Out of the Blue - Winter 2016

Christmas Productions Pre-Prep takes to the stage!

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The Blue Coat School Founded by the Church of England in 1722

TED Launch Years 5 & 6 get Thinking, Exploring and Doing!

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Head First Music from those memorable nativities and carol services is ringing in the ears; my first term must have ended already!

But it only seems like yesterday that I was being commissioned by Rt Revd David Urquhart, Lord Bishop of Birmingham to take up my new role at Blue Coat.

Over the course of the past three months it has been a privilege to see the children taking full advantage of the myriad of opportunities on offer. Satisfying, too, to learn from recent national test results that in terms of academic outcomes we are in the top 5% of schools nationally.

With the quality of music comparable to many a Cathedral School, and with sport on an upward trajectory, staff and pupils alike should give themselves a well-earned pat on the back.

The corporate New Year’s Resolution must be to continue with the hard work and the strong focus, so that The Blue Coat School becomes pre-eminent in all areas.

Meanwhile, thank you to everybody for all your hard work - I believe we are in the daily business of polishing a diamond.

Noel Neeson, Headmaster

Term Round-Up A new academic year and a new headmaster! Mr Neeson has certainly hit the ground running and has quickly immersed himself into Blue Coat life along with his wife Jules and children Bea and Jasper. We are sure that many of you have seen Mr Neeson either teaching on the rugby pitch or passionately cheering our teams on from the side-line, the children have certainly been lifted by his enthusiasm for the game and beyond.

Our new School Officials represented themselves extremely well with an impressive performance at the TISCA Prefects’ Training Day at Kingham Hill School, showing excellent teamwork and leadership skills. Lower down the school we are delighted that many new pupils put themselves forward to join the School Council in their first term and are following in the footsteps of these great role models.

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Thank you to Chaplain for her wonderful assemblies where we have had the opportunity to discuss The Blue Coat School Values: Patience, Perseverance and Respect. As many of you will have read in our weekly Update, a growing number of the children are already exhibiting these attributes - producing excellent pieces of work, achieving in competitive sport and music and in carrying out selfless acts of charity for the benefit of others.

We have welcomed many wonderful speakers to Chapel this term and we were particularly delighted to involve three current parents, Reverend Tucker, Dr Kay and Flight Lieutenant Holland, in our Prep Remembrance Service. Amazingly we smashed our Shoebox Appeal target once again this year, sending gifts to children in Belarus.

Alumnus Mark Aldred, who rowed in the lightweight four in Rio, returned to share his experiences with us. Much has changed in terms of our buildings but Mark was able to see that the opportunities in sport and other areas of the curriculum are still going strong and his visit was a great way to inspire pupils to strive for their goals.

From Olympian to Junior Language Champion - on Friday 4 October, an expectant but nervous Ritisha Baidyaray travelled down to compete in the final of this national language competition. With the original 1,000 contestants whittled down to a final 30, Ritisha’s hard work began to reap dividends as her knowledge of Swahili was tested. She finished in first place winning a trip to a school in Africa.

Well done to all 23 Blue Coat pupils who took part in this year’s challenge, learning Romanian and Korean in the early rounds. Special congratulations to Ritisha on a Blue Coat first!

In the Spotlight We congratulate Mrs Tammy Bennett on her appointment as our new Director of Sport and talk to her about her love of her subject and plans for developing this area of the curriculum.

Q. How long have you worked at The Blue Coat School?

A. This is my second academic year at School.

Q. Do you have a favourite sport to teach, and to play yourself?

A. Football is my favourite game to play and teach but I also love netball. I played football for 14 years but now I just play netball. I train once a week and play ‘Centre’ in a Birmingham Netball League.

Q. What made you become a sports teacher?

A. Miss Broadway, my inspirational PE Teacher at senior school.

Q. What do you think about sport at Blue Coat?

The Friends have been energetic in their organisation of some wonderful events for the school community for which we are most grateful. The Fireworks Extravaganza was exactly just that! With stalls selling hot food, drinks and light-up goodies, there was a fantastic atmosphere as we were entertained by fire performers and a professional firework display.

As the dark nights began to draw closer our Year 6 pupils knuckled down to final exam preparations with the 11+ season starting early this year. The children all acquitted themselves well and should be proud of their maturity in facing these pressures at such an early age.

A chance to escape to the wilds of North Wales was therefore a welcome distraction from revision and study. Set deep in a beautiful valley designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and surrounded by scenic hills and woodlands, the children experienced activities including caving, zip-wire, bouldering and a night walk. They surprised themselves and gained a huge sense of satisfaction in completing the various challenges whilst having lots of fun along the way.

Meanwhile back at School, Years One and above were exercising their grey matter as they endeavoured to solve Maths puzzles in teams, as part of a special Puzzle Challenge Day organised by Mrs Simmons.

This was a successful day which followed on from an exciting programme of visits earlier in the term including Roman Soldier Day, The Aztecs, a Macbeth Workshop and a visit by Environmental Artist-in-Residence, Stephen Whitehead who spent two amazing days with Year 5 looking at the theme of Wind Art.

A. I feel it is an exciting time for sport in general and I am looking forward to developing our offering at School. It helps when your headmaster is very keen on sport too!

Q. What would you like to achieve?

A. We need to evolve BCS Sport based on two key areas: 1) participation 2) performance. I want to improve both these areas and look at the strategic development of all sport across the School. I take sport seriously, and it matters to me enormously that we provide a broad programme that encourages and values participation for all, whilst making provision for our most able sportsmen and sportswomen. We are currently recruiting for new members of the Sports Department – the future is exciting!

Q. What do you like doing in your spare time?

A. In my spare time, I am either taking my children to sports activities, playing sport myself or watching sport. When I sleep I even dream about sport!

Q. And finally, what would you like for Christmas?

A. All of my family around the table with lots of food, drinks and laughter.

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The re-housing of the Christmas Fayre in the Sports Centre gave everyone plenty of room to explore the festive stalls including a Santa’s Grotto to rival the likes of Harrods! The festive season was truly upon us as the endearing Pre-Prep Nativities began and our many choirs and musicians readied themselves for a busy end of term, all culminating with our traditional Carol Services.

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Classroom Connection New beginnings We welcomed twenty new children to Buttons Nursery in September and they have been settling in nicely.

A busy term has included decorating cakes to raise funds for Macmillan, Harvest celebrations, making poppies, exploring nature and collecting items for our nature table during an Autumn walk around the school grounds, and learning new nursery rhymes as part of World Nursery Rhyme Week.

Later in the term, Transition also had great fun learning about fireworks. They looked at images of fireworks and thought and talked about how they look and sound. In outdoor learning the children used ribbons, pom-poms and coloured scarves and pretended to be fireworks. They made circles like Catherine wheels, zoomed like rockets, fizzed like colourful fireworks, sparkled like sparklers and jumped and banged like bangers!​

Making the move to Transition has been equally smooth with the help of Mrs Hall, Mrs Round and Miss Clarke. The children enjoyed a special Harvest Festival enthusiastically helping Chaplain to unpack her special Harvest Sack. Many thanks to all who donated to a bumper harvest which went to the Karis Neighbourhood Scheme.

An unusual birthday cake During the Autumn Term, Reception have participated in many interesting Literacy activities. One of the weekly topics they have examined was ‘Celebrations’. Pupils discussed different celebrations and the children linked this to their own experiences of birthdays and other special occasions. Using the familiar story ‘The Toys’ Party’ by Roderick Hunt and Alex Brychta, the children made a rather unusual cake. The ingredients used were cornflakes, tomato sauce, milk, jam, sugar and baked beans. Surprisingly, many of the children thought it was a good choice of recipe! Perhaps next year we should consider entering this cake for the Great British Bake Off? After the cake was finished, the children made a list of the ingredients used and drew a picture of it.

Victorian playtime revisited

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In September, as part of their History topic, the children in Year 1 spent an exciting day learning about toys from the past. The ‘Off the Page’ group brought along their travelling museum of amazing old toys. The children were treated to play sessions with artefacts, enabling them to handle and explore a wide variety of real and reproduction toys dating back to Victorian times.

Imaginations were brought to life as the children revelled in their play. They learnt about different toy materials and similarities and differences between toys now and then.

Wonderful stories about toys from the past captured the children’s attention and at times they were spellbound! A fun time was had by all when it was time to create their own toys. The children enjoyed a practical making session which gave them a hands-on experience of making their own traditional toys and everyone went home with their own bag of treasured toys!

Year 2 investigate One of the Science topics in Year Two is to investigate Plants and Animals in the local environment. Having discovered lots of information for themselves within the school grounds about insects, birds and trees, the children turned their attention to the living creatures within the classroom walls i.e. the children!

The children initially looked at the similarities and differences that they could readily see, such as gender, hair, eye and skin colour but then measured other differences that were less obvious. Using rulers and tape measures they discovered that differences in hand, foot and arm length required skilful manoeuvring with each piece of equipment and mathematical skills for accuracy. It was a great way to introduce Maths into their scientific investigation and provoked much discussion.

Journey to the Aztec world Ask any of Year 4 what they learned at their Aztec experience and you might be surprised at some of their replies! For instance, did you know that the Aztecs played a ball game where you were only allowed to use your hips? Or that naughty Aztec boys had to sleep outside with no clothes on, whilst girls had to sweep the house for hours?

Perhaps worst of all was the fact that no one under the age of 52 was allowed to have chocolate!

5-a-day challenge Year 3 have been learning about healthy eating this term as part of their Science curriculum. Catering Manager, Mark Gladwin gave pupils a guided tour of the school kitchen and amazed them with lots of facts and figures. He explained how over 700 meals were prepared, served and then washed up each day by his team of fourteen staff.

The children were shown the hot and cold service areas before being taken to the dry store. They saw that the cans of beans and bags of pasta used at school were much bigger than they had a home. For many the highlight was the walk-in-fridge which could fit at least six of them in at the same time!

Following their kitchen visit the children kept a food diary for a week and a winner from each class was presented with a beautiful fruit hamper prize from Palmer and Howells for their outstanding efforts.

The Scottish Play Continuing with the theme of welcoming majestic Scots to Blue Coat this term, Year 5 pushed the boat out and welcomed a whole group of them! We were delighted to welcome back The Young Shakespeare Company and witness their mesmerising performance of Macbeth.

These fascinating facts, along with many more, gave the children a real insight into the daily lives of this Mexican civilization. With the help of stunning computer graphics, a wide array of artefacts and the real-life sound of Aztec musical instruments, not to mention the chance to dress up in feathers and cloaks, the children were also able to experience the thrill of participating in an Aztec ceremony to the Sun god, Huitzilopochtli.

Our thanks to Ian and Graciela for sharing their in-depth knowledge with us and bringing the Aztecs to life in Birmingham!

Bird House Project The refurbished DT Room has been greatly enjoyed by all the children this term and Mrs Lynn would like to thank the Estates Team for their hard work in creating this fantastic new space.

Year 6 have been working on a project looking at different types of shelters. They have all undertaken the challenge of creating a bird house to hang in their own gardens. The children have improved on early skills learnt in woodwork, and are now quite proficient in measuring, sawing, sanding and drilling.

The school hall was transformed into the wilds of the Scottish moors, Great Birnam Wood and High Dunsinane Hill, as Macbeth’s ill-fated journey from a brave and loyal soldier to a murderous King was revealed. This classic tale of greed, ego, ambition and morality gave the children much to think about and discuss as they embarked on an exciting two-week study of the play.

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Although the frame structure of the bird houses is the same, each child has stamped their own creativity on their project some have gone for a ‘Birdingham Palace’ look with exquisite detail using pyrography equipment, whilst others have opted for sublimation technology to enhance the design of their house.

Each pupil has experienced using the pillar drill and jigsaw and when one pupil was asked to describe what it felt like using the jigsaw, he replied, “It was better than one of the fast rides at Drayton Manor!” Well done Year 6, you have worked really hard this term to make some amazing bird houses!

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Christmas Productions Transition and Reception Production – “It’s a Baby” The six Transition and Reception classes have been working extremely hard learning songs, actions, dances and speaking parts for their Christmas production, “It’s a Baby”. The story revolves around the very busy “Bethlehem Inn” where the poor Innkeeper and his wife – played by Ismaael Alam and Lucy Carberry are feeling the pressure of an inn full of noisy guests. When Joseph (Hugo Brinkman) and Mary (Mani Kaur) arrive looking for a room, the innkeeper takes pity on them and offers them shelter in his stable. Overnight their baby is born, leading to a whole range of special visitors, including Wise Men, Angels and even some cowboy shepherds!

Year 1 Production – “The Night Before Christmas” “Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro’ the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;”

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All of Year 1 have enthusiastically rehearsed for their performance of “The Night before Christmas”. The children worked tirelessly: dances were run through, songs and lines learnt and acting roles were worked on, the audience were transported to that most magical of times - Christmas Eve.

The performance ends with a rousing song called “Hallelujah” which was enthusiastically performed by all the children. Many thanks to all the children and staff involved for their huge effort in producing such a marvellous Nativity.

The children thrilled their listeners with their clear retelling of the famous Christmas poem; their joyful singing, animated acting and dancing helping to awaken those feelings of anticipation associated with this special night. The delightful show left everyone feeling as though Christmas had certainly arrived!

Year 2 Production – “The Christmas Jigsaw” At a bustling Christmas market, five excited children come across a very special stallholder who gives them a tatty old Christmas jigsaw in return for the promise that they will find time to complete it on Christmas Eve. As the children gradually piece the jigsaw together with the help of a very special visitor, the Christmas story comes to life with all the traditional nativity characters.

The children have been very excited and put in a great effort to make this long-awaited Nativity, their best yet! We have been lucky to have Miss Pardoe this year to support the children with their singing and Mr Nicklin who played so wonderfully for the children.

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Thank you to all the staff that worked so hard to get everything ready and enable the performance to run as smoothly as it did. To all of Year 2, thank you once again, for a fantastic Nativity and for learning your lines, songs and dance routines with such commitment.

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Colomendy Situated in North Wales, in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Colomendy Outdoor Education and Adventure Centre was the perfect environment for our Year 6 pupils to explore the great outdoors!

Arriving at the 130-acre site, set deep in a beautiful valley and surrounded by scenic hills, woodlands and brimming with wildlife, our intrepid band of 63 children and 6 staff were greeted with Wales’ version of ‘liquid sunshine’. But a little rain was not enough to put our eager children off their first challenge of the day. Who knew it could take 45 minutes to put a duvet cover on? Beds sorted and suitably attired in wet weather gear the children set off into the woods to try their hand at abseiling and caving.

Day Two saw activity groups experiencing bouldering, zip-wire, archery, caving, Jacob’s Ladder (part 2), Team Tec, abseiling, night line, low ropes, aeroball and problem solving. The sessions, each seventy minutes in length, seemed to fly by and the children were tasked not only to overcome personal challenges, but to work together in a spirit of cooperation and endeavour. Resilience, perseverance and sheer courage a-plenty, our Year 6 pushed themselves to the very limit of their physical and mental ability, surprising themselves and gaining a real sense of achievement. After a brief return to the dorms and a hearty supper, hot chocolate and marshmallows beckoned and the children enjoyed singing classic camp-fire songs around a warming log fire in the clear night air.

Waking up on the final day to a frozen but picturesque landscape, teamwork perfected over the course of their stay, bags were packed and the site navigated for laundry drop off, all by 8.30am! It was then time for a final adventure in the woods before returning tired and to the familiar sight of Somerset Road.

There were team-building exercises on the low rope course, and Mrs Walker’s group worked incredibly hard on Jacob’s Ladder, a high rope course which encourages four children to work together to climb as high as possible. The instructors were all extremely friendly and clearly very knowledgeable. They reassured and encouraged the children to push themselves to achieve the challenges set before them and they relished it!

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After supper, a night walk beckoned on a now dry, moonlit and starry evening. Perfect conditions for a sensory exploration of the woodland surrounding the dorms. Owls hooted from their perches, and 63 torch-bearing, chatty children wandered around the forest with their leaders, discovering the nocturnal sights and sounds.

Musical Notes This term we have had four Morning Recitals and two Prelude Concerts. Over 160 children have performed in these events, with more to come in the new year. Providing performance opportunities like this enables the children to overcome the dreaded nerves, and like any skill, performing in public, gets better with practise. The Chapel Choir have been in fine voice too, and have treated us to many beautiful anthems. We congratulate our Year 5 probationers who received their surplices at our All Saints Service.

Our Christmas Concert was a huge success, with more children than ever before taking part. It is a feat of logistical prowess to get such vast numbers of children in the right place at the right time to enable the music to happen, and we are more than fortunate to have such a dedicated and supportive team of Visiting Music Teachers. Miss Akehurst, our new Music Department Administrator has really got the team working well together.

Our young Music Scholars were invited to attend a concert at King Edward’s School involving some Blue Coat alumni, and featuring the music of the 20th Century composer Igor Stravinsky.

Mr Nicklin need not have worried that this challenging repertoire might be a step too far for our young scholars. Far from it! They sat through his ‘Dumbarton Oaks’ piece for wind ensemble, along with a wind quintet by Paul Hindemith (a contemporary of Stravinsky) like ducks to water. Not only did they sit through it, they listened intently and asked some very thoughtful and considered questions about the music too!

There is extraordinary music-making taking place on your very doorstep. The gift of music is all around us. Our pupils give of it freely and with such generosity it is almost breath-taking. Please do attend our concerts, even when your child is not playing - come and share in the wonderful talent and musicianship that exists in our School.

Just as we go to print we have news that Katie Baker, Tristan Wong and Sophie Reason, all Music Scholars, have successfully auditioned for the National Children’s Orchestra. Sophie has also secured a place in the National Children’s Choir of Great Britain. A fine achievement indeed.

Our musical links with Birmingham Cathedral are very important to us, and the Advent Processional Service which takes place on the first Sunday of Advent is a highlight in our calendar. This year the singing was outstanding from the Chapel Choir and members of The Blue Coat School Choral Society. It was a long and challenging day, where the stamina of all concerned was put to the test, but each year the children rise to the challenge as if it were a mere bagatelle.

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As we made our preparations for the festive season, the Chapel Choir visited the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham to sing carols for visitors, patients and staff. The opportunity to give something to our local community, however small, is indeed an important part of our aims as a School, and giving the gift of music to those in need was something that our Chapel choristers enjoyed enormously.

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Sports Round-Up Soccer The Year 3s have developed quickly and been introduced to home and away fixtures against other schools. There has been a strong sense of team ethic and passion to get the best out of each other. The majority of fixtures have been close and although results haven’t gone our way, this does not reflect the evident quality and depth of ability in the year group.

Blue Coat hosted the U11 Aston Villa Tournament involving 15 schools on 14 November, our boys played extremely well. A nail-biting semi-final penalty shootout saw defeat to the eventual tournament winners but with only one goal conceded in open play, the team are to be commended.

The U10s have had an extremely successful season, and the As have won all four matches played. The B team also remain undefeated drawing in their two matches.

The U11s had their biggest win of the season against Foremark Hall.

Over the season they also bagged two wins against Bromsgrove during tournaments. The U11 Bs have been very successful and are unbeaten all season with new players emerging into the squad.

Netball Explorers This year we have entered our Year 5 girls into an U11 local schools’ netball league to give more opportunities for competitive play. Whilst there is still a lot of work to be done in honing skills, the girls are to be commended for a positive attitude when facing a more experienced side and in some cases, substantially taller Year 6 opponents!

Swimming This term’s gala against Bromsgrove was the first outing for our Year 3s and saw exceptional performances from Emily Whitehouse, Freddie Trevis and Hari Phillips, all gaining first places. Oona Knight also swam well and finished second in the backstroke. Year 5s put up a good fight in the girls’ medley, (Poppy Couzens, Hannah Smith, Neave Rees, Skye Henshaw) gaining an impressive first place and continuing to gain firsts in most of the individual races.

Rugby This term has seen the full introduction of the Age-Grade Rugby Laws as outlined by England Rugby. The boys have adapted to these changes very quickly and appear to be enjoying their new rugby experience.

The U9 season has seen the addition of rugby festivals as well as regular weekly fixtures. The boys have gradually become more accustomed to the need to tackle and have developed their passing and teamwork skills throughout the season.

The U10s have shown a good work ethic and a desire to improve.

The introduction of rucking and being able to steal the ball in contact has taken a bit of time to get used to. Every game has been close and it has been encouraging to see their skill levels improve.

The U11 boys are learning that rugby is a game where mental application is just as important as the physical aspect. The A team have had a successful season winning more than they have lost. All players have developed well with individuals displaying impressive speed and agility.

Hockey The girls’ hockey teams have been out in force and produced some strong performances.

Our U8s had their first taste of match play against Winterfold. Due to frozen pitches, they played in the Sports Hall and adapted well to playing inside, although they were unable to stop the forceful shots from their opponents, conceding six goals to their three.

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The U9s are developing in confidence and match play and we have a good pool of strong players from which to pick our teams. The As have played 4, drawn 3 and lost 1, whilst the Bs have played 4, won 3 and lost 1.

The Year 5 boys had a harder job and gave their all, with Alex Bryans swimming a strong backstroke to finish second, and Shayan Patel finishing first in the butterfly. A special thank you to the children who attended cross country training in the early hours, and to the Year 5s who completed time trials in curriculum hours; this did not deter them from staying late and putting in a sterling effort at the gala.

The Year 6 girls’ team comprising Maia Noonan, Sofia Knight, Zoe Wilcox with a little help from Skye and Neave, stormed through with first places in all races. The boys faced stronger competition and some unfortunate loss of goggles and a hat during two races confounded their results. Well done to Fintan Dowling who secured a win in the breastroke despite tough opposition.

Cross Country We returned in high spirits from a Cross Country meet at RGS The Grange in November, with the U9 and U11 girls victorious and the U9 boys finishing a very respectable second. Congratulations to our individual medalists: Bea Neeson and Sofia Knight (Silver), Phoebe Jones and Oliver Smith (Bronze), and also to Maia Noonan and Storm Henshaw who finished fourth, just outside of the medals.

The U9s completed a gruelling 1.9km course whist the U11s had to run around an extra field making a 2.4km course. Our pupils ran really well powering up the hills, working their way to the front and sprinting to the finish line - an outstanding team performance!

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The Friends of The Blue Coat School

At their AGM, The Friends thanked Emma Trevis, Darashna Moodley, Anita Poole and Nadia Ahmad for their hard work and enthusiasm in post. Anita kindly agreed to remain as Vice Chair and will be supporting the new Chair, Corinna Gregory. Shamaela Ahmed and Saira Riaz were welcomed as Secretary and Treasurer.

The much-anticipated Fireworks Extravaganza took place on Friday 4 November. The children purchased several light-up goodies and the playground was soon a-glow with green, yellow and pink fluorescent lights. After a dazzling show by the fire performers it was soon time for the main event. Fireworks popped, fizzed and burst into beautiful cascades of sparkles that lit up the smoky sky.

With no time to rest Christmas was next on the agenda! The new venue of the Sports Centre proved a popular choice, housing everything under one roof and providing more space to enjoy refreshments. Nearly 1,000 people attended and the atmosphere was bustling and festive.

Santa had given strict instructions to some special Elves to replicate his Lapland Workshop. The Elves got to work and with the help of the children they made tree decorations out of Lego, Barbies, Superheroes, Play Mobil, and much more! As if by magic, they transformed a small nondescript room into a glittering grotto, impressive enough to rival many a garden centre or department store.

“Even better than Harrods!” exclaimed one parent - a missed calling for some of our parents perhaps?

Swiftly followed by a wonderful Carols and Fizz, it was soon time to bring the term’s activities to a close. The Friends would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who has been involved; a lot of time and work goes in behind the scenes but seeing the whole school community coming together and enjoying themselves makes it all worthwhile.

Thinking, Exploring, Doing (TED) A curious addition to Friday afternoon appeared in September. It soon transpired that last year’s Options programme was being relaunched. With various choices under the categories of Thinking, Exploring and Doing, Blue Coat’s very own TED Programme had arrived.

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Mrs Bennett proved that it’s not just boys who are exponents of the beautiful game, by coaching Girls’ Football. Mr Wurr passed on his skills in Boys’ Hockey and Miss Crews championed Outdoor Education providing problem solving tasks around the School grounds. Mr Davies nobly drove the minibus to The Priory Club for weekly lessons in Squash so that many could get to grips with a new rackets game. All were part of the Doing collective.

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Anyone wishing to do some Exploring had three possibilities.

Young Journalists joined Mr Hill and Mr Morris plus a range of cameras, editing equipment and green screen backdrops. In Art Mrs Lambert-Green encouraged her prodigies as they worked towards Arts Award Explore, a nationally recognised qualification.

Productive Gardens once again treated participants to a touch of The Good Life alongside Mr Isherwood and Mrs Walker.

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Not surprisingly STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), run by Mr Neeson, proved popular with those of an experimental bent. Meanwhile Mrs Gibson was testing the grey matter of her charges with Mind Games. Mrs Simmons, on the other hand, was Buying and Selling tea towels with a vengeance, all in the name of worthy causes. All of the above came under the title of Thinking.

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Charity Check Spotacular fundraising for Children in Need Everyone at Blue Coat embraced this year’s Spotacular theme for Children in Need 2016. A non-school uniform day saw onesies and spotty items donned as children came to school in more comfortable attire. Mr Davies masterminded a Rio Spotacular whole assembly in the Sports Hall to kick-off the day in style. We welcomed our teams of “Spotty” athletes as they prepared to battle it out on an Olympic style obstacle course.

Thanks to the leadership of our Sports Captains, competition was fierce as they conquered the vault trying to land on the right spot, galloped on Spot the horse, foam fenced and mastered balloon volley ball.

Celebrations continued in Pre-Prep with Pudsey colouring and spotty biscuit decorating ready for a picnic in the gym.

Some of our pupils also did their own bit for this worthy cause and are to be commended. Holly and Emily’s Pudsey Bear shortbread and fairy cakes went down a storm in Cornwall as they spent a busy half-term break preparing their goodies and raised £30. Back at school Year 5 pupil, May Hadley organised a raffle and sold tickets in St Margaret’s House before and after school raising £112.

A record 451 shoeboxes sent to Operation Christmas Child this year!

Our winner, Natasha Page in Year 4, was delighted with the prize of a hallmarked sterling silver hand-made ladies engraved bangle and stylish gentleman’s cufflinks made in May’s daddy’s workshop in the Jewellery Quarter.

We are delighted to announce a total £722.72 raised by Blue Coat for Children in Need this year.

Poppy Appeal Mrs Lynn’s hand-knitted poppies were worn with pride by many children and staff.

Beautifully crafted, they raised £180 for Help for Heroes.

Key Dates for Spring Term 2017 Term begins Wednesday 4 January at 8.30am Open Morning Saturday 21 January 09.30am to 12.00pm (Registration at 9.30am and 10.30am)

7+ Prep Entrance Test & Music Auditions (Year 3) Tuesday 7 February (Application deadline 24 January) Half-Term Holiday (school closed) 20 - 24 February

8+ Prep Entrance (Years 4 to 6) Tuesday 7 March (Application deadline 24 January) Term ends Friday 31 March 3.15pm (Pre-Prep) & 4.00pm (Prep) After Care and Houses open until 5.45pm

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The Blue Coat School, Somerset Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B17 0HR S

The Blue Coat School Founded by the Church of England in 1722

Telephone 0121 410 6800 @bcsbirmingham

Email info@thebluecoatschool.com Website thebluecoatschool.com

The Blue Coat School Birmingham Limited is registered in England, Registration No. 8502615 and is a Registered Charity No. 1152244