December 8th 2017 1 ADVENT SERVICE ... - Taunton School · anthem ‘E’en So Lord Jesus’. Advent of course marks the ... CHALLENGE NURTURE INSPIRE SCHOOL CALENDAR Saturday 9th

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www.tauntonschool.co.uk

CHALLENGE NURTURE INSPIRE

December 8th 2017

MORE INSIDE...A BUSY WEEK IN DRAMA...

A Level students are treated to specialist lessons.

HOCKEY U18 WEST INDOOR FINALS...

The U18 girls battle it out at Cheltenham Ladies College.PICTURES ON PAGE 4

On Sunday evening and Monday morning of this week Taunton Senior School came to Chapel for the traditional Advent Service. In this very special candlelit Service, we traced the eternal story of God’s love for humankind from the darkness of sin through to the hope of Jesus as light of the world.

The Choir spent much of the term preparing music especially for the Advent Service, including Palestrina’s evocative ‘Matin Responsory’, Vaughan-Williams’ ‘This is the Truth Sent From

Above’ and a new piece for the Choir, Manz’ rich and powerful Advent anthem ‘E’en So Lord Jesus’.

Advent of course marks the beginnings of the build up to Christmas, but it also looks through and beyond to the ‘new heaven and new earth’ of eternity and, at this the darkest period of the year, it shines light where light needs to be shone…

ADVENT SERVICE ILLUMINATES CHAPEL

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The Senior Courier


SCHOOL CALENDARSaturday 9th December

IELTS Examinations (am and pm)8.30am - 8.55am Scholars' Programme (Academic, Art, Drama,

DT, Music & Sport) (Theatre & Departments)8.30am - 9.15am Parents' Breakfast (Informal) * (Chaplain's

House)1.30pm - 4.30pm Girls' Hockey v Wellington School (H) 14A

14B 15A 15B (A) 1 2 (depart 12.45pm)2.00pm - 6.00pm Rugby v King's Bruton (H) 1 2 3 SCA SCB (A)

JCA JCB FA FB (depart 12.40pm)2.30pm - 3.30pm Community Choir rehearsals (soloists/

orchestra) (Sports Hall)2.30pm - 7.00pm Football v Canford School (A) 1 2 (depart

11.30am)3.30pm - 5.30pm Community Choir Concert rehearsals (Sports

Hall)

Sunday 10th DecemberDetailed student information about the final week will be

given out in houses 2nd in Advent

11.00am - 1.00pm Boarders' BrunchBoarders' Activity - House Christmas Meals

Boys' U16 West Indoor Hockey Finals (A) (Wellington School)

Monday 11th DecemberABRSM Exams (w/c 11 December)

Rugby Natwest Competition - U18 & U15 - w/c 11 December - date to be confirmed

Tuesday 12th December8.30am - 8.55am Chapel Singing Practice for Carol Service

(and Chapel Choir) (Chapel)8.30am - 8.55am HM Assembly (Theatre)4.00pm - 5.00pm Years 9 and 10 Horizons

5.00pm - 6.00pm Hockey Awards Presentation (Theatre)5.00pm - 6.00pm Rugby Awards Presentation (UDR)

Trinity Music Exam (Music School)

Wednesday 13th December8.30am - 8.55am Chapel - Singing Practice for Carol Service

(and Chapel Choir) (Chapel)8.30am - 8.55am HM Assembly (Theatre)

9.00am Deadline for Co-Curricular Reports - All Years5.00pm Deadline for Years 9 and 12 Tutor Reports

5.00pm Deadline for Year 10, 11 and 13 House Staff Reports6.45pm MFL Sixth Form Christmas Social

Thursday 14th DecemberSave the Children Christmas Jumper Day - Whole School

11.30am Baty Bowl (Boys) and Football (Girls)2.00pm - 5.00pm Carol Services (Day and Boarding) (Chapel)

Friday 15th December9.00am Term Ends

This is a collaborative piece made by Year 9 students, who have been working hard in their Art lessons in the last few weeks!

Well done Year 9!

Year 9

ARTWORK OF THE WEEK

Dear All,

Taunton School International Middle School is hosting a Christmas Music Morning at The Grange

on Monday 11th December from 10am

If you can fit a visit into your busy schedules, please come and join us for some mulled wine

and delicious mince pies. We will be performing our favourite Christmas Carols performed by our

talented musicians.

Parking is limited around the school, so please share transportation where possible.

There is also parking available in the Kingston St Mary Church car park.

We hope to see you there!

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The Senior Courier


I had spent a lovely evening at an Old Tauntonians’ dinner last week. It took place in London and I very much enjoyed spending time with our Josie, Patrick, Ellie and Ned, our current Heads and Deputy Heads of School. It was also great to catch up with some recent leavers to hear of their exploits on Gap Years and in their first year of University.

However, I was most taken by a groups of OTs who left school between 2011 and 2014 and are now out there in the world of work. They are an eclectic group: lawyer, policeman, investment analyst, navy officer, professional sportsman, engineer. Already they have spent time working in countries I haven’t visited and gained some incredible insights. They had opinions on many aspects of life including politics, economics, Taunton School and The X Factor, and were comfortable in their own skin. Inevitably they reminisced about school days asking about favourite, and not so favourite, teachers, laughing about minor scrapes and last minute knock-ons in important matches.

In all cases they reflected on happy days at school; on lasting friendships and how their time at Taunton School had shaped them into the people they are now. It was a moment of pride to think that Taunton School successfully nurtures young people and supports them to become positive, ambitious, confident young people with a thirst for life’s experiences.

I look forward to next year’s dinner and hope that there will be more young people who want to catch up with each other in person and look back on good times at school but share ideas for a bright future.

Lee Glaser Headmaster

TS HEADS UP ON... OT DINNER

OTS CHRISTMAS LUNCH IN THE OLD LIBRARY THIS WEEK

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The Senior Courier


During the second week of November students from Years 9 to 13 took part in the UK Bebras Challenge for Computational Thinking. Hosted in over forty countries around the world, this challenge is designed to get students excited about computer science.

Taking place during one of their Computing lessons, our students tackled a series of challenging yet fun computer science problems, demonstrating their logic and reasoning skills along the way.

The results are now in and we are pleased to report that our students performed fantastically well, achieving over the national average with their results. Out of 99 students who entered the competition, 28 received merits and a further 27 received distinctions. Special congratulations go to David Kacs (Year 12), Kit Lloyd (Year 10) and Charlie Shave (Year 9) who received the highest scores in their age category, earning them the title ‘Best in School’.

Additionally, 8 of our students were in the top 10% of students nationally and have been invited to enter a follow-on competition, run by Oxford University, in March 2018. These students are Jack Court, Matilda Clarke, Maia Donovan-Smith, Kate McVicar, Rory O’Carroll, Guido Wieser, Charlie Shave and Kit Lloyd.

Kirsty Rogers and Simon Ryder

BEBRAS CHALLENGE

LIGHT UP A LIGHT

On Wednesday evening the Chapel Choir participated in their second Service of ‘the Season’ (the first being the Advent Carol Service last week) having been invited to sing at the St Margaret’s Somerset Hospice ‘Light up a Light’ Service at St John’s Church Taunton. The choir is pictured here rehearsing before the Service.

This is an extremely busy time of year for the Chapel Choir as tonight they sing in the Community

Choir’s performance of The Armed Man; on Sunday they perform at Blenheim Palace; on Monday a small group will sing carols at the opening of Santa’s Grotto at Aspen Court Nursing Home and, in the evening, carolling outside the Chapel for the Co-Op Funeral Care Carol Service before ending the term on Thursday with our own two Carol Services.

Organist and Choirmaster, David Bridges, says “I am very proud of the way the Chapel Choir

youngsters and my colleagues carry on delivering high standards despite the enormous pressures put upon them in their already busy lives. Their resilience, commitment and professionalism are outstanding. Music, particularly singing, is great for the mind, body and well-being in general....ask them!”

David Bridges Chapel Organist

ADVENT SERVICE PICTURES...

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A LEVEL DRAMA RECEIVES SPECIALIST LESSONS

This week A Level Drama students in Year 12 and 13 were given the benefit of expert lessons in costume design and musical scoring from some of Taunton School’s multi-talented staff.

On Monday the students had a lesson from librarian Amanda Lockwood who studied theatrical costume at university. Miss Lockwood brought in her extensive collection of design portfolios from a variety of performances including Antigone and Henry V. The students were also inspired by the hands on nature of Miss Lockwood’s approach to designs which were all painstakingly hand drawn and intricate.

Wednesday’s lesson was a masterclass in musical scoring for film with Mr Butterworth-Smith who shared his expertise on diegetic sound, music for emotional manipulation of an audience and how briefs for music design can help communicate shape, colour and texture in the mind in order to emphasize the action on stage and screen.

It was a privilege to have both of these members of staff share their passion, knowledge and enthusiasm with the drama students and we look forward to more lessons next week on puppetry and lighting design.

Melanie Stamp Head of Drama

It is a nerve-wracking thing to perform at any time, but you add to that what you are performing counts towards your GCSE and the Year 10s and 11s should be applauded for their bravery and stunning performances. On Thursday 30th November, the Year 10s performed the first performance of their GCSE career while the Year 11s performed what would be their last. And what a way to go out for the Year 11s! Each of the 3 groups performed the opening scenes of John Godber’s Bouncers, showing the audience how different interpretations of the same text can result in very different performances. The jokes that were being told over and over again by each group remained fresh thanks to the deliberately different delivery each group took with the material. Even after seeing these performances many, many times, I can still be heard laughing from behind the camera!

The Year 10s had created devised performances from a selection of stimuli, rather than a script. Two groups used the stimulus The Future and another used the song The Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. As you can imagine

this created a wide variety of performances, focusing on a wide range of themes, from genetically modified humans, to the personification of depression and the effects of domestic abuse – all interesting and important issues, and all communicated in a very effective way. These performances are important not just for the sake of exams, but the process of creating something yourself, or taking artistic liberty with a text, teaches these students how to create something that is entirely their own, highlighting talents in them that might otherwise not have come to light.

Melissa Price Drama

GCSE PERFORMANCES

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The Senior Courier


BOARDERS AND TSI HIT THE BATH CHRISTMAS MARKETS

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Bath Christmas Market, now in its 17th year, has grown to be one of the UK’s favourite Christmas Markets, and our students did not disagree. TSI students enjoyed a fantastic day out on Sunday 3rd December, where they attended the annual magical and award-winning Christmas Market.

Travelling via coach the students arrived at the markets at midday with a full day of adventure ahead of them! These markets are home to over 200 stalls filled with twinkling handmade gifts and Christmas delicacies, all spread out across the

picturesque streets. The students spent their time soaking up the sights, smells and festive ambience of Christmas in England. The students were also able to enjoy music and festive joy filling the streets, with various entertainers from carol singers, musicians, street theatre, and local dramatic societies performing throughout the market’s location.

The day was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who attended and there’s now a Christmas buzz present around the TSI campus!

Miss Lewis TSI

Over 40 boarders from TS and TSI visited Bath at the weekend to get into the festive Christmas spirit and for some Christmas shopping. The market contained over 200 beautifully decorated wooden chalets spread throughout the city centre, selling handmade and local Christmas gifts. Lots of purchases were made, including handmade

Christmas decorations, personalised gifts, hand-made toys, festive food and drink, local artwork and designer jewellery to name but a few! The festive feeling was complete with snow machines blowing snow out at the crowds and added to the Christmas spirit!

Jennie Windsor Housemistress. Woodyer

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The Senior Courier


W H A TW H A T

R E S U L T !R E S U L T !

C O U R S E D A T E SCourse 1: Monday 26 March – Thursday 29 March 2018

Course 2: Tuesday 3 April – Friday 6 April 2018

Each course includes an end of course BBQ

I enjoyed learning new things, relaxing more than worrying about revising.

Fo r m o re i n fo r m a t i o n o r t o b o o k a c o u r s e p l e a s e e m a i l :

r e v i s i o n c o u r s e s @ t a u n t o n s c h o o l . c o . u k

K E Y F E A T U R E S Revision and examination techniques

Averaging six students per class Wide selection of subjects

Closing gaps in knowledge

Unpicking tricky questions One-to-one support

13 hours of intensive tuition per subject over four days

B O O S T Y O U R G R A D E S T O G E T A H E A D !

G C S E & A L E V E L

E A S T E R R E V I S I O N C O U R S E S 2 0 1 8

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The Senior Courier


LOUIS' HALF-MARATHON

Not many of us would gladly put ourselves forward to slog through just over thirteen miles of North Devon countryside.

Possessing a genuine care for the things he partakes in is just one of many qualities that make U6th student Louis Large a dedicated individual. Being a volunteer director at Taunton’s MAKE Theatre Club, which focuses on giving young people experience in the dramatic arts, and a close friend of Sophy Layzell, the founder of the Jemima Layzell Trust, both MAKE Theatre Company and the Trust are two organisations that are of great importance to him. Hence, deciding to raise money for both, through the form of a sponsored run, came as a clear decision to him.

He stayed the night at a campsite nearby and woke up early and raring to go with his father, brother and his sister-in-law.

Taking place on the 25th June 2017, Louis ran through torrential rain, high-

speed winds, and blisteringly cold temperatures to place 217th out of 431 participants. Although not a personal best, a time of 2:19:11 is something to be very proud of especially considering the weather!

Louis would like to thank everyone who donated and his total raised was £412.63.

Ultimately, he said: “This was my second ever half marathon and I couldn’t have been happier with how it went. I had been having reserved thoughts as I walked towards the start line in the rain, but I loved every bit of it. Crossing the finish line was a momentous feeling and I can’t wait to get out there and do it again. Thank you to everyone who donated, it meant a great deal to me and to the Trust."

Huge congratulations and well done to Louis, we are all very proud!

Abigail Casson and Louis Large

The final tea-time concert of the Autumn Term featured debut performances from Arthur Zheng, Year 9 Wills West, unaccompanied solo flute and Gabby Ireland who is preparing for her grade 4 singing. Well done to all our performers and good luck to all those preparing for Autumn Term music examinations.

James Butterworth-Smith Music

TEA-TIME CONCERT

Last week the L6th Weirfield girls got into the festive spirit with a trip to Winter Wonderland. Against a backdrop of Christmas carols and with the smell of mince pies and mulled wine in the air, the girls took

to the rink and tried their best to impersonate Torvill and Dean! Despite some of the girls never having skated before all gave it a go and even the most

reluctant skaters were able to let go of the support rail by the end of

the session. It was a very enjoyable day out and a great way to celebrate the festive season.

Laura Brayley Housemistress, Weirfield

WINTER WONDERLAND

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It is easy to forget the struggles of others, when our lives are so easy by comparison so it is a tradition in Weirfield House to try and raise as much money as we can for charity. Last week a number of girls rolled up their sleeves and got baking in support of World Aids Day which fell on Friday 1st December. After a busy (and slightly late) Thursday night filled with baking, icing and generally destroying poor Miss Brayley’s kitchen (we did clean up afterwards) we were absolutely thrilled with the response we received. Donning our red ribbons of support, we held a cake sale in the wind tunnel at break time, raising money for the National Aids Trust and this year's campaign of

‘Let’s End It’. Everyone got involved and tucked into a selection of delicious treats, all in the name of a fantastic cause. From the sale, we raised an incredible £163.18 (plus another £40 with gift aid), more than three times the amount raised last year. This money will help the charity to champion the rights of people living with HIV and raise HIV awareness, eventually working towards finding a cure and eradicating this destructive disease. A huge, huge thank you to everyone who came out to support, it was a fantastic event, and it makes me proud to be part of such a supportive and compassionate community.

Jemima Cranston-Jones Year 12

B A K E

Last weekend Year 9 music scholar George Knowles made his way to Birmingham to perform with the National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain in Symphony Hall. George has been a wonderful ambassador for Taunton School, working hard and leading by example, even to the point of being announced as the most supportive member of NCO at regional rehearsals.

Well done George!

James Butterworth-Smith Music

NATIONAL CHILDREN'S ORCHESTRA

S A L E

Seasons greetings from Year 8 who received their laser-cut Christmas trees from Mr Bough, the Head of DT from the Senior school, just in time for the big day. They would like to thank him and his staff for this taste of things to come next year! What a great little cross-over project!

Simon Ashmore Head of DT (Prep)

YEAR 8 LASERCUTTING

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Find out about our new Business course

launching in September 2018www.tauntonschool.co.uk/BTECBusiness

BTEC BUSINESSComing soon

For further information please contact [email protected] • 01823 703703

2 x 100% fully funded means tested places available

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The Senior Courier


Support your friends and students on the following Tuesdays, in the Theatre Foyer from 5.45pm - 6.30pm

7th November 2017 • 6th February 2018 • 7th June 2018

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The Senior Courier


VICTORY IN BASKETBALL

A 57 – 26 victory against Wellington School on finals day of the inaugural ‘Monument League’ rounded off an unbeaten term for the basketball team. So far they secured victories over Queen’s College, King’s College, Blundell’s School

and Wellington School (twice) ensured that they finished champions.

The season is not yet completed , though, with 8 more fixtures to follow after the Christmas break.

Mike Cook TS

Last Friday, it was wonderful for myself and fellow gap year OT Dan Woolstencroft to be invited back to Taunton to debate against Ben Fletcher and Ellie Smith. Having taken part in and won – so important – many debates throughout our time at school we have been missing the Friday evening thrill that is the Burke. The motion was that "This House believes Political Correctness has gone too far". We see this all the time such as a primary school parent in Newcastle recently arguing that the innocent beloved story ‘Sleeping Beauty’ should be banned because the Prince does not obtain Sleeping Beauty's “consent” before kissing her (to save her life!) and Sir Michael Fallon losing his job for touching a lady's knee. Dan argued superbly that chivalry and romance are being destroyed by politically correct fanaticism. The opposition argued that ‘political correctness’ is a term used by right wingers to excuse their so-called “extreme views” and where it exists is simply people "being nice to each other" – so Pollyannaish I doubted that they believed it themselves. Joyfully, I started with a non-PC joke, which was met with nervous laughter from the audience. Of course I was joking, but the PC brigade constantly seek to censor such humour which is unfair and in the long

run destructive. The debate quickly moved on to the hot current topic of whether we should tear down statues or rename buildings dedicated to former slaveholders – recently the Colston Hall has agreed to do just that. The opposition and some in the audience argued such statues should be removed for causing offence or for projecting hated old ideas. Yet we argued that this is the most vivid emblem of the PC identity politics which inappropriately place modern day values on the past, disregarding heritage for their own political ends. We argued that this is bigger than just renaming a building and is akin to Mao Zedong’s communist Cultural Revolution, iconoclastically removing history to fundamentally remake society. Ben and Ellie fought well with courage and passion to defend their arguments and everyone had a very fun intellectual evening of highly relevant debate. Ultimately we won the debate by 29-9. Friday night debating was crucial, I believe, to my A Level exam successes and a great delight. This topic will unquestionably continue to be argued and I sincerely hope that society is not doomed to humourless misery where freedom of speech is simply a romantic lost dream.

Kieran Bailey OT

THIS HOUSE BELIEVES...

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TAUNTON VS BLUNDELL'S2nd December 2017

RUGBY1st XV Won 20pts-3

1st XV had a very good game against a strong Blundell’s team. The game was extremely physical and Taunton won the battle in defence by not conceding any try. Blundell’s coach decided to rest some of their 1st XV players on Saturday but it was still a hard battle on the field. The first try came from a fantastic cross kick from Thomas Wyatt and Will Perry touched down. Henry Lee scored the next two tries, the first after a quick penalty played by Flyn Drury and the second following a wonderful pass from Farai Chadzimura.

Even though we had 5 injured players during the game, we created more opportunities to score than Blundell’s. Well done to all the players who stepped up. As I said to the players before the game, they have to leave their jersey in a better place and they certainly did! Well done for all your effort and your passion for the game.

Man of the Match: All the team.

Points scorers: Tries: Henry Lee (2), Will Perry

Conversions: Fraser Johnson

Penalty: Fraser Johnson

2nd XV Won 28pts-0

Once again the 2nd XV dominated the first half scoring 4 tries and putting themselves in a winning position. They defended exceptionally well and turned over possession with their blitz defence on a few occasions. The momentum was disrupted by injuries in the second half but the defence held firm.

Man of the Match: Marius Avezou

Points scorers: Tries: Will Doherty (2), Farai Chadzimura, Ali Alusta,

Conv: James Doble (4)

3rd XV Lost 24pts-50

A game of two halves, dogged performance in the first half, resulting in a 24-19 lead at half time. A number of enforced changes shortly after half time, changed the dynamics of the backline which Blundell’s took full advantage of. However, the side continued to give 110% and gave their all until the final whistle. Well done to everybody. Fantastic effort.

Man of the match: Jack Chen

Points scorers: Tries: Korede Adesunloye, George Tidy (2), Mark Mcauley

Conversions: Mark Mcauley (2)

SCA Won 45pts-0

The Senior Colts A team were at full strength for the first time this term and duly produced their best performance to date to demolish a fractious and disjointed Blundell’s team. After a slightly slow start with a lengthy injury break, Taunton began to mount some pressure and took the lead with a brace of tries from skipper Tyler Goosen who twice sliced through the defence following strong driving play from the forwards; Archie Robinson converted both and it remained 14-0 until just before half time when the pack again created a fine attacking position which the backs capitalised on with some crisp handling putting Matt Holland in for a simple score in the corner.

From 19-0 up at half time, Taunton began to turn the screw playing towards Greenway Road in the second half. Soon after the restart an excellent Goosen offload saw Holland storm 40 metres to bump off the Blundell’s full back and score his second before, two minutes later, the captain made a magnificent turn over for Ben Mouzouri

to break away down the left and time his pass to perfection for Sam Perrone to run in from half way. Robinson converted to make it 31-0, then burrowed over himself from close in and added the kick to make it 38-0. Perrone completed the scoring with a short range try from a set move off a scrum with Robinson converting again to make the final score 45-0. The match finished five minutes early with Mr Waller calling time as the visitors’ frustration showed and led to a series of niggly incidents.

The Taunton boys deserve congratulating on an impressive team display. The forwards, dominant in the scrum throughout, responded to demands to show greater urgency and venom in the loose. Rob White was again outstanding but all played their part allowing Archie Robinson, who harried the opposition mercilessly all afternoon, a strong platform from which to launch the dangerous backs. Captain, Tyler Goosen, was absolutely superb with his running, passing, tackling and scavenging; he was a clear man of the match. With one match left, the Senior Colts now have a great chance to complete an unbeaten season and will be looking to sign off in some style against King’s Bruton next Saturday.

Man of the Match: Tyler Goosen

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Points scorers: Tries: Tyler Goosen (2), Matt Holland (2), Sam Perrone (2), Archie Robinson

Conversions: Archie Robinson (5)

SCB Won 54pts-20

A comfortable looking scoreline, and probably would have been much more one-sided but for the interventions of the (one-eyed) referee! Blundell’s arrived with only 14 fit players but that meant an opportunity for both Rex Rhodes and George Tester to get their breath back ‘on the bench’ - having been late for a 2.15 start.

There were three (mostly early) tries (again) for Roman Prokhorov, two from Josh Crompton - and even Toby Eavis got on the scoresheet! Blundell’s (to their credit) ‘stuck at it’ for the whole match but were no match for the SCB

‘juggernaut’.

Miles Lemon had probably his best game of the season (although he has been consistently good!) and Stephen Cao proved that he can tackle very well! Chikere Jumbo looked solid throughout.

Man of the Match: Miles Lemon

Points Scorers: Tries: Roman Prokhorov (4) Josh Crompton (2) George Tester (2), Toby Eavis, Rex Rhodes

Conversions: Oliver James, Billy Williams-Pritchard

JCA Won 10pts-15

A fantastic team performance saw the junior colts record their first win since October. The win was based on fantastic play in and around the contact area with determined and spirited first up tackling supported by excellent work in the ruck. The truth is that the team could have won by more but with a lack of confidence in the opponents 22 the team made hard work of some of the chances they created. With the score at 15-10 with 5 minutes to go they defended their line with passion, team work and doggedness which made both coaches very proud.

Man of the march: Ronnie Foster

Points scorers: Tries: Bryn Baker, Miles Butt, Samuel Stevenson

JCB Won 56pts-5

On a damp and sticky field the U15 B team romped home try after try against a fairly average opposition who were lacking in numbers. The handling has been better and the rucks and mauls were not the best but once they were organised, their structure was enough to allow them to make decent headway in to the Blundell’s defence and score a clutch of tries. Some good straight running and hard tackling kept us in charge all the way through the game.

A happy day for all,

Man of the Match: Cameron Davis

Points scorers: Tries: Rupert Dean (2), Cameron Davis (4), Elijah Groves, Jesper Harrington, Ethan Tyler, Kit Lloyd

Cons: Max Fletcher (3)

FA Won 10pts-40

Taunton found themselves down early in the game and it was apt that the first score came from a penalty as the sheer number of penalties conceded throughout stopped the Foals from having possession for any length of time. However, with the possession that they did have the Foals showed great tenacity and dominated the breakdown. Allen-Skinner scored to take the lead, then shortly afterwards a well-executed

move put Houghton-King under the posts before he intercepted for a second try. Dietz picked up his own brace of tries before Shave finished off the job as Taunton ran out comfortable victors with Chaffey kicking very well and converting all but one of the tries.

Man of the match: Barnaby Webber

Points scorers: Tries: Jakarta Allen-Skinner, Tom Houghton-King (2), Barney Dietz (2), Charlie Shave

Conversions: Chaffey (5)

FB Lost 22pts-7

With the monotony of November rain the As robbed the Bs of the jewel of our gilded youth to fill holes in their lines against Blundell’s. The necessity of such larceny is moot given the size of their score lines but the rump of the Bs battled valiantly against a good Blundell’s side who took the lead through the exploitation of local knowledge and knowing exactly what to do on an incredibly wide pitch. Vlad battered hard against the Blundells’ ramparts to some effect but they were heroic in their stymieing of him as sometimes 6 or 7 clung to him like determined Deerhounds clamped to their quarry. With route one not bearing fruit we began to fling the ball about and there were creditable performances from Freddie, Adam, Daniel and Olec who I suspect will not always be playing B team Rugby. 22 -7 was a fair testament to a tough contest.

Man of the match: Daniel Wen

Points scorers: Try: Adam Lewis-Williams

Conv: Ollie Edward

Nic Sestaret Head of Rugby

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U18 WEST INDOOR FINALS3rd December 2017

HOCKEYGirls U18s:

The U18 girls played very well at the weekend playing at the Cheltenham Ladies College. They lost their first game against Cheltenham College 2-1 but had a disallowed goal in the final few minutes which was frustrating for all. The second game was very similar just missing out with a 2-1 loss against the previous year’s national champions. Some great play from the defence who were able to break down a strong press. The next game against Exeter reflected our play and we won 1-0. This meant we went into our final game a lot more positively winning 5-0 against KES Bath. The forwards were particularly good at converting in our attacking D and goalie Maddie James barely touched the ball! The girls missed out on the semifinals narrowly but overall a great tournament and team performance and everyone contributed to the team throughout the day.

Emily Yap

Boys U18s:

Having played well together as a team and coming second in their county round, the U18 Boys' Indoor Hockey side went into the Regional Tournament with the knowledge that they had every chance of qualifying. Wanting to send an early message out to the other teams, the boys came flying out the blocks getting two quick goals against their first opponent, Exeter. Keeping the pressure on, the team forced several short corners and had enough chances to extend their lead even further. A poor second half followed however, and Exeter quickly pulled a goal back. The team held out for a 2-1 victory but knew their performance needed to improve. Putting in a better effort against Canford, the team were unfortunate to lose 2-1 after a dubious umpiring decision to

give a penalty stroke to the opposition. A dramatic game vs the toughest team in the group, Dean Close followed. With the team trailing a slender 1-0 margin, Coach Foweraker turned many heads with the decision to put a kicking back on, but was justly rewarded when the Taunton got the crucial equaliser in the last play of the match, with German Wunderkid, Lennard Huermann putting away a well rehearsed short corner. Going into the last game, Taunton knew they needed to get a good result to get the goal difference back in their favour and stand a chance of advancing from the group. Whilst the performance was there, a 2-0 victory meant that qualifying was now in the hands of other teams in the group. A win for Dean Close vs Canford meant that alas it was not to be. Whilst the boys failed to qualify, they left the tournament pleased with the effort they put in and knowing that on another day anything was achievable. Particular acknowledgement should be made to the performances of Olly Kenny and Allen Vitug who took a step up from their year group and more than proved their worth to the team. The team are massively grateful to Mr Foweraker and Mr Pring, who gave up their time to help get the team where they did, a feat that would not have been possible without either of them.

Joey Rogers

Match reports V Wells:

2nd Team 6-0 Win

The 2s produced their best hockey of the season against a battling Wells team with some excellent fluent moves and a level of accuracy and support previously unseen this term. A frustrating first half where we lacked composure and aggression in the D saw our 90% possession go unrewarded ..still 0-0. However, 'player of the match' Anna Parkinson, broke the deadlock and the flood gates then opened! Two goals from Flo S-G, one a spectacular reverse

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hit shot from the edge of the D and the other a well-worked penalty corner, quickly followed and then another well placed shot from Nirva Patel. Flo Rihll maintained her pursuit of team top goal scorer with another two trade mark far post finishes. But this was truly a team performance and I was proud of every single one of them!

U14A Won 10-0

On Saturday 2nd December the U14A team played a fierce match against Wells School, managing to absolutely thrash them 10-0! With scoring 7 goals in the first half, the girls were confident in winning however their effort stayed at top form with them managing to score 3 more goals in the second half of the match! Esme, Hetty and Leila scored the many goals

that won us the match using their hockey skills to lead us to victory. Overall this was a very good match!

U15a Drew 1-1

U16 Boys Indoor Team

On Monday the U16 Boys travelled to Wellington for their crack at indoor success. It started very well despite some change in personnel when the boys beat Wellington 3-2 in a 5 goals thriller. Second up was Queen's and despite plenty of chances Taunton only won 2-1. Some great performances by all the boys here, credit to late additions Alex Brown and Tyler Goosen who appeared natural in their play despite it being their debut. Taunton topped the group and played a good Bruton side, losing 2-0 despite some good performances from Charlie Hartwell and Dom Murphy the boys rolled into a 3rd and 4th playoff to qualify for west. The boys missed had two early goals disallowed Wellington capitalised and took the lead 3-0 into the half time break. A rally after half time saw Taunton have the run of play but they couldn’t find the levellers, they got one goal to make the game 3-1. Well done to Toby Power and Ollie James who captained the team well and lead by example on the pitch. Also a big well done to all the other boys involved: Dan Lloyd-Jones, Freddie Day, Max Fletcher, Ned Power, Adam Small.

JOB VACANCIES

If you'd like to be part of our outstanding organisation, please have a look through our latest

job vacancies on our website www.tauntonschool.co.uk

Or for more information, contact our HR Department on 01823 703123 or via hr@

tauntonschool.co.uk

CRICKET: MR SANDERSON

There will be no cricket any day next week. Sessions will recommence the first week back.

MFL GINGERBREAD HOUSE MAKING COMPETITION: MS MARTOS-BLANCO

Calling all Sixth Form Linguists: Come along to the MFL traditional Gingerbread House Making Competition on Wednesday 13th December in the Upper Dining Room from 6:45pm until 8:00pm. There is a sign-up sheet on the MFL office door and there are 40 places, so hurry

up! It promises to be a wonderful evening!

NOTICES

HEADMASTER’S ASSEMBLY TUESDAY 12TH AND WEDNESDAY 13TH DECEMBER: MR BURNETT

There will be no Head’s Assembly on Tuesday 12th and Wednesday 13th December.

Elliot Foweraker Head of Hockey

https://www.tauntonschool.co.uk/job-vacancies/

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THE JURASSIC PERSPECTIVE

CHRISTMAS

IS COMING...

BOOK TICKETS

HERE!

The impressive cliffs found at West Bay provide us with a wealth of information and a breath-taking glimpse into the evolution of plants and animals preserved in the rock from 250 million years ago. They essentially document 180-190 million years of the Mesozoic Era alongside a number of habitats and climates, consisting of the Triassic (hot arid/desert climate), Jurassic (tropical/warm Sea) and Cretaceous (wet/boggy swamp) periods.

As seen in the photograph the 25-30m cliff is prone to rock-falls due to its complex sedimentary makeup of unstable red Jurassic marine shoal sand and mica bands between the more resistant sandstone layers which are seen jutting from the cliff. These sandstone layers are rich in fossils as they were formed slowly during the decompression of deep ocean sediments during the Jurassic period, preserving the exoskeletons of marine life (ammonites/etc.). This results in a high carbonate composition. The geology and topography produce the iconic rhythmic snaking formation, furthermore the deep orange colour seen on the cliffs is surface oxidation of pyrite.

The large quantities of screen and inward notches are formed by abrasion, hydraulic action and attrition, playing a substantial role in undercutting and producing a wave cliff foot cut notch within the tidal range. The fine red sediment on the beach is transported eastward by longshore-drift from Ladram Bay which hosts slumping gravel cliffs containing red quartzite. Additionally rock-falls and the River Brit provide terrestrial and fluvial sediment deposits. Freeze-thaw and chemical weathering are responsible for the development of pockets and holes (honeycomb-weathering).

Henry Shelton Year 12

https://www.thebrewhouse.net/event/a-christmas-carol-the-musical/

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KARL JENKINSThe Armed ManPresented by Taunton School Community Choir .

8th December 2017Taunton School Sports Hall, 7pm

Free entry - Tickets available via

www.tauntonboxoffice.co.uk

Retiring collection in aid of Music Man Project, Liverpool.The UK’s first Music education service for children and adults with learning disabilities.

Programme to include:

Mozart Piano Concerto No.24 in C Minor K.491 Soloist: Ben Shattock

Richard Strauss Concerto for Oboe and small orchestra in D Major Soloist: Daniel Lloyd-Jones

TONIGHT! Tickets available on the door

http://www.tauntonboxoffice.co.uk/event/184/the-armed-man

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The biggest mass-movement dance production anywhere in the UK in each year! Workshop to take place 9th-12th February, event to take place on the 24th March.

Contact [email protected] for more details!

Students UK Schools Fans

“YOUR PRIORITY INVITE TO PERFORM ON THE BIGGEST STAGE OF YOUR LIFE”

Pro-Excel – 15 years of mass-movement at the worlds greatest venues & stadiums

LIVE AT THE OLYMPIC

STADIUM

BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW!

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Documents

December 8th 2017 1 ADVENT SERVICE ... - Taunton School · anthem ‘E’en So Lord Jesus’. Advent of course marks the ... CHALLENGE NURTURE INSPIRE SCHOOL CALENDAR Saturday 9th