July 2024 Edition 19 Leaving A Legacy As the summer term ends, Pembroke Academy bids a heartfelt farewell to Mr. Evans, who has led the school with dedication and vision for the past seven years. Under his leadership, the academy has grown from a modest 161 students in 2017 to over 600, making it a well-subscribed and highly sought-after school in Lincoln. Mr. Evans' tenure has seen the school through numerous challenges, always upholding the academy's motto, "Achieving Together." This ethos has filled every aspect of school life, guiding students and staff alike in their pursuit of excellence. A particularly unique tradition initiated by Mr. Evans is the knighting of pupils who reach the top of the Pembroke Pledge, using an actual sword—a practice believed to be unique among UK headteachers. Reflecting on his time at Pembroke, Mr. Evans shared, "I'm incredibly proud to have served as the first Head of Pembroke. It's been an honour and a privilege, and I have so many happy memories to take away. I pay full tribute to all the staff who have worked with me at Pembroke and the pupils who put on the tie and badge each day. Pembroke is now a school of choice in this part of Lincoln, and this was something that I set out to achieve all those years ago." “As I reflect on my time at Pembroke, I am filled with pride and gratitude for the wonderful experiences we shared. One of the most spectacular traditions has been our annual beach day, where the entire school gathered by the sea each summer, creating lasting memories and a strong sense of community. The school trips and visits, such as the Knights trip to London and the unforgettable journey to Barcelona in the summer of 2023, were equally memorable. Despite the 24-hour coach ride, these trips provided invaluable learning experiences and opportunities for students to grow and bond. Our annual walk in aid of Macmillan has been particularly meaningful, allowing us to honour and remember staff members we've lost over the years, bringing us together in solidarity and compassion. Hot Chocolate Friday has also become a cherished tradition, offering a warm and welcoming way to end the week, and fostering a sense of community. Additionally, our end-of-term assemblies, annual sports day, school shows, and "Pembroke's Got Talent" events have been vibrant celebrations of our students' talents and achievements. These moments have shaped our students' experiences and contributed to the supportive environment that makes Pembroke so special.” As Pembroke moves into its next phase, it will welcome Mrs. Helen Spoors as the new Headteacher starting in September. Alongside this leadership change, there will be additional staffing and system updates, details of which will be communicated in due course. The Priory Federation extends its deepest gratitude to Mr. Evans for his unwavering commitment and inspirational leadership. His legacy will undoubtedly continue to inspire and shape the future of Pembroke for years to come. Let's continue to cherish these traditions and create even more memories in the years to come!
Wisely Supporting Our Primary Schools The last term has been as busy as the rest. I have been busy teaching year 1 and year 5 at Cherry and also year 6 at Carlton Academy. We also have had to organise and visit all our future year 7 students whilst making arrangements for what were two fantastic induction days on 4th & 5th July. June began by delivering a really cool architecture unit to Mr Dobson’s class at Cherry. We looked at the main styles of architecture over time with a specific focus on the contemporary, mind-blowing designs of Zaha Hadid. The students constructed some incredible imaginary architectural models using only geometric shapes. This was not only engaging due to the use of the glue gun, but also because they could just go with their creative flow. The creations constructed from recycled packaging were brilliant. The students created nets, domes and stair cases in all sorts of directions. We photographed their final models, too, and created dramatic black and white compositions for their sketchbooks. Year 6 at Carlton were looking at Impressionism, and after looking at the traditional artists such as Monet and Van Gogh, we then looked at more contemporary work inspired by this original artform. Artists such as Mona Edulesco and Elena Bond use bold colour and really exaggerated marks with paint, and year 6 were desperate to have a go. Working from a range of photography sources, they explored mark making with both brushes and palette knives to create their own impressionist artwork. They had fun using acrylic paint as it was new and encouraged colour mixing using only cyan, magenta, yellow, black and white. Year 1 at Cherry have had a ‘Jungle’ theme this term; and with the starting point of the famous Henry Rousseau’s tiger in the jungle image, we discussed what else we could see in the painting. We also looked at Tinga Tinga art from Tanzania and created paper collages of giraffes using different colours and patterns. The students engaged with basic clay techniques to create ceramic lion models. We finished the project by looking at the inclusion of parrots in art work and what they represent; afterwards, we created our own paper parrots with mono-printed wing designs. Behind the scenes, over the past few weeks, Mr Greene (Head of year 7 in September), Mrs Ratcliffe, Mrs Bromley and I have been out across the county visiting our 128 new year 7 students. We have met so many wonderful children during those visits with vast backgrounds, hobbies and interests. All are very excited about coming to Pembroke. During their transition days, they were greeted by Mrs Spoors (our new Headteacher) and spent time with their form and tutors. Two students from our current year 7s were employed to be tour guides and general helpers for each form on both days. They enjoyed hot snacks from the canteen at break time, as well as English, Art, Pe, Maths and Science lessons. At lunch students were encouraged to explore the site and meet up with students they knew in the older year groups. They all left with fewer nerves and more smiles! On Thursday 11th July, we met the year 6s’ parents and after a lot of information from the year 7 team, parents were also happy and content that they had chosen the perfect school for their child. You can keep up to date with daily activities via our social media feeds.
Curious Bushcraft Trip On arrival, we were met with a rocky, if slightly muddy path surrounded by trees, leading down to our very own camp. It was a relatively short walk and at arrival at the camp, there was a clearing surrounded by tents with two main yurts with a fire-pit in the middle. The surrounding trees were luscious and green. At Bushcraft, it was important to protect the trees as they are relied upon for firewood and to keep the ecosystem thriving. Some of the Bushcraft meals were eaten at our campsite, such as burgers and pizzas which we made ourselves and in the evenings biscuits and hot chocolate were enjoyed by many. For other meals, we would walk down to the central kitchen yurts which were a little way into the forest and this was often done in the rain! Mr Brewer commented that this was our first rainy Bushcraft experience out of the four that he had taken part in since 2019. The camp leaders were very friendly and helpful. They worked extremely hard to keep everyone, including the teachers, safe. They also prepared meals, led activities and kept the fire going through the night. One activity we tried was shelter building where we constructed our own shelter and then tried to sell it to the camp leaders. They were tested for durability by having water thrown at them while we were in them! Some shelters kept us dry better than others, but overall, they all passed the test! Another activity that we took part in was cutting skills where we were each given a stick and a knife a few at a time (after being taught how to use it safely and responsibly) and we could carve a point into our wood and practised taking off the bark which later some of the camp leaders kindly offered to burn our names into with a hot fork. We also learnt how to put someone into the recovery position and then how to get them onto a stretcher and move them safely. A few people got dropped during this so it was lucky that they weren’t really injured! It took a long time, but, when we were eventually allowed into our tents, we unpacked our stuff and got ready for bed. The tents were large and roomy, cold at first, but gradually became warmer. One tent decided to warm themselves up by opening the tent doors to get heat from the fire, which was a good ten metres away (it did not work!) We were able to have our friends around us and stay up late telling stories. However, if we were too loud we would get a cup put on our tent canopy which was the equivalent of a school warning. If three of these were gained a teacher would be sent for. (This may have happened once or twice!) To conclude, Bushcraft was a valuable experience for both staff and students. It was a chance to talk to people you might to know that well, learn skills to help in day-to-day life and to be independent and adventurous. Thank you to all the staff involved in organising and coordinating the trip. Everyone should try it at least once! Martha Alwyn-Clark On 22-24 May, 50 Year 7 students were given the opportunity to go to the grounds of Castle Howard in Yorkshire, and participate in the Bushcraft experience they offer there. This meant leaving our phones and our families to go and spend three days living in the wi ld! During this trip, we would be taking part in team building exercises and learn skills that would not only help us to survive in the wild, but help us throughout our lives.
Wise About Our Environment Almost everyone in the world today is aware of climate change and global warming, but how often do you think back to the root cause? There is no denying that humans are the reason the world is warming at such an alarming rate, but why? What did we do? Is there a way to fix it? In this article I am going to explain why global warming is happening, how it links so directly to us as humans and how to resolve it. Some people may think that humans are not responsible for climate change: untrue. These people might not be fully informed; hopefully I will change that. Climate change is the weather in the world’s atmosphere becoming harder to predict because of the world warming up. Gases such as methane and carbon thickening the Ozone layer, essentially a bubble around the world keeping air in which is trapping the heat radiated by the sun inside the atmosphere. The unnaturally large amount of carbon is mostly produced by cars. As more cars get made and gradually fewer trees are being planted and cared for, we are destroying our best natural filters and replacing them with more carbon. Is this really fair on all the other creatures on this planet that were here centuries longer that us? Landfills are also a huge issues, they poison the earth and release methane. It comes from animal farms, especially cows because of the mass production of them. A lot of these farms are also made in the rainforest resulting in deforestation. I will leave you with this: 57% of green house gas emissions is linked to the rearing and breeding of cows. Ways to slow down global warming are having less meat in your diet, to decrease the need for cow farms. You can also use less plastic to reduce the amount of poison in the earth. For more information look at Climate Change | Causes & Effects of Global Warming | Justdiggit. We may be the cause, but we are also the solution! Martha Alwyn-Clark This term has been focussing on year ten and their work experience. The week prior to May half term, the majority of year 10 sourced a work experience placement for a week. We had such a variety of placements from primary schools to vets, from dog training to learning how to be a pilot. The students really enjoyed their week and strengthened their skills in communication, confidence and resilience. Year 7 have been set a challenge in their Careers lessons by a professional illustrator Vicky Luckman: Create an eye catching poster for Willow Court Care Home’s summer fair. There have been so many amazing designs but the winners are; Martha Alwyn-Clark, Elisabeth Ascoli, Ben White & Jamie Keen from 7.3. A group of students in Year 8 and 9 visited the National Horseracing College in Doncaster. They enjoyed spending time with the horses and were inspired by their 12 week residential training program. Career Curiosity
Generosity For Bees This year we chose to participate in the “bee-autiful gardens” category, against 11 other schools. It was a tough category!! We started with some research, using the internet first for some planting ideas. We then visited Woodside Wildlife Park and chatted with their horticulturalist team about the plants they grow there for their pollinators. They were kind enough to donate us some of the seedlings they had, too! Our next visit was to Thorne Beehives; we had an interesting talk about how bees are kept, and how the colony works. We discovered the main workers are females, and the males are kicked out of the hive when they are no longer needed. We then used our new knowledge to create a bug house from a donated bird table, along with a range of clay pots for bees to get a sip of water in the hot sunny days. All of these components made up our garden! We set it up on the Tuesday afternoon, and on the Wednesday and Thursday we had a great two days experiencing all there was at the show! Now in its 139th year, the Lincolnshire Show is organised by the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, a registered charity whose aims are to educate about food, farming and the environment. The Show is the county’s flagship event, proud to welcome over 60,000 visitors, 5,000 school children and 500 exhibitors each and every year. It really is an actionpacked day out for all of the family, the Show offers an eclectic mix of shopping, horticulture, live music, equine and livestock classes, children’s activities, local food and drinks, and breath-taking entertainment. Our students enjoyed lots of activities such as American football with the Lincoln bombers and wheelchair basketball and parkour and the climbing wall. As an academy, we weren’t given an award, however our students worked very hard, and we are all proud of what they achieved this year!!
Courageous Sport News In this edition, we bring you some incredible out of school sporting courage. Alicia Lynas in year 8 tells us all about her Judo journey. I started was when I was 6 years old after watching my brother a few times. I joined in the lessons because it looked cool throwing and fighting. We had being doing it for about a year, it took a bit of a stall because of lockdown. When we returned, my dad had started it back up—he had quit due to injuries competing. Since he’s been involved, he runs the club and has recently opened a second venue. The sessions are continuing to grow; it’s great as it means more people to train with and travel to competitions and events. My biggest achievement so far Is quite recent when I won AJA national and was selected to compete in Holland and made it on the AJA GBR British squad for juniors. Making it to Holland and getting that far was a really awesome experience. The actual competition in Holland was nerve-wracking. The participation and experience is what I took away to build on for next time. I love judo, and I am actually giving back what I learn to the younger ones; my coach calls it junior leadership where I’m given responsibility and help them with their judo because I am a higher belt then they are. Judo helps me in all sorts of ways, like the strength it gives me and the friends I’ve made through training at various clubs. In my day to day life it helps me by being able to relate to other people. I have friends both at judo, out of judo and also at school all whom I wouldn’t have met if I didn’t do judo! I think judo is brilliant for girls and older women. There were only a few when I started now, we have 20+ and have a designated female only class. When I train seniors on a Friday sometimes, I’m the only girl on the mat which I don’t mind! However I would definitely love having other girls on the mat; it would be great to help the others that are a bit shy and not confident. I think that more girls trying out judo would help themselves massively with self-defence, confidence and inner strength. I’m hoping to be an Olympian. I’d like to be the first medallist or become the next coach at my judo club; my grandad coached my dad and he still does judo as does my dad. I’m hoping to be a coach myself one day as it would be nice to keep the tradition going! We also celebrate the incredible passion of Asher and Finnian Phillipson in year 9. The boys first got into running in year 4 when they were selected to run for their primary school and Asher won both the 600m and 100m, and the boys team won the 100m relay which both boys were selected for. They then earned a place in the top 3 in every competition they represented their school in for country cross country. As it looked like they may be quite good at this running, their parents decided to sign them up to Lincoln Wellington Athletics Club, LWAC, at the age of 9. This year Finnian has come 2nd in the Lincoln and Gainsborough schools XC, 3rd at the Lincolnshire XC and 8th at the Anglian XC. For 800m, he is currently 9th U15b in the country with a time of 2:00.25 which broke the Lincolnshire record which had stood since 1989. He is also the Lincolnshire county champion in 200m, 300m and 800m, breaking the county records for 300m and 800m. He was 3rd in the Anglian schools for 1500m. This season, Finnian has achieved the English Schools entry standard for 300m, 800m and 1500m. As you can only compete in one event, he has decided to compete in the 800m as this is his favourite distance out of the three. Finnian also loves to do parkrun and his current PB for 5k is 17.34 and 3Kon the road is 9.55. That is fast! This year, Asher has come 1st in the Lincoln and Gainsborough schools XC. He came 4th at the Lincolnshire XC and 16th at the Anglian XC. For 800m, he is currently 10th U15b in the country with a time of 2:00.75. He is also the Lincolnshire county champion in 1500m and 2nd in 300m just behind his brother. This season, Asher has achieved the English Schools entry standard for 300m and 800m and, like Finnian, he has decided to compete in the 800m. With their coach Marc Thorpe, Asher and Finnian train four times a week including competitions and parkrun. Due to their dedication to running, they will also be competing at the end of July in the English Athletics Championships in the 300m. Wow! Another runner is Holly Urquhart in year 10. Holly was in year 3 when she started her running journey. She has always enjoyed sport growing up. After one of her sports days when she was 9 years old, her dad suggested that she should join an athletics club and she has ran ever since. Holly has then developed her skills through training and many competitions. On the 12th of July, Holly was competing in the 300m sprint at English School nationals in Birmingham. What an amazing experience.
Passion For Prom On 1st July, Prom 2024 was held at Hemswell Court—a beautiful venue. It’s a ‘rite of passage’ for every year 11 in the country and our year 11s loved every minute. It’s not just about the fancy frocks, smart suits and the flashy cars they arrive in; it’s about celebrating a five year journey as a year group. This year 11 have had a bumpy journey, with a pandemic interrupting their second & third year of secondary school education. We held their options evening online and, since then, we have been working hard to build their resilience and aspirations. This year group have worked hard. Not only for their GCSEs, but also for their Prom fundraising. They held cake sales, year 7 cinema nights and raffles to be able to treat themselves to a few extra perks on the night. They particular enjoyed the fun awards that Mr Greene had organised. We wish each one of them the very best on their journey post Pembroke and look forward to hearing of their achievements in the future. We are sure many will keep in touch and share with us what they get up to in and out of further education.
Generous To Share Our Favourite Books? Our students & staff have some recommended reads for you... Don’t forget to follow our stories daily on social media. ‘Starfish’ by Akemi Dawn Bowman This is about a girl called Kiko who feels like she doesn’t fit in. She is of Japanese heritage which she knows nothing of due to living with her English mum; she doesn’t see her dad. Her mother is selfish and obsessed with her own dramas and doesn't value her daughter in terms of her looks or her artistic talents. Kiko is lonely and thinks she is ugly. Kiko dreams of getting into the best art school— ’Prism’ and upon her first failed attempt begins to doubt herself. With the help of a childhood friend and an artist who draws out her soul, Kiko discovers things about herself she didn’t know. I would love to see the drawings she does as she describes them on each page. Not only do they depict her emotions but they just sound like fantasy illustrations. Miss Neal ‘Once’ by Morris Gleitzman Felix is a naïve orphan living in a Catholic Orphanage, although he is a Jew. He makes an escape one day deciding to find his parents. On the way he witnesses hundreds of murders, he saves a girl called Zelda and almost dies. They are both saved by a dentist called Barney, who helps them hide in a cellar with other kids. Felix, all this time, had kept his notebook, with stories he creates. Eventually Zelda and Felix are taken to a train which leads them to a concentration camp—another place to escape from. This is a very emotional book, but incredibly powerful at the same time. The reader is able to see Felix figure out the horrors of war, all whilst keeping a flicker of hope that his story will have a happy ending. A fantastic adventure! Lydia Poore ‘Dragon Rider’ (1) by Taran Matharu Dragon Rider is a great fiction book with fantastic characters and storyline. I enjoyed reading this book a lot even though it is very long and some of the language was more difficult to understand. The book is the first in a new series set in the Sabine Empire, a fantasy land with deserts and mountains, castles and cities. This book was a blast to read and I would recommend it to all my friends and to anyone who loves a fantasy, magic or adventure book or who has read any of Taran Matharu’s previous series, The Contender and The Summoner. Lucas Jackson ‘The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise’ and (its sequel) ‘Coyote, Lost and Found’ by Dan Gemeinhart This joyous pair of books form a unique and funny journey into the heart and mind of young girl, Ella, hereafter known as Coyote, who has lost her Mum and two beloved sisters to a tragic accident. Coyote and her Dad, Rodeo, cannot fully face their loss and so they set off on a road trip, partly set during the pandemic, across the States in a big school bus. Are they running away from their heartbreak or to a new life? With new friends collected along the way (so long as they can answer three crucial questions including, “what is your favourite sandwich?”), the pair finally come to terms with the true meaning of family, including all the messy bits like conflict, misunderstanding, grief, anger and compromise. Coyote is wise beyond her years and can teach any reader a thing or two about how not to be afraid to admit when you’ve messed up and how to do what it takes to make it right. Mrs Coggan ‘The Librarian of Auschwitz, the Graphic Novel’ adapted by Salva Rubio As part of our Holocaust Beacon School status, we have been looking to improve the offer of the books we hold in the Reading Room, to ensure access to a range of materials covering this important period of history, along with others genocides, for staff and pupils alike. The graphic novel adaptation of the bestselling novel gives an even more impactful version of the story of Dita Kraus, Holocaust survivor and secret librarian for the children's block in Auschwitz. This moving but beautifully illustrated book is simple without being simplistic, sophisticated without being daunting and a haunting yet authentic retelling of this story for readers in year 7 and above. Mrs Coggan ‘The Stig Plays A Dangerous Game’ by Jon Claydon and Tim Lawler Who doesn't love The Stig, that anonymous driving hero, star of the Top Gear franchise? In a new series of short and snappy adventure books, we get to find out a lot more about our white-suited legend and what else he gets up to. New boy, Sam, is trying to fit in in a town where everyone appears to be addicted to a mysterious computer game and no one seems to care too much about a missing kid. When he meets a group of new friends, disaster is never far away and The Stig is the hero they all need. An action-packed and hilarious new series for all. Mrs Coggan
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODA2Njk=