wa n S The he T The Magazine of Christleton High School Autumn Term 2013
We Will Rock You
Clay
Caterpillars
Pasta
School Clubs
Pavarotti’s
Sporting Success Students Enter Hogwarts
Headteacher’s 2
The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Report
As we near the end of the Autumn Term I am delighted to say that the school is currently running better than at any time in the 12 years that I have been Headteacher. There is a calmness and atmosphere of helpful co-operation between all our staff and students which enables purposeful work, great learning and a strong sense of community. Examination results in 2013 improved on all the major headings by around 5% in contrast to national trends. There are some great subject successes and I also believe we have capacity for further improvement in GCSE results, both on headline and on a subject-by-subject basis.
There is significant change planned by the government to the curriculum and exams which you may have seen on the news. Our school will be less affected than many but I am working closely with Governors and Leadership Group to ensure we meet statutory changes but also use our academy freedoms to retain the best practices, and ensure our students’ education is grounded on stable values and in their best interests.
The new Lesson Monitor and lunchtime arrangements have gone really well. Students tell us they much prefer the new lunch arrangements with little queuing, and better facilities where they can play, work or socialise. My thanks go to
Mrs Begbie for the work she has done planning, implementing and researching and evaluating this change. The all-weather pitch is available to all students through a free booking system, and most lunchtimes there are between 120 and 180 students who have use of the pitch. They are treating it with respect and running off a lot of energy! In the evenings it is well used throughout the week by our local youth teams.
We introduced the Building Learning Power (BLP) Scheme last year with a significant number of staff and students. This has now been incorporated into mainstream teaching practice. It has been done unobtrusively with staff and students developing their skills, particularly at noticing when BLP is occurring and with regular sharing of good practice during the Wednesday afternoon staff training sessions to embed success. My thanks go to Mrs Harding and her team who have tirelessly led this initiative. To find out more, please visit the BLP website www.buildinglearningpower.co.uk
We have a number of staff leaving at Christmas. Mr Glover, our Bursar and Clerk to Governors, has served the school as a parent, Chair of the PTA, Governor and then for the last 7 years in his current post. His contributions to improve the school have been very considerable and we will miss him both personally and
professionally. We are pleased to welcome Mr Nigel Follos as his replacement. Mr Alford, Director of Sport for the last 8 years is leaving to concentrate on developing his now successful business. He has served the school brilliantly and was instrumental in securing the allweather pitch, along with a number of other significant improvements, especially the sporting success of all our talented students and teams. Also at Christmas, Mrs Leedham is retiring after 20 years’ super service in the PE Department. She has inspired and coached a large number of our girls and we thank her for her hard work and commitment. Congratulations and best wishes also go to Mr Sewell-Davies who has been appointed Head of Mathematics at Helsby High School from January.
Implementation of the Strategic School Development Plan is well underway (it’s on the website!) and it is my belief that a 3-year development plan in reality only lasts 2 and-a-bit years, as a result of energetic commitment to implement it, and secondly central government and external changes which always seem to render some aspects redundant. We hope to complete everything we can on the development plan within the 2013/2014 academic year, and then to meet with governors, staff and students at conference in the autumn of 2014 to design the next strategic phase of the school’s journey.
Autumn erm 2013
Our Rural Partnership with Neston, Tarporley and Bishop Heber is going from strength to strength. We are now sharing staff development and training at all levels, some recruitment and a lot of good practice. The School Direct Programme (which is school based teacher training) has started well this year with Christleton as lead school, and we have 20 students. Next year we have salaried places in addition to the School Direct PGCE, mostly in shortage subjects. This programme has tightened links between the rural schools and provided us with high quality students.
We have put in an application to become an Air Training Corps centre. This builds on our 3-year partnership with the Military School of Fitness. If successful it will provide engineering, flight experience and training, as well as all the usual benefits of a cadet base: self-discipline, new skills and enjoyment. The proposed start is September 2014.
Art
DT
Cookery
Geography
English
Hot Scholars
Pathway
Science
History
Maths
Performance Sport
The budget remains very tight this year and for the foreseeable future. We have had real term cuts of around £200,000 per year so a key challenge for us is to continue drawing in new sources of revenue and capital, and looking to share and sell our expertise to do that and make it sustainable.
Please can I draw your attention to the adoption and fostering campaign that is being run by the local authority. There are currently only around 100 carer families in the County with many more children and young people in need of respite, fostering or adoption. As someone who fostered when my family was younger I can thoroughly advocate it, it’s not heroic or special, it just requires good people to offer and try. The
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hidden benefits to yourselves and family are very similar to those within your existing family – frustration, anxiety, untidiness, tiredness and immense satisfaction and fun! We will be leading assemblies and awareness raising over the next few months but I know the County team would love to help you find out more. They can be contacted on www.fosteringwestcheshire.co.uk
To finish, I believe the school is in a brilliant position with significant capacity to improve further. It is a lovely place to learn and work. The last day of term is Thursday 19th December, and students finish at 12.45pm following our Christmas Assembly.
Can I take this opportunity to wish you a Happy Christmas, and send very best wishes for the New Year.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Fun Celebrations the Last Day of term
Autumn Term 2013
July 2013
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END OF YEAR ENRICHMENT DAY IN AID OF ANYA BENTHAM
On a swelteringly hot day in the middle of July, history was made. What a day. Record breakers.
Thanks to the fantastic efforts of the Sixth Form Leadership Team we managed to raise more than £1800, a new record for the end of year fun day at CHS. Despite all the stress and anxiety of weeks and weeks of planning, the end result was, by far and away, better than expected. All profit for that day went towards the Anya Bentham Appeal for her fight against neuroblastoma.
Across the field, there were many different activities for students to take part in, such as the Giant Inflatable, Sumo Wrestlers, the Ginormous inflatable Slide and the old classic, ‘soak the teacher’. We must give special thanks to all the staff who helped out on the day, because, without their willingness and good spirit, the day would’ve been chaotic to say the least! Also, a big thank you to those, who donated sweets and cakes to the cake stall, and for putting huge amounts of effort towards helping such a great cause.
Thank you, students, for making the day a memorable one.
Felix Cross & Katie Dunning Year 13
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Team "Educating Christleton"
Chester 2013
Santa Dash
Religious Studies AS trip to Liverpool Crown Court
Earlier in the year, a group of Sixth Form Students were given the opportunity to observe some trials at Liverpool Crown Court, here’s what the students thought….. It was a great experience Becky White
We saw a grievous bodily harm case which was interesting, as we got to hear all the details Rosie Bancroft
I had the slightly scary opportunity of witnessing a murder trial. I was interested and entertained the whole way through, hearing witness accounts and looking through video evidence. It was a great trip, really enjoyed it! Sam Mellor
It was great to have the opportunity of an insight into how court works and it was interesting hearing all the different witness accounts and how much they can vary, I had a great time Emma Heath
It was interesting witnessing the inner dealings of court James Lister
Seeing how courtrooms work was exciting and bumping into the defendants from the grievous bodily harm trial in McDonalds was interesting! Sophie Hurst Inspiring, 5* day! Naomi Edwards
I really enjoyed going on the trip to the courts, although I didn’t actually get to see the murder trial, I saw many other cases which was really interesting, as I got the chance to come up with my own conclusion as to what should happen to the people Lydia Wright
I got to see the jury being sworn in. To me, this was interesting as I have never seen any court cases. This has even led me to go on and study Criminal Justice at University Courtney Graham
Cameras and phones are not allowed in the courts, so here is a photo of some of the students who attended the trip back in school and enjoying the ‘hats’ activity.
8th December
A Team of 11 of from school were dressed up as Santa, with a supporting cast of an 11 month old elf in a sleigh and her reindeer. We walked, jogged and ran the 4k course.
It’s not too late to help, please, please help us in our fund raising - we have pledged to raise £500 - and would be very grateful of your support however large or small. The proceeds from our fund raising will go equally to The Countess of Chester Babygro Appeal and the Hospice of the Good Shepherd Child Bereavement Service - both good local causes.
You can donate online at http://www.justgiving.com/Sam antha-Mothersdale2 You can also use Just Text Giving: Text TCHS50 £3 to 70070 (£3 is an example).
Thanks in advance from the cast: Mrs Arends, Mrs Dowsett, Mr Miller x2, Mr Evans, Mr Stenhouse, Mrs Roberts, Mrs Stott, Mr Burns, Mrs Heaver & Mrs Mothersdale.
Autumn Term 2013
The Sporting Bears Motor Club excited for the next day and the drivers had already had an amazing experience so far with the drive down and the stay in the Hilton.
The Sporting Bears Motor Club (SMBC) has raised over £1,000,000 for Children’s Charities in the UK, but sometimes that just is not enough. This year on July 2nd a once in a lifetime experience occurred for ten families with children who have disabilities…
After months of careful and meticulous planning, the day began. At seven O’clock in the morning on the 1st of July, ten dedicated members of the SBMC arrived at the Bentley factory in Crewe to collect a fleet of Bentleys, including Mulsannes, Continentals and Flying Spurs. The fleet of ten was kindly donated by Bentley to be driven down to London to the Hilton Metropole, the largest Hilton hotel in Europe, where the ten families were staying in their rooms, that were also kindly donated. The families were from charities that we had raised money for. The charities were Claire House Children’s Hospice, Zoe’s Place, SSAFA (Children’s Section) and the Children’s Trust. Everyone was extremely
On July 2nd we woke up to begin an extraordinary day filled with smiles, laughs and memories that would last forever. As we were polishing the cars and the families were gathering, a Metropolitan Police helicopter flew overhead and filmed the preparation. Before long, the SEG Police Escort Unit arrived to escort the fleet through London. The SEG Unit is usually used by the Royal Family to get around London and is the only armed Police Escort Unit in the UK. Even in the morning rush through the capital, the motorcyclists made sure that our convoy never stopped on our journey to the Houses of Parliament. Once there we parked to go and have a guided tour of the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey. It was extremely interesting to look around the Houses of Parliament because of the incredible historical relevance, from the floor tiles to the golden painted ceilings. In Westminster Abbey we were able to see the iconic scenes shown from the royal wedding and the plaques to remember the lives of pioneers such as Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton. It was also fascinating to see the graves of the Kings and Queens that once ruled Britain. The children all bore huge grins and so did their families who were thoroughly enjoying the break. Some of
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the families were recovering from dreadful experiences and others were re-connecting their bonds as a family due to the separation required because of the conditions of some of the children. The day was completely about the families enjoying themselves and they certainly did. To finish the day off, we had organised for them to go on an amphibious duck tour of London before driving back to the Hilton Metropole where we said our goodbyes.
The day was so amazing but there are many people who we could not have done it without… Bentley for giving us the cars, Hilton Hotels for donating the rooms for the families and the drivers, the SEG police unit, the Metropolitan Police, Max Walker for organising the event and on a personal note our fantastic headmaster Mr Lamberton for allowing the four of us to take part in the event. Blythe Walker, Tyler Jones, ZuZu Walker and Cara Jones
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
WHAT DO YOU DO AT SPELLING
LUNCHTIME...?
We now have over 40 different lunchtime activities happening during the week, below are just a small selection. You can
view the full timetable on the Weekly Information Sheet on the Parents section of the school website.
BEE
ALL CALLING
YEAR 7s Like French? Special Prizes!!! Enjoy Spelling?
Every Thursday from 12.30-13.00 * *CO M IN G S O ON**
LO OK OUT FOR O UR DIGITAL DIS PLAY IN THE COVER ED A REA FO R AL L THE INFO ON CLUBS
In B5
(Ms Dionisi’s room)
With Miss Holt and Thomas
Autumn Term 2013
CHS DRAMA Theatre Trips
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A visit from Parliament for the 6th September 2013 and November 2013 form ALL MY SONS History & ROYAL EXCHANGE Politics MANCHESTER students As part of UK Parliament Week, on 21st November, 6th form History and Politics students welcomed Stephen Mosley (Chester MP) to their lesson. Year 13 were particularly pleased about this as he had been unable to meet them in April on their Parliament trip. Mr Mosley had a tour of the school, including the i-Research Centre (which he helped to raise funds for) and met a number of students who were working in there. He then joined Politics and History students who heard about his role as an MP and had an opportunity to question him about a number of issues - they were particularly impressed by his ability to avoid answering some of these questions (like a true politician)! Issues covered included MP’s pay and expenses, his role on the Science and Technology Select Committee, electoral systems, Scotland, Europe, local issues and his work as a politician. Stephen Mosley later tweeted about his experience at Christleton High School saying that he had received a ‘real grilling’ from the students.
All My Sons was a really good production and I thought that the staging in the round was a very effective. Chloe Dunn Y12 All My Sons Even though was an exciting the ending of All My historical piece Sons was of theatre; the cast acted well predictable I really and the overall enjoyed production was the enjoyable but overall the ending did production. lack depth. Naomi Kieran Roberts Edwards Y13 Y13 The performances in All My Sons were excellent and made the story really come to life. Emma Taylor Y12 Watching All
The costumes used in All My My Sons in Sons really the round enhanced the overall was really production. interesting. Annie Howarth Kiera Berry Y12 Y12 I enjoyed the story of All My Sons and the actors’ performances were fantastic. Rebecca Woolley Y13
I really enjoyed 1984 and the lighting was used in a very
successful way. Chloe Dunn Y12
1984 was exhilarating and intense, I thoroughly enjoyed it and would be more than happy to see it again. Matthew Brunskill Y12
1984 was brilliantly shocking; the visual aspects were a delight. Annie Howarth Y12
A graphic and exciting production. Rebecca Woolley Y13
This production of 1984 was true to the story written by George Orwell, the staging of Room 101 was excellent and almost felt like a separate play. Kieran Roberts Y13 The bizarre lights and intense music in 1984 left me on the edge of my seat. Kiera Berry Y12 The dark scenes in 1984 were so effective and
really disturbing. Emma Taylor Y12
1984
LIVERPOOL PLAYHOUSE LIVERPOOL
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Printing with Owls
In a Printmaking workshop, Joe McDermott, Charli Brickland and I created collagraph Prints. We made the art work in two sessions, each a week apart, on a Wednesday after school for an hour and a half. The workshop was a lot of fun. In the first session we were given a picture of an owl each. We then cut out different shapes from wallpaper to make the different parts of the owls, for example the beak and the feathers. After that, we stuck down each piece onto a printing plate and then varnished over it so we could print from our owls over and over again like a stamp. We learned new techniques such as how to cut out different shapes from different textures to make our work look a certain way. In the second week, we were given metal plates which we then covered in different coloured sticky inks. After that, we were able to roll the ink onto the owls from the metal plates. We then placed the owls on pieces of paper and laid them down on the roller. Once it had rolled over the owl picture you would slowly remove the paper from the owl plate and you would be left with the print of the owl. We also used two colours on top of each other and different coloured paper to give many effects. I would definitely recommend doing this if you have a flare for art. Thank you Miss Booth for organising this amazing workshop! Shivvy Heard 10L4
Autumn Term 2013
Everyone is an Artist
On Open Evening, the Art department made everyone feel welcome by encouraging visitors to get stuck into some painting. The Art Hot Scholars and I helped to create a beautiful butterfly image using only paint, perseverance and the ends of paintbrushes. Everyone who came into A13 that night was invited to make their mark by adding something to the butterfly until it was complete. The final result proved that, even though some don’t know it, everyone has the capacity to become an artist! We took it in turns to meet parents and prospective students to build our life skills and all of us had fun doing what we love so much. The Art staff were a great laugh as usual, and the night was a thoroughly enjoyable and valuable experience. I would like to thank everyone who helped us that night, including fellow students. The butterfly can currently be seen in the art department and is destined to go on display somewhere in school for everyone to admire. Blythe Walker 10L4
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The Art of Studying Abroad By Lucie Podlesna & Milena Burzlaff
This is a special year for us having swapped study in the Czech Republic and Germany respectively for Chester. During our ten month stay we will complete our AS Levels and then return home, repeat the year and graduate a few years later. Our main reasons for coming here were to improve our English and gain an insight into another culture.
We are extremely lucky to be staying with an amazing host family and this has made settling in a lot easier. Although we have not been here long we have already adjusted to the new lifestyle well. This is thanks to the great support we have received from all of the students at this school. We weren’t expecting everyone to be as friendly and welcoming as they turned out to be. This was a nice surprise and a big relief for us.
School life here is quite similar to school life at home, although Art is very different. At home we had less time dedicated to Art and made very slow progress usually spending one term on the same art piece. This was boring after a while and the lessons were unfortunately used for socialising rather than working. Here things move at a very different pace. It is nice to actually get work done and try out different things to produce your final piece. It might still be a bit early to say this, however, we think it was a good decision to come here.
Art:
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
moving on up! Many people think that Art is the craziest (good) subject in the school. Some can’t understand how anyone would put themselves through Art GCSE. However I was given the
opportunity to study Fine Art GCSE in one year rather than
two. I was then able to do a GCSE in Graphics in Year 11 and I am now studying Art as one of my four A-Level subjects.
That’s when some people asked me ‘Why?’
For both GCSE years I saw Art as my ‘contrast subject’
because it is creative as opposed to my other subjects which
are academic. I was able to use the home learning tasks to
break up revision and other work. I found the learning and
creative elements interesting and I enjoyed the independence I had in being able to investigate artists and topics that I enjoyed.
It is a well-known fact that the jump between GCSE and A-
Level in any subject is extremely big. However, in my
experience I have actually found Art to have only changed as much as my other subjects, maybe even less. Yes, the pace is fast and it is important to stay on top, but as long as you
stay up to date it’s not as intense as some people make out. The most important thing that I have noticed is that it is my
most rewarding subject by far. Unlike every other A-Level you are not just learning but constantly creating Art to submit as part of your coursework. Everything counts and there is no memory test style exam at the end
I have to say, if you are enjoying Art at GCSE, it’s definitely worth considering Art at A-Level. Beth Hosker 12Mulvey
The images of owls are taken from Beth’s GCSE A* Art Graphics
Autumn Term 2013
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How might studying Classical Civilisation affect your future?
Q: Why are the Classics important? A: The Classics, as Karl Maurer (of the University of Dallas) once put it, are ‘the ABC of our own tradition’. That definition could not be truer- during the study of ancient civilisations we can learn so much about ourselves, the lives we lead and the world in which we live. Q: What does the GCSE course entail? A: We follow the AQA Short-Course GCSE with a personalised research task ending with the completion of a controlled assessment on the life of the Emperor Nero, then in the summer students sit an exam on Homer’s Odyssey. Q: What are the classics? A: The Classics is the umbrella name given to the study of ancient civilisations (mostly Ancient Greece and Rome) along with their respective native languages- Ancient Greek and Latin. Q: How can I take my studies further? A: Although at the moment Classical Civilisation is not offered at Christleton at A-Level, many university courses are still open to you as long as you study History and possibly a language in the Sixth Form (for more specific entry requirements please visit: www.ucas.com). Far from being a dead language, Latin (and also the wider Classics) is studied at universities up and down the country. A simple UCAS Course Search for Classics found 39 results for fulltime undergraduate courses; with providers ranging from the University of Oxford to Swansea University. There is simply a world of undergraduate classics-related courses available; from Classical Civilisation to Ancient History, and Latin with French to Classical Archaeology & Greek. Such courses would build upon the research and essay writing skills you developed at GCSE level, whilst also introducing you to numerous interesting people and events from thousands of years ago. Q: I don’t know any Latin or Greek; can I still embark on further studies? A: The answer is an emphatic yes! Even Oxbridge run 4-year degree courses for those who don’t have a grounding in the Classical languages and Cambridge does not describe the study of Latin as ‘essential’ for its 4-year Classics course. Most definitely, knowledge of Latin and/or Greek is not a pre-requisite for most university courses. Q: Are there many careers available to Classics graduates? A: A plethora of opportunities are available to those who have studied a Classics related course and 44.7% of graduates are in full-time employment six months after completing their course, whilst 28.4% go on to further study [source: www.prospects.ac.uk]. Possible careers paths could include: the legal profession; clerical work; curating; marketing and business; and even finance. Q: What will Classics give me? A: Without a doubt any qualification in Classics (from GCSE to PhD) will have helped you to develop your essay writing and independent research skills- important attributes which will stand out dramatically on any UCAS application! The field of Classics is always developingwith new discoveries of ancient relics; making the subject one of the most interesting and encapsulating available! Harry Hatwell, Hot Scholar for Classical Civilisation.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Charity Trip to T a n z a n i a On the 24th July 2013, my two children and I, along with two families from the Wirral, began the challenge of climbing Africa's highest mountain, Kilimanjaro, which is over 19,000 feet. Despite problems with altitude sickness, 7 out of 9 climbers reached Uhuru summit. The climb was strenuous, long, hot, cold, dirty, often beautiful, but extremely challenging. On the day of the final ascent, we walked for over 17 hours, starting at midnight (It took 17 hours because my son Mike and I were the slowest walkers, but at least we got to the top in the end -and back down to the next camp!)
The climb was to raise money for the charity TCPA (Tanzanian Church Partnership Association). During our stay we were able to visit a number of projects that the Tanzanian Church Partnership Association have supported including paying for new school classrooms at St Paul’s School, near Arusha. The school was extremely grateful for the classrooms, which are now in use, but as you can see, they would not pass our health and safety standards! Life is very different for schoolchildren in Tanzania! Part of the charity's work is to support the education of particularly poor children, through sponsorship by families in England. We arranged for the sponsored children to visit a
game park, which was a once in a lifetime opportunity for them. We were a bit worried at the start, when the children’s bus got stuck and they all had to get out in the middle of Tarangire National Park, while the bus was dug out. Fortunately there were no elephants, or anything similar, close at the time! The lions were the greatest hit with all the children and even the adults along with them, had never in their lifetime in Tanzania seen a lion! Visiting game parks is usually only something rich tourists can afford. We then ran a sports camp for over 50 children- some from Dodoma (the sponsored children) and a group from the local Arusha school. We taught the children how to play cricket as well as improving their football skills and we left behind equipment for them to continue to use at their schools. We also helped with reading in English and writing letters for their sponsors in the UK.
Thank you so much to the staff, students and governors at Christleton High for their financial support towards equipment and food, as well as donations of sports clothing. Every child left with at least a football shirt for Liverpool, Everton, Tranmere or even Norwich, along with a brand new colourful book to practise their reading. Ms Hayden
Autumn Term 2013
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ICT
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
is the Future Senior Team
Maths Challenge 2013:
CHS students battle hard
against stiff
opposition!
On November 12th 2013, Christleton High School hosted the regional final of the UK Mathematics Trust/Further Maths Support Programme Senior Team Maths Challenge. Fifteen teams of 4 from various schools across Cheshire and North Wales puzzled and problem solved against the clock to try to gain a place in the National Final next year. We were very proud of our team: Ben Hamp, Anna Faulkner(Year 13) and Callum Griffiths, Yidan Hou (Year 12) who gained a pleasing fifth place beating all of our local rivals!
Volunteering: Year 12 make it all add up in the Maths Department
Year 12 students have enthusiastically responded to invitations from the Maths department to help support teachers in lessons and also to mentor Year 7 students with their Maths work. Nearly forty Year 12 students are currently volunteering to attend lower school Maths lessons to work, under the direction of the class teacher, with individuals or groups of students in support of their learning. Every Tuesday lunchtime more year 12 volunteers work with their partner year 7 students on a variety of tasks to help improve their performance in lessons. The sixth-formers and year 7 students are pictured hard at work! Mrs Murdoch
ICT is important because more and more items are becoming computerized nowadays so it will be better to learn how computers work whilst you are young instead of when everything is computerized.
I decided to find out why students choose ICT as an option, here are my results. Sam Moore Y10 It’s a chilled lesson and you do it all yourself.
Maddy Allman Y10 Your teacher doesn’t give you proper instructions, you have to find it out yourself and it’s more independent than other lessons.
Sam Gorst Y10 Everything in the future will be computerized so it’s better to learn it now and it’s a fun topic to do.
Adam Sinclair Y10 It’s fun to learn how computers work and talk through binary. It’s good to learn how most things run. On top of that it’s a really fun topic.
Emma Ogunyemi Y10 I like ICT because it’s interesting and I get to learn clever ways to do things on computers. Emma Collins Y10 Everything is electrical so it’s good to understand how electrical things work so you get a better understanding of things.
Mr Hall Teacher I like ICT because it’s always changing and because I get to play with all the cool toys.
Mrs Lawson Teacher I like teaching students new software and seeing them progress in it. I also like being creative in it with things like green screens.
Cameron Mochrie Y9 I like ICT because it’s interesting to understand how computers work and it will help you in the future if you have an office job. Mark Goldthorpe ICT Hot Scholar
Autumn Term 2013
Hot Scholars Manicure Prize
I am a Hot Scholar in Drama and I won a manicure in a Hot Scholars’ prize draw. On Saturday 21st of September EmilyRose Forden and I had our nails tidied and painted at ‘1st 4 Nails’ in Vicars Cross as a Hot Scholars’ Prize.
We arrived at midday and straight away we were welcomed into the shop and asked to choose the colours we wanted. Emily-Rose chose dark green with dark green sparkles and I chose purple with purple and silver glitter. I was taken to the nail bar while Emily waited. First the manicurist put a base coat on. Then she put my colour on, followed by the glitter, and finally a top coat. I had to sit down and wait until the paint had dried. Once Emily and I had both had our nails done, we waited while my Mum also got her nails done. 20 minutes later our nails were all ready. We both had a really good time and are very grateful to the manicurists at 1st 4 Nails for doing our nails. Megan Gibbons 9BY2 and Emily-Rose Forden 9BA2
Sweet!
I got the chance to go with my sister to ‘The Old Trooper Inn’ for pudding when I won a voucher in a Hot Scholars’ prize draw. It was a lot of fun and we used the voucher to buy ourselves an amazing dessert. The service was great in The Trooper and I would definitely go there again and again.
This all happened because of the Hot Scholars prize draw so, all I can say is thank you to the teachers involved in the Hot Scholars’ Team and to the Trooper for their generosity. Harry Ford Hot Scholar in Art
Children in Need We raised an grand total of £1,463.18 Thank you to everyone who took part and generously contributed.
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School Support Voluntary Work Experience placements
Christleton High School is a high performing 11-18 Cheshire school which became an Academy in 2011. As part of our contribution to our community, we are starting a programme of help, offering work experience to those that are having difficulty starting their career.
Are you or someone that you know interested in work experience where you will develop transferable marketable skills and gain the satisfaction of making a real and valued contribution to the school? Placements for highly motivated individuals are available within School Administration, Finance, ICT Support and Facilities Maintenance.
Excellence:
A personalised experience based in a successful school. Employability: Contrasting school based experiences and a school based mentor who will know you, and work with you to increase your opportunity for employment.
Excitement:
School based learning, where you will be working alongside committed professionals.
Enquiry:
Please send a covering letter outlining the work experience you are interested in and CV to enquiries@christletonhigh.co.uk
Applicants should be aged 18+ and will be required to have a CRB check.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Early Entry Art
Every year, some Art students in Y10 get to do early entry Art. This means that instead of taking two years to get one GCSE in Art, the students have the chance to complete their Fine Art GCSE in Y10 and then take a second Art GCSE in Y11. Last year, those of us who did this took Graphic Communication or 3D Art in Y11. ‘I really enjoyed doing Early Entry because I got to experience a range of topics and achieved two Art GCSEs at the end of it. I enjoyed it despite the hard work at times’ Heather Tonks ‘I think Early Entry benefitted me greatly. I was really pleased with my grades in the end and the whole process was fun as I got to express my creativity twice in a subject that I love.’ Daisy May Taylor
Autumn Term 2013
Hot Scholar Prize Winners
Cheshire Ice Cream Farm Recently, I won a hotscholars’ prize draw. I won a £10 voucher for Cheshire Ice Cream Farm and I decided to take two of my friends, Amy Russon and Emma Cresswell. We got there and had some lunch, and then we went and had a look round the farm as it had changed a lot since my last visit. We played some mini-golf and by the time we had done the course we were hungry for ice cream. We went into the parlour and had a look at the choices. There were so many flavours to choose from. I decided to have Mint Choc Chip and Double Chocolate. Amy had White Chocolate Oreo and Raspberry Ripple with Raspberry Pavlova. Emma had Mint Choc Chip and Honeycomb. They were so delicious! After eating our ice creams we went round and had a look at some of the animals; they had lots more than there had been when I was younger. We love the Ice Cream Farm and had a really nice time there together. Erin Brackenbury Hot scholar in PE The voucher was a great prize and the Hot Scholars’ scheme is very grateful to Cheshire Ice Cream Farm for this form of support.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
2013
Young Physicist
of the Year Awards Earlier this year the Physics Department were invited by the Ogden Trust and Liverpool John Moores University to nominate a Year 12 physics student for their annual Wirral & Cheshire Young Physicist of the Year event. The aim is to celebrate the student's success within Physics and to encourage and inspire students to read Physics at University. All the students nominated in the region attended a celebratory event to receive their award at the end of June at Spaceport on the Wirral. They also become eligible to apply for an Ogden Trust Undergraduate Scholarship, which can help them during their university course if they intend to follow a physics based degree.
It was a tricky decision with so many talented students but this year the Physics Department nominated Iain Menzies for the award. Iain shows real passion and enthusiasm for Physics and he had made considerable progress during the transition from GCSE to Year 12, developing a more mature and methodical approach to his studies even when it was challenging. It is Iain's ambition to eventually study Physics/Astronomy in Higher Education. Iain went to Spaceport with his parents and Mrs Mothersdale. During the event not only did he receive his award and prize, he was also able to speak to professional Physicists, listen to an Astronomy lecture by Professor Andy Newsam as well as visit the Dr Who Exhibition and sneak into the Tardis!
Parental Feedback Survey
The Governors would like to thank all the parents who completed the survey and we were delighted that we had over 400 responses from all year groups. Detailed feedback will be sent out after Christmas, but in the meantime here are some significant headings: • 99% of parents would recommend the school to other parents • 94% of parents believe that their children are making good progress at the school • 94% of parents believe that the school helps their children develop the skills to succeed • 96% of parents believe the students of Christleton are well behaved
Iain continues to work hard towards realising his ambition.
The Governors wish to take this opportunity to wish you a Happy Christmas and peaceful New Year.
The Physics Department
Sue Leake and Jean Charlton Governing Body
Who will be the Year 12 Young Physicist of the Year 2014? There is another strong field to consider!
Autumn Term 2013
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Mmmmmm Chocolate...
"Evaluation of whether employer/employee relations can be maintained during a period of significant change," "Evaluation of the role of lean production," and "Evaluation of the effectiveness of marketing analysis in developing a successful brand," are all typical exam questions our A-Level Business students need to prepare for and what a better way to develop their understanding than a trip to the Cadbury's factory, Bournville.
Our Year 12 & 13 students had the opportunity to experience firsthand how an iconic British Brand has developed and established itself as a market leader in over 70 countries. As part of our visit we learnt how a large scale business managed its most complex asset, their employees. Students were provided with a seminar which looked at how Cadburys have grown their product portfolio and become one of the most successful British companies with strong corporate values. Since it began in 1905, Cadbury's have recognised and celebrated the efforts of their workforce by investing in community projects, educational schemes and even building gyms, swimming pools and parks for employees to use and enjoy in their leisure time. Their Corporate Social Responsibility even extends itself as far as Ghana with their fair trade scheme that ensures workers are paid a fair wage. Back in 2010, Cadbury's experienced a hostile takeover from Kraft. Despite uncertainties, they have strengthened their brand portfolio and explored new markets within India, Australia and New Zealand. Cadbury's have since experienced a second takeover in 2012 and are now owned by Mondelēz International. With the revival of old products such as Wispa and Spiral, Cadbury's success is down to listening to what their consumers’ desire. In order to extend the product life cycles of brands such as the Creme Egg, they use innovative techniques to redesign and promote sales. Fact: 1.5 million Creme Eggs are produced each day and generated net profits of over £16 million in 2012. With a chocolate filled adventure our students are now better prepared to answer complex questions on the key functional areas of HR, Operations Management, Marketing and Finance. Big thank you to the student’s #classofcadburys2013 Scan codes on left for extras....
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Operation Christmas Child
Looks like the warm weather is (finally!) on its way.....and what a better way to celebrate by attending the Christleton Country Farmers Market where the fantastic spring produce can be enjoyed. The Ring O’ Bells has recently taken over the running of the markets which we are very excited about, there will be many returning stalls with the addition of some new faces.
We realise the importance of buying locally produced everyday items which we make available at the markets, such as bread, cheese, fruit & vegetables, fish & meat as well as the more luxury items of homemade cakes and pies, organic soaps and handmade stitch work. We also have the more unique stalls selling items such as homemade dog treats! It is a great way to make your shopping basket greener and healthier!
delicious brunch menu. We open the pubs doors early from 9.30am on market days to assist in giving the shoppers the best experience possible.
Traders provide customers with seasonal, locally grown, reared and produced items, helping support the local farmers and businesses.
Our farmers markets are guaranteed to be filled with fantastic food and produce, great offers and plenty of chat, you may even get good tips and advice from our friendly traders. Enjoy the unique shopping experience where the surroundings are picturesque and quality goods are offered. Make the most of our markets and join us inside the Ring O’ Bells for freshly ground coffee, real loose tea or a bite to eat off our
Christleton Farmers Markets are a regular event held on the second Saturday of every month from 9.30am – 1.30pm. Make sure you get the date in your diary now for the next market.
Autumn Term 2013
Ha r ry Po tter
GCSE Media Trip to
On Friday November 22nd the combined year 10 and 11 Media groups went on a trip to the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour near London. The trip was organised by the Hot Scholars and especially Georgia Jones in Year 11, who surveyed students on where they wanted to go and arranged the costings and workshops.
After a very long coach journey we arrived at the studio. It was huge and we were all very excited. We went into a workshop on camera shots and camera angles with a teacher who was also a script editor and she told us all about the studios and costumes as well as the films being made whilst we were there. We also got to see Hagrid’s Head – the animatronic version.
Then we all went into a small cinema where we watched a film about the making of all of the Harry Potter films and interviews with Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. Once the film was over the screen went up and spectacularly the great oak doors of the great hall
were there in front of us. We went into the Great Hall, which was amazing, full of food and magical wizardry.
We then moved into the main exhibition hall, which housed lots of the sets, props and costumes from all of the films, there were some incredible things there such as the self chopping knife, the self stirring cauldron and the enormous set of gates.
The exhibition also allowed your to play Quiddich next to a green screen so that you really were flying. Outside the were the fronts of Harry house and the opportunity to taste Butter Beer.
The final section is a real treat, so I wont reveal it here but it is incredible. We spent ages in the shop buying scarves and wands and lots of chocolate and got back on the coach ready for the journey home.
We all had a fantastic day – a long coach journey but we arrive home tired and Harry Potter Happy.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
S wan
Carving We could not believe it when Mrs Kelly gave us an apple and told us we were going to carve it into a Swan! She showed us a picture of the finished Swan and we were worried…but then she said she had instructions. It needed a lot of concentration and perseverance to follow the instructions and to make something that looked like a Swan. Some ended up looking like a Swan in a rowing boat or a submarine but several turned out quite well. The winners were Mia Walker 7By2 and Rachael Warburton 7By2, main picture above. Well done to them.
I wonder what else we could carve an apple in to? Year 7 mixed BaBy group
Artists Away Autumn Term 2013
On the 8th November 2013, four AS Art students were taken by Mrs Bolam and Miss Booth to join other Cheshire Art students at an A Level Art residential course at the Conway Centre in Anglesey. The aims were to learn new practical skills, work with others, create Art that will be used towards their AS course work and to have plenty of fun. This is what they thought:
Keira Berry
“I had a fantastic time at The Conway Centre! It was great to be able to use such a large variety of materials and media. I especially enjoyed getting extremely messy! Creating abstract work was very demanding but thoroughly enjoyable too.”
Beth Hosker
“I had such an amazing time at Conway. I learnt so much in such a concentrated amount of time. We got stuck in and spent our whole day being creative and having fun. We also had help from artists whose expertise was invaluable. On top of that we ended the weekend bringing
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back multiple big pieces of work that we were able to submit towards our A Level. Overall such a good weekend!”
Daisy May Taylor
“My time at Conway was very useful and enjoyable. It has taught me to look at art and landscapes in a new way and that it doesn’t have to be perfect to be good. I think my drawing style has loosened up and my lines have become more fluid because of this.”
Rhiana Craig-Cargill
“I really enjoyed my time at Conway; I thought it was a fantastic course. I will incorporate techniques I have learnt to supplement and better my work at A Level. It was a great, very productive weekend. I have learnt that you don’t have to draw every detail to get an amazing final piece; it only needs a creative eye.”
It was the first time that the Conway Centre has run an Art weekend for A level students and it was considered a huge success. Looking forward to going next year now! Y10 Art students also have the opportunity to go on a GCSE residential trip in March 2014. If anyone is interested they should see Mrs Bolam to find out if any places are available.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Would you like
to be more
involved in helping to
support our
school and children?
donated over £20,000 to the school, including: £1,793 for Kindles in the Language Department; £642 for rugby kit; £468 for the STEM Club; £8,000 to the i-Research centre; £515 for a Visualiser for the Art department; £325 for a Cricut Cake Machine and £1,548 for tents and rucksacks for the Duke of Edinburgh scheme. Over the years school teaching staff have put in requests for a range of products, from art materials
The Christleton High School Association We are a group of parents that meet every couple of months along with a couple of members of staff. Over the last few years the CHSA has organised numerous yearly fund-raising and profileraising events, ranging from the Christmas raffle to the year 7 BBQ, to refreshments at the concerts, shows and parents evenings and not forgetting the 200 club that brings in additional funds.
We have also made good use of match-funding in the last few years, so if any of you work for a company that would be willing to match-fund one of our events, please speak to one of the committee members about how to set this up or email school (please speak to any friends you may know in this situation too). Over the last 3 years we have
for the Koinonia project, to the new equipment bought for the DT workshops (including a state-of-the-art laser cutter). We have also purchased many books and sports equipment, including kits for the netball and rugby teams.
Above all, the things we buy and help to purchase are in keeping with the national PTA guidelines. The school is extremely grateful to the CHSA for all its hard work and valued fund-raising, and CHSA members say that it is always a joy to get involved, to get to know staff and feel a sense of pride that they are helping to provide our children with what they need for their education. We hope to see you at future meetings or events soon. We always welcome new ideas and encourage people to bring these to our meetings or you can email them in!
Historian of the Month Congratulations to the following who have all been ‘Historian of the Month’ over the last term for their effort, enthusiasm, participation, attendance and punctuality: Year 7 Jack Smith, Will Robinson, Archie Roebuck, Fiona Morrison
Year 8 Lottie Parry, James Sleddon Plant, Osian Williams, Cara Walker, James Mizen
Year 9 Matt Jones, Harvey Ashworth, Lloyd Roberts, Toria Jones, Graeme Mochrie, Sam Ward Year 10 James Bagby, Dominika Sadczuk, Jess Renner, Naomi Simm, Kristie Horrocks Year 11 Megan Russon, Becky Allen, Alex Roskilly
Year 12 Ellie Wright, Jennie Tilston, Lydia Price
Year 13 Becky Thompson, Matt Fletcher Hunt, Jenny Moore Year 12 Politics Matt Entwistle
Year 13 Politics Matt Coathupe Classicists Tyler Jones, Mark Harvey, Blythe Walker.
Autumn Term 2013
Textiles Club
In Textiles Club we do everything you can think of to do with sewing. You could use the sewing machine or hand stitch. We are making Christmas related things at the moment as Christmas is in a couple of weeks but other people are also making other things like bags and cushion covers. “It’s a place were you can express your feelings and show your creativity.” “You can be yourself and show your own personality.”
Elizabeth
Goodwin 7L1
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Physics Trip to Alton Towers As we were rapidly approaching the big blue gates a sense of excitement buzzed through the coachFelix Cross had tears in his eyes. Mrs Mothersdale announced our arrival and a host of yelps emanated from the back portion of the minibus. Little did we know what a roller coaster of a ride this day would be…
As we passed the squirrel nutty ride, we caught the anxiety bug when we saw the number of Gs we would theoretically pull, frightening. We huddled together for warmth, much like the king penguins of the Arctic in times of adversity. Fleeing from the jaws of the perilous squirrel the vulnerable group hurried on to the Smiler – the adventures continued.
Following an hour of refuge in the queue of the Smiler, we defied park rangers in taking recording devices onto the ride – a decision the gods came to punish us for. To quote Ryan Sinclair; ‘these 14 big loops and 90 degree chain action really help us understand the principles of circular motion’.
We managed to pull at least 6 Gs, whilst being thoroughly marmalized, giving thrill seekers the experience they desire. Having escaped the hypnotisation of the Smiler we flocked to Enterprise; a perfect example of circular motion. We survived, fortunately not requiring the aid of harnesses – due to fundamental physics principles at work. Air. Wow. What a ride. We decided that the time was right to see the ride in all its beauty at around about lunchtime; best decision we’ve ever made.
Following a sky ride through the heavens, we arrived at Nemesis – where the gods would take their revenge on the innocent Becky Scanlan for her misdeeds against the rangers in the Smiler. The data taken from the Smiler provided vital insight into real world applications of circular motion equations. Felix Cross Year 13
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Washing Line Wednesday
On Wednesday 3rd July, a group of students who won 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the 2013 sketchbook competitions, and some other students who also love Art got the chance to help put up art work from years 7-13 for the Summer Washing Line Weeks’ Exhibition. It was very enjoyable putting up the amazing art work, whilst listening to music (and eating chocolate). It was great seeing everyone’s finished pieces from each year group. “I enjoyed it a lot because every piece of work we hung up looked amazing, it was lots of fun.” Arin Theard Hania Arthur, Nadia Powell-Williams and Arin Theard
Autumn Term 2013
My-Pad
In the MFL Department this term, we have welcomed the arrival of our own set of I-pads which we have been putting to regular good use in lessons. Students have been able to take advantage of this new bank of resources in a variety of ways to enhance their learning and productivity in lessons: students in French, German and Spanish lessons have, for example, been able to video each other and record conversations conducted in the target language. This has turned a standard speaking exercise into a fun, interactive and authentic exercise. It has also enabled groups to peer assess each other’s performance, without slowing the pace of the lesson, as they are able to pass the I-pads among groups and simultaneously listen to and feedback on a numbers of other groups’ work. Students have produced presentations and interviews for use on Open Evenings and have been able to show greater independence in their group work, which is something that, as a department, we are continuously trying to encourage. To this end, students can also access interactive online learning resources and conduct research as part of their studies.
As a department, we value having this resource and would like to take this opportunity to thank the CHSA for their very generous contribution towards their purchase.
MERCI BEAUCOUP!
VIELEN DANK!
MUCHAS GRACIAS!
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Are you Ready. . . 3, 2, 1 . . .Cheese! Preparing for the Whole School Photograph, September 2013
. .. Y e ar 7 S u mm e r S ch o o l
Literacy; Numeracy; Graffiti Art; Assault Course; it must be… A number of our new Year 7 students enjoyed a Summer School experience back in July and August of this year.
The aim of this five-day summer school was to help students make a successful transition from primary to secondary school and included opportunities to further develop literacy and numeracy, as well as range of enrichment activities to develop confidence and teamwork skills. Around twenty students joined us from many different primary schools, with each day beginning 9.30am and finishing at 3.30pm. Here’s what some of our (now current Year 7) students who
attended the Summer School thought about the week: “Different to primary but in a good way” “There’s some really good activities”
“The teachers were really fun” “My favourite day was Wednesday; I told my mum all about it”
“You’re not stuck in the classroom all the time” “More freedom” “I enjoyed the Army exercises” “I am a lot more confident now”
“It is not as big as it looks” “I like the ICT lessons”
“You must be on time” “I’ve most enjoyed the graffiti art”
“I have more friends now”
“It is worthwhile coming to Summer School because we make new friends and learn a lot of different things”
The summer school was be led by a very experienced team and our thanks go to Sam Ball-Taylor and the Military School of Fitness team, Theresa Docherty, Sara Ramsden, Hannah Brennan, and Sheila Lister. We are also very grateful to MBNA for contributing to the funding of the Summer School through their School Grants Programme:
Autumn Term 2013
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Hot Scholars
Go Ape Tree top adventure! By Laura Beattie
Last year the end of year Hot Scholars’ prize draw took place in the Christmas assembly. In the draw, I was fortunate to win two Go Ape vouchers for the Tree Top Adventure at Delamere Forest. I was very excited to have won these tickets and couldn't wait to go.
On Sunday the 16th September I arrived at Delamere Forest and headed to the Go Ape station where my family and I were then instructed on how to fasten our harnesses and told about the safety lines, along with how to secure ourselves when going around the course. There were two paths that you could take when you were up on the tree tops; one was an easier route and the other was the more difficult path. I chose to take the more difficult path. Over time, the course got increasingly difficult and more and more challenging. Occasionally an instructor would come to a section and make sure that you were all right and having a good time. There were zip wires at the end of each section and the final one was fantastic but, if you weren't facing forward, you got dragged along the floor when you hit the ground! Go Ape was an amazing experience with fun tree top courses and lovely, helpful instructors; it was a great day out. I'm thankful to Hot Scholars and the people from Go Ape for giving me this opportunity and would recommend it to everyone to try!
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Bake Off Competition Year 9 Schools
Wednesday 20th November 2013
Design Brief
What a Royal year it has been! From the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation to the birth of a Royal baby. Could you design a product fit for one of these royal occasions? The product can be either sweet or savoury in the form of a cake or a pastry dish. The choice is yours. The competition is open to individuals or groups (with a maximum of 3)
Congratulations
CHS WINNER: Amy Russon
Runners Up: Sophie Runciman, Hannah Jones, Megan Gibbons (Team Entry) 3rd Place: Vicky Tate Commended work: Tim Jago, Jenny Wilkinson, Lucy Osborne and Ellie Wilkins
All these competitors are through to the next round to be judged by judges from the Reaseheath Food Centre bakery facility. Watch this space for more news!
Autumn Term 2013
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If you go down to the woods today you’re sure to have a big surprise -its full of A level Biology students!
If you had to pick any location and any activity for a school trip, where would you go? If your answer was to “the forest to count trees” then you’re in luck! Year thirteen biology students recently went to just that place to do just that. What do you mean that wasn’t your answer? It should have been.
Okay, so maybe it wasn’t quite that simple. Delamere forest, its name meaning “forest of the lakes”, is a 972 hectare large woodland area of deciduous, board leaved trees and evergreen pines. A hunting forest owned by the Norman Earls of Chester, it was originally used for catching wild boar. Ownership passed over to the Forestry Commission in 1919, and they now manage the forest to be a multipurpose forest – incorporating timber production, wildlife and recreation for the public. The objective of our trip to the forest was to record data on three different stands, one of young trees, one at the thicket stage and one at the mature / thinned stage. This enabled us to compare the productivity of each stand, and also the abiotic and biotic factors that may affect the tree’s growth. The biotic (living) factors that we measured included height of trees, and percentage cover of ground
plants such as brambles, so that we could estimate diversity. Species diversity tends to be highest when the growing conditions or abiotic factors (nonliving) are more favourable to organisms. We found that the older the stand, the more diverse the plant life there.
The abiotic factors we recorded included temperature and light intensity. We even got to bring soil back to the lab and analyse it to see moisture content and pH. We showed that all three stands had soil of a pH of around 3 - this acidity is down to the large coverage of pine needles on the ground. These take a long time to decompose, but whilst they do, release an acidic compound. This is taken into the soil and explains the low pH reading. Whilst we were at the forest, it would have been a shame not to make good use of John, a forest ranger who knows so much about the forest, that ‘Treebeard’ himself crowned him king of the tall of leafy. He talked about the history of the forest and explained how it is
managed today for timber production, wildlife conservation and recreation.
The day ended with a visit to Black Lake, a sight of special scientific interest. The Lake not only has very important wildlife status, it also is an excellent example of a ‘hydrosere’ which basically illustrates ecological succession in a freshwater habitat. This was a great trip for any budding ecologists, and we all learnt a lot about Delamere and the importance of keeping it a productive forest in years to come.
Conservation in action - A level biologists hear first hand This half term, Bernard Wright, from the Broxton Barn Owl group came in to speak to year 13 A level Biology students about the role of this voluntary group in conserving these owls in Cheshire. Bernard, a retired chemist and keen ornithologist, has been involved with conserving barn owls for the past 20 years. We learnt about the adaptations of the bird to its environment – for instance, did you know that the barn owl’s flight feathers are designed in such a way that they reduce the sound of the bird when it flies? This helps the bird to catch its prey more easily. Urbanisation, traffic, use of chemical pesticides and development of farm buildings into houses are just some of the threats that have contributed to the falling numbers of barn owls over recent
years. However, one of the main reasons why barn owl number have fallen so rapidly is a reduction in their food supply, small mammals, which has happened because of a fall in agricultural habitats.
The Barn owl group works hard to raise awareness about the problems these beautiful native species face. In addition, they carry out active conservation work by erecting nesting boxes and ringing birds to find out as much as they can about the number of young birds that live to breed successfully. Biologist!
For more information about how you can help go to www.bbog.co.uk/what-we-do.html
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Valuing our Art Hot Scholars
Year 8 & 9 Art Hot Scholars were invited to try their hand at creating 3D caterpillars using air drying clay. These became part of the “Swarm� exhibition on the WOW wall. The Art department feel very
Scholars
proud
and felt it was time to give them a
experience in
Art Hot rewarding
of their
thanks for all of their hard work.
Autumn Term 2013
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We decided to design a brand new, unique new logo for Hot Scholars. Until now we have just used pictures of the 3 Hot Scholars’ emblems. Daisy May Taylor was chosen to design the new logo. She is currently in
the sixth form doing A Level Art. The reason Daisy was chosen was because she did Fine Art and Graphics
for GCSE and she is really good at using Photoshop. All of her experience means she has a lot of
knowledge about to how to make a new logo and make it look great! When I saw the new logo myself, I
loved it! It is a clear and effective design and will look amazing as the symbol of the Hot Scholars’ brand. Anna Kew 10L3, Hot Scholar in Art
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
“How Can I Find Out More About My Dream Occupation……?” With over fifty representatives from a vast array of different occupations on hand to give individual advice and an insight into what the job involves, this year’s Careers Information Evening was a great success. A wintry November evening still produced a fantastic turnout of students from Years 9, 10, 11, and both lower and upper sixthformers, together with interested parents, which meant a busy night for all, and plenty of food for thought. As part of our on-going commitment to raising students’ aspirations and encouraging them to think about future pathways; the evening aimed to inspire students to find out more about the career paths available and to meet people from a variety of different occupations.
Sylvia Wood, our Pathway Careers Advisor was also on hand, and was able to help with a wide range of general and specific enquiries.
Students have been making use of U-Explore this term to research three different dream occupations (‘My Star Jobs’); the Careers Information Evening was a great opportunity to speak with people in those very occupations.
Several of the representatives at the evening were former students of Christleton High School, and it was good to hear what they had been up to. Steven Brown left Christleton in 2010 after taking A-levels in Psychology, PE, and ICT and said: “After working in a café in Chester for several months I applied for an Apprenticeship at Airbus. I’m now in my third year and I’m really enjoying it, especially relating the theory to the real world of aircraft” Former CHS student Steven Brown, now with Airbus as an Apprentice
Former student Andrew Devine from Essar has enjoyed his career progress” “I left CHS twelve years ago, and after two years of work experience I joined TTE as an apprentice. On completion of an Advanced Modern Apprenticeship in Engineering (successful completion of ONC, HNC, NVQ’s, etc), I became a Power and Control Technician working for Shell UK Limited. I soon realised I wanted to further my career and Shell sponsored me to complete a BEng (Hons) in Industrial Electronics and Control Engineering in which I achieved a first class honours degree. The Stanlow Refinery was taken over by Essar Oil UK Limited in 2011. I am currently a Reliability Engineer. My roles and responsibilities include, Incident Investigations, Mechanical equipment bad actor tracking and rectification, continuous improvement projects, and much more.”
Former CHS student Andrew Devine; a TTE apprenticeship led to a post at Essar Oil & Gas
Feedback from students, parents, governors, and exhibitors was unanimously positive, and many of our students left with a real sense of purpose and direction about where their futures might lie.
Year 9 student Sean Thomas (9Ba2) said: “I have spoken with Airbus and TTE. It’s been good because I’ve learnt all about apprenticeships and sponsorship”
Sean Thomas 9Ba2 reflects on his discussions with Airbus and TTE
Many thanks to Mrs Varley and Mrs Charlton for all their help with organising the event, and particularly to all of the following representatives without whom the evening could not have happened: -
Autumn Term 2013
• Airbus: Steve Edwards; Sophia Paraman; Steve Brown; Jordan Hampshire • Architect: Andy Foster • Architect: Mark Powell • Army: Mark Doyle • Careers Advisor: Sylvia Wood • Chartered Accountant: Heather Townsend • Chartered Building Surveyor: Andrew Marshall (Powell Williams) • Dentist: John Welford • Dietician: Christine Wolfendale • Doctor (GP): Dr David Inchley • Energy Innovation Centre: Denis Massey; Carlos Javier Martinez de Ilarduya; Dylan Oliver • HR Management: Fliss Bridgewater • IT Consultant: Luke Packer • Journalist: Dave Powell • Life Style and Beauty (Leaf): Jan Lea and Fiona Southorn • Manufacturing/Engineering (Essar Oil): Alice Robinson; Richard Davies; Andrew Devine • Nurse Advisor: Wendy Lewis • Nutritionist: Clare Glazzard • Occupational Therapist: Helen Carey • Paramedic: Pete Fisher • Physiotherapist: Julie Wilkins • Police Sergeant: Rachel Gallagher • Psychology: Phil DuPrez • Psychology: Dr Emyr Williams • Public Relations (PR): Lee Cullen; Becki Rogerson (thinkdewinter) • Retail Manager: Eryl Edwards (Primark) • Radiographer: Andrea Herbert; Vanessa Pryer • Social Worker: Michaela Evans • Sports/Coaching: Judith Gilmour • Sports Science: Dr Colin Hill • Solicitor: Leanne Kennedy • TTE Apprenticeships: Kerry Ottley-Jones • Teacher – Primary: Sarah King • Teacher – Secondary: Chris Miller • Teaching Assistant: Jackie Bradshaw • Vauxhall Motors: Rosanna Andrews; Rebecca Moore • Vet: Peter Spence • Veterinary Surgeon: Ashleen Berry • Veterinarian Nurse: Gemma Humphrys
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Year 9 Pathway Process:
Six Steps to Future Success!
Year 9 students have just finished making their subject choices for Year 10 and 11 and have benefitted from an improved process of guidance and support, coupled with increasing independent research. The ‘Six Steps to Success’ have been: -
1. Pathway Sessions in ICT Rooms: every fortnight
Year 9 students have been following a programme of specific tasks and activities making use of U-explore and other relevant websites and programmes to research career options and map out pathways to the future world of work.
2. Options Booklet
The Options Booklet has been redesigned as a more colourful and professional package, with QR (Quick Response) Code links included.
3. School Website Pathway Podcasts
Podcasts on the career options relating to particular subject areas have been available to students and parents on the school website, and focus on the skills developed, related occupations, and possible future career pathways subjects can lead to. The Pathway Podcasts are available to view using the following link: -
www.christletonhigh.co.uk/school _information/pathway_subject_c hoices_and_future_pathways.php
Connor Clarke 9K2 and Lewis Davies 9K1 get ready to view the Pathway Podcasts
4. Careers Information Evening: Wednesday 20th November: 6.00pm to 8.00pm Many students from Year 9 came along to this to find out more about different career paths available and to meet people from a variety of different occupations.
5. Year 9 Options Fair:
Wednesday 27th November; 2.30pm to 4.00pm Subject teacher sessions with Year 9 students gave an overview of course content, assessment, and skills developed in Years 10 and 11
6. Year 9 Parents’ Evening:
Tuesday 3rd December The traditional parents’ meeting with current Year 9 subject teachers to discuss progress made and targets for improvement.
Well done to our Year 9 students for taking the whole process so seriously and for the interest and enthusiasm displayed!
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
“Flagging Up Opportunities for School and Industry Partnerships!”
Carlota Burnside Ribera &Shivvy Heard: Ready to share our dreams, hopes, ambitions & aspirations!
The Fourth of July is
American Independence day...
The Third of July was
Christleton High School
Inter-Dependence Day…!! The Welcoming Committee Await the Arrivals!
Year 11 Textiles Students and the bespoke canvas invitation goodie-bags!
A Special Invitation Goodie-Bag for Tata Steel, created by Hot Scholars for Art, Business Studies and Textiles
On a summer’s day six months ago (just after the Summer Edition of The Swan had gone to print!) Christleton students were the presenters of an exciting morning designed help forge and extend some valuable links between Christleton High School and local industry. Hot Scholars in Art, Business Studies, and Textiles had worked together to produce individualised invitations to a dozen different companies, which really showed off the creative talents of our students.
Having sent out the bespoke invitations we were delighted that representatives from seven different companies were able to attend: • • • • • • •
EA Technology Lyjon Engineering McCormick Architecture Meadow Foods University of Chester Tata Steel Vauxhall Motors
We have strong links with many businesses and employers in the area and the event aimed to take these to a higher level of mutual cooperation and gain. The morning was planned to allow industry representatives to see the huge changes that have happened in education and the incredible talent of our students.
In turn, we were able to achieve a greater understanding of the needs and aspirations of the employers in our community. Students in Years 8 to 11 took charge of the morning and led a package of activities that included interviewing guests and introducing them to everyone, giving a presentation of what great learning looks like, sharing their hopes, dreams, ambitions and aspirations, and explaining the role of Hot Scholars and the skills developed. Representatives also had the opportunity to visit lessons in Maths, Science, and Geography; many thanks to these departments and to the following students who made the day such a success: -
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Kate Boyce Lydia Price Andrew Baldacchino Chris Harrington Greg James Abi Stevenson Harry Hatwell Jess Renner Sophie Brown Matilda Watts Harriet Keogh Joe Bowes Joe Shaw Christy McGeean Hannah Jones Carlota Burnside Ribera Shivvy Heard Emma Duthie Ffion Jones
Autumn Term 2013
Conservation in action
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Environmental studies A level students hear from a past CHS student
On Tuesday 12th November an ex-Christleton High school student, Emma Page, came to speak to us in our Environmental studies AS lesson. The purpose of her visit was for us to find out about what she has done with Environmental Studies A level qualification since leaving school. After spending the summer working with the rhinos at Chester zoo, Emma went to Chester University to study a degree in animal behaviour and animal forensics. Her final year
dissertation involved a study of the behaviour of grey seals on Hilbre Island and she explained how this can be used in conservation management decision making. In addition, it was interesting to hear about the different research methods used in the study of these native marine mammals.
This term in year 7 we have been making timers. We’ve learnt how to solder and about the components in a circuit. To practice our soldering we made stick men out of wire.
put things with smaller bases than the top and we used moulds to make our plastic casings. It was really cool to touch the bouncy plastic when it was hot!!!
Currently, Emma is working on another project to do with saltmarsh conservation which fitted in with the work we have
been doing in lessons on conservation of wildlife habitats. She talked to us about the range of jobs available for graduates with an animal behaviour degree. Her talk during our Environmental Studies lesson was very interesting and I enjoyed seeing the pictures of all the animals she has worked with.
Year 7 E l e c t r o n i c s
We used our soldering skills to attach the components to our circuits. To solder components to a circuit board you have to prepare your soldering iron, then heat up the wire part of the component you are soldering and cover the hole with solder (be careful not to burn yourself!).
As well as soldering we have learnt how to use the vacuum former. We learnt why not to
Our timer will be able to time things from 1 minute to 5 minutes. Our timers will have an LED, which will light up to show that the timer has started and then our timers will have another LED or a buzzer to show the time has finished. Year 7 Electronics has been really fun and enjoyable. Sophie Newman and Charlotte McConnell 7Ba2
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
New Music Technology course
Year 12 students have been thrilled with the new BTEC Level 3 Music Technology course which began in September. It is the first Level 3 (A-Level equivalent) course to be run in the school, and the support of our governors and Senior Leaders in enabling it to happen has been fabulous.
We decided to switch from traditional A-Level to the BTEC Level 3 so that students can have a more vocational, hands-on experience. They will learn how to set up lots of different types of music technology equipment and will also be meeting studio professionals in the industry via school visits and online webcasts. Our students will also be teaming up with BTEC students from Neston High School (one of our partner schools) to work on some collaborations later in the year.
kicks off to a flying start!
“Music Tech is really fun. If you enjoy playing an instrument and listening to music, it is the course for you” Richard Muir
“I really enjoy Music Tech. It’s fun whilst giving me a wide range of recording and mixing skills that will help me with my chosen career in Music Tech” Will Taylor “Music Tech has been very enjoyable so far. The mixture of different skills, from recording and mixing through to analysis of music has been very beneficial” Mark Hearn “It’s the best option I ever took; I’ve learned a lot from it and there’s always something new” George Antar
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All Year 11 students are invited to our Sixth Form Open Evening on Thursday 16th January 2014. The evening runs between 7.00p.m. and 9.00p.m. The aim of the evening is for prospective students and their parents to find out what opportunities are available in one of the largest and most successful sixth forms in Cheshire. With almost 300 students on roll, we are able to provide variety and breadth, in a friendly and supportive environment. Students are given every encouragement to reach their full potential, both academically and socially. The majority of our sixth formers go on to Higher Education and then successful careers in a wide range of occupations.
Around 20% of our sixth formers join us from other schools, which adds to the richness of their education and that of our own students. During the evening students will be able to:
Discover more about the sixth form curriculum and our range of over thirty different AS/A-Level courses. This includes courses new to our students, such as Music Technology, Government & Politics, Computing, Economics, Law, Media Studies, Psychology and Sociology. Gain an understanding of the application process.
Meet subject teachers and talk about the different courses on offer. Ask questions of our current sixth form students and find out directly what they like about everything we can offer.
The evening is the best opportunity to assess what is offered in the Sixth Form and whether it is the best option.
Further details are available on the school website, giving information on all the subjects we offer and how to apply. We look forward to seeing all Year 11 students, their family and friends there. Kate Saxon Assistant Headteacher
Year 11 Students & Parents
Si xt h F o r m Op e n E v e n i n g
T h ursday 16th January 2014
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
YEAR 12 RESIDENTIAL AT CHOLMONDELEY CASTLE
N I T H G I AN T S E R O F THE Having fun
Friends
Autumn Term 2013
Building our shelter for the night
Team work
Cosy accommodation
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
A walk in the forest
Worn out
Don’t I look the part?
Keeping warm
I didn’t think it was going to be this hard
Autumn Term 2013
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Yummy trout
Snuggled up for the night
Enjoying ourselves!
Our kitchen
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine Autumn Term 2013
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The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Going For Gold... ...The Final Challenge
What the parents say
My daughter’s confidence has increased through the process and she is happy to face things that before she thought were unachievable. We really appreciate your time and support given to our son and the other students. He came back full of confidence and very tired! E… had a great time and I can see the many benefits of this challenging adventure. It is great for her to have achieved this and to be the first one in the family to complete the Bronze and Silver award
What the students say
DofE has brought as much reward for me as it has for the people I have helped and volunteered. Silver, Year 10. As a group you go through a lot, us in particular had to cope with getting lost more than once! Silver, Year 10.
I feel completing DofE has given me a sense of achievement and working well as a team. Silver, Year 10. I decided to take part because I fancied a challenge. I have learnt so many new skills that will help me in the future. It has made me much stronger in terms of determination and stamina, it
was tonnes of fun to be part of. Silver, Year 10 D of e has allowed me to develop key skills which can be transferable to real life scenario's as well as looking good on my CV. Gold, Year 13
The Duke of Edinburgh award is not only tremendously enjoyable but it also develops important skills such as planning, preparation, teamwork and time management. Gold, Year 13 DofE is a challenging yet exhilarating experience, one which I would thoroughly recommend. Gold, Year 13
Autumn Term 2013 Residential - I loved doing the residential section, as I met so many new people similar to me. I coached military sport session to other teenagers, I found it extremely therapeutic and I learnt so many new skills that will help me out later on in life!
Expedition - I found the expedition an enjoyable challenge! My team work skills have improved and it tested my physical fitness as well as be able to have have a laugh with my friends! Gold, Year 13
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D of E is a great opportunity to challenge yourself and work as a team. Through my volunteering at year 7 hockey I have enhanced my leadership skills. Gold, Year 13 For my DoE volunteering I am a young leader for 1st Christleton Scouts. I have been a member of this Scout group for 9 years now, both as a Scout and a Leader and it gives me great satisfaction to be able to give back to the group. The expedition is my favourite section as I can enjoy the challenge alongside some of my best friends. Gold, Year 13
Pictured here are: Abby, Lorna and Georgia outside St James’s Palace, London in September where they met with Royal Family members and celebrities. They had a very special day and were presented with their Gold DofE certificates.
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Autumn Term 2013 The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Gnocchi...
Approx 250g large potatoes, all roughly the same size 90g plain flour Pinch fine salt Pinch of nutmeg (optional) 1 small egg, beaten
• Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5 and wash the potatoes. • Dry them well and prick all over, then cover the bottom of a baking tray with the potatoes • Bake for about an hour until completely cooked through. • Remove from the oven...... 1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
..... as soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle (be brave!), peel off the skin and discard.
Scatter 250g of the flour over a clean work surface along with 1/2 tsp fine salt and a pinch of nutmeg.
Push the potatoes through a fine sieve (using a metal spoon) onto the flour. Make a well in the centre of the mixture and add the egg.
Mix together stopping as soon as it comes together into a soft dough. Adding more flour bit by bit if necessary.
Set the dough aside while you clean the work surface and put a pan of water (half full) on the hob to boil, then turn down to simmer.
7.
Dust the unit with a little more flour and place the dough on it.
9.
Divide this square into 1.5cm-wide strips, then roll these into sausage shapes.
8.
Flatten the dough into a square about 1.5cm thick.
10. Cut these ‘sausages’ of dough into 1cm-wide segments. 11. Dust these segments with flour.
12. Roll each over the tines (prongs) of a fork, pressing your thumb into the back, so you have and indentation on one side and grooves on the other. Put the finished gnocchi on the flourdusted tray.
13. Get a slotted spoon from the white drawers by the desk (you may have to share) + wipe unit.
14. Tip the gnocchi into the simmering water. Stir, then wait for them to rise to the surface. Count slowly to 10 then remove with a slotted spoon into a small bowl or dish.
15. They are ready to serve with whatever sauce or flavouring you wish
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Building Learning Power – Strengthening Learning Behaviours
There are four Rs that staff and students have been working on during the last term – RESILIENCE, RECIPROCITY, RESOURCEFULNESS and REFLECTIVENESS. This issue focuses on REFLECTIVENESS
Can you match up the learning behaviours associated with REFLECTIVENESS with the illustration?
Planning
Adapting
Thinking about where you are going, the action you are going to take, the time and the resources you will need, and the obstacles you may encounter
Being flexible, changing your plans in the light of different circumstances, monitoring and reviewing how things are going and seeing new opportunities
Distilling
Looking at what is being learned, pulling out the essential features, carrying them forward to aid further learning; being your own learning coach
Meta-Learning
Knowing yourself as a learner, how you learn best; how to talk about the learning process
Thinking about REFLECTIVENESS. Are you a planner? Do you think ahead before you do things? Try this activity to help you to plan your learning better
Jumbled planning In what order would a good planner do these things? • • • • • • •
Sort out what resources they will need Understand the problem or challenge Decide how long it will take you Think about the obstacles you might meet Decide the success criteria Think about what you will need to do Think about what you want to achieve
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Hot Scholars in the Driving Seat
I chose my Hot Scholar subject because I enjoy the subject and this is a way for me to improve and help out. Kim Duffell Hot Scholar in Music
My favourite exploit has been organising a dodge ball competition for Y7s because they learned a new skill from it. George Campbell Hot Scholar in PE I like being a Hot Scholar because you know that you have done something to help in your subject. Jasmine Prince Hot Scholar in DT
I chose my Hot Scholar subject because I really enjoy this subject and I want to share my enthusiasm with others. Bee Walker Hot Scholar in Science
Taking responsibility feels good when you see people enjoying something that you have organised. Cameron Bradley Hot Scholar in PE
I would like to take more responsibility for going to some primary schools and doing activities with younger children. Lucy Joyce Hot Scholar in DT
My best Hot Scholar exploit so far was going to Oldfield Primary school to run a workshop with the students in Art. Sophie Brown Hot scholar in Art
Taking responsibility feels good when you know what you’re doing and you get a good result. Anna Thompson Hot Scholar in Music My best Hot Scholar exploit so far was making birds for the WOW wall. Joseph Bowes Hot Scholar in Art
I chose my Hot Scholar subject because I wanted to promote Science in the ways other Hot Scholars promote their subjects. Charlotte Timms Hot Scholar in Science
Autumn Term 2013
Year 7 Woods & Plastics Project
Last term in Design and Technology with Mrs Stewart we did a woods project where we used the dye sublimation printer and heat press. Firstly we designed our own pieces of work. We all had many ideas but in the end we chose just one to make. Some of us chose key racks, jewellery holders and mobile phone holders. We had to put a special varnish on our piece of pine and printed out the image we had created on the computer on to special paper. We then dye subbed the design we created onto our piece of pine. This is a process where an image is transferred onto a material using special inks, paper and heat. We used this process on Open Evening with acrylic to make key rings for visitors! Everyone was impressed to see the process and the students really enjoyed having something to take home. The quality of our final products in DT was much better than if we painted them. Here are some examples of our work! Isobel Craig 7K2
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
B efo r e an d Af te r . . . . .
Autumn Term 2013
Back in the 1980’s when I was studying for my German degree, I would hop onto my bike and cycle across town to the Modern Languages Faculty building where, in a darkened basement room, a small number of students sat staring at tiny TV screens showing flickering, blurry, well-worn VHS recordings of target language news bulletins and weather forecasts, often originally broadcast many months or even years earlier. Fast forward to 2013 and the shiny, newly refurbished Christleton High School Modern Languages department: huge wall-mounted flat screens in the brightly lit corridors offer a steady stream of up-to-theminute programming in French, German and Spanish. It is uncompromisingly fast but absolutely the real deal, and there are always curious students looking in. On other screens, content from the new Christleton High School MFL Youtube Channel plays. A suite of interconnecting open-plan classrooms facilitates a collaborative learning experience. A million miles away from that dank and hushed basement, there is a vibrancy and excitement about learning and using new language here which is almost tangible. Visit at any time of the school day and you can see students from various classes working in small groups in newly-created alcoves and seating areas, equipped with ipads and dictionaries. It may not be quiet but one thing is clear – a new generation of modern linguists is hard at work. A huge thank you to our brilliant Site Team and ICT Support Team, who completed this massive transformation in just six weeks.
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YEAR 13 LEAVING CELEBRATIONS The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
obvious person to nominate for this award as he is such a goodhumoured, determined and trustworthy person. His peers thought that he deserved praise for many reasons. He is a quiet, calm and positive student, who is the personification of the word ‘friendliness’. Always willing to listen, he will go out of his way in order to help someone, whether it’s for personal advice, school work or to just have a casual chat. In times of adversity, Chris always has a smile on his face, which brings a room to life.
Year 13 began their A2 study leave in May after a farewell celebratory assembly. All students were presented with a Christleton 50th Anniversary book, which contained personal commendations from their subject and form tutors. Commendations were awarded for achievement, effort, sporting and performing arts’ activities and overall contribution to school life. Awards were presented by our Governor, Mrs Louise Rees, who inspired and entertained the Hall with stories of her own education and early life.
The historic Andrew Ranner award, now in its 33nd year, was presented to Chris Lau for his outstanding contribution to the life of the Sixth Form. The time in the Sixth Form, and especially in Year 13, is a very busy one for all students. All of the recipients of the Andrew Ranner Award have been great individuals and have made a fantastic contribution to the life of the Sixth Form, but it is unusual to find someone who is as unassuming and modest as this year’s winner. Chris was an
Chris is also really passionate about his music. He plays the Cello, Piano and Guitar and always made a full contribution to the concert band and music in general in the school. Chris was surprised to have been awarded this prize, such is his modesty, but he richly deserved it. Both students and teachers agree that Chris has truly been an excellent, happy, hard-working and courteous person, who deserves every success in the future. The assembly also gave the Head Boy/Girl Team the opportunity to give their thanks
Autumn Term 2013
for all the support with their charity fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support. A representative from the charity attended the assembly and spoke of the charity’s pride in what the school had achieved. The team presented her with a giant cheque for over £4000, which was the highest single donation from any school that she had received.
The annual Sixth Form Leavers’ Ball, organised by the Head Boy/Girl Team took place at Chester Racecourse in July. A great night was had by all – great food, dancing and company.
We wish all our students well for the future.
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MIGHTY MUFFINS Years 8 and 9 have recently enjoyed the ‘Mighty Muffin‘ lesson.
The challenge was to make muffins that were healthy not filled with chocolate, to work alone and clear away in 55 minutes. Both groups rose to the challenge and produced scrummy muffins. Flavours they used included - cheese and chive, blueberries, banana, raspberry, strawberry and onion with mixed herbs. Year 8 and 9 described them as – delicious, tasty, yummy, sweet and blue. Well done! Mrs G
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
The Year 13 Geography field trip took place on Tuesday 17th September 2013 in North Wales; visiting the Nant Ffrancon valley, the Cwm Idwal corrie and Aber-Ogwen.
On the morning of the trip, the weather didn’t look promising – it was forecast wind and rain, so we pulled our waterproofs high and climbed excitedly into the minibus. When we finally reached our destination, the first drops of rain fell against our eager faces, but this did nothing to dampen our moods!
Year 9 making Fresh Pasta accompanied by Pavarotti
After a short stop at the newlyvamped visitor centre, we headed up to the Cwm Idwal corrie where we studied the various depositional features, such as moraine and a protalus rampart. We then trekked to a higher viewpoint of the Nant Ffrancon valley to discover more interesting features of glacial erosion and deposition such as truncated spurs and roche moutonees.
Upon our return, we ate lunch in the warm and comforting shelter of the minibus. We then began our journey to
Wet, Windy and Wonderful
Aber-Ogwen, which was funfilled and musical. We walked along the beach until we reached the glacial varve in the cliff which had been formed by fluvio-glacial processes. We did this to find out whether the deposits left by the glaciers have preferred orientations and whether the shape of them indicates this. The trip proved to be valuable as we now have a better understanding of what we need to know for the exam by seeing the features physically. Elena Charlton, Ellie Mageean and Zoe Lemarechal
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Studying Geography at A Level
Studying Geography at A Level can really broaden
your horizons; it is often
seen as a bridging subject as it fits well with science, arts and other humanities
subjects. Employers like the skills that Geographers
develop such as decision
making, problem solving,
analytical thinking,
communication and teamwork.
Geographers in Year 12
started to develop some of
these skills on a recent visit to North Wales. Students
worked in small teams to
collect a range of data about Flooding in Llanrwst and
Rebranding in Llandudno, it
was brilliant to see students collaborating to achieve their goal.
Later back in the labs they were able to analyse their
data by constructing a range of complex graphs and drawing conclusions about each issue.
Problems like flooding and urban degradation will
continue to challenge us in the future, but with a
geographical understanding our students may go on to
find the solutions to
future issues.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
On September 25th 2013, Year 6 students from Christleton Primary School came to the History department to spend an afternoon learning about World War 2. The visit was organised by the History Hot Scholars who put together three activities; Air Raid Shelter building, WW2 Food and Evacuation stories. Katie Flowers says: ‘ I am a History hot scholar and I came up with the idea of inviting Christleton Primary School’s Year 6 class to visit our school for the afternoon to experience an amazing, fun filled World War 2 day along with the History Hot Scholars and Mrs Holme’. The afternoon was a great success; everything went along great including the horrible tasting food. We all had great fun providing help to Year 6’s and teachers, as well as planning this afternoon.’ Joe Corr organised the Air Raid Shelter building: ‘I was helping the Year 6 children to make model Air Raid shelters. We used card, green tissue paper and glue to try and make the best shelter possible! All of them were really friendly and we got along well with each other. I
Visit from Christleton Primary School would like to do more things like this as I really enjoyed helping them.’
Matt Rawson helped to lead the section about evacuation stories: ‘Another part of our WW2 day with the year 6 was a set of stories and thought provoking images to help them draw a picture or write a poem about any war. This was a very interesting experience because we got to see what they thought and knew about all Wars. The students enjoyed this station as it was learning about the War but in an enjoyable manner. I also really enjoyed it because it gave an insight into the childrens’ minds. I also found that they knew a lot about Wars. This was a very enjoyable for both the people who ran the station and the children.’ The event received a lot of positive feedback from staff at Christleton Primary said: ‘May we send our sincere thanks for a fantastic afternoon led by your Hot Scholars this afternoon. I was so impressed by their patient and confident manner and their enthusiasm to support and discuss their activities with the Year Six
children. The Hot Scholars were a credit to your department and school’. The parents of the Year 6’s involved said: ‘ I Just wanted to pass on thanks to the students (History Hot Scholars) who did the session on World War 2 on Wednesday. My son attended and thoroughly enjoyed it. He told me all about the "horrific" food. He was really inspired by the session, so thanks again.’ Patrick Buckley sums ups the whole experience: ‘The whole experience was amazing. The children were very well behaved which made the job easier. Once we had them sat down we had their full attention. We were all a little nervous at first but after a very small amount of time, we were all fine. Our confidence grew and grew the longer we were with them. The activities put in place seemed to grab their attention and keep it. In almost no time the younger children were asking questions and were very interested in the topic at hand. Specifically, in the trenches and the drawing task, in the stories, allowed their creativity to flow and it was like a river.’
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Sixth Form students and staff
had good reason to celebrate
their examination success this
year. It was a day of smiles for 135 Year 13 students as they
picked up their results, with more
than half of all grades at A*- B
level and almost a third at A* - A. Exceptional results were
achieved by a number of
students including Olivia Jones
who achieved 2 A* and 2 A
grades and is currently reading English Literature at St Hugh’s College, Oxford. Similarly,
having deferred entry last year,
Ben Walsh has taken up his
place at Cambridge University
to study English Literature.
Amongst the success stories,
four students have begun their
undergraduate study at Durham
University -Jonathan DeardenWilliams attained 4A* and 2 A grades and is reading
Mathematics and European
studies; Aaron Bell attained 3 A*
grades and is reading Economics;
Laura Croenen achieved 2 A* and 2 A grades and is reading Natural
Sciences and Eleanor Chatterton achieved 1 A* and 3 A grades and is reading History.
Hannah Sweeney is studying
International History and Politics
at Leeds, having attained 2 A*s
and 1 A grade and Emma Welch has gone off to York to begin a career in Medicine.
We had very high expectations of
this year group and they came to fruition in these outstanding results. Young people are
currently under a great deal of
pressure and it is a credit to their determination and commitment to learning that they have met
the demands of A-level study so successfully.
STUDENTS ON TOP FORM
A L E VE L S U C CE SS
Cook Cup R epor t
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
The Cook Cup is an annual tradition that takes place in memory of Tristan Cook, who tragically passed away six years ago in a road accident. The football match, between Year 12 and Year 13 raises money for Brake, a charity that highlights awareness for road safety.
On the 25th September, with the clouds hovering over the pitch, a fixture some were calling David v Goliath was about to take place. The expectancy was certainly that of gloom for Year 12, as the teams lined up, the expressions of their young, inexperienced faces did not inspire success for their quiet
following on the touchline. Even the Year 12 players knew they were in for a long, painful 90 minutes of football. Goalkeeper Ryan Wolfe had his deep heat at the ready for the inevitability of a sore back at the final whistle.
Before the start of the game, players of both sides respectfully listened to Mr Fisher and Mr Alford in a pre-match talk, to remind them of the importance of the annual fixture.
Kick off. An absolutely fantastic array of support blessed the school’s new 4g pitch. Year 13 quickly took control of the game, as expected, with the ball being passed around in an utterly flawless manner. The Year 13s looked ruthless down the right hand side with warning shots beginning to be struck, when Behan made a menacing run towards the box, only to be brought down by a cynical foul. Dangerous! With almost everyone expecting a shot, Gregory floated a magnetised cross into the packed penalty area, with Dutchman Richard Tomassen rising to head home, past a scrambling Wolfy in goal. Where were the Year 12 defenders? Let the onslaught begin. 1-0, 2 minutes gone.
Year 12 kicked off again, in what would be a familiar routine for them by the end of the game. A series of errors from the Year 12 team led to a flowing move from their elder counterparts, with Richardson executing his trademark turn followed by a pinpoint finish into the bottom corner - 2-0.
Optimism then ran through the hearts of the Year 12 players as Kieran Carney outpaced Astbury, who appeared to have forgotten to take the handbrake off, and found himself with a surely unmissable chance against goalkeeper De Winter. The Year 12 fans, who had now come out in great numbers for this occasion, were almost already celebrating when the Year 13 goalkeeper saved spectacularly to deny the target man. Year 12’s work rate almost paid off in a 10 minute period of fierce competing with the classy Year 13 set up. Carney and Black proved dangerous within this spell, creating two chances which De Winter was equal to in goal. Black then whipped a ball across the box, evading all of his teammates, their lack of quality in the final third was frustrating for Year 12 director of football, Mr Gannon.
Year 13 manager, Myles Reid, decided to mix things up by introducing Jonathon Morgan and co.; this decision crushed the Year 12 dreams of an unlikely victory even more when super-sub Morgan added a third to the tally. Year 12 desperately sought the half-time whistle from veteran referee Titch, and finally they got their wish. Half time 3-0. Would an inspiring team talk from player/manager Myles Grant rally his team into an unthinkable comeback?
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Introducing Year 7 – 11 House Captain Teams
7Ba1 7Ba2 7By1 7By2 7K1 7K2 7L1 7L2 No. Moments after the restart, two exquisite goals in quick succession from Clark and Gittins proved how dominant the three times County Champions were. Year 12 started to commit more men forward in an attempt to hit double figures, however this proved costly for them as Year 13 were able to play the long ball, counter attacking football they are familiar with. Unattractive! Black seized upon two long punts as he left Astbury red faced, he firstly scrambled the ball into the net before smashing a second past debutant keeper De Winter.
Now at 5-2, the score line started to flatter Year 12, before Walters surged forward in a Bale-esque fashion to score past erratic goalkeeper Wolfe. In a controversial decision, Richardson took a tumble to earn a penalty for his team. He stepped up himself and slotted home, lucky number 7 for Year 13, 7-2. A final consolation was taken out of the game for Year 12 as star man Cam Black got his hat-trick in what was a terrier like performance from him. Final whistle… Year 13 – 7, Cameron Black – 3. At the end of the game, all of the players from both teams shook hands, despite their rivalry, on the field. This match was a thrilling game for those who came to watch, and a fitting remembrance to Tristan and his family. Thank you to all who attended. #Year 13 #TwoTimes
8Ba1 8Ba2 8By1 8By2 8K1 8K2 8L1 8L2
Year 7 Daniel Richards & Eliza Rose Dominic Wright & Leah Parry William Robinson & Ben Tyson Alex Gillson & Eve Chaloner Emma Smith & Eve Griffiths Nicole McAuley & Lucy Peterson Jenny Stelling & Ben Tabenor Ruth Campbell & Ewan Bradley
Year 8 Paige Pedlow & Alex Martin Zuzu Walker & Priya Karnik Megan Tuck & Arin Theard Denin Bridgeman Osian Williams & Elise Allison Isaac Dunford Declan McKinney & Kyle Salisbury Elliot Deakin
9Ba2 9By1 9By2 9K1 9K2 9L1 9L2
Year 9 Inês Caramujo, Molly Jones, Joseph Baldacchino, Harry Ford, Christian Castle & Briony Vickers Mark Goldthorpe & Saul Duxbury Jasmine Prince, Megan Gibbons & Sarah Walters Ellie Wilkins, Issy Cornwell & Lucy Osborne Jenny Wilkinson Robi–Lea Creswell
10B1 10B2 10B3 10B4 10B5 10L1 10L2 10L3 10L4 10L5
Grace Broughton & Harry Fleetwood Tyler Jones & Connor Rowbottom Natalie Fryer & Ryan Hardwick Katie Barker & Matthew Rowson Mia Bellion & Oliver Wright Jasmine Bell & James Babgy Lucy Hosker & Jamie McKay Olivia Wood & Fin Wojtan Chloe Gale & Adam Stanworth Emma Ogunyemi & Sam Brierly
9Ba1
11B1 11B2 11B3 11B4 11B5 11L1 11L2 11L3 11L4 11L5
Year 10 Lead House Captains Joe Berry & Chloe Jones
Year 11 Georgia Fennell Robyn Barrett Hannah Whitlock & Saleem Rizvi Harry Hatwell Jamilla Spauls & Danny Ward Megan Russon Greg James Catherine Evans & Jonny Starnes Paige Johnson Henry Walsh
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
S cience People love to wonder, and that is the seed of
Ralph Waldo Emerson
We asked students about why they enjoyed their science lessons and the subject itself. As Hot Scholars, we think that it is very important that people appreciate the huge variety of subjects that Christleton High School has to offer. The pictures show us performing one of our favourite practicals called “Methane Bubbles”. The best quotes from students are listed below along with some to inspire you:
“I enjoy science because I get to learn about the world around me!” Year 7 Student “I love science because I learn something new from every lesson.” Year 8 Student
“I love science because I get to do a practical almost every lesson.” Year 7 Student
“I learn about how the Earth is unique in the Solar System and how big the Universe really is!” Year 7 Student
“I love science because my teacher always explains things clearly and the topics are interesting.” Year 9 Student “Science is but an image of the truth” Francis Bacon
“Chemistry is my favourite science because we get to use different chemicals to create really cool reactions.” Year 7 student
“I look forward to my biology lessons because I want to be a doctor and I find how the body works very interesting.” Year 10 Student
“The science of today is the technology of tomorrow” Edward Teller
“I love science because I get to learn about how things work and why they happen, even though I can’t see it happening with my eyes.” Year 7 Student “Science has made us gods even before we are worthy of being men.” Jean Rostand
"One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike - and yet it is the most precious thing we have." Albert Einstein
“Science as a whole involves so many other subjects to explain about how the Universe and everything in it works.” Year 10 Student
“Science is awesome! You don’t have to be amazing at maths to be a successful scientist; Einstein proved this!” Year 8 Student Blythe Walker and Charlotte Timms The Science Hot Scholars
Autumn Term 2013
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Action on Anglesey! A Level environmental studies
Day 1 After the journey from Christleton to Amlwch in Anglesey we arrived at Parys Mountain, an old copper mine where our first investigation began. We visited here to investigate the impact of past mining activity on the quality of water on the mountain. We began by meeting David Jenkins, a retired chemist from Bangor University who was a bit of an expert on landscape that was in front of us, He explained to us how the land was formed and why copper is found there (through copper veins found through the Earth’s crust); he also told us about the different minerals that were mined at the mountain when the mine was open in the 18th century. On our tour of the Mountain we saw the devastation that had been caused to the landscape from the mining activity all those year ago. The burnt orange coloured waste heaps created a landscape that was more like a moonscape! Our investigation took the form of a comparison of the physical, chemical and biological properties of two different pools – one which was surrounded by the waste heaps and so directly affected by the toxic run off from them and one higher up, out of harms reach. The difference between the two was staggering!
Day 2 Ecological succession on the sand dunes at Aberffraw was our second investigation of the week. This location was chosen because of the vastness of the sand dunes partially the fact that you could see each stage of the process of natural succession
clearly. Here we profiled the sand dunes and studied the change in biotic factors (living) as you move inland and the abiotic factors (non-living). We did all this in groups and were left on our own which gave us the feeling of independence and was different to any other field trips. We spent the whole day at the beach doing this investigation and after we went for a much deserved drink at the local café.
Day 3 Our last day was well spent visiting ‘Electric Mountain’ in Dinorwig. Here, we got to go inside the Mountain to see how a vast cavern, the size of St Paul’s Cathedral, was excavated to house the hydroelectric power station. We had to put on funny hair nets and hard hats, so that we were allowed in to the working power station. We were shown a short film about the making of the Mountain and the way it worked with to different lakes and draining them through the Mountain to turn the turbines to generate power. After we got on a bus and were taken into the depth of the Mountain where we saw hydro-electric power happen. We were shown around the mountain in the bus occasionally getting out to see the massive machines that where in the Mountain. Our tour
guide told us about the reaction time of the station which was 12 second to reach maximum power whereas the fossil fuel power station would take 48 hours to do the same. After this the trip came to an end as we started the journey home.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
S al e Sh ar k s
Rugby Coaching Clinic & Match
A group of year 8 and 9 rugby students attended a rugby coaching clinic at Sale Sharks. The focus of the session was the ruck and maul, which is an extremely important factor within the game. The boys arrived in buoyant mood and were relishing the chance to step onto the Sharks training area. Prior to their session all the pupils enjoyed a trip around the Sharks club shop, lots of items were bought and Cameron Bradley purchased his first rugby shirt. Once the boys had stepped onto the training area their coach was ready to deliver a high paced session for all to enjoy. Oliver Trollope, Jac Goodall, Arran Brearey and Jason Taylor looked highly motivated and couldn’t stop smiling. Once the training session had finished, the boys made their way over to the watch the 1st team play against London Wasps. Sharkey made a visit to our side of the stadium and gave a huge hug to some of the boys. Our pupils were fantastic all evening and were a credit to Christleton high School. A huge thank you must go to Mrs Leedham for driving and giving up her free time. Mr Barton
Autumn Term 2013
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H o w do e s Th e S wa n ma g a z i n e fi n d i ts wa y t o y o u?
My name is Dan and I’m Head of Design at NMC Design+Print.
We are not a typical commercial design and print company, we are actually part of a local Cheshire charity called The NeuroMuscular Centre (NMC), the Centre of excellence for people with muscular dystrophy (md). All our company profits go towards supporting the vital services of physiotherapy, training, employment and support offered by NMC. All of the design team and I have muscular dystrophy, a muscle wasting condition.
Christleton High School are one of our many valued customers who support the charity by working with us. Each term, just after the mid term break, we start to receive all the exciting and interesting articles from the school. My team and I create all the layouts on desktop publishing, send proof copies to the school to sign off and prepare final artwork for printing. We hope that you enjoy this brand new edition of The Swan Magazine.
Creative Graphic Design
• Print • Web Design • Promotions Cheshire’s Creative Social Enterprise
Part of the Winsford based charity The NeuroMuscular Centre, all profits go towards supporting our vital work. Contact Alison Evans 01606 863464 alison.evans@nmcentre.com nmcentre.com
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Students at the Stage where Work Placements have been
a great success!
Back Row: Row: Samuel Samuel Marshall; Marshall; Benjamin Benjamin Moody; Moody; Joseph Joseph Wells; Wells; Saleem Saleem Rizvi Rizvi Back Front Row: Row: Abbie Abbie Townsend; Townsend; Jessica Jessica Oldham Oldham ;; Richard Richard Welsh Welsh ;; Rebecca Rebecca Foxall; Foxall; Harry Harry Hatwell Hatwell Front
Year 11 students enjoyed
a really successful Work
Experience Week earlier this term and the feedback from
the employers involved has been extremely positive.
The U-Explore programme is
now being used by students to update their CVs and
personal statements to
record their experiences,
ready for sixth form, college, and apprenticeship applications in the
weeks ahead.
Here’s what some of our students thought about
their placement weeks: -
Sam Marshall 11L5
“For my Work Experience I went to IPSEN Biopharm. I was part of an experiment in which we were checking the concentration of a protein with and without PD10 buffer using UE Spectroscopy. I really enjoyed it and it helped me decide what it is I would like to do when I leave school. One of the members of staff named Rod was very inspirational to me as he was the Head of the Department that I would like to work in. The best moment was when we completed our experiment and got the results. I have learnt how to conduct myself in lab, how a lot of lab equipment works and how to calibrate the machines. The job was very enjoyable and I could see myself doing it for a living”
Benjamin Moody 11L1
“For my Work Experience I went to Growhow, a chemical manufacturing company situated in Ince, Elton. For the week I was there I worked in many different departments, by doing this I learnt many new skills and met some very influential people. The departments I worked in were: I.S; Chemist
(working in the labs); Chemical Engineering; Weighbridge; HR (Human Resources); and Customer Service. Out of the seven different departments my favourite was working on the weighbridge; it was here I learnt many skills such as working in a team, using ‘ORACLE’ the companies database, working with customers, completing paperwork and auditing. When I leave school this placement has taught me that I want to work in business and to keep learning a foreign language. My advice to someone who is preparing to do work experience would be to take notes, get involved and don’t be shy to ask questions”
Joseph Wells 11L4
“My work experience was good. I worked on the Grosvenor Estate in Chester. It involved working as part of a team to design and set up night events in aid of different charities. After helping set up and design the ‘Wolf Room’ (where the event is held) I got a rough idea how the courtyard and Eaton staff work. I have realised it is something I enjoy and would consider going to University and gaining a degree in Events”
Autumn Term 2013 Saleem Rizvi 11L3
“I really enjoyed my Work Experience week. I felt that I learned a lot about not only the world of accountancy but the world of work. I went to UHY Hacker Young, an accountantancy firm in town. I did a little taster on each aspect of accountancy; tax returns, VAT returns, bank reconciliations, audits and much more. In addition to learning about these individual aspects, I did quite a lot of administration work, which even though it was a bit tedious, I paid attention as the skills are transferable to other work places. Although I found accountancy fascinating, I’m still not convinced that it is the field that I would prefer to venture into. The work was mainly stimulating but I’m not sure I could sustain my level of interest and enthusiasm for a long enough period of time”
Abbie Townsend 11L2
“I spent my Work Experience with the Cheshire Shared Services ICT Department; I loved it! Throughout the week, I visited the different departments across shared services, including Service Desk, Networks, Data Centre and Design. My best moments were when I spent time with the Web Design Manager because I learnt the four key stages in making a website, HTML, CSS, Javascript and PHP. At the end of the week, I didn’t want to leave!”
Jessica Oldham 11L3
“I participated in the work placement at Lime Pictures Productions (the production company which broadcasts the hit TV shows ‘Hollyoaks’ and ‘The Only Way is Essex’). Entering the campus became a serious and professional experience as everything is classed as confidential as they film six weeks in advance. Whilst being at Lime Pictures Productions, I worked as a ‘Floor Runner/Assistant Director’; this was a great opportunity that I learnt many useful skills, such as communication and professionalism. The best moment was working with t he actors that I had watched every night for so long. To my surprise, they all had time for
me, making conversation and having jokes, whilst still concentrating on their important work”
Richard Welsh 11L5
“I went to a Garage and learnt many skills including how to take a tyre off a rim and replace it with another, how to change bulbs in the headlights and interior and how to work as part of a team. The best moment was when I got to help take the engine out of a vehicle because I could see inside the engine and how it all worked. I found the placement because we have known the owners for many years as my family have always taken their cars there to be serviced. The placement has given me a clearer idea about what I want to do in the future because it showed me that I would like to work with cars when I am older, but not as a mechanic”
Rebecca Foxall 11L4
“My Work Experience at Foxes Riding School was both mentally and physically challenging because I got to experience the real working hours of 8.30am until 5.30pm and although I had worked these hours doing some cover work in the past, the amount of work you have to do means a lot of running around to finish tasks on time. I got to experience different roles of the staff at the Riding School, watching instructors teaching lessons, being a yard worker and also working in the office. I was able to learn what it was like working amongst a group of individuals with contrasting personalities and how they coped with their differences. Before my Work Experience I wanted to go into either Equine Physiotherapy or something in Veterinary. Although I still aim to achieve either one of these, if it is not possible, then I would aspire to go and work on a racing yard”
Matilda Watts 11 L3
“I spent my week at a Special Needs School for Autistic children. Throughout the week I worked with a class of 6 to 8 year olds as well as having the chance to shadow a Speech and
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Language Therapist. Whilst there, I grew more selfconfident and understood more about working life. My best moments were working with the children on a one-to-one basis and spending time with the Speech and Language Therapist. I think that doing this Work Experience has helped me understand clearer what I want to do, I would like to be a Speech and Language Therapist, as the insight into that job helped me more with deciding”
Harry Hatwell 11L4
(standing in the upcoming UK Youth Parliament election!) “This summer I spent a busy and varied week at Doughty Streetthe Chambers of Baroness Kennedy QC. It was brilliant. I went to the Old Bailey, conversed with the Attorney General Dominic Grieve QC; the Lord Pannick QC (an esteemed columnist in The Times); and shook hands with Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers (the first President of the UK Supreme Court). However, my highlight was nearly appearing on the BBC News from the Royal Courts of Justice, after sitting in a courtroom full of television newscasters. In early January I applied successfully for a much-soughtafter work experience placement at Matrix Chambers in Gray’s Inn; a leading public law set and the brainchild of Cherie Booth QC (Tony Blair’s wife) and a team of other leading barristers. I had a really interesting and varied week; here is a taste of what I did:
For the first two days I saw an extradition case at Westminster Magistrates’ Court (the court of first instance for all extradition cases in England and Wales) involving the ex-owner of Plymouth F.C. and another individual, who were wanted back in Lithuania over alleged financial crimes totalling nearly €493m. A junior from Matrix was acting on behalf of one of the defendants (and was led by a silk from Doughty Street- the leading human rights Chambers where I went for work experience in the summer holidays).
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
On Wednesday and Thursday I attended the Supreme Court to see the much-reported case of a homosexual couple who were refused a double room at a private hotel in Devon. Queen’s Counsels from Chambers represented the Christian proprietors and also intervened on behalf of Liberty. They were both excellent; eloquently spoken and their respective arguments were extremely interesting to hear. Then during Thursday afternoon I worked through an enthralling hypothetical legal question about gross negligence manslaughter (a very hard to prove version of the criminal charge of manslaughter); at the end of the day I came up with a draft opinion as if I was a Crown Prosecutor working on the case.
Friday was probably the most varied day. I read through a skeleton argument for a very delicate and highly important asylum and immigration case, attended a conference with the clients- and then saw a leading immigration, asylum and education law junior brilliantly argue the case laid out in the document. Later in the afternoon I did some very interesting costs and accounts filing! Without a doubt, my recent week spent at Matrix was eyeopening, invigorating and has made me even more sure that I want to work as a barrister later on in life”
A big thank you to all
of the companies and
organisations that assisted and
congratulations to all
our Year 11 students! Thanks also to Karen
Varley for her help in keeping things
running so smoothly.
Calling all Year 10 Students…..
Work Experience week is just ten months away! Work Experience: Monday 20th to Friday 24th October 2014
(Provisional Date: subject to confirmation once school term dates are approved and published)
The week before October half term next year is Work Experience week; this means that Year 11 students (our current Year 10) will be off-timetable for the week and be able to get valuable experience of the world of work and a possible future career.
Recent research has shown that in a highly competitive jobs market relevant work experience can make a big difference to students’ employability. Work Experience also helps with future decision making about careers; students can understand work likes and dislikes better, learn about an occupation and decide whether it is for them.
Students are encouraged to organise their own placements wherever possible; Mrs Varley can help with this, and further details will be given to students next term.
In the meantime students are encouraged to make use of the ‘Search’ facility through U-Explore (www.u-xplore.com) to find all about the Related Job Roles that different interests and aspirations can lead to.
Local Employers: Can You Help?
If you are able to offer the chance for a fifteen / sixteen-year old to have a week’s work experience with you, please let us know. Contact Karen Varley varleyk@christletonhigh.co.uk Thank You!
Autumn Term 2013
Children in Need
This year we had a non uniform day to raise money for Children In Need.
Lots of people did extra events to add to the pot. Quite a few people did sponsored silences. We wore our pyjamas to school and managed to raise £105 which we were very happy with!
Someone else in our Form managed to raise £75 for not eating sweets or chocolate for a week. Everyone in the school contributed £1 for being able to come to school in their own clothes; This in itself will raise over £1,000. We also had a cake sale and Mrs Harper was painting nails, which was a great way of getting lots of money.
Christleton High School and it’s students have done very well and raised lots of money for Children In Need.
Charlotte McConnell 7Ba2 Sophie Newman 7Ba2
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Connor’s Placement Leads Him to Reaseheath College Animal Care Diploma Connor Stoddart 11B3 (with another happy
customer!) on his BTEC Work Skills placement.
Year 11 student Connor Stoddart has received a glowing report from his one-day-a week placement at Poochini’s Dog Grooming as part of his Learning to Work BTEC Work Skills course. Connor has been particularly praised for his reliability, sense of humour, good relationships with customers, and growing confidence and initiative.
Connor is hoping to study at Reaseheath College in Nantwich next year, and is interested in the Diploma in Animal Care which includes Animal health and
welfare, Animal accommodation, Animal feeding, Animal behaviour and handling, Animal biology, and Conservation and British habitats.
He has made effective use of the guidance available from Sylvia Wood, our school Pathway Careers Advisor, which has included helpful tips on completing the college application form.
Further details of the exciting courses available at Reaseheath College can be found on their website www.reaseheath.ac.uk . Sylvia Wood is also available to meet with students who would like to know more. Congratulations Connor on such a successful placement, and good luck next year!
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
U- Explore… Students Explore Their Future Pathways
We are very pleased that so many students in Years 7 to 13 are making effective use of U-Explore, the online interactive careers education site that the school is fully subscribed to. Following a series of bespoke assemblies for every year group, students now have a regular fortnightly session with their form tutors in an ICT room where they can find out what U-Explore has to offer and look at potential future careers and what is needed.
In the last few weeks students have been using the U-Explore CV Builder to complete electronic curriculum vitae which they will be able to update as things change and they gain more experience. Here’s what some Year 8 students have to say about their experience of using U-Explore:
Archie Gautier 8By2: “Using U-Explore is nice and simple. I like the template for producing a professionallooking c.v.”
Ophelia Catherall-Davis 8By2: “It’s straight-forward to use and I’m looking forward to finding out everything it can do!”
James Day 8By2: “I think it’s really easy to use and it will help me for finding out about what I want to do later in life. I’m using it to find out about architecture as a career, and what is needed”.
U-Explore: the Interactive careers education site available for students and parents
U-Explore offers a wealth of information, advice, and ideas and can be used to find more about: • • • • •
Careers, Information, Advice and Guidance Year 9 Pathways Work Experience preparation Post 16 Options Apprenticeships, BTECs and other vocational qualifications
U-Explore focuses on the main industry sectors of work, linking students to the business community and also providing an insight into different working environments, through 360° virtual, interactive tours and video clips.
U-Explore really helps to raise awareness of what opportunities are available in a particular sector and what skills and qualifications students will need to get a job in that area. U-Explore has videos of real people working in their chosen fields and practical tips on how students can reach their goal.
Students and Parents: How to Sign Up in Five Simple Steps…. 1. Go to www.uxplore.com and click on Register
2. Type in the brief details About You and create your Login Information 3. Select Cheshire West; Chester; Christleton High School 4. Type in the school Registration Code: 40329
5. When redirected to the start page enter your login information and click Go!
Autumn Term 2013
News from Sylvia Wood, our Pathway Careers Advisor…
an element of ‘off the job’ training which usually takes place with a training provider or at a college. There are 150 sectors to choose from – business, engineering, catering, hairdressing, beauty etc. The core components are: •
•
•
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Santa Sylvia here with a sack-full of news of relating to my role as the Pathway Careers Advisor for Christleton High School!
When I’m not feeding Rudolph I am based here at Christleton High School every Wednesday and have been involved in activities such as guidance interviews, group work and talks with students.
This term I have already met individually with dozens of students from Year 9 upwards and discussed future pathways choices. I have met with lots of sixth formers, many of whom are seriously thinking about whether the university option is most appropriate for them, as there are now other ways of gaining degreelevel qualifications without getting saddled with enormous student debts. Year 9 and Year 11 students have also been keen to get appointments to discuss the options choices that lie ahead. There are many options available to young people after they leave Year 11 – to join the sixth form, do a college course or employment with recognised training. Information on Apprenticeship vacancies for students in Years 11, 12 and 13 has now started to become available and I am able to assist students with this too.
What is an Apprenticeship? An Apprenticeship is a job with training which allows young people to earn while they learn, whilst gaining nationally recognised qualifications. Most of the training is delivered in the work place, with
•
A nationally recognised vocational qualification Functional skills, such as working in teams, problem solving, literacy and numeracy, communication and using new technology. A technical certificate such as a BTEC or City & Guilds Other professional qualifications or requirements as specified by the particular job.
Benefits of doing an Apprenticeship • Earning a salary • Training in the skills employers want • Excellent progression opportunities whether looking to study further or climb the ranks within the workplace • Increased future earning potential; apprentices enjoy marked salary increases when they complete their training • Better long term salary prospects • Learning at a pace suited to the individual with the support of a mentor
There are three entry points, and progression through the different levels: - Intermediate Level Apprenticeship - Advanced Level Apprenticeship - Higher Apprenticeship.
Salaries The minimum wage for apprentices is £2.68 per hour, but many employers pay more than this. The average gross weekly wage for an apprentice is £200. This depends upon the sector, region and Apprenticeship. Entry requirements Apprenticeships are available to anyone over the age of 16. There are different entry requirements depending on the sector and job. Apprentices need to be committed, motivated, enthusiastic and reliable, with a ‘can-do’ attitude. Duration A minimum of one year, however many can take longer, such as engineering.
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Where to find them? Start looking NOW!
www.apprenticeships.org.uk register to get vacancies emailed to you.
www.totalpeople.co.uk register to get vacancies notified to you, or download your CV onto their website.
These offer a range of apprenticeships, however you can find some training providers who have details of specific areas of work such as TTE Ltd., Ellesmere Port who offer Engineering and Laboratory training: www.remit.co.uk apply online motor mechanics, business studies etc. www.nwtc.co.uk apply online motor mechanics, engineering, construction etc.
www.cheshirewestandchestercounc il.gov.uk offers IT, Accountancy, Admin and Customer Care. Larger employers have their own websites. Details of any apprenticeships they may be offering (e.g. Airbus, Bentley Motors, Vauxhall, Kellogg’s etc. are usually found there)
Apply to smaller firms direct by sending a CV and a covering letter. I have a growing list of firms who recruit annually…
Any student who wishes to meet with me for help, support, advice or guidance related to careers and future pathways can make an appointment to see me through Mr Francis or Mrs Varley. I will also be available at most Parents’ Evenings at school and appointments to meet me can be arranged for this as well. I can also be contacted directly at sylviawood@live.co.uk I look forward to getting to know even more of you over the months ahead.
Sylvia Wood Pathway Careers Advisor
Architectural
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Lighting Project We have introduced a new project in D&T this half-term, replacing our ‘thinking outside the box’ scheme with our new ‘architectural lighting’ task.
It is always an exciting time introducing a fresh, new project, waiting in anticipation to see how the students will interpret this challenging brief. This project will give all students the chance to really stretch their
creative abilities and enable them to develop their attitude to what is possible. This new project is all about designing and manufacturing a small USB desk lamp inspired by iconic modern architecture. Students will use a plastic called polypropylene in various colours to develop an interesting and practical solution to this brief. Students have already had
some great ideas that they are taking forward, concentrating on buildings such as the eiffel tower in Paris, the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khlaif in Dubia, the ‘birds nest’ Biejing’s Olympic stadium, the sail shaped 7 star hotel the Burj Al Arab in Dubia and many more.
The best of the final products will be showcased in the next Issue of the SWAN magazine.
M r A l f or d a n d M r s L e e d h a m s a y G o o d b y e
We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to you all. We have loved teaching at Christleton and will both leave with great memories. We feel privileged to have worked with such exceptional young people and brilliant hard-working staff. Mr. Alford is going to run his own software business and Mrs Leedham is having several gap years! Good luck to you all in whatever you do. Have a Merry Christmas and Goodbye! Love Mr A and Mrs L. XXXXXXX
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Autumn Term 2013
Pathway to Learning for Work Year 10 Students Enjoy College Placement Success
As part of the Year 10 Work Skills BTEC course, students have been enjoying a half day placement every Monday at West Cheshire College. This has given students the opportunity to experience the world of work by learning the skills of particular skilled trades which are always in demand, such as joinery, brick-laying, and painting and decorating.
During Work Skills lessons in school students have been completing units such as Applying for a Job, Self Management Skills, Preparing for an Interview, and Managing Your Health at Work; the regular placement has allowed students to see the relevance of the ideas covered in school and then apply these to a real and practical experience.
The feedback from college tutors about the progress the students have been making has been really positive, so congratulations to all eleven students involved:
• • • • • • • • • • •
Owen Dance 10L3 Michael Hesketh 10B5 Charlie Hill 10L5 Bradley Jackson 10L4 Owen Lang 10B5 Matthew Leek 10L4 Jack McGuiness 10B4 Nathan McLaughlin 10B4 Joshua Moulton 10B4 Aaron Roberts 10L5 Dominic Wilding 10L5
Josh Josh Moulton: Moulton: “Get “Get Your Your Boots Boots on, on, Josh!” Josh!”
Owen Owen Lang Lang saw saw what what was was needed! needed!
Owen Owen Dance: Dance: “The “The January January Sales Sales have have started started early early again!” again!”
Bradley Bradley Jackson Jackson is is taking taking great great steps steps to to success! success!
Mike Mike Hesketh Hesketh measures measures it it carefully! carefully!
“Make “Make sure sure you you paste paste right right up up to to the the edges” edges” Bradley Bradley Jackson Jackson and and Nathan Nathan McLaughlin McLaughlin show show us us how how it’s it’s done done
Charlie Charlie Hill Hill is is getting getting the the hang hang of of it! it!
Total Total Concentration Concentration from from Dominic Dominic Wilding! Wilding!
Jack Jack McGuiness McGuiness makes makes sure sure it’s it’s ready ready for for pasting! pasting!
Owen Owen Dance Dance cuts cuts a a professional-looking professional-looking figure! figure!
Aaron Aaron Roberts: Roberts: “It’s “It’s a a perfect perfect fit!” fit!”
Congratulations to all our Year 10 BTEC Work Skills students.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Welcome to Design Technology
Autumn Term 2013 Christleton High year 7’s victorious in the Tarporley Rugby Festival
On the 26.09.13 Christleton, Tarporley, Whitby and Abbey gate year 7s all arrived at Tarporley high school for what was to be a spectacular evening of rugby.
Business BTEC trip to
Manchester United
It seems important to mention this was the year 7s first game representing Christleton high school. They felt nervous, anxious but excited to start. Dylan Bevan Jones took on the role of Captain with his previous experience at Chester Rugby club giving him the upper hand on the opposition.
The first game was drawn; It was Tarporley, the home team. This wasn’t wanted at first but we knew that it would set the standard for the rest of the tournament. A tuff game but with the back row players (Tommy Vickery, Ali Roberts, Will Robinson) linking up well with the front row players (Jacob Jones, Dylan Bright) we were victorious in scoring 2 more tries than the home team making the score (15 – 5). In the second game we faced Abbey gate which we knew would make an interesting game. With two tries scored each, 10 – 10 was the final score. We knew the next game had to be won!
In the third and final game this was our biggest challenge. Whitby. They had extremely strong players, some of which who played for Ellesmere rugby club. The team went in with their heads held high and an attitude which could not be beaten. With strong tackles to stop Whitby on our try line from Ben Tabbiner and great runs and breaks from both Tommy and Dylan we were victorious beating them 10 - 5.
2 wins and 1 draw meant that Christleton high were champions of the Tarporley Rugby Festival. Cheers went around all of the players at the tournament and the smiles could not be wiped from the year 7 Christleton high school boys.
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As part of the Business BTEC course, Year 10 and 11 students were treated to an educational presentation and tour of the stadium and museum at Manchester United.
The day started with a look around the museum where we viewed trophy cabinets and the many prestigious awards won by the club in their 103 year history.
We watched a short film about the influential factors which sets them apart from other clubs such as training, nutrition and mindset skills. Great players over the years have encompassed these factors to help make Manchester United the most successful football club in the world.
presentation on the financial position of the business, discussing key financial statements such as the balance sheet, cash flow forecast and income statements. Manchester United are prudent when they set their accounts against minimum expected outcomes for the finishing position of the club in both the Premier league and the champions league. This ensures that they generate profit as very few UK clubs do.
Our tour guide Kenny then took us around the stadium, where we experienced a fans perspective of the great game. We also went through the players changing rooms where team tactics are discussed and we were shown the facilities that the players and their families have access to on match days. Students had a photo opportunity with former manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
The educational Manager then delivered an informative
Our U16 Chester & District netball winners
Ellie Pino, Robyn McNally, Hannah Rain, Megan Russon, Emilia Perks, Emma Roberts, Maria England, Georgia Jones … missing from the photo is Sophie Clark (Year 10). The team played amazingly well to beat Queens, Kings, Heber, Tarporley, Abbeygate
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Sixth Form pass on their
Wo rd s o f W is do m. . . My advice would be to make sure that you don’t leave out anything in your revision. When I was revising for my AS exams, I didn’t revise research methods in Psychology as much as I should have, this can really let you down as the little marks make up one big mark! If you’ve got Mr Llewellyn, you’ve probably heard the word ‘elaborate’ about a million times, listen to him! You may think you have written enough, but if you leave out a little thing it can really mark you down! One last thing, don’t stress about the case studies. I was so worried about having to learn the names and years of them when in reality if you can describe them in detail you don’t need the names or years. Good luck guys, and don’t stress!
Courtney Graham
One of our students
recently said to me that, if somebody from Year 13, at the beginning of her
time in Sixth form, had
told her how much you’ve got to revise and how
hard you have to work, she would have really
listened to them. Teachers do tend to exaggerate a
bit, apparently! That got
me thinking that an article in The Swan would be a
great way to pass that
wisdom on from one year to another. So here you go…
The advice I would give to the Year 12’s about how to be successful is mainly to learn everything. Whatever you don’t study will be on the paper and then you’ll wish you’d looked over it more- I know this for a fact. Another bit of advice I’d give would be is to elaborate you answers. Make sure you write every little bit of information you can (which is relevant to the question, of course) because even missing a few words out
can lose you marks. Also, try different methods of revision so you don’t get bored of what you’re revising (my favourite method was pair cards), because you’ll need to do lots of it. Good luck, I hope you all do brilliantly!
Lydia Wright
Sure, you can revise and learn everything for an exam; however, the knowledge is useless if you do not know how to apply it. That is why my advice for you is to practise your exam technique. Usually the giant mark losses in exams are not to do with the knowledge you have, but the fact that it was not applied properly. Make sure you read the question thoroughly because you could potentially lose marks for misreading part of it. Those small marks add up so make sure you are trying your hardest to make your questions as detailed as you need. If the exam is going to consist of longer answers, create a basic plan for each sort of question. Revise not just the contents of questions; but what sort of questions are on the exam paper, the amount of marks and what do you need to do to get the maximum. Follow this and all the other tips and you will do absolutely fine!
Alex Higgins
Autumn Term 2013
My advice would be that it is very important to prioritise your revision; it may seem like a lot of temptation to go out with your friends. But exams only last for a short period of time and then once there over you have plenty of time to go out. It may seem like a good idea to put off revision and say you’ll do it later but truth is you’ll just keep putting it off! So write down how many hours of revision you plan to do and stick to it! If you don’t do well in your exams you’ll regret it later on in life, so get down and revise because it will be worth it when you open your results on results day!!
Charlotte Lee
Staying on top of each topic that you learn in class is important. Before you move onto something new in a subject, make sure that you understand everything you have been studying in class and perhaps make a note about the parts you are not confident on. This way you are revising as you go along. However, everyone learns in different ways, so when you come to revise your subjects try to find a bearable way to do it. I find revising with a friend helpful because you can both test each other and keep each other on track. Try not to get stressed out too much; it isn’t the most important thing ever just try your best!
Ed Behan
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Trips taking place next term 13th January 2014 Yrs 10,11,12 and 13 Drama trip to see ‘Warhorse’
24th January 2014 Yrs 12 and 13 Business Studies Exam Coaching Workshop 27th January 2014 Yr 9 Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Training
28th January 2014 Yrs 11,12 and 13 Drama trip to see ‘Blindsided’
31st January to 3rd February 2014 Yrs 10 and 11 Visit to Paris 8th February 2014 Yr 10 Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award 14th to 18th February 2014 Yrs 10, 11, 12 and 13 Rome and Pompeii visit
The advice I would give to Year 12 students would be to learn how you revise best. Teachers, parents and friends are all going to be giving you advice but you need to find your own way that works for you! Something I have done numerous times in the past is leave things till last minute, then try to do everything at once and completely panic and end up doing things badly. Take things a little at the time and don’t get bogged down in work. Maybe set yourself a task for an hour and then have a little break, go out, see your friends etc. Try to stay positive and remember you can do this and it’ll all be worthwhile in the end.
Samira RahmaniTorkaman
The most important thing is to ensure you have plenty of time to revise. Revision is vital to succeed. You need to try out a number of different ways of revising, that way you will find out which revision technique works well for you early on, before it’s too late. Exams are over in a matter of weeks so do not make the mistake of thinking you’ll be able to revise last minute because from experience you honestly wont! Keep all your information and sheets given to you throughout the year organised so they are easy to come back to when you need them. When you look back, you’ll realise that exams are not as big as they seem. Put the work in and it will pay-off. Don’t look back and have regrets. Revise!
Gemma Harper-Lea
Mr Llewellyn Head of Social Sciences
1st to 2nd March 2014 Yr 9 Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Training 7th to 9th March 2014 Yr 10 Art and Design Course
17th to 21st March 2014 Yr 10 GCSE Geography/Enviro Field trip (several groups) 18th March 2014 Yrs 8 and 9 UK Mathematics Challenge
20th March 2014 Yrs 11, 12 and 13 Drama trip to see ‘Twelfth Night’ 28th March 2014 Yr 12 Government, Politics and Law trip to Parliament 4th to 6th April 2014 Y10 Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Practice (Group A) 6th to 13th April 2014 Yrs 8, 9,10, 11 12 and 13 Ski trip to Passo Tonale
14th to 16th April 2014 Yr 10 Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Practice (Group B)
(Correct at time of publishing)
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine
Sixth Form Scarefest! Travel and Tourism Students develop Event Management
Employability Skills
we needed to follow in order to make our event take place. Firstly, we had to create a business plan which required us to work out the break even and the costs, meet our business goals as well as the feasibility of the trip to ensure that it’s a success. We then started planning for the event by making posters for the event and putting them up in the common room and around the school, going into assemblies doing talks to Year 12 and 13 about the event including things like why we were running the event, the price, why they should come and new rides that were at the park. We wrote letters so that people could come on the trip and pay for it.
A-Level Travel and Tourism Students (from left to right): Hannah Trafford, Eshah Toona, Jessica Cliffe, Sarah Davies, Jonathan Morgan, Rebecca Woolley, Liberty McLeay, and team mascot Ted the Travel & Tourism Terrier!
Once we decided on a price for the event which was £25, we decided to run a cake sale for the trip so that we could send some of the money to a charity called Neuroblastoma. We raised over £100!
At the beginning of the year when we started year 13 when we found out that for our coursework we would be planning, organising and running an event for our year. It was very exciting!
We all got into groups and decided on four different Events. These events included trips to Chester Zoo, Disneyland Paris, and Go Ape! and Alton Towers Scarefest. We all presented to each other a feasibility study of our chosen event, so that we could include different factors such as transport, cost and a SWOT analysis. This meant that we had to ring up coach companies ourselves and ask for a rough price as to how much it would cost to transport people to and from the event. After surveying Year 13 we decided on Alton Towers as it was the most popular event. Once we decided that the Alton Towers trip was our choice of event, there were several different steps
Cake Sale Success: Hannah Trafford, Erica Smith, Jessica Cliffe, Sarah Davies, Heather Hughes, Eshah Toona, and Year 8 helpers Elizabeth Glading 8Ba2 Eleanor Moulson 8Ba2; After a successful cake sale we raised over £100 for charity!
Autumn Term 2013
Teamwork was crucial to us as a Travel & Tourism class as we all have different skills that needed to be applied to different tasks. For instance, listening and communication skills were key as we all had different ideas to share therefore we had to combine everything to make sure that its fair and that everything runs smoothly.
Arriving at school for the event we agreed to arrive half an hour early so that we had time to spare before the coach was arriving and also to make sure of no delays with the trip. Luckily everyone arrived on time. We were able to take photographs of the group and talk them through our itinerary. The problems we faced when arriving at school were the worry of the coach not turning up. Whilst nervously waiting, without being able to confirm with the coach company as their offices are closed on Sundays we had to trust our planning previously. With the coach arriving exactly on time as expected the group was relieved to get everyone on the coach. Jonny then spoke to the students while on the bus explaining what our aims were for the day and thanking the group for coming.
At 6.30pm everyone was to meet at the front of Alton Towers in order for us to get back on the bus and be able to be back at school for 9pm. However we didn’t end up meeting everyone until 6.45pm as there were a few late comers but we still managed to get back on the bus before 7pm and we made it back by 8.30pm ahead of schedule! After making sure everyone had been safely picked up we were all able to go home and warm up our frozen feet! Many thanks to Mrs Bolam, Mr Burns, and Mr Hornby who gave up the last day of the half term holiday to accompany us. The event was a great success and we have got loads of ideas which we can now include in our Event Management coursework write-up.
Jessica Cliffe, Sarah Davies, Heather Hughes, Charlotte Lee-Codling, Liberty McLeay, Jonathan Morgan, Eshah Toona, Hannah Trafford and Rebecca Woolley Year 13 Travel & Tourism Class 2013-14
Scared-Looking Students Getting Ready to leave for the Alton Towers Scarefest: “Don’t worry; Ted will protect you!” After a one and a half hour bus journey we finally arrived at Alton Towers just before midday as planned. It was raining which slightly dampened the mood. After having been informed of meeting places and times we went to the ticket office to collect the tickets and then gave them to the students who then went off to do their own thing.
We were able to rely on the beautiful English weather to rain all day however this did not stop us going on the flumes or any rides for that matter. Due to the fact that it was the ScareFest event, there were scary mazes set up around the park plus people dressed up walking around!
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Citizenship & PSHE Department Year 11 trip to Krakow, Poland
“We set off from Liverpool airport at 9am Sunday morning and on arrival at Krakow we took a coach to the hotel so we could drop off our bags at Hotel Classic. Afterwards, we had a tour of the Jewish district looking at the old synagogues and learning about what happened in Krakow in World War 2. The tour finished at the Schindler’s Museum. The tour took 3 hours in total; an hour and a half was spent in the museum. The tour was a great introduction to Krakow and was very interesting to learn about what happened in Krakow during World War 2”. Tom McKeown “We were lucky enough to have gone miles underground to see the glorious views of the Wielickza salt mine in Krakow, Poland. We had our own personal tour guides who showed us around the salt mines, although we only got to see 1% of the marvellous underground sights as it would have taken one whole week to see the whole of the salt mine. Nevertheless we got to see the beauty of the salt mines and we also learnt how the workers used to extract the salt from the mine. There was also a gift shop that sold bath salts and cooking salts at good prices which is good because you saw how it was made and produced”. Lauren Beeby & Fay-Marie Herbert
Autumn Term 2013
“Night time in Krakow brought the city to life. The square, in which we spent our evenings was filled with a variety of shops, restaurants and historical monuments. Each evening after a fun filled day we would have free time to have a meal with friends, shop and wonder about the square, giving us independence on the trip. The square gave us the opportunity to experience the Polish culture and spend time with our friends, there were various things to do such as taking a tour on a horse and carriage around the square, trying different Polish foods, and making new friends. We all enjoyed spending each evening in the square as there was never a dull moment, we all would love to visit Krakow again”. Harriet Keogh, Chloe WatsonMeyers and Jodie Dowling
“On day two we went to Auschwitz, which was the first concentration camp in the region. We had a tour round the barracks, which displayed different exhibitions of the life of a prisoner, from deportation to extermination. This was a very interesting yet surreal experience, as it was very difficult to imagine how hard the life was for the prisoners. Particularly moving was the exhibit of 7 tonnes of human hair. This one exhibit can help you imagine the acts of cruelty that were performed at Auschwitz.
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Afterwards we went to Auschwitz 2 also known as Birkenau. Here we stood where we could see the infamous entrance where the many innocent people brought here were sent to their deaths in the gas chambers. We saw the gas chambers which had been destroyed by the Nazis and the memorial to commemorate the holocaust. Our tour guide ended the tour by warning us not to let the past repeat itself, as the future is in our hands.
Later on that day we went to the glacier museum and again got a personal tour guide. We learnt about the different parts of the holocaust and what happened after it. It also gave us all an insight of what it was like during that time as we saw pictures and got information about the holocaust. While we were there we got the privilege to meet one of the youngest survivors, Lydia. She talked about her experience in Auschwitz. Lydia was 3 years old when she went Auschwitz and despite her going through experiences that we can never imagine, she was adopted at the end of World War 2 and has dedicated the rest her life to not letting people forget the torture of the holocaust”. Henry Walsh, Meds Jones, Will Shannon, Alex Coker, Georgina Taylor, Sam Marshall, Catherine Evans
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5 Make Cheshire Squad Five Players from the Year 8 Rugby team have been selected to represent Cheshire West in the up and coming triangular tournament against Cheshire Central and
Cheshire East. Jac Goodall, Tom Roebuck, Oliver Trollope, Arran Brearey and Max Freeman have been fantastic this year and they attended a train in September and all players were selected. All players have said ‘it a real honour to play for Cheshire West’ and they will all be training hard to make the starting XV. Well done to all players, I am very proud. Mr Barton
Year 7 and 8 Rugby
The Year 7 rugby squads have been in fine for again this year, both teams have gone unbeaten and both teams are still in the Chester and District Cup, while the year 8 team have made it through to the 2nd round of the Cheshire Cup. This is the first time a team from I started playing Badminton for fun at the gym. Mum went to her exercise classes whilst I went to kids club. Badminton was one of the many activities I tried there. I enjoyed playing Badminton although I wasn’t very good at it at first. I liked it so much that I asked if I could play it with my mum and dad, so we bought inexpensive racquets and plastic shuttles to play with at the gym. I used to get frustrated that I couldn’t win against mum but I was getting better each time I played, until one day a Badminton coach watched me play and then spoke to mum about some coaching for kids that he held at the gym.
I had a few lessons shared with Ben Grace and mum, over the weeks we all gradually improved as we learned the correct strokes and movements around the court. In September 2012 I was asked to
Christleton has made it through to the next round of the Cheshire Cup, a huge well done to all the boys involved.
reasons why they are playing so well in their matches. Remember all players of all abilities are welcome to training and I hope we can build on our successes so far.
Badminton:
The teams have frequently been coming to rugby training on Tuesdays and that is one of the
Mr Barton
My route to the Cheshire Squad
join Wirral Cell which provides 2 hours coaching on Sunday mornings, Ben joined with me but unfortunately the coaching is aimed at kids so mum was not invited. I enjoyed going to training and was encouraged to enter competitions now that I had a Badminton England number having been registered with them when joining Wirral Cell. Last season I entered four competitions one of which was sponsored by Unipart. I surprised myself and my mum when I qualified for the finals and then went on to win both the singles and doubles competitions in the Under 13 age group. At about the same time, a lady at the gym asked my mum if I could attend a training session with Cheshire Development Squad for assessment by the coach, as a consequence of this I am now training with the Cheshire Development Squad and have recently moved up to a higher level, I have joined West Cheshire Performance Centre, I still train
with Wirral Cell and have just been offered a trial period training with the U15 Cheshire Squad, in all I spend around 6 hours a week being coached which I love and I also attend two other clubs just for fun.
As part of the West Cheshire Performance Centre 5th birthday celebrations held in November, I got the opportunity to be coached by Steve Butler, England Coach which was great fun and a fantastic opportunity!
I really enjoy playing Badminton, its surprising how fit you have to be to move around the court faster than the shuttle. The coaching sessions have improved my game to the point that I have now been asked to play for Cheshire Under 14 team when they compete in Sheffield in January 2014. I am really looking forward to representing Cheshire. Tom Foster 8K2
Autumn Term 2013
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Condover Hall Tour Running with our stars
Cross Country Cup
The Cross Country team was a massive success, 2nd, 2nd and 5th. We were second in the first round then again in the second round, and an incredible run by the whole team got us into 5th in England! The boy’s ran amazingly well in every race.
A special mention to Christy Mageean and Lewis Roberts, Christy won the first round, came 2nd in the second round (he would have won it if it wasn’t for a fall), and a stunning 11th in the national final. Lewis was nearly beaten by his nerves, but ran amazingly well and left his them at the blocks. This year the team is just as strong with George Stockton joining the team. He ran a strong race in the first round coming 16th in his first competitive race. We have only had 5 runners in the previous round but we didn’t need the 6th runner. Here were our results. Christy Mageean 3rd, Lewis Roberts 6th, Adam Carlile 7th, George Stockton 16th and Cameron Bradley coming home in 20th. We might get a 6th runner in the shoes of Harry Maltby. He has shown great pace in the cross country P.E lessons, running in under 13 minutes. We are all set for the regional finals. Mr Alford
On September13th -15th 2013 , Three Year 8 Netball teams travelled to Condover Hall to compete against clubs and schools from as far away as London. We played some great netball and our game really improved (so Mrs Leedham and Mrs Whigham told us ). One team got through to the finals on the Sunday. Before the finals we had great fun participating in activities such as Zorbing, High Ropes course and Archery which was great fun
and very challenging. On Sunday we played Hulme Grammar in the final it was a very exciting and tough game and we lost by 2. Although we were disappointed we had a great time, big thank you to Mrs Leedham and Mrs Whigham for taking us (sorry if we kept you awake.) Special thanks to Jo Edwards who drove us there and back. Where are we going next Miss? Year 8 Netball Teams
Girls kick off...
Girls Football has really taken off at Christleton this year, with the Under 13’s team winning every game so far this season! The girls started their campaign i n a friendly on the new 4G All Weather Pitch against Upton, which they won 3-0. Next they faced Bishops Blue Coat High School, again on the AWP and won 7-0. Goals came from Laura Roberts, Keane Harrison, Arabella Wagner and Niamh Kerfoot. The girls went on to play in the Cheshire Cup against Ellesmere Port Catholic High and played fantastically, winning 3-0. The team have now progressed to the quarter finals of the Cheshire Cup where they will play against Whitby High School. They have been training every Thursday on the All Weather Pitch. This has proved to be a great facility for the girls and ensures training can be tailored to their every need. Any girls that would like to be involved in football, training is Thursdays – 3.30-4.30pm.
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The Swan Christleton High School Magazine