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The
Beechwood Lion Summer 2016
Thrills and spills at Skern Lodge, page 6
From The Headmaster Dear Parents, And so we come to end of a summer term packed with events embracing every area of the children’s education. We have watched our senior pupils confidently perform Shakespeare and Latin plays and revel in the joy of music making in the Summer Concert. We have seen the Year 2 pupils sing, dance and perform in a colourful and vibrant Moving Up assembly as they celebrate all that they have enjoyed in the Junior Department and anticipate all of the opportunities of Middle Department life. We have celebrated academic success across the board with our 11+, 12+ and 13+ children demonstrating to future senior schools their independent learning and their academic flair. We have had a Breeze and Fun Night courtesy of the extraordinary efforts of the BPSPA, held our own Booker Prize, come together for Speech Day, held evening
Common Entrance Success Our Top Formers have excelled themselves this year with some remarkable Common Entrance results. Indeed 100% of our 11+ and 13+ leavers are going on to their 1st choice of school, many with scholarships.
barbeques, overnight camps and celebrated our leavers, who move on with such confidence and independence to their future schools. I am so proud of all that the children and their teachers achieve together, often gaining recognition in district, county, regional and national competitions. I am particularly proud of the achievements of our boys and girls in their cricket this season. Not only have the 1st team excelled on the pitches this summer, but the U11 boys finish the year as U11 County Champions and the girls as runners-up in the County Kwik Cricket Championships. Our assemblies have provided a wonderful opportunity to celebrate all of these accomplishments and all of our pupils can look back on a stimulating term in which they have, each one, brought their characters to bear in bringing creativity and joy to this very special community. Over the summer, car park improvements will begin, and the refurbishment of the Reception and (new) Year 4 classrooms. I am excited by the energy of new ideas permeating
the staff room and by some of the new sporting developments including the growing links with Luton Town Football Club, with the Independent School Football Association. Your children can be rightfully proud of all that they have achieved this year and I thank both teaching and support staff for making Beechwood Park such a wonderful and childcentred environment for your children to stretch their wings and to achieve excellence. Our pupils inspire and create because their teachers are passionate about nurturing them and bringing out their very best. They skilfully engage children with their enthusiasm and growth mind-set, inspiring in them the skills that will ensure 21st and 22nd century success. What is not to love? With best wishes,
EDWARD BALFOUR
Speech Day This year’s Speech Day, Mr Balfour’s first, was an opportunity to reflect on the many successes of the past year and to plan for the future. We welcomed England Rugby Defence Coach Paul Gustard as guest speaker and he spoke of his own coaching and playing experiences, stressing the importance of values to both the individual and the team. Pupils’ musical performances delighted guests and the two outgoing Heads of School gave eloquent and assured speeches. A busy afternoon followed with classroom visits, Angie’s delicious cakes and, of course, Le Café du Lion.
County Cricket Champs HM meets HM! Headmaster Mr Balfour was delighted to introduce five local headteachers to Her Majesty The Queen during her recent visit to Berkhamsted.
Beechwood Park won the U11 County Cricket Championships against Haberdashers’ Aske’s and reached the Regional Finals. Our Colts A put in a fabulous team effort. They bowled first and each member of the team put in a very strong performance. As a consequence, the opposition was only able to gain 16 runs off 12 overs. Chasing that score was therefore relatively straightforward and our team confidently went in to bat. In just 5 overs we gained 35 runs and drew stumps, victorious! In order to get to this stage of the tournament our team had played and won against two very strong teams: Heath Mount and Westbrook Hay. Beechwood Park subsequently played in the Regional Finals against other County Cup winners at Chigwell School in Essex where the team had the wonderful experience of playing the best teams in our Region. Very well done everyone!
LENNY COOPER
The newsletter of Beechwood Park School, Markyate, Hertfordshire AL3 8AW
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Juniors Stepping Back in Time Year 2 began the topic of 'Them and Us' by travelling back in time to when Beechwood Park was a private house. They became keen history detectives and visited lots of different rooms and areas in and around the School learning about what they used to be in past times. Did you know the wooden doors in the 'Great Hall' were carved by d'Angelo Barbetti and took 3 years to make? The children were delighted to visit the sports office where Prince Edward (Henry VIII's son) stayed when he visited Beechwood Park and Year 2 spotted that the original fire place was still in situ. The children also loved seeing the pictures of how Beechwood Park School used to look when it first opened - especially the picture of the Nativity play where the boys also had to take the girls' roles!
YEAR 2 TEACHERS
The London Aquarium Year 1 had an amazing day out at The London Aquarium. We enjoyed the sights: the London Eye, River Thames, Big Ben and The Houses of Parliament before our real visit even began! Then we were lucky enough to get up close with sharks, rays, seahorses and even to handle the starfish! We met a wonderful polar bear and killer whale, although they weren’t as real as they looked!
Superhero Week The children were very excited when ‘Superhero’ week eventually arrived. We talked about our powers and how they could be used for carrying out good, caring acts. Then each child made a potion full of positive components using a variety of ingredients such as love and x-ray vision! On Wednesday it was dressing up day at last and the children looked amazing. They made the experience entirely enjoyable by showing how ‘Superheroes’ have a clear understanding of how to follow the Golden Rules!
RECEPTION TEACHERS
CBeebies Filming Beechwood Park School’s Junior Department and the School grounds were the setting for several episodes of the BBC CBeebies television series "Melody and Friends". Partially sighted Melody is played by child actress Angharad Rhodes. When she listens to classical music, her incredible imagination takes her on exciting adventures. Melody introduces pre-school children to classical music through the main character's imagined stories, and specially created animations that are more enjoyable for visually impaired viewers.
We were delighted to work with Wish Films to record these episodes as it gave pupils an opportunity to experience something a little different and gain some insight into how television programmes are put together. Some of our Year 2 children even had the opportunity to visit the Purcell School, where they were filmed watching Harp, Cello, Marimba and Guitar recitals. The programmes are expected to be on air in the autumn.
HELEN DALKIN
WENDY RODEN
In 1666… …London burned like rotten sticks. Year 2 enjoyed two interactive days recreating the Great Fire of London. Led by “History off the Page”, we travelled back in time to old London where the children became apprentices to popular trades including scrivener, tanner, candle maker, apothecary and of course, baker. The children were delighted to discover that the parmesan cheese that Samuel Pepys buried probably melted! The excitement continued as we watched our model timber framed houses burn as the flames spread in the wind. It was also great fun ‘accidentally’ soaking each other as part of a water chain to put out the raging fire.
MIA BLOOMFIELD
Woodlands' Musical Mums Woodlands Nursery was alive with the sound of music when mums were invited in to spend some musical time with the Woodlanders. Together we sang some French songs then donned wellies to head off to the woods to seek out natural materials to enable us to make music. We took back a range of “instruments” that we had foraged from the woods and it was great fun seeing what sounds we could make. A fantastic morning.
SHIRLEY HAYMAN
The Railway Children The Performance Hall doubled up as a West End Theatre with Image Musical Theatre delighting the Junior children with their retelling of E Nesbit’s classic 'The Railway Children'. Children from Reception through to Year Two were transfixed by the action - joining in with the singing and helping the company to tell this beautiful story. 'Image Theatre' provide an interactive experience and a dozen children took on the parts of various characters. Whilst Jenny Agutter was not able to reprise the role of Bobby, Juliette, Grace and Alexandra shared the role of Phyllis, and Jack enjoyed playing Jim. HELEN DALKIN
2
PAGE X Maths Excellence
Competition Success
National Art Competition The commemorative charity "Never Such Innocence" launched a national competition last autumn, in which children were invited to submit poems or artwork inspired by the events of the Great War. Year 6 pupil Edward B created an amazing poppy head collage entitled Dominions Sacrifice. His red painted poppy head dripped like blood and the dark centre was created with lots of crosses signifying the dead. Edward also cleverly added the WW1 letters which he had filled with the flags of all the
nations that were involved, rows of head stones and a lone soldier showing respect. Edward's work was awarded third place and not only was he given a cash price but the School was also awarded a prize. Edward attended the prestigious award ceremony at the House of Lords on Monday 16th May, hosted by Baroness Anne Jenkin and his prize was awarded by General Gordon Messenger, Vice-Chief of Defence Staff. All of the winning entries have been published in a special booklet which is available to view on the charity’s website www.neversuchinnocence.com
EDWINA WILKS
A team of Top Formers participated in the UK Mathematics Trust Team Challenge held at Ashlyns School in Berkhamsted. They performed exceptionally well throughout the day and scooped an impressive 9th place out of the 24 schools taking part. Many congratulations on a great effort!
TOM MCKENZIE
Fierce Competition In the spirit of Beechwood's own lion mascot, a team of "fierce" mathematicians from Year 4 took part in a fun Maths Challenge competition held at Aldwickbury School. A total of 31 schools took part, and we were delighted to come in 11th overall. The day consisted of fun maths challenges including dice, dominoes and magical mathematics! The Beechwood Park team put in a great effort and showed steely determination throughout the day. Congratulations to both teams (team 1: Bibi and Freddie, team 2: Ben and Akshan).
IAN SHERIDAN
500 Words Story Finalist Year 5 pupil Jonathan was one of 50 finalists to attend the BBC 2 - 500 Word story competition final which was broadcast live from the home of British story-telling, Shakespeare's Globe. Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cornwall was an Honorary Judge. There were 23,400 entries this year and Jonathan’s story, entitled "Liberation" was selected as one of the final 50 stories. It is an amazing achievement to have reached the last stage of such a huge, prestigious competition. Well done, Jonathan! This is the third year in succession that a pupil from Beechwood Park has made it through to the final 50 in this phenomenally popular competition and we are extremely proud of all our story tellers.
GRÁINNE WILKINS
Shakespeare Competition This year we celebrated Shakespeare indoors rather than in the open-air (which was pretty damp as it happened!) with group scenes from Year 7 and Top Form, rousing solos and informative presentations about the Bard's life in celebration of his 400th anniversary. Mr Balfour was adjudicator, giving inspiring feedback to all performers, awarding the Heaphy Cup jointly to Top Formers Charlie T and Luke T. The overall group prize was awarded to Top X’s Pyramus and Thisbe for its excellent comic timing and sense of fun. Well done to everyone who was involved in the celebrations! GRÁINNE INNE WILKINS
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Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter
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Classics The Hunger Games Mr Ali McWhirter, Head of Classics at Haileybury, gave a fascinating talk to the Top Form about Classical influences in the 'Hunger Games' stories. “I learned so much about classical reception. It’s amazing to think how much we use from the Greek and Roman world. I found the names of the characters, places and events particularly interesting.” - Alex “ It revealed the reasons for names, settings and the plot of the 'Hunger Games'.”- Daniel “Exciting look at reception of classical culture in modern day life!” - Sam
Roman Adventures Year 3 became historical detectives when they enjoyed a fascinating day out investigating Roman life at Verulamium Museum in St Albans. St Albans was the third largest city in Roman Britain and we are extremely lucky to have so much history on our doorstep. Did you know Romans used to put perfume on their feet before eating? Or that they made their own make up? During our visit, we learnt many interesting facts such as these and history was brought to life as we had the opportunity to handle artefacts that were over 2,000 years old. Furthermore, the children had the chance to try on typical Roman tunics and learnt how different life would have been depending on your status. The life of a slave was somewhat different to the life of a wealthy Roman. Meanwhile, back at School the children transformed themselves into Roman soldiers and proudly showcased the Roman shields that they had made. They had great fun recreating shield formations and marching around the playground. Valete!
YEAR 3 TEACHERS
Latin Linguistics Mr McWhirter returned later in the term to lead a Year 7 workshop on Latin Linguistics. Finding patterns in groups of words and trying to make certain predictions about how words might change their stems kept everyone very engrossed.
MICHELE ANDERSON
Ludi Scaenici 2016 Gods, heroes, mice, monsters, hungry wolves, defenceless little pigs, slaves and emperors – at Beechwood they have one thing in common. They all speak in Latin! Well, they did on 28th June at our annual Ludi Scaenici. And this year we welcomed Priory Academy who also participated.
Minimus Mythology Competition
Adjudicator, Mr Daniel Rowland, Head of Classics at St. Albans School said “when I accepted the invitation I didn’t think it was going to be this difficult to judge!” Everyone excelled themselves. The famous Beechwood Roman banquet with Apicius-inspired food followed, a feast for eyes as well as stomachs.
Beechwood Park entered this international competition for the second year in succession. The theme was Perseus and Medusa and the categories were Creative Writing and Art. We had some wonderful work submitted. The exciting news is that we have 2 prize winners. Katya G is runner-up in her age category in the Art Section and Jonathan W is the recipient of a special Creative Writing prize for his poem. Gratulationes to these pupils!
MICHELE ANDERSON
Etymology Studies We come into contact with hundreds of products every day and probably rarely give a second thought to why they are given their particular brand name. A recent trip to Waitrose opened the eyes of our Top Form students to etymological links between the ancient and modern world. Latin and Greek vocabulary came to life as Top Form discovered just now many brand names are derived from these classical languages. It also gave them an understanding of the intricacies of marketing and how industries use branding to promote their products subliminally.
MICHELE ANDERSON
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Music and History Brought to Life Mountfitchet Castle Year 6 travelled back in time to the reconstructed medieval Motte and Bailey castle at Stansted Mountfitchet. Feeding the tame animals which roam around the site proved a popular activity and allowed students to gain a sense of what it would have been like to live in the castle during the 11th century. Pupils explored the main living area of the Outer Bailey and tried out the stocks, the pillory and the gibbet before venturing into the Inner Bailey to experience what life was like for the Lord of the castle. There was also time for a visit to the House on the Hill Toy Museum, where students enjoyed discovering a wide range of toys dating from the 1890s to the present day, whilst their teachers reminisced about the toys of their youth!
Viking Day There were plaits, shields, hunting horns and sheepskin galore when Year 4 transformed themselves into Vikings for Viking Day! Building on what they had been learning in class, the children had the opportunity to find out first-hand what life was like all those years ago. During the day they met Thorulf Hammrsson! He was very scary at times with all his facial expressions, although the children learnt a lot from him about Viking life and their weapons! After lunch there was a weapon demonstration and Thorulf chopped a watermelon in half with his axe before finishing it off with his sword!
YEAR 4 TEACHERS
ANGHARAD LITTLE
Isle of Wight Trip Once again, Year 5 had a fantastic time on their Isle of Wight trip! Despite some erratic weather we found time to build sandcastles and play on the beach. We visited Carisbrooke Castle and Osborne House and got creative in the Chessell Pottery Barns. We saw the Needles and enjoyed the beautiful views from Tennyson Downs. Mrs Ridley is still the reigning champion of the Headstand Competition but Tamsin came a close second!
KIRSTY BLASQUEZ
Olympic Fun Years 3 and 4 showcased their ‘Olympic Fun’ dances and songs to a full house of parents. We were all wowed by the children’s creativity and confidence and their t-shirts, decorated in their Art lessons with Miss Wilks.
LAURA HEGARTY
Year 3 Visit Kew The children had a wonderful time exploring the different gardens and habitats at Kew. They were able to experience a rainforest habitat at first-hand where they gained an insight into this natural, tropical wonder. They really enjoyed looking at the huge array of plants from cacti and water lilies to red hot pokers! The treetop walkway, which was 118 steps to the top, gave us spectacular views of the treetops and the gardens below, and was also a highlight for many of the children. YEAR 3 TEACHERS
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Summer Concert The Summer Concert was a fabulous event – one of the musical highlights of the year. 18 of the Beechwood ensembles delighted the packed audience to a wonderful variety of different pieces, including a bubble machine for the very first time! All players came together for a rousing finale performance of Uptown Funk - a fitting end to a busy year in the Music Department! Thank you so much to all the pupils and staff for your tireless work which made this concert such a success.
JANE LODGE
Choirs’ Concert An impressive 132 pupils from the Year 2 to Top Form, all of whom belong to one of Beechwood Park's six Choirs, came together and delighted a packed Performance Hall of friends and relatives with their beautiful singing. There was a huge range of songs, delivered with smiles, enjoyment and musicianship and it was wonderful to see the progression made from the younger to older pupils. Everyone left the concert positively buzzing.
JANE LODGE
Year 2 Instrument Demonstrations The Year 2 children descended on the Music Department in order to try out almost every instrument we teach at Beechwood – from harp to marimba, oboe to tenor horn. The music staff and pupil helpers from Year 3 to Top Form gave the Year 2 pupils a real taster of these instruments. The place was literally alive with musical sounds from every corner and there was a liberal smattering of smiley faces. Everyone had a wonderful time and nearly the whole year group are looking forward to learning an instrument in September!
Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter
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Post Common Entrance and Sport Post Common Entrance
This year’s Top Form Post Common Entrance week was as busy as always and included a wide range of different talks, trips and experiences. The pupils listened attentively to talks on the perils of binge drinking and
the dangers and consequences of drug use, as well as information on keeping safe on the internet. They used their designing and persuasive skills as they faced the Dragons in the Den and put newly learnt First Aid skills into practise on some willing bodies placed around the school. Thank you to Mr Davies and Mrs Humphreys for their input in these two areas. More ‘bodies’ were involved later in the week when the Top Form put on their lab coats and became forensic detectives. This tied in very nicely with the mock Magistrates Court set up by Mr Osman the next day. The pupils found this fascinating and a few even commented that this had definitely confirmed the career path that they want to pursue! Our day in London was extremely wet but it didn’t dampen spirits. We were fortunate enough to see Old Beechwoodian, Alan Duncan MP, (he recognised the sea of maroon blazers from a distance!) followed by a really interesting and informative tour of the Houses of Parliament. Pupils spent the afternoon at the Churchill War Rooms, a place we could have spent all day in. Continuing with the political theme, we were fortunate to have Mike Penning MP, visit us as well. He gave the Top Form an insight into his life as an MP and the many different roles and responsibilities he has had.
Newly Trained First-Aiders
Swimmers Help Dacorum to Victory!
During Citizenship Week, I ran a first aid course for the Top Form. We learnt about the Primary Survey to check if someone is breathing, and what decisions are needed depending on the outcome. We covered Asthma, experiencing what it might feel like to be asthmatic by moving around and breathing through a straw – it was a lot harder than they thought! We learnt what to do if someone is having an asthma attack, and how to help them. We had a lot of fun with the Choking Simulator vest; we got to practice doing back-slaps, and abdominal thrusts, and found out who could propel the choking hazard the furthest! Most importantly, the Top Form learnt CPR and how to resuscitate someone who is not breathing, which could help to save someone’s life. They then went round the School to find real ‘casualties’ who had fallen unconscious in all sorts of hazardous places! We have a new generation of lifesavers!
Beechwood Park was represented by a number of pupils at this year's Herts Primary Schools' Inter-District Swimming Gala at the beginning of this term. Ten Beechwood swimmers were part of the 32 strong squad and helped to lead Dacorum to victory. This is the first time since 2001 that Dacorum have won the event – a fantastic achievement for all those involved. Well done to Alasdair, Kieran, Jack, Max, Luci, Isabella from Year 6 and Fergus, Vivienne, Harry and Toby from Year 5.
CLAIRE HUMPHREYS
MAIRI MACNAUGHTON
IAPS Swim Success Beechwood Park’s swimming squads took part in the IAPS National Swimming Finals at the K2 Leisure Centre in Crawley. It was a fantastic day for our teams with our U11 boys taking 4.31 seconds off their medley qualifying time bringing them into 6th position in the country. Meanwhile, Kieran, Joshua and Henry all made it through to the finals with fantastic individual results - both Kieran & Henry came in 6th and Joshua came in 4th in the country. In fact, the boys’ squad all took between 1 and 3 seconds off their qualifying times in the individual strokes. The girls also enjoyed success, beat their qualifying times making it through to the finals where Isabella went on to take silver and beat her personal best time. An amazing day for BPS swimming!
National Aquathlon Beechwood Park had an army of pupils at this year’s National Aquathlon, held at Caterham School on 7th June. The team had great success with special mentions going to Thomas C (3rd), Alasdair W (2nd), Isabella (2nd), Freddie S (3rd), Robert Q (1st), Luke T (1st), Alex H (1st). The Aquathlon consists of a swim and then run – with the distances varying depending on age group. The sun shone for the children during the afternoon and they all thoroughly enjoyed the event. As the presentations took place, the heavens opened and it was time for the journey home in what seemed like a tropical storm! CLARE LECKIE-HARBORD
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Mr Ed Sayer, another Old Beechwoodian, and Vice President of Production and Development at the Discovery Channel, came to talk about his work in television and some of the programmes he has been involved in. He showed clips of the making of 'T-Rex Autopsy' which was so incredibly realistic and just a little gory! The Top Form were then whisked off for a week of high octane thrills and spills at Skern Lodge – as always, a week not to be missed!
Sport
PAGE X ESSA Finalists! For the first time, both our girls' and boys' teams qualified for the ESSA National Primary Team Relay Swimming Finals (in both freestyle and mixed stroke events), held in Sheffield. The U11 Boys came 7th nationally in the mixed stroke relay (there are approximately 17,000 primary schools in England!) and the U11 Girls knocked 5 seconds off their qualifying time for mixed stroke. This is an outstanding achievement, congratulations to all of you. U11 Boys: Kieran B, Max C, Edward R, Alasdair W; U11 Girls: Isabella C, Luci S, Olivia M, Vivie F
KYLIE-PAUL LE BAS
District Kwik Cricket Champs At the beginning of June the U11 BPS girls attended the District Girls Kwik Cricket Tournament for the second year running. They were up against some tough competition with 14 other schools competing for the title. There were 3 opposing teams in our group, battling it out to get through to the knock out stages. The girls did the School proud by not only winning all three matches in their group, but winning the semis and finals! Stop Press: The Team came 2nd in the County Finals – very well done, girls! ADRIENNE HORN
Played
Won
Lost
1st XI
5
4
1
2nd XI
6
4
2
3rd XI
6
3
3
4th XI
4
3
1
Colts A
8
6
2
Colts B
7
7
0
Colts C
7
5
2
Colts D
4
3
1
Colts E
4
3
1
Colts F
3
3
0
Total
54
41
13
Victores Ludorum Year 7 & Top Swimming Gala Year 7: Henry F Top Form: Luke T
Summer Sports House Competition Results 2015 Form 4
Form 5
Overall
1st
Stewart
Stewart
Sebright
Stewart
2nd
Tudor
Sebright
Stewart
Sebright
3rd
Saunders
Saunders
Tudor
Saunders
4th
Sebright
Tudor
Saunders
Tudor
7
CLARE LECKIE-HARBORD
Rounders Results Summer Term 2016 Played
Won
Drawn
Lost
4
2
1
1
U11 B
4
2
1
1
U11 A
2
1
0
1
U10 A
3
2
0
1
U10 B
3
1
0
2
U10C
1
1
0
0
Total
17
9
2
6
Senior School Sports Day Results
Middle School Sports Day Results Form 3
The sun was out for our Year 3 girls when they took part in a rounders festival against Chesham Prep. We had three teams playing in our lovely grounds, all with huge smiles on their faces as they played their very first rounders matches. The girls did brilliantly and showed off their new skills to the delight of watching parents. The afternoon ended with welldeserved refreshments. Well done Year 3, you were fantastic!
U11 A
Form 6
Form 7
Top Form
Overall
1st
Saunders
Stewart
Sebright
Stewart
2nd
Stewart
Tudor
Stewart
Saunders
3rd
Tudor
Sebright
Saunders
Sebright
4th
Sebright
Saunders Tudor
Tudor
House Swimming Gala Results Form 3
Form 4
Form 5 & 6 Form 7 & Top
1st
Stewart
Stewart
Stewart
2nd
Tudor
Saunders Saunders
Tudor Stewart
3rd
Saunders Sebright
Tudor
Saunders
4th
Sebright
Sebright
Sebright
Tudor
This term we attended the IAPS London Area Athletics meeting at Eton where a number of our pupils achieved personal bests and produced some remarkable results. Isabella C (2nd in Long Jump), Zara W (2nd in Javelin) and Robert Q (2nd in the 1500m) will all represent the London Area at the National finals in Birmingham. The relay team; Isabella C, Elizabeth M, Phoebe A-M and Zara W were simply outstanding reaching the final and finishing a very credible third. A great achievement for all the team. There were many other great performances on the day at Eton. These included Elizabeth M in the Hurdles and 200m, Gabriella W who finished 3rd in High Jump and Isabella C who reached the finals of the 100m. Theo H and George C both achieved personal bests to reach the finals in the 200m and Euan R came 4th in the 1500m. Stop Press: At the National finals in Birmingham, Isabella C won bronze in Long Jump and Robert Q ran a sub 5 minute personal best in the 1500m. JAMES BARRINGER AND GILL RUSSELL
Year 3 Rounders Festival Cricket Results Summer Term 2016
IAPS Athletics 2016
Golf Triumphs In June, Eddie and George from Year 4 and George from Year 7 took part in the ISGA Golf Junior Open held at Sunningdale Ladies Golf Course. Despite tricky and uncomfortable conditions, all three boys performed very well against some stiff competition. A big well done though in particular to George from Year 4 who finished in second place overall in the Stableford competition while Eddie finished second place Gross U10's and second place Nett Overall. Well done, boys! CHRIS KNELLER
Victor/Vixtrix Ludorum Senior Sports Day Year 6 Girls: Isabella C Year 6 Boys: Oscar C Year 7: Robert Q Year 8: Max B
Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter
7
BPSPA
BPSPA, Alumni and House News
A Summer of Events
A fantastic summer Breeze filled the air at our first ever Beechwood Breeze event. We welcomed over 350 Breezegoers on the night treating them to a delicious hog roast, unlimited ice-cream, jugs of Pimms, live music and fairground games. It really was the Best of British! Thank you so much to everyone who helped to make it such a success, especially Alex Morris (Event Chair), Nikki McBride, Louise Lynes, Pippa Ridout, Rob and Jo Parker, Caroline Child, Miss Wilks, the Maintenance Team and Pam Robson.
BPSPA Fundraising Projects Our children simply adore being in the woods! The ‘Down in the Woods’ project is an exciting one for the BPSPA to be involved with. Working together with Mrs Le Bas (Forest School Teacher) we look forward to seeing how our woodland evolves. Over the next few years we are hoping to raise considerable funds (our goal is £20,000) to provide a woodland shelter/outdoor classroom as well as natural play equipment. But it isn't just Forest School children who will benefit; the whole school will be able to enjoy this outside space. From Woodlanders to Top Form, it will be there for all our children to enjoy! You will hopefully be aware of the fantastic work that the BPSPA is doing to raise funds for our school and other charities. We wanted to take this opportunity to remind you about the Match Funding scheme and how a little bit of your time could double the funds we raise. We would be grateful if you could see if your employer has a match funding scheme, or if they are willing to match fund any of our events. If your company can help, please get in touch!
Old Beechwoodians, don’t forget to join the closed Facebook group ‘Beechwood Park School Alumni’.
Speech Day was extra special for the committee this year as we had commissioned a new award which was donated to the school. The Keech Shield recognises an individual child or group of children who have shown great kindness and caring towards others. We were thrilled to see it awarded for the first time to Darcy for his fundraising for Diabetes UK. Fun Night transported us back to the Wild West and what an incredible end to the year it was! The organisation of Fun Night has been allocated to Year 3 parents and we are grateful for the hard work that they put in. Thank you to Michelle Morris (Event Chair) for her incredible organisation skills, Carly Jacques (Junior Tent), Louise Plunkett (Tickets and Website), Sarah Ashley (Treasurer), Jenna Hockley and Debbie Cloake (Bar), Anne Manon and Ali Swift (Refreshments), Nora Foxcroft (Raffle), Vanessa Imondi (Tombola), Sarah Willan (Sweets), Laura Newton-Smith (Glow sticks), Fran Brown and Katie Diamond (Battle Field Live) and all the wonderful parents who have given their time to organise and
run stalls. We are also so grateful to all the members of staff who have supported us in the run up to Fun Night and on the night itself. Mr Ridley for coordinating staff helpers, Angie Travis and her Catering team, Pam Robson and the Maintenance Team, Keith Field, Mrs Dalkin and the Junior Department Teachers (for being such good sports with the Wanted Posters), Mrs Hegarty, Miss Blasquez and Ben Vasey (Cheerleading Coach) for the amazing Wild West Dancers, Miss Wilks and Mrs Davidson for help with the decor and judging the ticket competition. This half term our children were also treated to a weekly ice lolly stall; thank you to Mrs Dalkin and Angie Travis for supporting us and all those parents who gave their time to help out. It was an incredibly successful fundraiser and we hope that it will become an annual event.
Looking Forward
Don’t forget, the BPSPA website is the best place to find photos, information and news about all our events and fundraising projects. We are incredibly grateful to all the parents who offer their time, support and donations. At this time of year many of our class and year reps move on, and on behalf of the committee I would like to thank them for their help and input over the year. We are also looking forward to meeting the new reps who will be joining us in September. When I took up my role as BPSPA Chair in January 2015 I didn’t realise how rewarding it would be! My two years in post are slowly coming to an end and I will be stepping down at the AGM in January. The committee will be looking for my replacement after the summer holidays. If you’d like to step into my shoes or just find out more about what is involved please get in touch. Good luck to all those who are leaving us at the end of term to follow new adventures. Wishing you all a very happy and hopefully sunny holiday. See you in September!
Our first social event of the new school year will be the ever popular Quiz Night, hosted by last year’s winning team, which includes our very own Headmaster! Put the date in your diary (Saturday 8th October) and get your team together. We are pleased to be holding our third Family Photo Day next term. As you may know, only individual photographs (no siblings or groups) will be taken of your children. If you'd like a group photo, book a place at this year's Family Photo Day (Saturday 1st October). Other dates for your diary include Bonfire Night (Saturday 5th November), a Christmas Wreath Making Workshop (Tuesday 6th December, 09.00-11.00) and the Christmas Fayre (Saturday 26th November). The Junior and Middle School Discos will take place in February 2017, however we need two teams of parents to run the events. This is a lovely event to be involved in, and a full hand-over and support will be given. If you think you might be able to help please email the committee.
CARLY JACQUES - BPSPA CHAIR
Transformation of the Woods Fifteen parents joined us for a Forest School Working Party on a lovely sunny day in June. Cakes were on offer to tempt them to come along and help out; they certainly deserved a lovely slice of one of Angie’s cakes after some hard physical labour in the woods! We achieved an enormous amount in just one day – the pupils couldn’t believe the difference when they next came out to the woods. Mums and dads joined in with painting the shed, chopping down branches, clearing new paths, installing a water butt and guttering, organising wood for the chipper and laying down the bark chippings on the paths, building a pallet hut and ladder and generally tidying up and making a nicer space. A huge thank you to everyone involved and especially Mr Pearson who chipped wood all day long and Mr Morris, from High Elms, who delivered extra wood chippings and a beautiful log bench.
BECKY LE BAS
We welcome suggestions, contributions and news of Beechwoodians, past and present, which can be sent to Julia Rouse at J.Rouse@beechwoodpark.herts.sch.uk Please check the School’s website for more information: www.beechwoodpark.com