Headteacher’s Update

QE NEWS June 2016

Delivering Academic Excellence

Dear Parents , Guardians and Friends

Once again we have an incredibly packed newsletter full of stories from across the globe highlighting the amazing opportunities and achievements of our staff and students. As I say so often the superb co-operation between staff and students is the key to all we do here at QE and long may it continue. I do feel we are breaking new ground in this edition with encounters with present and past England cricket captains, students in print, award winning musicians, champion sports teams galore, record breakers, students visiting all parts of the globe, engineers in the local community supporting our STEM agenda, post 16 students on the doorstep and inside Number 10 and much, much more.

We have had to hold a few items back from this edition as we intend to produce another newsletter before the end of term. It has been an incredible time recently with so many students taking so many exams and it never fails to amaze our staff how dedicated, hard working and cheerful our students are during this stressful period. I must thank all parents for their support as well and wish everyone all the best for their results.

I also want to remind you that term finishes for all students on Monday 18th July at 3.15pm I must just finish with a big thank you to all of the students who have contributed to the production of this edition. It certainly makes life easier for our editorial team!

Martin McLeman

Headteacher

In July of 2015 our school’s Performing Creative Arts Department started audi-

tioning QE students for roles in The

Lion King Jr.

I auditioned in September, along with

our new year nines - it was wonderful to see all the talented students QE had gained, and how excited everyone was about performing. By September 2015,

the cast had been chosen and rehears-

als were underway.

Rehearsals were every week, and the teachers and staff mem-bers were amazing in making sure we got through what we

needed to. Independent rehearsals and one on one sessions, made it very efficient and fun for everyone, as dedication from all 150 participants was never lacking! The process of creating

a musical is extremely hard work, but the commitment of all students, teachers and staff made it such an enjoyable pro-

cess, as well as very rewarding.

Opening night was the 3rd of February, but previous matinées were performed to local first and middle schools, a St Michael’s teacher said “it was very inspiring” for students in their up-coming production of The Wiz-

ard of Oz. Beaucroft and Montacute School also came on the Tuesday and Wednesday matinées and it was great to perform to them as well as take hundreds of photos with them after the show. Seeing the

children’s faces as ‘Scar’, ‘Rafiki’ and ‘Simba’ took photos with them was wonderful.

If the audience is engaged with the performance, and it’s clear to the actors they’re enjoying themselves,

performing becomes exhilarating; both Beaucroft and Montacute provided this.

Not only were QE students involved but Cranborne, Allenbourn and St Michaels Middle school students

were a part of the chorus on alternate nights. Performing alongside the Middle school students was; their enthusiasm was tangible, and their talent was clear to see. Also, teachers from all faculties took part,

from Geography to IT, PE to History and they released their inner performers.

The Lion King

The costumes, staging and LED screen rounded

off the outstanding performances given by stu-dents (and staff). Working with such wonderful equipment gave very professional standards, as

well as enhancing the production

Luke Smith was the vocal director for the Middle schools, Stage Manager and the Assistant Direc-

tor. Alistair Goudie was the Musical Director, and Rhianna Elsden was the Producer and Di-

rector. Amy Cherrett looked over all the extravagant hair

and make-up, with a team of

student and staff volunteers.

When we asked Rhianna Els-den what everyone should ex-pect to see next, she said “We are not sure what we will be doing next time round, due to the rights of musicals, so no decision has been made yet. However, we should know in around a year.”

Every night was a success and the hard work undoubtedly paid off. There was a huge buzz on closing night and fortunately the adrenaline kept us going until half term—when we could finally

relax.

and the hard work had undoubtedly paid off. There was a huge buzz on closing night and fortunately the adrenaline kept us going until half term - when we

could finally relax.

Article written by Rebecca Watkins

Introducing our 2016-17 Student Leaders

After a very thorough and outstanding set of interviews with an exceptionally

strong field of candidates, we are delighted to announce the appointment of

our Head and Deputy Head Boys and Girls,

From left to right:

Ryan Pickup Deputy Head Boy

Yasmin Johnston Deputy Head Girl

Martin McLeman

Abigail Deeble Head Girl

Daniel Killgallon Head Boy

Rebecca Jenkins Deputy Head Girl

Charlie Pallister Deputy Head Boy

We all look forward to working with them over the coming year and are confident that they will be

excellent ambassadors for Queen Elizabeth’s School.

“Life in Dorset”

When I am asked what it is like to live in Dorset, I immediately think of fields, and fields, and fields!

I don’t know many other people who take their school bus journey through such a wonderful countryside as I do. Each season the view changes along with the wild-life within it, from deer to rabbits and hares!

Every day of every year something is different, and I love seeing how the freshly ploughed fields turn to brilliant yellow rapeseed on my way to and from school and being at the top of a double decker bus gives you a brilliant view!

Also, I feel that living in Dorset means that you have the opportunity to live in a diverse town or little village, but it may only take a few minutes’ drive – or even walk- to enter the green and pleasant surrounding countryside.

We have such a diverse landscape in Dorset, from fields and farms, to woodland and the beautiful coastline. We also have a hub of buzzing towns and many great facilities. We may not have the cosmopolitan cities of London or Birmingham, yet we still have a great many towns, like Bournemouth and Dorchester, that, in my opinion, provide a nice environment that feels a much more comfortable place to shop, still with so much heritage and culture.

We also have amazing beaches and even the Jurassic coast on our doorstep, with superb walks and fantastic water sports and sailing opportunities. I love having the option to go to the beach whenever I want to, preferably when it is nice and sunny!

This provides, in my opinion, the perfect area to grow up in, with everything we could want or need.

I am very proud to live in Dorset!

Rebecca Jenkins

We were recently approached by the author of a soon to be published local

book “Life in Dorset”. As well as local celebrities such as Kate Adie and Julian

Fellowes the publisher wanted to include the views of a young person living in

the area.

We were proud to submit the following piece written by Rebecca Jenkins and

look forward to seeing the book in the shops soon:

QE Jazz Orchestra wins at Bournemouth Jazz Festival

The QE jazz Orchestra visited the Bournemouth Jazz Festival on the

24th of April, and competed for the esteemed award against many

different schools and independent bands. The competition was

tough, however their diverse fifteen minute set of jazz, swing and

funk- not only impressed the audience who filled the pavilion

Ballroom, but won the 2016 competition. Our jazz orchestra also

won a cash prize and a free trip to France courtesy of Brittany

Ferries to play for the Mayor of Cherbourg this summer, not of

course forgetting the tremendous award.

Musical Director/2nd alto for the day Mr Glover was thrilled for the talented group: “We

rehearse every week without fail and always try to produce exciting and technically accurate

music. This doesn’t just happen by accident – the group is so good because of the team work,

dedication and love for music that all JOQE members have. They work hard, swing hard and get

the results they deserve. Thanks too must go out to all the parents and carers whose continued

support for the band is very much appreciated. I’m absolutely delighted for us all. Next stop –

Cherbourg!”

See report on the

Cherbourg trip

later in this

Newsletter.

Musician Chris Coomes

This year QE will be losing one of its most valued musicians - Chris Coomes. Since year nine he has participated in almost every imaginable event, adding extra colour and jazz to them all with his laid back but highly skilled approach. Chris originally took up the flute in first school but by middle school had learnt the saxophone with such natural ability that upon coming to QE in year nine he was already a grade five. He was understandably asked to join the big band, a role which he still enjoys. Chris has played on numerous occasions including Christmas events, Children in Need, and Summer Concerts along with Award Ceremonies and Open Evenings. This all would turn out to be great training for really honing his ability and show-manship allowing him to perform with JOQE and the Dorset Youth Jazz Orchestra at some highly prestigious events. If you ask Chris about some of the events he’s performed at it would seems there are simply too many to easily remember, but with a prompt he would come out with another two or three. His finest ones were; a Conference for Head Teachers in Exeter, War Memorial Services, the BIC - playing with Gordon Campbell, the Swanage Jazz Festival, Sherborne Abbey, and the crème de la crème the Rugby World Cup Opening Ceremony for the USA. These are events in which musicians of international repute frequent and to not only participate but play alongside such musicians is testament to Chris and the institutions he played with. Chris has mentioned that performing in them has really improved his confidence in his own abilities and his capability of improvising when required make it easier for him to really show just how good he is. He completed his grade eight, and whilst able to play alto, and soprano acknowledges tenor as being his favoured and best. Aside from performing Chris has increasingly been involved in presenting. He recently co-presented the Reward Concert for year 9s and 10s in which the Sixth Form BTEC musicians performed. This is yet another enviable string to his bow. From an academic perspective he chose Music as one of his GCSE options, following that up with Music Technology and Music BTEC in Sixth Form. This all with an eye to taking a Creative Music Technology degree at university. Chris is a dedicated musician who has given up the time and effort to become a great player, a lesson all aspiring musicians can learn from. Without dedication you can’t expect to improve. The Music Department at QE will sorely miss his professionalism and ability in coming events, and personally I will miss not watching him in awe close up when he completes moving solos at venues like the annual Minster Carol Service. Chris will continue to play and improve and the mere thought of that alone is, to musicians and music lovers who know him, incredibly exciting. Article written by Charlie Bonnington

Dorset Handball Champions

QE girls handball team competed in the Dorset Winter School games final. It was an exciting competition, with it all

coming down to the last game against Glenmoor. After a fast paced tense game QE Won by 7 to 5 at the end whistle

and became the Dorset Champions they now go on to

compete at the south west event.

Congratulations to:

Holly Fall Ellie Start

Lauren White Danni Till

Lauren Salt Charlotte Ayton

Amber Slate Lani Jones

Mia North

The athletics season has been in full flow this half term and the commitment to training has been rewarded with some outstanding performances. Saturday 11th June saw 20 athletes from QE represent the Poole & East Dorset District at the Dorset Schools County Championships. They returned with 10 Gold, 6 Silver and 4 Bronze medals. Some of the outstanding performances included Ryan Webb who jumped 2.09m in the High Jump and Ryan Long who ran 14.5secs in the 110m Hurdles, both breaking long standing Championship Best Performances. Other Gold medal performances came from Gemma Kennard (100m), Amy Hewitt (High Jump), Hannah Slater (1500m Steeple Chase), Ryan Long (shot putt), Jack Tozer (Long Jump), Tom Boulton (Pole Vault), Jack Ayton (High Jump) and Lexi Tryon (200m). With less than a week to go before the 25 strong Dorset Team is announced to travel to Gateshead in July for the English Schools Championships, we have 6 athletes who have achieved either Entry or National Standard and are pushing for places in the squad; joining the two Ryan’s are Scott Rutter (100m), Charlotte Ayton (Long Jump), Grace Copeland (1500m) and Pippa Hine (100m). The other competition that we have been involved with this term has been the Track & Field Cup. At the County stage in May, the Boys and Girls teams competed against other schools in Dorset. The boys came 5th and the girls won to become County Champions. Their score was ranked 3rd across the entire South West and qualified for the South West A final for only the second time in the school’s history. This week saw the team travel to Millfield for the Regional Final. Sadly injury saw the team depleted by 3 of its key members, but with reserves in place we travelled to Somerset and battled hard against the other 7 teams and the foul weather as it rained all afternoon. Despite some stunning perfor-mances including a jump of 5.36m from Charlotte and a 2min14sec, 800m from Grace, unfortunately we did not score enough points to make further progress. Next stop, Kings Park for the Town Sports on July 12th…

Athletics

NASA TRIP

The first week of the Easter holidays 40 students went to Orlando, Florida with Feats Travel. On the way to Gatwick airport there were a few problems such as Mr Howard taking his wife’s passport instead of his own but that did not stop them from getting there finally.

There were many activities which they took part in while they were there. They went to Black Hammock where some of them held a baby alligator if they were brave enough! Also, took an airboat ride on lake Jessop where any ‘gators are taken if they are found in populated areas. That same afternoon they took a

drive along International Drive .

The group spent the day at Wet’n’Wild waterpark. Which was full of fun! They also went to Universal Studios and Island of Adventures where they went on many rides and were whisked away in the magic of Harry Potter World. These Muggle students turned into wizards and witches of Hogwarts!

They went to Florida’s largest shopping mall. Where they spent a day shopping and enjoying the Food Court!

Last but not least they went to NASA! Here they did a Salute to Science programme showing them an insight into science. They had a chance to design a Mars Rover. The group also met and had a Q&A with the astronaut Ed Gibson! When they were at NASA they saw the Atlantis space shuttle and had the Saturn IV experience and also went in the rocket garden.

The NASA trip is taking place next year, talk to Miss Bartlett.

“so many experiences that we wouldn’t do normally” Annabel Coates

“it is a once in a life time experience that you will remember for the rest of your life. The memories made with your friends are great” April Quirke

Written by Rebecca Watkins

GIRLS CRICKET AT LORDS QE SCHOOL GIRLS’ CRICKET TEAM FINAL AT LORDS The Lady Taverners U15 Schools Indoor Cricket Finals took place at the iconic venue of Lords Cricket Ground on Wednesday 11th May. After some gruelling local and regional tournaments involving over 850 schools across the country it came down to a final 5 schools. Leicester Grammar School (Leicestershire), Moreton Hall (Shropshire), Felsted School (Essex), Horizon Community College (Yorkshire) and our own Queen Elizabeth’s School (Dorset).

Representing QE at the tournament were Year 10 students – Lucy Prest (cpt), Holly Fall, Ellie Stark, Charlotte Ayton, Naomi Booker and Year 9 students – Hetti Fox, Freya Hurlstone and Lauren Burns. After Pizza and an early overnight stay in London, the team arrived at Lords for their matches. The first game was against the Yorkshire team but unfortunately we lost despite some liberal running between the wickets. The girls won their second match beating the Leicester team which put a smile on their faces.

During lunch they had a fantastic tour around Lords and the museum, an inspiration to get them ready for their afternoon games against Shropshire and Essex. With some excellent fielding from Charlotte and some great batting by Ellie, the girls pulled off another win against Moreton Hall. They won the toss for the game against Felsted so put them in to bat and with some excellent bowling from Freya, Hetti, Lucy, Holly and Lauren restricted Felstead to 83 in their 8 overs which we were very confident of chasing. All the girls played well with great batting from Lauren working well with Holly at the end to get them over the line with an over to spare. It was then just a case of getting as many runs as possible, as they knew that if all teams were on the same points it would come to a count of runs scored at the tournament. After a tense wait the team found out that Horizon Community College had scored an incredible 125 runs in their last game which meant they finished with 404 runs in total for the tournament. QE were 30 runs short of this. This was an incredible achievement for the girls, finishing an amazing 2nd at the National finals and only on the total runs scored in the day.

The girls and the school are very thankful to Teachers Building Society for sponsoring the cricket shirts on the day as well as the support from the QE Family in enabling them to travel up the night before. This gave them the best possible chance of winning the tournament. The parents who travelled so far to share the day were absolutely fantastic and you can see from the pictures they even got to meet Mike Gatting!

“We are as a school exceptionally proud of what the girls have achieved in this tournament and as Head of the Physical Education Faculty I can only thank them for the hard work they have put in, their patience on the long drive home as well as for ‘singing’ the whole way! They have been an absolute joy to travel with and perfect ambassadors for everything that Queen Elizabeth’s School stands for.”

Shane Green

Head of Physical Education Faculty

Team Photo with Mike Gatting

(former England Cricketer and

Captain)

Team Photo with Alistair Cook (England Cricket Captain)

Team Photo with

Ebony Rainford-Brent

(Surrey Womens Director of Cricket)

FC Porto in Portugal

On March 26th 43 QE students set off to FC Porto in Portugal on the schools annual football tour.

They went for 5 days and 4 nights and stayed in the 3* Axis Ofir Beach Resort Hotel. The hotel was ideally located directly on a long sandy beach with many facilities. Throughout the week students received 5 training sessions on all aspects of play from the FC Porto full-time coaching. All scheduled training sessions were at the legendary Vitalis Park which offered a 11-a-side 3rd Generation Astro Turf pitch.

These fantastic facilities allowed the students to hone their skills and get a feel for what it was like to play in world class facilities.

The students were able to put all this practice into action as they were lucky enough to have two pre-arranged matches against local opposition. Both matches were closely fought and good sportsmanship was shown from both sides.

If this wasn’t enough they also got the chance to watch the top class FC Porto Liga ZON Sagres first team. After this they got a behind the scenes tour of Estádio do Dragão including a visit to the award-winning museum and time in the official club shop.

After action packed days of playing football, the students also got the chance to experience some Portuguese culture through a guided walking tour of the beautiful city of Porto and one evening the students got to go to a traditional Portuguese restaurant.

Written by Francesca Camp

Clayton Lamberth, Joe Clark, Harry Whitfield, Brandon Ramsey, Cameron Smith, Andrew Shiels, Jordan Chandler

Kyle Joyce, Jack Musselwhite, Bradley Sheppard, Liam McNally, Elliot Cooper

Sponsored by AIM Altitude

On Thursday 5th May, Queen Elizabeth’s School hosted a STEM Family Challenge, the first event

of its kind where students were invited to bring along family members to help them complete

an engineering challenge. The event itself was well represented with eight teams consisting of

students from Years 9 to 11, along with parents, brothers, sisters, uncles and grandparents.

The evening was led by Helen Wilson from the Engineering Development Trust (EDT) as part of

their First Edition programme for schools to promote careers within Science, Technology,

Engineering and Maths (STEM). Colin Thornton, Group Design and Engineering Director at AIM

Altitude, who kindly sponsored the event, attended with two of his colleagues to offer practical

advice, information about the company and, unexpectedly, stern competition as Team AIM

took shape as an unofficial ninth team.

The task was simply to build an elastic band powered K’Nex car. The resources were restricted,

except for the amount of elastic bands. The challenge was to get the car to go as far as

possible. The designs processes ranged from step-by-step improvements, to complex designs

with an engineering focus, to purely gut instincts. With the addition of excitement, panic and

frustration caused by family frictions, competitive dads and cars going backwards, the hall

became a buzz of activity.

The competition was forced to migrate out into the foyer after a mere half an hour as teams

started hitting the wall with distances in excess of 14m, but this in itself brought new

challenges as the friction of the floor varied. That is to underplay the impact of the automatic

doors and the potentially perilous drop into the restaurant.

So it came to final measurements. One chance to get it right. Some teams pulled it out of the

bag despite poor showings throughout testing. Others, unfortunately, went the other way. A

top three was determined for the final, where Teams Brunning, Thornton and Troffigue battled

it out for the title. The winners, a trio of son-parent combos, were Team Brunning. The fact that

all three students in the team, David Brunning, Joe Hartley and Samuel Savage, are in Year 9

bodes well for the future, as their skills were on full display throughout the evening.

STEM Family Challenge

Overall, the evening was a huge success. Students and parents were engaged throughout and

the feedback at the end was full of praise for the EDT for their running of the challenge, AIM

Altitude for their support and QE for hosting the event. It was fantastic for students to show

off their skills to family members, and for parents to get involved in assisting the Team You

ethos promoted within the school. It is hoped that this will encourage future family events

across the curriculum in the future.

STEM Family Challenge

Sponsored by AIM Altitude

CREATIVE WRITING SUCCESS

Creativity continues to shine in the QE student body, as we celebrate the recent success of two creative year 10 students who have gone above and beyond, achieving the honor of being published in the renowned ‘Spine Chil lers : Into Darkness ’ short story competition held by Young Writers.

Year 10 students Rebecca Legg and Laura Hell iker displayed outstanding l iterary craft when faced with the demanding chal lenge of producing a gripping yet short story based around the gothic horror genre, the 100 -word l imit prov ing a challeng ing barrier for the two ta lented authors.

Getting stra ight to business , both determined students welcomed the chal lenge; dedicating hours of arduous bra instorming ideas , creative interpretations and sheer determination in order to curate an entry of such high standard, one which would stand out from the sea of other hopefuls.

After hours of hard work, drafting and re -drafting , the pieces were finally perfected while the wait for judgement began…

To Laura and Rebecca’s del ight , it was announced that the stories they had both created were so unique and mesmeriz ing that they had been offered the incredible opportunity to be published in the notorious book, ‘Spine Chi llers: Into Darkness , ’ a real attribute to these deserv ing students!

Congratulations to both Laura and Rebecca on this bri l l iant achievement , the future definite ly looks bright for these young, budding authors

Holl ie Cra ig

HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT CHOOS-ING THE THEME OF YOUR PIECE? ‘I chose Halloween but wanted to do something different with it. I wanted people to feel a certain way, a new way.’ WHAT CHALLENGES DID YOU ENCOUNTER THROUGH OUT THE PROCESS? ‘The word count proved diffi-cult , but I knew I had to re-stra in and keep it deta i led. ’

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR? ‘I ’m incredibly happy! This publ ication has been a great boost to my self -esteem. ’

Rebecca Legg who had her

gripping and ominous short

story ‘Hal loween’

published described her

experience of the

competi tion.

Student Achievement

Ex Student Update—Alex Swan

Alex has now graduated from University of Reading and is working in Oxford. He has just been awarded funding by his company Peter Brett, to do his Masters at

Southampton University.

Congratulations Alex.

Talented musician, Sophia Benton, took part in the Wimborne Community Theatre production of What They Left

Behind

recently. The show was a complete sell out and received great reviews.

“Everyone played their part with honesty and determination, and to underscore the play, local composer and

multi-instrumentalist Karen Wimhurst has written some wonderfully evocative music, to words from the original

objects that inspired it, and arranged well known songs from the War. Karen’s opening number in the hospital was

operatic, deeply moving, and chilling, with words from the diary of Olive Harcourt and accompanied on piano with

a sensitivity far beyond her years, and with just her left hand, by Sophia Benton, a pupil at Queen Elizabeth

School. Other songs were accompanied by a small band and the town’s ukulele band, and enhanced by members

of two choirs, all to great effect.”

The Theatre Company wrote to the school saying “what a huge asset Sophia has been in this show! She’s

sounding fantastic and has readily taken up the challenge of accompanying a choir on stage and a solo voice.

Yeovil Town Ladies FC - Kelly Snook

Year 12 student Kelly Snook, a Yeovil Town Ladies player will be joining up with the England U18/19 Development Camp w/c 13th June. Kelly was originally placed on Standby for the squad, but recently got the call up. At a recent interview, Kelly said “I’m very excited, a little bit nervous, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. “I know it’s going to be on a whole other level, but I’m looking forward to it and I’m sure I’ll have a good experience.” Manager Jamie Sherwood praised Snook, but also gave recognition to the club and how it is developing young players saying “It’s good recognition for what the club have done over the last 18 months. “We’ve really tried to work on developing the structures within the club to produce stronger, more technically robust and tactically aware players.” When asked what advice Sherwood would give both Snook and others, he said “Be themselves, don't be anything that they’re not. They’ve got to work hard, they’ve got to do everything that they do here. Sherwood went on to say “Have an open mind, take on board everything that the coaches say. From every session, take at least two things away that they can improve on and two things that they did really well, and the biggest thing for me is to have a smile on your face and do yourselves proud.”

QE STUDENTS VISIT NUMBER 10

AND COMPLETE GOVERNMENT SPENDING CHALLENGE

Year 12 and 13 Economics and Government and Politics students from QE School spent an afternoon in London last week, taking part in a Government Spending Challenge, hosted and organised by The Cabinet Office. Based in what used to be the Admiralty Office Building, the students became Ministers for the day, each with a different set of spending priorities that they needed to defend. The negotiations took place for over 3 hours between the Ministerial teams and the Chancellor’s Treasury team, made up of students and Government advisers, with the Chancellor’s Treasury team attempting to balance a budget and keep all Ministerial teams happy. Areas of spending included Defence, Environment, Education and Health in a simulation that reflected closely the process that a political party goes through in terms of deciding their spending priorities, with students having to consider the impact of these spending decisions and the way in which the media may represent the decisions. The students were briefed and supported by a number of mentors who are all currently advisers to Ministerial teams. After the hard work was completed, the Cabinet Office team organised a surprise guided tour around Number 10 Downing Street with each student taking their seat in the Cabinet Room where all major political decisions affecting the UK have been sanctioned over the last few hundred years! Martin McLeman, Headteacher at QE said “It was a fantastic experience for our students to see how the process takes place in real Government, which is directly relevant to their A level studies. To round it off with the tour really was an excellent bonus. This fits perfectly with our strategy to reach out to both the local and national community to provide real-world experience as well as academic excellence in our teaching and learning throughout the school.”

Visit to Number 10

Year 9 Careers Day & Uni Visit

*****Year 9 careers day leads Hayley Buchanan to re-think her career as a Geography teacher! She looked quite the part in the gown and wig provided by our external visitor and was not thrown by the £500 price tag that came with the wig! The only member of staff brave enough to wear it! An excellent opportunity for the students to learn what life is like as a lawyer and barrister and a fearful moment for QE at the thought of Hayley jumping ship to a new career that appeared to suit her! Thankfully she gave it all back!*****

Seventy years ago this June Dorset played its part in the mass transit required by the D Day landings, and there was a very faint echo of that logistical challenge when the whole of Year 9, 400 students, visited Bournemouth University on 7th June.!! This involved three packed buses working in shifts and many teachers impersonating holiday reps as they wandered around holding up their numbered placards.

At the university the students had an information session in a lecture theatre followed by a tour, which was conducted in small groups each accompanied by a University Student Ambassador so the students had ample opportunity to ask questions. We were able to visit many areas including student accommodation, the media faculty, and the Student Union Building where meetings can be held in beach huts. We were also privileged to be amongst the first people to visit the new academic building, The Fusion Building, which had only opened the previous day.

It was a busy programme for a hot day but the student feedback was positive:

Chloe Middlemiss: I think it was really good to find out about university life. It has made me realise I want to go to university myself. Ryan Etherington: It was useful to get information about all the subjects you can study at university. It has given me some ideas about what I might want to do in the future. Maddie Trueman: ‘It was really useful and interesting, especially the tour. We saw a lots of different areas and the grounds. ’

Students also had careers sessions either before or after their trip in school and we are very grateful to the representatives from LV, Scott Bailey, Royal Navy, Nationwide, RNLI, Condor ferries, Europartner Language School, Home Office, and the House of Lords. The students found the sessions very informative.

Year 12 musicians and singers travelled to Malta last week with the Head of Music, Alistair Goudie and Head of Sixth Form, Mel Helliwell. The main focus of the trip was working with similarly aged students from an Interna-tional School who have been volunteering at a refugee camp. The camp is run by an inspirational man called Father Mintoff, brother of the first president of Malta and it provides very basic accommodation for migrant Africans. Instruments were provided by people living on the island and the students provided music to the refugees.

One of the students that took part, James Butler said “ The 5 days that I spent in Malta with my BTEC class were arguably the best of my life. Everyone worked and bonded extremely well together and this was reflected in the work that we did with a number of people out there. Personally, my favourite experience in Malta was the music we played at the Refugee Centre. We went to the centre on Monday Evening in order to work together with the students from the International School who were cooking dinner for the refugees. We began to play our songs that we had rehearsed together and a few students from the International School joined in. After a while a few of the refugees came and joined in, drumming in time to the songs, and by the end of the evening, the majority of the refugees were joining in, singing, drumming and playing guitar. The fact that we were able to bring happiness and joy to people who have suffered greatly in their lives was simply fantastic. By the end of the night I couldn’t tell who’d enjoyed themselves more; the refugees or my class.”

Students also performed a live concert and led some brilliant song writing workshops for young students at the International School.

Another unforgettable day was spend providing intensive workshops for autistic children through the Inspire Charity. Student Charlie Bonnington said “The centre for autistic children was perhaps the biggest struggle. It was a hard progression from the students’ previous experience in Dorset with Beaucroft students but one that filled all the students with awe at the patience and ability in the volunteers at Inspire Charity as well as the children’s parents. Clearly taking the children off the parents’ hands allowed them for a short but useful period of respite.”

Head of Music, Alistair Goudie said “Ever professionals, the students are already back into school life slightly browner, much more experienced, with everything they’ve seen and learnt firmly implanted in their head. They are currently devising ways to help the refugee centre from their often under-appreciated safety of their homes and lives; and planning on going back at some point in the future. Watch this space!”

We were delighted to receive the following message from the International School:

“I would like to thank you and your fantastic group of students for sharing your talent and spending time at our school last week. It was such a pleasure to work with such a spectacular group of kids. The way they performed and then took the leadership roles in the workshops was so impressive. At the end of the day my students felt very proud of themselves for creating a song- I don't think they knew they had it in them to do that. I hope I can apply some of what I learned from you and your kids next year.”

Musical Talents to Refugee Camp in Malta

The Malta team :

Charlotte Bond, Charlie Bonnington, James Butler, Buster Cassin, Tom Hobson, Hannah Nash, Lydia Newton, Sam Stone, Bella Wyatt.

Teachers : Alistair Goudie (Head of Music) and Melissa Helliwell (Head of post-16 education)

Prize Trip for JOQE JOQE International! Combien de groupes peuvent dire qu'ils ont joué dans le milieu de la Manche ? Having played in the 2016 Bournemouth Jazz Festival Jazz Factor competition the Jazz Orchestra @ Queen Eliza-beth’s (aka JOQE) not only came 1st, but also won a cash prize, a lovely trophy and a day trip to Cherbourg courtesy of Brittany Ferries to perform to a select French audience in Cherbourg. A very early start with a van jam-packed full of equipment saw the QE musicians, along with Musical Director Steve Glover, QE staff Sarah Adams and Gail Glover, and Bournemouth Jazz Festival impresarios Gerry Clarke and Alex Willis, boarding the ferry from Poole to Cherbourg. A mere hour into the 4 hour crossing and Mr Glover with his trusty team of (Year 10) roadies started to set up for the first gig. Squeezing into the corner of the bar, the 20-strong band kicked into their first set with a punchy version of Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir, and continued to play for the next half-hour. The fortunate audience were treated to the best of swing, jazz and funk, enjoying cracking solos from Jason Hayter (trumpet), Josh Eaton (trombone) and the amazing tenor sax improvisations of Chris Coomes. Ably supported by the super-tight rhythm section of Dylan Saberton (bass), James Rampton (drums) and Joe Hennessy (guitar), the band impressed the large audience both with their brilliant playing and their mature attitude on-board. Flautists Philippa Almond, Rebecca Jenkins, Luke Hayward and Ellie Trigger added real sparkle to the band’s sound. Many members of the public came up to say how great all our students were, that they were a real credit to the school. With the gear back in the van, JOQE’s next task was to be allowed through passport control to perform for the Mayor and citizens of Cherbourg. Arriving at the Salle de Fetes, JOQE quickly set up in the glorious French sunshine. They then performed their second gig of the day to invited dignitaries including the Mayor, local Jazz society members and le grand public de Cherbourg. Saxophonists Jaz Ashley, Alice Elliott, Hannah Coomes and Rhea Taylor swung with all their might, brass players Charlotte Gray, Toby Elliott, Josh Plummer and Lewis Thornton punched out their riffs alongside the groovy jazz bassoon of Kate Miller-Sparkes. After a few photos for the local press the band had a wander around the old town, tucking into baguettes and all manner of patisseries before catching the shuttle bus back to the ferry. Back on board, heading for home, the band chilled, playing cards, eating and drinking just like authentic jazz musicians. Docking at 9.45pm, a tired but immensely satisfied band disembarked into the waiting arms of their (taxi driver) parents. Quelle journée! Mr Glover would like to thank Brittany Ferries, Gerry Clarke, Alex Willis, Sarah Adams, and Gail Glover for all their help in making it a memorable experience, and the members of JOQE for being such amazing and talented young people.

Next stop: Swanage Jazz Festival July 8th!

Student Achievement

From Exeter Mathematics School Maths Challenge – February Winning Solution! Congratulations to Matt Wreyford from Queen Elizabeth’s School in

Dorset who (again!) has

provided a very detailed, and most importantly, correct solution to

February’s Maths Challenge.

We are very impressed with the thorough formal mathematics.

To see the solution click on :http://

www.exetermathematicsschool.ac.uk/news-and-events/

Ex-QE student and current Bath Spa Music technology undergraduate Harriet Friend visited our A level

students to give them an hour’s tutorial followed by an hour in the studio analysing their tracks.

Harriet had some audio tricks up her sleeve which she shared with the class, and was impressed by the

student’s work. It was also a great opportunity to ask questions about undergraduate life and the Music

Technology course Harriet is studying.

MR S H GLOVER

Wimborne Foodbank QE School and the Wimborne Foodbank For the first time this Easter QE School has worked to support our parents in receipt of free school meals by team-ing up with the Wimborne Foodbank. We are very fortunate to have one of our Governors, Revd. Robert Jones, who works at the Foodbank to support the local community. Robert Jones approached me and asked if we could send a letter to all our parents that are in receipt of free school meals offering them the opportunity to collect from the school, two Foodbank vouchers to support these parents during the holidays when they are not able to claim free school meals for their child, and may find the added cost a struggle. The feedback we have had from Foodbank has been very encouraging – We have now redeemed almost all the QE foodbank vouchers - and it has been a VERY rewarding exercise - thank you so much for your assistance and work in issuing the letters/vouchers. All the people I spoke to said that they would NOT have come to the foodbank if it had not been for the school letter, as they would have felt too ashamed. We heard some very sad stories, and feel that we have reached a group of people in genuine need who had not so far asked for help on their own initiative. Our volunteers have been very positive about the exercise, despite them having been rushed off their feet with the demand! LAST March we fed 52 people including 36 children, THIS March we fed 80 people including 33 children. LAST April we fed 40 people, including 15 children, THIS April (to date) we have fed 65 people including 34 children, with half the month still remaining. Once again, many thanks, I'll definitely call this experiment a success! We are going to repeat the exercise for the summer holidays using a three-voucher scheme and therefore need the help of our local community. The foodbank managed to cope with this increased demand but there are key items which they would need to stock up on prior to the start of Summer Holidays. Please can you help us by donating the following items, which are in order of importance? Goods needed

UHT Milk Canned Meats including mince, ham, SPAM, corned beef & Fray Bentos pies Jam/Honey/peanut butter Canned or Tetrapak custard Canned potato or instant mashed potato Pasteurised Tetrapak Fruit Juice Squash Packet Rice Coffee Hot Chocolate Biscuits

They definitely DON'T need, and don't WANT, pasta, baked beans, tinned tomatoes or soup at this time. If you are able to please send these items into school and ask your son/daughter to take them to House Office. Alternatively any time when Waitrose in Wimborne is open, via the Waitrose collection box near the customer s ervice desk, OR by visiting the facility in Leigh Park Community Centre, Wednesday 10-12am/Friday 2-4pm. This would be much appreciated and would help the Foodbank avoid running out of key items.

What is the 50/50 Club?

It’s a fundraising club for parents and staff. But you don’t just pay in – it pays out cash prizes too!

How does it work?

Everyone in the club pays £8 three times a year. Cash prizes are paid each term to our lucky winners. Half the

money raised is paid as prizes, and the other half goes to QE Family PTA funds. That’s why it’s called the 50/50

Club.

Where does the money go?

The money that is not paid in cash prizes goes towards extra facilities and amenities for students at QE.

How much does it cost?

Membership costs £8 per term (£24 per year), paid by Standing Order from your bank account.

Who decides who wins?

When you join the 50/50 Club, you are allocated a number. Every month, three numbers are drawn at random,

so three members win cash prizes. The prize money is paid directly into the winners’ bank accounts.

How to join

Simply complete the form below and hand it into the QE School Main Office, in a sealed envelope clearly

marked ‘QE Family 50/50 Club’. The more members there are, the bigger the cash prizes!

QE Family

50/50 Club

50/50 Club Rules

1. The Club shall be known as the QE Family PTA 50/50Club.

2. Prizes will be unfixed. 50% of the monthly income shall be distributed as prize money, 50% will be used to

benefit the school and its students.

3. A Prize draw shall be made each month. (With the exception of the August draw which will take place the

first week of September).

4. Members shall be required to pay a year’s subscription (per number) in the form of three standing order

payments or 1 cheque post dated to 1st June 2016. Any member who falls into arrears shall forfeit their

membership and shall not be eligible for the prize draw.

5. Notice of each month’s winner will appear in the School Newsletter.

6. The decisions of the QE Family PTA shall be final on any matter requiring adjudication. The Friends shall

have the power to amend these rules at their discretion.

7. Each member shall be given a number on joining and will be entered into each termly draw (so long as the

fees are paid).

8. The draw shall be made in the presence of at least two members of the PTA committee and will be drawn

at an event if possible.

THE MORE MEMBERS THERE ARE, THE BIGGER THE PRIZE QUEEN ELIZABETH’S FAMILY 50/50 CLUB MEMBERSHIP

FORM I wish to make a regular £8 contribution to the QE Family 50/50 Club.

Name: ________________________________________________________ (please print) Address:______________________________________________________ Tel. No: __________________________________ Student’s Name: __________________Tutor Group:__________ STANDING ORDER INSTRUCTION

To the Manager of ______________________________________ Bank/Building Society Branch _________________________________________________________ Address ________________________________________________________ My bank account: Name __________________________________________________________ Account No. ___________________ Sort Code ______________________ Please pay HSBC Wimborne Sort Code 40-46-37 for the credit of QE Family PTA , Account No. 31512366 the sum of £8 (eight pounds) on 15 April, 15 August and 15 December each year, until notice is given by me to cancel this standing order.

Signed _______________________________ Date __________________ Thank you for supporting the school in this way. Charity No:1165331

Collect FREE donations for QE FAMILY every time you shop online.

Join here:

easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/qefamily

Are You Looking For A Great Opportunity To Raise Your Business

Profile Locally?

QE Family, the registered charity vital to QE School’s continued academic success and financial security, is fo-

cussed on providing opportunities that enrich the lives of all QE students.

We are already working successfully with companies such as Lorica Insurance Brokers and Talking Legal Law-

yers, helping to raise their local business profile amongst the 1,558 QE students and their families in East Dorset.

We currently have the following sponsorship opportunities:

A Van der Graaf Generator (£250)

The Van der Graaf generator is a device that produces static electricity and would be used in Physics

demonstrations to show static charge and current flow. It has real life practical applications, as many

objects are painted using the idea of oppositely charged particles attracting each other.

A CO2/O2 probe (£250)

The CO2/O2 probe would be used in a number of Biology scenarios related to photosynthesis and respira-

tion. The probe would monitor the changes in the gasses according to different conditions.

50 new lab coats for the Science Faculty (£750)

2 sets of pop up mini football goals for structured play for the PE Faculty (£70)

6 Visualisers for various QE Faculties (£1,700)

A visualiser shows items and objects in large scale, allowing teachers to share images, text and ideas

simply and easily on their classroom whiteboard, encouraging interactive class discussion

QE Family’s Sponsorship benefits include publicity via the QE website, Facebook and Twitter pages, a page of

advertising for your company in the relevant QE newsletter and, where applicable, your company logo on the

sponsored items.

If you are interested in getting involved with student enrichment at QE and promoting your company and its prod-

ucts through a sponsorship arrangement with QE Family, please contact Sue Sparkes, QE Family Chair, on 01258

857874 or email chair@qefamily.org.uk to discuss. We very much look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely

Sue Sparkes Chair QE Family

Term Dates 2015/16

Summer Term 2016

Monday 11th April First Day of Term

Monday 2nd May Bank Holiday

Monday 30th May to Friday 3rd June HALF TERM

Monday 18th July (amended) Last day of Term - normal finish time

Tuesday 19th July Staff Training Day

Wednesday 20th July Staff Training Day

ADVICE FOR PARENTS/CARERS

Please see the latest Share Aware campaign from the NSPCC giving advice for parents and carers on helping your child stay safe on so-cial networks, apps and games:

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/share-aware

Exam Results Days:

GCE Exam Results 18th August 2016

GCSE Exam Results 25th August 2016

Term Dates 2016-17

Term Dates 2016/17

Autumn Term 2016

Thursday 1st September Staff Training Day

Friday 2nd September Start of term for Year 9 & 12

Monday 5th September Start of term for all

Thursday 29th September Open Evening – early finish at

12.50pm with buses leaving at 1.00pm

Friday 30th September Staff Training Day (Following Open Eve)

Monday 24th October to Friday 28th October HALF TERM followed by:

Monday 31st October Staff Training Day

Thursday 15th December Last day of term – early finish at

12.50pm with buses leaving at 1.00pm

Friday 16th December Staff Training Day

Monday 19th December to Monday 2nd January 2017 Christmas Holiday

Spring Term 2017

Tuesday 3rd January First day of term

Monday 13th February to Friday 17th February HALF TERM

Thursday 6th April Last day of term – normal finish time

Friday 7th April Staff Training Day

Monday 10th April to Friday 21st April Easter Holiday

Summer Term 2017

Monday 24th April First Day of Term

Monday 1st May Bank Holiday

Monday 29th May to Friday 2nd June HALF TERM

Friday 21st July Last day of Term - early finish at

12.50pm with buses leaving at 1.00pm

Queen Elizabeth’s School

Wimborne

Dorset

BH21 4DT

Tel: 01202 885233

Email: office@qe.dorset.sch.uk

Website: www.qe.dorset.sch.uk