BGS View Spring 2015

View THE BRISTOL GRAMMAR SCHOOL NEWSLETTER Spring 2015 Issue 29

OXBRIDGE SUCCESS

for BGS Sixth-formers

BGS INFANTS

fifth birthday

ALL IN A GOOD CAUSE

Charity at BGS

BGS BATTLE

of the Bands

CHARTER DAY • OBS ANNUAL DINNER • SPORTS NEWS • WORLD BOOK DAY

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From the Headmaster This term has been shorter than some and so has felt for us at School – and perhaps for you at home too – like something of a gallop. However, that just makes the range of activities undertaken all the more impressive.

W

e enjoyed some notable ‘firsts’ this term – including in girls’ cricket where our U13 and U15 teams both won the local round of the Lady Taverners’ Cup and will next represent Bristol in the county round of this competition. We also saw success for our Economics and Business Studies students in local competitions.

But of course there were so many achievements by our students; many congratulations to all and a big thank you to everyone for making these valuable experiences possible.

This year was also the first time when the whole School – from Infants and Juniors right up to Sixth Form – took part in

activities to celebrate World Book Day. It was fascinating to observe the range of literary preferences displayed in the costumes chosen and very moving to see our school community engaged in a common celebration in this way.

Of course, the highlight of our shared community life is Charter Day. The organisational changes we have made in recent years with the school procession down Park Street to the Cathedral provides an ever more visible and striking statement of our identity and our place at the heart of this great city. Charter Day is when we celebrate the soul and heritage of our great community, reminding us all of the values upon which all our other

activity throughout the year is founded.

Long may it be so.

I wish you and your families a very happy Easter.

Roderick MacKinnon P.S. As I write, we wait expectantly for news of the planning permission for our proposed new Performing Arts Centre which we hope will further enrich our community life.

BGS MODEL UNITED NATIONS At the start of February, Bristol Grammar School held its seventh annual Model United Nations (MUN) conference, with over 250 delegates attending.

The conference, organised by Dr Massey and the Sixth Form MUN team, was a huge success. It consisted of seven different committees, each chaired by BGS students, where issues of current interest were debated in the morning.

After lunch, everyone met in the Great Hall to work together on the fictional

Emergency Scenario, in which the Pope had declared war on terrorists.

Sixth-former Tommy Soppitt who took part in the event said: “Model United Nations is a fantastic way to develop confidence and public speaking skills, and we had an all-time high of twelve BGS delegations attending, which shows

the ever growing popularity of MUN. They all performed extremely well, with the USA delegation receiving the ‘highly commended’ award.

“Overall, the day was thoroughly enjoyable, and I highly recommend participating in the conference next year.

Model United Nations is increasingly becoming a larger part of Bristol Grammar School, and our success has led to us being invited to conferences in Harvard, Canada and India. Why not get involved?”

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News

Spring and STEM growth continues In February BGS student Isabella took part in the county-wide Poetry by Heart competition. After recording a section from Paradise Lost for the BBC Radio Bristol Drivetime show, Isabella made a dash to Bath to reach the Egg Theatre in time for the competition.

Just before Christmas several students visited the House of Lords to listen to Sir Ben Ainslie, Olympic sailor, talk about his dream of bringing the America's Cup back to Great Britain.

As with many sports, performing at the top level must include cutting edge design and advanced technology. Ben is heading up a team that will design and build the boat that he hopes will be the outright winner.

This term we have seen a good range of STEM events. The start of January saw a dozen students from Years 6 and 7 visit the Natural History Collection of the Bristol Museum. The assistant curator, Rhian Rowson, showed the students around and explained why scientists from around the world continue to find the collection a valuable resource.

The Renishaw Prize Giving was again a wonderful occasion to celebrate the writing talent of our students. Entries from Year 8 to the Lower Sixth were on display and William Paul, Applications Engineer from Renishaw, was on hand

to award the prizes. The prize winners were: Middle School Section Sarah 1st and Saty 2nd and Senior School Section Tom and Scott joint 1st and Kate and Dan joint 2nd.

The range of articles was impressive, covering subjects such as prosthetics, 3D printing, electronic noses, alternatives to antibiotics, thermal energy conversion and quantum computing, and were a delight to read.

In February BGS was visited by Dr Alun Gunn who gave a brilliant STEM Café talk on Forensic Entymology, or how insects can solve crimes. We are looking forward to further STEM cafés on Heart Health and Why Buildings Fall Down.

March saw girls from Years 8 and 9 attend the launch of the Airbus Industrial Cadets programme. This ten week project aims to inspire students to think about using their STEM subjects in careers involving science and engineering. We wish them well.

There she went head to head, poem to poem, against fourteen participants from schools around the south-west. The entries ranged from jovial extracts from Through the Looking Glass, to devastating scenes of trenches and trains in the First World War section.

Reflecting on the experience, Isabella said: “It was interesting to witness all the techniques used by the readers; while some were pronounced and eloquent, others were more in the vein of expressive monologues. I particularly enjoyed reciting a part of the visceral, violent Death of King Arthur. My readings brought me forward to the final round of the competition, where I came third and won a poetry anthology. The experience was fun, it was invigorating to talk with other fans of poetry from across the county. It’s pleasing to have poems in my arsenal to whip out at a moment’s notice, and to have brought Lucifer to south-western rush-hour traffic!”

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News

Soirée M O D E R N L A N G UAG E S

The Modern Foreign Languages Soirée brought the first half of term to a close with a fantastic evening of music, sketches and multilingual fun. With poetry, readings, and several silly hats, Senior School students showed off their linguistic prowess and kept the audience gathered in the JCR thoroughly entertained.

WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2015 This year’s BGS Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is now open. With categories for all ages of student, plus staff, parents and OBs, everyone can take part. To inspire you, this photo of a kingfisher was taken below Cabot Tower by a Year 4 pupil in the Junior School photography activity, run by last year’s judge, Iain Green. Closing date for entries is 15 May 2015, so get snapping.

SCIENCE In January Year 11 students attended Science Live at the Colston Hall. This annual event aims to inspire GCSE science students about some of the major issues in science today.

They enjoyed presentations from five scientists, each representing very different fields of expertise. From ‘A star in a jar’ and nuclear fusion (Dr Kate Lancaster) and the possibility of colonising Mars (Dr Maggie AderinPocock) to topics much closer to home: what it means to be human (psychologist Professor Bruce Hood), the very first hours of human life (delivered by legendary fertility doctor and pioneer of IVF treatment, Professor Lord Robert Winston) and the synthesis of new materials and compounds (inorganic chemist Professor Andrea Sella).

The trip was a great success and the day left everyone with a deeper understanding and appreciation of the wonders of the universe but, perhaps more importantly, even more questions than when they arrived.

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Charter Day

Tuesday 17 March was the date for this year’s Charter Day service, commemorating the award of Bristol Grammar School’s Charter in 1532. Blue skies and daffodils on lapels created an uplifting springtime feeling as the whole School processed in the sunshine down Park Street to Bristol Cathedral to celebrate the School’s heritage and history.

ALL IN A GOOD CAUSE Last term the Charity Committee was raising money for Hft, a charity that works to support adults with learning difficulties. In September, to support the charity's national ‘Dress like a Pirate’ day, the whole School dressed up, sold pirate key rings and drenched a few brave teachers in ‘Soak the Teacher’. The Charity Committee also sold toffee apples, provided refreshments during the School’s production of Grease, and held the annual Christmas Market – a hugely successful event. All this hard work (and fun) meant the Charity Committee was able to send an impressive £4,643.86 to Hft. The Charity Committee hopes that this term’s fundraising efforts for Age UK Bristol will be just as successful. They ran the highly entertaining ‘Battle of the Bands’, during which students performed brilliantly in musical groups of two or more. They also held a charity tombola, and sold Valentine’s cards and roses around the School. With the addition of money raised by the Senior School dressing up for World Book Day, this term’s total is already at £1,400.23.

Our thanks go to the Sixth-formers of the Charity Committee whose hard work and organisation helps us raise such a fantastic amount for such worthy causes.

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Infants & Juniors Mr Huckle writes …

One of the hallmarks of the School is our commitment to partnership with parents to achieve our common aim – helping children to grow and flourish socially, academically, culturally, morally and physically. In addition to supporting their own children throughout their learning journeys, many parents are tremendously supportive of the whole school community.

Our parents’ association (JISPA) does great work for the School. This term, JISPA has organised discos for Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6 (following last term’s JISPA Infant Disco), has run an Infant Film Night (a Frozen singalong with most of the children in costume) and a Junior Film Night featuring the classic Back to the Future. In addition, JISPA has donated two Shaun the Sheep to provide company for our two Gromits (previously donated).

The Infants and Juniors have enjoyed the chance to decorate and care for their copy of Shaun.

Many parents also come in to help the children – with reading, by talking about their work, by accompanying trips and so

on. There is always tremendous support when our sports teams play and it is wonderful that the emphasis is always on positive encouragement and the appreciation of good play by all. Parents are also invited to attend many events in School – some during the school day such as the Year 1 India Day or Year 2 Australia Day and others after school such as our amazing MADD evening this term.

Parents also played a part in supporting our impressive choir who performed in the Young Voices concert at the Genting Arena, NEC, Birmingham.

I hope that the reports on a cross-section of School events and activities in this edition of View give you an idea of why

LETS GO The first half of term was brought to a close by two great events, BGS Juniors’ Celebration of Singing and Performing Arts Day. The Celebration of Singing saw each class and House perform a song, with visiting Senior School staff acting as judges. They faced a difficult task with so many excellent performances to choose from. This was followed by Performing Arts Day. One of the great features of this day, packed full of dance, drama, singing and playing is the support the children provide for each other and the genuine pleasure they take in each

other’s successes. It is a day when the spirit of BGS shines through.

All this talent was on display again at MADD evening, when the Great Hall audience was able to enjoy a wonderfully varied programme of singing, dancing, acting and playing, celebrating the power of performance and the uplift we all get from the creative arts.

our parents are so proud of all that their children achieve at the School.

Peter Huckle Headmaster, BGS Infants & Juniors

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WE ALL SING TOGETHER

Almost 120 children travelled from BGS to Birmingham to take part in this year’s Young Voices concert. To be part of a marvellous celebration of singing with such high quality musicians, inspiring professional performers and a tremendous conductor was unique and made for an unforgettable, if extremely tiring, experience.

WORLD BOOK DAY There were some impressive costumes on display for World Book Day, including Mr Huckle as Mr Tumnus from The Chronicles of Narnia. It was lovely to see the enthusiasm and creativity which had gone into dressing up as a favourite character.

There was a literary theme to the whole week, with Year 4 visiting Year 1 to share the story books they had made

in DT with the Infant children and, thanks to JISPA, the Infants ended World Book Day with a bedtime story and hot chocolate. What a happy ending!

NOW WE ARE FIVE BGS Infants celebrated its fifth birthday in January with a lunchtime party – and of course the all-important birthday cake.

The Infants were joined by four of the first members of Year 2 who joined when BGS Infants opened its doors in January 2010; they are now all in Year 7 in the Senior School.

As well as joining the birthday celebrations, they also had the chance to add their names and thoughts to the very special birthday card which all the Infants helped to make.

Reflecting on five years of BGS Infants, Mr Huckle said: “Remarkable things have been achieved in such a short space of time by the Infant staff team. It has been a pleasure and privilege to have been involved in the development

of BGS Infants, and to watch the children who joined us at the very start of their school journeys progress onwards through BGS.”

A RUBBISH TRIP The destination for Year 3’s trip in January was a little unusual – a visit to the rubbish tip.

The children went to Avonmouth Recycling Centre to learn about sorting and recycling waste as part of their Geography topic ‘What a waste’.

The children saw all sorts of things which could have been recycled; glass, paper, tins and even a perfectly good sofa!

There were also lots of piled up Christmas trees, sparking a really good discussion about whether having a real or artificial tree was more environmentally friendly. The children are now using what they have learnt to set up their own recycling campaign.

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Infants & Juniors

 ACTIVE BGS Infants and Juniors alike enjoyed the chance to get outside and get active (and, in some cases, muddy) with Mojo Active this term.

Under, over or across, no challenge was too great for the BGS adventurers who ended the day tired but happy.

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A VIKING EXPERIENCE The Reception children started the term with a trip to one of Bristol’s favourite destinations – the zoo. They had a great day and the children really enjoyed the Polar Experience talk, learning all about the North and South Poles and the different animals that live there. They were also lucky enough to meet a very cute chinchilla and stroke his soft fur.

The Junior School Hall was overrun by Vikings this term when Year 4 had a Viking experience day, learning more about how the Vikings lived, fought and explored the world.

This fabulous event really helped bring the topic to life for the children.

A DOG’S LIFE

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Reception’s topic in January was ‘Winter and the weather’ and almost on cue the snow came down for their trip to Failand, letting them throw snowballs and make snow angels. They also did some brilliant art work, painting winter trees which looked amazing.

AR O UN

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WINTER WONDERLAND

1P were lucky enough to have a visit from a local lady and her guide dog, AJ, this term. The children were very excited as, inspired by last term’s study of ‘Light and Dark’ and finding out what it is like if you are visually impaired, they have sponsored their own Guide Dog puppy, Dasher. Meeting AJ let them see what Dasher was being trained to do and how important a role he will play in the life of his visually impaired owner.

Year 1 and Year 2 beat the winter blues by focusing on Australia and India respectively as their topics in the New Year. It was wonderful to be joined by lots of parents for the final themed day of the topic, when the children were able to show off all their excellent work.

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Sixth Form Sixth-formers at BGS have had the opportunity to improve their photography skills, thanks to the Sixth Form Photography activity.

SNAP HAPPY The group meet every Tuesday afternoon and, under direction from photographer Iain Green, take photos around the School and the city. Subjects have varied from pictures of their fellow students on the BGS climbing wall, to cityscapes taken from Cabot Tower.

Lucy Thomas, who joined BGS Sixth Form in September, had already taken GCSE Photography and was keen to get more help to take the best quality photos with her camera. She now feels confident in setting her camera for different types of pictures, a life skill she can use in the future. A real highlight for the group was their trip to a wildlife photography gallery, where they saw some amazing pictures taken all around Britain, inspiring them in their own photography.

BASE

REGIONAL WINNERS

On 11 February two teams, each made up of six Sixth-form students, represented BGS in the annual business, accounting and skills education (BASE) competition, along with 24 other schools.

The day was very informative with several presentations from people that run the event as well as an opportunity to network with representatives from a number of large businesses.

The competition required the students to analyse a fifty-page business case study and use the information to answer a series of questions. The teams then had to prepare a four-minute presentation on their findings and deliver it to a panel of judges as well as their fellow competitors. Despite having undertaken several preparation sessions in advance, on the day the BGS teams were both very nervous. Once they had got to grips with the questions and case study however, they began to settle down and the day became very enjoyable.

The teams initially made their presentations to twelve of the 24 teams and the judging panel. Both BGS teams gave excellent presentations that were clear and enthusiastic as well as containing lots of interesting and accurate knowledge from the case study. They were also well informed and able to answer calmly the questions fired by the judges, helping both teams secure places in the final.

The final was in front of all 24 teams and a panel of judges and again both BGS teams performed well. The final was very close and the judges had a difficult decision to make but they announced Gordano as the runners-up and one of the BGS teams as the winners and the other placed in the top four.

Congratulations to both BGS teams, especially the winning group who, as well as receiving certificates and a trophy, will be heading to Birmingham on 25 June as regional winners to compete in the national finals. We wish them the best of luck.

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BEST DRESSED The gauntlet was thrown down to the Sixth Form on World Book Day, with each tutor group challenged to pick a book and then dress up based on that theme.

From Where’s Wally? to Lord of the Rings, there was a broad range of literary works represented. Congratulations to joint winners, U6AJN (Peter Pan) and U6SJB (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe).

Oxbridge SUCCESS

Fourteen Bristol Grammar School students have received offers of places from the UK’s two leading universities, Oxford and Cambridge, for entry in October 2015.

Six students are holding offers from Oxford and a further eight from Cambridge. The offers cover a broad spectrum of subjects, ranging from Medicine to History of Art, and Spanish and Persian to Natural Sciences.

The full list of successful students and their proposed courses is:

Oxford

PIPPA BECK English Literature JOSEPH BUNTING Law MADDIE BURNELL History of Art GRACE JALLEH-SHARPLES Law LAURA TURNER Chemistry SERENA WATSON-FOLLETT Spanish and Persian

Cambridge

Wadham Magdalen Worcester St Edmund Hall Pembroke Christchurch

EMMA MCAULIFFE French and Russian Trinity Hall CHARLOTTE NEW Philosophy Trinity AMELIA PECK Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Corpus Christi JAMES PRIDEAUX-GHEE Natural Sciences Emmanuel ISOBEL RUDD French and Russian Clare KATE GARGAN* Medicine Fitzwilliam AMY STUART* Natural Sciences Newnham EMMA WILLS* Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Robinson *OB, Class of 2014

Alongside Oxford and Cambridge, two more UK universities appear in the top five of the QS world university rankings: Imperial College and University College, London. BGS students are holding an impressive nineteen offers from these two institutions (thirteen from UCL and six from Imperial).

Commenting on the students’ success Director of Sixth Form Justin Harford said:

The Oxbridge selection process is very challenging, both academically and personally, and it is a real triumph for these students to have their hard work and dedication rewarded with an offer. The students’ success also demonstrates the dedication of their teachers and tutors at BGS which helps ensure all our Sixthformers find the right path for them after BGS.

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Exploration In the February half-term 32 boys left Bristol, bound for Spain and a four-day hockey tour of Barcelona. The group contained an U15 squad as well as an U18 squad.

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LA BELLE FRANCE Day one saw the group enjoy the sites of Barcelona including the Sagrada Família and the Olympic Park, before the younger squad enjoyed watching a Barcelona match while the senior side played their first match of the tour. Playing against a strong ladies side the boys quickly looked to make the most of the clear speed advantage they had while appreciating the high skill level of their opposition.

A 4–0 victory was recorded with Lloyd (2), Mantzos and McConnell all on the score sheet. As for the football, the junior side saw a rare Barcelona defeat against Malaga.

Day two saw Athletic Terrassa host the first match for the junior side. In a closely contested match with both teams playing some excellent hockey, a winner in the final minutes of the game from Brewer secured a 3–2 victory. The senior

side playing a strong local club found the pace and individual skills of the opposition difficult to contain and lost 1–5.

Sunshine greeted the final full day of the tour and where better to head than the beach for a quiet morning’s preparation before the final tour matches. Beach soccer, volleyball and the compulsory Frisbee entertained all before a trip into the hills to the Illaro Hockey Club where all were treated to a barbecue feast. A couple of hours’ rest prepared the boys well as both teams played some highly impressive hockey. The junior side won 5–0 with goals from Brewer, Abraham (2), Windmeijer and Nelson, and the senior side won 5–2 with goals from Cullum (2), Stainer, Harrison and Hodgson. A great end to a great tour.

In the February half-term a group of A Level French students spent a week in Bordeaux in order to improve their French language skills and learn more about the culture. The week consisted of intensive French lessons in the mornings, followed by afternoon excursions and activities. Highlights of the trip included a trip to the medieval village of St Émilion and a wine-tasting session at Château Montlau. Throughout the week the group also enjoyed cooking their own lunch, spending their free time around the city centre and going to the cinema.

Being immersed in French culture through the combination of these activities and time spent with their host families greatly improved the students’ all-round French skills. Everyone really enjoyed their week in Bordeaux and the students are grateful to Ms Corrigan for organising the trip.

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a d n o R R E T U R N TO

At February half-term a group of 22 students from Year 10 to Upper Sixth went to Ronda on the return leg of the Spanish Exchange.

Arriving in Ronda very late on the Saturday evening after a long day travelling, they were all eager to meet with their exchange partners and get some sleep. The next day was allocated to free time with their host families; most toured Ronda however a few also went shopping or played football, and all got to experience an enormous late Spanish lunch.

Four of the next five days were spent visiting places in and around Ronda: seeing the stunning cathedral in Seville and the impressive Mezquita (mosque/ cathedral) in Cordoba, playing football in the sun on the beach in Marbella and admiring the luxury yachts in Puerto Banús. There was also a day of school with their exchange partners which was very different to school at BGS due to the lack of school uniform and how casual it felt.

Reflecting on the trip, Alex (Year 10) said: WE WERE GIVEN MANY OPPORTUNITIES TO PRACTISE AND IMPROVE OUR SPANISH AND WE ALL HAD A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE THAT I WOULD STRONGLY RECOMMEND.

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF COMPUTING On 10 February, students from Year 10, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth went on the annual trip to Bletchley Park and the National Museum of Computing to learn about the history of computers.

The students didn’t waste any of the day, using the coach journey to complete code breaking tasks in preparation for the day’s jam-packed schedule. On arrival at their destination the students learnt the difference between codes and ciphers before enjoying a tour and a coding workshop.

On the tour the group viewed the oldest working computer, the WITCH and learnt about Tunny, the machine that broke the German Lorenz cipher. They also saw Colossus, the world’s first programmable, electronic, digital computer, built to increase the speed at which German messages could be deciphered.

After this fascinating look at the early days of computer development, things moved into the more recent past with a hands-on workshop of old-school coding on BBC Basic machines. For a generation used to modern computing power, packed into ever smaller devices, this was a brilliant demonstration of how far computer technology has come.

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Performing Arts

BATTLE OF THE BANDS

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The Mackay Theatre was the scene for not one, not two, but three House concerts this term as Catchpole’s, Goodman’s and Edwards’s all took to the stage. With a mix of music, sketches, skits and (just a little bit of) mayhem, everyone involved, audience and performers alike, had a great time.

At the end of January, the audience assembled in the Mackay Theatre was treated to a brilliant evening of entertainment when the musical talents of BGS went head to head in the Battle of the Bands. As well as being a lot of fun, the evening also raised funds for this term’s charity, Age UK Bristol. Well done to everyone who took part, especially the winning acts: JUNIOR WINNERS

Ada’ora and Ed ONES TO WATCH

Mia, Holly, Harriet and Nicola HIGHLY COMMENDED

Oscar, Jack, Dan, Winston, Abbie, Lydia SENIOR WINNERS

Emily, Cara, Alex, Ed, Nathan

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Spring CONCERT

On Wednesday 18 March the musicians of BGS filled the stage of St George’s to perform in the Spring Concert.

From Cantata and the Chamber Orchestra to Khameleonz and the Ceilidh Band, there was a broad range of musical styles represented.

Each ensemble performed

beautifully, ensuring the audience at one of Bristol’s foremost music venues was treated to a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

LET'S DANCE

From the Infants to the Sixth Form, students at BGS have been pulling on their dancing shoes and taking to the dance floor. At the end of last term the Whole School Dance Production, Pass the Remote, captivated audiences over two nights in the Great Hall. This term has seen the ever popular Senior School House Dance competition and Reflections, the GCSE and A Level Dance performance evening. It has been a delight to see the enthusiasm with which our students have embraced the opportunities offered and the standard of performance has been incredibly impressive. We congratulate everyone involved.

NATIONAL THEATRE’S CONNECTIONS FESTIVAL 2015 Twelve BGS students, aged from 14 to 18, have taken part in the National Theatre’s Connections Festival 2015. The group staged The Crazy Cool Girls’ Fan Club, a new play written specifically for the Connections Festival.

Their experience mirrored that of a company producing a new play in any theatre in the country, creating marketing campaigns, designing sets and costumes, operating lighting, sound boards and stagemanaging their performances.

Following a performance at BGS, the play transferred to

the Bristol Old Vic for a Festival performance on Thursday 27 March. If BGS is selected from all the festival entrants, the group will also be invited to perform The Crazy Cool Girls’ Fan Club at the National Theatre in London, as part of a five-day summer festival.

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Literary Events

CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP WITH MARCUS SEDGWICK

Etherington THE

B R OT H E R S

On 5 February some 140 children from Years 3, 4 and 5 enjoyed a wonderfully entertaining hour in the Junior School Hall with the Etherington Brothers, Robin and Lorenzo. From the very first minute, the celebrated graphic novelists held their audience transfixed with a host of different characters, wonderful ideas, and some inspirational delivery.

Here are just some of the comments the children made afterwards: 'It was really good, because they told things in a funny way.'

'They gave me lots of new ideas for writing stories.

'I loved the way they think outside the box with their characters.'

'Amazing imagination!'

'I loved their acting, when people in the audience made suggestions.'

'They gave it their all.'

This surely ranks as one of BGS Juniors’ most successful literary events ever, in so many different ways: copies sold, level of participation and, most importantly, the children’s continuing enthusiasm after the presentation. The buzz throughout was incredibly positive, and the message was clear: ‘Don’t leave it too long to come back and visit us again!’

Steve Marsh

On 3 March our AS Creative Writing class was lucky enough to have author Marcus Sedgwick – former writer-in-residence on Bath Spa University’s well-regarded MA Creative Writing course – as our guest teacher. Throughout the ninetyminute session he challenged us with amusing and rewarding exercises involving different approaches to writing: describing a landscape without the sense of sight; limiting sentences to just seven words; avoiding the letter ‘e’. These were particularly helpful for writing poetry, as Marcus does in his latest novel, The Ghosts of Heaven.

‘THE USEFULNESS OF TRYING BIZARRE THINGS …’

It was a privilege to work not just with a great novelist, but also with a fantastic teacher. Marcus brought the group together with an impressive talent for remembering names, and an approachable manner that gave us confidence to share our work. He acknowledged that writing is a subjective process, and talked our ideas through, rather than seeking to push them in particular directions.

He showed enthusiasm for whatever we decided to share, no matter how awful, or undeveloped, we might have considered them.

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‘KEEP THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX AND DON’T USE FILLER: WHAT YOU CHOOSE TO INCLUDE IS VITAL.’ As well as being approachable, he was also incredibly humble, never talking down to us, but teaching us as equals and emphasising how writing was a different experience for each of us. He also proved very interesting about the research that went into some of his books, and honest about his writing schedule (or lack thereof!). Overall, it was a very helpful session, filled with new methods and approaches we shall all take away with us. We are all very grateful to Marcus, and hope to see him again next year.

Rhiannon Sidhu, L6

SARAH BENWELL BGS was the venue for the launch of The Last Leaves Falling, a remarkable new novel for young adults. Author Sarah Benwell and her literary agent Gill McLay (Director of Bath Children’s Literary Festival) talked about ‘her journey’ as a young writer. Hers began when she was very small, sharing stories with her father; at thirteen she joined an adult book group, and at fifteen a creative writing group. Sarah travelled and worked abroad, before returning to Bath Spa to study – only to realise that she wanted to switch to a different degree, creative writing. And now, still in her early twenties, she has had her first novel published, to great acclaim.

Sarah herself can hardly believe it.

Her advice to aspiring writers? ‘Keep at it, stubbornly, persistently. Don’t let people tell you that you can’t.’ She spoke about how helpful she finds being part of a supportive (often virtual) group that offers feedback. Twitter is where she finds ‘critique partners’. From the BGS audience came the question, ‘Was that scary?’ ‘Yes, but not having one is scarier.’

Sarah is keen to push Young Adult Fiction

If you read one début novel this year, this is the one to read."

The Bookseller

beyond its conventional comfort zone.

The main character in The Last Leaves Falling is a Japanese teenage boy dying of ALS, a rapidly degenerative – and always terminal – form of motor-neurone disease.

One fascinating fact: the area of the story dealing with teenage suicide had to be expunged from the American edition, which necessitated so much re-working that Sarah ended up with an entirely different book for that market.

However, as she told us, she likes both editions equally!

Jennifer Benn

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TOBY CLEMENTS Historical novels seem to be all the rage this year, with Hilary Mantel and Philippa Gregory paving the way, and so it was a pleasure to have Toby Clements visit and talk about his new book Kingmaker: Winter Pilgrims, the first in an exciting trilogy.

JOHN DOUGHERTY The sound of delighted giggles could be heard pouring out of the Infant School when author John Dougherty came to visit, holding children from Reception to Year 2 completely captivated.

He read animatedly from two of his latest books – Stinkbomb and KetchupFace and the Evilness of Pizza, and Finn MacCool and the Giant’s Causeway – using a stream of different voices, accents and facial expressions. Just when it seemed the children could laugh no more, he had them in stitches again singing one of his own songs entitled, simply…Underpants.

A sure-fire winner.

He then told the children about his own writing, explaining how the inspiration for the popular Stinkbomb series came from his own two children, now aged 12 and 14.

John, a former primary school teacher, told his audience: “My children started trying to make each other laugh, and make me laugh, by calling each other silly names and as we were all giggling away, they started calling each other Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face and the more they did it, the more they giggled and I thought to myself ‘those are great names and I am going to use them in my silly story’.”

John also talked about the importance of enjoying writing, having fun with stories and above all, having a go.

“The best way to make sure you never make mistakes is never to write anything,” he said. “Everyone makes mistakes when they are writing and that’s ok. The most important thing is to write your story and make it as good a story as you can and have fun with it. You can go through it later and check for things like spelling mistakes.

HAVE LOTS OF FUN WRITING AND HAVE FUN READING TOO. THERE ARE LOTS OF BOOKS OUT THERE FOR EVERYONE AND THERE WILL BE A TYPE OF BOOK THAT SUITS YOU BEST. YOU JUST HAVE TO GET OUT THERE AND FIND IT. The children left for lunch full of ideas and singing, of course, the chorus from Underpants!

Lizzie Peck

Kingmaker follows Thomas and Katherine, runaways from their respective monastery and convent, as they get caught up in the Wars of the Roses. Full of bloody battles and political intrigue the book is a gripping read, which Mantel calls her ‘best historical novel this year’.

After an upbeat and funny introduction

by Joe Toby talked us through the everyday lives of people in PreTudor England, regularly ignored by novelists, who focus on the nobility. It was fascinating to learn more about the food they ate, clothes they wore, and products they made, creating a new, albeit grim, picture for us. I had never thought about the effort that had to go into every activity, and it made me very thankful that I do not live in a time when we have to use rotten wolf as eye medicine!

‘Loyalty to thy Lord’ played a key part in the Wars of the Roses and Toby talked us through how one half of the country could be pitted against the other, simply by a ‘family squabble’ among the nobility.

It was very interesting to hear how such a little thing grew to become one of the bloodiest wars in English history.

As the Reformation is a key part of the A Level course, it was fascinating to learn how the Wars affected that. To see Henry VIII through Toby’s eyes, a man desperate not to repeat the war over inheritance, made me far more sympathetic to the King, not an easy feat. On behalf of the History Department I’d like to thank Toby for his wonderful talk.

Olivia Clements

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Sport

Golden girl ADA'ORA

Talented athlete Ada'ora Chigbo (Year 11) claimed two gold medals at the England Athletics Indoor Championships in Sheffield in March.

Ada'ora cleared 1.78m to win the under-17 women's high jump, just short of her recent personal best of 1.81m.

She then went on to win the shot with a championship record throw of 14.25m.

As a result of her impressive performances, Ada'ora, who trains at the University of Bath, was selected to represent England in an athletics match against Wales at Cardiff.

CROSS COUNTRY

ORIENTEERING

Rosie (Year 8) was selected to represent Avon at the English Schools Cross Country Championships on 14 March.

The lunchtime Orienteering Club has helped introduce twenty Year 7 students to this exciting sport. BGS has been performing very well in the Sunday Avon Schools League events with team members enjoying the competition both between themselves and other schools.

BGS are currently in third place in the local league. Notable performers are Sam n and Adam (Year 7), and James Jake and Ben (Year 8).

This was an impressive achievement as selection was taken from Years 8 and 9.

She also came first in the third Gwent league race at Blaise Castle, leaving her in gold medal position with one race remaining.

BADMINTON The School’s badminton Key Stage 3 and 4 teams have been competing in the Center Parcs National Schools’ Championship this term.

The girls’ team did very well in their first fixture for the School, but lost out in the first round to more experienced opponents. The boys' teams both comfortably won their first round tournaments to progress to the Bristol final. There the Key Stage 4 boys came second to an impressive Gordano School while the Key Stage 3 team overcame the same opposition to win the competition and progress to the south-west finals in Exeter.

The team, consisting of Siddharth Aabhas , Shashwat Om and Alex was the only team with two Year 7s and hence went with hopes of gaining experience rather than securing victory. However, after powering through the group stage with the loss of only one individual game, expectations were raised.

The final, against King’s School, Dorset, was much tougher and BGS suffered a narrow loss in the first singles match.

However, Om and Alex fought back against a more experienced and more powerful pair to claim a 21–19 win. Aabhas's calmness under pressure saw him win his singles and then combine with Alex to claim the match winning doubles tie, securing the School's place at the National Final as one of the top nine schools in the country. This is only the second time BGS has achieved this, and the first time at Key Stage 3 Level. Congratulations to the team and best of luck in the finals.

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FOOTBALL

GIRLS’ FOOTBALL GIRLS’ CRICKET

The First XI have had one of their most successful seasons to date, recording victories against Taunton, Wells Cathedral, St Edward’s Cheltenham, Wycliffe, Bromsgrove and King’s Taunton, while the Second XI and U15 sides have gained almost equal success. With more boys playing and taking part in competitive fixtures, the standard of football at BGS has been raised significantly.

There is equal enthusiasm for football amongst the girls of BGS. The Year 7 and 8 girls have played two fixtures against Red Maids’, losing 2–0 then winning 3–2.

Further up the School, Olivia Ball and Ellie Bunker (both Year 11) were selected to represent the South West team in the ISFA U18 National Tournament at Harrow School in March.

y e k Hoc The boys’ First XI hockey team has been in a period of rebuilding this season. After a shaky start, as the season has progressed they have begun to adapt to the pace and precision of the opposition and have beaten Taunton, Sir Thomas Rich’s and Rendcomb. Further down the School, the U12, U13 and U14 age groups are all enjoying highly successful seasons. With such talent, energy and enthusiasm for hockey at the School, the future is looking bright.

A piece of history was made this term when the U13 girls represented BGS in their first ever competitive indoor cricket tournament; the Lady Taverners’ Cup. A squad of eleven players, many of whom only began playing cricket this term, stepped up to face three other schools in the group round. Strong batting and tight bowling saw them through to the final where they defeated an experienced team from Colston's School to progress to the district round of the competition.

Not to be outdone, the U15 girls also delivered victory in the competition.

The team got off to a great start taking a wicket first ball. This competitiveness and skill was continued throughout the first and second group games, where consistent bowling and impressive batting saw BGS through to the final.

The final again saw BGS take on Colston's School. With BGS chasing 64, Ellie had to retire after scoring twenty. Colston's were able to dismiss the rest of the side with three runs required and three balls remaining; fortunately Ellie was able to return to bat and hit the winning runs with two balls to spare. Like the U13s, the U15s now progress to the district round of the competition.

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Sport RUGBY

SWIMMING

In Sevens this term the U16 group has progressed to the final of the Wellington Sevens and won the Plate competition at the Wycliffe Sevens. Our U13 boys are Bristol Schools’ Sevens champions, a trophy they won despite having four key players injured, demonstrating the excellent depth of talent in the squad.

The School swimming team fared well at the Bristol Schools’ championships with a number of the team qualifying for the March finals. In the finals, the senior girls won both the medley and freestyle relays and the overall aggregate point cup for senior girls. Our congratulations go to the team.

NETBALL

CLIMBING

The senior team has faced tough opposition this term but has still recorded victories over Badminton, Wellsway and Dean Close. Most impressive has been the number of girls participating in netball at BGS; it is common for sixteen sides to be in action at the weekend, with equal numbers involved in practice during the week. We are grateful to the ever-growing band of parents who cheer them on at Failand, impressed by the efforts being made by all the girls on the courts.

Congratulations to the Junior Climbing Team who won the South West Schools’ Climbing Competition in January. The students were: Imogen Eleanor Charlotte Raf Neo and Anthony Imogen also won the individual prizes for bouldering and top rope climbing.

JUDO Congratulations to Eleanor Ward (Year 8) who competed in the U17 open weight category at the Independent Schools’ National Judo Championships. Despite being by far the youngest and lightest in her category, Eleanor won all her fights by maximum points to become National Champion. Her coach was delighted with her success and described her as ‘’… a talented, determined and focused young lady whose conduct whilst representing the School was exemplary’’.

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OBs

Old Bristolians’ A N N UA L DI N NER

just finished a UK tour with Macy Gray, was the Society’s guest and played some tracks from her latest album. Ella is a very talented singer-songwriter and we will follow her career with great interest.

The music continued with post-dinner entertainment from the School’s Battle of the Band winners, Five Mile End, playing whilst the Old Bristolians continued to socialise into the early hours.

The Society’s next event is the London Dinner at Painter’s Hall on Wednesday 13 May; details can be obtained from the OBs Office or from Anna Freeman, afreeman@bgs.bristol.sch.uk, in the Foundation Office.

Peter Jakobek

For the last 103 years the Old Bristolians’ Society has been holding a Dinner to celebrate Charter Day. Originally this was held in a local hotel but soon moved to the Great Hall.

The tradition was continued on Saturday 14 March when the Great Hall was full again of Old Bristolians. Some are regular attendees while others were returning to the School for the first time in many years.

Earlier this year we posted a picture of the first girls to attend the School on our Facebook group. The picture generated a lot of interest and brought together old friends. They then decided to book a table for the Dinner and spent the evening

reminiscing about their School days. We were also delighted to welcome another group of Old Bristolians who left BGS twenty years ago.

At the Dinner the guests were welcomed

by Head of School Maddie Burnell who also said grace. The Headmaster, President of the Society, David Yeandle and President Elect Mike Burmester, also addressed the assembled alumni.

Ella Rothwell, Class of 2011, who had

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OBs

BGS WELL REPRESENTED AT THE VARSITY HOCKEY

OB S VS B G S FO OTBALL

Before the Old Bristolians’ Society Dinner on 14 March, an OBs XI took on the BGS First XI at Failand. Despite a valiant effort from the OB side, the School XI proved too strong for them, winning 4–1.

Fundraising N E WS

BGS Foundation is delighted to announce that at the end of last year we received a substantial legacy from Drs Peter and Jean James, to be used to provide a Bursary at the School. Peter attended BGS between 1933 and 1939, going on to study Medicine at Bristol University. One of the goals of BGS since the end of the direct grant scheme has been to try and maintain a wide social mix and keep up the tradition of educating Bristol’s young children, irrespective of their families’

means. We currently offer assistance to over a tenth of our pupils, but can achieve this figure only as a result of the generous donations we receive from the BGS community.

If you are interested in supporting the School Bursary or capital projects, please contact Anna Freeman, afreeman@bgs.bristol.sch.uk 0117 9339637.

We were delighted to hear that two of our OBs had been selected to play in the Oxford vs Cambridge Ladies’ hockey match on 8 March.

Whilst many universities have a ‘Varsity’ match when they play a rival university, the Oxbridge Varsity is probably the oldest. Izzy Murphy is now in her second year at Trinity College, Cambridge reading Modern Languages while Annie Koehli is in her first year studying Geography at Keble College, Oxford.

The game was well contested with Cambridge taking an early two-goal lead which they held until the last five minutes when Oxford staged a late comeback and scored. The final result was a win for the light blues but Annie is hoping that she will get her revenge next year.

As an added bonus for the staff that travelled down to watch the match, OBs Mike Balderson and Gavin O’Connell were playing for their Colleges, Worcester College, Oxford and Downing College, Cambridge in the Cuppers Cup Final.

Worcester won on penalty flicks after a 1–1 draw.

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Diary dates April Wednesday 15 April: INSET Day Thursday 16 April: Start of Term

May Monday 4 May: Bank Holiday Tuesday 5 May: Infant Teatime Concert Friday 8 May: Whole School Open Morning, 10am–12noon

Bristol Grammar School University Road Bristol BS8 1SR Senior School 0117 973 6006 Junior School 0117 973 6109 www.bristolgrammarschool.co.uk

PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE We are delighted to announce that we have received planning permission for the construction of our Performing Arts Centre.

Some enabling works will begin in the Easter holiday and we hope to start construction for the major works after external exams finish in the summer – more information will follow next term.

Friday 15 May: Infants’ Sports Day Wednesday 20 May: Year 6 Play performance Thursday 21 May: Year 6 Play performance Senior School Activities Day Friday 22 May: Senior School INSET Day

June Friday 5 June: Junior School Sports Day Thursday 11 June: Senior School new pupil induction day Friday 19 June: Friends of BGS Jazz Barbecue Wednesday 24 June: Senior School Sports Day Thursday 25 June: Upper Sixth Farewell reception and concert Friday 26 June: Sixth Form Leavers’ Dinner Tuesday 30 June: Junior School Prize Giving

July Wednesday 1 July: Senior School Prize Giving Thursday 2 July: End of Term

KEEP UP-TO-DATE

For latest news from BGS and to find out what’s coming up, you can keep in touch via our website www.bristolgrammarschool.co.uk We also have a Bristol Grammar School Facebook page and you can follow us on Twitter @BGSBristol

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Bristol Grammar School is a Registered Charity No. 1104425