Qualifying for the National finals and An Inspector Calls

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Block Bots with Mr Hadley

Mr Hadley’s Year 8 Design & Technology classes have been working on their Block Bots this week – characterful and unique painted wooden desk tidies! Many photos of the high-quality outcomes featured recently on the blog – this write up delves a little deeper to explain the design and make process behind the project.

During the design phase, students are encouraged to mind map initial ideas by thinking of the broad range of potential categories and combinations that could be developed. Students are shown photos and videos of previous examples to open their eyes to the fantastic potential solutions available and use ‘Turn and Talk’ to collaborate with peers and further devise possible outcomes. The initial ideas then take shape – first as pencil sketches, with details later added with black fine liner and coloured pencils, finally followed by annotation to explain how key features could be implemented. Mr Hadley also created designs in the lesson at the same time as the students, demonstrated on the visualiser. Student examples were also shared this way through ‘Show call’.

In addition to developing practical skills (through the use of hand tools, fret saws, pillar drills and belt sanders), students can also utilise Computer Aided Manufacture to embellish their work with laser cut plywood details and vinyl cut motifs. Water based spray paints are also used to give rich and lustrous finishes.

Once complete, students evaluate ‘what went well’ in their work and look for potential ways to improve in the future. They also make excellent use of Computer Aided Design to virtually model their final design and present a series of rendered screenshots accompanied by annotation to explain key aspects of their creations.

Year 8 PE with Mr Grinsill

On Monday the Year 8 girls started the new learning cycle with a new activity. For the next four lessons the group will be looking at Fitness. During the lesson on Monday, the focus was both cardiovascular and muscular endurance. The group were shown how to use the equipment safely and then completed 3 sets on each machine of 15 reps with 30 seconds rest working with a partner. This formed the main part of the lesson and focussed on muscular endurance.

To address cardiovascular endurance the group were set a challenge of running a mile as fast as they could or completing a 500m row as fast as they could. This part of the lesson proved to be more challenging for some than others as you would expect however the competitions proved extremely popular and super competitive.

The Rowing was very close and eventually the winner was Lana Northcott in 2.17.

The winner of the 1mile run challenge was Olivia Riches 9.01.

Building knowledge of key concepts for their GCSE literature in Year 9

This week Dr Davies and her Year 9s started Cycle 3 and they are building up their knowledge of political systems and the differences between Capitalism and Communism. They began by focusing on the regime in North Korea. They learned that a regime is a strict and controlling environment, very different to the individualistic society that we live in. Karl Marx is the author of important theories about communism and capitalism. His main idea was that workers are exploited and used to make surplus value for business owners. Marx supported the workers. This is important knowledge for English students as they prepare for GCSE Literature texts and the different ideologies that have shaped writers and writing.

An Inspector Calls

A mixture of Year 9 and 10 students have started reading through An Inspector Calls.  The play will be directed by Year 10 student Kole Gjikolaj.  I think this demonstrates how our students can demonstrate leadership and great organisation.  I look forward to seeing the students start their rehearsals in The Platform after half term.

Automotive Workshop

The school’s very own Automotive Engineering workshop is always a hive of activity where our students get to enjoy their learning in a fantastic industry-standard workshop. The cars that we use are generally donated by either teachers who are upgrading or local garages. Regularly changing our cars keeps the environment real and fresh to really suit the needs of our students and maintain our great learning environment. We are always on the look out for fresh small cars to keep our fleet evolving. Jack and Leo can be seen here replacing a cambelt on a Suzuki engine taken from a car donated by a local garage

Aidan refitting an exhaust system to Mr Waring’s Corsa

Jaydan replacing brake discs and pads on Mr P’s Fiesta

Tyler replacing the Clutch in an engine and gearbox taken from Mrs Peter’s Daewoo Matiz

Francis showing a support bracket made using hand tools

House Hobbies

Today we present the first instalment of our new series which is looking at the extra-curricular hobbies, interests and achievements of our students. We begin this week with a number of students from Brunel.
Mrs Haines, their Year 7 house captain, sent me a list of all the hobbies and interests her tutees mentioned and it was wonderful to see the huge variety of pastimes and the fact that, as well as working hard in school, every student had a focus outside school. I was a literally spoilt for choice but have selected six students to find out a little more about how they spend their time productively.

George O’ Hanlon has memorised the Periodic Table of by heart. This interest started during lock down when he was asked by his teacher to set himself a goal. George has managed to learn all 118 elements with their properties, chemical symbols and stories of discovery. The trick he says is to learn one element at a time.

Grace Gibbings joined the Sea Scouts at the end of the first lockdown. During the Summer of 2021, she learned how to sail a boat and tie different sailors’ knots. At one point her group went out to visit the cruise ships which were anchored in the bay. The Sea Scouts group meets every week and when weather conditions are unfavourable for sailing, the group learns useful skills such as how to MOT a car!

Lena Galazkiewicz’s hobby is sketching. She has taught herself to draw from the age of 9. Mostly, Leena likes to copy from photographs and draw in pencil. She has a series of sketch pads in which she keeps all her work> Leena informs me that her favourite subject is people but that she does not believe she can draw them properly- her friends assure me this is not the case. Mrs Lynch and Mr Haring will be delighted to accept Lena into the GCSE Art Course in Year 9.

Isabella Bentley enjoys trampolining and tells me that she has been attending a trampolining club every Wednesday for just over a year. She is becoming more proficient with every session and is currently working on learning how to perform front flips.

Indy Evans loves both swimming and kayaking. Every Friday she goes for a practice session in her local pool. Although she has not yet entered any competitions, her favourite stroke is the backstroke. Kayaking is a more recent hobby that commenced last Summer when the opportunity arose. Indy has now tried this new hobby three times and would like to continue further.

Finally, Laurentia Mihai has a passion for history-particularly famous battles and the events behind a famous historical murder. He informs me that he has researched information on the battles of Hastings and Stanford Bridge but that he is most interested in the events which led up to the assassination of Thomas a Becket. Laurentia is very much looking forward to studying history as a GCSE option choice.

Fun Friday

Students were each given a strawberry lace, the aim was to eat it as fast as the could without using their hands. Staff were also keen to get involved.

Year 9

Year 7

Year 8

Seeing Mr Littler handing out the strawberry laces reminded Mr Bez of something…!

Year 9 music

It was great to see the Year 9 music performance students this week performing in front of our 6th Formers who were able to help in providing feedback to them.

Oliver!

This week we have been installing even more lights into our amazing Drama Studio.  This meant the cast had to carry on with their rehearsals in the corridor – nothing stops them!

U16 Table Tennis off to the National Finals

On Sunday our U16 Boys Team competed in the Regional Finals against other qualifying schools from the South of England. The boys played fantastically well all day and it was an event where every single point mattered in an extremely close competition.

We opened with a 4-4 draw against Elvis Bevin, followed by a 5-3 win against The Westgate School. It all came down to a crucial last match against John Hamden Grammar School which also finished in a nail biting 4-4 draw. After a long and painstaking count down to individual points, we were declared winners by 8 individual points and now progress through to the National Finals where we will compete as one of the best 4 schools in the country; an incredible achievement.

There were so many highlights and each player contributed so importantly to our success. Jakub Piwowar (Year 9) was absolutely sensational, and did not drop a single set all day. Kacper Piwoar (Year 7) demonstrated such maturity and mental toughness to play and beat the top players from all 3 schools, all of whom were several years older. William Bevan won some crucial matches and sets which tipped the balance in our favour and Kai Fowler showed tremendous fight in every match which ultimately got us those all important 8 points.

A huge amount of credit for the success so far goes to our Table Tennis Coach Mrs Lacinska-Piwowar and we are really excited about the National Finals on Sunday April 3rd in Wolverhampton, where we will be going to win!

Player names: Jakub Piwowar, Kacper Piwowar, WIlliam Bevan, Kai Fowler.

Year 7 & 9 Netball

Last Friday, the Year 7 Netball Academy played fixtures against Newton Abbot College. Miss Felton was incredibly proud of the way the girls played and showed the progress they have been making in training through their results. The year 7’s won their match 10-3! The girls have been working very hard behind the scenes so it is fantastic to see their hard work paying off. Well done, girls.

The Year 9 Netball Academy also took to the court with determination in their match. The girls put into practice all they had been working on in training, defending well throughout the court which enabled them to win several interceptions. Evidently, they were rewarded with some great goals from Brooke, Evie and Tammy. Summer and Ella worked tirelessly in the defensive circle making it very difficult for their opposition to move the ball into the circle to shoot. Emily moved well into space to help get the ball through the court and Tammy and Maisy did some very fluid passing, moving it quickly down the court and feeding it beautifully into Brooke’s space under the post. TA’s player of the match was awarded to Brooke Tully. Overall, it was a great performance from the girls and they were all an asset to the school.

If students would like to get involved in the Netball Academy it is never too late to come along! Netball training is Wednesdays for Years 7 & 8 with Miss Lewis, Mrs Tully and Miss Felton, and Fridays for Years 9-11 with Miss Lewis and Mrs Westacott.

Year 7 Netball Academy: Larna Waller, Ellie Farthing, Matilda Stevens, Phoebe Denbow, Ella Randall, Eden Nelson-Minns, Francesca Skelly and Maisie Sandercock

Year 9 Netball Academy: Tammy Westacott, Summer Connolly, Evie Reece, Maisy Green, Ella McLachlan, Emily Graham and Brooke Tully

Year 7 Football

On Monday, our Year 7’s had their round 2 County Cup fixture vs Uffculme School. The boys did brilliantly and put on a dominant performance with some outstanding team football being played. They managed to walk away with an emphatic 6-0 victory and booked their place in the third round of the cup ready to do it all again!

Team Lineup: Ollie Payne, Lewis Phillips, Riley Calland, Joshua Parkinson, Oscar Mills, Ben Jolly, Mikolaj Piasecki, Charlie Wise, Thomas Ross, Toby Waring, Mason Bryant, Farah Ambrose and Harrison Richards.

Goalscorers: Mikolaj Piasecki, Oscar Mills, Thomas Ross, Toby Waring, Mason Bryant and Charlie Wise.

U13 & 15 Girls Cricket

This week Year 8 and 10 girls attended Paignton Hub to compete in the South Devon Indoor Cricket Competition. They competed fantastically well picking up the game’s complicated rules quickly and by the end of the day, the girls had put in some stellar performances.

In the U13s competition, they faced some good opposition who had clearly trained for the event and with the girls learning the game as they went they were unfortunately on the wrong end of the result for the first few games. Once they found their feet and realised they didn’t have to run every ball they came back with an amazing win over Paignton and Ema Kestell bowled an entire over without conceding any runs and getting a wicket as well! A ‘wicket maiden’ for the cricket fans out there. A quick appreciation for Millie Sneap’s amazing catch as well, I think she shocked herself when she realised she had caught a powerful shot right in front of her face!

The U15s faced some stiff competition with many of the teams boasting club and even county players. The girls did amazingly well getting key batters out at opportune moments in games. The standard of play on show was phenomenal and a pleasure to watch. All girls played fantastically well and with a little bit of training and some games in the summer, both age groups have the makings of two very good sides. Well done to all involved.

U13s: Amara Phillips, Lydia Bevan, Brooke Tully, Ema Kestell, Willow Kendall, Amber Dicken, Amelia Rogers, Millie Sneap

U15s: Mia Denby, Ellie Denby, Skye Warner, Lauren Major, Heidi Wright, Penny Richards, Ava Sams, Lily Unsworth

Post 16 vs Teign High School

Governor’s Bronze Certificates

Year 7 – Hamish Herring

Principal’s Gold Certificates

Year 7 – Ella Randall, Grace Gibbings, William Kelly, Millie-Ann Wigston,George O’Hanlon, Amelia Rose and Matilda Stevens

Year 8 – Jayden Trevelyan and Jj Cossey

Principal’s Silver Certificates

Year 7 – Leela Cartwright, Fredi Tuci, Kacper Piwowar, Grace Halsey, Abigail Hytche, George O’Hanlon, Cody Cave, Ellen Scott, Amy Rogers, Jason Mewett, Ethan Piri-Sadigh, Ruby Sellick, Brody O’Neill, Freya Coatesworth, Leah McClements, Adam Sadlik, Aleksandra Treder, Ella Hylton, Phoebe Mmith, Faye Cassidy, Millie Swift, Olivia Murr, Ethan Anyon, Chloe Burton, Layla Loizides and Emilia Hunt

Year 8 – Lyra Bowstead, Leon Bell, Joe Taylor, Buster Watson, Benjamin Watts, Laila Heavens,William Jackson and James Evers

Principal’s Bronze Certificates

Year 7 – Gracie-May Tolley, Diogo Pestana, Lili Budavolgyi, Amelia Lawton,Scarlett Lacey, Scarlett Finley-Squires, Lena Galazkiewicz, Nicholas Heale, Oliver Welsh,Isabelle Voisey, Lucas Quaintance, Serina James, Kloe Darbey, Josh Parkinson, Alex Nagy ,Sonny Bond, Taniesha Hippolyte, Connie McMahon, Marlee White, Joshua Henderson, Barnaby George, Bailey Heaward, Lucas Chappell, Sophia Burnham, Daisy Holden, Harry Paull, Lola Benney, Maks Adach, Imogen Symonds, Thomas Connelly, Tegan Ross, Emilee Payne, Olivia-Mae Franke, Kiel Mortimer and Olly Wittred

Year 8 – Billy Botten, Liam Baillie-Hogan, Olivia Riches,Zac Evans, Filip Frankiewicz, Olivia Walters, Gregg Hindom, Emily Owen, Ryan Williams, Oliver Jones, Olivia Hosking, Dolce Zulhayir, Samuel Alcock, Brooke Tully, Ema Kestell, Emily Meloy, Faith Batham, Emma Matthews, Colby Britton, Gabrielle Buys, Evie Hambleton and Gideon Prowse

Students of the Week

Year 7 – Lauren Tanton and Oliver Coker

Year 8 – Bartosz Mitula and Mya Hoskin

Year 9 – Oliver Huxtable and Jasmine Evans

Year 10 – Rose Bradley, Robin Pightling and Klara Cornforth

Year 11 – Will Bevan and Kai Fowler

House Stars of the Week

Year 7

Brunel – Bailey Heaward

Christie – Sophia Burnham

Darwin – Charlie Burton

Fawcett – Chelsea Milton

Harrison – Eunan Campbell

Kitson – Bella Blatchford

Nearne – Vincent Leibrick

Pengelly – Julia Tatarynowicz

Year 8

Brunel – Alex Winterton

Christie – Olivia Wilson

Darwin – Lucas West

Fawcett – Torrin Byers

Kitson – Jessica Mitchell

Nearne – Diego Zulhayir

Pengelly – Oliver Nunn

Year 9

Brunel – Ella McLachlan

Christie – Jayjay Henderson

Darwin – Thomas Pattison

Fawcett – Mya Sharpe

Harrison – Josh Spencer

Kitson – Oliver Stevens

Nearne – Oliver Reeves

Pengelly – Aspen Kennan

Homework Stars of the Week

Year 7

Brunel – Emma Giles

Christie – Callum Pile

Darwin – Leo Maasz

Fawcett – Benjamin Houghton

Harrison – Millie-Anne Adamson

Kitson – Jade Cook

Nearne – Oscar Mills

Pengelly – Josh Parkinson

Year 8

Brunel – Ellie-Jayne Scott

Christie – Callum Jackson

Darwin – James Hutt

Fawcett – Lucian Churchward

Harrison – Toby Forrester-Finney

Kitson – Jemimah Jones

Nearne – Harry Smith

Pengelly – Anthony Hewitt

Year 9

Brunel – Ruby Denison

Christie – Isabella Aguado-Georgian

Darwin – Matthew Oborn

Fawcett – Maja Davies

Kitson – Evie Parsons

Nearne – Karl Burton

Pengelly – Emma Roadnight

University Offers

Surname	Forename	Provider name	Course name
Banks	Shannon	University of Bath	Physics with Astrophysics with Study Year Abroad.
Barnes	Charlie	Bangor University	Zoology
Bell	Keely	Keele University	Paramedic Science
Brazier	Oliver	AECC University College	Sport, Exercise and Health Science
Burt	Thomas	Cardiff Metropolitan University	Sport and Exercise Science
Coulson	Sean	University of Southampton	Business Management
Deakin	Rory	Cardiff University	Business Management (Int’l Management) Prof Plac
Denby	Harry	Loughborough University	Business Economics and Finance
Handford	Patrick	University of Exeter	Environmental Science
Holmes	Lizzy	Manchester Metropolitan University	Adult Nursing
Minty	Izzy	Kingston University	Photography
Piper	Zoe	Manchester Metropolitan University	Business Management
Rawles	Elias	Cardiff Metropolitan University	Product Design
Shaw	Reece	Nottingham Trent University	Sport Science and Coaching
Shewell	Ben	University of Exeter	Economics with Year Abroad
Tikuzyte	Milena	University of Surrey	Paramedic Science

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