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February 2023
It does not feel like it has been that long since our last edition of Ribston Roar, especially with February half-term creeping up on us so quickly, but there was still much to celebrate this month!
Recently we have been involved with a number of projects with the National Cyber Security Centre. With women representing just 22% of the UK’s cybersecurity industry, getting involved in these event and workshops are really important in encouraging girls to think about a career in cyber. Annie Adamson, Bea Parish and Evie Poole in Yr 8, took part in the National Cyber Security Centre's CyberFirst Girls Competition - a prestigious, national competition lasting 10 days, where students solve online Cyber, logic and coding related puzzles set by the staff at GCHQ. In February the Ribston Team took part in the South West region finals which took place at the Defence Cyber Academy, and we were incredibly proud of them winning the South West competition.
During the month students got involved with activities that were run for Apprenticeship Week, and we were lucky enough to have a number of invited guests visiting us from Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, and Digital Woof a Digital Start-up company, students also benefited from an 'Apprenticeship Arcade' in the library throughout the week. Apprenticeship Week, is quickly followed by Career Week, which we are already preparing for ready for next week.
As we head into Spring it is lovely to have some lighter morning and evenings, but it also means we are heading into exam season. Staff from across the school have been working with our incredible students to build resilience and self-confidence and supporting them to look after themselves and each other during the coming weeks. We have great confidence they will do brilliantly!
Mrs Sarah Colombini
Headteacher
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Sociology
Court Trip
Recently Yr 13 Sociology students enjoyed a fascinating visit to Gloucester Crown Court. They were treated to a close-up view of the workings of part of the British criminal justice system. Students were able to see a variety of different cases which ranged from a person charged with being in possession of a dangerous and out of control dog, to someone accused of supplying drugs, to another involving assault. Students experienced the prosecution and defence lawyers determining trial dates and were introduced to all the court officials and their roles in the court process. The judge took time between cases to give very detailed talks about what people can expect when they are arrested and charged with a criminal offence, as well as how they are dealt with by different types of courts. It was a fascinating trip for everyone, and we were fortunate enough to be sat only feet away from the action. This visit should prove to be an invaluable one for all the students in their broader education and will help them enormously in their Crime and Deviance studies at A level. Our thanks to everyone at Gloucester Crown Court for a uniquely informative day.
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Dance
On 13th February students from GCSE and A-Level Dance performed at Cheltenham Town Hall Schools' Festival.
Eva Yordanova and Eliana Blaxill opened the evening with their performance duet, 'Helium.' This was followed by a group dance 'Vertigo' from Year 10, and then Isobel Rankin in Year 12, performed her examination piece 'Alston-Esque.'
All students have worked very hard in rehearsals and danced beautifully on the night.
Audience members and other school teachers commented that they thought Ribston Hall students' performances were professional, angelic, extremely well-rehearsed and Ribston was the stand-out school at the showcase. Well done dancers!
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Eco Committee
Following a request from the Eco Committee the RHA very kindly donated money for some more benches for the school. The committee felt it important to get more people outside and enjoying our natural environment and give students the opportunity to have more areas to de-stress in-between lessons.
The students got completely stuck in putting the benches together, drilling holes and screwing in legs, many students got to use power tools for the first time.
The benches are made completely from recycled plastic so will be in use for a long time, but still environmentally friendly.
The 6 new benches, 3 rainbow and 3 curved brown, can be found in quieter areas around the school.
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Psychology
Brains
Yr 10 Psychology students were set a challenge to come up with something creative to show the different areas and structures of the brain. Mrs Haigh was astounded by the amazing array of Brains that were put on display in the classroom. We had brains made of cake, spaghetti, brains carved out of melon, papier mâché, magnetic brains, puzzle brains, 3D pop up models, glitter brains, very intricately drawn brains and even some animated and video lessons on brains. It was a tough call to decide the best ones, but the winning brains belonged to Amelia G, Gabby, Lucille and Delilah, who made their brains from melons, glitter and pop-up effects, while also explaining the functions of the different parts of the brain.
It is safe to say that year 10 now know their parietal lobes from their occipital lobes!
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Egg Babies
It is the time of year that egg babies are born in Year 12 Psychology. As part of their attachment unit, students' 'birth' their egg babies and keep them in close proximity for one to two weeks, taking them to classes, socialising with them and making sure they are kept safe and supervised at all times. The students keep a diary showing their theoretical knowledge on attachment, emphasising the bonding behaviours taking place.
Unfortunately, some of the eggs did not survive the entire period, but those who did, went on to graduate as the Egg Class of 2023! You can see from the photo that Lauren was overcome with emotion when her baby graduated!
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Music
GCSE music Students attending GCSE Concert at Gloucester Guildhall
Yr 10 GCSE Music students attended a special GCSE Concert, organised by Gloucestershire Music Service, at Gloucester Guildhall on 2nd February. The first half of the concert presented four selected set works from GCSE examination boards, being performed by a number of orchestral musicians from Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and the second half demonstrated a live composition session by the BSO’s composer in residence. Prior to this concert, BSO ran a competition for all the attending schools to submit a melody composition. Year 10 music students worked on this project back in December, and one composition by Ruth Brook and Ruadhan McCorquodale was internally selected and submitted. BSO’s composer in residence chose the melody composition by Ruth and Ruadhan, created a complete piece, and premiered it at this concert. Ruth who was present at the concert received a full acknowledgement and applause by the composer as well as a full attending audiences. A fantastic afternoon concert experience!
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Exam Skills Day
On 6th February Yr 10 completed an Exam Skills Day to support them with their preparation for the Diagnostic Assessments they are currently completing. Students received sessions on: Study space and exam skills; Time management and motivation; and Revision strategies. The students also had an opportunity to practice self-care and consider ways to relax to help support good emotional health. Students left the day equipped with lots of revision strategies to try and resources to access.
Yr 10 will have completed all their Diagnostic Assessments by Thursday 9th March. We have all been very impressed with the year group this week as this is their first experience of completing assessments under the examination regulations. They have consistently demonstrated resilience and a ‘can do’ attitude. Well done Year 10 – Keep going!
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Wellbeing
Here at Ribston we have a Peer Mentoring scheme which operates alongside our normal support systems. Peer Mentors are Sixth Form students who have been trained to listen, guide and encourage younger pupils. We are aware that there are times when a student might feel that they could do with someone who understands; who has ‘been there, done that’, someone who is not a teacher.
Peer Mentors work closely with the Yr 7 and 8 Form Tutors and spend time with their nominated Tutor Group each week. Peer Mentors also offer one to one mentoring sessions with students from all year groups. So whether you are struggling with homework, settling in to Ribston, experiencing friendship problems or unhappiness at home try talking to a Peer Mentor, it really might help. Peer Mentors can be contacted through Wellbeing or Heads of Year.
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Geography
Our A'Level Geographers had a trip to Dorset on the Jurassic Coast in February, They investigated the factors that affect infiltration at Durlston Country Park and were also studying the Carbon Cycle, estimating the carbon storage potential of a small area of woodland. Students spent time studying the impact of longshore drift and beach management at Swanage and investigated dune development at Studland. The group packed a lot in over just a few days, and after a day in the field worked on into the evening learning about statistics in Geography.
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PE
We had a fantastic performance from Yr 7 Netball squad earlier in the month, they beat Holmleigh Park, A team 17-0 and B team 17-2.
Our U14 Football team have also been doing well beating Holmleigh Park 7-0 in their cup game. Player of the Match was Cameron Smith.
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Graphics and Art
This month has been full of amazing creative outcomes from Yr's 9JAD3 and 9KAD4 3D Graphics groups.
Yr 10 3D Design GCSE Skill building Mini Project also had some excellent outcomes focussing on Texture, Finishes and use of the Laser Cutter.
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At the beginning of the month six of our Yr 9 students competed in the Rotary Chef Competition which was hosted at the Kingsholm Rotary club.
The Rotary Young Chef competition, gives entrants the chance to put their culinary skills to the test and be judged by leading industry professionals. Entrants plan and cook a healthy three-course meal for under £22, develop their food presentation skills and gain experience in high pressure situations. Whether you’re keen for a culinary career or just an enthusiastic home cook, this competition is a fantastic opportunity.
Isabella Byrne, Mariama Faal, Mary Parker, Nancy Thompson, Abigail Claridge, Scarlett Mainwaring -Taylor- Winner all took part and Scarlett Mainwaring-Taylor was the winner of the heat and Abigail Claridge was runner-up. Scarlett will now go on to compete in the district final against other local schools in March. Scarlett cooked stuffed peppers to start, a halloumi and chicken skewer severed on homemade flat bread for main then an avocado and chocolate mousse for dessert. Congratulations Scarlett!
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Following the Schools County Cross-Country Championships in December at Newent, Ruth Brook in Yr 10 ran as part of the Gloucestershire Team in the Intermediate Girls Race at the South West Schools Cross-Country Championships at Blaise Castle, on 5th February where she placed first. The Gloucestershire Inter Girls Team took the Team Gold.
Ruth has been selected to run as part of the Intermediate Girls Gloucestershire team at the English Schools Athletics Association Cross-Country Championships in Nottingham on Saturday18 March.
Well done and Good Luck Ruth!
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Congratulations to Romans who re-gained the top of the leader board in the house competition this month.
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