PenyrheolHONK!ANOTHER SUPERB PERFORMANCE PHOTOGRAPHS AND REVIEW

Christmas 2013 • www.penyrheol-comp.net

newsletter

Event Updates:Christmas Concert

Charity WeekLe Touquet Trip

Iceland Trip

Awards EveningReview & Results

PLUS:Important Dates

Sports NewsEco News

Beyond the School Gates& More

autumnterm

Dear Parents and Pupils The Year 11 leavers of summer 2013 set new heights of excellence for Penyrheol Comprehensive School in their GCSE and BTEC results. 63% of them achieved the Level

2 Threshold including English and Maths, a 6% improvement from the previous year. This figure compares with the Swansea average of 55% and the Wales average of 52%. The high achievement of our pupils is the result of their and their teachers’ hard work and of the support and encouragement of parents. We were inspected by Estyn in September and the report has now been published on the Estyn website, www.estyn.gov.uk, and is also available on the front page of our own website, www.penyrheol-comp.net. To summarise the findings in one sentence: everything we do, we do well. I sent a letter out earlier this term explaining that we were aiming to introduce a new biometric cashless system for our canteen in January 2014 and seeking parents’ permission to take pupils’ thumbprints. Many thanks to all of you who have responded to this. It now looks likely that the system will be delayed because of some IT problems between the company installing the system and the Local Authority. I will keep you posted about developments, but I can’t see us having the new system up and running for the start of the new year. As ever, our pupils have been involved in many visits and activities this term, some of which you can read about in this newsletter. Our Christmas Carol Concert takes place at St. Catherine’s Church, Gorseinon, at 7.00 p.m. on Wednesday, 18th December. We would love to see you there supporting our orchestra and choirs as we celebrate together the Christmas story and our pupils’ talents. Term ends at lunch time on Friday, 20th December, and the Spring Term begins for pupils on Monday, 6th January. Nadolig llawen a blwyddyn newydd dda i gyfeillion Ysgol Gyfun Penyrheol.

Yours faithfully,

ALAN TOOTILL

Headteacher

A message from the Headteacher

Holiday Information

School for pupils will restart on Monday 6th January 2014 Bank Holidays 2014

18 April 2014 Good Friday21 April 2014 Easter Monday5 May 2014 May Day26 May 2014 Spring Bank Holiday

INSET Days 2014

Friday 21st February 2014Friday 11th April 2014Monday 21st July 2014

Other important dates to note

Whole School Review Day – Wednesday 19th March 2014

GCSE Results Day – Thursday 21st August 2014

Following feedback from parents, please find below a copy of the pricing structure for meals available to pupils each day here at Penyrheol.

School Canteen

On Wednesday 6th November the annual Year 6 open evening was held at Penyrheol Theatre. This is an important evening where Year 6 pupils and their families, look

around in order to help them choose their preferred secondary school… a big decision!

Pupils and Staff open up their classrooms and departments and display a ‘taster’ of what activities they do. Examples of work are displayed and families are shown around the school by pupils and even get a chance to taste the canteen food and go to the library!

Grace Thomas and Lauren Francis, both in Year 7, were chosen as helpers this year and this is what they had to say about their experience:

We were chosen by the sports staff to help out with the open evening on the 6th November and to demonstrate some of the different and varied activities that we do here at Penyrheol. It all took place in the sports hall.

We began by playing some netball and encouraged some of the Year 6 pupils to join in, which they did! After a while, we rotated the activities and demonstrated, rugby, badminton, table tennis, gymnastics and netball. Not only did the Year 6 pupils join in, but even some of the parents did…we were very surprised at that!

It was a really successful evening which we enjoyed very much and most importantly, the year 6 pupils did too. We are sure they will pick Penyrheol as their chosen school to come to next year! We did and we love it!

Year 6 Open Evening

Did you know...?For all the latest news you can follow us on Twitter @penyrheolor check out our website at www.penyrheol-comp.net

Many of our departments also use Twitter to showcase pupil work and share revision tips and links - check out @penyrheolDT, @penyrheolICT, @penyrheolWelsh, @penyrheolSKI to name just a few!

@cazznich

“loved every second. The enthusiasm and commitment from these pupils is fantastic.”

@Benneypenyrheol

“The talent of our pupils (and staff) never ceases to amaze. A wonderful service tonight. Proud to work @Penyrheol.”

@penyrheolmusic

“Proud doesn’t come near. The pupils involved in tonight’s concert are a credit to @Penyrheol Llongyfarchiadau bawb!!”

@WeeksVaughan

“it was a fantastic evening. Well done to all the staff and pupils involved”

Once again this year, our annual Christmas concert was an enormously enjoyable evening. The concert took place at St. Catherine’s Church in Gorseinon on the 18th December and the church was packed to the rafters, despite the awful weather!

The evening opened with an official welcome from head teacher Mr Tootill, before singing our first congregational carol ‘Once in Royal David’s City’.

The orchestra this year was led by year 11 pupil Mollie Allen on first violin. Mollie also treated us to a solo violin performance later in the evening. This was Mollie’s last Christmas concert at Penyrheol before leaving after her GCSE’s in the summer.

Penyrheol is fortunate to have three choirs, all of which sang beautifully. The senior choir sang ‘Shining Light’, ‘I Wish It Could be Christmas Everyday’ and ‘See amid the Pompeii Snow’ which was a mash-up of ‘See Amid the Winters Snow’ and ‘Pompeii’ by pop group Bastille – This was particularly well received by all generations!

The junior choir sang a selection of seasonal songs and the chamber choir, made up of girls from years 10 and 11 sang three beautiful songs. It was wonderful to see so many children involved in all of the choirs! Weeks of practice certainly paying off!

Other highlights were ‘A Thousand Years’ sung by the Elf-ettes and the orchestra’s closing piece, ‘The Egmont Overture’ by Beethoven which was particularly rousing!

The pupils delivered readings from the bible and after words of thanks from the Reverend Martin Cox, the evening closed with another congregational carol – ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’.

This was a lovely evening with a warm atmosphere that sent us home feeling relaxed and uplifted – A wonderful start to the Christmas season!

Congratulations to all those involved, especially our Peripatetic Teachers, Mr George, Mrs Gibbs and Miss Nicholas to whom we are most grateful.

Special thanks goes to Mr Rogers and Miss Morris from the music department for organising such an enjoyable evening.

Christmas Concert

Charity Week 2013

Year 10 organised a Dodgeball Tournament, Coloured Hairspraying and even a Spinathon, where Pupils and staff cycled in the school foyer throughout the day in order to raise much needed funds – Well done!

Year 10

11th - 15th November was our Charity Week at Penyrheol and what a week it was!

Pupils from all year groups baked cakes, shaved heads and even exercised to raise money for our

chosen charities.

We also held a non-uniform day on ‘Children In Need’ Day, where many pupils came to school in fancy dress and made a whopping £815 for

‘Children in Need’ that day alone!

The total raised all together was an amazing £2,560!

The £1600 raised from charity week activities this year will be divided between the following four charities, as decided by Student Voice in their

recent council meeting:

The Ark Children Home, AfricaBrainstrust

Loughor Inshore Lifeboat‘World Horizons’ Podiatry Clinic in Africa

Year 9 brought back (by popular demand) the tuck Shop for Charity Week.

Located in the annexe during break and lunchtimes the final total raised was £476.

A massive thanks to all form teachers, form reps and year 9 pupils who helped.

Year 9 also collected over 150 items (tins/pasta/dried foods etc) all of which have been donated to Gorseinon Food Bank.

Year 9

Year 7Year 7 organised The Great Penyrheol Bake Off. Form Tutors, Head of Year Miss Collier, Pastoral Assistant Mrs Gwyther and Head of Welsh Mr Binding all baked cakes. The children paid to taste the cakes which were all wonderful and then decided on their favourite three.

And the winner was… Miss Essery whose cake won hands down, but Mr Gray and Mrs Gwyther came in at a very respectable joint second. Thanks to everyone who took part!

Pupils from the STF raised £ 74.58 by making and selling cakes!

STF

‘I’m a Teacher, Get Me Out of Here’

Year 8 organised ‘I’m a Teacher, Get Me Out of Here’. School staff ‘volunteered’ to take part in the event and ate live bugs (yes…real ones!) and other nasty things in order to win the jungle crown. The King of the jungle this year was Mr Rogers (Head of Music) who like previous winner Mr Luckwell, took the trophy with ease as he ate anything and everything that came his way! This event alone raised £220!

Year 8

Romainian Shoebox AppealThe shoebox appeal was once again a massive success. 187 shoeboxes full of presents were collected this year and sent to children and adults in Romania to help make their Christmas just a little bit more special.

This has now become a favourite charity with the pupils at Penyrheol, who particularly like getting the feedback from the Romanian children after Christmas.

“When I am opening my presents on Christmas Day, I shall think of the child who has received my shoebox and it will give me a warm glow inside, knowing that I have helped to make their day more exciting. It will make me appreciate my Christmas Day all the more!”

A year 7 pupil

Le TouquetIn July the French Department organised a 3 day trip to Le Touquet in Northern France for the activity days. Here are some memories of the trip.

Sea Life and Beach WalksLeah Hagley 8C

France was fantastic and the weather was superb. We went to Nausica the sea life aquarium and I really enjoyed shopping at the Cité d’ Europe. The weather was glorious so it made the trip even more enjoyable.

The hotel was lovely and the sunset on the beach was amazing. I also really enjoyed the trip to the chocolate factory. I had a fantastic time.

Hannah Everest 9C

“I had a wonderful time on the trip to France and the weather was very warm. I particularly enjoyed the evening walks to the beach with everybody. I loved the Sea Life centre. Seeing all the sharks and seals and unusual marine life was amazing.”

Shopping!

Baking!

Great FunKaleva Neyland 9C“I really enjoyed going to France and staying in Le Touquet. It was great fun going to Nausica because it was interesting seeing all the fish and wild life. I also enjoyed going to the shopping centre and walking around with all my friends. Thank you for this trip.”

I had a wonderful timeCourtney Bevan 9C “The trip to France was a marvellous experience, especially going to Nausica Sea World. We spent about 3 hours there and it was loads of fun, seeing all the different sea life. I also enjoyed going to the beach in the evenings. Our hotel room was nice too. Going shopping, going to the chocolate factory and bakery was also fun. I had a wonderful time.”

A brilliant trip!Amy Frohwein 9CI really enjoyed France. I liked the hotel and food. It was a good experience going to the bakery and chocolatier. The Sea Life centre was interesting and getting to see all the dif-ferent animals. Overall France was a brilliant trip.

I really enjoyed the trip to France. I enjoyed the Sea Life centre. It was really interactive and the building itself was really futuristic. I also enjoyed going shopping in the big shopping centre. It was a good experience and a chance to meet new friends.

Bronwen Davies 9C

Chocolate FactoryCerys Jones 9C“The trip to Le Touquet was a brilliant experience. I really liked visiting the Sea Life centre and the Chocolate Factory, the bakery was good too. The teachers were lovely on the trip. It was brilliant.”

My favourite part was Nausica Aquarium. It was fantastic! There was

loads of wildlife there! Overall it was a brilliant trip. Thanks for taking us!

Cameron Beynon 9C

eco-newslooking after our environment

International IssuesPenyrheol recently put together an International Committee, where we will be working with six other schools in Spain, Turkey, Italy, Poland and Romania. Our project will be called ‘YES’ (Young Eco Savers) and will work alongside our own Eco Club to help us improve the environment around the school as well as looking at global issues.

The eye-catching logo for ‘YES’ was designed by Tianah Dodge 8R, Chloe Thomas 8D, Abigail Whiting 8D, Melissa Samuels 7R, Ethan Rigby 7R and Andzejs Dubjaga 7R. Well done team!

Beach Watch This year a small group of pupils from

year 7 and 8 took part in a national event called ’Beach Watch 2013’. This event was organised by The Marine

Conservation Society and encouraged volunteers to litter pick the local

beaches whilst learning about the marine life on the beaches and how

they are affected by littering.

During our time on Langland beach, we found a Mermaids Purse which is a shark eggs case. We were very

surprised to learn that there are sharks in our waters! (Dog shark)

This was a really interesting and very worthwhile project to have taken

part in and something that we look forward to

doing again!

Wishing to wave the Green Flag!Last year the Eco Club managed to achieve a silver award for the Eco standards at the school and we are now looking towards achieving the ‘Green Flag’.

Anyone wanting to help should contact Miss Kingdom who runs the Eco Club on a Wednesday after school. After Christmas we will be focusing on the school garden. We need to decide what to plant this year, as last year we had great success with a crop of potatoes, which we harvested in September and made potato wedges from!

Sukie Selby 7E

Matthew Richards 7E

Robert Potter 7R

Sam Cousins 7H

Abigail Whiting 8D

Rebecca Jones 8R

Jonathon Lewis 8D

Ryan Smith 8H

Amelia Maguire 9H

Matthew Roberts 8H

Oliver Thomas 8H

Maddy Shadrach 8H

Megan Hovvels 10R

Megan Coslett 10E

Angharad Lake 10E

Angharad Weeks 10E

In a recent Student Voice meeting, it was decided that we should be doing something about the waste rubbish around the school premises. We have decided to put together a waste committee, who will be responsible for empting the recycling bins in the classrooms, offices and workrooms…. They will be called ‘Waste Warriors’!

We had lots of applications from students wanting to be part of the Waste Warriors and are pleased to announce that the following pupils were selected:

Geography Department Trip to Iceland Beautiful scenery, relaxation and shopping

In July, The Geography department organised a 5 night stay in Iceland.

Having left school at 3pm by coach, the pupils flew from Heathrow airport directly to Reykjavik and upon arrival, were transferred to their hotel by late evening… a tiring start to the trip, but an exciting one!

On day two of the trip, pupils enjoyed a 90 minute tour of the capital city before continuing to Pingvellir (Parliament Plaines), the location of the old parliament and a geological phenomenon. From there they drove to the Geyser geothermal area and to Gullfoss, the Golden Waterfall. After a stop by Skalholt (the ancient seat of Icelandic Bishops), the final stop was to see the Hellisheioi geothermal power plant. A long day before returning to the hotel for a much needed relaxing dinner.

Day three was a trip east from Reykjavik, along the beautiful scenery of Iceland’s South Shore. Among the highlights of the day were the waterfalls of Skógarfoss and Seljarlandsfoss, the museum at Skogar, Solheimajokull Glacier, and black sands and rocks of Reynisfjaa Beach.

The famous Blue Lagoon was the activity for day four, where the pupils were able to bathe in the warm waters of the geothermal spa for 2 hours and enjoy an afternoon at their leisure. The next day, the pupils visited the national museum of Iceland to learn about the countries cultural history which was really interesting and was followed by another leisurely day at Laugasdaur Leisure Centre geothermal pools.

The last day was spent shopping, before transferring to Keflavik International airport for the long journey home

This was a very interesting trip and as you can see by the photographs, one which the pupils enjoyed immensely!

Going to Iceland was one of the best experiences of my school life so far. It was amazing! Our visit to the Blue Lagoon was one of the best parts of the trip apart from shopping of course! The time we spent at the glacier was very interesting and completely not what I had expected. #hyndmantours

Angharad Lake 10E

Geography Department Trip to Iceland Beautiful scenery, relaxation and shopping

The celebration of world languages took place on Thursday 26th September. Mme Tanner held special assemblies during which she addressed the school in French, Welsh and English. Two Year 11 pupils took part in these assemblies. Joseph Williams gave a fascinating presentation about a voluntary work placement he had done in an orphanage in Kenya last summer. Karina Dove sang a song in Russian about a lover going away to fight in the war.

At break-time, pain au chocolat were sold in the annexe and at lunchtime pupils from 9C helped out with face painting. This proved to be very popular with pupils in all year groups.

World Day of Languages

Christmas Card Recycling Scheme

Once again this year, the Eco Club have arranged a Christmas card recycling scheme. There is a bin at the school reception for pupils and parents to drop off any unwanted cards after the Christmas period and these will all be recycled on your behalf.

As a little incentive…there will be a prize for the form that collects the most cards and runner up prizes for the forms in 2nd and 3rd place.

Perhaps recycling more could be your New Year’s resolution?

Pupils Win Goldat the National Special Olympics

Penyrheol pupils, Calum Hearn (Y10) and Kieran Moruzzi-Jones (Y9) were 2 of 7 swimmers from Swansea selected to represent The Swansea Stingrays in the National Special Olympics hosted in the City of Bath.

Both boys were sponsored by Penyrheol Comprehensive and were very successful at the games. Calum won Gold in the 50 metre Freestyle competition and Silver in the 100 metre Freestyle. He also came 4th place in the 50 metre Backstroke and 4th again in the Relay!

Kieran won the Gold medal in the 50 metre Freestyle, Silver in the 25 metre Backstroke and Bronze in the Relay. A superb effort by both boys!

Three weeks later, both boys were invited to the National Pool in Swansea to receive their medals, presented to them by The Princess Royal, Princess Anne.

This was a tremendous day and we are all very proud of the boys and of their achievements.

Awards Evening2013

On the 28th November, the annual awards evening was held at Penyrheol Theatre.

The guest speaker was ex-pupil and now Welsh rugby squad player, Eli Walker, who presented the awards and gave a short speech about his time at Penyrheol and how he managed to progress from schoolboy rugby player to national sportsman!

The evening started with a performance by the school chamber choir. Conducted by Miss Morris and accompanied by Mr Rogers, the choir sang a lovely selection of songs beautifully and with delightful harmonies. The girls from years 10 and 11 performed at short notice and started the evening off on just the right note!

This was a proud evening for many parents, as the past pupils received an array of awards for their achievements and contribution to school life. This particular year group gained the best ever GCSE exam results, beating previous records by over 5%! The calibre of their success was so high, that choosing this year’s winners was a hard task indeed.

With each presentation, Deputy head teachers Mrs Tanner and Mr Benney, read brief biographies on the winners, which gave us an insight into what they had gone on to study and what career paths they were hoping to follow.

Halfway through the presentations, we were treated to a wonderful performance by Alex Murphy, who sang and played his own composition ‘Lemon & Lime’. The audience didn’t realise that Alex has written this song himself, thinking that his song was an Ed Sheeran cover… praise indeed for Alex, who was joint winner of the ‘Performing Arts Achievement’ Award!

The evening closed with all the award winners having photographs taken with their trophies and certificates and refreshments were served. It was a lovely evening that displayed the extent of ability and talent that Penyrheol pupils have and it was a chance for these capable children to get the praise that they certainly deserve.

We look forward to celebrating these achievements again next year!

A full list of the winners is listed opposite.

1 Memorial Award for outstanding service to the School Josh Thomas

2 Penyrheol Award for outstanding service to the School Katie Hollingworth

3 English Excellence Award for best GCSE performance in English Katie Hollingworth

4 English Achievement Award for most praiseworthy effort in English Ben Mason

5 Mathematics Excellence Award for best GCSE performance in Mathematics Bethan Cairns

6 Mathematics Achievement Award for most praiseworthy effort in Mathematics Ellie Jones

7Marion Williams Sciwence Award for best GCSE performance in Science Subjects

Kayleigh Thomas

8 Science Achievement Award for most praiseworthy effort in Science Amelia Picton Jones

9 Art Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Art Lucy Calarusso

10Business Studies Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Business Studies

Bethan Jones

11Child Development Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Child Development

Siobhan Martin

12 Design Technology Award for the best performance in Design Technology Amy-Lee Gibbons

13 Drama Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Drama Alex Myles

14Gower College Swansea Vocational Award for the best performance in Engineering

Nicholas Martin

15 Geography Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Geography Liam Stafford

16 History Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in History Josh Thomas

17 ICT Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in ICT Hannah Francis

18Media Studies Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Media Studies

Luke Dyche

19 Lloyds Bank Cup for the best GCSE performance in Modern Languages Lara Weaver

20 Music Achievement Award for the best GCSE performance in Music Caitlin Lewis

21Performing Arts Achievement Award for the best contribution to Music and Drama

Ellie Evans & Alexander Murphy

22Physical Education Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Physical Education

Liam Stafford

23 Sporting Achievement Award for commitment to Physical Education Corey Norman

24Religious Studies Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Religious Studies

Rebecca Street

25 Vocational Education Award for best performance in Vocational Studies Samantha Hunt

26 Welsh Excellence Award for the best GCSE performance in Welsh Ffion Dunning

27 Thomas Award for Special Effort Jemma Dennis

28Community Council Millennium Award for the best contribution to the Community

Jordan Jones (nominated by ACH)

29 Headteacher’s Award Chloe Davies & Ben Lang

30 Catherine Williams Award for the outstanding GCSE performanceBethan Cairns, Katie Hollingworth & Bethan Jones

31 A Special Award goes to our Debating Team Bethan Cairns, Bethan Jones, Amy-Lee Gibbons, Ffion Dunning, Georgia Parry, Ben Davies, Lewis Beck, Jessie Rosser & Emma John

Football

There have been mixed results this term on the football field. Year 7 have been the ‘stand out’ team and look the early favourites to reach the semi finals.This term has also seen the re introduction of girls football with great success. With a number of girls attending training every Friday, the future of girl’s football in Penyrheol is promising.

Rugby

The rugby season has also started well with regular fixtures for all years. Boosted by the prospect of 2 x Penyrheol pupils starting for Wales in the autumn internationals until an unfortunate injury to Eli Walker, pupils have taken to the fields with great enthusiasm.

Year 9 and 11 put in some great performances in the Welsh cup, and year 8 have showed some promising signs in the 4 fixtures they have played with a regular squad of over 20 players.

Once again the stand out team has been year 7, who are so far unbeaten going into the Christmas break. Well done year 7.

Netball

A very pleasing start to the 2013/14 season! Numbers attending training have been consistently high, particularly in years 7 and 8. All teams have produced some good performances, with some very good results being achieved during matches against other schools within the Swansea area.

Year 7 have made a positive start to the season, winning all their matches so far! The team have worked well together and produced excellent results against Olchfa, Dylan Thomas and Pontarddulais, winning

4-2, 10-0 and 15-5, respectively. Teams in Years 8, 9 and 10 have also achieved some pleasing results; hopefully all teams can build upon this term’s performances and carry this momentum forward into the second half of the season!

Urdd Swimming Gala

On November 27th, 21 pupils from Years 7 to 11 competed in the Area Competition.Everybody must be commended for their effort and enthusiasm.

Fitness at Penyrheol Leisure Centre

It is great to see so many pupils making exercise part of their daily routine. The

News from the P.E. Department

For updates on fixtures and PE information, follow us on Twitter @penyrheolPE

Florida Trip Fundraising

News just in! Pupils helped to pack bags @

asda Gorseinon on the 14th December and raised a

massige £586! Diolch pawb, a massive thanks from us

all! #pyhfl

fitness gym is very busy after school with pupils of all ages and particularly so,

after its fantastic refurbishment and introduction of new machines.

Monday night is also girl’s fitness night, with a variety of activities on offer, Thursday night spin is very popular and both sessions are only £2 per session. Don’t forget…it’s FREE for first timers!

Hockey

The squad is gaining in skills and confidence and train regularly on

Wednesday or Thursday evenings. We have played 3 games this term, winning 2 and losing 1. There are a number of fixtures planned for the New Year, so the girls are training hard in readiness for a string of successes!

Gym Club

A number of Year 7 and 8 pupils have been attending gym club at lunch times and after-school on a Monday. Pictured is an example of one of the balances they have been practicing. The girls are currently working on a routine to be included and performed at the School St David’s Day Eisteddfod in March next year.

Individual Achievements

Ashleigh Harries (Y11) made his Welsh u17s football debut during the summer against Malta, Well done Ashleigh.

A huge congratulations to Sam James (Y11) for making it into the u16’s Ospreys team and to Nathan R John (Y11) for reaching the ‘B’ squad.

Congratulations to Alisha Job (Y7), Sophie McCallum (Y9), Chloe Payne (Y11) and Zachary Spackman (8Y) who won their races in the Urdd Swimming Gala and will be representing the school in the finals in Cardiff next year.

Grace Thomas (7H) represented Penyrheol in the Afan Nedd indoor athletics year 7/8 competition and came 3rd out of 30 competitors. She hopes to be selected for the National Finals next year. Well done Grace!

Florida Trip Fundraising

News just in! Pupils helped to pack bags @

asda Gorseinon on the 14th December and raised a

massige £586! Diolch pawb, a massive thanks from us

all! #pyhfl

A big thank you to all the staff who have helped to run sports teams for Penyrheol.

Hello, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all at the AYP Team in Swansea!

This term at Penyrheol has been fantastic; I am brand new to the job but have hit the ground run-ning at Penyrheol, thanks to the wonderful staff and pupils at the school.

We have reached almost a quarter of the pupils at the school in the first few months of the aca-demic year and the scheme continues to grow and grow.

We have offered a variety of extra-curricular sporting activities, including breakfast clubs (8am-8.30 in the sports hall), lunchtimes and after school, covering sports such as Dodgeball, Atomic Touch (Rugby), Gymnastics & Street Dance.

All years are welcome at most activities and there will be a new and improved timetable from the 2nd week of the new term for everybody to get involved in. (Look out for posters around the school)

The highlight of the term so far was the Cyclo-Cross event held at Penyrheol in October, where 5 teams representing schools from the West side of Swansea took part in a fun, new and exciting cycling opportunity using grass banks, obstacles and lots of mud!

The Penyrheol team of six year 7 pupils performed admirably , picking up a silver medal!

Another notable mention for this term is Matthew Evans (Y10) who is the Silver Young Ambas-sador for the school, Matthew’s enthusiasm, along with many other Y10 boys, has seen the 5x60 ethos spread around the school and numbers growing every session!

Active Young People / 5x60by Ricky Morgan AYP Officer at Penyrheol

The X Factor Reading ChallengeYear 7 - May The Best Form Win!

The heat was on as forms in year 7 competed in The X Factor Reading Challenge. Every time a pupil read a book, he or she was asked three questions by the librarian and if they answered correctly, they received a music note to put on the X Factor display wall in the library.

But look out!!!! If caught cheating, the pupils received a ‘Simon Scowell’ and three of these would see the form disqualified!

After two months of reading, the winners of the competition were 7R who read 43 books during the challenge and won the silver trophy. Melissa Samuels (7R) and Shaun Cunningham (7M) both received special X Factor certificates for being the boy and girl who read the most books during the challenge. Well done!

Congratulations to all those who took part!

Book FairOnce again this year, the Scholastic Book Fair was held in the library and was this year run by two Year 7 pupils, Melissa Samuels and Mia Cozens who did a fabulous job! Popular as ever, the fair ran for one week and pupils enjoyed browsing and buying their favourite books!

Favourite Books 2013Diary of a Wimpy Kid still stealing the limelight!

This year the top ten most borrowed books have been:

1. Diary of a wimpy Kid – ‘Cabin Fever’ by Jeff Kinney2. Diary of a Wimpy Kid – ‘The Third Wheel’ by Jeff Kinney3. Diary of a Wimpy Kid – ‘The Last Straw’ by Jeff Kinney4. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid – ‘The Ugly Truth’ by Jeff Kinney6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid – ‘Roderick Rules’ by Jeff Kinney7. Zom-B by Darren Shan8. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins9. The worst Thing about My Sister by Jaqueline Wilson10. Lily Alone by Jacqueline Wilson

Library News Reading Challenge and Top Books of 2013

60% of our books are

borrowed by girls and 40% by

Boys!

Di

d you know...?

Most books are borrowed on

a Monday, closely followed by the

weekdays in order, with Fridays being the quietest day for

loans!

Did you know...?

93% of pupils regularly

borrow books from the school library…

and they say children don’t read books

anymore!

Did you know...?

News From the Welsh DepartmentNewyddion o’r Adran Gymraeg

Welsh Awareness Day 2013

This year’s visit to the capital was on Friday, 25th October and pupils had the opportunity to visit at least 2 of the following venues:

• Millennium Centre Tour• Senedd Tour (Welsh Assembly Building)• St. Fagan’s guided talks• The Urdd’s Cardiff base in Cardiff Bay

I went to the Welsh Assembly building where

all the meetings are held. Next I went to the Millennium Centre and

we went back stage. The day was fab.

Jacob Rees

I had a great day

and enjoyed learning things about the Welsh Assembly. We

got to see behind the scenes at the Millennium Centre. It was a really

good day out at the end of the half term.

Ellie Evans

In the Millennium

Centre I went backstage and saw the dressing rooms

and I learned that they don’t have the dressing room 13 because

they think it is unlucky.

Zoë James

The Welsh

Awareness Day trip was one of the best so far... awesome and interesting

finding out about the history of the buildings.

Oliver Scott

My favourite

was the Welsh Assembly building because it was very

interesting.

Dylan Court

I think it helped

us learn that Wales has a lot more to offer than

we think.

Ruth Jones

I loved the Welsh Awareness Day trip to Cardiff. Oh man, it was

so great!

Thomas Cahill

The Welsh

Awareness Day trip was really fun.

Caitlyn Roberts

I really

enjoyed it.

Jac Elsey

I thought that the

Welsh Awareness Day trip was very good.

Seren Dennis

Diolch yn fawr 7M!

Here’s what some 7M pupils had to say about their final day of their first half term at Ysgol Gyfun Penyrheol...

Yr Ystadegau / The Stats

3 bws

170+ disgybl / pupils10 staff

4 lle / locations

Nadolig Hapus a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda oddi wrth (from) yr Adran Gymraeg

Author VisitOn the 5th November, three writers who had been short listed for the prestigious ‘Dylan Thomas Award’ came to visit us. They met with some of our Year 9 pupils and Megan Ashman from 9R tells us a little bit about it:

In November, we were visited by three authors who came in to talk to us about writing stories. The authors were all short listed for the Dylan Thomas prize 2013, two of them for writing a book and the other for her poetry. Marli Rooks story was called ‘Call It Dog’, Tim Leach’s story was called ‘The Last King of Lydia’ and Jemma King’s poetry book was called ‘The Shape of a Forest’.

The authors were with us for two hours and during this time they told us about their books. We asked lots of questions like ‘How do you do your research’ and ‘What inspires you to write’. We then went on to write our own poetry. We could write about ‘The Beach’ or ‘Stranded on a Desert Island’. It was quite hard to get started, but the authors helped us.

I really enjoyed the visit and I learnt more about writing stories. I found the session very interesting and it was exciting to meet real authors.

Megan Ashman 9M

Unfortunately, none of our authors won the prize this year, as it was awarded to American short story writer Claire Vaye Watkins, who won the £30,000 that was up for grabs! Now there is an incentive for writing stories!

On 23rd September 2013, the Welsh Baccalaureate cohort took part in a one day Personal Development course run by the Armed Forces.

Pupils undertook a carousel of activities which were aimed at developing the following Key Skills: Communication, Working with Others, Problem- Solving and Improving Own Learning and Performance. In addition to this, pupils were given the opportunity to demonstrate leadership skills and use their own initiative in order to successfully complete the various tasks and challenges set.

The Army team delivering the course were very impressed with the work ethic and attitude displayed by the pupils.

Well done to everyone that took part!

Welsh Baccalaureate

Ski Trip to ItalySki trip places are still available for February 2015.

We are going to Bormio, Italy in February 2015 from Friday 13th to Friday 20th. The full cost of the trip is £800. If you would like further information about the hotel and resort, you can check them out at our website: http://www.penyrheol-comp.net/ski You can download a form from the webpage, and contact me directly via email through the site for further information. You can also follow the trip via @PenyrheolSki on Twitter - Mrs Tate

Another fabulous show this year that you would have been quackers to miss! A re-telling of the The Ugly Duckling, this production was

filled with fabulous song and dance and some very talented youngsters who handled the delivery of the humour just right! There were as always, some outstanding performances, in particular Ellie Coates who played Ugly (what a fabulous voice!) and Joseff Williams, as The Cat, who was both scary and hilarious and whose comedic timing was superb! Madame Tanner, Miss Davies, Mr Wallace and Mr Thomas were brilliant as the RAF geese who were accompanied by a flock of dancers and kazoo blowing pilots and were one of the highlights of the show! All those involved were a joy to watch and along with the imaginative costumes, set and live band, this was a production that Penyrheol can be really proud of!

HONK!

As seen on twitter...

@joseff_williams

“If you’re from Penyrheol & you’ve never done a school production - you need to. I’ve done all five since Year 7 - it’s a great experience.”

@WeeksVaughan

“Brilliant show tonight @Penyrheol. That tango should have been on strictly come dancing”

@AJTootill

“Another thespian triumph for Penyrheol pupils and staff. ‘Honk’ was hilarious and moving. Well done everyone involved. You did us all proud!”

@gorsyouthchoir

“Congratulations @Penyrheol for another fantastic show! Amazing talent on display - especially from the GYC members!

Christmas Jumper DayCharity Fundraising Event

Friday 13th December was Christmas Jumper Day, an Annual event by the charity Save the Children.

Staff donated £1 to wear a Christmas Jumper to work, and over £80 was raised for the charity.

At lunchtime a surprise was in store for the pupils, as staff had been secretly rehearsing a dance routine to ‘Rocking around the Christmas tree’.

Our Festive Flashmob dance group took to the floor and put on a great show which attracted a huge crowd of pupils who watched in amazement before heading back to class!

Thanks everyone for putting some Christmas cheer into the end of term!

You can watch the video of the flashmob dance at: www.youtube.com/penyrheolcomp

Mme. Tanner started the dance on her own Other staff joined in gradually

Crowds of pupils gathered to watch!

http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/christmas-jumper-day

Other staff joined in gradually

Happy Christmas - Nadolig Hapusfrom all the staff at Penyrheol Comprehensive School

...and soon they were in full swing!

Our trip to

Pembrey Country Park was fun and

interesting. I enjoyed learning about what was there and what people do there. My favourite part of

the whole trip was when we stopped for a little break

and we all had a big laugh… I really

enjoyed it!

M

ia Cozens 7R

I really

enjoyed our history/geography trip

to Pembrey and Kidwelly Castle. I loved walking

along the beach and learning about the environment. We discussed where it would be a good place to build

a hotel and we had to co-operate within a

group.

Cian McBrien 7R

I really

enjoyed the trip to Pembrey and Kidwelly. My favourite part was running down the hill,

pretending to attack Kidwelly Castle and visiting the

beach at Pembrey. I also enjoyed learning about

orienteering. I had a great time!

Robe

rt Potter 7R

Geography and History Trip to Pembrey and Kidwelly Castle

The Pembrey and Kidwelly Castle trip ran on Tuesday 15th and Thursday 17th October. The visits involved half the day being spent at Kidwelly castle with the History department, where Mr Luckwell and Dr Rees gave a tour of the castle, highlighting some of its key features.

The highlight of the visit was to climb up the steep steps of the tallest tower, the views from the top were amazing!

The other half of the day was spent with the Geography department at Pembrey, where students investigated the impact of a hotel being built within the country park.

The highlight was the beautiful view of Gower and Worms Head. Unfortunately the pupils that went on the Thursday trip didn’t get to see much of Pembrey due to the horrendous weather, but that alone will create humours memories we’re sure!

CAREERS FAIR10th October 2013

On 10th October we held a Careers Fair and ‘Have a Go’ at Penyrheol to inspire our pupils.

18 different organisations set up a stand for the day and Year 11 pupils were able to visit those that interested them. We had employers such as City and County of Swansea, HSBC, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Maldron Hotels, The Army, Wetherspoons, The Garden Centre, Vocations Ltd and Admiral, giving pupils plenty of choice and ‘food for thought’.

It was pleasing to see so many of our young people talking to the voluntary organisations, SCVS and The Prince’s Trust and showing a keen interest in various opportunities available to them. Swansea College, Coleg Sir Gar and Swansea University stands were kept busy all day. Great interest was also shown in apprenticeships with Swansea ITEC and LLETS.

At the end of the day, the Fair was open to all pupils and parents and It was particularly pleasing to see so many pupils from the lower school taking an interest in their future.

The ‘Have a Go’ was a fantastic opportunity for Year 9 and 11 pupils to try different careers.

Huge thanks go to Coleg Sir Gar for hosting this for us. With 16 different areas covered, pupils could try out careers in music technology, equine, hairdressing, engineering, catering and many more. It gave them a small, but valuable insight into different careers and was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

It is important that young people have direction and something to strive for. Hopefully this event will go a long way to helping this. We are extremely grateful for the time and effort the different organisations put in to making this event a huge success and for making it a meaningful experience for our students.

GymnasticsCongratulations to Jessica Girletz (7M) who came 3rd in the Welsh Gymnastics Championships in November. Jessica has been doing g ymnastics for 4 years and belongs to the West Street Gymnastic Centre in Gorseinon. Jessica says she was delighted with her 3rd place in the floor routine section because she had learnt it in only 6 hours! Fabulous effort… well done Jessica!

Beyond the School Gates Many of our Penyrheol pupils are involved in outside school activities. If you would like to shout about it...here’s your chance!

Sport? Drama? Charity? Music? Dance? Chess? Whatever it is you do... let us know!

FootballLauren Evans (7Y) and Charlotte Williams (7D) have both been selected to try out for the Welsh trials in Girls Football. If chosen, the

girls will be picked to play for Wales. Good luck girls - Go for it!

Rowing

Performing ArtsCongratulations to the large number of pupils (past and present) who took part in ‘Now! That’s What I Call Musicality’ at The Princess Royal Theatre in November. Performances included musical numbers from Matilda, Catch me If You Can, 13 and The Addams Family. A particular mention goes to Robin Haley (Year 10) who sang his first ever solo and to Jonathan Williams (Year 10) who stage managed the show also for the very first time! Well done to everyone involved!

ArtWell done to Sophie Davies (7E) who won in her category at the ‘Art across the City Art Competition 2013’. Pupils from all around Swansea entered the competition, so Sophie

did really well to win!

Sian Waters (8E) did Wales proud recently when she achieved 6th place in the Indoor British Rowing Championships! Sian has been rowing for 3 years and belongs to the

Swansea City Rowing Club.

18 young people aged 12 and 13 took part and had to row continuously for 3 minutes, all hoping to be the one that rowed the furthest! Sian says “in the last 10 seconds, the person who was in 6th place was only a few metres ahead of me, so I put pressure on

myself and managed to overtake them”.Well done Sian, that last push was well worth it and what a lovely hobby to be

involved in!

We encourage both pupils and families to let us know about pupils’ achievements out of school so we can give them the credit that is clearly due to them! Please pass any information to Ms A Murphy via school reception.