Newsletter Secondary March 2014 English

Newsletter King’s College Alicante

SECONDARY

MARCH 2014 / SECOND TERM

Literary Week Message from the Head of Secondary It is hard to believe that we are almost at the end of yet another term with the Easter holidays only seven school days away as I write this message.

Looking back on the term I am astounded by the sheer volume of activities, experiences and learning that has taken place since Christmas. In those three, short months our pupils have raised money for several charities, applied and been given offers to attend major universities around the world, been skiing in Huesca, taken part in day trips, participated in badminton, table tennis, football and linguistic competitions, enjoyed the various workshops and house competitions held in school, rehearsed for Grease, played in the Chamber Music Festival, chosen their IGCSE and A Level options for next year as well as attended approximately 480 lessons, completed hours of homework and coursework and, for some of our more senior pupils, already taken some IGCSE and A Level examinations; it is no wonder everybody is ready for the well-earned break!

One of the biggest events of this term, which I have yet to mention, was our Annual Literacy Festival and Visit from pupils and staff of the John Madejski Academy in Reading, UK, which took place on Tuesday 4th March. One of our whole school aims this year is to continue to develop our pupils’ literacy skills in English. With that in mind, Miss Taylor, Ms. McGuinness, Mr. Cook, and Mr. Ayling worked with the rest of the teachers in Secondary to organise a fantastic day of activities promoting the use of English across the curriculum. The John Madejski

Academy proved, once again, to be an inspiration to our Y7-11 pupils, leading workshops in drama, dance and football. The day was a phenomenal success and it was very gratifying to see such fantastic levels of English being used in different circumstances.

The focus on literacy has been sustained since the festival with pupils and staff enthusiastically embracing our “Drop Everything and Read” initiative in which KS3 children and their teachers have stopped for twenty minutes each day to read in English – the individual and form prize-winners will be announced shortly!

This issue of the Secondary School Newsletter is dedicated almost entirely to the events of the Literacy Festival and the “Drop Everything and Read” Initiative. I hope that you enjoy reading about the activities that took place as much as I enjoyed visiting them and the pupils enjoyed participating in them.

All that remains is for me to say a big thank you to the English Department and the entire Secondary School staff for their hard work in making that day, and every day this term, such a success and to wish all of our parents and pupils a relaxing and enjoyable break this Easter.

Mr. S Wicks Head of Secondary

charitywork KCA fundraising As a part of our ongoing commitment to the wider community, we are still supporting the local charity Cáritas and as such we are requesting donations. There are many local families who are unable to afford basic living items and these campaigns ensure these items are delivered to those families most in need. In order to avoid the duplication of items we have split the different groups of things between year groups. We would be grateful if your child could participate by depositing their donation in their respective tutor room or classroom, ready for the Sixth Form Committee to collect every morning. Cáritas will collect everything we have received at the end of this term, so please start bringing what you can as soon as possible.

Nursery/Reception

Primary (Y1-Y6)

Secondary (Y7-Y13)

Baby supplies: nappies, jarred baby food, baby formula (milk), etc.

Stationery (not used): Pens, pencils, colouring pencils, rubbers, sharpeners, notebooks, etc.

Snack foods: Cola Cao, biscuits, chocolate, cereals, juices & milkshakes (in small cartons),

It would be great if every student could bring in one thing from the suggested items, for example a pack of pencils or a notebook, a pack of cereal bars or a jar of baby food. If every student in King’s College contributed one thing we would be able to donate nearly 1,000 items which would be a big help to Cáritas and would benefit local families enormously.

The Charity Committee Fiona Barcenilla and Alba Espinosa

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c at ke th ts e st Sc ill ho av ol ail Offi ab ce le

>> PAGE 3

DROP EVERYTHING

AND READ ALL KS3 PUPILS

Pupils are participating in a competition to see how many books they can read, in English, in one month! The competition started on 3rd March and finished on Friday 28th March.

These were the rules of the competition: 1. Read a book from the Official Reading List that Sra. Sánchez, our School Librarian has available for you to look at in the library.

2. Once you’ve read it, get a blank postcard from the librarian and draw a picture on one side that illustrates the story you have read and write a recommendation on the back convincing somebody else to read the book. That somebody could be a friend, a sibling, a parent or even a teacher.

3. Make sure your name and class are clearly visible on the postcard and hand it in to Sra. Sánchez 4. Get another book from the list and start again!

THE PRIZES! Individual Prize of a brand new e-reader, for the pupil who reads the most books AS WELL AS writes and illustrates the most convincing recommendation Chocolate and Churros Form Prize for the group that collectively reads the most books!

Sra. Sánchez will keep track of the daily totals and will update a display to show which class is in the lead!

LITERARY FESTIVAL “English in the World” Tuesday 4th March 2014

Special Issue >> PAGE 5

LITERARY FESTIVAL For this year´s Literary Festival, the English Department wanted students to become more aware of the ways in which they may need to use English in a variety of contexts in the wider world.

Working with subject teachers from a range of different disciplines, we created a number of interactive and unusual workshops which combined speaking, listening, reading, writing and performance in English with the opportunity to learn new skills.

We were also excited to welcome back the John Madejski students from the UK who led a number of Drama workshops and a unique performance of Romeo and Juliet as part of the day´s programme.

The day was a huge success and there was an electric atmosphere as students threw themselves into workshops, from which they gained a great deal.

We would like to thank all of the staff who helped make the day such a success and the students for their wonderful behaviour and enthusiasm.

We hope you enjoy this special edition of the Literacy Festival newsletter, which gives you a taste of some of the things our students enjoyed.

Miss Taylor, Ms McGuinness Mr Cook and Mr Ayling

>> PAGE 7

JOHN MADEJSKI WORKSHOPS In this workshop students used the prologue from Romeo and Juliet in order to create a meaningful performance of the piece and to show understanding of the language.

Activity Students analysed language in order to identify the meaning within lines from Shakespeare. They used active techniques in order to improve diction, pronunciation and clarity of speech for an international audience.

Comments Students from Year 7 We learned how to work as a team and improve our English. We didn’t want the people to go because of their kindness and the way they worked with us.

We learned how to turn nursery rhymes into stories and act them out with dialogue. It was really nice being with older students and especially because they were from England!

Students from Year 8 I loved doing activities with the John Madejski people.

I had lots of fun and I learned lots of things like how to interpret different plays. I would like to do it again next year because I would like to learn more techniques for singing, acting and dancing and I would like to play more fun games with them. Sarah, Year 8G I really enjoyed the John Madejski workshop, we did a lot of fun activities such as drama and music work. I really liked it. Pablo, Year 8G I loved John Madejski so much, I wish I could have been with them all day. We first went outside to play “Rub a chicken” in which we had to shake our hands and feet, counting down to one and then jump and say “Rub a chicken”! We also had to take a well known nursery rhyme and reenact it but change it slightly. Reina, Year 8G

JOHN MADEJSKI PERFORMANCE The Performing Arts group from the academy performed a modern interpretation of Romeo and Juliet based upon the Shakespeare for School script.

Activity Students were encouraged to recognise that Shakespeare can be performed in many different ways: this version showcased Juliet´s inner turmoil and included two Juliets!

Comments Students from Year 9 It was really beneficial to see a live version of Romeo and Juliet. We also learnt how to use props. Blanca, Year 9B A group of teenagers from an English school performed the play Romeo and Juliet for us.

The characters I liked the most were Juliet´s mother and the Nurse since the actresses were very ‘in character’ demonstrating advanced performance skills. I think the play was very unusual as they had changed it in many ways from the original but each and every change made the play really good. It was clear that they performed to the best of their abilities and that they had put lots of thinking and hard work into the play.

We all had a great time watching it and we hope they come back again next year with another play for us. Paola, Year 9B

>> PAGE 9

Workshop:

WHODUNNIT? YEAR 7

LITERARY FESTIVAL

WHODUNNIT?

In this workshop, students were challenged to solve the murder of a very important member of staff…

Activity Students used analytical reading skills and scientifically analysed forensic clues to work out which teacher from the line-up had the strongest motive for murder. After submitting a Crime Report, students were awarded Police Detective status!

Comments Students from Year 7 “We enjoyed learning new words to do with being in the Police. We used flame tests and looked at hair cells with a microscope. We really enjoyed seeing how science is applied in the real world in detective cases.”

“We had the opportunity to do activities we had never done before. We worked as a team and identified the murderer using Police Language. It was a lot of fun.”

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Workshop:

SPORTY SPEECH YEAR 7

LITER

In this workshop students used movement to revise and learn English prepositions and sentence order…

Activity Students faced the elements during an unusually windy day, making the most of the opportunity to combine English with sport.

Comments Students from Year 7 “We learnt the names of sports equipment and how to descibe and explain objects. We also revised our prepositions of place. We really enjoyed the skipping rope activity.”

“We learnt new words about how to guide people. It was great to use our English outside of the classroom and to work together as a team.”

>> PAGE 11

Workshop: ALICANTE ANGELS

YEAR 7

LITERARY FESTIVAL “Alicante Angels”

In this workshop, students used team work and communication skills to solve a real life mathematical problem…

Activity As ‘Alicante Angels’ our travel agent students pitched proposals for a city break in Spain for a family of four, following a research activity in which they calculated and compared transport and accommodation prices.

Comments Mr Rodgers (Workshop Leader) The group work and team spirit made this task really successful and the fact that it was a real life problem which combined English with Maths showed how important these two subjects are for the real world. The room was well dressed up as a Travel Agency and students really took to their various roles allocated within the groups. One student told me he loved being a manager and another said how she couldn’t believe the price of accommodation!

Students from Year 7 We were in charge of a business and we learnt how to research hotels and transport for holidays and how to work as a group. We enjoyed being in charge and learning how to be a business man/woman. It was really enjoyable and the time went by very quickly!

We learnt how to take on different roles and how to research information about hotels and transport.

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Workshop:

FRANKENSTEIN

A MORAL JOURNEY

LITERARY FESTIVAL “Frankenstein: Moral Journey”

YEAR 8

In this workshop students discussed and evaluated the sometimes ‘monstrous’ decisions which humans make…

Activity Students entered Frankenstein’s laboratory and watched Frankenstein´s creature being brought to life. To evaluate his decisions and share his experience, students joined Frankenstein on his moral journey by deciding how they would treat their own creation after birth.

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Comments Mr Walsh (Frankenstein´s Monster) Year 8 looked at the moral issues behind scientific discovery and considered how they behaved towards other people, I helped them to do this with my performance as Frankenstein´s monster! The workshop posed the question: Do we need to be a scientist to create a monster? I really enjoyed the workshop and feel that the students had the opportunity to reflect on how they treat others who may be different in some way.

Students from Year 8 I enjoyed the workshop about Frankenstein.

We learnt about the characteristics of monsters and what the book “Frankenstein” written by Mary Shelley, really meant. It showed us that if you are nice to others, others will be nice to you. I also learnt that even though we are different on the outside, we are all the same on the inside. Patricia, Year 8G Frankenstein’s Moral Journey is a journey you take where you meet a monster in a room and you need to choose the correct choices to lead the behaviour of the monster. You see different types of monsters and you learn about them. Alex, Year 8G >> PAGE 13

Workshop: LANGUAGE NINJAS

YEAR 8

In this workshop students used ninja movements to practise their punctuation…

Activity Ninja trainees studied punctuation actions as demonstrated by their high heeled Ninja Chief. The event culminated in a Ninja battle where students fought to gain full Ninja status!

Comments What a fun day…

As well as being the first high heeled Ninja ever, I had a chance to engage in a very interactive way with students that I don’t normally teach, on a topic that I’m passionate about. The energy in the classroom was wonderful as students equated Kung Fu moves to specific punctuation marks. Competition in Year 8 is alive and kicking, (no pun intended) and they rose to the challenge brilliantly.

The only problem is, every time I write a comma, “Shi!” echoes in my head….. Ms Griffin (Workshop Leader) In this activity we learned the importance of punctuation, how we should use it and the movements and sounds of each symbol. I really enjoyed the combats we did to test how many we had learned. I wasn’t really good but it didn’t really matter because it was fun and really interesting. Luccia, Year 8G Language Ninjas was very interesting because it helped us with our punctuation by doing strange movements. It was very well organized and very funny. Andres, Year 8G We learned a bit more about punctuation and we saw a powerpoint which showed a punctuation sign and a movement which went with it. It was very funny when we went outside and did a punctuation Ninja tournament.

Carlos, Year 8G

Workshop:

BOOK BUILDERS YEAR 8

LITER LITERARY FESTIVAL “Book Builder”

In this workshop students learnt how books are made …

Activity Students designed, assembled and bound their own mini books which will be turned into mini guides for either Shakespeare or the Gothic genre as part of their English studies.

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Comments The students were very focused on task and followed difficult instructions in English whilst improving their craft skills. Now they all understand how books are made.

Some students gasped when they saw what they were going to learn! Ms Castro (Workshop Leader) We had lots of fun in the workshop. We created a pocket book to use in English to write down any key words from the play “Macbeth”. It was very difficult but really interesting and our books ended up looking amazing.

Irene, Year 8G. In Book Builders we made our own pocket books. We sewed the paper and made awesome covers. It was great and we enjoyed it a lot. Jorge, Year 8G When I did the Book Builders activity I enjoyed it a lot.

There were some difficult steps but my friends helped me and I finished my booklet by the end of the class. I really enjoyed the activity. Pablo, Year 8G

>> PAGE 15

Workshop: LANGUAGE ART

YEAR 9

LITERARY FESTIVAL “Language Art”

In this workshop students used their artistic skills to bring the world of English Literature to life…

Activity Students worked together, with great care and attention to detail, to paint beautiful murals which illustrate authors and texts studied in English Literature.

Comments Year 9 worked as an efficient painting machine during the Literacy Festival, creating four stunning murals depicting writers through history. As a team, they managed to finish the murals which are now on display in the bottom corridor outside the Spanish classrooms. With limited space and messy paint the teamwork and enthusiasm was wonderful and I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed working with them all.

Ms Manners (Workshop Leader) We learnt new words while painting and not wearing shoes Emily, Year 9B During the Language Art workshop I learnt new painting techniques and new words. I had a lot of fun painting Shakespeare as I am studying him in English at the moment. We had a lot of space to paint and we were allowed to be independent. Javier, Year 9B In Languarge Art I really liked taking off my shoes and working as a team with my friends. I love painting and it was great using brushes to paint the background. We worked really hard and the pictures looked really great at the end of the day. Paula, Year 9B

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Workshop:

THE VOICE YEAR 9 In this workshop, students competed in a spoken version of “The Voice”…

Activity Faced with three judges in three turned chairs, students were challenged to use perfect diction and enunciation of the English language in a short speech. The chairs turned only for those who used English with accuracy!

Comments Our Sixth Form judges/coaches did a great job; they took their roles seriously, were objective and gave helpful criticism. I think they enjoyed themselves. It's not every day you get to be Tom Jones in a swivel chair!" Well done to all of the students who worked so hard on their diction and expression, let´s hope they continue to use what they´ve practised when speaking in English. Mr Turner (Workshop Leader) I loved the sequined baseball caps. Ms Messent (Workshop Leader) I really enjoyed taking part in The Voice workshop. It was a wonderful experience where I had the opportunity to help and advise other students with their English. The thing I most enjoyed was discovering that the more shy and reserved children were the best English speakers! It was a difficult task for many of them, but in general they all did their best and stood up in front of their class and other students, which isn’t easy! Ornella, Year 12M I really enjoyed the workshop because we were able to look back at what we had studied in English about persuasive techniques. We also learned other techniques such as how to use formal language and a range of vocabulary. We had to try to avoid repeating ourselves when it comes to persuading someone! We also learned how we can get out point across by counter arguing. I had a lot of fun in this workshop and I would love to do it again next year. Silvia,Year 9B

>> PAGE 17

Workshop:

THE HORRIBLE HISTORY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE

YEAR 9

In this workshop students traced the Horrible History of the English Language…

Activity Students were presented with information about the evolution of the English language which they adapted into pages similar to those from the ‘Horrible History’ books.

The finished book will soon be available in the school Library!

Comments I was really impressed with the efforts of the ‘Horrible History’ groups. They worked really well in their teams: some responsible for the art, some the words, and some the layout. I look forward to presenting them with their finished printed ‘Horrible History of English’ books.

The original ‘Horrible History’ books in the library are filled with educational comedy, and, for me, the funniest part of Literary Day was seeing students working hard to be funny! Generally, by the end of the session, they managed it fine! Well done to everyone involved with the day! Mr Ayling (Workshop Leader) In this workshop we learned how the English language has developed over time and how events which happened in the past can affect the way we write or pronounce a word.

I enjoyed the workshop because it taught me curious facts about English in an interesting way. We had to turn a fact into a cartoon illustration and make it funny for our reader.

This was effective because it made it easier for us to learn and understand. Marta, Year 9B In Horrible Histories we combined humour and real historical facts about the English Language in order to create pages similar to the famous Horrible History books.

I enjoyed being independent, able to choose our topics, page structure and content. Dani, Year 9B

Workshop:

WORLD CONFERENCE YEAR 10

LITERARY FESTIVAL

“World Conference”

In this workshop, students used English as the international language of communication a United Nations conference…

Activity The topic of the conference was immigration and it was debated in six different languages, using students to translate into English. Students saw that by developing their fluency and command of English, and not having to rely on a translator, their own voices will be heard around the world.

Comments What I loved about this workshop was that it really was an imitation of a United Nations assembly. The students discussed a real world issue; immigration. They developed useful life skills such as research, writing, public speaking, problem solving, consensus building, conflict resolution, compromise and cooperation. All students showed maturity and interest in the serious nature of the workshop, with even the shy students realizing they can speak in public - they did it wonderfully. Sr Esteban (Workshop Leader) For World Conference, I was given a booklet to plan my speech regarding immigration issues in Europe. I was one of four students asked to represent Great Britain, each in a different workshop held that day. In the workshop 6 different countries were represented by staff or Sixth Formers and each was accompanied by a younger student of the same nationality. They had the task of translating the speech, delivered in the first language, into English. After the speeches had been delivered and translated, we all took part in a feisty debate trying to convince the other representatives and the jury that our strategy, or thoughts behind the subject, were the correct ones, and that our policies were the ones to adopt. Aside from the fact the subject of immigration was difficult and controversial, we all learned a lot from the task about the power of being able to express yourself in English as a first language and we all had a great time. Scott Laidlaw Representative of UK

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Workshop: FRESH PRINCE DUBBING

Literary Festival

YEAR 10

In this workshop students used rapping skills to practise clear enunciation in English…

Activity With flashing glasses and all things ‘street’, students used their ‘swagger’ and rapping flair to reproduce the title song from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

g n i b

b u d

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Workshop:

HISTORY ON TRIAL YEAR 10

LITERARY FESTIVAL History on Trial

In this workshop students used English to put a famous event from Spanish history on trial‌

Activity Students took key roles in a court case in which they presented the case for and against. Some outstanding skills in persuasive and argumentative English language were required for the winning team to prevail.

Tuesday 4th March 2014

Comments Students were really so engaged trying to defend or accuse the Spanish inquisition in this History inspired trial.

Activities like this help students not only to improve their English but while learning more about Spanish history in a wonderful atmosphere of learning. Sr Francisco (Workshop Leader)

>> PAGE 19

Workshop: QUALITY ST POETRY

YEAR 11

Students used analytical and presentational skills to interpret and transform a poem into moving image‌

Activity In this whole day event students worked in teams to plan, design, film, produce and edit a short film based upon an unseen poem. Every student in the group contributed to the film and, after focusing upon monologue skills in a workshop with the John Madejski students, the aim was to use accurate pronunciation of the English language for clarity on film.

Best filming technique – On the Train by Gillian Clarke (Aitana, Ivan B, Ivan, Paloma, Gonzalo, Tommy)

Words from Tara Wudhiphan Head Girl

World Literacy Day came and went again this year, but we most definitely made the most of it while it stuck around! All day and all over school, students and teachers alike took part in a myriad of workshops designed to celebrate literacy and languages.

The whole week was literacy week, but plenty of preparation was involved leading up to it.

Colourful, vibrant posters filled our halls for weeks, advertising the various activities we’d get the opportunity to participate in – “The Voice”, “Horrible History of English”, “English in the World”, and so many more exciting games and tasks.

I took part in our very own “World Conference”, a model United Nations of sorts.

Our issue to resolve – Immigration laws.

Students were paired off; a Sixth Form foreign representative and their KS3/4 translator. Each duo had spent a good amount of time prepping for this debate, reading up on their respective countries views on the topic. After plenty of vigorous discussion and a great display of argumentative ability and lots of compromise, each session declared a victor, whose laws would be those enforced.

Thank you on behalf of the students, to everyone who participated and made yet another fantastic Literary Festival.

And a special thanks to Miss Taylor, Miss McGuinness and the English department who put so much time and effort into organizing everything.

>> PAGE 17

the

art corner

artist of the

month

My artist of the month is Elena in 7D and I have included photos of the Modiglini portraits and some year 10 collages.

Mrs. S Manners - Art Teacher

UNIVERSTIY SCHOLARSHIP AWARD We are delighted that Emily in Y13 has been awarded a Scholarship to Aberystwyth University. Emily is one of only two overseas students to be awarded an Open Scholarship which includes an unconditional place to study Spanish & International Politics and guarantees her accommodation for the duration of her course.

This is a wonderful achievement for Emily and we wish her well.

Important Dates APRIL 2014

28 March Book Fair 28 March Ciudad de la Luz Recording 2 A p r i l

Grease The Musical

3 A p r i l

Grease The Musical

4 A p r i l

Last Day Term / Non Uniform Day

4 A p r i l

BSAs Got Talent

4 A p r i l

Race Against Huhger

22 April

First Day Term 3 / Summer Uniform

King’s College Alicante Glorieta del Reino Unido 5 Alicante 03008 Spain Tlf: 965 106 351 Fax: 965 108 096 info.kca@kingsgroup.org www.bsalicante.com