Issue 6 Autumn 2011
The news magazine of Tapton School
CSI:
Tapton
STEM
students
investigate
Rising to the
challenge
llenge and
always seemed like a huge cha
LEADING Tapton School has
ent for
artm
Dep
and
ority
by the Local Auth
a real privilege. To be asked
a sponsor
be
to
on
Tapt
for
and
ool,
Sch
Education to lead Chaucer
a
ion, was both a surprise and
school for an Academy convers
ents and do our
stud
our
all
e
valu
We
t.
pec
somewhat daunting pros
bled to achieve,
utmost to ensure they are ena
to live happy,
on
go
make real progress and
worked with
e
hav
I
,
May
e
Sinc
.
lives
fulfilled
exactly
of
uit
purs
in
r
the team at Chauce
the same goals.
s
Our own team has been generou
k and
in providing support for my wor
ucer
for colleagues at Chaucer. Cha
s
and
dem
the
ng
staff are embraci
and new opportunities arising
h
from partnership working, whic
will rapidly make Chaucer the
highest performing school in
the North East of the city.
e
z
i
r
p
s
u
Prestigio
t
e
o
p
g
n
for you
3
David Bowes,
Headteacher
Cakes
raise
cash for
charity
STUDENTS in Year 9 recently
got together for a cake sale.
Enlisting the help of their mums,
dads and grandparents, as
well as the canteen staff, they
put on a mouthwatering
display. As a result, they
collected a staggering £319
for Red Nose Day.
Passports open th
e door
to a brighter futu
re
WHEN students in
Year 10 started Key
Stage 4,
they were each giv
en a passport to co
mplete.
The passports provid
e an evidence-based
approach to their lea
rning, and include
information about ex
tracurricular activitie
s and
attendance. The aim
is to focus their lea
rning,
and ensure they are
motivated and prepa
red in
all their lessons. Th
e 16 students with
the most
complete passport
s were rewarded wit
h
a voucher for WH Sm
ith and an opportu
nity
to ‘jump the queue’
at break and lunch
time
for two weeks.
e Fair
All the Fun at th
?
What is this place
IMOGEN Cassels
in Year 11 has
always wanted
to be a writer, so
she was excited
to learn that she
had received a
commendation
s
in the prestigiou
Foyle Young
Poets of the Year
Award. This year,
the competition
g people, aged 11
from 7,200 youn
attracted entries
und the world.
aro
d
an
the UK
to 17, from across
g the 100
on
(right) was am
Imogen’s poem
overall winners)
15
d
an
ns
tio
da
en
judges.
winners (85 comm
file
ro
h-p
hig
a team of
to be selected by
rides
lk past screaming
couple
Five year olds wa
a honey skinned
in
n
tio
es
gg
su
the
e
guy.
se
me
to
so
g
d
un
un
yo
too
rved ro
a California girl cu
and the picture of
past.
A woman walks
she is holding a
in her hand
heart attack, open
fragile shell.
y,
sh
fle
a
cradled in
d
rience, and
e metal floors an
Rides are an expe
n upon the coars
su
ng
tiri
the
of
I like the shine
-blue
es wide and petal
own and long, ey
br
y
ne
I map out beauty.
ho
e,
fac
gling across my
plan the hair tan
eakers,
ler ...
tal
,
ier
ett
pumped out of sp
pr
I’d be
mindless music
the
to
ics
lyr
the
and I’d know
d sing and
.
open my throat an
s I’d be amazing
p, and stare, ‘co
sto
uld
wo
everyone
I’m not.
are.
h dream, or nightm
a madman’s garis
be
st
mu
hts
lig
g
These starin
st a rain-ripe sky,
wings, stark again
de
rco
ba
on
s
flie
A magpie
playground.
pleased with his
Vampire hunt
YEAR 13 English Literature students recently spent the day exploring
the seaside
town of Whitby, which is the location for part of Bram Stoker’s novel,
Dracula.
Armed with copies of the text, the group traced the movements of
the novel’s
heroine, Mina, before arriving at the suitably gothic setting of Whitby
Abbey.
Rise and
shine…
4 The news magazine of Tapton School
The school day starts
bright and early at Ta
pton. Before
lessons even begin, st
udents can take part
in a wide range
of extra-curricular ac
tivities
Fitness
first
WHILE some students are still
reaching out for the alarm clock,
students from across the school are
arriving at 7.45am to take part in the
school’s morning PE Clubs.
As well as getting the day off to a
healthy start, by taking part in a wide
range of activities including hockey,
table tennis, Dance, badminton and
trampoline, it is an opportunity for
friends to meet up before school.
Musical merits
THE Music department also
gives
students the opportunity to
take part in a
wide range of activities befo
re school.
From 8.30-9.15am, students
can take
part in the Year 7 Glee Clu
b and Girls’
Choir on Tuesdays, the Sen
ior Orchestra
and Flute Choir on Wednes
days and the
Wind Band and Strings on
Thursdays.
The Rockapella Choir, Hig
hly Strung,
Staff/Student Choir, Folk Gro
up and
Brass Band all rehearse at
lunchtimes,
and there is a very popular
DJ Club
and Music Tech.
5
This year, we are piloting a
new rewards
system in Music. Students
will receive
merits for attending rehears
als and
clubs, performing in concert
s, coaching
ensembles and, generally,
just helping
out. There will be prizes and
a certificate
for achieving 40 merits (Bro
nze), 80
merits (Silver) and 120 mer
its (Gold). The
names of students who reac
h Gold will
be placed into a draw to rece
ive iTunes
vouchers, and the student
with the most
merits overall will win the Tap
ton Young
Musician of the Year trophy.
t
s
a
f
k
a ed!
e
r
B erv
s
s
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om
le fr
ailab udents r
v
a
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kfas
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brea l cantee ing act pens a l
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A H in the n early rary (w ive at
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8am ke part the Lib who a gemen
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who to stud r stude port ar s.
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othe
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6 The news magazine of Tapton School
7
Peak performance
Bronze Award for
STEM students
TWENTY-FOUR members of our
Key Stage 3 STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics) Club gained
their Bronze Crest Award in the
summer term, after three months
of hard work. Projects included
‘Investigating Hair Products’,
‘Wind Turbines’ and ‘Water
Rockets’.Ten students presented
their projects at the regional Big
Bang Fair held at York Minster.
The ‘Jaguar Car Challenge’
won the Bronze Award section,
and £75, and will represent
the Yorkshire and Humberside
region at the national Big
Bang Fair to be held in
Birmingham in March
2012. ‘CSI’ was also
runner-up in the Bronze
Award section, and won
a separate prize for the
most interactive project,
winning £100 in total.
We now have two
STEM Clubs, which
meet after school on
Monday night, one for
students in Year 7 and
the other for students
in Years 8 and 9.
Dramatic link
with Poland
Driven to
succeed
ts took part in
SIX of our Drama studen
Rybnik School
to
t
visi
ge
han
exc
ish
a Pol
.
in September
of the Comenius
The exchange was part
partner schools
link
to
s
aim
ch
whi
,
Project
students to
ble
ena
to
,
throughout Europe
h other’s
eac
,
nce
learn about, and experie
THE world’s fastest car, the ‘Bloodhound
SSC’, will attempt to break the land speed
record in 2012, aiming to reach 1,000mph!
Students in Year 7 Science entered a
national competition last term in which
they wrote letters to Andy Green, the
Bloodhound driver, requesting that he
visit Tapton.
Their persuasive letters and interesting
questions obviously did the trick, as Andy
will be visiting the school later in the year.
l
l
a
r
o
f
s
e
i
t
i
v
…acti
Into the
a
i
d
n
I
dragons’
den
n
o
t
n
e
c
Ac
in a two-day
YEAR 7 took part
entitled
ct
oje
Pr
ts
Cross Ar
’, combining
‘Incredible India!
a and Dance.
Music, Art, Dram
in a
ted
ina
This culm
school to
er
aft
ce
an
rm
rfo
pe
rents, based
more than 300 pa
and culture
art
on the stories,
of Andhra
te
sta
ian
Ind
of the
r former
ou
ere
Pradesh, wh
, Dr Smith,
ce
ien
Sc
of
ad
He
d work in a
has recently starte
charity school.
o drew
The students als
a
of
e
rtis
on the expe
ical Indian
ss
cla
al
ion
ss
ofe
pr
d a group
dance teacher an
nts.
de
stu
of Sixth Form
Theatre Studies’
ar 13 Drama and
Ye
,
ain
ag
CE
ON
rbyshire. The
to Lea Green in De
students ventured
students with
d
ide
ov
residential pr
annual weekend
ir
the individual
time to work on
the facilities and
the weekend, the
of
d
en
ces. At the
group performan
showcase their
y
the opportunit to
en
giv
re
we
ps
ou
gr
ctive feedback.
ch other constru
work and give ea
YEAR 10 Business students have
taken on a Dragons’ Den-style
challenge as part of their Passport to
Success. In an attempt to secure their
share of £300, more than 60 budding
entrepreneurs pitched their business
ideas to a panel of ‘dragons’. Among
the proposals were the launch of
a school magazine, a comfortable
supermarket bag handle and bespoke
mobile phone covers.
Mrs Wilkins said: “The aim was for
young people to gain knowledge of
enterprise and business. It also gave
them a chance to use essential skills
such as communication, teamwork,
planning and decision-making.”
Local entrepreneur Andrew Emsley
said: “The thought and effort that has
gone into each business idea is very
encouraging. All participants should
be proud of their efforts.”
rked on a joint
culture. The students wo
a performance
g
isin
dev
,
ject
pro
ma
dra
g the need to
aimed at communicatin
age people to
our
respect others and enc
nity.
mu
com
a
as
er
eth
work tog
time to visit
nd
fou
also
The students
a local salt mine.
and
kow
Kra
itz,
chw
Aus
Prescription for a
career in medicine
A GROUP of Year 10 students visited Sheffield
Hallam University (SHU) to learn about different
careers in the NHS.
The students were treated to presentations by
SHU undergraduates on their chosen courses.
In addition, they had the opportunity to try out a
variety of activities, which gave them an insight
into social work, midwifery, physiotherapy,
occupational therapy, radiography, nursing and
the work of paramedics.
Fairytale ending
for ‘Grimm Tales’
s
MORE than 80 students from all year group
ssful
succe
er’s
summ
this
in
part
took
production of Grimm Tales.
The students were highly creative throughout
the rehearsal process as they recreated seven
.
of the original fairytales by the Brothers Grimm
inan
into
ormed
transf
was
Hall
l
Schoo
The
the-round auditorium, which added an extra
dimension to the performance and provided
the students with an additional challenge.
Next stop,
Don Valley
Skiers slope off
to Italy
EVERY year, students at
Tapton have the opportunity
to take part in a foreign
ski trip. Past destinations
have included France,
Switzerland and America.
This year, they visited
Courmayeur in Italy, where
they learned to ski and
board, sampled some of
the local cuisine and
enjoyed some après-ski
evening entertainment.
y at City’s
ld our final Sports Da
THIS summer, we he
years, has provided
the
er
ov
,
ich
wh
dium
Woodburn Road Sta
ries, whether on the
mo
me
d
number of fon
-of-war competition.
students with a huge
tug
100m sprint or the
the
ld,
fie
to mount
the
in
or
track
who achieved gold
7RJ, 8HS and 9JI,
held at Don
be
l
wil
y
Congratulations to
Da
s
ort
rld
Next year, our Sp
tting, built for the Wo
the winning podium.
this magnificent se
t
ub
nt
do
ha
No
mp
m.
triu
re
diu
Valley Sta
ne of many mo
1991, will be the sce
Student Games in
l.
oo
letes across the sch
performances for ath
Sport reigns in Spain
DURING the Spring Bank
Holiday, a party of more than
40 students and six staff spent
a sunny week in Platja d’Aro,
an upmarket seaside town just
outside Barcelona.
The visit provided students
with the opportunity to compete
against local teams in a series
of sporting activities, including
football, hockey and netball.
Hockey’s
big hitters
ols’
in the National Scho
m recently took part
THE U16 hockey tea
eld.
ed
competition in Sheffi
r 7, and have celebrat
for Tapton since Yea
yed
pla
ve
ha
ls
will go on to
m
The gir
tea
the
of
me
So
s along the way.
mpetition.
some incredible win
nd of the National co
kshire in the next rou
Yor
uth
So
t
en
res
rep
Tapton School
Darwin Lane, Sheffield S10 5RG
Tel: 0114 267 1414 Fax: 0114 294 1155
Email: enquiries@taptonschool.co.uk
Web: www.taptonschool.co.uk
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