3rd March 2017 STANDING OUT THE MAGAZINE FOR MOUNTS BAY ACADEMY Cover: Interact Group 8th November 2019 PRINCIPAL’S REPORT We Can Change The World... You cannot fail to have noticed that there is an upcoming election due to take place in our country on 12th December. The next few weeks will undoubtably be filled with manifestos, promises, debates, claims, counter claims, media circuses and photo opportunities. If the campaigning we’ve seen so far is anything to go by, it’s promising to be one of the most bad tempered elections we’ve ever witnessed in the UK. Argument and debate are very important to the democratic process and here at Mounts Bay we are keen to explore different views and perspectives in a respectful way. It is important that we are tolerant of one another’s beliefs and make sure we listen to one another’s views to hear and not just to answer. We will be exploring the democratic process over the next few weeks, with students being given the chance to participate in a mock election. The parties will all be represented by senior members of staff campaigning as candidates. None of the views will be their own opinions, and will be based on the relevant party manifesto. Students will take part in a ‘Question Time’ style debate, chaired by myself, where the parties’ manifestos will be communicated and key issues debated. A ballot will be held following the authentic experience as closely as possible: students will be crossed off our ‘electoral roll’, given a ballot paper, will place their ‘X’ against their choice of candidate in private booths to assure secrecy, before placing their ballot paper in a sealed ballot box. I am really looking forward to the MBA Election 2019 and we will be reporting how our students vote once our counters and returning officer have processed the result. The five British Values are: Democracy The rule of law Individual liberty Mutual respect Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs Best wishes Your Vote Counts... Les Hall Academy Principal Hot Chocolate Friday BE INSPIRED Remember, Remember... The Mounts Bay Academy Interact Group were delighted to join the Interact Group from Humphry Davy School and the Rotary Clubs of Penzance and Mounts Bay in helping the annual Penzance Fireworks display go with a bang. Following the outstanding display, students from both schools worked together to clear Penzance AFC’s pitch ready for the next game. The Interact Group meets on a Friday after school and arranges different events, with the proceeds going to local, national and international charities chosen by the group. Open to Year 8 and Year 7 students, new members are always welcome to come along and take part. Meetings are on Fridays (but not every week) after school in the main hall. For more details, please ask Mr Royle or email: [email protected] Report by: Mr Royle BE INSPIRED Year 7 Halloween Disco On Friday 1st November, there was a Year 7 disco at Mounts Bay held by the Interact Group. There were lots of prizes to win and lots of contests to participate in. There were refreshments in the canteen, including chocolate doughnuts and muffins. Students came in some incredible costumes and one of them I think was a dinosaur! There was a raffle at the end and lots of people won chocolates and all sorts of other prizes. It was a great success with lots of people having a great time! We were raising money for our group’s two charities; ‘Build Africa’ and the ‘Street Food Project Penzance’. We’re not sure of the final amount raised yet, but it was over £110! Thank you to all the Year 7 students who attended and to all the teachers and older students who helped out. Report by: Ivy BE INSPIRED Academic Academy Lecture Selected students from our Academic Academy attended a lecture on the Holocaust with ‘A’ level students at Penwith College to gain a deeper understanding for their curriculum learning. There were extremely moving presentations about the Holocaust and the causes behind this atrocity and what it reflects in human nature, which led to the question of could the same thing happen today? Report by: Mrs Masters “Last Wednesday, I attended the lecture at Penwith College about the Holocaust. It was an informative experience, we were told about the steps leading to the holocaust such as the anti semitism being pushed by the Nazis. We were also told about how concentration camps and anti “semitism weren’t new. In conclusion, the lecture was an interesting look into one of the worst genocides in history.” - Aiden “The lecture was really informative and made me think about how I would feel in the position of either group.” - Peter ” BE CURIOUS Science Club - Electroplating This week in Science Club students were electroplating a keyring. They practiced the method on a piece of brass. Firstly we had to polish the metal so it was as shiny as we could possibly get it and then clean it with soapy water. After this students attached the anode and cathode. To remember which is positive and which is negative we used the Panic method: P - positive AN - node, negative Is Cathode = PANIC. The piece of metal they wanted to plate was attached with crocodile clips to the cathode (-) and a piece of copper was attached to the anode (+). These were submerged in a beaker with copper sulfate solution, so we had a complete circuit for the experiment. Students then turned on the power pack and waited a few minutes. We found that the cleaner the piece of metal at the beginning of the process, the better the electroplating worked. Electroplating is a process that uses an electric current to reduce dissolved metal cations so that they form a thin coherent metal coating on an electrode. Report by: Mrs Wheeler BE CURIOUS Pot of Gold Rainbows are a meteorological phenomenon. The reflection, refraction or dispersion of light in the water droplets resulting in the spectrum of light being visible in the sky. Although we mostly see an arc rainbow, full circle ones can also be made. Rainbows caused by sunlight always appear in the sky directly opposite the sun. In the rainbow pictured you can see the colours start with red on the outside (the top) and violet on the inner (bottom). If you look closely you will see another arc above the primary arc. Notice that the colours of that arc are reversed. This is due to the light being reflected twice on the inside of the droplet before leaving! Sign of the Week - Autumn Report by: Mrs Wheeler + The sign for ‘A’ The sign for falling leaves Report by: Mrs Murray-Lambrou MBA FUTURES Can We Live Without Engineers? As part of Engineering Week, Year 10 and Year 11 students had the chance to hear first hand about the career opportunities in engineering from MBA’s Enterprise Adviser John Challenger, who has an extensive background in a variety of engineering disciplines. He shared with passion his wealth of experience in oil and gas production, chemical engineering, food and drink industry, pharmaceuticals and the design of life-saving vaccines to fight global pandemics. Students were able to relate their curriculum learning to real life projects and the variations from organic to physical chemistry. Students learnt about the wide range of opportunities to train at technician level through to degree and the rewards in terms of a fulfilling, varied, well paid and highly sought after career. The conclusion was that we can’t live without engineers! • It’s given me opportunities to travel and meet some fascinating people “ and make some really good friends. • It’s always challenging and stimulating. • I have never been bored! - John Challenger ” BE CURIOUS Eco Representatives Needed We are looking for students in each tutor group to be reps (representatives) for us. Your duties would include passing on information from us to your tutor group. You will NOT need to come to the meetings. We will send you information by email and you would also be able to send us suggestions, ideas and questions from members of your tutor group. The Eco Committee feel that this method will keep everyone better informed about what we are doing, what’s coming up, how you can get involved, as well as letting us know what you would like to see change. Please email [email protected] with your name and tutor group so we can compile a list of contacts. Doing this would be a great way to earn service hours for your colours or half colours. Report by: Mrs Wheeler Unsuitable App Information Important message for the attention of all parents, guardians or carers: Please can parents be aware of a new app that has been endorsed by celebrities, which has serious child safety issues. It is called ‘Facecast’ and we have been advised that it is unsuitable for students. If you see it on your child’s personal devices please delete it. We have blocked this on all Academy systems. This is the advice we have been given by a national safeguarding agency to protect our students. We have also been informed that people are targeting social media accounts where there are pictures of children in school uniform. We would advise that no student post such pictures on any social network. Report by: Mr Elliott BE INSPIRED Restorative Leadership Programme Mounts Bay Academy are the Project Lead for the Restorative Leadership Programme, a European part funded project that’s aim is to develop education and healthcare through restorative practice.