Inter House Arts Concert

REPORT & PICTURES ON PAGE 3

HEDLIGHTSHEDINGHAM SCHOOL & SIXTH FORM NEWSLETTER - MAY 2014

PACKED WITHTALENT

What a Mouthful!JOE NOURSE’S CHALLENGE PAGE 5

CONGRATULATIONS to The Jack Petchey Award Winners for April and May.

James Peagram is the Jack Petchey Award Winner for April.

James was nominated for starting and managing an out-of-school football team. His team really appreciate the time and energy he has put into this and the camaraderie it has created.

Darryl Poynter is the Jack Petchey Award Winner for May.

Darryl was nominated for supporting the school production with regard to manning the lighting desk and also productions at Haverhill Arts Centre.

Both are conscientious and thoughtful members of the school community.

YET another May has come to an end and once again we find ourselves wishing our Year 11, 12 and 13 students good luck and best wishes in their examinations which continue in earnest after half term. Our students have been working very hard, with enormous support from their teachers, associate staff and parents, over the last year. They have attended the holiday revision programmes and gained hugely from the work they have done. Now they face the reality of actually having to sit the exams. We have every confidence in their ability to achieve their potential and attain success. I would like to thank all staff and parents for their encouragement and support of our young people at this very important time.

Our students performed really well in The “Have your Say” Final in Colchester on Wednesday 7 May. The competition was strong, but we managed to win some prizes as follows: Year 10 German – 3rd PlaceYear 10 French – 3rd place

Congratulations to all the

students involved. Thank you to Emily Malaval and the MFL team for all their hard work.

Lesley Williams once again successfully led the Drugs Awareness Day on 8 May with our Year 9 students. They had a very instructive and enjoyable day and 36 students were selected. They had a training day with Lesley in order to prepare them for their visits to our partner primary schools in June. My thanks to everyone involved, particularly Lesley, for all her good work.

The regional final of the Jack Petchey ‘Speak Out’ Challenge took place at Hedingham School on Thursday 15 May. It was a brilliant event. Congratulations to our students who were very good, and my thanks to Melissa Dunne for her hard work. There is more information, plus pictures of this prestigious event, inside Hedlights.Friday 16 May was the leaving day of our Year 13 students. They had a brilliant day, together with an emotional assembly and lots of tears, as the reality set in that this was indeed their very last day at Hedingham School. We wish them

all good luck in their examinations and wherever they go from here work, college or university, we hope they leave with happy memories and wish them every success for the future

Wednesday 21 May was the last teaching day for Year 11 and again it was an excellent day for them and everyone who has worked with them. They were well behaved all morning and had a great afternoon assembly. It was a very poignant time for most of them when they left the school site at the end of the day.

I leave you to browse through the rest of Hedlights where you will be able to read about the various events and activities which have occurred within school during this half term.

School starts again on Monday 2 June 2014.

John Panayi,Headteacher

Head’s Lines

Jack Petchey Awards THE

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James Peagram Daryl Poynter

YEAR 9 IMMUNISATIONS Thursday 26 June DTP and Men C

WITHOUT a doubt, my favourite evening on the school calendar! This year’s Arts Festival and Concert were packed with talent. Hedingham students in all Houses rose to the challenge and we were had a large number of entries, from poems to pictures; from dance to drama. Our judges had a very difficult job, particularly in the new baking category, where runners up could easily have been winners.

On the night, we saw and heard some very entertaining and some very powerful performances; it’s very hard to single any out for particular praise. However, there were two stunning solo vocal performances from Danielle Rulton in Year 11 and Ella Odedina in Year 8. There was also a lovely fun rendition of ‘Lollipops’ during which the audience were treated to handfuls of lollipops being thrown at them.

Another first was the Handwriting category. We were very keen to encourage and reward students for the presentation of their writing. Once again, AS thriller openings were played during the interval. These really captured people’s attention and entertained them in the break while they enjoyed their refreshments.

The overall winning House this year was Symonds. House Leader, Mr Johnston, looked as pleased as the individual winners when he came up to accept the trophy. Well done, Symonds!

Four of the Houses have now won this Arts Competition. It feels ironic that, after organising the event for the last four years, my own House, Thomason, has not yet lifted this trophy. Come on Thomason!

This was my last year directing the Arts Festival and I am now handing the organisation of the event over to the House Team. I’m sure I’m leaving it in safe hands.

Mrs Bird

Inter-HouseArts Festival& Concert Photograhs of some

of the performances from the concert

NATIONAL SCIENCE WEEK was held in March and to spread the word of the wonders of the scientific world, staff and Sixth Form students from Hedingham School were invited to work at St John the Baptist Primary School in Pebmarsh for the day. One of the Sixth Formers involved, 16 year old Kyle Coldwell attended Pebmarsh Primary School when he was younger and he commented, ‘It was excellent returning to my primary school and seeing some familiar faces. All the children were very enthusiastic about science which was really good.’

The youngest pupils at the primary school had a fascinating morning, using pooters to investigate the life in leaf litter, and some got very friendly with the snails they discovered! They also made ‘indicator fish’ which they painted with household acids and alkalis to help them understand chemicals in the home. Just before lunch the 5 year olds had the chance to get their hands in frog spawn to feel what it was like and look at newts and frogs. Sixth Former Charlie Rivers, who is 17 and lives in Halstead, said, ‘I really enjoyed looking at the frogs and newts and so did the young children – we all especially enjoyed feeling the sliminess of the frog spawn!’ As Charlie hopes to be a primary school teacher in the future, this experience will stand him in good stead!

Older pupils had the opportunity to react metals and dilute acids to produce hydrogen gas which makes a wonderfully loud squeak when tested with a lighted splint. That gave everyone quite a surprise! They also tried out chromatography techniques, testing a range of felt pens to see the variety of coloured inks used and tackling some forensic science with fingerprinting experiments. They ended up making coco mentos fountains where mentos sweets are placed in large bottles of Diet Coke and produce a spectacular fountain fuelled by the gas produced. As the wind suddenly blew in the wrong direction at this moment, a number of young people got quite sticky!!

Miss Charlea De’ath, Coordinator of Science at the primary school, invited Hedingham School Science Department to join them at Pebmarsh for the day. Charlea was previously a student at Hedingham School and went on to train as a primary school teacher after completing her A levels in the Sixth Form. Charlea commented,

‘What more could we have asked for? Test tubes, hydrochloric acid, finger printing, cabbage paper fish, exploding coke, leaf littering, chromatography and a stomach-turning ‘Digestive System’ experiment - the latter caused screams of delight and revulsion in equal measure! Hedingham staff and students led the activities with energy, humour and no small amount of patience! It was wonderful to have further ways to prove to the children that science is exhilarating, unexpected and all around us.’

An excellent day was had by all and, as 17 year old Joe Nourse from Halstead commented, ‘The day was a bunch of fun for everyone! It was great working with the primary school team and seeing the children learn more about Science.’

It wasn’t only the primary age children that had fun during National Science Week; Year 7 and 8 students at Hedingham School also had the chance to take part in exciting scientific activities at lunchtime including making methane bubbles which burst into flames in their hands (don’t do this one at home!!), making silly putty to play with and learning about the pH scale using rainbow fizzes.

The Science Learning Area was also decorated for National Science Week with red, white and blue bunting made by students to celebrate famous scientists from around the world and their inventions, which have all made such a difference to the world we live in. Students who were especially commended for their ‘Brilliant B u n t i n g ’ were Aman Chahal, Otilly Frost, Daisy Newton, Thea Rees Phillips and Lauren Christmas.

Charlie Rivers with his enthusiastic invertebrate hunters

Scienceis Fun!

Getting close

and friendly

with a snail!

THE annual careers fair for Year 9 students was held this year on Thursday 24th April 2014.Hedingham School welcomed in local businesses, sixth forms, colleges and training providers to help support young people and show them what is on offer when they reach school leaving age.Supporting at this year’s fair were:Hedingham Sixth FormEssex Wildlife TrustBraintree District CouncilEasi Hair AcademyColchester Institute/the College at BraintreeC.A. Blackwell LtdDelphi of SudburyBabcock International EngineeringAnglia Ruskin UniversityLifeskills (Learn a living)The ArmyRoyal Navy

There was also an independent Careers Advisor in attendance for students who require a bit more individual help and guidance and a STEM Ambassador attended, to encourage the students to think about careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.

The students were able to visit each of the stalls and ask questions and receive advice about their own aspirations for the future.

Annual Year 9 Careers Fair

Delphi of Sudbury stall

What a mouthful!EVERYONE loves a Malteser chocolate but Hedingham School Sixth Former, Joe Nourse, took this notion a bit further. He decided that an innovative way to raise money for Sport Relief would be to see how many Maltesers he could fit into his mouth at once! Joe set about publicising the challenge he had set himself and encouraged friends and fellow students to pay a £1 to guess the number of Maltesers he would be able to manage.

On the day of Sport Relief, Joe, who is 17 years old and lives in Halstead, sat in the school foyer surrounded by other students to cheer him on. With a First Aider on hand, in case he choked and needed a timely Heimlich Manoeuvre, Joe started popping Maltesers in his mouth one by one. The students watched in amazement as Joe’s mouth started to resemble a hamster’s preparing for winter – his cheeks bulged as he resorted to squeezing each

Malteser into tiny gaps around his teeth. Head Boy and fellow Sixth

Former, Nathan Hope, counted out loud as Joe carried on and Nathan held a small bucket under Joe’s chin just in case………

At last no more Maltesers could be forced into Joe’s mouth and he had to stop with an incredible 40 chocolates jammed into his mouth - which he was still able to shut! To a huge cheer Joe then had to spit the Maltesers into the bucket as it was impossible for him to swallow them all. You might think it was a waste of some delicious sweets but Joe has now raised over £100 for Sport Relief which is a great achievement and one that provided entertainment and fund raising inspiration for others. Younger students are now waiting with anticipation for Joe’s next fund raising challenge which he plans for the end of term.

After the event Joe commented, ‘The challenge felt great and I was amazed I could fit that number of Maltesers in at once – 40! It was a brilliant feeling, raising money for such an inspirational cause!’

Joe with 30 Maltesers in his mouth, looking like a hamster

ON Friday 21st March Hedingham School had council members collecting money from classes and with their

fantastic help we raised £1,300 for Comic Relief this year. On behalf of the School Council we thank the people

who participated in Non-Uniform day and paid £1.50. It was also the day for year 11 students to dress up in very exciting costumes. They all looked amazing and we are sure they all had fun. William BevanSchool Council

Non Uniform Day for Comic Relief

ON Thursday the 15th of May, Hedingham School was lucky to host the prestigious event of the North East Essex Final. The night was amazing and enlightening with a range of thought-provoking as well as humorous speeches. The themes ranged from war to the typical garden gnome..

Last year’s Hedingham winner was the Master of Ceremonies for

the night. He retained his usual air of wit and great delivery throughout the night to help introduce each of the speakers in a very entertaining manner. Well done to Jonathan Banks-Seeney!

Sam Ward delivered a heart-wrenching speech based on mental illnesses which had the audience holding their breath. Meanwhile, Mally Fenemore-Jones provided

the audience with a whimsical take on the representations of Disney which was witty and neatly structured. Unfortunately, we did not place in the competition, but the girls were amazing and represented the school extremely well.

The winning speech was a clever discussion of the modern world and its technologies by Sophie Perrins. Better luck next year for us!

Jack Petchey Speak Out Final

Sam Ward Mally Fenemore-Jones

WE would like to say a huge congratulations to Denys Seleznov in Year 10. After achieving the certificate for Best in School for the Intermediate Maths Challenge run by the University of Leeds, he was invited to take part in the next round of the competition, the Olympiad Hamilton paper. The paper took place on Thursday 20th March, where Denys was given two hours to attempt six complex Maths problems.

He managed to achieve a distinction, placing in the top 100 in the country of 1700 participants. Denys has been presented with a medal and certificate to acknowledge this incredible achievement. Denys commented,‘I did not expect to get that far in my very first try in the Maths Challenge, but the questions were not all that hard. I was very excited to be able to participate in the Maths Olympiad!’

Hedingham’s Top MathematicianHEDINGHAM School was lucky to have the talented author, Alan Gibbons, teach numerous workshops to a variety of year groups. Mr.Gibbons is a fantastic writer from Liverpool who has produced children’s novels since 1991.His father was a farm-labourer, but was hurt in an accident when Alan was only eight-years-old. He began to write for his students as a teacher and later had some of his work published.Some of his work includes: Total Football; The Edge; Hold On and Raining Fire. In 2000, he won the Blue Peter Book Award. He was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal twice, in 2001 and 2003.

He taught the students a fun-filled way of exploring creative writing. He led them through an innovative thought process to produce an exciting adventure! This will enable students to be able to produce a better quality of writing in their English. Moreover, he taught the Year 10s and 11s a number of techniques in order to achieve the A/A* grades in their GCSEs.Miss Dunne

The Great Gibbons!

SIXTEEN year old Zoe Sones from Yeldham has recently passed her Grade 8 piano exam with a Distinction which is an incredible achievement and one that is rare for students still at school. Zoe has been playing the piano since she was 6 years old and loves playing classical music, particularly the work of Chopin.

Zoe said she aimed for a Distinction when she took her exam but never thought she would get it. After the exam she checked the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music website every day for 11 days until her result was finally there for all to see. Zoe commented, ‘I was completely

shocked when I saw that I had gained a Distinction for my Grade 8 piano exam but I was very happy too!’

Zoe is currently studying hard for her GCSE exams whch she takes in the summer at Hedingham School and she then plans to go on to do A levels - including Music obviously! She is unsure of a future career but would like to go on to university and be involved in music in some way.

Zoe has played piano in several school productions including the recent highly acclaimed production of ‘We Will Rock You’ and has entertained guests at many school events such as Certificate and Achievement Evenings. She also plays the viola which she started learning when she was in Year 9 at school and plays in the Essex Youth String Orchestra outside of school. Zoe is now preparing for her viola Grade 6 examination which she takes this weekend. We have no doubt that she will be successful!

Zoe Hits the High Notes!

ON Friday 28th March, the Year 12 Geographers went to Clacton to investigate the development of a seaside resort and the need for the Essex coast to be rebranded. Once we were all on board, Mr Ballard drove the mini bus whilst Year 12 ate, and ate some more and then had a snack to keep them going. We parked up in the coach park near the Martello tower in Clacton and walked along the sea front into the town centre, it was a lovely bright day but really cold. When we met up

two hours later, everyone descended on McDonald’s and shared their stories of the sights they’d seen around town. After dispersing to complete the rest of their work, we met again for lunch in the gardens near the pier where we calculated whether or not Clacton is a clone town and shared our ideas as to whether or not Clacton needs a rebrand.

We walked back to the mini bus along the beach, spotting some graffiti art and pretty pastel beach

huts on the way. We also discovered that Year 12 students are quite similar to dogs when taken for a walk at the seaside because they eat anything, no matter how gross it is, they chase seagulls, waves and balls on the beach and attempt to bring home with them whatever they find washed up on the beach, including hermit crabs and old tyres! Eventually, laden down with rocks and pebbles, we boarded the mini bus for a somewhat pungent journey home.

Clacton Fieldwork

FIFTEEN members of the Hedingham School Orienteering Team went along to the East Anglian Schools Championships which took place at Hadleigh Country Park on Sunday 11th May. Schools from across the region took part in the event

in a hilly area partly used for the Olympic Mountain Biking in 2012 with lovely views across the Thames Estuary.The Year 9/10 boys’ team were gold medal winners in their category with an individual silver medal for Josh Partridge, bronze for John-Henry Love, Joseph Powers 6th, Ollie Smith 8th & Lucas Wrigley-Moss 10th. It was a clean sweep in both the Year 7/8 & 9/10 girls categories with Chloe Cracknell winning gold, Victoria Love silver, Cerys Wrigley Moss Bbronze and 5th Place for an injured Abi Duncan in Year 7/8. Daisy Partridge was gold medalist running up in the Year 9/10 girls category with Laura Smith Silver, Harriet Vinter Bronze, Annie Northfield 4th & Tia Coster 5th. The overall result was incredibly close this year with the E A Schools Championship trophy being shared by Hedingham School and St Andrew’s

Primary School with Barnardiston Prep in third, Kings College School 4th and Brentwood School 5th.This fantastic achievement followed on from their success at the Yvette Baker trophy heats in February where ten members of the Hedingham School team helped Essex to win a place in the prestigious national final for the third year running. Well done team!A special mention should also go to Charlie Partridge on his first competitive Orange standard course. Charlie stopped to assist a younger competitor and consequently mispunched shortly before the finish. Well done Charlie and the other Hedingham team members who also helped the young boy at different times along the way. This sportsmanship and the kindness shown to another competitor is very commendable.

This is Barnaby, a recent addition to the Geography department. He loves travelling and will happily stow away on any trips which other departments organise! Since Christmas, he has been skiing and to Poland with the Sixth Form and he has now written about his adventures in his own unique style (with a little help from some friends). I hope you enjoy his stories which may give a different perspective on these visits to the authorised official accounts of them which are also published in Hedlights! If you are going on an adventure and would like Barnaby to come too, please let the Geography department know and we’ll

organise Barnaby with the required travel documents and vaccinations (and yes we do know this is a bit crazy).

‘Hi, I am Barnaby and I went to Le Touquet. We went to Le Touquet by bus and I got a little bit bus sick. When we got to Dover we caught the ferry. I got a Costa and it was hot and I burnt my mouth.Then we went to the arcade and then got a bus when the ferry stopped. When we got to our hotel it was nice and warm and I got the key to my room. I then had a shower. Then we had dinner and I had chips and

steak. After dinner we went on a walk around the hotel then went back to our rooms. We all went to bed. The night was hot but after a few minutes I got to sleep. In the morning we had breakfast, croissants, cereal and hot chocolate.

We then got on the bus and went to a market. I bought some glasses and a hat. We then went to a

chocolate factory where I bought some chocolate for my whole family.

Afterwards we caught the ferry home. I went to the vending machine

then sat down until we were back in England. We watched Despicable Me

2. We got back to school then went home.’

Orienteering

Hello from Barnaby

Skiing in in Austria

Relaxing in Le Touquet

Inset: Off to Poland

YOUR COMMUNITY CINEMA - HEDINGHAM FILM CLUB

PRESENTS

FROZEN  (PG) 

Frozen is a phenomenon. It's a magical and emotional experience that will stay with you for days, weeks, months after you see it. Everything 

from the animation to the toe tapping musical numbers are breathtaking and will delight adults and children alike. 

 

8pm Friday 30th May SHOWING ON THE BIG SCREEN AT

THE HEDINGHAM VILLAGE CLUB STATION ROAD, SIBLE HEDINGHAM

Tickets: Adults £5 / Children £4

(under 12's must be accompanied by an adult)

REFRESHMENTS AVAILABLE http://www.essexinfo.net/siblehedingham/hedingham-film-club/