Message from the Headteacher
As you can see from the newsletter, LPGS has been a hive of activity this half-term. None of the many opportunities that are afforded to our students would be possible without a dedicated staff body who give up much of their own time, not only to meet the needs of the formal curriculum, but the enrichment activities that develop students’ confidence and broadens their horizons. This half term alone we have two international trips, one to Washington DC and one to Euro Space in Belgium. In each case staff are giving up their holiday time with their own loved ones, not for financial recompense, but because they believe these experiences are so beneficial to their students, that this sacrifice is worthwhile.
With 29 March fast approaching, the Department for Education has issued a document:
EU Exit: No deal preparations for schools in England
It outlines the implications for schools as employers and service providers. It outlines the likely impact in terms of employing staff from abroad and arrangements for students from the UK studying in Europe (a common arrangement as part of a 4 year degree) amongst other things.
... and a final note from the Headteacher
With the signs of Spring visible around campus, and the mornings and evenings lighter by the day, more and more students are spending their break and lunch times outdoors. We are also well underway with planning for next year’s timetable and the activities week in July. There will be more news of that and the Expert Scholar programme that will explicitly develop the LPGS characteristics after half-term.
Chinese New Year Celebration - Year of the Pig
新年快乐
Mandarin Club taught the Year 8 forms a Happy New Year song and we learned about the Year of the Pig and New Year traditions in form time. At lunchtime we were able to try different Chinese foods and lucky red envelopes with treats inside were handed out if we could say something in Chinese. Luckily the Mandarin Club and the Year 12 Mandarin enrichment students were there to help us!
The Altruistic Society
As the Altruistic Society, our first job was to fully grasp the concept of Altruism and how we could encourage people to be more altruistic in their daily lives. Altruism is the selfless concern for the well-being of others and an act of altruism is something done to benefit someone else, without any personal gain for example, donating blood. It is an important part of any community and although it can require effort from an individual it can have big positive impacts on communities as a whole and for disadvantaged people in need of help.
Over the Christmas period, the Altruistic Society worked with the Senior Prefects to fund-raise for Crisis at Christmas. In two weeks, we managed to raise over £1000 by asking our year 12 form groups to organise bake sales. We also ran a campaign called 12 Days of Kindness, challenging our students and staff to perform a kind act each day such as giving out compliments and writing down positive messages. People completing these challenges had a positive impact on the school community!
We have kick-started a 2000 Altruistic Hours Campaign by speaking to each year group in assembly. Our aim is that through this campaign, we can encourage every student and teacher will be able to spend at least one hour of their time being Altruistic. We have asked, anyone who has contributed to our Altruistic Hours Campaign, to log their hours on the Altruistic firefly page. We have already had many students log their hours, with the current hours raised being 73 hours. We are now integrating the Amazing Altruists and Altruistic Ace of the week, which aims to promote one student or teacher’s Altruistic Activity, from the collated submissions that week. We have had many different Altruistic activities being submitted, from donating blood, dog walking and raising money for charities.
Hopefully we can keep on raising hours to reach our final goal of 2000 Altruistic Hours!
The Alrtusitic Soceity, lead by Miss Cejer, includes students from Year 12 Encirhcment; Ava D (12B), Aisling G (12B) and Jae W (12E).
Law visit to the Houses of Parliament
Year 12 Law students recently visited the Houses of Parliament. We left school at lunch time and travelled for free courtesy of Transport for London. On arrival we were met by vociferous campaigners both for and against Brexit. We were lucky enough to be present in the House of Commons' public gallery as MPs debated and voted the recent amendment to the Withdrawal Bill. The students then learnt about the process of passing an Act of Parliament and took part in a debate on whether the perpetrators of false rape allegations should be imprisoned. We also took part in a Q and A session with a representative of the MP for Beckenham.
First Lego League Success!
On Saturday January 26th, Mr Wheeldon with Macey P, Malena A.G, Athina I and Matilda R in Y10 went to Queen Mary University in East London to compete in the First Lego League against 25 other teams from schools across London and the South East.
They had spent the previous three months working on a Lego robot, programming it to complete as many challenges as possible on a game board. They had to build the robot and design features that would enable it to lift, sweep, retrieve and whack various obstacles. Alongside this they had to complete and investigative project into a problem that might be experienced by astronauts.
On the day, they dealt with various issues including laptop failure, an unsuccessful first run, the battery dying just before a run and being given a Lord Sugar-esque grilling on their robot design. Despite all of this, the girls showed real resilience and were rewarded with the Best Newcomer award. The trophy is now on display in the trophy cabinet.
Anyone interested in taking part in next years challenge should speak to either Mr Wheeldon or Mr Brooks. We'll be starting again towards the end of the summer term, ready for next years challenge.
Year 12 Biology Club Careers talks
In January, Chloe Wallace, an ex LPGS student, came to talk to us about her work as a midwife. Chloe told us about her training both at university and her various placements; she described the role of a midwife within a team of medical professionals and the immense joy of delivering a baby. Chloe spoke with such enthusiasm about midwifery that she cannot fail to have given food for thought to a number of her listeners. Thank you very much Chloe for a very informative and interesting talk.
At our following meeting Eleanor Taylor, another ex LPGS student who qualified as a veterinary surgeon last year, came to talk to us. Eleanor brought some animals with her and students were shown how to hold the animals so that they felt safe and Eleanor taught them how to listen to the heartbeat of each different animal using stethoscopes. In the words of Lucy (a year 12 student) “ it was really interesting about what vets do and amazing to handle the animals and measure their heartbeat – it was such fun” and Megan, a year 13 student said “ Eleanor gave me some very helpful advice on interview technique for my interview at the RCVS”. Thank you very much Eleanor for a very engaging talk.
Visual Arts Department
GCSE Photography trip to Tate Britain
GCSE year 11 Photography students are currently working on their examination preparation working on the theme of, REFLECTION.
The recent Don McCullin show at Tate Britain, harrowing at times and an attack on senses, is a must see for all. A huge collection of hand printed photographs spanning a long career, reflecting on us, society and our treatment of others.
The students were certainly moved by what they saw, McCullin had an intuitive way of reaching out to others through visual communication; a exhibition which makes deep impact and a lasting impression on us all.
Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre in the West End
On Wednesday 19th December, a group of students went to watch the musical Dreamgirls in the Savoy Theatre in the West End. I had the chance to go because it was an end of term treat for the people who are a part of any music clubs/ extra-curricular activities. I am a part of the Trumpet Group, Concert Band and Jazz Band so got an invitation.
On the way there, everybody was extremely excited, to add to the excitement, we saw James Corden getting out of a car going and walking into the Savoy Hotel. He even stopped and waved at us! After this, we couldn’t wait to go and watch the performance.
I thought the musical was brilliant, especially from our seats in the stalls and would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves amazing singing and very sparkly costumes! Overall, I had a great time and loved the whole experience. I can't wait until the next one.
By Zoe H, 10GB
Credits:
Created with images by Skitterphoto - "pink tulip bulb" • rawpixel - "untitled image" • Libracesp - "curtain theatre las vegas"