Bishop’s Musicians Perform at Lady Salisbury’s Coffee Morning

Talented musicians perform at Lady Salisbury’s Coffee Morning at Hatfield House.

On Tuesday 28th March, six of our talented musicians braved a rainy walk down to Hatfield House’s Old Palace in order to perform at Lady Salisbury’s Coffee Morning. This was a fantastic opportunity to represent Bishop’s in splendid surroundings. The coffee morning was to raise money for Breaks Manor Youth & Community Centre & St. Etheldreda’s. Our audience was treated to wonderful performances from the following students: Holly armer and Ellie B (Year 11) singing a vocal duet from the musical Evita, Em W (Year 9) performing a beautiful piece of Grieg on the piano, Kiruga J (Year 11) performing a movement from Reade’s Victorian Kitchen Garden Suite on the clarinet, sensitively accompanied by Grace M (Year 9) on the piano, and Sophie G (Year 10) singing Popular from Wicked. The girls did themselves and the school proud, giving some very polished and confident performances. A number of members of the public commented on how beautifully they played, and how it was lovely to also hear some instrumentalists performing at the coffee morning for the first time. Congratulations to all six performers!

Treading the boards in Matilda

Year 7 enjoys treading the boards in our Matilda production

Matilda the Musical was an outstanding opportunity to be part of and I was extremely honoured to be chosen for the lead role, alongside Polly C. It was a wonderful experience to be able to work with extremely talented girls, from various year groups, since this helped to vastly boost my confidence, not just for the show but in other areas of my life too. Rehearsals began almost immediately after auditions were over in the September 2022, which meant we had 7 – 8 months of consistent rehearsals. These took place each Monday and Wednesday until the nights of the shows – of which we had 2. The first night, Polly took the lead and on the second night I took my turn. Both nights turned out to be a success and our perseverance and commitment really did pay off and have had lots of positive comments since. That said, it did not come without nerves and stepping out into the spotlight was very daunting. However, with much reassurance from the teachers, staff, my family members and fellow cast, the show was a success and it certainly made me realise that performing is not just about putting on a dazzling show for audience members, but to also enjoy yourself along the way. With that in mind, I want to finish by saying that I thoroughly enjoyed performing on both nights, and I believe I speak on behalf of the rest of the cast, when I say that, with much hard work and determination, we produced a Musical that no one will ever forget!

Siena-Maria MH

GCSE Musicians Watch Inspiring Performance

GCSE Musicians travelled to Stevenage Music Centre to watch a fantastic concert, led by conductor Patrick Bailey.

On Monday 27th March, our Years 10 and 11 Music GCSE Students travelled to Stevenage Music Centre to watch a fantastic concert, conducted and led by Patrick Bailey. Patrick Bailey is a conductor, composer, arranger and presenter who conducts concerts with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Sinfonietta and many others. He has given concerts across Europe and in Dubai, India, Oman, China and the USA. As a composer, workshop leader and presenter, Patrick has led projects and written and presented concerts for BBC orchestras, BBC Proms, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, Royal Opera House, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Music for Youth. He led an inspiring and informative session for us, which presented pieces from different musical periods, some minimalism as well as music composed for television. The pieces were performed by a small orchestra of professional musicians. As well as the works just being performed, Patrick also explained the context of the pieces, and analysed them, illustrating his points with some cues being played by the musicians. The language he used to do this recapped some really key vocabulary which is vital for our students in their listening and appraising exam. The afternoon concluded with Patrick leading a composition session in which he practically illustrated an approach to composing a whole piece for GCSE using just two 4-bar fragments of music. This was a very useful learning experience for our students in order to help them with the composition element of the course. Some of our students commented that this was the first time they had seen a real orchestra play live, making it a really memorable experience. This was a fantastic event organised by Hertfordshire Music Service and we were very pleased to be able to take part.

Bronze DofE Expedition Training Day

Duke of Edinburgh participants enjoyed a day getting ready for their expedition.

As part of the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award, pupils took part in an expedition training day on Monday 27th March when not just the sun was shining – volunteers and participants alike had a fantastic day. The participants learned the theory of how to use a compass and practised orienteering on the school field. They experienced how to cook their planned expedition meal(s) on a Trangia and enjoyed their meals out in the sunshine. With the expedition rucksacks being almost bigger than some of the participants, they were shown how to correctly pack and adjust their rucksacks for safe carrying, and to avoid being tipped over in the process. The day finished with pitching tents with a record time of 7 minutes for the first group. Pulling together and helping each other out was one of the big aims for participants and this teamwork was clearly on show throughout the entire day.

A big well done to all participants and a huge thank you to all staff involved. Special thanks to Mr Underwood and Ms Blakey for supporting this day.

Mr D. Stevens & Ms T. Hurley (DofE managers)

GCSE and Year 9 Students cook up a storm!

GSCE Food Students and Year 9 Students create some delicious food at Bishop’s.

As part of the GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition course, Year 11 Food Students completed their last practical for their Food GCSE exam last week. They achieved incredible results using their high level technical skills they have learnt creating 3 delicious dishes in 3 hours. This was a great way to complete their last required practical for their Food GCSE NEA2.

The Year 9 students also did themselves proud by creating their own Street Food for our Street Food project. They created Burrito’s, Souvlaki, Curries, Pizza, Pasta and delicious desserts using their technical skills and their hygiene and food safety knowledge. It was all so delicious that we could have opened up our own Street Food Festival!

Close Connections of the Pyramid Kind

Year 8 scientists design pyramids showing connecting food chains as part of British Science Week 2023

As part of British Science Week 2023, we designed and decorated pyramids to show connections between food chains.

We drew our pyramid net in maths and took it to our science lesson where we researched different food chains to draw on each side of the pyramid. We had to find food chains that were connected in some way, as the theme for British Science Week was ‘connections’. The pyramids were judged on construction, creativity, accuracy and connectivity. My partner, Babara and I won a prize for the pyramid that scored the highest in all those categories. We enjoyed this activity, learnt a lot about different food chains and it was good to see how maths and science can also ‘connect’ together.

Caitlin E

Great Bishop’s Exhibition – Year 8 assess the British Empire

Our Year 8 enjoyed a History Assessment with a difference!

Our Year 8 always enjoy one particular Assessment in the History syllabus: when they get a chance to re-create the Great Exhibition of 1851! As part of their studies into the British Empire and its positives and negatives, Year 8 are tasked with finding out more about certain countries and the impact on them in being part of the biggest Empire in the world. Our pupils never cease to amaze with this project – in their delivery and enthusiasm! It is a group task. All have roles from creative stall decoration and cake making to research and write up. There are also key roles on the day of the exhibition, to present and explain their judgements on the impact on their allocated county. The Great Bishop’s Exhibition included Ireland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia, Kenya, Barbados and South Africa. The displays were full of fun facts, history of the country and if we were lucky a tasty cake or culinary treat indigenous to their country. Mr Wood and Mrs Mansfield were special guests at the Exhibition and both were bowled over by the range of information and creativity on display – I think they even got to sample a few goodies when visiting!

Call to Action ! Apprenticeship Registering Workshop

Year 12 attend a workshop to outline all apprenticeship options and help pupils register

The Department of Education are actively encouraging all employers to provide Apprenticeships at all levels of education from the more traditional Apprenticeships at 16+ to Apprenticeships at 18+, 21+ and beyond. A few weeks ago as part of our Year 12 Careers programme, our pupils were given a myth-busting presentation on all the opportunities available to them in the world of Apprenticeships. Following on from this, Bishop’s hosted an Apprenticeship Registration Workshop to help our pupils sign up and use the government website for all Apprenticeship opportunities that arise going forward. This workshop was optional – as another route to consider along with UCAS for our Year 12s – and about half the cohort joined in this active session. Our presenter, Becky Betts of Services for Young People, explained how to register and set up alerts for areas of interest. She also explained further the different types of Apprenticeships that exist nationwide and the wide range of businesses and organisations in multiple fields and disciplines the Apprenticeship listings cover. Top tips were given on how to search chosen fields and employers and then advice on how to apply. Our pupils got the interactive session to register and familiarise themselves with opportunities. This is all part of our Year 12 Careers programme focusing on equipping our young people with information about the many choices they have at 18+.

 

For more information on apprenticeships, visit our Careers page.

Cultural Clothing Day

BHGS students share and celebrate their cultural heritage

We decided to host a culture day to appreciate and acknowledge diversity within our school community. We wanted to highlight and celebrate our cultural heritage by holding a ‘cultural dress catwalk’ to showcase everyone’s cultural clothing. Students were able to explain the history behind their clothing, be it the print or the style, which gave everyone the chance to share part of their heritage. Artefacts were also brought from home to show not only what people wear, but staple items within their households. On behalf of the Equality and Diversity Committee, we thoroughly enjoyed presenting some of our cultural clothing and giving people an opportunity to do the same. It was great to see people showcase their culture with confidence and remind everyone of how diverse our school is and to celebrate all the different cultures within it. We hope you enjoyed it!

Bryana C, member of the Equality and Diversity Committee (9Se).

Year 10 scientists full of STEAM at Roche’s ‘GeneratioNext’

A group of Year 10 scientists spent the day at Roche Pharmaceuticals, learning about various careers in STEM

On Thursday 23rd March, we visited Roche Pharmaceutical in Welwyn Garden City to attend the GeneratioNext event (an early careers programme to help young people explore STEM careers).

We were given breakfast when we arrived which was a great surprise! We heard from a very inspiring keynote speaker, Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon, who discussed her career thus far and how science and technology have impacted all our lives. She asked us to always think ahead with technology and be innovative and creative at all times. We heard from a data manager who showed us how to use various data systems to assess levels of risk, we looked at what factors would affect who survived on the Titanic!

After lunch, which was provided (great food!), we worked in groups on mock clinical trials, uncovering what obstacles drug companies can encounter when trying to develop a new drug. It was a competition and my team won!

We also had a careers fair for an hour where we could chat to scientists at Roche and ask about their projects, career paths and were given handy hints to help us as we continue our learning journey at Bishop’s. It was a great day, with lots of useful career advice, new knowledge linked to our GCSE Biology specification and some fantastic food and freebies!

Penelope D