Veritas Summer 2014 - St Dominic`s High School for Girls

Sum
m er
Term
2014
V
e r i tas
ST. DOMINIC‟S HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
|
Preparatory
|
Senior
|
Sixth Form
N E W S S u m m e r Te r m 2 0 1 4
Pre-Preparatory
Welcome to our termly newsletter; a celebration and review of just a
handful of our 2014 Summer Term events. Enjoy!
Pre-Preparatory
Road SaRoadRodfety
Department
Day
IT’S FUN TO
LEARN AT
ST.
DOMINIC’S!
2
Condove
r Advent
‘WELLIE
WEDNESDAYS’
Our „Wellie Wednesdays‟ have proved
so very popular this term! Your
learners gained so many new skills and
learnt new exciting vocabulary too.
Venturing outside is a wonderful,
innovative approach to learning through
play and educational
ac tivi tie s
in
an
outdoor environment
and how lucky we are
to be surrounded by
such beautiful grounds,
which are always kept
so gorgeous by our
Maintenance Team.
Please ask your
children to tell you all
about
their
excursions.
ure
What a fa
bulous tim
e was ha
rose to th
d by all!
e challeng
All the gir
es: the „m
low rope
ls
uddy sens
s and ad
o
r
y
‟
v
t
e
r
nture co
ail, the
challenge
urse, the
and the M
la
s
e
a
r beam
ze game,
Year 2 gir
all before
ls also en
3
p
m. The
joyed Bo
Mania‟ be
dy Zorbin
fore bedt
g and „Da
ime.
nce
Our instr
uctor Ry
an said: „I
such a we
‟ve never
ll manner
worked w
ed, positiv
their team
ith
e group.
spirit for
I‟
m amazed
such youn
at
g pupils.‟
During lu
nch your
daughters
mannered
were so
that the c
impeccab
ook and
came ove
ly
several o
r to tell
t
h
e
r
t
u
e
s
achers
how beau
girls were
tifully beh
.
aved our
With all t
hat excite
ment, six
the way h
of Year 1
ome and
fell asleep
a
ll
Year 2 w
pm witho
on
ere fast a
ut any tea
sleep by
rs.
9
Mrs Pum
phrey and
I are SO
are wond
proud of
erful amb
them; th
assadors!
ey
Mrs Kare
n Grevett
, Head of
Pre-Prepa
Mrs
ratory
Holida
y Club
, Summ
er 201
Our ho
4
liday clu
b will r
5.00 pm
u
n
from 8
during
.00 am
the foll
owing
14 - 18
w
eeks:
July
21 - 25
July
18 - 22
26 - 29
Monda
August
August
p
y 1st &
lus our
Tuesda
inset d
y 2nd S
ays :
eptemb
er
3
Preparatory Department
Veolia
pening of the
O
al
ci
ffi
O
he
Our Day at T
lity
Recycling Faci
Our Trip to Paris
Veolia was
„Our Day at
were treated
excellent. We
a lovely lunch.
to drinks and
ere delicious
The puddings w
ian was very
and the magic
entertaining.
a tour of the
We went on
Mrs Kirwan
t the rubbish
recycling plant.
the crane to pu
ng
lli
ro
nt
co
at
see the
had a go
we could go to
til
un
d
te
ai
w
e
away. Then w
ter.
Duke of Glouces
their
rner presented
Tu
ce
ra
G
d
an
Molly Doughty
ess‟.
His Royal Highn
to
e
ur
winning pict
r4
Yardley, Yea
By Helaina
Our trip to Paris
was
fantastic!
Twenty
three
excited
girls
relished
every
moment
and
spending time in
the Disney Park at
this time of year
meant that we
virtually had the
park to ourselves
on the first day, so
the waiting times
for the rides were minutes, not hours.
The rain was rather heavy on Wednesday, but undeterred, the
girls squelched their way from ride to ride with great
enthusiasm. On Wednesday evening the girls all dressed up for
their evening meal at Planet Hollywood and the staff there made
it an extra special occasion for our birthday girl Sarah Hendrie,
who was 11 the following day. She had to stand on a chair and
blow out a candle on an ice cream, whilst all of the restaurant
diners clapped and cheered.
We were up early on Thursday morning (there were some
reluctant to wake until they remembered it was the day we
were visiting the Disney Studios) and after a hearty breakfast,
we were welcomed by the most gorgeous blue skies and
sunshine. Our first ride of the day was Crush‟s Coaster. This
was the favourite ride for many of us as we oohed and aahed
our way through the neon scenery until the vertical ascent and
subsequent descent through the darkness, whilst at the same
time rotating.
Graduation Day at
Staffordshire University
Years 2-6 attended their first Children‟s
University Graduation at Staffordshire
University‟s Stoke campus on Tuesday
24th June. All pupils received a Bronze,
Silver or Gold Award at the ceremony,
celebrating the achievements and
credits earned by attending extracurricular activities at school. The girls
looked very smart in their red mortarboards and gowns. There was an official photographer on the
day who took some stunning photographs.
After lunch we left the park for our walking tour of Paris, which
was curtailed by the fact that the Queen and Prince Philip were
visiting.
Whilst this meant the Arc de Triomphe was
unexpectedly closed for security reasons, the girls had the
unique experience of seeing the Queen pass close by in her
royal car on the Champs Elysee. What a spectacle it was!
David Cameron was only around the corner too! We felt very
privileged. The girls were so excited, it was worth every minute
of us standing on the Champs Elysee in the sunshine. All of the
girls slept soundly on their last night and had the chance to do
their last minute present shopping on the ferry before we
returned to Blighty.
Our girls were a pleasure to take abroad, they were polite,
helpful and especially kind to each other. I would like to thank
Mrs Wild and especially Miss Edwards (for stepping in at the last
minute) for accompanying us on the trip. We really did have a
fabulous time, one that they will all remember fondly.
Mrs James, Pastoral Manager for Year 7 & Year 8
4
Choral Day
Mini-Beast
Adventure
We've been having so much fun in Mini-beasts Club on Mondays
during this term.
We've planted a miniature butterfly garden and watched our
seeds grow at a tremendous rate.
Then we went out to build some habitats for some creepy
crawlies and we found a baby toad, millipedes, centipedes,
woodlice and a variety of snails.
We then had a great time learning about who, or what, moved
into the homes we
built.
Mrs Thomson,
The Year 5 Choral Day
and concert on Friday 16th
May was a big success!
The girls and visiting
pupils from neighbouring Brewood Middle School worked
extremely hard, performed well and with confidence. They sang
„Sing‟, „Holiday Time‟ and „Spiritual Medley‟ amongst others; some
of these involved performing in parts and with actions, which was
extremely tricky.
A big thank you goes to Mrs Lamplough, Miss Robbins and Mrs
Stubbs and the parents who came to support the event.
Mrs S Kirwan, Head of Preparatory
Year 4
Porridge!
“
The girls worked in groups on different projects including fabric
design, cathedral art, an audio magazine, bell ringing, calligraphy,
quilling, singing and making stained glass. They produced some
lovely pieces of work and were in awe of the cathedral‟s size
and beauty. Sally Griffiths and Amara Sangha played the hand
bells to signal the start of afternoon worship. Sarah Hendrie
and Jessie-Rose Giles performed a song in the closing service
and Charlotte Yarwood accepted a candle on behalf of the
School from the Open Door team. All the girls were attentive
and well behaved during their visit.
Mrs S Kirwan, Head of Preparatory
the end! I want to go back next year’.
Jessie-Rose Giles, Year 6
“
Porridge was an excellent
e x p e r i en c e , e s p e c i a l l y
performing at the Stafford
Gatehouse, „The Met‟! I loved
performing on stage in front of
my family and friends. I also
loved our dressing room - it was
set out as though we were real
actresses! Overall I loved the
experience of Porridge!
“
On Tuesday 9th
June Years 5 and 6
took part in the
„Open
Door‟
project at Lichfield
Cathedral alongside other schools
in the county.
Lichfield
Cathedral‟s Open
Door was formed
in 1977.
Each
summer the doors of the Cathedral are opened wide to
welcome approximately 180 children each day for 9 days.
“
Open Door Project
On 30th June we went to perform our play Porridge at the
Gatehouse Theatre in Stafford. We were there from 10 am until
2 pm and we all had a really good time. We hope to have
another experience like it soon. When we came to perform the
play we were all nervous, but we came through and all the
people who watched it were very pleased and said we
performed very well. My brother also did this play at his school
and when he came to watch us he said that ours was much
better than his - so that means we were really good and he
enjoyed it!
Amara Kaur Sangha, Year 6
Emilia Pumphrey, Year 6
5
Senior Department
Peers in Schools
Pupils from Years 7
to 9 from St
Dominic‟s
and
Walton
School
received a fantastic
talk from the peer
Lord Cormack this
term. The content
of his talk was
fantastic and the pupils were captured by his delivery!
All of the pupils from both schools had prepared perceptive
questions to ask Lord Cormack. These were brilliantly received
and answered by the extremely informed and engaging Lord. In
particular, one subjective question about the worst law passed
received an intriguing response! Lord Cormack was delighted
that a younger audience asked intelligent questions as the Peers
in School programme is normally targeted at A Level students.
Lord Cormack‟s son used to attend our School when he taught
at Brewood Grammar, therefore, it was wonderful to see him
return and see our School, which is introducing boys up to the
age of 11 from September.
Lord Cormack ended his speech by urging pupils to be interested
citizens, to participate in civic life and to vote. The pupils left
feeling very inspired and empowered. We are so grateful to our
close contact Gavin Williamson, MP, for organising Lord
Cormack‟s visit.
Mrs R Mason-Cowley, Head of Sixth Form
Speaker’s School Council
Awards
We were thrilled this term to be awarded in
the Speaker’s School Council Awards
Healthy Choices School Council Linking Project as
highly commended in the 11 -16 category.
This year, the competition received over 700
entries so we were thrilled to receive this special recognition
from the judges.
On behalf of the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Rt.
Hon John Bercow, and the Speaker‟s School Council Awards
team said “we would really like to thank you and your school
council for participating in the competition and taking the time
to tell us about all the hard work that has gone into making your
project great. We wish you every success with your future
projects and look forward to hearing about them in next year‟s
competition!” Mrs Clinton, Head of History & Citizenship
Intergalactic
Crisis
The universe was in peril and
only Doctor Who, with the
help of the students at St.
Dominic‟s, were able to save
the day!
A collapsed timetable saw the
crisis acted out and the
predicament presented, then, like in all good Doctor Who
episodes, the issue was solved using good teamwork,
courage and problem solving skills. The students had to
negotiate obstacles including fixing the TARDIS using
electrical components, finding their place in time and
space using history and a
specially hired star dome,
as well as dodging an old
enemy of the Doctor who
was creeping menacingly
around the premises.
The aim of such skills days,
which are held termly at
School, are to nurture
many
different
competencies outside the classroom and this one in
particular has built upon the STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering & Maths) programme that is actively running
at School.
Mr Pete McNabb, Deputy Head said of the day “The day
was a fantastic success! Our pupils‟ generated ideas,
explored possibilities and developed strategies to connect
their own ideas to those of others as well as exploring
ways in which to question their
own and their team members‟
assumptions but most
importantly they managed to
save Brewood from an
intergalactic crisis!”
6
Rotary
Club P
hotogr
Comp
aphic
etition
Off‟‟
This ye
„Bake
ar St D
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r
k
a
a
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b
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two hig
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our
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h Ma
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Mrs B
FF
-O
BAKE
AUTOMATIC WEATHER STATION
Katie Price and Gemma Dilkes in Year 10 have been renovating the School
Stevenson screen this term. The original design was by Thomas Stevenson
(1818-1887), a British Civil Engineer and father of the author Robert Louis
Stevenson. Traditionally this houses wet and dry bulb thermometers together
with special thermometers to read maximum and minimum temperatures. A
weather observer would have to read these manually every few hours to
record the readings. The screen at St Dominic‟s was a bit neglected and some
new parts had to be made. The old paint was removed and new weather proof paint applied. It now houses a new
automatic weather station made by the two girls.
Katie and Gemma built their automatic weather station based around a Raspberry Pi micro computer for their GCSE
Computing course. The new automatic weather station will have sensors to record temperature, atmospheric pressure,
humidity and ambient light. The Raspberry Pi will log all the data every few minutes and this will be stored for further
computer analysis. In the future they hope to add more measurements such as rainfall and wind speed to the weather
station. They would like to make the data available on the School network and on the website so that others can use the
data for their own analysis. The programming of the Raspberry Pi will take some time to work out but the girls are
confident they will have it working before the end of the year. They are hoping to document some record high
temperatures during the summer while they are on their holidays!
7
Sixth Form Department
Young Enterprise
Careers Convention
‘How to be a
Good Driver’
“Did you know that our age group (17-24 year olds)
account for only 5 per cent of the total miles driven on the
roads in the UK, yet a staggering 1 in 5 crashes will be
caused by them?
This term‟s enrichment talk focused on what makes a good
driver. Paul Fisher, Chris Scott-Douglas and Paul Buckle
are the main driving instructors at Rio (Right Instruction
Only) and they came to St Dominic‟s High School for Girls
to make us aware of how important driver attitude is and
how we can be safer on the road through the use of our
driving knowledge. This talk was very interactive; we had
two quizzes and watched road simulations which tested us
on the value of road signs and where on the roads they
should be placed.
Paul Fisher then sparked a debate about whether the
motorway speed limit should be changed to 80 mph and
how safe that would be for every road user. The majority
of girls highlighted that many drivers already drive at that
speed illegally, therefore will changing it make any
difference?
The talk was very interesting for us listeners. It was
especially good hearing about the company‟s specialisms
with helping nervous drivers and drivers with difficulties.
Rio covers the Walsall, Wednesbury, Sutton Coldfield,
Lichfield, Wolverhampton and Cannock areas. They will be
returning later this academic year and early next year to
talk to the younger girls about road safety. It was great to
meet such lovely Driving Instructors.
“
Maneshia Johal, Year 13
Young Enterprise
Young Enterprise
continues
to
develop our Sixth
Formers
into
budding
entrepreneurs.
This year, the Year
12 girls created a
business
called
'The Zoo Box',
where they created bracelets using 'magic'
beads. These beads caught the light and reflected it
back, creating a 'cats eye' effect. Georgia Price was
nominated Managing Director and she saw to it that
the company met every Thursday evening with Colin
Hansen-New and Anna Wolliscroft as their Business
advisors.
Their first task is always to write a Business Report,
which outlined where the company saw the product
development, along with marketing and sales
opportunities. In the area final we gained a very
respectable third place in the Business Report
category.
After many sales over Christmas and B for B
business breakfast meetings, the girls attended the
Stone Trade Fair, where again they came third with
their stall. On the evening of presentations held at
Wedgewood in March, the final Company Report
gained the girls yet another third place.
On liquidation the girls made a profit of £20 each.
They all learnt many new business skills which will
put them in a good place for the future. The girls
expressed their thanks to Mrs Rebecca MasonCowley and Mrs Coriarna Morris-Smith for all their
help.
8
So Long…..
Golden Girls….
We saw a super leavers‟ lunch earlier this term as we said a
sad farewell to our Year 13s, some of whom have been at St.
Dominic‟s since Preparatory! A real testament to their
maturity saw a super leavers‟ assembly earlier that morning
followed by a lunch full of reminiscences from staff and pupils
alike. We wish them all well for the future; we will miss them
terribly.
On Friday 27th July, six students from
Year 12 took part in the Gold Duke of
Edinburgh Award Practice Expedition.
Yan, Holly, Ellena, Molly, Charlotte and
Eleanor started their expedition in
torrential rain and thunderstorms in the
Valley of Edale.
“
After their first night in the wild, they met
their leader, and embarked on their 3 day
challenge, where they walked over 16 km
a day, covering heights of 678 m. On day
one, the candidates conquered Mam Tor which is to the north
of Castleton. On the Saturday night, they camped at Fieldhead
Campsite where they soon fell asleep.
“
On 6th June Matthew Wellbourn a Professional Development
Executive from UCAS, gave a talk to Year 12 students on
managing their university UCAS application. With the choice of
over 360 universities in the UK alone and 37,000 courses our
options are incredibly broad and information on the process of
finding the right university that suits our ambitions and interests is
vital.
Mr Wellbourn took the group through the process of UCAS,
advising us to begin with the exploration into subjects of interest
and discover the course that was best suited to us. He told us to
primarily think of three things: ‘What do you want to do?’, ‘Where
do you want to do it?’ and ‘What grades does the university ask
for?’ This is the basis for our research as students must be
comfortable in a place of study for three years and be engaged in
the subject they learn in addition to realistic aims in terms of
grades achievable. Mr Wellbourn recommends that we begin
using the UCAS website and Unistats during the summer to begin
initial research; then in the autumn term begin finalising our
choice.
He also gave some helpful advice when writing our personal
statements. He suggested we include our experience and how
that increases our skills academically, critically and develop time
management abilities.
Mr Wellbourn informed us that we can use a track facility on
UCAS to follow our application as it gets sent off to our university
choices. We have four choices of universities and when we
receive our acceptance letters we choose a first and second choice
of university.
Day two was the day they were dreading the most. This was a
scramble up Grinsbrook Clough followed by 6 hours on the
top of Kinder, passing Kinder Scout, Kinder Downfall and
Kinder Low. The peat bogs in this area are notoriously difficult
to navigate. The candidates survived the bogs and the pools,
demonstrating determination and resilience to achieve their
goal. On Sunday
night the students
camped
at
Whitmore Lea, a
very basic Gold
camp, with no fresh
running water and a
'toilet' which was
inhabited
by
swallows.
Day three soon arrived and the group were very keen to finish.
They started early to miss the heat of the day walking from
Upper Booth, to Barber Booth, and through Nether Booth . . .
lots of Booths, along Jaggers Clough, where again they
scrambled up the rock face, and down on the Roman road,
back to Hope.
The leader commented on the group as one of the best set of
candidates that he has met. He said that he had never met a
group who worked so well together and displayed excellent
navigational and camp craft skills. He also complemented them
on their manners throughout the whole practice expedition.
Well done girls, next it‟s the assessed expedition in September.
Mrs C Morris-Smith, Head of Geography
Overall, Mr Wellbourn’s advice and support was incredibly helpful
informing us of the extensive, long process Year 12 students are
about to embark upon. His recommendations have gently eased
us into the UCAS process and introduced us to the journey we
begin even before we are Year 13.
“
Katie Randall, Year 12
9
Whole School
Brewood Cycle Challenge
„On Saturday 7th
June our School
hosted the 2014
Brewood
Cycle
Challenge, where
over 750 cyclists
entered. We set
up a team called „St
Dom‟s
Cyclers‟,
consisting of Holly
Thomas, Mr Blaikie, Mr Ward, Mr McNabb and myself. Mr
Davies, Mr Dilkes and Mr Hess also took part in the Challenge.
New Identity…..
ming all our
We look forward to welco
in September
learners back to school
to:
St. Dominic’s Brewood
tion for boys and girls
The co-educational junior sec
ed as St. Dominic’s
aged 3-11 will be renam
our girls only senior
Preparatory School, and
remain St. Dominic’s
section for girls aged11-18 will
High School for Girls.
Mr Blaikie did the more challenging 100 km cycle, whilst the rest
of us took on a quite difficult 50 km ride. Mr Ward
unfortunately fell off his bike part way through the Challenge,
injuring his shoulder, then subsequently managed to get lost, so
was unable to finish the Challenge.
Despite the horrible weather we all found it a great experience
and overall a lot of fun. We all look forward to doing it again
next year - maybe you would like to join us? If so, please bring
along a bandage and a map for Mr Ward!‟
Molly Palmer, Year 12
Promise Dreams
I am delighted to
report that we raised
over £415.00 for
Promise Dreams for a
litt le
girl
called
Kennedy who suffers
from Spinal Muscular
Atrophy. Kennedy and
her family will use the
money to go on a
short family break.
Thank you all most sincerely for taking part in this very worthwhile initiative. We were very pleased to present a cheque to
the Promise Dreams representative .
Mrs K Grevett, Head of Pre-Preparatory
Autum
n Term
2014
comm
ences
:
Wedn
esd
ay 3rd
Septe
mber
2014
Enjoy
your h
o
lidays
!
10
Prize-Giving 2014
Pre-Prep Song
5
We‟re Pre-Preps and we‟ve had fun
You won‟t believe the work we‟ve done!
Fun work, challenges or a game
No two days are ever the same
~
We‟re Pre-Preps and it‟s been great
So much success to celebrate
Sticker awards, certificates, merits too
We‟ve worked hard the whole year through.
~
We‟re Pre-Preps, we‟re keen to explore
Studying tadpoles, butterflies and much more
Photosynthesis, metamorphosis too
Our vocabulary just grew and grew.
~
We‟re pre-Preps and we need a rest
„cos every day we‟ve done our best!
But Mrs G plans activities galore
We‟re back in September for MORE, MORE, MORE!!
The Spotlight Continues to Dazzle
on St. Dominic‟s..
One of our Dominican‟s, Anya
Chalotra, continues to be an
inspiration to all of our LAMDA
and Performing Arts students
as she has now been offered 3
year degree courses in Acting
by four different accredited and
world renowned Drama
Schools:
The Royal Welsh
Academy of Music & Drama, The Bristol Old Vic and two of the
most prestigious internationally, the London based LAMDA and
Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
There were four Acting auditions at each school, starting with
4,000 girls and ending with only 24.
Anya has also been selected by the National Youth Theatre of
Great Britain as one of 24 girls to perform at the
Commonwealth Games.
We are immensely proud as ever of Anya who finished her
studies at St. Dominic‟s Brewood just last year.
Meanwhile a number of our current, talented St. Dominic‟s
Brewood students have also achieved some amazing accolades.
Rosie Nightingale (Year 8) has made the leap to Seniors after an
intensive audition for the English Youth Ballet, Amelia Freeman
(Year 5) also successfully auditioned for the English Youth Ballet
and their production of „Sleeping Beauty‟. The audition consisted
of over 100 children. The production takes place at the Grand
Theatre in Wolverhampton at the end of September.
Abigail Strudwicke‟s (Year 10) stunning achievement (as well as
Dominican Lucy Follows) who have both been cast as Wendy in
Peter Pan, to be performed at the Grand Theatre in
Wolverhampton this autumn. This is a very exciting opportunity,
especially as they will have to go down to London to get
specialist "flying ariel" lessons;
Bethany Lear (Year 8) gave a marvellous performance of Street
Dance in front of an audience of hundreds for the "8
Mile" Festival.
Award winning WBOS Youththeatre are presenting Oliver in
November and Grace Pugh (Year 10) has won the part of Mrs
Bedwin, whilst Arabella Yardley (Year 5) and Lara Pugh (Year 7)
have also been selected to play parts.
Also, during half term Sophia Elton (Year 10) was placed overall
winner of the „Wow Factor‟ talent competition run by Sandwell
Libraries, with a song and dance routine which was judged by
three of Sandwell‟s Councillors. She will now go forward to the
Grand Final, which will be held in the summer.
Mrs C Molin, Director of Performing Arts said of the breadth of
achievements “Drama, Music, Dance and Singing all play a vitally
important role at school. They reinforce the values of the school
and help to build confidence and develop team spirit” she
continued “all children are encouraged to join the choirs, play an
instrument, take up dance or sing or take part in LAMDA acting
training. We are immensely proud of all of their achievements.”
This is by no means a comprehensive list of pupils‟ achievements,
and through our weekly Bulletin we have been proud to
celebrate the successes of all of our pupils throughout the school
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this term.
Our Friends’...
Uniform Shop
Our shop opening times are:
As a committee we are always delighted to provide
refreshments at various events. This term has been a very busy
one. We hosted a drama evening, musical soiree, sports day
and MoMo event to name but a few.
Sports day was a lovely event. My thanks to the 6th Formers
and Year 11s who expertly sold ice creams, sweets and afternoon tea.
The Summer Fayre was an afternoon filled with fun and
entertainment. A „flash mob‟ led by Mr McNabb got everybody
tapping their feet, a climbing wall allowed pupils (and staff!) to
scale to dizzy heights enabling them a fabulous aerial view of
our school, not to mention all the stall holders and other
entertainers who gave up their time to provide a huge array of
activities and foods to please our visitors. Many thanks to
EVERYBODY involved in such a fun and successful fund raising
activity.
Tuesday: 12 noon - 1.00 pm
Wednesday: 3.00 pm - 4.00 pm
Thursday: 9.00 am - 10.00 am
If these opening times are inconvenient, we are more than happy
to take orders at the office. Please ask for an order form.
Thank you,
Mrs S Tillett, Uniform Shop Manager
We were also pleased to welcome many Dominicans to a
service to commemorate and remember a dear member of
staff, Kath Doyle, who sadly passed away earlier this year.
This term with the funds raised, we have purchased:
A set of kindles for the Senior Department
A digital Cannon Camera for the Senior Art Department
Dr Who Skills Day equipment hire
Carnegie Reading Book Scheme
Croquet Sets x 3 ( extended day)
To name but a few……...
The Friends are in URGENT need of new members, please
contact the School Office if you are interested.
Mrs Lisa Nightingale, Chair of the Friends
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Extended Day Club
Check on our website during the Summer holidays to see what
Extended Day activities are planned for next term.
Don’t forget to let a member of the School Council know if there
is an extended day activity that you are interested in and you’d
like School to put on!
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Menus are subject to slight changes .
Our four week menu is run on rotation and is reviewed each
term by our Student Voice and our in-house catering team.
DAILY SALAD BAR: Lettuce, Tomato, Cucumber, Pasta/Rice/Potato Salads, Carrot & Raisin, Apple & Celery, and Selection of Cold Meats
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SPORTS NEWS
A varied programme of recreational and competitive activities
continues to take place across the school including multi-sports,
tennis, rounders, gymnastics and swimming. We are pleased to
report on the numerous successes throughout the term in our
weekly Bulletin.
SENIOR SPORTS NEWS:
ROUNDERS
Congratulations once again to Emma Hudson who has been
picked for England U16 team.
Our U13 team also achieved success coming 3rd at the Midlands
ISA Tournament.
TENNIS ACADEMY
We are thrilled that our new tennis Academy has launched with
lessons being taught on Monday and Friday mornings in school.
SPORTS LEADERSHIP
Congratulations to 17 of our girls who have completed the Sports
Leadership course and were presented with badges and
certificates at Prize-Giving.
OLYMPIC
VISITOR:
Earlier this term
Meghan Beesley, the
400 m hurdler,
came into School to
give a Sports for
Schools afternoon. Reception Class to Year 9 all took part in a
fitness circuit with her and then she showed them how she
hurdles. A number of pupils had a go at hurdling as well. Meghan
took a question and answer session and told pupils about her life
as an athlete. Afterwards some pupils got Meghan‟s autograph and
had a picture taken with her.
Sponsor monies raised were split three ways: to buy school sports
equipment; children‟s charity and training costs for athletes.
PREPARATORY SPORTS REPORT:
ROUNDERS
Rounders Club (Y2-6) has been well attended throughout the
term during Wednesday‟s Extended Day. An extra practice was
put on during Thursday lunchtimes (Y4-6) to cater for Year 5 who
were not present on a Wednesday and also to improve throwing
and catching skills – especially when wet grass prevents game play.
Rounders results:
U10 Against Birchfield – 20th May - Lost 5 ½ - 10
ISA U11@ Dixie Grammar – 18th June – won four; lost one;
drew none (3rd out of 10 schools)
NETBALL
U11 Staffordshire Netball tournament, hosted by Penkridge Middle School was held at the beginning of the Summer Term. The
U11A team won this tournament – finally beating Stafford Prep! –
a first in the history of St Dominic‟s Prep since Stafford Prep
opened 5 years ago.
An inter-house Netball tournament took place at St Dominic‟s
(Preparatory) on March 28th (End of Spring Term) in which all
Preparatory girls played in at least one match. Nightingale won
the tournament.
GYMNASTICS
Team training (Tuesday U11 & O11) (Thursday U7 and U9) and
general gymnastics on a Wednesday lunchtime are very well
attended by the majority of Preparatory Dept.
MULTISPORTS
Multi-sports has been well attended by both the Pre-Preparatory
and Preparatory departments this term.
TENNIS
Pre-Preparatory Club on Monday extended day has been keenly
attended.
Years 4, 5 & 6 have played tennis and developed their skills in
their Games session on a Friday.
DANCE
Dance Club (Mrs King) has been well attended on Mondays
(Preparatory Dept.) and Thursdays (Pre-Preparatory Dept.) Many
girls have also enjoyed attending Mrs Carey‟s Dance lessons held
between 5 pm and 6 pm on a Tuesday.
SQUASH
Year 6 pupils have had introductory squash and racquetball
lessons within their allocated Games session on Fridays.
SWIMMING
Lunchtime club is attended by Years 5-6 ( approx. 7 pupils) every
Monday throughout the Summer Term. Year 1 were offered the
opportunity to attend two lunchtime practices to see who would
be eligible to be invited next year.
Years 2 and 4 attended Chase Leisure Centre as part of their PE
curriculum for swimming tuition every Monday throughout
Summer Term.
Abbots Bromley Annual Swimming Tournament (Y6 - 19th June):
the girls did well, competing against some very large schools from
around the Midlands, qualifying for the Medley Relay Finals in
which they came 6th. Neah Boniface managed to gain 2nd in her
Butterfly heat putting her through to the finals in which she came
4th.
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And Finally….
A Note From our
Head...
This term is always punctuated with exams for all our learners and
one that finishes with our annual Prize Giving which always carries
with it a plethora of emotions. I would like to wish all our Year 13
leavers well for the future and along with Year 12 also for their
results. I hope the former group will remain in contact with us
through the Dominicans. I also wish all the Year 11 girls the very
best as they now wait, like those in Year 12 and 13, for their
results in August.
However despite this the term has remained exceptionally busy.
The term began with the Year 10-12 Performing Arts girls, under
the close and watchful guidance of Mrs Molin, Mrs Stubbs and Mrs
Carey, perform superbly at the Evolve Theatre at Dudley College.
Later in the term we not only saw the LAMDA and Associated
Board of Music exams completed but also some magnificent
musical and performing arts related showcase evenings. Then at
the end of term we saw a sublime performance at the Stafford
Gatehouse in the penultimate week from our Prep Department
girls in their performances in „Porridge‟.
We also saw two really interesting Skills Days this term. Firstly,
we had a „Social Skills Day‟ for the Preparatory Department,
which was then followed by a fantastic „Dr Who‟ STEM Skills Day
under the guidance of Mr McNabb (aka Dr Who). In the latter day
many converts were made as they visited the star dome, plotted
co-ordinates and travelled back in time! Both days clearly outlined
the importance of the curriculum and the application of key skills.
In the Senior Department other skills have been realised with the
Year 8s enjoying competing in their first „Bake Off‟ which was
judged by the owner of „SugarBudz‟, who has judged with Mary
Berry! The Year 8s in the final produced some stunning final bakes
as did our Year 5s who laid on a Parents‟ Café inside school due
inclement weather. The end of the summer term also hailed the
start of the Duke of Edinburgh practice expeditions for Gold,
Silver and Bronze which went well, albeit either too hot or too
wet; the good old British weather!
In the early part of term Olympic Athlete, Meghan Beesley visited
Reception – Year 9 as part of the „Sports in Schools‟ campaign to
promote the importance of staying active. This certainly inspired
many of girls as did trips to Wimbledon, the Aegon Classic and an
international athletics meet at Birmingham.
The school had a very successful term on the sporting front and
this was evident at our Sports Day for the Preparatory and
Senior Departments, which was most competitive. My
congratulations go to all who have represented the School and
more recently their House.
One real highlight was the Year 2-6 visit to Staffordshire
University where the girls were rewarded for all their extended
day and extra-curricular activities, both inside and outside of
school, by the Children‟s University. All put on „cap and gown‟
in a super graduation ceremony where they received their
certificates. Both the Pre-Preparatory Department and the Preparatory Department have also been busy. The term began with
an Enriching Young Minds trip which saw the girls enjoy a super
day watching Michael Murpurgo‟s „Private Peaceful‟ at the
Birmingham Rep. This was then followed by two overnight trips
which included the Year 6 and 7 going to Paris and the Year 2
adventurers enjoying a sleep over to Condover. Once again
five local schools, including St. Dominic‟s, put on a stunning
display at the annual Community Choir event. The girls from
Year 1 to Year 6 performed like professionals and it was a
wonderful occasion where all the Brewood schools got
together to perform at St. Mary‟s Church. In the PrePreparatory Department at the end of term the children
enjoyed their Teddy Bears‟ Picnic alongside their Sports afternoon and many other parentally involved moments throughout
the term.
Some of our girls also had the opportunity to meet royalty this
term! Mrs Kirwan, Amelia Freeman, Grace Turner, Helaina
Yardley, Libby Bennett, Molly Doughty and I all attended the
opening of the Veolia Recycling Plant with HRH the Duke of
Gloucester. All the girls were nominated to attend following
success as runners up or in Grace and Molly‟s case winners of
the Art competition that was run earlier this year. It is now
proudly displayed in the Preparatory Department corridor and
also in Veolia‟s reception.
It now leaves me to wish everyone well for the Summer holiday
and I hope to see all of those returning in September, refreshed
and recharged. For our new starters, including our Prep boys,
we very much look forward to welcoming you to our School.
Many thanks to all the contributors of our termly newsletter, Veritas.
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