Christleton High School - Swan Autumn 2012

The Christleton High School Magazine

Santa’s DT & Artassistants helpChester Round Table See Page 58

2 The Swan - The Christleton High School Magazine

ReportHeadteacher’s

The new iResearch Centre hasbeen a really superb additionalresource for learning this term.Students have settled in quicklyand at any point in the day thereare up to 80 students workingthere independently, with clearconcentration and using thebreadth of the facilities and theLibrary team’s expertise. Manystudents are choosing to extendtheir working day in school, andit has been super to see studentsof varying ages supporting andworking with each other withtheir research and study. Thesilent study room which students’requested has been well used,mostly by Sixth Formers, manyof whom are currently workingon their university applications,and have appreciated an areawhere they can work withcomplete concentration. From apersonal point of view, thisproject has given me greatsatisfaction and is one which wecan all be proud of.

Sadly, this year Mr Les George,the first Headteacher ofChristleton High School passedaway peacefully after a shortillness. Mr George served asHeadteacher from 1958 – 1980.Attendance at his funeral andsubsequent memorial service inChester Cathedral reminded usall what a great contribution MrGeorge had made. John PrescottMP posted an article in the DailyMail and on his blog as a tributeto a man who changed his life,and a number of ex-students,some now retired wrote to sayhow Mr George had changedtheir lives.

In the last edition of the SWAN Ishared the main headings of theSchool Development Plan 2012-14, which resulted from aconference involving governors,students, staff and parents. Thisis now completed and approvedby governors, and available onthe school website for you tolook at. The key directions ittakes are: (i) to remain with apolicy of student choice in thebelief that well informed studentchoice leads to high levels ofmotivation, success, and alignswith future careers; (ii) greaterdevelopment if independentlearning; (iii) exploitation of ICT;(iv) a concentration onoutstanding teaching. In termsof advice and guidance we havemuch more to do, as do thestudents, in researching fullytheir pathways at a much earlierstage to ensure that their chosenpath will be successful and leadto gainful employment and afuture contribution to our society.You can expect to see moreinformation, more connectionand opportunity forconversations about futurepathways, and if any parents ormembers of the local communitybelieve they can contribute inhelping shape students’ dreamsinto careers, we would bedelighted to hear from you.

The Government is changing therules regarding examinations ata considerable pace, utilisingevery opportunity to move awayfrom modularisation to terminalexams, and less and lessopportunity to re-take. In someways this will simplify the systemand allow us more learning time;in others it creates a greater riskof failure which we must clearlysafeguard against.

We welcomed the following newstaff in the summer and we havebeen delighted with the way inwhich they have settled in, andare contributing to school lifehere:

Miss Brennan (English)

Mrs Dionisi (French)

Mr Hall (ICT)

Miss Hill (English)

Mrs O’Hare (History)

Mr Prouse (Design & Technology)

It is my pleasure to share withyou news of the promotion of MrDathan who has served here in avariety of roles for the past 7years. He has been promoted toAssistant Headteacher at NestonHigh School, which is one of ourrural partner schools. I am sureyou will join me in congratulatingand thanking Mr Dathan for allthat he has done for the studentsat Christleton, and wish him wellin the next stage of his career.

Autumn Term 2012 3

Studentsarranged a CakeSale to raisemoney forChildren in

Need, Well doneto all involvedfor raising a

brilliant £74.00

Last summer we completed afull overhaul, refurbishment andre-fitting of our ICT systems,with many new machines, a newnetwork and broadbandconnection. IT has progressedsignificantly, and we areconstantly experimenting withnew methods of learning utilisingIT. I would encourage you toengage in your homes and asksearching questions about thepurpose of the work done on thecomputer, whilst supporting andencouraging your sons anddaughters to use themeffectively.

We have recently become atraining school for teachers in aprogramme known as SchoolDirect. The school will receiveadditional monies and interviewand select the trainee teacherswho will then learn “on the job”,with a mentor in school. This isa very different programme oflearning which we feel confidentwill add much more value tostudents in the school, and to thestudent graduate teachers. Thefirst group of School Directgraduates will start in September2013, and if you are interested ina career in teaching or knowsomeone who is, please directthem to our website.

The school budget remainssolidly positive. Despite the biginvestment into the iResearchCentre and ICT, governors havebeen able to support part-funding of the proposedall-weather pitch which now hasplanning permission, and I hopewill be constructed by mid-summer. A significant part ofthis financial solidity is as aresult of our change to Academystatus.

This edition of the SWANshowcases, as ever, the hugevariety and scope of opportunityfor young people in the school.I hope you enjoy reading furtherabout their achievements.

On the last day, Wednesday 19thDecember, there will be a charitynon-uniform day, whole schoolassembly, and school will close at12.45pm. School buses willleave at this time, with additionalplaces provided for studentswishing to travel into Chester forChristmas shopping.

As always, I thank you for yoursupport, and please rememberthat we need and welcome yourfeedback to enable us tocontinue to improve.

Finally, I would like to wish youand your family a wonderfulChristmas together, and ahappy New Year.

AJ LambertonHeadteacher

With representatives fromover forty differentoccupations on hand to giveindividual advice and aninsight into what the jobinvolves, our first everCareers Information Eveningwas a great success.

A fantastic turnout ofstudents from Years 9, 10,11, and both lower and uppersixth-formers, together withinterested parents meant abusy night for all, and plentyof food for thought.

The evening was organisedby Mrs Chapman and MissBeardsell as part of our on-going commitment to raisingstudents’ aspirations andencouraging them to thinkabout future pathways. Theevening aimed to inspirestudents to find out moreabout the career pathsavailable and to meet peoplefrom a variety of differentoccupations. Sylvia Wood,our Pathway Careers Advisorwas also on hand, and wasable to help with a widerange of general and specificenquiries.

Feedback from students,parents, governors, andexhibitors was unanimouslypositive, and many of ourstudents left with a realsense of purpose anddirection about where theirfutures might lie.

??Can You tell Me

More AboutWhat You Do

Can You tell MeMore About

What You Do


Many thanks to MrsChapman and MissBeardsell for theirsuperb organisation,and particularly to allof the followingrepresentativeswithout whom theevening could nothave happened: -

Accountancy:Andrew Bradshaw and PhillipaBritchford of BradshawsChartered Accountants.Accountancy:Ian Brown and Judith Pryer.Adoption Social Worker:Norman Goodman,Chief Executive ofAdoption Matters Northwest.Airbus: Steve EdwardsArmed ForcesBiological Sciences:Pfizer, Specialist AccountManager in Oncology (cancer)Catering: Mark Beardsell.Chartered Surveyor:WHR Property ConsultantsMark WilliamsChemistry: Vikram Paul Shell

Mexichem:Brendan Connolly and Alida LloydDentist: John WelfordDental Nurse: Jenny WebsterDietitian: Christine Wolfendale,Dietetics at Chester UniversityEnvironmental Chemistry:Louise PaulFlorist: Judith CrillyFurniture Designand Manufacture:Paul OgunyemiGarage Mechanic:Dave Morris, Sandy Lane GarageGP: Dr David Inchley,Upton General PracticeGraphic Designer andWebsite Designer:Stuart WilliamsHealth and Safety Advisor:Karen BellIT Solutions: Richard VarleyJournalist: Laura JonesLife Style and Beauty:Jan Lea and Fiona Southorn.Leaf Lifestyle and Beauty.Manufacturing:Toyota: Jane HendyManufacturing andEngineering: Simon BellChartered EngineerNursing: Tracey Jones,Manchester University andCountess of Chester NHS TrustNursing and Health Care:Nick Hodson, Managing Directorof Chester Healthcare Ltd T/asJane Lewis Health & Social CareOccupational Therapy:Helen Carey, Professional Leadfor Occupational Therapy atGlyndwr UniversityOptometry:Frankie Brown, Optometristand owner of A1 Vision Ltdin Vicars CrossPharmacy:Pam Rushworth, SeniorPharmacy Practitioner atCountess of Chester NHS TrustPhysiotherapy:Julie WilkinsPolice Force:Sergeant Rachel Gallagher -Road Policing, Cheshire PolicePsychologist:Phil DuPrez, Programme Leaderand Senior Psychology Lecturerat Glyndwr UniversityPublic Relations (PR):Hems de WinterRadiography:Andrea Herbert,a diagnostic radiographer

Retail: Eryl Edwards, PrimarkSocial Work:Michaela Adams, Social Workerfor Childrens Serviceat Chester Social ServicesTeaching, Primary:Belle White, Primary SchoolTeacher at HuntingtonPrimary School

Teaching, Secondary:Simon Holme, Enterprise SouthLiverpool AcademyTeaching Assistant, Primary:Carol Morgan, a teachingassistant at Huntington PrimarySchoolTheatre Costume:Debbie Knight, Head of Costumeat Theatre ClwydTheatre Stage Manager:Ruth StainesVeterinarian: Niki MillerVeterinarian Nurse:Kate Warren, Head Nurse atBarnhouse Veterinary Surgery

Autumn Term 2012 5

Year 7Being atour guideBeing a tour guide has built myconfidence. At the start I was alittle nervous, but by the end Ireally enjoyed myself and I gotto know the school better.

I got to see all the teachers andI learnt lots of facts and it alsoreminded me of when I wasbeing shown around.

Parents and Year 6s challengedmy knowledge of the school byasking questions – I didhowever, answer them!Being a tour guide was fun and Ienjoyed showing familiesaround.

I would recommend it to theyear sixes when they go the highschool!Elizabeth Glading 7BA2

Being a tour guide helped me tobe more confident.

I got to know the teachers betterand find out different placesaround the school.

I also found out some new facts.I did some work on the laptopsand made part of a cartoon. Itried to answer questions and itmade me feel more confident inmyself because I knew I wasright.

Being a tour guide was fun and Ihope to do it again.Eleanor Moulson 7BA2

Guiding people aroundChristleton high was veryexciting and also new because Ihave never done anything likethis before, so it took somegetting used to. When I wasguiding, one of my fears wasgetting lost and taking the familyto completely the wrong place.Despite this I managed, with myfriend, to guide them throughthe school.

I hope in future open evenings Ican help or guide people aroundbecause it was a very enjoyableexperience.Oliver Dandy 7BA2


Welcome Year 7On September 4th 2012 a new year group started

at Christleton High. Mr Francis, Miss Edwards and

all their form tutors are very proud of how they

have settled in and it is already visible that they

are and will continue to be a fantastic asset to

Christleton High School.

Year 7

BBQOn 28th September

2012, all Year 7

students and their

families were invited

to the CHSA BBQ.

This was a great

opportunity for

students and parents

to meet and enjoy

some food cooked by

Mr Lamberton and Mr

Francis.

There was also the

chance for parents to

watch the

‘Christleton Today’

DVD which was

filmed with MGL

before the summer.

It was a great night

enjoyed by all, with

only a little bit of

rain.

Miss J Edwards

Autumn Term 2012 7

The Year 9 English Hot Scholarswere essential in supporting theEnglish Department with thepreparations of a ghoulish gothicthemed Year 6 Open Eveningwhich reflected the class workthey were completing on thisgenre. The festive fun included:interactive quizzes; a viewing of‘Edward Scissorhands’; messageballoons and, for those who weredaring, a refreshing glass ofblood (or black current juice forthe faint hearted!) Here’s aninsight into the English HotScholar experience…

“At the Year 6 Open Evening, Ihelped out in the Englishdepartment as I am an EnglishHot Scholar! I was in a roomteaching the visitors how to usethe Interactive White board, wehad puzzles they could try usinga website called Doddle. I got toanswer some questions from theparents and children about

studying English and what life islike at Christleton High which Ifound quite fun. I talked a lotabout Year 7 and it brought backsome funny memories of when Istarted high school. We also hadballoons as gifts they could takewith them, and when theypopped them at home there wasa message from a student inYear 7 at Christleton who toldthem something positive aboutEnglish which was a really sweetidea. I loved helping out at theYear 6 open evening and wouldbe happy to help again!”Chloe VenablesEnglish Hot Scholar, Year 9

“For the parents evening, Idressed as a gothic zombie tomatch Miss Brennan’s gothicthemed English room. My rolewas to walk around the schooland advise parents to go andvisit the English department. Itold them about what was goingon in the different rooms and Ialso told them that there weredrinks and balloons. Thisexperience was useful because Ifelt confident about talking to theparents and teachers about whyI was dressed like that. I usuallystruggle to talk to strangers

because I am very shy but Iseemed to be okay at the openevening. During open evening Ialso painted a little girl’s faceand whilst I was doing that Ispoke to her about Christletonand I made sure she feltconfident about the school. Iasked her questions and kept herpositive. I felt that the openevening for the English HotScholars went well, it was fun,and it improved my confidencewith talking to people.”Kristie HorrocksEnglish Hot Scholar, Year 9

“We thought that the openevening went very well becauselots of people took the balloonswith messages in and we ran outof balloons! The Englishclassroom looked very gothic andspooky which really got thechildren interested in the gothicgenre and hopefully English ingeneral at Christleton. Weenjoyed doing the quiz on thesmart board with the primaryschool pupils because it wasmore interesting and fun doingan interactive quiz because theycould really get involved. Wedon’t think there is anything toimprove upon for next timebecause all of the kids who camehad a really good time.”

Anna Kew and Becky HerbertEnglish Hot ScholarsYear 9

HHOOTTSSCCHHOOLLAARRSS

English

Anti-bullyingThe wonderful form, 7BY1 runby the amazing Miss Loxam istaking part in the themed weekwhich is anti-bullying week. Weare going to be doing manywondrous things includingquestions and answers withbullying victims. We asked theorganisers of this small play onhow it affects the lives on thevictims, the following questions:

Q: What should you do if Ican see my friends bullyingsomeone?

A: Tell a responsible adultlike a parent or a teacher.

Q: What should you do if afriend is getting bulliedbehind his back?

A: Tell a parent or teacher ortell him so he can tell aparent or teacher.

and much more…

We are also doing an assemblywhich will include the four maintypes of bullying: Cyberbullying, Physical bullying,Verbal bullying and Silentbullying. We are also making awebsite on anti-bullying whichwill also only be up for a shortperiod of time, but can beaccessed at any time by

everyone more details will bereleased soon. The website,stopbullyingeveryday.webs.comhas been created by MaciekCumberford, Tori Watterson andJosef Hollywood.

But apart from putting on anamazing show, the form’s mainintentions are to stop bullying inany way, shape, or form and arehoping to achieve those goalsand by the sound of it they will.And if you know someone who isbeing bullied or is bullying youMUST tell someone straightaway.

Jack Worrall, Tom Attwater, Kian Moulding

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Anti-bullyingDuring November, Year

7s have been taking part

in Actionwork’s 2012

anti-bullying month. The

theme this year is

“We’re better without

bullying”. Forms have

taken part in a

competition trying to get

this message across.

Entries so far have been

excellent and included

posters, DVDs and one

form has even

volunteered to take an

assembly for the rest of

the Year. At the time of

writing this the

competition was still

open, but I look forward

to celebrating the

winners in the next

edition.

Miss Edwards

DANCECLUB

The PE Department were veryproud to hold Christleton’sGym and Dance Showcase.Many students from years 7to 11 performed, with somecreating their own pieces. TheShowcase includedperformances from clubs, PEclasses, Dance Leaders andindividual Gym and Dancechoreographies.

The show raised £1350.00,which was used to buy newgymnastics equipment. SixthForm student Molly Joneskindly brought in an OlympicTorch for the public to havetheir photo taken with toraise money for the charity‘Hannah Banana’.

The show was a huge successand we hope to organiseanother showcase next year.If you would like to take partplease join any Gym or Danceclub or see Miss Sandbach orMr Barton.

Monday: Gymnastics

Tuesday: Years 9, 10 & 11

Dance

Wednesday: Gymnastics

and Years 7 & 8 Dance

Friday: Street Dance

Miss Sandbach

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The Art Department is constantlystriving to improve. One way todo this is by listening to thefeedback of students andallowing them to give theiropinions on the department.Therefore, the Art Hot Scholarscarried out a survey aboutdifferent aspects of the ArtDepartment. We asked a boyand a girl randomly (but whotake Art) from each form, in allthree Key Stages, to complete adetailed questionnaire and thenwe collated and assessed theinformation. The feedback thatwe received was all positive. Ournext step is to share our findingswith the Art Department, MrStenhouse and Mr Jones in ameeting so that they can ask usabout the results.

Summary of ArtQuestionnaire Results

Starters In KS3 almost all of the studentssaid that starters are veryhelpful or quite helpful. Theyalso said starters are almostalways independent and thatthey mostly enjoy them. Mostsaid they always have startertasks.

In KS4 the majority of studentssaid that the starters are quitehelpful and, most of the time,are independent. They said thatthey nearly always have astarter task in Art lessons. InKS4, more girls enjoy startersthan boys.

In KS5 most students said thatstarters were quite helpful andthat most of the time they wereindependent. They said that theyhave starters most of the timeand then majority of them saidthey enjoy the starters.

TopicsIn KS3 nearly all students saidthat they enjoyed the topicseither quite a lot or very muchmeaning that all studentsenjoyed the topics. The majorityof students feel that the topicsare quite varied and that thetopics studied are nearly alwaysacademic enough and give theopportunity to try a range oftechniques. More girls than boysfeel they have the opportunity totry a range of techniques.

In KS4, the majority say thatthey enjoyed the topics studiedquite a lot, with 4 girls enjoyingthe topics very much. Thestudents feel that the topics arequite varied and that most ofthe time the topics studied areacademic enough. Almost allsaid that they are almost alwaysgiven the opportunity to try arange of techniques.

In KS5 the majority of studentssaid that they enjoy the topicsstudied quite a lot and that thetopics are quite varied. They saidthat the topics studied arealways or mostly academicenough and they are alwaysgiven the opportunity to try newtechniques.

Hot Scholars’

Student Voicein Art



HomeworkAll but 5 boys in KS3 feel thatthe homework given is equal tothe amount stated on thehomework timetable, with only 3boys saying that more homeworkis being set that stated on thetimetable. Almost all studentssaid that they receive a varietyof homework tasks and that thetasks are nearly always relevantto their Art lessons.

Most students in KS4 thoughtthat the homework given wasequal to the amount stated onthe homework timetable with 3boys and 1 girl saying that theyreceive more homework that onthe timetable. Nearly all agreedthat they receive a variety ofhomework tasks and that thetasks are always relevant to theirArt lessons.

In KS5 all but 4 students saidthat the amount of homeworkgiven was equal to thehomework timetable and nearlyall said that they receive avariety of homework tasks whichare relevant to their Art lessons.

FeedbackThe majority of KS3 students saythat they always enjoy receivingfeedback and that they receivefeedback either always or mostof the time. Nearly all thestudents said they receive arange of feedback.

The students in KS4 enjoyreceiving feedback either most ofthe time or always. They saidthat they receive feedback mostof the time and that they receivea range of types of feedback.

All students in KS5 say that theyenjoy receiving feedback and aregiven feedback either always ormost of the time. All but one saidthat they receive a range oftypes of feedback.

LearningIn KS3 almost all of the studentssaid they would rate the learningin Art as good or excellent. Moregirls than boys thought thatthere was structure to Artlessons.

The majority of the students saidthat independent learning takesplace most of the time in Artlessons with some saying that italways takes place.

In KS4 the students would ratethe learning in Art lessons asgood and say that most of thetime there is structure. Allstudents in KS4 think thatindependent learning takes placeeither always or most of thetime.

Students in KS5 said that theywould rate the learning in theirArt lessons as good or excellentand that there is almost alwaysstructure in their lessons.

Friendliness of StaffAll of the students in KS3 saidthat their Art teacher is friendlyand that they are mostly helpful,approachable and fair.

The majority of KS4 students feelthat their Art teachers are mostlyfriendly, helpful, approachableand fair.

Overall, students in KS5 said thattheir teachers are always friendlyand helpful, and are mostlyapproachable and fair.

AtmosphereAlmost all students in both KS3and KS4 rated the atmosphereas either good or excellentduring Art lessons.

All students in KS5 said that theatmosphere in lessons was goodor excellent.

SafetyAll but one student in both KS3and KS4 said that they feel safein Art lessons. All students in KS5 said that theyfeel safe in Art lessons.

BehaviourThe majority of students in bothKS3 and KS4 thought that thebehaviour of their group in Artlessons was good. All but 2 students in KS5 wouldrate the behaviour in Art lessonsas excellent, with the 2 studentssaying behaviour in lesson isgood.

Robyn McNally also interviewed arange of students in different KeyStages about Art lessons:

“I think Art is really fun andexplores my creativity, whichI love.” Oliver Joinson

“The vibe is nice. Quality ofwork is so much better whenthe lesson is quiet which Ienjoy!” Alex West

“It has a really opened myeyes into the developingworld of architecture and Art” Robbie McNally

“I enjoy drawing fish, this ismy favourite lesson. I think Idid really well in the activitytoday.” Danny McNally

“Friendly staff and a welcomefeeling to work in thedepartment whenever and forhowever long I want” Owain Tudor

Art Hot Scholars Heather Tonks & Robyn McNally

The Fresher’s Fair& Children’sUniversity

On the 27th September 2012,

Christleton High School

hosted its first ever ‘Year 7

Fresher’s Fair’. The aim of

the event was to promote the

plethora of extra-curricular

Clubs and Societies running

in school and encourage

students to get involved in

them. It was also an

opportunity for students to

sign up to the Children’s

University. The atmosphere

at the event is expertly

outlined by our fabulous

reporters Osian Williams and

Elsie Allison both from 7K1

‘I was taken aback by thenumber of clubs that were onoffer at the Fresher’s Fair as Iwalked into the hall. There wasan exciting and lively buzz in theair. It was busy but cheerful,with students wanting to sign upfor an array of different clubs.

At the stalls were teachers whoran the clubs and also existingclub members helping people tosign up or handing out leaflets toanyone interested. To add to theatmosphere there was music inthe background as well as sweetsgiven out to anyone signing up.At the cooking stall you couldeven decorate your owncupcake!! (I think there werelots of takers for that club!!)

Here is only a sample of thevariety of clubs:

Chess club

Cooking Club

Knitting Club

Art Club

Drama Club

Maths Club

STEM Club

There was even a chance to jointhis year’s school musical,‘Oliver!’

If you took £2 to the Fresher’sFair you were able to buy a‘Children’s University Passport’.The passport is a small passportbook. Inside there are places forstamps. Each time you go to aclub you will be able to ask theleader of the club to stamp orsign your passport. Graduallyyou will see how many hours ofactivities you are doing. Themore you do the more stampsyou get. There are 3 levels thatyou can try to achieve. Thepoint of this passport is to tryand get you doing lots of funactivities. When you haveachieved a high amount ofstamps, you are able to‘Graduate’ at the ‘Children’sUniversity’ Graduation ceremonyat Chester University.

In my, and lots of other people’sopinion, the Fresher’s Fair was asuccess, inspiring students to getinvolved in things that they havedone before and enjoyed or theyhave just discovered for the firsttime.

Dr Dowsetts


Here at Christleton high school

we are hosting a very exciting

cooking club for Year 7 and

Year 8 students. Since this club

is so popular, we have two

groups.

We had a very successful cake

sale, in which we made cakes

of all different shapes and

sizes. Some of these were:

cupcakes, flapjacks, chocolate

cake, chocolate brownies, and

muffins which were all sold out

in two days. In both of our

bake sales we made £235!

This was a huge success for us

as we are able to use that

money to buy ingredients for

our super speedy meals for a

snack or tea after school, e.g.

last week we made a turkey

tikka pitta. We struggled with

the chopping of the onion!

In the future we hopefully want

to make soup, spicy wedges,

more muffins and lasagne. We

love cooking club and it is lots

of fun, especially eating the

yummy treats! So, remember

anyone can cook; only the

good ones can make a tasty

meal.

Keep your eye out as you

might see some world-famous

chefs coming your way...

Josef Hollywood & Maciek Cumberford 7BY1

SuperSpeedyMeal

Success


DT stands for Design and Technology. In DT you design things and then make them. We have different areas in DT which are:

Product Design Woodwork Plastics and MetalsTextiles Electronics Food

I really like DT because you can design anything you want to do within a theme. For example,in woodwork we designed and made a storage box and in metalwork we had to design andmake a piece of jewellery on the theme of nature. I made a flower brooch. I also like itbecause I like drawing, making things and overcoming problems I face on the way.

I asked around to get the opinions of others:

“I like DT because you can have an idea for a product then go through the stages of makinguntil you finally get to see and use your new and finished product” Jack McDermott

“I like DT because it is different as we have practical and theory” Tyler Jones

“DT is great because you get to learn new experiences and try new things” Evan Pickstock

“I like DT because it will help me to be what I want when I’m older…… that’s a chef” Jack McGuinness

DT is a fun way to learn how to build, cook and sew. As you can see lots of people love DT!

Joe McDermott 9BY2 DT Hot Scholar


Fun and Learningin the Sun!

Year 7 Summer School: August 2012

A number of our new Year 7 students enjoyed a Summer Schoolexperience back in August of this year.

The aim of this five-day summer school was to helpstudents make a successful transition from primaryto secondary school and included opportunities tofurther develop literacy and numeracy, as well asrange of enrichment activities to developconfidence and teamwork skills.

Around twenty students joined us fromdifferent primary schools, with each daybeginning at 9.30am and finishing at 3.30pm. The summer school was be led by a veryexperienced team and our thanks go to Sam

Ball-Taylor, Wayne, and Brian from the MilitarySchool of Fitness, Theresa Docherty, Sara

Ramsden, Barry Holmes, and Jenny Edwards.


reating hinking evelopinghristleton echnology epartmentC T D

As I am a Drama Hot Scholar,every few weeks I have theopportunity to enter myselfinto a prize draw and, since Ihad not entered one before, Ithought I might give it a go.The prize was to have a touraround the Houses ofParliament with our localChester MP, Stephen Mosley.This excited me as I am veryinterested in politics and had

never had the chance to goand see the Houses ofParliament before. About aweek or so later I was toldthat I had won - my journeyhad only just started.

On the 3rd of July 2012, Itravelled from Chester toLondon. The Houses ofParliament immediatelylooked massive and verygrand. The Parliament itselfwas actually a former palaceto many kings and queens.We passed through security(similar to airport security)and we even got givenspecial passes with ourindividual photos on!

While we waited for StephenMosley, a former President ofthe USA, Jimmy Carter, andArchbishop Desmond Tutuwalked past us on their wayto a peace conference. It wasonly after my mum had takenmillions of photos that shetold us who they were!Stephen Mosley then met us

inside and gave us a 2 hourtour around Parliament. Ilearned lots of new thingsand we got to see lots ofplaces the public can’t usuallygo; I stood in the samecupboard that Emily Davison,a Suffragette, had hidden in!We then went to watch theSpeakers procession, which isthe official opening of theHouse of Commons for the

day. It consisted of menmarching between the Houseof Lords and the House ofCommons wearing traditionaloutfits. It was from then onthat debate began. Afterbeing allowed to watch fromthe public gallery, suspendedabove the House of Commonschamber, we were able towitness the politiciansdebating about new laws!

Overall the trip was amazingand has really got me intopolitics even more. I can’tbelieve I got the chance tosee a former President andsome special places thepublic never see! I would liketo thank Mrs Pritchard forputting so much effort intomaking it happen. More HotScholars should enteramazing competitions likethis because you never knowwho you might bump into!

Eve Cornwell 11L5Drama Hot Scholar


Visit to theHouses ofParliament

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It’s been HAIR raising!

The Hot Scholar Year has been

an exciting one and the next

one is about to begin! You

might like to know the

following:


• You can now apply directly to one subject of your choice.

• You can apply throughout the year and can ask whether there are vacancies.

• If your application is successful, you will be a member of the department you join.

• Hot Scholars are expected toperform at least 6 learning exploits throughout the year and they keep a record of these on a card.

• From time to time, Hot Scholars’ cards are handed in for prize draws ☺

• Prizes in 2012 included 4 free tickets for Alton Towers,a guided tour of the Houses of Parliament in London, a meal for 2 at Jamie’s Italian restaurant in Liverpool, free all day boat hire on the canal, cakes at Rowton Hall, and a meal for 2 at the Mercure Hotel in Christleton.

• Hot Scholars have organised reward trips for younger students, led learning at primary schools, put up displays and exhibitions, given feedback for home learning in younger students’books, provided learning support in lessons, invited visitors in to school, met andhosted visitors from the Government, spoken in public, evaluated the learning in their departments, worked with local charities and made big decisions on behalf of our school.


Patrick bargesahead...Our trip began at theCheshire Cat Restaurantwhere, as we drove up, thepurring of the boat we wouldbe hiring came closer. I hadwon the boat hire as a HotScholars’ prize in the summerterm. Firstly, we had to go

through a tutorial on how tocontrol the boat. This wasgreat fun but also nervewracking! Mr Portbury, whohad kindly given us a day onhis Cheshire Cat NarrowboatHire day-boat as a prize, leftus just after the lesson. Helet us continue on the opencanal and the weather wasgood at this point. We beganto move along well.

Our first main point wasWaverton, which was great.We were trying to spot

people we knew. We sawsome wonderful houseson the right side andthere was nostopping us. Wewere trying to getto the TattenhallMarina where wewould eat ourlunch. Going pastall the villages wasamazing. When we

eventually reached theMarina, the gap to enter

was very small! Wemoored the boat in thespecial spot reserved for usand ate our packed lunches.

Cheshire Ice Cream Farm wasnot far from the marina, so 3of us walked there to getsome ice cream. It wasdelicious. We walked back tothe boat and had to leavestraight away to get back tothe Cheshire Cat in time. Justafter we left the Marina theweather took a dramaticchange. It started to pourwith rain and one of us stillhad to drive! We were finallygreeted by Mr Portbury justoutside the restaurant withtime to spare and we left forhome. We are very grateful toMr Portbury for thisexperience.

Patrick Buckley 9K1Science Hot Scholar

ChesterandDistrictNetballChampionsOn Wednesday 10th October

2012, the Under 16’s netball

squad arrived at Upton High

School. The team consisted

of Rebecca Nibbs, Jenny

Finnerty, Lydia Ward, Eve

Riley, Ellesha Dunn, Hannah

Cooper, Katy Boyce, Becky

Finnerty and our fabulous

coach, Mrs Whigham. Our

first game which we won was

against Kings and we then

went on to win the rest of

our matches against Upton,

Tarporley, Catholic High,

Bishops Heber and Bishops’

Bluecoat.

At the end of the

tournament, we were

awarded our medals and

certificates and it was

announced that this was the

fourth time in a row that we

were Chester and District

champions – what an

achievement!

Hannah Cooper 11L5



Alice Russell, Emma Brand,Emily Goulding, Georgina Taylorand Megan Russon

Our focus: the humanimpact on litter in theenvironment.

The aim within ourexpedition was how litteraffected the environment.To study this we tookpictures whilst we werewalking and collected litterwe found as we wentalong. We found that therewas much more litter onthe Sandstone trail thanthe public footpaths. Wethink this is because theSandstone trail is usedmuch more often than thepublic footpaths. To reduce the litter, morebins could be placed onthe trail so the public havesomewhere to dispose oftheir litter.

Here are some pictures of thelitter we found, and us disposingof the litter we collected!

Day 1We arrived at the car park at9:00am and began our walk at10:00am. We didn't start ourwalk till then as one of our groupwas in a car that had brokendown! When we reachedcheckpoint one we stopped for aquick snack and then carried on.On the way to our camp we werefaced with steep hills, a slightloss of direction, and some cows.We took it slowly so that we onlyneeded one long break for lunch,which we had in a meadow halfway between checkpoint 5-6.When we arrived at the camp wefound out it was in part of an oldgraveyard. We tried to get aspace as far as possible from thegraves but ended up in a pitchnext to a grave of a 4 year oldboy. We cooked our dinner withcamp stoves on a concrete areaaway from the wind, and thentalked and played catch with therest of the camp until curfewtime where we went into ourtents and to bed.

Day 2We got up at 6.30-7.00am, avery early start for all of us. Weaimed to be one of the firstgroup to leave camp at 8.00am,in order for us to get a goodstart for the rest of the day. Themorning was a bit cold and itspotted with rain a bit, but itcleared up by the time we left.We had our “Oats so simple”porridge. We set out back homeand it became so very hot andsunny that we had to changeinto shorts and leggings on ourway. The final leg of the journeywas vaguely familiar as it was asimilar route to our training dayand it was near our homes andwe even bumped into some dogwalkers we knew. The scenerywas beautiful and breathtaking.We arrived at school at about3.00pm and the sun was still outand blazing down on us. Wewere the last there but we tookour time and made sureeveryone in our group wascoping with the weather and thewalking. We were greeted by MrsStott, Ms Stonehouse and our

parents with cold juice and somecream cakes.

I really enjoyed the Duke ofEdinburgh Bronze Award thisyear. I felt that it was a greatopportunity for me to beinvolved in and an excellentplace for me to learn some

valuable life lessons. Although Istruggled in certain areas, I havelearnt and am aware of what Ican do for the Silver Award toimprove (probably starting witha lighter rucksack!). I enjoyedthis rare experience with myfriends around me and I have noregrets. These two days weretwo of the most exciting daysI’ve ever experienced and I can’twait for next year! Jennie x

OUR Duke of Edinburgh Experience


The Duke of Edinburgh BronzeAward was a great experience tous all. I had some bad times butalways made them better whenwith my friends. We had a lot oflaughs on the way, and the spiritthat we all had to keep on goingand succeeding. It made methink about how much effortgoes in to it and how different itis to what you think it would belike at first, but now knowingwhat it is like I am able to go toSilver and be ready for anotherexperience. In the end knowingyou have just walked that much

is weird but extraordinary,walking so much in just twodays, and the great views I saw.To improve on the Silver award Icould make my rucksack lighterand adjust the waist belt so theweight doesn't go on to myshoulders as much. I am evenmore excited to do the Silveraward after knowing what agreat adventure it was. Lauren x

Taking part in the Bronze Dukeof Edinburgh was a new eyeopening experience allowing meto help out in different new areasin working in a café. RobertMcNally

Meeting New people: I wouldn’thave spoken to half of the peoplein school that I met whilst doingthe Bronze Duke of Edinburgh,but I’m glad I did! GeorginaTaylor

I helped at Cubs for myvolunteering and I found it veryfulfilling. I learnt how to Kayakfor my physical work which wasreally challenging!Richard Gunther – Silver Award

The Bronze Duke of Edinburghaward was really good fun and areal life lesson on how to survive- David Koutson.

Duke of EdinburghParticipants

Gold - 34

Silver - 47

Bronze - 63

Autumn Term 2012 21

When:Tuesday

Time:12.30to 1.00

Where:ICT4

EatLunchFirst

SilentWorking

HOMEWORK CLUB

111220 Prospectus Cover and Cutter:Layout 1 20/12/11 14:05 Page 1

An Exo-lent Student: Emily’s Pathway to a future in BusinessFormer student Emily Easton deserves realcongratulations for gaining sponsorship fromWrexham-based Exopack Advanced Coatings Ltd. aleading manufacturer of speciality films and coatingsfor the medical, security, optical and printingindustries.

One example of the company’s work is theproduction of polyurethane-based components forthe manufacture of wound dressings, which are usedfor the treatment of conditions including pressureulcers and leg ulcers.

Emily will join the company’s UndergraduateProgramme in Business Studies and will receivesome funding at the start of her course to help hersettle into university and then next summer andeach subsequent summer will enjoy a paidplacement within the company. Here she can learnabout the commercial side of the business from apractical point of view whilst she is studying thetheory at university. Hopefully it will take some ofthe pressure off her in terms of worrying aboutfinding a placement each summer and should giveher plenty of practical experience.

We are delighted that for two years runningChristleton has been successful in getting a studentonto this prestigious sponsorship programme. Lastyear Lawrie Campbell was successful and he has justfinished his first placement with the company; theyare “delighted with the work he has done” and knowhe has really enjoyed the experience.

At Christleton we are keen to promote such sponsorship opportunities to our students; please contact Mr Francis if you have any such information to pass on.

Jonny Arditti: BSc (Hons) CreativeProduct DesignFoAfter studying Design Technology: ProductDesign at both GCSE and A level, I went on tothe University of the West of England in Bristolto study a BSc in Creative Product Design. Thiscourse teaches me in depth all areas of design,the journey from the conception of an idea tothe marketing of a viable product.

These subjects include Sketching, Modelmaking, CAD, Graphic Design and designhistory. The knowledge gained in these subjectareas help us to undergo bigger projects eitherin design teams or by your self.

The course also teaches how to convey designproposals in a professional manner. The coursealso gives me the opportunity to go on aplacement year in the 3rd year of the degree ata design agency or business which will help toenhance my design portfolio and gainexperience.

The Degree is also part of the Design Council’sInside Track programme to help studentsproduce innovative design. After the degree Iwill either go on to do a Masters degree toenhance my degree or look for work in thedesign industry or as a teacher.


U- Explore...Your Future PathwayInteractive careers education site nowavailable for students and parents.

We are very pleased that theschool is now fully subscribedto U-Explore, an onlineinteractive careers educationsite that offers a wealth ofinformation, advice, andideas.

U-Explore can be used to find more about: • Careers, Information, Advice and Guidance• Year 9 Pathways• Work Experience preparation• Post 16 Options• Apprenticeships, BTECs and other vocational qualifications

U-Explore focuses on the main industry sectorsof work, linking students to the businesscommunity and also providing an insight intodifferent working environments, through 360°virtual, interactive tours and video clips.

U-Explore really helps to raise awareness ofwhat opportunities are available in a particularsector and what skills and qualifications studentswill need to get a job in that area.

U-Explore has videos of real people working intheir chosen fields and practical tips on howstudents can reach their goal.

Students and Parents: How to Sign Up in Five Simple Steps…

1. Go to www.uxplore.com and click on Register

2. Type in the brief details About You and create your Login Information

3. Select Cheshire West; Chester; Christleton High School

4. Type in the school Registration Code: 40329

5. When redirected to the start page enter your login information and click Go!

Pathway to aCareer in MotorManufacturingEarlier this year a group of thirty students fromYears 10, 11, and 12 who were interested inengineering and robotics descended on Toyota’sDeeside engine plant for a ‘See InsideManufacturing’ tour.

The group was split into two and my groupstarted with a Techniquest Workshop where weprogrammed some basic robots to move.

The groups then changed over and our group hada tour of the factory starting in the casting plantand walking through the main assembly line tothe machining operations, finishing with a tour ofthe quality control and maintenance areas. Themost interesting part of the tour was the castingarea of the plant as we were able to see an actualengine block being made.

After lunch we returned to school knowing a lotmore about what goes on behind the scenes of acar engine plant.

Thanks to Mr Cumberford, Mrs Charlton and MrsVarley for accompanying us on this reallyworthwhile visit.

Chris Phillips 11L5


I chose A-Level Textiles asone of my choices as I loveworking with fabrics andbeing creative and I knewthat the teachers werefantastic from being taughtby them in my GCSE Textileslessons. They really helpedme every step of the waythrough both GCSE and A-Level and it was always thelesson I would look forwardto as I could really let mycreative side come out. Ilearnt skills in those lessonsthat without which I wouldnot be where I am today. Ialso knew that in the future Iwanted to be a Buyer for oneof the big high street storesas I had family members inthe role and knew thatTextiles was the perfect firststep to getting me there.

When I had finished my A-Levels I was accepted byManchester MetropolitanUniversity to studyInternational FashionMarketing. This was a fouryear course which covered allareas from the financial sideof a business to productdevelopment and I wouldhighly recommend it if youwant to get into the fashionor buying industry. Itincludes a third yearplacement for which I movedto Cardiff and worked for theclothing chain Peacocks as anAssistant Buyer. This wasabsolutely fantastic since Igot involved in developingthe products that would gointo the stores, fromconcepts through to modelfittings and I was able tomeet suppliers and visit theirfactories. It was also myresponsibility to chasesample approvals andapprove the final products, aswell as lots of tidying andfiling :o) !!

After finishing my degreewith a 1st Class Honours andlots of hard work :o) Iapplied for lots of jobs andwas asked to attend a BuyersAdministrator assessmentday at Claire's Accessories.After a full day of teamexercises and interviews, Igot the job which I was sopleased about as I loved thecompany! I started out atClaire’s doing similar tasks tomy role at Peacocks andgradually worked my way upto the role of EuropeanAssociate Buyer.

I absolutely love working forClaire's as there is never adull moment from attendingBuying Trips to Chicago,selecting the products Iwould like to go into myrange in our 1000+ stores

throughout Europe, topresenting in product sign offmeetings and monthly salesreviews with seniormanagement and I nowmanage a BuyersAdministrator of my own! Iam hoping that one day inthe near future I will be aBuyer at Claire’s and afterthat the sky is my limit,maybe even CEO of Claire’sone day ;o)!

I could not have done any ofthis without all the help,support and belief in megiven by the DT Textilesteam. So a big thank you tothem for believing in me… (Icould not have done itwithout you and I wouldreally recommend thecourse!)

Lizzie DaviesEx CHS Student

Lizzie Davies:EuropeanAssociate Buyer for Claire’sAccessories


reating hinking evelopinghristleton echnology epartmentC T D

Hello again!

As I hope you already know myname is Sylvia Wood and I amthe Pathway Careers Advisor forChristleton High School. I havea wealth of experience in helpingstudents in a variety of differentways, whether it is givinginformation about apprenticeshipschemes, talking with sixth formstudents about likely careerprogression routes, or givingadvice to students in Year 9 or11 about options available in

terms of course choices andcollege options.

I am based here at ChristletonHigh School every Wednesdaywhen I will be involved inactivities such as guidanceinterviews, group work and talkswith students.

Within the ten weeks of thisterm I have already metindividually with over eightystudents from Year 9 upwardsand discussed future pathwayschoices as diverse as SportsJournalism, Midwifery,Marketing, and the Police Force. Just over half of the students Ihave met with have been sixthformers, many of whom areseriously thinking about whetherthe university option is mostappropriate for them, as thereare now other ways of gainingdegree-level qualificationswithout getting saddled withenormous student debts.

Information on Apprenticeshipvacancies for students in Years11, 12 and 13 has now startedto become available and I amable to assist students with thistoo.

Any student who wishes to meetwith me for help, support, adviceor guidance related to careersand future pathways can makean appointment to see methrough Mr Francis or Mrs Varley.I will also be available at mostParents’ Evenings at school andappointments to meet me can bearranged for this as well. I canalso be contacted directly [email protected]

I look forward to getting to knoweven more of you over themonths ahead.

Sylvia WoodPathway Careers Advisor

News from SylviaWood, our PathwayCareers Advisor…

Lee Ware Wins Prize forCompany’s Best WorkExperience StudentYear 11 student Lee Warereceives his prize from ManagingDirector Terry Smith.Lee Ware completed his workexperience week with IDMEngineering in Ellesmere Port, acompany that specialises in thefabrication and machining of steeland plastics, and manages themaintenance and installation ofmachinery.

IDM Engineering holds acompetition every year for alltheir work experience studentsfrom ages 16 up to 21. We were

delighted to hear that this yearLee Ware has won the company’sprize for best work experiencestudent in recognition of hisenthusiasm and willingness tolearn.

Managing Director Terry Smithspoke in Year 11 assembly andpresented Lee with a top-of-therange tool box and a set of digitalcallipers. He described Lee as“cheerful, smart, polite and amodel student.”Lee said: “I really enjoyed myweek at IDM, I learnt a greatdeal, and I am certainly thinkingabout engineering as a future.”Congratulations Lee!

Engineering His Pathway To Great Success!


Year 11 WorkExperienceWeek 2012

Year 11 students enjoyed areally successful WorkExperience Week earlier thisterm and the feedback from theemployers involved has beenextremely positive.

Here’s what some of ourstudents thought about theirexperiences: -

Becky Alcroft: Dental Clinic“During work experience I wentto a Dental Clinic. I learned anumber of new skills such asteam work, organisation andcommunicating with patients.The best part of work experiencewas helping with a tooth

implant. I found the jobinteresting. It has given me aclearer idea of what I want to dowhen I leave school”.

Tom Croft: Umeco Composites“I went to Umeco Composites inDerby where they makematerials like carbon fibre forFormula 1 racing cars. New skillsI have learned are how to mixresin, work efficiently and well ina group of people and how tomake pieces of carbon fibre. Ilearned about myself that I canwork hard and efficiently to get ajob done and I work very wellwith people. The best moment of

the work experience was when Imade a big piece of carbon fibreand then moulded it. It isactually a piece that is going tomake up part of a cockpit of acar called the Bloodhound whichis going to be used to break thespeed record of 1000mph. It hashelped have a clearer view onwhat I want to do and what I notwant to do”.

Katherine Weddell: Unilever“For the majority of the week Iwent to Unilever to work indifferent departments. Iobserved clinical trials and sweatreduction products and alsoconducted a trial on my own

hands to see how much I sweatunder certain conditions. I alsowent on tours around the siteand was allowed access to level2 laboratories. On the final day Imade conditioner which I amable to use if it passes its microclearance”.

Elliott Tong: Platt White Architects“For my work experience I wentto an architect firm called PlattWhite. I have learned new skillssuch as using a computerprogram used for drawingbuildings and how to measurethe area of a non-regular shapedroom. I think it has helped makearchitecture a job that I wouldlike to do in the future when Ileave school”.

Claire Spencer: Littlecroft Vets“For my work experience week Iwent to a clinic in Sutton. It wasbrilliant because they let mewatch all of the operations,which was a bit gory butinteresting. I got to syringe feedone of the cats who was ill,prepare the scrub for theoperations, test the bloods on amachine, feel an animal’s pulseand clean the operating kits andlots more. I learned so muchthere and my time at the Vetshas made me realise that Idefiantly want to work towardsbeing a Vet when I am older”.

Jordan Coxall: EvertonFootball Club“For my work experience I wentto Everton Football Club. Igained further experience as afootball coach and that has mademe more confident and hasencouraged me to take my FALevel 1 in coaching. I learnt thatI have enough confidence andability to coach at a basic levelof football. The best momentwas getting there and beingallowed to walk around thestadium on my own. I found thejob very rewarding andengaging. My work experiencehas given me an extra option forwhat I want to do when I leaveschool”.

PlacementPerfection!

A big thank you to all of the companies and organisations that assisted andcongratulations to all our Year 11 students!

Thanks also to Karen Varley for her help in keeping things running so smoothly

Back Row: Jennifer Tilston; Clare Spencer; Elliot Tong; Tom Croft;Jordan Coxall, Front Row: Eve Riley; Katherine Weddell; Seb Dunn



Lydia Ward: Nyland and Beattie Solicitors“I went to Nyland and BeattieSolicitors for my workexperience. I learnt what dailylife as a solicitor is like and alsoabout each of the differentcourts and areas of law. I foundit much more enjoyable then Iexpected and it is defiantlysomething I would like to do inthe future. Spending time withpeople in employment andgaining a more realistic idea ofworking life in general is whatwork experience is all about. Iwould advise someone who wasabout to do their workexperience to be open-mindedand try your hardest with everytask”.

Sebastian Dunn: Visual Metrics Limited“I went to a company calledVisual Metrics Limited. It is an ITcompany providing softwareenabling companies to accessstatistics of their choice relatingto their company. I have learntmany technical IT skills

throughout the week and gainedan idea of what a workingenvironment is like. I also pickedup some organising and socialskills”.

Eve Riley: Christleton Primary School“For my work experience I wentto Christleton Primary School. Ilearnt how to act around youngchildren and how to explainthings in a way that they wouldunderstand and it has taught meto be more confident. The bestmoment was when the childrenenjoyed and understood what Iwas teaching. I found the jobenjoyable but tiring as you arealways on your feet and thechildren always want yourattention. My work experiencehas made me realise thatteaching could be an option forme”.

Jennifer Tilston: Greif UK “On my work experienceplacement I went to work for alarge manufacturing company(Greif UK) in Ellesmere Port. I

worked in the Sales, HumanResource and Manufacturingdepartments. I carried out arange of tasks that werenecessary and helpful to peoplearound me. This varied fromfiling and shredding to sendingand receiving mail to and fromcustomers. I really enjoyedworking around people that didnot treat me like a child andchallenged me to do things thatI may not have had theopportunity to do elsewhere. Thebest moment was when I wastaken around the shop floor inthe factory and was shown eachstep of the manufacturingprocess and how they had totest each vital procedure. I hadto wear steel capped shoes,goggles, ear defenders and ahigh visibility jacket. I alsoenjoyed being givenresponsibilities and I think Ishowed that I am not onlycapable of working in an office ata desk but I could also enjoy ajob that provides a bit ofstimulation and variation ratherthan a repetitive job”.

Work Experience:Monday 14th to Friday 18thOctober 2013The week before Octoberhalf term next year isWork Experience week;this means that Year 11students (our current Year10) will be off-timetablefor the week and be able

to get valuable experienceof the world of work and apossible future career.

Recent research hasshown that in a highlycompetitive jobs marketrelevant work experiencecan make a big differenceto students’ employability.Work Experience alsohelps with future decisionmaking about careers;students can understandwork likes and dislikesbetter, learn about anoccupation and decidewhether it is for them.

Students are encouragedto organise their ownplacements whereverpossible; Mrs Varley canhelp with this, and furtherdetails will be given tostudents next term.

Work Experienceweek is just tenmonths away!

LocalEmployers:

Can YouHelp?If you are able to offer thechance for a fifteen /sixteen-year old to have aweek’s work experiencewith you, please let usknow.

Contact Karen Varley [email protected]

Thank You!

Students and staff once againcelebrated excellent resultsin this year’s A-levelexamination, with 100%success rate in 25 subjects.Over half of the 135 studentsachieved grades at A*-B,with 16 students gaining atleast three grade As.

Over a third of students weredelighted that they weresuccessful in their applications toprestigious Russell Groupuniversities, and over 90% havetaken up places on extremelycompetitive courses in otherHigher Education institutions.

In this tremendously competitiveyear for university places, fivestudents were successful in theirapplications to Oxford and tostudy Medicine: Amy Hughes achieved 5 A*grades and is reading Physics atUniversity College.Joel Diggory achieved 3 A* and2 A grades and has taken up hisplace at St John’s to read English.Jack Chapman achieved 1 A*and 2 A grades and is readingChemistry at Christchurch. Twins, Rory and Callum Evansachieved 3 A* and 4 A gradesbetween them and are at Oxfordand Sheffield reading Physicsand Civil Engineeringrespectively.Dean Chen gained 3 A* and 2 Agrades and is studying Medicineat the University of Sheffield.

Other students who achievedsignificant success include:

Georgia Dutton achieved 1 A*and 2 A grades and is studyingLaw and Criminology at theUniversity of Sheffield.Elizabeth Harker achieved 3 Agrades and is studying Psychologyat the University of Aston.Rosie Maher gained 3 A*grades and an A* in the EPQ andis studying French at theUniversity of Leeds.Matthew Mauger achieved 2A* and 1 A grade and is readingMathematics and Physics at theUniversity of Manchester.Saskia McCormick achieved 4A grades and has a deferredplace to study English at theUniversity of Sussex.Nathalie Moore achieved 3 Agrades and is studying Speechand Language at the Universityof Newcastle.Erin Sumner achieved 3 Agrades and will take up a placeto read English and CreativeWriting next Autumn at theUniversity of East Anglia.Hannah Treloar achieved 3 Agrades and is studying Speechand Language Therapy at theUniversity of Reading.Laura Walker achieved 3 Asand 1 C grade is reading Law atthe University of Sheffield.Ben Walsh achieved 2 A*, 1 Aand 1 B grade and has applied toCambridge this year.

These results give real cause forcelebration and represent twoyears of hard work and effort byour students, backed up byoutstanding teaching andsupport from parents. We wouldlike to take this opportunity tocongratulate all of our studentson their considerableachievements and to thankthem. We had very highexpectations for them and wewere not disappointed. We wishthem well in their future careers.

Students rise to the

challenge


Year 11 Students & Parents

Sixth FormOpen EveningThursday 17th January 2013All Year 11 students are invited to our Sixth Form Open Eveningon Thursday 17TH January 2013. The evening runs between7.00 and 9.00p.m.

The aim of the evening is for prospective students and theirparents to find out what opportunities are available in one ofthe largest and most successful sixth forms in Cheshire.

With almost 300 students on roll, we are able to provide varietyand breadth, in a friendly and supportive environment. Studentsare given every encouragement to reach their full potential,both academically and socially. The majority of our sixth formersgo on to Higher Education and then successful careers in a widerange of occupations.

Around 20% of our sixth formers join us from other schools,which adds to the richness of their education and that of ourown students.

During the evening students will be able to:

• Discover more about the sixth form curriculum and our range of over thirty different AS/A-Level courses. This includes courses new to our students, such as Music Technology, Government & Politics, Computing, Economics, Law, Media Studies, Psychology and Sociology.

• Gain an understanding of the application process.

• Meet subject teachers and talk about the different courses on offer.

• Ask questions of our current sixth form students and find out directly what they like about everything we can offer.

The evening is the best opportunity to assess what is offered inthe Sixth Form and whether it is the best option.

Further details are available on the school website, givinginformation on all the subjects we offer and how to apply.

We look forward to seeing all Year 11 students there.

Kate SaxonAssistant Headteacher


6th FormInductionResidential

Collectingwood to make a fire

Attempting tomake a fire


Autumn Term 2012 31

It’s all aboutTeamwork

Have we got a flame?

CookingDinner


Desperatefor acomfortableseat

Hold onTight

Don’t look so worried


Happy

Group hug

Who’s backwill be thefirst to bend?

Our homefor thenight


After settling comfortably intotheir new roles, the HeadBoy/Girl Team embarked uponorganising the latest sixth formtradition….THE FRIDAYCHALLENGE.

Friday challenges take place inthe common room during Fridaylunchtimes and have rangedfrom Cake Eating competitionsto the infamous TabascoChallenge. Since September, wehave held the ‘DanglingDoughnuts’ competition wherecompetitors battle it out for theprestigious title of DoughnutDangling Dominator and prize ofthe ultimate raspberry andcream filled doughnut! It is agood opportunity to have a bit offun and competition whilstmaking a worthwhile donation toour chosen charity.

Take a look at some of the weirdand wonderful costumes thatstudents have been wearing!

Upcoming challenges include:Arm Wrestling, Leg Waxing andany other suggestions you mayhave. Please pass anysuggestions to the Head Boy /Girl Team.

SIXTH FORM ACTIVITIESFriday

Challenges


In September, Mr Dathan took agroup of year 11 students toChester University to give adviceto student teachers currentlystudying a PGCE course. Westarted the afternoon withEllesha, Andrew and I givingspeeches to the teachers aboutlife as a KS4 student; our top 10tips for being a teacher andwhat makes a good relationshipbetween teacher and student.After delivering our speeches,we split up into four groups anddivided off into separate rooms,with approximately 25 studentteachers in each. Within ourrooms, the teachers asked usquestions about all sorts ofthings, such as ‘How should Igain the attention of the class?’and ‘How can we make lessonsfun for students?’ We answeredthe questions using our manyexperiences of classroomsituations when, for example wehave enjoyable lessons and howthe teacher has adapted to caterfor different situations. MrDathan had told us beforehandto be completely honest with theteachers; this may be harsh, butit will teach them what to doand what definitely not to do.We later returned to the lectureroom and the student teachersand their tutors gave theirthanks and handed a box ofCelebrations to us, which we alldevoured on the drive home!

We all thoroughly enjoyed thetrip and were proud to bechosen to represent the school.In addition to this, the speechesseemed to be so well received,that they will be published byChester University in a book forteachers; a very excitingprospect! We would all like tothank Mr Dathan for giving usthe opportunity and being agreat driver of the minibus andalso Chester University for beingso kind and hospitable- also forthe Celebrations!

Katy Boyce

As part of the leavingcelebrations in Year 13, the finalassembly took place in May andincluded the presentation ofChristleton Anniversary bookswith personal commendations toall students. For the majority ofstudents, commendations wereawarded for achievement, effort,sporting and performing arts’activities and overall contributionto school life.

Everyone assembled for the lasttime in the school hall andenjoyed a motivational speechfrom Chester Businessman andGovernor, Hems de Winter, and avariety of performances andmedia presentations from Year13 students.

The historic Andrew Ranneraward, now in its 32nd year, waspresented to Joel Diggory for hisoutstanding academicperformance and contribution tothe life of the Sixth Form. Joelreceived a standing ovation andit was a very emotionalexperience for all concerned. Hispeers described him as “not onlya dependable and loyal friend,but also a charismatic student,for whom many teachers hadgreat respect. When anyone is indifficulty, Joel can be relied uponto give advice about coursework,drama assessments or how towrite a good personal statement.Joel not only managed to gain aplace at Oxford University tostudy English Literature, but alsoachieved the highest score in thecountry in his entrance exam!”

YEAR 13 LEAVINGCELEBRATIONS

2012

The assembly also gave theHead Boy/Girl Team theopportunity to thank theirteachers and peers for all theirsupport with their charityfundraising. Early on during theirterm of office, they had beenprivileged enough to visit ClaireHouse hospice and were reallymotivated by what they sawthere. A representative from thecharity attended the assemblyand spoke of the charity’s pridein what the school had achieved.The team presented her with agiant cheque for £6232.37,which was a fantastic donation.

The annual Sixth Form Leavers’Ball, organised by the HeadBoy/Girl Team took place atChester Racecourse on Friday6th July. Everyone arrived instyle, enjoyed a delicious mealand then danced the night away.There were lots of tears andlaughter, whilst conjuring upmany happy memories of theirseven years at Christleton HighSchool. We wish all of ourleavers every success for thefuture.



6th FormPolitics andLaw Trip toParliament10th July2012

After a very early start,invalid tube tickets andclosed stations, a number of6th form Politics and Lawstudents enjoyed the annualtrip to Parliament.

High points of the visitincluded a tour of both theHouse of Commons andHouse of Lords and meetingStephen Moseley who latertweeted:

‘It was an absolutepleasure to welcome thestudents and teachersfrom Christleton HighSchool to Westminster.Trips like this allowstudents to gain firsthandexperience of the day today working of Parliamentand it also provides them

with the opportunity todelve into the onethousand years of history at the Palace ofWestminster’

We saw Westminster Hallwhich was built in 1099 andhas survived countless firesand bombings, St StephensHall, the Queen’s RobingRoom and the lobbies whereMPs cast their votes.

The tours were followed by aQ and A session with StephenMoseley who was grilledabout tuition fees, academiesand private education.

After this we walked toDowning Street, butunfortunately could not haveour usual visit to number 10due to the French Presidentvisiting David Cameron at thesame time!

Following this, Law students(and Louis the Law Bear!)visited the Supreme Courtwhere they were takenaround the building and theguide explained thesignificance of its role.

Mrs Holme

POETRY ATGLYNDWR…Ever wondered what inspirespoets to write poetry? The desireto communicate or make senseof the world? To share a personalexperience or explore feelings?Because they can’t stop the urgeto write? To make money?(Unlikely).

Sixth form students had theopportunity to put thesequestions directly to two of ourmost famous poets, Carol AnnDuffy (Poet Laureate, no less)and Gillian Clarke, when theyperformed recently at GlyndwrUniversity.

Carol Ann Duffy performedpoems from her famouscollection ‘The World’s Wife’, inwhich she imagines what itwould be like to be the wife of afamous figure, such as Midas.She shared her favourite poem‘A Child’s Sleep’, about herdaughter, and indulged theaudience’s request to hear herpoem ‘Valentine’ which compareslove to an onion (Yes, really!)

Gillian Clarke explained her loveof nature and the countrysideand disclosed that the genesis ofher poem ‘Catrin’, (a GCSEfavourite) was an argument shehad with her teenage daughter,which inspired her to explore therealities of mother-daughterrelationships.

Both poets clearly feel aresponsibility to speak for thecommunity. Carol Ann Duffy haswritten a poem to commemoratethe recent ruling on theHillsborough disaster, which hasbeen unveiled at LiverpoolCathedral: Gillian Clarke feltcompelled to write down thefeelings of her Welsh communityon the disappearance of theyoung girl, April.

The sixth form discovered thatpoets could be…..entertaining,thought provoking, funny humanbeings. Thanks to Glyndwr forthe invitation.

Mrs Hughes

Sixth FormersCompete forThe Cook CupThe Cook Cup is an annual tradition that takes placein memory of Tristan Cook who tragically passedaway five years in a road accident, and to raiseawareness for Brake, a charity that raises awarenessof road safety. The upper sixth take on the lowersixth in a heated battle for pride and bragging rights.

The match took place on the 10th October when theweather finally started to clear. The upper sixthteam were under pressure to win, after losing theprevious year. However, this year they had anadvantage; they had the expert knowledge andexperience of Jack Fleetwood to lead them out andinspire with his “head down, chin up!” tactic. Thelower sixth were new to the competition but wereexcited and ready to compete.

The game kicked off quickly, with a little bit ofamateur dramatics from Greg Campbell in thepenalty area, trying to win a penalty that wasquickly dismissed. Shortly after this, the upper sixthtook an early lead with an exceptional first timevolley from Greg Campbell, this time gettingrecognition for the right thing. After a spell ofmissed opportunities and silly mistakes, the lowersixth caught a break and counter-attacked with awell worked passing move, before the ball wasfinally slotted past the keeper.

The ball returned to the centre circle. The lowersixth had control of the game once again, and tooka bullish approach to try and make their possessioncount. Shortly before the half-time whistle blew,there was yet another great passage of play fromthe lower sixth that caught the upper sixth defencesitting back on their heels. The ball found its wayout to Cam Clark on the right wing and he sent in awonderful searching cross that found his team-mateon the edge of the 18 yard box. The strikercontrolled the ball on his chest and took anaudacious shot on the half volley that was placed

into the far right corner of the net, leaving the keeperno chance of saving it. The first half finished 2-1 tothe lower sixth; but they still looked hungry for more.

As the second half kicked off, the upper sixth lookedlike a new team after Jack Fleetwood’s inspirationalhalf-time talk. They looked fiendish and excited to

compete for another gruelling 45 minutes. It tookanother 10 minutes before the upper sixth cashed intheir dominance and enthusiasm by winning a freekick on the edge of the area, after a poor desperatechallenge. After a well-taken free kick from JackJoinson that glided over the wall and slotted into thebottom left corner, the game was 2-2 and the lowersixth looked deflated.

Once again for the third time the game was allsquare and there was all to fight for. The lower sixthmade a number of good tactical substitutions thatrevitalised the team and gave them a boost ofenergy and confidence. After another spell of well-worked possession they attacked again, once againdown the right. Cam Parker flew past Jack Parkereasily, as if Jack’s feet had been encased inconcrete. This gave Cam Parker an easy cross intothe box that was easily knocked into the goal. It wasnow 3-2 to the lower sixth. The dominance of thelower sixth didn’t stop there and they romped on toscore a 4th after a great pass from the bi-line wasnetted easily from the spot.

The end of the game came at 4-2 to the lower sixth,however, the players did not stop. To the crowd’sshock, and to the tired players’ dismay, the refereedecided to play “Next goal wins!” This was one lastopportunity for the upper sixth to win their firstCook Cup. However, after an additional 10 minuteshad passed, a tired lower sixth team beat the uppersixth to win conclusively. The referee’s whistle wentfor full time with the score being Upper sixth 2,Lower sixth 5. (After an additional 10 minutes ofnext goal wins).

Jack Saunders, Year 13


CHStival in Support ofMacmillan Cancer SupportCHStival – Christleton High School’s first music festival – tookplace on 19th July 2012, the last day of the academic year.After what seemed to be an eternity of organising, the big dayarrived. Unfortunately, the heavens had opened, yet ourspirits were not dampened. Students turned out in theirmasses for a fun filled day of live bands, including manyschool bands, a teacher band (TTNH) and headliners: FallingThrough Doors.

A superb range of Inflatables also proved very popular on theday, with constant crowds of people waiting to go on, or beingspectators for Sumo Wrestling, Gladiator and the Rodeo Bull.Sweets, stalls and competitions were a big money maker,

particularly the face and nailpainting and ‘Sponge theTeacher’.

Though a lot of team effortwas put in, it couldn’t havebeen done without the help ofsome superb sixth formers,brilliant staff members and agreat site team, who madethe day run smoothly. Agrand total of £1,620.71 wasraised for the Sixth Form’schosen charity, MacmillanCancer Support, So, thanksto everyone that came andsupported us!


On Wednesday 31stOctober 2012, theAS/A2 PhysicalEducation studentsvisited the BodiesRevealed Exhibit inLiverpool. The exhibitcelebrates the humanbody and its many inter-related systems andfunctions, while showingthe effects that diseaseand unhealthy lifestyleshave on the body. All thespecimens displayed arenot the typicalanatomical models seenin schools. They arereal, preserved using a

technique where tissuewater is replaced withsilicone rubber. Of particular interest toour students were theskeletal and musculargalleries. Here fourcomplete bodyspecimens are ondisplay. This was atimely visit, especiallyfor our year 12 who arecurrently studying thisarea in detail. Latergalleries are dedicatedto respiratory, digestive,reproductive andcirculatory systems,areas focussed upon byour year 13 studentswhen looking at lifestyleand disease. The visit has given ourstudents a new foundrespect for thecomplexity and fragilityof the human body.

BODIESREVEALED!

Upcomingevents

Over the next few monthswe have organisednumerous events which aimto get the school in theChristmas spirit in time forthe holidays.

On December 7th we hostedthe ‘Winter Disco’ for theYear 7s & 8s. Similarly to the‘Fall Ball’ this was held in theschool hall and the eveningconsisted of music, gamesand refreshments. For thesixth form we are holdingthe winter ‘Snow Ball’ at theMercure hotel (formerlyknown as the Ramada) onWednesday 19th December.We are hoping like last yearthis event will be a successand will raise money for ourchosen charity, as well asbringing the Sixth Formtogether for a festivecelebration.

We are currently working onplans for the traditionalChristmas assembly whichwill be held on the last dayof term before the holidaysas per usual. Whilstpreparing for this, we alsoheld a ‘sign up’ for the‘Christleton’s Got Talent’ inthe hall during the week of26th November 2012.Results will be posted in thenext edition of the Swan!

We hope to see you all atour upcoming events inorder to help our chosencharity, MacMillan CancerSupport.

Clare Bate U61


At the ungodly hour of 6am on atypically dreary July morning,Upper 6th set off to Hadrian’sWall to examine the Romanremains. The 80-mile-longbarrier was originally built,depending on which historianyou ask, to keep barbarians out,keep barbarians in, lookimpressive, give Roman soldierssomething to do, and/or somecombination of the above. Wewent to examine what was left ofthe complex system of forts andmilecastles, to try to gain abetter understanding of such animpressive archaeological featand the people whoaccomplished it.

After a brief coach journey, ourtour began at Housesteads fort,situated almost at the midpointof the wall. The fort, originallydesigned for 100 men, is of verystandard Roman design, and(reportedly) features some ofthe best preserved Romanlavatories in the country.

We also walked along the wall,along the top of the escarpmentthat the Romans took advantageof when selecting its location tosee the view from the remains ofa tiny milecastle, where eightmen would have been stationed.

The view north was particularlydesolate, and it was hard toimagine what a legionary mighthave felt surveying a similarscene almost two millenniaearlier. We were informed thatRoman soldiers sometimes beattheir legs with nettles in anattempt to keep warm. I couldsympathise.

Our next stop was Vindolanda, alocation famed for the woodenwriting tablets found preservedin the airless conditionsunderground nearby. The tabletstold a very different story tomost of the sources we had seenso far. Rather than grand poeticstelling the stories of emperorsand generals, they contained anamazing insight into some of themost mundane activities of camplife - party invitations,complaints about the roads,requests for extra pairs of socks- all surprisingly relevant to ourtime.

Chesters fort, originally built toguard a bridge over the Tyne,housed 600 cavalry troops fromnorthern Spain. Here thebathhouse especially waspractically intact, and gave anamazing insight into Romanbuilding and fort design. We then

travelled to the hotel and, aftereating, listened to a short andhighly interactive talk given byUlfric the Re-Enactor, who,against his better judgement,gave numerous members of thegroup a variety of Roman-eraweapons to hold while talking usthrough their uses.

The following day, our first stopwas Arbeia. A large fortreclaimed from the estatessurrounding it, it featured alarge segment of reconstructedwall which gave a stunningreminder of the scale thatRomans sometimes constructed.The reconstructed CommandingOfficer’s house was impressive tosay the least, and helped bringlife to the otherwise twodimensional building outlinesthat comprised of the rest of thecamp. Segedunum, our finaldestination, featured acompletely rebuilt bath house,and a raised platform thatallowed a better view of the fortlaid out below.

And so, with a new insight intothe Roman occupation and wayof life, we headed back toChester.

Niall Ward-O’Brien U68

Hiking Hadrians Wall...



Year 13 ColdEnvironmentsField work inSnowdonia

Year 13 ColdEnvironmentsField work inSnowdonia

GardeningClub News

Some people may think that

Gardening club is boring or

for people who have

experience in gardening

outside school, however this

is not the case. The club

offers a friendly, laid back,

relaxed and most of all fun

environment in which to learn

this extremely helpful skill

that you will need throughout

their lifetime as well as

making new friends.

I first joined the club in year

7 when I heard about it

through the Eco team of

which I am a member and I

have been attending the

garden sessions ever since.

During my time in the club I

have experienced all of the

challenges faced by every

gardener - pests, weeds, the

British weather etc. However,

I have also experienced the

positive aspects of the club,

for instance the sense of

achievement that you get in

the harvesting season when

you unearth all of the

vegetables, herbs and spices

that you have cared for, come

rain come shine for the past

five months. The garden is

resting now over winter but

garden club will start again in

early spring so why not come

along and see what it’s all

about.

Alec Stokes 9L2

Bloomingmarvellous!CHS garden club green

fingered winners

There was cause for celebration

in July at the Christleton Show

when Christleton Garden club

became winners of the garden

produce, ‘salad & herb’

category. The Garden club was

highly commended for its

entries and members Lauren

Sharples, Blythe Walker,

Charlotte Timms and Mrs Platel

were there to accept the trophy

and certificate. Well done

everyone – a real achievement

particularly with all the rain we

had early on in the season.



What’s happened to the Beak-On?

Over the summer the Beak-Onhad a tough time. This isbecause it was made out ofwillow and the rainy weathertook its toll on the structure. Wedid have some birds visit theBeak-on and so it was successfulto a certain extent, but welearned that it wasn’t in the bestplace for the small birds we weretrying to attract.

What was the Beak-On?

The Beak-On was a type ofsculpture made to attract smallbirds to come and eat in ourschool grounds. Inside it, wehung bird feeders for small birds.The Beak-On has beendismantled but the feeders havebeen kept so they can be sited inmore suitable places in theschool grounds.Alana Williams 9La2

Congratulations…The following stuidents have

achieved their Level 2

Certificate in Food Safety and

Hygiene for Catering.

Ryan Coppock, Ewan

Drummond-Hay, Jordan

Efobi, Connor Farrell,

Katie Martin, Alex Noyes,

Max Schalow, Abbi Walsh,

Emily-Ann Westoby.

The class worked hard to

revise for their test and

slogged for nearly 4 hours to

achieve this industry

standard qualification.

This qualification will help

them to successfully obtain

employment in the catering

industry. This is something

the Design and Technology

department see as extremely

important and will endeavour

to ensure that all future year

10/ 11 students taking Food

Technology achieve their

Level 2 Certificate.

Well done guys!

Art saysBye Bye Beak-on

Dinosaur Attacks Local Primary School: A Level Art Student at Risk!Last month I had the chance to

visit Cherry Grove Primary

School where I worked with a

nursery class building a 3D

dinosaur. We used everyday

objects such as stools and

brooms and then added papier-

mâché to create the main

structure. Next we painted it

and put it on display in the

school’s ‘Learn and Play Area’.

The experience of working as a

visiting artist was very

beneficial to me. It gave me

the chance to

work with a

younger group and

lead a group

activity whilst

putting my art

skills to good use.

I would encourage

other students to take part in

community art as it is a good

opportunity to receive feedback

from new people and be

creative in an alternative

working environment.

Sian Rees 13U66


Reading,relaxing andrefreshment…Every Wednesday 1.00pmyou will find 5 year 8students reading, talking andeating cakes in the iResearchCentre. No, they aren’tbreaking all the rules…theyare giving up their time torepresent CHS in theinter-schools Cheshire BookQuiz. They meet with MrsBarker and discuss the booksthey have just read and havesome chocolate.

Sophie Brown, IsabellaCornwell, Jess Dunning,Isobel Griffin Morris andSarah Walters are set to readone book a month for thenext five months.

They have already read thefirst book ‘The Thieves of

Ostia’ by CarolineLawrence and answered 20questions….only 100 to go!

The other books are:-

‘The Bone Magician’ by F.E. Higgins

‘The Lost Christmas’ by David Logan

‘Small Change for Stuart’ by Lissa Evans

‘The Devil’s Triangle’ by Mark Robson

‘Fifteen Days without a Head’ by Dave Cousins

This year for the first time weare using a mixture ofKindles and books – not sureyet if there is a clearfavourite... but definitely agood start all round.

ARTAUTUMN

TERM

SKETCHBOOK

COMPETITION

WINNERS

1stCharis Inchley 7By1

Joseph Bennett 7By2

Isobel Griffin Morris 8K2

Sam Rackham 8K2

Naomi Simm 9L2

Lewis Gerrard 9By1

2ndJessica Jones 7L1

Finley Lloyd 7L 1

Emma Newnham 8BA2

Callum Brunskill 8L1

Dominika Sadzuk 9BA1

Billy Walsh 9Ba1

3rdSophie Bridgewater 7K2

Arthur Jessop 7L2

Courtney Chadwick 8L1

Joe Callaghan 8L2

Jess Bridgewater 9By1

Will Hurley 9K1

i ResearchCentre News


Last half term I became a‘Washing Line Wednesday’curator. We helped organisethe Washing Line Wednesdayexhibition by putting upartwork, looking after it atbreak and lunch and taking itdown at the end of the day. Itwas great fun being thereand I got to know some morepeople really well. I did itwith some of my friendsincluding Sophie, Paige,Molly, Alex, and anotherSophie. Mr Kane wasthoroughly impressed withthe pieces of art calling theexhibition “A stunningdisplay”. I thought that theexhibition was a really greatsuccess too. The only

disappointment was takingdown all the lovely artworkbut I mostly felt happy to bepart of the show.

Mr Jones also thoughtWashing Line Wednesday wasa success saying, “WashingLine Wednesday is lookinggood again; I’m veryimpressed”. Overall, I reallyenjoyed helping out andwould encourage otherpeople to join in. And ifyou’re not sure whether ornot you want to curate greatartwork maybe you shouldknow that we got chocolateas a reward for all our hardwork!ZuZu Walker

Curating Great ArtworkCurating Great Artwork

Would you like to be moreinvolved in helping to support ourschool and children? We are a group of parents thatmeet every couple of monthsalong with a couple of membersof staff. Over the last few yearsthe CHSA has organisednumerous yearly fund-raising andprofile-raising events, rangingfrom the Christmas raffle to theyear 7 BBQ, to refreshments atthe concerts, shows and parents’evenings and not forgetting the200 club that brings in additionalfunds.

We have also made good useof match-funding in the lastfew years, so if any of youwork for a company thatwould be willing to match-fund one of our events, pleasespeak to one of the committeemembers about how to setthis up or email school (pleasespeak to any friends you mayknow in this situation too).

During the past year we havedonated £11,500.00 to school,including: £8,000.00 to the i-Research centre; £515.00 for aVisualiser for the Art department;£325.00 for a Cricut CakeMachine and £1,548.00 for tentsand rucksacks for the Duke ofEdinburgh scheme.

Over the years school teachingstaff have put in requests for arange of products, from artmaterials for the Koinonia project,to the new equipment bought forthe DT workshops (including astate-of-the-art laser cutter). Wehave also purchased many booksand sports equipment, includingkits for the netball and rugbyteams.

Above all, the things we buy andhelp to purchase are in keepingwith the national PTA guidelines.The school is extremely gratefulto the CHSA for all its hard workand valued fund-raising, andCHSA members say that it isalways a joy to get involved, toget to know staff and feel a senseof pride that they are helping toprovide our children with whatthey need for their education. Wehope to see you at futuremeetings or events soon. Wealways welcome new ideas andencourage people to bring theseto meetings or you can emailthem in to :[email protected].

We look forward to hearing fromyou.

The CHSA Committee

TheChristletonHigh SchoolAssociation

USEDSTAMPSAND OLD

SPECTACLES

Building Learning Power (BAsan ECO school we wish toensure that as much ‘waste’ aspossible is recycled and re-used,and, with Christmas coming upyou are all in a great position tohelp us achieve this.

Used, franked postage stampscan be sold on by charities toraise significant funds. All youhave to do is to tear them fromthe envelope, leavingapproximately 1½ cm all theway around. Quite simply, savethem up and then send them tous in school. We shall gatherthem together and then passthem on to charities such asCancer Research and Oxfam.

Likewise, do you have any oldpairs of reading glasses lurkingaround, unworn and unloved inyour drawers?

These spectacles can bedistributed for use in underdeveloped countries and thusmake a really positive impactupon the lives of so many. If youwould be kind enough to let ushave them, we shall ensure thatthey are passed on to theappropriate charities.

Please take your Stamps andSpectacles to Student Services.If you have any questions,please contact Mrs Weaver inour Student ServicesDepartment.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH


Autumn Term 2012 47

On 10th July 2012, a selectedgroup of Year 9 and 10 studentsset off to the Royal ExchangeTheatre in Manchester to watchwhat was to be a contemporaryand modern version of AMidsummer Night’s Dream. Wearrived early and had a lookaround and bought refreshmentsand then finding our seats,settled down for a very funnyperformance of WilliamShakespeare’s play. The RoyalExchange Theatre in Manchesteris a stunning building. I wasawestruck as I walked in as ithad such a vivid and livelyatmosphere, the actual stagingitself was set in the centre of thebuilding and raised up, thestructure supported by greatbeams and the seating had threelevels, and we were on thesecond level.Some have suggested theproblem with Shakespearecomedies is they are just notfunny, this ‘Midsummer Night’sDream’ is not funny - it isabsolutely hilarious.From start to finish it is a crazy,madcap piece of theatre thathurtles along at such a speedyou could reasonably expectthem to fall off at any moment.Despite - and probably becauseof - this tremendous pace it isbrilliantly bonkers, chaoticallyclever and fantastically funnyfrom start to finish.The moment Ed Gaughan arriveson stage to deliver a topicalstand-up comedy prologue -heavily laced with a generoushelping of local geographicreferences - you know this isgoing to be no ordinary‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ andso it proves.

Guest appearances which arenever quite what they ought tobe, bun fights which escalateinto battles and songs whichrock the soul of Shakespeare allserve to both mirror andemphasise the Bard’s comedywhile, amazingly, retaining mostof the essential tale. Superb.Gaughan goes on to create aninnovatively excellent PeterQuince and together with ChrisBranch as Frances Flute, Alan

Pagan as Snug the Joiner andanother (you will discover whoon the night) as Bottom, theydeliver a fine gathering of rusticthespians who invariably stealthe show - here they are madeto work for their star billing andyet still come out on top with ahilarious comedy within acomedy.Jonathan Broadbent and PoppyMiller are delightfully daft asking and queen of the fairies,Oberon and Titania while FerdyRoberts’ Puck is a master classof comedy.John Lightbody’s Lysander andRhys Rustbatch’s Demetrius bothrevel in their manic alter egosand, along with GemmaSaunders’ revealing a dotty sideto Hermia and Rebecca Scroggsmaking Helena a wickedly lustfulrole - a character Shakespearetruly intended - this highly

talented, high-speed ensemblecast create an irresistiblyentertaining mayhem.There is classic Shakespeare,alternative Shakespeare, evenreduced Shakespeare and thenthere is Filter Theatre’sShakespeare - and, if you havenever seen this company’s takeon the Bard then I suggest youare missing out on aspectacularly funny piece oftheatre - so don’t.

Polly Bowerman 9L1

R e v i ew :

A M i d s umme r

N i gh t ’ s D r e am

at t h e R o y a l E x c h ange

i n Man che s t e r


IntrepidGeographersdeal withExtremeWeather tocollect fieldwork data

October saw the usual Year

12 Geography field visit to

North Wales and it was fitting

that the weather matched the

title of the unit for Physical

Geography. The weather was

so windy and the river so

high from previous rainfall

that real care had to be taken

to collect any data.

The weather on Thursday

was kinder and students were

able to investigate flooding in

Llanrwst using a range of

techniques.

Rebranding Llandudno was

the theme on Friday and

students were able to study a

real example of rebranding of

a coastal resort.

Mrs Harding


Physics Alton Towers 2012

Time again for the annualphysics trip to Alton Towers!The budding ‘A’ level physicsstudents arrived at thealmost empty amusementpark, where they completedmany complex and highlevel physics experimentsinvolving intricate force andacceleration analysis usingtheir accelerometer apps!

After a good few minutes ofthat they threw themselvesinto any and all rides,sometimes up to 3 or 4times in a row! In fact theonly time limiting factorseemed to be the physicaltime taken to walk down thenever-ending weaving pathsto the waiting carriages! Thephysicists exertedthemselves to all manner of‘g’s, from the thrilling freefall of Oblivion to the neckbreaking speeds of Rita,from the light “airy flying”sensation of Air to the spinerattling bends of Nemesis!However no matter how sickyou felt one thing couldalways be relied upon… itwas all in the name ofScience!

Russell ‘Physics Banter’Grim U64

AltonTowers,nowthat’s a greatprize!My friend Rob, my brother,my Mum and I went to AltonTowers expecting ‘SunnyBritish Weather’, but that wasnot going to happen!The weather was the onlything that could have ruineda fantastic day, but it didn’t!It made it a whole lot morefun, in fact! Travelling into anabyss such as you do onoblivion is scary enough! Adda monsoon worth of rain tothat equation and you’ve gotyourself a mighty good andexhilarating ride! All of therides were ten-times betterand it made for an amazingday out!

Me and Rob would like tothank Mrs Pritchard fororganising the prize draw,and rewarding us with asuperb day!

Dan Hamp 10L3Geography Hot Scholar

AltonTowers -just theticket!The week before we broke upfor the summer holidays, Igot called into Mr.Lamberton’s office and I wastold I had won a hot scholarsprize of 2 tickets to Altontowers. These tickets wereto be used in the time duringsummer holidays and werefor two people. I waitedthroughout the whole of thesummer holidays for niceenough weather to go to andit wasn’t until the last weekof the summer holidays thatmy sister and I had thechance to go! I really enjoyedthe visit and it was a lovelyending to the summerholidays. It was alsosomething to look forward to.

Hollie Lawson Y11Art Hot Scholar


@111220 Prospectus Cover and Cutter:Layout 1 20/12/11 14:05 Page 1

Autumn Term 2012 49

Community MathsYear 6: Kandinsky to FactorialFarbstudie QuadrateYear 6 students fromChristleton, Oldfield andMickle Trafford Primaryschools visited the HighSchool on Monday 15thOctober 2012. They wereintroduced to the work of theRussian artist WassilyKandinsky and his colourstudy of squares withconcentric circles. Eachsquare was filled with coloursin a design similar to atarget.

The Year 6 studentsinvestigated how manydifferent patterns could bemade with different numbersof colours. One colour waseasy – one pattern. Twocolours made two patterns.So three colours must bethree patterns – yes? No!There were six possiblepatterns. This sparked theircuriosity to find out whatwould happen with fourcolours and what was the linkwith the numbers. Could it bea sequence like Fibonacci?Factorial!

Fibonacci was an interestingidea as his sequence dependson the addition of theprevious two numbers. Thestudents discovered that thisrule involved multiplying:

Colours Patterns

1 1 = 1

2 1 x 2 = 2

3 1 x 2 x 3 = 6

4 1 x 2 x 3 x 4 = 24

They used ipads to researchthis pattern and discovered amathematical function called‘factorial’. This is when youmultiply all the countingnumbers up to and including‘n’ together. It is representedby a !

n! = 1 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 5 x … x (n-1) x n

Each school produced a walldisplay to represent theirresearch, analysis andfindings, which they tookback to their schools.


HHOOTTSSCCHHOOLLAARRSSHot Scholarsgo to HotMustardHot Mustard is astaff art group,which is held oncea month in the ArtDepartment atChristleton. Anymember of staffwho wants to go anddo art of their own iswelcome. As Art HotScholars, we were luckyenough to be asked to attendin July. As well as Katie Hinde,Abi Stevenson, Emily Treloar,Beth Mollart-Evans, Beth Hosker,Hollie Lawson, Robyn McNally,Paige Wright and the Art staff.Mrs Buckley from WavertonPrimary School was there as wellas Jon Hosker.

When we arrived at Hot Mustard,we were greeted by Mrs

Pritchardwho askedus what wewanted todo. We hadthe choice ofdoing art

work of ourown or painting

some eggs as apresent for the

Education Minister, Nick Gibb,who was coming to open ouriResearch Centre. We all chooseto do the eggs whilst the adultsdid their art own work. We usedsmall spots and stripes todecorate our eggs and everyoneused the same colour scheme sothat the eggs made a set.Everyone decorated an egg eachand, in the end, after they had

dried we placed them in an eggbox that was painted purple andhad a ribbon on it. Other peopleand staff were working on lots ofdifferent things like course workand personal art pieces. Therewere people from different yearsand a range of staff. We reallyenjoyed out time at Hot Mustard.It was a very friendlyenvironment and we hope to beinvited again.

Paige Wright & Robyn McNally 10B2Art Hot Scholars

Hot Underthe CollarAfter the Hot Mustardexperience, I had a very scaryjob to do. I had to give the giftof decorated eggs to Nick GibbMP when he came to open theiResearch Centre. This was myjob because the eggs had comefrom hens on my farm. We calledthe eggy-art-work-gift DreamHatch to represent all of thedreams, plans and ideas whichwill, like chicks from eggs, be

hatched in the iResearch Centrein the years to come. Givingsomeone a present doesn’tsound scary, does it? Well, it wasterrifying to be honest, becauseI had to give a speech in front oflots of people. Before the day Iwas practising my speech a lotwith the help from the Art staff.On the day I was panicking as Iwas worrying about dropping theeggs or getting my speechwrong. Paige Wright, mysupporter, was there to tell me Iwouldn’t drop the eggs and tokeep me calm. Right before myspeech I was shaking and was

absolutely terrified, but when Igot up there I just talked to MrGibb and I didn’t look down ordrop the eggs. I gave him thepresent with a smile and then Isat on the chair next to MrLamberton. I was so happyafterwards and I was alsorelieved too.

In the end, it was a greatpleasure to give the eggs to Mr Gibb!

Abi Stevenson 10B2Art Hot Scholar


PrimaryDaysSince half term, Year 8 ViceCaptains have been visitingprimary schools to tell thenew Year 7s what life atChristleton High is like. Iwent to four different schools- Mickle Trafford, Hoole,Overleigh and Saighton. Thereason that we went to theseschools was because wewanted to give the currentYear 6 students a taster ofChristleton and how it works.I really enjoyed the time thatI spent at these schools and Ithink the Year 6s did as well.The experience gave me awonderful opportunity toshare my thoughts aboutChristleton and tell othersabout how I felt at the startof Year 7. We went to see theOlympic torch when we werein Mickle Trafford. I am nowlooking forward to welcomingthe Year 7s in September.

Lewis Roberts 8by2

Since half term Mr Francis,Miss Edwards and some ofour amazing Vice Captainshave been visiting localprimary schools andintroducing ourselves to thenew Year 7s. We have beenreally impressed with all thelovely students that we havemet and look forward to themjoining us full time inSeptember.

Miss Edwards

Teachersfor an HourArt Hot Scholars’Peer Assessment isActive Citizenship

As Art Hot scholars, RobynMcNally and I had theprivilege of ‘being teachersfor an hour’. We were askedto give feedback for an Arthome learning task by Y8.

Because this is activecitizenship, Mr Hollywoodallowed us to use PSHE &Citizenship time for this.

We were told in advance thatthe assessment criteria forthe task were the use oftone, blending, effort /completion and using acolour family. We learnedhow to compare differentlevels of skill in these 4specific areas and we nowunderstand how frustrating itis to have no name on apiece of work! After receivingtheir work, the students werevery pleased and one pupilsaid that if she had knownthis was going to happen, shewould have tried harder. Thisshows that doing things likethis can improve students’approach to learning.

Paige WrightArt Hot Scholar

Paige and Robyn, along withLaura Beattie, Katie Hinde,Emily Treloar, Abi Stevenson,Nicole Hogan and Ellie Gill,helped to create the Dreamsmural on the stairs from theexhibition hall to thestaffroom.




I chose Art as a GCSE option atthe start of Year 10 and a fewmonths ago me and a fewother students were chosen todo early entry, meaning wewould do two years of Art asusual but be entered for twoGSCEs. Last year I did Fine Artand this year I’m doing 3D.

In Art I am currently startinganother year’s worth of workfor my next GCSE. I am doingAfrican Animals. This includesmaking 3D card masks ofanimals, using differentmaterials, creating designsheets and final pieces.

I enjoy drawing animal facesand using cut shapes for themasks I’m currently making. Iget to use all sorts of skills andtechniques to produce art indifferent ways. Doing Art isinteresting due to the fact I canuse my camera and go out andtake my own pictures oflandscapes, animals andstatues to go with my project.

Doing early entry is quitestressful sometimes but if youkeep on top of it and do thework to a great standard thenthe GCSE you get will be worthall the time you took doing thework.

The African Animals topic isdifferent to the others I havedone and I get to do all sorts ofdifferent things to show theexam board a variety of stylesand techniques to go towardsmy GCSE.

Lauren Arthur 11B4

Early Entry Art Students Progress with African Animal Mask Project

On Tuesday 6th November 2012,GCSE Media students from Year10 and Year 11 were invited tothe National Media Museum inBradford, Yorkshire. Afterenduring a tiresome coachjourney, we were all incrediblyeager to explore the museumand experience everything it hadto offer.

The National Media Museum aimsto be the best museum in theworld for inspiring people tolearn about, engage with andcreate media, and do so byproviding a huge variety of

exhibits, as well as visually andinteractively informing visitors ofhow media has developed in thepast century. It also remindspeople of what media used to belike and how it may continue todevelop in the future. Themuseum is located in the centreof Bradford, Yorkshire, and is oneof the most popular museums inthe UK. Within the museum,there are a variety of uniquegalleries featured, some of whichinclude:

Kodak Gallery – The KodakGallery invites you to behold thehistory of photography, how ithas developed and some of thefirst photographs that were everpublished.

Life Online – Life Online is oneof the first galleries that isdedicated to giving visitors achance to explore the social,technological and cultural impactof the internet, as well asexploring the history of theinternet.

Experience TV – This huge, in-depth gallery explores thehistory of television and howtelevision has developed - evenwhat televisions have developedinto compared to the sixties!

TV Heaven – The first of its kindin Britain, this unique gallery

allows you to access a uniquearchive of more than 1000television programs from the lastsixty years of Britain’s televisionhistory.

Magic Factory – A variety ofhands-on exhibits complete thisgallery, as it educates you on thescientific aspects of light andcolour within photography, filmand television.

Animation Gallery – TheAnimation gallery gives visitors achance to experience howanimations bring characters tolife, and also explore the historyof animation.

Media

Mania

hits

Bradford


Games Lounge – GamesLounge gives visitors theopportunity to reminisce on howgaming consoles havedeveloped, as well as providingclassic games in their originalarcade format for you to try!

Upon arrival, we were welcomedby Rob* who lead us to wherewe would be conducting someactivities. On the way, a vastarray of exhibits were on displayfor us to take a look at, howeverwe soon had our attentionsaverted once we reached theroom we would be conductingsome of the activities in. Theroom was fairly large, andbenches lined the rim of theroom – but by this time, oureyes were transfixed by theglistening Macs, carefully placedon the benches. As we sat down,Rob* began to explain to us whatwe would be doing for the day.We soon discovered that wewould be creating our own horrormovie trailers using professionalrecording equipment and theediting software on the Macs! Wearranged ourselves into groupsof six and were given a smallchecklist of scenes we were toinclude in the trailer, and soonset off into the museum torecord our scenes. We had atime limit of one hour to recordour scenes and complete asmuch of the checklist as wecould, so it was impeccable thatwe work together as a team tocreate the best horror movietrailer!

The museum was of modernarchitecture, and included a café,shop, and numerous amounts ofdynamic exhibits for us to lookat. Whilst recording, we wereable to catch a glimpse of someof the things that the museumhad to offer, however wefocussed on choosing the spotswe thought were mostappropriate for each scene. Acompetitive aura filled themuseum, as each team strived tocreate the best horror movietrailer; however we had a lot offun making the checklist into areality, as well as adding our ownideas! Using our knowledge ofcamera angles and techniques,each team filmed scene afterscene, and after the hour wasfinished, we had all completedthe checklist. During lunch, we were able to

have a brief look at some of theexhibits, my favourite being theMagic Factor – colours floodedthe room, and it was fascinatingto learn about the scientificfactors behind film andphotography. The activitiesthroughout all of the exhibitswere hands-on and aestheticallypleasing, but once the hour hadended and lunch was over, everyteam was eager to look at theirfootage and use the Macs tocreate their trailers!

With each team crowded aroundthe six Macs, each of us set towork on the trailers. Rob* gaveus a detailed explanation of howto use iMovie (the software wewere to use to create thetrailers) and after he wasfinished, we immediately rushedto the Macs and set to work.With the videos uploaded, wewere able to experiment with avariety of different tools andmusic to define the look of ourtrailers, as well as usingtraditional concepts that featureregularly in horror trailers asideas for our own.

After an hour and thirty minutes,we had all successfullycompleted our trailers, only tofind that they would be played infront of everyone! As some of usdespaired as their trailers wereshown, we all expressed ourenjoyment as we experienced avariety of unique concepts, ideasand designs featured within all ofthe trailers. From hoodedstalkers to a vision of the futureTaken 13 movie, the trailers werea lot of fun to watch, and as wecame to the end of the finaltrailer, I wanted to re-live thewhole day all over again.

Every student who had thechance to experience theNational Media Museum glancedback at the building as the coachbegan to retreat, and wishedthey could re-live the day allover again. Thank you to Mr.Gannon, Mrs. Lawson and Mrs.Cutler for attending the trip withus all and to everyone atBradford Museum who helpedmake the day such an innovativeand interactive experience for all!

Paige Johnson, 10B4

Guesswho?


I joined the school in 2005 as anewly married KS3 Maths Co-ordinator. Christleton was totallydifferent to the school I hadcome from and I distinctlyremember boasting to my wifeabout how amazing it was beingable to teach again, rather thanorganise crowd control!Teaching students who werehungry for learning and caredabout their grades! In the firstterm, I was always running outof things to do in lessons as myclasses finished early and

completed the work that wouldtake a week at my formerschool! I even remember settingup an after-school class withsome Year 11 students to helpthem achieve As in their Maths,back in the days when there wasan intermediate syllabus! Theyall managed this and theirreactions made all of it totallyworth it.

Students at Christleton alwaysknow how to thank and supporttheir teachers, never more thanin our first Ofsted. I had a groupof Year 11s and had beenworking with them for 4 months.It was a small group of studentswho never really enjoyed Mathsbut we had worked hardtogether. An inspector walkedinto the room and the students,all of them, were so polite, sofocussed and did their level bestto impress! That one actionbrought us closer together thanany words of thanks could everdo. It was a wonderful feeling toknow that the students werealso proud of this school.When Mr Hall retired, I took overinducting the Newly QualifiedTeachers, many of whom remainhere and their quality istestament to theirprofessionalism, that of theircolleagues inducting them and toour students who give them theopportunities to shine asprofessionals.My involvement in the running ofthree ski trips have been excitingopportunities and I will take thememory with me of MrStenhouse on his first black run,together with many other happymemories of my time here. Myproudest day at Christleton waswhen I took four Year 11students, now in their first yearat University, to the EmiratesStadium in London, where theypresented our Peer Teachingproject to 1500 people, teaching

a lesson, discussing the ideasand benefits and fieldingquestions for 40 minutes.Christleton creates someamazing students and givesthem incredible life opportunity.

Over the years, opportunitiesarose and I was given mycurrent role as Head of Year.Taking my first ever Year groupthrough for 4 years, taught me agreat deal about studentsgrowing up and facingchallenges than I ever thoughtpossible. How we can and dosupport students became myfocus and I have always tried todo this to the best of my ability.As well as some sad times, withlessons learned, I will alwaysremember with pride, thesuccesses of so many studentstoo numerous to mentionindividually, but they know whothey are!

I would like to acknowledge thehelp, support and friendship ofall teaching and non-teachingstaff with special thanks to MrFisher, Mrs Evans, Ms Saxon, MrGoodwin, Mr Stenhouse and MrLamberton. These individualsare innovators who challenge allof us to provide the best for ourstudents. The school isfortunate to have such caring,talented and passionate staffwho have taught me so muchand for this I will always begrateful.

I joined as a 25 year old lad andleave as a senior member ofstaff, married with two kids. Ifeel I have really grown up atthis school! Goodbye to the bestschool - I look forward to mynext career challenge. Goodluck to all the students,especially my Year 11s whom I’llmiss so much. I am confidentyou will achieve some amazingresults next summer!.

Mr Dathan

It’s Goodbye from Mr Dathan…


Christleton High School wasexcitedly preparing for openevening on the 3rd ofOctober for what will be theNew Year 7s next September.Art Hot Scholars we wereasked to come up with ideasfor how we could presentand represent Art. This iswhen Abigail Stevenson andI came up with the idea ofusing swans and cygnets asa theme.

The Hot Scholars drew agiant swan and also threecygnets. The idea that I hadwas inspired by the tale of'The Ugly Duckling' which is

about an ugly duckling whogrows into a beautiful swanat the end of the story, verymuch like a student whochanges and grows as theygo through high school.

On open evening we set up aworkshop with the swan andits cygnets and waited forthe year 6 visitors. Whenthey came to Art they helpedto paint the swan andcygnets using fingerpainting. They then wrote ona feather shaped piece ofpaper one word to describehow they feel about comingto high school next year. Thefeathers have now beenattached to the swan whichis also a symbol for

Christleton Village. We had many visitorsincluding Mr De Winter, aGovernor, who said “There'splenty of work to showhere!”, and “It’s going to bebrilliant, this is a great idea!”Furthermore, Annie fromYear 6, said “I'm nervous butexcited about coming to highschool!” The youngest personwho joined in our activitywas a girl called Amy whowas aged 4!

I really enjoyed openevening and would definitelyhelp out next year!

Laura BeattieArt Hot Scholar

HHOOTTSSCCHHOOLLAARRSSArt Hot Scholars’

Success at Open Evening



ChristletonSleighleads the way...Christleton High Schoolstudents have spent thisterm designing and makingSanta’s Sleigh for ChesterRound Table led by year 9Design Technology studentsFin Wojtan and MatthewGoodwin. The Sleigh wasmanufactured by year 11Design and Technology (DT)students Tom Crank andChris Phillips under theguidance of DT TechnicianPaul Chafer and with helpfrom Art Technician LucyDentith. Among otherstudents who assisted wereAbi Stevenson, Kelly Morris,Georgia Jones and KatieHinde. A lot of time andeffort went into the designand construction whichneeded to be relativelytraditional to look at but alsoincorporate a generator,lights and a sound systemwhich could stand up to theelements. Head of DT,Hilary Kelly, commented that‘the whole project had beena valuable and very reallearning experience withquality, deadlines andbudgeting to be considered’.The students hope that thesleigh helps to raise as muchmoney for charity aspossible. This week Santasets off on his sleigh aroundHoole where the Scouts (ledby CHS DT teacher CharlyHillier) helped ChesterRound Table to collect forlocal charities. Keep an eyeand ear out…..he may bevisiting your area soon.

CHS STEM club needs your help!

What: 1500 empty 2 litre plastic bottlesWhy: To make a plastic bottle greenhouse

for the vegetable garden

Please take your empty bottles to Mr Britton in room A7 or Mrs Parker in room 19

STEM club = Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths.

GregoryJamesawardpresentedby theLordMayor ofChester"Earlier this year I wasawarded the 'Young GoodCitizen Award 2012’. I visitedthe Council HQ and receiveda certificate, presented bythe Lord Mayor of Chester.

She congratulated me on thework which I did as a ChildAmbassador for UNICEF. Wethen walked down to theracecourse where we had agreat 3 course meal. We had

the perfect view of theracecourse as we were in thehospitality boxes (where thecelebrities go!). Overall itwas a really good day!"Greg James 10B2

AUTUMN TERM 2013Term begins:Tuesday 3 September

AUTUMN HALF TERM Students finish:Friday 18 OctoberStudents return:Monday 28 October

CHRISTMAS Students finish:Thursday 19 DecemberStudents return:Monday 6 January 2014

SPRING HALF TERMStudents finish:Friday 14 FebruaryStudents return:Monday 24 February

EASTERStudents finish:Thursday 3 AprilStudents return:Tuesday 22 April

MAY DAY Students finish:Friday 2 MayStudents return:Tuesday 6 May

SUMMER HALF TERM Students finish:Friday 23 MayStudents return:Monday 2 June

SUMMERStudents finish:Friday 18 July

INSET DAYSMonday2 September 2013Staff In

Friday 20 December 2013Staff not in

Friday 4 April 2014Staff In (Moderation)

Monday 21 July 2014Staff not in

Tuesday 22 July 2014Staff not in

TERM DATES 2013 - 2014

National schoolcross countryfinalistsChristy Mageean, Joe Powell,Jac Goodall, CameronBradley, Lewis Roberts andAdam Carlile.

They came 2nd in theRegional finals and competein the National final in Boltonon Saturday 1st December2012, results will be in thenext edition of the Swan!


Our latest completed project atSTEM was the making of our veryown terrariums; which was forour Bronze Crest Awards.Although it took some time,concentration, determination,hard work and effort fromeveryone, the complete productwas absolutely fantastic.

Each group had their own uniquedesigns, shapes and plants whichmade the project freer and morefun, as it was up to us what wewould do. You may be wonderingwhat terrariums actually are?They are sealed transparentglobes with pretty plants inside.Terrariums are self sustaining asthey don't have to be watered orfed. This is because just beforethe plants are sealed in the globethey are watered. Then theprocess of photosynthesis beginswhen the plant receives lightwhich makes the plant transpire.The water vapour fromtranspiration rises up and

condenses on the walls and thenslides down into the soil whichthe plant can reuse again andagain. The dead leaves of plantthat drop off after a whiledecompose which give the plantsnutrients, so they stay healthyand grow for a long time.Terrariums are very easy tomaintain as you don't have to doanything to them just sit backand admire. In the project weused our scientific skills whichhelped us to understand howterrariums work. The technologypart was the building of theterrarium. And finally the mathsand engineering was implied to

designing the shape of ourterrariums which had to be madeof tessellating polygons. Ithoroughly enjoyed the projectespecially building theterrariums. Also it was reallyinteresting to learn about whatterrariums are and how theywork as before joining STEM Idid not have a clue what theywere.

I think the most challenging partwas at the end when each grouphad to summarise their projectand what they did in apresentation to be able toreceive their CREST awards.Overall the project was a greatsuccess for everyone and I amreally looking forward to doinganother project at STEM.

Dominika Sadczuk 9Ba1

S.T.E.M.TERRARIUM

TIME



KEEPINGOURSTUDENTSSAFEDuring the darkermornings and eveningsand in adverse weatherconditions, we considerour studentsparticularly vulnerablewhen travelling to andfrom school.

Unfortunately, thisvulnerability isheightened when theyarrive at school, due toan increasing number ofcars parked directly atthe gates and oftendriven onto thepremises at the startand end of the schoolday.

Parents/Guardians willbe aware of the doubleyellow lines and zig-zagroad markings, inaddition to road signs.In order to improvesafety, we request thatyou please refrain fromdropping your childrennear to the gates or onthe school premises atthese busy times.

Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

Mr Stenhouse

On Friday the 5th October 2012,Christleton under 13’s Netballteam arrived at Condover Hall,Shrewsbury. When we arrivedwe met our leader, Nigel. Hethen showed us to our house,where we would be staying forthe weekend, the mill house. Wethen went to tea in the dinnerhall, we had a choice of Macaronior beef mince with chips, it wasdelicious! That evening we wentand did lots of fun activities forexample the laser maze,tunnelling and grid of stones. Weall had an amazing night, wecouldn’t sleep very well.

The time soon came to start thenetball matches after an hour ofwarming up, we were veryfortunate in winning our firstmatch and that put us all in highspirits. But we sadly lost the 2ndand 3rd game. Then during thelast few minutes of the 3rd game

Amy Russon(GA) went downafter a collision with anotherplayer she ended up having totake a trip to A+E with MrsLeedham. Later that day wefound out she had fractured hercollar bone and was unable toplay. This made a massiveimpact on the team as we wereshort of an amazing shooter.Unfortunately we then lost thenext 2 matches but we were ona high for the final match, as wecouldn’t wait to see Amy; wewon this match with a high goaldifference!

The following morning we gotthe news that we had got intothe plate final, we were alldelighted as we knew we hadnot played our best the daybefore. We began warming upand we were all raring to go. Weplayed four matches and thoughtwe did very well but we werecompeting against a hard team.We had to wait for the result ofthe Colfes final match to see ifwe had won, we need them towin by more than 17 goals. Itwas very tense and when werealised they had not scoredenough goals, we were ecstaticand began screaming andshouting!

During the final we played ourbest as we all knew just howmuch we wanted this. Whilst wewere playing first half we werepretty even; so it all came downto fitness and strength but in theend we just pulled throughleading to a victory. We had wonthe plate final!

Fern Horsfield and Emma Cresswell 8BA2

NETBALL @Condover Hall

Rugbyat

Christleton HighThis Term

The rugby has been fantasticthis term and it has enabledeven more players to comeinto the teams and representthe school. Key Stage 3rugby has seen the mostpositive results with both theUnder 13s and 14s playing inthe Cheshire Cup andperforming extremely well.The Year 9 squad has nowgrown to 25 players with newadditions such as AnthonyFoster, James Allan, OllyWeaver and Jack Carey allstarting to develop their skillsin such a short space of time.Sam Brearey, BradleyJackson, Adam Bridle, JamesParry and Finley Wojtan havebeen exceptional in theirdisplays and they never let

their team mates down. Theyhave played in every matchand are always a pleasure tohave in the team. The Year 9rugby team has reallydeveloped confidence in all itsplayers and they really dowork hard for each other. Somuch so that when theyplayed last year againstTarporley High, who are oneof the best sides in the area,Christleton lost heavily butthis year there was only fivepoints between the twoteams, which highlights howmuch the Christleton teamhave improved.

The Year 8 rugby team is oneof the most organised teamsin the school, they conduct

their own warm up beforeeach match and getthemselves focused at alltimes. Tom Wyatt, GeorgeCampbell and Harry Ford arethe key influences inpreparing their team and theyalways perform to anexcellent standard. The Year8 team have progressed wellsince last year. They camefifth in the Chester andDistrict emerging schoolscompetition, narrowly missingout on a semi-final place by 1point. The Year 8 team havealso gained more playerswhich has bolstered thesquad. Players such as RoryHarper, Karter Cutler-Evanand Sam Ward didn’t play lastyear but have now come into


the squad and have made areal difference in bothdefence and attack. JoeNesbit, George Campbell,Harry Ford, James Foxx havebeen excellent in theperformances and really doset the standards.

The Year 7 team have beensensational this term andthey are the best team in theschool at present. They areundefeated in all friendly

fixtures, undefeated at theTarporley festival and theyhave been crowned Chesterand District emerging schoolschampions. During theemerging schools festival theYear 7 team only conceded 1try and scored 12. They areanother team to always getthemselves warmed up beforegames and they are led bythree excellent individuals.Tom Roebuck, Jac Goodalland Arran Brearey are naturalleaders and always organisethe team prior to fixtures,during matches and withinlessons. Due to ourconnections with Sale Sharkswe had two tickets to one oftheir Premiership fixtures athome. These tickets went to

Tom Roebuck as he was ‘Manof The Match’ at the emergingschools competition and so itwas a fantastic prize for himto receive. There are anumber of players who haveplayed exceptionally well butit is important to mentionthat Phil Hopkins, JasonTaylor and Zac Smith, whohave only just started playingrugby in school sinceSeptember, show naturalability for the game.

A number of players are alsobeing selected to trial for theCheshire squad in the nearfuture, players like SamBrearey, Finley Wojtan, AdamBridle, Harry Ford, Joe Nesbit,George Campbell, Tom Wyattand James Fox are all playersthat frequently play to a highstandard with both club andschool and I wish them wellat the trials. Joe Layder hasrecently made the U15s WestCheshire squad and he hasperformed excellently in hismatches at scrum half. Thereis huge talent at Christletonand it won’t be long untilanother player makes thesquad.

A huge thank you must alsogo to Tom Lacy and ConnorFarrell in year 11 who havehelped to train the Year 7 and8 team every Tuesday duringafter school club. They alsohelp coach the teams duringboth home and away fixturesand they are beginning tobecome excellent coaches.The Year 7 and 8 teams reallyappreciate your help and Ihope it continues.

I hope all players haveenjoyed playing for theschool. We have about 25players who play regularly ineach team in Years 7, 8 and 9and I hope to see you foryears to come. Well done toall involved and if you are notinvolved in the school teamand would like to join in,please come to training onTuesdays after school or askMr Barton.

Mr G Barton


ChristletonHigh SchoolRugby Kitarriving soonNew to 2013 is the Christleton

High rugby kit that has been

kindly purchased by the CHSA.

The kit design has been sent to

the manufacturers and will be

with us in the New Year. We will

have 22 shirts available for Years

9 and 10 to play in and as the

popularity of rugby grows in the

school, so does the need for a

strong, durable and recognisable

kit. I hope the students of

Christleton High will be proud of

the new shirts and I will keep

you up to date of all that’s

happened on the field of play in

the next edition of the SWAN.

Mr G Barton

We’re going to the

Zoo Zoo

Zoo...When we went to Chester zoo we were allowed to walk around andlook at the fantastic animals that they have on offer until lunchtime.I walked round with Peter Jackson and Sam Jenkins (it was veryentertaining with Peter being scared of the bat house). Also on ourway round the zoo we filled out a leaflet on types of endangeredanimals from butterflies to huge Asian elephants.

In the afternoon we had a talk about endangered animals andwhy poachers kill certain animals and how long it takes for certaintypes of rubbish takes to decompose like cigarette butts, plasticbags, nappies, tins etc...

It was a great day and I learnt a lot of good information that willhelp me with my GCSE’s.

Will Rushforth 10L2

We held our very own ‘Wear itPink’ Day on Friday 19th October2012 with an Eco Twist; studentswere given the choice to wearPink or Green and pay £1 ordonate a phone to recycle andraise cash for Breast CancerAwareness.

Our Pink and Green Non UniformContributions raised a fantastic£681.83 We collected over 200phones which will be exchangedfor cash.

In addition, students and Stafforganised a Pink Cake Salewhich raised £178.01

A Whopping Total of £859.84 so far!

By recycling your phone you make sure itdoesn't become part of the growing streamof electronic waste that is polluting theenvironment with toxic materials such aslead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic

Christleton goes pink andgreen on non-uniform day!


Christleton High School - Swan Autumn 2012

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Transcript of Christleton High School - Swan Autumn 2012