CALENDAR

The English Martyrs School and Sixth Form College, Catcote Road, Hartlepool, TS25 4HA

Tel: 01429 273790 Fax: 01429 273998

e-mail: admin@ems.hartlepool.sch.uk www.ems.hartlepool.sch.uk

The English Martyrs School and Sixth Form College is now on Facebook and Twitter.

Please visit www.facebook.com/EnglishMartyrsSchool and 'like' the page to receive information from the

news feed or follow @EMS_Hartlepool on Twitter.

Wednesday 2nd April (to 3rd) House Sports Friday 2nd May Feast of the English Martyrs Y11 Mass

Thursday 3rd April Y13 Parents Evening AS French Speaking Exam

Friday 4th April Sixth Form Easter Mass (to Tuesday 6th May) A2 Ceramics Exam

School Council Meeting A2 Art Textiles Exam

(to 5th April) Biology Zoo Trip Monday 5th May Bank Holiday

Monday 7th April Wednesday 7th May AS Graphics Exam

(to Monday 21st) Easter Holiday (to Friday 9th) Y9 Retreat

Thursday 10th April Thursday 8th May A2 Graphics Exam

(to Friday 11th) Cambridge Residential AS / A2 MFL Speaking Exams

Saturday 12th April Friday 9th May House Council Meetings

(to Saturday 19th) Ski Trip Saturday 10th May MFL / History / RE Revision

Tuesday 22nd April New Term starts Monday 12th May External Exams begin

Y10 Meningitis Vaccination Wenesday 14th May Catholic Partnership Athletics

Y8 HPV Vaccination (Girls) Thursday 15th May Y8 York University

Wednesday 23rd April Friday 16th May Dukeshouse Wood Residential

(to Thursday 24th (am)) AS Ceramics Exam Saturday 17th May German Revision

Thursday 24th April A2 Music Performance Exam Wednesday 21st May Catholic Partnership Athletics

Piano Recital (6.00 pm) Friday 23rd May Y13 Leavers’ Mass

Friday 25th April Monday 26th May

(to Monday 28th (am)) AS Art and Design Exam (to Friday 30th) Half Term

Monday 28th April EMA Meetingt Monday 2nd June Beginning of term

(to Tuesday 29th) AS Art Textiles Exam Tuesday 3rd June Catholic Partnership Mass

AS Music Performance Exam Wednesday 4th June Y7 York University

(to Friday 2nd May) Y10 H&S Care Work Exp. Monday 9th June Y10 GCSE Catering Exam

(to Monday 12th May) Y8 Assessment week EMA Meeting

Wednesday 30th April Tuesday 10th June CP Rocket Challenge

(to Thursday 1st May) A2 Art and Design Exam Wednesday 11th June York University Big Deal

Thursday 1st May Y12 UCAS Convention Thursday 12th June CP Softball Tournament

Musical Soireé Y7 Parents Evening

E

School Uniform / PE Kit - New Arrangements

All school uniform and PE kit is now available from:

Altered Images, Hartlepool Enterprise Centre, Brougham Terrace.

The store is open from 9.00 am to 4.30 pm Monday to Friday

and 10.00 am to 2.00 pm on Saturday. Tel: 01429 265413.

Uniform will no longer be sold from the Salvation Army Centre. Garments are supplied by the same suppliers and there will

be no increase in price. It is hoped that these changes will make the process of ordering, buying and collecting school

uniform more convenient for parents / carers.

If you have any items of school uniform or PE kit that your child no longer needs (which are still in good condition we would

be grateful if you would send them to school. We will then keep a supply of uniform and PE kit in school which can be loaned

to students in an emergency. Thank you

School will finish for the Easter break on Friday 4th April at 3.10 pm

and will reopen at 8.50 am on Tuesday 22nd April.

Contact Details Please will parents / guardians notify the school office immediately if there are any changes to names,

addresses, telephone numbers, mobile phone numbers or the named contact persons of students.

It is very important that contact information is kept up to date.

The English Martyrs School and Sixth Form College

Parents’ Bulletin No 5

April 2014

Easter Message

It seems very strange to be writing an Easter message when we are only half way

through Lent. Quite often though we enter Lent and endure it through gritted teeth

with the challenges that it brings and all that fasting that we undertake in order to

cleanse our soul a little. Let us not forget that our efforts in prayer, fasting and

almsgiving are not in vain, the Scriptures tell us that when we do these things in

secret, our Father in heaven who sees everything will reward us.

In just under 3 weeks we will celebrate the greatest miracle ever known. The death

and resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. The beauty of this season is that although

we fast for 6 weeks, we then get to feast for 8! Easter is a great time for joy,

celebration, indulgence and all that is good. We have much to celebrate. That life

won for us through that one act of love on the cross was not only the greatest act of

sacrifice but it won for us the gift of eternal life. Let us be filled with that sure and

certain hope as we continue through Lent but keep our eyes on the prize that is Easter!

Ampleforth 2014

Every year we fill Alban Roe House at

Ampleforth Abbey for our Lent Retreat and it is

always one of the highlights of our year. This

year did not disappoint. We had students from

Year 7 right through to Year 13 and the eldest

participant was 92. The programme was

planned, prepared and led by our exceptional

team of Sixth Form students who worked hard

in the weeks leading up to the retreat. They

really are a credit to our school.

The theme was “The Circle of Life” and we

focussed on the topics of birth, life, death and

resurrection. The students had the opportunity

to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation in

the crypt of the monastery and we joined the

Ampleforth community for their Sunday Mass.

We played games which emphasised the point

of each topic and the times of prayer were extremely

poignant. The weekend included the annual themed

fancy dress and of course, “Miss Malcolmson’s Big

Night In” quiz and dance-off.

Since the retreat, the students who took part have been

back to the chapel on a daily basis and are eager to

throw themselves into the spiritual life here at English

Martyrs, especially as we prepare for our mission in

October.

To see video reflections of our time at Ampleforth,

please visit the “EMS Mission” channel on YouTube and

also, follow our Youth Ministry feed on

Twitter @Hpool_Ministry.

External Summer Exams start on 12th May and

finish on 24th June .

Engineering Day

On Tuesday 18th March 10 students from Year 9 took

part in a day of Engineering based activities at

Newcastle University. They discovered the variety of

Engineering opportunities and prospective careers

available. They took part in a rage of activities including

a talk from a recent Engineering graduate, a team

building activity and a real lecture in a lecture theatre.

The day was thoroughly enjoyable and has hopefully

opened the opportunity of Engineering as a potential

career to the girls that attended.

National Enterprise Challenge 2014 at EMS!

On Tuesday 11th

February a number of Year 9 students participated in

‘Enterprise Day’ which was hosted by The Ryman 2014 National Enterprise

Challenge. Students were separated into teams of 6 and had to come up with

an entrepreneurial idea of designing a new flip flop range for the already

existing business ‘Gandy’s Flip Flops’. Their idea could potentially be in the

shops available to buy next year! Students got to grips with key business

concepts that they will be introduced to next year if they go ahead and choose

Business Studies as one of their options. The day was a huge success and our

winning team consisted of Jennifer Cope, Isabella Starling, Patrick Mulvey,

Olivia Bennison, Matthew Windram and Timmy Hutchison who did a fantastic

job of pitching their Business idea to the judges. These 6 students will now go

onto Manchester in July to pitch their idea to Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis

and compete with other winning teams from across the country. We wish the

English Martyrs School winning team every success and a big well done to all

other teams who competed in the challenge.

Jewellery / Make up

We have noticed a recent increase in various items of jewellery being worn to school by students and would like to remind

parents of our policy on this. Apart from wrist watches and a pair of single stud earrings for girls, jewellery is not allowed in

school. The wearing of make up and nail varnish is also not allowed. Recently a number of girls have turned up with nail

extensions which they claim to be unable to remove. These should also not be worn.

FREE SCHOOL MEALS

Children whose parents are in receipt of one of the following are entitled to receive free school meals (FSM):

� Income Support (IS)

� Income Based Job Seekers Allowance (IBJSA)

� An income related employment and support allowance

� Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

� Child Tax credit (provided they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit) and have an annual income which from 6th

April 2013 does not exceed £16190 as assessed by HMRC

If you are in any doubt whether your son / daughter is eligible for Free School Meals (and the associated Pupil Premium

payment) contact Hartlepool Civic Centre on 266522.

You will need to supply your National Insurance number before they carry out a simple eligibility test via their Eligibility

Checking Service.

Remember

� School can provide packed lunches or a hot meal as part of the FSM service

� In the 2014 / 2015 financial year schools will receive £935 per secondary pupil who has ever been eligible for free

school meals. This could help your child in a wide range of ways.

Student Safety Would parents please avoid dropping their children off in any of the staff car parks at any

time during the school day. It is in the best interests of all students’ safety if the number of vehicles

entering the site is kept to a minimum.

Medicines / Tablets

Please remember that students must not carry any tablets / medicines in school. If students need to bring tablets to school

they should hand them in to Mr Craddy for safekeeping.

Music Department Events

Piano Recital Thursday 24th April

The Atrium at English Martyrs Sixth Form College 6.00-pm - 7.30 pm.

Students from Year 7 through to Year 13 will perform the pieces they have been

preparing for Grade Exams and other events. Admission is free

The World Music Festival Tuesday 29th

April

The Borough Hall 6.30 pm - 9.00pm.

The Chamber Choir and Youth Voices have been invited to perform at this

prestigious annual event organised by Tees Valley Music Service. They will join a

massed Primary Choir and the Hartlepool Concert Band in the performance of a

number of songs from The Musicals. Tickets for the concert can be purchased from

the Music Department at £4.00 for adults and £2.00 for concessions with under 16’s

free. The choirs will sing two pieces on their own and there will be a number of

soloists showcased.

Sixth Form Musical Soiree Thursday 1st

May

The Atrium at English Martyrs Sixth Form College 6.00 pm - 7.30 pm.

This year the Sixth Form Musical Soiree will be held in the Atrium of the Sixth Form

College. It will feature some of our most advanced and talented students, many of

whom are going on to study Music at University. Year 12 / 13 students will perform

a selection of their exam pieces. Entry to the event is free.

Music Instrument Appeal!!!

Time for a Spring clean? Do you have an unwanted musical instrument lying around

at home? Perhaps a guitar or keyboard that you no longer play!

The Music Department would be very happy to put it to good use. Any instrument in

reasonable condition would be very much appreciated. Please bring instruments

directly to the Music Department or to the School Office.

The English Martyrs Association

The next EMA Meeting will take place on Monday 28th April 2014 at

7.00 pm in the Conference Room.

ALL ARE WELCOME - your contributions / ideas are very much appreciated

Find more about the EMA in the Community section of the school website

Follow EMA on Twitter: @ems_association

email any enquiries to: ems_association@ems.hartlepool.sch.uk

Recently the EMA have donated funds to help the following groups of

students:

� £700 to PE to kick start their Sports Leaders group.

� £750 to Technology to kit their Woodwork rooms with new

aprons to help keep the students safe and their uniforms clean!

� £600 towards taking a group of students on a trip to Mull and

Iona. The children selected each year are Year 9 students, all of

whom have shown commitment to their school work while

having to deal with personal challenges on a daily basis.

Our next fundraising events are

our annual student Easter

Tombola (Thursday 3rd and

Friday 4th April) and Quiz Night

(Thursday 8th May).

The tombola is an annual event

eagerly anticipated by the

students which is held during

their lunch break in St Anne’s

Hall. We are very grateful for the

varied Easter goodies which have been donated by staff, students and

parents.

The Annual Quiz Night is another popular event. Tickets are available

from the school office, priced £6.00, including pie and pea supper.

Everyone is welcome.

Thank you for your continued help and support.

Rotary Club Public Speaking

On the 13th

February, six students were involved in the

Rotary Club Public Speaking competition. Both teams

won the Hartlepool round. The Intermediate team

included Elizabeth Shanks (Y9), Joel Barry (Y9) and Lois

Joynt (Y8). The Senior team included Jack Twydale

(Y11), Rachel Baines (Y10) and Carmel Harrison (Y10).

The District Final took place on 2nd March, in

Gateshead, and both teams won their respective

categories to proceed to the National Semi-Finals in

Dundee, Scotland, on 8th March. Both teams delivered

exceptional performances; the students are assets to

the school.

Public Speaking

In March we held our fifth Annual House Public Speaking Competition. We had 21 competitors who spoke for two minutes

each on a subject of their choice. The standard was extremely high and helped us to maintain the strong tradition for public

speaking that we have established at The English Martyrs School and Sixth Form College. The winner of the KS3 competition

was Grace Allen who spoke on “It’s good to talk”. Runner up was Lois Joynt who spoke on ”Gambling - the wild side of life”

and in third place was Millie Twydale whose topic was “Beat the Bullies”. KS4 winner was Eve Coates who entertained

guests with “The 3 people she would most like to meet and why”. In second place was Alex Foster who said that it was good

to be different and in third place Leah O’Sullivan on “Laughter is the best medicine”. Recordings of the speeches can be

found on our school website.

We also had three competitors taking part in the Catenian Competition between the Catholic schools in the north east. Our

three competitors were Chloe Harvey who gave a 5 minute speech on Pope Francis. The Intermediate competitor was Alex

Foster whose 4 minute talk was on “The shortage of Priests” and in the Junior section Isabella Starling entertained the judges

with “What really annoys me”. The three students finished as runners up in their sections with each receiving a £75 cheque.

In February students were presented with their Platinum Merit certificates and trophies by Mr Lee

St Anne Line House Mass

St Anne Line House held their Mass with all year groups and guests from the parish at the end of January. The theme was

community and each year group had a focus in which they completed tasks to help people within our community. St Anne

Line year 7’s had The English Martyrs School community. Year 8’s have been contributing to the Foodbank collection point in

the chapel. Year 9 students have made cards which will be sent to members of the Parish. Year 10 students will be visiting

Care Homes to share some quality time with the elderly. The year 11 students collected old toys, books and games and some

of the St Anne Line students delivered them to the Children’s Ward at North Tees Hospital. The students had a tour of the

ward from the Play Co-ordinators, Claire Wise and Chris Goodwin and they demonstrated what some of the donations would

be used for. We thank the Children’s Ward for letting us visit and hope we can support you again in the future.

St John Vianney Parish Meal

A group of Year 7 and Year 9 students,

helped by the marvellous Mrs Moller and

the brilliant Mrs Bainton, prepared and

served soup to the parishioners of St. John

Vianney’s church during Lent.

On the menu was a very exotic Italian bean

and pasta soup as well a more traditional

leak and potato, rounded off with apple

crumble and custard. The children from

the parish primary school, pictured here,

told us it was the best restaurant they’d

ever been to!

Many thanks to Lydia Ryder and Michael

Hutchinson for their invaluable help.

Fairtrade

On Friday 28th

February, English Martyrs School and Sixth

Form College held a Tombola at Tesco. It was a great chance

for us to help the community become more aware of what

Fairtrade products are available to buy. We had over 25

different items on our table from bananas to rubber gloves.

There were 5 students representing our Steering Group:

Nathan Liddell-Archer, Joshua Cain, Amber Lee, Byron Bell

and Louise Connor.

The following week we held a banana loaf competition. One

member from each department baked a loaf then they were

all judged. We had 3 winners; 1st

SEND, 2nd

History ,

3rd

Technology. This was followed by a coffee morning when

everyone was able to taste all the different cakes. It was a

great success.

FOODBANK - During Lent, school have been donating items of food for the Hartlepool Foodbank

which feeds poor families right here in our own town. The Foodbank is providing a vital service to

people in the town and after Easter we hope that the food collections will continue. If you can

donate any of the following urgently needed items, they would be greatly appreciated. Please ask

your son or daughter to bring them to the chapel.

SUGAR TINNED FISH TINNED FRUIT CEREAL RICE

UHT MILK COFFEE SPONGE PUDDINGS INSTANT MASH PASTA SAUCES

John Bell Lecture

In March we held the Thirty-fourth

Annual John Bell Lecture.

The lecture this year is was delivered by

David Eagle, a former Sixth Form

student who now tours the country, and

indeed the world, with a sea shanty

band, the Young Uns.

The evening proved to be a hugely

enjoyable and entertaining occasion for

all who attended.

Geography Field Trip

Thirty five AS Level Geography students spent the weekend on the North York

Moors gathering data for their practical examination paper. The group stayed

near Whitby at Boggle Hole Youth Hostel. On the Saturday we worked with the

North York Moors Park Rangers near Danby and studied river changes from

source to mouth.

Maths Challenge

Eight Students from Year 8 participated in a

regional Catholic Partnership Maths

challenge. One team were successful in

winning the relay round- a fast paced

dangerous game! They came second

overall. A fantastic achievement given that

there were 15 very strong teams from a

number of schools.

Well done to both teams on representing

the EMS Maths Department.

The winning team were: Felicity Skidmore

Amy Wright, Hannah Kerridge and

Caitlin Gray.

Catholic Partnership Bake Off

On Friday 28th

February Thomas

Turnbull and Joe Laundon represented

English Martyrs in the annual Catholic

Partnership Bake Off which took place

at St John’s School Bishop Auckland.

The theme of the day was ‘Teddy Bears

Picnic’; the boys underwent three

challenges to produce food products

suitable for this theme. The first was a

technical challenge that involved

making a batch of chocolate éclairs. On

this challenge the boys excelled them-

selves making éclairs of a high enough

standard to turn Mary Berry’s head!

They were placed joint first at this stage. The second challenge was a vegetarian picnic snack made with short crust pastry.

The boys showed imagination and flair with their layered picnic basket design. As the boys entered the final challenge

tensions were mounting as they embarked on decorating Teddy Bear themed cup cakes. The standard was exceptionally high

from all nine teams from different schools in the Diocese. Our boys were close runners up with only one mark between them

and the winning team. Well done to Thomas and Joe - look out for them on future Master Chef Competitions!

Barcelona

In March 21 Year 10 Photography and Art students visited Barcelona to photograph the fabulous views and architecture of

the city. After arriving and checking in at the hotel, the students went for a walk along Las Ramblas, the most famous street

in Barcelona and a trip to Port Vell for an evening meal. On Monday morning, the students visited the famous landmarks of

artist Antoni Gaudi, spending the morning at Parc Guell. This is a beautiful park designed by Gaudi with amazing views of the

city and interesting structures all incorporating small mosaic tile patterns. The afternoon was spent in La Sagrada Familia,

also known as the unfinished Cathedral. It was designed by Gaudi and he started building it up until his death in 1926.

Various architects have since continued his work to the exact plans of Gaudi. It is estimated that it will take another 15-20

years for the outside it to be completed. The inside has recently been finished and is an incredible sight with hundreds of

different stained glass windows lighting up the cathedral in all the colours of the rainbow. It really is a place that needs to be

seen by everyone! The second day was all about the Olympics and a visit first to the Olympic Port and village, where the

athletes stayed during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. There are famous hotels and a fish sculpture by architect Frank Gehry,

put in place for the Olympics. There was a trip to Montjuic hill on the afternoon and a visit to the Olympic stadium, passing

the beautiful waterfalls outside of the National Palace on the way. It was all about art again when students visited the Miro

foundation, a collection of work from another of Barcelona’s famous artists and saw the ‘Barcelona Head’, a sculpture by

artist Roy Lichtenstein. After a quick trip to the Nou Camp, home of Barcelona FC, the students headed off to La Ramblas and

Placa Reial for an evening meal on their last night in the amazing city.

All of the students took hundreds of photographs which will form part of their studies for their GCSE Art and Photography

courses and help them gain top grades in the subjects next summer.

Rotary Club Photography Competition 2014

A talented teenage snapper has walked away with the

top prize in an inter-school photography competition.

Hartlepool’s Rotary Club’s recent Young Photographer

Competition attracted 31 entries from keen

photographers at English Martyrs School and Sixth

Form College, Hartlepool Sixth Form College and High

Tunstall College of Science. The theme of the

competition was ‘people’. Adam Gofton, 16, from

English Martyrs, was crowned as the winner, with

fellow pupil Joseph Spence, 18, as runner up. Both

Adam and Joseph received a prize for producing the

winning entries illustrating once again the talent and

dedication of students at English Martyrs.

Key Stage 3 Catholic Partnership Photography Competition Key stage

three students of all the schools within the Catholic Diocese were invited to

participate in a photography competition to showcase their talents. The

competition had various themes for students to respond to. All entries will be

displayed in a formal exhibition in the Winter Gardens in Sunderland and the winners and

runners up will be announced during the event. Good luck to all English Martyrs’ entrants.

World Book Day

On Thursday 6th

March ten year seven pupils

attended a World Book Day trip to Crown Street

Library in Darlington with six other schools from

the Catholic Partnership. The day was a huge

success! All of the chosen pupils made a great

effort to attend in costume and performed

presentations about two of their favourite books;

The Weight of Water by Anita Shreve and Goblins

by Philip Reeve.

The students participated in a host of fun activities organised

by the library and partnership staff, ranging from book

readings to an illustration master class! The day was a

fantastic way to

celebrate World Book

Day and promote a love

of reading amongst our

students; we are already

eagerly anticipating next

year’s event!

A Day of Discovery at Newcastle’s Writing Lab

Earlier this month, three year 10 pupils, Haydn Rogan, Anna Strickland

and Jacob Clyburn, attended the Catholic Partnership’s first Writer’s

Laboratory at Newcastle’s Discovery Museum. The day was a great

success; we had the opportunity to work closely with a number of

published writers and the staff of the museum. As an added bonus,

we were granted access to the museum’s archives, which are not

open to the public, with one of the curators giving us a personal tour.

Haydn, Anna and Jacob have all written original, thoughtful and

creative pieces as a result – thank you to all involved.

Hartlepool Rotary Club Competition

We are pleased to congratulate our two Year 7 students who are the

proud winners of the Hartlepool Rotary Club Writing Competition.

Hannah Dickson won the competition and Jack Grand came runner up.

This is the second year in a row that 'The English Martyrs' has won this

competition.

Berlin Trip 2014

Nineteen German and History students spent 4

days in Berlin 23rd

– 26th

March. They were able to

learn about the impact of recent history on this

vibrant and unique city as well as experiencing

German culture first hand and practising their

language skills.

On arrival we went to see Check Point Charlie and

then walked on to see the Brandenburg Gate by

night. On Monday a walking tour of Berlin provided

information about many famous buildings and their

history. We then visited the Topography of Terror -

an exhibition detailing the impact of Hitler’s rise to

power on Germany and its people. This was fol-

lowed by a visit to the East Side Gallery - a section

of the Berlin Wall which is now used by artists to

make political and social statements. Finally we

went to the Olympic Stadium where, as well as

learning about its history, we also witnessed the

preparations for the visit of Bayern Munich the

following day. We certainly felt we had earned our

pizzas in a Berlin restaurant that evening!

Tuesday was equally busy with visits to the Berlin

Wall exhibition centre on Bernauer Strasse, (a street

that was literally split in two when the wall was

built), the Reichstag and the Memorial to the

Holocaust victims. We finished the day with a visit

to Alexander Platz – the bustling centre of Berlin

today with its wide range of restaurants and

food stands.

Wednesday morning was a chance to visit the most famous

department store in Berlin – KaDeWe and stock up on souvenirs

and presents for friends and family before heading back to the

airport where there was time for one final Currywurst before

the flight home!

The trip was hailed a great success bringing History and German

lessons to life and helping students to appreciate the

significance of the city and its history in Europe today. Students

were great ambassadors for English Martyrs School and Sixth

Form College and behaved impeccably

throughout. They were a real credit to

themselves and their families.

Catholic Partnership Competition

Well done to the Year 9 students who were

runners up in the Catholic Partnership MFL

video competition! Students were asked to

create a promotional video highlighting the

value, enjoyment and rich opportunities that

speaking other languages offers but with a

twist – the students had to do this in a foreign

language! Twenty-two pupils took part in the

project to produce a video presentation in

French. They impressed the judges who loved

the polished video which they said was ex-

tremely professional and persuasive. The

judges were also impressed by how many

students were involved in the project. The

video will be appearing on the school website

soon. Well done to all involved!

University Links

This year we have been strengthening our links with universities. Our students have had amazing opportunities to

participate in conference days, residentials and open days at some of our most prestigious universities.

We have had a fantastic outcome in many of our students securing places on university supported progression programmes

to raise their aspirations and assist them with their pathway into higher education.

Below are some of the things our students have been involved in:

RE Revision

There will be a Year 11 GCSE RE Revision day on Saturday 10th May in school from 10.00 am to

12.00 noon.

Year 10 the Big Deal Competition

The Big Deal is an enterprising competition that develops students’ innovation, creativity and risk management skills.

Students from year 10 attended a detailed briefing at the Launch Day on Monday 17th

March at the University of York.

Teams will now compete against each other over ten weeks to create a product or concept. They will complete an online

curriculum with the support from their mentor who is a business professional. The teams will be required to develop a

business plan, which they will then pitch at the final Dragons’ Den on Wednesday 11th

June at the University of York. The

winning team will be taken on a business trip of a lifetime to New York City to present to the world leading companies.

MFL Revision sessions for GCSE

An intense revision session for GCSE French will be held on Saturday 10th

May 9.30 am - 11.30 am.

This will provide essential exam practice for the Listening and Reading exams which take place on

Monday 12th

May (afternoon). Bonne chance!

A similar session for GCSE German will be held on Saturday 17th

May 9.30-11.30 in preparation for

the Listening and Reading exams which take place on Monday 19th

May (morning). Viel Glück!

Year 13 Parents’ Evening – Thursday 3rd

April Year 13 Parents’ Evening will take place on Thursday 3

rd April 2014 between 4.00pm and 6.00pm.

It gives parents and students the chance to discuss their current progress at this important time

before exams begin.

If parents are unable to attend, it is expected that students will attend to have these important

discussions with their teachers. Parents should have received a letter regarding this and an

appointment sheet which should be used by the student when approaching their teachers.

Year 12 UCAS Convention – Thursday 1st

May As an introduction to applying to university in the next academic year, all Year 12

students will attend a half day UCAS Convention at Teesside University on the

morning of Thursday 1st

May 2014.

The convention provides students with the opportunity to speak with representatives

from various universities about the courses that they offer. This is one of the many activities organised in the Sixth

Form to help students begin the process of considering their post-18 options.

University Open Days

All of the universities open days are now

available to book on-line via their websites. It

is essential that Year 12 students do this as it

not only gives an insight into that university

but also supports any university applications

that are made.

University Residential

Fourteen of our Year 10 students took part in a residential at The

University of York 25th

– 27th

March. This has been designed to raise

awareness of the progression routes and variety of further and

higher education provisions available. Students were encouraged to

develop their own learning styles and to increase their confidence and self esteem. Students were inspired and motivated to

achieve academic success.

Year

Y12 10 York University Supported Progression Programme

Y12 5 Newcastle University Supported Progression Programme

Y12 4 Durham University Supported Progression Programme

Y12 6 Durham University – Insight Programme

Y7 to Y11 94 York University Shine Programme

Y9 9 Durham University Supported Progression

Y12 / Y11 15 English Focused Oxford University conference

Y12 6 Oxbridge conference

Y12 13 Durham University conference

Y12 18 Kings College Cambridge University Residential

No. of Students

History Department

The annual Year 9 trip to Beth Shalom Holocaust Memorial Museum in Newark took place. Students were able to see first

hand the causes and effects of the mass murder of Jews and other minorities that took place in Nazi occupied Europe in the

1940s. Also, students were privileged to hear from Stephen Frank, a Holocaust survivor who had been interred at Terezin

and whose Father was murdered at the hands of Nazis. His talk was inspirational as well as heartbreaking, and allowed us a

rare opportunity to hear from someone who was actually there. Once again, the day was filled

with reflection, historical perspectives and hope, and all students were an absolute credit to

the school. We did chuckle when our Year 9s knew more than the University students who

were also at the talk in the afternoon!

Next term Year 8 will have the opportunity to go to the Heugh Battery as part of a local study.

Art and English Combine to Celebrate Shakespeare!

To celebrate Shakespeare Week, Year 7

students were given the opportunity to

get creative with some of his finest work.

They were given creative freedom and

the opportunity to combine Art and

Literature. As the students have been

studying various forms of poetry, this

was the perfect opportunity for them to

explore some of Shakespeare’s much

loved Sonnets. Their homework in

preparation for this work was to choose

a Sonnet and bring in materials to use to

create their works of art. The students

did not disappoint: they arrived to their

English lessons with paint, glitter, craft

paper, gem stickers and pastels, ready to

celebrate the work of the Bard!

The creations are fantastic, as you can

see from the images here, and are now

proudly displayed on the walls of their

English classroom.

Well done Year 7!

Katie Laybourn

On the 23rd

February, Katie Laybourn attended the British Gas

Northumberland and Durham swimming championships. She

swam the 100m freestyle and had to qualify for Nationals

within a time of 1:04:63. Katie qualified for the final after her

performance in her heat and achieved a time of 1:04:05. Katie

will now be competing at Ponds Forge Sheffield in the summer

holidays.

We wish her the best of luck for her race.

Catholic Partnership Netball Tournament

The Year 7 and under 14 netball teams competed in the

Catholic Partnership Netball Tournament in Newcastle. The

year 7’s were crowned champions and the under 14’s finished a

respectable 3rd

place. The teams displayed some fabulous

netball throughout the tournament and really did the school

proud.

A special mention goes to Libby Skidmore who was presented

with ‘The Most Promising Player of the Future’ award.

Well done Libby.

5* Performance at Catholic Partnership

The EMS rugby team had 8 players selected for the Catholic

Partnership Rugby team to play against Ampleforth College,

one of the most prestigious schools in

the country. The team was selected last

month and the boys who were

successful in the trial game were: Kieran

Hogg, Sam Kitching, Kieran Goddard,

Harry Powell, Lewis Connor,

Danny Winship, Jack Cooper and

Andrew Croft. The first six mentioned

played in the game with Jack Cooper

and Andrew Croft missing out due to

injury.

During the game the boys from EMS

were among some of the stand-out

players with 5 of the 6 tries scored by

the team coming from Martyrs

students. Four of the tries came from

man of the match Kieran Hogg and the

final try from winger Lewis Connor. The

final score was 36-5 to the Catholic

Partnership Team.

EMS ‘Smart’ Stars

The EMS Sports Stars have improved their image with a large number of the

athletes receiving tracksuits and training gear. The students who have been

attending 2 sessions per week were lucky enough to receive Nike tracksuits. In

addition to them looking more professional, they have also been aiming to step

their way up the performance ladder by developing their physical and mental

skills. They have had the privilege of training with Co-ordination specialists from

the Body Alignment Clinic in Hartlepool, Chris & Dennis Bartram. Dennis is

extremely passionate about the programme and has donated wobble boards,

balance bars and other various pieces of equipment to assist the athletes in

improving their co-ordination and consequently overall performance.

We have also had the Royal Marines put the athletes through their paces.

During their visit they had the sports stars sweating it out with a military style

work out which, needless to say, left them all feeling that they had been

‘pushed’. The Marine PTs who led the session said that they were massively

impressed with the fitness levels of the group. It was one of the fittest groups

they have ever taken and their attitude and determination was the best they

had seen in a long time.

On the last day of term EMS Sports Stars will be visiting Manchester City Football

Club as a reward for all the hard work.

Hartlepool Schools Gymnastics

Sadie Laffin (Year 7) represented English Martyrs and competed against other

schools within the town in the vault and floor event.

Sadie came 1st in the key stage 3 advanced floor competition, 1st out of the key

stage 3 advanced vault competition, which meant she came 1st overall in the key

stage 3 advanced competition. Well done Sadie.

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