Winter 2014 Edition - St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School

Winter 2014 - Issue 15
More News
E
H
T
M
O
R
F
R
E
T
T
LE
HEAD TEACHER
saw this term begin to
llow fruitfulness . . .’ As we
‘Season of mists and me
ticeable too, with the
change in weather was no
close to an end, with it the
y red leaves spilling
ing golden orange and fier
trees on site suddenly hav
rvest time, and, whilst at
e is also renowned for Ha
tim
n
tum
Au
r.
floo
the
to
students have still
a Harvest collection, the
h
wit
ate
ebr
themselves.
cel
t
no
do
school we
ers so less fortunate than
ive interest in
charity work, giving to oth
al
usu
ir
the
in
ped countries, and an act
es
elo
elv
dev
ms
s
les
of
s
nes
immersed the
are
aw
bal
ers, a glo
eal, contributing to
to nurture a regard for oth
Christmas Shoe Box app
the
to
s
gift
ing
nat
At St Thomas More we try
do
,
Muftis and
collecting money
to raise money for a goat,
hts are heart-rending, by
Paul, and a Read-a-thon
de
children whose daily plig
t
cen
Vin
St
the
for
s
a Fun Run to raise monie
at we are about.
Children In Need, having
ups – helping others is wh
Gro
r
Yea
all
to
ne
do
ll
ir part. We
week, some students
cake sales also played the
July. During Enrichment
t
las
d
rte
sta
had
we
t
of
ether activities tha
fired tiles in remembrance
Remembrance, pulled tog
site designed, created and
on
yed
November, the month of
sta
o
wh
the
h
ers
oug
oth
ilst
you journeyed thr
lds of Northern France wh
ld not fail to stop you as
cou
t
tha
y
travelled to the Battle Fie
pla
dis
a
in
ter
er
togeth
Tristan Car
r 1. All events were pulled
November 11th itself saw
lives lost during World Wa
pped you in your tracks.
sto
ies
pp
po
m.
the
of
00a
s
11:
nes
at
sed in prayer
brilliance of the red
ion area as the school pau
ept
main corridor, where the
rec
in
ma
the
e
sid
out
Last Post on the steps
place, three different
(Yr11 student) playing the
ents’ Evenings have taken
Par
of
st
ho
A
.
too
er
nn
ir children.
fruitful ma
has forged on in its usual
celebrate the talents of the
ere parents joined us to
Academically, the school
wh
nts
eve
al
tur
demic
cul
l
aca
era
nt), celebrated the
with parents and sev
nt organisation of this eve
elle
Mentoring Days/Evenings
exc
al
usu
her
ool’s Award
for
Sch
ry
– the Thinking
g (thanks go to Miss Per
h another National Award
wit
ed
nis
The annual Awards Evenin
og
e
rec
s
wa
ool
the sch
will see the rich and divers
r, and, early on this year
you read this booklet, you
en
Wh
e.
alik
achievements of last yea
ts
den
‘We
stu
n reads,
m staff and
entrusted to us. As the hym
much injected efforts fro
their time to the students
- reaping the rewards of
of
e
giv
to
ts that
ff
sta
den
of
stu
s
nes
the
h
are blessed wit
dents, and the willing
hout its students, and we
wit
h
activities offered to the stu
suc
be
t
.
no
iety
uld
soc
wo
er
ute to the wid
tter . . . ’However, a school
out and what they contrib
day
in
plough the fields and sca
day
e
iev
ach
y
what the
You should be proud of
er. As the Advent
we have – your children.
patience. A time of wond
of
e
tim
A
g.
itin
wa
of
e
what
ced in Advent. A tim
t asks us to meditate on
s, we will be truly enscon
aning of Christmas. Adven
me
e
tru
And now, as you read thi
the
ber
em
thi
,
rem
to
school/work day s is
s of December, we pause
the full. In the rush of the
to
y
nit
ma
hu
candles light the dark day
our
res
sha
e who
Jesus personally as someon
it means for us to know
ha
ived home this week wit
sometimes forgotten.
r children should have arr
you
of
h
Eac
s.
ma
Year
rist
the
Ch
holy
e full circle from
r families a peaceful and
e Gift of Literacy’ – to com
‘Th
:
iod
per
s
I close wishing you and you
ma
rist
Ch
s
es in over thi
m us to your child.
vel to immerse themselv
offer this book as a gift fro
and
y
rac
lite
of
gift
gift from the staff – a no
the
te, we also value
in the opening to this no
7 Read-a-Thon mentioned
With blessings,
Alison Wilshaw
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
1
More News...
Uniform reminder
PE and Games Kit
Boys
• White PE shirt with school crest
• White or black shorts
• White socks
• Trainers with white or clear soles (not black)
• Towel
• Green and white hooped rugby shirt with
school crest
• Green socks
Students who do not comply with the code of • Black jogging suit
• Football boots
Please can we remind you of the uniform
dress code. It is good that most of our
students come to school each day in the
correct uniform and look very smart.
However, there are some students who either
do not have their full uniform or choose to
wear things that are not acceptable. As a
school we pride ourselves on high standards
in all aspects and this includes uniform.
dress risk being sent home or sent to Isolation
in our Emmaus Centre.
Girls
• Blazer with crest
Many thanks for your continued support.
Required School Uniform
Our uniform can be obtained only from
Your School Uniform – see website: www.
YourSchoolUniform.com
Boys
• Blazer with school crest
• White shirt
• School tie
• Black school crested jumper (optional)
• Black or dark grey trousers
• Black shoes (no canvas)
• White polo-shirt with school crest (summer
wear only)
• Plain outdoor jacket or coat (no denim or
hooded top or fleece like tops)
• A protective apron; strong shoes
(for workshop use)
Vacancies
LUNCHTIME ASSISTANTS
& CLEANERS
THE SCHOOL IS RECRUITING FOR FRIENDLY
AND RELIABLE LUNCHTIME ASSISTANTS
AND CLEANERS.
LUNCHTIME ASSISTANTS WILL WORK
ALONGSIDE TEACHING STAFF SUPERVISING
STUDENTS IN OUR DINING ROOM AND
KEEPING THE AREA CLEAN AND TIDY.
CLEANERS ARE NEEDED TO WORK AFTER
SCHOOL TO CLEAN ALL AREAS OF THE
SCHOOL SITE TO A HIGH STANDARD.
INTERESTED?
PLEASE CONTACT THE SCHOOL
OFFICE/PERSONNEL
MANAGER AT
ST THOMAS
MORE FOR AN
APPLICATION
PACK on
01234 400222
2
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Black school trousers (Not Fashion)
lack school skirt (Not Fashion) – no shorter
B
than knee length – no stretchy material
White shirt
School tie
Black school crested jumper (Optional)
Normal coloured tights or white socks
Sensible Black shoes (Not Fashion or Canvas)
White polo shirt with crest (summer wear only)
Outdoor clothing - plain jacket or coat (no
denim or hooded top or fleece like tops)
A protective apron; strong shoes (for
workshop use)
PE Kit - Girls
• White PE shirt with school crest
• Bottle Green sweatshirt with crest
• Black shorts • White/green sports socks (for games)
•
•
•
Black or navy jogging suit
Towel
Trainers with white or clear soles. (Not black)
Jewellery
• Studs only may be worn; one in each ear –
small, plain gold or silver
• Earrings or valuable jewellery are not to
be worn
• Neither nose studs nor any other form of body
piercing is allowed
• All jewellery worn to school is at the owner’s risk
• The school does not accept any responsibility
for any jewellery lost or stolen
• Shoes with stiletto heels will not be tolerated
in school under any circumstances as they can
cause damage to floors.
• Trainers should be worn only outside for Games
or PE. They are not allowed in the dining room.
• Outdoor clothing should not be worn in
classrooms or in the Library.
Hair
• Extreme hairstyles are not acceptable – only
natural hair colour accepted
Make-up
• Make-up is acceptable, providing it is discreet
and reasonable.
In all cases of school uniform, jewellery,
make-up and hair, the school will determine
what is reasonable and what is not.
ATTENDANCE
and PUNCTUALITY
As a school we place great importance
on attendance and punctuality as these
have a real impact on the attainment of
all students.
•
The school will not sanction any
holidays in school time as directed
by the Department of Education
•
Pupils who are late to school will
have a phone call home
We are therefore asking for the
continued support of all our parents
and carers in working towards having
no lateness to school each day and the
lowest possible absence rate. We have
been set a school target of 96%.
•
Pupils with more than 2 lates will
have an after school detention with
their Progress Coordinator
•
We acknowledge that the majority of
our students have excellent records of
attendance and punctuality. However,
for a small minority this is not the case
and therefore the following procedures
have been put in place;
Failure to attend the after school
detention or continued lateness
will result in a Senior Management
detention
There is a REWARDS system in place
for those students who have good and
improved attendance and punctuality.
•
Pupils falling below 92% attendance
will be referred to the Education
Welfare Officer
•
Pupils falling below 85% attendance
will have an Attendance Plan
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
If you have any queries about
attendance then please contact
either Mrs. Bond (Deputy Head)
or Mr. Morris (Education Welfare
Officer) at the school.
Year Group Updates
year 7
year 9
“Books, to
the reading
child, are so
much more
than books—
they are
dreams and
knowledge,
they are a
future, and a
past.”
At half-term all year 9’s with 100%
attendance were invited to a special
reward lunch of Pizza in the assembly hall.
The pupils enjoyed 2 different varieties of
pizza and also had cookies, flapjacks and
crispie cakes for pudding along with
soft drink!
It was a lovely lunch and all the pupils
enjoyed their treat!
Miss Clark
Esther
Meynell
Read-a-thons are a fantastic way to
reinforce good reading habits while
also raising funds to support literacy
in the developing world. The Year 7
students are raising money to give
the gift of literacy through the CAFOD
Teach Someone to Read charity. The
St Thomas More Teaching School
Read-a-thon encourages students
to read and collect pledges for each
book they read. The Read-a-thon ran
from the 3rd November 2014—8th
December 2014 – look out in the next
issue of More News to see how we did!
Miss Millar
year 10
Year 10 are now well and truly settled into their new
GCSE courses. When I go around the school and listen in
on Year 10 lessons there is a continued sense of purpose
and industriousness that characterised their first year in
our school. They may have been shocked by the level of
expectation bestowed upon them by Mr Richardson, but
already staff are commenting on the quality of the work
being produced this early in courses.
At the end of last year our group of Y9 sailors completed a
course at Priory Marina. They did in fact complete the Level
1 Adult qualification and as is the case most years, a few
have decided to continue sailing there as members. Mrs
Bennett, to whom thanks must go for organising this, was
full of praise for their maturity and how they conducted
themselves as ambassadors for the school. Well done!
Year 11
Year 11 have returned with a real sense of purpose, ready to
attack this academic year. The students are hard at work in
lessons and making the most of revision sessions after school in
a large number of departments. During PSHCE sessions the form
groups have not just been focusing on preparing for the exams
but also life after St Thomas More, whatever that might hold.
A group of able, gifted and talented students recently took a trip
to The University of Cambridge for a seminar on subject selection
at A-level. This discussed the importance of selecting the right
combinations of subjects for specific career paths.
Last summer a number of our year group took their GCSE
Italian and GCSE Spanish two years early. Well done to Fabio
Liberio, Deborah Addai, Rachele Mensah, Lucia Cifres, Fiorella
Bechtle, Gabriella Iannantuono and Mikella Young on a really
good set of results and on putting in those extra hours to
prepare for the exam!
As the stress and anxiety build it is important to remember to
balance your life with a little fun. This is currently being provided
by this terms Inter-Form competition – Netball. There have been
some very competitive games with good performances from
players and great support from the spectators. The students have
also enjoyed seeing some of their tutors putting on their trainers
and “mucking in”!
If their excellent attitude is anything to go by, then
Summer 2016 is going to bring us a bumper set of
results!
Year 11 – I hope you all have a restful Christmas break after
such a busy and term. You definitely deserve it after all your
hard work.
Mr Aquino
Mr Hopkins
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
3
Sixth Form
Sixth Form News
Head Girl
Tell me a bit about yourself?
My name is Chanel Quigley; I am in year 13,
which is my last year of sixth form and have
recently become the Head Girl of St Thomas
More.
What made you want to become Head Girl
at STM?
Throughout my years at St Thomas More,
I have joined many extra-curricular clubs
which contributed to my choice to apply for
Head Girl – things such as Student Voice and
Student Researchers enhanced my leadership
skills from a young age, allowing me to get a
feel for what the role would entail.
What does your role as Head Girl
consist of?
The role consists of many responsibilities
that perhaps not all of the students are quite
aware of, for example, our team of ‘student
leaders’ and I created an action plan for the
year which we wish to put in place as part of
our contribution to the school’s Improvement
Plan. The action plan is an opportunity for
the students to contribute to their learning
environment.
Also, I am often seen at our Open Evenings
and Parents Evenings alongside Edem as
a friendly face which hopefully both the
students and parents will recognise! Of course
as Head Girl it is important that I am not just
recognised for Sixth Form duties, but wider
school activities and initiatives also.
What has been your most memorable
moment at STM?
There have been many memorable moments
within STM however, I think it is safe to
say my favourite was our celebration for
The Diamond Jubilee in 2012. This was a
spectacular day which the Student Voice
Council had arranged for the entire school –
throughout the day we organised activities
such as Tommy’s Got Talent, Face Painting,
The Great British Quiz and The Great British
Bake Off. I found this day was particularly
memorable as it gave the Student Voice an
opportunity to unite the school years; it was
with our team work and the voluntary help of
the staff that made the day truly special.
Parents are going to be reading this, is
there anything you want to tell them?
I can safely say that I don’t think my true
potential would have been met if it wasn’t for
the continuous efforts of the staff here and
the community that is St Thomas More!
4
When you move on from STM, what mark
do you hope to leave?
I hope when I leave St Thomas More that
I am remembered for my attempt to give
something back to the school, in return for
their constant efforts.
What is your favourite quote?
I have many favourite quotes that range from
artists to authors and inspirational leaders;
however this quote has been one that sticks
with me throughout:
“Everyone has inside of them a piece of good
news. The good news is that you don’t know
how great you can be! How much you can
love! What you can accomplish! And what
your potential is!”
The quote taken from Anne Frank’s wartime
diary “The Diary of a Young Girl” gives
inspiration to everyone despite their situation.
It takes great courage to stay as optimistic and
hopeful inspite of the horrendous situation
she found herself in; I feel the quote inspires
me to stay positive and believe in true
goodness!
What does the future hold for you?
I have just applied to my 5 choices of
University for a degree in ‘Law,’ through
this I hope to achieve my true potential and
achieve happiness in helping others.
Head Boy
Tell me a bit about yourself?
My name is Edem Kelman; I am in my last
year of sixth form and fortunate enough to be
head-boy.
What made you want to become head-boy
at STM?
The school has done a lot for me, it’s only
right I give back – besides who would look
better in a suit!
What does your role of head-boy
consist of?
Various different things, a lot of speeches!
Often with the senior students and the
teaching staff we get together to discuss
how we can help the school to progress. I
personally mentor two students within the
school, one lad in year 9 and another in year
11 - sometimes I can spend an hour helping
them with homework, other days we just
talk about our hopes for the future and the
glorious Arsenal FC!
The first term back I really wanted to try and
bond with students lower down the school,
how did I do that? Well firstly I opened up a
few assemblies, tried to make them laugh,
smile and so forth; after that it was just really
about talking to them individually, making
sure they’re okay.
I hope I lead by example. I believe if I work
hard, then other students shall in turn do the
same.
What has been your most memorable
moment at STM?
That’s a very hard one; I’ve made so many
good memories. It’s between prom night,
results day and Mr Quinn’s legendry speech
just before the GCSE exam period. Oh, not to
forget all the mini-bus moments on the way
to our football match.
Parents are going to be reading this, is
there anything you want to tell them?
Errm, your son or daughter is in perfectly safe
hands. I remember being sat at the back of
Mr Grimley’s RE lesson as Lodry and I agreed
on how amazing it was that some teachers
can make you feel like you’re the only student
they’ve ever taught. What I’m trying to get
across is that here at St. Thomas More the
students really do matter.
When you move on from STM, what mark
do you hope to leave?
I hope students lower down the school say
to their selves, “well that guy never doubted
himself, so nor shall I”.
What is your favourite quote?
I should really quote Ghandi or Martin Luther
King... at the moment it has to be ‘a long
way down’ – it’s also the title of Tom Odell’s
fantastic album. Often we’re too scared
to take risks, but in order for any sort of
greatness they’re necessary. It’s that fear of
falling the higher up you go.
What does the future hold for you?
Hopefully greatness, well first a degree in
‘Philosophy and French’ then hopefully
another in acting and theatre. I’ll let you into
a little secret, I’m actually quite scared of the
future – it all seems like a long way down.
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
Sixth Form
RUN AND RAISE
On a rainy Friday afternoon in November, 6th Form students changed
from their normal, ‘academic’, well dressed selves into a rainbow of
colours and a multitude of characters and took to the muddy fields of the
cross country track.
Why, I hear you ask yourself?
They were sponsored by theirs friends and family to dress up in fancy
dress to raise money that will be used to create Christmas hampers.
These hampers will then be given less fortunate families in Bedford,
through St Vincent Parish. The 6th Form team will be creating 9 hampers
this year to be distributed to 9 families across the town. We hope to help the families
have a joyous and fulfilling Christmas by filling their hampers with lots of lovely
gifts and food.
So, who could be found running (well, slowly plodding) through the fields as the
rain came down?
We had all sorts of wonderful characters joining in the fun, such as the smurfs,
sumo wrestlers, goldilocks and the 3 bears, power rangers, teletubbies and even a bunch
of bananas to name just a few! All the students involved had a great time, despite the rain
– even the staff enjoyed themselves, coming dressed as school children, pirates
and many more!
This is an event that takes place each year in the 6th
Form and the costumes this year proved to be the
best yet.
Now all the money
has been collected,
the students are busy
shopping for all the
goodies they will
need to fill their
hampers with.
corner
out
y.
r
a
Well done to Peter Mendy and Yousef El-Badri for winning the attendance draw. This is for
u
students you have gained 96% or higher in their attendance for a half term. A draw will take
n eir
a
place at the end of every half term.
J th
corner
h
t rted
aminations
Winners of the Fun Run costume prizes:
9
out
Best costume: The sumo wrestlers
ex h – sta for
Best home-made costume: The Smurfs
t ow on
6
cut
Most inventive costume: The Hawaiian boy
n ati
n
e
Best teacher costume: The Pirate (Mrs Malcolm)
o av ar .
mock
e
h rep ms
c
d
a
l
UCAS applications are well under way, many have already
corner orm pl hou in p exa
been sent off and offers are now starting to come in.
ir
Well done to those who have received
h F ke s s ion
e
t
t
h
out
offers already.
6 l ta en evis t
d
r
il
cut
w Stu
6th Form Information
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
cut
7
Trips and Activities
Morocco
Twelve St Thomas More Students went on an expedition to
discover the blazing colours and wafting aromas of Marrakech,
a cross roads for travellers and traders for centuries and where
souks and bazaars offer a continent’s worth of riches. They
stepped out of this vibrant world and got their boots dusty as
they headed out to the silent wilderness of the Atlas Mountain.
The students visited Berber villages and trekked through timeless mountains. Morocco was a nonstop adventure!
12th J
uly
Didn’t
sleep
at all
up at
overnig
half t
ht - it
hree f
can-dl
was s
o
r a ha
elight,
o cold
lf fou
then s
! Wok
r
start;
e
t
We st
o
en
f
f
, equip
ate br
arted
eakfas
p
o
e
d
f
f the
waterf
w
it
t by
h
head t
hike w
all and
orche
ith a
a cliff
nerves.
s
tee
wrack
pass,
ing in
climbin p scramble
and hig
t
he dar
over t
g rapid
h too
he
k…). I
ly (ju
; unfo
altitud
t was
st a l
rtunat
e sick
ittle
a
ely so
really
ness b
me pe
hard t
adly a
Those
ople s
rek,
nd had
of us
uffere
t
o
return
d from
who d
howev
id reac
er, we
to cam
re tre
h the
p.
blue s
ated t
p
e
a
kies a
k
o
o
f
a
n
M
s
d
t. Tou
pectac
distan
mount
ce. A
b
ular s
ains s
truly
ight; in kal,
tretch
incred
ing aw
tense
ible fe
ay into
eling!
the m
isty
remembrance day 2014
On the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day of the eleventh
month, we will remember them.
Here at STM we came together as a whole school
community to remember all those men and women who
were killed during the two World Wars and other conflicts.
Students and staff gathered on the front steps while the Last
Post was sounded (played beautifully by Tristan Carter, Year
11) and the entire school stopped to reflect during the two
minute silence that followed.
In addition, a very beautiful and poignant display was
created by our Year 9 students for the entire school and it’s
visitors to enjoy.
YEAR 9 WELCOME MASS
AND ACTIVITY AFTERNOON
On Thursday 20th October the Year 9’s had their welcome
Mass at school. The Mass was led by Father Malcolm and
students from each tutor group.
In the afternoon students competed in different activities
in their tutor groups. These included making an outfit out
of newspaper, creating a Form Emblem, writing a poem,
completing a quiz and making a form photo collage. At
the end of the afternoon the whole year group came back
together and presented their work to the judges. There
were some fantastic outfits shown on the ‘catwalk’ and the
poems and emblems were also very good! All students from
each form were involved in an activity for their form and the
team spirit and cheering during the
presentation was excellent!
The winning tutor
group on the day was
Pope John Paul II ! Well
done to them and
to all students who
represented their tutor
group.
6
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
Trips and Activities
cutting!!
STM students at the hottest show in town on the
hottest day of the year!
Visiting the exhibition of Henri Matisse’s cut-out art at the Tate
Modern was a great opportunity for students to experience
the buzz of a very busy and energetic gallery. There was a real
sense of excitement at seeing a collection of vibrant, radical
and groundbreaking pieces of work that had not been brought
together for over 40 years and the show was packed!
It may look simple, but Matisse was able to dynamically transform
paper and glue into an impressive collection of art work. We were
all really taken with the range of subject matter, size, scale and at
times, intricacy of the cuts. These were
composed in such a way
that only a true master
could elevate such basic
materials to this level with
his dress making scissors.
piece of art by seconding a bench in the Tate garden and using
paper and found objects that they had to hand.
The work certainly gathered interest by other passers-by with
some very enthusiastic critique being received!
Our Arty activity was followed by a stroll down Southbank, onto
the OXO beach for a bit of impromptu paddling, stone clipping
and sand sculpture and later watching a number of street art
entertainers.
What a fantastic day out!
Having been wowed by the
show, our budding artists
Thank you to all of the students who made the day such a lot of
set about making their own fun, Miss Perry and Mr Entwistle.
A time of waiting… A time of patience…
A time of wonder
As the Advent candles are lit all over the world, here at St Thomas More during our busy school and work day, we pause.
So that Advent isn’t forgotten, our staff have created an interactive Advent display,
where students, staff and visitors can take time out of their busy day
to stop at the display and add their own word,
message, poem or prayer reflecting what Advent
means to them.
Mr Juma, 6th Form Centre Manager
adds his own Advent message
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
7
Trips and Activities
Paris 2014
“This annual trip to Paris will be in its 15th year by
next July……”
Looking back at that line written in January 2014 I’m amazed
at the number of constants – the ever-excellent behaviour and
community spirit, the energy levels as we hike around Paris, the
fact that I am still fitter than all the year 10 students taking part!
This year we had a bit of lie-in, meeting up at Bedford station at
5am, rather than 4am. From there it is down to London, Eurostar,
Metro, dump our bags at the hostel off to start exploring. As ever
we were able to spend four days criss-crossing Paris, cramming in
as many sights as possible in such a short stay.
We had the added excitement this year of our being in Paris for
Bastille Day – we have never managed to be there on this day so
we felt very lucky this year. From Sacré Coeur we watched the air
show along the Champs Elysées, then in the evening we sat by
the Seine and watched the fireworks going off at the Eiffel Tower.
We were again blessed with warm weather and from the staff
point of view it was a real pleasure to have so many students who
enjoyed Flunch so much!
8
Their good-spirits and willingness to open themselves to new
experiences made them a great bunch to take abroad. The
question remains: “Was their group as good as 2013, or 2012, or
2011, or 2010 or 1999?????’
Plans are already underway for ‘Paris 2015’ and again we are
looking for something new to add to the experience of being in
Paris in July.
Here is a sample of the feedback from the students:
Brilliant, especially the amount you get out of each day - Tania
Where can we get some of those socks? – Hakeem and Darius
Next time, can we walk even further? – Tiffany
And some advice for those considering coming next year:
If you don’t like to try new things – stay at school
If you don’t like walking – stay at school
If you are a fussy eater – stay at school
If you are enthusiastic, energetic and flexible – sign up!
Mr Aquino
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
Trips and Activities
THORPE PARK THRILLS
Friday 7th November promised a day of extreme
experiences and fun as year 7 headed of on their trip to
the roller coaster “thrill capital” Thorpe park.
Hopes were high for year 7’s first ever school trip at St
Thomas More. Many were anticipating the arrival at the
theme park wondering whether they had the nerve to go
Stealth side or take on the horrors of Saw.
Finally the arrival and the first glimpses of the rides .The
sights left some staring but most were excitedly shouting
to friends.
Once we were through the ticket turnstiles it was as if the
gate had opened on a herd of wild horses. Everybody was
sprinting off in different directions shouts of “come on…
let’s go to Saw” or “Stealth first…”were heard as they
rushed away.
The favourites included Stealth, X, Saw and Nemesis
Inferno which were all praised highly by those brave
enough to ride. Comments included “it was brilliant”,” let’s
go again” or some reported that the selected ride was
their favourite by far.
Not only were year 7 excited about the day off but so
were the teachers whom you spotted occasionally either
grimacing or smiling - you couldn’t really tell as they
hurtled round the roller coasters.
Groans and grumbles ensued as the clocks ticked
nearer and nearer to half past four when we had to drag
ourselves away from the rides and towards the bus to
head home. The only thing negative that anyone said
about the day was “I wish that they’d let us stay.”
Special thanks to the sixth formers who planned and
organized the trip. On behalf of the whole of year 7 we
had a blast!
Leonie Brunning, Yr 7 Joyce
clubtastic!
OPERATION CHRISTMAS
Lunchtime games clubs are now up and running for both
year 7’s and year 9’s and above.
The Year 9’s are supporting the Samaritans fundraising
initiative, ‘Operation Christmas Child’ this year. Operation
Christmas Child is the UK’s largest children’s Christmas
appeal and has been running for over 20 years. Thanks to a
huge army of volunteers who give their time to help make
this Christmas ‘miracle’ come to life, they are able to deliver
gift-filled shoeboxes to children in Africa, Eastern Europe
and Central Asia.
More 4 7 is an exclusive Tuesday lunchtime club for year 7
only. Here students can play games and join in fun activities
to help support their literacy and numeracy skills. All year
7’s are welcome so if you haven’t already joined and would
like to, pop into to the Library where Mrs Snare and Miss
Jones will be happy to sign you up!
STM Games Club is for year 9’s and above where a range of
games are available. As well as old favourites such as Chess,
Drafts, Mastermind and Backgammon we also have lots of
new games where problem solving, skill and logic are top of
the agenda! This club is open every Wednesday lunchtime
so feel free to come in - we would
love to see you!
Mrs Snare and Miss Jones
Each tutor group had to find empty shoeboxes in which
they would put gifts for either boys or girls. The gifts
brought in by pupils included teddy bears, pens, bubble
bath, books and much more.
The shoe boxes were then collected and taken to the
Operation Christmas Child Headquarters. The boxes will
then be sent abroad to children who are less fortunate and
they will be unable to unwrap a present at Christmas.
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
9
In the Spotlight
awards evening 2014
To mark the wealth of talent amongst us
and to recognize the great achievements
of our young people in our community, the
celebration evening on Thursday October
23rd was a truly wonderful end to the first
half term. There were over ninety award’s
and prizes presented to students who have
excelled in academic, pastoral, community
and sporting activities. We were extremely pleased to welcome
to present the awards a very special
guest who specialises in presenting
anthropology, archaeology, social history
and adventure programmes. Mary-Ann
Ochota has worked on a number of
television series for Channel 4, BBC3,
Discovery Networks and ITV. Her
repertoire includes Time Team, Unreported
World, Castaway Exposed and Britain’s
Secret Homes. She has contributed to a
wide range of Radio shows, BBC Breakfast
News and is a regular guest on the Sky
Newspaper preview show.
Mary-Ann has also written for the Daily
Telegraph, The Independent, The Sun and
The Mirror, she blogs for The Independent
newspaper and her book Britain’s Secret
Treasures, was published last year in
conjunction with the British Museum
and ITV.
Following the presentations, students,
award winners 2014...
Year 9 winners: Luca Campopiano - English, Freddie Budek - ICT, Gabrielle Lawrence - RE, Fabrizio Baio - Mathematics, Eryk RATAJCZYK - Science,
Ronan Cook - Modern Foreign Languages FRENCH, Gabrielle Lawrence, Rachel Mensah - Learning Resources, Maggie Baker - History, Linda Scaramella
- Perf Arts, Samuel Wilthew - Music, Rachele Mensah - EAL, Nataleigh Sutton, Harry Raiswell, Summer Viola - YR 9 - Emmaus/Ind Needs, Urja Patel TEXTILES, Gabrielle Lawrence - FOOD, Matthew Andrews - RMats, Daria Szmitka - Art, James Warren - Graphics TJ, Luca Campopiano
- Geography, Andrew Crunkhurn - Year 9 LA Pastoral Prize
Year 10 winners: Ifra Ahmed - English, Anna Baldassarre - Media, Christopher Young - ICT, Tameka Brandy - RE, Stephen Popland
- Mathematics, MONGIARDI Dario, Naomi Hayes - Modern Foreign Languages - FRENCH, Gabriel Avellaneda - Modern Foreign Languages
- ITALIAN, Nathaniel Wedderburn, Niamh Williams - Learning Resources , Christian Esposito - History, Elisa Gray - Perf Arts, Annabel
Clarke - Music, Daphen Lu Valena - EAL, Chloe Philips, Francesca Rumble, Hanna Smith - YR10 - Emmaus/Ind Needs, Christian Esposito
- Sociology, Evangeline Lawrence, Thomas Andrews - Business, Ancella Nyincho - Health and Social Care, Esree Haynes - TEXTILES,
Rebecca Broughton - FOOD, Stephanie Reilly - RMats, Pelin Morgan - Art, Melissa Williams - Graphics TJ, William Bates - Geography,
Sam Holland - Year 10 - JH Pastoral Prize
10
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
More
Team
In
theRacing
Spotlight
parents and staff thoroughly enjoyed
listening to Mary-Ann‘s thought provoking
and inspirational recollections of her
adventures. Many students took the
opportunity to speak to Mary-Ann further
about her career experiences, she was
happy to share valuable advice for our
budding writers and broadcasters and it
really was a pleasure to meet her. As she left St Thomas More she tweeted:
A privilege and a delight to speak to the
students of St Thomas More at their awards
night. An inspirational bunch!
What a great evening and congratulations
to all of the following students:
Year 12 winners: Lucy Arpaia - English, Anthony Wickenden - Media, Sam Blanken - ICT, Jack Emsley, Kira Spicer, Farida Ahmed, Rosie Ram, Dani
Cocozza, Edem Kelman, Hannah Janes, Perry Toombs - RE, Helen Popland - Mathematics, Hannah Janes - BIOLOGY, Alfie Santaniello - CHEMISTRY, Ben
Faulkner - PHYSICS, Edem Kelman - Modern Foreign Languages - FRENCH - General MFL, Monica Verdura, Melvin Joseph - Learning Resources, Jack Emsley
- History, Kira Spicer - Perf Arts, Sam Fattorusso - Music, Edem Kelman - Psychology, Aida Veizaj - Sociology, Sam Blanken - Business, Bianka Nurzynska Health and Social Care, Sandra Phan - TEXTILES, EPG engineering, Matthew Davies - RMats, Tamara Phillips - Art, Josh Harlow - Graphics TJ, Sam Fatturosso
- Geography, Prince Zisengwe, Matthew Davies - EPQ VM, Edem Kelman - Student Voice AC, Jack Emsley and Sam Fattorusso - Ang Letch – Com service
CUP (CS), Hannah Janes and Helen Popland - Outstanding A.S Level Results (CS)
special: Reqeal Kumar yr 10 - Media, Perry Toombs yr 12 - Media, Sophia Picciano - ICT, Year 9: Paige Addison, YEAR 10 : Alessandro Endress, YEAR 12:
Maisie Carlyle - Mathematics, Riccardo Mazzeo - YR 10 SCIENCE, Helen Popland - Outstanding Scientific Achievement - Krys Hawkins Award, Frederick
Budek YR 9 - Modern Foreign Languages - FRENCH , Year 9 special: Maya Acton - History, YEAR 9 SPECIAL: Bartolomeo, Ziccardi - Perf Arts, Year 10 SPECIAL:
Anna Baldassarre - Perf Arts, Year 12 Special: Marcello Troisi - Perf Arts, Special year 9: Adam Daisley - Music, Special: Dominik Skreta - Business, Charlotte
James, Megan Woodhouse, Sadia Begum - Health and Social Care, Ashley Mawere - TEXTILES, Year 10 special: Michael Sinha - RMats, CAR TEAM: Riccardo
Mazzeo, Liam Bunker, James Robinson, Adil Rahman, Jordan Miles, Matthew Andrews, Andrew Crunkhurn, Anthony Tanti, Gabriel Avilleneda, Inderpal
Singh, Joshua Farr, Michael Hill, Filippo Bartoli, Michael Furr, Oliver Hull, Michael Sinha, Aadil Shaikh, Christoper Young, SPORTSMAN: Tom Rawes,
SPORTSWOMAN: Fiona Swift - Physical Education, Riccardo Mazzeo - Geography, Olivia Freda - Outstanding GCSE Results (RC), SAM HOLLAND - HT Award
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
11
Literacy and Numeracy
a gift for christmas
Year 7
Accelerated
Reader Update
Who’s Reading the Most in
November?
Boy reading the most: Anthony Ukome
Girl reading the most: Lara Bacino
English class reading the most: Ms Murdoch
Well done everyone!
This year, St Thomas More Catholic Teaching
School will be giving each student in the school a
gift this Christmas – the gift of reading.
Each student in each year group will be given the
following book to take home this Christmas:
Year 7 - Wolf by Gillian Cross
Year 9 - Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
Year 10 & 11 - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
by Mark Haddon
Year 12 - The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Year 13 - The Kite Runner by Khlaed Hosseini
The books will be given out by form tutors on
Thursday 18th December
BRILLIANT RAPPERS
EDUCATE INTELLIGENT STUDENTS
Rap artist and performer BREIS (Brilliant Rappers Educate
Intelligent Students) carried out engaging Literacy Rap
workshops with students in Year 7 on Monday 24th
November. BRIES performed some of his own Rap lyrics
and helped students with the ‘ingredients’ to make their
own; including rhymes, metaphors, similes, key words and
phrases, humour and emotions. The results were brilliant
and all groups (as well as budding solo artists) performed
their finished work on a variety of different topics. Special
mention goes to Blaise Powell for his fantastic solo
performance dedicated to his younger sister. We hope you
saw their performance at the Winter Advent Concert on the
9th December!
IT ALL ADDED UP…!!
On a cold November evening, four intrepid sixth formers
accompanied by Miss Jameison headed off to Cambridge
University to take part in the Regional Final of the UKMT Senior
Team Maths Challenge. Having spent a number of lunch times and
evenings practising answering questions under the guidance of
Miss Martin, the team felt prepared to face the challenge.
Over the course of 3 hours they worked as a team to complete
three rounds of challenges which incorporated a variety
of mathematical problems to solve. Up against some stiff
competition from both private and state schools the team did very
well to achieve 19th place out of 39 teams.
A big well done to Helen Popland, Ben Faulkner, Liam Mason
and Callum Murphy….!!
12
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
Design Technology
DESIGN TECHNOLOGY
Meanwhile, our budding Textile designers have been
flourishing in the new area which has ample room for
machines, screen printing and design activities and offer
sixth form students plenty of space to continue their study
time in the area too. This certainly enriches the experience
of all students in this highly creative and collaborative
space where deep thinking and problem solving are
always heightened in an environment that is built to
grow talent!
Over the summer, our design and innovation areas have
undergone a complete transformation.
Following extensive building work, the space has been
enlarged to create an open, bright and spacious learning
environment where students are able to develop
their design and making skills and explore the varied
opportunities that the fully integrated workshop/ design
room spaces offer to be independent learners.
The Laser cutting machine has been busy once again this
week enabling yr 7 - 11 students to achieve high quality
project work and gifts ready for the seasonal Music and
creative arts concert. This is now located in a purpose
built area that will enable the machine to work at
even higher production levels than before.
The new work benches and workshop space have
proved a real success particularly with our Resistant
Materials GCSE students who have excitedly been
creating prototypes of their design proposals and
refining their construction skills ready for the
making of their final products.
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St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
13
Subject News
COMBIEN SAVEZ-VOUS DE NOTRE ECOLE ?
QUANTO SAPETE DELLA NOSTRA SCUOLA ?
Répondez aux questions dans la langue de la question. Donnez
vos réponses à un des profs de langues avant la fin de la première
semaine de janvier 2015. Les noms de ceux qui auront gagné
seront mis dans un tirage au sort pour gagner un prix. Ouvert à
tous les élèves et personnel du lycée.
Rispondete alle domande usando la lingua della domanda. Date
le vostre risposte ad uno dei professori di lingua alla fine della
prima settimana di gennaio 2015. I nomi di quelli che avranno
vinto saranno messi in una lotteria per vincere un premio. Aperto
a tutti i nostri alunni e il personale del liceo.
1.Certains élèves iront dans un pays en Afrique pour une visite
scolaire? Quel pays?
2. Quanti professori lavorano qui da più di 28 anni? Chi sono?
3.Chi lavora principalmente nell’aula a sinistra dell’aula del
Signor Grimley?
4. Comment s’appelle l’actuel directeur du lycée?
5. Comment s’appelle le nounours de Madame Gillies?
6. Cosa non puoi usare all’interno dell’edificio?
7. En quelle année est-ce que l’école a été ouverte?
SOCIOLOGY
Year 13 Trip to the Luton and South
Bedfordshire Magistrates’ Court
Year 13 students are currently studying crime and deviance
and so a trip to the Magistrates’ Court in Luton was arranged to
deepen their understanding of the topic.
The day started with a seminar which was held by a magistrate.
He explained his role and that of the Criminal Justice System
in general and engaged us in a lively discussion about the
issues affecting the crime rate in our local area. Next, came
the opportunity to sit in on several hearings and listen to the
arguments put forward by the defence and the prosecution.
Defendants who had spent the night in the cells at the
police station were brought through to the court room via
the underground tunnel. The cases included drugs offences,
domestic abuse and criminal damage. We were even fortunate
enough to be able to speak to two criminal barristers who
answered our questions with enthusiasm.
Club ork!
Sociology
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11.
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13.
14.
Il signor Chapman tifa per quale squadra di calcio?
In mensa cosa non offrono da mangiare il venerdì?
La signora Hawkins viene da quale paese?
Le tournoi de tennis aura lieu où?
Que fait Madame Cooper?
Quelle matière étudie-t-on dans la salle T2?
Qu’est-ce qu’il y a à gauche de la porte de la salle 12?
Il tie-break!
Chi è la persona più importante della scuola? Perché?
Bon retour....
Shona Magill, Ciaran Smith, Anna Surricchio and Aby-Gaël Messey
have just come back from their respective year abroad. Welcome
back and good luck for your final year!
Littorio Luongo and Marianna Liberio are due to start internships
with major companies in Paris as part of their university course
in French and Business at Aston
University. Both chose a course taught
mostly in the foreign language and
are now impressing companies with
their combined skills. Littorio will
be with the multinational Thales,
whilst Marianna will be with the
telecommunications group Orange.
Geography
Year 7 have been learning about the wonders of volcanoes
and more recently, super volcanoes. This subject matter
has really captured their imagination and they have really
enjoyed learning about the global effects a super volcanic
eruption would have. They have recently been making
papier mache models of super volcanoes to demonstrate
the size and surprisingly flat shape of a super volcano.
Meanwhile Year 9 has been investigating urban
environments, looking closely at life in the favelas of Brazil. This has culminated in them devising an improvement plan
for their own favela, for which they have drawn a map to
show the improvements and written a letter to the Brazilian
government to explain their proposed improvements.
Year 10 have begun in earnest to study the modules
required to complete their GCSE. They have already
finished learning about tourism and the impacts it can have
in various places including the Lake District, Jamaica and
Antarctica. They have subsequently begun their second
module ‘The Restless Earth’ investigating the wide variety of
landforms and events associated with plate tectonics.
Finally, Year 11 has spent the vast majority of this academic
year completing their controlled assessment that will make
up 25% of their final GCSE grade.
14
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
Subject News
TUDOR LECTURES REVIEW
On Thursday 13th November, our
history class set off to London, where
by we received four lectures from
three well respected and renowned
historians; John Morrill, John Guy
and David Starkey at the City Temple
Church in Holborn.
The first lecture we received was
from John Guy. This was based on
Cardinal Wolsey and the influence
he had on Henry VIII reign. I was
surprised about how much influence he actually had and
all the work that he had put in behind the scenes for King
Henry VIII. For example, Wolsey met Henrys demands by
getting him the title of ‘Papal Legate’ something that he
craved from the beginning of his reign to become well
known throughout Europe. However this lecture also spoke
about the Wolsey losing control and effectively letting
power get to his head. He tried to strike an agreement
with Charles V; Holy Roman Emperor to make him become
acting Pope in return for the alliance of England and Spain.
However this did not work out and Charles V in the words
of John Guy “Ratted him out”.
The second lecture John Guy delivered was about the reign
of Mary Tudor, otherwise known as ‘Bloody Mary’. This was
a very detailed lecture recalling events from the reign of
Mary Tudor and explaining the importance of them. He
argued that Mary Tudor’s reign was a failure due to the
fact she was unable to produce and Heir to the Throne.
Something knew I had found out from this lecture was the
fake pregnancy of Mary Tudor and the impact of this. She
claimed to be pregnant however this was just a condition
that caused her belly to swell, hence not actually being
pregnant. This brought great humiliation towards her and
the monarchy.
John Morrill’s lecture was based
on the reformation in Henry.
Again like the previous lectures
this provided a very detailed
insight to the reformation and
cleared a lot of queries I had.
King Henry was not actually
fully protestant, just a Catholic
reformer. The six articles signed by Henry VIII shows this.
The lecturer spoke very clearly and was very concise,
getting straight to the point.
The closing lecture was delivered by David Starkey
focusing on Edward VI and was a very assertive lecture.
The main point of his argument was how King Edward
VI could have developed into a very powerful king. He
brought up interesting points about his short lived reign,
stating how clever he was and showed a great passion
in everything he had done. He brought up an anecdote
from Edwards diary describing the loss of a jousting
match which was interesting to hear, explaining how
angry Edward VI was and the passion he showed over
the slightest thing. David Starkey also spoke about the
downfall of the Duke of Somerset. The main reason for
his downfall was the lack of money and this affected his
control over Scotland.
Overall this trip was very
useful and a good day
out. All the lectures were
well delivered and very
detailed. I took away a lot
of new information which
I will put towards both
my part A and part B.
By Giacomo Pozella, Year 13
Science
The 6th formers have been running a weekly Science club
in Lab 6 this term. There has been a variety of activities
including fire writing and making a cell out of biscuits!
There is a twice weekly homework club held by the Science
department on a Tuesday and Thursday. This is open for all
year groups from Year 7 to 13 and held in Lab 7.
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St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
15
Subject News
YOUNG MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR
Tuesday 14th October saw our annual Young Musician of the
Year competition, ably judged by Miss Millar, Mr. Hopkins and Mr.
Betteridge. Judging the event was extremely difficult due to the
high standard of entries.
The event was sponsored by The Sound Garage,
who provided the winner’s prize - time in their
recording studio!
Overall winner – Bethan Nicholson
Ensemble winners – Adam Daisley and Chloe Sansom
Solo winner – Chris Howes
Composition winner – Elisa Gray
On Wednesday November 19th we held our St Cecilia’s Day
concert (patron saint of music). This was very capably organised
by two of our year 12 music students, Jacob Frederick and Eric
Vermeulen and ably supported by many fabulous musicians who
player an eclectic mix of music from Eminem and Adele to songs
from Frozen and Les Misérables. Performers:
Madelyn Harding, Rosie Armitage, Eric Vermeulen, John Mozobo,
Chloe Sansom, Prince Zisengwe, Meo Ziccardi, Ellen Stanton,
Jacob Frederick, Nathaniel Ivy, Rochelle Blake, Debbie Baugh,
Vanessa Kadji, Weronika Bagienska, Adam Daisley, Liam Daisley,
Niamh Williams, Chipo Maseko, Freddie Budek and Gabriella
Lawrence.
Many congratulations to everyone who took part!
Siân Smith
BONDING
WITH BUSINESS
As part of our Applied Business A level,
Unit 13: Organising an Event, we were
asked to plan and arrange a trip for
the new Year 7 arrivals into
St Thomas More.
The trip was to be designed as a bonding day, enabling Year 7
pupils to make new friends and feel welcomed into their new
school. We decided that this trip should involve loads of thrills
and excitement; allowing the trip to meet the needs of an
active bunch of students.
To find out what we came up with and to see what the
students thought of the
day, take a look at the
report written by Leonie
Brunning on page 9.
By Donatas Sidlauskas
and Sam Blanken,
Year 13
16
An evening
with Roald Dahl
On Wednesday 17th December it is my pleasure to present
‘an evening with Roald Dahl’. This evening will consist of
performances from Revolting Rhymes, Dirty Beasts
and musical numbers from the West End hit
musical Matilda.
The cast of ‘an evening with Roald Dahl’ is made
up of every year 7 student as well as cameo
appearances from year 12 students Sophia La Rosa and
Claudia Gawel.
I cannot praise the year 7 students any more if I tried! I am
incredibly proud of the work they have produced so far; their
dedication, commitment and talent does not stop surprising
me week by week. This event is something for the
whole family and you won’t be disappointed! From
the year 7s and I, we hope to see you all there!
Details
Date: 17/12/2014
Time: 7:00pm
Cost: Free
of charge
Venue: St Thomas More, Performance Hall
Miss Damon
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
A.O.B.
CHARITY UPDATE
THE FIRST AID COURSE
Since the beginning of the term students and staff have
been raising money for a range of charities.
In October, a group of Health and Social students with
other members of St Thomas More 6th Form took part in a
first aid course.
Our committed 6th Form has raised hundreds of pounds
to buy gifts for needy families through their annual
fun run. In addition, the 6th form also has been raising
awareness of the plight of people who have been
trafficked in different ways across the world. Staff and
students paid to wear luggage labels saying “Not for
Sale!” This prompted an assembly to raise awareness
about human trafficking and the dignity of human life.
Staff and students have also raised money for Cancer
Relief through coffee mornings; Year groups have taken
on projects including CAFOD “Teach a Child to Read”
where every gift of £10 enables a child to be taught to
read in a developing country.
Since 1990, more than 113 million boys and girls in over
130 countries have experienced God’s love through the
power of a simple shoebox gift and this year our Year 9
students contributed to this very worthy cause.
We are proud of all of our staff and students and that the
school is an outward looking school with justice at the
heart of its fundraising.
We all found it extremely beneficial and worthwhile because it
covered skills which could be the difference between a life lost
and a life saved, such as choking or severe bleeding. The course
itself was very enjoyable as we all learned the different skills
via different methods e.g. verbal - discussions with the trainer,
analysing scenes and identifying the dangers.
I would highly recommend this course to everyone as you never
know when you could be faced with a life or death situation.
Completing the course not only saves lives but it also looks very
worthy when it comes to writing CV’s, personal statements or
even subjects at school like Health and Social Care. At the end
of the course, once you have been observed, you receive a
legitimate certificate to say you are a fully trained first aider!
“Very enjoyable and worthwhile” “I can now save a life”
“Fundamental skills for everyone to know about”
Student Voice Council is a coming together of students from
all year groups to represent the whole school community as a
single voice. To reflect this, SVC have created our own Mission
Statement which is proudly displayed as posters around the
school. Students – please get in touch with SVC if you have a
question, wish to share an idea or raise a query – we are here to
help! Sam Holland, YR11
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
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More Racing
MORE RACING UPDATE
More Racing qualifies for the
Greenpower International Final!
After a successful race at Rockinghan in July,
both teams cars successfully qualified for the
International final at Goodwood. Although
the team has qualified for the National finals
twice before, this year was the first time both
cars achieved this incredible achievement.
STM002 (the older car) qualified in 54th
place out of 220 cars and STM005 (the new
car) qualified in 67th place out of 220cars.
Race Day
The International final was held on Sunday
the 12th of October at the Goodwood race
track in Sussex. In preparation for the day,
the pit crew loaded the two cars and all of
the race equipment into the van during
the morning of the day before the race
with the Team arriving at 5am! on race day.
Three hours later and the cars arrived at
Goodwood and immediately got to work
setting up the garage, attending the event
briefing and getting the cars ready for
inspection. Both cars passed the pre-race
inspection without any problems and the
team then went on to finish a successful
practice session during which each driver
completed one lap of the track.
The first one and a half hour race was a
total success with both cars completing the
race. Between the end of the first race and
the start of the second, the pit crew was
very busy preparing and where required,
repairing both cars. Despite experiencing
a few minor problems, not to mention the
horrendous wet weather which did cause a
number of cars to crash out of the race, once
again our car team was triumphant with
both cars finishing the race.
The final overall results gained by the team
were;
STM005 – finished in 57th place
STM003 – finished in 63rd place
Once the last race had finished, the team
were again very busy packing all of the
equipment and cars back into the van
before the team headed home. Arriving
at the school at around 8pm, the van was
unpacked and the team all went home
– it was a very long and tiring day but so
rewarding for everyone who took part.
The team and Mr Prudden would like to
thank Miss Perry, Miss Chalmer and Mrs
Clacton for all of the fantastic help that
they provided the team during the race
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day. Without the help of all three, the team
simply could not have made it to race day or
been successful as they were.
More Racing Wins the ‘Best
Engineering Club’ at the 2014 Big
Bang Fair
The day after the Rockingham Greenpower
race, the team attended the Eastern
Regional 2014 Big Bang competition at
held at Duxford. During the day the team
displayed both cars and was interviewed by
three groups of judges. The team members
involved handled these pressurized
situations really well and the judges were
so impressed, the team won the Best
Engineering Club award for the Eastern
region! This fantastic achievement only goes
to support all of the hard work that has been
put in by the team during the previous four
years.
More Racing attends the
University Formula Finals at
Bedford Modern
More Racing was once again invited to
attend the annual finals of the University
Formula event held at Bedford Modern on
Wednesday 12th November 2014. At this
event, the top three university teams who
have designed, built & raced their high
performance cars are required to talk about
their projects and answer questions from
experts as well as the audience. More racing
displayed both cars as well as photos and
other information about the team. A large
number of people from the engineering
industry were most impressed by what the
team has achieved and many commented
on how professional the team has performed
at both regional and International events. As
a direct result, two of the organisations have
offered to sponsor the team for the 2015
racing season.
More Racing Prepares for the
2015 Greenpower racing season
As with any motor sport team, More Racing
cannot stand still if it wants to succeed
during the forthcoming 2015 racing season.
In preparation for the new season the team
has undertaken or is begin to complete the
following tasks.
-Recruitment of new team members –
During September the team interviewed
and selected a group of Yr7 & 9 pupils
to undertake a range of roles including
driving, pit crew and designers. It is
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
the first year that it has been possible
to recruit Yr7s and four out of the six
new drivers for the 2015 season will
be Yr7 pupils, giving the team a great
advantage their smaller build enables
the cars to be much lighter and quicker.
-Development of the cars – In
preparation for the construction of
STM006 which will take place next year,
the team for the 2015 season will be
further developing the two existing cars.
The team has identified a wide range of
improvements that could be made and
this work will be undertaken during the
winter and spring.
-Development of team performance
– The team has identified a number
of methods that could, if completed
correctly, vastly improve the
performance of both the cars, the drivers
and the team as a whole. So not to give
away any competitive advantage these
modifications will provide, I cannot tell
you any more about this at this stage
– what I can tell you though is that the
team will be working on these ideas
during the winter months and I will
update you of our progress in the next
More News.
-Team Physical Training – Matthew
Davies will continue to organise and run
the training sessions that are held in the
school gym. The goal of this training is to
ensure that the team are fit and that the
drivers in particular are strong enough to
drive the cars during the races.
Team Sponsorship
During the last few weeks, the team has
received generous funding from the school
itself as well as from the Sixth Form Study
Fund. But, as with all motor sports, the
team is always looking to secure additional
funding and to help achieve this, the team
itself will be undertaking a number of fund
raising events over the coming months so
please support them generously! If anyone
would like to sponsor the team or you
know a company that may be interested
in sponsoring More Racing, please get in
contact with Mr Prudden.
Sports
St Thomas More’s PE & Sport department have had a fantastic start to the year in terms of both competition
and participation. For the first time, the school has seen teams of boys and girls representing each year
group from year 7 to 6th form in a range of sports and already we have had our fair share of success…
Football
Basketball
Boys’ teams from years 9, 10, 11 and 6th form and a girls’ team of
mixed year 9-11 have participated in friendly, County and National
Cup matches. The year 9 boys made it as far as the 4th round of the
National Cup where they were unlucky to go out to King Edward
VI School in Suffolk. They are, however, still going strong in the
County Cup along with the year 11 and 6th form teams, with the
District Cup coming up after Christmas.
Our under 18 team were the first to
compete in the district competition
but were up against some tricky
competition from Mark Rutherford
and Sharnbrook in particular. Our
under 16 team are currently in the
middle of their campaign and have
started with excellent victories against Rutherford and Biddenham.
Rugby
Wednesdays in November
saw teams from years
9-11 compete in the
County Rugby Festivals
across 4 different venues
at Biggleswade, Ampthill,
Dunstable and Leighton
Buzzard. The boys achieved mixed results but there were also great
wins in friendly matches against Mark Rutherford, Biddenham and
Sandy. Our year 7 boys, in their first ever Rugby game, beat their
now local rivals Beauchamp to pick up their first ever win! Also, the
year 9 team got into the final of the County Plate competition.
YEAR 9 INTERFORM
Year 9 have been playing Interform on Fridays since
September. Each half term we play a different activity with
each form having 6 players - 3 boys and 3 girls. If they win
they go through to the next round.
Before half term the activity was Basketball.
The winners were Gandhi! CONGRATULATIONS!
Well done to everyone who represented their form and
played and of course to the supporters on the side-lines for
their encouragement and cheering!
This half terms activity is Ice Hockey (Without the Ice!)
Netball
Girls in years 9-11 have
been taking part in their
district competitions on a
Tuesday rotation at Bedford
Academy. On some days
the girls have had to play
as many as 4 games in one
afternoon, but despite that they have had some excellent victories
against the other upper schools in the area including Stratton and
Bedford Free School. Our year 7 girls also got their first taste of
competition with a 9-0 win against Beauchamp!
Find out in the next edition of More News who the
winners were!!
SPORTS LEADERS
As part of their Community Sports Leaders Award, this year’s group have been busy
undertaking courses and helping to set up, organise and run a variety of activities.
On Wednesday 12th November all the Lower schools in the Bedford and Kempston
School Sports Partnership came up to St Thomas More where they took part in a multi
skills sports event. The purpose of the day was to help improve and develop the children’s
multi skills. The day was overseen and run by our Sports Leaders – everyone did a
fantastic job and all the children had a fun day!
On the 26th November, the group completed an Emergency First Aid Course. In it they covered Mouth to Mouth Resuscitation, CPR,
bandaging and much more. They were all successful and can now use their qualification to help run children’s activities in and out of
school. Well done to all the group!
A busy term for the Sports Leaders!!
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
19
Club Focus
‘It appears that St Thomas More’s cheerleading team STM Elite
continue to go from strength to strength with yet more success in
competition. Having started the year as National Champions, the team
travelled over to Samuel Whitbread Academy to take part in the BEST
regional competition. Although the competition was on a reduced
scale compared to the previous event due to rescheduling from the
summer, our girls did an excellent job of rearranging and refining last
year’s routine in order to perform it to a fantastic standard at this event.
In fact, with no less than 8 of the girls having only joined the team in
September, their achievement was even more remarkable.
For the first time in the school’s history, girls from each year group 7-13
represented the school and continued their victorious ways by winning
the senior (containing any student(s) over 13) category! STM Elite are
gaining a fierce reputation for truly being one of the best teams around,
this time fending off competition from 5 other teams to take home the
trophy. As if that wasn’t enough, there were further awards given out to
Katie Peace for Best Tumbler and Miss Biggins for Best Choreography.
Our girls even won the ‘chicken in a hen house’ fun competition.
The team will now be working on a brand
new routine as they build towards more
regional and national competitions in the
coming academic year – we may even be
seeing them performing as the home side
at a competition to potentially be held
here at St Thomas More. Congratulations
again girls and watch this space!’
school clubs
Something for Everyone!
Extra-Curricular Activities at St Thomas More for dates, times and locations please see the club
notice board outside the LRC or look on the VLE.
Art and Graphics Club
Art and Graphics GCSE/A Level Catch up
Business Studies - Catch Up
Business Studies - Intervention
Concert Band
Drama - Stage School
Drama - Storytelling Club
Drama Club - Stage Speak
ESU Mace Debating Club
ESU Speaking Competition Meetings
Games Club
Geography Revision Club
Grease Band
Health and Social Care Revision Club
History - Churchill Club
Homework – Independent / Supported
ICT Achievement Session
Languages - Independent / Supported
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St Thomas More School, www.stthomasmoreschool.org.uk, 020 8888 7122
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Lyrics Club
Maths - Revision Help
Maths Club - Homework
Media Coursework - Catch Up
More 4 7
More Singers Choir
Music GCSE/BTEC Support
Music Recital
Open Rehearsals
Poetry Club
School Show Rehearsal
Science Drop In Club - Revision,
Homework or Classwork.
Science Experiment Club
Sociology Club
Sports Clubs
STM Car Club
Student Voice Forum
St Thomas More Catholic Teaching School
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