ACADEMY NEWS26th February 2016

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BE YOURBEST

Best wishes

Sara DaveyAcademy Principal

Principal’s ReportMounts Bay Academy describes itself as a “Centre of Excellence for Sport and Creativity” and this week we have evidence a-plenty that this is a case. There is no doubt that we are developing world-class talent in many areas. MBA has an outstanding reputation for sport and this came to the attention of Radio Cornwall today when they spoke to our high flying Year 11 rugby players about their recent success in becoming County Rugby 7s champions, beating Truro School in the final. Three of the team, Luke Flack, Henry Hocking, Connor George were interviewed along with Mr Harvey about being inspired by one of our alumni; Jack Nowell. Click here to listen to the report. Jack is in the starting line-up on Saturday at Twickenham in the crucial match against Ireland. We wish him the best of luck. He certainly appears to be becoming the poster boy for England Rugby as the photograph from Liverpool Street Station shows.

The under 14 boys hockey team has added to our sporting success this week by becoming county champions as well. Congratulations to all the boys and a big thanks to Mr Neil Eddy, the team coach.

As well as inspiring sporting excellence, Mounts Bay also prides itself on developing creative excellence in range of different areas. I am very proud to report that the talented Year 7 students have produced outstanding poetry, art and photography and this has been professionally published in six separate books. Each tutor group visited a local place of interest and attempted to capture the spirit of the place.

Students across the Academy are also developing superb film-making skills. Do check out our website for some sample work. We have also recently refurbished our Music department and have literally hundreds of students accessing a multitude of opportunities from our High Performance Choir to our Taiko Drummers. Do check the dates for the diary to see the various musical events taking place over the next few months.

Finally, a big thank you to all parents for coming to the Student Led Conference this week. It was well-attended and a great opportunity for the students to become leaders of their own learning.

BE INFORMED

Coming Soon:

Saturday 27th February• HPI choir rehearsal Exchange Gallery 2pm

Tuesday 1st March• Year 7 & 8 Hockey @ Pz Astro

Wednesday 2nd March• U13 Netball @ Penair

Thursday 3rd March• U12 County girls Hockey

Saturday 5th March • Music for Youth event

22/02/16 - 24/03/16 Spring Term

24/03/16 - 11/04/16 Easter Holiday

18/04/16 In Service Training Day

11/04/16 - 27/5/16 First half Summer Term

02/05/16 Bank Holiday

27/05/16 - 06/06/16 Half-Term

06/06/16 - 22/7/16 Second half Summer Term

22/07/16 Summer Holiday

Term Dates:

Opportunities

RONA SAILING TRIP: Only one place left on the Rona Sailing Trip. 17th - 24th April. £250. Must be 14 or over on 17th April. Contact Mr Fish - ifish@mountsbay.org.

SPONSORED 60KM BIKE RIDE: 24/3/16. 6 x 10km laps. You can do it as an individual or in teams of 3 (20km each) or teams of 6 (10km each). £5 per person entry fee. Money goes towards DofE in Cornwall. Contact Mr Fish - ifish@mountsbay.org, or see website.

BBC NEWS SCHOOL REPORT: 11/3/16. There are still a few places for budding journalists, technicians and presenters in Year 7 & 8 to take part. Contact Miss Fisher - rfisher@mountsbay.org

THEATRE TRIP: 14/4/16. There are still tickets available to see ‘Gangsta Granny’ by David Walliams at The Hall for Cornwall. Contact Mrs Marsden - lmarsden@mountsbay.org

SWEDEN SEA KAYAKING EXPEDITION: Just two places left. £750 pp. Open to Years 9, 10 and 11 only. End of Summer term. Contact Mr Fish - ifish@mountsbay.org.

DODGEBALL CLUB: Friday lunchtimes 12:30-12:50 for Year 7 & 8. Contact Rhys Brown to sign up - rbrown.14@mountsbay.org

CORNWALL JUNIOR CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP: Saturday 27/2/16 Penair School. Visit their website to find out more and download entry form: http://www.cornwallchess.org.uk

BECOMPETITIVE

Report by Mr Veal

County Rugby 7s Champions

On Wednesday the U16 Rugby 7s squad travelled to Newquay to play in the annual Rugby 7s competition. This is always a very tough tournament and the fitness levels required are very demanding. We started slowly, as always, but managed to top our group beating Richard Lander School and Pool Academy in the process. We then battled our way to the semi finals where we had to beat last year’s winners Penrice Academy. The game was all but lost, and Penrice Academy just had to kick the ball off the pitch! However, their player missed the touch line and Conner George and MacKenzie Oliver retrieved the ball and scored a try. This then meant a 'golden try' extra time period in which we created a try and reached the final. At this point the boys were very fatigued and not over pleased that we had play Truro School in the final! The last match was a thriller, each team scoring tries to sneak one try ahead. However, we had enough resilience and character to finish winners by 28-21. This is a massive achievement and a fitting end for a team who have stayed together for the past five years. A day to remember! It's not fair to mention individuals as without a whole team effort they would not have won. Awesome!

Team:Shea CornishLuke FlackMawgan OsborneMacKenzie OliverJordan Church

Sam LewisCadan BrownfieldBeau RogersConner GeorgeMatthew-John Olds

BEINSPIRED

On Friday morning Radio Cornwall reporter Matt Pengelly visited MBA to broadcast an interview with Mr Harvey and six Year 11 students. Mr Harvey talked about the impact Jack Nowell has had as a role model for student aspirations as well as the success of other former MBA students such as Luke Cowan-Dickie, Max Bodilly and Tom Hendrickson who have also played for Exeter Chiefs and, in Luke's case, England.

Report by Mr Harvey

BBC Explore the Next Generation of MBA Rugby Stars

The Year 11 students - Luke, Henry, Conner, Shea, Beau and Matt spoke about their own recent success in winning the County Rugby 7s Championship, a first for MBA. They also explained the influence that watching Jack Nowell, and knowing his background led to great success, has had on their own aspirations.

The broadcast went out live between 8.30 and 9am on Friday.

Mr Harvey spoke about the importance of attitude, determination and hard work for aspiring young sports stars who want to develop to playing at a higher level, as well as the influence former students such as Jack have on current students in fostering the belief that living in an isolated place such as Penzance is no barrier to achieving international success.

To listen click here.

Listen from: 02:44:15

BEADVENTUROUS

Moroccan Surf Trip

Report by Mr Veal

This year’s Morocco surf trip has just returned and the students had another fabulous time. The weather and surf were fantastic but also the students were amazed at how much the trip raised their awareness of the people of Morocco and that the different cultural experiences have been life changing. We had the opportunity to visit local markets and even a local school where our group invaded a French lesson in mid flow! Thanks to Global Boarders surf team and 'Spot M' for helping to make the surf trip safe, successful and educational.

BEINSPIRED

Have a look at the most recent Word Millionaire table; it is seriously impressive with 18 students already part of this, what I was assured would be, 'exclusive club'. I'm thrilled that it is not and expect to have the next ten members within a month. Well done to all you avid readers. Plenty of Vivos are being earned, with 15 awarded for each million words read, as well as Five Vivos for every 100% gained on an Accelerated Reader quiz. Word Millionaires also receive a book voucher from The Edge of the World bookshop.

Word Millionaires

Report by Mrs Marsden

BECURIOUS

The Witches at The Hall for Cornwall

On Tuesday 23rd February 25 students went to see Roald Dahl's ‘The Witches’.

We were very impressed by how the seven actors gave the impression of there being 30 or more people taking part in the play. All the music was played on stage, except for difficult things like the ticking of a clock; they used a variety of instruments, like the piano, violin, drums, flute, clarinet and piccolo - and a lot of the actors played at least three instruments. One of the actors, who played the Mouse Boy, was very athletic, and did lots of rolls, cartwheels, round-offs and walkovers... it was very impressive.

Every time a human was turned into a mouse or another unloved creature, the stage would darken and there would be a loud clap on the drums. A witch would scream and it would give a feeling of wildness and power.

Overall, it was the perfect mix of fairytale terror and humour. The show was amazing and we'd highly recommend it to any other student.

The next school trip to the theatre is on 14th April to see "Gangsta Granny" by David Walliams.

See Mrs Marsden, if you would like to come.

Report by Flo Sibley, Thomas Hosking, Marlene Favata, Lucy Egan and Jack Cross

Tickets Available for next Theatre Trip

14th April

BECREATIVE

Both of the performances that we went to see were wildly different, one was a bit eerie and left us all slightly shocked, and the other was a funny, lighthearted piece that filled the hall with laughter.

The first piece, ‘The Birth Of Memory’, was more of a dance than the other piece, and it had a less clear message, but left more of an impact than the second piece. This is because it had one dancer who was in a wheelchair. There was one point in the dance when he got out of his wheelchair. When this happened, there was a few gasps and a silence.

The second piece, ‘Little Women Big Balls’, was a very funny piece based around sport, winning, and sportsmanship. The characters had a brilliant friendly rivalry that a lot of people seemed to connect with, and they used a lot of over-the-top humour which got a lot of laughs and was quite funny. It didn't have as much actual dance as the first piece, but it definitely made up for it in character.

Dance Leaders Trip to Falmouth University Performance Centre

Report by Konnah Sanson

MBA Choir Performing at the Exchange GalleryThe HPI choir have been busy rehearsing for the upcoming Music For Youth Festival in Truro. This is the first time that we have participated in this competition and in preparation for this we will be holding an open rehearsal this Saturday at The Exchange Gallery in Penzance from 2pm. We will be performing our 10 minute set at 3.15pm in the gallery, so pop in and see us if you are in town.

Report by Miss Wills

BECREATIVE

Year 8 Blitz DramaYear 8 Students are working hard on developing their performing skills and techniques over this semester by creating a performance based on WW2. Students begin by researching The Blitz and then use this material for an opening scene based on family life during this time.

They are gaining experience of the technical equipment and are expected to use the lighting and sound system to create an appropriate atmosphere. After each lesson another scene is added. For example, their next task will be to develop a scene in the Anderson Shelter, then hear the news on the radio that all children are to be evacuated.

Currently they are in the process of recording their announcements as well as working on a scene portraying children being evacuated to the countryside.

Report by Miss Osborne

Mounts Bay played Humphry Davy on Thursday 25 February. It was a one sided affair with Mounts Bay coming out on top. From early on we dominated with three goals in the first seven minutes of the game. After 15 minutes we made some changes, however the pressure was still applied on Humphry Davy. We went into half time 8-0 up. As soon as the second half started we put pressure on in their half again. The final score was 14-0 with Humphry Davy only having one shot on target, which Toby Osborne saved magnificently, making up for the open goal he missed earlier in the game!

Football Win

Report by Tom Hands

The team:

Louis Thorpe,Tom Hands (c), Felix Bellamy, Tyler Jackson-Roberts, Pasha Wilson, Noah Brunsdon,Levan Siney,

Ellis Hart, Mawgan Kewn, Tom Stephan, Jack Baylis, Fletcher Stevenson,Ben Durrant, Toby Osborne,

Jordon Jeffrey, Ricky Holden, Andre Green, Oakley Blackhall,Mark Hicks

BECOMPETITIVE

BECOMPETITIVE

Swimming Medals

Half-term Football

Report by Mr Lawrence

Year 7 student, Oriana Noel, had an extremely successful weekend at the first half of the Cornwall County ASA Age Group Championships held at Newquay and Penzance swimming pools. She returned with a total of eight medals across a range of swimming events. She won two Gold, two Silver and two Bronze medals in the U12 events, as well as two finalist medals in the U16 events.

Oriana’s Gold medals were awarded for the 100m and 200m butterfly events. She is now the fastest swimmer at 100m butterfly in the South West, the third fastest in England and the seventh fastest in Great Britain.

Oriana trains most nights after school as well as at the weekend and will be swimming again this weekend when the Championships continue. There are plenty more medals up for grabs in the remaining events. Good luck Oriana - we hope all your hard work continues to pay off.

Throughout the February half term, the Football Development Centre staff were busy once again running another Soccer Camp, in total over 60 players attended over the two days. The players had great fun and participated in many games, tournaments and skill challenges. Soccer Camps are available every school holiday and the next camp is on Thursday 7th and Friday 8th April. If you enjoy playing Football, winning prizes, scoring goals and having fun then the Soccer Camps are perfect for you. For further information email Mr Lawrence - klawrence@mountsbay.org

BECOMPETITIVE

Monday 15th February saw the second WHPC schools show jumping competition held at Colraine Equestrian Centre. MBA entered two teams; one in the Open Competition and one in the Novice, with both teams and individuals having a range of results.

The Open Team consisted of Ellie Ringwood, Poppy Burford, Anna Cryer and Naima McSally. This team came fifth overall, with a fourth in the best presented category. As an individual competitor, meaning she achieved a double clear, Ellie continued on to gain second place.

The Novice Team consisted of Alex Woollock, Ismay Cornish-Murphy, Ross Gilmour and Jessica Lee (competing in her first schools show jumping competition). This team came fourth overall, with a second in the best presented category. As individuals both Ross and Alex achieved placings, with Alex finishing in fourth position and Ross winning the individual competition with a very daring and well ridden jump off, which, although risky, 'sealed the deal' for him and his mount, Master Juno.

A huge well done to all involved and many thanks to all who helped with getting the competitors to the event.

Schools Show Jumping

Report by Mrs Trevail

BE INFORMED

Thank you to the students and parents who attended the Student Led Conference Review Day on Wednesday, making it a great success.

The Academy really feels that Student Led Conferences are a key way of fostering independent learning. This is because students are given an opportunity to reflect on their progress across all subjects. This also enables their tutor to be aware of the areas of growth and development that students have identified and support them with achieving their goals.

However, this is not just the opinion of the Academy. Below is an extract from ‘Deeper Learning: How Eight Innovative Public Schools are Transforming Education in the 21st Century’, which explains the value of Student Led Conferences:

Student Led Conference Success

Report by Mr Yeates

At King Middle School, the twice-yearly student-led conferences are “one of the most important things we do to have students own their own learning,” says Peter Hill, who helps prepare kids in his advisory class, or crew, for their meetings. “And yet, the students’ first impulse is to tear through their folders to find every best thing that they have done to show their parents.”

Instead, Hill encourages students to reflect on the connection between the effort they have made and the quality of their work. To this end, he asks them to choose three examples that help them tell their parents a deeper story: one that shows they have recognised both a personal strength and an area in which they are struggling. Most students, he says, have never thought about their learning in this way. Nor have most of their parents.

The above extract reinforces the idea that successes and areas for development are important to discuss holistically across the curriculum for all students. Principally, this is because these conversations often give students the confidence to address their own needs as learners and help them to take responsibility for achieving academic success.

We will be holding the next Student Led Conference at the start of the 2016 Autumn Semester.

BEA WINNER

To enter, simply write an original sentence correctly using the word revival. Send in your sentence using the link below.

Competition

Congratulations to Zeev Cohen who wins an Edge of the World Voucher.

Click Here to enter the competition

Zeev receives his prize

This week’s word is: Revival

Definition:

• Improvement in the condition, strength, or fortunes of someone or something.

• Something becoming popular, active, or important again.

Etymology:

Early 15th century. From Middle French 'revive' (10th century) from Latin revivere from re- again + vivre -to live.

BEA WINNER

Maths Quiz

This Week’s Puzzle:Scales 1 and 2 are in perfect balance. How many Bs are needed to balance the third set?

Last week’s solution: 132

Explanation: The first person shook hands with 11 remaining people, the second person also shook hands with 11 people, but we count 10, as the hand shake with the first person has already been counted. Then add 9 for the third person, 8 for the fourth one. Proceeding in this fashion we get: 11 + 10 + 9 + 8 + 7 + 6 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 66. Hence 66 hand shakes took place before and 66 after the meeting, for a total of 132.

Could you write next week’s puzzle?If you would like to set the numeracy puzzle for a future week click here. You will win house points.

Win an iTunes voucher

Whoever submits the most correct answers over a semester will win an iTunes voucher – prizes are also awarded to the top scoring parent/carer/staff.

House Competition

Blue: 41 PointsGreen: 31 PointsYellow: 19 PointsPurple: 17 PointsRed: 12 Points

Orange: 8 Points

Click here to submit your answerClosing date for Entries: Thursday 12:00

This Week’s House Totals

A. 2

B. 3

C. 4

D. 5

E. 6

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This competition is open to all Years with the theme: Design an album cover as if you are releasing your very own worldwide album

Start: 26/02/16 End: 18/02/16

1st, 2nd and 3rd

prizes

All entries must be emailed to ahuckle.11@mountsbay.org

by the deadline

Design an Album Cover Competition

The winner gets to design

the 2016 Qube Records

album logo