theLion www.bablake.com
News and views from Bablake School
Issue 65 | Autumn 2014
Arctic adventure
Our intrepid explorers
During the summer holidays, 25 intrepid Bablake pupils headed to colder climes, just a couple of degrees south of the Arctic Circle.
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ur action-packed itinerary began with a trip to the Blue Lagoon. Set amongst a landscape of black lava, its water temperature averages between 30 and 40ºc and it is rich in unique natural minerals such as silica and blue green algae. The highlight of day two was a glacier walk; kitted out with crampons and ice axes, we were led by an experienced guide on an exploration of the frozen glacier tongue of Solheimajokull – a wonderland of
ice sculptures, ridges and deep crevasses. The following day, our destination was Jokulsarlon, the glacial lagoon which featured in the James Bond film Die Another Day. This is Iceland’s most famous and most photographed glacial lagoon and is also one of its deepest lakes. Enormous icebergs, some the size of houses, break off the Breidamerkjokurjokull glacier tongue as it retreats, and drop into the lagoon, creating a spectacular sight.
The following morning, our journey took us past the imposing volcano Hekla, which is long overdue an eruption (as are several other Icelandic volcanoes!). A welcome mid-afternoon snack consisted of eggs boiled in the geothermal river water at Hveragerdi and the day finished with a visit to “Perlan”- a Reykjavik landmark, a meal of Reyjavik’s finest hamburgers and an evening swim at the geothermal open air swimming pool. Thingvellir National Park is where Iceland’s parliament was established in 930AD (the oldest in the world); however, the visit here was simply an appetiser to the main activity of the day – lava tube caving. Donning helmets and headlamps, we were soon plunged into darkness, navigating our way along a lava tube containing magical rock formations left by the last major eruption. It was reassuring to know that the huge rocks on the floor of the cave had collapsed hundreds of years ago and that the cave was actually one of the safest places to be during one of the 30 or so earthquakes that happen every day in Iceland. Once back in daylight, the next stop was the famous geothermal area at Geysir – one of the trio of natural wonders on the well-known “Golden Circle”. A surreal world of spouting geysers and hot springs captivated the pupils and our tour was completed with a visit to Gullfoss waterfall – a thundering mass of foaming glacial melt-water plunging over a double drop into a mile-long gorge. After an Italian feast in Reykjavik, our last night ended with a Segway ride around the streets of the capital and a highly competitive game of bowling. On the final morning, before heading to the airport, we enjoyed a whale-watching experience in Flaxafloi Bay, sighting white-beaked dolphins, minke whales and puffins – a perfect way to end a thoroughly inspiring expedition to an amazing country. As the Iceland tourism information website says “It’s not a destination, it’s an adventure”, and it certainly was! Mr Simon Enstone
Bablake celebrates record results at GCSE and A level – see page 4
Bablake News
Lower Sixth Team Building A team building event for our Lower Sixth took place on the day before term began in September. It was a super introduction to Bablake for new pupils in our Sixth Form and a great chance for the new tutor groups to bond immediately. Every form participated in a series of nine exacting mental and physical challenges, receiving marks for achievement and team-work for each activity. It was particularly noticeable how the scores became more and more impressive as the day proceeded and each form group was able to identify its own strengths.
Claybrookes Marsh in Coventry
Upper Sixth Enrichment As part of Friday afternoon Enrichment activities, a group of Upper Sixth pupils has been doing volunteer work for the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust. The Trust describes volunteering as ‘a rewarding experience allowing you to develop skills and interests, to meet new people and above all, to contribute to the conservation of some of Warwickshire's most valuable natural areas’ and our pupils have certainly been developing new skills, including chopping down trees, clearing brambles and building a dead hedge, all under the expert guidance of Mr Paul Cleaver (Head of Art). The photo shows our pupils coppicing trees at Claybrookes Marsh in Coventry, one of the most important areas for rare invertebrates in the county. Originally, Claybrookes Marsh would have been grassland and a natural marsh but for much of the twentieth century it formed the railhead for Binley Colliery. As a result, a wide range of habitats exists, from the relics of the original marsh to bare ground and dry grassland, and regular conservation work is necessary to maintain this variety. We have a full programme of conservation work for the Trust planned through the year, giving our Upper Sixth some appreciated outdoor time on Fridays after a hard week of academic work, but also providing them with valuable volunteering experience.
Getting to grips with team building
Fourth Year Social On Friday 19th September, 82 of our Fourth Year pupils met in the School Hall to enjoy an evening of fun and frivolity. Amongst the activities were quizzes and welly-wanging, basketball and pizza-eating. Great fun was had by all, including the Fourth Year tutors and co-tutors, who were out in force. Special mention goes to CJ Dosanjh, our reigning welly-wanging champion!
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The Lion Autumn 2014
Bablake News
Spiritual enlightenment Insightful summer trips with the Department of Religious Studies. At the end of a busy summer term, Mrs Jackson, Mrs Sawyer and I accompanied 45 Fourth Year R.S. pupils to a Buddhist temple in Kelmarsh, near Market Harborough. The temple is called the ‘Nagarjuna Kadampa Meditation Centre’ and is run by a Buddhist group called the New Kadampa Tradition (NKT), one of the biggest Buddhist communities in the Western world. They are a school of Tibetan Buddhism and we received a very warm welcome from the community there. They gave us a talk on the basic teachings of Buddhism, led a meditation session, and showed us how to make ‘torma’ (traditional food offerings made to the Buddha statues). We were also able to ask questions of a young Buddhist nun about her lifestyle and why she had chosen to become a nun. It gave our pupils an insight into what Buddhism actually looks like in practice, as it is lived by Western men and women in the modern world. We look forward to visiting again next year. A few days later we paid another visit, this time with the Shells to a local gurdwara and mandir: Sri Guru Singh Saba gurdwara and the Shree Krishna Temple, both in Foleshill. We received tremendous hospitality in both places. At the gurdwara we were shown how the Guru Grant Sahib (the Sikh holy book) is treated like a living religious teacher, put to bed each night and woken up in the morning. We were also served some lovely curry and rice at the end of our visit, which went down very well! At the mandir we were told some of the great stories of Hinduism and shown how to make offerings to their gods. We are grateful to those who showed us around and look forward to returning again next year. Dr Toby Smith
Shell pupils enjoy their visit
“With realization of one’s own potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one can build a better world.” Dalai lama XiV
Harvesting a community spirit
Shell C girls
Once again Bablake has pulled together in true community spirit, producing some wonderful harvest boxes for our local elderly people. Shells to Third Year pupils covered their boxes in lovely harvest colours and made cards for their elderly recipients. The Junior School and Senior School collected suitable food items for the Coventry Foodbank, with the Junior School collecting an amazing 66 bags of food. Four girls from Shell C gave up their lunchtime to bake some superb cupcakes for their elderly person and then helped deliver the food box. Ellena McDevitt tells us: “The lady said it was lovely to see us, as she doesn’t have much company. She talked about her life and thanked us very much for the food and especially the cakes!” Mrs Carol Davey
Charity “Last year's fundraising for local, national and international charities reached an impressive total of £24,802.46, which surpassed the record sum raised in 2012-13. A total of £4390.87 was raised for Macmillan Cancer Support by our first Macmillan team. When I think of my 2013-14 Macmillan team, the following quotation is very apt: “It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” Every member of the team has dedicated a lot of time and effort to make the fundraising such a success. I am incredibly proud of all of them! Our 2014-15 charity team, aided by the whole of the Bablake community, made an impressive start to this year’s fundraising campaign, raising over £1,500 in just the first few weeks of term. Over 30 pupils are helping to run fundraising campaigns this year and we have established fundraising groups for CRY, Zoe’s Place and Macmillan. We have welcomed visitors from various charities to Bablake and have delivered Harvest baskets to our senior citizens. There are various events planned throughout the year and we are really looking forward to helping many more charities with our generous donations.” Mrs Maria O’Neill
Running for CRY Bablake School
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Bablake News
Record results “We are immensely proud of our pupils who have worked with such enthusiasm to achieve record-breaking results. They have been inspired to meet the highest expectations, whilst also forging strong friendships and enjoying involvement in sport, music, drama, volunteering and fundraising.” Headmaster John Watson
Every year we celebrate Bablake pupils achieving some of the most impressive results in the Midlands, and this year was no exception. Our A level group, a record-breaking GCSE cohort, achieved a 100% pass rate once again, a record proportion of A* grades and 80% A*- B grades. Over a third of the year group achieved three or more A*/A grades, with 13 of these achieving 4A*/As – all the more impressive as they were the first group not to sit A2 January modules. School captain Jess Betts led by example with 3A*s and 1A at A Level to add to her 10A*s at GCSE and her fellow school captain Robert Faulkner gained 1A* and 2As: excellent results achieved whilst also holding the responsibility of leading the school and being involved in so much co-curricular activity.
Our Fifth Year enjoyed recordbreaking GCSE results, achieving 70% A*/A grades, and overall, an impressive 55% gained 8 A*/A grades. Nivaran Aojula and Chris Tuttle led the way for their year group with 12 A*s, tremendous reward for their industry and commitment. Six more pupils (Tom Betts, Madison Cotteret, Sonia Dhillon, Rory Kenney-Herbert, Arun Nahar and Emily Poole) gained at least 10 A*s and 7 pupils (Kirsty Cattell, Hannah Davies, Alesha Gibbs, Ben Jones, Eva Klesnik-Edwards, Emily White and Ciara Wyman) were awarded an impressive 9 A*s. These are exciting times for Bablake’s successful GCSE and A Level pupils, all future leaders with such outstanding potential.
Mindfulness at Bablake What is Mindfulness? Mindfulness has become very fashionable these days! Its origins lie in Buddhism, but it is increasingly used in a nonreligious way to help people cope with stress. It can be broadly defined as, ‘paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, nonjudgementally, in the present moment’ (Jon Kabbat Zinn). Practising Mindfulness involves learning various meditation practices which help you to focus more on your body as opposed to being caught up in your thoughts, and to adopt a more kindly attitude towards yourself and others. However, it is much more than simply a series of techniques: it is a whole approach to life which involves bringing greater awareness to life, learning to be more appreciative of it and less caught up in old habits.
Mindfulness in schools Sensing the great potential of Mindfulness to help people cope with stress and become more fulfilled in their lives, a teacher called Richard Burnett at Tonbridge School in Kent persuaded his Headmaster to let him teach a course on Mindfulness. The course went well, and so Burnett continued to develop it, leading to the founding of an organisation called ‘.b, the Mindfulness in Schools project’ (the .b in the title stands for ‘stop and breathe’, which is one way of trying to distil the essence of Mindfulness into a catchphrase that will appeal to teenagers). This is a small group of people who teach suitably qualified people how to teach Mindfulness to children in schools. They run excellent, highly rigorous four-day training courses, one of which I attended in February.
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Mindfulness at Bablake Mindfulness is taught to Bablake students in several different ways. It is available to all pupils on Tuesday lunchtimes at the Mindfulness Meditation club, 1:30pm to 2:00pm in the BCR. We currently have about fifteen pupils who regularly attend. It is also taught in some Fifth Year general R.E. classes and as a Sixth Form enrichment option, and is becoming part of the school’s new well-being oriented PSHCE programme. Sessions are also available to staff on Monday evenings. Further details can be found at: http://mindfulnessinschools.org Dr Toby Smith
“Be happy in the moment, that's enough. Each moment is all we need, not more.” Mother Teresa
newsshorts
Bablake News
Warwick Castle Excitement was in the air as the Shells toured Warwick Castle. From learning about the ancient families Warwick housed, to ancient Norman defence mechanisms, we had a full taste of what the castle had to offer. The trebuchet had to be the most enjoyable part. The bowman showed off his archery skills and we enjoyed his impersonation of Robin Hood. The dungeon gave everyone the creeps! We also had an intellectually challenging booklet to fill in, that required us to apply our knowledge of Warwick Castle. It was a successful and fantastic day out!
Our successful Arts Award pupils
Alex Cox & Gregory Innes
Arts Award We were delighted with the Arts Award moderation which took place at the end of the summer term; nine pupils (Elizabeth Hayes, Joshua Lowe, Jessica Brake, Emma Blackett, Enya Bowe, Darya Sutton, Ellie Aitchison, Hattie Morris and Beth Carter) gained a total of 12 Awards, the most we have yet had in a year! Our Shell music scholars from last year all completed their Bronze Award, and Elizabeth Hayes (Shell N last year) got both a Bronze and Silver, undertaking some excellent work with the Junior School woodwind players and directing them in their end of year concert. Emma Blackett and Enya Bowe also worked for both a Bronze and Silver award, and their choreography work contributed much to the Junior Choir performances last year; Enya’s beautifully presented portfolio gained especial recognition from the moderator as a piece of art work. Finally, Beth Carter was awarded Bablake’s very first Gold award; this is a prestigious award, attracting UCAS points, and working at an AS level standard. Her work on ‘Night at the Oscars’, her beautiful photography (on display at the Art, Design and Textiles exhibition last summer) and her careful and thoughtful research on the physical strains of ballet on young people, alongside work on career pathways in the Arts, earned her well-deserved praise from the moderator. A really good year for the Arts at Bablake! Any pupils interested in taking on or finding out more about Arts Award for this academic year should contact Mrs Scott-Burt.
Bosworth Once at the Bosworth heritage centre and country park, we began the mile-long walk exploring what is known to be the battlefield that marked the beginning of the great Tudor dynasty. Before setting off, we chose particular members of the group to play key figures in the Battle. We had the King, Richard III (Jack Nash), his opposition, Henry Tudor (Jake Morton), his mother, Margaret Beaufort (Hannah Davies) and her husband, Lord Stanley (Ali Hijazie). Our guide informed us of key events in the battle and major discoveries that have been made as recently as 2012. She told us about the
procedure that went into discovering the true location of the battle and the amazing discoveries found in the mud of the battlefield, such as cannonballs and boar badges that Richard gave to all his knights. As we made our way round the site, we were able to see examples of weaponry used and how effective they were. One of the most fascinating things was ‘The Memorial Sundial’, commemorating the thousands of fallen men from both the Battle of Bosworth and the Wars of the Roses. After lunch and an opportunity to warm up, we visited the award winning exhibition galleries. The galleries assisted us in visualising the battle, as we were able to listen to stories from a mercenary’s wife, a soldier, Lord Stanley and a child witness. We also saw the type of weaponry that would have been used and felt how heavy it was to carry. We were then given the opportunity to dress up in the armour that each army would have worn, which was extremely heavy. Once we had watched the video of the battle, we went on to learn about the aftermath and the recent discoveries, before finally voting for who was the better monarch, Richard or Henry? (I chose Henry). Visiting Bosworth was a fantastic experience as it helped to bring our History lessons to life. We were able to visualise the battle and were given a real insight into the key events, imagining what it would have been like to fight for either Henry or Richard. It was fascinating to learn about the process of finding the true battlefield and also about the discovery of Richard’s skeleton in Leicester in 2012. I am very grateful to our guide, Pat Moore, for helping us to understand in greater detail the Battle of Bosworth.
Shells at Warwick Castle
Senior Citizens’ Summer Party
Beth Edmiston
The Sixth Form at Bosworth Bablake School
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Bablake Arts
“We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law!” arthur miller, the crucible
Bablake in the
Crucible by Hannah Corden
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et in the 17th century, The Crucible tells the tale of the Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts. Last term, ‘Actus’ put forward an incredibly talented cast for this production, with mature performances all round. Jasmine Shankster-East carried the plot with an extremely strong portrayal of the role of Abigail. Standout performances also came from Ellie Lowson, Alex Hamilton and Georgia Birch. John Proctor (played by Michael Parvis) was a man truly torn by his circumstance, while Steven Floyd executed the difficult role of Hale to great effect. Suraj Lall, as Parris, showed great understanding of his character and worked well alongside Hawthorne (Dan Cox). The supporting cast added great depth to the piece: Peter Cusak played a frail Francis Nurse and Georgia Kelsey, playing his wife, successfully created an old woman whose wisdom is ignored. Ben Turnbull, Suzi Barrett, Rhys Mangat, Lubnaa Khan and Dan Smith all performed strongly. Albert Jie impressed with his powerful vocal skills and Charlotte Allitt delivered the final monologue of the play with suitable gravitas and emotion. A powerful and effective element of the play was the use of the chorus, whose contribution added another dimension to the performance. These girls, dressed all in black, looked on with disturbing complacency at the unfolding events. The design of the piece added an extra element of authenticity to the aesthetics of the whole production. The staging had stark simplicity, with brave lighting choices (Julian Wreford and Luke Wyman) that did not soften the delivery of the piece. The sound (Liam McSorley) made effective use of dissonant tones. The costumes were stunning, and Jody Wong created impressive hair and make-up effects to support the design. The Fifth Year stage management team (Hannah Jewkes, Callum George and Thomas Nelson) ensured that everything ran smoothly and thanks must also go to Director, Ms Farmer, for such a great adaptation of the play, and to all those who worked backstage. For anyone who is interested in trying a new role in theatre, information can be found on www.bablaketheatre.com
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Scenes from the performance
Bablake Arts
Harry Bowser as Pugsley. Photo: Peter Weston Photography
The Addams Family Second Year pupil Harry Bowser took on the role of Pugsley Addams in a recent musical production of The Addams Family at The Talisman Theatre in Kenilworth. This was Harry’s first main role on the Talisman Stage, although he has previously appeared in The Talisman Youth Theatre’s annual productions. Harry was the only child in the cast and in the role he needed to sing and dance, as well as maintain an American accent! Since appearing in The Addams Family, Harry has performed as Edwin in Jeeves Takes Charge, also at the Talisman. The experience and overall sense of achievement has confirmed Harry’s ambition to be a stage actor when he is older. Taking to the streets in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
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What a fantastic run this year! We took The Picture of Dorian Gray to Edinburgh having made developments based on the 4 Star reviews we received last year. The roles of Sybil Vane (the unfortunate girl who falls in love with Dorian) and Basil Hallward (painter of the portrait) were expanded, giving more depth to Dorian’s character. This year’s Edinburgh was the busiest to date, affecting everyone’s box office. Nearly all of the shows that we saw were not full as ‘punters’ had too many shows to see. This did not stop our enthusiastic selling of the show on the Royal Mile, with original ideas being used. Due to the inclement weather, the cast acquired appropriately grey umbrellas and at one point the cast made hats, dresses and canes from the fliers – all attracting attention. We saw some great comedy (Chris Ramsay) and hysterical theatre. ‘Frankenstein Unbolted’ even managed to include Mrs Martlew in the show (much to her displeasure). After an exhausting trip away, our thoughts turned to the show we would take next year, and how we would raise money for it. To put on a repeat performance in school, we recast the roles of those who went to university this year and the Sixth Formers who admirably took on the roles with only two weeks to rehearse performed to a good house in September. It was marvellous to see the theatre supported by so many pupils from different year groups.
Rehearsals led by Ms Caroline Farmer
Othello The cast has been announced, and rehearsals are underway! This show will be performed at Bablake before we take it to the Edinburgh Fringe in 2015. A large cast and crew have been assembled to take part in this project. Matthias de Veer will take on the title role, with Grace Wye playing his wife Desdemona; Matthew Hayhurst will perform as Iago alongside Morwenna Hocken, who will play his wife, Emelia. These students have also worked on cutting the piece in order to make is feasible for the Fringe. Our previous shows have lasted between 45 and 60 minutes, due to budget, and the expectation of the Fringe is that it does not last much longer than that. This in itself is a challenge! Bablake School
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Girl power Year 5 pupils ready to ‘Thrill’!
On Friday 13 June, the EDM hosted 120 Year 5 children from three different Coventry schools for a day of Macbeththemed music theatre. The children taking part enjoyed a drama session, led by Ms Farmer, a music session with Mrs Scott-Burt, an art session with Mr Cleaver and a dance session led by Miss Moseley, all with support from our Sixth Form. The pupils produced some wonderful work in the short time they were with us and parents came to the theatre later in the afternoon to see each group perform a scene from Macbeth, a ‘Thriller’ inspired dance and finally the whole group performing the ‘Double Trouble’ song from Harry Potter (many wearing the fantastic witches and wizards hats designed by Mr Cleaver). We look forward to repeating the session over two days next summer, as it proved so popular with our feeder schools!
Taking to the stage
Grab your hat!
Rhythms of Africa The EDM resounded to the sound of African drums towards the end of the Summer Term when In2Cultures arrived with many fantastic examples of African drums and percussion, spending the morning working with our Second Form pupils (who have completed a unit of work on World Music this year) and the afternoon with our Year Four pupils from the Junior School. The pupils really enjoyed the experience, although many reported tingling fingers afterwards!
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African drumming with the Second Year
Ellie Aitchison Anna White Beth Carter
Anastasia Jeffcoat
Outreach Theatre
Avni Kant
Bablake Arts
The Music department was very pleased to have some great ABRSM examination results last term; pictured are Avni Kant (distinction for her grade 5 harp exam), Ellie Aitchison (distinction for her grade 5 violin exam), Anastasia Jeffcoat (distinction for her grade 2 French Horn exam), and Anna White (distinction for her grade 8 ‘cello exam). The final picture is of Beth Carter, who gained Bablake’s first ever Gold Arts Award in the summer, with the moderator commenting that Beth’s work was the best and most comprehensive Gold portfolio she had ever seen. Well done to all the girls on their fine achievements!
New arrival The Music department is delighted to be the very proud owner of a Yamaha baby grand piano. This instrument was purchased largely by funds raised at the Piano-a-thon, held earlier this year, and thanks to a generous donation from Bablake's Parents’ Association. Mrs Cathy Scott-Burt (Music, Outreach Coordinator and Head of Enrichment) said: “We are hugely grateful to all the parents and supporters of the Music department, who donated time, talent and money to purchase this splendid piano. It is already being used extensively by our piano teaching staff and featured accompanying our Senior Music Scholars at their concert in September.”
Bablake Arts
Good evening, good night, Little angels watch over; In a dream they show You a Christmas tree. Sleep only blessed and sweet, See paradise in your dream. Sleep only blessed and sweet, See paradise in your dream. Guten Abend, gute Nacht (Brahms’ Lullaby) Pupils performing in Germany
Eine Deutsche Erfahrung At the beginning of the summer holiday, the Music department undertook a wonderful trip to the Rhineland in Germany.
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aving arrived safely in Boppard, we enjoyed a picturesque walk into town before an evening rehearsal. The first concert was preceded by some sight-seeing, including the Lorelei, St Goar and a boat trip back up to Boppard. The concert, which took place in a large band stand in Boppard’s Kurpark, was well-attended in glorious sunshine, and the performances, especially from the wind band, were excellent. An evening of bowling (with very quiet children, as most had picked up the free wi-fi!) rounded off an excellent day. The following day, pupils and staff took a sight-seeing trip to Rudesheim and put on two concerts; the first was an afternoon performance in a concert hall in Bad Kreuznach, which was a really enjoyable venue, especially for the accompanists as they were pleased to find a grand piano on stage. The evening concert was the highlight of the tour for the choir – a concert in
Wunderbar!
the Pfarrkirche in St Marien in Rachtig. The Junior Choir sang the majority of the programme, and their performance was superb; they brought a tear to many eyes with a lovely encore performance of Guten Abend, gute Nacht. A bus trip back to Boppard was cheerfully spent, with Mr Cooper receiving texts every few minutes about a key football match taking place that evening : Germany vs Brazil. The score was already 5:0 to Germany when we returned to the hotel,
so we really couldn’t miss the rest of the match. An exciting evening was spent in the hotel lounge watching the score reach a phenomenal 7:1 to Germany. Needless to say there were many excited locals! After a final breakfast on Wednesday morning, the long journey back to school began. This had truly been a wonderful experience for everyone involved. Mrs Cathy Scott-Burt
Bablake School
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Out and About
Third Year pupils in Birmingham
Bablake’s artists on the move At the end of June, in preparation for next year's GCSE Art course, a healthy number of our Third Year pupils headed to Birmingham for the day, where they visited the National Sea Life Centre and Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. Mrs Amy Cassell (teacher of Art) commented: “Both venues gave the young artists plenty of exciting stimuli for next year’s projects. At the Birmingham Museum, we were also able to view the current exhibition of automata – quirky moving machines – created by eccentric English inventor Rowland Emett.” Our Fourth Year artists then headed to London in the final week of term to help stimulate new ideas for next year's key GCSE work. The main focus of the day was a visit to the National Portrait Gallery, where there was a chance to see exhibits for the 2014 BP Portrait Award.
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Fourth Year pupils in London
Out and About
Prepare to fight!
Rubi Ingaglia
Out and about in Roman Verulamium On a warm Saturday in September a group of ten Fourth and Fifth Year pupils travelled to St Albans on a Classical Society trip to visit what remains of the Roman town of Verulamium. Our visit coincided with the St Albans Festival of Food and Drink, so there were other attractions to be enjoyed, including some energetic and enthusiastic Morris Dancing! St Albans Museum allowed us to appreciate what a rich and sophisticated lifestyle was enjoyed by the people of Verulamium, with impressive mosaics and wall paintings surviving. As you can see in the photo above, the dressing-up area proved very popular with Bablake pupils! Following this, we walked across the park to a preserved mosaic and hypocaust system from a town-house and then the Roman theatre, which allowed us to see how the Romans in Britain enjoyed their cultural attractions. For our own entertainment we explored the town in groups, whether looking in the City Museum or checking out the fast-food culture. All in all it was an enjoyable day visiting an interesting and attractive town, and the pupils were very good company. We look forward to visiting another ‘Roman’ town in the near future. Mr Julian Bunce
A Far Eastern experience ... “Winning a scholarship for summer study in Hong Kong, achieved by my creation of a video to promote Hong Kong universities to British students, gave me the opportunity to experience a totally new culture and education system. I have come away from Hong Kong with invaluable international experience, an inspired work ethic, a wealth of new friends, and a strong desire to return as soon as I can!” Rubi Ingaglia
Mosaics at Verulamium
Rubi and friends Bablake School
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Out and About
Sri Lankan tour This July, for the first time in Bablake history, the boys’ hockey and cricket teams embarked on a combined tour to Sri Lanka, writes Mr Andrew Phillips.
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O
nce through passport control, an evening of relaxation awaited us at the Jetwing Lagoon Hotel, which had an impressive 100m swimming pool! The following day we made our way to Kandy, where our first stop was Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage, home to around 50 elephants. We were fortunate to watch them bathe in the local river before heading to the Millennium Elephant Foundation where the boys had the opportunity to ride and wash these incredible animals. Our next excursion was to Sigiriya Rock, the ‘eighth wonder of the world’, which was truly spectacular! We negotiated the overfriendly monkeys, several large hornets’ nests and Mr Phillips’ fear of heights, to climb to the top where we were greeted by breath-taking 360 degree views of the surrounding plains. The next morning, we made our way to Dambulla International Cricket Stadium for our first fixture. It was an incredible venue, which had the potential to hold 50,000 people. Our supporters numbered 15, including 3 cows, appropriately tied up at ‘cow corner’, and 12 ground staff who kept the 6 storey scoreboard updated. The 1st XI batted first scoring 226-6 off 40 overs with Ross ‘Mr Cricket’ Parnell scoring 96*. We then bowled North Central Province Academy out for 174, with Chris ‘The Wobbler’ Sewell picking up 5-23.
Out and About
The following day we played Kurunegala District Academy U15s who gave us a lesson in cricket, chasing down our total of 206 with 7 wickets remaining. Our tour wicketkeeper, Rory ‘Symbols’ Kenney-Herbert did a fine job, but unfortunately the bowlers got carried away with a hard flat pitch. The only real highlight of the day was Ross Parnell’s 68. However, our spirits were lifted when the tour company managed to book us an air conditioned hospitality box at the Sri Lanka vs. South Africa International game that evening. We were treated to a fantastic evening surrounded by cricket-mad Sri Lankans! Our first hockey fixture was a truly ‘cultural’ experience, playing on grass at Kandy University. After the ground staff had soaked up the puddles from the morning’s thunderstorm, the game got underway. Despite losing 4-2 it was a thoroughly enjoyable game, which was followed by an equally competitive game of one-hand, onebounce cricket with our hosts in the car park.
“Our next excursion was to Sigiriya Rock, the ‘eighth wonder of the world’, which was truly spectacular!” The Randholee Hotel was the venue for Mr Benfield’s ‘Srilympics’ – a sporting event to rival the Commonwealth Games in which the teams battled it out over table tennis, badminton and pool. The evening was spent watching a cultural show in Kandy, including a man who walked through fire. Mr Benfield also purchased enough animals carved from coconuts to fill a small zoo. Thankfully, they were sold with a reassuring ‘lifetime guarantee’. The following morning we enjoyed a visit to a traditional Sri Lankan spice garden on our way to Colombo, where the boys were treated to an impromptu massage. This set them up for their second hockey fixture against Ananda College which they won convincingly 7-2, with Chris Sewell scoring 4 goals. We played in another high scoring game the following day, narrowly winning 8-6 against Nalanda College. The tour goal scoring machine, Chris Sewell, casually bagged a double hat-trick. Heading down the coast towards Galle, we stopped for our next cricket fixture at Surrey Village Cricket Ground where we played Palink Cricket Academy in a T20. The 1st XI successfully chased down 119 losing only 1 wicket, Parnell 58* and Betts 58. The evening was spent at the Sands Hotel where the traditional tour water polo game was held.
Talent was low but enthusiasm high as the two teams battled it out. The following day we played our final hockey fixture against D.S. Senanayake College, who treated us to a tribal dance before the game! A very competitive and physical game finished 3-3 with fantastic hockey being played by both sides. As we approached the end of the tour, we visited a turtle sanctuary and enjoyed a river cruise in a soft-top convertible boat. We continued down the coast to the Foundation of Goodness, an inspiring project that started after the devastating Tsunami hit in 2004. This was an incredibly moving visit and the boys got a real sense of the impact this had had on the local community as well as the country as a whole. Our final cricket fixture was against the Foundation of Goodness (FOG). Many of the opposition had lost their parents and other family members in the Tsunami. FOG posted an impressive 288 off 40 overs and despite a solid start, Bablake 1st XI ended up 67 runs short: Payne 4-50, Sewell 3-49, Payne 47, Parnell 39, Betts 36 & Sargent 35. The tour finished with an awards ceremony on the beach whilst the sun set on the horizon: a fitting end to a memorable and successful tour in a truly spectacular country.
Good bye, Sri Lanka – we will be back in 2017! The Bablake teams Bablake School
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Bablake Sport
Boys’ sport Peter Cusack Peter Cusack (5H) was part of the victorious England Central Wheelchair Basketball team that played in the 2014 Sainsbury's UK School Games, a multisport event for the UK's elite young athletes of school age, held in Manchester in September. At the age of 15, Peter was one of the youngest members of the squad, but he played a part in all of the matches. England Central won its pool games convincingly, against Northern Ireland and England South, then went on to beat Wales in the semi-final. The final was against last year’s winners, England North, and despite Central opening up a small lead in the early stages of the match, the scores remained close for the majority of the fixture. An incredible final quarter though, with stunning performances at both ends of the court, saw Central avenge the 2013 final defeat, winning 50-29. The photograph, kindly submitted by Mrs Nic Kusack, shows Peter proudly showing his Gold medal.
the season with a string of victories against Camp Hill (2-0), Lawrence Sheriff (7-1) and Warwick (3-2). However, Solihull and Queen Mary’s proved too strong and the 2nd XI lost 1-3 and 0-4 respectively. Mr Rushton, our new addition to the Bablake Hockey coaching staff, will be supporting Mr Atwal getting the 2nd XI back to winning ways. The 3rd XI, under the experienced leadership of Mr West and Mr Williams have started the season gently, not wanting to peak too soon. Their first victory is undoubtedly just around the corner. Their season can be followed at www.bablakesport.com where Coach West posts his famous weekly match report. Junior Hockey The first half of the Autumn Term is used predominantly as a ‘training block’ for the junior hockey teams. Numbers at training have been impressive and squads have been enjoying the newly refurbished Astro Turfs on Norman Place Road. The U15s have played two fixtures, losing 1-3 against Warwick but performing excellently to beat Queen Mary’s Grammar School 3-0. The U14s have also played two fixtures, losing to Princethorpe (0-4) but beating Lawrence Sheriff (4-0). The U13s and U12s have been training hard on a Friday evening and can look forward to action packed seasons with their fixtures starting properly after the October half term. We are thankful to a number of young coaches helping on a Friday evening, including ex-pupil Chris Sewell (1st XI top goal scorer for the last two seasons), current 1st XI captain Tom Betts and 1st XI goal keeper Aidan Thomas. The success of Friday’s Junior Hockey Club, which accommodates 45 young players (Shell & 2nds) is only possible thanks to their help and commitment.
Cricket Boys’ Hockey @bablakehockey Once again, Bablake Boys’ Hockey will compete in the well-established Warwickshire Hockey League. We have welcomed new schools into the competition this season, including Loughborough Grammar School and King Edward VI School. All league tables, fixtures and information can be found on the Warwickshire Hockey League microsite, which is accessible through www.bablakesport.com. Senior Hockey The 1st XI started the season positively with a 3-1 victory against Camp Hill and a hard fought 1-1 draw against a very talented Birmingham University Women’s 1st XI, who play in the National League. Another draw (4-4) against Lawrence Sheriff followed, before a series of tough defeats in the Warwickshire League against Warwick School (1-3) and Solihull School (5-0). However, under the captaincy of JRPC (Midlands) representative Tom Betts, the 1st XI bounced back well against Queen Mary’s Grammar School with a comprehensive 5-0 victory. The 2nd XI started
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The Lion Autumn 2014
The Warwickshire Annual Cricket Awards were held on the 12th September at the newly refurbished Edgbaston Stadium, and were attended by over 300 people. Our Warwickshire county cricketers, Dan Smith, Daniel Mousley and Ross Parnell, who are all Bablake Cricket Scholars, represented the school on the evening. Both Ross and Daniel are in the elite EPP (Emerging Players Programme). On the evening, Ross Parnell won the U16 Bowler of the Year Award for his consistently strong performances for the county, bowling with
Dan Mousley receiving the Neal Abberley Trophy from Warwickshire 1st XI Coach Dougie Brown
pace and accuracy throughout the season, picking up wickets at an economical rate. Daniel Mousley was arguably the star of the evening. He picked up a commemorative bat for his hundred against Holland from ex-England cricketer Jonathan Trott, the U14 Bowler of the Year Award (despite only being U13) and the main award of the evening – The Neal Abberley Trophy. This trophy is awarded to the Warwickshire Junior Player of the Year across all the age groups. He follows in the footsteps of former pupil Mark Best who won this award a few seasons ago.
Rugby Rugby continues to flourish at Bablake with matches coming thick and fast this term. The attitude of the boys who represent Bablake at this sport remains fantastic with the emphasis on team work, commitment, development, respect and enjoyment. All teams have had their usual highs and lows, though the U15s have stood out with 6 wins and just one narrow loss at the time of writing. 1st XV highlights include excellent victories over Wellingborough and KES Camp Hill, whilst the 2nd XV have had an excellent season to date under the guidance of Mr Hall and new coach Mr Wilkes. The Shells and Second Year continue to develop at a rapid rate and also enjoyed a recent trip to watch Leicester Tigers defeat Harlequins.
Bablake Sport website www.bablakesport.com During the last academic year, 2013-2014, we had over 300,000 visitors to the site! In September 2013 we had 23,907 visitors to the site, but by September 2014, this had increased to 49,962. 33,000 of these were from desktop computers, 17,000 were through the mobile app. Bablake is ranked 27th in the country of around 450 schools who are using schoolssports. com, which includes nearly all HMC schools. Bablake Sport Twitter Accounts @bablakecricket @bablakeghockey @bablakehockey @bablakenetball @bablakerugby
Bablake Sport
Girls’ sport U13 Hockey team
New staff We welcome Miss L Watts to the P.E. department in a permanent position as well as two new members, Miss J Payne and Miss L Mullan. Our focus is to promote high standards and values. We therefore stress the importance of girls committing to training and matches so we can develop strong, competitive teams and build success.
Newly refurbished facilities
Loughborough Festival There was early success at the start of the season at the Loughborough Festival of Sport. The U13 hockey team performed very competitively and in great spirit, coming runners up. The girls won five of their seven games, drew one against Loughborough B team and lost just one game to Loughborough A team. The U12 netball team also finished runners up, winning five out of six matches, narrowly losing to Sheffield High who went on to win the competition: an excellent start to their first term at Bablake. The U14 netball team went one better, winning six games and drawing one at this tournament to finish winners. They played really well beating some very strong teams from Loughborough, Sheffield, Nottingham and Leicester.
Warwickshire hockey tournaments There were three Warwickshire hockey tournaments during the first full week of October. The U18s made an excellent start, beating King’s High 1-0 and King Henry VIII 2-0. A close encounter with Rugby followed, which Bablake lost 2-3, meaning it was a tight competition with all to play for. Unfortunately the girls could not convert the pressure they put on Princethorpe early in the game and lost 0-2, finishing third overall. The U14s got off to a slow start and lost to King’s High 1-4, but they responded well and beat Kenilworth and King Henry VIII, conceded an unlucky late goal against Princethorpe and lost to Rugby to finish fourth. The U16s were overwhelmed by Rugby in their first game, but worked with greater confidence and self-belief to beat Princethorpe 1-0. Minnie Klesnik-Edwards had her stick in the right place to score from a great cross by Hannah Allroggen. Despite having their chances and playing very well, the team lost to King’s High 0-1 to finish third.
Coventry netball tournament The U18 Coventry Schools netball tournament saw only six teams enter, including 1st and 2nd teams from both Bablake and King Henry VIII.
level. Last season they were selected to train and play netball for the U17 Regional Development Academy. During the summer Mollie played for the U17 West Midlands team and this season she is part of the U19 Regional Performance Academy. Hattie Morris and Lawou Mpafe performed well at county netball trials and have been selected for county netball training this season. Eleanor Faulkner competed as part of the West Midlands team at the English Schools’ Athletic Association Combined Events Championships in Boston, Lincolnshire at the end of September. Congratulations go to all these girls and we wish them continued success.
U12 Netball team
Christmas has come early for the PE department and Bablake pupils! Our gift has been the wonderful refurbished hockey facility on Norman Place Road and the pitches have exceeded our expectations. The initial all weather pitches were built in 1985 and at that time were the first double school pitches in the country. The new AstroTurf pitches are an excellent addition to our sports facilities and are also being booked out by the local clubs in the community.
U14 Netball team
Bablake 2nd VII played well, winning three games and losing two to finish third. A competitive pre-season tournament at King’s Worcester had focussed Bablake 1st VII and they won all their matches to take the trophy and a place in the Coventry/Solihull/Warwickshire tournament in November. The U16 A team finished third overall after winning 3 games but losing to Blue Coat and to King Henry VIII by one goal. The U16 B team won all their games and went on to win their Coventry Schools netball tournament for the third consecutive year. Well done girls!
Netball Captains Aimee Piercy and Mollie Sargent
Recent representative honours Sophie Price was selected for JAC (Junior Academy Centre) hockey training and then for the Warwickshire county team to play in the Midlands inter-counties tournament for the last two years. From here she was selected for the JRPC (Junior Regional Performance Centre) which is an excellent achievement. Sophie has been to training sessions with JRPC to develop her hockey skills and games play. This year she went forward to play in the regional tournament and is also playing for Bablake 1st XI and Leicester Hockey Club. Mollie Sargent and Aimee Piercy have the joint role of Bablake 1st VII netball captains and also play for Copsewood Diamonds at U19 and senior
Eleanor Faulkner
Sophie Price
Lawou Mpafe Bablake School
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Bablake Update
Headmaster’s notes
Staff News Many congratulations to Nicola and Christopher Green on the birth of Benjamin, and to Mandie and Lewis Bradshaw on the birth of Martha. We are pleased to welcome our Modern Foreign Languages assistants for the year: Lamia Loukil (French), Vanessa Beck (German), Isabel Cowell (Spanish).
We are, as ever, immensely proud of our pupils’ achievements, but even prouder of the fine young people they become as they proceed on life’s journey. We again celebrated record examination results this summer, with a higher-than-ever proportion of A*/A grades at GCSE and of A* grades at A level. Our results are the strongest locally, especially at A level, and far ahead of national averages. This is not an idle boast, for they bear testimony to the positive work ethic of our pupils and of their joint endeavour with staff; we share high expectations, and we want our pupils to do their very best academically, relative to their abilities – so that doors remain open to a lifetime of possibilities. There is, however, so much more to a school than statistics! A school cannot be strong academically unless it looks after its pupils very well, and our aim is to know them as individuals, to guide and support, and to provide outstanding opportunities which mould them as human beings. A new initiative this year has been ‘One page profiles’. We asked incoming Shells (and their parents) to tell us about themselves before arrival, so that we can build an increasingly comprehensive picture of their characters, their interests, their strengths and their anxieties as they move through the school, and as different teachers and tutors get to know them. This is important, as we are all unique and play our own special part as members of our community. Bablake provides a privileged environment in which children can thrive both in and beyond the classroom. Yes, we are a positive, happy and warm community, but that doesn’t mean that pupils (and staff) don’t sometimes hurt each other or go through very challenging and painful times. The measure and success of a school community is not then reflected in its examination results, but in the ways its members care for each other – especially when they are at their most vulnerable – and in the ways we look outwards to a needy world.
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The Lion Autumn 2014
Mr John Pakeman has joined us a minibus driver, and is currently operating the free after-school shuttle between school and the station until 5:45pm; this is a new service, enabling pupils who take the train to benefit fully from the school’s co-curricular activities. Mr Robert Shiers is our new Design Technology technician. Mr Sheirs has specialist experience in carpentry and related trades, and has recently worked as a caretaker in a local primary school.
Diary dates Tuesday 6 January Entrance Examination Saturday 12 January Scholarship Morning Wednesday 11 February Rugby 1st XV v King Henry VIII Butts Stadium – 7.00pm Wednesday 25 February Music Coursework Concert Rehearsal Room – 7.00pm Sunday 8 March Orchestral Day EDM – 9.00am – 5.00pm Sunday 15 March Geography Field Course Betsw y Coed Departs 9.00am Wednesday 18 March Lunchtime Concert at St John’s Thursday 31 March Easter Concert Main Hall – 7.00pm Wednesday 1 April Term ends 4.00pm Wednesday 22 April Summer Term begins
Bablake School, Coundon Road Coventry CV1 4AU t 024 7627 1200 f 024 7627 1290 e info@bablake.coventry.sch.uk w www.bablake.com f www.facebook.com/bablakeschool t www.twitter.com/bablakeschool
A Bablake School App is available on both Apple and Android platforms Design by Mustard: www.mustardhot.com Printed on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests.