March 2013

Newsletter

In this issue:

Head teacher's Message

Ski Trip 2013

Alumni

Speak Up! Speak Out!

Bishop Justus Church of England School

Headteacher’s Message

Music Events

Geography Trips

Mr. Broughton‘s Marathon

Careers Events

Dyslexia Awareness

Volume 2013 Issue 2

Dear Parents, It is hard to believe, given our current weather conditions, that we are approaching Easter. Whilst the weather gives us no pleasure, I do hope that reading this edition of the school newsletter does. Alongside the many activities that you will read about, I would like to take this opportunity to bring parents up to date with a change we will be making at the start of the new timetable. Full details at the end of this Newsletter. Whilst the start and end times to the school day remain unchanged, following consultation with staff and Student Council we are making some changes to improve the shape of our school day. We are moving tutor time from the end to the start of the day to allow for a greater focus on personal development, allowing this to be more closely linked with the worship life of the school. You will also notice that this model allows for lunchtime to move to 12.35pm in response to a number of requests for us to consider an earlier lunchtime. The length of teaching periods remains the same, as does our commitment to after school activities and more details of these will follow in due course. Parents of students in the 6th Form will know that a large number of our 6th form students already have lessons at 3.20pm and we have taken the opportunity to formalise this arrangement which will also enable us to reinstate a sports afternoon for all 6th form students. Please remember our students in Key Stages 4 and 5 in your prayers over the coming months as they take their important public examinations. We hope they will work hard during the Easter break to prepare for these examinations but also to rest in preparation for the weeks ahead. We also wish the staff and students a wonderful trip to Sorrento and look forward to them returning to us safely with stories of their adventures. I look forward to welcoming back our students on Monday 15th April. All that remains is for me to wish you and your family a very peaceful Easter and thank you for your continued support. Kathy Griffiths

New School Timetable

Diary of forthcoming events

See end page

Magical Images of the Austrian Ski Trip in February…. Read more on the next page

During February half term 48 students from years 8, 9 and 10 travelled to Austria for the annual ski trip,

spending 6 days skiing in the Zugspitz Arena ski area just over the border from Germany, having been

made very welcome at the Zum Schluxen Hotel in the small village of Pinswang.

The students made excellent progress on their skiing, with absolute beginners tackling red runs by the end

of the week, and the more advanced successfully completing some black runs on the final day. It was great

to see the students‘ technique really improve during the trip and to see them all really pushing themselves.

As well as skiing we also had time to visit the town of Fusen in Germany one afternoon where the students

had time for shopping before we went for a pizza in the evening. We also had an evening walk by

candlelight up the mountain path to Neuschwanstein Castle which featured in the film, ―Chitty Chitty Bang

Bang‖. We were also lucky one evening to see local people taking part in the "burning of

witches" (Hexenverbrennung). This is an old custom of driving the winter away with bonfires. The fire is

made to drive the evil winter spirits from the fields and represents the people's yearning for warmth and

spring. The students were excellent representatives of the school and made a real impression on their ski

instructors who all said how proud they were of them all. Mr Gray ran a blog of the trip this year so parents

could see how we were getting on over the week. Well done to all!

Ski Trip 2013

Alumni

Nicola Foxen at The Mail on Sunday

With its great reputation for Journalism, I knew Bournemouth

University was the place for me. Since leaving Bishop Justus

and starting University in September 2011, I have learnt

numerous things inside and out of the lecture theatre and

developed as an individual in the process. Having had a

successful first year at university gaining a 2.1, I have been

working hard throughout my second year to achieve to the best

of my ability. I have also been fortunate to be chosen as a peer

assisted learner for the first year students where I can assist

with any problems they may face.

I have benefited from going to a university with such an

impressive media school and have got involved in a variety of

its media outlets. As an aspiring journalist, I have worked on

the campus newspaper as a sub editor where I have learnt to

write even more precisely whilst also being a weekly host on

the radio show in my first year to boost my confidence.

Alongside this, I have immersed myself in freelance journalism,

developing a personal portfolio where I have written pieces for

businesses and fashion labels as well as maintaining my own

news blog. In the competitive field of journalism, I believe

experience is everything, so last summer I voluntarily worked at

my local newspaper ‗The Newshopper‘ getting a number of articles published. I have been privileged

enough to help out on other stories and been specifically asked to write a follow up piece for a local dance

company. All of these factors have been a contribution as to why, this summer, I am now looking forward

to starting a five week placement at The Mail on Sunday, working in a variety of departments and gaining

a broad insight into working at a successful national newspaper.

Although having a nervous start to the university experience, I believe the past two years have been better

than I could have ever anticipated. Bournemouth has definitely been the perfect place for me; it is like a

home away from home, with the benefits of living so close to a beach. I have met some amazing people,

had a lot of fun and learnt great life skills such as cooking, budgeting and time management to name but

a few. But most importantly, I have got a taste of what is to come in the future as life as a journalist.

Although a daunting prospect, I feel prepared to begin my third year where I face the task of writing my

dissertation.

Speak Up! Speak Out!

On Monday 25th February, 32 Year 10 students were involved in the ‗Jack Petchey Speak Up! Speak Out! Challenge‘.

We had a trainer, Ore, come in and train us in public speaking. Some people were nervous as they hadn‘t spoken in

front of a large group of people before, but she told us all we needed to know. This included hints about keeping eye

contact, using hand gestures to show expression and just the right amount of movement to make it interesting. We

started off with small tasks and Ore helped us improve before the final

task. As the day progressed, people grew in confidence and just before

lunch, we had to write a one minute speech about something we felt

passionate about that we would then present to the class in the

afternoon. People rehearsed all lunchtime and then the final

presentations came. There was a variety of different subjects; some

emotional, some funny, but each person had a go at presenting their

work from memory and did an excellent job. Each participant supported

everyone well by applauding them really loudly; everyone in the school

must have heard!

Eight finalists were picked by Miss Hamilton and Ore, though there were

meant to be six; they just thought we were all too good! The finalists were Joe Paris, Emily Smith, Olivia Freame, Faith

Nandy, Hector Jonson, Gabby Owens, Megan Pearce-Wright and Keita Orelaja. Each one then had to present their

speech in the Year 10 assembly that Thursday afternoon. They all did extremely well and were all confident, though

they thought the nerves would take over! They each remembered what Ore had taught us about being confident,

using a loud and clear voice and taking control of the room and they all produced speeches that made an impact on

the audience as they were all very powerful. At some points the speakers made the

year speechless, some made them laugh and some encouraged a reflection on the

message delivered.

There were three judges for the final: Mr Healey, Mr Blakelock and Ms Young, all

experienced in public speaking and after a long debate they picked a winner and a

substitute to then go through to the Bromley borough final, along with the winners from

the other Bromley schools. The winner for Year 10 was Hector Jonson with the

substitute position being awarded to Keita Orelaja. They both did an amazing job and

captivated the audience well. I think Hector will do our school proud in the final and

fingers crossed he makes it through to the national final representing Bromley. Each

one of the students that participated was awarded a certificate with special award

certificates being given to the 8 finalists. Bethany Mulley and Abi Morton were awarded

additional certificates recognising their efforts and improvement throughout the day.

Miss Hamilton said how proud she was of everyone because they gave it everything

and we should all be proud of the finalists who represented our year so well. It was a

great experience and everyone who took part felt that they grew in confidence and

enjoyed the day.

Winner: Hector Jonson

Runner-up: Keita Orelaja

On Monday 18th March thirteen Bromley secondary schools came together for the Year

10 Speak Up! Speak Out! Challenge. Seventeen speakers battled it out for two hours

speaking for two to three minutes each on topics varying from war, image, X Factor,

time and animal testing to name but a few. The competition was fierce but only three

students were to be named champions.

Hector Jonson represented Bishop Justus after being chosen as one of eight finalists

from a selection of 32 other students who took part in the Speak Up! Speak Out!

workshop held on 25th February and then winner of the eight in the Bishop Justus Year

10 competition on 28th February.

After weeks of hard work and practice; including performances in the Year 7 and Year

8 assembly and in Staff Briefing, the hard work paid off and Hector Jonson was

awarded second place!

This is a tremendous achievement and we are all immensely proud of him. It's not easy

to speak in front of a large audience but Hector did so with poise, articulation and

confidence.

Well done Hector!

Music Events… at the school

Easter Cabaret Concert

Music Events… in the borough

Bromley Music Festival

Congratulations to Rachel

Parker (Yr. 12) who came first

in the violin solo class earlier

this month.

Senior Sax Band Katie Haig, Year 9 Iman Beoku –Betts, Year 12

The annual Easter Cabaret concert took place on Thursday

21st March, and was one of the most successful to date. It

included performances from ensembles including Senior

Saxtet, Concert Band and Samba Band, and soloists

including Katie Haig, Heather Phelps and Iman Beoku-Betts.

On Saturday 9th March, students

from the chamber choir at Bishop

Justus sang as part of a massed

choir at the packed Fairfield Halls,

led by staff member Mr Graves, and

performing songs from Rodgers and

Hammerstein.

Heather Phelps, Year 10

On 11th March, the Bishop Justus Jazz

Band performed at the annual Duke of

Edinburgh Awards Presentation at the

Civic Centre in Bromley. The band had

the opportunity in the middle of the

ceremony to perform to the Mayor of

Bromley, as well as the assembled

crowd of hundreds of people!

On 12th March, the A Level and AS Level music

students performed their final assessed recitals

at Holy Trinity Church in Bromley in front of

friends and family. The concert was a chance to

perform in a beautiful acoustic and atmosphere,

and for the students involved, an opportunity to

showcase the results of many months of hard

work and practice. Stephen Yolland

AS Level Geographers explore the River Cray

Despite the hail at the first site, AS Level Geographers enthusiastically explored the channel dynamics of the River

Cray investigating downstream changes in processes and energy levels of the River. Measurements demonstrated

that the channel geometry and flow conformed to the expected models of behaviour. Flood management strategies

were also investigated and it was no surprise to find the flood alleviation channel at Hall Place in Bexley carrying

water for the first time in many years.

House Matters

We congratulate all students in Hoy House for their

tremendous efforts over the last two terms in moving up the

leader board to claim the House Cup for their overall House

points and commendations gained. We are also delighted to

have appointed our Deputy House Captains this term who were

welcomed during House

Worship: Jessica Frankland,

Erika Mantoura, Tim Murch,

Sonia Woolhouse, Victoria

Junaid, Jean-Louis Francois

Campbell, Jack Malham, Harriet

Egbonimali, Summer Cowans,

Nekebah Cohen, Meesha

Vaughan-Gray and Sophie

Skinner. We look forward to

these teams generating

enthusiasm for the House

system and running more events in the forthcoming weeks.

Mr Broughton (Assistant

Headteacher) will be running the London Marathon on 21st April,

2013 in aid of the YouthNet charity. He would welcome

support on the day itself as well

as any contributions to the project that he is looking to fund.

This charity project - run jointly

by Age UK and YouthNet - is aiming to link young people up

with those elderly who might

well be isolated so that the young can gain mentoring

experience by teaching the maturer members of the

community how to use the

internet. The idea would be then that the elderly can use the

internet to become more social and enjoy the convenience that

the web can bring.

My fundraising page is:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/

PeterBroughton1

The relevant charity pages are:

http://www.runforit.org.uk/ http://www.youthnet.org/

Mr. Broughtons Marathon in aid of

YouthNet

10 lucky winners secured their places at The Big

Bang Fair last week by successfully posting in to

school a humble potato crisp. This technical

challenge set to year 9 students allowed them to visit

and participate in a huge range of events to develop

their understanding of just what scientists, engineers

and mathematicians actually do – and how they

could follow in their footsteps - activities and

resources highlighted career opportunities and

routes to those careers. The students got thinking

about what jobs in science and engineering are really

like, and how they might make the ideas they get

from visiting The Big Bang 's events a reality. It was a

fantastic event and the few that attended have been

sharing what they learned by giving presentations in

their tutor groups. Sharing all the fun and excitement,

and the bigger message about the kinds of careers

that studying science and maths can lead to.

The Big Bang Fair

Don‘t Try This at Home!

As part of National Science week,

we were delighted to host year 5

students from local primary schools.

They had the opportunity to work

with our 6th Formers extending their

science learning. The afternoon was great fun

and saw them benefiting

from using all sorts of

equipment and undertaking

experiments in our labs. Our

6th form were a real credit to

themselves too, patiently

supporting the youngsters

and clearly explaining the

concepts.

Excitement is gathering here at Bishop Justus in anticipation of the launch of

our new Career Academy on June 12th 2013. Our 6th Form students will have

opportunities to engage with local and national employers in partnership with

our school as a valuable preparation for adult life.

Our young people, who successfully enrol on the programme, will have

opportunities to extend their achievement beyond accepting the middle ground.

They will receive support that will build on their enthusiasm and help them to

identify and develop their strengths in meaningful ways that will go with them

long after they leave Bishop Justus. To find out more about Career Academies

visit www.careeracademies.org.uk. If as an employer, you would like become

part of this new initiative contact Alison Oosthuizen, who will be delighted to

involve you.

‘Just wanted to say a BIG THANK YOU for such a great afternoon. The Students from

Keston had a wonderful afternoon, it was informative, encouraging and such good

fun.’

Chris Rowland

Keston CE Primary School.

Diary of Events:

APRIL 2013

Sorrento Holiday Geography KS4— 1st April

Iceland Trip Year 11,12 and 13— 8th April

The Voice Heats—22nd to 24th April

Impact Day— 25th April

MAY 2013

The Voice Quarter Finals—2nd May

The Voice Semi Finals— 9th May

Year 13 Bingo Evening— 10th May

Public Exams begin— 13th May to 30th June

Music Tour Parents‘ Evening—14th May

The Voice Final— 22nd May

Concert Band and Choir Tour Paris/Prague— 25th to 29th May

JUNE 2013

Friends Summer Ball— 15th June

Bishop Justus Church of

England School Magpie Hall Lane

Bromley

Kent

BR2 8HZ

020 8315 8130

Through Faith and Learning

Every Learner Achieves @ Bishop Justus

Does your child have a learning difference or difficulty?

Do you sometimes struggle to support them with their learning?

If so, if you want some guidance for how best to support your child at home, or some information of where to get

additional help in the local areas, sign up to our ELA Mailing List. Each week you will receive a ‗Top Tip‘ or infor-

mation from external providers to help you help your child.

If you would like to sign up, please email ela@bishopjustus.bromley.sch.uk typing ‗Sign Up To Mailing List‘ in the

subject box. We look forward to working with you!

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

8.35 Registration Registration Registration Registration Registration

8.40 Worship / Tutorial Worship / Tutorial Worship / Tutorial Worship / Tutorial Worship / Tutorial

9.15 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1

10.15 Break Break Break Break Break

10.35 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2

11.35 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3

12.35-

1.20

Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch

1.20 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4

2.20 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5

3.20 Period 6

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