Head’s Up!

Sring 2014

Fun with Numbers

The news magazine from BecKfoot

Sporting Champions

Buzz team: Anika Hunt, Harry Taylor, George Loftus, Huzaifa Al-Yamani, Lottie Roberts

If you would like to write an article for the next edition of Buzz, please email your idea to the team at BuzzTeam@beckfoot.org

What do you love about Beckfoot School and its students?

Aisha, Year 7

I love our school’s soul. I think Beckfoot puts young people first and we’ve never compromised our values. Without getting too deep, there are a lot of schools that just chase exam results or are rather cold places where young people are not valued. But I think Beckfoot puts its values above eve-rything else and is a happy community. Young people feel it is their school and I am very proud of that. It is what makes us unique.

Was being a headteacher a childhood dream? Anoosheh, Ben, Alaina and Harvey, Year 8

No, my childhood dream was to play centre forward for Spurs – that is what I was interested in as a kid. Being a headteacher became a dream after about five years of teaching. I began to think I would like to do that one day but it wasn’t a childhood dream.

Why did you not continue with your football?

Harry, Year 12

I did continue with my football until I was 40 then my knees gave way. I was never good enough to be a professional footballer. I worked that out when I was 16 or 17. I played football at a good level for a long time. I now play golf, which is a bit sad but I need to do something competitive, so this is what I do.

What is your biggest achievement in or out of school?

Tutor Group 710

Out of school, having two wonderful children and being happily married for a long period of time. (It’s all very cheesy stuff.) That is my biggest achievement in life. Professionally, it is seeing our wonderful school getting stronger and stronger every year. I am very, very proud of being part of that.

What do you think of the Educating Yorkshire TV programme?

Tutor Group 707

I thought it was a great programme. I was quite anxious about it because it is a big risk for a school to allow TV cameras in as there is always going to be things that could be made to look worse than they are. I thought you got a real picture of what that school was about and the difference a school can make for young people. Some of the sto-ries, such as the lad at the end who had the stammer and spoke at the leavers’ assembly, were truly inspiring.

What was the best thing to happen at Beckfoot during 2013?

Amara and Sanna, Year 8

Gosh, that is hard isn’t it? I don’t know.

Wonderful things happen every day. To pick out one would probably be wrong. The re-warding aspect of my job is that every day I see something special. It may be a student who has achieved what they never expected to. It may be seeing our Student Leaders standing in front of an assembly, talking about what they want to do for the school. It may be visitors coming to our school and saying we’re great – that is pretty good. But it is not easy to pick one thing out; it is lots and lots of different things.

Are there any changes you want to make to the school?

Tutor Group 804

Yes, I want the school to continue to improve; I think we can get better still. I want more and more students to be in a position where they can see where they are going in life. It is great that so many of our students do well academically but we need to help them make the connection between school and the world they move into when they leave Beckfoot. We also need to keep look-ing at issues like our uniform and behaviour expectations. I hope our School Leaders will help with that.

We,ve heard you have a new iPhone. What is the best thing about it?

Awais and Dawood, Year 8

I am not very good at technology to be honest but I am very proud of my iPhone. I like the fact that I can take photographs that move across, what do you call those things? Panoramics! Those and Siri.

Do you have any music on your phone?

Harry, Year 12

Yes, I have got loads of music on my iPhone. I love soul and blues music, and Bob Dylan too. They are my real passions I suppose.

What subjects did you teach?Anna Hattam, Year 8

I taught history, sociology and politics.

What is your favourite takeaway? Awais and Dawood, Year 8

I am planning on having a takeaway this evening funnily enough. I quite like Indian food. A Chicken Bhuna is my favourite.

What do you like about teaching? Awais and Dawood, Year 8

I have loved teaching from the moment I started; I knew it was right for me. I love the positive relationships you have between students and staff. I love being part of the community and seeing young people grow, develop in confidence and flourish. That is what it is all about really. You feel like you are making a difference.

Head’s UP!Year 8 students Anna Hattam

and Harry Longbottom put

students’ questions to Mr Horn.

BUZZYour

Teamhow we,re creating a better BuzzBy Anika Hunt, Year 13As your Buzz editorial team, we have students from many different subject backgrounds. Our group was put together with a strong purpose to improve the Buzz and make it a student-led publication, generating a keener interest in the magazine.

By listening to what students want and getting as many involved as possible, we are making the Buzz a magazine by students, for students.

This issue features stories sourced from all over the school with great photos and articles. It will be distributed inside and outside school, so we want to reflect a positive image of Beckfoot and its students.

We hope you enjoy reading your spring 2014 Buzz as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

In total, 11 candidates took part in our 2014 Student Leadership elections, ranging from Year 7 students all the way to Year 12. Throughout the week of 20 January, candidates campaigned hard to garner the votes of around 1,700 Beckfoot students and show just how well they would represent students’ views. Eventually, the 11 would be whittled down to a group of seven who would be elected.

The 11 candidates represented themselves with posters in varied designs throughout the school, along with speeches in

assembly to all year groups. There were catchy slogans, T-shirts, and other creative campaign ideas to gain that precious ‘X’ on the ballot paper.

Winning candidates were Ruby Drake, Alice Hamilton, Faisal Hussain, George Loftus, Awais Nazir, Raahat Rahman and Caitlin Wood; with Isobel Bateson, Libby Jones, Kaitlin Stevenson and Adam Ormondroyd narrowly missing out on the vital votes.

Thanks to all the candidates for having the courage to put themselves forward.

Beckfoot has always had a great reputation when it comes to debating and the 2013-14 debating season

did not deflect from this tradition. It all kicked off with internal qualifying debates and then heats between the teams that made it through. In these rounds,

we heard a range of topics, from abolition of the monarchy, to the NHS. These made for excellent debates, which as always, were a brilliant spectator sport.

We also took part in the national competition but sadly did not make it through, narrowly losing out to Parkside School, Cullingworth in a debate on: “We should embrace

the use of smart drugs.” Still, it was a highly impressive showing from debaters Lottie Roberts, Jack Blakey, Ed Ford and Felix Bunting.

Finally the debating team reeled in the New Year at the Oxford Union Schools’ Debating Competition; the first time Beckfoot had entered such a contest. The format

of the debates followed the parliamentary format and was a wholly different beast. Sadly, a win was not to be and our teams went home without passing to

the next round – only five of the 36 teams got through – but it was still a battle well-fought by George Loftus, Josie Tothill,

Ed Ford and Felix Bunting.

Tough Debates

Report by George Loftus, Year 12

Students recently voted for a new Beckfoot Student Leadership logo. Over 500 students voted on designs by Emily Walton and Ezra Slater. Thanks to all who voted, in the end, you chose Ezra’s design.

Ezra explained the thought process behind his design: “My first idea for a Beckfoot Student Leadership logo was to look at the

new school building. The existing logo showed the old clock tower and I thought it was important to portray the new one. This design shows the new building with the colour of the new clock tower. The lettering is large and bold, and in bright colours from the old Student Leadership logo to create impact.”

Clock our new student leader logo

Eleven courageous candidates become seven leaders

By George Loftus, Year 12

Number Day was a regular school day but with Maths games incorporated into break and lunch time. Students also paid £1 to wear an item of clothing with a number. All the money raised was donated to the children,s charity NSPCC which works with vulneable children.

NUM63RDAY

Report by Sarah Andrews, Year 12

FUN + FUNDRAISING

There were stalls with games estimating how much was in a container, guessing the weight of an object, picking a card and rolling a dice and we had a bun sale with a number theme. In the final activity, students had to make up magnetic shapes in a race against the clock.

A big thank you to the Numeracy BSL team and everybody who contributed money on the day! The total raised for NSPCC was a fantastic £422.92.

“It was a great charity event.” Jack Peters, Year 10

“Number Day makes Maths exciting.” Ben Maloney, Year 11

“I thought Number Day was a really good way to support a charity and have some fun. I think it would be nice to do it again to give them more money.” Millie Markham, Year 8

“I think it was a great way to support the NSPCC and learn Maths skills.” Lauryn Hunt, Year 8

“It was good to see so many people participate and wear numbers.” Amani Miran, Year 8

Mrs Marquaye’s

Year 7 Maths

group composed

Maths poems...The Ballad of 90°

By Kiara Lamiot, Year 7

900 in a right angle900 is a right angleShe,s a right angleBut she,s wearing the wrong bangle

900 had a pet newt900 had a pet newtA slimy little newtThat she,d named acute

900 liked to let loose900 liked to let looseUsually with a mooseAt a club called obtuse

One stormy night900 got into a fightShe was rescued by a knightAnd they called him Sir Right

He was a right angleHe was her right angleAnd he had the right bangle900 in a right angle900 in a right angleAnd now she,s wearing the right bangle.

Mr Burland’s Year 8 Maths group trialled iPads... Apple days.Report by Digital Leader, Tegan Horsfall (written on her iPad)I have found the iPad project very useful so far. It is a great way to learn new skills easily; we also have lots of fun this way. For all the work we do, we are rewarded. This should be encouraged throughout the school; it makes students strive to work harder. I think that we are extremely lucky to have such a device. My work has improved dramatically because I want to do more work outside school.

Staff are downloading fun, educational apps to help us learn and enjoy different

subjects. We can enter competitions instead of writing things down and we can share our independent homework with the entire class.

I am a Digital Leader with a few fellow class mates and we had a really exciting day at the Innovation Centre Bradford, where we had special training on e-safety, choosing different scenarios to see whether they were dangerous and testing all the apps.

I think that over the next year our grades will increase, because these iPads are helping all of us.

Designed games...board not

bored of maths

M R K E THS

GROUP

AM

T L E S Y E A R 8‘

Shakespeare in shortsIn February, we held our second Beckfoot Shakespeare Festival over three nights. Students performed shortened half-hour versions of Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, and a Midsummer Night’s Dream, while KS3 Drama Club students performed short scenes from Romeo and Juliet they had devised themselves.

Year 7 Drama Club students said:

“Everyone did really well. It was amazing.” Sophie Burton

“I was really happy that all the performances worked well. We all put lots of effort in.” Georgia Holmes

“It was a good experience as I got the chance to perform on a proper stage.” Amy Parkinson

Christmas Crackers Concert leaves glittering memories

Our 2013 Christmas concert was amazing! I had come from a primary school where we didn’t have a concert, only a nativity. Suddenly, I was surrounded by flying drumsticks, fake snow and about a ton of tinsel.

Backstage was crazy, with musical instruments piled on every surface, ukuleles being tuned in every room and people desperately trying to find the music for their performance. But on stage, it was even crazier.

Soul Band, to Drumline, Groove Tubes to JUNO, our Year 7 Choir, each was totally awesome! I loved being part of the Christmas concert and hope I will be in every one from now on.

One thing I enjoyed was the number of new faces I met. As a Year 7, I still did not know most of the teachers and the students. Being in the concert introduced me to so many of them.

There were loads of great people at the concert and of course one special guest... a giant snowman!

I know I will never forget the Christmas concert, and even if I do, there will still be the glitter ground into the carpet when I walk to English to remind me!

Other performers commented:

“We’ve been practising so hard, I’m glad it’s paid off!” Bethany Woodyatt, Year 10

“I’m nervous but excited.” Sumara Gilmore, Year 7

“I’m feeling the pressure but can’t wait to get on and play saxophone!” Jojo Thakker, Year 7

“Performing was amazing and the atmosphere was immense.” Ben Maloney, Year 11

Report by Lydia Aitken, Year 7

By Louis Bagga, Sam Thewlis, Chrystal Tong, Emily Ludbrook and Huzaifa Al-YamaniA-Level Business Studies students have been involved in mock job interviews as part of their Unit 2 work. We have compiled a list of the top 10 tips we feel are crucial for ensuring a successful interview.

•Dresssmartly-nojeansorT-shirts

•Giveafirmhandshakeatthestart

•Getthere10-15minutesbeforethe interview

•Looktheinterviewerintheeyeswhen talkingtohim/her

•Don’taskaboutwagesorholidays

•Situpinthechair,don’tslouch

•Don’ttakeaseatunlessyouareasked todoso

•Lookandsoundenthusiastic

•Doyourresearchaboutthebusiness beforehand

•Askquestionsattheendofthe interviewbutnotaboutsomething that’salreadybeenexplained

WillPower

How to perform well at interview

TOP

10 TIPS

By Haleema Mehmood and Zarah Akbar, Year 9On 16 January, a group of Year 9, 10 and 11 students went to London as part of the His-tory excursion Kip on a Ship. While there, we visited lots of exciting places starting with the Shard, the tallest building in Europe. We then moved on to the Churchill War Rooms, where the Prime Minister is-sued commands and devised tactics. We went to Trafalgar Square to do some sightsee-

ing and watched a production of War Horse, which was very moving. After a long day, we arrived at our accommodation on the River Thames, HMS Belfast, a warship that served during the Second World War.

Next morning after breakfast, we had a tour of the warship and saw different aspects of the lives of those who served on the ship. We then visited the National Army Museum, before sadly saying our good-byes to London and travelling home.

Getting street-wise on marketing

Fundraising Totaliser

Total raised by Year 7 and Mrs Judson for Wear Red Day

£320.00

Children,s Heart Surgery FundTotal raised by Year 8 at their Christmas fair

£57.67 “Over the past few weeks we worked hard to

get it all sorted. Thankfully it paid off!”

Rory Hamilton, Year 8

Children in NeedTotal raised

£1,947.17

Bradford Curry ProjectTotal raised by Year 10 pantomime and staff

£475.00Yorkshire Air AmbulanceTotal raised by Beckfoot and Hazelbeck staff raffle

£175.00

Candlelighters

Total raised by Beckfoot and

Hazelbeck staff raffle

£233.00

Total raised by Year 7 and Mrs Judson for Wear Red Day

£320.00

fibor facta card trick from Mr Kendall

Report by Darcie Wilkinson, Lucia White, Tilly Weston, Faizah Sajid, Uma Iqbal, Zaynab Iqbal, Mona Hafidh, Year 9On 3 February, our team of seven Year 9 students travelled to the Royal Armouries in Leeds for the regional final of the Real Business Challenge. The event was run by Coca Cola Enterprises in partnership with the sports charity StreetGames, which brings sport to young people in disadvantaged communities.

We competed against 11 other schools and our challenge was to create a promotional campaign to raise awareness of StreetGames. We had to create a viral video, poster and app, then present our campaign to three VIP judges and an audience of over 120 people.

Although we didn’t win, we gained a lot from the event and got the chance to work with a mentor from Coca Cola in the process. To get to this stage, we had already designed our own soft drink for children called ‘Ape-ricot’ to ‘help cheeky monkeys grow.’

We learned about marketing and will be visiting a Coca Cola factory in March to discover how soft drinks are manufactured.

“I found the experience really fun. It gave us the opportunity to build our skills and confidence.” Uma Iqbal

“The cards in my hands have a letter on one side and a number on the other.

If there is a vowel (A, E, I, O or U) on one side of a card, then there is always an even number on the other side.

You can only see one side of each card, so which cards must you flip over to work out whether I am telling a lie or telling the truth…

•Allofthem?

•Eand7?

•Eand2?

•E,Vand2?

Email your answer to me at becndk@beckfoot.org by Friday 28 March 2014.

There will be an exciting prize for the first correct answer drawn from the hat!”

Real Business Challenge team

PU

ZZLE

CORNER

Report by Raahat Rahman, Year 9The KS3 History Club meets fortnightly on a Tuesday and is open to all KS3 students. It looks at various aspects of history using debating, arts and crafts, historical films, anything that can be thought of.

We had our first meeting and during it we watched the

popular BBC sitcom, Blackadder Back and Forth, which is about Blackadder’s adventures when his servant Baldrick creates a working time machine. This inspired the club to have a debate on whether it is individuals that shape history or factors that are outside their control. It was a really interesting, original and different way to look at history.

ClubWatch The write club for usWhy did you start the Year 7 Writing Club?E: Because we didn’t have one in Year 7. When we were in Year 7, it was just sport or drama that was available.

Do you think there is a demand for more clubs like this?

S: I guess so because a lot of the clubs are based on students wanting to take part in sport or performing arts, which is good for people who want to do that but it’s not for everybody. There was never anything we wanted to do in the sports and performing arts selection.

Can you run through a regular Writing Club session?S: We have a word of the week exercise where we give students a new random word, usually something really weird, for example ‘abacinate’*. They have to try and guess what it means. Then we have

the theme of the week, for example one week we did poetry. Another week, we did a session on how to kill characters properly (laughs) because you know that’s important. At the end, we have a game that until now has mostly been Consequences.

What books are you currently reading?E: I’m reading the Da Vinci Code.

S: (Laughs) Well, yours just sounds so sophisticated because I’m reading The Princess Diaries! I’m also re-reading Harry Potter.

E: I’m always re-reading Harry Potter!

The Writing Club is run by Philippa Kirkham, as well as Simrah and Ellie. It is open to all Year 7s and is held on Tuesdays after school in E10.

*Abacinate – to blind by a red-hot metal plate held before the eyes.

George Loftus interviews Simrah Asghar and Ellie Gilchrist, two Year 11s who run the Year 7 Writing Club.

A cunning plan to time travel through history

Kip on a Ship trip

Report by Sam Powell, Year 11From the outset of Year 7, all participants could tell that the newly-refined Beckfoot basketball programme had massive potential. Even though nobody was already proficient at basketball, we all picked up the game like second nature. In our first appearance in the Bradford schools cup, we were placed second to Buttershaw. Ever since that moment, a rivalry was born.

In Year 8, the majority of the team started playing for national league basketball teams. That season, we won the Bradford cup and conquered our rivals Buttershaw. In Year 9, our winning spirit was not dented even though our undefeated season was cut short in round 16 of the English schools cup.

In Year 10, we took our basketball to the next level in performance and maturity. We got to the quarter finals of the English schools cup before St Cuthbert’s unfortunately overcame us in a nail-bitingly close game.

In Year 11, I shifted towards leading basketball. The team I coach started out of the blocks quickly and became the first

Year 7 team in Beckfoot history to win the Bradford cup. Year 8 broke more records as the first Year 8 team to go beyond the group stages [of which competition?] Coaching has helped me personally with my confidence, as I can now face challenges and overcome them in multiple ways.

Basketball team: Abu Hussain, Sam Forster, Jermaine Ramsden, Matthew Garland, Jay Balanda, Louis Ogol, Elliott Clarke, James Banton, Yusuf Rasul, Alex Leadbeater, Sam Powell

Sports Round

Up

To keep up-to-date with all the buzz at Beckfoot

Beckfoot School, Wagon Lane, Bingley, West Yorkshire BD16 1EE

The Buzz Team: Brenda Thomas, Adele Sewell-Peterson, Catherine Hemingway & Sarah Edwards

visit: www.beckfoot.org

Tel: 01274 771444 Email: admin@bec.bradford.sch.uk

Report by Zahraa Khan, Year 8Our Years 7, 8 and 9 girls’ football teams have done it again in an amazing sea-son, winning all their respective Brad-ford leagues and are still unbeaten. The combined Year 7 and Year 8 team won all their fixtures, scoring 28 goals and con-ceding just one. Year 9 made up of a few Year 8s also won all their games scoring 13 goals and conceding just three.

Year 7 and 8 entered a 14-team tourna-ment organised by Bradford City. After qualifying for the semi-finals, Beckfoot were in deadlock at 1-1 at the final whis-tle. This was the first time they had not won in over two seasons but the team were very proud of how they had played.

All going swimminglyReport by Josh Holdsworth, Year 13This year Beckfoot did fantastically well in the Bradford Schools Swimming Gala. I was proud to see everybody really going for it, not only in the races but in terms of team spirit. Finishing in first place for the last two competitions has really improved the sporting image of the school. It has also made Beckfoot’s swimming team grow not only in quantity but in quality too with swimmers such as Becky Fuller and Ben Higgins achieving personal bests and Yorkshire championship times.

Swimming team:

Year 13 – Josh Holdsworth

Year 12 – Ben Higgins

Year 11 – Sophie Holdsworth

Year 10 – Ellis Short, Jess Hutchinson, Grace Anderton

Year 9 – Becky Fuller, Kieran Armstrong

Year 8 – Eve Anderton, Sam Backhouse, Ruth Hollis, Alex Smeele

Year 7 – Georgia Pilling, Ollie Steele, John-Luke Hutchinson, Hollie Marsden

From novice to winner to coach

five great years of basketball

Teams:Daniella WildmanBavneet KangRemi MalcolmOlivia AukerEleanor BartleEllie AfzalSophia MottramZaraah KhanEllie Clayton Green

Darcy Gleeson WadeLucia DoddyLydia BennettEllie ThewlisHollie RichardsonIshbel WrightOlivia FrancisMolly McDonaldPhoebe Wilde

Champions Again! Keep Calm and Love Football