Extracurricular

Politics Club

This term, the Politics Club looked at several prevalent topics. This included subjects such as professional athletes and their ability to use their exposure to spread awareness about key social issues before matches and should big tech companies be regulated by the government?

Whilst having these topics in mind, we have been able to construct complex debates for topics such as the power of conglomerate corporations over citizens around the world and whilst the act of taking a knee is an effective way to raise awareness of campaigns such as BLM, we also decided that further, more direct action needed to be taken by professional teams.

Now that we are back to being in a physical classroom, we’re very excited for future debates next term and discussing the affirmative and negative arguments regarding societal issues. Manga, Drawing and Cartooning Club

In Manga, Drawing and Cartooning Club with Mrs Sullivan for the Lower School, we have had some beautiful pieces of work being produced, including pieces by Year 8 pupils, Alice and Eva, and Year 7 pupil Oliver. It’s great that even through lockdown, we’ve been able to spend time together after school and create some amazing work.

Running Club

Plymouth College Running Club with Dr Norris has been one of our extracurricular clubs that have continued during lockdown and our pupils have been enjoying the outdoors and counting up their kilometres for the Evolution Expedition with Mr Mutlow! Google Classroom has been used to deliver a programme of run sessions, core strength sessions and advice and tips on running. There has been a Google Meet every Thursday at 4pm for a briefing on the interval session for each week and a catch up on everyone’s running progress.

Completion of runs and tasks on Google Classroom have been tallied together to create a leaderboard which will lead to prizes.

Megan Shorey

Alice Northey

Eva Langman Phoebe Timson

Tristan Babb

Our young artists have been keeping busy throughout the term by trialling different creative methods to produce wonderful pieces of work. Our GCSE pupils have been busy creating their final pieces for their Fine Art GCSE portfolio using a mixture of mixed media and 3D collage to stunning effect.

For Years 7, 8 and 9, they have been practising their drawing, in all styles, as well as their painting. Our Year 7 pupil Josh even created the beautiful portrait ‘Benji’ to be submitted to the Great Big Art Exhibition, that is being promoted by artist Antony Gormley.

Photography

Our GCSE Photography pupils have been busy all half term, both taking photos and editing their work. They have been trying out new methods to refine their editing skills as well as experimenting with new Photoshop techniques to create pieces to add to their final GCSE portfolios. To say their work is outstanding is an understatement!

Spending the majority of this term in a lockdown may have put a halt on some aspects of our ‘normal’ school days, but it hasn’t stopped our pupils winning awards and achieving fantastic results in their creative extracurricular activities.

Online South West of England Speech and Drama Festival

This term saw some of our LAMDA pupils take part and place in the Online South West of England Speech and Drama Festival. Year 10 pupil, Lydia Lambie, came in first place for the Solo Acting and Humorous Verse categories and also came second in the Musical Theatre category. Fellow Year 10 pupil, Lily Walsh, achieved second place in the Solo Acting category and Year 8 pupil, Alice Northey, came second in the Own Choice Verse Speaking category.

Music Gradings

A huge congratulations to the following pupils who have worked incredibly hard to achieve great results in their recent music exams:

Frazer Oliver (Upper Sixth) - Awarded Merit in Grade 8 Piano Alexander Smythe (Year 8) - Awarded Merit in Grade 5 Music Theory and Grade 6 Electric Guitar Matilda James (Year 7) - Awarded Pass in Grade 5 Violin Charlotte Bryce (Year 10) - Awarded Merit in Grade 6 Piano

Year 7 Performance Poetry

This term, our Year 7 pupils took part in the Performance Poetry Competition - organised by Miss Husband. Mrs Moore was our guest judge and decided on our winner and second place. Congratulations to the Year 7 pupils that made it to the final: Freddy Dennis Barnaby Hutchings Megan Hayward Abby Sweby Chloe Nicholson

After much deliberation, Megan Hayward was announced as first place, with Abby Sweby coming in second place. Very well done to all!

Lydia Lambie

Alice Northey Lily Walsh

Frazer Oliver

Matilda James Alexander Smythe

Charlotte Bryce

A Note from Miss Newnham

We were all ready to return to school in January, we even had our staff inset day on the Monday, preparing for the term and left in the afternoon with classrooms ready to welcome the pupils back the following day. Then, at 8pm that evening, the Prime Minister announced that schools were going to be closed at least until after half term and that remote learning would be starting the following day. The seamless transition was a credit to both pupils, parents and staff. At 9 o’clock the next morning we were all ready to go into our new virtual classrooms.

By the following week, the Sixth Form Centre at our Ford Park site had turned into a pre-school and classrooms for children of our critical worker parents. We were able to make use of both the classroom facilities and the outdoor environment surrounding us with some pupils making some hedgehog houses around the school field.

Virtual assemblies were held to celebrate pupils’ successes, participation, independence and hard work. Year 5 and 6 even had a guest magician at one of their assemblies! We dressed up for World Book Day and participated in Internet Safety Day with our online assemblies. The children have worked so hard and it is impossible to list all the topics and activities that they have experienced this term. Here is a small reflection of what our pupils have experienced: Early Years pupils have taken traditional fairytales and story books to work through themes and incorporate all key learning areas to enhance their development and learning. The Bad Tempered Ladybird story helped children learn about time and The Gingerbread Man and The Three Little Pigs not only helped with writing skills but also gave the children challenges such as making a boat to help the gingerbread man cross the river!

In the Infants, Year 1 were able to pick up from where they left off in the classroom and continued to have daily Maths and English lessons as well as their practical lessons, such as PE. Thanks to Google Classrooms, we were able to share some of the wonderful work that was produced by our pupils - including the beautifully created blossom trees in Art. In Year 2, the structure was very similar with Maths and English in the mornings, followed by afternoons where we had some wonderful work shared, showing how they learnt about food chains in Science and their theme of rainforests inspired some really creative artwork and story planning. They also enjoyed an online pyjama party as a half term treat!

In the Juniors, all lessons continued online and our older pupils coped so well with moving from lesson to lesson with different teachers. They managed their Google Calendar and classrooms with ease and showed great support and encouragement to others. History in both Years 3 and 4 was a favorite. They learnt about the Anglo-Saxons and the Tudors. Impressive creative writing skills were developed and the Year 4 poems ‘My Heart’s in Plymouth’ gave us all a chance to reflect on our wonderful surroundings. Years 5 and 6 have worked hard learning about topics such as forces and even had the task of creating ‘flubber’ as a Science experiment. When learning about fractions, cakes were made and PSHE lessons focused on wellbeing, making positive lists and looking forward. Pupils wrote some fantastic pieces of work in English and developed skills by reading these aloud in assemblies.

Our extracurricular activities also continued where possible during lockdown - with after-school clubs such as Lego club with Miss Manuel and Chess club with Mr Paull taking place both on-screen during lockdown and face-to-face since being back in the classroom. Now that we have all gone back to a more regular timetable of extracurricular activity, we are able to enjoy and organise more extracurricular activities that we hope to bring to next term.

All pupils have worked so hard and developed some really useful skills. Their resilience, cooperation and resourcefulness have been tested and they have become excellent communicators. I believe they have come out the other side as much stronger individuals.

PREPARATORY SCHOOL

Karneval

Mask-making and singing were just some of the fun activities undertaken by Year 6 when we celebrated German Karneval (this year virtually). Dressed in carnival costumes, the children celebrated the mid-winter festival with a mixture of learning and fun activities. The children got to grips with the language through learning a traditional song and learning a brief dialogue. Mr Carr (Deputy Head - Teaching and Learning) said it was fantastic to see Year 6 get so involved, especially this year with the use of filters and backgrounds on their Google Meet being a particularly fun element. It is so important to inspire a love of languages in people so young. Pupils also learnt about the importance of languages in general, fostering an appreciation of other cultures and an awareness of their own. The afternoon was testament to the curriculum at Plymouth College where true cultural and educational enrichment is so important to prepare our young people for their futures.

World Book Day

This term, our Prep school pupils celebrated World Book Day, albeit a slightly modified, lockdown version. Whilst some of our infants had loads of fun telling us about their favourite books and reading them to everyone over Google Meet, Year 1 incorporated our World Book Day theme of ‘bubbles’ into their Maths lessons. Our Year 3 and 4 pupils listened to MC Grammar and tried to work out how many children’s books had been mentioned in his rap song. The children were then set a scavenger hunt to find items or themes in books that they had read.

All our pupils looked fabulous as they dressed up as their favourite book characters in true World Book Day tradition and whether our pupils were learning in-person or at home, it was a splendid day!

Year 1

In the classrooms this term, Year 1 undertook some amazing projects based on The Three Little Pigs story theme. They looked at materials to build houses and had to think about why they are chosen. The pupils were then encouraged to make a small house out of whatever they liked - Hula Hoops, biscuits, cakes, bread, matchsticks, Lego … What an exciting day for Year 1!

Maths Science Year 2 African Animals

All our pupils have adapted so quickly and maturely to getting back to home learning and we couldn’t be more proud of their progress! In particular, our Year 2 pupils have had loads of fun in Maths and have blown Mrs Jenkins away with their knowledge and understanding of the column method! In Years 5 and 6, our pupils have been learning all about fractions with Miss Newnham by making delicious cakes at home and taking some time away from their screens to learn about fractions in a fun and visual way. Science this term has been nothing short of fantastic with Mrs Burnman! All our Prep pupils have been able to learn about different elements of the world around us with experiments that can be done at home, with the help of Mrs Burnman’s step-by-step video guides. This Spring Term, Year 2 have been learning all about African animals in their online lessons with Mrs Jenkins. During their lessons, they have been going outside and collecting a range of natural materials and then making them into their favourite African animal!

Edie Russell (Year 4)

During the course of the Spring Term, we have been able to see some amazing home learning taking place and the extra work that has helped our pupils to discover their passions. In particular, Year 4 pupil Edie created a wonderful presentation on echolocation and created a Powerpoint to present to teachers and peers.

Year 1 and 2 Makaton

Years 1 and 2 have continued to learn sign language songs in their critical worker classes, with a wonderful Makaton interpretation of True Colours from the Trolls film that they couldn’t wait to show off and rightfully so!

In Year 5 Art lessons this Spring Term, our pupils have been learning all about silhouettes and African sunsets by studying the colours, blending them all together and then layering the black silhouettes onto their sunsets. All pupils have got stuck into their work by having a go at painting them themselves.

Year 4 have also been looking at Banyan Tree artwork, studying the colours and having a go at creating their versions of Banyan Trees to see how they compare and they are all beautiful!

Year 6 have also been learning about various different artists, such as Bridget Riley, who specialises in ‘optical art’. They all got stuck into creating their own versions of Riley’s work and had loads of fun learning about her! Lego Club

Despite being in a lockdown, that hasn’t stopped some of our after-school clubs going ahead, including our at-home Lego club with Mrs Manuel this term! Our pupils joining Mrs Manuel have been able to let their creativity flow in and create different objects such as a car, a dinosaur and a pizza!

Year 2

Our Year 2 class have been busy this term learning all about Shackleton’s perilous trip to Antarctica. They have been busy making models of Shackleton and his men trapped in an ice floe with their ship The Endurance!

Critical Worker Pupils

Whether our pupils have been situated at home or in school as a critical worker pupil, they have all produced outstanding pieces of work. In Pre-school learning, pupils have been looking at the story of ‘Lost and Found’. Not only have they designed and made boats from a variety of materials, they also became illustrators! Look at how proud Lily was of her artwork! Year 5 and 6 critical worker pupils have continued their hard work by building shelters for the local wildlife animals that take residence in the Ford Park school grounds. They have been working hard on their hedgehog houses and hopefully they’ll soon have some residents in! We have been able to incorporate our online lessons with our in-school learning for our critical worker children and we are so proud to have been able to get all pupils involved in academic and physical lessons, such as PE.

PREPARATORY SCHOOL

Although the school site has been closed during this most recent lockdown, we have been fortunate that government guidance has enabled the construction industry to continue. As a result, work on the interior of the new Prep building has moved on at pace in recent months.

The internal layout has been remodelled, and the building is now ideally suited to the needs of a modern Preparatory School. Significant elements have been adjusted and upgraded to create large and airy classrooms, suitable toilet facilities and the various requirements to ensure we are able to provide an excellent education for our youngest pupils. Inside of the building, we really have started again. As well as an almost complete rewire, replumb and replaster, the new Prep will benefit from no less than 8 new sets of toilets. A new fire alarm system, upgraded data provision and better lighting will all play their part in improving the building. The installation of the new windows has now been completed.

Aesthetically, one of the biggest changes this term has seen the making of several large openings in the downstairs perimeter of the building. Full height windows have been added, along with 3 huge sliding doors to link the inside spaces to the play areas beyond. As work progresses the outside areas will become a very secure and versatile space. During the course of the holidays further internal work will be carried out, and by the start of the new term we anticipate being able to showcase what is rapidly becoming a great new facility. Plans are well advanced for the external spaces, as well as the outside of the building which will have an fresh new look.

SPORT

Sport in Lockdown

The Spring Term of 2021 has been a challenge for so many people in so many different ways. We have all been required to think differently and adapt accordingly, and Sport has been something that has proved a real challenge for schools up and down the country.

This term has seen a combination of different challenges and tasks set for pupils to engage with, in the hope that there would be something for everyone. Online workouts, House Challenge Board, Skills Challenge, Yoga videos and lots more have become regular features of our life in recent times and pupils have risen to the challenges set admirably, with lots of regular contributions and excellent engagement with all of these activities. Spring has also seen the launch of the Evolution Expedition, a whole-community challenge designed to unite people when we haven’t been able to be together physically. Launched in January, the challenge was to follow the route of HMS Beagle and Charles Darwin on the famous voyage of discovery that inspired ‘On The Origin of Species.’ Setting off from Plymouth in December 1831, Darwin circumnavigated the globe, making various stops on the way, on a voyage that took 5 years to complete. Mr. Mutlow challenged the Plymouth College community to get out on their bikes, run, walk, swim, row or move in any way possible and record their distances in order to see how much of the journey could be replicated. The response was outstanding, with over 200 contributors across the parent, pupil and staff body. At the end of lockdown, we had travelled the length of the Atlantic Ocean, around the tip of South America and made landfall in New Zealand before moving on into the Indian Ocean, travelling well over 30,000km in the process. The challenge has enabled the community to stay connected and active during challenging times.

The end of term has enabled a brief return to sport, with House Matches and competitions being the order of the day in the handful of weeks since schools were back in session. Well done to everyone who has approached this term with such a positive attitude, it has been wonderful to see people rising to the challenge in true Plymouth College style.

Summer Term Sport

With restrictions easing, the Summer Term looks likely to be more ‘normal’ than what we have become accustomed to since Easter 2020. There is a renewed optimism that we might hear the sound of leather on willow and the prospect of competitive sport returning to Ford Park. There is a significant amount of water to pass under the bridge before we can confidently predict where we will be when we return and it seems inevitable that any return to ‘normal’ will not be complete prior to the Summer Holidays. Whilst fixtures may return in some format, hosting, travel and numbers of teams playing at any one time may be limited by continued restrictions as the nation eases its way out of this pandemic. We will - of course - do our best to respond to changing circumstances and to communicate as effectively as we are able to in this regard.

We do know some things about our return after Easter. Grass-roots sport is scheduled to be back on the cards, especially in outdoor environments and therefore we will be offering as full a range of Summer Sports as we are able to. Cricket, Rounders, Tennis and Athletics will all be on the cards in some format, although the usual staple events such as Sports Day may not be able to run. Fixtures against other schools will be undertaken if we feel it is safe to do so, although our overriding priority will be the safety of our community.

After the disruption of the last year or two, we look forward to making use of the fabulous George Stephenson Pavilion - something that has had limited use since its opening in Summer 2019 - as well as the continued development of Cricket for girls. With a professional pathway now available to them, this is an area we will be looking to expand into next term and beyond

Whilst uncertainty remains, I am certain of two things:

1. The Plymouth College community will rise to the challenges posed and approach whatever lies before us with positivity and a ‘can-do’ attitude that defines our pupils and staff. 2. As Captain Sir Tom Moore said, ‘tomorrow will be a good day,’ and I am certain that brighter days are just around the corner.