Michaelmas and Christmas 2022
A Welcome from the Principal
Welcome to the Aspire Magazine, reviewing the Autumn term 2022. It has been a long, busy term with plenty of opportuni es for our young people to shine.
Our new Year 7 students have se led in really well, and as well as celebra ng a whole-year Mass in College, they were also the first year group to go on a residen al Retreat this year. Students from all Year groups par cipated in our Open Evening, a real opportunity to welcome visitors into College, to see what a fantas c school we are. We have had Geography field-trips, a Performing Arts trip to London, and a History trip to Liverpool.
Yet again our students, parents and staff have been generous with their me and money, raising much needed funds for charity, and working with our partners in the community. The Christmas Caritas appeal raised over £1,400, that has been used to buy a huge selec on of Christmas gi s from Argos. We collected food hampers for the SVP and Silk Life Foodbank, and the Sixth Form Fancy dress day raised funds for the India Project.
The Choir sang at the Tree of Light Service in Macclesfield and our 6th form leadership team organised an amazing All Hallows Has Talent concert to round off the Christmas term. We listened to singers, watched ballet and heard fantas c drumming, as well as enjoying the staff band who raised the roof in the Hall. We are blessed with so much talent!.
I hope you enjoy your read of our latest magazine. Thank you to all of our contributors and all those who help put it together.
May I wish you and your families a happy, peaceful & safe Christmas.
God Bless,
Tim Beesley Principal
In This Issue...
Staff Welcome Mass
Family Fast Day
Year 7 Retreat to Alton Castle
Mini Dash 5th October
Year 7 Service of Welcome
Remembrance Service
Year 8 Rosary Workshop
Harvest Hamper Appeal
Christmas Liturgy
All Hallows Has Talent
Year 8 Chapel of Reflec on on Advent
Advent Sta ons 2022
Caritas Toy Appeal December
Year 7 Christmas Fundraising
Prayer Sta ons
Odd Sock Day
Worry Box Compe on
Sixth Form Taster Day
Public Speaking Compe on
Sixth Form Core Re Sessions
All Hallows Farm Round Up
ECO News
Student Success
My Running Story by Hannah G
Mia K—My Boxing Journey
Mr Mercer Completes the London
Marathon
Bailey and Niall Perform!
Performing Arts Trip to London
European Day of Languages Round Up
Year 8 History Trip
Modern Foreign Languages
Compe on
Cross Country Club
Aspire Day—October
Aspire Day—December
Sixth Form Fancy Dress Day
The BBC Inspires our Students
Faith In Ac on Day—All Hallows 60th
Anniversary
Amazing Art Work
6th Form Art Work
Year 7 Travel Games
Excellent English Work
Year 10 Victorian Literature Project
Year 9 Romeo and Juliet Work
Year 8 Work on Charles Dickens
Mandarin Success
Mandarin Le er Exchange
Year 11 Geography Field Trip to Manchester
Year 11 IT Visitor
Science
Form and Peer Reading Projects
Library News
Reading Success
Prayer
Faith in Ac on
Staff Welcome Mass—September
On Wednesday a ernoon our staff gathered in the hall to celebrate Mass together with Father Mar n of Savio House, Bollington. The Mass was a collabora ve service with each faculty leading different parts and delivering prayers. A erwards, teaching and associate staff enjoyed tea and cake, many of which were homemade, to raise money for Macmillian and the DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal. The total raised was £207.88.
Thanks you to all who contributed.
Family Fast Day—Hunger Lunch
On Friday 7th October, Year 7 and 8 students were given the choice of a simple lunch of soup and bread rather than their usual lunch. Students paid £1 with the money raised going to CAFOD. CAFOD con nue to help those most in need in poorer countries and they also promote suppor ng people around the world who are dedica ng their lives to protec ng God’s crea on. By sharing a simple meal and giving what you save, you'll be standing in solidarity with vulnerable people who are threatened by the global food crisis. No-one deserves to go hungry. The famine in East Africa is intensifying as Climate Change impacts heavily on the poor of the world.
Year 7 Retreat to Alton Castle
We had a wonderful few days at Alton Castle, Staffordshire. Students shone as they fully par cipated in the outdoor and indoor ac vi es including crate stacking, archery, mountain bike riding, abseiling, team games and trekking. Time was also spent in quiet reflec on as we all thought about our rela onship with God and with each other.
Students visited the beau ful Pugin designed chapel to pray quietly during adora on of the Blessed Sacrament as well as preparing for and taking part in Holy Mass on the final night. The atmosphere for both was quiet, reflec ve and prayerful. Students learnt new hymns and sang with enthusiasm and managed to learn the ac ons too. They wanted to carry on singing at the goodbye session on Wednesday.
To stay in a castle was a unique experience set in beau ful countryside. The weather was kind to us with just one very heavy shower which soaked the bike riders!
The students were a delight to be with and definitely demonstrated that they wish to “Aspire not to have more but to be more”.
Faith Life
Mini DASH - October 2022
Mini-DASH was held at Ellesmere Port Catholic High School this week. Gui, Jack and Ivan a ended with Mrs Livesey while Mr Beesley a ended the DASH mee ng (Diocesan Associa on of Secondary Headteachers). It is always a great event and so wonderful to see us all together for the first me in a few years. As always the staff at EPCH made us feel very welcome and the session was ran by Sophie from SYMT (Shrewsbury Youth Mission Team). Sophie led us in prayer, reflec on and cra ac vi es.
We explored who St Maria Faus na was (it was her feast day on 5th October), and how she became the inspira on for a movement dedicated to proclaiming and imploring Divine Mercy throughout the whole world. We also spent me looking at the Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary and made small rosary beads and a larger one for display.
The students were amazing ambassadors for our College and commented that it was:
“Good to see students from other Catholic schools mee ng together”, and that “It was interes ng to look at the rosary in a different way as I had never thought about it like that”.
Year 7 Service of Welcome
The service was held on Wednesday 12th October. We were delighted to see so many parents and carers inside College once more a er a gap of a few years (for the obvious reason!). The students rose to the occasion and showed how hard they have been working in the past few weeks to present their own interpreta on of the Core Values of the college and our Mission. Presenta ons varied from video recordings, music, drama and ac on. Great thought had gone into the work by the young people. The Year 7 form tutors and RE team had supported the students. The choir led by Mr Thompson added to the evening by providing an opportunity for some tremendous singing. Students were presented with a card by their form tutors as we all try to, “aspire to not to have more, but to be more”.
Remembrance Service
During the live streamed liturgy our students learned about the lives of soldiers in World War 2, as well the war experience of poets Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon. The Last Post was played, we listened to gospel readings and prayed for all those affected by wars and conflict throughout the current and last century. Form groups then had a chance to add the name of a loved one who has died or just the word 'peace' onto a dove. These doves have now been hung on a tree in the College grounds.
Year 8 Rosary Workshop
Year 8 students have had me to develop their knowledge of the Rosary this week. The students came to the Chapel to work with Mrs Livesey and their RE teacher. They used a card sort to divide up the mysteries of the Rosary into Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious and Luminous. They worked extremely well in their groups. Mrs Livesey
Harvest Hamper Appeal
A big thank you to all students and families who have contributed to the form Harvest Hampers this year. They are fantas c and am sure will be welcomed by those who receive them. This annual collec on always shows our Core Values of Compassion in ac on.
The newly formed SVP Youth Group handed over part of the huge Harvest Collec on to one of our partner parishes, St Benedict’s RC Church, Handforth. It was a wet and cold morning but Aneeta and Gui along with Mrs Livesey were delighted to take part. It was good to chat with Mike and Peter from the St Benedict’s Parish SVP as their own children a ended All Hallows many years ago. St Benedict’s SVP collect food each month for a local food bank, do check their newsle er for details.
Christmas Liturgy
The Christmas live stream liturgy took place on the last day of term. Well done to those students who read so beau fully and to our choir for leading us in song. Thank you to Mr Thompson for conduc ng the choir. With a focus on Luke’s gospel we all joined in prayer to give:
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.”
Students completed an origami task to make stars filled with prayers for their prayer altars. Ms Elliot showed us how to do this via a video link.
All Hallows Has Talent!
Our very talented students and staff performed on the last day of term for the rest of the College. We watched singers, dancers, drummers, cubers and the staff band! The Eco Council also entertained us. The concert was organised by our 6th form leadership team who did an excellent job of organising the whole event. Year 11 students who are going to visit our India Clinic in October 2023 sold sweet treats to students as part of their fundraising. Many thanks to all involved.
Year 8 Chapel Reflec on on Advent
8A enjoyed some me in reflec on in our Chapel last Friday. As part of our topic “God’s promise fulfilled”, the students were asked to reflect on what Advent meant to them. As part of this, they were tasked with focusing on different aspects: Joy, Love, Peace, Hope and Light. You will see how some of their comments showed fantas c engagement and deep awareness of what is important to these young people; par cularly upli ing was not one point about materialis c items and most looked to “others” they truly value.
Some examples are included below: Peace: kindness to another, no bullying, no war, calm, silence, making up with one another, stop being against each other, ge ng along and everything coming together.
Hope: all saw this was important to have; par cularly was how hope can help through the current problems instead of purely worrying. There were many who iden fied this linking with resilience as well as helping achieve goals, but also linking this to food availability and ending poverty. There was also a connec on with happiness and hope.
Light: most obviously was the link to Jesus as the light of the world, Jesus’ presence in the world and as a connec on to the use of our advent wreaths, but also how these ed in with the everlas ng love of God. As well was the rela onship to a brighter future as well as guiding us through the darkness and away from bad choices and sadness.
Love: this was the most directly answered, all men oned families, friends, "bes es" and a brother specifically got a men on. Without a doubt, the young people appreciated the help and the support that their friends and family show them, and they saw this was because of the love they had.
Joy: this was predominantly focused on happiness and things that help to give them joy or happiness. Again, there was a connec on to friends and family (perhaps obviously), but it was encouraging that the students men oned how even small things can lead to joy. The young people recognised the value and difference between joy and happiness i.e., that joy is long las ng – it doesn’t necessarily depend on a situa on; it lasts despite adversity.
Well done 8A; a truly upli ing experience.
Mrs Su on
Advent sta ons 2022
Year 9 and 10 students are preparing for Jesus’ birth by praying at Advent Sta ons. The Chapel is set up with sta ons which allow students me to be s ll, to pause and reflect.
Caritas Toy Appeal—December
Once again, our amazing students have worked in their form groups to choose a toy and then raise the money to purchase the items. You can see in the pictures that there are a wide range of toys suitable for all ages, plus some gi s for teenagers too. Our College recep on was been busy during the last week of term accep ng the deliveries from Argos.
Year 7 Christmas Fundraising
On Wednesday 7th December, our Year 7 once again took part in the annual sponsored Christmas themed run for East Cheshire Hospice. This year was the Elf Run, so many sported elf hats to get in the Christmas spirit. Miss Thomason, who organised the event was very impressed with the students enthusiasm. The total raised was £1128.77! Well done, Year 7!
Prayer Sta ons
During November, the prayer sta ons and altars in our form rooms have reflected the theme of Remembrance and Holy Souls.
Odd Sock Day
On Monday 14th November our students wore odd socks in support of An -Bullying Week! Odd Socks Day is delivered in partnership with CBeebies and CBBC star Andy Day and his band, Andy and the Odd Socks.
Worry Box Compe on
In the Autumn term all forms were asked to create and decorate a Worry Box for their classroom. This is somewhere that students can post any worries / concerns / report things anonymously. The idea is that they will be checked regularly by our An -Bullying Ambassadors and they can work with Mrs Lewis (and their Year Learning Leader) to help solve any issues that are raised.
There was a compe on for the best decorated box and the Ambassadors chose 8C’s box! Well done to all involved in crea ng it.
Sixth Form Taster Day
We had an excellent day in November on the Sixth Form Taster Day where we invited Year 11 to experience a day as sixth formers. We were also delighted to be joined by a number of students from other schools and colleges. They arrived looking very smart and ready for the day. Students went to a minimum of four different subjects, some they have seen before and others such as criminology, sociology and economics which are new subjects to them.
James said ' I've had a really good day, I enjoyed learning about childhood in sociology and how it's different across the world'
Elle said that she'd 'really enjoyed the day, especially chemistry with Ms Roberts.' Students have had an enjoyable day and we look forward to welcoming them into sixth form next year.
Public Speaking Compe on
On the 24th of November a group of Year 12 Students competed in the ESU Mace deba ng compe on against local rivals, Fallibroome for a place in the next round of the na onal compe on. Danny B, Deniz G and Eva C proposed the mo on to ban the sale and consump on of meat products in the UK and argued their points skilfully and convincingly, u lising a variety of sta s cs and research to strengthen their points and respond the opposi on's counterarguments. They were supported by a wider research team who have helped them prepare over the past 2 months, so addi onal thanks to Emily Beaumont, Amelia R, Yannis Z-B and Amelie M for their hard work. Although they did not progress to the next round, the team spoke eloquently and intelligently and have gained a lot of new skills and experience from the compe on.
Sixth Form Core RE Sessions
In September, students studied the impacts of social media on wellbeing, learning about addic on to social media as well as how it has been used disingenuously to influence poli cal campaigns like Brexit and Trump's elec on in 2016, and how it has led to polarisa on of society. We examined the documentary The Social Dilemma and looked at some educa onal resources the makers had produced for schools. Mrs Su on
In early October there was a Core RE lesson was on Stewardship. Year 13 students read and discussed key extracts from Pope Francis' Laudato Si, and then welcomed Rich Breedan from Trash Free Trails via Zoom. This is a large ini a ve based around ge ng people more connected to nature and trails through mountain biking, running and walking due to the many social, physical and mental health benefits. He spoke about academic research on the most li ered brands (Coke Cola, Red Bull, Monster Energy) and also how Trash Free Trails are working with brands like Red Bull, The North Face and Trek Bicycles to see what large companies can do to tackle li er on nature trails. We then went on a li er pick both in the school grounds and along the trails outside to not just pick up li er, but also analyse what kinds of li er are the most common.
Dr G. Keogh
All Hallows Farm Round Up
‘It's Rex the Chinese Water Dragon here, I have exclusive news... This morning through the mist in my enclosure, I no ced a new person in the animal room. I think its the new farm manager Mr Leake, well that's what my neighbours the guinea pigs have told me (they have all the gossip!) We can't wait to see all the new ideas Mr Leake has and I'm sure he's looking forward to mee ng as many new faces as possible over the coming weeks.’
Since staring, Mr Leake has been working hard and enjoying ge ng to know both animals and students. His main project in the Christmas term, outside of daily tasks has been to plan an build a new home for Rex and bar some external decora on has finished the build! He says Rex is much happier in the new enclosure and has more room to move. He just has to be careful of opening the sliding doors too far as Rex has made several escape a empts!
Eco News
In early December Mrs Su on, who leads our Eco warriors received this le er detailing how changes to our school energy bills had contributed to a large saving na onwide.
Student Success
Cricket
Congratula ons to Bethany M who has been lucky and talented enough to get selected for the Under 11 Cheshire County girls cricket team. Bethany started playing cricket when she was 8 at Macclesfield Cricket Club and plays for Macclesfield U11 Mixed team and U13 Girls teams. Her big brother Luke (Year 9) also plays for Macclesfield Cricket Club. This is a great opportunity for her and is as a result of a ending months of Cheshire training sessions all over the winter as well as those at the Macclesfield club. The girls have played matches against Lancashire, Durham and Yorkshire (won some, lost some!) with Bethany taking wickets in all matches she has played. Bethany has also played in a 4 day fes val at Malvern against Her ordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk (winning 4 and losing 2).
Trampolining
Ava represented the school in the Northwest Schools Trampoline Championships in early December and won 1st place in a huge category of 36. She has qualified to the northern Zonals in Belfast and we are so proud of her. She was amazing!
IT Skills Success
Abu is the first student to achieve the Bronze iDEA Award this year at All Hallows.
Mr Barron said, ‘Abu is one of the hardest working students in Computer Science and it is great to see him extending his knowledge outside of the classroom and gaining interna onally recognised awards too.’
My Running Story by Hannah G
Congratula ons to Hannah G who has completed 100 Park Runs and below tells how she began as a runner. I’ve always enjoyed running! From the first primary school race I did to the race I did for Cheshire last weekend. I love ge ng outside into nature and blowing the cobwebs away. I enjoy the thrill of working towards something and being with friends who like running too. You need perseverance, determina on and resilience. Not many people understand the joys of ge ng cold and muddy outside, but that doesn’t ma er to me!
Parkrun
Parkrun is a weekly event held on a Saturday morning, where people come together to run, jog and walk a 5k course. It is a great community and people of all ages a end to have fun together. I’ve met many friends who share my passion in exercising and help me strive to be as fast as I can possibly be. You can get a me for each week that you do so that you can work towards a new PB each week. At the minute, my 5k PB is 21:29 on the hilly Macclesfield Parkrun course that I have completed 99 mes now, 100 next week! If you are a slightly younger person (aged 0-14), you could also go to Junior parkrun. Junior parkrun is a 2k run aimed at ge ng kids out of the house on a Sunday morning. There too, you can get a me, my PB for that is 7:38. I’ve done 50 junior parkruns now! Overall, parkrun is a brilliant, regular event involving lots of lovely people. Everyone there is amazing from runners to marshals to run directors and all the volunteers who makes it happen.
Cross Country Club
Cross Country Club is the a er school club here at All Hallows. There is a small and growing number of year 7-9 students who a end on a weekly basis. Our wonderful coach/RE teacher runs the club in any weather and helps us to push ourselves to whatever we are capable of. We do hills and HIITs round the muddy school football and rugby pitches. I love the club and the training helps a lot especially when working towards races during the cross country season. Its also nice to have some friendly compe on every now and then! I also enjoy looking forward to it throughout the day! So please come along to join us from experienced runners to beginners and even other teachers are welcome too!
Races
I love racing! It’s great to get outside and feel the nerves and excitement before a race as well as the buzz that is created by lots of runners of your age. I like how throughout the season you have something bigger that you can work towards. I have done lots of schools cross country and athle cs now since joining All Hallows at the beginning of Year 7 which has led me to be a part of bigger races. I’ve even run for Cheshire! I prefer cross country to athle cs because it’s a longer distance, but I s ll enjoy doing the 1500 m without having to think about where exactly I’m pu ng my feet!
To conclude, I love running because it’s good for me, I can meet new friends and get out and about!
Athle cs
Congratula ons to Jake R as we reach the conclusion of the athle cs outdoor season for this year. The school recently supported Jake in his selec on for English Schools where he competed in the 800m at Sport City in Manchester. He followed this up with a bronze medal for the 800m compe ng in Bedford at na onal level. He has achieved mul ple podium finishes throughout the season this year in Area and Na onal Championships represen ng Cheshire as the County champion.
In addi on, in his final outdoor race of the season today at Trafford, Jack achieved a gold medal, personal best me of 2:02.73 and broke the Macclesfield Harriers club record for the 800m, that has stood for the last 17 years. He is now having a planned rest period prior to compe ng in the indoor season in Sheffield.
Girls Football
Olive C who has been chosen for the girl's Cheshire Football team. Well done and good luck in future matches, Olive!
Dance Champions
In late October, a group of All Hallows girls competed in the Dance It Championships in Skegness. They took part in various dance styles, including Solo Qualifier, Fast Pairs, Slow Pairs, Slow Dance, Pairs Rock n Roll, Show team, and Solo Grand Final. They all had a very busy weekend but did superbly and shone on the dancefloor. It was a hard compe on with some tough sec ons, but they all enjoyed themselves, and many got to the final and received trophies (some as big as them!). Their Show Team dance - Wizard of Oz (which included all the girls from the dance school!) won 1st place! Parents also had the opportunity to show off their dance moves with a Parent Team dance (Grease) and won third place out of 7 teams- well done to the mums and dads!
Congratula ons to all our girls who took part on their effort and achievement: Milly, Lacey, Amelia, Emily, Alice, Emi, Sinead, Evie, Jasmine, Beth, and Amberlei.
Mia K - My Boxing Journey
My boxing journey began when we took a ferry at 2:00pm from Holyhead to Dublin, which was fun, but when we arrived in Dublin at 6:30 we had to drive to the weigh-in which closes at 7pm - luckily, we made it on me! When we arrived at Lucan and weighed in, all of us at the weight we wanted to fight at, we managed to get a look at the rings where the bouts would take place - they looked absolutely massive.
So, a er the weigh-in, we got back in the minibuses, and grabbed a snack because we hadn't eaten all day and we made our way to our accommoda on. We had been told that we would be staying in a nice gym, and it was amazing; downstairs was a boxing gym and upstairs a massive room which was amazing to stay in. We were so red that we just had some more food and went to sleep. We woke early the next day and got sent the list of fights. I found out that I had a semi-final fight, because two people were in my weight category, so I was very excited about the challenge, but I also felt very red from all the travelling.
Some of my teammates made it straight into the final on Saturday and Sunday but my semi-final fight was on Saturday, and I was a li le nervous because there we lots of people watching, so I decided to warm up even though was due to enter the ring for the 11th bout. It was a good job that I did because the me went so fast and before I knew it my name was being called.
I walked up to the ring with everyone shou ng my name and I got my last instruc ons about what to do in the ring and before I knew it, I was in the centre of the ring having a face-off with my opponent, and then the bell rung....
Unfortunately, I did not win the 1st round, as I was trying to figure out her boxing tac cs because everyone has a different style. My coach told me to go straight in and not to hesitate, then when the 2nd bell goes off, I got ready to go straight in, but she did the same. However, this me I did be er, managing to draw the 2nd round. In the 3rd round I did the same and won the 3rd because I wore her down making her red, so I won the round but ended up losing the fight on a split decision. I was told of an opportunity to have another fight on Sunday, so I jumped at the chance and made sure to have some decent food and rest in prepara on. The next morning came around very quickly, and I was so excited as we drove to the event. This me I had plenty of me to prepare and when I saw the girl, I would be figh ng, I felt lucky as she was the same height as me. When we got called to the ring everybody shouted my name again and I was excited. She won the first round then I fought back to win the remaining two rounds.
So, a er a very busy weekend we travelled back on the ferry which was great fun as it was night- me and the sea was very bumpy.
Mr Mercer Completes the London Marathon
Congratula ons to Mr B Mercer, our SENDCO who ran the London Marathon last weekend to raise Monday of the clinic in Varusanadu, India that All Hallows supports and sponsors. So far Mr Mercer has raised £620 which is fantas c. The reason why he took on this challenge, although he has already run three marathons, is because he spends his day running round school and thought it was about me to put that running to good use and raise some money to support the cause that is close to so many hearts at All Hallows. Mr Mercer described the experience as 'a challenge but great, well worth doing!' Here in College, we are all very proud of Mr Mercer's achievement and know that the money raised will make a big difference. We are now wondering, who will take on this challenge next year?
Bailey and Niall Perform for All Hallows Students
Early on in the new academic year, our Year 7, 8 and 9 students a ended a concert given by rap ar st, Bailey and DJ Niall. Bailey performed several of his self penned songs while Niall worked the decks. The songs detailed Bailey's own brushes with mental health issues such as self esteem and problems with reac ons on social media. The boys gave the students lots of useful advice on how to deal such problems, who to seek out for help and they talked about becoming resilient and staying strong. They also talked to the young people about the impact of drugs and alcohol on Mental Health. The performance was very powerful, and as one Year 7 student said, “That was the most unexpected surprise, ever! It was great fun.” Other comments from our students included, 'I loved it! It is my kind of music and liked all the songs, especially Monsters in My Head,' said Chris S and Chloe P said, 'It is an important message (to stay strong and believe in yourself) and the music was really good to listen to.' Hannah G said, 'It was inspira onal and a good way to learn about mental health!' while Isabella C simply said, 'It was a really cool way to spend an hour at school!'
Performing Arts Trip to London
The Performing Arts Department together with 41 students spent last Friday and Saturday in London where they watched two shows, enjoyed me viewing various ar sts perform street theatre and indulged in a spot of Christmas shopping in Covent Garden. We even had me to take a flight on the London Eye, despite several of our students (and staff) worrying about the height! Our students were terrified by the stunning performance of The Woman in Black at the Fortune Theatre and were wowed by the skills of the young performers in Ma lda at The Cambridge Theatre. Our coach drivers gave us a detailed and engaging tour of all the major tourist a rac ons and we even had me to visit Buckingham Palace. (Unfortunately, Charles was unable to come out and meet us as he was busy!) A er a nice spot of pizza (and ice cream courtesy of Mr Bailey) we headed back to our hotel in Wembley. The trip was a great success and our students were a credit to the College. Keep an eye out for Ma lda ckets going on sale as this will be our February whole school produc on. We guarantee it's one to rival even the West End version!
Thanks to all the staff and especially Mr Bailey, our new Head of Performing Arts for such a fun packed weekend.
Miss Pridding
European Day of Languages
In the Autumn term we celebrated European Day of Languages here at All Hallows. Amongst various ac vi es for students to get involved in, such as the Treasure Hunt around the school, class quizzes, and the usual ‘Find Someone Who’ compe on which saw our students trying to guess which teachers spoke which languages! We also held our popular Bake Off Compe on and we received over 45 amazing entries. Please have a look at some of the examples a ached. On the last day of the week, students sold these cakes to raise money for the Macmillan Coffee morning. Thank you everyone for your kind dona ons.
Year 8 History Trip
Year 8 history students a ended a trip to the Liverpool Na onal Slavery Museum in November. Here, students learnt about the horrors of the transatlan c slave trade and the legacy that it s ll has on our society. Students had the opportunity to handle objects in a workshop on enslavement to discover more about life on the planta ons for enslaved Africans. Students also had the opportunity to see artefacts linked to the Titanic and Lusitania.
Mr Eardley
Modern Foreign Languages Compe on
In October a number of Year 9 Languages students took part in a compe on by the GCHQ. Our two teams did us proud! Congratula ons to Seb A, Finlay W, Benedict A, Gianna C, Anna B, Mia B and Alicja W who finished in the top 25% of all the teams who entered which was over 2000!
Mr Philpot
Cross Country Club
We are growing in numbers! This muddy gang truly experienced the cross-country weather in the Autumn term and there have been a few drama c spills along the way! Students are currently looking forward to their forthcoming cross-country compe on.
Mrs Su on
Aspire Day October
In October, we had our first Aspire Day in College which is a personal development day, rather than the usual metabled lessons. Sessions delivered by our staff and outside speakers included: Health and Wellbeing, The Arts, Rela onships and Sex Educa on, Culture Building, Safety and the Wider World, as well as Ci zenship and Careers. In these pictures you can see our students taking part in several of the well being ac vi es that included, glow in the dark dodgeball, form tug of war compe on and an orienteering challenge around the College site.
Aspire Day December
In December, our students had their second Aspire Day for Personal Development. Over the academic year, students will have 6 drop down days and experience lessons/ac vi es in six areas of personal development; Rela onships and Sex Educa on, Health and Wellbeing, Ci zenship and Careers, Safety and the Wider World, The Arts and Culture Building. On the day, students had external speakers giving workshops in Stomp-style rhythm, peace and nuclear disarmament, financial management, among others. Our own staff delivered lessons on hate crime, county lines, mental health, domes c abuse, FGM and solidarity, children's rights, among others. Students also par cipated in a variety of sports such as footgolf, archery, boccia, as well as taking lessons in healthy cooking and board game strategy. Some year groups also spent me research future career opportuni es and planned their college/university applica ons. These drop-down days contribute to the holis c educa on of our students and pursue our mission statement of aspiring not to have more, but to be more.
Sixth Form Fancy Dress Day
Tuesday in the last week of term 6th form held their annual dress up day, with dona ons going towards our clinic in India. The common room and College corridors were filled with a weird and wonderful collec on of characters! Students raised £243 for the clinic. Well done to all!
The BBC Inspire Our Students
On Wednesday 14 December we welcomed the BBC back to All Hallows Catholic College a er their previous visit where inspira onal speakers discussed their life stories. This me the focus was for students to hear inspira onal careers journey stories from four guests.
Jess talked about how she became Director of a business called Water Crea ve which produces adver sing for the fashion and beauty industry, including TV, billboards and the internet. Jeff discussed how he became Crea ve Director of two companies. One is called Matmi where he sees himself as a "fungineer" as he develops computer games and graphics for theme parks, tourism and escape rooms amongst many other industries globally.
Emily is a sports journalist at the BBC and she talked about how she got this job a er studying French and History at university. She recalled when she interviewed former Premier League footballer, S lian Petrov, about his life and career a er recovering from cancer. She also men oned all the stars she has interviewed over her career and the countries she has visited!
These guests were interviewed by Mary who is a radio presenter with the BBC and she also shared her career journey, including the four years she spent travelling the world. It was by listening to the radio during these travels that inspired Mary to then train to be a radio presenter.
All of our visitors gave insigh ul and interes ng stories as to how they got do the jobs they now do. Students were given the chance to ask ques ons and this has helped with the careers educa on of our students across Years 7 to 10 as they met these real life entrepreneurs and employees. We hope this event has inspired our students to set their goals high with their own future career aspira ons.
The BBC Bitesize website is excellent with providing loads of useful facts about careers. Please click on the link below to access this site. Perhaps this is something both parent and child could do together? We would also highly recommend your child showing you the website Unifrog. All students have log in access to this site and they should be able to show you just how good it is. Maybe parents might also find the contents of Unifrog and Bitesize useful for their own careers!
Faith in Ac on Day—All Hallows 60th Anniversary
On November 1st the staff and students at All Hallows Catholic College celebrated All Saints Day and the College’s 60th Anniversary with a Faith in Ac on Day. The theme of the day was ‘We are all called to be saints’ and the students were given lots of opportuni es to act as Prophets of Change, as they worked on different issues and to make a difference in College, locally and globally. The issues covered included: helping the elderly, climate change and climate refugees, human dignity, prisoners of conscience, food waste, sexual harassment and animal welfare. Working together in their form groups, students learnt about these issues and then planned their ac on responses in collabora on.
For example, students in Year 7 were looking at climate change through our core values: Respect – respect each other in the classroom and in the world around us, Coopera on – Working together, Compassion – Caring about others in the world, Stewardship – Looking at ways to look a er our earth and Honourable purpose – doing something for the greater good – bigger than ourselves. At the end of the session, they wrote a le er to their local MP with their findings and sugges ons for ac on.
Another session that all students took part in was planned by our own Eco Warriors based on the Papal encyclical 'Laudato Si' and the film 'The Le er', calling on our students to take onboard our shared responsibility for God's crea on and pu ng our Gospel value of Stewardship into ac on.
Other sessions in the day included a session in the College Hall with the BBC 100 Share Your Story Team which offered our students the opportuni es to understand the value of storytelling and the importance of it in careers at the BBC. Our students also celebrated the College’s anniversary with homemade cakes from our fab catering team and a session on a variety of inflatables in the sports hall. All in all, it was a busy and produc ve day, allowing for reflec on on our faith and College core values of respect, compassion, coopera on, stewardship and honourable purpose. Our students said they enjoyed the change from the usual curriculum and had fun celebra ng the College’s anniversary.
Throughout this week Mass was celebrated for Years 8-13 as part of our All Saints Day and 60th anniversary commemora on. We were very grateful to Father Mar n and Father Peter for joining us. Students had prepared for Mass as part of the Faith Day on Tuesday and led us in the readings and offertory. We offered gi s connected with the talents of our students, the India clinic and items to represent the huge amount raised in the harvest collec on. The choir, led by Mr Thompson, were superb and inspired us all to raise our voices in praise and prayer.
Amazing Art Work
6th Form
Year 7 Travel Games
ln October, Miss Cook’s Year 7 class had great fun researching travel games to help them design and produce their own games.
Excellent English Work
Year 10 Victorian Literature Project
Miss Mar n was very impressed by the Victorian Literature Projects created by her class. All students put a lot of effort into their work. These are examples by Pheobe, Lucy, Alysa, Alex, Ciara, Imogen, Ha e, Nicola, Emily, Sofia and Evie. Well done to all of them.
Year 9 Romeo and Juliet Project
Miss Devlin was impressed with this great Romeo and Juliet homework from Louisa W.
Year 8 Work on Charles Dickens
Miss Mar n was very impressed with great homework produced by 8F, as part of their research on Charles Dickens to accompany the study of A Christmas Carol in the Winter term.
Mandarin Success
On 18th May 2022 our Year 10 students, who are now Year 11, sat the HSK3 exam (an interna onal standardized test for Chinese proficiency established to assess the Chinese proficiency of non-na ve Chinese speakers) as part of their studies on the Mandarin Excellence Programme. Now the results are in from Chinese Tes ng Interna onal (CTI).
We'd like to congratulate five students who passed the HSK3 exam: Ella W
Cyrus F
Thomas C
Evangeline A
Kathryn A
We also congratulate those who won the MEP award for their excellent performance in the HSK3 exam, despite not passing.
3 students have been awarded “Gold” level by the Mandarin Excellence Programme Team: Ella W
Cyrus F
Evangeline A
Two students have been awarded “Silver” level by the Mandarin Excellence Programme Team: Thomas C
Kathryn A
Three students have been awarded “Bronze” level by the Mandarin Excellence Programme Team: Mikayla D
Freya C
Madeline B
And, four students have been awarded “Commenda on” level by the Mandarin Excellence Programme Team: Joseph O
Thomas M
Katharine F
Georgia B
We would like to recognise the achievement of all the students who rose to this challenge so enthusias cally.
Mandarin Le er Exchange
Mrs Denby wanted to share news about an exchange project going on in Mandarin classes.
Way back in February, our Year 7 and Year 10 Mandarin students (who are now Y8 and Y11) took part in the ac vi es of the Beijing Winter Olympics and the Chinese Womens Football Team. During the ac vity, some of our students wrote le ers to the women football team of Beijing Normal University, expressing their love for football and their blessings to the Chinese Women Football team. Recently, we received a reply from the women's football team of Beijing Normal University. In the le er, the team members shared their daily life and training life. Although many difficul es were encountered: hot weather, physical exhaus on and pain, with the spirit of the women football team, all the team members worked together and were able to overcome all difficul es. Finally, they also wished our students to s ck to their hobbies and chase their dreams bravely. Through le er exchanges, our students can gain an in-depth understanding of the lives of Chinese athletes and enhance their enthusiasm for learning and using Mandarin.
Year 11 Geography Field Trip to Manchester
In October, our GCSE Geography students travelled to Manchester. They did land use mapping, sustainability scores and a scavanger hunt through Manchester. The group also went to the Na onal Football Museum for a workshop, to look around and play the games. Our students were well behaved and got a lot out of the experience!
Year 11 IT Visitor
Year 11 Enterprise and Year 13 BTEC Business students had a visit from Will Sant. Will is a chartered accountant for Wilmslow based accountancy firm, Langricks. Will gave an insight into the role that accoun ng plays in making businesses more effec ve, along with sharing his journey on how and why he became an accountant.
Science
Ms Lea's classes have been making models to represent an electrical circuit. There are running tracks, ski slopes, central hea ng, donkey tracks and lorries on the road. They have put a lot of hard work and effort into this project. Well done to all!
Form Reading
The start of form reading has seen our form groups enjoying some of Roald Dahl's short stories. Forms in Years 7, 8 and 9 have been reading 'The Hitchhiker', while Year 10 and up have been reading, 'The Landlady' and discussing her sinister nature. Special praise for 7A, form readers of the week who have taken their enthusiasm for 'The Hitchhiker' as inspira on for a display and created some amazing pictures.
Form reading will be run twice a week . In the first half term students will focus on short stories and then a er half term move onto a novel.
Peer Reading
Last week Year 7 and 8 peer readers had their first session with their Sixth form mentors. Students will take part in the peer reading scheme over the half term every Tuesday morning in the common room. The scheme is designed to grow confidence, develop comprehension and build a love of reading.
Library News
This term I have appointed an enthusias c team of students to help out at break and lunch mes. Each student has a training card and they can ck off each new skill and make notes on their progress. Skills taught include:
· Issuing, renewing and returning library books.
· Shelving returned and new books.
· Labelling, covering and adding date labels and Accelerated Reader S ckers to new books.
· Helping remove old and put up new displays.
· Choosing new stock for the library.
· Sugges ng ideas for ac vi es and compe ons in the library.
Recommended Reads for the New Year
Why not get ahead and read a shortlisted book for the Cheshire Schools Book Award 2023? All books will be available in the AH library in the new term. Parents, carers and staff are all invited to read the books as well and vote on each one.
Pictured le is Jess W in Year 7 helping sort the new Bookbuzz books into form boxes. Year 7 & 8 Shortlist
9 and Upwards Shortlist
Bookbuzz is Back
Bookbuzz is an annual part of the introduc on to the library for our Year 7 students, and Year 8 who also have a regular library lesson, to con nue their reading journey at All Hallows. In September our Year 7 and 8 students watched a presenta on that included all the authors of the Bookbuzz list describing their book. Students then ordered their book, which was free to them. Eventually, the books arrived in early December and students received them to read in Library lesson or at home. The books are theirs to keep, swap with friends or lend to their family. The most popular books were: Wai ng for Murder by Fleur Hitchcock and You Are a Champion by Marcus Rashford.
Reading Success in Year 7 and 8
All students in Year 7 and 8 use the Accelerated Reader programme in their Library lessons. It has been another successful term, as you can see in the sta s cs below. Well done to all students and let’s keep the momentum up next term!
Year 7
Words read since September: 9,268,251
Word millionaires in the Year 7: None yet! However, there are several students who will be in the new year if they keeping reading!
Quizzes taken and passed: 490
The best quizzing form: 7M
Form with the most 100% passes on the Accelerated Reader Quizzes: 7M
100% Draw Winner: Crystal G (7A)
Year 8
Words read since September: 4,281,084
Word millionaires in Year 8: None yet! However, there are several students who will be in the new year if they keeping reading!
Quizzes taken and passed: 310
The best quizzing form: 8S
Form with the most 100% passes on the Accelerated Reader Quizzes: 8S
100% Draw Winner: Aleksia F (8S)
Prayer
Loving Father, help us remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and worship of the wise men.
Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gi and good desires with every gree ng.
Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.
May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children, and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake.
Amen.
Robert Louis Stevenson
Come and visit our wonderful Church College, everyone is welcome.
