Issue 19 | January 2015

Floyd FootnotesSir Henry Floyd Grammar School

www.sirhenryfloyd.bucks.sch.uk

Wilkins Solicitors LLP - for legal advice that is friendly and professionalCan we help you? - Call us on 01296 424681

We cover a range of legal issue from property, wills and trust to family, employment,

accident claims and other court matters.

Our highly experienced principals ensure skill and expertise in all the areas we cover, and they are well-supported by

a team of junior colleagues, enabling us to provide a professional but cost-effective service to our clients.

Serving Buckinghamshire for over 100 yearsFirst Floor, Lincoln House, 6 Church Street,

Aylesbury HP20 2QS

Email: mail@wilkinssolicitors.co.ukwww.wilkinssolicitors.co.uk

LLP

Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School has never put on a show like it - The Wizard of Oz was the Floyd’s biggest and best show yet! With its incredible set, sound and costume, the flourishing young actors aged between 11 to 18 came together to produce L. Frank Baum’s iconic piece about one girl’s odyssey to the mysterious land of Oz. It was not just about what you could see onstage however: the backstage crew worked incredibly hard to surround the cast with a cinematic (and portable) set, gorgeous sounds and wonderful costumes. The audience felt as if they had stepped onto the yellow brick road with Dorothy and friends once they entered Sir Henry Floyd’s theatre for the four sold out performances.

Ben Churchill, 6A1

The Autumn Concert on 22nd October showcased a spectrum of performances ranging from solo pieces to orchestra ensembles, and an immense variety of styles and instruments. The audience hoped to experience a night full of brewing talent amongst Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School students and they were not disappointed. This night was definitely one to remember.All performances were incredible: the audience and the students adored each and every one - unique in its composition. In particular, the solo performances by Sammy Vong, Luke Tomkins, Hugo Piper and Anna Hale were exceptional and so inspiring for younger students.

An example of one of the astounding performances was Anna Hale who performed her first ever marimba solo that brought a brilliant new flavor into the concert. Anna’s playing was full of expressive dynamics and absolute accuracy, which seemed very hard due to the difficult rhythms and harmonies she had to play. Nonetheless, Anna captivated the audience.Not only were there solo performances. A

duet featured Alice O’Neill and Yanice Begar singing and playing on the acoustic guitar the song ‘Hearts on Fire’ by Passenger. This song warmed the hearts of the audience, as the soft harmonies and beautiful singing and playing resonated out into all four-corners of the hall. The audience was utterly entranced throughout the song and the students back stage also adored every note of this piece.

An ensemble piece of the Floyd Macapella truly brought the Disney flavor out of ‘Kiss the Girl’ from the Little Mermaid. With members in Floyd Macapella increasing every year the sound heard at the Autumn Concert was full of rich harmonies and a rainbow of fabulous bow ties. Not only was the audience humming along to the well-known tune, but they brought it to life with movements, gestures and facial expressions leading to a very entertaining performance.

Additionally, the Senior Orchestra performed Chopstix Variations and Sound Innovations Fanfare by Sheldon. The two very interesting choices of music were full of expression and accuracy plus blasting in volume. And we must mention the difficult tempo and metre changes but the orchestra who rose enthusiastically to the challenge.

The Sound Innovations piece was encored numerous times with the audience clapping profusely at the entire night’s performance. What a finish to the concert!

Many special thanks go to all the teachers involved and Performing Arts Ambassadors and Young Arts Leaders who give of their time to lead students in their love of all things musical. To conclude the term, the Christmas Celebration on Wednesday 17th December did not disappoint. Full of fabulous and entertaining pieces, including the carols sung by the audience and played by the orchestra, the usual blast from the Floyd brass and numerous choirs and Accapella groups. Not to mention the readings by students Tsamaija Forsythe-Gidharry, Maddy Matthews, Findlay Fleming, Mufaro Kapfunde, Emmeline Downie, Jack Blue and Luke Burton. In particular we thank Reverend Doug Zimmerman for his welcome and the use of the facilities of St. Mary’s Church, and to all the teachers who contributed to creating such an amazing programme and performance in the traditional run up to Christmas.

Madeleine Glover, 10H

The Wizard of OzSince September, the Performing Arts department has been working on what has possibly been Sir Henry Floyd’s most challenging production yet. A huge number of students were involved in the show, from Year 7 to the Sixth Form. Though the preparation process was demanding, the performances in the first week of December were certainly something to be proud of, receiving excellent feedback from audience members. Several teachers have put a huge amount of time and effort into ‘The Wizard of Oz’, namely Mr Bunn, Faculty Leader, who directed and produced the entire show. The choreography by Mrs Whitfield was undoubtedly brilliant, and we were very sad to see her leave the school at the end of the Autumn Term. However, the work put in by Mr Cole and his tech team was spectacular and without it the show would not have been nearly as spellbinding. The production was filled with larger-than-life set, pyrotechnics, wind machines, and even the face of “the great and powerful Oz” himself. The tech team were also responsible for live-linking the orchestra to the theatre, as they played upstairs in A15, led by Mr Forshaw.

The iconic role of Dorothy was wonderfully portrayed by Jessica Hopkins in Year 11, who has dedicated so much of her free time to the show, being in all but one scene! She was joined by Seb Applewhite as the Scarecrow, Jacob Cole as the Tin man and Ben Churchill as the Lion, who all gave

outstanding performances every night. The last night was rather emotional for Year 13 students, including Seb and Ben, for whom ‘The Wizard of Oz’ was their last production here. Performers, tech team and orchestra members leaving will all be missed!

A special mention must also go to the brilliantly behaved Paddy Kratt as Toto, who was an excellent addition to the show. On behalf of everyone involved, I must say ‘The Wizard of Oz’ has been one of the best musicals at this school yet. Congratulations to all, and we hope that everybody who saw it was thoroughly entertained.

GCSE Drama ShowcaseOn Thursday 6th November, the Year 11 Drama and Theatre Studies students showcased their devised pieces to friends, family, and each other, in preparation for their upcoming practical exam. The students, in groups of three to six, were provided with a stimulus on which they based their performances, as well as styling their work around a practitioner like Brecht or movement such as surrealism or frantic assembly. The marks, assessed by the drama teachers, are based on the performances given, and the contribution made throughout lessons towards the creation of the pieces that were produced by the students working together in their

respective groups. A great variety of drama was displayed throughout the evening, from some emotionally moving moments to highly comedic scenes. An entertaining evening was had by all, and we wish the GCSE students the best of luck in their examination, and their results in August.

Anna Hale, Lead Ambassador for the Performing Arts, 6C3

PA AmbassadorsAs always it has been an amazing term for the Performing Arts department, packed with breath-taking events from the Autumn concert to our activity sessions with Pebblebrook and the phenomenal school production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’. It has been a pleasure working with staff and students alike and we can’t wait to see you at future events. We hope that you all had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

J P Waksman, 6A1, Anna Hale, 6C3, Rhiannon Bacchus, 6H1, Emily Hale, 6H3 and Emily Dimino, 6M2

I am pleased to be able to add a contribution to another very full edition of Floyd Footnotes – once again describing an enormous range of activities and achievements.

The Wizard of OzMany readers will have seen our school musical production ‘The Wizard of Oz’ at the end of last term. It was a huge success. The acting, singing and dancing were excellent, with some very impressive performances from the principals. The contributions of those who did not get on the stage were probably the most impressive of all. The technical complexities of building a stage, providing numerous pyrotechnics, lighting a yellow brick road under the stage, creating a tornado in the theatre with two large wind machines, balancing the sound between an orchestra in another room and the singers on the stage plus creating a snow storm were as complex as anything we have ever attempted! The technical crew led by Mr Cole were rehearsing in school all day on the Sunday before the show right up until one o’clock in the morning. They were then back in school before 6am on Monday and worked right through until eight o’clock that evening. That was a spectacular super-human commitment!

The orchestra also deserve a special mention. Musical shows in schools usually come with a special schools’ version of the orchestration. Not so in this case. The music that our students played was exactly the same arrangement as that used by the professional orchestras at The National Theatre – the same notes in the same order and at the same speed! It was very demanding indeed but Mr Forshaw and his musicians pulled it off.

Decision Times for Years 9 and 11This term is the time that Year 9 students choose the subjects that they wish to study for GCSE. They will spend time in PSHE+ lessons considering their choices and we will hold an evening for parents to explain our curriculum structure. We are still experiencing some tensions between what we think is best for our students and what the government values enough to include in performance tables – but we are committed to designing a programme that we think is in the best interests of our students.

Year 11 students have a big decision to make over whether they choose to study A levels or the International Baccalaureate Diploma. The IB is as it has always been, the same composition and the same standards, but the government has changed the structure and standards of A levels again. The status and the specification for AS levels have changed significantly. A levels are now to be seen as a two year course examined at the end of Year 13 rather than two separate one year courses, one examined at the end of Year 12 and the other at the end of Year 13 with marks linked together. At least that is how it will be in some subjects. A number of subjects will change their syllabus a year later. We have done our best to provide a programme that continues to ensure that our students have a high quality experience that sets them up for success in the next stage of their life. (One further complication for us is that one of the opposition parties has announced that they will scrap the reforms if they get into power in May).

The support provided by our new careers education team is described elsewhere in these pages.

Late Transfer Tests (12+)We will be offering a number of places to students who wish to apply to join us in Year 8 in September. The testing process that we will use is shared between six of the grammar schools in Buckinghamshire, with exams being sat on Saturday March 7th. Applications to be tested should be directed to the Local Authority at County Hall in Aylesbury who we have asked to co-ordinate the process. The skills being tested will be the same as those tested in the 11+ test. The only difference is that the late transfer test will be sat at a computer so the marking can be almost instantaneous.

11+ Testing and SelectionThe local papers have given a lot of coverage to a debate that the County Council has been conducting in response to queries and criticisms about the new(ish) 11+ and the selective system.

A lot of the discussion has been around the fact that the numbers of children qualifying for grammar schools has a connection with the affluence of the area in which they live. Specifically there are not many children in grammar schools who qualify for free school meals. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are also less likely to get Level 5 and 6 scores in their SATS. The issue is not one that can be resolved by a school system in one county but grammar school Headteachers are well aware of the issues and we have been holding regular discussions between ourselves, and with the test designers, to see if there are some equity issues that we can address.

Interestingly, I watched a Year 13 sociology A level lesson at the end of last term. The lesson was in the form of a debate with three teams of students debating whether the strongest factor that determined achievement in schools was gender, social class or ethnicity. I was very impressed by the students’ research and preparation and left the lesson reminded that there are no simple answers!

Alice BarnettWe received some very sad news just before Christmas when we learned that one of our former students, Alice Barnett who left in 2013, had lost her life in a tragic accident on what was almost her final day of a charity project in South Africa. She made a wonderful contribution to our school while she was with us. A skilled artist, Alice served as an art ambassador – sharing her gifts by encouraging and supporting younger students. She was also a regular performer in choirs and on the stage. Again she would regularly work with younger students. Her liveliness, her helpfulness (and her individual interpretation of our dress code) were very special. Alice was one-off.

We have a very full and busy term ahead of us. I regularly feel privileged to be able to work in a school community that is so full of talented and hardworking staff and students. Our school really is a very special place!

Stephen Box, Headteacher

Headteacher’s Update

On 17th December it felt like Christmas

had arrived as we made our way to St.

Mary’s Church for this annual

celebratory event.

The work put in by both students are teachers never ceases to amaze, and a mere two weeks after the incredible ‘Wizard of Oz’ production, Sir Henry Floyd did it again with their wonderfully festive Christmas Celebration at St. Mary’s Church in the beautiful old heart of Aylesbury. Of course the celebration would not have been what it was without the huge amount of time and effort put in by several teachers, namely Mr. Forshaw, Subject Leader for Music, who was brilliant in arranging, directing and conducting the entire evening. As always though, Mr. Cole’s ‘Tech’ Team ensured that the evening sounded and looked incredible. Senior Choir triumphed with a breath-taking performance of ‘Zadok the Priest’ featuring students, staff and parents, not to mention our very own chamber orchestra! After a magical rendition of the classic, ‘Moondance’ by Van Morrison, performed by Sir Henry Floyd’s student led Jazz band, Floyd Brass delivered a jazzy, upbeat Christmas medley full of dancing and singing. Fantastic musical performances were not the only feature of the evening however. A number of readings from various students added to the great atmosphere of the evening. Findlay Fleming in Year 9, for example, delivered a moving reading of ‘Letter from the Trenches’ by Rifleman Graham Williams while the Head Boy and Head Girl read a witty piece written by Emmeline herself, A Letter to Thomas Cook, by a dissatisfied Joseph and Mary! I must say that 2014’s Christmas Celebration was one of the best yet and we hope that all who attended thoroughly enjoyed the evening.

Jean-Pierre Waksman, 6A1

Ascot Claydon Hartwell Mentmore WaddesdonYear 7 Library Quiz 5 3 1 2 3Year 7 Poetry by Heart 3 2 4 1 5Year 8 Poetry by Heart 3 4 5 1 2SHFGS Community Cupcake 5 2 10 8 5Year 9 Swiss Roll 2 6 8 4 10Chari-tree 10 2 8 5 5

Year 7 Netball 10 8 6 3 3Year 7 Football 2 7 10 7 4Years 8/9 Netball 10 8 2 4 6Years 8/9 Football 10 4 2 8 6Years 10/11 Netball 6 10 2 8 4Years 10/11 Football 10 2 6 8 4Autumn Term Achievement Points

25 25 26 23 23

TOTAL 101 83 90 82 80

JuST A quiCk uPDATE On THE SCHOOL’S SPOrTS TEAmS AS WE mOvE FOrWArD inTO 2015. • The Year 8 and 10 football teams are just

one win away from a well deserved quarter final place in the County Cup.

• Years 7 and 11 are finely poised in the league, sitting first and second respectively with only a handful of games left to play.

• The Sixth Form rugby team is training hard preparing for a showdown again Mr Pettifer’s Royal Grammar School side (“go get them”) and a rematch against Aylesbury Grammar in the New Year.

There is plenty to get excited about in 2015 before the summer sports begin. Go Floyd!

James Burge, Teacher of Physical Education

All New Badminton!The first Aylesbury Vale district league matches have been played and the squad has shown some early promise. They started out against Cottesloe School winning all their doubles and singles to give SHFGS an all-round win for both U13 girls and boys and U15 girls and boys. The sixteen students who participated have been busy developing their skills and game-play during lunchtime training under the ever watchful eye of George Battams-Scott and myself. Their second fixture against Aylesbury Vale Academy saw the U15 girls and boys take victory with exceptional performances from Alex Xu, Atul Shankar and Sarah Flower in the singles games. Chloe Foster was also victorious in the U13 girls singles.

There is still a long way to go, many skills to be refined and at least four more games to play. Training is on a Thursday lunch time and all are welcome to try out for the squad.

English Schools NetballThe English schools tournaments for both U16 and U14 were played on a cold and wet Saturday morning at Aylesbury High School with the results of hard work and training being evident during the games for both teams. Since September, the girls have been very committed to training with over thirty staying after school for workshops and all squads having a lunchtime practice. The U16 team played with enthusiasm and spirit against some tough opposition and they should be proud of their efforts. After some threatening games for the U13 they finished runners up in the tournament which qualified them for the South regional round. They will face even harder opponents soon on the 31st January in East Grinstead – so watch this space!

Pam Taylor, Teacher of Physical Education

Student Leadership in PEWith the Sports Hall now in full use the Physical Education Faculty ran a busy extra-curricular schedule last term. This was only possible due to the support from the many students who volunteered and gave up their time to help lead and coach a range of activities. Some students have used their wealth of experience to plan and organise challenging sessions managing drills, fun games and officiating match situations. The skills that they are practising will benefit them as leaders in many careers but, the knowledge that they are passing on, is also invaluable to those attending the clubs. As a faculty we would like to wholeheartedly thank the following student leaders and hope that they will continue to generously support us in the future.

• Year 9: Hatty Perry and Charlotte Wooster• Year 10: Oyin Alli, Anson Chan, Sarah Flower, Liam Gesoff, Jess Hubery, Milo Measey, Larry Mills, Geraint Minney and Tom Powders• Year 11: Nik Adios, Zoe Phillips, Jodie Battrum and Delapo Adelakun• Year 12: Raaj Tanday and George Battams- Scott• Year 13: Jason Lines and Tyler Minney

Emma Barber, Teacher of Physical Education

HOuSE BuSinESS This term has been busy with the Inter House sports events being a highlight for many students and the Sports Leaders officiating in a highly professional manner. There was a buzz about the school on the morning of the cup cake competition as we had invited all members of the school community to contribute. Mr Box and I spent a long time judging and felt very much like Mary and Paul indulging!

Although we did not collect apples this year we had held back just enough bottles of FLAPPLE juice to meet the demand at the Christmas Fayre. Depending on the weather we shall be asking for apples next autumn.The House Captains enter their last half term in post and are very much looking forward to the process of appointing new Captains. They have done an excellent job this year and I hope that they have been proud of sharing their leadership achievements at interviews for their university places.

Amy Malone, House Co-ordinator

Autumn House Points 2014

Mufti Day

Bake Sale

Our Floydians and their parents have been generous once again last term raising money for various charitable causes. We held a very successful coffee morning in aid of Macmillan which was probably the biggest bake sale I have ever witnessed in my time at the school, and that is some accolade! This one event alone made £408.00! Staff also enjoyed some home-made goodies at break time with their hot drink and donated too.

The next bake sale was for Save the Elephants which raised £137.00 but if you factor in that this was one student wanting to make a difference with her friends, then that is a laudable amount that Sofia Della Valle and her helpers should be proud of.

The House Chari-trees assemblies launched this event which is in its second year following great popularity and success last year. The foyer was decked with mini trees festooned with all sorts of festive tinsel and baubles in house colours. The five charities chosen this year were the Chiltern food bank, the Salvation Army, Homeless UK, Mix 96’s appeal, and again, Helen Douglas House.

And finally, we had the mufti-day on the last day of the term, raising money for both the Royal National Institute for the Blind and Save the Children (Syrian appeal).

Students and staff came in general Christmas theme gear and an array of bright

jumpers including good sports Mr Fell and Mr Roberts! However, although there were a few parties in tutor time later on in the day, classes were working hard with up to the last minute doing timed assignments as in Mrs Kratt’s history class. We raised £1325 for these two causes.

Many thanks for your continued support in helping us to raise money for the various charities that are most definitely grateful for our efforts as a caring and giving school community.

Andria HanhamDeputy Headteacher

Autumn Charity Events

Bake Sale

Alfan We recently conducted our second charity event linked to a home charity the ‘Alfan Foundation’. It was an absolute privilege for us to do a shoebox appeal where we asked people to donate items as Christmas

presents for the children supported by the foundation in orphanages and schools in Ghana. Our Charity Committee managed to get 119 boxes in total - smashing our expectations! The boxes included basic necessities like notebooks, toiletries and pencil cases which are all things that we take for granted. With the founders of the organisation, we split the items into 500+

individual age appropriate gifts that will have made a huge difference to the children. It has been an honour to work with this foundation and I am grateful to my team and you all for your continued support. Becky Sharp, 6A2 Head of the Student Charity Committee

Battlefields Trip, A Personal Experience I have been very lucky growing up locally, surrounded by my large family. Well almost, I had one great uncle that I never met.

My grandfather was one of seven children, one of six boys. Five of them had married and settled within Berkhamsted. They had children, who themselves had married and lived locally within Berkhamsted and Tring. They in turn had their own families with children very close in age and we all attended the various local schools. There were several family gatherings including generations of Goffey relatives. However, we also grew up knowing about Uncle Jock who ran away from school and joined the army but never returned. He never had a wife, children or grandchildren or even a job.

I studied history at O level but unlike my brother never had the opportunity to visit the Battlefields of World War I. It was not appropriate for girls then. Although my history syllabus was supposed to cover up to 1915 we never finished the syllabus. I am very grateful to Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School for the opportunity that I had during Activities Week to travel with Year 9 to see France and Belgium, and to find my uncle’s grave.

John Graham Goffey (Uncle Jock) ran away from school at the age of fifteen and joined the army in 1914. All the men in my family are six foot plus so the recruiting officers probably did not suspect the tall, fit, enthusiastic young man in front of them was too young - “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori” – a child desperate for glory. It was only when I had my own son that I realised how significant it was that Uncle Jock had not returned home. My grandfather and my mum never knew where to look for his grave. He had lied about his age. It was very hard trying to trace where he had died, when he had died or even which regiment he was in.

However, with the advent of the internet and the Commonwealth War Grave Commission online, the task became easier. Initially I had trouble because he had lied about his age so his date of birth was wrong. I then found that although this was correct on the war memorial at Berkhamsted School, the website that catalogued the fallen heroes of Berkhamsted had his name misspelt. I was beginning to lose hope, but then about five years ago I searched the CWGC website and found his name! He was a Second Lieutenant in the Kings Royal Rifle Corps and died on September 3rd 1916 - the second big push in the Battle of the Somme. I found a picture of the Ancre British Cemetery in Beaumont-Hamel, France.

When I received the itinerary for the Battlefields Trip I then looked on Google maps and found that it was only just up the road (two minutes) from the route we would be taking between the New Foundland Memorial and the Ulster Tower. Our guides asked if anyone had a pilgrimage they would like to make and so I showed them the letter my great-grandparents received from the King of England in 1922 passing on his appreciation of the service Uncle Jock had given to our country. I also showed them a map from the CWGC with the location of his grave and they said they would like to take me there and help me to find it. You may imagine that I was completely overwhelmed with emotion when I saw his grave.

This poor man had only just turned eighteen and lost his life so that future generations could live in a society of freedom that we enjoy today. I never knew him and he never knew me but I knew all his brothers and sisters. My grandfather was only six when he left and his younger brother was only two. They never got to say goodbye but I was finally getting to say hello, thank you and “We will remember you”.

I would like to thank all the Year 9 students for their compassion and sensitivity and Mrs Pilkington, Mr Fell and Mr Buckley who offered support for me on what was a very emotional journey.

Julie Davis, Teacher of Physics

Remembrance We held remembrance assemblies during the week beginning 10th November last year, again to commemorate those who lost their lives in the Great War but also to consider more modern perspectives and global strife. Assemblies ended on a note of peace with Keely Brown talking about the peace symbol – the dove. Although I led on these assemblies in terms of canvassing for a team and sorting out the order of speakers, it was the students who did themselves proud in their readings of poetry that they chose, sensitive words that they had written themselves and confident explanations for the power point slides. It was a pleasure to work with them on these important assemblies. It was also wonderful to have Luke Tomkins playing his trumpet and the piece Concierto de Aranjuez by Rodrigo with its natural theme to begin some of the assemblies with a contemplative mood.

Andria Hanham, Deputy Headteacher

InstagramWe now have a school Instagram account that we are using to showcase the artwork of our students. The account can be easily accessed by going onto the school’s website and clicking on the Instagram camera logo at the top of the homepage. You can also leave comments if you wish against the various pictures of art shown if you log into your own Instagram account or via Facebook.

Ross Collins, Faculty Leader Art & Design

On 15th October, four A level history students in Year 13 along with Mrs Pilkington, visited Stone School to help Years 2 and 3 act out what an attack in the trenches would be like and to understand why it was difficult for armies in World War One to break through trench defences.

Helpers and children alike all dressed up in makeshift army uniform and nurse outfits. The children were divided into two teams and opposing lines of “trenches” were created with a “no man’s land” in between. Bean bags and softballs were used as ammunition and either side with the help of

the Year 13 ‘Generals’, had to come up with tactics on how to get as many men down. When the whistle was blown, one team would climb out of their “trench” and advance towards the enemy whilst the other team would quickly distribute the ammunition and try and defend themselves with it. We did this a number of times and many men fell down numerous times, including our helpers! It’s safe to say our tactics were a bit questionable, but overall we had a brilliant time and thoroughly enjoyed the experience (even if it was about war).

Matthew Hudson and Laura Cross, 6C2 Kavita Sharma, 6C3 and Brad Baines, 6M1

On 20th November, SHFGS History Department invited John Giddings MBE to deliver a lecture on ‘The Cold War’ and his experiences being in the Royal Observer Corps during that time. A large number of students from all years turned up during lunchtime to listen to him speak and to gain a perspective on the Cold War. It was fascinating to see what was happening in Britain while the Cold War was going on as we mainly just hear about American and Russian involvement. It was also fascinating to hear how many men and women worked and lived in bunkers underground to try to spot any threats like bombs and planes. John showed us pictures about machines he would use and explained how dangerous it was to use some of them with radiation sickness being one consequence. He even explained how a whole city could get wiped out which made us think of the major threat Britain was under. John was happy to answer any questions we had and showed us his many medals due to all his achievements. He was not only involved in protecting Britain in the Cold war but is also a Second World War veteran, Far Eastern War veteran, was a teenage RAF volunteer and is involved in many organisations including the Royal British legion, Royal Air Forces Association and Burma Star Association! We hope to welcome him back to the school again soon to share more of his experiences with us.

Kavita Sharma 6C3, Lead Humanities Ambassador and Penny Chamberlain 6W2, Humanities Ambassador

Fieldtrip to SnowdoniaThis is the most exciting week of the year if you are a Year 11 geographer at Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School and this year the weather took a turn for the better. Spectacular views of the Snowdon massif (extinct volcanoes) greeted us as we neared Blue Peris, our centre for the week. Kit was issued; attractive waterproofs, wellies and warm fleeces and walking boots with a slate quarry walk as a useful way of wearing them in. While two groups collected masses of river data for their coursework (following a mountain stream from source to mouth), the others kayaked and climbed encouraged by the friendly mountain instructors. “Brilliant’’ and “I’ve never done anything like this before’’ were comments from those pushed beyond their comfort zone.

Fifty hungry students ate masses but the cooks delivered generous helpings of tasty home-cooked food and an evening geography lesson was followed by problem-solving activities before ‘brew’ time.

Sea level traversing involves dodging waves, using ropes to reach small stacks and jumping when it is safe. “321... I jumped on two but then I made a funny noise I’d never made before” exclaimed Henry. The sea off the coast of Anglesey was not as cold as we thought it would be. On Wednesday we had a break from hydrology and learnt about the resources of Snowdonia and their impact on the local economy, how slate is used for roofing across the UK and the clever re-use of water to generate hydro-electricity.

The best day was the last though with a challenging mountain walk (scramble) up one of Snowdonia’s 3000ft peaks with amazing views over Snowdon and the Irish Sea. There were speeches, prizes for the winning group and a retirement presentation to Mr Buckley from the Centre Manager that evening to round off a very successful trip. Students thanked Miss Davis, Mr Buckley, Ms Whitfield and Mrs Stonham for giving up their own time to make it all happen.

Cold War Veteran

Advice and Guidance

As the need for a skilled workforce is increasingly necessary for the country’s future prosperity, and as the types of employment our students can look forward to constantly change, so the choices that are made are increasingly important.

With this very much in mind Talentino Ltd has been engaged to help provide a clear vision to change the energy, focus and accessibility to provide all our students with support to develop their early careers effectively.

Talentino has created an Early Career Development Programme. It entails training Early Career Coaches from the school to deliver the programme using their resources so making it sustainable and increasing the school’s capability and knowledge about early career development. The aim is for all our students to achieve the following:

• from Year 8 onwards, discover what their ‘Core Interests’ (passions) are and be able to use this as their terms of reference for career decisions

• explore the widest range of options using our research based card exploration tools

• make career choices which link to their core Interests

• define career goals• create ongoing personal development

career plans whilst they are at school and beyond

• identify activities which will enable them to compete more effectively for the career of their choice

• leave school with a Personal Development Career Plan.

A bespoke programme has been agreed that will begin to roll out this year. The choices that Year 11 students make is of particular

importance and so they are the first recipients. Parent volunteers and members of staff will undergo ‘Early Career Coach’ training in January and then lead coaching groups with students on Career Development, competing in the employment market, setting goals and career alternatives. Where appropriate some students will be offered face-to-face interviews with a Talentino coach.

The volunteer coaches and Talentino staff will then provide opportunities for all students, during the rest of the year, to begin their own Personal Career Development Plan. Year 8 students will attend a one-day Career Development event, and be introduced to different routes to careers, and planning successful competition for careers. In Year 9 students will start their Personal Career Development Plans aided by the volunteer coaches. These plans are further consolidated in Year 10 with more sessions with the Careers Coaches. Year 10 will also have a career focus day in the final week of the school year during Enrichment Week (currently being organised by Mr Box).

Year 12 students already benefit from choice of university and course advice, but for those not planning on going to university there will be sessions on career alternatives, apprenticeships, goal-setting and career competing.

The programme is designed to give all young people the opportunity to plan a career that matches their interests because a motivated employee is a more successful one, but also provide employers with employees who have the skills they need. If you want to find out more about Talentino you can visit their website at www.talentinocareers.co.uk.

Malcolm Fell, Teacher of Business Studies

Careers Education

Careers Education, Advice and Guidance

Year 7 will be in the bush learning survival skills including sleeping under the stars in ‘man-made’ shelters at Cornbury Park, Year 8 will be in Dorset at Studland Beach enjoying Beachcraft and Year 9 will either be in France and then Belgium experiencing the World War 1 battlefields and some serious chocolate shopping in Bruges or, in Snowdonia, embarking on mountain climbing and outdoor pursuits. I hope that the weather is good so that those in the great outdoors can enjoy the sunshine whether in the city, the countryside or at the seaside. Deposits are being requested by early January and I would like to thank parents in advance for following the instalment instructions for payments. I can tell you with all honesty that the children are excited but the staff are possibly even more so! Over twenty will be giving up three nights away from home and their families and a further six spending two nights away in the bush!

Year 10 will get to do some enterprise activities and have a careers fair. The latter was a big success last year and promises to be bigger and better this. There are also plans for an off-site trip to a university so that students can get a flavour of life after school and set their sights on what lies ahead when they successfully achieve their personal best in public examinations in Years 11 and 13.

Many thanks to parents at home for the support that you give to the school on these ventures, not merely in terms of much appreciated voluntary contributions, but in encouraging your child to take part in what will probably be for all of them, some new, dramatic and exciting experiences that they will treasure as memories for a very long time!

I look forward to the numerous tales and will be expecting some lively, interesting anecdotes for the edition of Floyd Footnotes in the Autumn of 2015.

Andria Hanham, Deputy Headteacher

Enrichment WeekThe last week of the year will be slightly different this year. Years 7, 8 and 9 will have the wonderful opportunity to go on a residential trip and stay overnight with members of their year group and keen members of staff.

At the end of the last Summer Term, the Learning Development Department moved to a new location on the school site – the former caretaker’s house beside the Performing Arts Block. After several months of planning, the day came and a steady stream of Learning Support Assistant traffic went to and fro between the old and the new departments, transporting many cherished items and resources. Our story is interesting: our department has grown from being one desk in a small office to a busy department used by fifty Floyd students over the 2013-14 academic year, some on a daily basis, others as and when needed! Students paid a visit to the new location to ‘suss it out’ and, having received their blessing, we were finally relocated!

Having hastily settled in at the end of last term, we didn’t really know how things would work on a day to day basis until September. A lot of work had been done over the summer holidays to convert the house from a place where meetings occurred and examinations were taken to a fully functioning team housing the learning support assistants, lockers for students, computers and independent work areas, a quiet room where they can ‘chill’ when they need to and a place where students can work with specialists from external agencies to get the support they need. We must not forget the ever popular Social Groups which take place twice a week at lunch time, plus the newly constituted Board Games Club on a Friday lunch time.

A major concern about the move was the increase in student traffic across the Performing Arts car park. We arranged for our Community Police Officer to come into school to speak to students who use Learning Development regularly about road

safety. Now we have our own zebra crossing and speed bump to slow the traffic as it enters the area to park. Students in one of our Social Groups prepared posters on road safety and using the crossing. Not quite The Beatles, but pretty close!!

New location, new students, new staff, new telephone system........ there was a lot of change! However, three months later it feels like ‘home’ and we are as busy as ever.

A huge thank you goes to the caretakers who worked hard on our behalf to get the new Learning Development up and running for September. Thank you also to all of our students who have generally met the change with a smile and who make it a rewarding and interesting place to work. Students, staff and visitors to the school are always welcome – it is worth the walk to visit us, but remember to use the crossing!

Liz Inglis, Leader of the Learning Development Department

Student Council UpdateThis year elections to the Student Council took place at the end of October when an excellent set of participants spoke very well about how they would add value to our school and how they would represent their fellow students. The maturity shown by candidates was outstanding and the enthusiasm with which the hustings assemblies were received was an exceptional display of democracy!

The first full Student Council meeting was also held in October with the Headteacher, Mr Box, calling it “the best Student Council meeting” he had ever attended. With the representatives from each year selected (and one for each House in the Sixth Form), all came brimming with ideas to this inaugural gathering with the intention of being the most proactive and refreshing Student Council in Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School’s history.

In December a brand new constitution for the Student Council was drafted and approved by all members, clearly stipulating the code of conduct and processes by which the Council would be run. We have also decided to do something a little different this year and will select three ‘big ideas’ that we hope to have finalised early in the New Year. These will be discussed at the next Student Council meeting and will form the basis of our work for the next few months.

It has been a privilege to work with all members of the Student Council so far, representatives and deputies alike, and we very much look forward to continuing this with eagerness in the months to come.

Jack Blue, Head Boy, 6A2

Floyd Learning Focus GroupThe team for this year (below) comprises some new people and existing members from last year who wanted to continue their work on learning initiatives. It is great to see so many Year 7 students on the team. So far we have redesigned the student questionnaire for Mr Box and are working on some ideas linked to improving students’ literacy skills. Global Diversity Week is also being planned for late February with learning activities in lessons connected to a diversity theme, possibly poetry from around the world or on environmental topics.

Andria Hanham, Jo Whitfield and Emma Prior - Teachers working with the FLFG

Harley Sullivan 7CElizabeth Sond 7HJack Hollingworth 7HFaris Mahmood 7HCameron Machin 7HAlexander Broadley 7HJames Clifford 7HAsa Mereki 7HPatrick Scanlon 7WLuke Burton 7WKeely Brown 8C

Dexter Adonu 8CNiah Goldsworthy 8CLucy Jackson 9AVenkat Satram 9CJacob Cole 10AAngela Samonte 11CAmelia Fabes 6H2Lauren Kendall 6H3Luke Tomkins 6M1Harry Frost 6W2

Happy New Year everyone! We hope that 2015 proves to be an excellent year for all students, staff and families at Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School.

We had a busy fundraising Autumn Term beginning with the New Parents Challenge for families in Years 7 and 8 which raised £400. This was followed by the Years 9–11 Paintballing Experience (more on that below), the Christmas Fayre and Raffle which both raised £2,000 each, and over a hundred families are now members of the Floyd Flottery! We have also received donations of over £300 from the Giving Machine taking us to nearly £5,000 raised so far this academic year. We were also pleased to be able to support the excellent performances of The Wizard of Oz by selling interval refreshments, raising £200 which will be shared between ourselves and the Performing Arts department. Thank you so much to everyone who supported all of these fundraisers, or sent in donations or gave up their time to help organise the events themselves. Your support is invaluable.

In September, one hundred and twelve parents and children came from thirty four families in classes from Year 7 and 8M2 to join us for some light-hearted rounds of ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’, together

with the annual Dance Challenge. My Bryant was an excellent quiz master, and was ably helped by Mr Box acting as Phone a Friend with the Dance Challenge students as Ask the Audience. The success of the evening was helped along by the excellent meal choices of curry or pizza provided by the catering team.

The Years 9-11 Paintballing Experience held on 18th October was also a great success, with two teams competing and a fair amount of mud splashing as a result! The seventeen competitors included two brave dads, and the fine early Autumn weather helped everyone to have a great day. To end the term, we did the draw for the very successful Christmas Raffle, with some great prizes donated by parents and friends of the school, on 12th December.

Our current aim is to raise £11,000 this year to support a number of projects which are underway throughout the school which be of benefit to our children.

The challenge now is to raise the remaining money before the end of the school year. We have a number of events planned which, with your support, should enable us to reach our target.

• Floyd Flottery (previously 300 Club): if you have not signed up for this year - please do so! This is a monthly lottery where 50% is paid out in prize money and the remaining 50% is donated to school. Your membership runs for twelve months so you can join at anytime. An application form is available on the school website under the Parents Society page. At only £12 per annum to join, if all families had one number each, this fundraiser alone would raise over £5500! This is a very easy way to support the school – please assist us if you can!

• The Giving Machine: if you are doing any shopping on the internet, please remember to login in via the Giving Machine on www.thegivingmachine.co.uk

and make SHFGS your beneficiary. It will not cost you a penny but you will be raising money for school with every purchase! See the flier for more details as to how to get started – it only takes minutes to register as a user so please join now!

• Second Hand Uniform: those of you who came to the Christmas Fayre and other school events will have seen that we now have a good quality stock of various uniform articles available to buy. If you have any particular items in mind or are able to send in quality donations please email us on parentssociety@sirhenryfloyd.co.uk.

And we have more events planned for the remainder of the year:

• Pamper Evening on 13th February: there will be plenty to enjoy with beauty treatments, shopping, refreshments and treats for everyone. Make it a mums’ and daughters’ night out!

• Quiz Night on 20th March: a fun night for all the family with a supper and bar available. Please put the date in your diary now and encourage friends to come along and make up a table. More details to follow later this term.

• Midsummer Raffle Draw on 19th June: if anyone is able to help with donations of prizes for this fundraiser we would be most grateful.

• Years 7 & 8 Disco on 26th June: have fun with all your friends before the end of term.

Our Spring Term meetings will be on Monday 19th January and Monday 2nd March, 7.30pm at the school – everyone is welcome to attend and it would be great to have more help available to organise the events for the Spring and Summer terms. If you can help in any way please contact us by e-mail: parentssociety@sirhenryfloyd.co.uk or via the school’s reception on 01296 424781.

Parents Society News

Years 9-11 Paintballing

Christmas Stalls

Our Christmas Fayre in late November was again busy, despite the rather wet and gloomy day. The hall welcomed guests with festive carols, hot drinks and mince pies and an array of Christmas-themed stalls to get people into the Yuletide spirit.

The students’ Christmas-stalls this time included a tin can alley, guess the gorilla’s name, Fifa gaming, guess where Santa is, doughnut challenge, hot chocolate and cakes, smoothies, guess the safe code, ball throw through the Christmas Tree, guess the cake’s weight, 20p on Rudolf’s nose and sweet jars. And tweets the next day included photographs of the teachers who had agreed to be ‘splatted’ with cream pies. Rather Mrs Malone, Mr Fell and Mrs Ormston than me!

We raised £2000.00 overall with £698.00 coming from the student stalls alone, again up on last year’s figure by £30.00 with 7H making £110 alone on their chocolate tombola! They (and their parents) were very generous in their donations of chocolate for their stall.

Regardless of the damp conditions the barbecue was a sell out and Mr Box was a trifle miffed as he had to have a hot dog as the burgers were all gone in a matter of minutes. And we sold the remaining bottles of Flapples (I got the last one). We are

considering whether to do this next year if we have a bumper apple crop as it has been so popular being good for drinking as a product as well as giving students the opportunity to compete in the label design competition.

Thank you to all parents and members of staff who donated foodstuffs, cakes or sundry items for the tombola and ‘make a bid’ stall. I myself purchased several gifts for family and friends, and something for myself from the jewellery stall.

This annual event relies on the generosity of our school community. We definitely had more donations than ever this year for the tombola and ‘make a bid’ stalls with the Parents Society cupboard being packed to the rafters with all manner of quality donations from edibles and clothing items to craft ware, toiletries and ‘smellies’.

Monies raised go back into school resources for the benefit of our students and their learning environment. However, the Christmas Fayre is much more than a fundraising event, it is a tradition of the school and a great example of team work. The students had such a worthwhile experience in having to organise themselves, work together and, on the day, persuade lots of customers to part with their money against stiff competition from their peers. They had such fun!

Andria Hanham, on behalf of the Parents Society Dangling Donut Challenge

After arrival we had the opportunity to briefly look around the grounds which was really helpful as the majority of us will be looking around universities soon during our A levels. We were ushered into a huge theatre for the talks. There were six speakers in total and each one of them was really engaging and introduced themselves before beginning their talk which helped us to get an idea of where they started from. One of my favourite talks was about the chemistry of chocolate and how to make a better tasting product. The speaker was very funny and used different props and volunteers to help him to visually explain the chemistry. It also involved a lot of tasting chocolate which was a bonus!

Another speaker I really enjoyed listening to was Peter Wothers - speaker of the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures in 2012. His talk was about different elements and the meaning behind each symbol and element name. This was more serious than some of the other talks but was still very engaging because of the use of history, mainly Greek and Roman mythology. All speakers used different subjects to grab our

attention instead of being just about chemistry which might have been a little difficult to sit through all day. We were also given lots of opportunities to go on stage to demonstrate explanations and we were always given a period at the end of every talk to ask questions.

Not only were there chemistry talks but there was also a great experience to listen to an examiner talk about the most common mistakes in the A level chemistry exams. Considering how we can easily boost our grade was so helpful and has really helped me to avoid silly mistakes which could cost me easy marks.

Overall, it was a really interesting day which helped me to look more seriously at my career options if I go into chemistry and made me realise how broad different careers in chemistry can be. I had a really fun day and would strongly recommend this trip for any future chemists. Thank you Mrs Gethins for arranging it.

Harriet Wilkinson, 6H2

Chemistry at Warwickin mid november, we were welcomed by Warwick university for a day of chemistry talks by a variety of different chemists.

The Senior Debating Society has had a fantastic start to the year, with a record breaking turnout and an even more impassioned membership.The society has hosted numerous debates this term, focusing on wide-ranging, complex issues including the ISIS threat, whether money is more important than love and if terrorism can ever be justified. Our annual Christmas debate on whether Christmas should be cancelled brought eager contributions from a range of speakers.

After speaking outstandingly in school debates and participating in external competitions, some of the society’s senior members are now adjudicating debates and offering beneficial advice to the new Year 12 students who have joined the society in large numbers and are keen to take part in the proceedings.

The society is regarded by both participants and teachers as an extremely helpful way of applying learning to modern contexts as well as a means of combining and evaluating the perspectives, approaches and theories involved in their chosen subjects. I am immensely proud of the society as a whole, and I am enthusiastically looking forward to our launch in the New Year, which will include debates on the legalisation of performance-enhancing drugs, Palestinian statehood and a general election themed debate as well as hopefully the launch of a Junior Debating Society for the younger year groups.

Brad Baines, 6M1, Chair of the Senior Debating Society

Senior Debating Society

A Note from Mrs Perrett, Assistant Head of Sixth Form:

The Senior Debating Society has indeed gone from strength to strength this year, largely as a result of its very strong Year 13 student committee. I have arrived late to several debates to find the classroom packed, sometimes with forty to fifty sixth form students, and the debate in full swing!

We have competed in the Warwick University Schools Debating Competition, the English Speaking Union School’s Mace, and in January I will be taking two teams to the Oxford University Schools Competition, having attended a workshop in Oxford this term. These are highly prestigious competitions: our students have been competing against the top student debating teams in the country and I have been very proud of the way that they have conducted themselves - confidently standing their ground, often in the face of formidable opposition. What is more, they have enjoyed themselves!

We look forward to next term’s debating and the election of a new committee from Year 12.

On Friday 28th november, over a hundred and ninety people from across the uk came together to debate in the House of Lords on democracy in the digital age. As a member of The united kingdom Youth Parliament for Buckinghamshire, and due to my work with various organisations and politicians to represent young people, i was asked to be one of them!The day began with a welcome from The Lord Speaker Baroness D’souza and The Yeoman Usher who was wearing the most amazing uniform. I then had a tour of The House of Lords and was intrigued by the rich history of it as well as being overwhelmed by the Queen’s throne which is made out of real gold. Then after a briefing and quick lunch we were escorted into the chamber and the debate began. I was lucky enough to be chosen by The Lord Speaker to stand up in front of everyone and give a short speech on my views to add to the debate. I felt so honoured to be given the opportunity to do so as I had never once in my life thought I would be able to debate from the red seats! The debate was also made up of the younger generation and the older retired generation. It was interesting to hear views from all generations and I felt it broke down common misconceptions about each other. The outcome of the debate was the idea that we should include more expert advice via online conferences and/or community consultation which I was pleased about. Then when I got home I heard that the debate was not just aired on the House of Lord’s website but shown live on television by the BBC. Overall this is an experience I will certainly never forget and one that has encouraged me to carry on campaigning on issues politically to get my voice, and the voice of young people heard. Our voice can resonate on a large scale!

Kavita Sharma, 6C3

Debating in the House of Lords

As Economics and Politics Ambassadors, we are immensely proud of the Floyd model Parliament which was established as a new-extracurricular club this term, open to all students from Year 9 upwards. The Floyd Model Parliament simulates the national parliament of the fictitious Nordic country of Buckland, deciding on major policy areas such as the budget and

scrutinising proposed laws. All of these activities at every stage are undertaken by students, allowing them to fully shape the future of the fictitious nation.

The lunchtime time club has successfully gained a significant committed following that has created a range of exciting, differentiated parties. A few examples being the liberal Unity Party, Conservative Independent Congress and Socialist PSC. These student organised groups have written, debated and voted on bills on an impressive variety of policy areas including: education, the environment and the economy.

The club aims to develop student’s interest in politics through drawing on, but also going beyond GCSE, AS and A2 knowledge of associated subjects like history, politics, economics and sociology applying these to real world situations.

We as a team are proud of the contributions made by attending students, and all of the students who take the roles of Bucklandian Senators are eagerly looking forward to the results of the mid-term election debates. We’ll just have to see how the public of Buckland voted!

Brad Baines 6M1, Economics and Politics Ambassador and Speaker of the House

Floyd Model Parliament enjoys fantastic first term success!

Our voice can resonate on a large scale!

Safe Drive, Stay Alive

Pebblebrook Connection ContinuesTwo years ago, the previous Sixth Form Student Leadership Team created a connection with Pebblebrook School; a community special school adjacent to our sports field. The legacy has continued and so, on a monthly basis, students from their Sixth Form visit the Floyd for a variety of activities led by Ambassadors. The activities are planned to provide students with the option of spending the afternoon with art, sport or performing arts ambassadors. These subjects provide the opportunity for the students to express their creative side, as well as building confidence in going outside their comfort zone and strengthening their social skills.

At the start of the Autumn Term, we visited their school in order to greet the students in a relaxed environment and with the intention of starting to develop connections with each other. We spent time with them on their miniature farm and got to understand their interests to plan the activities around these.

Last term, the students have had the opportunity to play basketball and football in the gym, develop their confidence with

acting games in performing arts and use mixed media skills in art, producing a still life drawing. Collectively, they have also worked with the art ambassadors to produce Christmas cards sold at their Christmas Fair to raise money for their school.

To finish each term, we co-ordinate a group social, with the opportunity for the Sixth Form students who don’t usually visit to attend. Last term we finished with a very successful fun and festive Christmas Party. In return, we were invited to their Disco!

We are all looking forward to the continued visits this term and have an Easter themed afternoon already in mind.

Felicity Nicholls, 6W3

in november four coach loads of Year 12 students made their way to the annual Safe Drive Stay Alive roadshow at the Wycombe Swan theatre. SDSA was developed ten years ago by Thames Valley police in response to their growing concern about the number of local young people killed in car accidents. Many of our students learn to drive while in the Sixth Form and this hard-hitting session provides much food for thought. The presentation uses a mixture of video and live testimony from different emergency personnel such as the police first response unit, the ambulance and fire service staff and A & E doctors. This year our students were particularly moved by the words of a father whose daughter died recently after being involved in a road accident.

Afterwards we received the following responses from our students to the questions opposite.

Kathryn ChapmanAssistant Head of Sixth Form

Why would you recommend this event to other

sixth formers?

• (because) ‘You realise that life is not like the movies.’• (it’s) ‘very hard-hitting in the realisation that one small mistake can cost

someone their life.’

What advice would you offer to a

passenger in a car?

• ‘You can be as equally to blame as the driver.’• ‘Don’t be afraid to warn the driver – you will be respected.’

What advice would you give a driver in a car?

• ‘Limit your distractions.’• (Keep your) ‘eyes on the road…and your speedometer!’

• ‘You are in control of the car, not your passengers.’

Student Senior Leadership TeamAfter hosting a hugely successful Leavers Day Lunch for Year 13 on the theme of Children’s Television and Films, the Student Senior Leadership Team have focused on creating our three-point plan for the next academic year. We aim to achieve the Bronze Eco-School Award, create a new link with the local community as well as continuing our strong connection with Pebble Brook School while increasing the efficiency and repute of the School Council by creating a job specification for its members. So far, as an SSLT, we have made amendments to the Sixth Form Dress Code, met the new Year 7 students and hosted a successful Q&A with parents.

Jack and I spoke at the Open Evening and compered the Celebration at the Waterside Theatre. We hope to be able to update you in the next issue of Floyd Footnotes on our progress.

Emmeline Downie, Head Girl, 6W2

The material itself was to come solely from young writers and then be performed by professional comedians. I quite enjoy writing little sketches and jokes in my spare time and so I thought that I would have a go at entering something. It was a risk; the responses I received when I shared my work for feedback varied from uproar to a slow groan of pain. I did not hear back from the BBC for a month, and thought that they had probably sided with the latter audience and rightly so, but then in May, I received an email saying that I had made the shortlist after spending so long deliberating because they had had thousands of entrants. In their email they kindly said that the liked my “clever, subtle humour” and asked for some more material. I spent half a week trying to think of something else mildly amusing to

say about the Referendum on Scottish Independence, taking inspiration from Alan Bennett’s ‘Talking Heads’, and then sent that off. It was only on the 19th July that the producer emailed me again saying my work had made the final cut and that it was being filmed that same week! I am absolutely thrilled that I will be receiving a pay cheque for some dodgy jokes! I would not like to spoil the show for you by sharing my work in Floyd Footnotes (more importantly, it may have been edited so much that it does not at all resemble what was sent in) but if you are interested please look out for “What’s funny... about the Referendum on Scottish Independence?” on bbc.co.uk from the end of August 2015. Emmeline Downie, Head Girl, 6W2

in march i spotted a competition organised by the BBC to enter some comedy writing as they were creating a new show with the theme of the referendum on Scottish independence.

Making a DifferenceThe summer programme lasts for four weeks but it is definitely time well spent! The first week is spent at an adventure centre facing new challenges such as kayaking and learning valuable team work skills. This is followed by a second residential learning experience on self-sufficiency and learning life skills such as first aid and budgeting - which are especially useful for anyone planning on going to university. Finally, participants spend the last two weeks planning and creating their own social action project, aiming to make a change to the local community. My team and I raised money for a local homeless shelter through a bag pack and raffle enabling us to buy enough food, clothing and basic necessities to last weeks. The feeling of being able to give back was one that I will never forget. NCS not only looks great on my CV, and on my UCAS application, but I have made so many new friends from very different backgrounds to myself. I have also improved my confidence, learnt valuable life skills whilst having a fantastic time!

After NCS, I was luckily enough to be selected as one of a hundred leaders for the programme nationwide, and from there was elected to their National Youth Board where I represent NCS participants from all over the South East, endeavouring to make the programme the best it can be. This has opened a whole range of ‘doors’: I’ve appeared in both The Times and The Mirror speaking about the portrayal of young people in the media as well as being interviewed on various radio programmes, including Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, on the changing role of women and the issues facing young women today. I’ve also been lucky enough to be invited to speak at an all-party parliamentary committee meeting to nearly one hundred Members of Parliament, as well as speaking most recently at the Birmingham skills show about the importance of helping young people in to the work place. These are just a few of the amazing opportunities that have become available to me since doing NCS and I can honestly say it has changed my life. NCS is open to anyone in Years 11 and 12. To those considering doing it, I wholeheartedly say to you, “Say, yes, yes to NCS”!

Evie Aspinall, 6A2

Last year, i took part in the national Citizen Service, an amazing government funded programme for 16-17 year olds which gives them an opportunity to make a difference.

in the cold evenings of winter some recall the warm days of summer and what they did last year, what they will be doing this year, and possibly beyond this. This may well be the case for our students who have taken, or will be taking part in World Challenge Expeditions.In the summer of 2014 three teams ventured to Ethiopia – the cradle of humanity… and also the cradle of the coffee bush! It was an interesting time away working in local schools, taking part in two treks in the Bale Mountains (often under cold, wet and trying conditions), and finally ending with some well-earned rest immersing themselves in the cultural offers of Bahir Dar, Gonder and Addis Ababa.

As time moves on, all those who went can reflect on the things they learnt, especially about themselves. Oh, and coffee, many returned converted to the taste of the black liquid.

In the autumn Snowdonia beckoned for those students heading to India in summer 2015. A long weekend in North Wales was spent honing skills with trangias (with some interesting meals arising), tents, and of course trekking up one side of Snowdon and down the other whilst practicing various safety scenarios. Having successfully organised and run the Stay-Awake-A-Thon the teams are now on the countdown to departure – as you read this it will be less than six months away.

There are those of course who are looking a little further ahead – summer 2016 will herald the departure to Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Over 40 students, primarily in Year 11 have signed up and attended the initial meetings at school run by World Challenge staff and ourselves. Three teams will be announced in early January and their first group task will be to deliver a themed event – so please put Friday 27th February in your diary for an evening of Central American delight!

Ian Bryant, Assistant Head

Ethiopia

Ethiopia

SNoWDoNia

The Stay-Awake-A-thon, the annual twelve hour overnight marathon of activities for students in Years 7 and 8 has become a rite of passage for many of our junior students each November. This year sixth formers heading for India next summer on their four week World Challenge expedition provided entertainment for over a hundred enthusiastic children. The event had been weeks in the planning and totally lived up to everyone’s expectations.

“I liked the sumo wrestling and Blind Dates because they made everyone laugh.”

“I played sports, watched movies and had pizza for breakfast.”

“All through the night there were fun games and activities to partake in. They were all really exciting and helped you stay awake! The sixth formers made it even better – they acted as responsible adults and still joined in and made it amazing.”

“It was such a great experience, I definitely would recommend it.”

Thank you to all those people who generously sponsored the participants. The money will be split between the two India teams and converted to US dollars. This extra money will enable the students to have a greater impact when they carry out their community projects in southern India. It will enable challengers to buy extra tools and materials, pay local craftsmen to complete building work and purchase school equipment for communities who have so little.

Sarah Williams, Sixth Form Leader

WORLD CHALLENGE STAY-AWAKE-A-THON

Ethiopia

Snowdonia

Snowdonia

Stay-Awake-A-Thon

The TrialSteven Berkoff’s ‘The Trial’ was something we considered to be a challenge. We wanted to put on something different to the usual, cinematic musical. Mr Bunn, with the help of co-directors Boni Adeliyi and myself decided that we would transgress the norm. ‘The Trial’ would not take place only in our theatre but would be a journey around the school site - through classrooms, computer suites and receptions, the audience were greeted with various characters ranging from one extreme to the other. The main point of our version however was that we cast no main character. The audience was the

protagonist! The actors would interact with the audience members personally as they travelled around the school and audience members were expected to reply back and ask questions along the way.

Something on which we pride ourselves is the fact that we turned around the show in six weeks – only three from the start of the academic year. We received rapturous applause for our efforts and the audience were pleasantly surprised to see something new, different and exciting at the Floyd. What’s important to us is that we always meet, if not exceed, the audiences’ expectation. ‘The Trial’ is something that, incredibly, did exactly this.

Ben Churchill, 6A1

In November, a group of students, teachers and parents went to see the award winning ‘Once - the Musical’ at the Phoenix Theatre in London’s West End.

‘Once’, set in Dublin, is about a young Irish man and a young Czech woman. The fusion of the Irish and Czech cultures creates an exciting, vibrant and emotional show. With a minimalist set, lighting and props were used for scene changes. The cast sang and acted, but also worked as the orchestra playing with their instruments on stage and dancing with violins, guitars and an accordion! Everybody who went on the trip enjoyed the musical immensely!

“A challenging, yet equally enthralling musical. To create a fusion between Czech and Celtic musicality is a feat that not only impressed but captivated the audience in a whirlwind of acoustic brilliance!” - Joe Davies.

“This musical has to be in my top three, such an amazing book and score, beautifully staged and school took us all for £30.00! I will definitely be going to see ‘Once’ for a third time!” - Emily Hale. “The inclusion of an acoustic sound was what really brought the show to life for me, alongside the perfectly matched instrumentation and the gripping song writing.” - Hugo Piper. “We liked how the music was played on stage. It gave a new spin on the show and it was good how the instruments were a part of the story line.” - Wren Harries and Ebun Osobu.

If you are interested in attending a trip to see a musical, keep an eye out in the student bulletin, in PA reception and for information about future events on the school’s website.

Emily Dimino, 6M2

ONCE - The MusicalWoyzeck Splendid Productions came to perform their rendition of “Woyzeck” by Georg Buchner to our Drama GCSE and A-Level students. It is a play that Year 13 studies in detail, to be commented on in the written part of the exam and so watching their interpretation of the play was particularly beneficial to them.

Splendid Productions take on the play was very unique and had everyone laughing and eagerly taking part in the audience participation moments. Hopefully we’ll see them again next year!

Rhiannon Bacchus, 6H1

Floyd FringeOn the last Thursday in November, the school hosted its first ever ‘Floyd Fringe’ where acts of all years were invited to perform in front of an audience. I am pleased to say that it was a massive success with a variety of acts from dancers to a string quartet, and also a variety of ages from Years 7 to 11. The acts were absolutely brilliant with friends and classmates supporting them in the audience, encouraging the performers to do an amazing job. Overall, the fringe was a huge success and should definitely be arranged for next year as it was great fun for both the audience and the acts that were involved.

Samantha Kenneth, 11A

We extend our best wishes to all former students, staff and governors for a healthy and prosperous 2015. Following recent contact made via Linked In this message is now directed at

600+ alumni and this number is growing daily.

For Old Floydians who are reading this and have not yet registered with us we would be pleased to hear from you. The school’s website has a quick link on the homepage to assist this process, or you can email jwilloughby@shfgs.co.uk with your details. It would be good to hear from you, and if you want to share your experiences since leaving the school in the Where Are They Now?

article of this termly magazine we would be delighted.

Ian Bryant, Assistant Head

Old Floydians

Last year Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School came fourth in the Southern Premier Final and will be entering Rock Challenge again in 2015.

The school will be involved in two events. The first will be at the regional event in Stevenage on 24th February and the

second at the national event in Portsmouth on 20th June.

Any sponsorships for the event will appear in the school publication ofFloyd Footnotes along with other school fundraising activities.

Your support will also be featured on the school website,will be tweeted in our school Twitter account and

will also appear on the T. shirts that students will be wearing at both events.

We are looking for sponsors for these events,so if you feel able to help with sponsorship please contact

Sara Durose, Subject Leader for Dance: sdurose@shfgs.co.uk

Thank you.

2014 Premier Southern Finals

Sponsorship Request for Rock Challenge 2015

Rock ChallengeThis year we have chosen the theme of The Little Mermaid, but we are doing the original, gory, Hans Christian Anderson version, so much more exciting!

Our cast of 60 have been rehearsing hard for our showcase at Stevenage in February, and the piece is looking impressive!

Our costumes are all designed, ready to be made, and each dancer will resemble a different fish to create a realistic reef scene. Tridents have been made, the witches cape fitted, and our set is bigger and better than ever. We really are on to a winner!

Come along to Stevenage on the 24th of February to watch our piece, I’m so excited to show off the huge amount of talent in our school!

Emily Hale, 6H3

Gavin Brown left the school in 2003 and has shared with us his experience in the years since:

I started at the Sir Henry Floyd in 1998 and left after Sixth Form in 2003, going on to study at the University of Nottingham.

I work in public relations and it’s my job to tell the public, through the media, about positive things the organisations I work for have done.

I speak to journalists from the BBC, the Daily Mail and other outlets every day and I contribute to news stories you might read by giving journalists newsworthy facts or snappy quotes about my organisation. English was my favourite subject at the Floyd so I feel very fortunate to write for a living!

After leaving university, I first worked for British Transport Police, arranging media coverage on the theft of a £1m Stradivarius violin from Euston station in 2010 - something you can still read about today. I’ve also worked for the Crown Prosecution Service and currently I’m with the Royal Air Force. I worked on the 70th Anniversary of World War II’s D-Day in France last summer, in which the RAF played a big part, and I also flew on an aid mission to the Philippines with the Secretary of State for International Development following Typhoon Haiyan in November last year.

No two days are ever the same in my job, but I wouldn’t be where I am today without the support of my Sir Henry Floyd teachers and the grades I achieved; the school has a well deserved reputation for excellence and has been a massive springboard for my career - I will always be grateful for that.

Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School | www.sirhenryfloyd.bucks.sch.uk

Dates for your Diary

Designed & Produced by FSE Design Tel: 01933 303520 www.fsedesign.co.uk

Dates are liable to change. Please see the school website for up to date information www.sirhenryfloyd.bucks.sch.uk

January 2015Tuesday 6th – Friday 16th Y13 International Baccalaureate Trial Examinations

Y11 GCSE Trial Examinations

Friday 16th Open Morning at 9.45am

Monday 19th Parents Society meeting at 7.30pm

Thursday 22nd Y9 Parents Consultation Evening from 5.00pm

Thursday 29th Y11 GCSE Revision Skills Parents Evening at 7.00pmY9 & Y10 DTP & MenC Vaccinations

February 2015Wednesday 3rd Y9 GCSE Options Evening at 7.00pm

Thursday 5th GCSE Art Trip to London galleries

Monday 9th – Friday 13th Global Diversity WeekPerforming Arts Interhouse Competition all week

Tuesday 10th Open Morning at 9.45amSixth form Philosophy & Ethics Conference in OxfordBand Night at 7.00pm

Wednesday 11th Bake SaleY8 Parents Consultation Evening from 5.00pm

Thursday 12th Deadline for Sixth Form and Year 9 Options

Saturday 14th Parents Society Girls night Out from 7.00pm

Friday 13th – Saturday 21st Senior Ski Trip to Austria

Monday 16th – Friday 20th HALF TERM

Tuesday 24th Rock Challenge in Stevenage

Tuesday 24th – Wednesday 25th Y12 History trip to Munich & Nuremburg

Wednesday 25th Y7 Parents Consultation Evening from 5.00pm

Friday 27th World Challenge Costa Rica & Nicaragua 2016 Themed Evening at 7.00pm

Saturday 28th – Sunday 1st March Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award Expedition 1

March 2015Monday 2nd Y12 UCAS Information Evening at 7.00pm

Parents Society Meeting at 7.30pm

Wednesday 4th – Tuesday 10th Y12 Trial Examinations

Tuesday 10th A2 and AS Dance Showcase at 7.00pm

Thursday 12th Open Morning at 9.45amGCSE Drama Showcase at 7.00pm

Wednesday 11th – Tuesday 17th Y13 A level trial examinationsY11 Final trial examinations

Monday 16th GCSE Dance Showcase at 7.00pmY7 & Y8 Rugby Tournament in Milton Keynes

Wednesday 18th AS & A2 Dance Examination

Thursday 19th As & A2 Recital Evening at 7.00pm

Thursday 19th – Saturday 21st Y10 History trip to Berlin

Friday 20th Parents Society Quiz Night at 7.00pm

Saturday 21st – Sunday 22nd Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award Expedition 1

Monday 23rd – Wednesday 25th Y12 Geography Field trip to Swanage

Tuesday 24th Keep Your Child Safe Evening at 7.00pm

Thursday 26th Y10 Parents Consultation Evening from 5.00pmCharity Days – including Bake Sale

Friday 27th Charity Days – including Mufti Day

Monday 30th – Friday 10th April EASTER HOLIDAY

April 2015Monday 13th Summer Term starts

Wednesday 15th Staff Training – School Closed to Students

Friday 17th Open Morning at 9.45am

Thursday 23rd Y9 GCSE Standards Evening at 7.00pm

Saturday 25th – Sunday 26th Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award Expedition 2

Monday 27th Y13 IB Study Leave startsParents Society meeting at 7.30pm

Monday 27th – Friday 1st May Y9 Examinations

Thursday 30th A Level Art Examination

We would be delighted hear from all of those who read Floyd Footnotes as to whether they would prefer to receive a paper copy, as now, or alternatively would be equally happy to access the

publication online.

Currently we post out this magazine to all parents and carers to ensure they receive it. Sending it home via students we have found is not always reliable.

All recent copies of the magazine have been made available on the school’s website in a Flicker book format that allows the reader to move from page to page, increasing the size of the articles as required at:

http://www.sirhenryfloyd.bucks.sch.uk/news-and-events/floyd-footnotes/

So please let us know what you think and what your preference is by emailing Jackie Willoughby at jwilloughby@shfgs.co.uk

Paper or Online?