The Park Post summer 2019 by Shelleys the Printers Ltd

Summer 2019

The

Park Post From The Head Change is an aspect of life that some may find frightening, challenging and unsettling, but we all have to change. Although change can be linked very closely, at the same time, with remaining fundamentally the same… Our school has undoubtedly changed; for the better, and it will continue to evolve. The Dalai Lama says: “Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.” Many people have related to me during the course of this year, that it is abundantly clear that The Park School values hold strong; our ethos, Christian values and motto of Trust, Respect and Friendship all remain evident irrespective change. Our raison-d’être, our pupils, have adapted well and continue to be kind, considerate and proud of their school.

There is much talk in education at the moment about the importance of STEM subjects, and we are enhancing this further as STEAM: Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths. In addition to our current offering of subjects we are in discussion with Yeovil College to see where we can work together. For example, to offer a mutually-beneﬁcial subject exchange programme in topics such as GCSE Engineering. There is much to explore, but the future is exciting and I believe we can be at the forefront of this expansion, as long as We are on:

we are prepared to change. A Chinese proverb states: “When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.” Look out for the windmills here!

With windmills in mind, we are working towards becoming an Eco-School and have appointed Dr Mort as our Eco-Teacher to lead this initiative. Our School Councils have already met to launch this programme and many exciting ideas are in the planning stages. As a starter, we are adopting a new blazer made from recycled plastic bottles from September and to eliminate single-use plastic bottles we now offer cans of water in addition to encouraging use of our water fountains. Gardening club plans to build a poly-tunnel in the new term from recycled plastic bottles and will grow vegetables for the kitchen. We cannot tell what will happen in the future but as long as we embrace change and are excited by it, we will succeed. There will be challenges for us all and they will come in all shapes and sizes. They may

be personal to us, or they may affect the world in which we live. Let us help our children to become hard-working, funloving, resilient individuals, who will become successful, responsible adults to lead our world and sustain it for future generations.

Jane Huntington Head

Independent Day School 4-18

News round up New School Chaplain

Many different activities in school contribute towards the awarding of Stunt Cup that is presented to the House with the highest number of points each term. Activities that earn points include House quizzes, service merits, inter-house sports competitions, fundraising activities, talent show, sports points and tutor points.

The Stunt Cup

Over the course of this year, each House led a whole school assembly and organised a fundraising event for the NSPCC who received a cheque for over £365. Thanks go to Livingstone whose cake sale raised £68, Muller collected money in Smarties tubes and raised £57, Shaftesbury put the teachers in the stocks and raised £93 and Slessor held a Mufti Day and raised £147.

The highlight of the year has been the whole school fundraising event to twin our toilets – you can read about that elsewhere in this magazine – but we raised enough money to build a school toilet block in two different schools, another excellent achievement.

This term the Stunt Cup has been awarded to Müller with a score of 761 points. Shaftesbury was in second place with 707 points, Livingstone came third with 681 points and in fourth place was Slessor with 640 points.

I would like to say a big thank to everyone who supported our House activities in any way this year and I hope you are looking forward to even more House events next year!

Mrs Richards

The school is delighted that Revd Ron Martin, who is a parent and school Governor, has taken on the role of School Chaplain. Revd Martin has been busily planning and developing ideas for this new role and we are certain that he will be a valuable addition to our community. Ron will also be revitalising our Christian Union, which is an important part of our school life and an opportunity for students to meet and feel comfortable with their faith, or at least to explore what this might mean.

In addition to our Facebook and Twitter accounts, we're delighted to now have a presence on LinkedIn and we'd love to get reconnected with past pupils and staff. www.linkedin.com/school/the-parkschool-yeovil/ Please join us and pass it on if you are still in contact with other old friends of The Park.

Thank you PTA!

We’re privileged to have an enthusiastic PTA who have worked tirelessly over the past year on a number of exciting events. Not only do these events raise money for different projects but they also contribute to the wonderful community and family character of the school. The school would like to acknowledge the hard work that the PTA has put in this year with the following events: Picnic in the Park, Barn Dance, Christmas Fayre, Breakfast with Santa, Easter Bingo, Mothering Sunday Pop Up Shop, Sports Day refreshments and the Summer Fete.

Funds raised have contributed to the Prep School Easter Egg Hunt, a new rugby strip, the new outdoor classroom and landscaping, a 2D cutter for DT and a deﬁbrillator, which is positioned outside the school gates in order that it is accessible not only for us, but also for the village. Like to join? Contact Kim Banks, Chair kimbanks@btinternet.com

Speech Day

In a marquee bursting at the seams, parents, grandparents and guardians were welcomed into school for the annual awards day at the end of the academic year. Over a 100 prizes were awarded, not only for academic achievements but also for sporting attainments, artistic and musical endeavours and outstanding service in the school community. We also welcomed a new Chair of Governors, Mr Gareth Price, who oversaw the prizegiving and who recounted an anecdote likening the school pupils to flavoursome fillings in a cake; a subject that all of the audience could relate to. The event was beautifully punctuated with performances by the school choir, prep school choir, senior girls choir and the school band.

Mrs Guthrie, Director of Sport also gave a moving speech in honour of Mr Larry Tulett who after twenty years leading sport and athletics at The Park, has retired. Mr Tulett leaves a legacy of The Tulett Cup which shall be awarded to the house who

triumphs each sports day from now on. The inaugural winners were Livingstone, coincidentally Mr T's own house!

As is traditional on these occasions, the Senior Prefects had an opportunity to give a farewell speech. Chris, Head Boy, delivered a meaningful address on the surprising subject of 'failure', recalling how his own disappointments in the past had helped him gain focus for his aspirations. Head Girl, Kamakshi, presented an amusing speech recounting memories of her younger, shy self. She encouraged younger pupils to break out of their timidness and reticence to embrace all opportunities in life. Her message of 'what have you got to lose?' was powerful.

Flushed with success

In May the whole school came together to raise much needed money for Toilet Twinning - a water and sanitation initiative run by Tearfund, a Christian relief and development charity. Housebased activities involved a cake sale, throwing competition, relay and water carrying event, a quiz and ‘spending a penny’ to create a coin picture. We’re delighted to report that the school raised almost £500 which is enough to build two toilet blocks in Malawi in a community where people currently don’t have somewhere safe and hygienic to go to the toilet. Thank you to everyone who took part so enthusiastically and especially to Mrs Richards for organising the event and for being such a good sport!

The School's PTA followed the formal part of the day with another exciting Summer Fete complete with traditional stalls and games - the tugof-war proving to be most competitive!

News round up

Arabian Nights Pre-empting this summer’s re-release of the Disney classic Aladdin, our Prep School staged its own Arabian-inspired production of Scheherezade in April. The play drew on the talents of a dedicated team directed by Mrs Fisher. Credits should be given to the entire cast, George & Luke on lighting detail, Mr Rice who superbly managed the music, Mrs Gifford and team for the fantastic set and props, and to everyone involved in hair and make-up.

Chemistry Compositions

Students were invited to compose poems to mark the International Year of the Periodic Table, here are the two joint-winners.

Poem of some non-metals by Callum, Year 7

Boron is in Borax to help you make slime, It's rarely in its purest form – that's polycrystalline. Carbon is in CO2, it is everywhere, It helps our plants to grow and it is in the air.

Nitrogen is colourless it's in the atmosphere, Plants need it to survive, we are lucky it is here.

If there were no oxygen humans would be dead, It runs through our veins and travels to our head. Silicon is in the sun and stars, You never know it could be on Mars!

Arsenic is toxic and will kill you without doubt, So be careful who you are messing with if arsenic's about. Poland is how Polonium got its name, But also it is how Marie Curie got her fame.

The Periodic Table Poem by Georgiana, Year 7

Radon is radioactive do not touch, Do not eat it with your lunch.

Carbon’s atomic number is 6, Don’t put it on your Weetabix.

Neon glows like a star, You can see it from afar.

Gold is very shiny, It can be quite tiny.

Calcium makes your bones grow strong, Don’t get me wrong.

Oxygen helps you breathe, It comes from the trees.

Hydrogen is hard to ﬁnd, Actually, you know never mind.

Chlorine is found in pools, Don’t drink it, don’t be a fool.

Nitrogen’s atomic number is 7 Sodium’s is 11.

The periodic table isn’t that hard, You can ﬁt it all on a card.

Piano Practice makes Perfect

The Adventures of Swallows & Amazons

In June, many of our Prep School pupils enjoyed a residential experience at Hengistbury Head outdoor centre, where they spent a busy week away from home taking part in many new and challenging activities. Split into two groups, they were nicknamed ‘Swallows’ and ‘Amazons’ which created a healthy competition. The exciting schedule included dragon boat racing, high ropes, sailing & rafting, kayaking and paddle boarding, archery and climbing. Not forgetting the opportunity for a barbeque, campﬁres and hot chocolate, all of which are very important parts of the experience.

“I had an amazing time with my friends and loved every minute. Thank you to the teachers for organising it and to the instructors at the centre. They were incredible and so supportive.”

Around the World

Emilia, Year 6

Students taking piano grade exams this term have been awarded some of the highest honours: Alma, Emilia and Georgiana (year 6) all achieved Distinction in their grade 1 piano, with Alma also going onto gain Distiction in her Graded 2. Matilda (year 8) was awarded a Merit in her Grade 1 piano, whilst her sister Daisy (year 8) achieved Distinction in her Grade 2. Jack (year 8) also achieved Pass in Grade 2 piano. Congratulations to them all!

In June the year 3-6 Prep school pupils were treated to a most enjoyable carousel of mini language lessons, prepared and taught by members of year 8. They were enthusiastic participants in eight different language lessons including Hungarian, Portuguese, Dutch, Norwegian, Welsh, German, Mandarin and Polish. Well done to all those who took part!

Mrs Gordon

Iris D, Year 11

News round up

Engineering Club Win at Donington

Engineering club celebrated a fantastic win in May when they became the first school club to build a motorbike, enter it into a race and win at Donington Park as part of a BMRC (British Motorcycle Racing Club) event.

The Big Art Competition

The PTA organised a popular art competition this term on the theme of reimagining our school crest and to incorporate our new home at Chilton. Mrs Briggs was delighted with the many entries and awards were given to: Pictures attached to go with this article. Isobel in the Pre-Prep, Olamide in the Prep, Oliver D in Year 8 and Iris in Year 9. Congratulations to all!

The club includes Sixth Former Chris and Oliver C, Oliver C and Oliver H from year 11, and is run by Physics teacher Mr Gill, who himself is a motorbike race winner having won the Mellano Trophy for being the Champion of Champions at the British Motor Cycle Racing Club (BMCRC) in 2017.

It was an exciting race and our bike won by only a fraction of a second in the full power Formula 400cc championship category, ridden by a professional rider.

“This type of project has been really good for the pupils; it’s opened their eyes to how the work they do in class can be applied in the real world. We have used many concepts taught at GCSE to help us rebuild, from electrical circuits to gear ratios.” reported Mr Gill. “To my knowledge there hasn’t been a school team enter the full power class before and we competed against teams with budgets far in excess of ours.”

A Night at The Oscars

This year’s Summer Ball was held at The Northover Manor in June. The theme was ‘A night at the Oscars’ and the function room was decorated exquisitely with all things resembling Hollywood glamour.

Oliver D, Year 8

With everyone dressed beautifully for the occasion, the paparazzi awaited us upon arrival and photographs were taken in the beautiful Northover gardens. After a delicious dinner, a most enjoyable Oscars ceremony ensued. Oscar awards were presented for a vast and unusual array of categories but the room was ﬁlled with laughter throughout. The night continued with dancing and music and everyone had a superb time, revelling in the glitz and glamour of the evening.

Lauren, Year 11

Wheels of Revolution

In April Year 8 students visited Morwellham Quay in Devon to discover more about life during the Industrial Revolution.

They gained hands-on experience of rock breaking, which all children (from the age of 7 or 8) would have had to do for between 8 and 12 hours a day. A rope-

making experience culminated in a tug of war competition but was actually the way in which ropes were stretched to prevent them from becoming twisted.

Travelling underground to the copper mine added depth (pardon the pun!) to the experience, although the group went by train rather than walking and pushing a

Enterprise Day

wheelbarrow. The darkness and dripping water provided plenty of shrieks.

The Victorian school proved a reality check in terms of classroom expectations and methods of punishment, most students being pleased that things have changed!

Mrs Richards

On a gorgeous afternoon towards the end of term, budding entrepreneurs in our Prep School organised a mini-market selling their wares. Having planned and organised their business ideas during lesson time, they considered products, prices and promotional activities with great effect. Ideas included stalls selling home-made cakes and drinks, horse-shoe decorating, smoothie-making, second hand books, cuddly toys and even pony rides. An impressive total of £363 proﬁt was made - A fantastic afternoon with some unique ideas!

GCSE & A-Level Art Gallery

Alice P

Joni C

Danisha K

Here is just a small selection of this year’s GCSE and A-Level Art, Craft & Design students’ work. It’s always so difficult to select only a few for the magazine; see more in our online galleries.

Hannah H

Jeffrey C

Art

Celebrating

Young artists at The Park School have been celebrating multiple successes again at an ISA Art Competition and in the ArtsAward scheme.

Charlotte G

Lauren B

In the regional ISA competition Danisha (year 11) won first prize in the Key Stage 4 category for her Pheasant, on the theme of ‘Fragments’ made with real pheasant feathers. In year 13, Joni won first prize in the Key Stage 4 textiles category with her artwork Flowers inspired by Oriental art using mixed media textiles and print-making techniques. In Key Stage 3 runner-up awards also went to Lucy’s (year 8) Cubist-style painting of a tree, Charlotte’s (year 8) Reflections textile piece based on water reflections in a pond, and a group Oceanic art project by Lily, Abigail and Laura (all year 8) of an authentic Polynesian costume. The two winners will go to the National final in November.

Silver arts

Charlotte G and Lauren B, (year 11), have achieved their Silver Arts Awards this term having worked hard over a two-year programme to complete a thorough project brief. They have achieved a recognised externally-moderated award that will enhance their CVs especially if they choose to follow a career in the creative arts. The moderator commented: "These are exceptional Silver Arts Award portfolios, with ﬁrst class artwork included. Great painting by both young people, well-organised work, excellently reflected upon. Very creative work and great communication skills. All beautifully presented. Well done!" Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with news

Sports round up...

Duke of Edinburgh

From the beginning of the year, our largest ever group met every Tuesday evening in the activity slot. We enjoyed some short walks in the Chilton area, focusing on map-reading skills and compass work. We also practised putting up tents, cooking on Tranjias, basic first aid, route planning, and teamwork exercises. It was a productive and enjoyable time.

Of course, the expedition is only one element in DofE, so in the Spring Term, focus shifted to each student's physical, skill, and volunteering sections. Our students volunteered in libraries, learned musical instruments, helped with junior clubs, gave time to community shops and more - such a vast range of valuable enrichment.

Just before Easter, there was a residential to Bodmin Moor when the groups experienced conditions that they would face on Exmoor and Dartmoor. We stayed in a large Farmhouse in Tintagel, which was a real 'Famous Five' experience. The Summer Term focussed on preparations for the expeditions: Planning routes, drawing tracings,

writing route cards, packing bags, and buying blister plasters â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the practice expedition following the Parrett Trail in Somerset. Shortly after, the Bronze groups spent two very wet days on Exmoor but showed tremendous resilience as they battled real peasoup conditions to press forward to the end. Two weeks later the Silver group took to Dartmoor in improved weather conditions. As the last team lumbered, weary and heavy-laden, to the top of their final Tor, I couldn't help being just a little sad that DofE was over for another year. It was 12 months of superb fun and high achievement. We are very proud of our students.

Mr Coles Duke of Edinburgh Award Leader

This year has seen The Park School pupils enter and compete in a wide range of sporting events. Pupils from across the range of years have participated in local district leagues playing various sports including Hockey, Basketball, Football, Netball, Rounders and Cricket. A highlight being the U13 Netball team reaching the district ďŹ nals.

We have also represented at a selection of National events including Swimming, Netball, Cross-Country, Triathlon, Biathle and Athletics. Some of these events are stand-alone competitions but most required pupils to qualify through regional rounds making it more impressive if achieved. A few special mentions must go to Abbie White (y11) who defended her ISA National Triathlon title for the third time, to Holly White (y8) who qualified for four national ISA events and to Helena Cox (y7), who in her first year, represented the South West ISA team at two national events. We enjoyed two sunshine-filled days for our two whole school events. The swimming gala displayed a wonderfully inclusive spirit and although many races were competitive, pupils finished their own race and then cheered on opposing houses which was pleasing to witness. Congratulations to the Muller team which was the victorious house.

Sports day saw 75 events competed in an excellent spirit and with strong participation by all the prep pupils who competed in the howler, hurdles, sprint and a long distance, and many senior students competing in either a throw, jump or run event. Exciting performances were seen and some slick relay changeovers made for an exciting afternoon. Congratulations to Livingstone for defending their title. We are also sadly saying goodbye to two colleagues and I would like to express my sincere thanks to Mr Tulett and Mr Cawley. Each has played a part in maintaining the foundations of sport in our school and it has been a pleasure to work with both of them. Mr Cawley leaves us at the beginning of his teaching journey and Mr T is retiring from teaching. What a fulfilling career he has had and how lucky we have been at The Park School to have had him in our community for twenty years.

Mrs Guthrie, Director of Sport

Valete

Larry Tulett

The Park School says goodbye to one of its longest-serving and highly-regarded teachers this year, Larry Tulett, who has taught sport and athletics at the school for twenty years. His teaching career spans 27 years and followed 28 years as a communications engineer and PT instructor in the army.

Larry continued ...

An unassuming team-player, Larry frequently spends his own time coaching and mentoring gifted students, especially in athletics, which is his love. Well-known in the local athletics and sporting community, Larry has enjoyed success at mentoring District, Regional and National sports and athletics champions over the last two decades and has earned status and influence in the broader local community as a coach and sports administrator. Mr T has coached the GB gymnastics U16 team, he has run a sub 3-hour marathon, and has been an International Athletics track official. He has officiated at many international events, including World Cups, Indoor European Championships and the 1984 Paralympic Games. Director of Sport, Alex Guthrie, expresses the feelings of the school “Mr Tulett is pupil-centered to the core, he is a compassionate, knowledgeable teacher who is respected by pupils and staff. It is no surprise that he regularly achieves outstanding results in BTEC sport. If you were to interview Park School’s past pupils, I have no doubt that Mr Tulett would be remembered fondly by most. On behalf of the Park School community, past and present, we wish him the most wonderful next chapter and a happy retirement.” In honour of Mr Tulett the school has created a new award The Tulett Cup to be given annually to the school house that wins sports day.

Richard Coles

Richard leaves The Park after eight years during which time he has progressed our Computer Science teaching so that we have been one of the first schools in this area to offer the subject right through the school from Prep to A-Level, and we are grateful to him for this innovation. He was originally appointed as a Maths teacher, but it soon became apparent that he had other talents and his role evolved into its present guise as Head of Religious Studies and Computer Science. He has also contributed greatly to our assembly programme as well as leading our Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme. Richard is a big act to follow, but we wish him very well in his new role at Kings of Wessex Academy.

Rachel Robson

Our Head of Boarding, Rachel has been with us for two years and during this time she has run an efficient and happy home for our boarders at Riverside. Rachel is relocating to Manchester and had wanted to move in April, so we are enormously grateful to her for agreeing to stay with us until the end of the year to oversee the closure of Riverside. She has helped a huge number of our students to find home-stay guardians locally, enabling them to remain at The Park as day pupils. We wish Rachel all the very best and hope she will stay in touch!

Ryan Cawley

Ryan sadly leaves us after two years to continue his teaching career in Australia. He has brought enthusiasm, a love of sport and an ethos of participation which has been central to the continued development of the school sport. He is an excellent teacher who cares about his pupils and has contributed in both academic and pastoral parts of school. He will be greatly missed in the sports department and throughout the school but we wish him well on his teaching journey.

Sheila Godden

Mrs Godden leaves us having worked in our laundry, sorting socks and washing and ironing clothes for our boarders for the last twenty years. When she began in 1999, she was paid only £3.50 an hour; her pay had increased since then! Sheila will celebrate her 80th birthday later this year and she now takes the opportunity to turn off her iron, put away her washing powder and enjoy her well-deserved retirement.

Victoria Marsh

Victoria has been with us for three years and moves to Leweston School in September. During this time, she has developed the English curriculum and led several theatre trips to instil in our students a love of literature. We are grateful to her for all she has done as Head of English and we wish her very well for the future.

Annie

Fresh from his brilliant performance as Oliver ‘Daddy’ Warbucks, Matthew, Year 10, tells us about his experience in the school production of ‘Annie’.

What did you enjoy about being part of the school show? The most enjoyable aspect would have to be drama week; the time where all of the cast & production team come together to create this wonderful performance, as some people say: ‘it’s not always the destination that counts, it’s the journey’. This is what made the school show what it was.

What was the hardest part of being in the play? For me, it’s the mornings! It is very hard to come ﬁlled with energy as soon as you go on stage, and after doing so for a week, you do feel somewhat tired. Luckily no one could hide from Mrs Baimbridge’s warm ups!

Dates

for your Diary

Tuesday 3 & Wednesday 4 September Wednesday 5 September Friday 13 September, 2.30pm Tuesday 24 September, 5.30pm Friday 27 September, 9.00am Friday 4 October, 2.50pm Thursday 10 October Thursday 17 October, 6.30pm Monday 21 Oct - Fri 1 November Monday 4 November Tuesday 5 November Thursday 7 November, 5.30pm Monday 11 November, 10.45am Wednesday 13 November, 5.30pm Tuesday 10 December, 4.00pm Friday 13 December, 2.00pm

INSET Days Term Starts New Parents' Tea Parents' Evening Y11 & Y13 PTA Macmillan Coffee Morning Harvest Festival, St James' Church Army Careers Morning Sixth Form Open Evening Half Term - Two weeks Term Resumes School Photos - individuals & siblings Academic Information Evening Y10 & Y12 Remembrance Day Service Parents' Evening Y9 Prep School Christingle Service Carol Service

How did you get into character? Getting into character was probably the easiest aspect this year, as I played a sad, posh billionaire; it was certainly something fun to get stuck into. To get into character, I began by saying the most posh words I could think of, some of which include: ‘British Isles’, ‘Tartare sauce’ and last, but not least, ‘National conglomerates’.

How did the performance go? The performance was a great success! Everybody enjoyed themselves as I am sure the audience did as well. The lighting was smooth, as were the music cues and the transitions between scenes were clean as can be. Thanks must go to all of the ‘behind the scenes’ helpers.

The Park School Chilton Cantelo Somerset, BA22 8BG

01935 850555 admissions@parkschool.com

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