Stringer Press SPRING TERM
Contents Headteacher's Message
3
Junior Leadership Team News
4
British Science Week
5
Drama News
6
Music News
8
Geography Projects
9
Maths News
10
Modern Foreign Languages
11
English Independent Learning Project
12
Business & Computing
13
Art Department News
14
Mastermind 2022
16
Mental Health Champions
17
Fundraising
18
Dolawen 2022
20
Environmental News
24
PE & Sporting News
26
Dance Show
29
Let's Dance at the Dome
31
Photography Competition
32
Things Happening on Socials
33
Upcoming Dates
34
SOCIALS
Follow us on socials for regular updates @DorothyStringer @dorothystringerschool Dorothy Stringer #StringerLearningatHome 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
hEADTEACHER'S MESSAGE MATT HILLIER
Dear Parents, Carers, Staff, Governors and Students, Welcome to our Spring term newsletter. I very much hope you enjoy reading about everything that has been going on this term, especially the huge amount of extra-curricular provision that has restarted here at Stringer. It was just over two years ago that we had our first lockdown mandate and exams were cancelled for the first time in living memory. The whole community have shown so much resilience over the last two years and as the weather has warmed up over the last few weeks there is an air of positivity that has permeated throughout the school corridors and classrooms. The staff have been busy preparing the Year 11 cohort for their GCSE examinations with additional mock papers and revision sessions, and I have no doubt the hard work which they have all put in will stand the students in very good stead. One of the most pleasing aspects of this term has been the return of visits, trips and shows. These features of school life have been much missed during the pandemic. As you read this newsletter, two coaches are travelling to Austria for the ski trip, and I am sure students will build memories there which will last a lifetime. As well as the trips abroad, there has been a theatre trip to London, a rocking music concert at St Matthias church and of course, the annual Stringer Dance show at the Dome. I am sure you will have noticed too the huge number of sporting fixtures we have managed to fulfil, even with absences, and the PE department continue to excel in the opportunities that we offer. The first Year 7 trips to Dolawen also took place and students were buzzing on their return to school. The chance for the students to bond with their peers at our outdoor education centre in Snowdonia is a wonderful opportunity we are very fortunate in being able to offer, and we are grateful for the continued support and sponsorship of Big Yellow in this regard. As well as the extra-curricular programme on offer, the annual Mastermind competition made a welcome return, as did the Maths challenge. As we move into the Summer term, we can also look forward to our first Enrichment Week in three years, which will provide students with a huge variety of opportunities. I wish you all a safe and Happy Easter. I hope that students can have a well-deserved break and, for those in Year 11, that they are able to make use of the time for some revision as well. We look forward to welcoming the whole school back on Monday 25 April. With very best wishes, Matt Hillier | Headteacher
HEADTEACHER MESSAGE
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JUNIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM NEWS MX KING & JLT
The Junior Leadership Team have been busy working away to best represent the school community and have contributed to the progression of the school in a number of ways. Recently they have worked on the following projects and issues: The Head Students have created an assembly with Ms Mockeridge about discrimination and the detrimental effect of using slurs. The assembly was shown to all year groups and was part of the JLT’s equalities initiative. The JLT as a whole have been involved in the consideration around change in break time access to the canteen, to streamline the process. They have also been part of the change in the food provided, and we have the JLT to thank for the inclusion of chocolate twists and gluten free macaroons. Students in Year 8 that are part of JLT have been working with Mr Watson and his team, who have been helping change the way students report an incident on the SLG. The Year 8 students were driven to make these changes because they found through personal experiences that the process for getting help needed to be clearer. They have created a new platform on the website and after running assemblies about it in person to Year 8 tutor groups, they have recorded an assembly that is being shown to all year group. JLT have worked with Mr Charlesworth to put British sign language in the “Word of the Week” information, as well as setting up a display in the atrium and creating an assembly which will be coming out later in the year to explain more about integrating British sign language into our curriculum. Members of the JLT have also interviewed potential new teachers as part of our school’s student panel and taken candidates on tours of the school. The JLT also helped promote the blue and yellow themed non-uniform fundraising day, which raised over £3,500 for the Disasters Emergencies Committee’s Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. The members of JLT are really enjoying seeing their work come to life and are looking forward to continuing to serve the school community and best represent the students of Dorothy Stringer. Coming up next term for the JLT: Many of the JLT members are proud members of our Student Voice, and love to share ideas and views to help improve our school alongside the current systems. Looking forward, JLT have been involved in plans for the new toilet blocks that are coming next school year. JLT also have lots of ideas on how they would like to do more to fundraise in the future, now that things are opening up more following Covid. The Year 10s on the JLT are currently excited about the Head Student and Prefect applications which will be opening next term. We would like to say a big: “Well done and thank you” to all the members of the Junior Leadership Team and everyone who works towards implementing their ideas. Your efforts are much appreciated!
DRAMA DEPARTMENT JUNIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM HEADTEACHER MESSAGE
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BRITISH SCIENCE WEEK SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
This term saw British Science Week take place. Our Science department planned lots of activities to really get students excited about science. During the week, our upper school Science prefects surprised different classes and ran mini pop up Science practical's during lessons around the school. At lunchtimes Science staff put on larger exciting and explosive experiments in the Science Block and outside the Sports Hall. There was a real buzz around the school and students were really engaged in the experiments taking place. We can't wait to see what the Science department have in store next year!
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
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Small Island – Olivier Theatre TrIP MS ETTENGER | HEAD OF DRAMA
On Saturday 12 March, the Drama Department accompanied 60 students to The National Theatre to see ‘Small Island’. The play follows three intricately connected stories: Hortense yearns for a new life away from rural Jamaica, Gilbert dreams of becoming a lawyer and Queenie longs to escape her Lincolnshire roots. Hope and humanity meet stubborn reality as the play traces the tangled history between Jamaica and the UK. A company of 40 actors take to stage at the The Olivier Theatre in this timely and moving story. All of the students were inspired by the acting, design and creativity of the production and will spend future lessons preparing to write about what they saw in their final GCSE exam. Well done and thank you, Drama kids, for a great day!
YEAR 11 DEVISED PIECES Congratulations to all Year 11 Drama students who performed extracts from Antigone, My Mother Said I Never Should, Lord of the Flies and Kindertransport for their GCSE Drama Scripted Assessments. We were impressed not only by the engaging, dynamic, and sensitive acting, but also by their calm and mature approach to the day and as audience members. Well done and thank you to everyone who took part!
DRAMA DEPARTMENT DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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Lower school production The Drama Department held auditions for the Lower School Production this week.
date for your diary
Led by Ms. Grout, Year 7, 8 and 9 were invited to audition to be a part of the ensemble for a production of Ernie/Edie's Incredible Illucinations.
LOWER SCHOOL PRODUCTIONS
Eight weeks of rehearsals start on Monday, in preparation for two early
WHEN: TUESDAY 28 & WEDNESDAY 29 JUNE 2022 WHERE: DOROTHY STRINGER MIDDLETON THEATRE
evening performances in June. Thank you to the over 100 students who came to the auditions. Well done to those who were cast, and we hope that those of you who were not successful will try again next time. We can't wait to watch the production!
DRAMA DEPARTMENT DRAMA DEPARTMENT
Tickets will be released next term, so keep an eye on our newsletter and weekly news updates.
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MUSIC RECITAL AT ST MATTHIAS CHURCH MR KNOTT | MUSIC DEPARTMENT
Our Music Recital on Thursday 10 March was the first time in the last two years that the Music Department could come together to put on a live concert, and it certainly didn’t disappoint! This concert, down at St Matthias Church, was an opportunity for our Year 11 Rock School Performance students to show off their talents. As their performances formed part of their final assessment, audience members also got their say on what they thought of the performances. The evening was full of variety: rock and roll bands, acoustic solos and delightful duos putting on an evening of music that appealed to all music tastes. A huge “Thank You” goes to St Matthias Church for hosting us, to the students for their amazing performances, to the Dorothy Stringer Music staff for organising the event and last but not least, to all the students’ parents, carers and friends who came along to support the event. We are already looking forward to doing it all again in the Summer as part of our Summer Showcase!
MUSICAL ACHIEVEMENT We would like to say a huge well done to Richie in Year 7 for his musical achievements playing the violin outside of school. Richie took part in the Springboard Performing Arts Festival, where he got second place in competition Grades 6-7 performance, which is a great achievement.
Musical Date for your diary Next term we will be holding an end-of-year Summer Concert. This will involve students across all years of the school, showing off many musical talents.
Richie was also representing Brighton and Hove in Rotary Club Young Musician competition District 1145 and was the youngest competitor. Well done Richie, we hope to see you performing in some of our musical events in the future!
DRAMA DEPARTMENT MUSIC DEPARTMENT HEADTEACHER MESSAGE
SUMMNER SHOWCASE WHEN: THURSDAY 7 JULY 2022 WHERE: DOROTHY STRINGER MIDDLETON THEATRE Tickets will be released next term, so keep an eye on our newsletter and weekly news updates.
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GEOGRPAHY DEPARTMENT PROJECTS MRS MORGAN | HEAD OF GEOGRAPHY
In Geography this term, our Year 7 students completed an introduction to map skills and created some wonderful contour models for Home Learning. These models linked to their learning in Drama as students had to design a 3D Greenal Island. They have more recently been studying about China and are now moving onto learning about Coastal landscapes and management. Year 8 have been studying Africa as a continent of contrasts and challenging the portrayal of this continent in the media. Students are now starting to learn about Weather and Climate, and we hope to take students outside to explore the school site, using fieldwork equipment to measure the weather. Our Year 9 classes have been studying Tropical Rainforests and considering how consumerism can lead to environmental degradation. Students are encouraged to form their own opinions and supported to develop an awareness of global issues such as deforestation They will soon be moving on to study Glacial Landscapes. As you can see, we study a broad range of geographical topics. Within these topics, students have been developing key geographical skills as well as widening their geographical knowledge and understanding. The Summer term will bring with it a range of opportunities to learn outside of the classroom and we look forward to sharing with you photographs of our learning around the school site and on upcoming fieldtrips.
GEOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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MATHS NEWS MATHS DEPARTMENT
Year 11 GCSE Maths Booster (Grades 3-5) The Maths department have been delighted with how hard the students have worked MONEY RAISED: over the course of Monday Booster activities. There has been a wonderful atmosphere
of hard work as students have been working to improve their core skills in preparation for their exams.
Maths Challenge On Wednesday 2 February, all of our Newton Classes in Years 9 -11 took part in the Intermediate Maths Challenge. We’re extremely pleased with the results: 122 of our students gained a certificate, placing them in the top 50% of entrants across the country. Nearly fifty of our students came in the top 25%, and twenty-three students came in the highest 6% nationally. Special mentions go to Arthur (Year 11), Pinky (Year 10) and Max (Year 9), who each came top in their year group. Twenty-seven students have been entered into follow-on rounds which will be taking place in school next term. Well done to all involved!
junior Maths CHALLENGE fOLLOW-ON ROUNDS DATE: Tuesday 17 June 2022
MATHS DEPARTMENT
VENUE: TBC (Students will be informed)
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MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES MFL DEPARTMENT
GOLDEN WORDS This year we have introduced ‘Golden Words’ to all classes in years 7-9 in French and Spanish lessons. Each new module has six words or phrases that we encourage students to learn as the starting point for the topic that we are covering. Students write the ‘Golden Words’ in their high frequency vocabulary columns and they are reminded of them at the start of each lesson. The ‘Golden Words’ for each year group are available in Course Materials and we’d love to see students trying to incorporate these words into their learning on a regular basis. Maybe you can come up with some useful ways of learning them together at home. FRENCH
SPANISH
Unit 4: À TABLE ·Je mange: I eat ·Je bois: I drink ·Je suis fan de: I am a fan of ·Délicieux: delicious ·Dégoûtand: disgusting ·Par contre: however
Unit 4: MI CASA 1.Vivo en: I live in 2.Cerca de: near to 3.Abajo: downstairs 4.Arriba: upstairs 5.Afuera: outside 6.Todos los días: every day
The MFL Prefects are about to launch a competition for Year 7 students. The task is to record a roleplay in either French or Spanish in groups where we can evaluate their level of vocabulary, fluency and creativity. We would like the Year 7s to do this outdoors and pretend to have a casual conversation with a friend in the Target Language. The videos will be assessed by the Prefects and there will be prizes for: Best target language Most creative Most realistic role play
Goodbye from Ms Barker - MFL Supply Teacher You can tell a lot about a school from the way it welcomes its Supply Teachers, and I was ushered in with numerous offers of help as I quickly got to know the students. And what a lovely surprise, despite the problems of the pandemic. The respect and creativity of the Stringer students showed them to be independent learners, unafraid of asking questions and thinking for themselves. In a Language Department where the resources are better than any of the other 15 schools in Sussex where I have taught, I have enjoyed helping students progress so they can say and write what they want in another language, not just what is drilled into them. I leave reluctantly next week when their teacher returns, but I look forward to bumping into them one day in France, with a cheery “Bonjour, Miss!”
Information will be shared with Year 7s during their MFL classes. Good luck, and we look forward to seeing the entries!
MFL DEPARTMENT DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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ENGLISH INDEPENDENT LEARNING PROJECT - EXCEPTIONAL WORK ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
Below are some extracts taken from a piece of work created by one of our Year 7 students, Esther in 7TYL. Students were set an independent learning project on Idioms and Root words. Esther went above and beyond, showing great creativity creating this piece of work. To see the readable version of the whole story, click here. Well done, Esther!
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
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BUSINESS & COMPUTING MRS MOCKERIDGE | HEAD OF BUSINESS AND COMPUTING
Oxford University Computing Challenge Congratulations to our students who competed in the Oxford University Computing Challenge at the beginning of March. Over 90 Upper and Lower School students were invited to take part in this prestigious challenge as they achieved a Gold Award in the Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge taken in the Autumn term. This award is given to the top ten percent of students who competed across the country. Special congratulations go to Yida for achieving a Distinction in the Intermediate Challenge.
10X Challenge This term our GCSE Year 10 Business students competed in this year’s UK wide 10X Challenge (previously known as the Tenner Challenge). The Challenge is run by Young Enterprise www.10Xchallenge.org.uk the UK’s leading enterprise and financial education charity, helping young people to develop the skills they need for life and work. Taking part in 10X Challenge helps our students to develop crucial employability skills and experience, as well as giving an important insight into how core curriculum learning will serve them well in this fast-changing world of work. Students were pledged £10 from the school’s 10X Challenge Fund and used this start-up capital to get their enterprise off the ground. All profits from the students’ enterprises are being donated to the DEC.
BUSINESS & COMPUTING DEPARTMENT
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ART DEPARTMENT ART DEPARTMENT
Year 11 Art students have been busy preparing for their upcoming ten-hour assessment at the end of March. Students have been making some fantastic research pages in their sketchbooks and attending after school catch-up sessions running on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in the Art Block.
SAVE THE DATE: Year 11 Art Exhibition WHEN: saturday 21st of May 2022 WHERE: Dorothy Stringer Art block Children's Parade WHEN: Saturday 7 May 2022 WHERE: Brighton city Centre
On Saturday 21 May, the Art department will be hosting an exhibition for our Year 11s, to celebrate all their hard work and achievement over the past two years.
Year 10 students in Fine Art, Photography, Graphics and Textiles have been finishing off their final outcomes for their first GCSE Project. Year 10 Fine Art have been completing their still life paintings in lesson, creating a lovely calm atmosphere while they worked.
DRAMA ART DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENT HEADTEACHER MESSAGE
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Year 9 have been working on their clay animal heads keeping Ms Sweeney and Ms Way, our technicians, very busy in the kiln room!
Year 8 have been finishing off their ceramic tiles of insects and they are now ready to be taken home.
Year 7 classes have produced some wonderful press printing in response to the artists Yinka Shonibare, Yinka Illori and Kehinde Wiley. Art Club has changed from Tuesdays to Wednesdays so that more students can join in with creating the big makes for the Children’s Parade in the Brighton Festival. This year the theme is about ‘Rebuilding and Hope.’ We have decided to base our willow sculpture on the colourful and optimistic patterned designs of Nigerian artist, Yinka Ilori.
SAVE THE DATE
ART DEPARTMENT
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DOROTHY STRINGER MASTERMIND 2022
On Friday 1 April, after two years away, we welcomed back the annual Dorothy Stringer Mastermind. Students and staff gathered in the Main Hall to watch the four finalists show off their specialist subject and general knowledge skills. After a very tight first round of specialist knowledge, the general knowledge round saw 1st place frequently change, with the final outcome as follows:
· · · ·
1st Place: Amelie (11LMB) 2nd Place: Mabel (9RBG) 3rd Place: Isla (10GRV) 4th Place: Wilf (8SVZ)
Well done to everyone for taking part and congratulations to all four finalists. We look forward to next year and Mastermind 2023. The school’s General Knowledge Quiz will be held in the Autumn term in the next academic year - and look out for further updates as we hope to be able to hold one for parents too!
MASTERMIND
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MENTAL HEALTH CHAMPIONS MR WATSON | ASSISTANT HEAD & SENCO
Our Mental Health Champions are students from Years 7, 8 9 and 10 who are working on a year-long project created in school, supported by Public Health Brighton, focused on 'Acts of Kindness'. Our Mental Health Champions met up this term during Mental Health Week to take part in their most recent workshop, led by our colleagues from YMCA Dialogue. The students worked on surveys for both students and staff to obtain their thoughts. They also planned how to use the school's social media feeds to share this information safely with our school community, and prepared student-led sessions with some of our teaching staff. Well done and thank you to all those involved. We look forward to seeing how the project develops over the year.
STUDENT SUPPORT PAGE To help support our students’ mental health and wellbeing, our Junior Leadership Team (JLT) decided they wanted to update the support pages on the SLG and make the existing information about student wellbeing easier for students to find. Four members of the team, Cassidy, Emma, Iona and Jonah, worked together with Paul Watson (SENCo) and Mark Wood (IT Network Manager) to create a new page for the SLG where wellbeing information, advice and links to support they might need can all be found easily in the same place, and to make it a priority link on the SLG. These students then made presentations to all Year 8 tutor groups to explain the new page, what information is included, where our variety of different student support groups are based and to provide opportunities for any questions. Jonah, Cassidy, Emma and Iona were a pleasure to work with and deserve credit for their vision, focus and dedication to ensuring that support is easily accessible to the Dorothy Stringer student community.
MENTAL HEALTH CHAMPIONS & STUDENT SUPPORT DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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MONEY RAISED:
NON-UNIFOM DAY FUNDRAISER On Thursday 17 March we held a blue and yellow themed non-uniform day to raise money for the Disasters Emergency Committee who are coordinating the response for those who have been displaced in the Ukraine. We would like to thank the whole school community for their generosity. Together we raised over £3,500. It was brilliant to see a flourish of blue and yellow around the school campus. Below is a photo of staff from our wonderful support department. If you would like to support the DEC further, money can still be donated through their website: DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal | Disasters Emergency Committee
FUNDING PROJECTS FONTHILL FOUNDATION We would like to say a huge thanks for a £3,000 community grant from The Fonthill Foundation – a Sussex based education charity. This is allowing us to continue our work with more students on our innovative DS Zine Project with Future Creators and Little Green Pig.
ABLETON PUSH INSTRUMENTS We are delighted to announce that following our successful application, the Music Department have received free Push instruments for our music classrooms from Ableton. These will be used by students to learn new skills and make their own music. Push is an instrument that puts everything you need to make music in one place—at your fingertips. Please follow the link below to learn more about Push and see how it can be used by students. Learn more about Ableton Push | Ableton We would like to say a huge thank you to Ableton for donating the 24 Push units to Dorothy Stringer School, giving our students the opportunity to learn new skills. We look forward to hearing what they can produce!
FUNDRAISING DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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SMARTER UNIFORMS WHOLE SCHOOL
Dorothy Stringer are proud to have been partnered with Smarter Uniforms since 2020. Smarter Uniforms provides good quality and affordable second-hand school uniforms for families across Brighton & Hove and across the UK. They offer home delivery to Brighton and Hove customers through their zero-carbon partner courier service, Zedify, and home delivery through Royal Mail for other orders. Working with Smarter Uniforms not only saves parents and carers money but also protects our planet's precious resources for our children's future, as well as raising important funds for the school. So far, we have raised £500. Parents and carers can order through the Smarter Uniforms website. We are now resuming our Uniform Collection for the Spring term. If you have any unwanted uniform, it can be dropped off at the school reception.
EASY FUNDRAISING WHOLE SCHOOL
Help us to collect donations for the school whenever you shop online through EasyFundraising. The Dorothy Stringer School Fund, our registered charity, will receive a donation from the retailers to support opportunities for students that fall outside the school budget. So far, we have raised £859.91 through EasyFundraising. Please sign up by following the link below: https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/dorothystringerschoolfund/ You can find out about our current fundraising campaigns through the SLG and on Twitter @DSFundraising.
FUNDRAISING DRAMA DEPARTMENT
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year 7 dolawen trips 2022! This term saw the first of our Year 7 Form Dolawen trips. Year 7 form groups packed up their rucksacks and set off in the school mini busses to embark on an adventure up to our Outdoor Activity Centre in Wales! 7BRN, 7CLR AND 7RYN all had amazing trips, spending their time rock climbing, gorge walking and abseiling to name a few! For lots of our students this will have been the first time away from home for an extended period of time and we are extremely proud of the resilience and respect they have shown whilst away. Students have worked together, and with staff and instructors throughout the week, showing their support and encouragement to each other throughout the various activities they have taken part in. The trips to Dolawen really are a fantastic opportunity for forms groups to create bonds and make memories of a lifetime. We look forward to seeing what the rest of our Year 7 groups get up to next term!
DOLAWEN
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DOLAWEN
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DOLAWEN
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DOLAWEN
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ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS MR SANDERCOCK
CITY OF MEADOWS AND TOWER OF LONDON SUPERBLOOM PROJECT We are delighted to be part of two wildflower projects this year. Students have been preparing patches of ground around the school site which are being planted up with a range of wildflowers to support biodiversity, provide beautiful flowers and celebrate being part of the UNESCO Biosphere as well as the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Please see the links below for more information: City of Meadows Tower of London Superbloom Project
GROUNDFORCE CLUB Groundforce have been hard at work clearing the area in front of the Environment Centre so that we can build the solar powered phone charging bench. These students are getting in their volunteer hours for Duke of Edinburgh or just come along to get the satisfaction of doing something active and improving the school grounds. If you want to get involved, the club is after school on Thursdays.
FRIENDS OF LIZ WILLIAMS PLANTING DAY We recently had a successful Saturday session with the Friends of Liz Williams Butterfly Haven planting new hedging along the new fence of the Butterfly Haven. The trees were supplied by Special Branch. We have planted lots of blackthorn, which is the food plant for the Brown Hairstreak. We hope this will help establish the fledgling community of this butterfly on site. LizWilliamsButterflyHaven (@LWButterflyH) / Twitter
ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS
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YEAR 7 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE Our Year 7 students have been busy during their Environmental Science lessons planting this year’s crop of potatoes in the Stringer Community Allotment and have been enjoying the fine weather outside surveying the plants on the school field and the nature reserve. We are always looking for volunteers to help out at Gardening Club after school on Wednesdays - see Mr Sandercock if you are interested in joining. Students have also been doing an experiment in class that proves CO2 gas captures longwave radiation and leads to an increase in temperature in the atmosphere; Carbon Dioxide really does trap the heat.
NATURE ON THE STRINGER CAMPUS This year we have had an exciting early string of sightings at the Liz Williams Butterfly Haven: Small Tortoiseshells, Peacock, Commas and Brimstone. We've also had some brilliant spring flower delights. After many years of students planting wildflowers in the woodland, this year we are truly seeing the benefits with primroses, snowdrops and daffodils blooming everywhere. The clumps of bluebell leaves all around are suggesting a great display in a few weeks. We look forward to seeing them bloom in the Summer term. To find out more about our Butterfly Reserve, follow LizWilliamsButterflyHaven (@LWButterflyH) / Twitter
ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS
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PE & SPORTING NEWS MR CORRIGAN | HEAD OF PE
As this Spring term draws to a close, we can reflect on an amazing Football, Netball, Basketball and Rugby season. Although most of the fixtures for these sports have now been completed, we will still have a couple of final games for some Football sides in the first weeks of May. The U14 Girls Football team have reached the Final of the County Cup, whilst the U16 Boys, U14 Boys and U13 Boys all have semi-final places to play this week! Easter always marks a big change for the PE department. The Football and Rugby equipment goes away, the shorts come out and Summer activities take more prominence on the curriculum and in the extracurricular timetable. Next term students can look forward to Athletics, Cricket, Tennis, Rounders, Softball, and many other summer activities. This year we particularly look forward to the Cricket County Cup; Stringer have drawn Hove Park in the U13 competition and Brighton College in the U14 competition, so we anticipate some competitive fixtures. We are excited to announce a partnership with St Peters Cricket Club, located in Preston Park. For many of our home games, St Peter’s have kindly offered the hire of their facilities free of charge. A big thanks to Russ and Greg at the club for their work in making this happen. This year our focus on inclusive extracurricular was a huge part of our post covid recovery plan. We are very proud of the record numbers of students who have represented the school at clubs and fixtures, this year including for the first time Year 7 and 8 social C team members, who have played games against Kings, Blatchington Mill and Cardinal Newman. In these year groups, we have been proud to run four football sides per year group and to avoid cancelling training even once. Thank you to the staff and students who have dedicated their time to these clubs. The Dorothy Stringer PE Department have continued to offer a wide range of extracurricular activities this term and have been extremely proud of the successes of students who have represented their teams in fixtures. We are very grateful to our sponsors Donatello, who have continued to support the PE Department and the Dance Show during a challenging time. With their support we can offer our students the best opportunities!
PE & SPORTING NEWS
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SEASON REVIEW – SPORT OF FOCUS | NETBALL This term we would like to take a closer look at the Netball season and delve into what the students have MR CORRIGANthis | HEAD OF PE achieved year. Our other teams and sports will have their reviews and player of the season awards at our end-of-year dinners at Donatello in Brighton. Netball at Stringer is in full swing, and it is has been wonderful to return to competitive games this year. All year groups have shown great commitment to training and a progression of skills in their games. All teams have had the opportunity to play in a League and a district tournament this season. In Year 7, we have been lucky enough to run two teams this year. Both teams have shown fantastic development through the season with some strong wins and narrow losses. We look forward to returning next season with our established squads. Players of the season goes to Freya N and Romany C for great commitment and fab shooting. The Year 8 teams have made some fantastic progress this season, not only growing as a squad but playing fixtures for the first time. The Year 8A team have remained undefeated in the league this season, winning all their games and drawing just one. Players of season goes to Eve A and Eva B for their outstanding performances. The B team had a good season, winning four games and losing just three; their best result was coming joint 1st in the district tournament! Player of the season goes to Biba C. We look forward to what the Year 9 season will bring. The Year 9 team have had a tough season in a league with some very strong opponents. The team have shown excellent determination and resilience throughout the season, finishing on a high by beating Varndean. They have shown great development in strength and tactical awareness this season and we look forward to the excitement of next year. Player of the season goes to Maisy B for outstanding defence, with a special mention to Mabel G-C for her consistent all-round contribution. The Year 10 team have won all but one game in their league, a great season! Their only loss being to an independent school, this demonstrates how much the girls have improved in their tactical awareness and resilience to take on harder opposition. They have shown fantastic teamwork throughout the season. Player of the season goes to Jess and Lola S for their outstanding attacking play. A special mention to Lola S and Ivy H-S for volunteering as young coaches/umpires at Year 8 Netball club every week and assisting in various Netball tournaments; we are very grateful. The Year 11 team before the pandemic were one of the strongest Netball teams Stringer have fielded in a good few years, remaining undefeated from Year 7 to Year 9. The pressure of exams and other commitments has meant the team have not been able to commit in the same way but their performance in the district tournament was amazing, narrowly losing in the final to Newman. The teachers are looking forward to taking on the Year 11 team as their final match. We wish them every success at college next year and we hope that Netball remains a part of their lives. Player of the season goes to Izzy B, who now plays at a regional level, and to Flo H for her endless enthusiasm.
Players of the season Year 7 – Romany C and Freya N Year 8 – Eve A, Eva B and Biba C Year 9 – Maisy B Year 10 – Jess and Lola S Year 11 – Izzy B and Flo H
PE & SPORTING NEWS
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STUDENT SPORTING ACHEIVEMENTS -
BRITISH BOULDERING COMPETITION - ANYA YEAR 10 A huge congratulations to Anya in Year 10 who competed in the British Bouldering Championships last month. Anya won the championships in her Under-18 age category. A fantastic achievement, well done, Anya!
SUSSEX SCHOOLS CROSS COUNTRY - LARA YEAR 8 Lara Cox, our Year 8 Girls Stringer Run winner, took part in the Sussex schools cross country Competition this term. We would like to say a huge well done to Lara as she came 5th in the competition, beating her finish by six places from last year! Keep up the great work and dedication!
We love hearing about our students’ achievements outside of school and celebrating them in our termly news and on social accounts throughout the year. Please share them with us or Mr Corrigan by emailing communications@dorothy-stringer.co.uk or CGN@dorothy-stringer.co.uk
PE & SPORTING NEWS
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DOROTHY STRINGER DANCE SHOW AT THE DOME MS SAMPSON | I/C DANCE
MR CORRIGAN20 | HEAD OF PE saw Saturday March
the Stringer Dance Show return to the Brighton Dome after the pandemic forced us to deliver it virtually last year. The prospect of the show being back where it belongs this year saw lots more students inspired to be involved and they were extremely excited to be able to showcase their hard work and talent back on the big stage, under the bright lights! The students behaved impeccably throughout the rehearsals and the performance. Considering that two of the year groups had not had the opportunity to perform at the Dome before, they adapted brilliantly to new surroundings and were mature in their conduct throughout. All staff helping were extremely impressed by the students and they were an absolute credit to the school. The night showcased 22 pieces in various genres including Contemporary, Jazz, Commercial and Ballet. Most of the work was created from our extensive extra-curricular Dance programme, but some was also from GCSE exam work. Every single piece was a huge success and delivered with great professionalism. I was so impressed with the resilience the students displayed, both in their commitment to rehearsals and throughout the show. It was fabulous to see them all enjoying being part of a school event once more and being able to come together to produce such brilliance. Particular praise must be given to our wonderful Year 11s who really have been at the centre of such an excellent standard of Dance for the past five years. Their amazing talent was clear to see right from Year 7 and despite the impact of lockdown, they have never given up on their passion for dance, their commitment, and their ability to shine - all done with such friendship and warmth. They really have been one of the most amazing groups of students I have had the pleasure to teach. I wish them all success in their exams (particularly Dance!) and I will miss them lots. The show really was amazing, and I hope you were lucky enough to see it. I would like to say a massive ‘well done’ to all those who took part and thank you for the support that all the staff, parents and carers have given the students. These types of opportunities are essential to the happiness, enjoyment and engagement that our students should experience whilst at school. If you or your child would like to be involved next year, be sure to come along to our extra -curricular clubs. We’re already looking forward to next year! Photos from the Dance Show and Let's Dance are taken by Charles at Mega Pixel Movie. Charlies has worked with Let's Dance and Stringer Dance for years and is brilliant at capturing incredible shots of the students. All the photos from Let's Dance 2022 and the Dorothy Stringer Dance Show 2022 are now online and the link to view them has been emailed around to those who have participated. For safeguarding purposes these photos are password protected the password has been emailed to parents and carers. Please contact Ms Sampson if you have not yet received the password. As a thank you to everyone that preorders a DVD before May, Mega Pixel Movie have sent out a discount code for 25% off all photo orders over £10 made in April 2022. If you have already purchased a DVD the discount code will be included in your order confirmation email.
PE & SPORTING NEWS
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Photography by Charles @ MegaPixelMovie.com
PE & SPORTING NEWS
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LET'S DANCE AT THE DOME KATIE BOOTH | EVENT ORGANISER
This term saw the return of the eagerly anticipated and celebrated event Let’s Dance, which took place at the wonderful Brighton Dome from Monday 14 - Friday 18 March. In a week-long festival which celebrated and showcased dance from the children in our city, a total of 1,745 young people from the schools across Brighton & Hove took to the stage. Young people aged from 4–18 danced their socks off to packed auditoriums of over 900 audience members each night. Dorothy Stringer School took over the organisation of Let’s Dance in 2005 and since then, it has grown to be the largest celebration of school dance in the UK. The event is a small step towards moving on from the pandemic and we hope that by taking part, some of the performers will be inspired to continue dancing at school, clubs or other organised events. We should all take great pride in the fact that our city celebrates this event in such a positive and public manner. Let’s Dance plays a major role not only in encouraging our young people to develop healthy and active lifestyles but also in ensuring that dance and physical activity remain a high priority in educational establishments across the city. Katie Booth, Let’s Dance Coordinator, says: ‘It is such a wonderful event to be part of, especially this year. The performers were fantastic! Every one of them put in 110% and their enthusiasm and determination was inspiring. Well done to all the teachers and helpers too, who created some brilliant costumes to complement the dances. Children in the city have been denied so much over the past couple of years and I hope that their time on the big stage made it a memorable and enjoyable occasion, both for everyone who took part and for those who supported the event.’
Photography by Charles @ MegaPixelMovie.com
LET'S DANCE
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PHOTO COMPETITION 2021-2022 SPRING TERM WINNERS
January WINNER |eva
February WINNER |esme
WHOLE SCHOOL
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march WINNER |Eva
April WINNER |betsy
ENTER THE 2022/23 PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION NOW. ALL Entries TO BE SENT TO: PHOTOCOMP@DOROTHY-STRINGER.CO.UK DEADLINE : MONDAY 2 MAY 2022 MORE DETAILS CAN BE FOUND ON THE SLG.
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@DorothyStringer
@dorothystringerschool
upcoming dates for your diary spring term Start of Summer Term Year 8 Parents' Evening Children's Pararde Year 11 Exams Begin Year 11 Artist Exhibition Summer Half-term Lower School Production Year 11 Prom Year 10 Work Experience Enrichment Week Sports Week Last Day of Term
Monday 25 April 2022 Thursday 28 April 2022 Saturday 7 May 2022 Monday 16 May 2022 Saturday 21 May 2022 Monday 30 May - Friday 3 June 2022 Tuesday 28 - Wednesday 29 June 2022 Friday 1 July 2022 Monday 11 - Friday 15 July 2022 Monday 11 - Friday 15 July 2022 Monday 18 - Thursday 21 July 2022 Friday 22 July 2022 (early closure at 12.30pm)
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