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Autumn 2007 Issue 4 The news magazine of The Armthorpe School 6 Back to nature Actors amaze audiences at Open Evening 4&5 7 Artistic talents one taster as PHGS 3 Pupils INSIDE Ambitiouswin prizes Fiercely 8 Sports achievements News in brief • Armthorpe is part of Doncaster’s e-learning portal pilot scheme, which is opening up virtual learning for pupils. Parents can log into a portal website for information about the school and their child. The system also lets pupils and staff access files and email on the Elation computer network from anywhere in the world. • Hannah Hanifin visited partner primary schools last term to observe and team-teach Year 6 Literacy lessons. Her efforts were part of a transition initiative in which primary schools unite with the English department to deliver a unit based on the reading of Michael Morpurgo’s novel Kensuke’s Kingdom. Eyes on the prizes ,Year 10, receives Star pupil: John Walsh from Justice Graham. his award Laura Alle n,Ye with her ce ar 11, rtificate. Seeing stars: Headmaster Nigel Pattinson congratulates high achievers Adrian Pimperton, Fay Jenkins and Toni Panks,Year 12. Standards set even higher ARMTHORPE pupils’ 2007 exam results helped the school to establish new levels of success. The Maths department again achieved Key Stage 3 results among the top five per cent nationally. An excellent 54 per cent of GCSE pupils set a new record by achieving five or more A to C passes, leading to an achievement award from the Specialist Schools Academy Trust. At A-level, we were ranked 180 in The Guardian’s list of top comprehensive schools – well ahead of a number of private fee-paying institutions. Congratulations to the teachers and pupils who worked so hard to achieve this, and to those setting their sights on even higher targets this year. Nigel Pattinson, Headmaster New facilities for dual specialism THE Armthorpe School became a Specialist School for the Arts and Sport in September. A rehearsal space, recording studio and gym are currently being built, while the school hall is also being refurbished to create a state-of-the-art venue for performances, presentations and lectures. Work has been delayed by the after effects of the summer’s floods, but we hope all facilities will be completed by the first few weeks of the spring term. AMERICAN basketball star Justice Graham delighted pupils by turning up to present the prizes at our Lower School Prize Day on 18 October. Justice, a Sheffield Sharks player, captured the audience’s interest with details of his childhood in Brooklyn, New York, as well as with a demonstration of his basketball skills. The following afternoon, we welcomed Doncaster Knights rugby union players Mark Woodrow and Scott Gray to our Senior School Prize Day. Headmaster Nigel Pattinson fired several questions at Mark and Scott, who responded with entertaining answers. More than 120 prizes were awarded on both afternoons, which also featured extracts from the school show High School Musical, performances from the BTEC Dance Group and music by the school orchestra. Year 8 pupils . Golfers get into the swing Who’s the caddy? RATS participants Luke Millar, Daniel Latibeaudiere and Lewis Jackson, Year 10, on the green. YEAR 10 boys involved in the Raising Achievement Through Sport (RATS) programme took to the fairways of Hickleton Golf Club at the Pro-Am Golf Tournament on 12 October. After intense training on caddying responsibilities, developing putting skills and improving their swing using Leaderboard technology, the boys put their knowledge into practice. Nerves were quickly overcome as the group worked with professional golfers, met and greeted teams and advised VIPs on their putting and golf swing. Some even assisted with polishing cutlery for the celebratory dinner at the 19th hole – the conclusion of a rewarding, enjoyable and successful day. Awards for all:Ye ar 11 pupils. Year 9 pupils with their awards. Top of the class :Year 11 pupils. ar Steele,Ye Michael rd. awa with his 13, Special guest: Justice Graha m presents Baris Ozburk, Year 8, with hi s certificate. 2 Fiercely Ambitious 3 taste Getting to know you HEADMASTER Nigel Pattinson welcomed Year 6 pupils and their parents to the Open Evening at Armthorpe. All departments made a significant contribution to the success of the evening, with parents and children joining in activities and learning experiences. The positive interaction between teachers and pupils was evident, while parents enjoyed the chance to ask questions and the informative nature of the evening. Just a talents of our Scientific spectacular Bright sparks: Reece Jaques and Carla Parkin,Year 8, watch an experiment in progress. THE Science department put on another exciting show on Open Evening, arranging a wide selection of activities for visitors to watch, as well as some to try for themselves. Andrew Utting continued his tradition of treating visitors to a display of Chemistry and Physics experiments, which this year included the Screaming Jelly Babies demonstration, a blazing ether trail and a shocking example of how dangerous electricity can be. Among the practical experiments for pupils and parents were opportunities to make slime, carry out chromatography, complete some simple food tests for starch and use acids and alkalis in the Traffic Light task. A COMPANY of more than 30 pupils performed extracts from our forthcoming production of Disney’s High School Musical during the Open Evening. Cast members from Years 7 to 11 sang, acted and danced their way through numbers from the show based on the smash-hit movie, including Wildcat Cheer, Start of Something New and The Audition. Everybody involved is now working hard to complete the show ahead of public performances in December. Our Open Evening proved the perfect platform to show parents and prospective pupils what Armthorpe has to offer Gymnastics coach adds bounce AS part of the Year 11 intervention strategy, the PE department has brought in local gymnastics and trampolining coach Tracey Morrow. Tracey, a former pupil of The Armthorpe School, is working with gifted gymnasts to increase their performance grades in trampolining. The seven-week course aims to improve pupils’ skills and routine performance. Using external coaches is a great motivator for the gymnasts and really helps them move on to the next level. Fun with numbers THE Maths department’s Open Evening activities were a huge success. Future pupils took part in a variety of tasks, helped by Armthorpe pupils Martina Austin, Liam Goddard and Richard Rothwell, Year 7. The pupils made different kinds of shapes, such as isoceles triangles, equilateral triangles and hexagons, before working together with other people on their table to make one big shape. Visitors also tried their hand at a number shape, which had one black number (the number they were trying to make) and five red numbers, which could be used in different ways to make the black number. Sums included division, multiplication, addition, subtraction, square numbers and root numbers and, if you were really clever, algebra! Other “mini lessons” were on offer, Shape up: Martina Austin and Richard Rothwell, Year 7, show off some of the Maths handiwork from Open Day. including Information Technology, English and many more. We all had a fun and exciting day; it gave Year 6 pupils from the primary schools an idea of what Armthorpe School will be like. Martina Austin, Year 7 Let’s twist again: Drew Ramsden, Year 8, and George Beevers,Year 11, get into a tricky pose during the after-school Performing Arts Club. ‘High School Musical’ Boys in the spotlight WE welcomed a new member of staff to the Performing Arts Department in September. Martin Hutchinson has launched a new Performing Arts club for boys, in which he works with pupils from Years 7 to 9 after school, helping them brush up on skills including drama, technical theatre, physical theatre and dance. The boys hope to showcase their efforts later in the year – watch this space for details of their performances! 4 West End here we come! Cameron Farrell,Year 10, Sam Ashton and Katy Morris,Year 11, Robyn Murray,Year 9, and Ryan Coleman, Year 11, show off their High School Musical moves. Fiercely Ambitious 5 Rain doesn’t stop play JULY’S awful weather meant Year 7 Geography pupils could not go to the Peak District as usual, so we headed for Year 8’s usual stamping ground of Flamborough and Hornsea instead. In turn, this meant Year 8’s field trip was relocated to Burbage, where pupils completed a variety of activities ranging from measuring stream characteristics to floating ducks! Reach for the sky THERE is always lots going on in the Art department, especially in the Sixth Form room, where we display students’ big paintings, sculptures and prints. One of our Art students, Laura Cox, Year 13, is pictured working on her personal study. After becoming interested in the work of Wendy Puerto and JWM Turner, Laura uses colour to show mood and emotion in the large “sky” paintings that she has produced. She has used a variety of media to create her pieces and has also experimented with mixing different media together. European union ON European Day of Languages, we were split into two groups. Half of us went into different classrooms to learn a different language, including Polish, Russian, Czech and Urdu. The others did lots of activities in the hall, such as posters and a language quiz, which was funny. Matthew Ellis, Liam Lindley and Luke Dennis, Year 7 Homage to Turner: Laura Cox, Year 13, at work in the Art department. Digging in: Plant Pots members John Walsh, Liam Barker, Colleen Hunter,Thomas Jeeves and Daniel Frizzell,Year 10. Plant potty OUR gardening club, The Plant Pots, have won Silver Gilt awards in the Doncaster in Bloom competition three years in a row, in the Young Persons, Community and Environmental categories. This year the eight pupils will be designing their own vegetable plots, selecting and growing flowers, fruit or vegetables to sell fresh or as preserves. The pupils also follow the NOCN course, which leads to a qualification in horticulture. At present the group have six chickens, two of which were hatched and reared in the school. Pupils are also working in conjunction with an estate in Scotland which rears and releases pheasants into the wild. German trip: Ryan Clark, Year 10, in Köln. GOING to Germany was really fun. My highlights were when I went to Köln,where I met up with my godparents, and buying lots of chocolate at the chocolate factory. Even though we spent more than 30 hours on the coach travelling, it didn’t seem that long, as we were entertained by all sorts of things. Adam Goddard, Year 10 First in media International outlook: Katarzyna Sielezin,Year 11. ARMTHORPE’S Media department is working exclusively with the Community Learning Centre at Balby Carr to deliver the exciting new BTEC First in Media Course. Pupils from Years 10 and 11 will be working alongside specialist staff from Armthorpe and the CLC to create their own horror films and music productions, using state-of-the-art camcorders and blue screen technology, as well as leading industry editing software in the CLC’s brand new Apple Mac suite. Engineers of the future Give us a pizza that: Liam Goddard and Samantha Earl,Year 7, use Sainsbury’s donated goods to create their own customised pizzas. Fancy a cuppa? Sixth Form students Ryan Bartlett, Jess Fernandes and Sam Morris help Michael Steele to elevenses during the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning. YEAR 10 pupils from The Armthorpe School are involved with an innovative new educational project in Engineering, which was launched at Mansion House by Councillor Tony Socket. The three pupils are now following a two-year programme, studying Young Apprenticeship Engineering with a focus on Aviation. The trio will work towards GCSE Double Award Engineering, achieve Health and Safety certification, complete an ASDAN Certificate of Personal Effectiveness and take part in work-related learning. Pupils also spent a week at Brathay Hall in the Lake District, where they worked together on team-building activities. Taste the difference THE Food Technology department was selected by Sainsburys in Edenthorpe to receive a huge selection of ingredients and equipment for pizza making. The supermarket’s generous donation was part of their Make the Difference and Active Kids schemes, encouraging young children to eat and cook healthily. Edenthorpe’s store manager and staff also visited the school to talk to Year 7 pupils, who then used the donated items to design and make their own pizzas. Sixth Form updates • Sixth Form students at Armthorpe raised an amazing £316.60 for Macmillan Cancer Support by taking part in the charity’s annual World’s Biggest Coffee Morning on 28 September. • Our team of students on the Engineering in Education scheme have reached the final of the CREST Gold Awards, and will present their solutions to the design brief set by Peglers PLC in London in February 2008. • Head Girl Natalie Mason and Head Boy Ryan Bartlett, both gifted students and wonderful ambassadors for the school, have made Oxbridge applications for entry in 2008. Natalie hopes to study German and Linguistics at Oxford, while Ryan wants to read Mathematics with Physics at Cambridge. 6 Fiercely Ambitious 7 TH EA L OO RM CH TH ES O RP The Armthorpe School, Mere Lane, Armthorpe, Doncaster South Yorkshire DN3 2DA , Tel: 01302 831582 Fax: 01302 300757 Website: www.armthorpeschool.org.uk Email: admin@armthorpe.doncaster.sch.uk Produced by Words&Pictures. Tel: 01943 854800 Netballers poised for success THIS year, Armthorpe have teams entered from Years 7 to 12 in the Doncaster Schools Netball League – the first year we have been able to enter all six teams. The girls have had a very successful start to the season and are all motivated to succeed. Armthorpe has also been the base for Doncaster’s Netball Centre of Excellence for over a year. Last season, two of our Year 10 girls were successful at trials and trained at the centre, which gives Doncaster girls the chance to represent the county against the Rotherham, Sheffield and Barnsley Centres. On your marks:Year 8 netballers mark each other during a game. Ball skills: New Year 9 coach Mick Lowcock shows players Joseph Lowcock, Jason Beevers and Shane Golding,Year 9, a move or two. Rugby hits new heights THE Year 9 rugby team are having an excellent season this year, thanks to new coach Mick Lowcock. Former Armthorpe pupil Mick, who coaches at Doncaster Knights, assisted with the organisation of last year’s successful Under 16 Basketball team, but has returned to his first love by volunteering to coach the Year 9 team this year. The team’s season has shaped up well, with the team not losing a game to date and reaching the quarter-finals of the Yorkshire Cup. Record GCSE grades THE PE department at Armthorpe had an excellent year last year. As well as great success in extra-curricular sport, pupils taking GCSE Physical Education also achieved the best results the department has ever had, with all entrants passing and 60 per cent gaining a C or higher. The department also saw our largest ever amount of A grades, and AS-level groups are at record numbers as a result of this success. Well done to all examinees. [ A dangerous challenge IN October, eight pupils represented the school in the DMBC Interschools Kielder Challenge at Sandall Beat Wood. The team competed against other schools in the borough in a number of challenging activities, such as crossing an explosive minefield while blindfolded and even disarming a nuclear reactor! The eight pupils did themselves and the school proud, and worked so well that they won the competition. Winning ways: Armthorpe team members Mitchell Hone, David MacDonald, Curtis Delves and Martin Jackson,Year 8.