Hurstmere Newsletter Spring 2017

r e t t e l s w e N

HURSTMERE SCHOOL

Hurstmere School Hurst Road Sidcup, Kent DA15 9AW Telephone: 020 8300 5665 Facsimile: 020 8300 2039 Email: info@hurstmere.org.uk

Pre-match rainbow over Hurstmere School

Spring 2017 Issue 16

Website: www.hurstmere.org.uk

Y7 FOOTBALL TEAM - KENT CUP WINNERS - see page 6 The Year 7 football team have had an extremely successful first year. At the time of writing they have reached the ESFA Cup quarter final v Riddlesdown Collegiate, Croydon, the District semi final v Beths and have won the Kent Cup Final which was played on Friday 24th February at Maidstone Utd. FC against Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys. Our congratulations to everyone involved.

HURSTMERE CONQUER LITERACY PLANET - see page 9 Hurstmere School pupils have become World Leaders. In November we were 9th in the World's Top 50 schools and the Top School in the UK for pupils' use of Literacy Planet. Literacy Planet is a website that pupils use to boost their literacy through playing interactive games.

Civic Celebration of Pupil Achievement Mr Stollery attended the Bexley Civic Celebration of Student Achievement award at The Orchard Theatre, Dartford to congratulate three Hurstmere pupils who received well-earned recognition. Pupils from Bexley’s primary, secondary and special schools are nominated each year by their teachers for their academic, arts and sporting achievement, and for progress and service to their school. The awards were presented by Bexley’s Mayor, Councillor Eileen Pallen.

Sam Ward’s excellent work ethic helped him gain 4A* and 5A grade GCSEs. He treated all subjects with equal importance and strived to achieve success. Alexander Neofitou worked hard throughout his GCSEs and exceeded his personal targets. His progress throughout his time at Hurstmere was a result of a high level of effort on his behalf. Jamie Moreland was a talented, ambitious and confident pupil who achieved a very effective role in school and represented Hurstmere in numerous extra-curricular activities.

Congratulations to all of our pupils for their commitment and hard work.

Mrs V Ahern - Administrative Assistant

PRIZE GIVING 2016 - see page 2 On 2nd November 2016, Hurstmere held its annual Prize Giving, celebrating the success of the boys in all aspects of school life. The guest speaker was Olympic medallist, David Florence a British slalom canoeist who won silver medals at three consecutive Olympics.

Hurstmere students with the Mayor after receiving their awards.

> Pg. 3

> Pg. 4 - 5

STUDIO FIX

> Pg. 8 - 9

ENGLISH

> Pg. 11

SPORT

SKIING ‘17

Dear Parents As the spring term draws to a close I would like to thank parents for attending the recent evening meetings at which they spoke with their son’s subject teachers. Once again virtually all students were in attendance and represented, which is an indication of the great level of support the school enjoys from its parent body. Year 7

parents will be looking forward to learning more about their sons' progress at their Consultation evening on Thursday 20th April.

Students in Year 6 have recently received notification of their secondary school placements. I am pleased to report that once again September will see Hurstmere fully populated with 218 new students, whom we shall first meet at the Induction Days in early July.

Finally I take this opportunity to wish all of our Year 11 students the best for their GCSE examinations in May and June. These last few weeks of planning and revision are vital as they seek to achieve the best possible grades to open doors of opportunity beyond Hurstmere.

Mr G C Stollery—Principal

GCSE Grades are Changing GCSEs in England are being reformed and will be graded with a new scale from 9 to 1, with 9 being the highest grade. English literature, English language and maths will be the first subjects to be graded in this way from

this summer, August 2017. The ‘option’ subjects with the highest numbers of candidates (e.g. arts, humanities, languages) will follow in 2018 and most others in 2019. During this transition, students will receive a mixture of letter and number grades. In the first year each new GCSE subject is introduced, students

PRIZE GIVING AWARDS

who would have got a grade C or better will get a grade 4 or better. Grade 9 will be more difficult to achieve than a grade A*. In order to see how the numbered grades compare to the current A* to G system, one can Google "ofqual 9 to 1 postcard".

(Continued from front page)

SPECIAL AWARDS 2015 – 16 Sandra Cochrane Prize for Art

Michael Fairman

Lee Powell Prize for Music

Cassius Hammond

Lee Powell Prize for Science

Nishil Patel

James Herring Sportsman Award

Matthew Stock

Sports Leader Award

George Fisher Josh Barton

Science College Award – Upper School

Lenny McIntosh

Science College Award – Lower School

Daniel Vincent

D&T Award for Design and Innovation

Joseph Marshall

Personal Achievement Award

Charlie Guard

Accelerated Reader Award

William Leahy

Work Experience Award

George Oldfield

Valerie Hughes-Narborough Prize for English

Jamie Moreland

Year 11 Academic Achievement Governors’ Prize

Sam Ward Joe Barnbrook

For a full programme showing the complete list of prize winners please contact the school.

All the photographs can be seen on the school website in NEWS & EVENTS/IMAGE GALLERIES.

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Above and right: Some of the Special Award winners.

Studio Fix IMPRESS THE MUSIC FOR YOUTH JUDGES Congratulations to the three Studio Fix acts that wowed the judges at the recent Music for Youth 2017 regional heats.

Well done to The Gas Tanks (Gary, Matt, Sam, Ed, Jake and Tom), TMT (Thabo, Daniel, Kaamil, Godswill, Wisdom and Israel) and Sixth Senate (Thomas, Adam, Niall, Oliver, George and Joel) who each performed three songs for the judges.

Each group have spent Studio Fix time writing and recording their own work in their aim to reach the National Finals in the summer. The finalists will be announced by Music for Youth after the Easter holidays.

The positive comments by the judges included songs having “great topical narratives”, “highly original songs really well performed by everyone” and their

appreciation of the “guitar and drum solos” featured.

Well done to the boys for all their hard work, along with the support of their teachers, Mr Gilbert and Mr Robertson.

Mrs V Ahern - Studio Fix Administrator

ENGLISH - POETRY COMPETITION Earlier in the term the English Department ran a Poetry Competition for the KS3 students. The themes were Global Community/Family and Animal Rights. There were many excellent entries and this made it difficult to choose the winners.

After much deliberation the following boys were selected as the best ones: Year 7 1st Shevan Fernando - ‘I’m Just a Child’ Harry Stephens - ‘We are a Global Family’ Charlie Read - ‘All Unite’ 2nd George Blade - ‘Our World’ Matthew Mason-Rogers - ‘We Are a Global Society’ 3rd Ryan Alldis - ‘We Are a Global Family’ Special Recognition Kofi Sackey - ‘We Are One Big Family’ Ben Turrell - ‘If Everybody was the Same’

Extracts from the Y7 winning entries:‘Wouldn’t it be boring, Wouldn’t it be bland, If we were all the same colour and from the same land’ - Harry Stephens ‘We all need to unite Nobody needs to fight We are one community Stick together be tight.’ - Charlie Read ‘...We are a global family, We know where we belong, We are a global society, But some think that’s wrong.’

- Matthew Mason-Rogers ‘I don’t know what to say…

About certain issues happening today, Some people think it’s right, Others think it’s wrong But I just want us to get along…’

- Kofi Sackey Year 8 1st Adam Cronin - ‘Don’t be a Loser—Stop the Animal Abuser!’

Miller Ewen - ‘The Dog left with One Choice’

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2nd Sonny Freeman - ‘Why Would you do this?’

George Franklin - ‘Animal Rights’ 3rd Thomas Hyde - ‘Animal Bullying’ Luca Halstead - ‘Animal Cruelty’ Some extracts from the Y8 entries: ‘...Any abuse makes my stomach churn, But abusing our animals is a major concern.

So to all animal hunters who think it’s a game, You have brought us humans all to shame!’ - Adam Cronin ‘...Cold like an icicle the dog sits and shakes, Time stands still in this cold empty place.

Tomorrow will be the same as yesterday was before, The only blanket here is the leaves on the floor.’ - Miller Ewen Well done to all our aspiring poets.

Mrs L Murphy - Head of Media

Hurstmere’s Short Story Competition 2016

Hurstmere’s Short Story Competition in the autumn term was well received and we had some strong entries from KS3 and from KS4 following this being opened to them for the first time. Pupils were asked to write a short crime or

horror story of 500 words or less; the entries were varied and exciting with pupils showing an exciting flair for creative writing.

We have included the openings of our winning entries for you to enjoy. The

Harbour Raid

Pictured Left: The winners with Mr Stollery and Miss Parris

KS4

Winner - Joe Marsh Runner up - Tristan Freeman

KS3

Winner - Charlie Deppe Runner up - Matthew Sowamber

complete stories can be found on the school website under ‘Latest News’.

Look out for opportunities to take part in the next competition in the summer term.

Miss R Parris - Teacher of English

By Charlie Deppe

Southfield, Detroit. Jack White stumbled out of the boisterous pub after one of his frequent drinking sessions. His role in the police force was very important and had a very dangerous aspect to it. He had been an outstanding field officer and specialised in thwarting drug shipments.

However, due to his untrustworthy behaviour, he was made redundant from the important and treacherous profession that he thrived in. His questionable demeanour had then worsened after his difficult departure from the Southfield Police Department.

I awoke from my silky slumber and remembered I was supposed to be meeting up with one of my old confidants from the police force. I went to catch up with him at the restaurant on the docks. Since I had lost my driving license recently, I took the bus to the docks to satisfy my appetite for food and for social activity. I strolled towards the restaurant only to encounter three suspicious looking men who were reluctant to be seen. Intrigued, I hid whilst listening in on their discussion. What I observed engrossed me. A wave of aggression rushed through my body as they argued over times for what was one of the world’s biggest drug shipments. As soon as I heard the date and place for the shipment, I took the bus to Southfield Police Department and reported it. I told them where and when this was going to happen but no one believed me as I was no longer dependable following my departure. I had no choice but to deal with it myself. I had to go undercover and attempt to be a dealer when the shipment landed.

I went back to my chaotic home and initiated my preparation for my attempt to discontinue the menacing, detestable drug gang...

The Case By Joseph Marsh The heavenly golden sunshine tore through the melancholy night and broke on the amber sands of Mesa, Arizona, signaling the start of another normal day. Well, it seemed like a normal day to the innocent residents as they woke up for their daily commute into Phoenix. But it wasn’t. Something was wrong. The deserts, usually teeming with life, bore none. But there was one dead thing lodged in the sands - a body.

A human body.

CSI Rhodes woke up that morning with that same feeling. He lived alone and only had one child, Jake, from his first marriage, who had been shipped off to university the year before by his mother. Rhodes was very fond of Jake, so he spoke to him every month but had only been able to leave a voicemail in the last month.

“Youngsters”, Rhodes thought to himself.

He was a simple man; he lived by himself and spent most of his free time reading or profusely watching TV. Though once he stepped through the doors of the Phoenix Police Department, he was a different man. He was a ruthless, cold and heartless crime scene investigator with no remorse.

He grabbed his daily coffee from the staff room and sauntered into his office full of important files on previously solved cases. He sat down and unpacked his briefcase when Sheriff Brookes burst into the room.

“There’s a 411 in the desert”, before briskly leaving. Rhodes knew what he meant: murder…!

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‘CHECKING OUT ME POETRY!’ Success Stories: Pupils at Hurstmere School have become World Leaders. We are 9th in the World's Top 50 schools and the Top School in the UK for pupils' use of Literacy Planet. You can keep track of the leader board here:

http://www.literacyplanet.com/ leaderboard The leader board is as follows for Hurstmere pupils as of 30 November:2016: 1 George F 8cd/En2 8050 2

Max D

8cd/En2

3690

3

Joseph W

7ab/En1

3117

4

Stephen Y 7ab/En1

3042

5

Max C

2762

Twenty-eight Year 10 and 11 pupils attended the Poetry Live event in February, along with Miss Bradley, Mrs May and Mr MacKenzie Ingle, held at the Apollo Theatre, Victoria.

The poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, as well as Daljit Nagra, Maura Dooley, Owen Sheers and Imtiaz Dharker read out some of their poetry and participated in a short question and answer session with the pupils. Oxford University’s Professor of Poetry, ultra-cool Simon Armitage then delivered a variety of his work along with his usual amusing anecdotes, explaining his influences and many of the ideas behind his poems which are in the AQA GCSE Anthology. Each poet also discussed how certain writers had influenced their own creations.

The AQA examiner also took to the stage for a time and gave a master class in “how to achieve a C, or above, in your English GCSE.” He took the pupils through an essay, explaining what the examiners are looking for in a pupil response to poetry. The Hurstmere boys furiously scribbled down notes which will hopefully aid them in their revision and success in June!

The star of the show was, as always, John Agard. Greeted like a rock star by the pupils, his enthusiasm for and joy of writing poetry is infectious and had everybody in the audience clapping and shouting along to his poetry, including his hit, ‘Checking Out Me History’. An inspirational end to a worthwhile day!

Mr K MacKenzie-Ingle - Teacher of English

7ab/En1

It has proven to be so popular with Hurstmere pupils that its leader board is a great source of conversation around the school and it has encouraged healthy competition amongst the boys. Well done boys for doing us proud on a national and international stage. All boys who regularly take part, especially those named above, should be warmly congratulated for their commitment and enthusiasm.

Mrs L Murphy - Head of Media

Year 8 enjoying the Imperial War Museum.

Imperial War Museum Visit On Tuesday 24th January, a group of Year 8 pupils were fortunate enough to visit the Imperial War Museum. We were overwhelmed by the fantastic response from pupils and parents interested in going on the trip. The visit was designed to enhance the students’ understanding of the First World War and support them as they study poetry from World War One in their English lessons. The museum allowed the boys to explore the story of the war through the eyes of people in Britain and its empire, both on the home front and the fighting fronts. The students gained a better understanding of how the war started, why it continued, how the Allies won and its global impact. The museum’s new hands-on exhibit allowed the boys to see and engage with over 1,300 objects drawn from IWM’s First World War collections – the richest and most comprehensive in the world. These exhibits range from weapons, uniforms and equipment, to diaries, letters, keepsakes, trinkets, photographs, film and art. Each object on display gives a voice to the people who created them, used them or cared for them, and reveals stories not only of destruction,

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suffering and loss, but also endurance and innovation, duty and devotion, comradeship and love.

The boys behaved impeccably throughout our time at the museum with one visitor taking the time to come and speak to staff about how impressed she was with not only their behaviour but the respectful way the boys used the exhibit and the discussions they were having about what they had learnt. The boys used a work book to document their learning and explore the conditions the soldiers were living in during the First World War; it has helped to improve their understanding of the conditions and events being explored in the poems they are studying – one pupil commenting that “having gone through the exhibit, I can now understanding why some poets were so angry about the war and why they are so graphic as they describe soldiers dying; they didn’t want others to have to go through what they’d gone through”.

It was a pleasure to take the boys to the museum for the day and watch them engage with the exhibits and discuss how they felt. Let us hope we can make this a regular feature!

Miss R Parris - Teacher of English

ANTI-BULLYING AMBASSADORS

Citizenship, PSHE and SRE

Mr Joyce and 12 pupils, from a range of year groups, attended a training day to raise awareness of the Anti-Bullying Initiative that is presently being developed through the Diana Award.

The day was presented extremely well and our boys left motivated and eager to get things started back at Hurstmere.

during February and March at Hurstmere At Hurstmere we believe that promoting the health and wellbeing of our pupils are an important part of their overall education. This is done through both our Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) and Citizenship courses. February’s ‘Theme of the Month’ was ‘Developing Healthy Relationships’. Hurstmere welcomed back ‘The Little Fish Theatre Company’, who delivered their new production to our Year 9 students. ‘Seventeen To The Power Of 3’, explored the pressures of being a young person, looking at young carers, teenage relationships and what consent means to young people.

We met with the Principal, summarised our training, and explained our future plans. After our first meeting the team began to put the initial plans into action.

The Anti-Bullying Ambassadors were introduced to the year groups via assemblies, with 2 particular members of the team being very proactive and talking in these assemblies as well as attending Citizenship lessons, to raise the awareness of the Anti-Bullying Campaign.

With Anti-Bullying Week occurring during the first term, this enabled the following projects to get underway.

Additionally on March 27th, for the third year running, Hurstmere has invited a national project 'Romance Academy' to run workshops with Year 9 and 11 pupils to help support them in developing the values and skills that are needed to build healthy relationships. There will be a special focus on using social media and associated technology safely.

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An Art Department Poster competition with “The Power of Good” being the theme.

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An English Department poetry competition.

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A Music Department Rap focus.

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The Computing Department promoting the topic through the “Safer Internet Day”, focusing on ‘sharing images online’.

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A ‘Drop Box’ was positioned in the School foyer, allowing pupils to let the team know about any bullying issues, as well as suggesting new possible projects.



A cake sale was held in that week which raised £130.17 towards future projects.

Two of the team, Josh Clarkson, Year 11, and Luke Grace, Year 10, were both nominated by the rest of the Anti-Bullying Ambassadors for the Jack Petchey Award. Both were winners and have chosen to spend the 2 x £250 on an Anti-Bullying Flag to be positioned at the front of the school, and to pay for a specialist to help create and spray paint an Anti-Bullying design for an external playground wall.

This exciting Campaign is aimed to raise awareness of bullying, promote kindness, diversity, respect, good behaviour and make a positive difference to our community.

Mr G S Joyce - Head of Year 11

AN INVITATION TO PARENTS

STREETWISE

In addition, Romance Academy is hosting an event for the parents of Hurstmere’s students, Years 8—11, on the same day - 27th March. This will be a frank and informative evening with the aim of supporting parents in dealing with tricky parenting issues such as relationships and the safe use of social media and technology. This event will start at 5.00pm and finish around 7.00pm and will take place in the Main Hall at Hurstmere School.

The feedback from previous sessions has been extremely positive with many parents expressing how impressed they were with the event.

On Wednesday 1st February all of Year 7 spent the afternoon watching the 'Streetwise' drama presentation which raised the issue of how young people can stay safe on the roads.

The performance was created by a group of professional actors from Performance in Education, a theatre group who specialise in topics from the PSHE and Citizenship curriculum.

The show highlighted the dangers children can face around busy roads and demonstrated steps they can take to keep themselves safe. The show ended with a quiz and a discussion of the importance of road safety. The pupils enjoyed the presentation and demonstrated thoughtfulness and maturity in their discussions afterwards.

“An informative and honest workshop. It helped me to deal with situations regarding my son in an open way.”

All parents should try to attend this very candid, constructive and inspirational evening.

For more information about road safety you can visit http:// think.direct.gov.uk/

Mr M Wright - i/c Citizenship

Mr P Bolter - Head of Year 7

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Hurstmere House Report

School Council and House Meetings This year’s meetings are going well. But we already have an eye on next year. This half-term, Mr. Wright will be inviting applications for the four House Captain posts. Look out for an announcement on this shortly.

The 2016-2017 Hurstmere School House Competition is up and running! Last year, Form Representatives and House Captains asked for students to be kept informed of the progress of the competition as it went along, so there is now a half-termly house report on the school’s website. This will allow you to know how your house is progressing and whether you have got some catching up to do or a lead to protect!

Last term the School Council (your House Captains and Vice-captains) met with Mr. Wright to discuss current issues around the school. The main talking points were in response to the positive House meetings you had had earlier in the term. Well done to Sidney House in particular who had an 87% attendance by the form representatives. Following the meeting the minutes were shared with the Senior Leadership Team and, if possible, agenda points were actioned.

The House Competition The standings as of January 25th are:

Sidney Chaucer

488.00 482.00

Caxton Cobham

518.00 398.00

Highlights of the minutes:

Miss Parris’ Literacy quizzes have been huge point-earners this year, with Caxton house gaining an advantage by successfully completing the most quizzes in 4 of the 8 competitions.



More shelters in the play grounds

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House Competition running totals to be displayed on the school website

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Higher turnout strategies for Captains to encourage better attended House meetings.

Jack Petchey Awards Three Jack Petchey Awards were made in the Autumn Term.

Congratulations to the following pupils:

Mr. Blower has also organized a number of Art competitions with Chaucer and Sidney earning high scores in these.

Isaac Ayliffe – awarded for a selfless act of kindness outside of school. Isaac has chosen to use his reward to take a group to the London Club for an exclusive golf day.

Attendance checks, Accelerated Reading and inter-house PE activities also added significantly to the scores so well done to everyone who has contributed positively to these.

George Fitzpatrick – for leading the school’s points table in the Literacy Planet scheme. Incidentally, the school has been one of the most successful in the world this year for points gained on this competition. George is using his award to take a group to the cinema.

There will be many more competitions in the weeks and months ahead so there remain plenty of opportunities for gaps to be narrowed and leads to change hands.

Mr T James and Mr M Wright - Head of Houses

Callum Deppe – for the excellent attitude he has shown at the start of the Sports Leaders scheme. He has decided to use his reward to kit the Sports Leaders out in smart new tops, which they will wear at events this year.

INTER-HOUSE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS In the Year 7 Inter-house Championship Finals, Mme Notton’s 7 Chaucer Y took home the trophy after a competitive all Chaucer final.

Many thanks for your continued involvement in the House Competition.

The Year 8 Inter-house Championship Final was won by 8 Sidney X in what was a tough competition. Mr Syplywczak's group beat both 8 Chaucer X and 8 Cobham Y.

Mr T James and Mr M Wright - Head of Houses

Mr J Macnamara – Teacher of English/RE

Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge -

VIVA THE VOICE - Hurstmere’s Public Speaking Workshop

Regional Final I am pleased to announce that Matthew Smith, in Year 10, will represent Hurstmere in the regional final of the Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge at Townley Grammar School on 30th March at 6.00pm. Edward Brooker is the reserve for the regional final.

25 Year 7, 8 and 9 pupils attended a public speaking workshop on Thursday 15th December 2016. The boys learnt how to become improved listeners and speakers through a variety of tasks. Their aim was to use these skills not only in school but in the real world, which the boys really took on board despite some of them having initial nerves. They supported and worked together exceptionally well motivating each other with positive praise and constructive feedback. All pupils' confidence and ability soared throughout the day, culminating in a two minute speech. The boys selected the following as winners, but I am immensely proud of all who took part with such enthusiasm and spirit.

1st place - Mohammed Bari 3rd place - Alfie Peacock.

Matthew will be speaking for two minutes to a panel of esteemed judges as part of the competition. His speech, 'Paper', is inspirational and moving, as well as a clever metaphor for how we can choose to screw up our chances into a ball or soar like a paper airplane.

We wish Matthew every success as he enjoys this wonderful experience of public speaking! All are welcome to attend and support him - contact Mrs Murphy for details.

2nd place - Callum Deppe

Mrs L Murphy - Head of Media Studies

Mrs L Murphy - Head of Media

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SPORTS NEWS Y9 FOOTBALL - Fixtures and Results

Y7 KENT CUP WINNERS The Kent Cup Final was played at Maidstone Utd. FC, in February, against Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys and was a very exciting game for the players and spectators.

The Year 9 football squad has enjoyed a successful season to date. A large number of boys have represented the A and B teams and even more fixtures are planned for both teams this half term.

The B team were very unfortunate to lose in the first round of the ESFA Cup to a very strong St Pauls team. The boys put in an excellent performance but on the day it was just not meant to be. It was a great shame to go out in the first round having reached last year’s final.

The A team enjoyed good runs in both the Kent Cup and ESFA Cup. In the Kent Cup they lost in round four to Beths Grammar School. With the game looking like it was heading towards penalties Beths scored with an excellent strike from outside the 18 yard box. It was an excellent game of school boy football that neither team deserved to lose. In the ESFA Cup the A team lost narrowly to Simon Langton School. In a very tight game Hurstmere failed to convert their chances despite being the better team for large spells.

This season’s results are below.

Above: The Hurstmere Year 7 Kent Cup winning squad.

(A team in Black - B team in italics) th  Wednesday 28 September Cleeve Park (h) Friendly Cleeve Park conceded the fixture th  Thursday 29 September Woodlands School (h) ESFA Rd 2 Woodlands conceded the fixture th  Wednesday 5 October St Pauls Academy (a) B ESFA Rd 1 Lost 3 – 2 (Pandonu) th  Tuesday 11 October St John Fisher (a) Kent Cup Rd 2 Won 0 – 7 (Jenkins 2, Dolding 2, Parrot 2, Corbett-Smith) rd  Thursday 3 November Queens School (h) ESFA Rd 3 Won 4 – 1 (Long, Dyer, Leek 2) th  Wednesday 16 November Thomas Aveling (h) Kent Cup Rd 3 Won 2 – 0 (Roast, Gibson)  Friday 18th November St Bonadventure (a) ESFA Rd 4 Won 1 - 3 (Gibson, Jenkins (p), Corbett-Smith) nd  Tuesday 22 November Harris Academy Falconwood (a) North Kent Cup Lost 2 - 1 (Jenkins (p))  Wednesday 30th November Simon Langton (h) ESFA Rd 5 Lost 0 – 1 th  Tuesday 6 December Erith (h) N Kent Cup Won 6 - 0 (Leek, Roast 2, Hughes, Stuart, OG) th  Friday 9 December Beths (a) Kent Cup Rd 4 Lost 3 – 2 (Leek 2) th  Tuesday 7 February Bexleyheath (h) North Kent Cup Q/F Won 5 – 2 (Pandonu 2, Parrot, Long, OG) Mr J Ball - 2 i/c PE Dept.

The first half was a very close affair with neither side being able to force a breakthrough. The second half came to life with Tunbridge taking a one nil lead. From this point on Hurstmere began to take control of the game and scored a deserved equaliser through a superb individual effort from Bobby Wallace. Tunbridge now found their opportunities very limited and direct from a corner Bobby Wallace headed a deserved second goal which proved to be the winner. The final score was 2 - 1 to Hurstmere.

As it has been throughout the season, the boy's conduct both on and off the field was impeccable. I look forward to hopefully informing you of further success in the next newsletter!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff, parents, relatives and friends who came to support the boys.

Mr A Jones - Teacher of PE/Head of Y10

SPORTS HALL ATHLETICS After the success of the Year 7 and 8 teams winning the Level 2 Bexley Championships, Hurstmere represented Bexley at the Level 3 Sainsbury’s School Games at London 2012 Olympic Venue, The Copperbox. The boys gave a great account of themselves throughout with effort in abundance. There was a notable performance from Olly Evans winning his 4 lap race. Overall both squads finished in 8th position on the day.

RUGBY - U14 Kent Rugby 7’s The U14 Kent Rugby 7's took place at Dartford Grammar with Hurstmere full of high hopes after a successful warm up tournament the previous week. After being drawn in a tough group Hurstmere narrowly lost their first game to the eventual winners Kings Rochester 12 - 5. In the next encounter the boys put everything together to demolish John Roan School 36 - 10 and followed up that victory with an impressive hard fought draw with Dartford Grammar 19 - 19. In the final game Hurstmere lost out to Wilmington Grammar 17 - 12, leading to a third place finish.

Congratulations on your achievement!

Year 8 Squad: Louis Woods, Luca Treadwell, Luke Christie, Alfie O’Neil, Louis Day, Kieran Callaghan.

Year 7 Squad: Olly Evans, Joshua Johnson, Harry Day, Teddy McIntrye, Oliver Tull.

Mr J Eiffert - Teacher of PE

Well done to all involved.

Mr J Eiffert - Teacher of PE

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SPORTS NEWS SPORTS LEADERS

SKY LIVING FOR SPORT - Y9 Event

Competition plays a vital role in the development of all young people at Hurstmere whether it is through competing or as a Sports Leader. Through the extensive leadership programme boys are given the opportunity to develop a range of employability skills such as organisation, communication and responsibility. We deploy these skills by volunteering to officiate at School Games competitions and gain first-hand experience of the benefits of competition and the impact it has on young people.

Hop Skip & Jump to Success This term Sports Leaders from Years 10 and 11 completed the Sports Hall Athletics Leaders course. This involved learning the rules and how to officiate a range of track & field events so that we were qualified to run the Primary School Games Level 2 Sports Hall Athletics competitions. During November the group of boys delivered 3 Sports Hall Athletics competitions involving over 280 young people from local Primary Schools. Miss Allsop, Hurstmere SGO, said "I am extremely proud of the Hurstmere Sports Leaders, they have delivered all the competitions in a very professional manner, ensuring all the participants have competed in a high quality event and gone away having had a positive experience. They are a credit to the school". The Sports Leaders really enjoy doing these competitions, and it is rewarding to know that they have given other young people the opportunity to take part in sport.

As part of their involvement in the Sky Living for Sport Programme the Year 9 Sports Leaders organised a Basketball Festival for Birkbeck and Dulverton Primary Schools in February. Children from Years 4 and 5 participated in a coaching session where they were taught a range of Basketball skills and then played a match where they got the chance to put their new skills in to practise. This was a fantastic opportunity for the Hurstmere boys to expand their leadership skills and gain experience in coaching. A great afternoon was had by everyone who attended, well done boys!

Ms S Allsop - School Games Organiser

PE STUDENTS’ ATHLETE VISIT

Change4Life Festival

Boys in Years 10 and 11 studying GCSE PE or Btec Sport spent an engaging morning with Theo Spalding McIntosh, GB Judo.

The boys learnt first-hand about an athlete’s training programme, the importance diet plays in the build up to competition and the different organisations that support an athlete throughout their career. The boys were able to put into practise what they have been learning in the classroom and relate it to what an athlete actually has to do to achieve success. This was excellent preparation for the Year 11 boys before their exams and gave the Year 10’s a good foundation as they continue with their studies.

In the Autumn term Year 8 Sports Leaders attended a number of training sessions in preparation to deliver a Year 3/4 Change4Life Celebration Festival which they delivered to local Primary schools, Barrington, Bedonwell Juniors, Birkbeck, Burnt Oak Juniors and Mayplace. The boys delivered a fun and engaging warm up, taught children the skills of Speed Stacking, organised some Speed Stacking Relays and then ended the Festival with the great Tower Challenge. The aim of the festival was to engage the children in physical activity make new friends and have lots of fun. Well done to all the boys; they really did achieve their aim!

Ms S Allsop - School Games Organiser

Ms S Allsop - School Games Organiser

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CHARITY FUND RAISING

- Gold Tie Awards David Florence presenting Gold Ties to two of our students at Prize Giving 2016.

VOLUNTEER criteria: Volunteering is a key aspect of the Science Tie award. The Science ties are awarded on some or all of the following criteria (along with the MUST criteria). 



On the last day of the Autumn term boys and staff wore a Christmas inspired jumper to raise funds for Zambia. A total of £720 was collected for this worthy cause.

SMALL CHANGE - It all counts!

The school Library has a collection box for Bexley & Greenwich Hospice where the boys can put loose change. This last academic year we collected £92.00!

The school Library also donates its old and unwanted books to schools in the poorer regions of Zambia and India.

Each year Hurstmere’s Science Department proudly recognises the achievement and commitment of selected students in Year10/11 by awarding them a Science Gold Tie. This year the ties were presented to the students by Olympic medallist, David Florence, during our annual Prize Giving.

Students can start volunteering in Year 9!

MUST criteria:  Consistently try your best and meet all Science Targets 

Have exceptional behaviour in and around the department

   

Getting involved in running of extracurricular clubs (rocket club/science club) Getting involved with open mornings, open evenings, Year 9 options evenings Helping to do things around the department - e.g. looking after our pets Maintaining and updating display work for the corridors and classrooms Going ‘above and beyond’ with homework, projects, etc.

Academic mentoring of students of younger years

Wearing the Gold Tie indicates the student’s hard work and enthusiasm in the subject, and is an invaluable way for them to demonstrate their hard working attitude to 6th forms, schools, colleges and employers when they eventually leave Hurstmere.

If you are interested and are in Year 9/10 please see your teacher or Mr Sheehan.

Mr J Sheehan - Head of Science

Hurstmere is proud to continue its work with the Tag Rugby Trust and we are starting fundraising for our Hurstmere in Zambia 2018 project.

This tour will mark the 6th student tour with the Tag Rugby Trust and will involve 17 students from Year 9 and Year 10. The purpose of the tour is to change futures in some of the most under privileged areas in Zambia. The project will look to build upon, and add to, existing projects that the previous tours have started. These projects include a water tower which provides water for over 30,000 people, a chicken coup which provides food and a source of income, a library and many other projects. All of these projects are designed to be sustainable and have a lasting impact.

If you are interested in supporting the cause there are many ways in which you can do so.

Donating clothes and old school

uniform will help us achieve a goal of providing a school uniform for an AIDS orphanage.

Prize donations are always welcome as we will hold a raffle during future events.

If you are an online shopper then please explore Easyfundraising.org.uk and search Hurstmere in Zambia. There is no additional cost to you and every time a purchase is made through this website a small donation is made to our cause.

Finally if you would like to make a donation to the cause then please visit https://www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/HurstmereinZambia2018 We thank you for any and all support with our efforts as this project not only changes the lives of some of the most under privileged areas in the world but also provides an experience of a lifetime for Hurstmere students.

Mr B Maher - Teacher of Geography

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CANADA SKI TRIP -

This half term, 43 boys enjoyed a ski trip to Canada. The trip featured five days skiing in Quebec, an overnight stay in Toronto and a trip to Niagara Falls. It was truly a trip to remember!

Here is a poem, with some of the highlights, for you to enjoy …

A Ski Trip Ode Main Hall start we board the coach, We fly through traffic: terminal 2 approach.

The check in gate and duty free, The on flight meal brought jubilee.

We hit the ground, hand visas in, 4 hour coach ride; we settled in.

Touched down in Chateau for a boxed up lunch, 43 Hurstmere lads: a rowdy bunch.

A ski fitting session was nice and quick, Maher on the skis seemed remarkably slick.

Davis clearly had all of the gear, But as the old saying goes, had no idea.

Day one on the slopes was said and done, Key skills were learnt amongst the fun.

Off the boys all went to bed.

Day two soon came, full steam ahead.

Double socks today, was the parting tip, From Mr Ball who had one 'ell of a trip.

The snow park was the place to go, Dinghies down a mountain do not go slow!

Back to the slopes for night time ski, Sights spectacular like you wouldn't believe.

The ice cold conditions froze Allsop's hair, Her technique so neat she didn't care.

Then off to Toronto to explore a new place, The -20 conditions still crisp on ones face.

Day three then came the half way stage, Skiing ability saw instructors amazed.

Connecting flights and hours in transit,

Then came Macnamara’s quiz night, None of the teams could spell ‘Syplywczak’ right.

Tomorrow would bring a whole new slope, Le Masif we went with fresh new hope.

The boys enjoyed skiing on fresh fallen powder.

The snow kept on falling hour after hour.

Generosity of the hotel blew Robinson away, Fresh capsules of coffee for him every day.

The hotel sweet shop was another example, All enjoyed copious Ferrero Rocher samples.

Day four whistled past like the crack of a whip, No surprise that Wrighty had one 'ell of a trip!

The last day of skiing came round oh so fast, We knew that the glory of the slopes could not last.

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All would be worth it for the places we’d visit.

Our last supper venue was the Hard Rock Café, No better end to an exhausting day.

Then Niagra falls to watch the water flow down, Straight to the outlets on the other side of town.

Then Ralph and Hilfiger, Calvin Klein too, Nike and Adidas to pick up some shoes.

Toronto airport to start a long journey home, Boys were tired, but not one of them moaned.

Back to Hurstmere where our journey did end, Lots of great memories and lots of new friends.

Canada ‘17 has flown by so quick, We can all agree it was one 'ell of trip!

By Ski Trip Staff Team

LIBRARY NEWS ACCELERATED READING

All Year 7 pupils and some in Year 8 engage in Accelerated Reading as part of their English work. The aim is to encourage boys to comprehend and digest the texts they read. When they have read each book they take an online quiz and if they pass they move onto a more challenging book.

We hope these memory/ comprehension skills will transfer to other subjects and assist pupils with their examinations.

Firefly has been a part of Hurstmere School for 2 years now and is constantly being populated with class and revision resources to assist in your son’s learning.

Firefly is able to keep parents up to date with their child’s progress and enables teachers to provide parents with the resources they need to support learning outside the classroom.

Many of the boys are progressing well and so far we have 3 Year 7 boys—Darren Chipunza, Harry Boggans and Matthew Mason-Rogers who have read over 2 million words, and 3 boys who have read over 1 million—Ahren Smith, William Leahy and Shaylyn Gounder. Well done to these pupils.

Crumpled letters and reports in the bottom of schoolbags are a thing of the past because using Firefly, the school is able to get important information directly to parents.

Termly tracking reports and end of year full reports have been successfully delivered in Firefly since December 2015.

The school continues to take great care to send you only relevant messages, and avoid communications of little importance.

CARNEGIE BOOK AWARDS Once again, the Library staff and the English Dept. want to encourage the boys to read the short listed books with a view to attending the Bexley Libraries Carnegie Book Award 2017 in June. Any boys in years 7 - 9 who wish to participate should speak to Mrs Tubbs or Miss Parris.

Firefly links seamlessly with the students’ school and parents’ personal email.

Many students are also using the Office365 resources provided by LGfL, which as well as School Email, contain Onedrive (cloud storage) and online Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc).

Mrs E Tubbs and Mrs J Dowse - Librarians

ALUMNI -

If you have any problems using or accessing Firefly or have any questions regarding the above, please email firefly@hurstmere.org.uk

Ronnie Richardson Former student Ronnie Richardson has achieved rowing success in two major competitions in 2016. Rowing for Globe Rowing Club he was selected into the Junior quadruple scull team for the National Schools Regatta where he volunteered as “bow steers” for the boat, a position of great responsibility as he has to coxswain the boat guiding over the course. The competition took place at the Olympic Venue, Dorney Lake Eaton and Ronnie’s crew were crowned National Champions after winning the Kingston Cup. In 2016 the same crew were Silver medallists at the British Rowing National Junior Championships. In addition to this Ronnie has attended GB training camps and has also been invited to attend GB Junior Trials, we wish him every success with this.

Mr C Richardson - MLE Manager

All tracking and reports for students in Years 7 - 11 are now issued in Firefly.

30/03/17 31/03/17

Whilst at Hurstmere Ronnie was a quiet and unassuming boy and was not one to blow his own trumpet but it is clear that his dedication and single mindedness to training and achieving his goals has paid off, everyone at Hurstmere is extremely proud of his achievements.

Y8 Parents’ Evening — 4 - 7pm Last Day of Spring Term (Early closure 1.40 pm) First Day of Summer Term Y7 Parents’ Evening — 4 - 7pm May Bank Holiday

Ms S Allsop - School Games Organiser

Josh Scales Josh Scales left Hurstmere in 2014 - he has completed a course at North West Kent College and, as a result of a partnership with the company BBA Reman, he was one of only four boys selected for a position at the company after extensive interviews.

This is yet another success story for an ex-Hurstmere pupil.

18/04/17 20/04/17 01/05/17 29/05/17 02/06/17 Half Term Break

Mr S Syplywczak - Head of History Designed and Produced by Mrs J Dowse

School photographs by Mr C Richardson and staff

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Printed by F M Litho