BVC News - Spring 2018

Spring 2018 Issue 25

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The magazine of Bo sham Village College

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Projecǘ 80 Sporǘ Relief New buildinlj updatdž SportǗ & ArtǗ NewǗ PluǗ lotǗ mordž newǗ & informatioǔ

Achievement through inspiring, caring, enriching

Messagdž froǓ thdž Principaǒ I do hope that you have all enjoyed a res ul Easter break and are looking forward to a warm and sunny Summer term.

As you can see from the content of this newsle er, last term brought with it the usual array of ac vi es for our students to engage with: Sport Relief, Duke of Edinburgh Award, Performing Arts, a range of spor ng ac vi es and events in the college library. A highlight was sixteen of our students receiving Roy Burrell Awards, (front cover photo) including Sportsman of the Year for the third year running. From all year groups, it is wonderful to see so many of our students throw their heart and soul into all that BVC has to offer, enriching their experience at school.

Bo sham Village College Lode Road Bo sham Cambridgeshire CB25 9DL Tel: 01223 811250 enquiries@bo shamvc.org

In academic ma ers, I’d very much like to send my congratula ons to students in years 10 and 11, undertaking mock examina ons. As I have men oned to you before, the reformed GCSEs offer students huge challenge, both in terms of the breadth of content but also in the skills and sheer stamina that they have to demonstrate. Pleasingly, I can say that both year groups approached their mock exams with a posi ve, diligent mind-set and have reaped the rewards.

Looking forward, visitors to the college will no ce the extraordinary speed at which the building work is being completed: there is a palpable sense of expecta on and excitement around the college, seeing the new performance hall, dining room, dance studio and classrooms develop, seemingly before our very eyes.

We also celebrate the official opening of our 3G pitch and hope to see many of you on the 28th April for an a ernoon filled with fun for children of all ages.

Other no ceable events in the term ahead include Ac vi es Week, Leavers’ Celebra on Day, Leavers’ Ball, Dance Showcase and the Summer Concert. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for some great summer weather!

Best Wishes,

MrǗ Jennǜ Rankindž

DateǗ for your diarǜ Summer TerǓ 2018

Autumǔ TerǓ 2018

Monday 16th April - Start of the summer term Monday 7th May - May Day 28th May - 1st June - Half-term Friday 29th June - Leavers’ Ball 2nd - 15th July - Year 10 Work experience 9th - 15th July - Ac vi es Week 1.25pm Tuesday 24th July - End of summer term

Monday 3rd September - Training day Tuesday 4th September - Training Day Wednesday 5th September - Year 7 only Thursday 6th September - Start of term for all other year groups Thursday 4th October - Training Day 22nd - 26th October - Half term Friday 30th November - Training Day 1.25pm Wednesday 19th December - End of autumn term

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Bo sham students once again showed their charitable nature by raising over £1300 for Sports Relief. This exceeds the money raised in previous fundraising a empts. The Student Leadership Team organised many ac vi es including two well supported cake sales which raised £304.10. Other ac vi es were a year 11 girls v boys netball match and the usual favourite of teacher v teacher dodgeball.

Throughout the week students were challenged to complete as many steps as possible trying to get physically ac ve. Students got to wear non-uniform for the day and this raised £886, they also par cipated in daily form me quizzes which saw 11.7 awarded 1st place!!

A huge thank you to the student leadership team, all staff that helped organise the events, and parents and students who donated cakes.

Welcome to more ‘News from the building site’. In this article I would just like to let you know what has been happening on your local building site and what to expect in the coming weeks.

The new school building’s skeleton of CLT (cross laminated timber) is now finished, the roof is on and the windows are in. A team of brick layers have put a skin of brick work over a large part of the building, while another team of fitters have started work putting cladding on the rest of the building. Over the last month or so we have installed the structures that will support the final floor surfaces. These are a mixture of cementatious screeds on the ground floor & specialist acoustic floating floors on the first floor. The new acoustically rated internal walls are coming along well and our teams of plumbers and electricians have been beavering away installing the beginnings of the infrastructure that will make the building live and breathe.

Even though we don’t start the refurbishment of the existing school until the summer holidays, over the Easter break we made a start. Some new doors were put in, the Project Area was decorated, and new carpets and new lighting fitted to some classrooms. Students may notice the in-filled corridor in the science area. There has been some demolition carried out that is a little less obvious but was very noisy so we did it while the school was empty. As we move closer to Summer you will see the skin of the new building getting finished and the beginnings of the external landscaping.

At the end of March we had two open days which were very successful.

Some photos showing how the building looks inside now can be seen opposite.

We do our very best to ensure that we keep you all safe and any disturbances to a minimum, but if you have any questions or concerns, please contact a member of the school staff or the Morgan Sindall Team.

Please remember that construction sites are dangerous places, do not try and enter.

by Graeme Jenkins, Senior Site Manager, Morgan Sindall

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Careers News

Raspberry PIoneers!

Last term, myself, Tom and Zach teamed up to par cipate in a na onal Raspberry Pi compe on. The Raspberry Pi is a small computer, about the size of a credit card, that is designed to help you learn programming, and can be used in many electronics projects to create amazing things.

The aim of the ‘Pioneers’ compe on that we took part in was to create any sort of device/machine to protect you and your team from a (theore cal) a ack by zombies. We had about eight weeks a er entering the compe on to come up with a plan, create the computer code and build our device…it seemed like plenty of me!

We set to work, crea ng an electronic security device that would allow the door of our zombie proof bunker to open only when a human was outside. Luckily, Zach had a mo on sensor and bullet-launcher, so we created a code that would ask a ques on when the mo on sensor was ac vated. If the ques on was answered correctly, the door would open. If an incorrect or no answer was given, the box would pelt them with plas c darts, “killing” them. We just had to hope that zombies can’t do geometry…

So, we recorded a video explaining how our machine worked, and sent it off for judging. We didn’t expect to hear anything, as during our filming the code repeatedly malfunc oned, and we pre y much ended up with a series of bloopers. However, a few weeks later, we heard back that we had won in the category “Most Inspiring Journey” - one of the five possible winning categories! We were overjoyed, as we then received lots of lovely Rasberry Pi goodies in the post.

You can see our entry (The Three Musketeers) and learn more about the Rasberry Pi at h ps://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/ pioneers-winners-only-you-can-save-us/

by James Hawkins

Hello everyone!

Careers at BVC has been very busy this term and students have par cipated in a variety of ac vi es. These included mock interviews for all Year 11 students where real employers asked students real interview ques ons. The feedback was overwhelmingly posi ve from everyone and we hope to offer Year 10 students a similar experience a er the Easter break.

Year 10 par cipated in CV wri ng and employability skills workshops whilst Year 9 visited Anglia Ruskin University in January for ‘Eyes on the Prize’ and more recently enjoyed an Enterprise Day in school. The lower Years par cipated in a ‘What’s My Line?’ event asking searching ques ons to find out about an individual’s occupa on.

Having supported Year 11 students with their post-16 op ons, my a en on now turns to Year 10 career guidance interviews where I provide informa on, advice and guidance to help students to make decisions about their next steps. I have also interviewed many Year 9 students who are considering their GCSE op ons. Of course, I am available for all our students and anyone wan ng a career guidance interview, just needs to ask their Form Tutor or Head of Year to email me.

Finally, I would like to draw your a en on to our careers web page and in par cular to our ‘Current Opportuni es’ sec on. Here you will find appren ceship vacancies, events taking place at the University of Cambridge and other items, which may be of interest.

Many thanks for your me and best wishes, Laurie Simpson.

A feast of Maths!

On Tuesday 20th February eight bright mathema cal minds from year 10 headed off to compete in the South of England Maths Feast at Linton Village College.

Split into two teams of four, Team A - Pravin, Tom, Yasmin and George and Team B - Yasmin, Josh, Archie and Harriet, the students tackled a range of ques ons all under strict me limits to keep the compe tors on their toes.

The teachers that went along were not allowed to help their own students but were there marking results for other schools so it was only when the results were finally read out at the end that we became aware that both teams had done excep onally well, with Team A managing to win the event outright!

We will of course be back next year to defend our tle.

by Mr Escalante-Phillips

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Kickash Mentors Proud to be Smoke Free The Kick Ash mentors have been busy during the last few months. They have visited primary schools in our catchment area to deliver lessons to year 6 children about “being Proud to be smoke free”, some of the mentors a ended the Open Evening and two cake sales have been organised to draw a en on to “Stoptober” and “No Smoking Day”. They have raised a total of £98.50 which will go to the Bri sh Heart Founda on.

The Kick Ash mentors are now looking forward to the ‘BIG EVENT’ in late April where they take part in Krashball & Zorbing. Well done to Morgan, Alex, Joe, Ella, Olivia, Molly, Tony, Connie, Elise, Jess, Eve and Aaron.

by Mrs Denise Cook

Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural EducaƟon Students have been very busy this term in REP reflec ng and gaining understanding about various aspects of spriritual, moral, social and cultural issues. Below is a piece

by Kiera and Isobel about ‘The Holocaust’.

For the past few weeks, we have been learning about the tragic holocaust in REP. It is a horrific event which le many scarred. The whole idea was created by Germany’s leader, Adolf Hitler, who persuaded many countries to hand over the Jews. Hitler strongly believed that they were taking over Germany even though the Jews were about 0.7% of Germany’s popula on. Hitler sent them to concentra on camps to be gassed and to work as labourers. We need to learn about this because it has a very important moral which is to not judge someone by their religion. Hitler thought they were different for their culture and their beliefs and he managed to persuade the majority of the public to join his evil rampage to ex nct the Jews.

Real Tennis Masterclass Back in January Bo sham Village College was invited to take part in an event organised and hosted by Cambridge University Real Tennis Club. The event included a masterclass in the sport of Real Tennis and following the masterclass, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex joined the event and had lunch with students. It was a wonderful and unique opportunity for our students. One said “' I had a great me learning the sport Real Tennis and especially mee ng and talking with The Earl of Wessex.”

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DANCE EAST WORKSHOPS

BRASS FUNKEYS

Dance East is a non-profit organisa on who delivers advanced training to dancers from all over the Region. KS3 students were lucky to have 4 one hour, 40 minute sessions with Jack from Dance East to learn different warm ups and create a contemporary style dance to show as a performance. We learnt travelling exercises as well as stretches and mini sequences. These helped prepare us for the dance we were going to do. We did these warm ups at the start of each session making slight adjustments to challenge us more each week.

The main dance was a collabora on between Jack and the dancers; this gave us an opportunity to work in small groups to adapt his choreography and make it our own. We could add li s, jumps and anything we wanted as long as it fi ed with the theme.

In the performance we were able to show our parents some exercises we had been learning as well as our final piece.

It was a great sharing opportunity that everyone enjoyed.

A big thank you to Miss Pinny and Miss Ruth for organizing this amazing event and to Jack for coming in to show us a bit of what it’s like at Dance East and introducing us to the company.

This has been a great experience everyone has enjoyed taking part in.

by Honey, Year 8

The Brass Funkeys came to Bo sham to deliver a 2 hour workshop to our KS3 instrumentalists. These visi ng musicians introduced our students to New Orleans jazz and the workshop encouraged understanding and crea ve development as well as providing an opportunity to perform with professional musicians. The music covered in the session ranged from single line riffs to complex melodies and made use of looping, and backing tracks.

Here is what Emily from year 9 thought about the day The Brass Funky’s workshop was a great experience for all music abili es and everyone had a part to play. We did improvisa on which later we turned into a full song with everyone having a solo. We used only 3 notes but the end result was amazing. Everyone seemed to enjoy listening to pieces performed by the band including ‘fly away’. Overall, it was a wonderful, fun workshop inspiring people to do Jazz.

‘TEECHERS’ at MUMFORD THEATRE On Tuesday the 13th March GCSE drama students enjoyed a trip to the Mumford Theatre to see John Godber’s famous play ‘Teechers’. The play is set in a school that lacks order or engagement and both staff and students are played stereotypically for comedic affect. Students were amused by the naughty nature of the Whitewall High students and some even took the opportunity to improvise with them, as the performers came out in to the audience in role as part of their ‘drama lesson’. Immediately a er the show students had to make notes on anything that they remembered about the play in order to write a theatre review for their final exam in June.

Many students enjoyed discussing the play over dinner a er the show, to truly complete their theatre experience.

IGNITE PERFORMANCE GROUP Year 9s have been rehearsing every Monday since January in prepara on for the forthcoming performance of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.

The group have been using the original script and made it their own by adding modern references, song and dance.

This will be the 4th year of the Ignite performance group and we have seen the group grow in numbers and dedica on. Many students have gone on to take GCSE drama and taken inspira on from their year 9 performances to aid their GCSE work. Ignite performance group will be performing at the Netherhall Shakespeare Fes val on Monday 23rd April.

ROYAL ACADEMY DRAWING WORKSHOP On the 28th March 25 students enjoyed working with tutors from the Royal Academy Outreach Programme. They learnt a range of new ways to approach drawing and were challenged by drawing on a large scale. The main focus was portraiture and ways that personality can be expressed in a drawing. Students said they really enjoyed having a whole day to create a series of drawings and in being encouraged not to be too precious with their drawings. Students will include these drawings in their GCSE por olio submission and could use these drawing methods in future extended projects.

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SPRING CONCERT On 6th February musicians and dancers came together to showcase their talents. It was a wonderful occasion with many memorable performances. The dances and musical items were prepared and rehearsed both in and out of the classroom and the programme was varied, represen ng a range of genres and year groups. For many it was their first public performance and it was lovely to see new groups forming for the concert. Well done to everyone who took part.

Date for diary: Summer concert on Monday 25th June

‘Spring’ at the junction

‘Move it’

Back in February 10 GCSE dance students a ended a trip to see ‘Spring’ at The Junc on in Cambridge. The dance that we watched was a collabora on piece between Gandini Juggling and choreographer Alexander Whitley. The performance lasted one hour and was packed with fun and excitement. The idea behind the dance was inspired by the Spring season and how many different colours appear. It was performed by five virtuoso jugglers and four contemporary dancers to an original piece of music by Gabriel Prokofiev. Many different types of difficult juggling were incorporated which was very impressive as the dancers were dancing while juggling. I found it interes ng as it was a blend of dance, circus and music which created many different ideas and visual interpreta ons. Overall, everyone had a very enjoyable night and we were all inspired by the performance.

by Iysha, Year 10

On Friday 16th March, a group of year 9s and 10s went to ‘Move it’ at ExCel in London.

It was a day full of workshops, dance companies and incredible performances. We went together on a coach but split off into groups at the venue; this gave us the freedom to look into the aspect of dance we wanted to learn about and spend the day with our friends. The trip was a learning experience and gave us an insight into professional dance. There were colleges and schools running stands to look at and gain informa on from to give us a chance to think about out futures as performers and dancers. We were extremely lucky to have had this opportunity and it was a trip none of us will forget. Thank you to the school and it's wonderful staff for the opportunity.

The highlight of the trip for me was the chance to watch so many fantas c performances which will help with my choreography and understanding of dance and different styles. We even got to see Aston Merrigold from JLS perform live! I heavily suggest this trip for anyone who enjoys dance or is thinking about a career on performing, it's an amazing learning experience and a great day out.

by Nelle, Year 9

HIP-HOP WORKSHOP th

On the 7 February GCSE dance students took part in a hip-hop masterclass with professional dancer Manny Tsakanika We started off with an intense warm up and began to learn some moves. As the session progressed, Manny taught us some different styles of hip-hop including waaking, popping and freezing. We finished off the session with a piece that included many elements of the styles. We all really enjoyed the workshop and would love to have Manny back to do another class.

by Eve, Year 10

IEM MUSIC WORKSHOP Professional musicians came to visit in March to work with the year 10 music students on song-wri ng.

Connor Adams, who has toured with The Darkness, shared his experience in wri ng a successful pop song and shared some of his music in a performance in the main hall to year 9 students. The music students, as part of the workshop, were encouraged to produce a song in a morning and performed for feedback. It was a fun and informa ve morning and the year 10s did brilliantly.

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Exploring School Architecture AcƟviƟes in this strand will include: x In 2017 Bo sham Village College was 80 years old. Our school opened in 1937 and was the second of the village colleges founded by visionary educator Henry Morris. x In 2018 a new building will open on the school site. x A new future is about to begin for Bo sham Village College! So this seems to us an appropriate point at which to reflect on the past, this project will allow us to do just that!

x x x x

Working with RIBA East and architect Visi ng Linton VC and Impington VC t Mee ng the architects of the new bu Designing a space for BVC, including p

Researching the school’s past a Project 80 is a heritage project involving staff, Year 8 students, parents, members of the community and outside agencies, which will inves gate the history of Bo sham Village College and explore school architecture.

At the end of the project, and to mark the opening of the new building on the school site, we will have a celebra on which will include : x x x x

An exhibi on of the architectural models and drawings A screening of the film made documen ng the project findings and ac vi es A performance of the piece developed in response to the project A sharing of the project publica on

AcƟviƟes in this strand will include: x x x x x x

Learning about documentary filmmak Making a Project trailer Exploring the school archives Visi ng Cambridgeshire County Counc Oral History Training Conduc ng oral history interviews

DocumenƟng project acƟviƟes If you know any friends, family members or people in the local community who came to Bo sham and might be able to help us by coming into school and sharing their memories of the school, please let us know. They may even have the opportunity to appear in our final Project 80 film! We would also be interested in any old photographs of the school that people may have, any old report cards or par cular memories that they would like to share with us. Please email project80@bo shamvc.org or contact the college.

We are delighted to be working with the Henry Morris Memorial Trust and RIBA East as our project partners.The project is funded by the Heritage LoƩery Fund through the Young Roots programme.

AcƟviƟes in this strand will include: x x x x x

Interviewing other project par cipant Wri ng reports on project progress Taking photos of project ac vi es Producing ar cles and film clips for th Producing a final publica on about th

Developing a performance AcƟviƟes in this strand will incl

x x

Working with a professional prac on Developing a performance which resp

Bo sham Village College was delighted to welcome Phillip Venning from the Heritage Lo ery Fund to the school on 14 March for the launch of Project 80, the school’s new heritage project, which will aim to trace the history of the school through its buildings and through interviews with former staff and students. The project has been generously funded through the Heritage Lo ery Fund’s Young Roots programme.

Phillip Venning was joined by Peter Hains, former principal of the college and now Chair of the Henry Morris Memorial Trust, one the school’s project partners. Another partner, RIBA East, was represented by Delyth Turner-Harriss, Partnerships Manager, who is working with the Cambridge Associa on of Architects to recruit the architects who will work with students on the project.

s from the Cambridge Associa on of Architects o explore the development of school architecture ilding/touring the site of the new building producing scale drawings and making a 3D model

and documenƟng findings on film

king with a professional filmmaker

cil Archives and Cambridgeshire Collec on

and making a publicaƟon

ts, prac

oners and visitors to the project

he website and final exhibi on he project

ude:

ner ponds to the project findings in the other strands

Full credit must go to the Year 8 students who organised the event, gave an overview of the project in a superb presenta on and introduced the guest speakers. The event was well a ended by the Year 8 students who are keen to take part in the project, their parents and staff, and all were able to enjoy a delicious array of refreshments, including a wonderful cake, all made by the Year 8 organisers, supported

by Miss Minaeian.

Project sessions began on 21st March and we will look forward to keeping you updated on project progress on our website and next newsle er.

Poetry & Dance at Anglesey Abbey W are proud to let you know that Bo sham We Village College is par cipa ng in a widely V rrespected accredita on for Mental Health and Wellbeing.

W

On Wednesday 21st March, World Poetry Day was celebrated by a class of Year 9 pupils on a visit to Anglesey Abbey.

The students immersed themselves in the beau ful grounds and wrote their own nature inspired poems. One off which is opposite.

This term, for the first me at BVC, the year 9s on dance rota on were taken out of school to Anglesey Abbey. We created dances in groups based on taught phrases, photos and our performance spaces. We rehearsed them at school and then walked to Anglesey Abbey for our final assessment. Dancing there was very different and definitely more challenging than what we have done in school so far. However it was also very enjoyable dancing in completely new surroundings, it made us think about our dances in a different way; adap ng it to the area. Being out in the woods was a refreshing change to the normal environment of the Ros Su le and in general was a great way to end KS3 dance.

by Amelie, Year 9

D Developed in partnership with the Na onal Children’s Bureau (NCB), the Wellbeing Award C ffor Schools is intended to help schools prepare aand equip themselves to promote emo onal wellbeing and posi ve mental health across the w w whole-school community.

W share the vision of the NCB that good We eemo onal wellbeing and mental health should b be at the heart of the culture and ethos of B Bo sham Village College so that all our sstudents, with the support of the school, can build confidence and flourish. Evidence shows b u us that wellbeing is of central importance to le learning and a ainment, with high levels of wellbeing associated with improved academic w outcomes. o A central theme to the award is the involvement of the whole- school community. We recognise o tthe need to work closely with staff, parents and ccarers as well as the students themselves. At mes mental health can be seen as a difficult aand frightening issue. We hope to work together tto break down these preconcep ons, to promote posi ve emo onal wellbeing and p mental health throughout the school m ccommunity.

A Bo sham we are fortunate to have a wellAt eestablished pastoral support team consis ng of Heads & Assistant Heads of Learning, Form H ttutors, Pastoral Support workers, the SENCo and YYear group TA’s. Each year group is overseen by a member of the College Leadership team. Staff have undertaken addi onal training in mental h health, and most recently three of the team have completed the na onal Mental Health First Aid programme. We also have access to external mental health providers such as Kooth, Centre 33, YMCA, Blue Smile, Chums and CAMh. The Wellbeing Award for schools is an opportunity for us to demonstrate and develop the excellent provision that we already provide in this area and it provides ourselves with a benchmark of best prac ce against which we can measure ourselves.

We will shortly be asking teachers, parents and carers and students to complete a short survey around mental health provision at Bo sham Village College. The views from the survey will inform our ac on plan and will shape the way in which we move forwards with the award and Mental Health provision at Bo sham Village College.

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Silver Challenge in the Peaks As part of the Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award students are required to camp for two nights and walk for 3 days, being totally self-sufficient.

So on a bright and early Friday morning at the end of March, thirty six Bo sham students and five members of staff embarked on a gruelling weekend of ac on in the Peak District.

A er students were dropped off in Bakewell they started their passage to the camp sites where they were spending the first night. All students challenged themselves on day 1 walking over 10 miles which far exceeded the minimum required 7 hours of walking. A er pitching their tents and cooking their evening meals at dusk, the rain started to fall and the students’ work for day 1 was complete.

Day 2 saw students further elevate their challenge with large ascents and muddy terrain. A period of rainfall tested students’ willpower, however as fa gue set in spirits remained strong within the groups; students con nued to support each other. With the benefit of an earlier start students concluded their walk, set up their tents and cooked their evening meal enjoying a glorious sunset.

Despite the start of Bri sh Summer Time and having one hour less in their tents, students’ smiles could be seen across the valleys as they prepared to conquer their final route. Every step was a step closer to the comple on of the award. Staff were met with exhausted gree ngs as the students arrived at Eyam before the quietest bus journey home!

All students that took part were a credit to the school and displayed impeccable levels of dedica on to the cause. Congratula ons!

Bo sham Village College was the second school to be founded by Henry Morris, the outstanding educator whose vision for a new type of school led to the crea on of the village colleges across Cambridgeshire. A er Morris’s death in 1961, a group of his friends set up a trust in his memory and established a fund that would allow young people to experience independent travel and study.

The Trust was founded in 1964 and con nues to operate, with the current Chair being Peter Hains, a former principal (then known as Warden), of Bo sham Village College. Peter was recently able to come into school to deliver assemblies on Henry Morris and the work of the Trust and, as a result, of this 8 groups of Bo sham Village College students applied to the Trust for funding to realise their project ideas. The students whose project idea met the funding criteria, were invited to meet the Trustees and take part in a short interview to explain their plans. These included trips to Barcelona, Cornwall, Berlin, Venice, Hamburg, Rome, London and one group of boys wan ng to do the 3 Peak’s Challenge.

We look forward to telling you more about the trips in future newsle ers.

Launchpad to a career in Science

Year 10 students worked in groups to design a presenta on to explain how they would alter the genome of an organism to solve a real-world problem. This compe on was designed to raise awareness of Biology and Gene cs research as a career and the skills involved in this type of work.

The winning team from Bo sham Village College then took part in the next stage of the compe on. Below is a report from Joe. On Thursday 9th March, Eddie, Anna, Lucy, Ella, Alex and I took part in a Launchpad project at the Horizon Discovery Centre at the Cambridge research park. The day started with an introduc on into the scenario that the day was based around: Someone had been murdered and we were to find out who it was out of two possible suspects (who just so happened to be twins). We used a variety of procedures that they undertake at the centre daily which involved removing DNA from blood that was collected from the scene (pulped strawberries), and then cu ng it with enzymes and inspec ng the results to find out whose it was. It gave us a valuable insight into what the employees there do and what possible careers are available in that industry. Overall we all had a great day and we would like to thank Mr. Bailey for taking us.

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News from the Library It has been a busy term in the Library, with Book Club on Tuesday lunch mes, appren ceship mee ngs, mock exams, World Book Day, and a Book Fair at the end of term.

Thursday 1st March was World Book Day, which was celebrated with a quiz and compe ons in the library. I dressed up as my favourite character – Daisy from the Murder Most Unladylike books by Robin Stevens – which got a few odd looks and lots of smiles!

We had 44 fantas c entries for the wri ng compe on, but only five winners – well done to Ben, Lewis, Florence, Kaisha and Darcey – who each got a £5 Book Fair voucher and a box of chocolates. All of the amazing stories received are on display in the Library. I also talked to two Year 8 Prac cal Literacy classes about the importance of reading, and took a box full of books with me … nearly all of which were borrowed on the spot!

Our autumn Book Fair sold over £300 worth of books and sta onery, which means that the school will receive £78.72 to spend on new books for the library. This term’s Book Fair looks set to smash that total. Your con nued support for the Book Fair is very much appreciated, and it’s a great way for students to buy new books while suppor ng the school.

Having only been at the school since September, it has been a huge pleasure to see so many students reading, wri ng and drawing in the library at break and lunch mes. The Library is also a buzzing hive of industry a er school on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, when students can come and revise or do homework. It’s an exci ng me for the Library as we prepare to move to our new space in the coming months, and I look forward to seeing what the future has in store!

Book Club by Riana, Year 7 Ms. James our school librarian has started up a Book Club on Tuesday lunchtime based on books. However, it is not like what people thought it would be like. It is A LOT different to reading a book and then talking about it!

One of my favourite activities was when we were having fun doing MadLibs. MadLibs is when we fill in random words into stories to make people laugh.

We had a go at doing this ourselves and it was quite funny.

We also had fun designing World Book Day tokens and entering them into a competition.

As well as doing these enjoyable activities, it gives us a head start to the new competitions Ms James starts. An example of this would be the writing competition in the library. We had a chance to plan our story. The winner of this competition receives a £5 Book Fair voucher and a box of chocolates.

This club is ready to welcome anyone.

Come to Book Club on Tuesday lunchtimes in the library!

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Students from Year 7 and 8 entered a Young Writers compe on to have their stories published in a book called Welcome to Wonderland which is now in the library.

The students had to write a 100 word mini-saga based on this tle and 20 of our students had their sagas published in the book.

Other Year 7 and 8 students will be entering the wri ng compe on this term and the new compe on’s tle is ‘Stranger Sagas’.

Boƫsham Village College Adult Learning We have lots of new courses & Saturday Workshops starƟng in April

The Friends of BVC were delighted to have 21 tables in a packed Hall for the Quiz night on 16th March. It was a wonderful evening hosted once again by quizmaster Greg Alvey, ex-head of PE at BVC. We raised a massive £1004 and this will be matched by Lloyds Bank. The other success this term was the 2nd hand uniform sale in February which raised £420. Please bring any unused uniform to the college’s main recep on so we can recycle it. Parents are always delighted to be able to but a sweatshirt for £3.

Our next event will be the Summer Ball on 30th June.

See our Facebook or email Friends@bo shamvc.org for ckets which are now on sale for £60.

We would like to thank everyone who supports our events. The money recently raised has paid towards the minibus, bought £1000 worth of dic onaries and a programme to iden fy Dyslexia for Learning support.

All are welcome to join our happy Commi ee and the next mee ng is April 24th at The Shed in Lode at 8pm. Many of us have Year 11 Children so new members are very welcome.

Joanne Allwood Chair of Friends of Boƫsham VC

Visit our website www.boƫshamvc.org/adultlearning to browse all our courses and for informaƟon on how to enrol, or phone Sue on 01223 811372

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Bottisham Equestrian Team It was a bi erly cold day at the end of January but that didn’t deter the newly formed Bo sham Equestrian Team from turning up at The Jays stud in Bury St Edmunds for the NSEA Eventers Challenge.

The team were entered into three classes over the weekend. In the first class the jumps were between 7075cm, the second class had jumps at 80-85cm and the third class on the Sunday included jumps at 90-95cm.

Alice Trump got us off to a fantas c start in the first class with a clear round on her horse Paddy. However, with so many riders taking clear rounds it came down to me and despite jumping clear, she wasn’t placed.

By the me the second class started, it had begun to rain.

With the weather against them Alice bumped a pole down on the first and brought three down altogether. Charlie Evans, jumping fi h, riding his horse Pluto had two poles down and this meant unfortunately, that neither riders were placed.

With the sun out on Sunday we were back to The Jays with Orla McElhorne on Sabrina’s Skylark, Mia Biggs on Stradone Prince and Holly Woolley on Tallyho Stormbreaker for the 90-95cm class. Bigger jumps, bigger horses, faster riders.

This was going to be a tough compe on! However, the girls were relaxed, confident and having fun. The course was tough and there were refusals, elimina ons and poles going down as well as the occasional jump! We were jumping near the end and we knew we stood a chance if we jumped clear. If we didn’t then it would come down to me. The girls performed magnificently. They took a couple of poles down between them but they were fast, Orla in par cular rode a lovely line, with excellent posi oning and turning. As we watched the end of the compe on it became clear that we had done well and this was confirmed when the results were read.

I am very proud to say that Bo sham came second out of 11 teams and Orla claimed 5th place in the individual results. This meant she was the fi h fastest rider out of 56!

A fantas c achievement.

Since January the team took 6th place at the Na onal School’s Intermediate Team Show Jumping qualifier.

Look out for forthcoming fundraising events and if you are interested in sponsoring the team please get in touch with Miss Green at kgreen@bo shamvc.org

BVC Golf Team Teddy Hall, George Whitehall and Harry O’Shea set out to defend their Cambridgeshire Schools tle in March at a cold and windy St Ives Golf Club.

Over 45 schools had the opportunity to compete for the chance to represent Cambridgeshire in the na onal finals at Woodhall Spa in Lincolnshire.

Teddy, George and Harry at only age 13 and 14 were compe ng against teams from sixth form colleges, many of whom drove themselves to and from the venue! The boys played superbly all day. Overall, we finished fourth only losing out to sixth form teams from Long Sands, Perse and Hills Road.

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Harry shot the best back nine of the en re tournament, including a birdie in front of a packed clubhouse on hole 18. Teddy achieved nearest the pin and even more impressively finished second in the scratch under 16 compe on. Well done boys!

Cross Country Bo sham Village College students con nued their impressive cross country record at the County and Anglian Schools compe ons. Henry Jolland, Hugh Dow, David Dow, Will Newcombe, Beth Irving, Felix Allen and Hamish Jennings competed in the County Schools crosscountry championships at the Kings School, Ely in January. Henry came home with the performance of the day con nuing his impressive form coming 4th in the year 7 boys race.

Henry, Hugh, David, Will and Beth all qualified from this event and travelled to Ipswich’s rather impressive Royal Hospital School for the Anglian event with students from Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire running.

Unfortunately year 7 students cannot qualify for the na onal English Schools so Henry wasn’t able to qualify for Leeds.

Full list of Cross Country Achievements of 2018 to date: County Schools-Kings School, Ely-January Henry Jolland - 4th - Minor Boys (Y7) Beth Irving - 4th - Junior Girls (Y10/11) Hugh Dow - 9th - Junior Boys (Y10/11) Will Newcombe - 11th- Junior Boys (Y10/11) Felix Allen - 24th - Inter Boys (Y8/9) Hamish Jennings - Minor Boys (Y7) Anglian Schools-Royal Hospital School, Ipswich-February David Dow - 1st in Junior Boys (Y10/11)-1st Cambridgeshire Hugh Dow - 31st in Junior Boys (Y10/11)- 8th Cambridgeshire Beth Irving - 18th in Junior Girls (Y10/11)-4th Cambridgeshire Henry Jolland - 21st in Minor Boys (Y7)-4th Cambridgeshire NaƟonal Cross Country Championships- Parliament Hill, LondonFebruary David Dow - U17 Men - 11th Hugh Dow - U15 Boys- 157th Will Newcombe-U15 Boys- 126th Beth Irving-U17 Girls- 117th English Schools Cross Country Championships – Leeds – March David Dow – Inter Boys - 5th Beth Irving – 214th

Cheerleading

Netball

Cheerleading club has been really popular with our year 7 and 8 girls who are working hard on their rou ne. The girls have shown great commitment, leadership and perseverance to the club every week and their performance is looking really impressive!

Look out for pictures and videos on the schools twi er page for their progress. The majority of the girls at the club had never tried cheerleading before and it is great to see such a high standard being achieved by all.

Gymnastics Year 7 and 8 girls competed at the Cambridgeshire schools Gymnas cs compe on in January. All compe tors completed a vault and a floor rou ne and competed extremely well in a tough compe on. Out of a possible 9 medals Bo sham took home 5! 1 gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze medals!

Medal winners were Olivia, Kristen, Grace, Amber & Scarle

The Year 10 netball A team came 7th overall in their district tournament whilst the B team came 2nd!! Despite tough compe on both teams worked extremely hard and demonstrated resilience throughout all matches .

Basketball We have had many pupils a ending basketball club throughout the winter months which meant Bo sham entered both boys and girl’s teams represen ng every age group in the district tournaments. Well done to all our basketballers this year who have showed great commitment and determina on at club and in matches.

The U16 girls’ basketball team finished 4th in the district finals with Chiara D’Avino as their top scorer throughout the tournament.

15

Girl’s Football Bo sham Village College’s U15 football team played Crompton House school in the semi-final of the Na onal cup. The school had a long trip down to us from Manchester. The game started off with Crompton house scoring an early goal, to which Bo sham retaliated with a quick equaliser.

Both teams ba led in the first 10 minutes with the score going to 3-2 to Bo sham. The girls worked hard in the first half despite the weather condi ons and finished a snowy half 6-3 up. A er warming up at half me the girls were focused and ready to con nue to fight for their place in the final. The snow started to clear and Crompton house came back in the second half scoring a further 4 goals. This did not dampen the spirits of the Bo sham girls who con nued to fight and came out winning 9-7. Amy Mclean scored a grand total of 8 goals and Annabel Cuthbert scored 1. The team worked hard to set these goals up and without the con nued grit and determina on of every member of the team we would not have been able to keep working and come out on top. Well done to all the girls who played on the day and have played to get us into this posi on.

Bring on the final!!

Boy’s Football Bo sham Village College had the pleasure of hos ng the Year 8 boys football tournament. Teams from the district including Swavesey, Impington, Parkside, Melbourn, St Bedes and Comberton were all involved in the tournament.

Bo sham A team came 1st. The team showed resolute defending skills only conceding one goal in the whole tournament and in the final an expertly taken penalty was the difference between the two sides. The Bo sham B team competed and ba led really hard being the only B team playing in the A team tournament. They finished 8th overall. Well done also to all year 9 sports leaders who helped with the running of the tournament-they were fantas c all a ernoon.

We pride ourselves in the PE faculty, and across the Cambridgeshire district as a whole, of being inclusive when providing spor ng opportuni es. Therefore, we were thrilled that the Bo sham B team won the Year 7 district North tournament, bea ng 5 other schools to claim the tle. The A team played magnificently in their compe on too, finishing 4th out of 8.

Roy Burrell Awards Back in March, sixteen of our Year 11 students a ended the Roy Burrell Awards. These awards celebrate outstanding achievement in both performance and leadership through sport. 220 students from over 20 schools were in a endance, and once again, Bo sham students came away with some of the top awards.

Lauren Wa , who is the 3rd fastest breaststroke female in England at U16 level, came 3rd place in the sportswoman of the year award.

Ben Knight, who is an Ipswich Town and England U16 footballer, came 1st place in the sportsman of the year.

This is the third year in a row that a Bo sham student has won this tle, following Adam Cross last year and Jonny Lankfer two years ago.

Ben Knight – football Michael Brand – football Charlie Nicholas – football Adam Dawbarn – rugby Harvey Porter – rugby Ben Lawson – rugby Evan Thomas-Mansfield – swimming Lauren Wa – swimming Holly Sampher – swimming Holly Rolfe – triathlon David Dow – athle cs and cross country Beth Irving – athle cs and cross country Jess Struthers – netball Ben Shackleton – athle cs Lowri Davies – dance Sophie Kelly – nominated for the Greg Alvey award for outstanding commitment to sport

For all informaƟon on fixtures and clubs over the coming year, follow @BVCPhysicalEd on twiƩer!