THERFIELD NEWS Issue No.79 26 July 2000

We were also awarded the prestigious Sportsmark award.

Finally the school is more over-subscribed than it has ever been.

It is not surprising, therefore, that other schools have wanted to appoint Therfield staff to promoted posts. We are glad for them but inevitably we will miss them:

My thanks to all of them for what they have contributed to a superb staff team and my very best wishes for the happiest of futures.

This represents about a 15% staff turnover, which is a little higher than usual but not surprising given the success of the school. I am delighted to announce also that we are fully staffed for next year and will introduce the new staff to you in the first Newsletter of the new year.

May I take this opportunity of wishing you all a very good summer and I look forward very much to the start of the new school year. I hope that it will bring as much success as this last one.

Please also look at the latest Governors Report

The Maths department are particularly pleased at the number of Level 8s. Some of the assessment of English Tests is 'strange' and the papers are being re-marked. It is very rewarding to see not only the superb top grades but the results of many pupils who have worked hard and have shown excellent progress during Key Stage 3.

The students practised fieldwork techniques in Chamonix town centre and undertook lots of Alpine walking to learn about the spectacular glacial scenery. A reminder of the sterner side of the visit was the very cold feet they endured while measuring meltwater streams and the constant icy dripping as they ventured inside the Mer de Glace to view glacial ice at close quarters.

With rides in cable cars and on chair lifts there was plenty to keep everyone interested, with the added promise of some eye catching project work for their studies.

Staff and pupils combined beautifully to give everyone a lively, memorable and enjoyable evening.

Special thanks to Sixth Former Tim Boniface, who leads The Stompers with such verve - he spent his Links Week time giving equally enthusiastic help to the Music Department.

Sadly, Mr Pratt has been unwell and, for the first time in years, was not to be seen leading and cajoling his performers to new musical heights - he would be proud to know how everyone rallied round. Hopefully, he will appreciate the sounds they made, as a tape recording of the evening is being sent to him. Fortunately, Mr Pratt is sufficiently recovered to be back in school and we all hope his progress is maintained.

Five pupils - Andrew Fidler, Mitchell Kane, Crispian Dungey, John Andrews (all Year 7) and James Claxton (Year 8) gained gold medals, with John and James achieving best in school and so qualifying for the next round, the Junior Olympiad. Therfield also achieved 15 silver and 23 bronze awards.

This prestigious competition attracted an entry of over 140,000 from 2000 schools and certificates are awarded to the highest scoring 40% of candidates (6% gold, 13% silver and 21% bronze).

Some students found time to take part in a Maths competition from which Nichola Holland and Ted Timmins came away with £10 vouchers. Thanks to Mr Jordan, Head of Chemistry, for acquiring the tickets.

This extremely useful and enjoyable trip provides a practical background for plenty of work to be continued back in class, as well as broaching the social and environmental problems of conservation.

34 pupils have just returned from a fun-filled but linguistically challenging week near Cologne and can vouch for the value - and enjoyment - to be gained from the experience. As their hosts from the Nicolaus-Cusanus Gymnasium had visited us earlier, the Therfield students were meeting old friends and so embarked on a busy programme of visits, as varied as Phantasieland (Cologne's answer to the World of Adventures), a cruise down the Rhine and a tour of the famous and thought-provoking museum of contemporary history.

For the first time Year 12 students joined the Exchange and followed a modified itinerary which enabled them to brush up on their language skills independently.

Africa Evening is presented under the umbrella of the Technology Department and draws in others as part of a cross-curricular exercise. Music, Art and Drama all contribute and the exuberance of the performers owes much to the dedication of staff and pupils alike. A special mention here for Sixth Former Emily King who gave a vast amount of help on the musical side.

• a Pupil Welfare Officer (17.5 hours a week)
• and a Reprographics Technician (18 hours)
• also someone to help out part-time as a Science Lab Technician at the beginning of term - an undergraduate wanting to earn some money before going up to University in October would be considered.

There is also a vacancy for someone looking for a small part-time job providing tea and coffee for staff at morning break two or three days a week.

Initial enquiries should go to Finance Officer Jenny Good at school.

Also, Mrs Christine Stedman (01372 375089) would be pleased to hear from anyone interested in working in the canteen.

With the coast so near, the group also took the opportunity to put in some extra study time on succession on sand dunes on the north Norfolk coast. More understandably, some even tried an early morning yoga session.

A very pleasant follow up to this visit were the letters received from the studios where the group worked and the hotel where they stayed; both praised the students and staff for their 'happy, cheerful and extremely courteous behaviour', the whole party being described as 'great ambassadors for your school'.

In common with most other schools and young readers they selected Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban as the outright winner, praising it for its gripping storyline and wonderful characters.

The Illustrated Mum and Kit's Wildernes' also came in for praise.

All of Therfield's panellists were surprised when the time came to open the sealed envelope to reveal the official winner as Aidan Chambers' Postcards from No Man's Land - the least popular on Therfield's list!

All those who 'signed up' enjoyed the challenge and the opportunity it gave to 'talk books' and were especially impressed by the industry of Alex Kemp in Year 7, who read all eight books - more than the Sixth Formers and the teachers managed!

The previous weekend she had gained her first international vest and won the gold medal for the UK in an U18 international in Budapest. Emily was also successful when competing for England in the Home Countries Schools International at Blackpool last weekend. She will be spending part of August in Edinburgh jumping for England in the Commonwealth Millennium Youth Games.

Congratulations too to Christopher Langridge, also Year 10, who has been selected for a week's England Elite training for Badminton at Loughborough University Institute of Sport. He is the youngest boy to be selected.

Also to James Lloyd, Year 9, who will be travelling with the Surrey squad to Solihull to take part in a tennis tournament and who will also be competing in the U16 event at Surbiton Open Tournament.

Simon also took a first place in the Tidal Championships at Hayling Island as did Catherine Manders in the Novice race. Simon Fuller, Rachel King, lan Sherriffs and Philip Haines were our other successes.

Those pupils and staff who went on the Sail Training Cruise in the Solent were thrilled to get an invitation to go aboard one of the BT Challenge round-the-world racing yachts. They were given a detailed tour of the 70 ft boat and were able to admire all the latest communication gear installed.

Mr Stewart and Mrs Wingrove invest a lot of time and expertise in the Sailing Club and in this they are helped by pupils who work their way up in sailing knowledge.

It was nice to hear from a parent of one of our Sixth Formers, who is now going on to university, on how beneficial sailing had been - "when he arrived in Year 7 he had never been in a boat, but is now a qualified instructor and has been teaching younger members of the Sailing Club. He has thoroughly enjoyed all his school sailing holidays, regattas and cruises."

This is probably a temporary arrangement until she 'finds her feet' in Leatherhead. Anyone interested should call Mrs Hrouda at school early in September.

The 20 teams spent the day working in IT, performing role plays, constructing games to aid memorisation of vital phrases and watching and assessing videos of past oral exams. All students felt they benefited hugely from the day and enjoyed the competitive nature of the programme.

In Gerrnan Dan Richards' team (Jo Wells, Chris Langridge, Emily Cooke, Luke McFadden) and Karl Coppack's team (Peter Mendes da Costa, Anna Caffell, Lisa Penny) were the winners. In French the winning teams were led by Vikki Thatcher (Marie Houlgate, Craig Ball, David Titman, Alex Christie, Ben Gamer) and Nikki Holland (Megan Titley, Richard Skielnik, Jack Carmichael).

Looking at the tightly packed and heavily laden rucksacks, it seemed appropriate that their first port of call was an Army barracks - 'are they emigrating?' enquired one Year 7! Initial reports show that they all arrived safely, though one errant rucksack has gone to Peru!

The Year 7s also lost only one game out of six and have the potential to become a very good side. Year 8 and Year 9 also performed well, both finishing in the top half of the table in the District League.

Players in Years 9 and 10 have benefited from the link up with Ashtead CC and top class coaching from Carl Anderson.

They thoroughly enjoyed the chance to see top level tennis played in an electric atmosphere on the new Number One court.

Although the result did not go the home team's way, there was a bonus for Therfield when Ben Gamer, Year 10, won 20 free racquets for the school in a prize draw!