Leweston Life | Spring Term 2023

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LEWESTONLIFE

LEWESTON LIFE REFLECTS THE MANY ACHIEVEMENTS OF LEWESTON PUPILS OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS

SPRINGTERM|2023
www.leweston.co.uk 01963210691
TABLE OF CONTENTS Sports 8 Music & Creative Arts 4 Equestrian 11 In The Lab 15 Life In Boarding 13 Academic 16 Extra Curricular & Enrichment 19 17 International Careers 18 22 Chapel & Community Sixth Form 24 Dates for Your Diary 27 Music Groups & Concerts 26 Events & Clubs 25

MUSIC & CREATIVE ARTS

YEAR 9 PRODUCE ARCHITECTURE INSPIRED PRINTS AND MODELS

Using the technique of dry point printing, Year 9 pupils have been capturing the outline of a particular building inspired by the artist Sunga Park. Inking up their plate, they could choose to keep their printing inks precise and add water colour after printing or loose and atmospheric

Screen printing provided some great results capturing the London cityscape Pupils created their own stencils and used them in collaboration with screens depicting architectural imagery. This was a great learning experience with eye catching outcomes produced by all!

The pupils finished their architecture project by creating their own laser cut models. They used computer aided design (CAD) to plan their model, drawing their design digitally. They then sent their designs, inspired by famous architects such as Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid and Antoni Gaudí, for precision cutting

Their final pieces look fantastic, and showcase their creativity and digital design skills

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A CLEAN SWEEP AT THE TAUNTON FESTIVAL

Congratulations to our Junior Choir, Year 7 and 8 Choir, and Schola Cantorum who all performed brilliantly at this year's Taunton Music Festival Each won their category and brought home a trophy! All our singers should be extremely proud of themselves for this fantastic achievement. Visit our website to listen to recordings from the competition.

CREATIVE FINE ART COURSEWORK

Serena, Year 12, created her Fine Art coursework around the theme of "Growing up". She created her own photoshoot of a teddy bears' picnic inspired by the photographer Tim Walker and set designer Shona Heath. The cakes, sandwiches, tea set and flowers were created by Serena, along with the Grayson Perry inspired dress which Ondine, Year 13, wears

EVIE CREATES PORTRAIT OF LEWESON'S LONGEST SERVING TEACHER

Evie, Year 12, has created a fantastic portrait of long-serving teacher, Mr Burton-Brown (fondly referred to as Mr BB) Mr BB has worked at Leweston since 2002 as a Classics Teacher Evie said of her project: “I have had the pleasure of working with Mr BB recently during a focused piece of A Level artwork, inspired by the artist, Mark Powell I have chosen my A Level theme to be ‘Identity’ with an emphasis on studying life and the journey of time. Mr BB was the perfect choice to help me interpret Mark Powell’s work With a career spanning decades, and a love for knowledge, I created Mr BB’s portrait using complex biro techniques layered upon the pages of an old book I would like to thank Mr BB for his time and patience and hope he enjoys the portrait ”

Mr Burton-Brown was delighted to see the finished piece and honoured to have been Evie's chosen muse for her project.

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MUSIC & CREAT

MUSIC & CREATIVE ARTS

STUDENTS WOW IN SCHOOL PRODUCTIO

The West End play ‘Six’ may not seem like an obvio however, Leweston is delighted to have been one of the first schools to tackle the show since its amateur release Anyone who attended the performances has to agree that it was a fantastic choice to showcase the vast array of talent we have at Leweston.

The cast’s energy, enthusiasm, wit and fantastic singing excited audiences young and old. Pupils from Year 10 to Year 12 gave strong, confident, and well-rehearsed performances, particular mention must go to the six queens who were in the spotlight at all times and remained in character throughout. The impressive lighting, music and staging were put together by our technical crew made up of staff and pupils, even the costumes were made in house.

Audience feedback highlighted the professional quality of the production with comments such us ‘it was amazing’ and ‘an incredible night’ and ‘it left us blown away!’ Many congratulations to the cast and crew, and thank you to all the staff involved in putting such an unforgettable production together.

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LEWESTON LIFE | page 7 'Six'

U16 HOCKEY DORSET COUNTY CHAMPIONS

A massive congratulations to our boys’ Under 16 hockey team who competed in the Dorset County T2 U16 Hockey Tournament. They played four, won four with not one goal conceded, qualifying as County Champions for the South West Regional Championship Further congratulations to Ben and Alfie who have been selected for Dorset U16 Hockey

STUDENTS SELECTED FOR THE BATH RUGBY

DPP

Well done Isaac and Harrison who impressed at Bath Rugby and have gained places with their Developing Player Programme (DPP)

NETBALL SELECTION SUCCESS

Over the 2022 and 2023 seasons, Izzy, Esme, Alice and Ellie all gained selection within the Dorset Netball Satellite Programme, alongside the strongest of the county’s netballers.

Issy, our 1st VII Netball Captain, has been selected for the Team Bath U18 PDP Squad and played her first games for them this term.

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SPORT

SPORT

TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL WINNERS AT THE NATIONAL SCHOOLS BIATHLON

Congratulations to the athletes who travelled to Redditch for the National Schools Biathlon and achieved some superb results:

Reuben, Josh, Jay – Team Gold (Year 10)

Reuben – National Individual Champion (Year 10)

Thomas, Henry, Matthew – Team Gold (Year 12 and 13)

LEWESTON TOP PISTOL SHOOTING SCHOOL TEAM IN THE COUNTRY

At the National Schools Shooting Finals this term the Junior team got off to a great start. Lucy achieved the top score in the prelim round, qualifying for the final and becoming the Junior Schools National Champion.

In the Intermediate event Reuben had a great prelim round, qualifying for the final to take the individual Silver medal. The Intermediate team also shot well taking team Gold and being crowned National Champions. The Senior team; Thomas, Honor and Miller took team Silver. At the end of the day Leweston was top of the medal table, placing us top Pistol Shooting Team in the country!

Follow Lewestonsport on Instagram for the latest news and updates.
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SPORT

REGIONAL EPEE FENCING CHAMPIONS

Leweston had a great day at the BYC South West Regional Epee Fencing Championships. The results from this event go towards selecting a South West Region Epee Fencing Team for the National Inter Regions in May. Congratulations to Katrina who won the U12 category to be crowned Regional Champion! Further congratulations to all six athletes who have been selected for the Regional Fencing Team

LASER RUN, TRIATHLON AND TETRATHLON EVENT AT LEWESTON

Leweston hosted an invitation Laser Run, Triathlon and Tetrathlon on the last weekend of the term 170 athletes attended, including a team from Ireland. Everyone took part in the Laser Run, with 110 athletes in the Triathlon event (laser run and swim) and 75 athletes taking on the Tetrathlon (fencing, swimming and laser run).

The competition was a great success Leweston had 16 athletes taking part with some excellent results and performances Visit our website to view the results. Follow Lewestonsport on Instagram for the latest news and updates.

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EQUESTRIAN

8 RIDERS QUALIFY FOR N HICKSTEAD NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Congratulations to all our riders fo the cold weather at Moreton EC on February They achieved three tea eight individual qualifying places f Hickstead National Championships

DORSET COUNTY TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS

Leweston equestrian teams were out in force at the NSEA County (Dorset + Hampshire) and the Royal Windsor qualifier, organised by Moreton EC

Team Marine and Team Navy were delighted to be crowned Dorset County Team Champions, winning both the 80-85cm and 90-95cm classes. As a result, they will go to Hickstead to represent Dorset at the County Championships Congratulations to May who just pipped Darcie to take the Individual County title!

The win in Class 3 also gave Team Navy their ticket to the 2023 Royal Windsor Horse Show for the Intermediate finals.

Follow our page on Facebook for the latest Equestrian news - @LewestonEquestrian
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NSEA PONTISPOOL EVENTERS CHALLENGE | TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL QUALIFIERS

Five Leweston riders attended Pontispool and came away with one team win and four individual qualifications over the challenging course. Congratulations to Hen, Maisie, Rosie and Madeline who took the team win at 90-95cm. With Madeline second and Rosie fourth, earning their welldeserved individual qualification.

Maisy and her ex-racehorse, ‘Tihui Sept’, won the Open 1m-1.05 class with a super smooth round. Madeline qualified with a good third placing on ‘Strandhill Mick Dundee’ Both these riders are starting preparations for the Badminton GR Series Championships as their main goal this year and were delighted with their results.

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LIFE IN BO

A BUSY TERM FO BOARDERS

Leweston boarders have had a jam-packed term of weekend and evening activities!

At the beginning of the term they hit the coast for a fun-filled trip to Weymouth; visiting the Sealife Centre followed by a walk along the beach to enjoy the various rides from Bumper Cars to ‘Surfs Up’.

In January, our Chinese boarders cooked a delicious meal to celebrate Chinese New Year and together all of the boarders made decorations to adorn the boarding houses.

The boarders also went on a trip to Gorcombe Extreme Sports and got to try their hand at archery.

It was lots of fun and Mrs Simkins-Smith, Director of Boarding, showcased a hidden talent for toxophily!

The Senior School boarders celebrated all things literacy throughout their Reading Week; from sharing their current reads and ‘Guess the Staff Member’s Book Shelf, to ‘Blind Date With a Book’.

They also had a fantastic time at Go-Karting and at their Boarding House socials which included a visit to Tamburinos and bowling.

Follow Lewestonboarding on Instagram for the latest news and updates

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LEWESTON BOARDERS ENJOY SOME DOWN-TIME!

Whilst a group of boarders set off for Exeter for an all-day shopping trip, those left behind enjoyed an in-house spa day, winding down with face-masks and relaxing music

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IN THE LAB

SCIENCE WEEK

In celebration of Science Week, pupils throughout the school took part in various experiments in the laboratories

Year 7 created hovercrafts from a variety of materials after learning about air pressure Year 10 focused on the anatomy of the human eye; examining the cornea, sclera, retina and optic nerve. In order to fully understand the anatomy of the eye, the students dissected sheep have a close resemblance to our own i

ARMY STEM ACTIVITY DAY

On 2 February, Leweston had a visit from an Army STEM Team who ran two interactive workshops

The morning session involved Year 9 students designing, building and testing rocket cars The winning team's rocket car reached a top speed of 68 mph!

In the afternoon selected Year 7 students focused on problem solving in a disaster relief scenario This developed their teamwork and problem solving skills in addition to construction and programming of the robots. All involved had a really exciting time and we very much look forward to inviting the STEM Army team again next year

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ACADEMIC

GCSE LIVE! SCIENCE TRIP

On 27 February, Year 10 students embarked on a Science trip to ‘GCSE Live!’, Bath. The pupils were accompanied by three of our science teachers; Mrs Le Poidevin, Dr Greenway, and Mr Hudson. Ollie, Year 10, has written about the day and the interesting talks from Britain’s top scientists, all working at the cutting edge of their specialisms. "...For me the day was overwhelmingly positive. The specialist knowledge reflected by the range of professors was beyond compare, and I have learnt so much, not only about science, but future careers, exam techniques and more." Read the full write up on our website.

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EAL STUDENTS VISIT OXFORD

A group of English as an Additional Language (EAL) students who are studying with Mrs Quick, ventured to Oxford for the day

They explored the city and took notes about Phillip Pullman’s His Dark Materials at the Pitt Rivers Museum and The History of Science Museum Their visit complimented their reading this term, The Northern Lights, and the work expanding their lexical awareness, as well as their knowledge of places in the UK

PUBLIC SPEAKING COMPETITION

In March, three of Leweston's international students headed to Sherborne Girls with Mrs Quick, Director of International Students, for an International Public Speaking competition. All three students did well discussing a variety of topics and gained some great feedback from the judges.

Michal, Year 12, was praised for his witty presentation which kept the judges laughing, it was engaging but they were eager for more development on the topic. Weronika, Year 12, fielded some tough questions about her topic on Mathematics and whether we are being controlled by algorithms.

Monica, Year 10, was complimented on her command of the English language Her talent for speaking and her honest nature earned her an impressive third place against Sherborne Boys and Sherborne Girls.

The event was a great opportunity that we hope to continue in the future.

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A TALK FROM LIEUTENANT-GENERAL SIR JAMES DUTTON

Sir James Dutton gave a fascinating careers presentation to Year 11 Sir James spoke to the pupils about his career experiences which include serving in the Royal Marines for 38 years in a mix of policy, training and operational appointments. Notably he completed tours in support of the police in NI and the Falklands war in 1982. Following the terrorist attacks on the USA in 2001 his appointments were focused on Iraq and Afghanistan

In 2010, he joined the US firm Bechtel, spending two and a half years establishing and running a national infrastructure development project in Gabon, West Africa. In 2013, he was appointed Governor and Commander in Chief of Gibraltar, representing HM The Queen Back with Bechtel in 2016, he returned to Africa, running development across the continent until 2021 Most recently, we were delighted to welcome Sir James as one of our School Governors.

Sir James discussed the importance of the pupils' upcoming exams but stressed that there are other important factors to consider He spoke of leadership skills, in the military and civilian life, teamwork and taking enjoyment from the work that you do. Everyone found the talk interesting and there were lots of questions at the end of his presentation.

SIXTH FORM VISIT EXETER UNIVERSITY

Leweston's Careers Adviser, Mrs Hutton, and Head of Sixth Form, Mr Ryan-East, took Year 12 students to the University of Exeter this term.

One of the Exeter student ambassadors was Old Antonian Kamila, who is in the first year of her degree in Exercise and Sport Sciences Everyone loved the opportunity to catch up with Kamila and hear about her experiences of Exeter University.

The students had a tour of the Streatham Campus as well as the accommodation and spent time in the Forum, where there were a variety of information stalls. The day finished with a talk from a Recruitment Officer where the students learnt more about the university, accommodation, societies, the best way to research different degree courses and the other Exeter campuses.

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CAREERS

RHETORIC CLUB EXPLORES THE GROWING ISSUE OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Rhetoric is an academic enrichment activity for Years 7 to 9 and each session has a different focus to encourage pupils to think beyond the normal curriculum In previous sessions, pupils have had the opportunity to learn Mandarin but before half term the focus was Science; in particular the issue of growing antibiotic resistance. This is recognised by the World Health Organisation as one of the major challenges of our time.

Lead by Head of Biology Mrs Dawson, pupils had to conduct an experiment to determine whether there was a bacterial infection in a sample, they then undertook further testing to plot the changes in the sample after use of antibiotics There was discussion on what happens when courses of antibiotics were not completed and how mutation and resistance can occur, as well as suggestions about how to approach this complex real world problem. Pupils enjoyed the hands on approach and showed good understanding of the issues involved.

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT DELVES INTO A VARIETY OF TOPICS

Years 7 to 9 debated the idea “Does social media cause more harm than good?” in an after-school session In mixed year groups they researched the topic and planned a short speech, a rebuttal and some questions for their opposition.

The Year 10 and 11 Scholars’ Society met to debate “This house believes that climate change is inevitable”. Both sides produced strong arguments and coped well with wide ranging and challenging questions from the floor. Everyone worked well to produce informative speeches and responses.

EXTRA-CURRICULAR AND ENRICHMENT LEWESTON LIFE | page 19
Read the full story on our website.

EXTRA-CURRICULAR AND ENRICHMENT

DUKE OF EDINBURGH TRAINING

The Silver and Bronze Duke of Edinburgh teams completed their first aid and expedition training programme this term. They also took part in a bag packing workshop learning how to reduce the weight and slim down on non-essential items The teams had a talk about food nutrition and food for fuel, which has helped them to then plan out their menu for their practice and final expedition. The teams were a credit to Leweston and are now looking forward to their practice expedition at the end of June when they can put all their newly acquired skills into action.

TEN TORS TEAM FACE SOME CHALLENGES

The Ten Tors team tackled freezing temperatures as they took to the hilly Dorset countryside for one of their many training walks. The team maintained the steady, rapid pace needed for their expedition on Dartmoor in April

They were greeted with warmer weather halfway through their preparations in February. Praised for their impressive pace and excellent navigation by Sherborne Air Cadet leaders, the team are well on their way to being ready to take on the full 45-mile route.

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LEWESTON LIFE | page 21 Duke of Edinburgh | First Aid Training

'SPORTS SCIENCE IN ACTION'

Our A Level Sport students enjoyed a fun and informative day at the University of Bath for a ‘Sports Science in Action’ trip, getting a taste for Sport, Exercise and Health Science

The day included a Strength and Conditioning session with British swimmer, Ben, who led the students through a variety of exercises. They then got to experience some Vo2max and Anaerobic Wingate tests. They were given the data to bring back to Leweston to analyse in their classroom sessions.

Lunch on campus was followed by a presentation and Q&A with informative third year student, Phoebe, who is a GB U23 rower The students were then taken on a tour of the Team Bath University Sports Training Village

The day was an amazing opportunity for our students, who left feeling very inspired

CIDER TASTING EVENING

Leweston hosted a special hot-dog and cider-themed Anchor and Buzzard event for our Sixth Form students, led by our very own Head of Chemistry and resident cider expert, Dr Whale. Year 12 and 13 were invited to sample an array of his different varieties of local, award-winning Southdown Cider

A huge thank you goes to Dr Whale and to Cedar’s Café and Chartwells for helping to make this another fantastic Anchor and Buzzard evening.

SIXTH FORM LEWESTON LIFE | page 22

SIXTH FORM

N I V E R S I T Y O F F E R S

Congratulations to our Year 13 students who have received their university offers Anne was delighted to receive an offer to study Philosophy and Economics at the London School of Economics. Anne says “I’m really looking forward to studying Philosophy and Economics next year at LSE. This would be the start of my philosophy journey and I believe this opportunity will take me to the next level in my economic course ”

E A D ' S E S S A Y S O C I E T Y

One of the Year 12 Head’s Essay Society meetings this term discussed the concept “Would you pay everyone the same?” The wide ranging discussion covered politics, history, economics and more Overall the group decided this was a problematic concept and not necessarily a desirable one. Congratulations to Chloe who wrote a fascinating essay on the topic.

Congratulations to Year 13 who took part in a 24 Hour Sportathon to raise funds for Dementia Research UK Now a regular fixture in Leweston's annual calendar. The students began the event with rounds of badminton, followed by cycling on the school spin bikes over night The following morning they were joined by various year groups as they took part in Just Dance Everyone kept going throughout a long 24 ours and they have already raised over 1000 for charity!

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U
H 2 4 H O U R S P O R T A T H O N

PARTNERS FOR PROGRESS VISIT LEWESTON

Leweston welcomed Charlie Portlock and Liz Rutter from Partners for Progress to give a talk to the group of students going to Nepal in October Liz and Charlie explained what they will be helping with once they arrive. Liz collected letters from the students which will be hand delivered to the pupils at Jana Jyoti School. Leweston has worked with and supported the school for over thirty years and our students are delighted to be able to communicate with their peers in Nepal.

Ondine, Year 13, is the founder of the Leweston Boarding Letter Writing Club and, along with the Nepal group, was thrilled by the Partners for Progress visit Ondine has written about the visit on our website.

SCHOOL RETREAT

On 22 March, the school came together for an end of term Retreat In Houses, mixed year groups took it in turn to visit different areas of the school to participate in activities relating to Holy Week Each group also completed a Stations of the Cross walk around the school grounds At the end of the day everyone came to the School Chapel for a dramatized Liturgy, taken from the Gospel’s of Luke and John; following Christ’s journey from arrest to resurrection, reciting pieces they had worked on throughout the day.

The Retreat was a fantastic opportunity for pupils and staff to focus on an important time in the Catholic calendar but it also enabled different age groups to work together and showcase the strong sense of community at Leweston. Visit our website to read the full news story and view the gallery.

CHAPEL AND COMMUNITY LEWESTON LIFE | page 24

EVENTS AND CLUBS

In March we were delighted to welcome Dr Ben Broadbent, Economist and Deputy Governor to the Bank of England, who gave our first Leweston Lecture of 2023. After studying at the University of Cambridge and Harvard University, Dr Broadbent has been Assistant Professor of Economics at Columbia University, an Economic Adviser to HM Treasury and a Senior European Economist at Goldman Sachs. As the current Deputy Governor (Monetary Policy) Dr Broadbent has specific responsibility for monetary policy, including monetary analysis, banknotes, and data and analytics transformation. He has shared responsibility for the international macroeconomic analysis, strategy, and engagement

Dr Broadbent gave an insightful talk to pupils, staff, parents and the wider community about his education and career, whilst focusing on the current economic environment.

Everyone who joined us over half term for our Holiday Club had a fantastic time, getting creative, showing off their best dance moves with Just Dance and demonstrating their adventurous side with some fun and games

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L E W E S T O N L E C T U R E S
H A L F T E R M H O L I D A Y C L U B

MUSIC GROUPS AND CONCERTS

Leweston offers a number of different instrumental ensembles including string ensembles, Baroque Group, Flute Group, Recorder Consort, and Jazz Band. We also have Guitar Ensemble, Saxophone Group, Music Theory, Music Tech Club, Festival Singers, School Musical Group, and the Sixth Form and Staff Choir

All pupils in Years 7 and 8 sing in the award-winning junior choir, Cantemus Pupils in Year 9 and above can audition for a place in the prestigious Schola Cantorum. All of our groups and choirs are available as part of our broad lunchtime and after-school activities programme, and this term was, again, full of fantastic music making! Find out more about our clubs and activities on our website.

At the end of term, we held our Leweston Choral Society Concert in the School Chapel. This was also the inaugural concert for the newly-formed Leweston Community Orchestra. There were pieces from both the orchestra and the choir individually, as well as two combined performances The concert also featured Schola Cantorum, and our Year 7 choir, the Festival Singers A particular highlight was an arrangement of ‘Great is Thy Faithfulness’ by Dan Forrest which combined all the choirs and orchestra. The performers ages ranged from 11 to 80 (and beyond!) and the event was a true reflection of Leweston Community music making.

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L E W E S T O N C H O R A L S O C I E T Y A N D C O M M U N I T Y C O N C E R T

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Pentathlon Easter Training Camp: Monday 3 - Saturday 8 April (Book here)

Leweston Holiday Club: Monday 3 - Thursday 6 April (Book here)

& Tuesday 11 - Friday 14 April (Book here).

Leweston Lecture (Lt Col Ann O’Flynn): Thursday 20 April (Book here)

Triathlon Training Day: Sunday 23 April (Book here)

PALS Whole School Summer Fair: Friday 12 May

LEWESTON LIGHT | page 27
Leweston School, Sherborne, Dorset, DT9 6EN 01963 211 015 | admissions@leweston dorset sch uk | www leweston co uk @Leweston @leweston1891 @LewestonSchool

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