ISSUE 110 13th September 2019 The time had arrived for Year 7 to begin their Resilience Camp adventure. Although the weather was not the best when we arrived at school on Wednesday morning our spirits were high, and despite a few nerves about staying away from home students were excited to get going. Carrying all their belongings students boarded the walking bus and began their journey from BBG to Fanwoods. On completing the first challenge and arriving at camp the skies were dry and students were very excited and ready for their second challenge of putting up their tents and creating a home for the next three days. They followed instructions perfectly and embraced the challenge of putting up their tent and in no time our location had gone from an empty field to a little camping community. Although things did not go smoothly for some groups, all students persevered, demonstrating great Cognitive Resilience. Students were incredibly supportive of each other, not only working effectively as a tent group but also offering a helping hand to those that were struggling once their tents were up. Great friendships were already starting to blossom. Students were divided in to 17 groups, in which they completed a combination of the following activities; axe throwing, rifle shooting, bouldering, team building, grass sledging, archery tag, indoor cave, low ropes, night line, crate stacking, archery and photo orienteering. Each one designed to challenge students in various ways, allowing them to make new friends and find out new things about themselves. Throughout the activities students demonstrated real team spirit, from supporting those who were struggling to celebrating with each other when success was achieved. On many occasions we saw students supporting each other and giving expert advice to help improve performance and increase the chances of success. Students have been a credit to us and most importantly a credit to themselves. They have done us proud. An exceptional level of camaraderie and resilience was always evident. The staff would like to say a huge “Well Done” to all of Year 7. Sadly this week we have had a number of reports via telephone, email and Twitter about the unsafe way in which some of our students are riding their bikes to school. Whilst we can tell students daily about the dangers of not wearing a helmet and also about safe practices on the road, ultimately we cannot travel with them. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, as parents, can you encourage your children to obey the rules of the road? Reports of pulling wheelies, weaving in and out of traffic, and in some cases actually making contact with cars all worry us greatly. We have also had many reports of children not wearing helmets. On Wednesday this week a young boy was tragically knocked off his bike and killed in Wales, as reported by The Metro. Also reported by The Metro last week was the story below of a young man who collided with another bike and was not wearing a helmet – this happened right outside the school grounds. His family wanted other families to see the devastation caused to his face as a result of not wearing a helmet. “A schoolboy has warned cyclists to wear helmets after he broke his face and skull in a horrific fall from his bike. Lewys Jones, 15, landed face-first on the pavement after he collided with another bike outside Merthyr Tydfil College on Friday. Doctors discovered he had suffered five fractures around his socket and another to the top of his skull. He spent three nights in hospital, and said he wants to warn others about the dangers of not wearing a helmet. He said: ‘It is vital. It can save a life. I want to make young people aware that a helmet is safe to wear.” Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/09/04/family- want-see-picture-injured-teen-didnt-wear- bike-helmet-10687534/?ito=cbshare Kier and Tom Garnett Year 8 have been doing a session with Tom Garnett, a structural Engineer from Kier. Each group learnt about the construction industry and the careers available to individuals. Tom explained what some of these jobs entailed and what qualifications they require. To get a feel if the students would like a career in this industry they built structures which could hold different weights from spaghetti. The winning structure was 370 mm tall. This week saw Year 8 students taking part in a construction based activity, in which they were building planters to be displayed around the ‘new build’ part of the school. The project was led by three chaps from Volunteer it Yourself (VIT) with all materials provided by Wickes. Students worked in teams to build the planters from scratch, using carpentry skills, whilst being supported by the mentors from VIT, who not only taught the students how to use the tools safely and correctly but worked with them to create something which they could be proud of. Students worked non-stop all day, showing a great team spirit and lots of enthusiasm. Learning new skills, such as how to measure their wood correctly and then saw it to size, as well as using the drills to fix pieces together, ensured that the room was filled with the buzz of true commitment and technical talk. What a great week! In true Bob the Builder style – “Can we make it?” “Yes, we jolly well can!” Sara, Jonny and Alicia from Creative Scene inspired Year 10 on Wednesday with the varying routes into the Arts and the vast array for jobs within the industry. Students completed a networking task, to understand the importance of good communication skills and why networking is important, before hearing about the way the arts stretches from jobs such as law or doctors within a film set, to artists, film producers, game designers, social media PR consultants etc. The students were really engaged and the following even won a private tour around the Nationwide ‘Blink’ Arts Project, which will be launched in Dewsbury in November, before beginning it’s tour of the UK. Well done to Rebecca Woods, Max Newby, Rhiannon Selby, Oscar Craven, Emma Lightowler, James Jarrett, Bailey Cadamarten, Archie Hamilton and Leonie Hanson. The Royal Air Force Flight Lieutenant Phillip Todd worked with Year 9 to demonstrate how important working as a team is, especially in the RAF. Communication is an essential element and it was really interesting to see teenagers (who are experts at talking) actually struggle to communicate. Quick progress was made as Positive Discipline took a new direction with press ups being introduced! It was super to hear from, and work with Flight Lieutenant …… a big thank to home for giving up his time. Year 8 enjoyed a presentation from Corporal Matt Oldfield from the RAF. Matt talked about all of the different career options offered by the RAF; from chefs to fighter pilots and, from mechanics to lawyers, there seemed to be options for everyone. BBG students were interested to hear about the different entry routes into the RAF, and how much they might expect to get paid. They also heard about the many other perks of being in the RAF, including adventure holidays, sports and world travel. Year 8 showed their engagement with the presentation by asking a number of insightful question, such as about the impacts on family life, and the different types of aircrafts the RAF have. A big thank you goes to Matt for sharing his experiences and expertise with us. All rise for Judge Saffer! Year 9 had a fantastic insight into the world of law during their fascinating session with a real judge! Judge Saffer specialises in immigration law and presented the students with some tricky scenarios to debate as a class. Students were lucky enough to discuss cases with the judge and learn how to make decisions based on the facts without demonstrating bias. Students exhibited fantastic listening skills and conveyed their ability to be flexible thinkers. It was wonderful to witness students respond to new information and develop their arguments as the debates progressed. Thanks to the judge for his expertise and time. Yorkshire Building Society delivered an Interview Skills session to Year 10 on Thursday. Students were given nine interview tips, including the importance of a good handshake, making eye contact, being honest and friendly and dressing the part. They were also given advice on how to structure answers to skills questions. The interview techniques will be helpful for both college and apprenticeship applications and the year group found them very useful. Visitor Steve Twynham, along with associate Brenda Etchells, were on hand during careers week to teach the students all about career opportunities in radio. The Great Yorkshire Radio and Rhubarb Radio presenter, Steve, gave the students insight into the roles involved in the creation of a radio programme. Alongside this he gave students the opportunity to record their own radio interviews and experience the day in the life of a radio presenter. For those who didn’t feel presenting was for them, all the behind the scenes roles were detailed so that students had an idea of what choices were open to them, should they opt into a career in radio. We at BBG thank Steve and Brenda for their time. Court Ambassador Year 8 have been listening to interesting stories from Usman, our visitor who came to talk to us about careers in the courts. Students were captivated by his tale of resilience through rags to riches. A totally inspiring message about GCSEs being your passport to whatever you want to be and that anyone can be successful with the right mindset.