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Fully Authorised by British and Spanish authorities. Centre for Cambridge International Examinations and Edexcel London Examinations
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Senior News Sporting Success for Gemini
Graduation Day "What a fine group of people, a credit to their parents." With these words, Tony Garwood (Head of Seniors), commended the students of Year 11 who had gathered with their parents for their Graduation Ceremony.
This, he said, was a happy day because most of the IGCSEs had now been taken and because a long summer holiday stretched before them. However, this was also a sad day because this was absolutely the last time they would all be together at Wingate.
The award for Progress and Determination was given to Danni Smith. The final award went to Head Prefect Rebecca Merritt for the efficient and effective way she had led the Prefect during the last year. Then it was on to the Graduation Certificates themselves. Chloe Pinchin (tutor of 11P) presented to her form and Rob Finnie (11F) to his. There was much joy shown in the applause from parents and fellow students as each person received the certificate marking this milestone in life. Each certificate contains the names of everyone in Year 11. A fine memory jerker in 20 or 40 years time.
Mr Green, commenting afterwards, praised the sense of community that the students were so clearly demonstrating. And perhaps this is one reason why so many of them plan to return to Wingate Sixth in the Autumn to continue with their studies. World Record-breakers!
Students from Wingate Seniors made their personal contribution towards the Global Campaign for Education last week by taking part in the Guinness World Record attempt to hold the World’s Biggest Lesson. The lesson took place on Wednesday 23rd April in over 100 countries. It was part of the Global Campaign for Education’s ongoing campaign to raise awareness and pressurize politicians around the world to keep their promises to provide Quality Education for All. In 2000, leaders of rich and poor countries committed themselves to a set of goals and targets to end global poverty and make the world a better place. Central to these are the Education for All (EFA) goals signed up to be achieved by over 164 Governments in Dakar in 2000. The target was set to be reached by 2015 and although we are already past the half way point to 2015, there is still a lot of progress to be made on this issue. According to the Global Campaign for Education, “there is an inequitable distribution of quality education, with children in poorer countries most affected by a lack of teachers as well as learning materials. 72 million children and 774 million adults are currently missing out on an education. Quality Education for All is fundamental to ensuring that people of all ages are able to develop their full capacities.” In total 109 Wingate students participated. In doing so they learnt about the importance of getting a good quality education, as well as the impact not being able to read and write or count has on someone’s life. They also explored different ways in which individuals can come together to try to influence politicians to take action on such key issues. The Global Campaign for Education is still collecting verification forms from schools worldwide, but an early count shows that the record has already been broken, with an estimated minimum of 7.5 million people taking part. It may be some time before exact figures are published, but Wingate students should feel proud to have done their bit. They left the lesson feeling very fortunate about their own education, and despite the success of the attempt would probably all agree that the old cliché ‘it’s the taking part that counts’ was more meaningful than ever. Surf’s Up at Wingate Richard Bullock, Wingate PE teacher, and life-long surf enthusiast, has started a Surf Club. This is his account of their first outing. We left Wingate at 9.15, our destination, K16 Surf School in Las Americas; twelve students from Years 7 to 10, ready for their first taste of riding the waves. The forecast was for small waves and very little sun so when we arrived at the beach I was pleased there were no surprises! Both instructors met us outside the shop and after brief introductions we were taken to get fitted out with all our surf equipment. The girls insisted on pink surfboards, James wanted his regular board and Lucy was embarrassed as she knew the instructor and was wearing school uniform! After squeezing everyone into wetsuits and fitting the girls with pink surfboards we were ready to hit the water. Lois managed to hit 90% of the expensive cars on the way to the beach with the back of her board. Talking and carrying a surfboard is a skill yet to be mastered by this budding surfer!! Once the lessons started the students were taught how to safely control the board in the waves, the paddling technique and how to stand up. On a more serious note, I believe that learning new skills in a challenging environment can have a massive positive effect on students’ self-esteem, can improve team-work and communication. Surfing is a sport that can promote a healthy lifestyle, is great fun and is perfectly suited to life in Tenerife. Once we hit the water and seeing the waves closer up I noticed some students say “they look much bigger out here! ” and Lois saying “I’m gonna die!!” AGAIN. Although a little on the small size, the waves were perfect for the learners in the group. All caught lots of waves, most managed to stand up and with no injuries and a lot of laughs, it all made for a successful surf trip. Awards went to Jacob Ashley (Year 7) – First wave ever caught and he stood up and rode nicely. Sam Finnie (Year 8) – Longest wave, all the way in, but forgot to stand up. James Stormont (Year 9) – Best Wave. Lois Whitelaw (Year 7) – The “am I gonna die award” for survival. After warming up and a little food, it was back to school and lessons. K16 commented on how quickly the students picked up the basic skills and that their behaviour was excellent. So, all set for the next wave. Wingate Students visit HMS Portland
Students of
Years 10 and 11 of Wingate School were invited to a tour on board HMS
Portand on December 10, when it docked at Sa HMS Portland is a modern Type 23 frigate (there have been 15 HMS Portlands since 1653). It has one of the most modern weapon systems in the Royal Navy and it’s motto is “To be ready to fight and win. One of the highlights of the tour was when the students were shown the ship helicopter. The officers shared their experiences with the students and encouraged them to look into the navy as a career choice. Open Day Friday 26th October
Parents met with subject teachers in the school hall. A busy afternoon for all concerned. Senior parents had been asking for the opportunity to meet directly with subject teachers for some years. This was our first attempt to satisfy this request. A massive 92% said that they were pleased with the way the afternoon was organised. 8% would have preferred to have met with just the Tutor as in the past. The summer Open Day will be Tutor based. The chief improvement we feel we need to address is reducing queue sizes and waiting times.
Year 11 Officials Head Prefect: Rebecca Merritt.
Prefects:
Aaron
Dowling, Noemi Garcia, Jasmine
Hall, Charlotte Harrison,
Christopher Harrison,
Georgina Kay, Nicole Parker,
Victoria Reeve, Stevie
Reynolds, James Rubes, Ayla Sayes,
Pooja Tanwani
and
Celeste Whitehead.
House Captains and Vice Captains:
Copyright © 2005 [Wingate School]. All rights reserved. Revised: July 25, 2008 |
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