October 2015 A NEWSPAPER FROM PARK VIEW SCHOOL Issue 51

Talent Rewarded A BADGE OFHONOUR

Created when we became aComprehensive, and worn with pride bynumerous generations, the school badgehas very much been seen as a symbol ofPark View. So why change it? MrsGraham, the Business DevelopmentOfficer, explains: ‘When I came into post,I was intrigued by the meaning of thebadge and asked several students whatthe symbols were.

All agreed on the hand but interpretationsof the bird ranged from a turkey to abudgie and the animal from a bull to adog. I asked Mr Veitch and he told methat they represent the three areas whichwere brought together to create theschool: a glove, to symbolise Lumley; adeer, to symbolise Lambton and a Ravenfor Ravensworth.

It seemed sensible, given how importantour heritage is to us, to have the badgeredesigned to make these more clear. Iam delighted with the result, as are thestudents, and particularly like the way wewere able to keep the school colours ofyellow and black whilst incorporating thecoloured strips to show the House identi-ties.’

The new academic year has begun with theschool in optimistic mood with regard to thechallenges ahead, largely because our stu-dents continue to achieve so well in somany fields. Academically, students in Year11 continue to perform well, exceedingnational averages significantly.

The GCSE results this yearwere a fitting testamentto the talent anddetermination of ourstudents and theprofessional dedi-cation of ourstaff. It was anabsolute delightto see the vastmajority of ouryoung peoplegaining the gradesthey needed toaccess the futureopportunities which theyhad set their hearts on, with75% achieving C+ in English and72% in Maths. It is no surprise that themajority have joined our Sixth Form andhave made a great start to their life there.

Out of so many spectacular achievements,special mention must go to SarahCampbell, Satiago Dubov, Becky Gatenby,Katie Gunn, Frazer Hepburn, AlexJennings, Scott Burgess, Daniel Jukes,Summer Patton, Megan Cotcher, KiahEdwards, Isabelle Foster, Katie Hopkinson,Adam Petch and Katherine Turnbull whoachieved the highest grades in ten subjectsor more

Our A-level students have maintainedexcellent standards, achieving, on average,points scores equivalent to AAA. Of partic-ular note were Ben Fraser, Lauren andRachel Potter, Erin Bell, Irem Ozen, RobynBailey, Steven Lowes, Daniel Thompson,Amy Williams, Sarah Forster and Saima

Chowdhury who all achieved at least threesubjects at grades A*/A. Our heartfelt con-gratulations go to the students who workedso hard, the parents/carers who were sosupportive and the staff who were so com-mitted to ensuring that they achieved their

potential.

Park View is not, and neverwill be, an examination

factory. We believethat education is not

about finding quickfixes to make theschool look goodin performancetables but ratherthat we have aduty to educate

the whole child.Performance in

external examina-tions is vital but as

important to many childrenare their achievements in

music, drama and sport; their creativ-ity in the workshops and art studios or theircontributions to the local and global com-munity: it is in these arenas that lifetimememories are made and that young peopletruly grow and mature, developing the skillsand attributes which they will need in adultlife. With that in mind, just before we brokeup for the summer, I was delighted to seeso many throw themselves heart and soulinto the Enrichment Activities. Study visitsabroad and at home, work experienceplacements and in-school projects werehugely successful, with all praised for theirpositivity and commitment. The attitudeshown is indicative of the collective com-munity spirit which pervades Park View: putsimply, we are a happy school where chil-dren thrive because they are valued andvalue others.

I.R VEITCH, Headteacher

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This Was a Big RiverIt was with Jimmy Nail’s tribute to The Tyne ringing in our earsthat myself, Mr Owen and Mrs Heslop and an intrepid groupof Year 9 students set off on a week long adventure to findout why so many Geordies regard the river as the heartbeatof the city. We started at its mouth, with what for many wastheir first taste of not only surfing but also the North Sea.

Unbelievably, we had a sun-kissed day, the kind whichmakes the Long Sands at Tynemouth the most beautifulbeach in the world, and all were quick to get into wet suits andout on their boards: it was a truly fantastic experience. Thenext two days were spent on The Quayside, seeing sights,taking photographs, interviewing local people and hearingtheir moving stories as well as undertaking a river cruise. Weeven found time to go for lunch to the magnificent SausageEmporium, where Stone and Ryan tried Chipotle peppers forthe first, and probably the last, time.

The week was rounded off with the creation of a living muse-um, visitors being treated to models, paintings, soundscapes,poetry, films and photo-montages, all created by the stu-dents. I could not have wished for better company and wasdelighted by the work that they produced. My father anduncle both served their time in the shipyards of The Tyne andloved it above all else – I think they would have been movedat the way that the river had spoken to the souls of childrenof a different generation and time.

I.R VEITCH

Cayeux-sur-Mer

At the end of the summer term a group of fantastic studentsfrom Y7 spent a wonderful week in France exploring the cul-ture and history as well as practising their French languageskills. At the start of the visit we explored some of the WW1battlefields of the Somme and the war memorial at Thiepvalwhich gave students an insight into the historical significanceof the region. Students took part in different language chal-lenges and also conducted interviews in French which wasfantastic to see. It was an entertaining week with Mr Smyth’smusical soirée and the sports and games on the beach. Weenjoyed a fantastic day at the Nausicaa aquarium followedby a visit to a local snail farm, where students learnt aboutthis French delicacy and sampled some ‘escargots’.Délicieux! The highlight of the visit for all was without doubtthe visit to Parc Bagatelle, c’était fantastique!

Sixty Year 7 and 8 students spent aweek in Dalguise on an activity holiday.The students had a fantastic time andmanaged to dodge the rain drops onthe whole, whilst the staff found a wayto avoid the Scottish midges. Studentstook part in new activities this year,including archery, night walk and aburn walk, alongside the traditionalcanoeing, biking and climbing. Theburn walk was particularly hard as theyquite often had to scramble over diffi-cult terrain whilst at times being blind-folded and led by friends: scary stuff!!!!The week was all about team work,pushing boundaries and having fun,ending with a brilliant disco, duringwhich Mrs Danby was seen throwingsome shapes on the dance floor.Members of staff at Park View Schoollove the Dalguise trip as it is a fabulousopportunity to interact with the studentsin a different environment and to seehow remarkable they can be.

A Year 8 student said “The activitiesthat we did were excellent. Theinstructors were very kind and pushedus to try to go further in each activity:we were pushed to our limits. The bestactivity was probably the tree climbbecause it was so high – my heart wasracing. I liked it because there were sixof my friends in my dorm and in sum-mary the whole trip was really fun.”

Students from Park View School visited St Mary’s NursingHome and had the pleasure of spending time with the residents,listening to their life stories. It was a privilege to be able to listento the poignant stories the residents shared with our students:stories about the war, first days at school, when they met theirlife- long partners or a special moment from their lives. One stu-dent said the project was ‘amazing’ and that it was’ an honour tohave someone open up and share the personal details of theirlives’.

The students took the information they gathered and wrote upan account of what they had been told and, when these hadbeen critiqued and redrafted, placed the stories in beautifulwooden frames and returned them to the home and presentedthem as gifts to new friends, leading to many tears on bothsides. The work the students created remembered and paid trib-ute to stories from the lives of some of our elderly residents, cre-ating a permanent account that the residents placed proudly intheir rooms.

The project certainly proved to be rewarding, as students gainedknowledge of what life was like during earlier years in andaround Chester – le –Street, and they formed relationships withthe residents which continued after the project ended: some stu-dents have taken to visiting the residents in their own time. OnePark View student said she found the project ‘inspirational,’ see-ing how ‘older people have helped to improve and shape ourcommunities and overcome obstacles she would neverencounter today’. She went on to say she saw ‘real strength’ andbelieves our ‘elderly residents should be respected more’. MrsMoore said “For me, the beauty of this project was that it allowedus to span generations, to work with our community, and itenabled our students to feel a sense of pride in their work, as itis dearly valued by those who received a ‘Story from their Life’.”

Brave Hearts North of the Border

Life Stories from the OlderGeneration

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Before the Summer holidays, the staffwere challenged to show their devotionto the written text by taking books toplaces no man (or woman) had gonebefore. Some chose to weave theirreading into their past-times, with MrsWilson and Mrs Burnett photographedreading on golf greens in sunnierclimes. Others chose to dice with dan-ger, most notably Mr Cooper, whoclimbed the huge tree outside the SixthForm Block for some tranquillity; MrHiggins and Mr Macnamara, who choseto hang upside down from great heights;Mrs Wanless, who took her book to the

very edge of Cheddar Gorge and MrBell, who read his newspaper on HolyIsland Causeway whilst the tides encir-cled him. Finally, we had the exotic: MrsHeslop reading on the floor of theBarrier Reef; Mrs Reynolds hanging outof a tower at the highest point ofMajorca; Mrs Muncaster hanging on fordear life in a tuk-tuk and Mr Mainattempting to teach a monkey to read inBali. In the photograph, Mr Groark read-ing at an archery range – perhaps if hehad worn a different football shirt, peo-ple would not have been so keen to firearrows at him!

In July, a group of science students from Park View Schoolunder-took the return leg of their Next Generation ScienceExchange programme to Arnhem in the Netherlands. The tripwas an opportunity for the students to work on different types ofscience projects as well as have a cultural experience with a hostfamily.

Over the course of the 10 days, the students firstly visited theWorld War 2 British headquarters at Oosterbeek, where theBritish planned and unsuccessfully tried to resist the Germanarmy’s push across the Netherlands. This was documented laterin a Film: ‘A Bridge too Far’. The students visited the war gravesfor the British soldiers, learning some stories about some of thefallen, including some members of the Durham Light Infantry.

On the second day they visited an algae farm as well as the damsat Zeeland, which allowed the Dutch to reclaim land from the sea.It had also been the finishing line to Stage 2 of the Tour de Franceonly days earlier. The highlight of the day for most students wastaking the trip by the Dutch Football National Team bus.

After a weekend of cultural activities, they returned to school inArnhem bright eyed and ready to visit Arnhem Zoo. This proveda popular day as the students studied the animals and present-ed a new eco-system habitat for an animal in the zoo. Tuesdayand Wednesday saw them back in the school working on LegoMindstorm projects to develop a test tube train for monitoring PHreadings and temperature.

On the final day, they took a bike ride through the suburbs andout to a Parc where they made models from metal using spotwelding machinery. Again they were in full flow as engineers,planners and designers. After a break to make bread for lunch,they cycled further into the countryside to a Pancake House,where they drank and ate savoury pancakes in the setting sun,before cycling home for a final night with hosts.

After early morning goodbyes, students and staff boarded thetrain back to Amsterdam for the flight home. The 10 day Dutchadventure was over and many new friends had been made.

BAND AID COMES TOPARK VIEW

A group of Year 9 and 10 students wrote and recorded a sin-gle exploring issues of mental health. The students’ movingballad ‘Whatever the Weather’ is about this sensitive issue,with the chorus “Just hold on, it’ll get better. It’s a storm now,but we’ll get through this together’ being a rallying cry to allthose who are suffering in silence. The students wrote thelyrics, composed the music, recorded the song and evencreated a music video. The first live performance of it tookplace in the Link on the last day of term, with all of theChurch Chare site gathered as an audience. It was a fittingend to a great academic year, with many left in tears by thetalent of so many of our students. Mr Jarvis, who led theproject and played guitar on the final track, said, ‘It was anincredible week because the students were so committed towhat they were doing. I cannot remember an educationalproject which has moved me so much – a real privilege tobe a part of.’The single is still available to download on ITunes for £1

(search ‘bandcamp’), with all money raised going toAmerican Mental Health Foundation.

GIVING A HELPING HANDTO THOSE IN NEED

In an effort to combat poverty in Chester-Le-Street, sevenstudents from Park View School held a food bank collectionat the entrance of the local Tesco store for a day. Overall,an outstanding 338 items were donated by the generalpublic to the small collection point; this was then deliveredto the local food bank which will help and support people incrisis in the local area.

Mr Veitch, Headteacher at Park View School said: “It trulyis an amazing achievement”. Miss Brown who helpedorganise the project said: ‘We explored what it is to be poorin modern day Britain and then organised a collection pointat Tesco for people to donate to the CLS Food Bank. Theresponse from customers, staff and students left a lump inall of our throats! The students were a pleasure to work withand I am very proud of what they have achieved through-out this project."

Hannah Roberts, from Durham Christian Partnership, said“The students at Park View School donated a marvellous254.3kg of food to County Durham Foodbank - that isapproximately 317 meals! It is thanks to such generousdonations and support that we do not have to turn peopleaway who are in food crisis. Thank you for your support!”

Students returned from the Summer hol-idays to find that not only had the schoolbadge been updated but also that theyhad been allocated to one of fourHouses. Mr Finley, Deputy Head,explains, ‘We wanted to bring all of thecompetitions which run in school underone umbrella in order to promote partici-pation for all. It was also an opportunityto foster the community spirit, which is somuch a part of our school, by allowingstudents to identify with and meet othersoutside of their tutor and year groups.’

After much thought, it was decided thatthe Houses should be named after greatBritons who had changed the world.Because of their scientific prowess,Darwin and Newton were obvious choic-es, followed by Wilberforce, the greatslavery abolitionist, and Franklin, for herwork within genetics. The latter pro-voked initial debate because manyassumed that the house was namedafter Benjamin Franklin and thus we hadno female representation. The aim was,in fact, to highlight the pioneeringresearch of Rosalind Franklin, a Britishscientist who worked alongside Watson

and Crick on the discovery of DNA yetdied before this was made public, andthus was given no credit. Interestingly,since the House launch, Nicole Kidmanhas opened a play in the West End onthis very subject!

So far, competition has been intense. Astaff ‘Extreme Reading’ competition, two

Twitter challenges and a busking com-petition have all taken place before thesports and academic contests kick in?Who will win? It is very close at present,with Darwin and Wilberforce leading,then Franklin and Newton. Follow us onTwitter for regular updates@ParkViewCLS

Exchange Programme to Holland

TAKING READING TOTHE EXTREME

Wilberforce Be With You!

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Park View’s PE department are delighted to announce thelaunch of the Park View Elite Sports Academy, an excitingventure designed to support gifted and talented young ath-letes from Chester-le-Street and Durham Primary Schools aswell as our own talented young sportspeople. This amazingopportunity aims to provide young athletes and their familieswith world class mentoring, bespoke education programmesand access to services designed to nurture talent and improvechances of sporting success.

Working in conjunction with Youth Sport Trust and DurhamUniversity, the scheme has already attracted lots of interestfrom students across our primary schools as well as withinschool. Debbie Hepple, from the Youth Sport Trust, says “ThePark View Elite Sports Academy is just the sort of programmethat sports clubs would love to see more of in schools.Talented sportspeople are often identified at a young age andanything that schools can do to nurture and develop this tal-ent is essential if we are to continue to produce future worldclass athletes. This scheme has our complete support and willprovide welcome education for young sportspeople to com-plement their undoubted talent.”

A range of services and support will be available to athletesperforming at County through to International level and it isstunning to see the variety of sports our young people are soactively involved in. Athletics, football, judo, boxing, gymnas-tics, swimming, rugby and basketball are just some with ath-letes accepted onto the scheme. So far 35 athletes from Year6 to Year 13 have been recruited after proving their talent in a

competitive application process. The programme hopes toprovide these athletes with tailored education sessions onnutrition, psychology, strength and conditioning, communica-tion and goal setting, free sports kit, educational visits to worldclass venues, sports photography sessions and discountedsports physiotherapy as well as other bespoke services. MrFinley, the man behind the idea has been overwhelmed by thelevel of interest: “Throughout my time at Park View, I havealways been hugely impressed by our success in a widerange of different sports and the level of dedication shown bysome of our talented students. It fits with our ethos that weoffer educational support for these gifted performers and I amdelighted to be able to give a helping hand alongside our part-ners who I know are as enthusiastic as we are. We can’t waitto get going and seeing our sports students blossom.”

We are delighted to have secured sponsorship from CountyCoaches and The Education Network who have both beenimpressed by the scheme, its values and support. The sup-port from these partners will go towards providing the kit forthe athletes as well as contributing towards the education ses-sions and Sports Personality of the Year Awards to be pre-sented at the end of the year. We are delighted to have themon board.

We hope to keep you posted as the scheme launches laterthis term and we will always welcome applicants from Year 6students onwards as their sporting success stories are told.

Sport at Park View INDIVIDUAL STARSSHINE BRIGHTLY

Philippa Ellis was the overall individual winner at theDurham Schools U12 County Mini-Athlon. A fantasticperformance from Philippa, but by no means a surprisegiven her great talent in the sport.

Lucy Crozier has been selected to represent the districtat Netball with County Durham Netball Team. Lucyplays centre wing attack and has also been selected forregional try outs. Her commitments to the sport spansacross many teams, playing for Park Views SchoolsYear 10 team and the Vixens as well as volunteering asa coach for the Vixens under 11’s team.

REPRESENTING THEREGIONThe Year 8 (Junior) boys athletics team travelled to Hullfor the Regional 'A' Final of the English Schools athlet-ics competition. There were some good individual per-formances but things never came together for the teamon the day and we finished 8th overall. The achieve-ment really was qualifying for this round of the compe-tition - not done since the days of Mr Robison! MrChristie and Mr Wilson were ably assisted by SixthFormers Harry Simpson and Russell Bewick.

PE ARE IN THE HOUSE!The house matches are underway across both theNorth Lodge and Church Chare sites. The PE depart-ment are delivering a range of activities over lunchtimes during the school week, including Netball, Futsal,Dodgeball and Table Tennis. The competitions are opento all pupils from all year groups, with an excellentatmosphere established between the houses with thecorrect amount of competitive spirit shown. The match-es in each individual sport run for one half term; at theconclusion of the fixtures, points are tallied and posi-tions are achieved. First place gains 100 points, second75, third 50 and fourth 25. These points go towards theoverall house totals. The House competition will run forthe full academic year and end with a major sports dayat the Riverside on the last day of term.

The inaugural Year 9 Tour De Northumbria 2015, in aid of ‘IfYou Care Share’, proved to be a roaring success. The stu-dents (and staff) experienced challenging but rewardingcycling as they journeyed along the new Sandstone Wayroute through Northumberland. The week began with sometraining in road etiquette and bike maintenance provided byBike4Health, who were also the expert guides for the week.On the Tuesday 'If You Care Share', Park View’s chosen char-ity, came into school to talk about the excellent support theyprovide for young people in the local area. The rest ofthe day was filled by researching the placesalong the route that we would be taking. ByWednesday morning, all were primedand ready to go. Stage One took usfrom Bolam to Rothbury, travellingthrough some of the country's mostpicturesque areas of outstandingnatural beauty, including Belsay,Scots' Gap and Simonside . After awell-earned evening meal atTomlinson's Bunkhouse, Rothbury,fun was had trekking through the

grounds of Cragside. The overnight accommodation wassuperb, and everyone awoke refreshed and ready for StageTwo, which was across some wild terrain, with’ thankfully,mainly thrilling downhill sections. The group stopped at vari-ous historical landmarks from Chillingham Castle to StCuthbert's Cave, where the students managed to presentsome interesting mini talks about these famous historicallandmarks. Wooler Youth Hostel provided the second night'smuch needed rest and recuperation. The final day began in

the pouring rain but ended in the brilliant sunshineof Berwick. Despite cycling nearly 100 miles,

no-one wanted the week to end. Over 23students had demonstrated their deter-

mination, resilience, and fitness whilstearning praise from all who hadcome into contact with them alongthe way. Mr Bishop, support driver,said: “It was lovely for me to seestudents outside of the classroomengaged in an physical activity,completing goals and raising

money for a fantastic local charity.”

Elite Performers Recognised

Tour De Northumbria 2015