Fearnfile 488 May 6th

Fearnfile - out every two weeks!
FEARNHILL SCHOOL
6TH MAY 2016
Headteacher’s Message
Sunshine Ahead
The weather has taken a
turn for the better and
suddenly we are all feeling
happy. There have been
lots of great moments at
Fearnhill over the last
week or so that have also helped with
that positive feeling!
Fearnfile
Issue 488
 On Thursday 28th April we held our
first ever Spring Concert in the evening,
with Pixmore School joining us. The
quality was very high and it was lovely
for the younger students to see classical
music performed to such a high standard, as well as hearing GCSE students’
original compositions and more modern
numbers. Everyone left with a smile on
their face! There is a full report from Mr
Powell in this edition.
 Year 7 took time out from their usual
lessons recently to spend the morning
learning about managing their money as
part of our Personal Finance Education
programme; tackling different challenges
helped them to plan and understand
exactly how their financial choices will
have an impact on their lives over the
long term.
 We are now entering the season for
our Celebration of Achievement
events. The first is next Wednesday,
11th May, at 2pm. Our Year 12 and 13
students will be receiving awards and
recognition for their work over the last
year, followed by afternoon tea served
in the canteen. Parents and carers are
warmly invited to this event; just email
admin@fearnhill.herts.sch.uk and mark
your message ’ Celebration of Achievement’ so that we can cater for you. Celebration events for every year group are
on the calendar and you will receive
more information as we get closer to
each date.
 Finally, the Year 8 cricket team beat
Highfield School last week. This was a
very close match but we managed to
hold on to our lead; well done to all the
students involved and to the staff who
support them!
With best wishes
Liz Ellis
Headteacher
Hedgehog Awareness Week
2nd - 8th May 2016
for more info visit
www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk
Or see me for useful tips!
Miss Jennings
Assistant DTL in Science
To access the school
exams calendar
please visit our website
http://www.fearnhill.herts.sch.uk/exams-calendar/
Careers Corner
Year 7 PSHCE Day – Careers & PFE
The Year 7 "My Future, My Money" Careers/PSHCE Day was a huge success. Students learnt how to use the Kudos & Careerscape websites which allowed them to examine their personal skills and qualities and apply these
to their potential future careers. They also looked at budgeting and how to manage their money in relation to
their future earnings.
The day culminated in an 'Apprenticeship style ' hat making competition requiring skills of budgeting, design and
teamwork. The winners of the in-form competition were;
from 7G – "Team A" - Kaila Evans-Peters, Zoe French & Shanie Dorrington
and "Team B" - Sherwin Vaz & Matthew Wiseman
from 7H – "Hats All Folks!" - Madeline Giles, Emma Favell, Holly Wilkins & Sommer Jackson
from 7N – “Cat on the Hat” - Ellie McLean, Gracie Wilsher & Stanley Parkins
from 7P – “Group 3” Gabriel Ryan, Sami Malik, Mia Clark & Molly Bracher-Jones
and “Group 4” Connor Young, Rhema Bingham, Codi Eversley-Harris & Laci Brooks-Maskell
Students really enjoyed the day and showed a real interest in the opportunities available to them in the future.
The day proved that it’s never too early to start thinking about your future career. Knowing what you are aiming for provides a motivation to work hard in school and achieve the qualifications that will be required to enter
your future profession. Although your choices will change over time - the need to work hard never will.
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F E A R N HI L L S C H O O L
Many thanks to Mrs Burnett, Mrs Franklin & Ms Brown for guiding their form group through the day and getting
stuck in to the activities! Thanks also to Ms Brown (Yr 7&8 ASDL) who helped out during the day.
“I enjoyed it when we got to research careers.
Money is important, we should respect that.”
Eleanor Brewer 7G
“I learnt what to take in case of
an emergency in the desert.”
Allisha Cairns 7G
“I invented a new career choice
‘You Tubeoligy’.”
Khalil Brown 7G
“The best part of the day was doing what we wanted to do
in the future.”
Shanie Dorrington 7G
“We collaborated making the hats & learnt there are a
variety of different careers.”
Chairya Mendis 7G
“I liked it when we were making hats. We had to buy all
of the materials & make some kind of profit. It was fun
but stressful.”
Maegan Willson 7H
“You’ve got to think
about others.”
Michal Stadnicki 7G
“I learnt that it is very
hard making career
choices.”
Sherwin Vaz 7G
“It was fun – You didn’’t
have to do lessons – You
got to be creative – You
got to work with who
you wanted – You had
to use your brain.”
Freya Marshall 7H
“I enjoyed the paper hat
making as we had to
work as a team. It was
also fun as we were
competing.”
Dylan Earl 7N
“It was really fun. We made
hats in a group. I enjoyed
finding out what people get
paid in different jobs.“
Shaline Binoy 7H
“I really liked the team
work for the hats & what
was the fun part was actually making the hats with
our teams.”
Mia Clark 7N
“It was fun finding out careers
of my future & making the hat
during the competition.”
Anon Yr 7
“We had to make hats & stuff
with money. I liked it because
we had no lessons.”
Rhema Bingham 7H
“I liked making the hats even
though we didn’t win the
competition. I also liked looking
at our careers, mine said I had a
good chance of becoming an
Animator.”
Anon Yr 7
“I liked learning how to handle
money & how to make our own
choices. I especially liked the hats.”
Tammin Williams 7N
“The best part of the day was making the hats because we got to
work with our friends.”
Michelle Wesley 7G
“I enjoyed finding out about what
job we were most likely to do.”
Riya Mann 7H
“I liked absolutely everything about
the day, like the finances.”
Aeden Morris 7H
“I liked researching on the computers.”
Jack Tarran 7G
“We learnt that everything has a price.”
Kaila Evans-Peters 7G
“I loved making hats, it
was sooo fun! I loved
spending time with my
form & friends. I learnt
that you need to spend
money wisely.”
Lilly Goddard 7G
“It is difficult to work.”
Dennis Iriele 7G
“I liked that the whole
class spoke.”
Phillippe Legrand 7H
“Everything was fun
except making hats.”
Charlotte Pryke 7N
“My team won the mad
hat competition.”
Matthew Wiseman 7G
“The thing I found fun about PSHCE day was that we got to
find out what job we want when we grow up!”
Holly Wilkins 7H
“I learned that you have to pay
tax & you have to pay lots of
things to keep your house like
car insurance & bills.”
Rebecca Ager 7H
“We made teams & made
hats in groups of 4 & we
did not win.”
Anon Yr 7
“I enjoyed making the hats, it was fun.”
Hannah Bellamy, Molly Bracher-Jones, Katie Croucher, Freya Day & Gabriel Ryan 7N
“Making the hats was the best part because we got to be creative. It would have been
improved if it was for the whole day. I learnt that not everything comes cheap & that a
career is more complicated than I thought.”
Zoe French 7G
“Students enjoyed finding out about possible jobs & liked linking them to
possible earnings, some said the most important bit was deciding the
difference between wants & needs.“ Miss Jennings
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“I learnt how to save & spend
money on the things I need.”
Kira Brown 7G
Ms Balchin
Director of Teaching & Learning in Careers
F E A R NF I L E
Student Voice Update
We have been meeting regularly this term, sharing ideas and responding to new changes and policies being developed in the school. Below are some topics we have discussed...
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Our views on homework and the new Homework Policy
Remembering Mrs Dent and how we want to recognise her amazing contribution to our school
Developing a Teaching and Learning focussed Student Voice group.
What we could spend our Student Voice budget on that would benefit everyone in the school
Most importantly we were asked to form a Student Voice panel for the recent Headteacher interviews. We planned all our own questions that we felt were vital to ensure that we could identify the
very best candidate. Below are the questions we asked...
1. What is your first impression of the school?
2. Have you been a head teacher before and why do you want to be head teacher of our school?
3. What would you say is your best achievement in your previous school/s?
4. What improvements do you think the school needs and how will you action these?
5. How do you feel that the school can get the balance right between rewards and sanctions?
6. What strategies would you bring to improve progress of students on the SEN/D register.
7. What would be your financial priorities for the future of the school?
8. How will you get to know us as individuals?
9. What are your aspirations for the Co operative between Fearnhill and Highfield School?
10. How would you make this an outstanding school?
Next week we will be finding out what students think about...
1. The Rewards and Behaviour Ladder
2. Planners - are they useful?
Mrs Cotton
Assistant Headteacher
*** Please ensure that we have your current
email address, any updates to be sent to the
Main Office Thank you ***
We are collecting used stamps for
The Garden House Hospice
If you have any then please send them in to school
in an envelope for the attention of the Main Office
We have made 4 deliveries already and the staff at the hospice
are very grateful
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F E A R N HI L L S C H O O L
Spring Music Concert
On Thursday 28 April, we held our Spring Concert with Pixmore Junior School. It was a fantastic evening packed with talent and music making! Fearnhill Voices opened the concert with
energetic performances of ‘Hey Ho!’ and ‘Shake It Off’ and rounded the night off being joined
by the Pixmore Junior School Choir singing ‘Believe’. The audience were dazzled by various
soloists; Catrin Sewell 13JL and Isaac Barkway 13DMG both played piano solos and a duet of
exceptionally high standards, Gabriel Ryan 7N played and sang with charisma and Jessica
Moore 10R and Rebecca Burton 9Q both sang songs beautifully. Fearnhill’s resident band
‘Composure’ performed two numbers to massive applause and also did a great job of hosting
the evening. A huge highlight was having the Pixmore Junior School Choir performing with
brilliant choreography to boot! Every member of the audience had a beaming smile on their
faces and it was a joy to see musical talent at such a young age. Aimee Moore, Mae
McClumpha, Soeli Leverett and Abbie Grimes, all 9R, performed a stunning rendition of Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ and for the first time we included two GCSE compositions of Georgina
Kivelehan 11V and Stephen Pryke 11W to showcase the talent in the school.
Many thanks to all of the performers for their hard work and dedication and also to the parents and carers of the young people – your support of your child's musical education and experience is much appreciated by all.
Mr Powell
DTL in Music
Memories of When I was at School
School for many is described as ‘some of the best days of your life’. A time when
your future is not yet mapped out and your career path not yet sign posted. Parents
often tell students to enjoy these ‘carefree’ days so they can look back on them
fondly in later years. Do Fearnhill staff agree, were their school days happy ones?
What are their memories of this time? Let’s find out…
“I really loved PE when I was at school and I spent every spare moment doing sport.
When I was in Year 7, I used to go into school early to attend the gymnastics club. I
still always remember any Friday the 13th, that occurs in July, because that is the
date that I decided to really show off my gymnastic talents because I was certain that I could be an Olympic gymnast! I decided that I could vault over a very large piece of gym equipment that everyone else was avoiding because it was too high. I can still hear the break of my arm as I crunched onto the floor! I didn't cry but I remember that my PE teacher did cry because she thought that she would get into trouble for letting me be so stupid!
My mother wasn't very pleased as she had to leave work to take me to hospital and I then spent the next 6
weeks of the summer holidays with my arm in plaster. It ruined my holiday!
This didn't put me off and I continued doing all sorts of sports during my school years. I was quite good at long
jump, entered competitions for trampoline and happily spent many hours representing the school in netball,
rounders, lacrosse (which you have probably never heard of!) and hockey. My next big sporting ambition was
that I was going to be a Wimbledon tennis champion. I have to admit that
I was not a very good role model for Fearnhill students! I went to a school
with over 2000 students and the teachers didn't really notice whether we
were in lessons or not. I used to skip some lessons and my friends and I
used to spend these lessons playing tennis! However, I didn't get the best
grades in the subjects that I skipped and I haven't become a Wimbledon
champion ....yet!
Ms Lindsay
DTL in Humanities
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F E A R NF I L E
Where Are They Now?
Life After Fearnhill School
Celebrating the success of our ex-students. We hope you enjoy hearing about their
successful career paths following their time at Fearnhill School.
Piers Roberts
Piers attended Fearnhill from 2004-2009, we caught up with him to see what he is up
to...
“I left Fearnhill after my GCSE’s I did A-Levels at a different school achieving AAB in
Music, English Literature and Philosophy and Ethics. I then went on to study for a Music BA (Hons) at the University of York where I also worked extensively in the catering
industry (and enjoying myself way too much at the same time!). I now am studying for
Piers then
Nursing (Adult) MSc at University of Leeds.
I currently am an Assistant Nursing Practitioner in Acute Medicine/Care at Leeds General Infirmary. The LGI is one of the busiest hospitals in the country based in the centre
of the city. I also work at St James University Hospital, which is the largest Teaching
Hospital in Europe and these hospitals together (plus a few others in Leeds) make up
the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust which is the largest NHS Trust in the country by
quite some way.
As part of my role in Acute Medicine/Care I currently split my hours between Neurology, (I am the first ever male Assistant Nursing Practitioner in the history of the Trust in
Neurology) and the Accident and Emergency Department of LGI (in which I am certainly NOT the first male Assistant Nursing Practitioner).
My current interests for my MSc and Research Nursing role are centred around improving time management of clinical decision making in transferring seriously unwell patients from Ward based care to Intensive Care (ICU) or High Dependency Units and
Piers now
(hopefully) back to Ward based care. We hope that in making nurses EVEN MORE effective at assessing, we can waste less time and have better patient outcomes and less permanent damage.
My other current research investigates the crossover in symptom management of Motor Neurone Disease and
Parkinsons and how looking into how treatments for one can help inform nursing care for the other.
The latest task which the “Leeds Centre for Neurosciences” have invited me to be part of is the early detection of
Encephalitis (Brain Infection) by analysing and triaging bizarre behaviour before clinical abnormalities and symptoms develop. The hope is that by doing this we can fast track clinical management before behaviour becomes
too challenging, bizarre and dangerous to deliver treatment effectively.
I am also soon taking up work at Armely prison in Leeds as a link member of nursing staff working with prisoners
with some level of brain damage (and challenging behaviour) caused by drug and alcohol abuse. It is hoped that
this will help us understand the link between drug and alcohol abuse, infection and long term consequences to the mind and body caused by blood borne infections.“
We are very proud of Piers and all he has achieved so far We wish him all the best for the future.
Are you an ex-student or do you know any ex-students who
will be willing to share their story of where they are now?
If so please email susan.charter10@fearnhill.herts.sch.uk
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F E A R N HI L L S C H O O L
Inside the Classroom - Science
So many interesting and fascinating lessons take place here at Fearnhill
School so we thought we would share with you what is going on inside the
classroom...
7H/Sc
Year 7 students were using ideas about acids
and bases to make crystals. Students were carrying out a neutralisation reaction between copper oxide and sulphuric acid. Students are expected to understand and predict the outcome
of these reactions all the way through into GCSE.
Students worked hard to carry out the practical
safely and everyone made beautiful blue crystals
of copper sulphate. Well done year 7 for successfully carrying out a neutralisation reaction.
Next time…
Find out what is
happening in
Year 7 Humanities!
During the Easter
holidays students were
set self-study to carry
out a Science investigation.
Maegan Willson 7H investigated what
makes eggs bouncy! See Maegan to
find out the answer…
Madeline Giles 7H also found out whether
it is safe to drink the river water in Hitchin.
See Maegan to find out the answer...
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Miss Jennings
Science Dept
F E A R NF I L E
PE Pages
Marathon Successes
We asked on our school Facebook page and via School Comms
email if anyone knows of ex-students or current student’s family
members took part in this year’s marathon.
Thank you to all who contact us to let us know the following successes…
(please let us know if there are anymore and we will publish them in the next issue).
Name: Carla Pilsworth (nee Poole)
Who: ex-student (featured in Fearnfile issue 483)
Time: 6 hrs 12 mins
Charity: Tommy’s
Amount Raised: over £10 000
Name: Nichola Walker
Who: Family friend of Brandon Dorrington 11U
& Shanie Dorrington 7G
Time: 4 hrs 45 mins
Charity: Great Ormond Street Hospital
Amount Raised: over £5000
Name: Vicky O’Kell (nee Grant)
Who: ex-student
Time: 4 hrs 23 mins
Charity: Cancer Research
Amount Raised: over £1700
Name: Stuart Card
Who: Son of Mrs Wade (LSA in SSU)
Time: 4 hrs 38 mins
Charity: The Haemophilia Society
Amount Raised: over £1500
Name: Michael Crouchen
Who: Uncle of Lilly Goddard 7G
& Georgina Goddard 8R
Name: Wayne Fisher
Time: 4 hrs
Who: Uncle of Joe Jones 10V
Charity: Cancer Research
Time: 4 hrs 14 mins
Amount Raised: unknown
Charity: Cancer Research
Amount Raised: over £1350
Brighton Marathon
Name: Alice Sibley
Who: Cousin of Danny Devine 6th MT & Joe Devine 8R
(Danny was near the finishing line to congratulate her but Joe
was in Barcelona with the school)
Time: 4 hrs 58 mins
Charity: Crohns & Colitis UK
Amount Raised: over £1095
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Name: David Scoot
Who: ex-student
Time: 3 hrs 58 mins
Charity: Alzheimers Soceity
Amount Raised: over £1500
F E A R N HI L L S C H O O L
Sports Personality of the Month - April
Congratulations to the following students for being awarded Sports Personality of the Month for April
KS3
Ciara Copping 8Q
Amazing bowling to take Yr8 to
their first ever Cricket victory
against Highfield
KS4
Nicole Watt 11V
Outstanding commitment to GCSE PE
& preparing for exam
Jack Tyler 9U
Excellent attitude & 1st place in 800m events
Ben Rose 11W
Stepped up to the plate for PE
moderation & secured some really
good practical grades
These students will be presented with a medal in their next assembly
Senior District Athletics
Fearnhill arrived at Ridlins Stadium in Stevenage for the Senior District Athletics
competition on Wednesday 27th April with a diminished but none-the-less, able and
willing team ready to do battle on the track and field. Unfortunately clashes with
exams and preparation needed for these the night before meant that many of the
team had to make the tough but right decision to put their heads in their books rather than their feet in their trainers. So it was a night for the individuals to give it
their best and for some it was their last ever representation for Fearnhill School.
As is always the case, our athletes shone in terms of attitude, effort and team spirit
and despite a smaller than usual team their efforts paid off placing both the boys
and girls teams 6th overall in the District which is a fantastic achievement and gives
us a good start carrying these points forward into the Junior Champs in June.
Stars of the evening were Josh Dell 6thJL who bought home a silver medal in the Discus, Maddie Shipton 11Q winning bronze in her first ever attempt at the gruelling
400m and Nicole Watt 11V who also won bronze and smashed her PB by 43cm in the
Triple Jump.
Well done to everyone who took part that evening - you are a credit to yourselves
and the school and to those who couldn’t make it - we missed you and hope the revision pays off.
Ms Balchin
ADTL in PE
Be sure to check regularly to find out what is going on
Find us at: FearnhillPE
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F E A R NF I L E
Barcelona Trip Student Reports
“In Barcelona we went to a theme park called
Porta Ventura. The roller-coasters were huge
and there was a dropper type thing that
brought you up then dropped you down and
at the top you could see over the whole park
and you could also see the mountains. At the
end we then went on it a 2nd time and we got
put on the opposite carriage and we could see
the sea.“
Max Eedle-Hobbs 8R
“There was one ride that went 95mph. None
of us expected it to go that fast. There was a
video at the start and next thing we knew we
were off zooming. At one point we were over
the water but we didn’t get wet luckily. We
went on every roller-coaster there but I
thought it was one of the best rides there.”
Joe Devine 11W
“Firstly we walked from the hostel to the park
which was a great laugh with lots of amazing
views. Then we went to a new camp by bus.
From there we went straight to the Metro
where we came to the beach. All round we
had a good day.”
Paul Mavromoustakis 7P
“When we got there we were all excited because we saw a new
ride called Ferrari but it was not open until October. It Is one of
the fastest roller-coasters in the world. We went on 7 rollercoasters as well as other rides like the rapids.”
Cameron Fraser 8R
Barcelona – Day 1
“As we woke up at 3am we made our way to school. Eager to
get on the coach and after what felt like an eternity we finally
got on and made our way to the airport.
When we got there we had to check our bags and show our
passports. Then we boarded the plane ready for our flight.
After a while of waiting we took off. We immediately powered
on our phones and played on them all the way. As we left the
plane we collected our suitcases and headed for the coach. We
then drove to the Gala Salvador Dali Square where we had
time to get lunch and look at the shops. We then met up and
went to the Salvador Dali Museum and saw many paintings
and other pictures. We then got back on the coach and headed
for the hostel where we had dinner and then went to bed
bringing the first day to a close.”
Mitchell Barnes 7N
The day was finished by Harvey
Moore sleep talking on the coach
back saying ‘Its not my cat’.
Library Corner
Staff are promoting a love of reading by sharing their favourite book with the students. Members of staff have
brought a copy of their favourite book in to school and have had their photograph taken whilst reading it and
explained why they enjoy the book. These have been made in to posters and will be displayed in the Library.
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
“I love this book because once you start reading it, you just cannot put it down! It is
a mystery novel written in 1859 which is told by a number of different narrators.
The Woman in White is a mysterious character who insists on always wearing white
clothes. After a number of twists and turns, the story unfolds.
I can really recommend it!”
Mr Williams
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F E A R N HI L L S C H O O L
100% Attendance
The following students are displayed on the Attendance board by the Hall for having 100% attendance since
September 2015.
7G
7N
7G
7P
Name
Bonacci, Hayley
Garner, Luke
King, Joshua
Maddox, Kerry
Reg
8R
8Q
8R
8U
Maddox, Scott
8U
Southern, Rio
8R
Symonds-Bishop, Tamzie 8R
Verma, Isshika
8R
Name
Courtney, Megan
Moore, Chloe
Thayakaran, Yuwan
Wood, Trinity
Reg
9U
9R
9U
9Q
Reg
10U
10V
10U
10V
10U
10U
10U
10R
10R
10U
Name
Reg
Alleyne, Karlos
Bibbey, Kurtis
Bunyan, Charlotte
Christmas, Olivia
Fell, Stuart
Fowler, Jessica
Gill, Cameron
Goodwin, Andie
Grimes, Brandon
Higginbotham, Joseph
Higginbotham, Samuel
Johnson, Luchia
Kivelehan, Georgina
Lal, Manisha
Mann, Anjli
Moore, Lewis
Piper, Charlie
Pryke, Stephen
Ryan, Gage
Stadnicki, Jan
Ward, Freddie
11R
11V
11V
11W
11R
11R
11V
11V
11V
11V
11Q
11Q
11V
11U
11U
11W
11W
11W
11Q
11Q
11U
Have you borrowed any items of uniform?
Harvey-Green, Charlie
Imasuru, Grace
Iriele, Dennis
Woods, Emily
Name
Adlam, Charlie
Emson, Thomas
Hay, Adam
Lamont, Camron
Lawrenson, Katie
Lee, Charlotte
Maddams-Wilkinson, Ben
Moore, Jessica
Nath, Shannon
Ziolo-Hitch, Tom
Please can students check at home for any
ties, skirts, blazers etc.
All items to be returned to the Pastoral office.
Reg
7P
7G
7P
Please note we will now be charging 20p per day for tie rental
Name
Barker, Kenzie
Butler, Harrison
Fuller, Harry
Mr Catlin
Assistant Headteacher
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F E A R NF I L E
Student of the Week
Thought of the Month - May
Fearnhill School, Mathematics and Computing College, Icknield Way, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, SG6 4BA
Tel: 01462 621200, Fax: 01462 621201, E-mail: admin@fearnhill.herts.sch.uk, Website: www.fearnhill.herts.sch.uk
Headteacher: Ms E Ellis MA