BISHOP RAMSEY. Half Term: Monday 16th Friday 20th February. Wednesday 25th House Event KS4 Deba ng Thursday 26th Year 7 Parents Evening

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1 BISHOP RAMSEY December 2014 Issue 3 Dates to Remember... DECEMBER Monday 15th Carol Service (7.00 pm at St Lawrence Church) Friday 19th End of Autumn Term JANUARY Monday 5th Start of Spring Term Thursday 15th Year 11 Parents Evening ( pm in the Hall and the Hub) Wednesday 21st Parents Prayer Group (8.00 pm in the Chapel) Wednesday 21st House Event KS3/4 Thursday Girls 5 a side Football 22nd Year 11 Eucharist at St Lawrence Church Monday 26th Malawi Week Tuesday 27th Year 9 Pathways Evening (7.00 pm in the Hall) Wednesday 28th House Event Year 10/11 7 a side Rugby Friday 30th Non Uniform Day FEBRUARY Monday 2nd Year 9 Eucharist (School Hall) Tuesday 3rd Parents Link Group (7.00 pm in the Hall) Thursday 5th Year 9 Parents Evening ( pm in the Hall and the Hub) Half Term: Monday 16th Friday 20th February Wednesday 25th House Event KS4 Deba ng Thursday 26th Year 7 Parents Evening ( pm in the Hall and the Hub) MARCH Wednesday 4th Wednesday 11th Year 8 Eucharist at St Lawrence Church Parents Prayer Group (8.00 pm in the Chapel) Thursday 12th Spring Concert (7.00 pm in the Hall) Friday 13th Dress up Day Mile Challenge and Red Nose Day Tuesday 17th House Curriculum Day Tuesday 24th House Event Dance Compe on Thursday 26th Year 12 Parents Evening ( pm in the Hall and the Hub) Friday 27th End of Spring Term Monday 13th April Start of Summer Term Half Term: Monday 25th May Friday 29th May Friday 17th July End of Summer Term What s in this issue Headteacher s Notes Lest We Forget, A tribute to the Fallen through music An exci ng new chapter in a story of friendship across con nents Applica on/en tlement for Free School Meals House Christmas Card Compe on Maths Challenge Year 7 Parents Maths and Science evening The Real Experience Speak up, Speak loud, Speak clear Young Enterprise The next edi on of The Recorder will be published on the website on Friday 13th March /12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell 1

2 Headteacher s Notes Welcome to the Christmas issue of The Recorder. 2. This year we are celebra ng with a Service of Carols and Readings at St Lawrence s Church at 7.00 pm on Monday 15th December. I do hope you are able to a end. At the end of the evening there will be mulled wine and mince pies thanks to FBR. 3. On the subject of FBR, I would like to record my gra tude for the fantas c job they do raising funds for the school and running such enjoyable events. Their most recent event, the Quiz Night in November a racted 192 compe tors and raised over 1,000 for the school. 4. Fantas c Performances by BR students Congratula ons to all the students who were involved in our Christmas Drama produc on Telling Tales. It involved students from all year groups and captured the pantomime atmosphere of Christmas by telling children s fairy stories but also included some difficult and challenging Shakespeare and used a number of European languages. Thanks to Mrs Simmons and Miss Dell for direc ng and co ordina ng the evening. 5. School Admissions As we will not be making any changes to our admissions criteria and procedures for the school year 2016/17, we are not required to consult with parents. Our criteria and procedures for 2016/17 will be posted on our website by 1st May As you know we have 5 key strategic aims which guide us in how we spend our budget and direct our energies. They are: Every Learner an empowered learner Every Lesson an outstanding Lesson Every Day at School a rich experience Every Rela onship a posi ve encounter A community that looks outwards and beyond. This year we were forced by our precarious finances to add a sixth aim: A school that lives within its means. Congratula ons to all those involved in our superb St Cecilia concert on 20th November. The standard of musicianship was as high as we have come to expect and the sense of celebra on and enjoyment among both performers and audience was outstanding. You can see a more detailed breakdown of how we are transla ng these aims into reality by looking at our website and clicking on the About Us tab. Our plans for appear on the menu on the le of the page. 2 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

3 Headteacher s Notes Thank you to parents and students for suppor ng the 2014 Academic Tutoring Day. It is a unique day which offers students the opportunity to have a real say in shaping their educa onal priori es over the coming months. The targets agreed on 27th November will be reviewed with Form Tutors in March, to see how much progress is being made. 8. Malawi Week will take place during the week beginning 26th January, culmina ng in our Non Uniform day on 30th January, when funds raised will go to suppor ng our sponsorship of students at Malosa School. Our three Malawian visitors (Mr Nelson Mwale, Headmaster, Father Howard Nasoro, Chaplain and Mr Macpherson Ndawala, Teacher) are now safely back at Malosa. Their visit to Bishop Ramsey was a great success in many ways; they enjoyed being here, were made very welcome by the school community and, most importantly, they took back ideas and prac ces which they will use to help improve the educa on of pupils at Malosa. We have a party of Sixth Form students visi ng Malosa next summer and that will provide an opportunity to develop our partnership further. Jacob is now in a residen al rehabilita on centre run by The Children s Trust but his place there is only funded for another few weeks. This link: enables you to connect to the Justgiving site devoted to Jacob. Funds raised will be used to provide essen al treatments, therapies and equipment to aid Jacob s recovery when he comes home. 10. Stop Press we have just received news of the school s valued added performance based on last summer s GCSE exams. I am pleased to tell you that we achieved SIGNIFICANTLY POSITIVE valued added, achieving a score of (against a na onal average score of 1000). Results in Maths, Science, Languages and Humani es were all also significantly posi ve. English was also posi ve but not quite significantly so. These results paint the same picture as our post 16 results, where students at Bishop Ramsey also do significantly be er than the average school. Overall this means that in 2014 there really was a BR effect which meant that our students achieved be er and made more progress than students across the country. 9. On Sunday 2nd March this year Jacob Sawyeer, then of 10Y, suffered a brain aneurism while playing football for his team. We have given you regular updates on Jacob s progress towards health in previous issues of The Recorder. Jacob s school friends and teachers have provided great support to Jacob and his family as Jacob has edged his way towards health and fitness. 10. I would like to remind all parents of our arrangements for days when the school may be closed due to snow. I will ensure that an announcement is posted on our website by 7.00 am each day to confirm whether or not the school is open..and finally, may I wish you a joyful Christmas. Mr A Wilcock Headteacher 3 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

4 News, Events and School Activities... Lest We Forget A tribute to the Fallen through music Bishop Ramsey Church of England School held its annual St Cecilia Concert on Thursday 20th November. The evening is held to honour St Cecilia s day. This year the theme of the concert programme was Lest We Forget, incorpora ng reflec ons and music to commemorate the Centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. The M.C. for the evening was Elisha Zadok who introduced each piece fluently, providing informa on about the students and the music for the audience. Appropriately the concert opened with the Orchestra playing Gustav Holst s I Vow To Thee My Country accompanied by poignant images of the war and its vic ms displayed on the big screen. The mood was then completely changed by the Wind Band, which consisted of many younger members of the school, many performing for the first me in public. They played Let It Go from the popular Disney anima on Frozen. The Junior Choir of nearly 30 members also entertained the audience with a song from Frozen, this me Love Is an Open Door. In complete contrast their second piece was Jessie J s Price Tag where they sang and swayed, something our M.C told us they had prac sed hard to get right. The ever entertaining Jazz Band proved very popular with their rendi ons of the haun ng Autumn Leaves followed by the Louis Armstrong s classic What A Wonderful World. Both pieces were exquisitely played. The first half of the concert concluded with Duncan Stubbs Keep The Faith. This is a modern piece wri en to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of World War One and includes the poem by Moina Michael, We will keep the faith, which was read by Mr Bri on, Head of Religious Educa on. The second half of the evening opened with the Brass Band playing the moving Abide with Me and Last Post. The hymn is frequently sung at Remembrance services in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada, and on spor ng occasions. The beau fully played poignant sound of the last post evoked memories of past and future conflicts, an implied summoning of the spirits of the Fallen to the cenotaph, while symbolising the end of the day. The Senior Choir then sang two diverse pieces. The large group of singers began with the modern Fix You, a song by Bri sh alterna ve rock band Coldplay. In contrast they then sang the popular Bring Him Home from the long running musical Les Miserables. This was an unusual performance, as the song is well known as a solo performance but this group piece demonstrated the disciplined use of various voice groups. Andrei Anghel then played Praeludium and Allegro by Fritz Kriesler. This Year 9 gi ed and talented performer had the audience spellbound with his remarkable violin solo. The Sinfonia were led by two Sixth Form student leaders, David Ide and Ka e Stronell. They entertained with three appropriate pieces for the centenary concert, star ng with the Marching Song by Gustave Holst, then the well known Nimrod from Elgar s Enigma Varia ons. Their final piece was more modern. 21 Guns is a song by American rock band Green Day and addresses the topic of patrio sm and the 21 gun salute for someone that s fallen but through rock n roll. The Jazz Band returned for their second performance playing 3 pieces. Star ng with a deligh ul rendi on of the award winning ballad Somewhere Over The Rainbow from The Wizard Of Oz. In complete contrast their second piece was the 12 bar minor blues Mr PC by John Coltrane. This jazz classic was ably played by the en re band encompassing saxophone, piano, drums and guitar. Their final piece was the Stevie Wonder classic Isn t She Lovely. During the evening A Level Soloists Cherilyn Panganiban (guitar), James Wille (Saxophone), Thomas Hullyer (piano), and Daniel Brown( (Saxophone) superbly demonstrated their skills and different music styles on their chosen instruments. These exquisite performances were all very enjoyable and demonstrated the different genres and styles they have studied. The evening concluded with two beau ful composi ons played by the Concert Band. Both pieces complemented the theme of war and remembrance. Firstly Codebreaker by Robert Buckley was in the compelling style of classic spy music, entering the world of intrigue and espionage. The effec ve orchestra on and the 4 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

5 News, Events and School Activities... playing of the complex score was excellent and transported the audience to the Second World War and the world of Bletchley Park. The final piece was Songs Of The Great War. This selec on comprised a medley of well known and not so well known songs sung and heard during the First World War, many of which are s ll sung. The collec on included Goodbyee, Pack Up Your Troubles, Tipperary, Oh What A Lovely War, It s a Long Long Road and If you were the only girl in the world amongst many others. Many of the audience feet were tapping along with this great performance. The piece ended with the compelling Last Post bringing thoughts and memories of the fallen to those present as well as our thanks. Mr Wilcock congratulated everyone involved, remarking on the talent and variety of the evening. He also introduced and welcomed the schools 3 visitors from Malosa School in Malawi who were on a short visit to Bishop Ramsey School. Nelson Mwale, the Head of Malosa School, Howard Nasoro the School Chaplain and Maths Teacher Macpherson Ndawala enjoyed the concert and congratulated the students and teachers on their excellent performances. The theme of Wallace and Gromit was then played as a fi ng encore to a fabulous concert. The Malawian Teachers pictured with The Worshipful Deputy Mayor Councillor George Cooper and Mayoress of Hillingdon, Councillor Judith Cooper and Andrew Wilcock, Head Teacher of Bishop Ramsey Church of England School. Congratula ons to all the students involved and to Mrs Neale and Mr Cullum for organising the evening. Miss E Neal Senior Librarian 5 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

6 News, Events and School Activities... An exci ng new chapter in a story of friendship across con nents Applica on/en tlement for Free School Meals On Wednesday 19th November Nelson Mwale, Howard Nasoro and Macpherson Ndawala touched down at Heathrow to open a new chapter in the rela onship between Bishop Ramsey Church of England School and Malosa School in Malawi. The three Malawian teachers were beginning a week long visit to the school which would give them the opportunity to see at first hand learning, teaching and educa onal leadership in a leading Bri sh school. The aim of the visit, which was funded partly by dona ons and partly by a grant from the Bri sh Council, was to help the Malawian school learn at first hand about pedagogy and leadership from a successful English school. Nelson Mwale, the Headmaster of Malosa, said We were very impressed by the strong sense of collabora on and shared values which we saw at Bishop Ramsey. There are many things that we will try and incorporate into our work at Malosa Secondary School. Bishop Ramsey Headteacher, Andrew Wilcock, said: Bishop Ramsey School and Malosa Secondary School have been working in partnership over many years. Par es of Sixth Form students from Bishop Ramsey have been visi ng Malosa since 2007 with another visit this coming summer. These visits have o en had a profound effect on the young people taking part in them. Both schools are commi ed to developing their partnership which has already brought great benefits to both. Miss E Neal Senior Librarian In the light of the current economic situa on that affects us all we would like to encourage you to check the Government guidelines for en tlement to Free School Meals. You may have previously chosen not to register for Free School Meals. However the school will receive an addi onal 935 per year for each student who is claiming this benefit. By making a relevant applica on you are also helping to support the school. Please be advised that if your applica on is successful your child will not be iden fiable to any other pupil or staff member. The applica on process is strictly confiden al and run by the Welfare Team. Arrangements are made for the funds ( 2.15) to be directly credited to the student s ID card on a daily basis. If your child is are currently receiving Free School Meals, this provision will con nue un l the end of this academic year. In order to receive Free School Meals for the next academic year you will need to reapply online. If you consider you may be eligible to receive Free School Meals, please ensure that you logon to the new eligibility checker website at If you have any ques ons or queries regarding this ma er please do not hesitate to contact Mrs James or Mrs Baker on / Mrs A James, Mrs C Baker Welfare Officers The Christmas Cake Cart will be in a endance at Bishop Ramsey on Thursday 18th December. Just purchase your token from the café at morning break, and then choose your Christmas treat from the cart at lunch me. All items on the cart will be priced at 85p. Harrisons Catering 6 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

7 News, Events and School Activities... House Christmas Card Compe on The Art Department have had another successful year in running the House Christmas Card Compe on. Students from all years were asked to produce a colourful Christmas card with a religious theme. The winning entries were as follows: 1st Rochester (Rose Tasker Year 13) 2nd Salisbury (Anna Storey Year 10) 3rd Manchester (Joel Chamney Year 7) 4th St Albans (Alana Gaglio Year 10) 5th Exeter (Evyanne Ewusie Year 8) 6th York (Isabel Newns Year 9) A number of other students will also receive cer ficates for Best of Year and Highly Commended. Well done to all the students who took part and congratula ons to the winning entries! Mr S McIntyre Head of Expressive Arts 7 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

8 News, Events and School Activities... The Regional Heat of the Senior Team Maths Challenge Hillingdon KS4 group Maths Challenge On Monday 17 th November four Sixth Formers, Michael Edington (13.2), Piers Ellio (13.5), Elizabeth Flach (12.1) and Rachel Gynn (12.8) took part in the London West heat of the Senior Team Maths Challenge at Merchant Taylors School. There were 19 other local schools and colleges taking part. Bishop Ramsey takes part in many Maths compe ons organised na onally and locally. Last summer I no ced there was a gap in the market for students in Years 10 and 11. Using materials from the UK Maths Trust, I put together a group challenge for these year groups consis ng of 3 rounds. The compe on was in three parts. In the first, the team worked as a group answering 10 ques ons. In the next round, they split into two pairs and had to complete a cross number where one pair had the down clues and the other pair had the across clues. The final round was the hardest and was split into several mini relays. Despite an excellent second round where they scored 41/44, the other rounds for the Bishop Ramsey team were not as strong and we came 10th overall. Since the compe on was made up of many private and grammar schools, we were pleased with this result. Bishop Ramsey put together a team made up of Anna Thompson (10M), Ma hew Pledge (10E), Oliver Benson (11E) and Angelica Chukwuenyem (11M). In the first round they worked as a team to answer 8 ques ons. In the second round they split into pairs and had to solve 4 ques ons, where each ques on needed the answer from the previous ques on. Finally the relay round gave students the opportunity to run around the hall delivering ques ons for the other pair to solve. The Ramsey Maths Challenge was a ended by 15 schools from the Borough of Hillingdon and was supported by the Hillingdon Mathema cal Society. The feedback from all the schools was very good and one of the teachers said, It was excellent night. The kids had a great me and I enjoyed it too! Parents were invited to join us for the final round and many came to support their school. Mr Wilcock also joined us for the last round and handed out the Ramsey Maths Challenge trophy to St Helens who were the winners Mrs J Hurley Mathema cs 8 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

9 News, Events and School Activities... Year 7 Parents Maths and Science evening A group of Year 7 parents a ended school recently to par cipate in Maths and Science lessons so that they could gain a valuable insight into how their children were being taught. The parents had the opportunity to solve Maths puzzles and learn how some aspects of Maths are now taught differently to when they were at school themselves. In Science they were able to work together in groups on a variety of Science experiments and this hands on approach was very much appreciated and enjoyed. The enthusiasm of the parents was very apparent to the staff teaching the lessons and a large number of posi ve comments were received including; All of the teachers were very encouraging our children are very lucky to have such interes ng and fun teachers, Super evening. Really glad I came, Thank you for a very informa ve evening which was also fun!. Many thanks to Mr Be s, Mrs Humphreys, Mr Doran and Mr Murphy for giving up their me and making the evening so successful. Mr A Lunnon Assistant Headteacher 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell 9

10 News, Events and School Activities... The Real Experience for AS Business and Economics students Students from Bishop Ramsey recently applied for the opportunity to be involved in the Real Experience. What is the real experience? The Real Experience in Enterprises House is a Coca Cola Enterprises (CCE) community ini a ve that aims to iden fy future talent from a pool of year old students local to Uxbridge and offer them a unique learning experience. A er lunch, the students were placed in groups and tasked with two challenges, firstly to indicate key takeaways from the day and secondly to design an adver sement that would help a ract graduates to Coca Cola, based on what they had learned from the day. There was a prize of a Kindle for each of the members of the group that most impressed the judges. Students from five schools applied through a le er of applica on and CV. All six of the Bishop Ramsey students were selected to a end the day and they were Talin Aslanian (12.5), Alex Brown (12.2), Carina Cain (12.8), Analese Haynes (12.3), Chelsea Shrestha (12.1) and Timothy Stokes (12.8). The morning consisted of an overview of the business, a demonstra on of CLIC a virtual reality modelling tool to assist in designing the CCE selling experience, a tour and a chance to meet employees in key func onal areas of the business. The focus here was on becoming familiar with the various roles within a large firm. Also significant emphasis was placed on how to apply for careers in large businesses and how best to convey capabili es and character in an applica on. This is a quote from Bill Muirhead, Senior Manager of CCE educa on programme. I just wanted to drop you a quick line to say how impressed we were with the students today. They presented their ideas brilliantly at the end of the day and we were genuinely impressed not only at the amount of informa on they had absorbed but at how coherently and professionally they ar culated their thoughts. In our opinion, they showed competencies and business acumen well beyond their years and were a complete credit to themselves, their schools and, of course, their teachers /12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

11 News, Events and School Activities... This is what two students thought about the experience: Spending a day at Enterprises House was fascina ng and incredibly insigh ul, giving a unique perspec ve into a business whose inner workings are li le known to the general public. From speaking to a varied and diverse mix of staff, I feel much be er prepared for the next few years ahead, as many misconcep ons I had previously held which ranged from job applica ons to university life were all dispelled. This gives me greater confidence about making key decisions in the not too distant future. One thing that par cularly surprised and impressed me throughout the day was each employee s pride, belief and passion shown for their job and the products sold, which was something I had never experienced before and did not expect. I would again like to reiterate my gra tude and thanks to every member of staff who made the day so beneficial and the business as a whole who welcomed us with such warmth. Alex Brown (12.2) Visi ng Coca Cola Enterprises gave me a huge insight into not only the background of the company, but also into what employability skills a large corpora on would be looking for. Personally, I found it extremely valuable to be able to ques on senior level execu ves and also graduates, to gain priceless advice on how to prepare for my future. The experience opened my eyes against the straight forward way of thinking that to go into to business you must do business or economics at university. I now understand that doing a degree that you will enjoy, and adap ng the skills and experiences you go through, can equally put you in good stead for a corporate career. I am grateful to Coca Cola Enterprises for a fantas c day of learning, networking and discovery, and am looking forward to adap ng what I have learnt in aiding my future. Talin Aslanian (12.5) I would like to congratulate all the students on their performance and thank CCE for providing such an experience. Mr D Carter Head of Business and Economics For further informa on: h p:// and events/news/coca cola enterprises hosts localstudents at uxbridge head office 11 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

12 News, Events and School Activities... Speak up, speak loud, speak clear; the 2014 Speak Out Challenge is here! On Friday 24 th October, Year 10 were privileged enough to have a day full of expressing opinions, listening to others, talking in front of an audience and performing to peers. We arrived at school, in the not so early hours of the frosty morning, to begin our workshop. Each form was separated into different classrooms and assigned an English teacher. It started with an introduc on to a Speak Out mentor, who from then on would not only be our teacher for the day; but also our coach. It was fascina ng to be spurred on by a person not only very qualified in their profession, but also so comfortable with their field of exper se to give you guidance and support. We began the even ul day with a starter task. A sudden rise of mu ering flooded the classroom when we told we would stand up, say our names and a few facts about ourselves. Smirks wiped across people s faces as they so confidently believed they knew the form so well, li le did they know... We were soon in for a shock and our a en on drawn in, to say the least, by this simple game. We failed to recall what everyone had said about each other, without any repe on. It s only 30 people? How difficult can it be? Well let me tell you, readers of The Recorder, it s a lot harder then it seems! The room s atmosphere had already differed from before; now flooded with a sense of bewilderment, excitement and an enlightening ambience. A er a brief demonstra on from our mentor, a few selected individuals were asked to do a prac ce speech. This was the first challenge of the day: improvisa on. A er being relayed a ques on, the students had their two minutes to make a statement. We were led to believe these could poten ally be the most important one hundred and twenty seconds of our lives. We had a quick brain storm in our booklets, no ng down about what we could and couldn t speak about; then the talks began. It was amazing, and slightly worrying to see how passionate someone could be over dogs being be er pets than cats. We were astonished at the quick thinking of our peers members, thinking they were brilliant, bemusing, breath taking, but not for long... This led us into challenge two: observa on. A er some construc ve cri cism and how to analyse speakers; looking at the posi ves and nega ves of our colleagues delivery and image. I can honestly speak on behalf of my form, and shamefully admit, we did not know the amount of technicality that went into a speech. The concept of this analysis allowed us to see what, and what not, to do when speaking in front of an audience. Now people who lacked in confidence, flourished, people who spoke one hundred miles an hour, talked at walking pace and the wrigglers as we called them were bold in their stance. T o say the least, it was not even lunch me and people had gained at least three new performing quali es. Challenge three: ideas. We undertook the task of wri ng down what we wanted to say: a drama c and cap va ng opening to grip the audience; a detailed descrip on to set the scene and hook the listeners. But that was not enough! We also needed to keep them interested with a tense build up, make and maintain the connec on with the audience In order to make them really feel something. Then hit with the jaw dropping peak: impact them harshly through the power of words making your speech come alive! We had learnt anything could be spoken about as long we had a sensible approach and suitable reasoning behind it. It was a chance for people to express personal opinions, views and beliefs; not to be judged, interrupted or shamed /12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

13 News, Events and School Activities... Lunch had come ever so quickly, I ve never seen people so eager to stay and work in the class voluntarily. Astonished is an extremely suitable word for what my eyes laid upon at lunch. The Hub was filled with Year 10 students prac sing their speeches. No ea ng, no communica on and no movement; instead a room filled with students hard at work and the unusual turning of a page. There was a range of reasons for this ground breaking event that happened at lunch. Either people did not want to look like a fool performing in front of their other classmates, or perhaps they were scared and wanted to be able to stand up and talk with minimal shaking. However, for the majority it was because they actually wanted to win. Compe veness was the new feeling rushing through everyone s veins. Finishing line in sight, sweat trickling down faces of 14 and 15 year olds, the clock was cking down. The sense of urgency, and being able to already hear the high pitch monotone scream of your mother as you tell her you won kept us going. A hymn of mu ering of people repea ng their lines in the final few second before the *RIIIIINNNNGGG* Performance me! The day had come to end, and what a day it had been. Every single individual took more out of it than even describable. One day of being able to express opinions was literally life changing. Some people enjoyed it because it was their forte, whereas it resulted in others loving it because they were able to do something they never thought was possible. So, next me you do a speech, don t just assume the facts and figures will wow the audience because they won t. Performance is key, so let your confidence flourish, be bold in your stance, talk at walking pace, make that eye contact you never thought you could male and make the audience remember your speech, feeling something different a erwards. Change their view through the power of words. We spoke up, spoke loud, spoke clear because the 2014 Speak Out challenge was here! Daniel Gibson (10R) This was it, this was the moment we had all been wai ng for. A er incorpora ng techniques we had learnt on that day, it was me to take all our knowledge we gained into prac ce. Having the posture for success, bold, big and clear, eye contact (propor onate), small ac ons and a big smile. A er even the first performance we saw the change. How proud and sa sfied we felt as a unit of our achievements. People stepping out of their comfort zone and speaking to us like a true performer. Not only did we shine, we shone brightly. It wasn t even always about the context: it s not what you say, it s how you say it. Congratula ons to the selected winners from each form, and by selected I mean that although they were chosen, we were all winners. It s up to us now to support the final six and display the listening skills we had also learn from our workshop /12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

14 News, Events and School Activities... Bishop Ramsey student wins the Jack Petchey Hillingdon Speak Out compe on Congratula ons to Joseph McCarthy (10Y) for winning the Jack Petchey Hillingdon Speak Out on Monday 8th December Joe beat off the challenge of 16 other excellent speakers and did the school proud. We reproduce here Joseph s winning presenta on. Men by Joe McCarthy I have a ques on! Ask yourself this. Am I a man? Right now the female half of the room are feeling rather insulted. But no, take a second to genuinely consider it. What does it mean to be a man? Is it the immediate thought of what lies in between your legs? A deep voice and broad shoulders? In a literal sense yeah, sure. But what about a man instead of a male? Then what? Now put aside for a second the fact that I am li le, I sing and I never play sports and instead bring forward the fact that on top of school work and what li le social life I have, I played the part of a father and a provider and I worked to ensure that my two youngest siblings were fed, dressed and happy and if that doesn t make me a man, then ladies and gentlemen, I don t know what does. Thank you. To watch Joe s speech please follow this link: h ps:// Miss I Niiranen Head of English I once read that a male is a ma er of genes and chance. A boy; a ma er of me. But a man? That s a choice you make. Now here s a bit about me. I m in a band, I sing, I don t play sports and you can tell just from looking at me that I don t go to the gym. I m not really into fast cars or loud aggressive music. I ve even got an earring. And I get a lot of s ck for it some mes because these things aren t viewed as manly by society. Do these things mean I m not a man? The answer, of course, to that ques on is no! I am a man and let me tell you why. A few years ago my father, my primary male role model fell ill. And it was because of this illness that he was unable to work as well. Now my mum is a primary school teacher. Can I get a show of hands from all the teachers in the room please? Well we all know teachers don t earn much don t we? So money in my house became ght. Really ght. I stepped up to the plate at that point and began to work alongside my dad, learning his trade and helping where I could. This meant that at the age of 14 I chose to take on a part me and physically demanding job for the sake of my family /12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

15 News, Events and School Activities... Young Enterprise The Business and Economics Department most years offers an opportunity for students from Year 10 upwards to get involved in the Young Enterprise Scheme. h p:// enterprise.org.uk/ The group are making good progress and having raised their ini al 80 entrance fee are now busily genera ng revenue so they can fund their main product development and sale. I will allow Bethany Evans Brown (12.7) to explain: Since the beginning of the year a number of Year 10 and Year 12 students have been involved with the Young Enterprise Programme. We need to decide upon a product or service, raise funds for the product or service and later go on to sell the product or service. Our company name is Seasonal Surprises and we provide holiday themed gi s, and delivery for a small charge. Un l the 16th December we will be providing `Candy Cane Grams. We have been raising funds by selling sweets and so far we have made enough to cover the costs of the business. It s a great scheme to get involved in because it gives you a small insight into the ups and down of running your own business and being responsible for either the success or failure of the company. We each carry out different roles within the company and ul mately contribute to the hopeful success of our service. It is our plan to provide further updates on the Young Enterprise group in the future and I am sure you and your children will give them their support. Mr D Carter, Head of Business Studies and Economics 12/12/ :38:42 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell 15

16 A massive Congratulations to Hollie and Lauren Wilkinson who both came home with a medal in the Commonwealth Games!!! As reported in the previous issue, they were competing in Tae Kwon Do. Hollie (10E) won a gold in the Pairs and Lauren (12.5) won a silver in Syncron! What a fantastic achievement when competing for their country; very well done to both of them! BASKETBALL UPDATE! Year 11's finished their basketball run with 2 wins, against Vyners & Ruislip High and 2 losses against Harefield and Douay. Well done boys!! 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

17 Once this winter s cold snap started for real, it was obvious it was time for some wet, muddy cross country! We had a lot of students turn up to trials the week before in the pouring rain, and teams were selected for the Championships on Tuesday 2nd December; typically the only day of the week scheduled for rain! We were fairly lucky in that this only turned out to be drizzle and the Bishop Ramsey Teams turned up ready and raring to go. It was a fantastic day for the teams from Bishop Ramsey, we don t have the final team standings yet or individual athletes who have qualified for the Middlesex Championships yet; we will make sure this goes in the next Recorder! 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

18 Well done to all the students who took part!! Boys: Joel Chamney (7M) 16th, Charlie Bush (7M) 68th, Hugh Legood (7S) 20th, Edward Phiri (7E) 65th, Maximillian Tilbury (7M) 14th, and Nicholas Wu (7M)26th, Harrison Filby (8A) 5th, Aron Harris Powell (9M) 14th, Joseph Hodgkinson (8R) 7th, David Place (8R) 54th, Raphael Barreto (10S) 14th, Jordan Astle (10M) 11th, Arron Jhimb (10E) 4th, and Alex Sungtong (10S) 25th. Girls: Hazel Dickinson (7A) 6th, Maria Flach (7R) 46th, Lizzie Kilbride (7M) 37th, Ella O Loughlin (7M) 12th, Molly Oxenham (7E) 11th, Lucy Pead (7E) 23rd, Jemma Cole (8M) 33rd, Grace Hooper (9A) 2nd, Becky Johnson (8R) 25th, Isabel Stark (8R) 6th, and Melissa Jarman (8E) 8th. Chelsea Pledge (11E) 8th and Sophie Scarlett (10Y) 39th and Hollie Barnes (12.8) 2nd. 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

19 Year 7 Haydon 5-2 Loss Haydon B 2-2 draw Ruislip High 2-1 win Queensmead 3-3 draw Boys Football Results Year 8 Haydon 3-0 loss Ruislip High still to be played. Queensmead 8-3 loss Year 9 Haydon 4-3 win Ruislip High 6-4 loss Queensmead 8-0 win Year 10 Haydon 2-1 loss Ruislip High not played Queensmead 2-1 loss Year 11 Haydon Draw Ruislip High Conceded by Ruislip High Queensmead 4-2 loss. Girls Futsal The U16s team which is made up from Years 10 and 11 have played their first 2 fixtures this term. Playing for the first time as a team in 2 years, they got off to a cracking start with a 7 2 win against Northwood School, with goals coming from Ellen Wardlaw (10R), Chloe Widdows (10R), and Chelsea Pledge (11E). Unfortunately in our next match we came up against a very strong Haydon side and we lost 7 2. Goal scorers were Ellen Wardlaw (10R) and Hollie Summerfield (11Y). We have 2 more matches after Christmas against Northwood College and Harefield Academy; good luck girls! Team: Charlotte Akester (10R), Angel Mutesasira (10A), Jane Devers (11M), Chelsea Pledge (11E), Hollie Summerfield (11Y), Chloe Widdows (10R), Ellen Wardlaw (10R) and Hollie Wilkinson (10E). 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

20 On the weekend of 7th 9th November, a group of 21 keen footballers from Years 8 and 9 descended on PGL Liddington for a weekend of football, outdoor activities and lots of fun! We kicked off the Friday evening with a delicious meal and some team building activities, followed by a fairly early night for all the students! Saturday morning brought a lot of rain and our first Manchester United Soccer School Session. We were assigned to our coach, Russ, and taken across Swindon Town s training ground to our designated area, all set up and ready for action! After a tough morning s football, we were glad a huge lunch was laid on in the canteen, and we were then straight into Aeroball and Trapeze for the afternoon! Aeroball is a crazy game played on trampolines which involves jumping up and down a lot and trying to score goals past an opponent the other side of the net who is also bouncing around on a trampoline! A hilarious tournament ensued with some dodgy scorekeeping and a lot of deducted points for not standing up and judging!! Trapeze involves climbing up a totem pole attached to a harness and taking a leap of faith from the top to try and catch a swinging bar! Unfortunately due to the rain, whilst all the girls managed to reach the bar, none were able to hang on and swing! We had a quick briefing session from the Manchester United coaches before a well earned dinner and shower!! In the evening, the Bishop Ramsey crew opted to play ambush, yet another crazy game which involved running around in the woods and trying to capture the other team. This involves silence and stealth, something I m not sure could be attributed to everyone on the trip and I don t think we were very successful!! Another eventful day was over, and despite the huge amount of activity, I m not sure how much sleep was had by Team BR footballers! 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

21 Sunday morning was much brighter and some skills sessions were followed by the girls and boys being split into single gender tournaments, mixed up with other schools. This gave our students a chance to pit their new abilities against others and brought much hilarity and laughter on still very slippery pitches! The session ended with a medal and training programme presentation from the Manchester United staff. Another great lunch followed, and yet more PGL activities to round off the weekend. Orienteering was first, which with such a big site was slightly more exciting than what we can offer at school! Jacobs ladder was last up, with the girls proving that it s not necessarily your height that helps you climb to the top of the challenge, with Reanna Gregory (8A) making a speedy ascent to the top wooden beam! Despite all this crazy activity, there was no sleeping on the minibus home; we had some karaoke and lots of sweets purchased from the gift shop! Overall it was a great weekend, with the students learning new football skills and challenging themselves physically and mentally with the outdoor activities! 12/12/ :54:51 DT-I-ITD-021 pburchell

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24 )!.lN 4t: ~AI.M~ Uncover your child's talents and make learning music a wonderful experience! MUSIC SCHOOL based at Bishop Ramsey CE School ~ ),fl Established and experienced music school now expanding with further classes available.~ Highly professional and CRB checked staff ~ J End of term concerts.~ Please contact us for more information:

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