DECEMBER 2015 NEWSLETTER From the Headteacher annual tea party and carols organised by members of the sixth form. As we come to the end of At the end of term we say goodbye to support staff another busy member Mrs Sally Blackmore. Our grateful thanks go term, I hope to her for all her work particularly in support of the that you will PSA. We also say a fond farewell to Mrs Kay Jarvis in get a flavour our office. To both colleagues our very best wishes. of the wide Year 11 mock examinations start on our return in variety of January. Girls have been issued with their exam activities that timetables, and a separate letter explaining have taken arrangements should have reached parents. Please go place this term through these arrangements with your daughter and from the ensure that she has a sensible programme of revision in newsletter. place. A reminder also to all year 11 pupils that sixth Our production of Daisy Pulls it off was a real delight form application forms should be handed in by 31st and my thanks go to Ms Webb and all her team for January once you know your mock examination results. If putting on such an excellent show. The autumn concert you know of any girls attending other schools who did was another tremendous showcase of BSG musical talent. not attend our open evening but might be interested in joining our sixth form we will be having an open morning It was lovely to see so many parents and friends at our for them when they can find out more about what we Carol Service, held again this year at St. Francis of Assisi have to offer. church. A selection of readings and musical items from our choirs and instrumental groups provided a memorable If you would like to keep up to date with the latest news start to the Christmas season. from BSG then why not follow us on Twitter? Our Twitter name is @BSGupdate. We will also use this medium as Founders’ Day was again an opportunity to celebrate an additional way of getting urgent messages out to the and share in the successes of so many of our pupils in school community. academic work and the wider life of the school. This year the prizes and certificates were awarded by the Mayor The new term starts on Monday 4th January at 8.30. of Bournemouth and double Olympic athlete Liz Yelling. May I conclude by wishing all members of the BSG We also saw the presentation of certificates by Mrs Jane community and their families a Happy Christmas and a Stichbury to the pupils who have completed the Duke of prosperous and successful New Year! Edinburgh’s Award at school. In addition to over 91 bronze awards, and a silver award to Poppy Bond, it was a particular delight to present gold awards to Mr Brien Olivia Burt, Madeleine Taylor, Rebecca Giddens and Chloe Walker. Congratulations to all girls who participated in any way to make this such a memorable occasion. It was good to welcome older friends of the school to our Amnesty International On Wednesday 9th December, the six Amnesty leaders went to the Houses of Parliament for Amnesty International’s Human Rights Day. It was a great privilege for them to be asked to attend, and they had a brilliant day. You may have seen a couple of ‘Tweets’ on the school Twitter account. As the school newsletter is going to ‘press’, a fuller account of the day will appear in the next edition. In school, we have continued to meet and debate human rights issues, and we have also held a couple of card making sessions so that we can send greetings to prisoners of conscience over the festive season and into the New Year. Thank you to all of you who have been involved with our meetings this half-term. Dr Ellsmore The sixth form has continued to hold regular debates with the boys’ school, alternating venues to tackle questions connected with film re-workings of texts, Trident renewal, and the significance of marriage, among others. Our teams have invariably produced well organised, detailed and persuasive speeches, and delivered them with aplomb in front of large audiences. The rest of the sixth form is to be congratulated on its support; on one occasion seventy students made the journey up the hill at Friday lunchtime. Speeches from the floor are becoming longer and more independent of question format, which is to be applauded. We are very grateful to Mr Bonds and BS for their enthusiastic commitment to this lively joint enterprise, which we much value. From the speaker group Alex White and Niamh Libonatti- Roche were selected to represent us at the local round of the ESU Schools’ Mace competition and performed with assurance and fluency against strong opposition. Mr Hubbard Year 8 Public Speaking This half term year 8 girls have been polishing their public speaking skills. Everyone has selected a subject about which she feels strongly and has prepared a short speech to persuade her classmates to agree with her views. The quality has been particularly high this year and topics have ranged from animal rights to the use of capital punishment (for and against) to gender stereotyping to talking in cinemas and beauty pageants… On 17th December two winners from each class will represent their house in the final. From these finalists, a group will go forward to represent the school at a regional competition. Watch this space! Mrs Burdett As girls perhaps may receive new phones, I pads, etc for Christmas, may I remind parents of the importance of ensuring effective security and parental controls are in place to protect the girls and their friends from unsuitable and upsetting material. The Knitting Club have had a busy term learning to knit various stitches, work with colours and follow basic patterns, just in time to knit festive Christmas tree decorations (Snowmen, Santas, Christmas trees, Gingerbread men, etc)! Some girls are completing this as an activity for their Duke of Edinburgh award, some are completing their Snowdrop awards. In this photo we have Elise Johnstone 8A, Isobel Priestley 7S, Sophie Roberts 7C, Amelie Fox 8S, Holly Sheridan 7P, Grace Weaver 10A, Josiah Cho 10C, Sarah Cole 10C, Eujin Oh 10C, and Elizabeth Dibden 10C. The Knitting Club is an after school extra-curricular activity; we meet on Mondays. D & T Department News The Clothes Show Live @ the NEC On 8th December, a large group of GCSE and A Level Textiles students travelled to Birmingham to attend The Clothes Show at the National Exhibition Centre. The exhibition space was 186,000sqm (making it the largest in the UK) and contained hundreds of well- known and independent brand stalls offering a range of products. For example, makeup by Barry M, Rimmel London and Models Own, and hair care brands like THX, Peaches and Cream, and clothes stores such as ‘Religion’, ‘In The Style’ and ‘Motel Rocks’. The main purpose of the visit was the fashion show, which was insightful and inspiring. The dancers and models were fantastic and stunning and they interacted with the audience well. There was a performance by X Factor contestant Josh Daniels, who sang a lovely rendition of “Runnin’” by Naughty Boy and Beyoncé. The fashion show was also hosted by ‘Made in Chelsea’ star, Jamie Laing. Overall, the experience was thrilling and eye-opening. Seeing the possible career opportunities has confirmed our love for the subject. We want to thank the textiles department- Mrs Crease, Mrs Leese, and Mrs Johnson - for organising and escorting us to what we can confidently say was the best school trip ever! Zhane Rose and Faith Mwangi addition we have seen great sixth form support in the school concert and carol service, and the production of “Daisy”, as well as weekly commitments to CCF, Enterprise Challenge and the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme, to name but a few. Year 12 were outstanding in promoting our sixth form to year 11 students both from BSG and other local schools recently as subject ambassadors at our sixth form information evening in The Sixth Form have been very busy, and there is always November. The sixth form have been very busy, and there is always a “buzz” in the sixth form area. Most of year 13 have been heavily career-focused this In year 12, students have made the transition from GCSE term – at the same time as coping with A2 lessons and to the more independent style of learning required for A coursework - with applications made to apprenticeship level study, and we have reviewed how they are getting providers and UCAS now underway. It is exciting to on through an “early warning” and formal “progress receive conditional offers of university places – many of check”. Many students were encouraged by the them without requiring an interview – but all students comments of their teachers at our recent year 12 parents’ have had the opportunity to practise their interview skills evening, and they will shortly be finding out who has by working with their peers, teachers at BSG and BS or been awarded a commendation for their attitude to Governors. We have also been fortunate to receive learning. Students who have found A level study more of support from local GPs and a Vet and we have practised a challenge have been supported by their tutor, and multi-mini interviews (which use a speed-dating format!) have received detailed feedback from their subject with those who are likely to be invited to one.