Issue 13 – 9th December 2013
Dear Parents/Carers
The Christmas holiday is almost here and it seems no time at all since we were returning from the summer holidays and welcoming our new Year 7
students. It has been a hectic, highly successful Autumn Term. The staff have worked tirelessly on behalf of the students and your children have been
keen to learn and get involved in so many activities in and out of the classroom.
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The next couple of weeks are as busy as ever, with the continuation of Year 11 Mock Exams, our annual Christmas Showcase on Tuesday 17
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December, and our whole-school Advent Mass on Thursday 19 December. Lessons continue as normal, though, so it is still just as important for
pupils to continue attending school regularly and on time. Our Attendance Officer, Mrs Heatley, has once again organised our ’12 days of Christmas’
in the lead up to the end of term. Those pupils (and staff) who are present on the previous school day are entered into a Year group prize-draw, and
the winners so far are printed below.
I know that Christmas can be an expensive time of year, but it also a time for giving. I recently wrote to parents regarding the Diocesan Buildings
Fund. As a Catholic school, we have ‘voluntary aided’ status, which gives us the freedom to provide the Catholic education which you have chosen for
your child, but this comes at a price. We find the necessary 10% of the cost of developing and maintaining the school buildings from the Diocesan
Buildings Fund. Last year St James’ was fortunate enough to receive more than £200,000 for the work on its premises, which wouldn’t have been
possible were we not a member. To be a member of this Fund, however, we have to raise an annual donation of £15 per child, and at St James’, like
other Diocesan schools, the Governing Body has decided to raise this annual donation of £15 per pupil via the school’s Gift Aid Scheme. The most
effective way for you to make a contribution to the Fund would be to establish a standing order from your bank account complemented by the giftaid declaration, which would allow income tax paid by you to be reclaimed by the Fund. The appropriate forms were sent out with my letter, but can
also be found attached to this newsletter or on the school website. St James’, as it exists today owes much to the generosity of previous parents, and
it needs the support of parents, now and in the future. Contributions from parents would help us to improve the security of the school site, help
repair any damage and prepare for the on-going general refurbishment of school premises. I know myself that there are many calls on parents for
money, but I do hope that you are able to help us.
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A reminder that school closes on Friday 20th December at 1.35pm and opens for the new term on Monday 6 January 2014. Thank you for your
active support and involvement in your child’s education. If you wish to communicate with me on any issue, please do not hesitate to e-mail me at
[email protected]. Alternatively, please ring and we will arrange to meet at the earliest opportunity.
Tim Beesley, Headteacher
PRAYER
ADVANCE NOTICE
Lord, thank you for the small things that make my day
go well:
a smile,
some peace,
good weather
a good laugh.
help me to wait for better times with a grateful heart
this Advent.
SCHOOL CLOSES FOR THE CHRISTMAS
HOLIDAYS AT 1:35PM ON
FRIDAY 20TH DECEMBER
YEAR 10 SKI COURSE 2015
SKI TRIP 2013
There are only 7 places left for the ski course in April 2015. This is a rare opportunity
to experience a very exciting and enjoyable sport in spectacular surroundings.
The trip will take place during the first week of the Easter holidays in 2015. The resort
is Claviere – part of the famous “Milky Way” a huge ski area of 100km. Our hotel is the
Passero Pelligina a 3 star, with excellent facilities and is only 100 metres from the lift
system.
NOTE FOR SKI 2014 – Aldi supermarket have a fantastic offer for ski wear (cheaper
than hiring!)
It was literally the best time of my life. A
fantastic experience and we all have so
many amazing memories which we’ll never
forget. Learning to ski, staying with your
friends for a week and making so many
memories is a once in a lifetime
opportunity. I have never had a better
holiday in my life, it was amazing, I wish we
could do it again!
Fiona Porter 11E
Mr Wilby – Trip Leader
SKI TRIP 2013
The ski trip at St James’ is a once in a lifetime opportunity! You’ll have the best week of your life and most of my memories from St James’ are
from this trip! Speaking on behalf of everyone, it was the best holiday we’ve ever had and we’d do anything to go again!
Katie Ward 11E
ENGLISH FACULTY
Quotation
“I will honour Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year.”
Charles Dickens
Suggested texts
It is the Dickens’ time of year so dip into some “Oliver Twist” or “Great Expectations.”
Writing Tips
Get those basics right! I am constantly reminding pupils about the use of apostrophes but these are not being applied to work. As GCSE
English Language now becomes increasingly focused on spelling, punctuation and grammar, these rules need to be addressed.
The rule is this-in singular nouns, the apostrophe is shown by ‘s for example, the girl’s dress. In the plural, it is shown s’ for example, the
girls’ dresses.
It may however be shown by an apostrophe only to avoid awkward-sounding double endings such as Moses’ anger and Jesus’ words.
Year 10
A reminder that Year 10 are now studying English Literature and our focus currently is the sonnet in ‘Romeo and Juliet’. It is vital that Year 10
understand the plot thoroughly and the structure of sonnets. So zoom into Shakespeare whenever possible over the next few weeks.
Mrs Zelinka – English Teacher
ATTENDANCE
We are once again running the 12 Days of Christmas Attendance Competition. Pupils and staff who are in school during the 12 days
before the end of term will be put in a daily prize draw to win a gift relating to the "12 Days of Christmas" carol. The winners so far
are:
Day One - Partridge in a Pear Tree
Amber Gibson 7S
Caroline Featherstone 8A
Ruby Kenyon 9M
George Ravenscroft 10S
Kieran Kelly 11J
Mrs E Keenan - staff member
Day Two - Two Turtle Doves
Lucy Lawrence 7J
Adam Geddes 8C
Beatrice Johnson 9A
Amy Mulhollland 10M
Louis Gilchrist 11J
Mrs J Corless - staff member
Adam Geddes 8C , Lucy Lawrence 7J, Beatrice Johnson 9A
GIRLS’ PE EXTRA CURRICULAR INFORMATION
BOYS’ PE
Week commencing Monday 9th December
Week commencing Monday 9nd December
Monday (lunch)
Hockey practice Year 7
Tuesday
Tuesday (lunch)
Netball practice Years 7 & 8
Year 7 5-a-side away at
Woodley – return 6pm
Tuesday (after school)
Year 7-11 netball matches @ home vs
Werneth
Wednesday
KS4 basketball away at
Reddish Vale – return 6pm
Wednesday (lunch)
Football practice all years
Thursday
Indoor rowing completion at
Levenshulme High School
afternoon
Wednesday (after school) KS3 SS Badminton away at CHHS
Thursday (lunch)
Netball practice Year7 & 8
Thursday (after school)
Years 7, 8, 9 Hockey at home vs Marple
Badminton Tuesday-Friday lunch
Boys’ PE
GIRL'S PE SPORTING NEWS
St James' girl's sporting teams have had a very successful week!!
Netball Tuesday 3rd December Year 10 St James' vs Stockport Grammar
The year 10 netball team competed in a 40 minute friendly match against a very strong Stockport Grammar side. The St. James' girls
started the game very strong and the intensity and quality of netball was at its highest from the first centre pass. The first quarter
finished 6-3 to St. James' but the game was still very much open as both teams where demonstrating excellent resilience and skill.
Throughout the rest of the game our girl's performance built in strength and composure and the intensity level did not drop. St. James'
girls deservedly won the gane an impressive 22-12. Excellent performance and result girls!! Well done to the following girls: Emma
Donaghy, Naomi Neale, Beth White, Jodie Worsley, Abi Howard, Ellie Hind, Olivia Lavelle and finally the team captain and finally the
awarded player of the match Lucy Donaghy.
SS Year 9/10 Dodgeball tournament Tuesday 3rd December
Girls’
The
St PE
James' Year 9 dodgeball team competed in the Stockport Schools Dodgeball tournament. The girls thoroughly enjoyed the
tournament and as usual the behaviour and level of competitiveness was faultless. They finished the tournament in 4th place, which is
an excellent result considering our team consisted of Year 9's only and they had only had one practice prior to competing in the
tournament. Well done to the following girls: Freya Tan, Danielle Stringer, Becca Chantler, Charlotte Laing, Mary Sweeney, Rosie HollinsSubirats, Faye O'Brien, Olivia Wheeldon, Jess Lax, Charlotte Kiessi and Isobel MacDonald!!
Boys’ PE
Girl's Football U13 & U15 matches vs CHHS Wednesday 4th December
U13
The Year 7 & 8 girls football team played fantastically on Wednesday night and beat a talented Cheadle Hulme High School side 6-1.
Chloe Ackroyd (Year 8) was amazing in attack, weaving her way through the Cheadle Hulme High School defence scoring 4 goals, which
contributed to her being awarded the player of the match. Ellie and Chloe Walker played fantastically in defence and for 40 minutes
only had their defence broken once.
U15
The Year 9 & 10 girls football team had a very tough battle against a strong Cheadle Hulme High School team. Anna Pullar, who was
awarded player of the match, scored an amazing goal taking our girls into a 1-0 lead. Cheadle Hulme High School began to press and
put pressure on the faultless defence of Anna Pullar, Charlie Abernathy and Becca Chantler (Year 9). St James' held Cheadle Hulme High
School to a 1-0 lead, until the last 6 minutes of the 40 minute game where they conceded 2 goals. The girls unfortunately lost the game
2-1 but their performance and sportsmanship was exemplary.
The atmosphere in both football matches was buzzing and it was thoroughly enjoyable to watch. Well done to the following footballers:
Charlie Abernathy, Anna Pullar, Maisy Lou- Taylor, Becca Chantler, Holly Ellison, Tara Delahoyde, Natalie Whitehead, Jess Burton, HalliJade Lockett, Chloe Walker, Ellie Walker, Katie McMenamin and Chloe Ackroyd.
Girls’ PE
PE FACULTY
Dodgeball
St James’ were represented at the Stockport Dodgeball tournament by eleven Year 9 and 10 boys. We were drawn against Stockport School,
Cheadle Hulme, Harrytown and a strong GCSE Kingsway team. Winning our games against CHHS and Harrytown, gaining a draw against Stockport
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School and narrowly losing to Kingsway (2-1) we finished 2 within our division and were unable to qualify for the final. Meaning the boys finished
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3 out of the 10 schools that attended. This was a very
positive result for them and they should all be proud of
their effort and commitment in the tournament; a
particular mention for Alex Hewitt who performed
exceptionally in all games and was our key man during
the tournament.
The boys were:
Alex Hewitt, Richard Kanege, Will Sparrow-Saunt,
Ben Gleeson, Michael Tebay, Kristian Tan,
Valter Neto-Grouve, Daniel Willoughby, Aidan Byrne,
Felix Beranger-Renwick and Joe McConnell
A big well done to all the Year 9 girls who participated in the Stockport Girls Dodge ball tournament, a fun time had by all involved which resulted
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in them finishing 4 out of 7 Stockport Schools.
Well done!
PE Faculty
STOCKPORT YOUNG STARS AWARDS
A Presentation Evening took place on
Thursday 5th December at the Town
Hall.
Congratulations to Kieran Kelly 11J.
He was named as the "Winner" of
the Award in the category
Special Educational Needs.
"Learner of the Year".
Three of St James' ex pupils were also
nominated for awards:
Becky Hoult - Outstanding achievement in
Netball
9S FUNDRAISING
A BIG THANK YOU!!
“A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips”
is what they say, but not for the pupils in 9S
on Friday 6th December. They held a cake sale
and were delighted by the support of others
managing to raise £56 to be sent to the
Philippines Disaster Fund.
A huge thank you to everyone who brought,
sold, and ate the cakes – you can be assured
that your money will really be appreciated by
those affected by Typhoon Haiyan.
Katie Young - Overcoming Adversity
Becky Watkins - Outstanding academic
achievement
Well done everyone!
Mrs Bray – Form Tutor
YEAR 7 TALENT SHOW
As part of our fundraising effort, Year 7 decided that they wanted to put on a talent show. I asked for volunteers to step forward and showcase
their talent and I was delighted with the number of pupils that were willing to perform. Rehearsals were held at lunchtimes for all that wanted
to take part, and it was very clear that there is a great deal of talented youngsters throughout the year.
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The talent show was held on Wednesday 4 December during lunchtime and was very well supported by the year group. The entrance fee was
50p and we raised just over £62 which meant that three quarters of the year came to watch.
Our contestants were:
Joseph Wilkinson
Casey-Jade Lynch
Katie McMenamin
Erin O’Connor & Katie Barnett
Jamie Kelly
Paige Sherratt, Kelly McKInley, Hannah Wheeldon, Chantelle Patterson
Olivia Irwin
Gabrielle Idehen
Lucy Brown
Sean Lavelle, Sean James, Tom Connolly, Luke Ricci, Louis Affen
Kian Bancroft
Olivia Ring
The talent ranged from impressions, to singing to beautiful dancing and there was even some strange noises thrown in. We were so proud of all
our contestants for performing and also of the others in the year group who gave up their lunchtime to offer their encouragement and support.
Same again next year !! – Well done to all. Mrs Linford & Mr Cawley