4th may 2018 weekly newsletter from the headmaster … · wave group depeche mode to open our new...

Weekly Newsletter from the Headmaster www.shebbearcollege.co.uk

4th May 2018Issue No 167

Dear Parents,

The last week has been dominated by music. Friday’s visit from Peter Gordeno of Depeche Mode was everything and more than we expected. Peter’s amazing talent is combined with a real gift of connecting with young musicians. A succession of our very best were able to perform with him and you can view his incredible jam with Rees on our Facebook page. The Chamber Concert on Tuesday was little bit more orthodox, but the audience which included many notable North Devon and Cornwall musicians were won over by the consistent quality of performance.

The other excellent bit of news was the invitation of our Junior UK Maths Challenge team to the National Finals in June. At a time when the government is worried about all STEM (Science Technology Enginnering Mathematics) subjects our mathematicians continue to do us proud. It is pleasing to note that our Junior team has a 50/50 gender split. I have also been able to hand out various science awards this week to our most able. Rob T hit new heights by achieving Gold Awards in both the Chemistry Olympiad and Biology Olympiad. We had a number of silver and bronze awards in each including two silvers for Will Balkwill-Western. Any award in these competitions places the individuals concerned in the very top echelons of young scientists in the UK.

Now that the sun has reappeared our netballers can finally go on their rescheduled tour to Bath this weekend. We wish them every success. The sport is going through a superb high at the moment following our gold in the Commonwealth Games. The other beneficiary of the weather should be our Spring Fair on Monday. This will include a dog show that Mrs Bearpark has bravely volunteered to organise together with another showcase for our musicians.

Simon Weale

Peter Gordeno of Depeche Mode officially opened our Music building last week



En route to Balleroy (Shebbear’s twin town in France), the Chapel Run Challenge has now reached just beyond Chard in Somerset. About 760kms to go!

I hope you have a good weekend.Matthew Foale

Monkleigh Cross-CountryThe weather held off for this year’s cross-country event at Monkleigh. Many congratulations to all those who took part and their results are shown below.

Y3 Boys Y4 Boys Y5 Girls Y5 Boys Y6 Girls Y6 BoysHarry 14th Jethro 3rd Freyja 7th Alfie 6th Millie 3rd Max 3rd

Freddie 20th Harvey 6th Bethan 31st Ben 20th Demelza 7th Jonah 11th

Jack 40th Axel 10th Willow 15th Freddie 19th

James 17th Maddie 26th Finlay 22nd

Tom 36th

Congratulations in particular to our three medallists: Jethro, Millie and Max all came third in their respective races.

Rounders Off to An Excellent StartOn Thursday the 26th of April, two mixed teams of Under 11 rounders players headed off to Kingsley where, fortuitously, the sun shone down for the first fixture of the term. Demelza, as captain, bowled

Prep School NewsWe started the week with an excellent talk by Lottie in Monday morning’s assembly. She spoke to all of the children about being a Royal Marine Cadet and what she does during her training sessions at Lympstone and Stonehouse Barracks. It is a fine achievement for Lottie to have become a Cadet and she spoke very articulately about how much she enjoys all of the activities, including drill!

It has been a busy week for our youngest children, with Pre-School swimming and visiting Bideford Fire Station. Years 1 and 2 also had their first swimming session earlier in the week and a trip to Rosemoor. The first cricket match of the season took place on Wednesday afternoon, against St. Joseph’s and Years 3 and 4 enjoyed a visit to Isley Marsh Nature Reserve.

Our House Captains led the House assemblies yesterday, with the topics including the danger of too much plastic in the environment, Bude and Stratton Rocks and the Royal Family. As always, Willow, Maddie and Will did an excellent job, supported by their Year 6 peers.Congratulations to Reem, Dixie-Belle, Alice, Oliver, Felix and Freddie V for winning last week’s Golden Stickers. The BAFTA (Behaviour Award for Thoughtful Actions) was awarded to Freddie L, with the Manners Medals going to Carter.



accurately for her team. Alfie performed admirably on second post but Player of the Match for that team was awarded to WIll for his incredible all-round fielding on fourth. The final score was 15 - 7 1/2 rounders - a convincing win for Shebbear. Meanwhile Millie’s team was also working hard to secure another win thanks to her tremendous bowling. Finlay was the top scorer and secured Player of the Match for his efforts. Final score was 13 1/2 to 7. A great result for the opening matches of the season!

High 5 Netballers Finish Second in the LeagueThe Holsworthy High 5 netball league concluded on Monday afternoon with a shoot-out, followed by presentations. Eight schools took part this year, with matches taking place over several months. Shebbear Prep finished in second place overall, losing only one match – to the eventual winners, Langtree. Seventeen players contributed to this result and many congratulations to them all. My thanks also to our parents for their continued support throughout the last few months.

Under 11 Cricketers Get Their Season UnderwayThe Under 11 cricketers played their first game of the term on Wednesday against St. Joseph’s on a rather soggy Battledown pitch. For many of the team, it was their first experience of pads, helmets and a hard ball but they acquitted themselves very well. Notable performances with the ball were Khaled and Millie while Finlay, Freddie and James batted confidently and sensibly. Although we lost by a handful of runs, there was plenty on show to suggest we can do even better in our next fixture.

Years 1 and 2 Designing Bug HotelsYears 1 and 2 have been designing bug hotels this week. They thought carefully about the different kinds of habitats the bugs might like to live in and they even considered how the bugs might entertain themselves. I’m sure the introduction of slides, tunnels and bridges would be welcomed by any bug. The children have also been very excited about their first swimming lesson this week. They had their goggles on even before we had left the classroom.

Another Busy Week in Pre-SchoolWhat a busy two weeks we have had. Last week we visited the library for some stories with Mrs Welby and this week a trip to Bideford Fire Station and yesterday we were lucky enough to get an invitation to listen to the wonderful orchestra. All this as well as fitting in some fabulous learning.

The children have been looking at The Sand Horse text and have become so familiar with the text they no longer need the book to retell it. Some children have written their own versions of the story which range from The Sand Mermaid to The sand Jabba The Hutt. It is wonderful to see the independent learning that goes on at the end of the school year and hearing the children take their knowledge into the various play scenarios.

Next week we are looking forward to a trip to Rosemoor and some of the children who are not enrolled for that day have asked to come and join us which will make it a very lovely day out.

Coming Up in the Prep School:Monday 7th MayOpen Day and Senior School Spring Fair

Tuesday 8th MayPre-School to RosemoorYear 5 Bikeability: Group 1, Day 1



The Music Department are indebted to Peter Gordeno for his kind, encouraging words and generosity of time. When accompanying the pupils, he gave so many the opportunity to take their performances to a different level it was a joy to watch and hear.

This was a truly special day for all involved.Kevin Parker

Student Exchange Opportunitiesin Australia, South Africa and New ZealandAnother factor that sets us apart from our competitors is that students in the Upper School have the opportunity to apply for one of our very successful exchange programmes. The exchanges were established 5 years ago to help us offer a rounded education. In addition to this, students that take part will be able to gather firm evidence on a CV of the ability to show initiative, resilience and courage.

Both the college and the traveling students have worked very hard to establish excellent relationships with schools in Barbados, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Earlier in the year, Revell Groom and Jack Joslin were selected to travel to Canberra Grammar School in Australia, and Will Cowan-Dickie will travel to Kingswood College in Grahamstown, South Africa.

We have one more space available at Kingswood, ideally for a girl in the Lower 6th, if anyone is interested please let me know.Jamie Sanders

Open Day Bonanza of Events!Everyone is invited to join us on our Open Day on Monday 7th May. This is an opportunity to take a good look around the school and then enjoy a host of activities:

Spring Fair from 1.00pmDog Show at 1.30pmCricket MatchMay Day Concert at 3.00pm

Isara’s Beautiful Fine Art CardsBoarding pupil Isara is selling a range of greeting cards with images of her wonderful fine art works on the front. She is raising funds towards her forthcoming school trip to Peru. Look out for her stall at the Spring Fair. If you would like more information or to buy any cards please email: [email protected]

Wednesday 9th MayYears 1 and 2 swimmingYear 5 Bikeability: Group 1, Day 2U.10/11 cricket and rounders vs St. Petroc’s (H) 2.00pm

Thursday 10th MayYears 3 and 4 to Launceston CastleYear 5 Bikeability: Group 1, Day 1

Friday 11th MayAssembly: Mrs LovettYear 5 Bikeability: Group 2, Day 2School Council meetingChapel Run

Saturday 12th MaySports Fun Morning for Year 6 (9.30-12.00)

Senior and Upper School News

Peter Gordeno Opens Music BuildingWe were delighted to invite Peter Gordeno of legendary 80s new wave group Depeche Mode to open our new Music building last week. Peter is an accomplished musician who has also worked with many other great artists including George Michael and U2. He spent the day in a variety of workshops with pupils; accompanying singers, encouraging young singer-songwriters and composers and inspiring several of our more accomplished pianists.

Following the official opening ceremony, a concert for invited guests and parents took place in the Music Department’s Recital Room, which houses one of the two Steinway grand pianos that Shebbear now has for its pianists. It was a wonderful opportunity to showcase several of the performers who had worked and performed alongside Peter during the day to the delight and appreciation of the audience. Parents and invited guests were then given the opportunity to view the many specialist classrooms, which include the fully equipped music technology suite and a recording studio.



Thomas Cameron at Abbey RoadWe were delighted this week to hear more about the success of Thomas Cameron (aka Cameron Mills), one of our Sixth Form leavers last year, who has been pursuing his dream of becoming a professional singer.

His debut album has now been recorded and mixed at the renowned Real World Studios near Bath, built and owned by music legend Peter Gabriel. The album was mastered early this week at the renowned Abbey Road Studios in London, synonymous with The Beatles as well as many other top recording artists over the decades. The album is due for release later this year, following some singles and a launch concert. We look forward to receiving the details.

Cameron has many performances lined up this summer, including The Edinburgh Fringe and Ludlow Festivals and the Ventnor Fringe Festival on the Isle of Wight.

We will keep you posted about other performances and we look forward to hearing more about Cameron’s progress.

The British Biology OlympiadThe British Biology Olympiad is a competition that is open to all A Level students in UK. This year it consisted of two multiple choice question papers that cover many aspects of Biology that go way beyond the basic Edexcel syllabus. In total over 7,800 students

from schools throughout the UK took part, including eight very brave Biologists from Shebbear College.

To obtain the top award, which is the Gold Award, you have to be in the top 6.7% in the country. I am delighted to report that Rob was one of these. So, many congratulations to him.

However, the praise does not stop there. William and Heather obtained Silver Awards while Kate and Theo

received Bronze Awards. Added to that Helen received a Highly Commended Award, and Emily was Commended, with Angus just missing out by a narrow margin.

All eight students have represented Shebbear College brilliantly and we hope they will inspire many more budding Biologists in the future.

Stuart Clewley

Form 1 HistoryThis half term Form 1 pupils have been assigned the project of building their own motte and bailey castle. There was nothing half-baked about first completed entry from Isobel. Her ‘Great British Bake Off’ style take on the project was so good that her cake had the competition in tiers! Not only was it an outstanding effort, it was also delicious! Very well done indeed Isobel!

Nick Law



BSO Concert TripSome of our musicians from Shebbear College enjoyed a beautiful concert in Exeter Cathedral last week. The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Feddeck, performed a program of Britten’s Four Sea Interludes, Dvořák’s Cello Concerto with soloist Daniel Müller-Schott and ‘Tod und Verklärung’ (Death and Transfiguration) by Richard Strauss.

It was a wonderful opportunity for our musicians to listen to a spellbinding program in a fabulous venue.

Hannah Bown

YMS Charity Music ConcertThis year’s annual chamber concert was in aid of Young Musicians Support (YMS). This local charity believes that classical music should be accessible to all, both as performers or members of an audience. YMS aims to encourage participation by children from families, which are financially disadvantaged, by providing financial and mentoring help to promising young musicians in North Devon. We were delighted to welcome representatives from YMS who had the opportunity to see our new music facilities first hand and hear from our musicians. This event is always a highlight in the year for our musicians, as it gives our more able musicians the opportunity to perform a more complex, challenging programme within an appropriate setting.

All our musicians performed exceptionally well and were a credit to the College. Lola Frisby Williams (F2) opened the concert with a delightful performance on the clarinet of Reade’s Prelude from the Victorian Kitchen Garden. She demonstrated a full, warm timbre and subtle use of dynamics. Timothy Parker (F3) excelled with his understanding of Haydn’s 1st Violin Concerto. This challenging piece required a close attention to rhythmic detail and intonation, which was clearly in evidence. Simon Cornish’s (F5) performance of Brahms violin solo Sonatensatz was full of dramatic sonorities and passion. Michelle’s (L6) piano solo Love Song by Chu showed an exquisite subtle use of touch and an awareness of sensitivity. Utor Wong (F5) expertly performed the unaccompanied 1st Cello Suite by Bach arranged for viola. He demonstrated his mastery of the instrument and drew the audience into the complex world of Baroque Music. The Brahms Intermezzo in A major was brought to life by Keith Wong’s (L6) assured piano playing. When performing, Keith has the ability to put the listener at ease and it was wonderful to hear how he brought out the full sonorities of the piano, to such great effect. Finally, the audience was transfixed by Rachel’s (U6) violin solos, which were expertly accompanied by guest accompanist, David Robinson. The performance was both technically demanding and artistically challenging. Rachel performed with her usual flair and panache: a fitting end to a superb concert. All the soloists should be congratulated for their hard work and dedication, which was clearly on display. Thank you to those who attended this concert, for their support of our young musicians and their generous donations to the YMS charity.

Performances of this concert will soon be available to view on the College’s social media platforms.Kevin Parker

New on Our SoundCloudA recording from our YMS charity concert of Michelle’s beautiful rendition of ‘Love Song’ by Wanghua Chu. Michelle is an accomplished piano student of Mrs Cornish and is in lower 6th studying A level music. More recordings will be added soon, so keep an eye out on our SoundCloud.

https://soundcloud.com/shebbearcollege/love-song-michelle-wong



Sports Day AnnouncementThis year’s Sports Day will be held on Friday 11th May. We hope you will able to join us to enjoy the events on display and appreciate the efforts of our young sporting talent, as they compete to earn vital points for their respective houses, Ruddle, Thorne and Way.

Pupils will attend their lesson period one before promptly changing at 09:45am ready for the first track and field events starting at 10:00am. The presentation will be at approximately 15:30pm before buses depart at 16:00pm. With some good fortune the weather will be kind to us and you can enjoy a BBQ situated on Tower field. Should you wish to attend we ask that you avoid parking immediately next to the track: additional parking will be available across the road on Dartmoor field.

Finally, the Physical Education department would like to thank you for your continued support of all our fixtures and events throughout the year and we look forward to welcoming you again on sports day.

Arron Steel

Spotlight on Freya and Jolyon!Freya and Jolyon were invited to Spotlight BBC South West News studios this week to try their hand at news presenting!

Ten Tors Final CampoutA wonderful photo from Mr Kingsland taken at last weekend’s final Ten Tors campout at Welcome Mouth.



Friends of Shebbear CollegeCurry & Quiz Night!

In aid of the Memorial Hall Upgrade on Thursday May 10th 2018 at 7.00pm in the Dining Hall

£10.00 per person (includes one raffle entry)B.Y.O. (small 50p corkage charge). Soft drinks included

Teams of 6-8 or make up a team on the evening

How to Book: To book please email Carol Shephard-Blandy at

[email protected] Tuesday May 1st

How to pay:Senior School: Cheque (made out to F.O.S.C) or cash to

FRIENDS TRAY in MAIN RECEPTION Prep School: As above but please hand to Mr Foale(please put any payment into an envelope with your

names/contact details clarly marked).Please indicate if vegetarian.

Please ‘See First’ on FacebookCould we please encourage parents to put our school Facebook page in their ‘see first’ list. This means that our content will appear in your news feeds, and not be filtered out due to recent changes to Facebook’s business content filtering.

Thank you.

Contacting ReceptionShould you need to contact reception (notifying of visitors, booking/cancelling of minibuses etc), please can you use the email address [email protected]

Many thanks for your co-operation and have a great summer term!

Coming Up in the Senior and Upper School:

Saturday 5th May01:00 - 20:30: Bath Netball trip08:00 - 20:00: U14, U15 Netball Tour to Bath - Away08:30 - 17:00: Cambridge FCE exam - Languages classrooms11:00 - 16:15: U12/13s Cricket v West Buckland - West Buckland11:00 - 16:15: U14/15 Cricket v West Buckland - Beckly Field11:00 - 17:30: 1st XI Cricket v West Buckland - West Buckland

Monday 7th May10.00 - 16.00: Open Day13:40 - 16:00: Spring Fair14:00 - 18:00: 1st XI Cricket - Beckly Field15:00 - 16:30: May Day Concert - Assembly Hall16:00 - 18:30: U14/U15 Girls’ Tennis v West Buckland - Away

Tuesday 8th May11:30 - 12:40: Form 2 - Staying Safe Presentation, Somerset nd Devon Fire and Rescue Service - Assembly Hall16:00 - 18:30: U12/U13 Girls’ Tennis v West Buckland - Away17:00 - 17:30: HoDs - Drama Studio

Wednesday 9th May14:30 - 18:30: 1st XI Cricket v Truro School - Beckly Field18:00 - 21:00: Senior Sports Dinner

Thursday 10th MayAll Day - Ten Tors camp set up - Dartmoor09:00 - 13:00: GCSE Drama exam - Memorial Hall

Friday 11th MayAll Day: Ten Tors - Dartmoor10:00 - 16:50: Senior Sports Day16:45 - 20:45: 1st XI Cricket T20 v Plymouth College - Beckly Field

Saturday 12th MayAll Day - Ten Tors - Dartmoor09:30 - 12:00: Y7 Sports Fun Morning (For Sep 18 Y7’s)09:30 - 12:30: GCSE History Revision Workshop - O’Donnoghue Classroom

CricketThe U14/15s played Okehampton this week and batting first, skipper Cameron (24) and Harrison (14) put on 50 for the first wicket before Romario B hit a quick fire 30, including two huge sixes, to take the total to 114-6 In 20 overs.

In reply, the visitors managed to reach just 45-4 before the rain brought an early finish to the match in which everyone played a part.

Andy Bryan



Picture this ... much more on our Facebook page

Photo courtesy of our new Chaplain, Mark Nightingale

Quiz &Curry Night

Quiz &Curry Night

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In aid of the Memorial Hall Upgrade Thursday May 10th 2018, 7.00pm in the Dining Hall

£10.00 per person (includes one raffle entry)Bring a team (6 - 8) or make up a team on the evening

B.Y.O. (small 50p corkage charge) Soft drinks included

For bookings, more information and payment details please email:[email protected]

Join the Friends of Shebbear College for a

Dog Show begins at 1:30pm!

Registration for classes from 1:00pm

Prettiest Lab

Handsomest Lab

Waggiest tail

Kindest eyes

Friendliest smile

Most like their owner

The dog the judge would most like to take

home

Puppy bitch (less than 15 months)

Puppy dog (less than 15 months)

Bitch (15 months to 7 years)

Dog (15 months to 7 years)

Veteran bitch (over 7 years)

Veteran dog (over 7 years)

The Classes are:

DOG SHOW

#YOUNGLIVESVSCANCER

clicsargent.org.uk CLIC Sargent Cancer Care for Children. Company number 5273638

Registered charity in England & Wales (1107328) and Scotland (SC039857) 17JH016

DANCING TO ‘THE DARTMOOR PIXIES’

Shebbear Village Hall

EX21 5RS Saturday 12th May

8pm

BRING AND SHARE SUPPER

Bring your own alcohol

RAFFLE

TICKETS £7.50

Children under 15 Free

CALL RUTH: 01409 281699 OR

07812 740756

4th may 2018 weekly newsletter from the headmaster … · wave group depeche mode to open our new...

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