Bottisham Village College Magazine - Winter 2010

BVCnews Autumn Term 2010

The magazine of Bo�sham Village College

Everyone was seeing spots – or was covered in them – at BVC. But it was all in a good cause as staff and students did their bit for Children in Need.

Individuals and groups could pose for a photo with the day’s special guest Pudsey Bear to raise muchneeded funds for children in the UK.

Pudsey hits the spot Children in Need special – See Page 5

Issue 3

Our new partners in education Trust partners are now bringing their expertise into Bottisham Village College to enrich the learning and widen the experiences of all its students.

The College changed its status in September from a community school to a Foundation Trust school with the key purpose of supporting the education of students and promoting community cohesion.

The College has teamed up with seven Partners – Cambridge Building Society, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Faculty of Education University of Cambridge, The Marshall Group of Companies, The National Stud, Red 2 Green and the John Lewis Partnership – to form the Bottisham Educational Trust.

Since then, there has been a series of meetings to decide how best the Partners can actively participate in the life of the College. Staff have been asked their views and have come up with a range of ideas under such headings as enterprise, aspirations and future careers, health and well-being, managing money and ethics.

There are plans for Partners to take part in assemblies and PSHE Days as well as providing speakers, role play scenarios and work experience across a range of curriculum areas. continues on Page 2

Wishing all students, parents and staff a very happy Christmas

BURWELL

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BOTTISHAM VILLAGE COLLEGE www.bottishamvc.org

Lode Road Bottisham Cambridgeshire CB25 9DL Tel: 01223 811250 Fax: 01223 813123 enquiries@bottishamvc.org

Term dates 2010/11

Spring Term 2011 January 4 – Staff training day January 5 – Term begins February 21-25 – Spring half term April 8 – Term ends for Easter holiday Summer Term 2011 April 26– Staff training day April 27 – Term begins April 29 – Royal Wedding Bank Holiday May 2 – May Day Bank Holiday May 30-June 3 – Whitsun half term July 22 – Term ends for Summer holidays

We would welcome your feedback on our newsletter, as well as any other suggestions about ways in which we can further improve our work with you; we would welcome your comments via email at feedback@bottishamvc.org or by writing to Mrs Evans directly.

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Welcome to the Christmas edition of our newsletter. We hope that it will provide you with an interesting and informative update on the wealth of activities and opportunities that BVC students have been involved in this term. As ever, it has been extremely busy in all areas of the school. We started the term with news of the record-breaking examination results achieved by Year 11 students; it was wonderful to be able to celebrate those achievements with them and their parents at our Certificate Evening in November.

September marked our move to being a trust school, with the establishment of the Bottisham Education Trust. As you will read in this newsletter, the Trust is already having a very significant impact on the range of opportunities available to all students. We are delighted with the response that we have received from our Partners and for their on-going commitment to active involvement in the life of the College.

We’re always keen to develop our students’ understanding of the world outside

A message from the principal Bottisham. The response that they showed in organising fund-raising activities on Children in Need day highlighted this, as well as illustrating their compassion to young people less fortunate than themselves.

As the autumn term draws to a close, I would like to wish you and your families a very Happy Christmas and best wishes for the New Year. We look forward to welcoming back all students on Wednesday, January 5 2011.

Mrs Evans

Key role for partners continued from Page 1 Earlier this month disability charity Red2Green, which has a base at BVC, was involved in Year 7’s PSHE Day on diversity and difference and next term other Partners will be following suit.

“Many Trust partners will be involved in a careers carousel on Year 10’s World of Work PSHE day on February 1 and will also be involved in mock job application and interview tasks on that day,” confirmed Assistant Principal Miss Ceranic.

Examples of concrete curriculum projects included Marshalls providing a business mentor for a social enterprise group, Newmarket Stud running sessions on animal ethics for GCSE RS and genetic breeding for science and the Faculty of Education developing tours for Gifted and Talented students, she said.

Tabbi Smith, Training Director at The National Stud: “We are delighted to be involved in the Bottisham Trust. It is an ideal opportunity to support local education and to help young people understand more about the industry.”

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Our Partners Red2Green – Cambridgeshire charity providing learning, leisure and work opportunities for people with a wide range of disabilities The National Stud – showcase for British thoroughbred breeding and offering education and training for young people entering the industry.

The John Lewis Partnership – leading UK retail business with stores throughout the UK. Profits are shared by the company’s 70,000 partners.

Cambridge Building Society – established in 1850, its head office remains in the centre of Cambridge supporting a strong branch network in the local area.

The Marshall Group of Companies – Cambridgebased company founded in 1909 with nearly 4,000 employees. It operates worldwide in the fields of aerospace, military land systems and fleet management.

The University of Cambridge Faculty of Education – oldest and one of the most prestigious Education departments in the UK. Undergraduate and postgraduate courses have all received the highest national ratings.

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Foundation NHS Trust – a designated Cambridge University Teaching Trust providing mental health services to 755,000 residents.

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Student Leadership

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Olympic role for our ambassador Young people from the region met top sports stars at a special conference in London aimed at spreading the values of the Olympic movement.

Among them was BVC student Rebecca Knowles, a Gold Young Sports Ambassador for the Cambridge Schools Sports Partnership.

Here is her account of that day: On Tuesday September 21 we set off early to London by train, and to The Oval on the underground for a conference. Hundreds of Young Sports Ambassadors from across England have been chosen to promote sport, physical education and healthy living; to build on the excitement of the London 2012 Olympic Games. Both Gold and Platinum Ambassadors attended. For me, as a Gold Ambassador, this was my first time I had ever attended a conference, whereas Platinum Ambassadors have generally been in the position for over a year.

When we arrived we went into one of the conference rooms to collect our kit and delegate bags.

After changing into our new Adidas kit we moved into another room, where the opening ceremony was being held. We had a presentation about the London 2012 Olympics, and Christine Ohuruogu gave us an insight into her experience of the Olympics. We were then introduced to the Olympians

Movie will promote anti-bullying message

‘

Rebecca Knowles meets British Olympic athlete Christine Ohuruogu at a conference held at The Oval cricket ground in London and Paralympians that we were going to be working with throughout the day and met the people in our group.

Each group was named after a city that had held the Olympics; I was in the Atlanta Group.

The aims of the conference were to: To raise participation in sport.

To promote the Olympic and Paralympic values.

Promote the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

To learn more about our role as a Young Sports Ambassador.

Throughout the day there were two themes. Obviously that of the Olympics, but also the idea that these games are ours. They are to be held in London and we can make them whatever we want them to be.

’

A movie was one of the results of an anti-bullying workshop involving students in Years 7, 8 and 9.

The five-minute film featuring COP (the Council of Protectors) was made as a starting point for discussions on bullying at BVC and to help primary school pupils in their transition to secondary education. It is to be featured on the county youth website, Youthoria.

Some 20 youngsters took part in the day which included a talk on cyber bullying by the College’s head of ICT, Miss Hanley.

Students then split into three groups – one working on the film and the others looking at how to get the anti-bullying message to a wider community and thinking about follow-up work to the day. Ideas included a puppet show at what will be the new Children’s Centre.

The day was organised by youth workers from the Locality Team in preparation for National AntiBullying Week (November 15-19).

“All the young people worked hard and really seemed to enjoy the workshop and get a lot out of it,” said the Locality Team’s Sarah Claydon.

“We are hoping that a majority of the Year 9s who took part will go on to be peer mentors.”

She said all participating students would get accreditation through the Cambridgeshire Youth Award.

The theme of this year’s antibullying week was Taking Action Together.

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Girls impress to win £2,500 grant

Maddy fires up imagination for top prize Winners of a competition to design a front sleeve for the Year 7 Camp DVD have been presented with their prizes.

First-placed Maddy Wood, pictured, whose collage campfire caught the judges’ eyes, plus runners-up Milly Parry and Chloe Swann, all received iTunes vouchers.

“We had a fantastic response to the competition and entries were of a very high standard. I’d like to thank all students who took part,” said Mr Baker, the College’s SENCO (Special Education Needs Co-ordinator) and main organiser of Year 7 camp.

The competition was sponsored by Photo Vision, of Swaffham Prior, a company run by ex-BVC student Philip Mead.

All students have an opportunity to buy a DVD of photographs after Year 7 camp, giving them a permanent record of their experiences.

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Bottisham’s new youth centre will be smart and well-equipped thanks to the persuasive powers of Year 10 students Mackie Goddard and Pippa Wade.

In true nerve-wracking Dragon’s Den style, they had to put their ideas to a panel of experts from Young Lives (an organisation supporting voluntary and community organisations working with children, young people and families within Peterborough and Cambridgeshire) and were awarded £2,500.

And their presentation scored a maximum 25 points.

“We had to explain what we needed and who would benefit,” said Mackie.

“We said the centre would be worthless without anything in it and would not be welcoming for people of our age.”

To support their bid, the girls took in photos of what the centre looked like under construction.

“We were shown round the building and had to wear hard hats. The photos showed the cracks, dust and dirt,” said Mackie, adding that the money would be used to buy sofas, a Wii Fit and plasma TV. “The purpose of the bid was to raise money to purchase items for the Bottisham Youth Centre so that it can be used for lunch time drop in and potentially as a youth club in the evenings,” said Locality Team manager, Lisa Riddle.

“They had scripted a presentation and handled questions from the panel in a professional manner. ”I am so grateful to them for their hard work and for being so passionate about the project – this money will enable the facility to get off to a great start in the early part of next year.”

The girls will be asked to cut a ribbon at a special ceremony when the centre is officially opened.

Campaign earns silver Anti-smoking campaign Kick Ash, piloted at BVC, picked up a silver award in a national competition recognising excellence in public relations and communications.

Last month it was awarded the silver prize in the public sector category for East Anglia in the CIPR (Chartered Institute for Public Relations) PRide Awards.

“This is fantastic news especially considering we entered this award after only six months of work at Bottisham Village College,” said Ellen Nicholson of NHS Cambridgeshire.

Three Kick Ash representatives visited the House of Commons calling for an end to online cigarette promotion aimed at young people.

As part of the day, involving hundreds of teenagers from throughout the country,

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Carlie Foster, Jess Foster and Katie France met with local MP Jim Paice urging him to back the campaign.

The event highlighted how tobacco companies use social networking sites to promote cigarettes.

“Social networking sites are used by millions of young people across the world because they’re a great way to keep in contact with friends. What’s worrying though is how tobacco companies are using them to encourage young people to start smoking,” said Katie.

“We want Facebook, Bebo, Youtube and other social networking sites to pull the plug on cigarette promotion,” she said.

Jessica and Carlie spoke of Kick Ash’s success on Heart Radio when a prerecorded interview was heard during the hourly evening news bulletins.

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It was fun, it was furry, it was fund-raising with a flourish when BVC students, with some help from Pudsey Bear, supported the annual Children in Need appeal.

Everyone went dotty and had spots before their eyes as staff and students embraced the charity’s 2011 theme.

The day had something for everybody thanks to the hard work and imagination of organisers Alice Hubbard, senior student charity co-ordinator, and Lydia Tabbron, head girl.

They aimed to pack in as much as they could during the day to reach their fund-raising target of £1,000.

Staff and students were encouraged to leave their usual work clothes and uniforms at home and pay for the privilege of wearing what they wanted. And the spottier the outfit the better!

In form time, classes were invited to play a fund-raising game for

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Children In Need.

Throughout the day everyone was given the opportunity to have a picture with Pudsey, who was walking round College saying hello to his many fans.

Many took up the offer to have a keepsake of the day and help the appeal.

And in an extra competition, students paid 20p to guess who had donned the Pudsey costume.

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At break time everyone was spoilt for choice by the array of cakes and biscuits for sale to boost the day’s profits.

Highlight of the day was a lunchtime Pudsey Rocks Out Concert with a varied programme of bands, solo singers and dancers. It ended with performers and the lively and enthusiastic audience singing the Children in Need theme song, Love You More by boy band JLS. No wonder Alice was smiling.

“The day went really well,” she said.

“Everyone said how much they enjoyed it and there was such a good atmosphere in school.

“It was a lot of hard work – we started planning before half term – but it was worth it.”

Alice admitted that her biggest worry was that the Pudsey outfit – ordered from eBay – wouldn’t arrive in time.

School uniform was replaced with denim as staff and students took part in a Jeans for Genes Day. The event raised £1,034.55 for the UK-based charity which provides care and support of children with genetic disorders and funds research into genetics and the development of effective treatments and cures.

In the saddle Teaching assistant Mrs Gray was among thousands of cyclists who took part in a London to Cambridge bike ride to raise money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

“I really enjoyed the 60 mile cycle along with 4,500 others!

It was a really good day and it raised a lot of money,” she said.

Having a ball The first fund-raising event for next year’s Leavers’ Ball raised £291.25. The cake stall was organised by a committee of Year 11 students and Mrs Cook.

“It was a magnificent sum.

Well done to everybody involved,” she said.

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Team put to the test at challenge This year, six students from Bottisham Village College participated in the Swavesey Science Challenge. They had a great day and worked really well together as a team and achieved fantastic results!

They were third in the chemistry round and came a respectable 11th overall.

I would like to say a huge

thank you to all of them for participating and I hope they enjoyed it.

It is a great experience but I suggest that you really know your science if you want to do this. It’s not easy but a huge amount of fun. You really get a feel for science.

Members of the team were: Eleanor Lodge, Oliver Galletly, Samuel Weinberger, Maddy Stewart, Grace Zied and Sam Christie.

Eleanor Lodge (Year 10)

A matter of physics Cavendish Laboratory Trip On Tuesday September 21, a small group of Year 9 students went to Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge. This event was to promote physics. We visited five exhibits out of a total 24.

First was Nano science, where we found out that, in the future, we could be wearing phones that wrap around your wrist and having chips inside our heads that call someone else through this chip, all just by thought. Then

we moved on to Biological and Soft Systems, which was all about how, if you do a sort of ‘DNA origami’ and alter different elements of the DNA, we can change different elements of materials. Third was the Fracture Shock and Physics Group. This group showed us how they tested the strength of different materials and how they break after impact. They also tested explosives. Using high speed photography, they could see water hanging in the air just after a water balloon had been popped. After this, we went to

the Rolls-Royce exhibit, where they told us about gas turbines that are used in planes and how they work. Then it was Quantum Matter Group, where they made a magnet hover using superconductivity. Last was the British Antarctic Survey, where we met one of the people who discovered holes in the ozone layer above Antarctica and learnt about how they monitored this hole. The whole trip was lots of fun and we all learnt a lot from it.

Catriona Marriott and Charlotte Elston

Get experimental at Science Club Science Club is aimed at Year 8 and Year 9 students. You get a chance to explore new things and take part in experiments that are not covered in lessons.

Science Club is held every week A Tuesday in S5, so come along if you want to make a mess or blow things up!

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Applied Learning specialism

A busy start for Diploma The new two-year Diploma in Hospitality was launched at the start of term with a carousel of activities for 30 students from BVC plus their peers from Sawston, Ely and Witchford.

Year 10s tried their hand at table setting, flower arranging, research into food air miles and making and serving their own lunch in 30 minutes.

Since then, they have been exploring the UK Hospitality industry and are working towards their external exam in January 2011.

Cambridge has a wealth of hospitality establishments and on September 23 students completed a Hospitality Trail.

They concentrated on the area around Parker’s Piece and Regent Street, gathering information on the various outlets offering hospitality

The launch of the Diploma in Hospitality saw students take part in variety of activities services. They looked at everything from small independent cafés to four star hotels and were genuinely surprised at the number in such a restricted area.

Students were thrown in at the deep end and asked to run a breakfast service. They were split into two teams and each had to prepare breakfast and serve it to the other team. The students soon realised the amount of work and skills they

required to complete the task.

We will be concentrating on customer service, food preparation and service using our new coffee shop as a realistic working environment.

One of the sectors in the hospitality industry is contract catering and we were able to arrange for the students to visit the school canteen to interview the catering manager and see the kitchens in operation.

Fraser is pipped in cook off Hospitality student Fraser Higginson, pictured, came within two marks of winning a local heat of the annual FutureChef competition.

Fraser had to settle for second place but Mrs Taylor, BVC’s head of food and catering, said he was very unlucky.

“He showed lots of skills, used local seasonal produce, cooked really well – he couldn’t have done any better. He should be very proud of his achievement,”

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she said.

Fraser cooked against more than 50 BVC students to secure a place in the local heat.

Judging was by Damien Plumb from the Hotel du Vin, Cambridge, who went on to mentor Fraser to ensure he perfected his competition dishes – smoked pigeon and orange panna cotta.

The competition was held at Peterborough Regional College.

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The students were shocked at the quantities of food consumed each day!

Next term, we have visits with tours and presentations planned to Crowne Plaza Hotel, Hotel du Vin, Fitzwilliam Coffee Shop and to Ipswich Town Football Club to see the diversity of hospitality on offer not only on a match day but throughout the year.

Mrs Matthewson, vocational education co-ordinator

Students get a taster . . .

KS4 Travel and Tourism students visited Cadbury World in Bournville as a key part of their BTEC course.

It was an opportunity to find out how the tourist attraction, which has thousands of visitors a year, provides and monitors its customer service – an important aspect of their ongoing assessment work.

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School t 5,000 m

For the past two years Bottisham Village College has been linked with a school bas more than 5,000 miles away on the south coast of Sri Lanka.

But it’s a “twinning” with a difference – Ranna MV, in the country’s Tangalle Education Zone, is a long way away, mak conventional exchanges and visits difficu Instead, the two schools are forging link through curriculum exchange.

Bottisham VC is one of more than 100 schools throughout the UK to have join ASL (Adopt Sri Lanka) Twins, a program originally set up in January 2005 in the wake of the Boxing Day tsunami.

At first, schools in Sri Lanka were linke with schools abroad to help their reco from the disaster, but over time this developed into students exchanging p pal letters and sharing project work.

Today, ASL Twins links schools in Sri Lanka with schools abroad to promot global and cultural awareness and to increase confidence in English. Stude in both schools benefit from a wider understanding of their different way life.

Staff and pupils in Sri Lanka decide relevant projects to bring benefits t their schools and their “twins” in th UK decide on projects or fundraisin events to answer those needs.

Bottisham VC has been involved in various curriculum projects, with more being planned, where schoo swap material, work and ideas.

Last year, Bottisham and Ranna MV work together on a geography project, exchang work. Sri Lankan students got to learn mo Bottisham Village about Britain’s climate, the seasons and College has sent a Hurricane Katrina, courtesy of 7.5. digital camera to The work was presented to Ranna MV Ranna MV, above, students by ASL Twins’ field officer Sanath books for the Wakunugoda. library, far left and “Mrs Indu Waniganayaka, the Twins coa project about ordinator, was very happy to receive it an climate, left showed it to the Grade 10 students,” said Sanath. were very4:23 happy,pm too. Page It will be 3/12/10 17:53 1 Cambridge Pine Page (Bottisham-S)-V1 Stonetime 17/3/10 (Bottisham 7:04 am - S)-V6 Page“They 123/3/10 1 ver

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Ranna MV is in the south of Sri Lanka – students have been painting murals in the English Activity Room interesting for the Sri Lankan students to receive it learn more about your country through this “The principal, teachers and students were project.” very happy, because now they can send you This term, Bottisham and Ranna MV have photos of their special events and use it exchanged recipes and the Sri Lankan when preparing projects to share with you.” students have done some work on festivals.

Although staff have not yet been given an Future projects include music, art and opportunity to visit their “twin”, former “culture in a box”, which involves students Bottisham VC student Minali Perera called in from both countries putting 10 items in a box when visiting relatives in Sri Lanka last year.

She was given a tour of the school, was able that they feel best represent their respective to check on the progress of the EAR and countries. watch students painting murals on its walls.

BVC has organised a number of fundraising She also answered many questions about activities, helping Ranna MV set up an English Activity Room (EAR) and buying Bottisham and her life in England. books for it. The most recent donation was a Assistant principal Mrs Melling explained digital camera, delivered to the school by how the twinning had come about.

Sanath.

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Council Twins project. We were offered two schools and selected Ranna MV as it had students the same age as ours.

“I think having this exchange supports our international status, it provides a different dimension to other partnerships that we have as they are all European links.

“Our students benefit from learning about the culture of a different country; the partnership provides opportunities for curriculum links that are agreed by both schools.

“Our students are not superior simply because we have the capacity to fund-raise,” she said.

A non-uniform day for Ranna MV was due to be held in the last week of term.

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Celebrating a record

Food technology staged demonstrations

Visitors could try a school meal in the dining hall

Doors thrown open to showcase College Crowds of prospective students and their parents attended Bottisham VC’s annual open evening.

Departments put on an impressive range of displays and activities to showcase what the College has on offer.

There was an opportunity to do science experiments, take part in a poetry challenge, complete quizzes, puzzles, maths games, visit Antarctica and meet a penguin and even try a school meal.

All areas of the College were

open including the sports centre and library.

Current students were on hand to help in classes, take part in demonstrations including drama improvisation, ICT, sport, music and technology. The college’s jazz band gave performances in Hall 2 throughout the evening.

“The open evening was, once again, very successful. The feedback from parents was extremely positive,” said principal, Mrs Evans.

Sewing skills were on display

A visit to Antarctica was on offer

Planning ahead . . .

Year 11 students have been looking into the future with a series of events encouraging them to explore opportunities post 16.

Careers was the theme of October’s PSHE Day, which included a trip out to Skills Cambridgeshire – a careers fair held annually at Wood Green Animal Shelter, Godmanchester.

There were plenty of hands-on activities, leaflets and information in five zones: People; Enterprise, Advice and

Guidance; Well Being; Creative and Make It. Students enjoyed the visit. One commented: “I would have liked longer so we could have talked to more people,” and another added: “It was a great help and I received many leaflets for the different options I looked into.”

The day also saw students logging on to careers websites, such as Kudos, to help them plan for the future.

BVC held a Post 16 evening where parents were given

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They and students were able to speak to representatives from sixth-form centres and colleges plus businesses and the Connexions service.

Mrs Jakes, one of the College’s post-16 advisory team, praised students. She said visitors were impressed by their behaviour on the evening and the standard of questions asked.

Last year’s Year 11s returned to College to celebrate their summer exam success.

The certificate evening was an opportunity to formally thank the students for all their hard work, reminisce about their five years at BVC and look ahead to their future lives.

The year group notched up record-breaking GCSE results with 99.5% of all students achieving five or more A*-G grades, 88% gaining five or more A*-C grades and 71% getting five or more A*-C grades, including English and Maths. In addition, 36% of all grades achieved were A* and A grades.

“These are outstanding results and represent excellent levels of achievement by students of all abilities,” said BVC principal Mrs Evans.

Curiouser and curiouser . . .

Alice in Wonderland wll be the theme for next summer’s Leaver’s Ball.

Every Year 11 had a vote and could choose from a long list of nominated themes ranging from Sesame Street to an Australia Christmas.

However, Alice picked up most support closely followed by Mafia and Casino.

Top drawer

At last term’s annual prizegiving event Alice Hubbard received the Graphics Achievement Award for 10.

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11

On the road for great art

Year 11 students who are taking a GCSE in art and design, had the chance to visit what is claimed to be the “World’s greatest museum of art and design”.

The 43 lucky students were escorted to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London by four teachers.

The museum is split into various collections ranging from Theatre and Performance to Architecture.

Unfortunately students were unable to visit the majority of the Asian Collection as it is currently in the process of reconstruction. It was due to be up and running on December 1.

The budding artists were told to find work that was relevant to their coursework, which didn’t seem difficult due to the vast collections of work exhibited. After finding a piece of art they liked, they would sketch the piece and perhaps take the chance to note down information and what inspired the artist.

“The quality of drawings that were produced from the students was outstanding and they took the opportunity to turn it into a very productive day,” said Mrs Wilkins, head of BVC’s arts department.

After asking students who went on the trip what they gained from the trip, one replied: “Many works of art within the V and A inspired and helped me out a lot with my coursework, giving me lots of potential ideas to work from.”

Another said: “Visiting the V and A was something that was well worth doing and has definitely given me an insight to art from different periods and cultures.”

Overall it seems the students enjoyed a day outside the classroom and gained a new set of ideas from the experience.

Faith Tapper 11.4

Marshalls (Bottisham - M)

Going to Curwen Print with the majority of my classmates was a great experience. The printing techniques we used were very expressive and were used by each person in a different way to create really different final pieces.

The staff were helpful and explained everything well before letting us loose with the inks The messy inks got everywhere so old clothes were needed, but it was fun all the same, bringing back memories of finger painting as a kid.

The final art pieces we produced were all individual and interesting, linking in to one of our GCSE projects and adding to our sketchbooks.

The atmosphere was very informal and everyone was expected to act maturely within the potentially dangerous surroundings, which I hope we achieved. Also the aim was to experiment and have fun with the artwork we were creating.

The printing presses themselves were interesting as each was individual and from a different background. Some were really old and some were reasonably new (like the ones we used). Also, the wide variety of different printing presses used for different things were interesting, as each one was designed differently.

I found out a lot about printing that I didn’t know before, which I think is the same for the rest of the students who attended the trip. We found out why you print on wet paper, and why different types of inks are used for different purposes The day was fun, informative and really messy!

Myfanwy Davies 11.3

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War Horse is a novel by Michael Morpurgo and tells us the tale of a young boy called Albert and the special bond he makes with his horse Joey.

However, Joey is sent to help fight in the First World War and Albert decides to follow him and take him back home.

Many of us at Bottisham VC were lucky enough to attend a trip to London to see a production of War Horse at the New London Theatre. It is an award-winning National Theatre production and it is honestly the best thing I have ever seen!

The animals in the show were real life-size puppets and were literally brought to life by the puppeteers. Most of us in the audience almost cried at the end. The whole show was a huge success and if I had to rate it I would definitely give it 5 stars! It was a night to remember.

Roman Armstrong 8.7

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Humanities specialism

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Year 7 takes a step back in time at castle

Year 7 students spent a day at Framlingham Castle in Suffolk.

The trip was organised by the history department and students

enjoyed a guided tour of the 12th century fortress as they explored the building’s development in preparation for future work in class.

Democracy day voted a success Democracy was the theme of a day for 60 Year 9 students organised by Citizen Arts UK. The day was divided into two workshops – interactive voting and back chat.

Students were asked to plan a party and to make decisions individually and through a group representative to show how direct and representative democracy worked.

Their decisions/votes were recorded electronically through a hand held voting controller.

The students then turned their attention to a different scenario as they were asked to consider the proposed conversion of a piece of waste ground to a skate park.

At first they were in favour of the project but as they heard more local reaction and how people

living nearby would be affected, they changed their vote to “no”.

In the final part of the day students talked about local issues, what they would like to be changed and how they could put their views to local government.

“It was a great day and tried to get the students to think about what democracy is and how it works in this country,” said Locality team manager Lisa Riddle.

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Bit of help at history A history masterclass was held for Year 9 students showing potential in the subject.

They analysed The Help by Kathryn Stockett, about the experiences of African American maids in the southern states of the USA in the 1960s, to complement the work they have been doing this term on the history of African Americans.

Where in the world?

BVC entered a team of three for the annual Geographical Association Worldwide Quiz, held at Coleridge Community College, Cambridge. They were Year 9 students Oliver Wightwick, Will Matlock and Ramganesh Lakshman.

Visit to museum Year 11 history students spent a day at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Permanent exhibitions there include galleries devoted to both First and Second World Wars and the Holocaust.

30/11/09

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2:09 pm Bottisham Page Thankyou

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5:27

Year 7 on song for day of celebration European Day of Languages celebrations took place at Bottisham VC during the week starting September 20.

The day is celebrated throughout Europe every year and many academic institutions, as well as some international organisations, organise events on this day.

European Day of Languages is a day to celebrate the rich linguistic diversity there is in the world and life-long language learning.

At Bottisham VC Mr Howell and Mr Zárate presented assemblies which provided all the students with an opportunity to reflect upon the importance of learning other languages as well as the fun the learners can have learning.

There was an interform

Choral Song Competition in French, which was judged by all year groups. Well done to 7.2 who were the clear winners with 12 votes – 7.1 were the runners-up.

As part of the European Day of Languages celebrations,

the MFL faculty also launched the Spelling Bee Competition which involves students in Year 7 competing against each other at spelling. The first round is now well under way. The following rounds will involve competing against other schools locally and nationally. Good luck to all year 7s in the competition.

Mr Zárate

German visitors enjoy lunch On Friday, September 10, a group of 17 students from Germany visited the school.

They were given a guided tour by some of our Year 9 students before undertaking a quiz round the school and village. After sampling a Bottisham school lunch, the group joined the Year 11 German classes to help in a lesson all about the German school system.

Our visitors enjoyed their day, the school lunch being a real highlight.

Ms Larrieu

Pick of the crop

13 Some MFL students have studied French poetry – translating works and writing their own. Here is a pick of the best ...

Un grand sommeil noir Tombe sur ma vie Dormez, tout espoir Dormez, tout envie!

Je ne vois plus rien Je perds la mémoire Du mal et du bien O la triste histoire Je suis un berceau Qu’une main balance Au creux d’un caveau Silence, silence!

A deep dark sleep Falls over my life Sleep, all hope, Sleep, all desire I see no more I’ve lost the memory Of good and evil The story, so sad.

I am a cradle Balanced by a hand In the hollow of a cave Silence, silence.

Verlaine’s Sagesse V, translated by Kelly-Ann Challinor, Daniel Cornell, Ella Lancaster, Eliza Spindel Dans Mon Monde Idéal Il n’y a pas de guêpes, mais il y a beaucoup de papillons et fleurs, Il n’y a pas de maladies, mais il y a beaucoup de bonheur, Il n’y a pas de serpents, mais il y a beaucoup de lapins et chats, Il n’y a pas de pauvreté, mais il y a beaucoup de chocolat, Il n’y a pas de crime, mais il y a beaucoup d’hamsters, Il n’y a pas de mauvais temps, mais il y a beaucoup d’étreintes avec ma mere, Il n’y a pas d’araignées, mais il y a beaucoup de bleu et violet, Il n’y a pas de pollution, mais il y a beaucoup de soleil.

Chloë Millard

Trio in high-tech contest

The BTEC Horticulture Year 11 group Bottisham VC students Andrew and Oliver had a fun trip to Shropshires in Wightwick and Eric Wieser, flew to Littleport to visit the lettuce fields on Singapore to represent the UK in RoboCup September 20.

2010, an international robotics We watched the staff do the competition. harvesting of the crop using the rig The TechnoBotts were among 500 teams and even had a go ourselves. They to take part in the event and were hoping were cutting the lettuce and for success in the Junior Lightweight Soccer packaging it up for the supermarkets, A League, in which teams of two robots, no all in the field, and we climbed on the bigger than 22cms in diameter, 22cms high rig to see how they manage to and weighing no more than 1.5kg, play harvest and pack 56 million lettuces a against each other using a ball that emits year! Shropshires get the lettuce infra-red light. from the field and in the shops within All robots have to be autonomous, 24 hours to make sure it is as fresh as programmed to act on their own. They possible. have to “see” the ball (using infra-red Aaron Morley, one of the students sensors), drive towards it and take it to the who went on the trip said: “It was a goal. really good trip, we learnt lots.”

Mrs Williams John LewisAd Manchetts (Bottisham (Bottisham - L) L) - V5 5/3/10 10/3/10 4:50 10:10 pm Page am Page 1 1

The boys played 11 matches over three days notching up two victories against tough opposition from Iran, Japan, Canada, Taiwan, Germany and the US.

“Proud to be supporting Bottisham Village College Trust”

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Bottisham Village College Community Education Courses for Spring Term 2011

All courses start week commencing January 10. They are evening classes and are for 10 weeks, unless otherwise stated.

Art History – ‘The Mystery of Art’ – Thursday, £85 Bookkeeping Level 1 – Tuesday, £85 (+ exam fee) Cookery – Pastries (5 weeks starting March) – Thursday, £43 Cookery – Traditional Thai (5 weeks) – Thursday, £43 Cookery for Adults with Learning Difficulties – Tuesday, £60 Counselling – Introduction – Tuesday,£120 Creative Painting and Drawing – Thursday morning, £85 Dressmaking – Mon/Wed morning, Thursday evening, £85 Garden Design – Tuesday, £99 IT for Beginners – Thursday morning, £90 Printmaking for Beginners – Thursday, £85 Sculpture – Thursday, £85 Self Protection for Women (5 weeks) – Thursday, £43 Sewing for Beginners – Tuesday, £85 Stitching for Fun – Thursday afternoon, £8.50 per week Upholstery – Friday morning, £85 Upholstery and Chair Caning – Tuesday, £85 Woodwork – Thursday, £90 Yoga – Monday, £53

Weekend Workshops

Saturday, March 12 Chic Jewellery from Recycled Materials – £40 Dressmaking – £40 Photoshop – £40 Thai Seafood Cookery – £40 Web Page Design – £40 Woodturning – £55 Stained Glass Making (two days – 12/13 March) – £80 Please see our website for further details www.bottishamvc.org/commed or contact the Community Office on 01223 811372, email: commed@bottishamvc.org

The answer is £650 Many thanks to all who supported our Quiz Night by entering a team or donating raffle prizes. It was an extremely enjoyable evening with testing questions, raising approximately £650.

This year’s Christmas Market on Sunday, November 28, was a big success.

There were over 65 stallholders selling a variety of wonderful crafts and produce with approximately 700 visitors coming through the door.

Bookings are now being taken for 2011.

Spaces are limited for the number of stalls per craft to give a varied selection, so book yours now to avoid disappointment by emailing friends@bottishamvc.org Many thanks for all your support in donating the huge amount of tombola and raffle prizes and to all students and parents participating – without your help it just wouldn’t happen.

Christmas Puddings have once again been a great success. Having been chief sampler, I can honestly say you are in for a treat. The Citrus, Honey and Almond and Triple Ginger being chief contenders in most popular pudding of the year.

Events for your diary in 2011 Friday, February 4 – Comedy Night: With such a popular first comedy night, we were asked to repeat this fun filled evening.

Please join us to be entertained by three top London comedians. Tickets on sale in

the New Year Friday, April 1 – Quiz Night: Our extremely popular evening with quizmaster Greg Alvey returns. Gather up a team and test your skills against fellow players. Watch out for more details after Christmas Friday, May 6 – Fashion Show: Please join us for our first fashion show and catwalk.

Current season clothing and designer wear will be on sale from a wide range of top fashion outlets.

Saturday, July 2011 – Summer Ball: A night not to be missed. Why not join us for a wonderful night in the grand marquee?

Plans are under way for this fabulous evening with a Champagne reception, the chance to dance the night away with live music, a sumptuous three course meal and entertainment throughout the evening.

We are currently looking for sponsors. If you might be interested and would like more information, please email friends@bottishamvc.org or contact Claudine Bateman at the college. Tickets will be on sale in the Spring term. Proceeds from the Summer Ball provide the marquee for Year 11s Leavers’ Ball. Please support this event.

Claudine Bateman

Library users can go online Did you know that all BVC students become members of the Cambridgeshire Libraries and, as such, are able to use all the online resources which include the Encyclopaedia Britannica in different versions for different ages? They just need their library card and their pin number.

All Year 7 students should now have been the lucky recipients of a brand new book that they were able to choose earlier in the term from the national “Booked

Up” scheme. Year 7 has also recently been involved in the Readathon for charity. Thanks to all those who took part.

Students can borrow books for up to three weeks and may then renew by phone,

online or in person. The occasional reminder from parents would not go amiss though! Fines or replacement costs are charged if necessary and we would appreciate prompt payment. If the student happens to owe fines to any other library, it would be very helpful if you could sort that out with the library in question so that they do not become barred from borrowing at BVC. Ms Lockett, library co-ordinator

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A ‘fitting’ focal point

Church hosts service Staff, students, parents and members of the local community enjoy their annual traditional Christmas Concert in Bottisham’s Holy Trinity Church.

The event celebrates the festive season with a mix of carols, music, readings and a performance by the staff choir.

The College’s wind band accompanies members of the congregation as they sing classic carols such as Good King Wenceslas and Once in Royal David’s City to get them in a truly Christmassy mood.

The evening concert, which follows a day of rehearsals, includes an address by Bottisham vicar, the Rev David Lewis.

Afterwards there are festive refreshments for everyone.

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A stunning new sculpture by artist Matt Sanderson – best known for his insect-like chronophage (time eater) on Cambridge’s Corpus Christi Clock – is being enjoyed by everyone at BVC. World Tree, inspired by Norse legends, stands between the main College building and the new English block. It was officially handed over at a topping out ceremony by representatives from the David Urwin Arts Award (DUAA).

Trustees decided to wind up the fund after more than 20 years by giving a sculpture to BVC. The result is a huge galvanised steel sphere, standing nearly 12 feet high, the culmination of an 18month partnership which saw Matt as a regular visitor to the college and leading student workshops.

“We are delighted to find such a good home for this magnificent sculpture,” said Martin Gent, chairman of the

DUAA fund.

“David was a parent and vicechairman of governors at BVC and I know that his family feel that it is a fitting way in which to wind up the fund.”

“We are absolutely thrilled with Matt’s work. It is an outstanding addition to the college environment and something everyone – staff, students, parents, visitors and the wider community can enjoy,” said BVC principal Mrs Evans.

“We would like to thank the

trustees for their generosity and Matt for creating this stunning sculpture and for his total commitment to the project,” she said.

Matt’s work and other pieces at BVC are to be included in a sculpture trail currently under development and due to be launched next spring.

Horningsea-based Matt is a former recipient of one of the Trust’s awards and already has one sculpture, Cell, in the College’s sensory garden.

Students sign up to fitness More BVC students than ever are regularly using the sports centre’s fitness suite and manager Dave Rayner is hoping even more will sign up.

“Since the governors took over the management of the sports centre, the relationship with the college has grown vastly,” he said.

“The students are encouraged by both PE department and sports centre staff to swim and use the fitness suite after school.

“We have about 30 students using the suite and a 8:49 1 are coming majorityPage of these

two or three times a week. It is a nice friendly environment and at times is like an after-school club. You go in there and students are chatting as well as exercising.”

“It would be great if more students could take advantage of these facilities.”

The suite is open every day after school to any student aged 14 or over. All they need to do is book an appointment with one of the instructors for an induction

and then they can attend any session after school for £2 a time – or £14 for a month.

Mr Rayner said a lot of students used the suite during the school holidays and it had also been integrated into GCSE PE. Students are also reminded that the swimming pool is available after school on Mondays, Tuesday and Thursdays (3-4pm) and there is also a specific ladies only swim on Wednesdays (3-4pm).

For further information, contact reception on 01223 811121 or check the website at www.bottishamvc.org/sportscentre

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Nationals beckon for riders

Mr Alvey says:

Bottisham entered three teams for the National Schools Equestrian Association show jumping regional finals at The Jays in Bury St Edmunds.

Taking part were: 70cm team – Domini Wright, Ewan Kingdon, Cicely Robertson, Eloise Stringer.

80cm – Cleo McGregor, Philippa Wade, Eloise Stringer, Georgia Marshall. 90cm – Georgia Marshall, Cleo McGregor, Belinda Dow, Philippa Wade.

All the children rode brilliantly and we had some very quick and exciting jump offs against the clock. The teams came second, first and second, which means all the riders qualified for the national finals.

Also placed as individuals were Domini Wright, first in 70cm and second in 80cm, and Eloise Stringer, fifth in 90cm.

Sam Stringer, who was injured and was not able to ride, had success later in the British Riding Club’s eventer trial qualifiers at Plum Park in Towcester, where he helped put his team into second place and later came second in the 95cm pairs.

Mrs Stringer

Rugby has proved popular among the Year 7 boys and the College was able to field three full teams.

Year 7 has team spirit As usual at this time of year we have been involved with rugby and hockey fixtures and are delighted to report that the number of students getting involved and representing the school has been as good as ever.

This was evident with the new Year 7 students, who came to rugby and hockey club in such good numbers that we were able to field three full rugby teams and three hockey teams from this one year group.

The older students have also been involved in large numbers and we do everything we can to get a

game for students who demonstrate that they would like to get involved.

RUGBY TRIP Over 70 students from Years 7 and 8 attended the match between Cambridge University and Northampton Saints in Cambridge.

The game, played at a fast pace, was very exciting and the students were able to reinforce what they had been learning in lessons. The Year 10 sports leaders were very helpful and ate a lot at half time!

TRIATHLON CLUB The triathlon club continues to thrive and the development of the

Year 7 girls fielded three hockey teams

‘

Keep active in the winter.There are opportunities to keep active even when the weather is not very good. At Bottisham Sports Centre you can swim, hire a badminton court, get together with a group of friends and hire the sports hall for five-a-side football or basketball. If you are over 14 you can join the Bodytone gym and use all the equipment for your work out.

As long as you dress appropriately there is nothing to stop you being active outside as well. Just remember to wear reflective clothing, a safety helmet and use lights if you are on your bike.

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Edited by Mandy Turner, BVC. mturner@bottishamvc.org0

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skills and levels of fitness of these students who run, swim and cycle every week has been excellent. A number of the members have joined the Cambridge Triathlon Club and are intent on developing their standards even further.

ROWING CLUB The indoor rowing club is open to all students and takes place every Tuesday after school until 4.30pm.

This is a great way of keeping fit and the onboard computers allow the rowers to keep an accurate record of their performances and improvement.

BADMINTON/TABLE TENNIS A group of 24 students represented the school at a recent inter schools competition. The badminton was for more experienced players, while the table tennis was for those students who had not played extensively but wanted some competition. Bottisham competed against teams from Linton VC, Chesterton CC, Soham VC and The Perse School and all performed well.

CROSS COUNTRY RUNNING All key stage three students have been running the cross-country course for this short unit of work.

The course (The ‘Sewers’ run) is challenging and it is a tribute to the students that so many are able to beat their Personal Best time year after year and gain a merit certificate. The weather this year has been problematic, but most runners have pushed themselves and achieved a great deal.

Mr Alvey, head of PE Faculty

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