CCF go Gliding, cupcakes, house sport and battle of the brains

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CCF go gliding

Sometimes you are asked to wait a minute for something. Well, this was an 18 month wait. All 8 students were booked in April 2019 to go flying or gliding or both before Easter. Their chance came again last Saturday. They drove up early to Upavon going through thick mist which was gradually lifting as it got lighter. By 1100 they were on the Airfield with all the ground school bits done and Mr Brett’s only concern was not to bring back a group of sunburnt cadets. What a perfect day for a first glider flight. It was worth the wait!

The cadets applied themselves as ground crew really well and got over 40 flights off the ground before 1700. There was real teamwork going on, in an environment that had its own challenges. Hooking up the tow wire was just one! Each student had their flight in turn. First, they put on their parachute and then were strapped into the glider in the front seat. Each cadet had 2 flights lasting just over 10 mins each. As each one came back after their flights you could see that it had been worth it. It was an amazing experience which they all really enjoyed in their different ways. Some had shadowed the controls, others had taken control, but to a person, they all had a story to tell afterwards. Personal development in action in an environment which was well outside most of their comfort zones.

While they were there, they had been busy launching another glider and by mid afternoon there was a cheer and applause across the Airfield as the cadet flying the 2nd glider had his first solo flight on a Silver wings scholarship. This really opened the eyes of our cadets who realised that the opportunities in the Cadets were so wide-ranging and they had played a small part in working with another squadron.

The final bit of teamwork was to make sure that they got their Contingent Commander, Mr Brett, off the ground safely which was a great end to a brilliant day. After that, they loaded up and headed back to Torquay but the chat was all about their experiences and what they would do next time, some hoping for more time at the controls and others hoping for a powered flight.  What an amazing experience!

I think next time they get on the flight simulator in school they will be significantly more focused as this experience made everything they do in school more real.

Seasonal cupcakes

This week Year 9 students have done an incredible job in creating some very pretty and seasonal cupcakes. They carefully used their piping skills to complete their creations and thought carefully about the right amount of food colouring to make the buttercream the correct shade.

Featured House of the Week

In the final instalment of our weekly series, the featured house is Brunel.  Brunel has always been one of our most successful houses and so far this academic year it has either topped or come second in our house-point competition every week.

The colour for Brunel is dark blue and students are clearly visible in their sporting of this colour with their badges, ties and PE tops. Last week saw a Brunel house assembly for Years 7, 8 and 9 and house competitions in PE.

Mr Pugh, one of the longest-standing members of staff at Torquay Academy is the leader of Brunel house. He proudly wears his dark blue all weather with the name of his house on the back when he presents certificates on Friday mornings. Mr Pugh believes that Brunel house needs no gimmicks as they are consistently a brilliantly performing house.

Brunel takes its name from Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) who was known as “One of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution” In 2002, Brunel was voted second in the “Greatest Ever Britons’ Poll” losing out only to Winston Churchill.  Brunel designed many famous tunnels, bridges and railways links, including The Tamar Bridge and Clifton Suspension Bridge. He invented the first ever propeller-driven steamship and built many famous dockyards. An interesting fact about Brunel is that he once swallowed a coin and had to be shaken upside down by his father to get it out.

The area of Torquay associated with Brunel is Watcombe, where Brunel once designed a mansion in which to retire. There is also the well-known Brunel Woods where a totem pole has been erected to commemorate this great man. Many of you may be registered patients with Brunel Medical Practice which has several branches in Torquay.

The motto for Brunel house is Be Inventive. This really means looking at people’s lives and thinking of solutions to make them easier, more enjoyable and more efficient. We expect all students in Torquay Academy to be inventive in finding ways around problems and solutions to challenges. In addition, a good Brunel student might take part in some of the STEM activities offered by Mr Foulds, Mr Waring and Mr Hadley.

Our featured student of the week is Ella Randall in 7B. Ella received her Star of the week certificate and badge for gaining 180 house points in just six weeks and producing impeccable homework. In discussion, Ella informed me that the trick to producing homework of an excellent standard is to take one’s time and not rush it. She also advised taking a day off from homework on Saturday so she could recuperate and plan for the week ahead by finishing homework on Sunday.  I’m sure you will all agree that Ella is an excellent role model for an ideal Brunel student.

Battle of the brains

This morning I had the pleasure of handing the trophy for our first-ever battle of the brains competition to 7P.  I will have a full write up on the event after the 3/4 place event takes place.

Etching workshop with Year 9

Year 9 have been experimenting with and learning about different materials, processes and techniques in their art and design course. Here are some examples of etching and collographic prints.

Forthcoming DofE opportunities

We are now looking to enrol students onto DofE Gold, Silver and Bronze awards.

The Bronze Award is open to all interested Year 9 students. Letters and enrolment forms are available from the Year 9 hub office.

The Silver Award will be open to all interested Year 10 students, whether they completed Bronze or not. Letters and enrolment forms will be available from the Year 10 hub office.

And we are excited to be offering the DofE Gold award to TA Sixth Form students for the first time in a number of years. Letters and enrolment forms are available from Mr Adams or Mr Butler.

DofE Awards are the most prestigious and renowned character development awards for young people in the world. They are an excellent way of learning new skills, meeting new people, taking on new and challenging experiences, getting healthier and fitter, seeing new places and contributing positively to the community. The awards are actual ‘evidence’ of those ‘transferable skills’ such as teamwork, communication, commitment, and leadership, and provide that extra edge to college, university and job applications that our young people will be completing in the not too distant future.  Please contact Mr Adams for further information.

Recycled Art

Year 10 art students have been looking at how society generates an enormous amount of waste, which is damaging and devastating to land and sea. Recycling and upcycling has led to the emergence of an artistic movement known as Recycled Art, that is inspiring artists and designers around the world with its critical message regarding excessive consumption and environmental pollution.  The students have been given the challenge to transform waste such as paper, cardboard, fabrics, wood, glass, plastics, metals and rubber into works of art, based on the theme of Identity. Here we can see students experimenting with recycling plastic bags by melting and moulding them together to create unique fashion garments.

6th Form Creative Arts

Last Friday saw our A Level Photography & Art students taking a creative field trip to Plymouth to undertake a number of different photoshoots, based on their individual, personal projects. The students had a fantastic afternoon capturing a variety of images and they were exploring a number of different themes and genres. The projects chosen were varied and interesting. Many of the themes included the following: Reflections, Memory, Motion, Colour, Dark & Light. Mrs Lynch and Mr Haring were really impressed with some of the imaginative and artistic photographic artwork that was produced.

Alice and Ellie Reshad in Year 13 are investigating “Decay” and “Patterns in water”.  They used the trip to explore different types of surfaces. Here is a small sample of their photographed images; these will provide them with a rich source of stimuli and help support their respective art projects.

Sport – That’s a Wrap

Wow! What a half term it has been for Team TA. Clubs have been buzzing, lots of sports fixtures have been played and hundreds of students have been regularly taking part in either our recreational or competitive sports programme.

This week, we reflect on a fantastic set of House matches in Years 7-10 and we were delighted to see so many students engaging with sport and having fun. It has also been great this week to see the Year 7 Netball and Rugby teams get their seasons underway.

Inter-House Sport

Last week we launched our inter-house sports competitions in Rugby, Netball and Football during lessons in Year 7-10. It has been great to see all of the students in each year group participating to try and earn points for their house. The matches in each sport have been really competitive and the house teams have worked together so well regardless of whether they won, lost or drew. The results for the Cycle 1 matches are below and we are already looking forward to the Cycle 2 event!

Here is a summary of the House Points for Sport so far this year. Well done to Christie and Pengelly who lead the way!

Year 7 Girls Netball

On Tuesday, some of the Year 7 Netball girls played in a Central Venue League. They played incredibly well, and it was great to put some of the things they had been practising in training to the test. We came away with a win, a loss and a draw, and a few focus points to take back to our training sessions. 

Well done girls, we are very proud of you all.

L-R Back row: Frankie, Emilee, Grace, Millie, Rebecca, Tilly, Ellen, L-R Front row: Phoebe, Kelsey. Eden, Larna, Lora, Ashley, Chloe

Year 11 Football vs TBGS

On Wednesday year 11 crashed out of the National cup with a 3-1 defeat to TBGS.  The conditions did not suit us and at half time we found ourselves 3-0down.  However, we played the much better football in the second half and the score ended up 3-1.  There were very noticeable performances from Lewis Vinson, Will Hall and Harley Sneap.  The team will now concentrate their efforts on both the South Devon and Devon cups.

Table Tennis Leaders

After almost 5 years on our Table Tennis Programme, William Bevan and Kai Fowler took their first steps into a coaching pathway by completing TTKidz Activator course.

Table Tennis England TT Kidz is a programme designed to introduce young people to the game of table tennis in a fun, engaging and inspiring way. Both of the boys have been helping to  run sessions for the youngest players at Torbay Table Tennis Academy, and we are very proud to see them supporting both the club and the next generation of table tennis players.

Year 7 Rugby

The year 7 rugby team travelled to Paignton Sports Academy on Wednesday. With the majority of the team having very limited rugby experience, we put in a great performance all over the pitch. We really started to do the basics right and it showed with a convincing win. Our running and support play was outstanding with 11 tries scored and our defence was solid with only 1 try conceded. Congratulations to the team with all the try scorers.

Oliver Welsh, Edward Evers (1try), Connor Dean, Hamish Herring, Harrison Harkin, Leon O’Connor, Oscar Mills (1 Try), Thomas Ross (3 Tries), James Bond, Sonny Bond, Broady O’Neil (1 try), Lewis Phillips, Louis Tillen (Capt 5 tries), Lincon Taylor, Callum Pile

European table tennis squad

Kacper Piwowar, in Year, has returned from the Eurotalents Under 13 Selection Camp in Otocec (Slovenia).  Despite being a year younger than the other players there, he has been selected for the European talent squad.  Even more amazingly, he has been given the third highest ranking.  I am sure you will be hearing a lot more about Kacper.

Athletics success

A trio of Year 10 girls represented South Devon AC on Sunday at Dawlish Sports Centre. Between them Grace, Ava & Hannah gathered club points in 2 laps, 6 laps, 2 lap hurdles, shot put, standing long jump & relay. Great results in the first of the Devon Sportshall League meets.

Students of the Week

Year 7 – Sophia Box and Malachi Morris

Year 8 – Paige Clements and Noah Butler

Year 9 – Mitchell Watkins and Illiana Lidstone

Year 10 – Jazz Povey and Kane Adamson

Year 11 – Kezia Stanley and Harvey Bates

Tutor groups Stars of the half term

Year 7

Year 10

House Stars of the week

Year 7

Brunel – Harry Newman

Christie – Lucas Chappell

Darwin – Ethan Piri-Sadligh

Fawcett – Benjamin Houghton

Harrison – Olly Whittred

Kitson – Louis Tillen

Nearne – Kyron Connor

Pengelly – Alex Nagy

Year 8

Brunel – Leon Mugliston

Christie – Ben Charters

Darwin – Lily Phillips

Fawcett – Jayden Field

Harrison – Callum Harrison

Kitson – Ollie Coleman

Nearne – Amelie McCaul

Pengelly – Leon Bell

Year 9

Brunel – Melvin Page

Christie – Riyan Rizvi

Darwin – Oliver Boyce

Fawcett – Olivia Wood

Harrison – Lacie Benson

Kitson – Tia May Anderson

Nearne – Sajor Camara

Pengelly – Cameron Sturtridge

Homework Stars of the week

Year 7

Brunel – Lena Galazkiewicz

Christie – Olivia Fordrey

Darwin – Ruby Sellick

Fawcett – Lottie Roberts

Harrison – Tom Connelly

Kitson – James Northcott

Nearne – Analais Biggs

Pengelly – Ayden Goldbrough

Year 8

Brunel – Leah Jones

Christie – Oscar Hughes

Darwin – Summer Faulkes

Fawcett – Sara Mills

Harrison – Kayden Whittred

Kitson – Jemimah Jones

Nearne – James Evers

Pengelly – Isabelle Roberts

Year 9

Brunel – Mollie Stanion

Christie – Riley Skinner

Darwin – Thomas Harrison

Fawcett – Logan Churchward

Kitson – Oliver Stevens

Nearne – Nikola Drygiel

Pengelly – Taylor Reynolds

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