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Pupils visit the WWI trenches in Belgium
On Friday 13th January, Year 9 and 10 History pupils visited Ypres in Belgium to carry out a ‘Surgery and Treatment’ tour. After a very cold and early start, they made it to Belgium.
The tour began with a visit to Beyernwald Trench System to study life in the trenches. Pupils were able to explore the trenches and bunkers as well as have a go at manoeuvring a stretcher through the cramped and crowded trenches. This was to demonstrate the difficulty stretcher bearers would have had removing wounded soldiers from the front line.
From the trenches we followed the experience of a British ‘Tommy’ who had been injured by shrapnel in ‘No Man’s Land’ and the evacuation route he would have taken. We then attended a ‘show and tell’ session to look at dressings and other medical equipment available to the soldiers in the First World War.
Some pupils had the opportunity to pay their respects to their own
relatives who gave their lives during WWI and the day ended at Lijssenthoek cemetery where pupils discovered the tragic fate of the British Tommy they had been following. Pupils then took part in a small ‘last post’ ceremony where they laid a wreath on the grave of the British soldier and held a minutes silence to show their respect for the heroic acts of all who fought in the war.
Inside this issue:
Our community 2
The Headteacher 3
New this term 4/5
For parents 6
Pupil page 7
Sports news 8
School Magazine
Term 3
February
2017
Some pupils were incredibly emotional and after a fitting end to an amazing day, we began our journey back home. Pupils commented on how grateful they were to have been able to share this experience and see exactly how the soldiers had coped in the trenches during WWI.
Pupils walking through the WWI trenches and taking part in a ‘last
post’ ceremony to lay a wreath.
Pupils from 7S wanted to raise money for people less fortunate than themselves and decided to fundraise for the homeless of Maidstone. The pupils made and sold ‘Brownies in a jar’ and dog bandanas. They filled the jars with all the ingredients (except butter and eggs) to make lovely chocolate Brownies and sold them at their Christmas fair along with Christmas decorations. 7S worked really hard and sold 80 Brownie jars. They raised an impressive grand total of £414.61 and we would like to congratulate them on all their hard work.
Pictured right, Charlotte, Joshua and Alfie at the Christmas fair.
Officer training for ex TMS pupil
The Royal Air Force College Cranwell is the Royal Air Force training and education academy, which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to be commissioned officers.
We are proud and delighted to say that Alex Hickman (Ex Year 13) at The Malling School, who
studied Sport and Communication & Culture has been selected to undertake his officer training with the RAF at Cranwell. Alex will become a commissioned officer in the RAF regiment where formal
training starts later in the year.
We would like to congratulate
Alex on his outstanding
achievement.
Concerned pupils raise money for Charity
Brownies in a jar and gifts from 7S
Page 2
Our community
Last term pupils from 8AG*
organised a charity event to
raise money for Oxfam. The
pupils were inspired by the work
they were doing in their
Geography lessons and wanted
to help children and families in
developing countries. They took
it upon themselves to organise a
meeting with Mr. Roberts to put
forward their ideas. Mr. Roberts
was keen to support this worthy
cause and agreed to a non-uniform
day and a cake sale on Friday 16th
December. The event was a huge
success and the pupils managed to
raise £300 just from selling cakes to
staff and pupils. The money has
been used to provide families in
developing countries with water,
goats and farmland. We are very
proud of all our caring pupils who
have worked really hard to help
other people.
2016 ended with the news that The Malling School had more first choice applications for September 2017 than any non-selective school in Tonbridge and Malling. We are very proud that the hard work of staff, pupils and parents over the years has paid off and that we are now widely recognised as an excellent place to learn.
As we started 2017 we set ourselves the objective of helping pupils to strive for excellence by improving their resilience and perseverance. Teachers and other staff have been looking at how a ‘growth mindset’ can have a positive effect on achievement. Having a ‘growth mindset’ means believing that the brain responds positively to challenges and develops as a result. People with a growth mindset have a ‘can do’ attitude to their work and are not defeated by failure. Instead, they use their failures to make improvements, which in turn lead to greater achievement. Research shows that teaching in a growth mindset way, physically changes the brain and leads to better learning. The opposite of a growth mindset is a ‘fixed mindset’, which limits achievement and aspiration.
Alongside this work, aimed at developing the brain we have continued our work on Mindfulness, which is aimed at helping pupils (and staff) deal with their stressful lives. Many of our pupils are now learning Mindfulness techniques, either as
part of formal lessons, or as part of one of the numerous clubs we run through the week. Although Mindfulness does not work for everyone the response we have had from pupils suggests that this is something worth pursuing.
Finally, you will have noticed that our School Magazine has not been sent out as a hard copy this term. We are trialling sending it out as an electronic copy only and would value your thoughts on this. As our school has grown, it now costs around £4000 per year to print and post the magazine and this does not take into account the hours of staff time it takes. We would rather spend this money directly on resources for pupils and will be using savings made to ensure that departments have enough money to provide pupils with everything they need for a first class education. We will still be printing a few hard copies so if you prefer to receive the magazine in the traditional format please do let us know.
“The Malling School
had more first choice
applications for
September 2017 than
any non-selective school
in Tonbridge and
Malling.”
Page 3
A message from the Principal
Mr Carl Roberts
A positive effect on achievement
IB and Btec Art and Design
Page 4
New this term
Alfie Ivy left TMS last year after passing 5+ GCSEs A*-C including English and Maths.
School was not always easy for Alfie as he had to overcome some difficult challenges. However, he showed determination, perseverance and resilience in order to achieve his good grades. As a result, he gained a place on a higher level
The IB BTEC Art and Design pupils have been completing various workshops in lessons with the University of Creative Arts. They have been exploring a range of unfamiliar techniques including working with light sensitive paper to produce some interesting outcomes.
They have also been learning how to create effective portfolios ready for their university interviews which were organised by Mrs Pizzey, our Careers Adviser.
apprenticeship with Volvo, formally known as a Heavy Vehicle Advanced Apprenticeship Programme.
Alfie beat many other applicants to gain his apprenticeship which is part of a three-year training programme. He is now training to be a Mechanical Engineer, specialising in working on Volvo articulated lorries and buses. Alfie currently works for six weeks in the Volvo Engineering Academy and
An apprenticeship with Volvo
then travels to Volvo’s Engineering College in Leicestershire for two weeks in order to continue his theory studies in engines, transmissions and the latest electronic diagnostic techniques covering all vehicle systems.
We are very proud of Alfie and wish him well in his future career.
See your child's reading progress with Home Connect
Did you know you can log on a website called Home Connect to see your child’s reading results and progress? It’s very simple to do, follow the link in the ‘MY School Links’ area from the school website or log on to https: ukhosted5.renlearn.co.uk/189
5283/HomeConnect/
Enter your child’s AR username and password (all pupils will know this) and you will be able to:
Review results on AR quizzes taken in school.
View the number of books read, words read and quizzes passed.
See a virtual bookshelf showing the books your child has read.
You will also see a link to ‘E-Mail Setup’ at the top of the page that
gives you the chance to sign up to receive an e-mail every time your child takes a quiz to share the results with you instantly!
Pupils learn computer programming with microbits
On Wednesday the 18th January, The Malling School hosted an IB anthropology day with students from the Royal Harbour Academy attending.
Students started the day with team games to get to know each other. One of the games involved making spheres using just cocktail sticks and mini marshmallows and another was a team juggling exercise.
Students used skills such as communication, creativity, ingenuity, coordination and perseverance. Once everyone got to know each other they were mixed into groups and had to do some research and present their ideas on some key anthropological questions. The questions were designed to look at social media, gender equality and rituals within our society. Students presented their work to each other, showcasing their anthropological knowledge in a very clear and concise way.
After a well earnt lunch, two PhD students from the University of Kent gave short talks on social
and cultural anthropology and biological anthropology. The first talk focussed on the migration of our earliest ancestors from Neanderthals to Homo sapiens and how their bodies adapted to specific environments. Students were intrigued and asked a variety of questions that tested the presenter’s knowledge. The second speaker focussed on her ethnographic studies in Timor, on post conflict environments, along with key anthropology concepts. The day gave the students a real insight in to the studies of anthropology and potential careers.
As part of computer skills lessons Year 7, 8 and 9 pupils are learning computer programming skills. They have learnt to programme using Scratch, Python and Logo by using ‘Microbits,’ which are programmable mini motherboards. Microbits were issued to schools as part of a nationwide initiative to help
teach computer programming in schools. Pupils will hopefully be encouraged to consider programming as a future career. They have been able to write programmes and upload them onto the Microbit modules. The Microbits have an inbuilt accelerometer and compass. Pupils have made interactive games such as rock, paper, scissors.
Anthropology day for IB students
Page 5
New this term
Students share their work with others at the anthropology day
held at TMS.
Labelling uniform and equipment
We would like to remind parents to please ensure all school uniform and equipment is labelled. We are
currently collecting a large amount of unnamed lost property, some of which are expensive items including
clothing. Could you please name all items so that it can be returned from lost property.
Keep up to date with your child’s progress by downloading
our new app
Page 6
For parents
A group of Year 10 pupils took part in a Youth Employability Programme ran by Future Creative. The programme took part over four sessions and pupils were able to explore their own personality traits and discover their strengths, weaknesses and learning styles. Pupils watched a video on body language and its
impact on behaviour and performance in the work place. The group then got to put this to the test by filming each other carrying out interview scenarios with negative and positive body language. All four sessions were very interactive and the pupils involved were able to gain employability skills whilst trying out new skills such as photography and film making.
Sleeping bags for the homeless
Employability programme introduced
On Wednesday 18th January, the Year 10 Resistant Materials class visited the newly refurbished Design Museum in Kensington. The
group enjoyed travelling to London Victoria on reserved carriages from East Malling station. They then took part in a very informative workshop on ‘lighting’ using collections of contemporary design objects. During the hour long workshop, pupils interacted with key designs through experiential learning.
The workshop supported pupils by showing new perspectives on the role of designers and the impact design has on everyday life. A visit to the gallery gave the pupils a chance to see how design ideas
Since the beginning of the academic year, some Year 12 students have been participating in the National Citizen Service programme (NCS) run by Catch 22. As part of the programme the students had to raise awareness of a local issue and one group felt homelessness in the Maidstone area was a major concern. The students decided to support one local charity, Homeless Care at Maidstone Day Centre, by holding a cake sale to raise money to buy much-needed sleeping bags. Thanks to the support of students and staff who
bought cakes that had been kindly donated by local organisations, the students were able to purchase 6 sleeping bags. Amy Foreman, met with Zofia Grzymala (Manager of Maidstone Day Centre), just before Christmas to deliver these much needed sleeping bags.
Maidstone Day Centre are always look for donations of unwanted sleeping bags which can be delivered during their opening hours. For more information contact: www.homelessinmaidstone.org.uk .
Trip to the design museum in London
Page 7
Pupil page
have progressed over the years. The behaviour of all pupils was outstanding and we received many comments from the public to that effect.
If you have any stories, comments or would like to publicise your community event, please contact the editor:
Available in other formats
Rugby club membership for Anthony
The ba ck p age Sports news
The Malling School
Beech Road
East Malling
Kent ME19 6DH
Tel 01732 840995
Email:
Judo Champion
On Saturday 21st January William Rolfe (Yr9) represented The Malling School in the Southern Area Trials for the British Schools Judo Championships.
William is a member of the Walderslade Judo Club and the event was open to all youngsters from Academic Years 4 to 13. The Southern Area trials saw hundreds of children from across the whole of Southern England taking part.
The judo trials took place at Medway Park Sports Centre and William took part in the Academic Year 8/9 category in the +66kilo weight group
William had three contests and did exceptionally well, coming away with a gold medal and as group champion.
The Gold and Silver medallists will now go forward to the British Schools Championships, which will be held in Sheffield in April. At the event, The Malling School will be represented at British Championship level. We would like to congratulate William on his success and wish him the very best of luck at the British Championships.
Anthony Parish left TMS last year after passing 5+ GCSEs A*-C including English and Maths. By the end of Year 11 he was also representing Kent at rugby. Anthony successfully applied to Hartpury College in Gloustershire to study Sport. As a part of his admission to Hartpury, Anthony was
accepted to become a playing member of Hartpury Rugby Football Club, which is attached to the college. Hartpury RFC are currently one of the top 40 clubs in England and have been instrumental in furthering the development of talented rugby players. Hartpury only recruits excellent players and gives them the perfect opportunity to experience National League rugby as part of their development, with the Saturday team experiencing a swift rise through the league system since their formation back in 2004.
Mixing youth with experience, the RFC also has excellent links with Aviva Premiership side Gloucester Rugby, whose training base is located adjacent to the Hartpury pitches and training academy. The close relationship between the two has seen a number of dual-registered players, all of whom are current or former Hartpury students who put on the red and black Hartpury jersey as well as the Cherry and Whites strip of Gloucester.
The Hartpury RFC has produced full internationals for England, Ireland and Wales, as well as some of the
emerging rugby nations, such as Canada, Georgia and Zimbabwe. Hartpury offers talented players, like Anthony, the chance to experience a professional rugby club atmosphere and establish an outstanding track record for developing players alongside furthering their education. We are very proud of Anthony and wish him well in both his academic studies and rugby career.
