CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2014
CHS DOES SPORT RELIEF TOP 100 SCHOOL CO-OPERATIVE NEWS AIMING HIGHER BBC SCHOOLS NEWS REPORT
HELLO... and welcome to the latest edition of In the Spotlight. The Spring Term was another action packed term with lots to reflect on. In January we were delighted to hear we had been officially acknowledged as one of the top 100 schools nationally for sustained improvement in GCSE results over the last 3 years. It was a busy term for our Co-operative Academy Trust as we held our first AGM and began engaging our students in our co-operative journey. Our talented drama and music students continued to wow audiences with some show stopping performances, from a Year 7 Murder Mystery play to our very own fashion show. We even saw three of our students selected to perform in a professional production of Lord of the Flies at the Lowry Theatre. Our Sport Relief Bake Off week raised a fantastic ÂŁ276 for Sport Relief, and we were overwhelmed by the creativity and baking talent of so many of our students! All of our achievements are only due to the hard work and dedication of our students, staff and parents and I want to thank them all. We hope you enjoy reading about all the successes and stories from the Spring Term, and we look forward to what the Summer Term will bring. CHRISTINE TAGGART COMMUNITY AND MARKETING OFFICER AND IN THE SPOTLIGHT EDITOR
INSIDE THIS ISSUE... CHORLTON HIGH IS A TOP 100 SCHOOL 1
LORDS OF THE DANCE
LIBRARY NEWS AND TOP AUTHOR VISIT 5
THEATRE AND FASHION SHOW NEWS 9
SPORT RELIEF HITS CHS
STUDENTS AIM HIGHER
6
10
2
DIGITAL SAFETY WEEK 3
SPORTING SUCCESS 12
BBC SCHOOL REPORT 8 CHORLTON HIGH GETS CO-OPERATIVE 4
TOP 100 SCHOOL
IT’S OFFICIAL In January 2014 we were personally congratulated by Schools Minister David Lawes for being in the top 100 schools nationally for sustained improvement in our exam results over the last three years. We received a letter from the Minster informing us that our improving results year on year for the number of pupils gaining five or more A*-C GCSEs including English and Maths, places up amongst the top 100 schools in the country when compared to the improvements made by other schools nationally. In the letter David Lawes said “the results are a shining testament to the hard work and success of your staff, Governors and pupils. I would like to offer my thanks to you and all at your school for your pursuit of the highest standards of education and achievement”.
We are very proud of our sustained achievements and the recognition this has brought from the Minister of State for Schools. We intend to build on this success and ensure even greater achievements for our students in the future. We would like to say thank you to all Staff, Students and Parents/Carers for all your hard work and support to make this significant achievement possible.
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
LORDS OF THE DANCE Matthew Bourne has produced some of the most successful dance theatre productions of the last 25 years including Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Now the company have brought to the stage a thrilling new dance production of William Golding’s classic novel Lord of the Flies, using young talent from around the North West. When we were offered the opportunity to hold a ‘Lord of the Flies’ Dance workshop at Chorlton High School in January 2014 for our aspiring male dancers to participate in, we jumped at the chance! The Chorlton High School Dance Department are a big fan of Matthew Bourne’s ‘New Adventures’ Dance Company and this opportunity excited us. We were told that the workshop could potentially lead to a performance place in the actual show, being performed at the Lowry in April, so we just couldn’t wait for our pupils to give it a go! The workshop lasted for two hours and was intense, with pupils learning key repertoire specifically from the professional show. All pupils were really engaged and put 150% effort into it. In total 600 boys around the North West region auditioned as part of the workshop process and we had to wait to
find out if any of their dancers had been successful in the first audition round. We were delighted to learn that four pupils had been chosen to go through to the next round of auditions with another 116 male dancers all ranging from 12-25 years. After a gruelling and intense weekend of dance and physical theatre auditions, we were delivered the good news that three of our pupils, Matthew Mantel (Year 8), Andre McCurdy (Year 9) and Caius Pritchard (Year 10), had been given places in the Lord of the Flies performance to make up the 24 strong cast of other successful auditionees. Year 9 student Andre McCurdy said “I enjoyed meeting new, talented dancers and using the competitive constructive environment to better my own skills. I’m excited for the final show and the audience’s reaction to the amazing work everybody involved has created.”
Year 7 student Matthew Mantel said “This is a great opportunity for my future as a dancer. Everyone was friendly and easy to work with and I look forward to the outcome of the show.” The three students performed at the Lowry Theatre from Wednesday 2nd April – Saturday 5th April 2014 and were amazing! Miss Carden said the performance was “Absolutely incredible! All of the boys looked very professional.” We are all very proud of their fantastic achievement and hope this reflects a bright future in dance! It wasn’t only current Chorlton High School students who starred in the final cast. The show also featured two Chorlton High School alumni: Michael Byers who is currently studying Dane at the Northern Ballet School, and Leon Moran who is a professional dancer in Matthew Bourne’s ‘New Adventures’ Company.
DIGITAL SAFETY WEEK RETURNS
Well done to all the students who helped deliver the Digital Safety assemblies throughout the week, they all did a fantastic job: Alex Barrett (Year 7), Hashim Mukhtar (Year 7), Ayan Bukhari (Year 8), Hope Lennox (Year 8), Maddie Anderson (Year 8), Oscar McQuillan (Year 9), Kofi Antwi (Year 11). We received lots of entries to the e-safety poster competition and were impressed by the quality and creativity of our students. There could, however, only be 6 winners, so congratulations to the winners who were: • Maddie Anderson (Year 8) • Kara Cecil (Year 7) • Jonah Jarrald (Year 7) • Alec Waters (Year 8) • Niamh Fenton (Year 9) • Oscar McQuillan (Year 9) Two Year 8 students who played an active role during Digital Safety Week shared their response to the week:
Following the success of last term’s Digital Safety Week, we decided to hold another during the Spring Term. This time the School Council played a key role in helping to promote digital safety by delivering assemblies to their peers throughout the week, as well as launching an e-safety poster competition.
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Miss Galbraith first approached us at a Whole School Council meeting about digital safety. We stated that we wanted more student involvement and for students to create the posters that would be displayed around the school. She was also looking for a small group of us to piece together an assembly all about digital safety which we would then go on to perform in front of each year group. The assembly began with a section on fake friends on the internet, discussing how it’s simple for someone to put a false name and age on an internet profile; you never know who you might be talking to online. Next we discussed checking whether a picture is fake or genuine. Maddie then went on to talk about thinking before you post and the dangers of posting in anger or irrationally. She also mentioned a social networking site called ‘snapchat’ and the dangers of this app. Next we discussed geo-tagging, an online phenomenon where anyone can track you and know your exact whereabouts using a certain program on the internet. We advised students how you can prevent this. Finally I informed everyone about the competition that school council is holding to design a poster with an important key message that will be displayed around the school.
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BY HOPE LENNOX (YEAR 8)
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I first heard about the Digital Safety Assembly when Miss Galbraith asked me if I wanted to take part, at first I was unsure what to do, it would be a completely new experience to me. Standing and talking in front of each year group seemed daunting at first. However, I decided to go along to the first meeting and at least participate in the making of the assembly. Creating the PowerPoint was fun, and I enjoyed learning about Digital Safety. After thinking about the actual assembly I realised that I had enjoyed making the presentation and contributing my ideas, so the chances were the assembly would be a positive experience too. Next we had to work on our presentation skills. I found this part of the assembly challenging as I was not confident in front of large numbers of people, but with practice and help from Miss Galbraith we were finally ready! On the 3rd February we had our first Assembly. I was extremely nervous as it was in front of year 11, but once I started speaking I knew that it was for a good cause and we were making a positive difference to our school. All in all, I had an amazing time making and presenting the digital safety assembly, and I also believe we got through to the students and helped them understand how to be safer and happier online.
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BY MADDIE ANDERSON (YEAR 8)
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
CHS GETS CO-OPERATIVE Over the Spring Term we have continued to progress our status as a Co-operative Academy. Here is a taster of our Co-operative Academy developments this term.
Our Co-operative Ambassadors at the People’s History Museum
FIRST CO-OPERATIVE TRUST AGM
On Tuesday 11th February 2014 we held the first Annual General meeting of our Co-operative Academy Trust. The meeting was open to all members of our Co-operative Trust (parents, staff, students and members of our local community) and despite a very cold night we welcomed lots of our co-operative members to our school. Headteacher Andy Park welcomed everybody and gave an overview of the activities and achievements of the school over the past year. This was followed by an overview of the financial accounts and an update on the co-operative development and future plans. Throughout the meeting members were treated to outstanding performances of dance, drama and music from some of our talented students. At the end of the meeting refreshments were served in our new extended dining area and informal networking and discussions took place regarding the future development of our Co-operative. We would like to thank everyone who came along and helped to make our first AGM a success.
CO-OPERATIVE AMBASSADORS
Twenty seven students from Years 7-10 took part in our Co-operative Development Day at the People’s History Museum on Thursday 6th March. The students were members of the Whole School Council plus students who volunteered because they have a passion for developing our co-operative status, including an interest in issues such as community development, fair trade and democracy. As ‘Co-operative Ambassadors’, the students will be taking a lead role in raising awareness of our school co-operative to their peers. The students first visited the ‘150 Years of the Co-operative Exhibition’ at the museum where they learned why the Co-operative has been such a successful business, and began to think about how this might be reapplied into the development of our school as a co-operative. The students were then given an overview on what a co-operative school is, and what being a co-operative means for Chorlton High School. It was then over to the students to give us ideas and ways in which as ‘Co-operative Ambassadors’ they could engage their peers in becoming co-operative members. We had some fantastic ideas and suggestions from the students and we were really pleased that they demonstrated such enthusiasm for the co-operative status of our school.
After a very tasty lunch provided by the Museum, the students went on to look at the co-operative values, and understand what they mean and how we can develop them within our school. The students showed an excellent understanding of the values and gave some really insightful suggestions. To round off the day the group then looked at how we could engage other students in our co-operative through our Extended Learning Days in the summer. We had some fantastic suggestions ranging from engaging more with the local community to developing team building and co-operative working skills. It was a fast-paced day and the students had a lot to absorb and think about. We are very pleased with the ideas and work they produced and we would like to thank all the students that came along and made the day such a success. We look forward to building on their ideas as we develop our student co-operative launch week which will take place during the Summer Term. We would also like to say a big thank you to the Peoples History Museum for supporting our day. If you’re not yet a member of the Chorlton High Co-operative Academy Trust, you can join at www.chorltonhigh.manchester.sch.uk/ become-member
EXCITING AUTHOR VISIT Award winning author Gareth P Jones visited Chorlton High School in March. Gareth is the author of Constable and Toop, a darkly comic Dickensian ghost story, which won the Chorlton Children’s Book Award in 2013.
ONE SCHOOL – ONE BOOK
“Gareth P Jones manages to tread a fine line between comedy and horror and it is precisely that dark quality that seems to delight his young fans” said Ms Hockey. Gareth talked to Year 7’s and Year 8’s in the Blue Box Theatre and used a mixture of story-telling and music to entertain the students. He brought along his famous Ukulele and performed the songs he had written to accompany each of his books. At the end of the day, Gareth met members of Creative Writing Club, for a special session talking about how to become an author and what makes a good story.
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I really enjoyed how he read the beginnings of his stories and left us on a cliffhanger. Saarah Ahmed, Year 8 It features a boy called Sam Toop, who lives in a funeral parlour and has an unusual gift. While his father buries the dead, Sam is haunted by their constant demands for attention. However, trouble is afoot on the ‘other side’ - there is a horrible disease that is mysteriously imprisoning ghosts into empty houses in the world of the living. Sam is caught in the middle - will he be able to bring himself to help?
The Library has copies of most of Gareth’s books, so why not give one of them a try?
LIBRARY LOYALTY COUNTS
Wonder by R J Palacio was chosen as Chorlton High’s “Whole School” book for Drop Everything and Read this year. Wonder is an incredibly moving and uplifting book about a boy called August, who was born with a terrible facial abnormality. Auggie wants to be an ordinary ten-year-old. He feels ordinary inside, but ordinary kids aren’t stared at wherever they go. It was the first time that the Library has chosen a book for the whole school and students and staff have been avidly reading the book throughout the second half of the Spring term. Pictures of everyone who has read the book have been displayed on a “Wonder” wall of fame in the library. Form groups have also been reading the book together during form time and 9ES produced an inspirational Assembly about the book and its central message which is to “Pledge to Choose Kind.” They talked about lots of examples where they themselves had chosen to be kind over the previous week, including opening doors for people, reading stories to younger brothers and sisters as well as making cakes for family and friends. Ms Gardner enjoyed the book so much that her Year 9 drama group have devised monologues and a play based on Wonder. “I absolutely loved the book” said Ms Gardner. “It made me laugh and cry.” “I have been overwhelmed by the reaction of staff and students to the book” said Ms Hockey. “It was one of the best books that I read last year and it has been wonderful to see so many people enjoying it.” If you still haven’t read this fantastic book, then come into the library and pick up your copy today!
Loyalty was definitely rewarded this term, as the winners of this year’s Library Loyalty Card Competition found out.
Our annual Drop Everything and Read photographic competition is always enjoyed by staff and students.
Students had been reading furiously for the second half of the Spring term, filling their loyalty cards with stamps every time they read a book. Congratulations to Hussain Shabbar Masalawala (Year 8) who won a £50 Amazon voucher, Ahmed Bendaw (Year 7) who won a £25 Amazon voucher and Noor Mustafa (Year 8) who won a £15 voucher. Well done to everyone who entered. It was wonderful to see so many students reading.
Photographs of staff reading books are put up all round school and students have to name the member of staff and the book they are reading. Congratulations to our winners, Manvi Mankhala (Year 8), Dae Jones (Year 8) and Javairia Hafiz (Year 8) who won some early Easter chocolate.
SPORT RELIEF HITS CHO THE GREAT CHS BAKE OFF During the week of 17th March 2014 we launched the CHS Sport Relief Bake Off to raise money for Sport Relief. Throughout the week we held a number of different fundraising activities to get students involved including a bake off competition, two technical challenges and culminating in a big cake sale. We were overwhelmed by the numbers of students wanting to get involved and the baking talent amongst our students. On Wednesday 19th March and Thursday 20th March students took part in our bake off technical challenges (sponge and pastry). Students were supplied with the basic ingredients but had to then work in pairs using their creativity to make their dish stand out in the hour time slot. We had some magnificent creations and were very impressed by the creativity and talent of our students. Throughout the week we encouraged students to keep baking and enter our bake off competition. We were overwhelmed by the number of cakes that had been entered into the competition with some truly outstanding entries. First prizes went to Daniel Pugh (Year 7) for an impressive ski jump creation and Maeve Callaghan (Year 9) for some individual Frappuccino cakes complete with mini straws. During break time the cakes that were entered into the bake off competition were then sold to staff and students. Over 500 cakes sold in 25 minutes raising an impressive £276! We would like to thank all the students and staff who got involved throughout the week and the guest judges of the technical challenges. We would also especially like to thank all the local businesses for their support by donating a range of fantastic prizes (Unicorn Grocery, Chorlton Bookshop, Post Box Café, The Barbakan Delicatessen, The Tea Hive, Juniper’s Café, and our caterers Manchester Fayre). You can find more photos from our bake off week on our website. From top left: Sponge technical challenge winners: Hannah Blackall and Zoe Hibbert (Year 7), Emma Kenny and Katie Marsden (Year 8). Pastry technical challenge winners: Alex Barrett and Anna Ballestrem (Year 7), Theo Peters and Rufus Horton (Year 7).
Above: Bake off competition winners Daniel Pugh and Maeve Callaghan with their prizes
RLTON HIGH
YEAR 7s LIVE ON BLUE PETER On Thursday 20th March we were invited to take along 10 Year 7 students to appear live on a Sport Relief Blue Peter show at Media City. This was the second time our school has appeared live on Blue Peter this school year, so we were very excited by the opportunity! To make it fair we chose the first 10 students who had signed up to get involved in our Sport Relief Bake Off.
Winter Olympic Skeleton gold medal winner. We got to see her medal which looked very big and heavy! Lina Elhassan thought “it was really fun and the presenters were really nice and friendly and made the experience enjoyable. I also really liked it because I took part in making flapjacks where I learned a new recipe”. We ended our Blue Peter experience eating the flapjacks that were made on the show. We all thought they tasted great!
Lily Norreys (Year 7) tells us about her Blue Peter experience: We arrived at Media City and were taken to our own room where we got ready for the show. After we had settled in, we were given Blue Peter badges by one of the producers, Laura. Then we were taken to watch Kian Egan from Westlife. Ruby Porter (Year 7) said: “We were really excited and I really enjoyed meeting the presenters and watching Kian perform.”
SPORT RELIEF MILE Baking wasn’t the only way we raised money for Sport Relief. Miss Roberts and her tutor group 9CR got sporty to raise money by doing the Sport Relief Mile after school on Wednesday 19th March raising £147.
After filming we went back for a break. Lily and Zoe were chosen to have a short interview with the presenters. On the set we met the Blue Peter presenters Lindsey, Radzi and Barnie. We had a chat with all of them and they were funny and really nice. Shortly after the break we had a dress rehearsal. Lina and Daniel were chosen to bake flapjacks with Lizzie Yarnald, the
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
CHS MAKES THE NEWS!
INSPIRING YOUNG MEN On Tuesday 14th January 2014 we hosted our first ‘Inspiring Young Males’ event. 80 of our young men from Years 9, 10 and 11 spent the afternoon in our Blue Box Theatre with 20 guest speakers, all of whom have had certain successes (as well as some failures) in their lives. Our boys had the opportunity to meet with the men for five minute ‘Power Meetings’, with the chance to learn about their stories, ask them questions, and reflect on their own futures.
On 27th March some of our students made the news for real as they took part in the BBC Schools News Report day 2014. The BBC School News Report gives 11-16 year old students in the UK the chance to make their own news reports for a real audience. The students began the day by began the day by gathering exciting news stories and writing dynamic scripts. They brainstormed ideas and put together a running order, before filming their footage and interviews with members of staff. The pupils were inspired by many important international news bulletins in their report. The missing Malaysian Airways plane and the recent decree issued by North Korea to regulate haircuts of the nation were discussed. They also presented local and topical issues such as the benefits of learning outside of the classroom. All of those involved worked really hard on the project all day. They learned a whole range of new skills such as camera work and script writing. Many of the students were inspired to consider a career in journalism and media at the end of today’s exhausting session. Future roving reporters in the making!
NEWS CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL
The Chorlton High News Team were: Jasmine Hulme-Kenny (Year 8) Inayah Hussain (Year 8) Joel Tragen (Year 8) Alex Barrett (Year 7) Cleo Smith-Prentice (Year 7) Chloe Rand (Year 7) Lily Cooper (Year 7) Kit McGregor-Stedward (Year 7) Belle Gascoyne (Year 7) Nell McLoughlin Garry (Year 7) You can watch their fantastic news production on our website!
100%
ATTENDANCE ACHIEVEMENT! Congratulations to Kofi Antwi (Year 11) who has achieved 100% attendance right from Year 7 through to Year 11!
The afternoon started with a motivational speech from Key 103’s ‘Drive Time’ host, Adam Catterall, and ended with some inspirational words from Headteacher Andy Park. For a little bit more of an insight into the impact that the event had on our students, please see some of their reflections below. “I found the ‘Inspiring Young Men’ afternoon incredibly useful and inspiring. I now feel much clearer on my future, and although I am not completely sure what it is I want to do, I now understand it is important for me to keep my options open, and to focus on what it is that I love doing.” “After yesterday’s career event I felt good about my chances of becoming successful. It was great to hear that many of these men have failed at something, but they have still gone on to be successful.” “After the event I felt inspired to focus in school and on my future goals. I also felt open minded that anything I set my mind to is possible.”
STAGEDOOR THEATRE COMPANY OPENING CREATIVITY
GUESS WHO?
When I first started as a Teaching Assistant at Chorlton High School I had the intention of starting a drama club that really pushed imagination and creativity, so I planned a course that would develop their skills through improvising and devising ghost stories using abstract techniques such as light and shadow and projected video to create a 3D effect on stage.
Following the success and popularity of the Am I Macbeth? Production in July 2013, our Drama Club has gone from strength to strength.
One of my students, Jonah Gourlay in Year 11, approached me asking if I would read the script he had written ‘Before I Die’, and if we are able to put it on within the drama club. After I looked over his script I was extremely impressed at the work and effort he had put into the script and I was touched by the themes it was exploring. I then decided to work with Jonah to develop his script; creating a clear structure and adding in some stage effects such as physical theatre, dramatic irony, music, set and staging. After three months of character development, physical theatre training, blocking, building parts of set and rehearsal, our performance of ‘Before I Die’ was ready for a paying audience. Because our performance was exploring the effects of cancer on the family, we thought that all the money raised through tickets sold should be donated to Cancer Research UK. Our first performance of ‘Before I Die’ raised an impressive £200 for Cancer Research UK. I believe that we performed a great play with even greater intentions and we are extremely proud of this accomplishment. BY AIDEN BELL, PERFORMING ARTS TEACHING ASSISTANT AND EX-PUPIL
CHS PROJECT RUNWAY
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I’m so impressed. Such authentic commitment to telling a story that really hit home. Beautiful music and singing. Congratulations to everyone.
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One of the most inspiring plays I have watched. The message behind it was not only touching but the actors did a fantastic job in showing the emotion.
On Thursday 27th March my GCSE dance class decided to do three performances to show off what we have learnt in class in the Blue Box Theatre in front of an audience of around 60. This performance consisted of Arts and Dance. A series of fashion pieces made by Year 9 Art and Fashion students were showcased, as well as donated clothing from various shops around Chorlton. To start off the night we performed a contemporary/samba called ‘Birds Of Paradise’. This was inspired from birds from the Amazon Rainforest. We wore dark green tops which fitted in with the theme of nature. Halfway through the showcase we performed ‘They came from the planet’. This piece was completely choreographed by students. We
On Thursday 16th January 2014 Year 7 and 8 Drama Club students kicked off 2014 by taking to the stage with a fabulous performance of Guess Who?, a whimsical murder mystery play that errs on the side of the ridiculous. It incorporated the glamour of the 1920s with the nostalgia of a retro-inspired radio production. The production allowed many young talents to experience, experiment with and showcase a wide range of acting techniques. Drama Club aims to encourage students to take every opportunity to be creative and independent in productions, and the show featured monologues written by the students, some self-directed scenes and numerous design contributions including the play’s name and programme cover. The next thrilling Drama Club project will be ‘10 Plays for 10 Years’, a celebratory production combining scenes from some of the plays that have been the traffic of the Blue Box Stage over the last 10 year. This will be performed in the Summer Term so watch this space! wore black tops which were splattered with neon paint and finger lights which gave an effect of almost ‘ET Hands’. Our final piece to round off the night was a 1920’s inspired piece influenced by ‘The Great Gatsby’. It had a mixture of Jazz and street in it. It involved a lot of footwork; however it only took a few lessons to put it together. It was very up-beat and eager as that’s what dance was like in the 1920s. Overall the night turned out very well, and it was a success! BY RUBY WARD (YEAR 9) We would like to thank all the local shops who donated clothing for the show and especially ‘Stitched Up’ who lent us a fantastic range of up-cycled outfits made by students at Manchester Metropolitan University.
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
STUDENTS AIM HIGHER Over the Spring Term we have offered a number of opportunities for our students to consider further education and encouraging them to aim higher.
UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER VISIT On Friday 17th January 2014, some Year 8 and Year 9 students visited the University of Manchester, giving them the opportunity to reflect on their options for the future in advance of choosing their GCSE options. The trip gave the students the opportunity to examine the implications of their choices, and how these influence their future including progression routines into different careers. The trip was very successful and our students particularly enjoyed a lecture about options delivered by the guest speaker, a former footballer who left professional football to become a PE teacher.
HIGH ACHIEVERS PROGRAMME AT XAVERIAN COLLEGE
The rest of the day was dedicated to exploring the idea of being left or right handed. Students considered various historical perspectives, such as left-handed people being accused of witchcraft, as well as the possible explanations that have been presented scientifically. After partaking in tests to determine which hand was their dominant one, pupils had to devise their own psychological experiments, each of which was judged by a teacher of Psychology. Excitingly, a CHS team was declared the winning group as their experiment had been well thought out, and was realistic and reliable enough to provide some real answers. The event provided a real insight into the types of learning that students can be sure to experience when studying A-level subjects. We look forward to finding out what Xaverian has in store for our third and penultimate High Achievers Day next term.
Following on from the trip in October, on 22nd January 2014 eleven of Chorlton High School’s Year 9 students returned to Xaverian College for the second part of their High Achievers Programme. Students once again began the day with ‘The Spaghetti and Marshmallow Challenge’, which involved them working in groups to create a tower made from 20 sticks of spaghetti, and one yard of tape and string that was able to hold a marshmallow. In comparison to their previous attempt in October, CHS students did really well and most of our groups managed to create a structure that held the marshmallow, demonstrating impressive organisation skills, patience and team work. The next task was called ‘Law and Logic’, and saw students being given a suspected murder case. Pupils had to use the evidence provided in order to determine who was responsible for the victim’s death. This needed thoughtful consideration and continuous reevaluation, and allowed students to contemplate the intricacies of the British legal system.
HIGH ACHIEVERS CONFERENCE On 28th January 2014, five students were invited to attend the PiXL High Achievers event at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester. The event aimed to introduce an understanding of Oxbridge and Russell Group Universities to students at an earlier age, to drive the valuable time they have whilst in Secondary Education. Furthermore, it aimed to help students make informative decisions about their future, and give them the best platform to achieve their dreams. The speaker made an inspirational impression on our students as he discussed the importance of young people having a passion for education, and being excited to study specific subjects of their choice, in an institute that suits their needs and taught in a way they feel most comfortable. Our students left the conference with confidence about applying to university and being able to make informative decision about their opportunities ahead. While many students do not have a focused career aspiration, all of the students left the event with a motivation to actively research and read up on what they enjoyed and potential areas of study.
NEWS CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL
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I am most looking forward to studying a subject that I love and being able to meet new and interesting people. Roisin Gilloch Boyle (Year 10)
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A CHALLENGING WEEKEND On the 10th of January, ten Year 10 students, Mr Casey and Miss Irwin embarked on an adventure to Ghyll Head Outdoor Education Centre to take part in the Kathy Fry Challenge. There were nine Schools taking part including ourselves. The idea was to gain as many points as we could by taking part in various activities over the weekend. When we arrived we were allocated our rooms. Once the other Schools had arrived we all gathered in the main room for a talk about what to expect from the weekend. We were then provided with kit and set off for our first expedition which was a night orienteering walk. We got a little lost but Ronaldo saved the day!
Later on after a shower back at the centre, we embarked on our next challenge. This was to drop an egg from a tower and not crack it. We had to make a device from the materials we were given to ensure the egg did not crack. Miss Irwin and Mr Casey were very competitive and gave us some good hints – We won!!
The next day, after a delicious sausage sandwich we set off up the Old Man of Coniston. This was hard but really rewarding once we had got to the top. Our team were commended on how well we worked together and encouraged each other.
Sunday was our last day so we needed to score some good points. We had to select our own challenges from a sheet and pick the ones that gave us maximum points in the shortest time. One of the activities was called ‘The Berlin Wall’. This was an 8 foot wall
which we all had to get over. Ronaldo was the last man standing and did an epic jump! The other activity was called ‘Sequence’. The numbers 1-30 were scattered in a large circle and we had to all touch them in consecutive order in the quickest time possible. This was hilarious as some people were faster than others and the ground was slippy. It was an amazing weekend and we were thrilled to hear that we came third out of the nine Schools that took place. We were very proud of ourselves and Mr Casey and Miss Irwin were delighted. BY LUCY SCOTT & LOUISA SPEED (YEAR 10)
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
SPORTING SUCCESS Over the Spring Term we have seen many sporting successes – here is a taster of just some of our achievements!
SWIMMING STARS Congratulations to the Girls KS3 Swimming Team (Siobhan Conway, Maya Lomas, Caitlin Conway, Vibke Callahan and Grace Doyle) and the Boys KS3 Swimming Team, (Alfie Marrs, Theo Peters, Quinn Manchester Symons, Luke Caudle). Both teams represented our school at a very high standard in the
Girls KS3 Swimming Team: Siobhan Conway, Maya Lomas, Caitlin Conway, Vibke Callaghan, Grace Doyle
CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS In January 2014 a group of students represented our school in the Cross Country Championships at Wythenshaw Park. All our students performed brilliantly but special congratulations to the Year 7 Girls Team who finished in 2nd place, and the Year 8/9 Girls Team who also achieved 2nd place. The top runners in each race then qualified to compete for Manchester later on in the year. The runners who qualified for this competition were: Daisy Wood, Layla Wiseman, Tia Rae Barton, Siobhan Conway and Anna Stewart Brown. This was a highly competitive race in very wet and muddy conditions, and despite this the teams were all fantastic! Year 8/9 Girls Team: Siobhan Conway, Vibke Callahan, Ella McKieCrane, Anna Stewart-Brown, Maddie Anderson, Miya James, Demi Forrest Samuels Year 7 Girls Team: Khalia West, Lawisa Kameron, Kiaya Carmont, Daisy Wood, Lily Norreys, Tess Sunderland, Layla Wiseman, Tia Rae Barton, Sophie Whittick
NEWS CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL
Manchester Schools Swimming Competition at Wright Robinson High School on 9th January 2014. Both the boys and girls teams gained a remarkable 2nd place overall in the competition, which included both individual and relay events.
Boys KS3 Swimming Team: Alfie Marrs, Theo Peters, Quinn Manchester Symons
VELODROME HIGH ACHIEVERS On Monday 17th March 2014, 14 Year 7 students went on the first of their 4 week high achievers cycling programme at The Manchester Velodrome. At the velodrome they were met by a qualified coach who taught them how to use the specialised velodrome bikes. All the students progressed significantly during the session and were all completing time trials around the track. All the pupils worked really hard and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL IN THE SPOTLIGHT
CHORLTON HIGH SCHOOL NELL LANE CHORLTON MANCHESTER M21 7SL Tel 0161 882 1150 Fax 0161 861 8753 admin@chorltonhigh.manchester.sch.uk www.chorltonhigh.manchester.sch.uk @chorltonhigh design manchesterdesignfactory.com 07884 427009