Blog week ending 25th November

As we move into the winter months, ensuring that our students are safe when they travel to and from school is or paramount importance to all of us. The roads around the Wilmington Schools are often very congested in the morning and afternoon. If you do drop off or pick up your child up from school, please be aware that the busiest times to do this are from 08:20 to 08:50 every morning and 15:30 to 16:00 (14:30 – 15:00 Wed) every afternoon. We would kindly ask all parents/carers to be mindful of these busy times and perhaps plan to avoid them if possible. Students are welcome on the school site from 08:00, and breakfast is available from the school canteen.

We would ask that if you do need to drop off or pick up your child at the ‘busy times’, please keep a very careful eye out for other students crossing the road and we will continue to work with them on road safety. Finally, as hard as it can be, please remain patient and courteous if you do get caught up in the traffic.

On Friday 11^th November, 133 students from Year 9 visited Ypres, Belgium to visit and pay their respects to those who fought and died in World War One. After an early start (4am), we made our way to Ypres, and firstly visited the Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, close to the site of many casualty clearing stations in the area. Here 10,785 people are buried including Nellie Spindler, one of only two female British casualties in Belgium.

We then made our way to the Dunhallow Cemetery, where we held our remembrance day service, remembering in particular Elias Shoesmith, a Man of Kent who is a relative of one of our volunteers. Elias, like so many young men served his country and made the ultimate sacrifice. Here there were excellent readings by Peter W, Alex S, Tomiwa O, while Alfie F and Kobby CB laid a wreath on behalf of the school.  

From this we visited the Passchendaele memorial museum, which amongst its excellent collection includes a mock up of both German and British trenches. Following lunch, we visited Tyne Cot, the largest cemetery on this front, Langemarck, one of only two German cemeteries in Belgium before visiting Ypres and the Menin Gate to the missing. The final stop was the chocolate shop which proved a big success with all the students.

Special thanks to all of the staff and volunteers who worked an 18 hour day to make the trip possible.

Dr Harris

Year 7 Food Technology students combined different culinary techniques to make delicious pasta bakes.  Food Technology provides students with the foundation skills for career paths in the food industry including chef, food scientist and nutritionist.  Practical skills are embedded into the curriculum which enhances resilience and problem solving whilst developing independence in the kitchen.

Our Year 10 GCSE Food Technology students received a specialist demonstration and practical session with a fishmonger.  Students were shown the methods to fillet a round fish and a flat fish before going on to expertly fillet and cook their own fish.  The fishmonger also showed the students how to clean, prepare and cook mussels which they then all enjoyed eating!

All Year 10 Students take part in PE activities whether part of their GCSE studies or (as below) part of their Core PE lessons.  Students are currently developing their own cardiovascular fitness routine combining gym and sporting activities. The aim of our PE provision is to develop healthy, active sportspeople by providing opportunities to educate minds, develop healthy bodies and promote positive attitudes towards a lifetime physical activity, fitness, and sports performance.

Beau W (pictured below), a talented and successful boxer has unsurprisingly been working on a routine that features sparring, skipping and strengthening exercises.

Rugby Fixtures.  On Monday Mr Powell took our Year 8 side to take part in the local tournament held at Dartfordian’s Rugby Club. They played competitive fixtures against Dartford Grammar, BETHS, Hurstmere and Bexleyheath Academy. The standard of rugby on show was very impressive and all games were played in an excellent spirit.

On Tuesday Mr Lynch took our Year 7 side to take part in another local tournament held at Dartfordian’s Rugby Club. They played competitive fixtures against Dartford Grammar, BETHS, Hurstmere and Bexleyheath Academy. The side were victorious in all four games and only conceded one try in the whole competition.

Mr Powell and Mr Lynch would like to congratulate all players that represented the school at these fixtures and thank Dartfordian’s Rugby Club for hosting the events.

This week’s hotly contested Inter-House challenges were four-square, retro board games and tug of war .. the latter of which proved very popular across the year groups drawing quite a crowd of House supporters! 

The leaders board shows Stevenson are out in front!  It’s still early days, plenty to play for.  Check with your form tutor or Mr Pope for next week’s fixtures.

Miss Selby’s Year 7 English class are currently reading Coram Boy by Jamila Gavin which is a historic fiction set in the mid-18th century from the true story of Captain Thomas Coram, who founded the Coram Hospital to foster orphans in London.  In this lesson students have been discovering the shocking living conditions and the cruelty and neglect found in many orphanages at the time. 

Miss Horsley’s Year 8 Scientists are continuing their ‘Explorers’ topic with a practical lesson on survival skills!  Students made a water filter using layers of filter materials including sand, gravel and charcoal then tested the effectiveness of their filters on dirty water.

Miss Tame’s A Level Physics students have been investigating how much energy is lost from the cells in solar panels.  Students have been building circuits to ensure that the panels extract maximum power and run efficiently.

A Level Chemists are currently manufacturing aspirin!  This requires students to complete a series of practical lessons the first of which (pictured below) was to make the precursor chemical that makes aspirin. 

Our WG6 Open Event is scheduled for Wednesday 30^th November.  For more information on the opportunities and subjects available to our WG6 students please read our Curriculum Booklet by clicking here  To apply to WG6 please click here 

Our Librarian has made us aware of the online service PressReader which she wholeheartedly recommends!  The service offers free access to most newspapers and magazines in the UK and overseas too.  This is a great free resource for students to boost their current affairs knowledge. Historians can look at BBC History magazine, Economics students can read The Economist.  Spanish students can read El Pais etc.  Science students can read BBC Science magazine etc.  The service can be accessed by following the below instructions.

How to guide

The weblink is https://www.pressreader.com/  Go to Sign in then click Library or Group

Then search for your local library service i.e. Bexley or Kent

Then enter your library card number. For Bexley libraries members this number starts with 20109…….

Please join me in congratulating Miss Price who has just completed her 30^th marathon, undertaking the Athens Marathon in Greece. It was a particularly special one as it is considered the original marathon; ‘The Authentic’, they call it. This is because it is inspired by the Ancient Greek legend of Pheidippides, a messenger who is said to have run from the town of Marathon to Athens to bring news of the Greek victory over the Persians at the Battle of Marathon. She and the other runners took buses to Marathon at 6am, where it started, and they ran the 42km to Athens, finishing in the Ancient Olympic Stadium; The Panathenaic stadium. Whilst she found it a challenge, especially with a lot of the course being uphill(!), she really enjoyed it and describes finishing in the stadium as a truly once in a lifetime experience.

WGSB PTA Update : PTA lottery: Congratulations to our PTA lottery draw winners!

Sep - No. 1008 Martin P, (7B); and Oct - No. 1002 Guneet U (7S); Nov - No. 1029 James J (10S). Your winnings will be ready for collection from the school office from next week.

Christmas Trees fundraising scheme Update.  Thank you to all who supported this fundraising scheme and have now placed their orders for Nordmann Fir Christmas trees. Please note that collection will be from 4-6pm on Friday, 02 Dec, at the school.

Don’t forget to Support Wilmington Grammar School for Boys - Dartford by signing up to support us for FREE on  Smile Amazon and Easyfundraising as you do your Black Friday, Christmas, daily shopping please!

Christmas Fair: All hands are on deck, our Elves are busy as we prepare for the greatest event of the year . . . WGSB PTA Christmas Fair which will be held on Saturday 3^rd December from 10:00am - 2:00pm. And we hope you will attend. Please invite friends and family members, bring the children and the grandparents along. There is something for everyone. Don’t forget your cash.

This year’s event will feature lots of Christmas stalls with

• Fantastic and fabulous Christmas gift ideas
• Chocolates Tombola
• Drinks Tombola
• Toy Tombola
• Mulled wine and Mince Pies
• Delicious treats
• Christmas Hampers
• Children’s Corner - face painting, crafts and decorations
• Wellness Corner - (Reflexology taster sessions)
• Christmas Raffle - with lots of fantastic prices to be won
• Bacon and Sausage Rolls and hot drinks
• Pre-loved skiing clothes and equipment
• And lots more . . .

You don’t want to miss this event. Come around and buy your gifts and get into the Christmas festive mood early at this fun-filled family event. Event is Free Entry, but don’t forget your CASH.

There will also be nearly new uniform and pre -loved Christmas Jumpers stalls at the event!  We hope you will plan to attend this wonderful event. Please contact pta@wgsb.co.uk  for more information on how you can support this event or if you would like to setup a stall on the day.

Calling all Elves!

Below are some of the items that we would particularly like donated:

• Boxes of chocolates, sweets, Christmas Puddings, mince pies, cakes (in date please!)
• Cakes (shop bought only please)
• Bottles of drinks, wine, spirits, liqueurs - (if parents can drop alcohol into Reception please)
• Baskets (for making up small and large hampers)
• Toys, games, books, bric -a- brac (new, all in good condition)
• Christmas decorations
• Beauty and pampering items
• Toiletries, and unwanted gifts (new and unused please)
• **Pre-loved Christmas Jumpers (clean, in good condition)
• **Pre-loved winter and skiing clothes and equipment (clean, in good condition)

**you can start to send these items in to the school from now.

Can you spare some time to help collect donations (chocolates/drinks/pre-loved items/etc) from the students? (Fri, 02 Dec, 8-10am)

Can you spare some time to help us setup for the Christmas Fair? (Fri, 2 Dec, 4-6pm)

Can spare some time on Christmas Fair day to help man a stall/setup/tidy up? (Sat, 3 Dec, 8am - 3pm)

. . . then please contact pta@wgsb.co.uk to let us know your availability and for more information on how you can help us. Remember, every little help goes a long way. We need more volunteers to support this event both on Friday and Saturday please. Thank you!

Upcoming Events - Please save the dates!

Forthcoming;

• Year 11 Careers Interviews – November 28^th
• WG6 Open Evening – November 30^th
• Christmas Donations Collection Day - Friday, 2 Dec
• Christmas Fair - Saturday 3 Dec
• School Carol service at St Michael and All Angels Wilmington - 8^th December –6.00 – 7.30 with refreshments served afterwards.
• Next PTA Meeting - Monday, 12 December 6.00-7.00pm; {Virtual}
• Year 7 Carol Service joint with WGSG during the school day - 13^th December

 

Best wishes,

Stuart Harrington

Head Teacher