Stringer Press | Spring Term 2024

Stringer Press SPRING TERM

Contents Message from the Headteacher 2 Governors update 3 Fundraising update 4 Head of Year updates 6 School production 10 Nepal trip 13 Northern France trip 15 Ski trip 17 St John’s College trip 18 PE & Sporting news 19 Dance news 25 Geography news 26 Science Week 28 Art department 29 Mastermind 2024 30 ESU Competition 31 Forest School 32 World Book Day 33 Year 9 Championing Literacy 34 Be the Change 34 Roedean Academy 34 National Careers Day 35 National Apprenticeship Week 36 International Mother Language Day 36 Out of School Achievements and News 37 Stringer Swap Station 38 Little Green Pig Youth Board 39 Photography competition 40 Key dates 41 Social Media Highlights and Feedback 42

CONTENTS

SOCIALS Follow us on socials for regular updates @DorothyStringer @dorothystringerschool

We Would Love Your Feedback If you have any ideas or suggestions of the type of news you would like to hear about please email us at: communications@ dorothy-stringer.co.uk

Dorothy Stringer open evening A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Message from Mr Hillier, Headteacher

Dear Parents, Carers, Staff, Governors and Students Welcome to another packed addition of the Stringer Press! I hope you will enjoy this edition, which provides a flavour of the many opportunities we offer for participation in a wide variety of extracurricular activities and events alongside the learning at the heart of school life. The period from Christmas through to Easter seems to pass by more rapidly than ever and we have to fit a huge amount in during these short six-week half terms. The Year 11s have completed a second set of mocks and have been working hard on their revision, for many alongside a wonderful trip to the Dolomites.

We also held our Quiz night this term, which is always a fun occasion for staff, parents and carers alike, and the evening led to well over £2,500 being raised for our school minibus campaign. We are now over 25% of the way towards our target, and I’d like to thank the Stringer Supporters and all those who have donated so far for their help in moving this forward. We continue to look for sponsorship within the local community and there is further information about our fundraising activities within the newsletter.

Spring is often about new beginnings and this Year two of our staff will be moving on to pastures new next term. Miss Potts has been with us for nearly ten years and she moves to a school in West Sussex where she will have the opportunity to teach A-level languages. We wish her all the best and know she will keep in touch with colleagues and the school.

In addition, Mr Charlesworth will be moving into supporting schools across the country with their managed information systems. Mr Charlesworth has been teaching at the school since 2002 and is also a former Stringer student. He played a huge part in supporting the drive for reading across the curriculum (with the tutor group reading programme) as well as leading the English department for a number of years. He also has a great love of Dolawen, and I have no doubt we will see him there again in the future.

A huge thank you to these colleagues who have helped shape the lives of thousands of students over the years and we wish them well in their new adventures.

I wish you all a safe and happy Easter. I do hope those on the ski trip In Year 10 have a fantastic time; it is certainly one of those memorable experiences that will linger long after their schooldays are finished.

For Year 11, I hope they take some time for rest and recuperation after a busy term alongside continued revision for those exams which start three weeks after they return from the Easter break.

We look forward to welcoming all students back into school on Monday 15 April for tutor time at 8.40am and it will be a Week 1 on the timetable.

Kind regards, Matt Hillier

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Dorothy Stringer open evening Update from Bridget Taylor A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Chair of Governors

I am very pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the termly Stringer Press. I will be letting you know about the issues that the Governing Body have been looking at in our meetings each term and some of the decisions that we have taken.

Our role as a team is to support, challenge and contribute to the strategic leadership of the school. This includes oversight and approval of the School Development Plan, the Budget, Improvement priorities and areas of operational practice that carry financial and reputational risk.

We are a team of 12, with 3 Parent Governors, 6 Co-opted Governors, 1 Governor appointed by the Local Authority, 1 Staff Governor and the Headteacher. We are currently recruiting 2 new Co-opted Governors. Our profiles are all on the school website.

Our main focus this term has been on the School Budget, as we are required to set a 3-year budget plan for submission to the Local Authority. As you might expect, this has been a challenging exercise. Like many organisations, we are experiencing increasing costs in terms of pay, fuel, supplies and services. We have been fortunate, as a result of sound financial management, that we have had some flexibility within our budget to call upon in previous years. This capacity no longer exists; so, whilst we are able to set a balanced budget for 2024/25, from April we are likely to go into deficit in the following two years if extra funding is not available. For this reason, the Governing Body has agreed a set of measures to help costs come down over the next year and income increase.

At our March meeting we had an in-depth discussion about attendance, which is a priority for improvement, so a subject that we keep under regular review. Since Covid there has been a drop in school attendance across the country and this is no different in Brighton and Hove, where figures are lower than in comparable local authorities. The reasons behind this drop in attendance are complex but the evidence is clear that students need to attend school on average 95% of the time in order to achieve their full potential. The staff team are dedicated to supporting students who may find attending school difficult and working in partnership with their parents or carers to help them get back.

The Governors wanted to acknowledge some of the unfavorable and inaccurate press and social media coverage the school has had in the last weeks about the break time queuing system for Years 9 and 11 wishing to purchase snacks. Mr Hillier has covered the detail of what is happening in his email to parents and carers. We discussed the subject at our March meeting and felt that it was important to emphasise to our community that these changes have been made first and foremost to address serious safety concerns for our staff and students. Our canteen premises require considerable improvements which we have sought funding from the Local Authority to address.

However, whilst the current facilities remain, our duty is to ensure that safe arrangements are in place to ensure everyone gets access to buy a snack if they wish in a short break time. This is now happening and there is food left over at the end of each break time. We will be keeping this issue under review.

Wishing you all a good Easter break.

Bridget Taylor Chair of Governors

DRAMA DEPARTMENT

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Fundraising Update

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

We’d like to say a huge thank you to all our staff, students, parents and carers who have supported us in our fundraising efforts this half term. We've been working hard to raise money for a new minibus and we have now hit the 25% mark on our fundraiser. We’ll be sharing more information about Summer Term fundraising events soon, but in the meantime, please take a look below to see what we’ve been up to this term.

Don’t forget, if you’d like to donate or help in any way, you can find more information on our fundraising webpage. We’re particularly keen to hear from anyone who owns a business and may be interested in corporate sponsorship – drop us an email at communications@dorothy-stringer.co.uk if you’d like to know more, and take a look at our minibus fundraising pack for information on why a minibus is so important to us.

Valentine’s Bake Off Just before the February half term we ran a Valentine’s bake off competition and bake sale. We were so impressed by all our students’ competition entries, and we were pleased to see that the cakes were snapped up by our students at break time, raising an amazing £300 for our minibus fundraiser!

Well done to Eliza, our Lower School Bake Off winner, and Lily, our Upper School winner!

FUNDRAISING DRAMA DEPARTMENT

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Fundraising Update

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Quiz Night Our 2024 Quiz Night took place on Friday 1 March and was once again a huge success. It was so lovely to see parents and staff taking part and we’d like to say thank you to everyone who attended – together we managed to raise an incredible £2,506!

We'd also like to thank all of the local businesses who generously donated to our raffle – we had some fantastic prizes up for grabs and we couldn’t have raised the amount we did without you!

Total raised so far: £8,440 £24,750

£8,250 £3,300

£16,500

75%

25% 10% FUNDRAISING DRAMA DEPARTMENT

£33,000

50%

Our target! page page16 5

Head of Year Updates Year 11 The term started with the flashbulbs of the school photographers, who did a sterling job of getting all of Year 11 into a group photo along with the individual ones. Shares in lip gloss and mascara rose steeply!

In the same week, we were delighted to celebrate a group of students who have made great progress with their attendance, and we enjoyed a pizza lunch together to celebrate. Attendance is so important in Year 11, making sure the students are not missing any important preparation for the exam season. They should all be proud of the resilience and determination they showed.

The students on the ski trip had fantastic weather and a great time in Italy, challenging themselves on the slopes. The staff who went commented on how brilliant the students were and a credit to you all.

I am very proud of all the Year 11 cast in our school play this year of ‘Curious Incident’ - the hard work, creativity and commitment they showed was fantastic. This will stand them in great stead for their college adventures next year.

Next came the mock exams and the year group had their last chance to practise in exam conditions before the real deal in May. The vast majority of students were well equipped and made the most of this opportunity to be as well prepared as possible.

The GCSE drama groups went to the Theatre Royal to be scared by ‘The Woman in Black’. The production was epic and has given them lots to explore, and the students were a credit to the school.

Now we are in the final countdown for Year 11, with many practical exams and revision clubs taking place. Students are wearing their colourful leavers’ hoodies; the Yearbook team are submitting their final touches and we have the Leaver’s Assembly to plan for.

I would love to thank the year group for a great term and wish them the best of luck for the next one. Remember Year 11: work hard and be kind.

Miss Poole, Head of Year 11 and Ms Palmer, Pastoral Manager

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Year 10 We have had a very productive Spring term, filled with remarkable achievements from our year 10 students. The school drama production was a spectacular success, showcasing the immense talent and determination of our students. Likewise, the annual dance show was met with resounding applause, underscoring the creativity and resilience within our year group. Our Spring Concert also promises to showcase the musical talents of our students, and we can’t wait to see them perform. We recently also concluded celebrations for students who completed HPQ awards, with commendations for their exceptional research and presentations, surpassing undergraduate standards in many cases.

As we celebrate our ATL improvers this week, they will be honoured with rewards and certificates, with Mr. Hillier extending his congratulations to them. Additionally, we will also be commending our students with 100% attendance, who will also receive a reward in recognition of their dedication.

Looking ahead to the next term in June, our year 10 students will face their mock exams, a significant milestone in their academic journey. They will diligently prepare for these exams both in lessons and at home, alongside gearing up for work experience and college taster days. It's a testament to their hard work and commitment that they've reached this stage in their school careers. Moreover, as we anticipate the selection of our head students, we're thrilled by the enthusiastic responses we've received thus far, with students eager to foster their leadership potential in the coming year.

As we transition into the Summer term, we're committed to helping students prepare for their end-of-year exams while emphasizing the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance. With optimism for sunnier spring weather ahead, we look forward to continuing our journey with year 10 and supporting them in their academic and personal growth.

Mrs De Brun, Head of Year 10 and Ms Smith, Year 10 Pastoral Manager

Year 9 What a whirlwind term it’s been for Year 9 at Stringer! There’s been so much to celebrate, and so much to make me proud daily. In terms of bigger things, I’ve seen so many students prosper in their chosen extra-curricular activities: the Year 9 sports teams seem to be smashing it all over Brighton and Sussex, and there’s been huge Year 9 representation in Let’s Dance and the Stringer Dance Show at Brighton Dome, and the school play, Curious Incident. I know many are also taking part in this term’s upcoming (at the time of writing) Music concert too, Back to the 90’s. The English department have taken students to deliver speeches competitively; the students have represented the school with distinction each time. I’m absolutely flabbergasted by the hard work that so many of our students put in regularly to achieve these fantastic things on top of their work across the curriculum.

For more ‘micro’ things, you might be aware that I run a fortnightly celebration along themes linked to our school core values of Creativity, Resilience and Respect: for example, ‘Kindness to Everyone’, ‘Manners’ and ‘Maturity’. It’s been wonderful to spend so many form times this year with such lovely students, having a good chat and sometimes sharing some Oreos. As I said earlier, so much happens to make me proud so regularly, and it’s brilliant to see the students striving for great things or just being good people. We regularly recognise and celebrate such positive qualities in school, and it is wonderful to witness them in abundance throughout the Year group.

Well done Year 9s!

Mr Haddington, Head of Year 9 and Ms Dodds, Pastoral Manager

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Year 8 It is such a privilege to see our Year 8s as they enter the halfway point of Key Stage 3 at Dorothy Stringer. They are truly a diverse, caring, talented and promising year group with so much already behind them and so much ahead of them, both at our school and beyond. They have truly become an involved, interesting, and integral part of our Dorothy Stringer community and will no doubt go on to achieve great things.

Year 8 involvement in the life of the school has been exceptional. They got fully involved in the Wear Red and Culture Day at the end of last year, and they have had some exceptional sporting and extracurricular results right through last academic year and into this year. Year 8s also helped to run and support our Bake Off competition and bake sale, assisting with the organising and the selling of the cakes to support our minibus fundraising campaign, as well as doing some of the baking!

Many Year 8s are also involved in this term’s Spring Concert and in ‘Let’s Dance’ and the Stringer Dance Show at Brighton Dome. There have been some excellent results in sporting features for Year 8, particularly in Football, Cricket and Netball. The Under 13 girls cricket team finished second in the Brighton schools’ tournament.

This year we have seen the start of Options selection, with Year 8 students choosing their practical subjects. I hope that this process will help them to start to consider their direction through our wide and varied curriculum and which subjects they might take further from next year.

It has also been wonderful to celebrate individual students each half term with our regular Cake Day, and some of the reasons tutors Year 8 tutors gave for nominating students this term are as follows: Always being selfless, helping others and trying his best.

Being resilient and making a fantastic positive start to school life.

Being a positive influence on her friends and showing maturity.

Polite, respectful and doing the right things even when not asked or being watched.

Constantly being positive, kind and bringing a wonderful energy to the tutor group.

Always polite and kind and an asset in the tutor group.

A kind, caring individual always thinking of others. An excellent footballer and a lovely student! Very lucky to have them in my tutor group!

Dedicated, committed and speedy in his sports! An excellent all-rounder and future athlete! Very lucky to have them in my tutor group!

Kind regards, Mr Shilladay, Head of Year 8 and Ms Alderson, Pastoral Manger

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Year 7 It's been a term full of success and rewards in Year 7 this term. Firstly, the introduction of our Head of Year awards based on our school values of Respect, Resilience and Creativity. A huge 'Well Done' to our students have been awarded these and I'm really looking forward to congratulating you on more of your hard work.

We have also had lots of sporting success this half term from cross country to rugby. Being part of an extra-curricular club enriches your life at secondary school, so I'm really pleased that so many of our Year 7s have taken these opportunities with open arms. If you aren't sure when the clubs are, please contact your form tutor.

Looking into next term, we have multiple trips to our amazing residential centre in Dolawen. A chance to try new things, get to know new people and make some fantastic memories.

Thank you for your continued support and I hope you have a super Easter holidays.

Mr Knott, Head of Year 7 and Mr Harvey, Year 7 Pastoral Manager

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CURIOUS INCIDENT - School Production 2024

This term our Drama department and students put on an Incredible production, The Curious Incident. We asked some of the cast and crew to share their experiences with us.

I initially auditioned for the school play as I had been in previous school plays and really enjoyed them.

There were three stages of the audition. The first stage was open to all students from year 9 and above and we worked in large groups making an ensemble piece. The second audition, a week later, involved much smaller groups, between 2 and 3 people, acting out dialogues from the Curious Incident. The third stage of the audition, on the same day, involved reading for specific parts and was very nerve-wracking!

When the play got going we rehearsed nearly every day after school. All the time that we spent together, including a few Saturdays, was fun. We learnt to help each other out and kept each other going even when we were tired.

One of the most important aspects of an ensemble is trust in each other and we all developed this in abundance.

The week of performance made me feel elated and accomplished. Feeling part of something that so many people seemed to enjoy made me feel really proud of myself and the whole team, not just the cast. Although I was glad that the late nights and the stress that came with performing was over I missed the friends and memories. I will always be grateful that I got the chance to be part of it.

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Mostly, I signed up for the school play because I enjoyed being a part of Blue Remembered Hills the year before. The audition process took a couple of weeks as we were narrowed down to around 22 actors. Throughout rehearsals I watched the ensemble go from separate groups huddled in different corners, to one large community who all genuinely got along. Lots of us ended up with the most unlikely, yet amazing friendships, and despite the hours of work we put in each day, we got each other through it.

Some scenes had to be completely re-done and others took hours of hard work from everyone involved, but not once did I regret it. When performance week finally came, we were all bursting with emotion; excitement and nerves and a bittersweet end to the experience that had consumed the last 4 to 5 months of our lives.

You know what made it worth it? When you all come running off stage into the wings and everyone is laughing, cheering, hugging and sharing a feeling of such pure happiness. There’s nothing else that’s quite like it. The chatter as we all get changed, dancing and messing about in our lunch breaks, helping one another with schoolwork, receiving endless support from the drama department and the amazing teachers who create it. It’s one of the best experiences you can have. Well, I think so at least.

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Ever since Year 7, I’ve wanted to be in one of the school plays, and getting the opportunity this year has changed school for me in so many ways. It's been the first time in my life where I’ve been able to reflect on the amount of time and effort that I’ve put into something and realise how completely worth it it was for the result. Standing on the stage on closing night with all my friends around me and knowing that my family had watched me achieve something I didn’t think I’d be able to succeed at, was one of the best feelings of my life so far. It was like the release of all the thought and love that 30 strangers had put into a story, which we had shared with people that mattered most to us. Going back to the dressing room after the final bow felt magical, everyone was so full of joy, and we were all so proud of what we’d achieved.

I remember it was a day in September, and the auditions were all I had thought about that day, and when we got there, half the theatre was filled up by people with numbers stuck to their fronts. It was a day in October that we were cast and seeing my name on the board felt surreal. I think having a double cast made the experience so much more memorable in so many ways, because there was always a sense of whatever you were feeling they were feeling too.

It’s brought together such a random mix of people who’ve all turned out to be so similar; and formed a tight knit community of friends that never would’ve spoken to each other if not for the play. I think we’ve realised how much in common we have with each other, and after spending 300 hours with someone, they become part of your life.

Sometimes rehearsals were gruelling, and we left thinking we wouldn’t finish the huge script in time; sometimes we would eat biscuits and dance and laugh for half an hour afterwards, but we always got through it together as an ensemble.

Performance week has blurred into this stretch of communally terrifying, brilliant, joyousness. I remember the afternoons pre-show and we fell into a natural rhythm so quickly: microwaving meals in the drama kitchen; dog-sitting Bertie and doing our makeup in the music rooms; running down to Sainsburys; and cast photo competitions with Ms Grout.

Jonah and I were night two, and so sitting backstage opening night listening to the audience laughing and crying and clapping felt like an unattainable thing to replicate; and I went to sleep repeating my lines over and over and over again in my head. But by Saturday the whole cast wanted to just keep performing.

I’m so glad I was in Curious Incident with these people, it is something I will always remember in equal parts magic and a miracle.

We are all so grateful to Ms Poole and Ms Grout for being so supportive when we were both silent with nerves and hysterical, for teaching how to do lighting and creating our props and set. But most of all thank you to Ms Ettinger who not only created an environment where we felt respected and valued and were treated as professionals; but who also constantly believed that a random group of teenagers could bring the story to life. Thank you for expecting excellence and waiting for us all to reach it and thank you for truly caring about us.

The drama department has given us a home within Stringer.

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Nepal 2024 Trip

This February saw a second group of Dorothy Stringer students head off on a Nepal expedition. The first week was spent in a Shree Saraswati School where students built on work that last year's teams had started. The team slept in classrooms and then spent their days completing construction work (digging, clearing land and laying two new paved areas for students to play on); teaching students (ranging from 3-15 years old); painting a mural (a sunset fusion with Nepalese and Brighton elements) and taking it in turns to cook traditional Nepalese food for the rest of the team to eat. We were also lucky to be able to watch (and join in) some traditional Nepalese dance and take part in morning martial arts. On our departure we were presented with traditional Nepalese hats, and a framed certificate from the Headmaster to thank us for ll our hard work.

After a quick pitstop in Kathmandu, the team rose early and took a 6-hour bus up into the mountains to start their 5-day trek with a team of porters. The team were in good spirits, tackling the challenging terrain with positivity. One student carried all his own gear, whilst another adopted a porter role and carried a heavy bag in traditional style across his head. The mountain views were spectacular; we saw numerous peaks of up to 7000m and managed to get to 4000m ourselves. We stayed at local teahouses along the way, where temperatures dropped significantly and the team huddled around the one central fire to keep warm. Weather conditions worsened, snow began to fall, and water began to freeze. Not once did the team complain - but we were forced to change our trek route for safety, so we retreated to lower altitudes, visited a yak cheese farm and continued our trek this way.

After the trek we headed back to Kathmandu for a much-needed warm shower, warm bed, shopping and to visit some popular tourist sites such as Monkey Temple.

The team were an absolute pleasure to travel and work with and a real credit to Dorothy Stringer. They fully embraced all the opportunities available to them - the people, culture, work and challenges - and worked incredibly well as a team. Many said they wished they could stay for longer, and some have set themselves challenges of things they would like to do when they are older as a result.

Namaste.

Tamsyn East 10 EST Form Tutor, Science Teacher (Second in Department)

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George: Feb 21st: miles taught me how to staff spin: I managed to do it in 30 minutes and we practised in front of a beautiful snowy mountain scape while the sun set in the frosty blue sky Hannah: I was helping India and Miles paint the mural and a crowd of Nepalese kids were standing around watching. I asked if they wanted to have a go and they were all too shy. Eventually I gave a boy a paintbrush and soon after all of them wanted to help and they all enjoyed it!

Max: The first time stepping out into the streets in Kathmandu. Nothing you’ll ever see in Europe. we were blown away by the amount of different smells and sounds. The smells of countless different spices and foods, and the sounds of people selling stuff, and constant beeping.

.

Miles: The food throughout this trip has been great. In the project the chefs were very good, making foods to our liking. We had a lot of fried chicken, I think we had it 3 times during the project. A lot more fried chicken than I would have thought we would have.

Also lots of egg during the trip, which is great since I like eggs and they’re healthy.

d cte e l l o m x: h ec the au Be rek w med thoug e a rt n ou we n . Eve left w r n n u e s ga be f dog d Bea Coffe side o , e t t o w n As mily ee, a it and ps ou nigh y f y a w u f e f r c a sle s eve e sno , Co , Bis t e i u .H th lly on cu Bis ntua Bean ards ek up ith us u e ev have nd g we tr ing w l a t stil oms us as d sit . n o g ks a r win ains brea o l l t fo oun m Leo:

India: We were sat inside about to have lunch, and snow begin to fall everywhere.

There was thunder too. When we were waiting for our food to come, most of us went outside to have a snowball fight with the porters and each other. Me and beaux built little snowmen too as more snow fell.

On day 2 and 3 I tried being a porter for a couple hours carrying a 25kg duffel bag up and down from our hostel. To make it lighter, the weight was distributed on my back and my head making sure that I didn’t hurt myself. Overall, it was an interesting experience putting myself in the role of a porter.

Ollie: The first day of sleeping in the mountains was very cold. I had to buy a new sleeping bag because my original one was too short. When we arrived in Adrian: I was getting used to Kathmandu, you could feel the contrast in using squat toilets throughout environments between the U.K. and Asia.

the time I’ve been here but it was also quite a long process at the end by flushing it away with a bucket but that all came to an end when I finally saw on trek day 3 a squat toilet with a flush!!

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Upper School Northern France Trip

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

At the end of last term, we took 40 students from Years 9, 10 and 11 on an exciting trip to northern France. This was the second time that students from Dorothy Stringer have had the opportunity to visit Le Touquet, and once again we had a brilliant time.

On the first day we arrived in France, we had the chance to visit a chocolate factory where we were able to see how chocolate is produced and we even got to try some! Then we headed off to a French secondary school in the small town of Etaples where we met our French pen pals.

AT THE END OF LAST TERM, WE TOOK 40 STUDENTS FROM YEARS 9, 10 AND 11 ON AN EXCITING TRIP TO NORTHERN FRANCE. THIS WAS THE SECOND TIME THAT STUDENTS FROM DOROTHY STRINGER HAVE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT LE TOUQUET, AND ONCE AGAIN WE HAD A BRILLIANT TIME.

ON THE FIRST DAY WE ARRIVED IN FRANCE, WE HAD THE CHANCE TO VISIT A CHOCOLATE FACTORY WHERE WE WERE ABLE TO SEE HOW CHOCOLATE IS PRODUCED AND WE EVEN GOT TO TRY SOME! THEN WE HEADED OFF TO A FRENCH SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THE SMALL TOWN OF ETAPLES WHERE WE MET OUR FRENCH PEN PALS.

WE WERE BACK AT THE SCHOOL AGAIN ON TUESDAY MORNING FOR A BILINGUAL CAROUSEL OF ACTIVITIES WITH OUR FRENCH FRIENDS, BEFORE VISITING THE NAUSICÀA SEA LIFE CENTRE IN BOULOGNE – THE LARGEST AQUARIUM IN EUROPE! WE HAD AN EXCITING DAY ON WEDNESDAY TOO WITH AN EDUCATIONAL VISIT TO THE MUSÉE SOMME IN ALBERT, FOLLOWED BY A FUN GAME OF BOWLING, AND THEN A FESTIVE VISIT TO THE AMIENS CHRISTMAS MARKET.

ON THURSDAY, OUR STUDENTS GOT COMPETITIVE AS THEY HAD THE CHANCE TO GO FOOD SHOPPING IN A LOCAL MARKET SO THEY COULD MAKE AND PRESENT THEIR OWN CREATIVE LUNCHES – THE WINNING MEAL IS PICTURED BELOW! WE MET UP AGAIN WITH OUR FRENCH PEN PALS ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON FOR A SCAVENGER HUNT AROUND LE TOUQUET. PERHAPS OUR FAVOURITE ACTIVITY TOOK PLACE ON THURSDAY EVENING – A FAREWELL PARTY IN A NIGHTCLUB WITH OUR FRENCH FRIENDS!

ON OUR FINAL DAY IN FRANCE, WE HAD A QUIZ AT THE SCHOOL BEFORE SAYING SOME SAD GOODBYES TO OUR NEW FRIENDS. BEFORE HEADING HOME, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT THE BOULANGERIE D'ESCOEUILLES, WHERE WE LEARNED HOW THE FAMOUS FRENCH BREAD IS MADE – A PERFECT END TO OUR FRENCH EXPERIENCE!

We were back at the school again on Tuesday morning for a bilingual carousel of activities with our French friends, before visiting the Nausicàa Sea Life Centre in Boulogne – the largest aquarium in Europe! We had an exciting day on Wednesday too with an educational visit to the Musée Somme in Albert, followed by a fun game of bowling, and then a festive visit to the Amiens Christmas market.

OVERALL, WE HAD AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE – WE ARE SO PROUD OF THE STUDENTS WHO TOOK PART, THEY MADE IT A REWARDING AND ENJOYABLE EXPERIENCE FOR EVERYONE. EVERY STUDENT GOT INVOLVED AND IMMERSED THEMSELVES IN THE FRENCH LANGUAGE. THE TRIP LEADER FROM COMBINATION LANGUAGES COMMENTED THAT OUR STUDENTS WERE “BRILLIANT AND THE BEST GROUP EVER FOR HOW WELL THEY JUMPED IN AND GOT TALKING TO THEIR PEN-PALS.” THANK YOU ALL FOR A LOVELY TRIP – WE CAN’T WAIT FOR THE NEXT ONE!

On Thursday, our students got competitive as they had the chance to go food shopping in a local market so they could make and present their own creative lunches – the winning meal is pictured below! We met up again with our French pen pals on Thursday afternoon for a scavenger hunt around Le Touquet. Perhaps our favourite activity took place on Thursday evening – a farewell party in a nightclub with our French friends!

On our final day in France, we had a quiz at the school before saying some sad goodbyes to our new friends. Before heading home, we had the opportunity to visit the Boulangerie d'Escoeuilles, where we learned how the famous French bread is made – a perfect end to our French experience!

Overall, we had an incredible experience – we are so proud of the students who took part, they made it a rewarding and enjoyable experience for everyone. Every student got involved and immersed themselves in the French language. The trip leader from Combination Languages commented that our students were “brilliant and the best group ever for how well they jumped in and got talking to their Pen-Pals.” Thank you all for a lovely trip – we can’t wait for the next one!

DRAMA DEPARTMENT

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Student Highlights from the Trip

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

‘THE BEST THING ABOUT THE TRIP WAS THE PARTY AT THE NIGHT CLUB!’ ‘THE DISCO WAS REALLY FUN!’ ‘VERY GOOD TRIP’ ‘VERY FUN AND IMPROVED MY FRENCH A LOT’ ‘VERY FUN, GREAT ATMOSPHERE’ ‘NIGHT CLUB: PURE EXCITEMENT AND ATMOSPHERE’ ‘PARTY WAS SO FUN’ ‘AMAZING TO INTERACT WITH STUDENTS YOUR OWN AGE’ ‘LOVED THE RANGE OF ACTIVITIES: FOOD MARKET, BOWLING, SEA CENTRE’ ‘ACTIVITIES WERE REALLY FUN AND MEETING OUR PEN PAL WAS THE BEST PART’ ‘GREAT EXPERIENCE AND MEMORIES’ ‘LOVED THE CHRISTMAS MARKET, GREAT TIME AND MADE LOTS OF MEMORIES’ ‘VERY FUN! YOU DO SO MUCH!’ ‘REALLY FUN EXPERIENCE, WOULD GO AGAIN’ ‘I LOVED IT, SUCH A GREAT EXPERIENCE’ ‘THE BEST WAS MAKING NEW FRIENDS’ ‘I REALLY LIKED THE AQUARIUM AND LE TOUQUET TOWN AS WE WERE GIVEN FREEDOM’ ‘IT WAS A VERY GOOD EXPERIENCE GETTING TO SPEAK FRENCH, SEE A SCHOOL ABROAD AND TALK TO PEOPLE’ ‘THE IMMERSION INTO THE CULTURE HAS MADE ME FEEL MORE CONFIDENT IN THE LANGUAGE’ ‘FUN TRIP AND WORTH IT FOR EXPERIENCE AND MORE KNOWLEDGE’ ‘I WAS ENCOURAGED TO SPEAK FRENCH AND I MADE FUN MEMORIES’ ‘IT WAS GREAT FUN WITH A RANGE OF ACTIVITIES FOR ALL INTERESTS’ ‘VERY GOOD TRIP WITH A LOT OF FUN ACTIVITIES’ ‘LOVED IT!’

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Year 11 Ski Trip

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

The long-awaited ski trip for the Year 11s created unforgettable memories for both students and teachers alike. Against the backdrop of snow-covered mountains, the students embraced the thrill of gliding down the slopes, mastering new skills and conquering challenges. Their positive mindset was commented on by instructors at the resort and as a result, they progressed exceptionally well.

The trip fostered camaraderie, and staff were pleased to see students encouraging each other during their ski lessons. Beyond the exhilarating physical activities, the experience provided valuable opportunities for personal growth, encouraging resilience and building community spirit which we were glad to have been able to provide.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

St John’s College Trip

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

The trip to St. John's College, at the University of Oxford on Wednesday 13 March provided thirty-three of our students with an enriching experience. The students who attended have all recently participated in an additional and voluntary academic programme. They were introduced to the college's prestigious history, values, and academic excellence, gaining insights into the application process, tuition fees, and accommodation options.

A two-course hot lunch in the oak-panelled hall immersed students in the collegiate atmosphere, followed by a guided tour taking in the college's architectural splendour and landmarks. Interactions with current students during a Q&A session offered valuable insights into university life and academic pursuits. A critical thinking session on artificial intelligence's potential to create real art sparked engaging discussions, stimulating students' intellectual curiosity.

The trip received overwhelmingly positive feedback from students, who found it inspiring and eye-opening. They appreciated the opportunity to explore St. John's College and interact with current students. Overall, the visit proved to be a memorable and impactful experience for our students, igniting their passion for higher education and broadening their horizons.

(Please note: Following the Critical Thinking session and as promised to our students, this report was generated by Artificial Intelligence, with input from Mrs Lloyd!)

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN MR GILL

The Spring Term weather can be summed up in one word, ‘WET’! Despite the challenges this bro it has been another extremely busy term for the Dorothy Stringer PE and Dance department. There continues to be extracurricular opportunities for all students to take part in something, whether you are looking to take part in one of our clubs for fun and enjoyment or looking to represent one of our sports teams competitively. The students have continued to support our extra-curricular provision, with clubs being well attended both before and after school.

This has led to a variety of sporting successes in a range of different sports and activities.

Netball Another busy term for our Stringer Netballers. KS3 club has seen numbers of around 30 weekly, and KS4 around 35. Beyond training, this term alone has seen nearly 25 netball fixtures and tournaments!

For KS3, Year 7, 8 and 9 have had their Brighton District Tournaments, and all represented the school brilliantly. Year 7 competed well in their first ever tournament, with both teams finishing 4th in their pools. The Year 8 tournament unfortunately got rained off midway through, after the girls made a solid start by winning both of their games! Year 9 just missed out on the podium position finish also, ending up in 4th place in their tournament. As the winner of each year group goes through to represent Brighton and Hove in the Sussex State Cup, our Year 8 team will be playing Cardinal Newman, who also won both of their games, on the penultimate day of this term as a decider. Good luck to our Year 8s!

KS4 Netball has also been hugely successful, and to date this year, our Year 10 team have only lost one game, and finished 2nd in the Brighton District Tournament out of 7 teams! Year 11s have continued to train hard amid their mock exams, and we look forward to playing them in our Year 11 Vs Staff Netball fixture next term!

Table Tennis Before Christmas, three of our Table Tennis teams qualified for Regional Finals held at Whitgift School. Our U16 Boys team played some impressive Table Tennis on the day but unfortunately failed to qualify for the Southern Finals. Our U13 Boys team, made up of Ryan G, Hewad K, Rafa M and Finley A, and our U13 Girls team, Olive S, Makia G and Lois M, did win their regional events so qualified for the Southern finals to be held in Bristol. Both teams competed last weekend. Unfortunately the girls team have bowed out of this year's competition, but they have done extremely well to get this far. The boys team however have qualified for the National Finals in Wolverhampton. Can they go one step further this year and be crowned National Champions?

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Football The Year 7 A team have had a roller coaster term. They narrowly lost in extra time in the Cup, then put in an impressive display against Patcham to come from behind and win the game 2-1. Their last game of the season finished in a disappointing 2-1 loss away to Newman, but the boys should be extremely proud of the season they have had. Their commitment to training has been second to none and throughout the year up to 80 different students have attended training. We look forward to seeing them all next year in Year 8.

A positive term for the B team, playing more games which allowed for more rotation to the squad and to develop experience in competitive matches. There were wins against Varndean, Peacehaven and Kings, with a real sense of teamwork and resilience shown in all these games. The squad have displayed a fantastic attitude to training and developing their gameplay skills. There are a couple of other games to be played by other schools, but it looks like we will finish 3rd or 4th in the league this year.

The Year 8 Boys have had another positive and busy season. The A team have played 15 games (hopefully one more!), scored 46 goals and had 12 different goal scorers. We got to the semi-final of the County Cup, in the semi-final of the District Cup and will be 2nd or 3rd in the league. Although not quite the same success in terms of trophies when compared to last year, the development of the players in their skills, understanding and resilience has been fantastic to see. Performances have improved as we have adjusted to 11 a side.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Engagement at Year 9 training on a Tuesday morning remains outstanding with 45 different students attending sessions in all weathers across the calendar year. Both A and B teams have competed really well in their respective competitions. The B team are currently in the Division 2 promotion places, having provided 25+ students with the opportunity to represent the school. The A team are currently invincible (played 10 - won 10) and have reached both District and County Cup finals, to be played after Easter. Well done to all involved.

The Year 10 A team have also had a successful season. Despite being knocked out of the Brighton Cup in the semifinals and the County Cup in the quarter finals, the team managed to finish the season Brighton League Champions. This has been due to the team’s commitment, with around 30 lads turning up each week at 7.30am for training. The B team also had some competitive fixtures with a 4-2 win vs BACA and a 3-2 loss to Blatchington Mill. Each and every boy has played their part this year and they should all feel very proud of what the have achieved.

The Year 11 team unfortunately had early exits this year in the Brighton and County Cup. However, since Mr Brown took the team on they have had a 100% record. A highlight was a 5-3 win against Blatchington Mill in the League. Will P was outstanding in this game and Adrien J showed excellent technique and composure to score two good goals.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Rugby Our Dorothy Stringer Rugby teams continue to punch above their weight across the county. Year 7 have gone from strength to strength with over 20 boys representing the school this year. This term they became The Snell Cup 7s Champions, beating some strong rugby schools in the 16-team tournament. They also progressed to the County Cup final against Warden Park, having beaten Bexhill and Blatchington Mill. The boys put in an impressive display to win the final 60-5 and finish the season undefeated. Year 8 had a tough draw in the County Cup at the start of the year which meant they were knocked out of the competition early. However, they recently played a fixture against Seaford Head, and although the game ended in defeat, Finley R scored 2 tries and it was great to see four new students playing for the school team.

The Year 9 team continue to progress in two County Cup competitions. They were recently crowned State School County Cup Champions with a 41-15 win against Bishop Luffa. Ashley K scored 2 tries and George H was Player of the Match. We look forward to playing Cardinal Newman in the semi-final of the other Cup competition. Nine of the Year 9 team continue to represent the U14 Brighton Schools Barbarians team. They faced Brighton College in a Friday night game under the floodlights. A battle of a game with both team's defences unwilling to yield finished at 12-12. A fantastic spectacle for the many supporters who attended the event.

The Year 10 team finally got their season underway away to Lewes Priory. A competitive game ended in defeat 197 but Joseph A scored a great solo try. They also recently played Tanbridge House in the quarter final of the County Cup. The game was played in proper rugby conditions, wet and muddy and again unfortunately ended in defeat but there were some strong individual performances and POTM was given to Dylan A. The Year 11s have got more competitive as the season has gone on and played out a tremendous game against Heathfield. Losing 31-19 the game was a physical battle but played in the right spirit. Tries from Sariyah B and Oscar D. Girls Rugby has been growing in popularity at Stringer with more girls regularly showing up for training. Over 20 Year 7 girls put their hands up to attend a rugby festival at Worthing RFC this week. The festival is designed to develop the students’ rugby skills and also give them an opportunity to play competitive contact games. Good luck girls!

It has been an impressive season from many of our Dorothy Stringer rugby teams, and we are looking forward to building on this season's successes next year.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Dance Show Saturday 23rd March saw the annual Dorothy Stringer Dance Show at the Brighton Dome and WHAT A NIGHT it was. The students should all be extremely proud of themselves and the show they put on. A big thank you to everyone who came to support the students on the night and an even BIGGER thank you to Mrs Sampson, Miss Bishop-Williams and Miss Fitzgerald for all their hard work and time put in to making the evening a success. The Dance Show has its own feature in the following pages, and photos will follow in next term’s Stringer Press.

Swimming With opportunities to take part for all levels, whether it be at one of our morning clubs or as part of the team, it has been great to see many new students making the most of the swim opportunities. The Swim Team have continued to compete well in the Swimming Super League. We qualified for the B League Final which was held at the K2. Some strong individual and team performances saw us finish a very respectful 3rd behind a strong Cranleigh team and BEDEs team. A special mention to Georgie C and Murray D who won gold in their individual 50m backstroke events. We also took part in the Brighton Secondary Schools Swimming Gala held at the Prince Regent. The Intermediate Girls team took gold in the medley relay. Well done to Amelie B, Georgie C, Milli B and Danielle G. Other strong performances saw us finish 3rd overall.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

PE & Sporting News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Athletics Our Cross-Country Athletes have again put in some impressive individual and team performances this year. In January, students took part in the Brighton Schools Cross Country Championships at Waterhall. Notable performances were from Lara C who came 1st in the Year 10/11 girls race and Stella G who came 2nd for the Year 7 girls. The Year 7 and 8 teams competed in the Sussex Schools Cross Country event at Christ’s Hospital. Both teams competed well, with the Year 7 girls team of Stella G, Millie W, Lyra J and Mia M winning the overall team event; a fantastic achievement. Special mention to Jack B, Beau H and Stella G who all finished inside the top 20 in their races and so are selected to represent Sussex at the Inter Counties Cross Country.

We are really looking forward now to the summer term when athletics will be taught in PE lessons and there will be an opportunity for students to attend athletics club. With plenty of city wide, county competitions and the Dorothy Stringer Sports Day to be involved in, there really is something for everybody. We also wish the Year 7 Boys Indoor Athletics team good luck in their upcoming event at the Burgess Hill Triangle where they will be representing Brighton and Hove. Come on Stringer!

Sports Captains This term, our Year 10 students have been settling into their roles working with a range of schools in different events and fixtures. 14 of our Year 10 students were trained up in officiating Stringer Netball Tournaments and have since shared their skills and helped run two of the Brighton and Hove Primary events and will be running and officiating the Sussex Schools Primary Netball Final in April.

Ten Sports Captains also worked with the Council and five local primary schools at a 'Let Girls Play' Event - a nationwide initiative to encourage more girls into Football. They worked with around twelve 6–7-year-olds from each school, talking to them about football and the skills needed, and then putting these into practice across five different activities: shooting, dribbling, passing, etc. The girls were brilliant and were praised highly by all the staff involved!

Continuing with Football, two of our Year 8 students, Echo and Macy, have trained up to be 'Game Changers' - a role that involves working with the PE department and Brighton Council to increase opportunities for females in football, starting at school. We look forward to seeing what ideas they come up with!

Finally, a massive thank you to Sam R in Year 10. Sam has regularly stepped up to referee KS3 football fixtures, which we are very grateful for!

The department are looking forward to working with the Sports Captains across the Summer Term, which is always busy, with Primary School Sports Days, Stringer Sports Day, Athletics Events and more!

Extra-curricular programme A huge thank you to all students who continue to support our extra-curricular programme in PE, Sport and Dance.

We look forward to seeing you all in the Summer term for our Summer extra-curricular programme. This will include clubs such as Athletics, Cricket, Rounders and Tennis so there is plenty of opportunity for students to develop their skills or try something new.

Don't forget to keep up to date with PE news and results from fixtures on Instagram. Give us a follow on @dorothystringerPE.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Dance News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

We were delighted to once again host a week-long festival of dance at the Dome this month, combining Let’s Dance and the Dorothy Stringer Dance Show to create the biggest celebration of school dance in the UK. From Monday to Friday, we invited more than 2000 students aged 5–18 from over 70 local schools, colleges and dance groups to dance at the Brighton Dome as part of Let’s Dance. This year we even had a parent group taking part! We also had dozens of Varndean College students helping backstage, gaining experience in stage management and learning what it takes to put on a show.

It was wonderful to see students of all ages and dancing experience taking to the stage supported by our brilliant local community, and we can’t wait to do it all again next year.

To round out the week, we held the Dorothy Stringer Dance Show on Saturday 23 March, featuring over 300 of our students with spectacular performances created from a combination of our extra-curriculum dance programme, dance lessons and our students' own GCSE examination work.

We are extremely fortunate to be able to hold our dance show in such an amazing Brighton venue and we’d like to say a huge thanks to all our school and Brighton Dome staff, to the students who have given their time and energy to make this year’s show happen for the whole community, as well as to all the families and friends who supported the event.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Geography KS3 News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Year 7 have been learning all about coasts, the processes that shape them and the ways they are managed. We received a fantastic array of Longshore Drift projects that saw many students getting out to their local beach conducting their own experiments to test the direction in which the sea transports beach material. Others designed creative and informative photos.

Experiment Design by Ben H

Photos by Betsy L

Year 8 have been learning about Economic Activity, with students in some classes competing to have the most profitable farm in a group Decision Making Exercise that had them calculating yields and dealing with financial disasters such as damage to machinery. Others have been learning about trade and employment sectors through exploring the cocoa trade, from the origins of the cocoa pods all the way to the design of the chocolate bar wrapper. How many jobs can you think of that would interact with a cocoa bean from the farm to your hand?

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Year 9 have been studying glaciation, learning how ice has shaped our landscape into how we see it today. This topic has challenged their map skills and they have been learning how to identify real glacial features from 2D maps by looking at the contour lines on maps. It is hard to imagine huge swathes of the UK being covered in ice historically, but glaciers have shaped some of our most beautiful landscapes including the Lake District and Snowdonia. Can you label any of these glacial features?

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Geography Association World Wide Quiz The annual Geographical Association World Wise Quiz, held at Varndean College on March 21, saw ten GCSE Geography teams from across Sussex competing. Final scores ranged from 39 to 50 points, with the Year 10 Dorothy Stringer Team securing an impressive joint second place with 49 points.

This remarkable achievement reflects both the team's dedication and their geographical knowledge and serves as a testament to our school's commitment to excellence in geographical education.

We commend all participants for their efforts and look forward to returning next year!

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

British Science Week 2024

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

This term we celebrated British Science Week ( 8- 17 March), British Science Week is a tenday celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths.

Our Science department put on some excellent lunchtime sessions for students all week long where they could come along and witness some seriously explosive practical's! As well as practicals their was a clue hidden each day around the science department students had to find all the clues and figure out our secret scientist.

There was an amazing buzz in the Science Department throughout the week, and to was great to see the students so engaged. We are already looking forward to next year!

The Screaming Jellybaby:

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Art Department

Year 10 - Sweets and Cakes. Year 10 Fine Art students have been studying artists Sarah Graham and Wayne Thiebaud as part of their Collections project. They have produced these fantastic mouth-watering studies of cakes and sweets.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Mastermind 2024

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

On Friday 9th February, we hosted the annual Dorothy Stringer Mastermind final. The finalists were some of the keenest quizzing minds in Year 10 and 9 and their specialist subjects were: ‘The US office season 1’, ‘Rick and Morty season 5’, ‘The life and work of Albert Einstein’ and ‘Taylor Swift’. The quality of quizzing was exceptional this year, encouraged by a large crowd of friends and students from all year groups to watch the four contestants compete for this year’s title of Mastermind 2024.

Following 2 minutes of questions on their specialist subjects, the contestants then answered two minutes of general knowledge questions, with the final results as follows: 1st: Kit R 25pts 2nd: Harriet M 22 pts 3rd: Stan M 21pts 4th: Kofi B 14pts Congratulations to all of them for making it to the final and especially to Kit for winning the Mastermind title for this year. Well done!

Paul Watson, Assistant Head

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Dorothy StringerUnion’s open evening English-Speaking Performing Shakespeare

Competition

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

On Thursday 12 March, two of our Year 9 students, Ella Mae and Max, participated in round 2 of The English-Speaking Union’s Performing Shakespeare Competition, at The Great Ballard School near Chichester.

Ella Mae chose one of Isabella’s monologues from Measure for Measure, Act 2 Scene 4 and spoke beautifully about her choice to the judges after her performance, elucidating on its powerful feminist significance. Max performed Jaques’ timeless, “All the world’s a stage.” speech, from As You Like It, Act 2 Scene 7 and spoke empathetically about its profound universal relevance.

The judges were most impressed with the passion and enthusiasm our students brought to the competition and, thrillingly, Ella Mae won a place in the southeast regional final (date to be arranged). Huge congratulations to both.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Forest School

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

This term we have had a great start to our forest school. Students have had plenty of fun together enjoying the outdoors, , taking part in activities such as shelter making, campcraft and campfire cooking, as well as forest games and land art.

We will be starting up Forest school again at some point after the Easter holidays, keep an eye out for the new start date in the weekly news.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Be the Change - Wicked Writers Competition

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

The National Literacy Trust, in partnership with the stage musical 'Wicked' have created a new writing competition all about creating a positive change for the environment. With prizes ranging from school trips to see 'Wicked', to writing workshops, books for schools, and publication of entries in an anthology.

KS3 students at Stringer have embraced the challenge, and many of our students have been submitted to this national competition.

Thank you to Mr Ryan for supporting this opportunity and we wish them all the best of luck!

World Book Day There was a lovely buzz in the library on 7 March as we celebrated World Book Day at Dorothy Stringer! Mrs Bowen put together an excellent array of activities including a ‘book restaurant’ where students could choose a new book from our book menus, pebble painting, and a book hunt around the school.

Staff also got involved by sharing their favourite books on posters around school, sparking some interesting conversations with students and with each other.

Thank you to Mrs Bowen for arranging these activities and to all our students who got involved, we hope you enjoy spending your book tokens!

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Y9 Championing Literacy

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Four Sussex University English Literature students visited Dorothy Stringer after school on Thursday 21 March to deliver an undergraduate-style poetry workshop for about 35 Year 9 students, as part of their ‘Championing Literacy’ module.

Our students responded thoughtfully and enthusiastically to all the challenges they were given.

It was wonderful for them to see what further study in this subject might look like, and to flex their analytical muscles!

The Sussex students were so impressed with our students’ ideas, their attitudes and their level of focus at the end of the school day. It was their first experience of working with teenagers and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Also, they were very impressed by our lovely library. A joy all round!

Roedean Acadamy Some of our Y10 students (along with others in the city) have been invited to take part in the Roedean Academy. A five-week programme which we kicked off this term.

Students attend Roedean after school and go for two hours of lectures and critical thinking.

The range of subjects that we can choose from has been both challenging and varied.

It’s a chance for our Year 10 students to meet their counterparts from lots of different schools across the city and to challenge themselves outside of their comfort zone.

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National Careers Day In the week 4th-8th March, we had an exciting range of activities going on in school for National Careers Week Year 11 had a presentation from the National Citizen Service, an amazing opportunity available to students during their 2024 summer holiday. This was followed by a ‘market stall’ by D-tree for students to find out more.

Here’s a link to their website if you want to find out more: https://wearencs.com/what-is-ncs Year 10 had a presentation from self-employed entrepreneur Ricky Whiting, CEO founder of Itty Bitty (https://www.ittybitty.co.uk). He spoke about the advantages/disadvantages of being self-employed, along with information about the personal characteristics it requires to be self-employed.

Year 9 were introduced to the value of work experience and asked to start thinking about how they can prepare for Year 10 work experience week.

Year 8 learnt how to link curriculum learning to the hard and soft employability skills that are in demand by future employers, as well as exploring links to specific career paths. You can see more about this on the webpage ‘Where could your favourite subject take you?’ which includes some videos and real career stories: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zhst2sg.

Year 7 students had an assembly on ‘My Life After Stringer’. Staff put up posters on their doors so students could get a taster of the many and varied paths that careers can take.

Loretta Lloyd Assistant Headteacher, Careers Leader

National Apprenticeship Week Thus term we celebrated National Apprenticeship week.

National Apprenticeship week is a week-long celebration that brings together businesses and apprentices across the country to shine a light on the positive impact that apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider economy.

Throughout the week we had a range of guest speakers attending our assemblies to speak to our students about apprenticeships available to them.

Thankyou to all our guest speakers: ASK Applying for apprenticeships Nigel Ryan from East Sussex College James Porter from The MET Plumpton College Further information regarding apprenticeships and careers can be found on our careers page of the SLG.

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

International Mother Language Day

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

On Wednesday 21st February it was International Mother Language Day. I took this as an opportunity to talk to all students from Years 7 to 10 in assemblies about the importance of language.

The idea for this special day came from the country of Bangladesh. Following the partition of India in 1947, the Bengal province was divided according to religions of those who lived there. The Bengal Province was taken over by Pakistan, and the Pakistani government decided to make Urdu the national language in East Bengal, sparking widespread protests to establish Bengali as one of the national languages of Pakistan. Bengali eventually became one of the national languages in Pakistan on February, 1956, after four years of protests.

Nearly half of the world’s 7,000 languages are in danger or dying out and it is thought that 1 language disappears every 2 weeks.

International Mother Language Day is an opportunity to celebrate the diversity of languages spoken across the world and the cultural heritage of those who speak them. The theme this year is the importance of multilingual education and lifelong learning for all. I asked our students to take a moment to appreciate the chances we have to gain an education – something that most of us take for granted.

We have a good number of multilingual students at Stringer, some of whom are also working hard to further improve their English. We are very fortunate to have a fantastic team of teachers and support staff who work closely with our multilingual students to help ensure they can access their education.

For many years we have encouraged our multilingual students to take GCSEs in their Mother Language - 50 students have been entered for a GCSE in their Mother Language in the last 4 years alone. If your child has a good level of fluency in a language other than English and you would like them to be considered for a GCSE in that language, please contact me so we can look into it (rvt@dorothy-stringer.co.uk).

Rachel Revéreault, Head of Modern Languages

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Out of School Achievements and News

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Congratulations to students Isla A, Amber M-B, Jaiten B and Aisha R F, who have all been invited to take part in exciting creative productions outside of school.

Jaiten and Isla have been cast in a production of Orchestra, a play by Charlie Josephine, for National Theatre Connections. This is a UK wide drama festival involving students from all around the UK as part of Hungry Wolf Visionary Youth Theatre. They will be performing in Brighton and in Tunbridge Wells.

Amber M-B and Aisha R F have been invited to take part in a dance show called Triptych as part of Brighton Festival. TripTych is a triple bill of dance performance curated by Project Female Dance Company in collaboration with Boy Blue Young Artists.

We wish them all the best of luck with these opportunities.

Congratulations to Year 7 student Zak, who received his British citizenship certificate this term.

Zak was presented his certificate by the Mayor of Brighton and Hove, Cllr Jackie O’Quinn at Brighton Town Hall.

We love to celebrate students' news and achievements from outside of school.

Please email any stories to communications@dorothy-stringer.co.uk

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Clothes Swap

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

PRIL

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SWAP

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This year we are doing another clothes swap!

The clothes swap will be on Friday 19th of April after school in the Main Hall.

Exchange your clothes for tokens in advance ·Bring in a bag of clothes you would like to swap to the D-tree canopy area on Tuesday 16, Thursday 18 and Friday 19 April at 8.15-8.40am. ·Clothes must be clean and in good condition. ·We are not taking swimwear, underwear or shoes. ·You will be given one token per item donated which you can use to choose another donated item at the swap event on the Friday afternoon.

Fashion Revolution Our clothes swap falls in the week of Fashion Revolution Week which was founded by Carry Somers and Orsola de Castro in the wake of the Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh in 2013. Fashion Revolution campaigns for a clean, safe, fair, transparent and accountable fashion system through research, education and advocacy. It is a global movement across 75 countries with a collective vision for a fashion industry that conserves and restores the environment and values people over growth and profit.

CLOTHES SWAPS HELP WITH:

FUNDRAISING

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Join the Little Green Pig Youth Board!

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Little Green Pig is a charity focused on inspiring and mentoring young writers across Sussex. Our Youth Board is a group of creative young people who meet once every 3 months to share their ideas with each other and with us, helping steer Little Green Pig in the right direction.

We are looking for young people approximately between the ages of 14 to 18 who are excited to learn new skills, are interested in improving opportunities for their community, and willing to share their ideas and voices with us!

We're really open to applications from lots of different young people.

Benefits of joining include: Building your team working and creative skills Making connections with other writers and creatives of all ages Learning about how charities and arts organisations are run Adding some valuable experience to your CV and UCAS form or any job application.

Having a real impact on young people in Sussex Helping improve the projects that LGP runs for young writers Starting a pathway towards becoming a member of the Board of Trustees at Little Green Pig Visit our website to find out more and apply: littlegreenpig.org.uk/youth-board Deadline for applications: 22nd April 2024

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Dorothy Stringer open evening

Key dates for the Summer Term

A REVIEW BY LIZ UREN

Monday 15 April - Start of Summer Term, week 1.

Wednesday 23 April, 4pm - Half termly SLT ‘surgeries’, session one.

(Email sent out to book appointment) Monday 6 May – Bank Holiday, school closed Monday 27 May – Friday 31 May – Half term break Friday 28 June – INSET Day, school closed Monday 15 – Thursday 18 July – Lower School Enrichment Week Tuesday 23 July – End of academic year, early closure 12.30 Thursday 22 August – GCSE results day Parents’ evenings Year 8 – Thursday 25 April 2024

LINKED BELOW ARE THE DOROTHY STRINGER TERM DATES FOR 2024/25 INCLUDING OUR INSET DAYS: DS SCHOOL TERM DATES 2024/25

DRAMA DEPARTMENT

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Social Media Highlights and Feedback

“A big thanks to all the staff for encouraging and inspiring my son in Year 9. He's doing well and I don't take the school for granted. Enthusiasm, humour, experience and helpful advice were all there for us at the recent parents’ evening, so please pass on my thanks and admiration.”

“Can’t tell you how elated we all are after parents evening. What an amazing and inspiring bunch of teachers! Our daughter is very lucky.”

“I just wanted to say thank you for everything you do to make Dorothy Stringer a positive and safe space for our kids.”

“I wanted to drop you an email to let you know how impressed I was with the support you and your team are giving my son. It has made a huge difference to his school day and the way he now engages with his teachers and learning. What an incredible team!”

DorothyStringer

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Share Your News We are always interested in hearing about our students’ achievements outside of school as well, and would love to celebrate them in our termly news and on social accounts. Please share them with us by emailing communications@dorothystringer.co.uk.

Weekly News Updates Remember to keep an eye out for our weekly news update from the Headteacher in your email inbox! It can also be viewed by logging onto the SLG, where you will find it under ‘Newsletter’.

Follow us on Socials Follow us on socials to keep up to date with current news, school events and student achievements.

@DorothyStringer @dorothystringerschool Dorothy Stringer #StringerLearningatHome