1. education
2. school

FRIDAY 27th FEBRUARY 2015
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER FROM SOUTHBOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL
WORD FROM
THE HEADTEACHER
Niall Smith
Combined Cadet Force
I am very pleased with the first stages of
our involvement with the Combined Cadet
Force at St John’s School, Leatherhead.
Our fourteen selected Year 10 students
are settling in well, as are our Adult
Volunteers: Miss Parsons, Mr SwinchinRew and Mr Walker.
Visit by Ed Davey MP
We were pleased to welcome Ed Davey
to Southborough just before half term.
He enjoyed touring the school and was
very keen to get involved in a discussion
with 8A about three parent babies.
Twilight Professional Learning
This event, calendared for Tuesday 3rd March, has
now been cancelled. School will finish at the normal time.
Kind regards,
Mr N. Smith, Headteacher
FOSH CORNER
FOSH will be having a cake/ hot chocolate
sale at lunchtime on Thursday 19th March,
we shall also be providing an Easter hamper
and a Licensed bar for the Murder Mystery (Tues 24th
March).
Our next major FOSH fund-raising event shall be a
‘pig racing evening’ on Friday 24th April – do keep this
evening free in your diary. At this event: for each race
there are 6 pigs competing, each complete with a knitted jockey. You can bet on which pig you think will win,
and then watch the race on the big screen. It should be
a fun evening with food and a Licensed bar available.
Children are welcome too, and there will be burgers,
sweets and J20’s for sale.
We are having our next FOSH meeting this Friday
27th February at 7.00pm at the Cap-in-Hand to plan
out these events and to have a drink together. Anyone
is welcome!
CALENDAR
Sun 1 Mar
WW1 Centenary Programme Trip to France/Belgium (to 4/3)
Mon 2 Mar
P4 Whole School Reading, Y9/10/11/6th Form
Drama & English Trip to Othello at The Globe
(pm)
Wed 4 Mar
6pm Y8 & 9 Options Evening
Thur 5 Mar
DofE Bronze Day Walk in Oxshott, Youth Service
Drop In @ Lunchtime, World Book Day
Fri 6 Mar
GCSE/Y8 Drama Trip to Caucasian Chalk Circle
Tues 10 Mar
PSHCE Day, 6th Form History Trip to Paris (to
12/3), Y9/10 Visit to Nescot – Apprenticeship
Information Workshop (am)
Wed 11 Mar
Y11 Business Revision Workshop in E20
Fri 13 Mar
DoE Silver Day Walk in Oxshott
Tues 17 Mar
Y10 Trip to The Orange Tree Theatre
Thur 19 Mar
4-7pm Y10 Parents’ Consultation
Fri 20 Mar
Y7-10 School Exams (to 26/3)
Sat 21 Mar
Y6 Friendship Day
Mon 23 Mar
6th Form Rag Week (to 27/3), AS Geography
Trip to Swanage (to 25/3)
Tues 24 Mar
7pm Murder Mystery
Fri 27 Mar
Break Up at Lunchtime
Mon 13 Apr
Professional Learning Day – School Closed for
Pupils
Tues 14 Apr
8.40am School Starts
Thur 23 Apr
4-7pm Y8 Parents’ Consultation
Thur 30 Apr
4-7pm Y7 Parents’ Consultation, Junior Maths
Challenge
Mon 4 May
Bank Holiday
Wed 6 May
International GCSEs begin
Fri 8 May
6th Form Study Leave Starts
Sun 10 May
Trip to Basketball Match at the O2
Mon 11 May
GCE/GCSE Exams begin (to 24/6)
Tues 12 May
P6 Whole School Reading
25-29 May
Half Term
2
The GRIFFIN
27 February
A VISIT TO OUR PARTNER SCHOOL
PARCELLES ASSAINIES SCHOOL,
DAKAR, SENEGAL
It was my great pleasure
to spend a week at one of our
partner schools, Parcelles Assainies School in Dakar, Senegal during the recent half term.
We are twinned with Parcelles
Assainies through the British
Council scheme, Connecting
Classrooms, a project dedicated
to the building of relationships
between schools around the
world.
Marieme N’Diaye, my contact at Parcelles Assainies, has
become a great friend since
her visit to Southborough High
School last September. She was
waiting for me at the airport on
arrival and whisked me off to
Hotel Kakatar, my home for the
next seven days.
My first couple of days in Dakar were spent visiting some of
the city’s main attractions such
as the bustling central market,
the presidential palace and the
controversial African resistance
monument.
Obviously the main objective
of my visit was to spend time
in school meeting students and
developing ideas with teachers
as to how to develop our partnership.
On my first day at school I
was struck by the incredible enthusiasm and kindness of the
students and staff. Within a few
minutes I was teaching a class
of expectant students how to
compose a job application letter. Everybody seemed anxious
to know about Southborough
and what life is like in England.
Most of the students at Parcelles Assainies come from extremely humble backgrounds
where money is scarce. My new
friend Abdul Asiz, an incredibly committed and well-liked
teacher at Parcelles, informed
me that many are not guaran-
teed a daily meal. Despite this
the ebullient spirit that they all
showed towards their learning
was truly disarming.
I was frankly overwhelmed
by the infamous Senegalese Taranga (hospitality,) and was invited to the houses of staff for
dinner on a daily basis, I was
able to sample the national dish,
Thiéboudienne, rice with fish,
and Bissap, a vitamin-packed
juice.
The
kindness
everybody
showed me and the great love
and respect that the Senegalese
have for each other is something that will stay with me for
the rest of my life.
I have been invited back to
school and I fully attend to go,
seeing my visit as just the start
of activities between our two
schools.
Mr D. Johnson
Head of MFL
27 February
The GRIFFIN
3
JACK WESTLEY’S POLE-VAULTING ACHIEVEMENTS
TAKE ANOTHER LEAP FORWARD!
Year 8 student Jack
Westley’s natural agility
and flexibility – not to mention a huge amount of hard
work and dedication - has
contributed greatly to Jack
becoming a highly successful pole vaulter, last year
gaining third position in the
Under 13s Pole Vaulting UK
finals!
Since
then,
his
pole-vaulting talents have
gone from strength to
strength, and in the Surrey Championships on 14th
February, Jack achieved another personal best when he
leapt 2.50 metres and won
the gold medal! He is now
ranked 11th in the UK in the
Under 15 boys age group –
although as more competitions take place over the
season, this will change.
Most recently at ‘Vault
London’ on 22nd February,
Jack had another good competition and jumped 2.43
metres, not quite matching
his previous personal best
but certainly giving other competitors – including
Jack’s sister – a run for their
money!
Since the last competition, Jack has now moved
up to the Under 15 age
group – no mean feat for
someone who’s still thirteen
years of age! Jack comments: “I love pole vaulting and am happy to train
three times a week in order
to develop my skills. I hope
to now move up to a bigger
pole in order to allow me to
get my feet up even higher,
so that I can achieve a hand
stand position on the pole!”
Many
congratulations
to Jack for his amazing
achievements to date!
4
The GRIFFIN
27 February
MURDER MYSTERY
Murder Mystery
Once Upon a Time - A Murder Mystery
Join us at 7pm on March 24th in the school hall
where we will be entering a fictional dimension!!
Welcome to Wonderland, where the Mad Hatter's Tea
Party is in full flow. However, the Queen of Hearts has
been murdered. With Year 10 actors as suspects, it's up
to you to identify the murderer and ensure the story has
a happy ending.
A ticket costs £14 which includes your entertainment for the evening and a 3 course meal created
by the Greedy Griffins and BTEC 6th Formers from
the Food Technology Department.
FOSH will be running a licensed bar on the evening
with a mixture of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available to purchase. There will be prizes, kindly donated
by FOSH, for the best dressed audience member (Book
/ Fantasy theme) and for the super sleuth. It should be
a great night, I hope to see you there!
Tickets must be purchased via the school's
ParentPay system by March 17th to allow the right
quantities of food to be bought!
WORLD BOOK DAY 2015
World Book Day is on Thursday 5th March and is a worldwide celebration of books and
reading.
Students will be given their
World Book Day voucher during
the week beginning 2nd March
by their tutors. This may be
used to obtain one of the specially commissioned £1 WBD
books from a bookshop or to
obtain £1 discount off any book
costing £2.99 or more. This year
the Young Adult titles are Geek
Girl by Holly Smale and Killing
the Dead by Marcus Sedgwick.
Accelerated Reader quizzes are
available for all the WBD books.
The token can also be used to
obtain £1 discount off any item
in the Scholastic Teen Book Club
leaflet which will be given out
with the tokens. Orders for the
Book Club should be given to
Mrs Pike by Friday 20th March.
World Book Day is present-
ing its first online book festival
for teens where students can
virtually meet their favourite YA
authors including Derek Landy,
Darren Shan, Andy McNab and
Robert Muchamore to name but
a few. There will also be competitions, fun challenges and writing tips, tricks and inspiration.
The virtual festival will run from
6-8pm on 4th and 5th March and
students can register at www.
wbdteenfest.com to take part.
On World Book Day itself, the
Library will be running a speed
dating competition at lunchtime.
Two teams of students and
teachers will compete against
each other to ‘sell’ their favourite books to members of the
opposing team. Team members
will then have to award points
for each book and prizes will
be awarded for the most popular book. If you have a favourite book and would like to take
part, please see Mrs Pike in the
Library for more details.
And finally, look out for the
posters around school alerting
you to a terrible catastrophe
that will be occurring in the Library on World Book Day and
find out what you can do to help
solve the mystery!
27 February
The GRIFFIN
5
A VALENTINE
TREAT
AT SOUTHBOROUGH
Just because Southborough
is an all-boys school, doesn’t
mean to say that special events
like Valentine’s Day pass us
by without some sort of celebration! On the contrary, Head
of Food Technology, Ms Pollitt,
and the Greedy Griffins catering
club were determined to mark
the occasion in a suitably fun
and creative way. And as the
saying goes, ‘the way to a man’s
(and boy’s?) heart is through
his stomach’ - so what better
way to mark St Valentine’s Day
than to bake and decorate the
most delicious cupcakes, short-
breads and chocolate truffles
around – even if it involved a
lot of hearts and red and pink
icing!
Indeed the Greedy Griffins,
namely Daniel Aldridge, Aaron
Lomanto, Basil Raja, Alex Finnie, Jonathan Adepoja and Jack
Twort worked tirelessly during
the run up to Half Term so that
students and staff across the
school could buy their loved
ones a special, tasty Valentine
treat. And if they didn’t have
anyone special to impress on
Valentine’s Day, they could always cheer themselves up by
tucking into a delicious Valentine cake or biscuit bought for
themselves!
Available for sale through
the school canteen, the beautifully decorated Valentine goodies went down a treat and were
sold out in no time at all!
Well done again to the
Greedy Griffins – and Ms Pollitt – for all their hard work in
marking St Valentine’s Day at
Southborough in such a creative and fun way! And a big
thank you to our hard-working
Catering ladies for selling them
on the students’ behalf!
WORD OF THE WEEK: ‘PHRONESIS’
Our word this week is 'phronesis' associated with the ethical thought of Ancient Greece and Aristotle
in particular. The word 'phronesis' can be translated to read 'practical wisdom' and refers to a kind
of understanding born significantly of experience that is reflected upon. In other words, 'phronesis'
refers to a 'wordly wisdom' arising from knowing what 'reality' is really like and what people are
really like. A person who is blessed with 'phronesis' understands how to engage with the 'rough
edges' of life so as to arrive at a 'smooth finish'. A person blessed with 'phronesis' appreciates that
in the 'real world', you may have to get from 'A' to 'B' via 'C' and 'D' rather than directly.
6
The GRIFFIN
SOUTHBOROUGH
PLAYGROUND
UNLIKELY SCENE
OF VOLCANIC
ERUPTIONS!
Southborough’s playground was the scene of
some rather unlikely volcanic eruptions recently.
However, there was no immediate cause for concern, as this was simply the culmination of a special Geography project which saw Year 7 students
eagerly put their home made volcanoes to the ultimate test, that is, to see how effectively they could
‘erupt’!
Year 7 Geography students certainly rose to the
challenge when they were asked to build their very
own model volcanoes last term and this was as
part of an ongoing project that saw them learn all
about the causes and effects of volcanic eruptions
and earthquakes.
Their brief from Geography Teacher Miss Bassnett-Barker was that the volcanoes could be constructed out of whatever material they liked and
that ideally it would need to have the capability
of ‘erupting’ – at least with a little help from vinegar, bi-carbonate of soda or coca –cola and mentos
sweets!
Over the coming weeks, students worked their
socks off, working long hours either at home or
by staying after school to work in the art rooms.
Students choice of material was certainly varied ,
ranging from clay, dough, plaster of paris – and
even special builders/plumbers expanding spray
foam!
The resulting volcanoes came in all shapes and
sizes and some even included vegetation and dinosaurs! One or two volcanoes even lit up! Southborough staff were absolutely thrilled with the results,
as the students had clearly gone the extra mile to
create work of outstanding quality.
However, the fun really began when – just before the school broke up for Half Term - everyone
took their volcanoes out into the rather chilly playground in order to see the volcanoes in action!
Taking turns, the boys poured their chosen mix
of ingredients into their volcanoes and onlookers
marvelled at how they ‘spewed ‘ out their ‘volcanic
matter’!
Staff – including Head of Geography Mr Walker
and Headteacher Mr Smith - who came out especially to witness the ‘eruptions’ – were all highly
impressed with every single students’ efforts. Congratulations to all Year 7 boys involved. Great work
indeed!
27 February
27 February
The GRIFFIN
7
Book of
the week!
Burial Rites
MUSIC
CLUBS
MONDAY: 12.50
by Hannah Kent
In 1829, the last public execution in Iceland took place. A
man and a woman were beheaded for the crime of murdering
two men on a remote farm. There were no prisons in Iceland
at that time, so the two prisoners were held in private homes
for the period leading up to their execution. This is the story
of the condemned woman, Agnes Magnúsdóttir, who was held
at the same farm she had lived at as a young girl. Guarded by
the farmer’s wife and daughters Agnes gradually forms relationships with the various members of the household and slowly
tells her story of what actually happened on the day of the murders. The tale also gives readers a glimpse into 19th century
Iceland with its beautiful landscapes and fascinating climate.
This novel is based on a true story and in the National Museum in Reykjavik, you can still see the axe that was specially
commissioned for the beheadings. ‘Burial Rites’ was chosen by
a member of my book club and it’s a real ‘page turner’. Mrs Bell
SAINSBURY’S ACTIVE KIDS
We are now collecting
these vouchers in order to
obtain free PE kit for the
pupils. In previous years
we have been able to
send off for some fantastic equipment. So please
do bring in /send in your
vouchers to reception.
Please ask neighbours,
relatives and friends for their vouchers to help us get as
many as possible. Many thanks in advance for your help.
MUSIC 1 – YEAR 7 ‘PLAY TIME’
For those who would enjoy getting
together with others on a variety
of instruments and producing performances of various songs.
TUESDAY: 12.50
MUSIC 1 – JAZZ BAND
At present we have 3 trumpets,
1 trombone and 1 baritone – any
brass or woodwind players of at
least Grade 3 standard would be
very welcome!
WEDNESDAY: 12.50
MUSIC 1 - UKULELE CLUB
If you have already played or you
would like to improve your skills,
come along to make music!
THURSDAY: 12.50
BANDITS
Aimed at any KS3 pupil, the
Bandits is a rock/pop band you are
welcome to join. We need a decent
keyboard player particularly!
FRIDAY: 12.50
MUSIC 1 – SINGING CLUB
Singing for everyone – all ages
welcome!
MATHS CLUBS
The maths department offers help after school on Tuesdays, Wednesdays,
Thursdays and Fridays. Please come along. If you’d like to develop your thinking
skills, why not join us at chess club or puzzle club?
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Maths help
for Y11
Thursday
Chess club
(B7)
Maths help
for Y11
Friday
Maths challenge club
(B5)
Maths help
for Y11
Maths help
for Y7-10
(B8)
(B6)
(B5)
(B5)
Puzzle club
Maths help for
Y7-10
Maths help
for Y7-10
Maths help
for Y7-10
(B5)
(B5)
(B7)
(B8)
Lunch
After
School
8
The GRIFFIN
27 February
Y8 STORYTELLING TRIP
TO HOOK LIBRARY
Year 8 were treated to a special
performance of Terry Deary's 'The
War Game' by storyteller John Kirk
at Hook Library recently. The event
was organised by Kingston Libraries to celebrate National Storytelling Week. John gave an animated
one-man performance of the book,
donning different hats and using
different voices to portray the various characters. There was a degree of audience participation involved- a tricky tongue-twister and
a chance to sing 'It's a Long Way to
Tipperary' with actions. The boys
joined in with enthusiasm and enjoyed themselves immensely. The
performance was followed by a
question and answer session where
the boys asked John some very
pertinent and intelligent questions.
Afterwards, John complimented
us on the boys' behaviour and engagement with the performance.
WORLD OF WORK
ROADSHOW
The World of Work
Roadshow
is
taking
place on Weds 4th
March at the Holiday
Inn on Portsmouth Road
in Long Ditton, KT6
5QQ. It’s aimed at Years
10,11, 12 & 13 and is
intended to provide students with opportunities
to meet people, working
in a range of industry
sectors. Along with finding out about training
and future employment
opportunities and the
local labour market.
There is an open
session from 3pm until 5pm where students
(and their parents) are
encouraged to attend.
Admission is obviously
free.
WEEKLY FIXTURES LIST - W/C MONDAY 2nd MARCH
Fixture Date
Staff
Y7 Badminton V Glynn - Away
2/3/15
Mr Cooper
Y7/8 Rugby - Home – 3pm
2/3/15
Mr Colbert
Sixth Form Football v Epsom & Ewell – Home 3.15pm
4/3/15
Mr Scales
Y9 Football v Hinchley Wood – Away 1.30pm
6/3/15
Mr Cooper
Cricket – Indoor league @ R. Challoner U13’s – 6/3/15
TBC
7.10pm and U17’s – 6pm
MENU w/c MONDAY 2nd MARCH
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Chicken Bhuna
Shepherd’s Pie
Roast Chicken
Sweet & Sour
Battered
Onion Bhajji
Veggie
Veggie Quiche
Chicken
Pollock
Burgers
Shepherd’s Pie
Roast Potatoes,
Veggie Sweet
Vegetable Kievs
Rice
Peas & Carrots
Yorkshire Pud-
& Sour
Chips
Green Beans &
Raspberry Jelly
ding & Gravy
Rice
Peas
Peas
Mixed Veg
Sweetcorn
Rice Pudding
Fruit Crumble &
Chocolate
Rice Krispy
Custard
Sponge Cake
Cakes
Jacket Potatoes, paninis, bakes beans, salad, fresh fruit and a variety of sandwiches and rolls are also served
every day.
27 February
The GRIFFIN
9
Southborough High School / PE Department
Key Stage 3 & 4 Extra
Curricular Programme Spring Term 2015
Monday
Lunchtime
After School
Gym - Table Tennis Club – No Clubs – Staff Meetings
up to 20 participants JCO
Astro –Y7
Tuesday
Astro – Y8 Rugby Club - All Years
CJO / ACO – School Field
Football Club – Year 7
ADU / KSC - Astro
Wednesday
Astro – Y9
Football Club – Year 8
JCO - Astro
Thursday
Astro – Y10 Football Club – Year 9
Y 7/8 cricket bowling machine ACO
– 6th formers
Friday
Astro – Y11
Badminton – Gym JCO
Personalised training programs
OPEN TO YEARS 10-13
THE WEIGHTS ROOM
WEDNESDAYS
3:20-4:30PM
THE
MUSCLE
PROJECT
STRENGTH
MUSCLE
WEIGHT LOSS
DIET ADVICE
Weights room & Fitness suite
Extra Curricular Programme
Lunchtime After School
Monday
Year 11 Weights gym & Fitness suite JCO
Staff Meetings
Tuesday
Year 10 weights gym & Fitness suite* CJO
Years 10/11 & 6th form
weights gym & Fitness suite*
Wednesday 6th form weights gym & fitness suite* KSC
Thursday
Yr 10 Core PE
The Muscle Project- MHA
Years 10/11 & 6th form weights
gym & Fitness suite* JCO
Friday
Yr 11 Core PE
Years 10/11 & 6th form weights
gym & fitness suite*
MHA
* Due to the popularity of this club there will be limited entry into the weights room & fitness suite.
FACILITIES FOR HIRE
ELEGANT AND SPACIOUS HALL
IDEAL FOR WEDDINGS, PARTIES, CONFERENCES, ETC.
DIRECT ACCESS TO A SUNNY COURTYARD WITH MATURE SHRUBS
ASTROPITCH
AND
OTHER SPORTS
FACILITIES
MODERN DINING HALL WITH AN ADJACENT CANOPIED AREA
GREAT FOR OUTDOOR DINING
FACILITIES HIRE TARIFF
(FROM JANUARY 2015)
FACILITY FOR HIRE
MONDAY TO SATURDAY
non-alcohol, per hour
Hall
alcohol, per hour
SUNDAY
non-alcohol, per hour
alcohol, per hour
Main Hall size is 64ft x 40 ft which can accommodate 500 seating capacity or 200 with tables &
chairs.The use of parking facilities at the front of the building is included in the price.
£70.00
£80.00
£85.00
£95.00
Additional parking
£10.00
Dining Hall +
Canopied area
£15.00
The dining hall measures 72ft x 48 ft and can accommodate 200 people in this area to eat.
£50.00
£60.00
£65.00
£75.00
£110.00
£130.00
£120.00
£130.00
Hall+Dining Hall
+Canopied Area
Gyms
We have two large gymnasiums available which can be used for a variety of sport including
netball, football training etc
£25.00
£28.00
£18.00
£20.00
Classrooms
Sports Field
(Sundays only)
£25.00
Astropitch
£35.00
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT US ON 0208 391 4324
£45.00