December 2011 Issue - The Woodroffe School

notes
December 2011
NEWS FROM WOODROFFE
Why Use Wisepay?
School Site Off-Limits
More and more parents/guardians are using our on-line payment system, Wisepay,
to pay for trips, uniform, school meals etc. and we strongly recommend all parents
use this system. Here are six reasons why you should use it:
· It is a web-based application, managed and maintained in a secure data
centre.
· All users are able to access the service on-line using a standard internet
connection.
· There is a link from the school’s website.
· You can pay by debit or credit card.
· It is accessible 24/7 allowing you the flexibility to pay at a time and place
that suits you.
· There is also a computer available in school which you can use if you do
not have access to the internet at home. Please contact the school for
more details.
We also recommend that students do not bring cash into school. School will not be
held liable for any lost cash.
If you are delivering students to and
from school, please note that the school
site is off-limits due to the high volume
of traffic already using the school drive
and parking facilities. Please do use the
following areas to drop-off and collect
students:
· Bus Bay in the morning only
· Anywhere along Uplyme Road
where parking is permitted
Students on Site at Own Risk
School is not open to students until
8.30am and accepts no responsibility for
those arriving on site prior to this time.
Cashless Catering
Bus Bay Near-Miss
Please check your account regularly to ensure students have enough money to
purchase food. Wisepay is working on a facility to remind parents when they are
getting low on money in their account but this isn’t available at the moment. You
can check what your child is eating on a daily basis via Wisepay and we have a set
daily spend limit of £4 a day on the system which you can increase or decrease but
the school needs to have this instruction in writing or via email. Please note we do
not allow students to ‘overdraw’ on their accounts and we no longer accept cash
payments for school meals.
We have to report a ‘near miss’ incident
in bus bay recently when a student was
pushed by another student into the path
of an oncoming bus. The member of
staff on duty was very shocked, as was
the bus driver, and reported that it could
very nearly have ended up with a fatality.
We are very concerned about the end of
school problems in the bus bay area and
have conducted a number of meetings
with the Police, Highways, Governors
and Health and Safety advisers and will
be aiming to progress improvements in
this area. Please remember:
Be the First to Get the News
Sign up to Parentmail and be the first to receive Rough Notes plus any information
concerning the School such as bad weather arrangements. It’s so easy, all you
have to do is send your email address to Alix Smith ([email protected].
uk) to set up your Parentmail account.
•
•
Do not park in bus bay at the end
of school or when waiting for a
school trip to return.
Do not park where you might cause
an obstruction or reduce visibility
for other car users and the buses –
especially at the right hand side of
the school drive.
F
rom Ofsted in September to
the Year 7 Pantomime trip this
week, it’s true to say that there’s
never a dull moment at Woodroffe.
We’ve certainly had a busy and varied
autumn term. A glance back at previous
editions of Rough Notes, or a look at the
school website, can be quite a dizzying
experience given the range of activities
that take place here. This term has seen
hundreds of events including Meet my
Tutor for Year 7; the Year 8 trip to Carey
Camp; Year 9 Geography Field Work
on Dartmoor; the Year 12 Bar Mock
Trial; the Year 13 Forensic Science trip;
the amazing B# Music Project featuring
Billy Bragg and John K Miles; sporting
successes in rugby, netball, swimming,
cross-country running, hockey and
football; life drawing classes; exchange
visits from French and Spanish students;
theatre trips; a Textiles department trip
to London; work with River Cottage;
success in the Senior Maths Challenge;
a brush with Jedward; and a stunning
A-Level drama production entitled ‘The
Dark Lady of DNA’.
The last couple of weeks of term
were particularly busy with the PTA’s
increasingly popular ‘Taste of Christmas’
event and the end of term Carol
Concert, held this year in St. Michael’s
church.
After Christmas, the frenetic pace
continues, with trips, visits and
activities planned right across the
school, though the mood undoubtedly
changes as students in Years 11,
12 and 13 prepare for GCSEs and
A-Levels. The opportunities offered
at Woodroffe make it a fantastic place
to be a student and we aim to ensure
that the positive approach to school life
such events encourages is reflected
in the commitment of students to their
academic studies. Once again we are
expecting excellent examination results
in the summer but these only come with
hard work.
With the outstanding Ofsted judgment in
September, confirmation of an excellent
set of examination results last summer,
and an incredible series of school
events, this has been another excellent
year.
Best wishes for Christmas and the New
Year.
Dr R P Steward
Headteacher
Children in Need Raises £1,500
Year 11 Raise £300
W
A
oodroffe was buzzing on Friday,
18th November 2011, with spots
before your very eyes, and students
appearing in various guises – the pink
and white rabbit probably the most
worrying. It was all part of their Children
in Need fundraising day. The sixth form
students, dressed in leopard and lion
costumes, made light work of the staff
5-aside team beating them 13-2 in the
annual staff versus sixth form game.
Cake sales were popular, with groups
of students setting up stalls throughout
the school at break time. There were
sponsored silences, some wonderfully
painted faces and lots of colour.
s part of their CoPE Level 2
Vocational Skills course the Year 11
students held a variety of fund raising
activities in and around the school,
raising almost £300 for Children in
Need. Nathan North (11RGB) wrote,
“For Children in Need I did a sponsored
silence from 08:00 to 15:40. I found it
hard to keep quiet all day, and slipped
up a few times. I now know I can’t keep
my mouth shut for more than an hour! I
raised exactly £17 for the cause.
Sixth form students had led assemblies
throughout the week to explain how
the money raised in the past was being
used for projects throughout the UK. It
enabled us all to reflect on how lucky
we are and gave real meaning to the
activities.
“As a group we spent four weeks
preparing for the event. I think it
went extremely well and we made a
good amount of money for the many
unfortunate children in the UK.”
It was a great team effort from the
students and staff with a total in excess
of £1,500 being raised. Well done to all.
Mr J R Thomas
“I also helped sell second hand bears
and CDs and helped out with the games:
‘Name the boy and girl bears’ and
‘Where does Chilly live?’
Other fund raising activities included
Year 11 Boys’ Leg Waxing in the Old
Gym at lunch time (there were screams
aplenty!), and the appearance of Dr
Ruffle in girl’s school uniform for the day
(even more screaming!). Anyone caught
laughing at him was charged a ‘fine’!
Mrs Z D Russell
BLITZ DAY
Y
ear 9 spent a day with police,
firefighters and healthcare
professionals learning about alcohol
abuse and the perils of binge drinking.
Students participated in a variety of
activities throughout the day including
the beer goggle challenge.
Widening the Careers Horizon
W
Well, that’s just what Year 10 are
preparing to do in the Summer of 2012.
June 2012 sees 180 Year 10 students
spend a week with various employers
gaining an insight into the working
environment, developing their skills and
perhaps exploring the possibilities of
future careers with employers based
across the South West.
Thank you to parents and students for
attending the work experience evening
in November and to all those who
are now underway in organising their
placements. There are also a number
who have yet to get started or have had
some difficulty with their first attempts,
so with a later start than usual to the
process it is vital that students get going
and persevere.
e were pleased to have Lynda
Shaw from Dorset County Council
visit the school in November to give
Year 12 and some of Year 11 an insight
into careers in Early Years Child care. A
number of students stayed on after the
Some students, I’m pleased to say, have
session to discuss options with Lynda on finalised their arrangements with others
a one to one basis.
nearly there. James Clarke has already
secured his place on the Bloodhound
Additionally several students recently
Land Speed Record Engineering
met with the Royal Navy/Royal Marines team while Natalie Bristol and Holly
careers liaison officer to investigate
Davis-Griffiths are close to completing
opportunities within the armed forces.
the arrangements for their veterinary
In spite of cuts there is still a degree of
experiences.
recruitment but all the services are very
selective and competition for places is
Following on from the curriculum time
fierce.
already given over to work experience,
there are other opportunities for students
It’s good to see students, particularly in
to get help or access the internet. Mr
the senior part of the school, making the Wells and Ms Elliott run two lunchtime
effort to find out as much as possible
sessions a week in B8 to help students
about the options available to them in
with the application process. There
order to make more “informed” choices
is also lots more information on the
about their future.
Careers page of the Woodroffe website.
Templates for letters to employers are
Year 10 Build Vital Skills
also now on Moodle so that students
can download, modify as necessary and
ver wondered what it would be like
upload the version they wish to send to
to work in the engineering team of
employers, or print out.
the Land Speed Record Attempt Car, or
a veterinarians, or local boat builder?
Mr G S Wells
E
Young Investors
A
ll Year 9 Business Studies
students are currently participating
in the annual on-line Student Investor
Challenge. Now in its 17th year, the
IFS Student Investor Challenge is
open to all school and college students
aged between 14 and 19. The investor
challenge is operated by the ifs,
supported by Bloomberg and the FTSE.
Learning the Business of Chocolate
Business GCSE students enjoyed a
successful visit to Cadbury’s Chocolate
World. The day began with a talk on
the marketing of Cadbury’s chocolate,
followed by a chocolate tasting
session, which was enjoyed by all! The
afternoon was taken up with a tour of
the production line, followed by more
chocolate tasting. All students were
exceptionally well behaved, although
Miss Kabia was told off by a member
of the Cadbury’s staff for standing on a
bench! Students also spent some time
in the World’s biggest Cadbury shop,
where a vast amount of chocolate was
bought! Highlight of the day for many
students was the chocolate tasting and
the free chocolate bars; although some
did get very excited at spending a bit of
time playing in the under 8’s playground.
Mr M Banfield
The free to enter annual competition
started with students receiving a fantasy
£100,000 to invest in the stock market
over three months. At the time of
writing, The Dominators are currently
topping the Woodroffe league and are
51st out of over 6000 teams entered
nationwide. The Dominators are closely
followed by Investor Contestor in 62nd
place, followed by The Rubber Bands in
68th place. The national winner, when
the competition closes in February,
wins an all expenses paid business visit
to New York. Mr Banfield will also be
giving a prize for the best performing
Woodroffe team, but has made it clear
that it will not be an all expenses trip to
New York!
Mr M Banfield
Family Maths
S
ixty families of Year 7 students recently braved the Maths corridor at Woodroffe
to participate in a trial of ‘Family Maths Evenings’. Year 7 students each
brought Mum or Dad (or family friend) for an evening of maths activities, so that
they could learn about secondary approaches to maths, and how families can
positively support their teenagers – they really make a significant difference. We
were very pleased with the way everyone participated: most activities were handson ‘whole-class’ or in pairs where parents worked with students, though for year
7’s the best parts were probably when there was a competitive element that the
students won!
Comments to date include ‘Fabulous: I came really really scared but you made it
such fun’, ‘I wish we’d had maths like this when we were at school’ and ‘Now we
know you genuinely want students to come and see you if they’re stuck’. We’re
hoping to run similar evenings for Key Stage 4 parents later in the year.
Parents/Guardians/Friends/Neighbours can take an active role in maths
education by:
Supporting young people in talking
with their teacher if they get stuck,
and in using opportunities for support
or extra-curricular activities offered at
school;
Involving young people in everyday
uses of maths such as budgeting,
measuring and estimating, using
information from catalogues and
brochures;
Enjoying constructive board,
electronic, and card games and
puzzles together;
Talking with young people about what
they’re doing at school;
Providing a time and place where
homework can be done; encouraging
young people to persist, to use
common sense, and to refer to
previous work or their books or
electronic resources;
Communicating with teachers if
they are concerned, and responding
to communications from school,
including taking advantage of
opportunities to visit school and meet
with teachers.
Mrs J Golding, Director of Maths and Computing Specialism
Granny and her granddaughter Gill
both had their birthday yesterday.
Today, Granny’s age in years is an
even number and 15 times that of Gill.
In 4 years’ time Granny’s age in years
will be the square of Gill’s age in years.
How many years older than Gill is
Granny today?
A. 42 B. 49 C. 56 D. 60
E. 64
Senior Maths Challenge 2011
F
ourteen year 12 and 13 students
recently chose to compete in the
national Senior Maths Challenge,
which is taken by the most elite maths
students in the country, the vast majority
of them studying both Maths and Further
Maths at A Level. Of these, the top 15%
achieve Gold or Silver certificates and
the next 25%, Bronze. Questions are
often bizarre, frequently humorous,
but always need clear reasoning. Nine
of the Woodroffe entries gained Silver
certificates, and all the rest, Bronze – a
remarkable achievement. You might like
to try two of the less technical questions
– and remember they had 23 more to
complete in 90 minutes.
Woodroffe Team Aims for
International Final
T
he Woodroffe Science Olympiad
Team is once again poised to
compete in the UK heats. A highly
competitive event for teams of three
from year 12, it consists of three
practical problems to be solved, one
in each of the main areas of Science.
The team hopes to be participating in
the UK heat just after Christmas and,
should they be successful, will progress
on to the international final in April.
The Woodroffe team has experienced
considerable success in the past
reaching the international final on three
occasions and winning it once. This
year’s final takes place in Vilnius, the
capital of Lithuania.
Mr C J Sweetland
Reebops!
6 Biologists enjoyed a recent
lesson on genetics, looking at how
Reebops inherit the characteristics of
their parents, although every offspring is
unique!
L
If some Maths teachers and some
spiders have 11 heads and 64 legs
between them, how many of each
(Answers at the back)
must there be?
Chemists go Behind the Scenes
M
r Clulee and Mr Sweetland took
the Year 12s to the Natural History
Museum in London for their annual
Chemistry AS day. All of the twentyone AS Chemists went on the trip and
experienced an interesting and varied
programme of events including a guided
tour of the Earth’s Treasury Gallery, The
Minerals Gallery and The Vault where
students found some of the largest gold
nuggets and diamonds in the world.
copper minerals dependent on the
availability of oxygen by Dr Robin
Armstrong. Students were then given
a demonstration of another chemical
analytical technique called Infra-red
spectroscopy which relies on infra-red
radiation to develop a signature helping
to identify compounds.
The fourth session involved a behindthe-scenes look at some of the most
treasured rock and mineral collections
in the museum by a curator. The
samples were set out in specimen
Dr Richard Herrington, a mining chemist, cabinets which went from the floor to the
gave an enthusiastic presentation about ceiling and along the lengths of several
the demands of copper and its formation corridors. The samples were categorized
and extraction followed by a session on according to date of collection or
expedition rather than mineralogy. We
analytical techniques in chemistry with
were able to handle samples collected
Dr Hazel Hunter. She ran two X-Ray
by some great explorers such as Scott
diffraction machines used to identify
and Shackleton on their historical
the chemical compositions of unknown
expeditions.
minerals.
Dr Herrington ran another session where
students were given the opportunity to
handle large pieces and polished section
of a ‘black smoker’, an underwater
volcanic vent found at the bottom of
oceans, usually where the Earth’s plates
are moving apart.
A terrific day was had by all and a
special thanks to Sally Collins for
making us feel so welcome and for
being such an excellent host and we
look forward to welcoming her and her
team to Lyme Regis for the annual fossil
festival.
A third session provided an insight
into secondary mineralisation of
Mr J P Clulee
Woodroffe Drives Community Drama
Project
L
called ‘Little Foot’ by Craig Higginson
which will be performed at the Marine
Theatre in February and The Theatre
Royal, Plymouth in April.
Woodroffe Community Art Teacher,
Alison Bowskill, is working with a group
of keen art students making masks for
the chorus to wear and Little Foot who
will be a puppet.
yme Youth Theatre and Woodroffe
have teamed up to take part in an
Rehearsals started in mid November
exciting international project run by
and feature a strong cast from
the National Theatre. Each year the
We are very grateful to The Woodroffe
NT commission ten
Association for helping us out
“Deep within the South African underground caves, a group of
playwrights to write
financially, their very generous
friends meet to spend the night and explore its mysteries. The
ten new plays for
donation has enabled the
so called ‘Cradle of Humankind’ caves are home to the oldest
young people. Then
project to get off the ground.
human remains. As the young friends venture deeper and deeper, This is the second time that
participating youth
strained relations and questions of loyalty take hold. With truths
theatres and schools
they have supported a drama
revealed and loyalties undone, these modern teenagers are
all over the country
project at Woodroffe. Four
stripped back to their primordial instincts. Surrounded by a chorus years ago their financial
and abroad choose
of ancestral voices, the group unravels. Just how far will modern
one of the plays to
contribution went towards
humans go to exact revenge? This poetic play draws on Greek
stage in their local
paying a playwright to work
Tragedy and South African folklore to create a powerful portrayal
theatre and a partner
with a group of year 9 devising
of modern relationships.”
regional theatre. The
a new play which we named
best production of
‘Paving Paradise’, last year
each of the ten plays
this play was published, which
Woodroffe, Axe Valley, Exeter College
then gets the amazing opportunity to
was thrilling for all of us.
and Thomas Hardye.. It is a very
perform at the NT in July!
exciting play with masses of potential for Please come and see ‘Little Foot’ at The
This year Woodroffe’s Head of Drama
chorus and ensemble movement, sound Marine Theatre, Lyme Regis in the week
and Dance, Anne Cruwys-Finnigan, is
and music work as well as some strong, beginning 20th February 2011, actual
directing Lyme Youth Theatre in a play
challenging naturalistic acting.
performance dates to be confirmed.
Ms A Cruwys-Finnigan
Head of Drama and Dance
Poet Laureate Inspiration
I was surprised when it turned out that
he could play them on a level far above
n the 25th November, twenty Sixth
what anyone could at school. At one
Form and Year 11 English Literature point he was playing two flutes at once!
and English Language students went to This tuned our ears to listening mode
Bridport Arts Centre to see Carol Ann
before Duffy herself got up. Her poems
Duffy, the Poet Laureate. This was a
were undoubtedly biased towards
great opportunity to hear the poems as
females, in “The World’s Wife”, she took
they were intended to be heard, spoken on the persona of famous men’s wives.
by Carol Ann Duffy herself.
She also read from her latest edition,
“The Beas”, explaining the thoughtFirstly her ‘announcer’ or, in Duffy’s
processes in the writing. One, which
teasing words, ‘the guy who won’t leave was very moving, was written about her
me alone’ played us a few songs on his mother who had died, and portrayed a
wide collection of flutes and trumpets.
very close and loving relationship.
O
As a writer and reader she wasn’t what
I expected. She had unusual reasons
for writing every poem and her tone of
voice, the pace at which she read, made
the meanings clearer.
So overall, it was a pretty interesting
visit; we learnt about her and her poems
which we wouldn’t hear anywhere else.
I didn’t even fall asleep (not that I ever
was going to).
Michael Ruddick (not in the picture) Year
12
Clothes Show Live Motivates Textiles
Students
New Recruits put Through Their
Paces
W
N
e left promptly at 7:00 am, and
arrived in Birmingham at the NEC
where the students explored the many
different areas of the exhibition.
ovember is a busy month for
the cadets despite some of the
outdoor activity being curtailed by
the evenings drawing in and wetter
weather! The 9th of November saw
61 new recruits turn up for their first
of five ‘taster’ sessions. Activities
included building bivvis, camouflage
and cooking ration packs, building
and launching rockets, rigging
a sailing dinghy and weapon
familiarisation all taught by our
excellent instructor team of NCOs
from years 11, 12 and 13.
Sunday 13th November was the
Remembrance Parade and Service
in Lyme Regis and the school was
represented by 52 cadet and 5 staff
members of the CCF as well as the
Head Boy and Deputy Head Girl.
Once again the school provided
the largest group in the parade. My
personal thanks go to all cadets
and their parents for ensuring such
a strong attendance. This year I
thought that the cadets’ turnout and
marching was some of the best I have
seen in recent years and this was
also recognised by the Royal British
Legion Branch President.
Major S.V. Ruffle – Contingent
Commander
Honda Crowns its Youngest Master
Marine Technician
R
upert Perry, former Woodroffe
student who left in 2009, has
qualified as the youngest ever Honda
Master Marine Technician in the UK.
We had the opportunity to talk to
university lecturers and students who
gave us great advice on our future
career paths.
The catwalk show was the highlight of
the day, featuring professional dancers
and models in amazing outfits. It was a
The variety of clothes from couture to
wonderful show and a fantastic
high street was highly inpsirational.
experience with an amazing storyline!
There was also a variety of unique
Viewing the work of university and
designers and companies that proved
college students in the amateur
useful for our primary research. The
competitions gave us lots of inspiration.
atmosphere was friendly and interesting. We all felt so motivated to return to
Rupert, 20, who is now based at Rob
Perry Marine in Axminster, has been
working towards this accreditation for
over three years at Honda’s purposebuilt skills training facility, The Honda
Institute, and is currently the only master
marine technician in the UK.
In recognition of this achievement,
Rupert was presented with an engraved
torque wrench and certificate by
Honda (UK)’s Marine Technical Trainer,
Robert Day, on Friday 2nd December.
Also attending were Dave Whitehead,
Rupert’s Honda Trainer and mentor, and
Steve Morris, Honda UK National Sales
Manager.
During Rupert’s time at the Honda
Institute, he was selected to represent
the company in talking to and
familiarising the International Marine
Press with Honda’s technology and Eco
systems involved in the latest Marine
Engines.
“We are very proud of Rupert’s
achievement. At school he was a very
hard working student with good practical
skills and completed his A Levels in
Product Design 3D and Business and
the BTEC Public Service in July 2009.
He has shown a true passion and
commitment to his chosen vocation
to become the only master marine
technician in the UK at just 20,” said Jim
Thomas, Head of Sixth Form.
school to produce our own garments
at the same level as the university
competition winners.
The whole day was unforgettable. Every
year we enjoy ourselves, and never
expect the following year to be any
better, but somehow, it always manages
to impress us even more!
Lucy Timbrell, Year 13
Sports Update
W
e are very proud of our teams who
continue to perform at a very high
state school level in area and county
competitions. With the tremendous
support and the dedication we have from
staff, students and parents alike we are
now well placed to compete effectively
against the big private schools who have
typically dominated county and area
competitions.
Year 7 Boys Make County Team
County Netball Finalists
H
oth Year 9 and Year 11 netball
teams have excelled themselves
this term. Both won their respective
South West Dorset area tournaments
enry Davy and Harry Pollard in
Year 7 have both been selected
for the Dorset under 12 football squad.
Congratulations to the two of them.
B
with neither team losing a game. They
then qualified for the County Finals.
The Year 11 team played at Budmouth
School and faced very tough opposition
including South West regional players.
They eventually finished 8th, so are now
ranked as one of the top 10 teams in the
County. Meanwhile, the Year 9’s played
at Canford School and finished 7th, again
competing well against top teams. They
too have a County ranking, in the top
seven. Very well done girls.
Miss S L Hutchings
Biathlon Success
I
Badminton Fantastic
W
hat a year so far! We sent eight teams to the area championships. They entered four different competitions and won
three of the four. The U16 girls, U16 boys and the U14 girls all won and now go through to the county championships in
February. Another of our U16 boys’ teams also came second. This means that they now go to the Dorset games in July and
have won tickets to see JLS – boy were they pleased!!!! The U14 boys’ team came a very close third but is a very young team.
Badminton is a real school strength. We operate clubs at lunchtimes and run a club after school on a Friday evening which is
attended by 40 students.
am delighted to report the success of
six of the Woodroffe Biathlete’s who
competed in the Somerset Schools
Biathlon at Taunton School on Sunday
13th November. The competition
involved a 100m swim and a 1000m
run for competitors in Years 7 to 13.
Florence Swan and Abi O’Leary, both
Year 8, were 5th and 6th respectively
in their age group. Mollie Simpson was
placed 1st in the Year 9 girls’ category.
Abi Dare, Abi Speake and Layla Felgate,
all Year 10 competed for 3rd, 6th and
4th places respectively. Congratulations
to these girls, we hope that they have all
been successful in making it through to
the British Schools Biathlon in January...
watch this space!
Mrs H L Cozens
Cross Country Team Success
T
wo inter school competitions have
taken place this term at Colfox and
Budmouth. At both events Woodroffe
students performed superbly and with
some success, individually and in team
events.
Early in the term at Colfox one of our
new recruits, Tamsin Edge in Year
7 led for the entire race only to be
beaten in an exciting sprint finish with
a student from Dorchester. Her fellow
team mate Somer Horsfield was 5th in
the same race.
In the junior boys’ event Woodroffe
were dominant winning the individual
race through Kingsley Wellman and
the team event with our top four boys
inside the top 15 finishers. We could
even afford to push one of our junior
runners, Ross Scadding into the senior
race to complete a full team.
In the junior girls race Annabelle Arnold
finished second and was supported by
her team members who secured second
place in the team event.
As expected the senior girls race was
dominated by Woodroffe with a win and
second place for Layla Felgate and
Abi Dare respectively. Our other team
members also finished in the top 10 to
take the team title.
Our senior boys were led home by Jack
Videan in 7th place. Again we won the
team event here.
In November at Budmouth school in
horrendous conditions the teams were
even stronger.
The year 7 boys, who were just learning
in the first race, took the team title with
second, third, 6th and 11th places for
the top 4 scorers. Oliver Caute led the
way but the biggest improvement came
from Lewis Pearson, who finished 16th at
Colfox but 3rd at Budmouth.
Tamsin Edge went one better in the year
7 girls’ race winning and beating her
rival by a considerable margin.
Woodroffe dominated the junior boys’
event even without the injured Kingsley
Wellman. Henry Riddle led the way with
a superb 2nd place. Ross Scadding was
3rd, Kieran Yorke 4th and Iain Ross 6th.
The latter are both only year 8 so this
looks good for next year.
The junior girls were one short of a full
team but again bearing in mind they are
all year 8,Florence Swan, Abi O’Leary
and Hope Horsfield all ran well.
Our senior girls swept the board again
with Layla once more victorious and
undefeated since year 7.
U15 Rugby
W
In the senior boys event Jack Videan
finished 3 places higher in 4th ably
supported by Josh Caute in 5th and
Reuben healer-Freud in 13th.
There were other runners in support
of those mentioned who must be
congratulated in being part of some very
successful teams.
The next event will be in January at
Blandford School.
Cross Country continues to thrive at
Woodroffe and I am very grateful to the
group of keen runners on the staff who
support the weekly club which attracts
in excess of 50 runners from all years,
especially on the drier days.
Mr A R Brown
U12 and U13 Rugby
B
oth the U12s and U13s Woodroffe Rugby Teams have put in great
performances this term. The U12s reached 3rd place in the South and West
Dorset Rugby Tournament with some noticeable performances by Angus George
and Luke Johnson. The team also had a fantastic win against Colyton with the A
team winning by a try and the B team running up an impressively large score.
The U13s went all the way to the final of the South and West Dorset Rugby, sadly
falling at the final hurdle. There were outstanding performances from Kieran Yorke
whose ‘Jamie Roberts-like’ crash ball runs smashed though many a defence; and
committed scrum-half and Captain, Rhys Davis, whose motivational team talks and
trade mark sniping breaks made him seem like a young Gareth Edwards.
Saturday morning training has also been well attended with over 30 pupils turning
up to be put through their paces with Mr Chambers. Also a special mention goes
to Harry Remens and Connor Jones who have given up their Saturday morning to
help coach the U12s.
hat a season! We knew that
they had real potential and they
proved us correct. Pre-season training,
determination and a squad of 26 meant
local teams were dispatched with
ease. They got to the 5th round of the
Daily Mail Cup Rugby Competition but
unfortunately came up short to a very
good Millfield team – who could go on
to win the competition. It was a fantastic
run of games for a fantastic bunch of
boys. We now have a new kit (partially
sponsored by Top Togs of Chard) –
worth at least 10 points a game!
To make Department funds
go even further we are on the
look-out for team kit sponsors.
For more information and
details of sponsorship
opportunities, please don’t
hesitate to contact Mr I
Snowling, Head of PE.
[email protected]
Taste of Christmas Raises £3,000!
Be Part of Your PTA!
W
T
Early estimates show that the event
raised in excess of £3,000.
The Giving Machine
T
here are only a few more shopping
days until Christmas – why not
make the most of your online shopping
by singing up to The Giving Machine?
There are over 300 major retailers
involved in this scheme, each of them
generating funds for good causes
including your PTA! Go to www.
thegivingmachine.com. It’s easy.
he first PTA meeting of 2012 is at
The Hunters Lodge Inn at 7pm on
Tuesday 10th January. Please do come
along and find out more about your PTA.
Please note that our next big fundraiser
is our Glam Rock evening on Friday 24th
February, if you would like to help, it’ll be
a hoot, contact me, Wendy at wwvdp3@
talktalk.net, or on 01404 881207 thanks
in advance!
Tickets are priced at just £12.50 – so
call me now to book your tables or
tickets.
Cash Prizes Galore!
I
t’s not too late to join the 200 club, for
the small sum of £12 a year there is
the opportunity to win a cash prize each
month, if your allocated number is drawn
from the bag. Prizes are: £20, £15 and
£10. Contact Sally the treasurer of the
PTA at [email protected]. All
profits go to the school.
Maths Answers
Gill is 4 and Granny is 60 (D)
7 spiders and 4 teachers
e would also like to say a great
big THANK YOU to everyone who
supported ‘A Taste of Christmas’ on
Friday 2nd December; the students who
entertained us with their marvellous
music, the Year 7s who raised oodles
with their stalls, the staff who willingly
gave their time and expertise, Julie
Thomas and the PTA members who
helped in many different ways, Jake,
Sophie and other incredibly helpful
students, all of the traders and the local
businesses who kindly donated raffle
prizes and of course to all the mums,
dads and carers who came along to
support and spend!
The Woodroffe 70s
GLAM ROCK EVE
Dust off your stacks,
don your wig & frock
&
Prepare to ROCK!!
Friday 24th Feb 2012 @ Woodroffe,
7.30pm ‘til late.
Nibbles, Cocktail Bar & three course
70’s supper with fab, live band,
loads of singing and dancing.
Prizes for most promising rockers in
dress, dance, song & air guitar solo!
There will be a licensed bar.
Please book tickets/tables, well in
advance from Wendy on
01404 881207 or [email protected]
Tickets £12.50
Please note: tickets will be for sale at
‘A Taste of Christmas’: what a brilliant
present!
Mo-Bros Raise £750
W
ho would have thought that
facial hair could raise so much
money? The Mo-Bro posse raised
a staggering £750 for two men’s
charities: The Prostate Cancer
Charity and the Institute of Cancer
Research.
Huge thanks to all those students,
parents and staff who donated to
this fantastic cause. Needless to say,
there’s not a whisker in sight now it’s
December!
School dates for your diary:
4 January
11 January
17 January
18/19 January
20 January
25 January
1-3 February
w/c 20 February
24 February
Year 12 Parents Evening
Year 9 Options Evening
Year 10 Family Maths Evening
Year 7 Parents Evenings
PTA Disco Years 7-9
Year 8 Pathways Meeting
Cabaret
Little Foot, Marine Theatre
PTA Glam Rock Night
Cabaret 2012
A
fter nearly 90 auditions over the last
month, teacher Kathy Elliott and
her Cabaret Mentor team – Joe Bailey,
Dominic Kirtley and Georgia Robson –
have finally chosen the acts they hope
will make Cabaret 2012 a great success.
The show will take place on February
1st, 2nd and 3rd. Details of how to obtain
tickets will soon appear on the school
website. Cabaret 2011 raised over
£1,500 for charity and the same amount
for the school.
notes
December 2011
NEWS FROM WOODROFFE
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