Weekly Newsletter - Shebbear College

Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
A very busy Dining Hall for Macmillan Coffee Morning
Dear Parents,
It is official. In a widely published report this week Shebbear was
named as the best place in Devon and Cornwall to raise children and
the seventh best place in England. In recent months I have been to
places like St. Ives, Totnes, Saunton Sands, Chagford, Watergate Bay
and Padstow and although they are very pretty and you can buy a
cappuccino, I knew there was something not quite right about them.
I usually take these type of articles with a pinch of salt, but this one is
definitely true because it was in the Times. You will be relieved to hear
that we will continue to teach critical thinking at school so that your
children will be able to draw their own conclusions about such surveys.
This has been a hectic week for our boys’ sport. It started off on
Saturday with a set of rugby fixtures against Exeter School, an ISFA
(Independent Schools Football Association) U15 cup match on
Tuesday against St Joseph’s which we won 11-2, some more rugby
fixtures (cup and friendly) and finishing off today with an U13 football
cup match against Truro. There have been some tremendous team
and individual performances, but the best thing for me has been to
see our newly arrived pupils becoming integrated into our teams.
Tomorrow is a rest from sport, although of course we look forward to
the big match in the evening. Having a Welsh father and an English
mother I am already guaranteed a night of mixed emotions.
It has been a quieter than usual week in the Prep School as the Year
Six classes have been on a PGL activity. You might not realise that
PGL actually stands for ‘Parents. Get lost!’, and it sounds like they
have been having a tremendous time. Don’t forget to ask Mr Furber
about his holiday when he returns.
You might be aware that St Petroc’s school in Bude joined the
Methodist Independent School’s Trust (MIST) earlier in the year. As
a result we will be holding some joint ventures to benefit from each
other’s expertise including Prep rugby sessions led by Cornwall and
Launceston RFC Captain Ben Hilton. We have sixteen Old Petrocians
in the school and they make a great contribution to our community, not
least last year’s Head Boy George Daniel, who heads off to Warwick
University next week. Another OP, Toby Biggs, has clearly made his
mark at Werrington Cricket Club (more later in this newsletter).
There are few schools that
take cakes more seriously
than Shebbear, and I have
certainly grown as a person
since I have been here.
As a result our Macmillan
Coffee Morning today was
a guaranteed success and
we did Mary Berry proud.
The positive effect of
Macmillan
nurses
is
phenomenal and when
you work in a school you
appreciate
how
most
families have to live at some
point with the effects of
cancer and why this is such
a good cause to support.
Simon Weale
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
News from the Prep School
There were some interesting goings on when knives, forks and
Swiss Roll appeared in the Year 5 classroom earlier in the week - this
was to learn good table manners and it was a very popular lesson
as the Year 4 and 5 children had to eat Swiss Roll using a knife and
fork! Since then it has been lovely watching them successfully put it
all into practice while eating their lunch.
Dear Parents,
Hearing that our two Year 6 classes have been away for the week,
and that all the other classes have spent at least one day out on trips,
you could be forgiven for thinking that with Mr Furber away, the rest
of the Prep school decided to have an easy, relaxed week - but no,
I can assure you that your children have been working hard as well
as playing hard.
From the reports I have had from Mr Furber, the Year 6 week at
PGL Osmington Bay, has been another great success, with children
conquering their fears for activities such as abseiling, having archery
competitions to earn points to use cutlery for their meal, celebrating
a birthday, and showing huge courage to tackle the trapeze are just a
very few of the happenings this week. There will be a full report with
photographs next week.
On Wednesday, Year 5 had their first of three outings this week when
they had their first swimming lesson of the year in the brand new pool
at Brandis Corner. It is truly impressive, with amazing lighting and
facilities, and it will soon be open to the public.
Mr and Mrs Gunning gave the Year 3 and 4 children a taster Martial
Arts session in activities - the children performed very impressive
high kicks and grapples, particularly as it was their first time of doing
anything like this.
As reported in the newsletter last week, our U11 teams played West
Buckland at netball and rugby. The girls approached their match with
cautious optimism, even though Shebbear’s historical match record
was not favourable, and they strode onto the court with a positive
attitude. The match was unbelievably close, each team scoring a
goal with the opposition responding with a goal in quick succession.
As a result, the score kept level until the last minute when Shebbear
snatched the winning goal resulting in a final score of 10 - 9. Well
done to all and especially to the Year 5 girls who are new to this level
of play. This is a team with great potential - what an exciting netball
season we have ahead of us!
This week has seen some stimulating learning opportunities
throughout the school from the youngest children going on a
scavenger hunt to the Year 5’s investigating the life cycle of a flowering
plant. Mrs Jones reports that it’s been wonderful to witness how
settled our Year 1 children are becoming and how much quicker they
are to focus on their new work regime with our Year 2 pupils rising
to their own challenges and setting a fine example to their younger
counterparts. This week they’ve all had a day out at Combe Martin
Dinosaur and Wildlife Park, a day celebrating the British author Julia
Donaldson and Year 1 have enjoyed their first penny whistle lesson.
Congratulations must go to Freddie Lovett and Bella Morris who
have both been awarded reading badges for learning to read over
two hundred sight words. Those children who have bought the new
back packs are looking very smart - they are perfectly sized for this
age group - the children were amazed to find a detachable pencil
case inside the front pocket too. If you would like one then please
speak to Mrs Goode.
Thursday was the best day of the week for Years 3, 4 and 5, with
a fantastic trip to Exmoor Zoo to complement Science work this
term on animals and their habitats. Despite having to dodge the
rain showers, there were so many memorable experiences for the
children, such as watching otters and cheetahs being fed, seeing the
meerkats and their babies (1, 2, 3 - aaah!), being fascinated by the
fact that father puma had to be separated from the mother and cubs
in case he ate his family!
As well as inventing creative stories, Year 3 have been adding and
subtracting pairs of double digit numbers. They also have been
working with money and giving the correct amount of change this proved very useful later in the week when visiting the shop at
Exmoor Zoo.
Year 4 have been learning about various aspects of Ancient Greek
culture, reading about Medusa and looking at the relationships of the
Greek Gods and Godesses. Did you know that the Ancient Greeks
liked to keep women locked up inside the house? This did not go
down very well with the girls - Demelza Short found the concept of
being ‘hidden away’ not to her liking, especially as this would have
meant no chance to play rugby or football!
In the zoo’s Encounter Zone the children were really brave in the
‘Spider Phobia’ and ‘Snakes Alive’ talks, special mention must be
made of Mrs Clewley and our gap student Rebecca who were truly
courageous, as in these sessions when the ‘hands on’ part came,
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
Mrs Johnstone hastily left the room, Mrs Partridge suddenly needed
to visit the smallest room at the zoo, and Mr Willetts vaulted over
two rows of benches to get as far away as possible - the keeper
said he’d never seen anyone move so fast! I asked the children to
be ambassadors for our school on the trip and they truly were, two
members of the zoo staff told us how the children asked searching
questions and behaved impeccably, showing good manners and
respect at all times.
The supplier of woodchips to the College is taking a day out on
Friday to give the Year 5 the opportunity to view the whole woodchip
production cycle from woodland (Sepscott Wood) through the drying
process (Holsworthy Wood Drying Plant) to customer (blown delivery
at Shebbear College). More about this next week. After two trips out
this week Mrs Partridge says that she can feel lots of lovely ‘follow
up’ work coming on for Year 5 next week!
Fiona Goode
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
Surf Boarders
This Sunday some of the braver boarders chose to take part in the
first of a three week surfing school run by Raven Surf School. We left
school and stopped off at Bude on the way to take a look at the Food
Festival. This in itself was excellent, but very tempting, with all the
delicious aromas, unfortunately I had only an hour before finished my
breakfast at school so could not eat anything (unlike some members
of staff who managed a few extra dishes at the Festival!)
Events in the Prep School Next Week:
Wednesday 30th September
Pre-Prep1 taking part in a Circus Workshop in Holsworthy
Thursday 1st October
U11 Rugby and Netball against Kingsley (Home) at 2.00pm
Advance notice:
All are welcome to join us for our Harvest Festival Service in the
Chapel on Tuesday 6th October at 2.15pm. Gifts of non-perishable
food can be sent in to school next week, these will be sold in aid of
Christian Aid.
Updates to the Prep School Calendar:
Thursday 8th October
Year 4 trip to Rosemoor has now moved to Thursday 15th October
Monday 16th November
U9 Rugby/Netball v Kingsley - Home - 2.00pm
Thursday 26th November
U11 Rugby/Netball v Kingsley (Away) 2.00pm
The surfing took place at Widemouth Bay and all the boarders
were excited and keen to get going. After some warming up and
instructions the boarders took to the waves. Everyone seemed to
have a fantastic time, despite the small size of waves. Hopefully
next week will prove to have larger waves and everyone can improve
their skills.
Stuart Clewley
Well Done
Toby Biggs!
Toby Biggs has earned the title
of Werrington Cricket Club U13
bowler of the year.
Toby is pictured here with Alex
Smeeth, the club professional.
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
Congratulations Dave and Becky!
We are delighted to report that Ethan Max Balman, who was born
on 9th September weighing in at 7lbs, 6oz made his first visit to
Shebbear College on Thursday this week with mum and dad.
Well Done Jane Welby!
Our librarian Jane Welby recently
graduated from the Open University
with a 2.1 Honours degree. Having
last been at college a very long
time ago (she says) when studying
for her professional qualifications,
MCLIP, she relished the chance to
continue learning - and to choose
a range of subjects to explore at
degree level for her Open Degree.
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
Autumn Colours at Rosemoor
The first day of autumn was an ideal time for our Pre-Prep 1 children
to take part in a workshop at Rosemoor entitled ‘Colours of the
Rainbow’. John, the Education Officer, explained about equinox
and they discussed the differences between the seasons before
setting off, armed with buckets, to collect a variety of colours to
match a colour chart. Lots of different shades were found, enabling
the children to make beautiful rainbow pictures. There was even
enough to make crowns to wear on the way back to school.
After enjoying their picnic lunch in the sun, everyone had a fun time
in the pirate park before taking photographs on the way back to the
minibus, these will make a lovely autumn display all done by the
children. They include a grasshopper spotted by James and a very
friendly Robin who was happy to pose for Delilah.
Jacqueline Biddlecombe
The subjects studied over her four
years as an OU student ranged
from ICT, through to Counselling,
Children’s Literature (naturally), Archaeology and Art History - and all
while doing a full time job. A great opportunity to demonstrate good
time management skills!
Her skills and experience have been further recognised by the
OU because she has been elected to represent students on the
OUSA Assembly Executive and in consultation forums. Learning is
addictive!
Life Beyond 18 - Request for Speakers
Following on from last year’s very successful careers morning ‘Life
Beyond 18’ we are in the process of organising next year’s event.
We would like to invite speakers from many different career fields to
come in for the morning and talk to our Fifth and Sixth Forms. The
date will be Thursday 15th October 2015.
If you think you may be interested or know anyone who could give
us a morning of their time, please get in touch. Please email Judith
Aliberti at
jaliberti@shebbearcollege.co.uk
Plymouth Trip
Mrs Vassilaki and Mr Barlow took class 3b to Plymouth on Tuesday.
Arriving at the aquarium in the same state as the fish (wet), the
class immediately began fact-finding and sketching. Fortunately,
the weather improved and the class was able to eat lunch at
the Barbican before visiting the stage set, rehearsal studios and
costume department of the Theatre Royal.
Alison Vassilaki
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
Dinosaurs
Spotted at Combe
Martin!
All of Pre-Prep 2 returned
safe and sound after
hunting for dinosaurs at
Combe Martin Wildlife
Park on Wednesday.
We enjoyed an active
and
informative
day
learning about meerkats,
dinosaurs,
sea
lions,
snakes and cockroaches,
the Ancient Egyptians
even got a look in!
We watched the giant
T-Rex come to life and
the children giggled as they dodged water sprayed from another
prehistoric resident. We ate our lunch whilst being entertained by
sea lions and even had time to take a trip into the water canyon on
the park’s train ride. The Park Ranger who took our educational
activity commented on how amazed he was that the children knew
so much about dinosaurs, fossils and Mary Anning. He said that
many grown ups he had talked to couldn’t answer the questions
that the children could! Well done Pre-Prep 2!
Di Jones
Record Your Own CD at CM Studios
CM Studios has been set up by Cameron Mills at his home and
specialises in recording amateurs and assisting budding musicians to
record their first CD’s in the studio’s comfortable, relaxed and friendly
environment.
Cameron is a keen singer/songwriter himself, and he will ensure that
he gets the best recording possible for you, taking away the pressure
of a high end studio, so there’s no problem if you make mistakes and
need endless retakes.
The Studio is located a mile from Hatherleigh. For more information
please visit www.cmstudios.co.uk or email cmstudios2@gmail.com or
just have a chat with Cameron.
St Petroc’s Super Thursdays
Year 6 pupils from St Petroc’s School in Bude visited us again this
week and enjoyed a lesson with Mr Clewley in the science lab in which
they studied the properties of various liquids. Following this they went
on to do some ‘High 5’s’ netball training on Pyke playground.
What’s on ...
Sunday 27th September
Boarders’ Surfing Activity, Bude, 2.00pm
Wednesday 30th September
Mock Trial Presentation A Form Three (Marilyn Gagg) 2.45pm
Thursday 1st October
Forms Two and Three (Girls) HPV Clinic, 2.00pm
Friday 2nd October
School Council, 1.00pm
Sunday 4th October
Boarders’ Surfing Activity, Bude, 2.00pm
Wednesday 7th October
At 6.00pm in the Assembly Hall, Vicki MacDonald will be coming to do
a presentation to Form 5 students and parents about A Levels entitled
‘Form Five A Level Subject Information Evening’.
Please try and attend this event as it will be extremely helpful and
informative at this time of such changes to the present A Level
structure. If you have any queries, please contact Judith Aliberti at:
jaliberti@shebbearcollege.co.uk
Tuesday 13th October
Friends of Shebbear College AGM - 6.30pm in the Assembly Hall
What’s on ... Sports
For the latest updates on sports fixtures please see the document on
the school website which is updated weekly.
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
Rugby
The U13s took on Exeter School ‘B’ in their first match of the season
and scored four tries in each half to record a 48-0 victory. Cameron
Young converted four of the tries, and there were two tries each for
Jacob Luxton and Louis Whitten in an impressive performance.
U15s v Pilton - North Devon Cup 38-0
A strong U15 side travelled to Pilton Community College for a fixture
that would decide their fate in two cup competitions, the Natwest Cup
and the North Devon Cup.
The first 20 minutes of the game were hard fought, with Shebbear
putting in an outstanding defensive performance to avoid conceding
the first points, thanks in part to an excellent last gasp covering tackle
from Stuart Williams. Once the team had settled and cut out the
early season handling errors, they began to take control of the game.
An expansive break from Will Cowan-Dickie allowed Eddie Jones to
cross for the first points of the tie, and indeed the season. Shebbear
ran in two more scores before half time to go into the break with a
19-0 lead.
The second half started in the same vein as the first, with some
hard hitting and defences on top, but Shebbear once again wore
the opposition down with some excellent spells of possession.
Eventually the hard work of the team resulted in the lead being
extended and thanks to further tries from Stuart Williams (2), Will
Cowan-Dickie (2) and Alessandro Aliberti the game was won 38-0.
It was an outstanding display against strong opposition on the U15s
first outing of the year and the team fully deserve to progress to the
next rounds of the two cups.
1st XV v Exeter School 14-31
We travelled to Exeter School for the second game of the season
and came up against a decent side. The game was played in
quarters and two lapses in concentration in the last minute of each
of the first two quarters allowed Exeter to capitalise on their only two
breaks. In the third quarter the Shebbear side really stepped their
game up. Captain Max Warren led by example and the set piece
was outstanding. Shebbear scored twice in that quarter through Will
Murch-Seage and then a great finish by winger Jabez Weale. At
the end of the third quarter the game was on with the scores level,
but unfortunately an injury to second row Riou Thomas and then
centre Patrick Marks disrupted us and Exeter crossed over twice
more. It was a huge improvement on the game against Bideford, but
a disappointing defeat 31-14.
U15s v Exeter School ‘A’ 17-34
During the first half Shebbear looked up against it as they struggled
to put pressure on in defence and get beyond the gain line in attack.
Two tries put Exeter 17-0 up at half time. Exeter however weren’t
counting on a Barnes style team talk and Shebbear quickly hit back,
scoring two tries both almost immediately from each re-start with
Stuart Williams and Alessandro Aliberti both going over the line.
Unfortunately, Shebbear then missed an opportunity to take the lead
and Exeter broke to take the lead.
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
James Law left the field with a knock to the head soon after and the
14 men of Shebbear then should have scored twice, from open play
and a penalty, but Exeter broke free again to seal the win. Shebbear
finished strongly in the last ten minutes despite being down to thirteen
with Stuart Williams also going off injured, but they fought valiantly
right to the end.
U14s v Exeter ‘B’ 90-0
A clear mis-match in standards saw the 10 players of Shebbear play
13 players of Exeter School U14B’s after Shebbear initially ran in 5
tries with the numbers even. This was a resounding victory, finishing
90-0, and all the team saw plenty of the ball and improved their
confidence in possession. A buoyant group of players will now be
looking forward to the next fixture.
U13s v Bideford College
The U13s played Bideford College for a place in the semi-final of the
North Devon cup. Findlay Irish scored the first try in the corner after a
good passing move through the backs and after Bideford equalised
the U13s went ahead again - Tom Everest-Dixon scoring this time.
The second half was keenly contested throughout with Harrison
Mitchell putting Shebbear further ahead before Bideford closed the
gap again. Finally, Louis Whitten managed to get the ball down to
secure a 20-10 victory but Freddie Stevenson was named man the
match for his strong running and fearless tackling.
U15s v Plymouth College
The U15s put on a sparkling display of rugby to defeat a very physical
Plymouth College side this week. Camped on their own line for the
first ten minutes, the U15s finally broke free and Sean Nadin ran in
the first try, very much against the run of play. From that point on the
boys took control and tries from Charlie Short and Will Cunningham
before half time, both of which were converted, gave the team the
platform they needed to express the full range of their ability.
Further tries from Will Cowan-Dickie and Stuart Williams and
Alessandro Aliberti with two a piece gave the boys a thoroughly
deserved 58-5 victory. They can now look forward to their clash with
Blundells in the Nat West cup with a great deal of confidence.
Football
The U15s played St Joseph’s in the first round of the ISFA Cup and
after going behind early on, they trounced the opposition scoring
eleven times, before James Edge saved a late penalty to keep the
score at 11-2.
There was a hat-trick for debutant Lion Grabau and Ramon VillaTerroba also impressed when he came on as substitute in the first
half.
Andy Bryan
Issue No 81
25th September 2015
Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
Picture this ... Macmillan Coffee Morning
Shebbear College, Shebbear, Beaworthy, Devon EX21 5HJ Telephone: 01409 282001
www.shebbearcollege.co.uk
Email: info@shebbearcollege.co.uk
100 Club Winners
What a success the 2014/15 100 Club has been. All tickets were sold and whilst the
draw is a monthly draw, there is a summary of each months winners below, do check if
you were a winner. All winners will be sent their winnings shortly.
100 Club Winners:
Month 1
1 – Helen and Chris Heard
2 – Ashley Ryder
3 – Kay Heath
Month 2
1 – June Hayden
2 – Mrs Rolls
3 – Reece Stanbury
Month 6
1 – Rebecca Robinson
2 – Liz Priest
3 – Karen Purdew
Month 3
1 – Fiona Goode
2 – Margaret Withecombe
3 – Mike Saltmarsh
Month 8
1 – Paul Sanders
2 – Nick Buckland
3 – Helen Williams
Month 4
1 – Judith Aliberti
2 – Dorothy Shemmings
3 – Lyn Bird
Month 9
1 – Hayley Sanders
2 – Simon Bee
3 – Coralie Short
Month 5
1 - Liz Priest
2 – Laura Twomey
3 – Suzanne Lawes
Month 10
1 – Kat Jenkins
2 – Meaghan Ryder Green
3 – June Hayden
Month 7
1 – Coralie Short
2 – Rebecca Weale
3 – Alison Kerslake
MIDSUMMER BALL 2016
Instead of holding a 100 club this year we would like to invite you to purchase
‘Midsummer Ball’ tickets to celebrate the 175th birthday of Shebbear College next year.
SAVE THE DATE:
Please save the date – 25th JUNE 2016 – and watch this space!