Welcome to the first edition of ‘The WAFFLE’… This is a new joint venture of the previous staff report and student magazine. We thought it would be a great idea to get together and create one fabulous magazine that will be rolled out once every term. It has been yet another fabulous year for all and the stories here are a reflection of that and we are sure you will find them interesting, perhaps amazing… but we know you will enjoy it!! The next edition will be published in December… so get writing those stories… Lisa Lewis Izaak Bosman Sarah Harris Lucia Buffa (Staff Member) (AS Student) (A2 Student) (A2 Student) Farewell year 13… Page | 2 An invite to our end of year art exhibition Private View night Everyone is welcome, so if you have friends/family/neighbours/dentists who like art, do please bring them along. And get them to bring their chequebooks, as our students are often happy to sell their work and you can pick up original, high quality work for a bargain. If you can’t make the private view night, do please just wander up and take a look any working day after that date. Page | 3 Visit to France, Germany and Spain By Sarah Whitney, Emma Walkers and Katrina Straw Groups of students studying French, Spanish and German spent a week in France, Spain and Germany on European exchange visits in February and March. In all the language exchanges in addition to lessons at our partner colleges and sightseeing the students spent a major part of the week at work experience placements in local primary schools. The 3-day work experience placements make the language exchanges at Bilborough College unique compared to exchanges and educational trips run by other schools and colleges. In addition to gaining confidence in their language skills the students learn about the working life abroad and have something worthwhile adding to their CV’s. Altogether 28 students studying French stayed a week in Bordeaux and were hosted by French students from our partner college Lycée Fernand Daguin in a town called Mérignac, a 20-minute tram ride from city centre Bordeaux. The students stayed in their French partner’s home experiencing the French family life and way of living. In addition to getting to know the French College life and the sights of Bordeaux, the students had a day trip to Dune du Pyla, Europe’s tallest sand dune in Arcachon on the Bordeaux coast. After the challenging climb up the dune everyone was rewarded with incredible views and a picnic. A group of 18 Spanish students spent a week in Cáceres staying with their Spanish partner’s families from our partner college “Universidad Laboral”. One of the highlights of the week was a day trip to the beautiful National Park of Monfragüe. After a 2-hour walk up to the main viewing point and back down again the students had a well-earned picnic enjoying all the food they had made themselves the previous day at the college’s catering department. A group of 10 students studying German spent a week in Berlin in March. The students were hosted by German students from our partner college Georg Büchner Gymnasium. Outside the family life Bilborough students got to practise their German in the classroom attending lessons as well as in the many activities the German hosts had arranged including bowling. The students also spent a day sightseeing in Berlin visiting the main sights such as Checkpoint Charlie, the Berlin Wall, the Reichstag and the Brandenburger Tor. Page | 4 Business Studies New York Trip Feb 2015 By Laura Goulding The Business Studies Department took 46 AS, A2 and BTEC business students to New York in February. The trip gave them a great opportunity to see business from an international perspective! Following a very early start on the Sunday morning, we arrived in New York late afternoon. After settling in at the hotel we went to experience American Cuisine at Bubba Gumps restaurant in Times Square before heading up the Empire State Building to take in the New York skyline at night. A fantastic sight and worth bearing the -10c temperatures and snow for! The following day started with a business seminar at Madame Tussauds which gave a fantastic insight to how Merlin Entertainment is run and their future strategies for the business – as well the process and cost of making the wax works (up to $300,000 per model!). There was then the opportunity for the students to go round the wax works museum – and plenty of shock at how small some of the stars are and a few photo opportunities! Following this the students undertook a walking tour of New York including Mid Town, 5th Avenue, Grand Central, the Rockefeller Centre, Times Square and Central Park. The students were fantastic taking in all the sights – despite being greeted by a snow storm whilst on the tour. Later in the day after warming up we headed off for a night of bowling. Tuesday started with an early morning walk up to the Rockafeller centre – luckily the weather had started to warm up (it reached 0c!). We all took in the New York Skyline in daylight and learnt about the history of the building. It quickly became apparent how much health and safety rules have changed! Following this we went down to Maddison Square Gardens for an all access tour. We got an insider look at the World’s most famous arena, including the Knicks and Rangers Locker rooms, the VIP areas and the behind the scenes side of the arena. The students were told about the logistics and marketing required for keeping somewhere like Maddison Square Gardens running. It was interesting to hear the corporate social responsibility side of the business and the involvement with the community that they have. After a break for dinner we returned to Maddison Square Gardens for the Knicks game! It was superb to see all that was discussed in action. We all kitted out in the freebies we were given (hats / t-shirts) so we felt the part! Wednesday was another early start to head off to the port for a Circle Line cruise. The one hour cruise took us down past the financial district, Liberty Island and the Statute of Liberty. This gave us some of the best views of city and plenty more photo opportunities. When we returned we hopped on the metro to head down to the financial district. After a quick stop for lunch we made our way to the 9/11 Memorial Museum. The Museum was a truly fitting dedication to those who lost their lives and those who were affected by the tragedy. Everyone was moved by the stories being told in the museum –it was a truly humbling experience and all of the students commented how grateful and appreciative it made them feel for their lives. This was followed by a walking around the financial district and Wall Street before getting the metro back up to the Hotel. That evening was Awards Evening – we headed off to Dave and Busters for a meal, a quiz and some awards. The evening was great fun and finished off by some time in the penny arcade. Thursday morning it was time to pack up. After packing and vacating the rooms we headed off to Macy’s for a tour and talk about the world’s largest store. It was interesting to hear the science behind retailing and the tricks of the trade. Following the tour the students were given time to help boost the American economy by indulging in a bit of retail therapy for themselves. Early evening we returned to the hotel to re-pack suitcases with the new purchases (this involved a lot of sitting on suitcases!) before the coach came to collect us to return to airport. An overnight flight and 3 hour bus journey got us back to the UK and the warm (6c at this point almost felt like summer). The students were fantastic during the week and were a great credit to the college! Page | 5 Oxbridge THANK YOU!!! By Emma Walkers So far YOU have raised £220 On 18th March we welcomed Alexy Karenowska, lecturer in Physics at Magdalen College, Oxford, and some for victims of the NEPAL current Magdalen undergraduates for an Oxford Outreach afternoon. The event was attended by EARTHQUAKE! students from Bilborough College and also pupils from Ellis Guilford and West Park schools. The event involved a talk from Alexy about why and how to apply to This money can help Oxford and then the undergraduates took charge of small groups and ran question and answer sessions to provide: help prospective applicants understand what life as an Oxford student is like. Several students also attended masterclasses and taster 2 built sanitation and sessions at both Oxford and Cambridge water facilities Universities. Students signed up for sessions in English Literature, Biomedical Sciences, Chemistry, Philosophy, Clean water for 750 Geography and History. children Over the Easter break, 6 students attended residential placements at Peterhouse College, Cambridge. These 22 hygiene kits gave them a taster of life at Cambridge University. THANK YOU AGAIN!!! Chemistry Trip By Garry Drew On Wednesday 21st January 2015 20 chemistry students Orchestra from Bilborough made their way to the university for the afternoon. By Sophie Mapplebeck (Nottingham Music Service) After the welcome the first lecture was given by Sir th Martyn Poliakoff, who talked mainly about the world On May 16 students part of the Robin Hood Youth famous Periodic Table videos, produced by Nottingham Orchestra at Nottingham Music School performed at University, on every element in the table.