Gryphon newsletter spring 14

Spring 2014

What’s going on ...

Sherborne Abbey Music Festival

6 May 2014, Church Hall, Digby Road, Sherborne, 2.30pm Come and see the Big Band play 45 minutes of Film, Show and Big Band Music

Art - Photography - Design Technology KS5 Exhibition 2014 8-10 July, Gryphon Conference Centre 9 – 3.30

St Aldhelm’s class of 1980 reunion 17 May 2014, contact: tsui@miller1821.freeserve.co.uk

Dancing to Success See inside...

www.gryphon.dorset.sch.uk

Ollie said: ‘Winning LV=Breakthrough Player Award is a great feeling. To have the opportunity to give something back to Sherborne Rugby Club, a club that has really helped me get to this stage, is a massive honour. Thank you to everyone connected with The Gryphon School who voted for me.’

Ollie’s former coach at The Gryphon, Jim Gower, added: ‘Everyone in the local rugby community, both at The Gryphon School and at Sherborne RFC, is bursting with pride at this news. This is a truly outstanding achievement by an exceptional young man.’

iPads for All A new ‘iPads in School’ trial has this term proved a huge success. Students in a Year 7 Tutor Group were each given their own iPad to use throughout the school day. They were encouraged to use the tablets as much as possible to enhance their lessons and to help with their work outside the classroom.

Inevitably, at first, there was much disappointment at not being able to download games! However, when the students saw the number of apps available they threw themselves into the experiment. We are excited by the possibilities this has opened up. Students have, for example, used video in History and Drama and used software called Reflector to project the iPad screen onto the whiteboard in Science. Over the course of the term we have learnt an enormous amount about the benefits of students having individual iPads.

Following the success of this trial we are hoping to make iPads available to all students in two Year Groups in September. We are confident this technology will be available to the whole school in the future and are determined that The Gryphon will continue to be at the cutting edge of technology.

Stuart Lawson - Assistant Head

Pupil Premium The School receives extra funding for our ‘Pupil Premium’ (PP) students. Your child can become a PP student if they have Free School Meals (or have ever had Free School Meals in the last 6 years), if they are a Looked After Child or have a parent in the Armed Forces. The money comes into school and is used to support the learning of PP students in a variety of ways, from funding school trips to paying for catchup lessons or counselling. We are sending a leaflet home to all families giving more details about PP. In the meantime, if you would like more information, please contact: Mr James Gower, Assistant Head Tel: (01935) 813122, Email: jim.gower@gryphon.dorset.sch.uk or Miss Anna Kalisz, Pupil Support Manager, Mobile: 07824398257 Email: anna.kalisz@gryphon.dorset.sch.uk

Pinnacle Photo Agency

The Gryphon School had a very special visit earlier this term from the woman who, when she was a child, was the model for the girl in the sculpture which stands in the quad outside the Science Department. The statue was originally placed at St Aldhelm’s School in 1957 and has been in its present position since The Gryphon School opened just over 20 years ago. Sandra Hills, who is now 61, had not seen the statue for more than 50 years and was thrilled to see her likeness again. Her mother worked as a cleaner for Ruth Gervis, the artist who created the sculpture. Mrs Hills was about six when, along with Philip, the cook’s son, she posed for the drawings which became the sculpture. She said ‘We stood side by side holding a book.

At the time we probably had no idea why.’ She went on ‘It was a bit surreal seeing it after all this time. My husband said he could tell it was me the moment he saw the sun glinting off the statue.’

Former Gryphon student Ollie Devoto has been named the 2014 LV=Breakthrough Player.

This award is designed to recognise the next generation of young players competing in the LV=Cup; a competition renowned for developing future international stars. Ollie was nominated following his outstanding performances throughout all four pool stages of this season's LV=Cup and follows in the footsteps of inaugural winner Jonny May and the 2013 title holder Jack Nowell, both of whom featured in England’s recent Six Nations campaign. As part of the prize for winning the Award, Ollie has been able to choose a grassroots club of his choice to receive a £1,000 donation from LV=.

Terry Fisher Photography

Statue Girl

Breakthrough Player Award for former Gryphon student

Young Designer for Old Company

TRADITIONAL STORYTELLER VISITS THE GRYPHON SCHOOL

A Year 10 Gryphon School student has inspired the design for a new box in which to keep special fishing hooks. It followed a chance meeting between Clive Edwards, owner of the 150 year old company Richard Wheatley, and Jack Taylor. When they met in a local tropical fish shop, Jack was talking about zig fishing for carp and showed Mr Edwards his selection of zigs. These are small imitation water creatures, beetles, water boatmen etc., built of foam that float in the water table. Clive noticed that these were just stored loose in a small box and mentioned the high chance for the point on them to get ‘dinked’ or chipped, greatly reducing hook up potential.

Giles Abbott, a storyteller from London, held Year 7 pupils enthralled when he visited The Gryphon School earlier this term and entertained them with his tales.

Sunrise A spectacular March sunrise over The Gryphon School. It was captured by Rory Manton, one of our caretakers, as he started work.

Year 7 go bowling I THOUGHT I WAS COMPETITIVE, UNTIL I MET MISS PAKIJAVAN AND MISS PETERS, AS I FOUND OUT WHEN I WENT ON THE REWARD TRIP TO THE BOWLING CENTRE IN YEOVIL.

Jack receiving the first of the Jack Taylor zig box out of Richard Wheatley’s Somerset workshop from Clive Edwards

Together, Clive and Jack, devised a new box to store zigs safely without the chance of hook damage. Clive Edwards said: ‘As anglers, we all know that you never lose a small fish, the ones that get away are always the big ones.

A dinked hook could mean the loss of your biggest fish’.

While we were on the mini-bus, Miss Peters and Miss Pakijavan laid down the challenge that if we won they would buy us sweets and if they won, then all of us would have to buy them a chocolate bar! So, let the challenge commence! We had three lanes and there were five or six people per alley. During the bowling, there were lots of funny moments such as Dylan throwing the bowling ball a little bit too hard and denting the alley, LOTS of people throwing the ball and breaking the edges of the alley and LOADS of people getting the bowling ball stuck in the gutter and the poor helpers having to go and retrieve them (without slipping!).

Richard Wheatley, known worldwide for its fly boxes, has now completed production of the Jack Taylor Zig Box. Clive Edwards commented: ‘These are our first steps into the carp/coarse fishing market for almost a hundred years and we felt that the box should bear the name of the fisherman who created the idea for the product.’

Holocaust Memorial Day 2014

The Year 7s were totally immersed in the worlds and characters he created and were spellbound by the stories, one a love story with a twist and the other a story about friendship and trust. The students said they thoroughly enjoyed listening to his tales, which, they said, were hilarious, imaginative and dramatic.

Julie Hoskins - LRC Manager

Little Gryphons praised by local MP Going bowling certainly brought out the competitive streak in all of us and we were determined to get at least one strike or, in Miss Pakijavan’s case, simply to win! It was not only a fierce competition, but also an enjoyable and friendly environment to meet new friends and to get to know Miss Peters and Miss Pakijavan better. A big thank you to both of them for a great afternoon!

Jasmine Moore – Year 7

Oliver Letwin, the MP for West Dorset, visited the Little Gryphons Nursery School this term. He praised the Nursery as a place ‘where significant and highly focused effort is being invested in ensuring that the children have the best possible start in life’. In an article published in the Blackmore Vale Magazine and on Mr Letwin’s website he wrote of the increasing focus on the lifelong effects of good nursery schooling. He said studies show children provided with a solid foundation in their earliest years tend to prosper and went on to say that Little Gryphons is a striking example of a new generation of nursery schools very serious about the development of their little charges.

Mr Letwin wrote ‘As soon as you enter the place, you are immediately struck by two things: the kindliness of the staff, and the intensely serious professionalism with which they approach their task’. To read the full article see www.oliverletwinmp.com/news/nursery-schools

They Win Again!

As part of their current studies, Year 9 marked The Gryphon’s annual Holocaust Memorial Day by welcoming Belsen camp survivor Rudi Oppenheimer to share his testimony. His presentation was central to a day of workshops and reflection and our students made full use of this opportunity, not only to hear from an eye-witness to these tragic events but to interact with him, asking prescient questions and learning from his experience. The level of engagement shown by Year 9 was truly exemplary and reflects the impact made by Mr Oppenheimer’s testimony. It was a terrific event, made all the more special by the reaction of the students.

David Gordon - Head of RE

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Giles, who is registered blind, started storytelling after losing most of his sight to multiple sclerosis. He was working in a bookshop at the time but the loss of sight meant he was unable to continue. He discovered storytelling was for him after being inspired by an evening listening to stories in his local pub. With this new career he has worked in a children’s hospital in London, given talks at conferences, told stories for both adults and children at festivals throughout the UK and is also a voice coach.

The winners of this year’s PTA Quiz were, for the fifth year running, the ‘Quizologists’. It was a close run competition with the result in the balance right up until the last few rounds.

However, once again, the ‘Quizologists’, with their impressive range of knowledge, proved the team to beat. Congratulations to them and many thanks to the PTA members who worked so

PRIMARY MATHS CHALLENGE DAY In mid-March, the best Year 6 mathematicians from around Sherborne came together to compete in The Gryphon’s Primary Maths Challenge Day. Each school sent a team of four students to compete throughout the day on a number of different rounds that would test students’ mathematical ability, speed, logic and strategy. The students were helped throughout the day by a team of Year 9 students from The Gryphon, who kept score and ensured the day ran smoothly. It was great fun and the final results showed what a closely fought competition the day proved to be. The winners were Yetminster with 193 points. Congratulations to all the students who took part in the event.

Patrick Unwin - Maths

hard to make the evening such a success. It was sold out with over a hundred people forming 14 teams competing for the prized trophy. The event was, as always, great fun and we look forward to next year’s quiz. Book early and maybe yours will be the team to pip the Quizologists at the post!

Loads of Literature Gryphon Hosts Regional Final The DT Food Department welcomed visitors from Beaminster School and The Park School in Yeovil to the Regional Final of the Big School Cake Challenge this term.

Year 9 students have been competing in the school rounds of the Competition which saw some wonderful creations including cups and saucers, a Cookie Monster and Jaffa Cake cakes. The winner of the School Finals, who went on to represent The Gryphon at the Regional Final, was Callum Henry with his original and very tasty, Blackcurrant and Courgette Cake.

Callum was up against stiff and very well organised competition from Lucy with her giant profiteroles and Jade with her Carrot and Banana Cake. The final was tense with Callum finishing with 6 seconds to go causing Mrs Elsworth and Mrs Baxter a few nail-biting moments.

Judges, Sue Fudge of Fudges Bakery and Richard Peacocke of The Green Restaurant, then had the tricky job of selecting the winner.

Organisation, originality, taste, texture and finish were all marked and the honours went to Jade from Beaminster whose original packaging and deliciously moist cake won ‘Best in Show’. Thank you to our judges who gave excellent feedback to all the candidates.

The pupils and staff were amazingly enthusiastic about our recent celebration of World Book Day. Everyone was invited to come to school as their favourite character from literature and did they ever rise to the challenge! We had all manner of fancy dress amazement and our Little Gryphons were heart-meltingly cute with lots of fantastic princesses and a teensy gruffalo.

Meanwhile, Callum gets free tickets to the Big Cake Show in Exeter to watch Jade compete against the other regional winners in front of British Bake Off’s Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood. Good luck Jade – represent us all well!

Look out for future competitive events and why not try Cooking Club on Wednesdays after school.

THAT’S FISHY!

Sally Baxter - Design & Technology

DT Food were delighted to welcome Mr Jonny Hodges, Commercial Director of Lyons Seafoods to talk to their Gifted and Talented Catering and Hospitality students in Year 11 and Sixth Form.

Mr Hodges gave an overview of the fish business and explained how new products are researched and developed – really useful for the A Level students who have to produce their own ‘concept product’ for their assessment. The whole salmon produced a range of responses from the students as did the many and varied samples Mr Hodges provided.

Amazing efforts were made by superstars like Jason Trevor, who came as Shakespeare's Juliet, and Tom Straughan who bravely bared his shoulders in honour of Game of Thrones.

It was a wonderful, whimsical day in which we all smiled a bit more than usual, and talked about books a lot.

Penny Fearn - English

A great learning and tasting opportunity! Thank you to Lyons Seafoods and to Jonny.

Caroline Elsworth - Head of DT Food

CODING AT THE GRYPHON The Hour of Code was launched in October 2013 to encourage students around the world to take up the challenge and experience what computer science and programming is like. During December over 20 million students in 170 countries, including those at The Gryphon School took part. In the five days over which it took place it reached 15 million users (Facebook took three years to reach that many!) and students wrote over 500,000,000 lines of code (Windows has only 50 million lines!).

KS3 students at The Gryphon were introduced to a number of different approaches to coding including Python programming, Lightbot, Java Script and App inventor. Those students that successfully completed their Hour of Code were given a certificate of completion. Nigel White, Head of ICT said ‘I am exceptionally proud of our students, they really responded to the challenge that coding and programming has presented them and every student that took part was able to gain some insight into the world of computer science. As our curriculum starts to move forward it is fantastic to see our students relishing the new opportunities for learning that are presented to them’.

Nigel White - Head of ICT

Easter Message ‘The winter is over; the rains have stopped; in the countryside the flowers are in bloom.

This is the time for singing.’

How wonderful it is to experience the sunshine and warmth after the storms and devastation we have endured over these past long months. The quote above could have been written by one of the talented students at The Gryphon. In fact, they were written hundreds of years ago and recorded in the Old Testament book of the Song of Solomon (Chapter 2:11-12). In the Northern hemisphere, the most important of all the Christian festivals stands aptly and squarely in the midst of springtime which brims over with hope, new life and new beginnings as buds form and begin to uncurl, colour explodes and lambs frolic with sheer joy at being alive.

For Christians, the new life and new hope of our surroundings pale into insignificance as we meditate our way through Good Friday remembering the death of Christ and then celebrate his rising again in glory on Easter Day. As a result all people everywhere can experience restored relationship with God, forgiveness for all of our wrongdoings, the certainty of God’s presence with us and the promise of heaven as death has once and for all been defeated.

HAPPY EASTER!

Rev’d Diane Tregale – School Chaplain

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Music and Drama Rock Challenge UK Over 60 Gryphon School students took part in Rock Challenge UK this term. They finished second and with five awards to their name. Rock Challenge is a series of performing arts events which promotes healthy life choices. Thousands of young people take part every year in their local events. The Gryphon performers joined those from six other schools and colleges in the region for a day of rehearsals before performing to a sell-out audience in the evening. The Gryphon School’s entry was a dance-drama choreographed, co-ordinated and run by five students Nina Trist, Lucy Bennett, Chloe Burton, Georgie O’Neil and Megan O’Neil. These students worked together as a team to decide theme, costume, set and choreography and then taught all sections to the other students involved. The Rock Challenge team performed ‘Epidemic’ at Southampton Guildhall in the heat stages of the competition. They gave a superb and impressive performance and were rewarded with second place. The team also received five awards: the Award of Excellence for Lighting, Award of Excellence for Performance Skill, Award of Excellence for Visual Enhancement, Award for Performers Choice (chosen by all the other teams taking part) and Award of Excellence for Choreography. The performance was just outstanding and really showcased the amazing talents of our students. The judges commended them on their excellent choreography with a delicate and sensitive start that progressed to a very dark and powerful ending. We are enormously proud of them.

The top 9 highest scoring schools (after first place) qualify to take part in the Southern Final of Rock Challenge UK later this year. Gryphon School students are keeping their fingers crossed that their high score will give them the chance to compete again.

Jessica Brooks - Head of Drama

South Pacific Last December’s joint Drama and Music Departments’ production of the wonderful Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical ‘South Pacific’ was a huge success and full credit should go to all students who performed, either as a cast member or in the 30-strong orchestra who all showed great professionalism, dedication and enthusiasm for the duration of the project. Set during the Second World War, ‘South Pacific’ contains such famous numbers as ‘Bali Hai’, ‘I’m Gonna’ Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair’, ‘Some Enchanted Evening’ ‘Bloody Mary’ and ‘Honey Bun’. The orchestral parts were the original professional parts and the orchestra did exceptionally well to pull off the score the way they did. All cast, leads, and orchestra without exception performed with great aplomb each night. Our very grateful thanks also go to Paul and Eli of ESP for the superb lighting and sound quality, to Harry Ford of AVP for the superb video of the Thursday evening performance and to Kevin Goodwin for all of the orchestral transpositions for saxophone and euphonium.

Show Orchestra The Show Orchestra took part for the first time this term in the Weymouth Music Festival. Soloists Emily Price and Matt Ward and the Brass Ensemble , performed to two adjudicators and students from local Dorset Secondary Schools. It was really great to hear performances by other School Ensembles. The adjudicators’ comments were extremely complimentary of everything we did, with special mention of Thomas Edwards for his sensitive Drum Kit playing. Students of The Gryphon Show Orchestra also represented the School at this year’s Sherborne Rotary Club’s Youth Makes Music Concert, an annual concert in aid of local charities with students from all the local schools performing. Gryphon students once again represented both the School and the Music Department admirably with four numbers from our recent production of South Pacific (with solos by Emily Price and Matt Ward) and Skyfall (soloist Megan Smith) as our finale. Our thanks and congratulations to all the students involved and to the parents and staff who turned out to support them.

Carol Service Last term’s end of year School Carol Service was a wonderful event. The Brass Ensemble, ably supported by Mr Fox and Mr Miles, excelled themselves both in the descants and in their solo item. The Whole School and Senior Chamber Choirs sang a wide variety of musical styles beautifully, and in some items were accompanied for the first time by our instrumentalists. Thank you to Mr Gostick (Choral Director) and Miss Wisener for their programming and direction skills. Thanks also to the members of staff who gave up their lunchtimes to join the choirs.

Val Mizen - Head of Music

Year 8’s Got Talent First things first, Year 8 most certainly does have talent! The calibre of the acts and the confidence within the Year Group was absolutely mind blowing. From selfchoreographed dance acts, to impressively composed vocal harmonies and with some truly impressive magic tricks thrown in to boot, it really was a fantastic night to behold. All the acts had clearly dedicated time and effort to their performances and it was a real privilege to witness the results. They all went on stage aiming to delight the audience and win the competition.

However, there could only be one winner, well two actually (a public text vote and a judges vote). The text vote proclaimed Israel MasonWilliams the winner with his amazing rendition of Adele’s ‘Someone Like You.’ Phoebe Stagg and Hollie Cullen were second with a sweetly sung ‘Perfect Two’ by Auburn, and Hannah Barnes took third place with her impressively planned and executed dance to ‘Bang That’ by KP. The judges then had the difficult job of choosing their winners who were Georgia Holder, Hana Hemerat and Tabitha Fox with their beautifully harmonised performance of ‘Counting Stars’ by One Republic. Ben Gear and Alex Elwick were second with their audience captivating music act and finally Emma Reynolds and Annalise Sargent were third with their fantastically harmonised version of ‘Hallelujah’ by Leonard Cohen. The event was a resounding success raising around £330 for charity.

Jordan Lane Year 8 Lead Tutor

Maths Challenges There have been a number of Maths Challenges that Gryphon students have taken part in so far this year.

Around 70 Sixth Form students took part in the Senior Challenge last November, with around half gaining medals of some type; achieving 20 bronze awards, 12 silver awards and three gold awards. The three gold awards were gained by Year 13 students, Emma Bussell, James Gard and Jacob Butt.

Four Sixth Form students also spent an afternoon at Poole Grammar School competing in the Senior Team Maths Challenge. Jacob Butt, James Gard (both Year 13), Jamie Loxton and Harry Tennant (both Year 12) competed in a number of challenges against Sixth Form teams from schools around the area, and finished a very creditable 7th out of 20 schools.

In February this year, 120 students from across Years 9, 10 and 11 took part in the Intermediate Challenge. Between them they gained a fantastic 33 bronze awards, 29 silver awards and nine gold awards.

The students achieving gold awards are Sophia Rogerson, Will Edwards, Henry Straughan, Paul Jennings and Wade Elgee (Year 11), Matthew Suri, Pawel Zaborowski, Thomas Blake (Year 10) and Noah Peet (Year 9). By virtue of these fantastic results, many of these students have qualified for the subsequent rounds, which will be taking place late this term.

Patrick Unwin - Maths

Inspired by the Dreaming Spires Late last term, 15 Gifted and Talented Year 11 students had a fantastic day at the University of Oxford getting a feel for university life and for the tutorial style education system. The students spent the morning at Merton College, touring the grounds with current undergraduates, having lunch in the dining room and experiencing the beautiful architecture of the city. They spent some time at the Bodleian Library exhibition and identifying colleges and other significant buildings in the city. The students participated in a mock tutorial with a university Professor of Mathematics, building upon the Pythagoras’ Theorem which they recently studied in Maths at school. The students were encouraged to really think about the applications for Maths.

In the afternoon the students were divided into groups and set a series of challenges to complete in the Pitt Rivers Museum which culminated in the sharing of ideas about the evolution of aspects of human society. They left with a much better understanding of the way the University works, its tutorial system and a renewed sense of purpose and motivation about their current studies.

Fiona Guest - Gifted and Talented Coordinator

Berlin Trip 2014

Barcelona Trip

a good time was had by all During Half Term, a group of students studying Spanish, from Years 9 and 10, embarked on a trip to Barcelona, accompanied by four members of staff.

Despite an incredibly early start on Friday morning (2am!), we all arrived safely at noon and checked into our hotel. We then had a few hours to explore the local area, including the beautiful sandy beach that was within easy walking distance of where we were staying.

The next morning, tired after all the travelling, we headed off for our first Spanish lesson. We then went to visit Camp Nou, Barcelona FC. Although several members of the group were not excited by this prospect, it turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip!

On day three, we were taken to Barcelona Cathedral and were treated to traditional Spanish dancing, and a protest about immigration rights! Then we walked down the road to the Picasso Museum, which was exhibiting some of his most famous works.

Over five days in February some of my fellow Year 10 students and I packed in as much history, culture and memorable experiences to not only support our GCSE studies but also give a whole new perspective on East and West Europe.

Our first stop, after a day’s travel, was at Treptower Park, where over 5,000 Soviet soldiers are buried in a memorial built by the Germans for the Soviets. This put into perspective the scale of conflict since 1940 through the 1950s and onwards during what is known as The Cold War. A visit to the Olympic Stadium contrasted with the sights seen in the UK when we hosted this event in 2012. The political messages and grandeur were very evident with statues of Nazi Aryan men surrounding the park.

We enjoyed an evening visit to climb the Reichstag glass dome, a parliament building with fantastic architecture and presence.

We also went to the former Stasi prison which put us in a respectful, sombre mood as we all found time for reflection at the site of such despair.

A sightseeing tour of the city one afternoon allowed us to see the Reichstag in the

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daylight, the Brandenburg Gate and the remains of the Berlin Wall. We got a taste of more modern Berlin with a trip to the Hopfingerbrau im Palais for a traditional Berliner culinary feast, followed by some bowling, which was enjoyed by both teachers and pupils, and was a brilliant time to socialise.

Sunday was another crisp and bright day, no snow so far! Our journey took us to consider the harsh and brutal environment of the Nazi concentration camp at Sachsenhausen. Then we spent time at Cecilenhof, the house where Churchill, Stalin and Truman met to discuss events and sign the treaty that decided Germany’s future after the Second World War. This was followed by a typically 21st Century meal at the Hard Rock Café and an incredible view of the Berlin skyline at night from 200 metres up in the TV Tower.

The trip took in poignant historical events and sites with a generous mix of modern and traditional cultures found in Berlin.

Thank you from all of us, to Mr Phillips, Mr Dagger, Mrs Beale, Mr Fishwick, Miss Boatswain and the tour team.

Matt Vear – Year 10

Day four started with another Spanish lesson, then we took the Metro to visit Montjuïc. This is the site of the Olympic stadium. We also went to El Poble – an exhibition showing the different regions of Spain. It was here that some members of the group bought sombreros that they insisted on wearing for the remainder of the trip.

On our final day we spent our remaining euros at various markets and travelled home. Muchas gracias to the staff who accompanied us on this memorable trip!

Eliza Main – Year 10

Mindfulness You may have heard the ‘Thought for the Day’ on Radio Four’s Today programme on Friday 28 February. The speaker was talking about the way in which mindfulness has begun to enter the mainstream of everyday life. He noted that a previous Speaker of the House of Commons spoke of how, whenever the cut and thrust of debate got overwhelming, he just called on his meditation practice and focused on his breath.

Since the beginning of last year, members of both Houses of Parliament and leading civil servants have been participating in a mindfulness meditation course (very similar to the ones that are run here in the School for students and staff). Its participants have found that, with regular practice, mindfulness can help to realign the relationship with events in your life that often cause distress. It does not stop those ‘nasty’ events, but allows one to develop a way in which one can respond more skilfully rather than just reacting without thinking.

This is what we have been doing here at The Gryphon. We are giving our students and staff the tools to be able to manage their lives more skilfully and with greater awareness. This will hopefully enable them to see events, big and small, pleasant and unpleasant, in a more enriching way.

Jem Shackleford - Mindfulness Co-ordinator

SIxTH FORM We are delighted that Ofsted recognised The Gryphon Sixth Form as outstanding. Our results last summer were not only the best in Dorset but amongst the best in the country for non-selective state schools.

Having completed their pre-public exams (mocks) Year 12 and 13 students are heads down and working hard for their actual exams this May /June. Almost all Year 13 students, who applied for university this September, have now had offers including four Oxbridge conditional offers. We are also delighted that Elena Siretanu who is in Year 12 has reached the final section stage for the Sutton Trust USA programme. If she is successful Elena will spend a week in America in August visiting a number of prestigious universities to find out more about the US Higher Education system. All travel and accommodation is paid for by the Sutton Trust.

Every term we encourage our students to participate in extra-curricular activities both in school and in the wider community. The Rotary Club of Sherborne was delighted to welcome Elena Vatamanuic, Mariela Balabanova, Elena Siretanu and Ginevra Villani to their World Understanding evening. Ginevra is spending Year 12 at The Gryphon, before returning to Italy to study Medicine.

Elizabeth Gallimore and Meghna Dwyer gave talks on Roman Mosaics and The Qing Dynasty (respectively) at the Sherborne Historical Society’s AGM in March. Elizabeth hopes to read Archaeology /History at University next September, whilst Meghna hopes to study Business Management. Potential medics and Oxbridge students from The Gryphon and Sherborne Girls now meet regularly on a Tuesday after school to discuss topics of interest. Well done to James Gard, Arthur Morris, George Brown and Emily Hall who have all given presentations at this event.

Our congratulations go to Jake Perrett who achieved a special mention at The Juvenes Translatores competition for students in the EU. Also to J ames Gard, Arthur Morris and Jake Clough who won the first two rounds of the Rotary Club’s ‘Youth Speaks’ competitions held at The Gryphon School and Beaminster Schools respectively. The boys, who gave a very entertaining speech on the delights of Coca Cola, were pipped at the post at the District round, held in Cheddar. However, Jake was awarded best speaker at the event.

We are always delighted to hear from former students and are pleased when they return to The Gryphon to talk about their experiences to current students. A highlight this term was a visit by Florence Edwards who is currently on a gap year before taking up her deferred place to read Government and History at the London School of Economics. Florence, who has recently returned from a 10 week trip to Nicaragua through a Government funded scheme, shared her experiences with students.

Jane Tutton - Head of Sixth Form

TRAVELS IN NICARAGUA During the final months of 2013, while most of my friends were starting university, I was living in a remote village in the beautiful Nicaraguan mountains. Together with 14 other volunteers from Central America and the UK, I had chosen to come and work on an environmental project on behalf of Raleigh ICS. ICS stands for ‘International Citizen Service’; this is a fantastic scheme funded by the UK government which gives young people the chance to work on a wide variety of sustainable development projects. I could never sum up in a short article the huge amount I gained from my 10 weeks in the village of Los Martinez. The work was varied and always interesting and living closely within a community allowed me to develop extremely strong friendships. I would urge anyone from The Gryphon who is interested in development and isn’t fazed by living in very basic conditions to look into ICS. You will have a truly unique experience and the opportunity to make a genuine improvement to people’s lives.

Florence Edwards - former Gryphon student

GRYPHON AMNESTY CLUB In the last year, The Gryphon Amnesty Group has been hard at work! Through our fundraising events, including cake sales and sponsored runs, we’ve raised £200. The money has gone towards postage costs for our letters to prisoners imprisoned without trial and we’ve also donated to Amnesty to aid their campaigns.

Last year we sent two representatives to the Amnesty AGM, and we hope to do the same next year in Edinburgh. The Gryphon Amnesty Club also went to London in July 2013, to hand in a petition of 11000 signatures to the Tanzanian High Commission campaigning for peaceful elections in Zimbabwe.

This year we plan on campaigning and fundraising in more innovative and proactive ways.

We are about to host an Amnesty Lunch in the Bistro @Gryphon. Following this, we aim to compete in the Amnesty Youth Awards, stage an Art Exhibition and go to London to work with Amnesty Headquarters on a new campaign. More Year 12 students have joined The Gryphon Amnesty community, so the legacy and work that we do can be continued.

Alastair Dolbear – Year 12 Gryphon Amnesty Media and Innovation Representative

Florence Edwards with Raleigh ICS

Sixth Form Youth Speaks team

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Girls PE

Inclusion Festival

International Success

All of our netball teams continue to battle for their places in the Yeovil and District Finals. Special mention must go to Years 7and 9 who are already through. Year 8 are yet to complete the games in their pool while a narrow win from Ansford knocked the Year 10 Team out at their final hurdle.

Year 7A and B teams entered a round robin tournament at Ansford at the start of their Gryphon season coming away with first and second place. A fantastic showcase of talent has made for some very difficult team selections which all involved have taken as an incentive to work at their best to prove their worth on the court.

The Gryphon School PE Department hosted its first Sports Inclusion Festival this term as the North Dorset Disability and Inclusion Hub. Students from schools across Dorset and Somerset and from as far away as Gloucester took part. It was fantastic to see so many young people involved in a day of opportunity, excitement and learning. The Festival was run and funded by Cerebral Palsy Sport, with support from The Gryphon School and the Rotary Club. The intention was to provide the opportunity for young people with Cerebral Palsy or other disabilities or impairment to experience a day of inclusive and enjoyable sport. With a number of adapted activities Gryphon School Sports Leaders conducted a day that was fully inclusive for all and allowed the young people to enjoy a positive experience of Sport. Our thanks go to all the staff who brought the students to make the day possible and to Cerebral Palsy Sport and the Rotary Club for their support and funding. It was a great day for all the young people involved.

Girls’ football has welcomed coaching from the Yeovil Town Ladies Assistant Coach after school each Wednesday. It’s been a great opportunity.

Boys PE Hockey A mixture of Years 8, 9, 10 and 11 boys played Shaftesbury in a hockey match beating them 1-0. The match proved to be very well contested with possession of the ball swaying both ways.

Some great goal keeping skills from Max Barker protected the boys’ first half goal. Special mention must go to Sam Reynolds and Tom Bevan for their skill and stick work. It was a great team effort that deserved the win at the final whistle.

Football Football is becoming more and more popular at The Gryphon School with high levels of enthusiasm and motivation being displayed by each and every player. With teams playing from Year 7 – Year 13 we have made a fantastic start to the season with victories happening at all age groups. Within the Sixth Form we have fielded a 1st, 2nd and 3rd xI for the first time in the School’s history! With boys involved in matches every week for every age group the standard of play has been truly exceptional.

Bradley Parks has continued to excel in basketball.

He is a member of the South West England Basketball Team who compete on the International circuit.

Bradley has already played in tournaments in Belgium and Prague and has just been to an International Tournament in Sweden. This is an annual event where teams from all over Europe compete. Bradley’s team reached the quarter final knockout stage where they were beaten by a team from Germany.

Andrew Simpson Olympic Legacy Bursary

County Success for Year 9s

This bursary follows the success of the scheme set up last year by the School and the Sherborne Rotary Clubs. It will provide pupils from The Gryphon School with the necessary means to improve on their sporting performances. The scheme is open to all pupils within the School who compete at a standard above county level. The large number of applications received, highlights the level of sporting talent at the School.

This was not only in the more traditional sports like swimming and football, but also included activities like dragon boat racing and kick boxing. With such a strong field it was hard to whittle the numbers down to the interview stage. All the pupils involved equipped themselves with confidence and a wealth of information to impress the panel.

As only one boy and one girl can receive funding from the scheme a long deliberation process took place due to the quality of presentations given by the pupils. The two winners were Juliette Barlow in Year 9 for her achievements in athletics and Drew Sanson in Year 10 for his achievements in air pistol shooting. Both of these students will receive financial assistance. All of the candidates involved should be congratulated on their efforts.

Sports Leadership Following their selection of a leadership option within Core PE lessons over 50 students have been visiting the local Primary Schools to deliver PE sessions. Year 11 students have been focusing on Netball with Years 5 and 6 pupils to help build their basic skills and decision making in fun and exciting games. Year 10s delivered varied activities, including Multiskills and Yoga for pupils in Years 1 to 4.

Meanwhile William Morris and Luke Furniss, have been selected to play Rugby for their counties.

Luke was chosen to represent Somerset in the Under 14s and William will play for Dorset and Wiltshire. William’s talent has also caught the eye of Bath Academy coaches who are watching his development. We hope another successful season at The Gryphon, Sherborne Rugby Club and Dorset and Wiltshire will secure him a Bath Academy trial next season.

Club Focus

In football Isaac Atherley was selected for the Under 14 County Team at the beginning of the season. He was then invited to attend the Advanced Development Centre in Bournemouth along with a number of other local players.

Following a six week trial for the Under 14 Excellence Academy at the Centre he has been selected to attend the Academy.

Since 2012, Mr Barker has been running a very successful after school club that focuses on fun and participation in Sport for boys in Years 7, 8 and 9. The primary aim has been to provide sporting opportunities for the vast majority of students who do not get access to after school fixtures. The take up and response from students in the last two years has been great, with hundreds of boys having taken part. Up to 60 students a week have been involved in a broad range of Sports including old favourites such as Football, Basketball, Table Tennis, Rounders as well as some more alternative Sports such as Dodgeball and Capture the Flag. Students are randomly allocated to teams each week, encouraged to enjoy themselves and then simply allowed to play. They have fun with their friends and students that they have never met before, making the club a great way to get to know people. Next term we are looking forward to a Year 8 and 9 Boys Fun Football Competition on the artificial surface starting after Easter, followed by the perennially most popular event, Capture the Flag, which will be for boys in Years 7,8 and 9. Sign up letters are available in PE lessons from Mr Barker.

Editor: Liz Oatts

In Netball, Georgia Tailby and Chloe Hellyar were successful in their trial for the Somerset Netball Satellite Academy. Following nomination from Yeovil Netball Club the girls attended a trial with over 40 local players. Both were in the final 16 selected to represent the academy. This means they are now on the way for county selection next year.

The Gryphon School, Bristol Road, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 4EQ School and Sixth Form – T: 01935 813122 • F: 01935 816992 • E: office@gryphon.dorset.sch.uk Conference Centre – T: 01935 810103 • F: 01935 816992 • E: conference@gryphon.dorset.sch.uk

Nursery – T: 01935 810112

The Gryphon School is a company limited by guarantee • Registered in England with Company Number 08130468

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F: 01935 816992

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