BROADWATER SCHOOL

Dear Parents

Skiing in Torgon, Switzerland during Challenge Week

I must open this newsletter by commenting on last week, Challenge Week. It was

really good to see our students being able to turn their skills to new challenges

across a wide range of disciplines. You will see in this newsletter articles and photos

of some of the activities they were involved in.

Our year 10 students did themselves proud as we received so many positive

comments from the employers they were with on work experience. Thank you to

Mrs Thompson for her excellent coordination of the week.

Our year 11 had an intense week of English and maths revision to which they

responded in a very positive way. This bodes well for their final written

examinations that start on the 5th May. The examinations seem to get earlier each

year. Easter is a crucial time for revising and being ready for the exams in May and

NNeewwss

M AR C H 2 01 5

BROADWATER SCHOOL SUMMERS ROAD GODALMING SURREY GU7 3BW Telephone: 01483 414516 Fax: 01483 425782

Email: admin@broadwater.surrey.sch.uk www.broadwater.surrey.sch.uk

June. I am sure you will all share with me in wishing them all the best in this

important period. A quote I read recently stated that year 11 should note when

revising, ‘The harder I work, the luckier I get’. What this is saying is that exam

success is not about luck but about consistent hard work and effort.

I am sure that everyone is aware of the forthcoming general election on 7th May. I

read recently that many young people do not bother voting. I find it a sad state of

affairs that many of our young people cannot see the point in voting, believing that

politics and what happens at Westminster doesn’t have anything to do with them.

Politics and the government have an important influence on many aspects of their

life. I know that none of the students at the school are eligible to vote but our year

11s who are 16 will be in two years’ time. I do hope that when all of our students

are able to vote that they will seize the opportunity.

It is very clear that the views of the former Education Secretary have had a

significant influence on the education system. I have never known a period in which

there is so much change in such a short period of time. It is not until 2017 that the

curriculum and exam system changes finally stop. I do hope that whatever

government is in power after 7th May they will allow a period of consolidation so

that schools are able to embed the changes of recent years. Sadly, education

remains at the political whims of the Education Secretary.

Finally we would like to wish Mrs Linda Heath a very happy retirement; Mrs Heath is

leaving the school after more than 17 years’ service as our Science Technician.

I’ll get off my soapbox now and wish you all the very best for Easter.

Chris Lee

Headteacher

Skiing and Snowboarding trip to Torgon 2015

At 5.15pm on Friday 13th March, 32 very

excited students and 4 slightly

apprehensive staff boarded the coach that

was to take us all the way to Torgon in

Switzerland for our Ski and Snow-boarding

trip.

It is difficult to put into words how

incredible this trip was, and how can I

choose the ‘best bits’?

Was it… the impeccable behaviour of all of

our students and the reputation they built

for themselves as the politest and most

positive school of the season?

Was it …their incredible ‘have a go’

attitude where even the hardest of tasks

like hurtling down a mountain in the pitch

black with only a flaming torch for light,

was made to look effortless?

Was it… the support and empathy the

students showed for each other especially

when others lost their confidence?

Was it… that all the ski instructors have

asked if they can have our students again

next year?

Was it…our students discussing

philosophical question whilst at the top of

the mountain and asking when we could

do a P4C enquiry in the snow?

Was it…that no matter how tired they

were, they carried on and embraced each and every activity including the climbing

wall, the roller disco, and the thermal baths?

Was it…their sheer love of dressing up in anything vaguely ridiculous?

Was it… their unequivocal

appreciation for the experience and

how grateful they were to their

parents for the opportunity?

Or was it being belted on the side of

the head by a massive snow ball?

(Thanks Martin)

So it transpires that skiing for a week

was not really such a challenge after

all. Keeping their rooms tidy and not

having access to their mobile phones

during meal times… now that nearly

killed them!

I could not be prouder of our

students and the way they

conducted themselves. It was a

sheer joy to be around them and

watch them face their fears and

tackle blue, red and black runs. The

progress they made on the slopes

was amazing; the progress they

made as young people was simply

astonishing.

Thank you to everyone who made

this trip happen, especially to the

admin team for all the paper work,

and Mrs Pearson- Jury, Mr Reed,

and Mr Hughes for doing such an

incredibly job of supporting our

young people.

Mrs E Matthews,

Deputy Headteacher

PGL Challenge Week Visit, Osmington Bay, Dorset

The PGL Challenge Week visit

this year was fantastic!

Every day was jam packed with

activities; a field studies activity

and 2 challenging activities

during the day and 1 at night.

We were split into 4 groups with

a member of staff and then

came back together for our

meal times and free time. The

food was excellent with hot and

cold choices for breakfast, lunch

and dinner!

The range of activities we did

varied each day and every group

completed them all over the

course of the week. These

included: Zip Wire, Archery,

Tunnel Trail, Trapeze to name a

few. The field studies the students

took part in were Marine

Zonation, which allowed students

to look for sea creatures in the rock

pools and Geology, which focused

on rocks & fossils. The combination

of activities allowed students to

show how P4C can fit to all activities

not just the class room.

Facing our fears was a big theme of

the week with students braving high

climbs and pitch black tunnels! All

students were involved and best of

all in their groups encouraged and

motivated each other to have a go and try. Evening activities were a little less

energetic with team games including Robot Wars, campfire sing-song and Ambush.

The week was great fun as you

can tell from the pictures we

had an amazing time.

Mrs Julie Skeats, Trip Leader

The Eggciting Challenge

This challenge took the form of a traditional “Great Egg Race” with the students split into teams of 5 or 6. The idea was to build a vehicle which would carry an uncooked egg safely down a ramp and then travel as fast as possible. They were judged on their ability to work together as an effectively team showing good creative, critical, collaborative and caring skills. Further considerations included: the aesthetics of the vehicle and using their budgets wisely. Each team was presented with a box of materials from which they had to develop a design and then build it. There were some challenges to overcome; for example the students were only given 3 wheels per team. Additional materials were available to buy and this is where the budget was used to purchase these eggxtras. The students really enjoyed the day taking part in this challenge and they created some really eggceptional designs. The furthest any vehicle travelled in the week was over 7 metres and we did not have any broken eggs! Daily Winners: Winning Team Student of the Day Monday Favourite Harvey Penton-Stewart Tuesday Yolk Masters Paul Ellis Wednesday Eggheads Brandon Tyrrell Thursday Eggcellent Poppy Marshall Friday Galaxy Charlie Slater Robert Coombes, Deputy Headteacher

Some of the Eggciting Challenge Winning Teams

Challenge Week Creative Arts The creative art department worked with students to create unique and original pieces of art in the form of music, drama and art.

The music workshop had students crashing, banging, sliding and scraping all sorts of junk percussion instruments from broomsticks to drainpipes. Students were inspired by the work of STOMP a highly successful West End show that has dazzled audiences for years. The combination of music, choreography, drama and comedy was emulated by the students during their session. I was impressed by how the students were able to incorporate their knowledge of the musical elements into their work showing real musical flare. The drama workshop looked at combining two skills to create unique pieces of theatre. Students were asked to use mime and soundscapes in their groups to devise an engaging and theatrical performance that challenged them both creatively and physically. Finally the art department worked on two scenes one of rural Britain and the other of the capital’s landscape using recycled materials reclaimed by a scrap charity. Students worked collaboratively all day and were able to demonstrate their skills in the 4 C’s.

Art Department scenes made with recycled materials

Students also had the opportunity to take part in a day trip to London to visit the Tate Modern and to see ‘Stomp’ at the Ambassadors Theatre. Mr Nathan Smith-Rogers Assistant Headteacher

Challenge Week Alpine Activity Days Students were offered the opportunity to take part in Alpine Activity day trips during Challenge Week. On Thursday, 20 year 8 & 9 students and on Friday 10 year 7 students travelled to the Alpine Centre in Aldershot. The students had a fantastic time with the chance to try skiing, snowboarding and ‘donuting’. All the students rose to the challenge and made the most of their day.

Year 8 & 9 Alpine Challenge Team

Year 7 Alpine Challenge Team

PE NEWS This has been a short, but very busy half term. After Easter we will be starting Summer sports. Please come along to Rounders, Cricket, Athletics and Tennis Clubs this Summer; all welcome. Broadwater hosted the Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 Hockey Festival on Tuesday 3rd March. The effort put in by the pupils was exceptional. Schools who attended were Tillingbourne, Chandler, St James and Busbridge. Broadwater’s young leaders helped run the event, refereed the games and kept the score board. They were amazing, despite getting very cold indeed! Well done to Tillingbourne and Chandler who go forward to represent Waverley in the County finals in Year 6.

The Inter House competition is closer than ever this year. This half term we have had Inter house Table Tennis. The Annual Year 2 Badminton Festival was also held this half term and yet again Broadwater’s young leaders were outstanding. Pupils from Farncombe Infants, Chilworth Infants, Loseley Fields and Moss Lane came along to the event and had a great time and learnt some new skills.

On Wednesday 25th February Broadwater hosted the Annual Dance Festival. Pupils from Moss Lane, Farncombe Infants, Godalming Junior, St James, Cranleigh Juniors, Loseley Fields and Chilworth Infants schools came along and took part in a day of dance. They learnt 4 different dances and then selected one to perform. Approximately 130 pupils were involved and it is always a thoroughly enjoyable day. We had 4 professional dance teachers in school to help deliver the sessions and we hope it is a festival we can continue to run in future years. Well done to the Young Leaders who assisted with this event.

Huge congratulations to our swimming squad who attended the Waverley and Ash Swimming Gala on Thursday 5th March. We did exceptionally well, coming 2nd overall, only losing out to All Hallows School who were first and beating Rodborough, Weydon, Glebelands and Woolmer Hill. What a result! Well done to all those involved including Broadwater young leaders who helped time keep and keep the score. Thank you to Mrs Sarah Perry who ran the event on the day and Mrs Fletcher who also helped with the score board. This term Waverley Borough Council promoted the Surrey Youth Games in assembly. Any pupils wishing to get involved can get a leaflet from the P.E department which gives details of all the events on offer. Congratulations to CCO who were winners of the Inter House Cricket Competition, and also to SFE who came second. It was a great final. Well done to all those involved.

Well done to all the young leaders who helped at the Waverley Paragames on Thursday 26th March. Also, to Broadwater students who took part in the day. It was a great experience for all involved, allowing young leaders to experience delivering sports to SEN children and for Broadwater students to experience some new alternative sports.

Well done to all students this half term who were involved in the Year 8 netball tournament, Year 7 netball tournament, Year 8 Table tennis tournament, Years 7 and 8 football tournaments. Football review Year 7: Congratulations on a good first season for the year 7 boys who have played all qualifiers and made it through to the district semi-finals which will be played after Easter where then they play Christ’s College. Moment of the season Another stunning free Kick from Charlie Le Masurier saw them beat Rodborough 2-1 in their last game and send them through. Year 8: The year 8’s have played some of their best football this year building on lasts year’s team with a growing number of players looking to be involved with the team and training. Moment of the season Carl Brown scored a wonderful team goal against Rodborough in their last match to finish off an encouraging season. Year 9: The year 9 boys have worked hard at training on Tuesday afterschool but still not found a winning line up. They lost 3 – 5 to Rodborough in their final match but have played really good football that is not shown in the results they had. Moment of the season Goalie Josh Burt has been excellent all year and an inspiration to his team mates especially with all his saves against Guildford County. Year 10: The year 10s were disappointed with their final position in the qualifying league for the cup as they did not go through to the finals for the first time in 4 years. They had a great win against Woolmer Hill but losing to Rodborough meant they did not go further in the competition. Moment of the season Hugo Lawrence performing his trade mark turn in the centre of midfield to bedazzle the other team. Year 11: This team have improved as the season went with stand out performances from Jack Nichols, Nathan Morris and Rory Sellick. They have qualified for the first time and are looking to beat Christ’s College away after Easter to get to their first final. Good luck year 11. Moment of the Season Ryan Coombes scoring a header at the back post in injury time to draw with Guildford County and send the team through.

Rugby Update

Over the year the teams have played several matches against local schools and had some really good matches. The Guildford Rugby Club has agreed to work closely with us next year again and hopefully we will see even more matches being played. Titans Rugby coaches will be running a few sessions next term as there are plans for some 7s matches but this is to be confirmed.

On 14th February Jacob Davis went to Twickenham to watch England play Italy and unveil our new school rugby kit designed by our students and made by Canterbury. It was an exciting match but before the game he welcomed both national sides to Twickenham, walked out onto the pitch as a flag bearer while the national anthem was sung and watched the players warm up. It was quite an experience. Jacob had a great day and upon returning to school the Yr 7 rugby team won their next rugby match in their new kit to finish their first season. Well done to all who played.

This term will see the start of the athletics, cricket, tennis and rounders leagues so please come to practices and join in and represent the school in these sports. I hope our summer term will be as fun and successful as our spring term. Mr Stuart Cook Mrs Kerry Fowler PE Department

Jacob at Twickenham launching the new Broadwater rugby kit

Surrey Schools’ Biathlon Well done Tom, Jamie and Oliver who took part in the Surrey Schools’ Biathlon at Spectrum on Tuesday 17th March. They competed very well against some strong opposition.

Duke of Edinburgh Awards

Congratulations to our students who received their Duke of Edinburgh Award certificates on Wednesday 25th March at Weydon School, Farnham. This was a prestigious event involving all the young people in Waverley who had completed their awards. We are very proud of all our D of E students. Well done to Sean Brown who made an excellent speech at the event.

A Visit To The Shah Jahan Mosque

A group of fifty seven year 7 students and 5 staff visited the Shah Jahan Mosque in Woking on Thursday, March 12, 2015. The students were able to tour the mosques and had an opportunity to ask the Imam questions about the mosque as well as more general questions relating to Islam. The students also worked in pairs to build their own mosques from cardboard before watching the mid-day prayer session. Overall, it was a very rewarding experience that will be useful as the year 7 students continue to explore Islam in the coming weeks.

World Book Day 2015

World Book Day is a celebration! It’s a celebration of authors, illustrators, books and

(most importantly) it’s a celebration of reading. In fact,

it’s the biggest celebration of its kind, designated by

UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of books and

reading, and marked in over 100 countries all over the

world.

This is the 18th year there’s been a World Book Day

which we celebrated on 5th March. The main aim of

World Book Day in the UK is to encourage children to

explore the pleasures of books and reading by providing

them with the opportunity to have a book of their own.

£1 book tokens were distributed to students which Year 7s and 8s could exchange

for the specially published WBD books available from the school Library, or to put

towards a book of their choice.

Activities throughout the day included a ‘Match the character to the book’ quiz and

sending postcards to recommend a book to a friend.

Mrs L Goldsmith

ATTENDANCE Please note below guidance that has been issued by Surrey County Council that I need to draw to your attention.

Penalty Notices to Address Poor Attendance at School A Penalty Notice may be issued as an alternative to the prosecution of a parent/carer for their child’s unauthorised absence from school and will be used by Surrey County Council in the following circumstances:- 1. Pupils identified by police and education welfare officers engaged on Truancy Patrols and who have incurred unauthorised absences.

2. Leave of absence in term time (5 days or 10 sessions or more). Please be aware that The Education (Pupil Registration)(England)(Amendment) Regulations 2013, which becomes law on 1st September 2013 state that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher is also required to determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if leave is granted. In such cases the Headteacher/Governing Body have to judge whether there are exceptional circumstances and may request that the Local Authority issue Penalty Notices when the absence is not authorised. Warnings will not be given where it can be shown that parents have been notified that such absences will not be authorised. 3. The issue of a Penalty Notice will also be considered where it is judged that a parent is failing to ensure their child's regular school attendance. This will be considered if the attendance is below 85% and there are 10 or more unauthorised sessions in the previous 6 school weeks, which may include a pupil arriving late after close of registration. If you believe at any stage that your child’s absence from school may leave you liable to receive a Penalty Notice, it is extremely important that you take action without delay to secure their regular attendance. If you have any questions or require further support to achieve an improvement, please contact the school or the Education Welfare Officer.

Penalty Notice relating to Exclusions If a child is excluded from school, Section 103 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 places a duty on parents/carers to ensure that their child is not in a public place without justifiable cause during school hours. This duty applies to the first five days of each exclusion. Failure to do so will render the parent/carer liable to a Penalty Notice. (Alternative education provision will be made available from the sixth day of any exclusion.)

Amount Payable for a Penalty Notice The amount payable for a Penalty Notice issued in any of the above circumstances is £60 if paid within 21 days of receipt of the Notice, rising to £120 if paid after 21 days but within 28 days. If the Penalty Notice is not paid, the recipient will be prosecuted in the Magistrates Court for the offence for which the Notice was originally issued. Please be aware that each parent is liable to receive a Penalty Notice for each child who incurs unauthorised absences; for example, if there are two parents and one child, each parent will receive one Penalty Notice. If there are two parents and two children incur unauthorised absences, each parent will receive two Penalty Notices, which in this case would amount to £120 each if paid within 28 days. Advice and support is available from an Education Welfare Officer by contacting your local Education Office as follows:- South East - Tel: 01737 737600

Friends of Broadwater School

friends@broadwater.surrey.sch.uk

Upcoming Fundraisers & Events

Friends Committee Meeting Tuesday 12th May 6:30pm-7:30pm, Room 15/Learn Centre

All welcome. Just leave a message at school reception or send your name & number to friends@broadwater.surrey.sch.uk, if you plan to come along, so we know to expect you. Hope you will join us!

Social Gathering Tuesday 9th June 7:30pm onwards at The Jack Phillips (Wetherspoons) in

Godalming

This will be our last social before the summer break – so be sure not to miss it! Just come along, grab a drink and get to know some other parents/staff & enjoy a relaxed evening out. There's no agenda nor action items! Send Moira your name & phone number (email above or leave a message at Reception) if you plan to come along, so we can let you know where to find us! Looking forward to seeing you there!

Uniform Donations

We'd appreciate donations of any outgrown or unwanted uniform (blazers, skirts, trousers, shirts/blouses, jumpers, ties, PE kit & bags etc). We're especially in need of girl's skirts and blazers. We accept items in any condition: items we can't sell will be added to the next textile recycling collection. Please mark bags '2nd Hand Uniform', and hand them in at Reception. Stock permitting, we'll be holding sales during the summer term (New Intake Evening & Y7 Parents Evening).

Many thanks to those who have already dropped off donations.

Updates

Spring Term Textile Donations

Thanks to your generous donations weighing in at 285.9kg, we're expecting a payment of £185.83! Much appreciated! Our next collection will be in the summer term (Mon 29th Jun – Fri 10th Jul).

Uniform

Donations

Fun & Games Night

Thanks to all those who took on the challenge of trying something new by coming along to Fun & Games Night. The event was very well received. Participants said: "It was a great night - we thoroughly enjoyed it and it made a great change from a quiz night". "Thank you for a fabulous evening, I thought it was brilliant as did the rest of my team". Congratulations to team 'Tom Mix' on their win and team 'Init 2 Winit' for winning the Pound Pitch prize. We hope they'll return next year to defend their titles :-) To those Friends who donated raffle prizes, desserts, loaned games for the evening and volunteered their time – thank you! Special thanks to our MC, Jessica Griffiss, Estelle Spencer for arranging and running the bar and our assistant referees: Sean & Carl Brown. Not only did everyone have a good time, but the event also raised £366 for our school!

School Wish List

Thanks to your amazing support this term over £700 has been raised from...

Easyfundraising: £143.02

Textile recycling: £185.83

Fun & Games Night: £366.95

2nd Hand Uniform Sales: £32.00

Total: £727.80

As a result we had enough money to purchase the 3D Printer (£1495) on the school's wish list! The price includes software and onsite staff training. It will be used in support of all STEM (science, technology, engineering, & mathematics) subjects and by a new STEM extra-curricular club the school is hoping to start. We can't wait to see what our innovative students create using this amazing piece of technology!

Thank you to everyone whose support has made this achievement possible.

The Friends of Broadwater School

friends@broadwater.surrey.sch.uk @FriendsofBWS

Fitness Timetable – March 2015 Monday 7.00-9.00 Ju Jitsu Assembly Hall Martial Arts 8.00-9.00 Zumba Sports Hall Fitness Class (Free to Members) 7.00-8.00 Boot Camp Studio Fitness Class (Free to Members)

Tuesday 6.00-7.00 Just Jhoom! Studio Fitness Class (Free to Members) 7.00-9.30 Taekwondo Bistro Taekwondo* (8yrs+) 7.30-9.00 Courage Dance Hall Dance Class 7.00-9.00 DTFK Kickboxing Studio Martial Arts*

Wednesday 5.00–9.00 Gym Clinic Fitness Suite Gym advice* (Free to Members)

5.15-6.15 Dance Fusion Studio Children’s Dance Class 6.15-7.15 Fitness Yoga Studio Yoga Class (Free to Members) 7.00–10.00 Savate Kick Boxing Bistro Adult Martial Arts* 8.30-10.30 School of the Sword Hall Adult Martial Art 5.00-9.00 Personal Training Fitness Suite Personal Training* (Members ½ price) 6.00-8.00 Pilates Hall Adult Fitness Class

Thursday 6.00-7.00 Fitness Pilates Studio Fitness Class (Free to Members) 5.30-7.00 Taekwondo Bistro Taekwondo (5-7yrs)* 6.30-10.00 RDA Dance Hall Dance Class 7.00-9.00 Cheerleading Studio Fitness/Dance Class 7.00-9.00 Taekwondo Bistro Taekwondo (8yrs+)* 7.00-10.00 Fencing Sports Hall Adult Martial Art

Friday 5.00-9.00 Personal Training Fitness Suite Personal Training* (Members ½ price) 6.00-7.00 Yoga Studio Fitness Class (Free to Members)

Saturday 10.30-11.30 Body Conditioning Studio Fitness Class (Free to Members) 9.00-5.00 Personal Training Fitness Suite Personal Training* (Members ½ price) Sun 9.00-4.00 Personal Training Fitness Suite Personal Training *(Members ½ price) * Please see reception for booking details ** Subject to availability

01483 520658

B R O AD W AT E R S C H O O L D I AR Y D AT E S

Please keep this newsletter as a reminder of important dates. Dates can be subject to change – please check the calendar on the website for new/ updated events.

MARCH

Friday 27th School closes at 1.00pm for the Easter Holidays

EASTER HOLIDAYS: Monday 30th March – Friday 10th April

APRIL

Monday 13th Start of Summer Term. Week B

Wednesday 15th Sports Hall Athletics Competition

Friday 17th Silver D of E Practise Expedition ( 2 nights) begins

Saturday 18th Bronze D of E Practise Expedition ( 1 night) begins

Monday 20th Year 8 Exams week begins

Thursday 30th Junior Maths Challenge

PB Group Trip to Arundel Castle

MAY

Monday 4th May Day Bank Holiday

Tuesday 5th Interhouse Rounders Week

GCSE Written exams begin

Tuesday 12th Friends PTA Meeting 6.30pm

Friday 15th Y8 Girls HPV2

Monday 18th Interhouse Cricket Week

Friday 22nd School closes at 3:20pm for half term

HALF TERM May 25th- 29th

JUNE

Monday 1st Return to school, Week B

Monday 8th Year 10 exams begin

Tuesday 9th Friends Social Gathering 7.30pm Wetherspoons Godalming

Thursday 18th Year 7 exams begin

Tuesday 23rd School Sports Day

Friday 26th Year 11 Prom