Mrs Wakefield and a group of Year 11 pupils took part in a thoughtful and heartwarming activity this week: ‘Postcards of Kindness’. Pupils created, wrote and delivered seasonal wishes to over 15 care homes in South Warwickshire.
The concept is to support those who might be feeling lonely at this time of year and our Y11s wrote postcards and Christmas cards, for local residents in care homes within the local community.
To find out more:
Thursday 12th December saw Studley High School’s annual Christmas Concert take place to a sell out audience of over 200 families, school staff and friends from our local community.
The evening opened with a welcome from the host, Year 11 pupil, Jarrad H who introduced our new brass group conducted by brass teacher Mrs Hattersley who played an opening Fanfare and then ‘Rudolph’. Following this rousing start, were soloists on vocals and the piano, drama group performances depicting Christmas scenes and our brand new ukulele club led by guitar teacher Mr Davies. Jarrad chose to perform ‘Winter Wonderland’, complete with tap-dancing and just before the interval we heard our fifty-strong choir led by Miss Wheeler who bought the first half to a close with a challenging a capella arrangement of ‘Carol of the Bells’.
The interval saw a Christmas market and festive refreshments provided by our fundraising Camps International pupils.
Rockschool opened the second half off with a very different version of ‘All I Want for Christmas’ and then the mood changed with Taylor’s beautiful solo of ‘Defying Gravity’ accompanied by Em W on the piano. More drama groups followed, along with a duet from the ‘Stanway Sisters’ and a song from the musical Nativity performed by our Performing Arts club.
The orchestra was the final act on stage who accompanying all for carol singing and then brought the evening to a close with ‘Merry Christmas Everyone’.
85 students from all year groups took part in the concert, giving a well rehearsed and professional performance. Our thanks to our peripatetic music teachers (Mr Jennings, Mrs Dolby, Mrs Hattersley, Miss Wheeler, Mr Hobbs and Mr Davies), school staff for helping out backstage, the local community and Arrow Valley Brass Band who continue to support us.
Pupils in Year 7 took part in the annual ‘Cells Competition’, in which pupils were tasked to create an animal or plant cell of their choice in the form of a model.
Pupils were challenged to be as creative as possible, and the entries didn’t disappoint. We had some fabulous cakes, lego models and lots of marvelous structures.
This year, 168 students entered, with everyone in the science department impressed at the pupil’s efforts. Due to this, we decided it was impossible to choose a 3rd, 2nd or 1st winner. So we choose to award winners for the wide variety of competition categories, including:
This year we introduced a class competition that ran alongside the individual competition the two categories were:
All entries were displayed during the Year 7 Parents Evening. Last Friday during an assembly, the prizes were handed out to pupils and the classes that won the class competition received chocolate for their class.
A massive well done to Year 7, who made this years competition a fantastic event and one that was exceptionally difficult to judge!
Em W in Year 9 has recently passed her Grade 8 Drum exam!
This is a fantastic achievement and a very difficult exam to pass, as it’s for candidates who have mastered advanced technical control and have a thorough grasp of extended stylistic techniques.
At Grade 8 this is shown through mature stylistic conviction, consummate execution of rhythmic complexity, mature and creative stylistic solo and improvisation work as well as a commanding sense of communication and performance.
(Rock School, https://www.rslawards.com/rockschool/graded-exams/drums/grade-8/ 2019)
Em started drum lessons in Year 6, after picking up some drumsticks at friends house, and amazing everyone with her natural ability on their electric drum kit.
In Year 7 she started playing with the younger Worcestershire Youth Jazz Orchestra (WYJO2), and will be joining the older group, WYJO, in January – as one of their youngest members. At WYJO2, she has been helping coach younger drummers, and will, in turn, be coached further by older drummers in WYJO.
She is considering a future in music, so watch this space!
Year 9 Photography group recently visited Hanbury Hall for inspiration on a project ‘Nature’.
They’re currently studying the work of Andy Goldsworthy notorius for his studies of nature through his artwork and photography.
Each work grows, stays, decays – integral parts of a cycle which the photograph shows at its heights, marking the moment when the work is most alive. There is an intensity about a work at its peak that I hope is expressed in the image. Process and decay are implicit.
Andy Goldsworthy
This year we are supporting young adults who have been in care up to the age of 16 and then leave children’s home/foster families and live independently, which can lead to them feeling very vulnerable.
The charity is called Brum Chistmas DInner and provides Christmas Dinner, on Christmas Day: a day when the young care-leaver might otherwise be sat alone in a bedsit, sofa-surfing or even on the streets. They aim to provide an enjoyable, memorable Christmas experience with food, friendship, entertainment, decorations and meaningful gifts, in a safe and caring environment.
The dinner is planned and run entirely by volunteers. They raise the funds, arrange the guests, buy and wrap the presents, cook and serve the dinner… so every penny raised goes into organising the day.
On Friday 20th December, pupils are invited to wear a Christmas jumper along with their usual uniform and shoes. We do not expect pupils to buy a specific jumper for the day, they can decorate an existing one with tinsel.
We would like to collect £1 from every pupil, whether they come in a jumper or not, as this is such a worthwhile cause and a time of year to think of others less fortunate than ourselves.
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/brum-xmas-dinner
Thank you for your support!
Last week, we took 90 Year 7 pupils to Bath, as part of their study on Roman Britain.
The baths, which take water from Britain’s largest thermal spring, were originally built over 2000 years ago, by the Romans but left buried for centuries until the grand monument was rediscovered under some buildings in the late 1870s. Pupils took part in a workshop to explore and handle primary sources and ‘think like archaeologists’. They also toured the baths and its many rooms. They then enjoyed an hour in the afternoon around the festive Christmas market in the city centre, where lots of presents were bought and sweet treats were consumed! All pupils were a credit to the school and had a brilliant time aside from the very very long journey home at the end of the day!
This Saturday our girls Gymnastic team competed in the Regional West Midlands Milano Trios Competition, in the Under 16 girls section. The girls (Ella G, Phoebe H, Mia B) came 2nd, meaning they will now go through to the National Finals in March against the whole of the UK and Northern Ireland to represent west Midlands.
Ella G came 3rd individually, competing against competitors who were 3 years older than her.
Their coach said:
I was extremely proud of the girls, particularly how they pulled together and work as a team every year.
Last week, we took a group of Year 9 English/Drama to see the musical rendition of ‘A Christmas Carol’, originally performed in New York. The fast-paced, all dancing and singing musical was non-stop entertainment from beginning to end. With a truly grumpy Scrooge and a terrifying Marley, the play unfolded. Pupils taking Drama loved seeing the aerial work with the trapeze for the ghosts and the special effects to help create the magic.
Images courtesy of BMOS Musical Theatre/ Alexandra Theatre
This was a super trip for us all to get into the spirit of Christmas and banish away any humbug feelings.
We have another boxing star at Studley High School.
Year 10 pupil, George G has been a member of the West Warwickshire Amateur Boxing Club for just over 12 months.
George was introduced to the sport by Mr Howitt, in P.E, who takes a group of pupils to the club on a Monday after school. After just a couple of visits George immediately fell in love with the sport and wanted to join.
He was invited to attend a boxing bootcamp in Tenerife last weekend. The camp involved sparring at a local gym, a morning run up Mount Teide, swimming and a beach boot camp. They also had chance to meet and spar with Spanish boxers. It was an amazing experience for George and his team mates.
George currently trains 3 nights a week for 2 1/2 hours each night and recently participated in his first boxing match.
Watch this space for more news on George’s boxing!
Last week, we were very fortunate to be one of only 5 schools in the West Midlands to receive a visit from Matt Gisby from ‘A Taste of Game‘ for a masterclass on butchering and cooking with pheasant.
20 Year 9 and 10 pupils took part in this exciting activity. Pupils were supplied with one ‘oven ready’ pheasant between two and were shown how to remove the breast and legs before making it into a tasty starter.
This was a fabulous introduction for pupils studying KS4 food qualification, to experience a highly skilled practical task, enabling them to achieve higher grades if used in their final practical assessment. Pupils had the opportunity to learn about the food providence of game as well. Some pupils were a little nervous at first, but worked incredibly hard to achieve some fantastic outcomes, the final dish was a very tasty pheasant bruschetta with a horseradish mayonnaise, garnished with rocket and julienned crisp eating apple.
Most agreed it tasted wonderful. We would like to thank Matt Gisby and ‘A Taste of Game’ for their support as well as their free delivery of fresh pheasants for the practical task. We intend to repeat this every year with our Year 10 pupils, as part of their module on meat.
Here is the recipe our pupils made: https://tasteofgame.org.uk/pheasant-and-apple-bruschetta-with-horseradish-mayonnaise/
If anyone is interested in volunteering to work with Matt, who gives up his spare time, to for this cause, please contact [email protected] uk
Last Tuesday we took a group of Year 10 pupils to Warwick University for ‘GCSE English in Action’.
The day consisted of a series of talks aimed to develop students’ skills in both reading texts and writing ‘like a genius’! These proved to be really informative, giving our pupils strategies and tips on how to approach their exams and achieve the highest grades.
The group also had the opportunity to experience ‘university life’ for a day which we hope will inspire them as they move towards Post-16 choices.
The highlight of the day for many was the presentation given by the award winning poet Owen Sheers, reading several of his poems and explaining the ideas behind them and people who inspired him. He also explained how he became a writer at the same age as our pupils, hopefully inspiring them in return.
This stimulating, information-packed day will feature a series of fascinating presentations guaranteed to enthuse, inform and inspire. During the day, students will hear from a range of expert and engaging speakers who will explore ways to enhance their creativity and writing skills, examine non-fiction texts across time, and tackle unseen poetry. The day will end on an unforgettable note with a presentation by an award-winning poet, who will read from and discuss their poetry before taking questions from the audience. Students are guaranteed to leave brimming with essential insights and ideas
The day will be chaired by Julia Geddes. Julia is an experienced Head of English, a Senior Examiner for a major examination board and a textbook author. She has published many study guides for both GCSE and A-level students.
https://thetrainingpartnership.org.uk/study-day/gcse-english-in-action-19-11-2019/
Last week, saw the first of our Personal Development days at school for this academic year.
During these days, timetable is collapsed and pupils are given the opportunity to participate in activities, events and workshops that are designed to enhance their curriculum, create further opportunities for their social, moral, cultural and spiritual development and to develop the attributes required in preparation for life
Year 9 were supported by Raymond Lynn, an expert on equality in the workplace. Anna Turney, Paralympic Skier, delivered a powerful message about perseverance in the face of adversity.
Year 11 were taught sessions on health and drug misuse from Compass Warwickshire Health Services. The charity organisation Brook, led sessions on relationships and gender.
Year 10 explored themes about personal identity while Year 8 learned about finance, including budgeting, bank accounts, and debt. Year 7 discussed and learned more about rights and responsibilities.
Last week, Year 11 GCSE Drama students went to see a production of ‘An Inspector Calls’ at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. Students are studying this play text for their exam; it was a fantastic opportunity for them to see how the play is staged and visualise how the performance should be portrayed. The actors were fantastic, each bringing their own unique twist to the characters we know so well. The costumes were fantastic and helped us to visualise how we might design for these characters. The set was especially phenomenal, particularly when it ‘fell apart’ at the destruction of the Birling family.
The performance was exhilarating and the cast brought the play to life. We also had the incredible opportunity to talk with some of the cast and the director about their intentions and ideas for their performances in an “after dark” talk. Our students really enjoyed the performance.
Last week the Art & Photography department took Year 11 pupils to the National Portrait Gallery in London.
Pupils visited the gallery to study the exhibition of Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize.
Showcasing talented young photographers, gifted amateurs and established professionals, the competition, showcases a diverse range of images and tells the often fascinating stories behind the creation of the works, from formal commissioned portraits to more spontaneous and intimate moments capturing friends and family.
Pupils were searching for inspiration to contribute to their coursework and study what each artist was drawing from their work. Pupils also enjoyed a visit to Trafalgar Square to soak up the London atmosphere.
Last week saw the launch of SHINE with our current Year 7 cohort.
It was fantastic to see over 50 Year 7 pupils attend after school, to learn more about the SHINE provision at Studley High School. Pupils discussed how they could achieve their full potential both in school and out of school and then shared this with their peers.
The first official SHINE session “The Power of Pop” is on Tuesday 19th November led by the History Department.
If you are an Art & Photography student, who left Studley in July 2019, you have until the 5th December to collect your work from last year.
After this date, it will have to be disposed of as storage space is limited. To collect your work please email Miss Hurst [email protected] giving her 3 days notice, so she can prepare your work for collection.
The Y7 and Y8 basketball teams started their season last night in the Junior NBA.
Studley Schools came together on Saturday 9th November for another great Firework Extravaganza. An estimate over 1400 people were counted as attending the event!
There were 100 volunteers, who were hard at work throughout the event, from parents and staff to the local community. The efforts paid off despite the rain, to create a wonderful evening of entertainment with live music, fairground rides, stalls, food, drink and a spectacular musical firework display. The display was provided by Iain Williams and Ultimate Fireworks.
Weather oak ale and Caney’s cider, both local Studley brews, were on sale at the bar and Bespoke butchers from Alcester road supplied the hot food. Many local business sponsored the event and pupils sold cakes, goodies and fudge to raise money. Parents, pupils and teachers helped out in every corner. The schools’ and village community really came together throughout the evening, even returning to clear up the next day. Thanks to Studley First Responders for being in attendance and to all who braved the weather for a truly delightful evening.
Mr J Kerridge – parent
We took forty pupils to Iceland for a 4 day Geography extravaganza last week. They travelled through the night, leaving Luton airport before 6 a.m and arrived at breakfast-time in a very chilly down-town Reykjavík.
The first day was spent looking around the capital city, visiting the magnificent cathedral and the President’s house. Pupils were surprised to see minimal policing present, as the country is a very safe place to live.
They visited a geothermal power station where they learnt about new carbon-capture technologies that are being used to tackle climate change and found out how the Icelandic people use heat from below the earth’s surface to produce hot water to heat their homes, roads, greenhouses and even to warm their lakes and some beaches for swimming. They were very impressed by the efforts made in Iceland to protect the environment and minimise pollution and waste.
The hurricane strength gusts of wind made the temperature feel like -10*C and there was snow in the air giving it a magical wintry face-numbing feel.
On the second day, pupils went on the Golden Circle tour visiting Thingvellir National Park where the earth’s tectonic plates can be seen diverging. The sun was shining and the sky was cloudless. They watched the sunrise and spent the day at the spectacular Gullfoss waterfall, waiting for Stokkur geyser to erupt, observing the volcanic crater at Kerrið and learning about the Geography of that part of the island. They were treated to spectacular views of Eyjafjallajokull and Hekla, both large volcanoes and travelled through the snowy mountains with unbelievable sunny weather. Despite temperatures around freezing, everyone enjoyed an hour of outdoor relaxation in the geothermal pools at Fludir. Despite some raised eyebrows at the prospect, all pupils thoroughly enjoyed the bath-warm water and ambience.
The third day had an even earlier start and took in several more waterfalls, some of which were frozen. Pupils climbed to the top of Skogafoss, saw Seljalandsfoss frozen and studied the basalt columns at the black beach at Reynisfjara with its striking coastal scenery, arches, caves, stacks and stumps. They also had the opportunity to put on crampons, helmets and carry ice-axes, to hike up onto Solheimajokull glacier – a magnificent treat in the clear weather with uninterrupted views from the summit to the sea. The scenery was stunning and they learnt a lot about how quickly the glacier is retreating.
Upon returning to the hotel in the evening, pupils were treated to a spectacular display from the Northern Lights which could clearly be seen from the hotel’s viewing platform. This was a wonderful end to a fabulous trip. Our pupils were fantastically well-behaved and enthusiastic and a pleasure to take to Iceland. They returned happy but exhausted and very pleased to have the half-term break to catch up on some sleep!
Mrs. Morland.
Pupil feedback:
“The scenery was amazing . . .it was like being on a different planet. I couldn’t stop smiling!”
“The glacier walk was brilliant fun. I thought it would be hard and at first I was quite scared but it was really worth it. I don’t think I’ll ever get the opportunity to do that again.”
“The trip was something that I will never forget, we did so much in just 4 days”
“I think I’ve got Geography coming out of my ears!”
“It was a fantastic life experience, I loved the geothermal pool.”
“Our guide was fab, she taught us a lot about Icelandic myths and legends.”
“My face froze so I couldn’t even talk. I have never been so cold yet wanted to stay out to see more.”
“It showed me what we could be doing to look after our planet better. They are so into sustainable energy and it made me think about what else we should try to do.”
“Despite the mind-numbing cold, I had the best time. I got to see and do things that I never thought I would. I’m really proud of hiking on the glacier – I never thought I could do that and really enjoy it.”
“ What a photogenic place – I took over 800 pictures!”
The Riot Act Theatre Company visited school last week, to perform ‘Deadly Distractions’.
The theatre company deliver powerful, important educational messages to pupils in schools across the country, through performance.
The actors engaged a hall full of Year 7 pupils, with a performance to raise awareness of the danger of roadside distractions from music, phones, and friends. They also looked at ways pupils can identify and cope with peer influence and peer pressure to promote safe, responsible and positive behaviour on the roads, on public transport and whilst travelling in general.
The Riot Act Theatre Company visited school last week, to perform ‘Deadly Distractions’.
The theatre company deliver powerful, important educational messages to pupils in schools across the country, through performance.
The actors engaged a hall full of Year 7 pupils, with a performance to raise awareness of the danger of roadside distractions from music, phones, and friends. They also looked at ways pupils can identify and cope with peer influence and peer pressure to promote safe, responsible and positive behaviour on the roads, on public transport and whilst travelling in general.
This week, the Y11 Photography pupils visited two sites for inspiration, as part of their coursework, themed ‘Absurd’. Pupils are studying Moroccan photographer, Achraf Baznani – who specialises in photo retouching, surrealism and photomontages.
The first stop was to the Stratford Butterfly Farm, to collect images for content to use in their final piece, submitted in December.
The next stop was Hanbury Hall, Worcestershire, to collect imagery to use as a backdrop for their final photographic submission.
Last week, we held our annual Post 16 event at Studley High School.
More than 25 exhibitors came to speak to our pupils, including sixth forms, colleges and universities as well as local businesses. We welcomed former pupils, now studying at sixth forms and in further education as inspiration to our current pupils.
The event was open to Y9, 10 and 11 and their parents/guardians, enabling them to gain further knowledge of Post 16 and progression onto higher education. The event was a huge success with excellent feedback from the exhibitors on pupil engagement and parents:
“It was a fantastic evening with so much more to learn. Thank you to all, I just wish this was available when I left school!”
“Many thanks for inviting us and welcoming us to your event. The students were very articulate about what they wanted to study after A Levels which was excellent to hear.”
“the event last night was really good, I lost count of how many people I spoke to” quote from apprenticeship provider
Providers attending:
Alcester Grammar School
A2B coaching
Arrow Vale School
Birmingham University
British Army
Bournville College
Gardner Denver
HOW College
King Edward VI School Stratford
MGTS
Mills Pyatt
Newman University
North Bromsgrove High School
Prince Henry’s High School
Rolls Royce
St Augustine’s Catholic High School
St Benedict’s Catholic High School
Stratford Girls’ Grammar School
Stratford College
Solihull Sixth Form
Studley Castle
Tudor Grange Redditch
Trinity HIgh School
Woodrush High School
Worcester 6th Form
Worcester University
Version 1
Every year, staff at Studley High School have the privilege of taking Year 7 pupils away on a three day residential stay. The purpose of these visits is to create a space for pupils to get to know one another, as well as creating chances for them to step outside their comfort zone and undertake a range of exciting activities.
This year, due to our increased numbers in Year 7, we split the pupils across two different sites. Whilst half of the pupils had the opportunity to stay in the wonderful stately home of Grittleton House, the other half returned to the picturesque Whitemead Forest Park following our first visit there in 2018.
Prior to the trip, activities were selected to help develop teamwork skills and resilience. Across the two sites, pupils had the opportunity to participate in varied activities including crate stacking, archery, low ropes and the ever popular ‘body zorbing’! Staff at both sites were very complimentary about the positive attitude shown by our pupils and their enthusiasm in getting involved in various tasks, despite the occasional spell of bad weather!
Mr Rose and Mr Rushton would personally like to thank all of the Year 7 pupils who attended the residential, for their exceptional behaviour and the staff who supported the trip: Miss Blackford, Mrs Guest, Ms Hatfield, Miss Hughes, Mrs Morgan, Mr Salmon, Mr Sidaway, Mrs Wakefield, Mr Willett and Mrs Woodger.
Here are some quotes from our pupils, on their time at Grittleton and Whitemead:
The thing that I loved the most, was the crate stacking…the staff were all amazing.
Jade P
The cabins were really nice and the food was really good! Brandon made us laugh so much in body zorbing, we would just fall over!
Holly R
I learned I could trust my friends and archery was super fun, that staff were very kind.
Alex M
The place where we slept was like being in our own apartment!
Holly S
National Poetry Day is a UK-wide celebration of poetry, that takes place on the first Thursday in October. Each year there’s a different theme and this year’s theme was ‘Truth’.
Pupils (and staff) submitted their poems and the following pupils were awarded prizes as the winner of each house respectively:
Molly H – C6 – Castle
Ellie-Mae S – A6 – Abbey
Jamie Y – P5 – Priory
Georgia M – M1 – Manor
The overall winning order for the house competition is as follows:
Congratulations to all who entered, photos to follow.
Last Friday, we hosted our annual Macmillan coffee morning.
This event is Macmillan’s biggest fundraising event – people all over the UK host their own Coffee Mornings and donations on the day are made to Macmillan.
In recent years this has become one of the biggest fundraising events on the school calendar and 2019 was no exception.
Tutor time was collapsed and break time extended, to allow the school community to spend time together and raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
The charity provides physical, financial and emotional support for those affected by cancer, as well as undertaking research projects to develop care and services.
This year, we received the largest number of donated cakes and the school hall was packed as slices of cake and cups of juice ‘flew off the shelves’, supported by staff and an amazing team of prefects. Any cakes left were donated to a local residential care home for the residents to enjoy.
We are incredibly proud of raising £532.70, beating last year’s total. We would like to thank every pupil, parent and member of staff who contributed to this achievement, and all those pupils who donated a cake will receive a ‘charitable’ postcard and 10 house points.
The Macmillan Coffee Morning tied in perfectly with the Modern Foreign Languages House Competition, “Bake Time for Others”. This competition supports European Day of Languages which is celebrated on 26th September each year, and is coordinated by the European Centre for Modern Languages of the Council of Europe.
European Day of Languages aims to raise awareness of the importance of learning another language in order to improve intercultural understanding and preserve the rich linguistic diversity of Europe.
To enter the competition, students needed to bake for the Macmillan coffee morning with a European theme. Some students baked a traditional European recipe, and others made a statement with the decoration. Mr Prince and Mr Eost judged all the delicious entries (based on taste, appearance, effort and originality) with 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes in each category. Winners received points for their house. All pupils who entered the competition generously allowed their cakes to be sold, also received a ‘Charitable’ postcard and 10 house points.
Congratulations everyone for supporting such a worthy cause!
We are also delighted to announce that Mrs Sanders in Finance, was the winner of the ‘guess the weight of the fruit cake’ competition! She guessed 1.372 kg (it was actually a whopping 1.4kg!)
For the full ‘cake breakdown’ see our Tweet! https://twitter.com/studleyhigh/status/1179742940991836160?s=20
As part of our ongoing aim to broaden our pupils’ opportunities outside of the classroom, the English department recently organised a trip to see ‘Blood Brothers’ at the Birmingham Hippodrome for our Year 10 pupils.
As well as supporting pupils in revising this set text for English Literature, it was also a chance for pupils to see fantastic theatre in a professional environment.
Feedback on the performance from pupils and staff was very positive:
It was a brilliant production. I’m so glad that I had the chance to see live theatre”.
Freya K
It was a really enjoyable performance. I especially like the imaginative approach to a familiar text.
Mrs Dyde, English department
We look forward to future opportunities for our pupils to see even more wonderful productions.
You can’t reach for the stars if you don’t build the rocket!
Last week, we took a group of Year 11 pupils to University of Birmingham for an insight into Uni life and to ‘demistyfy’ what universities are about, giving students real hands on experience.
The day started with a key question:
What percentage of effort are you applying to your learning? If it’s less than 100%, you’re doing yourself a disservice.
We heard some very interesting facts:
The message of ‘hard work pays off’ was clear in every example we heard from Ansar Mohammed, the Outreach Lead. To study Medicine or Dentistry at UoB, they look for grade 7/8 across all subjects. For Veterinary Science, they need a grade 8 across all subjects. These are competitive, popular courses with only 1 place offered to 25 applicants and so Ansar questioned: Are you in the game?
With a strong relationship between the GCSE grades and A Levels, the message was clear: work hard now to get the best GCSE grades and future proof your career.
Pupils had a chance to explore the campus and as it was Freshers’ Week – it was buzzing with activity. Having had a very big lunch and enjoyed a taste of life as a student, pupils spent time with a 3rd year student, listening to the reality of student life.. The idea of living independently; cooking and washing your own clothes, budgeting and organising your own time, certainly appealed to many.
This was a truly inspirational day for our pupils to see what life can be like Post 16.
We are delighted to report that the DofE Bronze cohort of 2019 completed and passed their expedition part of their qualification last weekend!
They started in the Cotswold village of Naunton where they navigated their way through the beautiful, sun soaked hills and made it to camp at Hailes Fruit Farm. Pupils enjoyed the weather whilst striking their tents, playing football, playing cards and cooking their evening meals. The weather took a turn for the worse during Saturday night and everyone tried to rest and recover from a long days walk through the thunderstorm.
Although most did not sleep very well because of the horrendous weather during the night, all woke bright eyed and bushy tailed and set off through the rain, making their way towards the picturesque village of Broadway.
Pupils conducted themselves excellently and had to persevere at times through difficult weather conditions. Although everyone was very tired as they arrived at the final meeting point, pupils were very upbeat about their accomplishments achieved over the weekend.
Well done to everyone involved.
On Thursday morning, we welcomed ‘Riding Lights Theatre Company’ to Studley High to run some exciting drama workshops with a group of Year 7 and 8 pupils.
Riding Lights deliver workshops and shows around the country, to make theatre accessible to everyone, regardless of their circumstances. They ran three workshops with our pupils, focusing on how to use their physicality in drama and exploring different ways of using this on stage. The workshops consisted of a number of physical and vocal warm up exercises, and pupils creating their own version of fairy tales, exploring what their physicality really looked like to an audience.
This pupils involved were enthusiastic and a credit to our school; it was an excellent opportunity for them to explore drama outside of the usual classroom environment.
*******UPDATE*******
Harry is Harriet! 
Well done Miss Bussey for saving her!
This morning, Miss Bussey came to the rescue of a stray hedgehog on school grounds.
‘Harry’ the hedgehog (as he was creatively named) was spotted wandering across the paving slabs by the new food pod, early this morning. Miss Bussey later went to check on him, and found him standing motionless by a small bush.
Concerned for his welfare, knowing that hedgehogs are an endangered species, Miss Bussey and Miss Jordan set about moving him to safety.
After some quick research, they found out what to do:
https://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/wildlife/orphanedanimals/younghedgehogs
If you find a hedgehog in school grounds, awake in the daytime, please tell a member of staff and do not touch it or try to move it yourself!
Harry has spent the day being cared for by the Science technicians (heat pad and cat food, never feed milk or bread to a hedgehog!).
Miss Bussey will be taking Harry to a wildlife rescue centre near Kidderminster after school today.
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