Dear Parent/Carer

PARENTS’ NEWSLETTER – ISSUE 8 March 2011

SAM LEARNING - 24/7 SUPPORT FOR SUBJECTS The school has recently purchased a licence for SAM Learning. This is an internet based service which is now available free for Bradon Forest students and Miss Maunder, Deputy Headteacher, has recently launched this in the Year 10 and Year 11 assemblies. It will be launched to Years 7, 8 and 9 after the Easter break. There is a direct link on the Homepage of the Learning Platform to the SAM Learning homepage www.samlearning.com The SAM Learning website contains a wealth of information for parents. Subjects include Applied Science, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, Design and Technology, DiDA, Drama, English, English Literature, French, Geography, German, History, ICT, Leisure and Tourism, Maths, Media Studies, Music, Physical Education, Physics, Religious Studies, and Science. The introduction below gives an outline of access arrangements:

Introducing the SAM Learning service As a school we are always looking for ways to extend our students’ learning. Part of our revision and support programme will now involve the use of SAM Learning, a unique online service that covers all subjects. SAM Learning has a proven track record; studies have shown that using the service helps lead to better examination results. Access details Students are able to access the service at anytime and anywhere. It is available to them in school, but also at home, in the library and community centre. All they need to do is visit the website and enter their unique login details. Website address: www.samlearning.com Centre ID: SN5BF User ID: Date of birth followed by two initials: first name then last name. Example: 010896DJ is the User ID for David Jones born 1 August 1996. Password: Initially same as the User ID, Learners are encouraged to change this to something difficult to guess. It is advised that students keep a record of the access details in their homework book. How to get involved All students will be taught how to use the service and you might wish to ask them how it works. The service enables homework to be set and marked which means that you can easily monitor the progress of your child. We hope that your child is able to take full advantage of SAM Learning and thank you in advance for supporting the initiative.

NEW UNIFORM PRICES ATTACHED : The updated uniform price lists and order forms for Key Stage 3 and 4 are now available on the website www.bradonforest.wilts.sch.uk under the ‘Welcome to Bradon Forest’ button - Section 1 Prospectus, General Information and Admissions.

SAINSBURY AND TESCO VOUCHERS : We would be very grateful if you could please send any vouchers you collect into Student Services or to Mrs Davies. Thank you.

BON VOYAGE – BRADON FOREST INDIA TRIP Over the Easter break, our India link students with Mrs Shelley and Miss Beet travel to India with staff and students from , Bradford on Avon, to visit our link schools as part of our joint British Council ‘Connecting Classrooms’ project. This is a fantastic experience and we look forward to hearing about the group’s time in India and sharing their adventures and some photographs via the newsletter and assemblies. The itinerary below provides a flavour of the trip and a look at the map of India gives an indication of the distances the group will travel between the link schools! Saturday 16 April Depart London Heathrow 10.00 pm Sunday 17 April Arrive Delhi 11.00 am Travel to Agra Spend overnight in Amar hotel Monday 18 April Visit Taj Mahal Travel to JNV Karnal Spend overnight in JNV Karnal Tuesday 19 April Travel to Shimla Spend overnight in Fagu Snow King hotel Wednesday 20 April Travel to Manali Spend overnight in Manali Heights Hotel Thursday 21 April Sightseeing in Manali Spend overnight in Manali Heights Hotel Friday 22 April Travel to JNV Mandi Stay overnight in JNV Mandi Saturday 23 April Travel to JNV Chandigarh Spend overnight at Hometel Chandigarh Hotel Sunday 24 April Travel to Delhi Spend overnight in Qutab Residency Hotel Monday 25 April Depart Delhi 1.15 pm Arrive London Heathrow 5.55 pm

PRIMARY LIAISON NEWS ISSUE 10 The tenth issue of our Primary Liaison News is currently being distributed via our Partner Primary Schools. It will be available shortly via the ‘Welcome to Bradon Forest’ button on our website: http://www.bradonforest.wilts.sch.uk/ This edition highlights a range of projects and support for our Primary Partner Schools including the terrific article below on a project with Peatmoor School: Is it a bird, is it Superman? No, it’s a Spitfire Members of our Technology team have been helping Peatmoor Primary School with a large scale project. Mr Parkinson, our Technology technician, together with teacher Mrs Carson, have built an amazing skeleton of a Spitfire plane (pictured right). Mrs Carson will be working with the Year 6 pupils every other Friday afternoon to bring the plane to life. Using the theme of recycling, they will first cover it in chicken wire, then papier mache and various recycled decorative materials to display in their main hall. The ambitious project links in with the pupils’ current work on World War II. We are very much looking forward to seeing the finished project, but in the meantime, are also hoping Mrs Carson will provide us with regular updates! “Can I just say how fantastic Mrs Carson is? She is so enthusiastic and just brilliant! Mrs Carson and her team are doing such a great job for us.” Mr Henstridge, Headteacher.

JAPANESE DISASTER FUNDRAISING Since the recent earthquake and tsunami that affected northern Japan, Simon Taylor, our Japanese support teacher, and Mr Winward, Deputy Headteacher, have kept in close contact with our Japanese families and Honda to offer support. A group of mothers, via Honda, are working with Simon and our Japanese students to raise money for the Japanese Tsunami appeal with a cake sale that will take place on Friday, 1 April 2011. The group is also offering pre-ordered sushi lunchboxes for staff to buy. These will contain six different types of sushi, including salad and egg, tuna and sausage and a piece of karaage (Japanese fried chicken). Stop press: The terrific response from staff on the first day the ‘sushi’ e-mail went out meant that no more orders could be taken and that pre-orders of sushi alone are set to make £100 for the disaster fund. Photographs and a report will appear in the next newsletter.

- 2 - MATHEMATICS NEWS Mathematics Revision for Year 10 Modular Students: On Tuesday 22 February 2011 (during the break between Terms 3 and 4), 50 Year 10 students attended a morning revision session from 9:30 am until 12:30 pm with Mr Widdop, Mr Duncan, Mr Thomas and Mrs Henly. This was in order to prepare as fully as possible for their first modular mathematics examination on 1 March 2011. Many thanks to parents for transporting the students to and from school and to the members of the Mathematics teaching staff for giving up their time for this valuable study day. UK Maths Challenge: On Thursday 3 February 2011, our most able Mathematicians in Years 9 and 10 undertook the UK Intermediate Mathematical Challenge. This is a one hour examination which challenges students to use efficient and carefully thought out techniques in order to complete unusual and challenging Maths problems within the given time. We are very pleased to report that the following students gained the awards as listed. Well done to all involved. Certificates will be handed out to students during the end of year awards assemblies. YEAR 9 YEAR 10 SURNAME FORENAME AWARD SURNAME FORENAME AWARD Ishida Takumi GOLD Hill Joshua GOLD Pettit Joseph SILVER Hannay Robert SILVER Jones Ben SILVER Mander Tina SILVER Dusting Kirk SILVER Somal Marrick SILVER Smith Oliver SILVER Steadman Hope SILVER Whinfrey Polly SILVER Green James BRONZE Richards Bethany BRONZE Hudson Iona BRONZE Gunton Elliot BRONZE Looker Jake BRONZE Curtis Hannah BRONZE Majdabadi Yalda BRONZE Bradley Adam BRONZE Sharp Elliott BRONZE Mills Robert BRONZE Tindall George BRONZE Stewart Joanna BRONZE

NEW YORK TRIP Forty students in Years 10 and 11 took part in a visit to New York during the recent break between Terms 3 and 4. They visited the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, The Rockefeller Centre, Central Park, Wall Street, South Street Seaport and Ground Zero. They also saw a Broadway show, Spiderman, and visited Times Square. The group had a superb time. They ‘experienced’ using the subway system and also had time for some shopping on Fifth Avenue and at Bloomingdales. “It is always a real pleasure to take Bradon Forest students abroad and it was a privilege to see the students experiencing and enjoying the ‘Big Apple’. A stand out moment for me was when the group spontaneously broke into song in the middle of Times Square! The group also showed compassion at the 9/11 exhibition at Ground Zero; we all had a few tears hearing about individual stories of courage and bravery. It was a real honour to be there with them.” Miss Cole Many thanks to Miss Cole, Mr Wright, Mrs Shelley and Mr Vizor for organising the trip.

- 3 - LIBRARY LEARNING CENTRE NEWS Scholastic Book Fair Thank you to everyone for your wonderful support of our book fair during World Book Day week. We made over £650 in sales of books, posters and stationery! Our sales were so high that we will now get over £500 in free books for the school library! We are delighted, and look forward to choosing lots of new books. Thank you again for your great support this year. The book fair will definitely be back next year! Mrs Sykes and Mrs Styles

FOOD TECHNOLOGY NEWS Miss Kinsey reports: Apetito Competition : Congratulations to all the Year 10 students who recently took part in the ‘Apetito’ competition - unfortunately due to the high number of entries this year we didn't get through to the final but the feedback we were given was excellent, so we will try again next year! Year 9/10 Swindon College Cookery Competition: Well done to Jessica Warren and Bryony Keep for getting through to the semi-final. They will be heading to Swindon College to cook up their dishes on 8 April 2011 and we wish them the best of luck!

Year 8 Swindon College Cookery Competition: We also held a heat in school on 16 February 2011 for the lower age group. We had lots of entries and the standard of work was amazing. Miss Kinsey chose twelve Year 8 students to come in after school to cook their chosen dishes. The entrants worked very hard and the standard of the final dishes was amazing. All the groups had obviously spent a lot of time and effort ensuring their final product was of the highest quality. Miss Kinsey involved several members of staff in the difficult task of judging the entries. Everyone commented on the high quality of the dishes - a few even asked for the recipes! The parents who came to watch really enjoyed being able to see what goes on in a school kitchen during a competition. The entries were outstanding and the winning team was Molly Griffin and Emma Clayton. Miss Kinsey accompanied Emma and Molly to the semi- final which was held at Swindon College on 18 March 2011. On arrival, all contestants were given a red nose for Comic Relief to help them relax and enjoy the competition. The girls were tasked with producing a dish using locally- sourced produce so they contacted Purton House Organics who very generously sponsored the girls by providing them with nearly all the ingredients they needed for the competition. They also supplied the fake grass for the table decoration which you can see in the photograph. The kitchens at Swindon College are very different to the ones at Bradon Forest. Both girls did really well cooking in unfamiliar surroundings and having to get used to cooking on the HUGE cookers. They competed against several local Swindon schools and were praised for their organisation and cooking skills. All the judges complimented the girls on their final dish of stuffed chicken and local and seasonal vegetables/ Although the competition was strong, the girls did very well and will now take part in the final at Swindon College on Friday 6 May 2011, so please wish them luck!

- 4 - SCIENCE NEWS On Friday 18 March 2011 representatives from Year 7 and 8 tutor groups took part in the 'Just a Minute' competition in aid of Science week. Each representative spoke for a minute on a Science topic of their choice in front of members of the Science faculty and friendly supporters. The judges were blown away by the high standard of the talks and found it incredibly difficult to choose a winner and runner-up for each year group. In the end, first prize for Year 8 was awarded to Jack Deeley (8Q) for his talk on the ‘Periodic Table’ and for Year 7 to James Keen (7W) for his speech on ‘Elephants’. Runners up were Rhianna Bryon (7S) who gave a speech on ‘Light’ and Rhian Williams (8Z) who spoke about the ‘Born Free Foundation’. The winners were awarded giant Science encyclopaedias about animals and environments and all involved were awarded certificates in assembly. Well done to all involved. 7P – Naomi Jennings 8P – Anna Witka 7Q – Jacob Thomas 8Q – Jack Deeley (First Prize) 7S – Rhianna Bryon 8S – Kirsten Harris 7T – Elenya Field 8Z – Rhian Williams 7W – James Keen (First Prize) 8X – Adam Godsell 7X – Bryony Lewis 8Y – Harry Cook 7Y – Angel Franklin 7Z – Callum Richardson

SPORTS NEWS Basketball (Boys) Following the excellent results in the Swindon Schools competition, the boys’ basketball teams have once again done well in the National competition. The Year 11s were placed in the Elite competition on the back of last year’s success which pitted them against the best teams in the South of England. After playing in a tightly contested group they unfortunately narrowly missed out on joining the last 16 in the country on points difference. A huge well done to the Year 11s who in their time with Bradon Forest have never lost in the Swindon Schools competition - being crowned winners four times, county winners three times, South West Champions three times, and reaching the last 16 in the National competition. The Year 10 team have also had a successful year in the National Cup. They progressed from their group with ease, went on to beat the Castle School in Taunton 58-40 before finally going out to Bristol Metropolitan Academy 67-55. This placed them in the last 32 nationally. Having been crowned county champions, the Year 9 team have had their first foray into the National Cup. They beat Bath’s Beechen Cliff 73-23 and Bristol Metropolitan 60-42 which placed them in the last 16 nationally. Unfortunately they were overcome in their next game against Plymstock School 55-81. They have had a fantastic first season in the National Cup, which should serve as excellent experience for next year’s competition. A huge well done to all involved.

Basketball (Girls) In the South West of England regional final the U16 girls travelled to Maynard School in Exeter. After a poor start the girls found themselves 15-1 down at the end of the first quarter and in danger of a heavy defeat. However, at the beginning of the second quarter, the girls began to find their form and an impressive whole team performance led to a 45-27 victory. As a result, the girls had to play Princess Risborough in the last 16 in the country. This game was going to be a tough ask as Anglela Luchembe was still out with a long term injury. With five minutes remaining in the game, the girls were 10 points down but with a change in tactics the team fought back to be level with 16 seconds to go. However, with the last play of the game, Princess Risborough scored to win by two points. Considering the injuries the team members have suffered this year, reaching the last 16 in the country was a great achievement! Very well done to all.

- 5 - Cricket Pitch Upgrade Mr Hartley submitted a bid to the Lord’s Taverners/Cricket Foundation ‘Chance to Shine’ scheme which was set up to support non-turf pitch development. We were delighted to hear that our bid has been successful and Mr Hartley is now arranging for the work to be done! An extract from the letter from The Cricket Foundation follows.

Grant for Non-Turf Pitch – I am pleased to inform you that, following application, grant aid has now been considered and approved by the Cricket Foundation. A grant of £5,000 has been allocated by the Cricket Foundation for the installation of a New Non-Turf Pitch. The maximum amount of this grant is £5,000 and is exclusive of VAT. You will almost certainly be aware that The Lord’s Taverners are supporting the Chance to Shine Campaign very generously indeed to the tune of £1 million. Half of this sum is being used specifically to support the installation of Non Turf Pitches. Sue Moxon, Operations Co-ordinator, The Cricket Foundation

Swindon Mad March Hare Race Keiran Jones (8W) ran the Mad March Hare Race (Swindon) and finished in the top eight out of 800 runners and raised money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer on route. An impressive result both in terms of running and fund raising – well done Kieran.

Netball County Finals Tournament Miss Pratten reports: On Wednesday 23 March 2011, the netball teams from Years 8, 10 and 11 travelled to Dorcan Technology College to compete in the County Netball Finals Tournament. All three teams were representing Swindon as winners of the Swindon Netball League and were competing against other Wiltshire area winners. The Year 11s first match was against South Wilts Grammar School and the team knew this would be their most challenging match of the day. Unfortunately, South Wilts proved too tough and the match went in their favour 19-17. The Year 11s then met Kingdown School from in their second match of the afternoon. The girls found this match much easier and at half time were 22-3 up. They decided to switch around positions and have some fun with this being their last ever netball match for Bradon Forest School! The final score reflected the versatility and ability of the Year 11 team: Bradon Forest 33 - Kingdown 5!! The Year 11 team consisted of Charlotte Legge, Jemma Showler, Paige Loyden, Natasha Chilambo, Emily Dicks, Shannon Stephenson and Hannah Pettit. The Year 10s first match was also against South Wilts Grammar School and the score at half time was 4-3 to South Wilts. The girls went out fighting in the second half but the opposition proved too strong and the girls lost this match 13-8. The Year 10s second match was against St Augustine’s College from , a specialist Sports College, and the girls knew this match would be even tougher than their first. Even though the final score was 12-5 to St. Augustine’s, the standard of netball from Bradon was fantastic and inspiring to watch! This team look strong contenders for next year’s U16 National Schools competition. The Year 10 team consisted of Jemma Bradley, Beth Dunn, Nicole Farmer, Chanaley Alleyne, Rhianne Groom, Natalie Moseley, Charlotte Densham and Letitia Cowley. The Year 8s had a blazing first match against Clarendon School from Trowbridge in which the team pulled together to win 10-0! The Year 8s second match against Sheldon, Chippenham, was not their best display of netball with a lack of passing accuracy being the main reason for the score at half time being 5-0 to Sheldon. The second half saw the Bradon Forest team completely change their positions and this seemed to have a positive effect as they won the second half 5-4. Unfortunately, the overall score was 9-5 to Sheldon. The Year 8s had one more game to play to determine whether they could become runner’s up in the tournament. Their final match was against South Wilts Grammar School. Unfortunately, the speed and height of the Goal Attack from South Wilts was too much for our defence and the final score was 10-5 in favour of South Wilts.

- 6 - The Year 8 team consisted of Elisha Davey, Katie Densham, Eleasha Kell, Bella Fedai, Grace Bartlett, Charlotte Butler, Georgie Toms, Kirsten Harris and Alexandra Tong. Final results were as follows: Year 11 = second place, Year 10 = third place and Year 8 = third place. These are extremely encouraging results for a county competition and reflects the talent within Bradon Forest School. Well done to all the girls who participated and represented their year group in the tournament – it was a privilege to take such a well-behaved and polite group of girls.

County Pom Dance Competition Miss Pratten reports: On Thursday 17 March 2011, ten students from Years 7 and 8 travelled to to take part in the County Pom Dance Competition. The girls had been practising their routine for weeks and were all looking forward to their first competition as a new squad. Each school in the competition had to perform their routine twice with the marks from each performance added together to create an overall total. The girls performed brilliantly, their timing was near perfect and they even remembered to smile throughout their performance. Congratulations to the Bradon Forest team for being placed third: Bryony Lockett 7Q, Danielle Spiers 7T, Molly Griffin 8S, Eleasha Kell 8Q, Daisy Kendall 8Q, Charlotte Butler 8Q, Alexandra Tong 8Q, Loren James 8Q, Becki Boyall 8Y and Megan Daw 8W. The girls were a pleasure to take to this competition and to come third in the county in their first competition is incredible. Credit should be given to the hard work the girls have put in and the commitment they have to each other to ensure they perform at their best. I am looking forward to working with the girls on their next routine and we hope that next time we can improve our placing and maybe even win! Watch this space!

Avon Valley School Sports Partnership: Year 5/6 Quicksticks Hockey Festival Miss Moore reports: What a well attended festival! 120 Year 5/6 pupils from nine primary schools took part. There were twenty teams entered in total and the games were played in a good spirit with a high standard of hockey from all. The Year 10 officiators did a fantastic job and the success of the festival was largely down to their professionalism. Miss Moore would like to say well done to everyone who took part.

SEAL NEWS Media Makeup Workshop Mrs Carson reports: As part of Bradon Forest’s ongoing investment into vocational learning and preparation for working life, Mrs Carson and Swindon College invited a group of Year 9, 10 and 11 students to take part in a Media Makeup and Beauty Therapy workshop. The workshops were designed for both parents and students to work alongside each other to build ongoing relationships through the medium of Art and Design and Production Arts, as well as personal satisfaction in building new skills. The workshop is part of a series of events aimed to help with progression towards post- 16 education. Students and parents learnt some of the makeup techniques used on the cast of the BBC one drama ‘Casualty’ and gave each other a mini facial in the Beauty Therapy workshop (see photographs below). Thank you to all those parents who came in to support the events. An enjoyable time was had by all.

- 7 - EXPRESSIVE ARTS NEWS

MUSIC NEWS Rotary Young Musician District Finals on Sunday 13 March 2011 Miss Groom reports: Swindon and Bradon Forest School were well represented on Sunday 13 March 2011 at the Rotary Young Musician District Finals held in Cheltenham. Lucy Bosley was representing Bradon Forest School in the vocal section and gave an excellent performance. There was a huge variety of styles and the standard was very high so many congratulations to Lucy who was placed second. Rei Shimizu played the piano in the instrumental class and also gave a fantastic performance. The instruments ranged from recorder to ukulele and beyond so I was very glad that I wasn't an adjudicator as again the standard was extremely high! Well done to both girls!

DRAMA NEWS Bradon Forest Theatre News: The Nothing Show On Friday 21 January 2011, Stewart Wright returned to the Bradon Forest Theatre with his amusing ‘tour de force of contemporary clowning’. Stewart Wright (Bridget Jones' Diary, Doc Martin) spent the afternoon working with a group of Bradon Forest students to create their own piece of physical theatre in the style of ‘The Nothing Show’, which was then performed to the public. This was an exciting opportunity for our students to work with and perform alongside a contemporary professional actor, using more traditional physical theatre performance skills and techniques. The final collaborative performance was a one off experience for both actors and audience members! Vicky Edgerton, Year 10, writes: "The Nothing Show can be summed up in one word, amazing. No verbal conversation, no props, and no sets yet still brilliant. The overall show was very entertaining, with no chance to be bored or without a grin on your face. Just as you think things are going to calm down something happens to shock you and make you laugh all over again. The show was split into two parts. There was the student part and Stewart Wright’s part. The student part was easy to follow and always different, coming up with new scenarios to make school life interesting. That was certainly entertaining as they all linked into what was happening and the way it was all done so casually was fantastic! Stewart Wright was a wonder to watch, with the repetitive waking up routine. Though you knew what was happening and had seen it before, there were small new things that happened, always holding your attention. It was absolute genius. I cannot find fault with this performance as I really enjoyed it, as did my sisters. Never before have I seen that kind of show and I didn’t know what to expect but I was very pleasantly surprised and would recommend if the chance ever arose, take it and see this show."

Student Success News – Wyvern Theatre Pantomime 2010/11 Pearce Barron (8S) played the part of John Darling in the Wyvern Pantomime ‘Peter Pan’ in December and January. The article below is written about Pearce and his experiences and is from ‘Young Performer’ magazine (March/April 2011 ). As the article indicates, there were 41 cast members who gave 49 performances over the 21 day run to a total audience of 26,500 people! The technical dress rehearsal is held the night before the public first night and is run in front of an invited audience. I was there with my family, as was Mrs Evans and her family, and we all thoroughly enjoyed the production – oh yes we did!! Well done to Pearce who did such a good job as part of a really enjoyable and professional pantomime.

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PTA 200 CLUB MARCH 2011 - PRIZE WINNERS

WINNER MEMBERSHIP NUMBER PRIZE 1 Mrs P Bedry, Cricklade 187 £20 2 Mr D Gibbs, Worthing 117 £15 3 Mrs D Coupland, Peatmoor 85 £10 4 Mrs J Deeley, Sparcells 60 £5

DATES OF FUTURE NEWSLETTERS 2010/11

Issue 9 - week commencing 2 May 2011 Issue 10 - week commencing 13 June 2011 Issue 11 - week commencing 11 July 2011

ACADEMIC YEAR DATES 2010/11 The dates for this academic year are reproduced at the end of each newsletter to ensure that ‘end of term’ closures and all our Teacher Development Days (when the school is closed to students) are regularly highlighted to students and parents.

Remaining Dates for Academic Year 2010/11

Term 4 Term 5 Begins Monday 28 February 2011 Begins Tuesday 26 April 2011 NB Public Holiday Friday 29 April 2011 Ends Friday 8 April 2011 Public Holiday Monday 2 May 2011 Holiday 9 April 2011 – 25 April 2011 Ends Friday 27 May 2011 Holiday 28 May 2011 – 5 June 2011

Term 6 Begins Monday 6 June 2011

Ends Friday 22 July 2011 Holiday 23 July 2011 – 31 August 2011

Yours sincerely

L M Spiers Headteacher

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