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Stunning Cathedral trip

As part of Curriculum Day, Year 9 students went on a humanities trip to Ely to take part in a variety of activities based on Art, RE, History or Geography. Lottie Bond describes the trip: After a coach ride from Bassingbourn to Ely, each group started the morning differently - my group began in the stained-glass museum that was inside the Cathedral. We began by learning centuries-old techniques used by monks to create the windows, how they made different colours and why they were made. After the workshop we began touring around the museum. On every wall were stunning patterns and designs displaying pictures depicting anything from biblical stories to images of monarchs commissioned by kings themselves. Art students took particular interest in the museum as their next scheme of learning will be incorporating some of the art styles and techniques seen there, but everyone else still enjoyed the experience. My group next ventured downstairs, into the main part of the Cathedral. With ceilings as higher than they were wide, it is an understatement to say we, including the staff, were amazed with the beauty of it all. As we entered, both the ceilings and the walls were decorated with intricate designs showing biblical stories, including the Nativity, the Easter story and the Ascension. While we were all stunned at the cathedral itself, we were kept interested by our tour guide, who not only taught us about common Christian teachings but also opened up theological discussions into the nature of God, which I, as an…

Dance Show gallery

BVC students Talking Aloud

Year 9 students Amelia Peace and Elliot Perkin represented Bassingbourn Village College at the inaugural Cambridge Talking Aloud competition. The public speaking competition was organised by Amber-Page Moss, of Peterhouse College, University of Cambridge, and attracted state schools from across Cambridgeshire. Amber visited Bassingbourn last term to deliver a workshop to our Year 9 students and to explain the competition to them. Amelia and Elliot were supported by a group of their BVC friends (above) and English teacher Mrs Rebecca Boxall. The Bassingbourn B team (right) had a last minute substitution at this week's Cambridge area final of the ESU's Churchill Public Speaking Award. Year 9 student Lottie Bond stepped in at the last minute to compete alongside Matt Gilliland and Fraser Clapham. Fraser once again won the evening's Best Speaker award and the trio were awarded second place overall, narrowly missing out on a place at the semi finals which will be held at Magdalene College, Cambridge, next month.

Curriculum Day activities

The normal timetable was suspended on Tuesday to allow students to enjoy extended activities related to specific curriculum areas. Year 7 enjoyed classroom-based activities related to poetry and performance while Year 8 covered wellbeing in PSHE, seeing first-hand how to deal with worries and the power of listening to each other chat over a simple cup of hot chocolate. A trip to Ely saw Year 9 enjoy a Humanities trip to Ely where they were able to visit the Oliver Cromwell Museum, Ely Cathedral, the stained glass museum looking at religious art and a geography field study within the city. The PE and Science departments joined forces with Year 10 to look at how we process food and burn calories – literally! Activities ranged from chocolate tasting to fitness sessions, all linking to wellbeing and healthy eating. The Year 11 pastoral team took students on a day-trip to the O2 to recognise their hard work so far this year. The students voted to visit the Oxygen Freejumping Park where they were able to take part in a number of activities including virtual reality games, bowling, watching a film and a visit to the interactive Sky Studios. BVC Principal Vickey Poulter said: “It takes a lot of planning to run a Curriculum Day and the whole day was particularly busy - including an impromptu fire alarm at the end of the day! “I spoke to a number of students across year groups and they all said how much they had enjoyed the day so I’d like…

Bonjour et bienvenue!

Our third annual French exchange has started with the college playing host to over 70 students from our partner school, Collège Joseph Bédier. Year 10 students Evelyn and Imogen describe the visit: "On Monday 27th January, we finally got the chance to meet our French exchange partners for the first time. They arrived after a long journey from the south of France by coach, and they had stopped on the way at Windsor castle and Grantchester for a cream tea! We picked them up from school and took them home where we gave them a tour of the house, bonded over activities such as watching films, playing games and answering their questions. "The next day the students came to our school, travelling with their partners by bus or car. Firstly, we had a presentation by students lead by college captains, which involved performances on the trumpet, piano, singing, GCSE dance students and a performance from some of the Matilda cast. The French students were really impressed! During the rest of the day the French students participated in activities such as a tour of the school, games in the library, PE and a short English and Maths lesson. They also shared a traditional English lunch in our canteen. "In the evening we took our partners out to enjoy bowling and a meal out. This was a great way to learn more about them. "Overall it was a great experience which has improved our French, our communication skills and we can’t wait to go to stay with…

Student voice is loud and clear

The tradition of producing good public speakers from BVC has continued with another of our students being awarded a Best Speaker award. The English Speaking Union's Churchill school's public speaking competition attracts entries from over 400 schools in England each year, with the Cambridge branch competition being hosted at Bassingbourn this week. Seven teams from four schools competed against each other - Bassingbourn and Bottisham Village Colleges, St Mary's, Cambridge and St Bede's Inter-Faith school - with teams from Bassingbourn and St Bede's winning their way through to the branch final. Bassingbourn fielded two teams, photographed above with English teacher and public speaking coach Mrs Rebecca Boxall. BVC team A comprised Katie Cheeseright, Ciara Free and Archie Lievesley with Katie choosing to speak on the proposal that 'The #MeToo movement has instilled fear rather than empower people'. Special mention must be made of Ciara who stepped in with just 20 minutes notice and impressed the judged with her confidence and calm manner. BVC team B - Jon Cheeseright, Matt Gilliland and Fraser Clapham - won through to the next round with Fraser speaking on the controversial proposal that 'Recycling is a waste of time'. Following in the footsteps of former BVC students Ed Evans and Iain Lynn, Fraser also scooped the main award of the evening - Best Speaker. This is the third consecutive year that BVC has won this award. The Churchill district final will be held at Hills Road Sixth Form College on Thursday, 6th February. Year 9 students showed great promise at…

Recycling project sorted!

A student-led recycling project has received the backing of the BVC Parents and Friends Association. Annie Safford, a year 11 student and Head of Luther King, launched an environmental awareness programme across the college as part of her role on the Student Council. Last term saw a number of quizzes take place with information posters placed in classrooms and public areas of the college to reinforce the importance of recycling to students. Annie said: “I have been working with our subject ambassadors to raise money for recycling bins which are badly needed in the college. “I think that having recycling bins would be a big step towards making the school much more sustainable and would be greatly appreciated by everyone.” When the PFA was approached to see if a cash contribution could be made toward the bins, they immediately agreed to buy ALL the bins for the student council – enabling the project to be completed much sooner than expected. Ann Lynn, acting Chairman of the PFA, said: “We were very impressed by how hard Annie and the rest of the school council have worked to raise awareness of sustainability and recycling in the school. Annie’s request for funding was one which we felt we could whole-heartedly endorse and unanimously agreed to pay for all the bins.” Vickey Poulter, BVC Principal, added: “We are very grateful to both the school council and to the Parents and Friends Association for their hard work and financial support for this project. I think that Annie in particular should…

Dance Show 2020

Tickets are now available for the annual BVC Dance Show. The show will feature entertainment from all year groups and is one of the post popular creative arts showcase events in the BVC calendar. There are three shows - 7pm on Friday 7th February plus 2pm and 7pm on Saturday 8th February - and tickets are £6 (adults) and £4 (concessions). These can be purchased via Wisepay. A licenced PTA bar will be available at all shows for refreshments.

Bad weather arrangements

We would like to inform parents of our closure procedures in the event of adverse weather conditions. Parents and students will be informed via the following methods: Announcement via the local radio (Heart, Radio Cambridge) A notice will be posted on the school's website and sent via Parentmail BVC Facebook and Twitter page If you use the Cambridgeshire.gov website to see whether schools are closed, please be aware that if the status column is blank then the Council will not have received any information from us.  Therefore please rely on the information posted on our website and sent via Parentmail, Facebook or Twitter as this will be the most accurate and up to date information available.

Matilda sell-out success

Bassingbourn Village College

South End, Bassingbourn, Royston, Hertfordshire, SG8 5NJ

01763 242344

office@bassingbournvc.org
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