| Newsletter

April 2019

elcome to the April edition of the WNewsletter! The arrival of spring always lifts our spirits as the beautiful grounds of Lytchett Minster School become transformed in a blaze of colour and the school fields are re-opened for students to enjoy at break and lunchtime. This month’s edition of the newsletter reflects the amazing vibrancy of the school with a very diverse range of extra-curricular activities and successes to celebrate. It has been most pleasing to see our students getting involved in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) events competing successfully with their peers from other local schools. Special congratulations go to three teams of highly motivated, intelligent Year 9 students who competed in the finals of a STEM challenge at , an Atlas Elektronik event in (see page 14), and a Rotary Engineering Challenge event at Grammar School (see page 10), and a team of Year 7 and 8 boys who reached the finals of a Robotics Challenge event in Birmingham (page 4) and our Year 9 science ambassadors who inspired Bere Regis pupils (page 30). My thanks go to Mr Reghif, Mr Patel, Mr Packham and Mrs Ventham for supporting these important events. We have also seen great success this month in football (Year 10 boys and girls and Year 11 boys), cooking (Year 10 students), writing (Year 9 students), and art (Year 12). If you have not already booked your ticket on Wisepay (via the school website) for the School Choir’s performance of Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’ on Saturday 27th April in the Lytchett Minster Parish Church, please do so, before they are all sold out! The 7.00pm concert begins with Wagner’s ‘Tannhäuser: Grand March’, followed by Vivaldi’s choral masterpiece and then individual performances by the school’s top musicians (who have all achieved Grade 8). It promises to be a fabulous concert! Our students have a real heart for others, and this was plain to see with recent charity fundraising activities, including the Sixth Form’s all-night Sleep Easy event (see page 2 & 24) and Red Nose Day (see page 11). It is always sad to say goodbye to staff, especially when they have served the school for so many years, but at Easter we say farewell to Mandy Franklin (Sixth Form Support Manager) and Mrs Abbott (Special Needs teacher) who are both leaving after many years of loyal service to the school.

Andrew Mead Headmaster

 01202 622413 • www.lytchett.org.uk • /

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Student of the Month

Congratulations to the following students who were nominated as March’s Student of the Month:

English Maths Geography Music Food Tech

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Bradley Mitchell William Percy Isobel Young Poppy Stratman Abigail Hughes Year 8 Year 11 Year 7 Year 10 Year 9

MFL Psychology P.R.E. DANCE Art

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Freya Barclay Ella Glass Phoebe Jones Louise Burke Eva Hampson Year 8 Sixth Form Sixth Form Year 10 Year 7

Drama HISTORY P.E. COMPUTING

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Oliver Archie Sheppard Eve Stickland Luke Coalter Year 11 Year 8 Year 10 Year 10

Ex-Governor Stuart McKechnie

We were sorry to learn of the recent death of Stuart McKechnie who served as a governor at Lytchett for a number of years alongside previous headteachers Mr Castleton and Mr Clark, chairing the Finance Committee during the time of the new Arts Block project. He was involved with the School both as a parent and with themusic department at that time, playing clarinet on the 1987 School Orchestra Tour to Switzerland. We pass onour condolences to Stuart’s family.

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Agglestone Gault Kimmeridge

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Kieran Nisbet Ella Wilson Millie Porter Year 10 Year 11 Year 7

Purbeck Wealden Portland Sixth Form

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Oliver Chaplin Harvey Pocklington Rees Jones Chloe Gilbertson Year 7 Year 8 Year 7 Sixth Form

Sixth Form support YMCA raise funds for the homeless

Well done to all those Year 12 and 13 students who spent Friday night 15th March sleeping rough in the school grounds to raise money and awareness of homelessness in support of the YMCA.

Special thanks also go to the staff who supervised the event : Mrs Booker, Mrs Skinner, Mr Hannaford, Mrs Coleman, Mr Coombes, Mr Wyatt and Mr Law.

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Tomorrow’s Engineers EEP Robotics Challenge

Lytchett Minster School students did an amazing job to get to the final of the Tomorrow’s Engineers Robotics Challenge – out of 500 schools and a thousand teams, putting them among the top 48 competitors. This was a fitting achievement for the students’ hard work and preparation.

At the event, which was part of the Big Bang Fair at the NEC in Birmingham, they were excellent representatives of the school, showing themselves to be hard working competitors and engineers. They also had the chance to look at the huge selection of STEM stands at the Big Bang Fair, which showcased all sorts of potential careers, including a slightly larger robot brought along by the military: maybe this will be what they’re making in 10 years’ time!

Report by Luke Nicholas (Year 8) Lytchett Minster School was proudly represented by Rees Jones (Year 7), Alfie Rawlings (Year 8) and Luke Nicholas (Year 8) at the Tomorrow’s Engineers final at the Birmingham NEC. We had to complete a series of tasks such as a race and a challenge mat. Firstly, we had two tries, back to back, on the racetrack. It was 8 metres long and timed by robots. It was also on tables that would have led to catastrophe if our race car couldn’t go straight … however, our car is incapable of turning! On the first go, the gears weren’t properly connected and it slowed down towards the end; on the second go it sped up significantly! Ours was ideal for the challenge optimising lightweight parts and extreme gearing. We then had to tackle a series of challenges, pushing our robot to the limit. With not-so F1-grade wheel changes and a destroyed plane, we completed these. In the limited five minutes allowed, we failed the ramp the first time, but succeeded the second time. The dance section showed the judges our not-so-funky dance moves, and the engineering challenge was a pain in the head – the engineers’ head! Throughout the morning we had to complete a teamwork challenge, which involved exploring the halls and working things out as a team. We handed the form in on the dot and used the ancient art of counting to complete two of the questions in the teamwork challenge. We also had to explain our design ideas and problems we overcame to the judges, despite it being a little awkward when we had nothing to say! Finally, we were hunted down by the judges to show them our idea of how robots could improve the future for humanity. Our robot was a rescue drone, designed for search and rescue and to act as an ambulance that doesn’t require personnel. They saw us at our pod, which was beautifully decorated with artwork and had our name board – which we hope will eventually be displayed in the IT block. Unfortunately, in the awards presentation we didn’t win anything – although, with only ten awards and 48 schools competing, there was only a small chance of getting a prize – but we still had loads of fun!

If any student is interested in taking part in robotics, please email Mr Reghif.

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Project Qualification for Exceptional (PQE) students

Congratulations to the following top Year 9 students who took part in the PQE challenge.

Amelia Barber

Erin Briggs Sam Graham

Izzy Harwood Charlotte Henry

Mia Longhurst Daniel Pritchard Bethany Pryor

Joe Smith Ruby Stratford Amelie Vivian Harriet Walker

The students were asked to research and write a 1000 word essay on a topic of the choice; a concept similar to that of the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ), taken by our top A level students. Mrs Halley Gordon and Mr Mead had the pleasure of reading and assessing the essays. They were very impressed with the high standard of academic scholarship evidenced in the work produced. The top 3 students, Mia Longhurst, Amelia Barber and Daniel Pritchard, were then required to give a 5 minute speech about their topic to the Senior Leadership Team . Mia spoke on the subject, ‘Should we fear artificial Intelligence?’ and Amelia and Daniel spoke on the topic ‘How can we combat climate change?’ The winner of the PQE Challenge 2019 was Daniel Pritchard. This young man gave a very impressive and eloquent speech showing a very profound grasp of his chosen talk. His essay is printed below. We would also like to thank the Year 12 and 13 EPQ students who mentored the Year 9 students through this project.

How can we combat climate change? By Daniel Pritchard In this essay, I will be talking about some ways that can help us combat climate change. I will also say about how we have reached this stage and what we can do to prevent the situation from getting worse. Then at the end, I will state whether I think we can stop climate change and what you can do to help First I’ll start by talking about how climate change has reached this point. In 1870, the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was 290 ppm (parts per minute) and the average global temperature was around 13.7°c. In 2019, the atmosphere has been 411 ppm. In May 2018, the average global temperature was 15.6°c. This shows a clear increase in carbon dioxide and global temperature. The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has quadrupled since 1950 due to the increasing demand for electricity and the deforestation of forests around the world, which create carbon dioxide through photosynthesis. People have tried and failed to combat climate change in the past. One such example of this is the Kyoto Protocol, which was a legally binding agreement where industrialised countries would collectively reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2%. The goal was to lower the overall emissions of six different greenhouse gases. The Kyoto Protocol partly worked because some countries reduced their greenhouse gas emissions while some countries increased theirs. Overall, the global emissions went up, clearly meaning the agreement was a failure. Some everyday ways you can help to reduce climate change include: use renewable energy sources, take public transport, car share, ride a bike instead of using a car, use energy-efficient light bulbs, unplug electronics when you’re not using them, use a clothes line instead of a clothes dryer, don’t use fossil fuels, eat less meat, buy more local food, don’t waste food and grow your own food. 5

A big contributor to climate change that we can prevent is deforestation. One way it contributes towards it is when people burn down tree stumps, after cutting them down, to create space for farmland so animals can be farmed for meat. This releases large amounts of CO2, which contribute to the rising amounts. Also, trees turn carbon dioxide into oxygen using photosynthesis, so when they are cut down, there are less of them to reduce the CO2 levels. This further contributes to the rising amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. For the reasons previously mentioned, you should buy fewer products made of wood and less meat if you care about reducing climate change. Another large contributor to climate change is the rising demand for electricity. This adds to the greenhouse gases being released because fossil fuels are burned, which releases steam to spin a turbine in a generator which then creates electricity. When the fossil fuels are burned, gases such as carbon dioxide are released. However, renewable energy sources release a lot less greenhouse gases, if any. One example of this is hydroelectric power (HEP). HEP consists of an artificial reservoir being created on the path of a river. Then, the water is allowed to go downstream to a dam. The water spins a turbine inside a generator to create the electricity. Hydroelectric power is already being used quite a lot. In the USA, 10% of their electricity is being created by HEP, which is a large amount for the richest country in the world. These are some reasons as to why you should try and save as much electricity as possible and why you should use renewable energy sources if possible. There are many solutions to climate change that are currently being developed. One of these solutions is to do with transport, which contributes 23% of the world’s gas emissions. Although we have found more energy-efficient ways of powering a car, such as with electricity, there are still ways that can release less carbon dioxide. Researchers at the University of Surrey are developing one of these ways. They have discovered new materials that offer an alternative to battery power. These materials are believed to be between 1000 and 10000 times more powerful than the current battery alternative, a supercapacitor. This would help reduce the amount of carbon emissions significantly if the concept was made to fit the plan put in place. Another solution to reducing carbon emissions involves food, which contributes a quarter of the world’s total global emissions. An alternative to producing meat and releasing a high amount of greenhouse gases is to start making lab-grown meat and produce meat substitutes that look, feel and taste like the real thing. The company Beyond Meat, which is backed by Bill Gates, created the world’s first meat burger that is completely plant based. It’s made mostly out of vegetable protein found in peas. The next solution that is being developed is to do with manufacturing, which contributes around 30% of the world’s emissions. However, there is a way that we can remove those carbon emissions from the air. Carbon Engineering is a Canadian start-up that is working on taking carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and then using it to produce fuel. The company has said, “Direct air capture can remove far more CO2 per acre of land footprint than trees and plants”. They are already running a demonstration in British Columbia that is removing one ton of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every day. In conclusion, I think it is possible to stop climate change through the methods I have already listed. However, I’m not sure if it will be possible to reverse it and return the world to its former state but if everybody does their part, it may be something that we see happen in the future. Overall, the most likely way of stopping climate change is for everyone to try and save as much energy, electricity and food as possible. If everyone can reduce their emissions by 10%, that will get us one tenth of the way towards saving our earth. Then from that point, we can continue to save and possibly try to reverse this horrific situation.

Daniel Pritchard (Year 9)

Year 9 PQE finalists: Mia Longhurst Daniel Pritchard Amelia Barber

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GCSE and A Level Drama

GCSE and A Level Drama Students work with Award Winning Devising Company, The Paper Birds.

The Drama Department were happy to host Award Winning Devising Company, The Paper Birds. This is the second year we have booked for this amazing company to come in to our school. Students from Year 10-13 were invited to take part in a 2-hour workshop with the company on their new show ‘Thirsty’. A story about Britain’s relationship with Alcohol, specifically the view of women who drink. The students loved their experiences during the day and came out with lots of enthusiasm for creating theatre.

The day didn’t end there though, the company then set up their touring production and over 100 students and parents witnessed their innovative and exciting work for themselves as they performed the above-mentioned show. This powerful performance had us laughing one minute and crying the next. We were so proud of our students and the company said, our school is their favourite and they loved working with our students. A wonderful day had by all.

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GCSE and A Level Drama

Drama Department Hosts visit from Professional Actor Greg Austin

Thanks to Tom Yorke in year 11 who put us in touch with Professional Actor Greg Austin. This initiative from one of our excellent Year 11 GCSE Drama students allowed us the pleasure of hosting a visit with Greg on February 15th 2019. Greg is a professional actor from Bournemouth. He offered to talk with our GCSE, BTEC and A level Students about the industry and his experiences and we were quick to take him up on his kind offer. Year 10 had a Q+A with him in their lesson and were excited by some of the famous names and shows Greg has appeared in such as Mr Selfridge, Class and Endeavour. They were equally excited to hear of his upcoming series which he will be filming alongside Al Pacino in New York this summer. His experiences of getting in to the industry and the skills he possessed from the subject which have helped him in all aspects of his career was engaging and inspiring.

Greg also supported some of our 6th form students with their upcoming auditions for Drama school and they were so grateful and inspired by his excellent advice. We cannot thank Greg enough for this and look forward to welcoming him back soon!

K9 Deployment visit

Whilst it is pleasing to hear that alcohol consumption amongst young adults is on the decline, the consumption of illicit drugs amongst young people appears to be on the rise. We have a zero tolerance approach to drugs in school. We work closely with the police to keep our young people safe. We educate our students about the dangers of drugs and we share information with the police that will help them to disrupt the supply chain. On 15th March we invited a drug-sniffer dog into school. The firm we used is called K9 Deployment. The sniffer dog undertook a thorough search of classrooms, corridors, Café, Sixth Form Centre, lockers, changing rooms, social areas – everywhere. We are pleased to report no drugs were found within school

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Children and Technology Workshop

Presented by Pat Bate and Liz Clough (Parent Guidance Workshops) in conjunction with Bournemouth University on Monday 1st April, 5.00-7.00pm in Room 13 (Manor House) Tickets: £5

To reserve your place on this workshop, book your ticket on WISEPAY (please note, places are limited)

Workshop Outline:  How too much screen time can affect children’s behaviour, emotions and learning  How to manage your child’s time with their use of technology  How to change negative behaviour ensuing from technology use and how to break bad habits  How to effectively use screen time as a family  How to recognise and support anxiety in your child  How to ensure that pre-school children develop the ‘soft skills’ needed to have a positive start to their school life

ALSO: Impact Case Evidence Study and Resources to take away

Please come along and join us to learn how just small changes to your child’s routines can benefit the whole family

[email protected]

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Important Information for Parents

The Village - Learning Centre

We appreciate that some students find school challenging. For a variety of reasons these students struggle to meet our expectations with regard to behaving appropriately in lessons and around the school site. Whilst we cannot allow this small minority of students to disrupt lessons, we also have a duty of care to ensure that they thrive and make progress. We are not in the business of ‘off-rolling’ students, as some schools appear to be.

To help disaffected students to get back on track, and to allow other students who want to learn to do just that, we are setting up our own Learning Centre down at the bottom of the site in the building we call the Village. This will start after Easter. Students who persistently disrupt lessons (getting relocated on a regular basis) will be taught away from their peers for 3 to 6 weeks, experiencing an alternative curriculum (but with a key focus on English and maths). They will only be able to start being reintegrated back into normal lessons, when they have shown that they have made sufficient progress in regulating their own behaviour. The students in the Village will have a different timetable, with slightly different starting and finishing times; their break and lunchtimes will be different from the rest of the school; they will have their lunches brought down to them; they will not have any contact with their peers during the school day.

There will be two members of staff managing this Learning Centre. They are both very experienced in dealing with students with challenging behaviour. We anticipate the number of students being taught down in the Learning Centre at any one time to be no more than six.

We want Lytchett to provide a positive learning environment for all our students. We believe that this new facility will ensure that classes in the main school are free of disruption.

STEM Rotary Challenge Competition

On Friday 8th March, 16 of our year 9 students travelled to to take part in the annual Rotary Club Engineering Challenge competition. In teams of 4, their task was to design and build a working crane that had to be able to move into position, lift an object, carry the object across a distance and place it on the ground. To do this, the teams had to design, build and test the chassis and structure of their crane, and to design a pullet system that was electrically operated, to lift and lower their crane. Every team started with the same materials and a small electric motor, and had to create their own control switch for the crane that could be operated away from the crane. All this in 4 hours AND produce a presentation explaining exactly how they solved the design engineering challenge. I am proud to say that Lytchett students came 1st and 3rd in a field that contained schools from all over Dorset. Tom Gill and Will Brown received first prize and a trophy for their working model, teamwork and presentation. A fantastic effort. STEM challenge events are a great way to develop your problem solving skills, your teamwork and to demonstrate your creativity through design and engineering. Careers in design and engineering can be some of the most rewarding and right now there are huge opportunities in this field both in the UK and internationally. If you are interested in taking part in events like this, come and speak to the team in Design Technology about how you can get involved. Well done Tom and Will and all the students who took part in this challenging and exciting day! 10

Red Nose Day

Comic Relief Red Nose Day in the 6th Form Big thanks to the Senior Team, the Charity Committee, all the cake makers, and of course Ben Parkinson for wearing a skirt all day! We raised £322.34!

The following amounts were raised by each house: Portland House £186.50 Purbeck House £206.95

Gault House £435.77 Agglestone House £194.50 School total Wealden House £318.80 Kimmeridge House £187.10 £1529.62

Wellbeing/Pet Therapy Dog

The pastoral care at Lytchett Minster School has always been one of the strengths of the school and we pride ourselves on our ability to introduce new initiatives for the benefit of the students. Pet therapy has already been a big success when introduced at the beginning of the school year but due to certain constraints, we are only able to offer the therapy to a select group of students on a smaller scale. As a family we have always wanted a pet dog of our own and it became possible when we agreed that we would train our puppy when the time is right to be our very own resident Pet Therapy dog. She is currently coming to school for a few hours each day to get used to the busy life of school. She resides in the Student Support Centre where she is kept securely.

Eventually when Bonnie is ready for Pet Therapy, students will be offered appointments through their House. However, there may be times when some students who feel distressed, upset or anxious over exams may want some ‘puppy time’ and are welcome to come to the SSC. We ask parents to notify the Student Support Centre if your child has any dog allergy or do not wish for your child to partake in any sessions.

We feel Bonnie will be a huge asset to our school. Mrs Waters, Student Support Centre

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A level PRE Trip to Rome

“When in Rome, do as the Romans Do” So goes the time-honoured adage. How was it then that we found ourselves, a party of bumbling Britons with comic shades and little backpacks, cramped beyond reasonable expectation into a tiny ice cream parlour, seedily taking it in turns to use a single soapless staff toilet that had been reluctantly handed over to us by the owners. This story I shall tell, as it is the story of the Lytchett PRE Rome trip 2019. Before our ambitions turned to colonising the toilets of the locals, our intentions had been purely touristic. Our sightseeing odyssey (that was the Romans, wasn’t it?) having begun with the mighty Colosseum itself. Our guide, after informing us that the matricidal Emperor Nero was never that bad, proceeded to lovingly guide us around the nooks and crannies of the infamous arena. The architecture was striking, with its tall crumbling arches built higher and higher, lit by the Italian sun like a long-forgotten beehive, only where the trickling honey used to be blood and the bees gore-hungry, wild eyed pagans. Poetry aside, the highlight of the Colosseum for everyone, really, was the vomitorium. An escape passage carved into the seating plan, kind of like a fire exit: “Just like vomit rushes out” Our guide used a language of familiar mime to emulate “so the people can…” he indicated the fleeing crowds rushing free. Wow. Some took it upon themselves to repeat the word in half-committed accents. Vomitorium. Vomitorium. Our next stop was the Palatine Hill. We soon realised that it wasn’t really a mere hill, but a maze of ancient ruins (some more ruined than others) that probably held enough archaeological information to keep two or three scholars in a state of suspended ecstasy for several lifetimes. I have forgotten almost all of the history, however the temple of Vesta has clung to my memory. The ‘Vestal Virgins’, our guide explained, were priestesses of the goddess of the hearth: If they broke their vow of purity, they would be buried alive. An appalling fact. If only every party-going teenage girl could hear such sordid history she would think again when complaining about being ‘grounded to her room’. A punishment which, by comparison, involves so much room and not nearly so much ground.

Day two began with a European breakfast. A buffet of sponges, tarts, sweet yogurts, pastries filled with icing, and cornflakes so dry and salty you felt like an ascetic monk. Upon entering the Vatican, we headed straight for the Musei Vaticani, with its expansive collection of Ancient Roman statues. It seemed evident upon viewing such figures that whatever negative side effects a heathen faith might have on the soul, it truly does wonders for the abdominal muscles. In short, defeating death itself might make you the King of Kings, but defeating a really, really massive lion is sure to make you king of the ladies. The enthralling collection of statues was like an ancient club, where every member had to be chiselled. The corridors seemed to stretch for miles and miles: tapestries, modern art, statues and relics. All property of the Vatican.

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The next day we visited Santa Maria Magiorre, an impressive Basilica specialising in devotion to the Mother Mary Protectress of Rome, but soon after ran entirely out of things to do. Eventually we settled upon a visit to the mighty “MOUTH OF TRUTH.” The Mouth of Truth was an ancient stone face with a gap- ing tunnel of a mouth that had apparently been in an Audrey Hepburn film once. Putting one’s hand in this mighty mouth was a dreadful risk, considering various local testimonies. The mouth of truth bites off the hands of liars. The only things that this venerable site lacked, given the relatively immense queues, were ice cream and a toilet. Two things that we soon after found in worrying vicinity, bringing my account to a close.

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Governor News

The Governing Body currently has a number of vacancies. We are particularly interested in welcoming to the governing body people with the following areas of expertise: education, law, finance, human resources, communication, business, hospitality and marketing. For further information, or to put forward your name for consideration, please contact Judith Hayward, Clerk to the Governors at: [email protected]

Atlas Elektronik STEM Event

Friday March 15th three students from year 9 visited Atlas Elektronik UK at the business park at Winfrith, and joined with three girls from Highcliffe School to make a stealth boat out of materials and equipment given to them. These included polystyrene, batteries, different motors and propellers. They were competing against 5 other teams and had help with the designing stage from some university graduates and members of ‘Smallpeice’ named (correctly) after Mr Smallpeice who made science and engineering accessible to school. They had to think about buoyancy, noise reduction, expenses, the look of the boat and making it float in a straight line. Each team’s boats were tested in a large water tank and prizes were given to the winning team. One of our girls got a prize for being very studious in making the boat. The girls found it very interesting and challenging.

We arrived at Atlas Elektronik and were given lanyards, and explained not to take pictures or leave the group, as there were top secret documents and equipment in the building. We were escorted to a room with an assortment of materials that would later be used in a challenge. Firstly, we were introduced to our team members and given a brief of the day. Our first task (to break the ice) was to make a small plasticine boat that would float on water with a 100g weight in it. We failed the task. Next, were given 2 hours to create a mini stealth boat. This involved wiring a circuit while carefully selecting a motor that was both quiet and fast, and ensuring that our boat was balanced and aesthetically pleasing. Whilst we ate lunch (which was extremely delicious and nutritious) our boats were being tested in a secret basement. We did a small challenge while we waited for our results. We had to get every person in our group through one A4 piece of paper. It was very difficult yet we pushed through and managed to win!

The results of the main task were in…. we lost. Our boat completely capsized but we still had a great day! We are very grateful to have been selected to take part in this magnificent experience. A special thanks to Mrs Tucker and Mrs Garnish for making this possible.

Izzy Bartlett, Mia Longhurst, and Erin Briggs

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A level Art Exhibition at The Poole Lighthouse

If you are going to the Poole Lighthouse in the next few weeks, we would encourage you to look out for the exhibition of A level Art work by Lytchett students which is on display on the ground floor next to the Lighthouse Cinema. The exhibition is entitled ‘Close to the Body’. It represents the culmination of an A Level project inspired by the film "Degas: Passion for Perfection." Project

Qualification for Exceptional (PQE) students Project Qualification for Exceptional PQE) students

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Vivaldi ‘Gloria’ Concert th (7:00pm Saturday 27 April, Lytchett Minster Church)

We do hope you will join us for the school choir and orchestra’s performance of Vivaldi’s beautiful "Gloria", and the school band’s rendition of Wagner’s "Grand March" from "Tannhäuser". The concert will also contain performances by many of our Grade 8-standard musicians, including extracts from Bach’s "Second Orchestral Suite for Flute and Orchestra", Debussy’s "Syrinx", and the world premiere of Harriet Rhind’s "Piano Trio".

Tickets are £5.00 (£3.00 concessions) and can be purchased on WisePay, or by phoning the school on 01202 622413. As there are limited tickets remaining, we recommend booking in advance. Andrew Painter (Head of Music)

Summer Opportunities with Bournemouth University

Media and Law taster events

We have joined forces with Dorset Chamber’s Young Chamber to provide An Introduction to Careers in Law and Media for Year 9 - Year 13 students and their parents/guardians. Attendees will hear from a range of speakers about the academic routes to success as well as talks from business people working in the industry about their job roles and career paths. You can find details for the Law event here and details for the Media event here.

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Filmosophy Club

The PRE department runs a film club that encourages students to explore the many issues that we cover in lessons. Each half term we show a film aimed at Key Stage 3 and a film aimed at Key Stage 4. Recent films have included The Matrix, Minority Report, My Sister’s Keeper and The Chronicles of Narnia.

Each half term the PRE department runs a film club called Filmosophy Club. The students are given a longlist of films to choose from, all of which have a philosophical, religious or ethical theme. This month we watched the film “The Fault in our Stars” which touches on issues to do with the quality of life. Our next film is “Heaven is for real” which tells the story of a young boy who claims to have been to heaven. You can find out more about our film club and other trips and events run by the PRE department on our department twitter feed. https://twitter.com/LMS_PRE Mrs McGee Head of Philosophy Religion and Ethics

A review of a Fault in our Stars

The fault in our stars was a very emotional film that made me cry. This heart-felt film got to my soul and I understood the people. The fault in our stars is about a 16 year old girl called Hazel Grace who has cancer. All the way through it seems as if she will die. Hazel Grace met a boy called Augustus Waters and they fall in love and start living life to the full. Augustus has a metal leg because cancer took it, everything was fantastic until a terrible misfortune. Augustus’s leg became terribly infected, he started to cough up blood. Hazel was terrified. Soon enough he tragically died. It was a very sentimental day and it was so sad. It made me think about how life is precious. Hazel is a strong resilient girl and I think this depressing time has made her tough and unbreakable. Her heart did break but her spirit still lives on. If you are looking for a romantic tragedy you should watch this film. But be ready to cry your heart out. By Bobby Stroulger Year 7

Sandwalk 2019

Our famous sponsored walk from Shore Road to Bournemouth Pier and back will take place on Friday 5th July and the proceeds will go to Cancer Research UK with whom the school has a long association having raised approximately £250,000 since 1996! Cancer Research will be running a Sun Safe exhibition at the beach as part of this year’s event.

All students are invited out for this day and it is very rare for us to leave anybody in school when the option is a walk along the beach for a good cause! Many of our students raise staggering sums of sponsor money, often motivated by experience of illness within families or friendships groups. I hope that all students and staff will aim to raise as much as possible this year so that we can raise in excess of last year’s £20,000.

As always with this event, to raise money for charity we would also like students to raise a minimum of £10 in sponsorship if they are to take part. If a student wishes to raise money for an alternative charity with whom they have a link, please ask them to let us know so that monies go to the correct cause. For your son/daughter to take part in the Sandwalk please make your payment of £8 on your Wisepay account before Friday 26th April (no orders for T-shirts can be taken after this date). 17

Year 10 Food Preparation and Nutrition

Yes Chef Competition

One of our Year 10 students, Holly James entered this annual competition organised by the Rotary Club of Great Britain held at Bournemouth and Poole College. The students had to complete a three course meal for 2 in 2 ½ hrs. Holly made a Soup with artisan bread, Thai Green curry and rice and a Raspberry cheesecake for dessert. Although we didn’t make it through to the regional round it was a great opportunity for Holly to practise skills that she will use in her 3 hr Year 11 practical exam.

It was noted by the judges at Bournemouth and Poole College and the Rotary Club of the high standard shown by the competitors. Our entry was supported by Poole Bay Rotary and we are grateful to them for their support.

Year 10 GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition Masterclass by Bournemouth and Poole College Hospitality and Catering Department

As part of our Masterclass series, Chef John Barrow visited Lytchett Minster School and demonstrated skills in presentation and garnishing to our current Year 10 students. Students on our new GCSE Course are marked, as part of their Year 11 3hr Practical Exam on their presentation and garnishing skills.

The College offers a range of courses which draw students nationally and internationally for their courses. Chef John showed them how to ‘plate up’, rules of garnish, colour and texture and presentation accompaniments such as caramel tuiles and corkscrews.

We are grateful to the College for their ongoing support, whether it be Chefs coming into school or the CPD offered to our teachers. Mrs Hoole

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Student Achievements

Jonty Spence (Year 8 Purbeck) became the last ever Poole Youth Parliament Deputy on Thursday 28th February 2019, but he also becomes the first ever Deputy for the newly formed BCP Council. Well done, Jonty!

Tom Adams (Year 9 Agglestone) has exceeded all expectations, in karting 2018. He has won 2 Club Champion- ships; the local circuit at Clay Pigeon and Whilton Mill, Daventry .

During the half term Tom had his first experience with driving in Europe, where again his driving ability was improved further by racing against some of the best European drivers in age group qualifying 5th out of 36.

Tom will compete in a further 3 race meetings in Belgium .

Lily Dennett (Year 9 Kimmeridge) recently attended an training selection weekend for Horse Riding. The selection process was tough and there were the top 32 children in England competing for 8 places. She unfortunately was not successful in getting a place on the team but her trail was amazing, she rode very well and did herself and everyone proud. She learnt so much and met some amazing friends for life.

Elliott Lowman Year 8 Kimmeridge was awarded a commendation from the Mayor of Poole for “Outstanding Success and Achievement” in the sport of Karate.

The Event was organised by Sport Poole and took place at the . The award was granted for Elliott’s achievements in 2017/2018 which include becoming: -

British Karate Champion under 12 Lisbon Karate Champion. under 12 English Karate Champion under 14 (despite only recently turning 12. Along with many other titles

Now he is 13 he will be competing at the very highest level at the official youth K1 championships against the best in the world.

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Student Achievements cont.

Well done to Bethan Harbut (Year 10) who attended the National Junior Indoor Rowing Championships at the Copper Box Arena in London last Friday 15th March when she competed as an individual in the Yr 10 girls event. Despite tough competition against the best in the country, she managed an impressive 5th place (129 girls participated on the day)- missing out on 3rd places by only 7 meters. The following weekend Bethan was involved in another rowing event, when she attended with her rowing club (Christchurch). Bryanston, Canford, Lymington and Christchurch clubs participated, and her G15 quad team won their category, being awarded the winners medal beating Bryanston girls by 3 seconds.

Tokyo Olympics 2020

Former Lytchett Minster School student Sam Whaley is currently aiming to be part of Great Britain's sailing squad at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. We wish him every success!

A great result for Daisy Miles (Year 7) who took part in her first trampolining competition for her new club, getting a gold medal! Daisy was competing against 4 other trampolinists from different clubs.

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Student Achievements (continued)

Scout District Night Hike The Scouts of Lytchett Minster, Lytchett Matravers, Sandford, Wool and Bovington, Swanage and Bere Regis took part in a 5 mile District Scout Night Hike lasting approx. 4 hours over Black Hill Heath at Bere Regis. Their teams had to attempt the hike using map and compass without the help of Scout Leaders. They had to complete a number of challenges at Bases e.g. First Aid scenarios, Knots (as well as a food station serving hot dogs, cake and hot chocolate). Explorers from Explorer Units in the above areas patrolled the route on mountain bikes or helped/run bases and were invaluable when the odd mistake was made (you have to remember that these were small groups of 10 – 14 -year olds and they were attempting the route in the pitch black with howling wind and rain). Attendees either as Scouts or Explorers from Lytchett Minster School were Sam Duffin, Kieran Nisbet, Angus Macbeth, Lily, Mary and Ben Howard, Ryan (Lumiere), Eric Whitchurch, Finlay Horn, Benji . All that completed the event should be extremely proud of themselves .

Daisy Brooks-Hewitt crowned National Champion at Boxing National Championships

Daisy travelled to Rotherham to take part in the Boxing National Championships. Her Team from Mackenzies Boxing Academy entered Daisy in the 50-52kg category were she fought in the semi-final and won on a unanimous decision. Daisy's next opponent was a former European Bronze medallist in the final which she won on a split decision. She was also crowned Junior Cadet National Champion 50-52kg

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Year 10 Work Experience 2019

What a contrast in weather from last year when students had to be sent home due to snow, luckily although cold and wet students were able to complete a full week. This year has been a challenging year finding placements for students, but luckily our parents have been so supportive, some offered to have students on placement at the companies they either own or work at which has pleased a number of our students. We have had various placements some in the construction industry, education, catering, IT, and even 2 students looking after alpacas. Lytchett students really do receive a valuable lesson in attending a work placement, it teaches them how to prepare for the world of work, and what is expected from an employer, and hopefully they can reflect on this during their school life how we try to prepare them. Being in school on time, arriving smart and appropriately dressed, being polite and respectful to others and working as a team. Please see the responses below that we have received from various companies, one comment that has been very pleasing to hear is how students tacked all tasks that were given and worked hard, which is good for students to show resilience within the work place and at school. I have also shared your comments from parents which is always great to receive. Mrs Tucker

Comments from employers 2019 Year 10 Work Experience Thank you very much for your note. I am glad that you enjoyed your week with us. We enjoyed having you with us and all of the people who spent time with you commented on your enthusiasm interest and impressed with your attitude and ability to listen and learn. We all wish you well for the future and if you would ever like any work experience again, you would be very welcome to come back. (George Bossons Purbeck) It was a pleasure to have Erin with us this week. She is a very sensible hard-working young lady. She represented Lytchett Minster School impeccably. On time well presented. I am most pleased by the interest she showed in what we do. Working well with the children, we would welcome her back anytime. (Erin Edwards Portland) Olivia has been lovely to have around. She is very positive and bright young lady. We hope that she comes and studies at Bournemouth Arts University. (Olivia White Purbeck) Georgia was an absolute pleasure to have in the classroom this week, she was very willing to do everything she was asked and performed at a very good standard. (Georgia Reynolds Portland) Michael has demonstrated great quality to achieve great success in his future endeavours. (Michael Brooks Purbeck) Mikolaj showed very good interest when new activities/tasks were explained and always asked insightful, appropriate questions. Good willingness to learn! Mikolaj Daron (Purbeck) Charlotte right from the start had the right attitude and willingness to learn, very polite and helpful young lady. (Charlotte Dooker, Wealden) Comments from parents 2019 Year 10 Work experience My daughter has finally embraced public transport at last! She has shown independence in planning her work day e.g. Timings for transport, lunch and style of dress required. My son gained confidence as the week progressed, and eager to discuss his days’ work and look forward to the next. I have watched my daughter’s confidence grow this week. My son has worked hard all week and slept so well I am very proud of him. Really enjoyed her time taking pride in what she wore, and happiest when busy in different department. Self-confidence has improved drastically, which I believe will give her extra confidence in her oral exam.

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Contacting your child’s House office

To aid quick and effective communication between parents and the House Offices we have recently introduced some new email addresses. Please could we encourage you to use these email addresses instead of individual staff email accounts - the main benefit to this is that if a member of staff is not in school and therefore unableto respond to your query, another member of the House team will be able to pick this up for you.

Agglestone House Office: [email protected] Gault House Office: [email protected] Kimmeridge House Office: [email protected] Portland House Office: [email protected] Purbeck House Office: [email protected] Wealden Office: [email protected] Sixth Form: [email protected]

School Reception

Please could we remind you that, whilst your child is at school, any contact with them must go through their House office. It is not appropriate for students to be using their mobile phones to ask a parent to come into school to collect them. This is a safeguarding issue. If you child is feeling unwell, or needs to contact you for a different reason, they should go to their House office.

If you need to see a member of staff, please could you contact the school to make an appointment. It is not always possible to release a member of staff from other commitments if a parent turns up at school unannounced. If you are collecting your child for an appointment during the school day, please come to the main reception to collect them, not the church or the bus layby.

Visitors to the school must report to main reception to sign in and to receive a visitor’s badge. It is not appropriate for parents to go directly to House offices.

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Sixth Form News

After nearly 13 years of working in the 6th form office, Mandy Franklin is leaving to develop her very creative business in Calligraphy. We wish her well in her venture and thank her for all of her hard work over the years. Please check out Mandy’s business called Cove Calligraphy.

https://www.covecalligraphy.com

As per our announcement last term, all Year 12 students must complete one week’s work experience as part of a government-led initiative. The dates are Monday 10th June through to Friday 14th June 2019. The deadline for students to secure their placement is Thursday 4th April 2019. Students can use our school data base to locate a placement of interest, or they can source If you have any questions themselves by contacting companies or organisations directly. Paperwork is about any items ,then please available from the sixth form centre. do not hesitate to contact the team via: sixth- [email protected] Sleep Easy 2019 We approached March 15th with trepidation as the weather forecast looked fairly similar to the November storms which is when we had to cancel Sleep Easy for the first time. Storm Gareth was causing havoc and we had to keep a close eye on him as we couldn’t have students sleeping out in potentially dangerous windy conditions. Even though hundreds of homeless people have no choice where to sleep, we have a duty of care and wanted to keep our students safe. We had no need to worry. As the evening approached, the weather settled; drizzly at first but then dry all night. Fairly warm it was too at 10 degrees and the wind only whipped itself into a mediocre frenzy in the early hours! 48 students (and a little dog called Alfie) took part and built their cardboard shelters in the doorways and covered in areas of our beautiful site. They are a creative bunch these sixth formers and we had fairly lights, drawings of dragons, front doors and patios to impress us as Mrs Horton, Chair of Governors, and I went to judge best shelter. The atmosphere was fantastic and every student took part with enthusiasm and a real sense of maturity. Hot water on tap, Domino’s Pizza, Tesco croissants and pancakes, a quiz and a fabulous exercise ‘warmup’ from Kieron Franklin helped keep us all warm and entertained through the night. Staff patrolled, checking on the rough sleepers throughout the night and all students who took part stayed out in their shelters all night, until rudely awoken at 6am. Yes, it wasn’t exactly like sleeping on the streets of Poole and Bournemouth where there are no warm toilets or the opportunity to fill up your hot water bottle. However, it still brought home the reality to many of our students what it is like to sleep rough, get little sleep and be moved along early in the morning. Tired and still in high spirits the students cleared away their shelters and made it home to a warm bed, or for many, a day at work! Money is still pouring in, and we are hoping to match if not smash our £3,500 previous amount raised. Well done to each and every student who took part. You are an amazing group of young people and we are very impressed and proud of you. Mrs Booker (Assistant head of Sixth form )

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PTA News

Join the Team for September 2019

WANTED!

After 6 years of running our highly successful PTA, Louise Christopher has decided to retire. We are very grateful to Louise for her tremendous energy, enthusiasm and generosity. She has been a brilliant Chair of PTA! We are now looking for somebody to take over this vital role. If you would like more information about the work of the PTA and/or are interested in being considered for the role of Chair, please contact the headmaster, Andrew Mead ([email protected]).

The PTA Secondhand Uniform Shop will be open at 3.30pm on: Friday 3rd May 2019 Friday 12th July 2019 Please come to main school reception between 3.30 and 4.00 pm. If you have any unwanted uniform in good condition that you wish to donate please send this in to main school reception, marked for the attention of the PTA.

Easter Egg Hamper Raffle

There is a raffle taking place for this delicious looking Easter Egg hamper which you can find in main reception. Tickets are available for £1 a strip and this will be drawn on Thursday 4th April and the lucky winner will have it delivered to their house office.

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DofE Bronze Award Practice Walk

Over the past 6 months the Bronze DofE students have been learning new expedition related skills. Saturday 2nd March was their first opportunity to put these into practice with an accompanied walk near Bere Regis. The students were given a specific route to follow and a route card containing a description of what they would see along the way – a tick list of things to look for if you like. Students walked in their teams, accompanied by a member of the DofE Staff Team to ensure that the activity stayed on ‘track’ and that the teams gained the most from the experience. Walking for nearly 2 hours, stopping at specified locations, the students used their newly acquired navigational skills to track their location on the map by identifying landscape features, using compass bearings and pacing distances to record how far they had travelled. Conditions along the route were tricky underfoot as the ground was very wet in places. This resulted in detours in some places (all good training for their expedition!) due to the ground resembling a bog rather than a path. The majority of teams performed above the standard usually displayed at this point in the course, with all teams gaining valuable experience. Everyone learned lessons and all teams have areas that they need to focus on moving forward towards their Practice Expedition at the end of April. All of the teams should feel proud of what they achieved during the exercise - working well together and displaying the spirit of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award throughout the exercise – fantastic all round, well done!!

On Friday 29th March our Bronze DofE students practised their camping skills by putting up their tents on the school site in front of the new Pavilion

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Sports News

The Cricket World Cup trophy was at Lytchett this week and Rose Biles (Yr12) and Rebecca Baron (Yr10) were involved in the event to celebrate.

The Big Pedal

Here at Lytchett we have been taking part in ‘the Big Pedal’ run by Sustrans. The aim is to encourage as many students as possible to walk or cycle into school, which will benefit the environment as well as pupils’ mental and physical health. Each morning tutors have been counting up numbers and if we can get 15% of the students in school cycling or walking then we stand a chance to win prizes.

Corfe Mullen United Juniors Under 13s

YOUTH PLAYERS WANTED

We are a dedicated and friendly team, whose philosophy is to provide a healthy, fun environment for young people to play Football and develop their skills. We promote equal opportunities and game time.

We are currently looking to recruit new players for next season (2019/2020) in the Dorset League.

If you are keen to come along and try out (no cost to try) we will start Tuesday night training at Corfe Mullen Rec, BH21 3HU from June through the summer.

During the season (from September) training reverts to 09:30 – 11:00 every Saturday, matches on Sundays.

If you are currently in Year 7 (year 8 next) and are interested

in coming along, please contact:

John Irons (FA Licensed Coach L1) – 07720 948489

Tim Haworth (FA Licensed Coach L1) – 07790 011426

www.corfemullenunited.co.uk

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The Ed Kent Trust

This year Agglestone House has been raising money for the Ed Kent Trust. This brilliant charity was set up after the tragic passing away of Ed after an asthma attack. The trust provides grants for children to take part in sport and musical activities and more information on the trust and the brilliant work that they do can be found on their website: edkenttrust.org

On April the 28th I will be running the London Marathon, if you would like to sponsor me please follow this link: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/andywaters1 . Whilst running (very slowly!) I am also going to try and break a Guinness world record for the most amount of costume changes completed in a marathon (this will be a new record as no-one has been silly enough to try it before!). If you have any very light fancy dress costume that could be worn whilst running that you would like to donate they would be greatly received and returned!

On the 18th of May Yr12 student Dylan Townley will be taking part in a 100 mile bike ride. This amazing event will take Dylan several hours to complete and he is already in training. If you would like to sponsor Dylan please follow this link: http://www.mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/dylantownley

All money raised will go directly to the charity and will then be given out as grants to those children that need a bit of financial help to realise their sporting or musical dreams, an extremely worthwhile cause I am sure you would agree. If you would like any further information about any of the charity events we are running please feel free to contact me at: [email protected]

Mr Waters Head of Agglestone House

Donations

We are very grateful to those parents who make generous financial donations to the school.

We are a state school and we believe very much in the principle that high quality state education should be free and accessible to all students, whatever their socio-economic background. In recent years schools have faced serious cuts to their budget and their per pupil funding. At Lytchett we have been very careful with our budgeting and always strived to live within our means. Occasionally we do ask parents to help contribute towards certain activities, such as Year 10 Work Experience, but we try and keep these to the absolute minimum. We have been very fortunate in recent weeks to receive donations from parents who wish to show their gratitude to the school. Such gifts are much appreciated. If there is any area of the school that you would like to support with a financial donation, I would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact me directly ([email protected]) if you would like to discuss this further.

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Leave your mark at Lytchett Minster School

As part of our Sunken Garden/Outside Eating Area project, our landscape architect, Nick William-Ellis, has designed a floor surface made up entirely of bricks – engraved with the names of students/parent/staff/ governors of Lytchett Minster School on them. We are we are offering parents, students, staff and governors the chance to buy a brick with their name engraved upon it. This could be a lasting reminder of your involvement with the school. You can buy a brick with your name on it for £15. The maximum number of lines permitted is two, with a maximum number of sixteen characters per line: e.g.

The Smith Thomas and Thomas Smith

Family

If you would like to order your personalised brick(s), please go onto our WisePay page on our website, and write the names of the people you would like engraved on it. If you don’t have access to WisePay, cheques will also be accepted (made payable to ‘Lytchett Minster School’).

Please remember:  £15 per brick  Two lines maximum  A maximum of 16 characters per line  Maximum of 10 bricks per family If you would like to order your personalised brick(s), please go onto our WisePay page on our website and write the names of the people you would like engraved on it. If you don’t have access to WisePay, cheques will also be accepted (made payable to ‘Lytchett Minster School’).

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Science Week

Bere Regis Primary School Science Roadshow

On Wednesday 27th March, a group of six of our top scientists accompanied Mrs Ventham to Bere Regis Primary School to participate in one of their Apprenticeship afternoons. The aim of the afternoon was to give younger students from Years 1-6 the opportunity to participate in some hands-on practical science and to show them how a sound understanding of science can lead to lots of different career opportunities. Whilst we were there, our students helped the younger children to make bath bombs, and investigated the chemistry that causes bath bombs to ‘fizz.’ The children found it challenging trying to keep the bath bomb dry and not cause it to react when the wet ingredients were added and we had some very interesting results!

After demonstrating the‘ Screaming Jelly baby’ and Thermite reaction to the primary children, they returned inside to investigate which surfaces absorbed and reflected light the best. Our year 9s helped the younger children to build light ‘caves’ so that, when the lights went out, they could determine which materials they could see the easiest. This was a lovely tactile activity, and the smaller children loved handling the different materials, (especially the fur!). It was almost time to go, so our team finished the afternoon by demonstrating how to get a boiled egg into a conical flask by lowering the pressure inside. The afternoon was a huge success, and enjoyed by all. Our students acted with courtesy, cooperation and were a true credit to the school. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mrs Ventham for organising the visit, our school technicians for making the roadshow ‘portable’ and putting everything together, Karolina Nowak for helping on the day with organising equipment and tidying up my mess, and our brilliant Year 9 students: Amelia Barber, Christian Walker, Sophie Junnier, Bethany Pryor, Zack Little and Kacey Borg-Fowley for being superb ambassadors for the school.

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Science Week cont.

British Science Week 2019 (11th- 15th March)

This year’s science week focussed on the national theme of ‘The Journey.’ Students across KS3 were given the opportunity to take part in some exciting activities linked to this theme. Students in Year 7 took part in a lesson on mummification, which looked at the journey into the afterlife; this tied in nicely with work they have recently carried out in history on Ancient Empires. After learning how the Ancient Egyptians used to prepare bodies in the mummification process, students had the opportunity to mummify an orange by scooping out its flesh, drying its corpse, packing with fragrant spices and wrapping in bandages. We look forward to seeing the results of this, but probably won’t wait thousands of years before we take a look! Year 8 students took part in an activity called ‘Game Changer.’ This focussed on how the industrial develop- ment of humans has contributed to climate change and how climate change is likely to impact on our daily lives as we journey into the future. Students have recently studied climate change in geography, and were keen to share their knowledge with each other when designing and building their climate change board game, unfortu- nately Donald Trump didn’t fair too well in most cases! The games that the students came up with were factual, creative and excellent fun to play. Year 9 students examined how DNA is used to help scientists and archaeologists to journey into the past. They explored technological advances in DNA analysis and found out how the mystery of Cheddar Man was debunked because of these advances. They had the opportunity to design their own ancient people and had great fun painting faces, designing -hair dos and sticking on other facial features. Once dry, students were able to use genetic coding to construct a genetic code for their ancient person and deciding their name, where they were born and how long ago they lived. In addition to these lessons, we were all able to enjoy a myriad of fun lunchtime activities and demonstrations which included Dr Bonney’s biomimicry and glue-making, Mr Barratt’s explosive chemistry demos, Miss Frith’s dry ice demos, Mr Patrikakis’ Van der Graff Generator demo and Mr Jeffs’ rocket display. As usual, these were very popular and drew enthusiastic crowds. I would like to express a huge thank you to all of the teachers, technicians and KS3 students who took part in making science week the huge success that it was, and look forward to more of the same next year!

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Lytchett Lecture Series Inspire, Challenge, Enthuse

‘Britain’s Secret Lands: the UK Overseas Territories’ Tuesday 2nd April at 6pm: Stewart McPherson, Redfern Natural History Productions An exploration of the amazing range of wildlife, history and cultures of the Overseas Territories. Join explorer and naturalist Stewart McPherson of Redfern Natural History who has travelled on RAF flights, ice breakers and the last working Royal Mail ships to discover the unique wildlife, history and cultures of the territories—the true treasure of these little known outposts of the United Kingdom. All lectures are free of charge and held in the Theatre at 6pm. Lectures are open to students, parents and the wider school community. Places are limited so please reserve your seat by booking through Wisepay or email: [email protected] or [email protected]

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Important Dates

Monday 1st April (in Room 13): Parent Workshop: ‘Children and Technology’ (5.00pm- 7.00pm) Tuesday 2nd April: Lecture Series ‘Britain’s Secret Lands: the UK Overseas Territories’ (6pm in the theatre) Thursday 4th April: Year 8 Parents’ Evening (4.00-8.00pm) Friday 5th April: INSET Day Friday 5th April: Year 10 and 12 trip to Oxford University Monday 8th to Monday 22nd April: Easter Holidays Tuesday 23rd April: Students return to school Thursday 25th April: Year 7 Parents’ Evening (4.00-8.00pm) Saturday 27th April (Parish Church): Summer Concert (7.00pm) Monday 27th to Friday 31st May: Half Term Monday 3rd June: Students return to school

Please remember to name all kit, uniform, bags, coats, shoes, trainers and pencil cases as this will ensure they will make a swift return to students.

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