December 2022

LGGS LGGS

WELCOME

Dear parents, carers and students, I hope you enjoy reading our end of term Newsletter. It has certainly been a remarkably busy time in school with many opportunities for students to involve themselves fully in school life.

I would like to thank all the LGGS staff who give up their time so that our students can participate in so many wonderful opportunities, both in and out of school. I was delighted to see LGGS

best performing school in the North West region and is the only Lancashire school to appear in the North West top 10. We are also incredibly pleased to be ranked 70th best state school in the

A level results. Many congratulations to our students and staff on such a fantastic achievement. Thank you as always to you as parents for your support. I hope that you and your family enjoy a relaxing break.

Mrs Jackie Cahalin, Headteacher

GCHQ LANGUAGE COMPETITION

In November, GCHQ ran their first major languages competition, for Y9 pupils nationwide. Here at LGGS, room 2 became a hive of lunchtime activity, as students logged into the competition portal to solve a range of puzzles both linguistic and cultural.

Of the 60 LGGS entrants (spread across 16 teams), many also chose to continue cracking language codes at home throughout the five day competition and we were delighted to give out prizes to ten pupils who scored 1000+ individual points, representing a significant commitment of both time and brain power.

In addition, our winning team of Auguste, Vedha, Regan and Jemima (9.3) finished in the top 40 nationally: an outstanding result, given this was their first experience of this kind. We look forward to having

similar fun with the upcoming GCHQ Christmas card challenge (which is open to the public from 12th December, so why not have a go at home?!), as well as future languages competitions, such as the UK Linguistics Olympiad, and the University of Oxford’s Anthea Bell Prize for Young Translators. S. Stephens, Head of French

What our students thought of the challenge ...

The NLC was such an amazing opportunity to take part in. It was a fun and relaxed way to learn languages and problem solving. Vedha 9.3

I had an incredible time taking part in this competition, it was challenging enough to keep you interested, but not so much so that you want to give up. After completing a challenge, it is extremely

rewarding and working as a team to share your success with makes it even more enjoyable. I specifically liked the puzzles which involved research about the different cultures that come with the language, such as songs, movies, and celebrities. I will be looking out for another chance to take part in something like this in the future and would definitely recommend it to anyone else! Catherine 9.1

It was a really fun experience that helps you to work on both your problem-solving skills and your language skills. I enjoyed it because you could do as little or as much as you wanted. Anna 9.1

I really enjoyed collaborating as a team to pit our wits against a variety of puzzles. The questions were not straightforward, and required a lot of attention, but were still fascinating and interesting. It was challenging, but rewarding, and I really enjoyed trying to figure out the answers. Merci, Jemima. 9.3

SEASONAL SCIENCE

This term Year 7 had the opportunity to participate in a series of themed science lunchtime workshops.

Our first session of the term ‘Spooky Science’ was a chance for 30 Year 7’s to make glow in the dark slime in our J4 chemistry lab, which had been decked out for the occasion with hauntingly fun decorations, overflowing dishes of bubbling slime, vats of witches brew and chemistry themed carved pumpkins! Our brilliant Year 12 helpers were on hand to make sure the Year 7’s got the slime recipe just right! We ended the session with a demonstration of foaming pumpkins, which illustrated the exothermic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide into oxygen gas and water.

In our second session ‘Bonfire Bonanza’ the Year 7’s investigated the colour of fireworks by carrying out flame tests on various metal ions. We performed a series of spectacular demonstrations

including creating a colourful row of rainbow flames, the very noisy canon fire reaction and a spontaneous reaction which produced lilac flames. Our grand finale illustrated how magnesium is used in firework displays to create a bright white light followed by a spectacular demonstration of giant exploding methane bubbles!

Our third and final session of the term ‘Festive Chemistry Crafts’ gave the Year 7’s the opportunity to get creative with pipe cleaners and make

beautiful decorations to adorn the J block chemistry Christmas tree! We also introduced the technique of chromatography and used it to create filter paper baubles with felt tip pens, which the students took home. Thank you again to our wonderful Year 12 helpers. Thank you to all the Year 7’s that have participated in our Seasonal Science Sessions, we hope you’ve enjoyed yourselves. A big thank you also to our Year 12 volunteers who have helped us plan and

ANIMAL CARE’S

SHOEBOX APPEAL

Well done to Year 11 student Holly Pearson who organised a Christmas collection for Animal Care, where Holly volunteers. Many thanks to all those students who brought in their gifts and decorated shoeboxes. Your kindness is much appreciated.

SAFENET ORGANISATION

Over the last few weeks students in Years 12 and 13 have been working together to make up shoeboxes full of gifts and treats for people who have had to flee domestic abuse. We work every year in December with Safenet, which is a local organisation who houses and supports those who have suffered domestic abuse, in the hope that we can make a small difference to those people, both adults and children, over the festive period.

ENJOYING THE MATHS CHALLENGE

We have had great success with the Senior Maths Challenge this year. In early October, 96 LGGS students participated in the UKMT Senior Maths Challenge. This is a challenging competition which is designed for students in Year 12 and 13, so we were particularly pleased that a number of students in Years 10 and 11 also chose to take part, many of them gaining certificates:

done to you all, and also to those of you who achieved Bronze certificates or who chose to take part, of course: there are too many of you to list you all here!

In Year 10, Molly B, Lily E and Connie W achieved Bronze certificates and Khadeeja K achieved a Silver certificate.

In Year 11, Bronze certificates were achieved by Gabija S, Evie S, Quirine P, Amina K, Apala S, Hania N, Maham A, Alice F, Esha B, Christina S and Eve H. Silver certificates were achieved by Saffron A, Georgia H and Iona M. These achievements are particularly notable given the age of the students.

Students from Years 12 and 13 who achieved Silver certificates were Emily A, Lauren M, Alice M, Lauren A, Scarlett H, Niamh B, Zaara M, Faheema D, Gaby P, Alisha J, Emma R and Lauren Mc. Very well

6 students achieved Gold certificates, Peiwen, Elizabeth, Radhika, Amie and Kate from Y13 and Holly from Y12. All of these students qualified for the next round, the Senior Kangaroo, apart from Peiwen who qualified for the extremely prestigious British Mathematical Olympiad. We also give students in Year 12 and 13 the opportunity to participate in the Mathematical Olympiad for Girls every year: this year 2 students from Year 12 and 3 from Year 13 chose to take part, between them achieving 4 Distinctions and a Merit, with Peiwen scoring an extraordinary 48/50. Special mention here goes also to Niamh for achieving a Distinction while still in Year 12. These are fantastic outcomes for our students, and we are so pleased to see so many enjoying the opportunity to challenge themselves with their mathematical thinking. The Kangaroo Challenge was a great opportunity to get through to a further round of the Senior Maths Challenge. The problems we had to solve for the paper were all quite interesting and very different to the kind of questions we do at A-level maths and further maths, so it was a great challenge for us all to experience. Kate Armer, Year 13

REUBEN’S RETREAT

Well done to Year 7 student Freya Parry. While at St John’s School Silverdale Freya made a successful pitch to the school community to support Reuben’s Retreat as their chosen charity for the year. www.reubensretreat.org The school with Freya’s involvement has raised circa £900 for Reuben’s Retreat (RR), Freya has also continued her fundraising while at LGGS by making bracelets, necklaces from kits bought with her own money to then donate the proceeds to RR. Freya was able to attend the special assembly at Silverdale school to present the cheque.

BOOKS OF THE MONTH DECEMBER’S CHOICES ARE LISTED BELOW

As part of the English Department’s Choosing Literature and Independently Reading for Enjoyment (C.L.A.I.R.E) scheme, each month we will be making a section of recommended reads for Years 7 - 11.

CHRISTMAS POETRY

Our lower school and upper school poet laureates, Catherine Hill (lower school) and Eniola Afuye (upper school) will be reading their beautiful poems, as part of the Carol Service. Should you be unable to join us for the service, please find copies of them below. Wishing you all a merry Christmas! Mr Grundy

SNOWFLAKE

Winter brings a very special kind of beauty, The kind that is completely concealed unless you truly value it. The kind that can make an adult feel like a child againThe peaceful kind.

It brings snow coated horizons and stained skies, Content robins filled only with joy, Frozen streams stopped in their tracks, And so much more.

One of my favourite winter things is the snowflake, drifting down from the night sky, Carelessly letting the breeze carry it gently onwards, Towards whatever it is that lies ahead. It brings happiness to all that are willing to stop and take the time to notice.

Maybe it will land on your grass, Or your coat, Or your path, The future is a mystery,

Formed from a single droplet, That grows magnificently, Into an intricate and dazzling wonder. It is just like magic,

A fairy, Dancing across the midnight sky, Leaping, From star to star.

But what I really love about snowflakes, Is that they are unique: Not one has the same pattern,

Each sparkles in its own way, Just like you and me, a snowflake.

By Catherine Hill

We have set up a Poetry Point in the Library where students can sit and listen to an audio device to listen to staff reciting their favourite poems. It's a lovely feeling to share your favourite poem and we hope to build on our collection in the New Year. Miss E. Brown, Librarian

CHRISTMAS SEASON IS HERE

The season has come again, The cheerful and glorious season. Oh Noel, be heard in the air, And other songs of joy be heard, As the Christmas season is here.

When Christmas comes to mind we think of The fragrant Christmas scents; Hearts filled with a delightful glow, The Christmas that represents, Warm cookies, with milk, Turkeys stuffed, Festive holly berries, Little faces bright with glee, Loved ones being merry and jolly; Parties, songs, beribboned gifts, Silver bells that tinkle;

The carrots for the reindeers, And of course, the mince pies for Father Christmas Christmas trees and ornaments, And colourful lights that twinkle.

Yet, there is more to Christmas, More to Christmas, Than the candlelight and cheer, Than the presents underneath the Christmas tree. It’s the spirit of sweet, sweet, sweet friendships, That brightens all the year, It’s the thoughtfulness, and kindness, It’s the hope that is reborn again.

Christmas is not about presents or toys. Christmas is about joy and peace, And happy family noise.

Christmas is about the spirit of cheerfulness, And of spending time with those you love. It is a time to show your love and appreciation, And in times where there is adversity, have hope and look up above.

For the youth and the elderly too, The Christmas season offers so much to see, And so many stories of old and new are told.

But let us all not forget the reason for the season. Christmas came about due to one, And so, we should be grateful.

So, whenever you witness that star shine very bright, Don’t forget to say a prayer for Jesus’ sake. Let’s be grateful, For the time of friendship For the time of Love, And for the Christmas spirit that is in the sky of December.

Christmas is here, It’s finally here, And for that reason, I wish you all a merry Christmas!

By Eniola Afuye

REMEMBRANCE 2022

The Royal British Legion has supported Service men and women and ex-serving personnel since 1921 and we were proud to support with the organisation’s Poppy Appeal. The Appeal is the principal source of funding for the Royal British Legion and directly supports the welfare of our armed forces and their families. We visited form rooms, handed out poppies and collected donations in the few weeks lead up to Remembrance Sunday. Olivia, Year 12.

Our Combined Cadet Force students took part in the annual Remembrance Sunday service and parade which took place at the Garden of Remembrance, adjacent to Lancaster Town Hall. It was emotional to hear the bugle playing ‘The Last Post’, followed by a two minute silence, and brought home the importance to honouring our armed forces and those who gave their life for their country.

Lieutenant K.

Students and staff from the LGGS community, worked together to create a collaborative artwork for Remembrance Day. The artwork consists of over 200 handmade clay poppies, each glazed in either red, white, purple or black. Thank you to everyone who helped and a special thanks to Mrs P. Doran for your time, energy and commitment helping with each and every session, to Mr J. Backhouse for cutting the steel rods, to site staff for safely moving the poppies to the gardens and to Ms C. Nickell and Ms P. Doran for helping with the instalment. The installation will be in the ground until next year and then the poppies will be for sale for £5 with proceeds going to poppy appeal charity. E Field, Teacher of Art.

HELLO FROM TECHNOLOGY

During December, some of our Year 8 students participated in the Arkwright, Smallpiece Trust STEM sessions.

Each session last for 1 hour and consists of a 30-minute livestream, delivered by expert Education Officers, bringing exciting content directly into the classroom. Students then had a further 30 minutes to embellish and refine their ideas. These sessions are fully-funded and are free to school.

In this particular session students got hands-on with engineering by creating a Prosthetic Hand, using readily available materials.

through the basics of building a prosthetic hand, with explanations of how in a real hand the muscles and tendons work to move the fingers and joints.

Ms J Sandbach

‘I enjoyed this activity

and fun’ Warisha ‘I liked this activity as it challenged my creativity’ Iman ‘

It was interesting to learn about how prosthetics work’ Ellen ‘Really thought provoking and an insight into deep

HEARTSTONE ODYSSEY PROJECT

I am a Year 8 student and I wanted to share with you all about a Study Circle Project I was involved in, called The Heartstone Odyssey Project which is the name of a book.

The Heartstone Odyssey is about a young girl called Chandra who immigrated from India to England when she was 7 years old. Chandra had a burning desire to dance. The dance was one that she learnt called Bharatanatyam, a classical dance originating from a state in Southern India. Chandra later finds out that her performance that she was very excited and prepared for was cancelled due to racist threats. Chandra has never experienced this before and was so shocked to hear that “She was not welcome here.” She was determined to prove her worth, to make new friends along the way and to be part of the society. Her character showcases as a

Chandra was determined to prove her worth, to make new friends along the way and to be part of the society.

wonderful example on how to be powerful, capable and young female of colour with sheer grit.

The Project group contacted various institutions, study circles in the UK and around the world to encourage students to read the book and reflect on it. We met once a week and discussed our understandings and perspective. After reading the book, we portrayed it in various art forms like drawing, colouring, poems, plays, dance to convey this powerful message to many people. We consider ourselves fortunate to be part of this great initiative for which our study circle was the first in the UK and proud to be the

ambassadors!

I decided to put my ideas into a poem and two pieces of art one of which portraying Chandra herself on the stage with no encouraging audience and the other showing the diversity and acceptance needed in our society. These art pieces were displayed at the second book launch in UCLAN Preston. From there I got many opportunities to speak and share my thoughts on the book and the project. One of which is on a conference with the members of the National Alliance of Women’s Organisation (NAWO). This meeting was about Chandra, where I spoke about how powerful and influential Chandra’s character is and its presence in our society. The fact of being a young female of colour leading on such a wonderful and impactful organisation. I was inspired by Chandra, and you will be too!

Shriya Kuruganty

REINDEER RUSH & ELF RUN

Although, due to snow and ice, the Fun Run was unable to take place on the 12th December, we are still encouraging students, and anyone who has signed up for the event, to do their own run (anywhere, any distance) out of school with family & friends ... once the ice has melted!

We would also like to extend an invitation to all staff!

Even if you didn’t initially sign up, please feel free to collect an Elf hat from the PE office, put on a pair of trainers and enjoy a festive run. Send us a photo of your run to the PE staff for us to use in the New Year's sports newsletter!

To help raise funds for St John’s Hospice please either share the link below, or if you could donate that would be amazing. Have a happy and healthy Christmas, from all the PE Department. Donate to St John's Hospice here ... via the Just Giving website!

CHILDREN IN NEED

This year, besides the usual mufti day at LGGS we also held an evening of music in LGGS’ Main Hall.

All the money raised from the concert was donated to Children in Need.

A total of £712 was raised thanks to our LGGS community.

Thank you everyone for your participation and incredible support.

Mr P Swannell, Head of Performing Arts

FESTIVE CREATIONS

This term, our school were invited to ‘Croppers’, a well established card and paper manufacturing company based in Burneside, near Kendal. Croppers stacked large quantities of coloured and white card or paper on pallets, which were piled high and they invited schools, at an allocated time to visit and load as much of the material as they could carry away! LGGS Art Department’s budget has saved considerably due to this kind donation to schools in the area. We are very grateful to Croppers for this service, especially during a time of financial restraints.

As you can see from the images below, the card was used for a Year 9 Wellbeing day. They have made stunning Christmas cards using the technique of lino cutting and then using the printing technique to transfer their bold, decorative design’s on to card. Students also used the card to make a collage version of a gingerbread house. The above processes will be used in the future to enhance their experience in the arts. Mr R Williams, Teacher of Art.

Happy Christmas from Year 9 students who were off timetable for one day this week as part of a mental health and wellbeing day at school. The activities they enjoyed included cut Christmas cards and gingerbread houses. Thank you to Croppers for

MFL EXCHANGES RETURN!

It has been such a pleasure to be able to reinstate our long-standing exchange programmes post-covid lockdowns, and Year 10 and 12 pupils have recently enjoyed trips to visit our partner schools in Bergisch-Gladbach (Germany) and La Vall D’Uixó (Spain).

We cannot express how excited we all were to be back with our partner schools, and LGGS pupils certainly relished every opportunity they were presented with, whether hotfooting it up cathedral towers, immersing themselves in Spanish and German school life, learning how to become an olive oil connoisseuse (in Spain) or being hoisted up in prison cages in the local Schloss for an authentic historic experience (in Germany)! Students (and staff) filled their boots with local delicacies, from oranges to waffles, and loved the chance for linguistic immersion. There have definitely been a few inadvertent ‘hola’ and ‘tchuss’ moments in the corridor since our return as pupils battle to remember their first goto language. The French department are counting the days until their return to Ambérieu to complete the last missing piece of the exchange puzzle, after this three year break. This really is what learning languages is all about.

Ms K Whitehouse, Head of MFL

PERFORMING ARTS FESTIVAL

November saw the return of our amazing Performing Arts Festival. Due to Covid restrictions we have really missed this opportunity to showcase the talent of so many of our students. Special thanks not only to all the participants but also to the Year 12 students who organised and led the Festival. We made just over £1000 from ticket sales for the evening performances. this money is going to the Lottie Edwards bursary scheme at the Dukes, Lancaster, which supports young people with an interest in the arts. You can find out more by following the