Parental Bulletin - 12th October 2018

Parental Bulletin
12th October 2018

The Knights Templar School
Headteacher:
Mr T. Litchfield, G.G.S.M.
Park Street
Baldock
Herts SG7 6DZ
Email: admin@ktemplar.herts.sch.uk Tel: 01462 620700
Dear Parents and Carers
PARENTAL WEEKLY UPDATE – 12th October 2018
(available on our website)
I was thrilled to see so many of you at the Careers Fair last
night. I was delighted to see our students engaging with
potential employers, asking about career paths and beginning
to focus themselves on their futures. I was equally
pleased to see so many of our x-students who were working
with some of the employers and in some cases as a result of
previous careers fairs.
Our estimation was that we had about 500 students with
their parents through the doors. I hope you found it useful
and informative. We run our Careers Fair every two years.
We had a very interesting and challenging talk from Femi Oluwole on
Wednesday as part of our Engaging Minds programme. Femi is an anti-
Brexit campaigner and told how he quit his dream job to try to stop Britain
from leaving the European Union. As usual, our students were challenged
and were challenging to Femi. Thank you Mrs Brando for creating the opportunity.
As an update to our new building project, it looks like we might be taking
handover of the building in early December. This means that we will be teaching in there after Christmas.
I would encourage all appropriate age students to register for Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme. By
completing the Silver Award, it will mean that students going onto achieve Gold will be able to complete
the course in a much shorter time. Mrs Hammond Ward has all the information for registering.
I would like to thank all of you who are respecting the no drop off rules of the school. The area around the
turning circle is now much safer for our students. Please note that parents can drop off before 8.00 in the
turning circle and can pick up after 3.40 in the turning circle.
For parents of year 11 students, please be reminded that we are holding our year 11 parents and information
evening next Thursday 18 th October. Booking for this event has been open for some time.
Kind regards,
Tim Litchfield
Headteacher

Dates for your Diary
Friday 12 October 2018 KS3/4/5 Royal Albert Hall Trip; West End Musicals
Monday 15 October 2018 E Safety Day - year group sessions throughout the day
E Safety Information Evening 5pm
Tuesday 16 October 2018 Curriculum Event - Yr7 Restart a Heart Day
Yr9 Boys Rugby Match
Sixth Form Performing Arts and Theatre Studies Performance Evening
Full Governors' Meeting
Wednesday 17 October 2018 Yr12 Art & Yr13 Photography Trip
Thursday 18 October 2018 Yr11 Parents' Evening
Year 11 Parents’ Evening - Thursday 18 th October - online booking system
The online booking system for this parents’ evening is still open.
Parents have all been emailed the details of how to book appointments.
If you don’t have access to use the online booking system then please let me know so that your appointments can
be booked through the school.
Many thanks
Miss F Oetgen
Year 11 Leader
Year 11 Parents Evening Refreshments - student fundraiser:
Please note that there will be cakes and refreshments available at the year 11 parents
evening on Thursday.
This is being run by some sixth form students fundraising for their expedition to Borneo in
the summer.
Cakes and drinks will be available in return for a small donation. So please do bring some
change a long with you if you’d like to support the students and get something to eat or drink.
Thank you!

Careers News
Guaranteed to inform and inspire young people on a career in aviation,
‘Pilot Careers Live’ is Europe’s leading career exhibition.
Who should attend?
Anyone interested in a career in aviation and aerospace, from aero engineering and flight deck positions to
maintenance, airport operations, management, air traffic control or flight ops.
Candidates with an ambition to be an airline or military pilot.
Anyone interested in commercial helicopter flying operations.
School/college career advisors, as this event offers an excellent opportunity to gather reference material and speak
with the experts about options within the sector.
You don’t need to be an aviation expert to attend as this event will equip you with comprehensive knowledge
about every career opportunity and training process, to ensure that you get the best possible independent, professional
advice.
Click here to find out more: https://www.pilotcareernews.com/live/london/
Art News
The first of our whole year visits is coming up soon, when, on Tuesday 6 th and
Wednesday 7 th November, we will take the Year 8s to the Imperial War Museum
at Duxford.
Letters will be distributed next week and are also available on the KTS website
now.

Geography News
National Geographic Competitions 2019 – the entries are in!
This half-term has seen nine geographers enter two national competitions.
Royal Geography Society – Young Geographer of the Year
Callum MacLeod (year 10) and Isla Macleod (year 7) have entered the Royal Geographical Society’s Young Geographer
of the Year competition. This involved producing an A3 information board with the heading ‘What makes the
Arctic unique?’ Both Callum and Isla spent a number of weeks researching the unique human and physical characteristics
of the Arctic, the pressures it faces and the future of this region. They used internet research, GCSE and A
Level textbooks, as well as the BBC Human Planet series in their research. Both students produced exceptional information
boards and we are keeping our fingers crossed that we have a winner in both the KS3 and KS4 category!
Callum Mcleod
Isla MacLeod

Geographical Association – Physical Geography Photo Competition
In September eight students from years 7-10 entered the Geographical Association’s Physical Geography Photo
Competition. The task required students to take a photo which fitted the brief ‘Physical Geography in my life’. They
also had to include its location and a 200 word summary explaining what the photo shows and why it is important
to them. Over the next few weeks we will be featuring each student with their photo and 200 word summary. Entries
were made by Samira Bingham (year 8), Charlie Prutton (year 8), Isabelle Webb (year 8), Charlotte Clifford
(year 9), Lena Hodgson (year 9), Arianna Wooding (year 9), Emily Foggo (year 9) and Callum MacLeod (year 10). We
hope you enjoy reading their entries - I’m sure you’ll agree that they’ve produced some fantastic work!
Left to Right – Charlie Prutton, Lena Hodgson, Charlotte Clifford, Callum MacLeod, Emily Foggo and Arianna Wooding
Well done to all of the geographers who entered these competitions. It has been an absolute pleasure working with
you and seeing your entries come to life - I hope to see you back next year!
Mrs Evans
The 2019 competition will open in Spring 2019. Anyone can register their interest with Mrs Evans today.
New Clock
Thanks to Steve Thomas and Pete Morrison for
putting up our new clock on the chimney.

Year 7 & 8 Intermediate Netball Tournament
Well done to all the girls who participated in the year 7 & 8 netball tournament at The Priory School yesterday.
All the girls were a delight to take to the fixture. They played so well throughout the tournament, listening to
FREE Parent Courses—Managing Anger
6-week anger course running at Hitchin Youth Trust commencing Monday 5th December from
12.30 to 2.30pm This is funded by big lottery funding and any parent can attend, they do not
need to be referred.

Personal Statements for UCAS Applications
The 15th of January 2018 – a date that should be written in the memory of our Year
13 pupils who hope to go on to study at university.
Why? Because this is the deadline for the receipt of all UCAS applications (except
those with a 15th October deadline, and Art & Design courses with a 24th
March deadline).
Our Sixth Form tutor team has been working hard with Year 13, encouraging students
to work on their personal statements and making
themselves available to improve drafts. Ultimately, however,
this statement must belong to the person submitting
it.
Writing such a document can be onerous, but with support
from school, from home and guidance widely available on the internet, there are
plenty of ‘ways in’ to creating a statement that is arresting and informative.
UCAS offer the following basic guideline:
Your statement cannot exceed 4,000 characters, or 47 lines of text (including blank lines) – whichever is
reached first.
UCAS is not a gathered field, i.e. admissions tutors give out offers as soon as they receive applications, so the
longer students wait the fewer places there are on offer
Give yourself time to work on it – work ahead of deadlines so that members of staff can help you
Speak to university representatives to discern what faculties may want to see from applications
Do not ramble and provide vacuous statements. At the end of the day, avoid clichés too.
Do not copy other statements found online
Do not lie
There are no surprises here for our would-be applicants; this information has been broadcast by the Sixth Form
team since the process creaked into being.
Help is available from your son/daughter’s tutor and from Dr Thompson, who is co-ordinating applications. However,
pupils must consider that the later the submission of a draft, the less time staff will be able to spare to look at it.
Our message to Year 13 is short: write your personal statement. Now.

Aim Higher News
We welcomed Pravahi Osman, David Freeman Outreach Officer at Balliol College, part of the University of
Oxford, to KTS on Tuesday.
Year 12 Introduction to Oxbridge
Pravahi ran a lunchtime workshop for Year 12s which ‘planted the seed’ for a possible application to Oxford or
Cambridge this time next year. She explained the two distinctive features of the universities: their
commitment to small-group teaching and the opportunity to live and study in a smaller college within the
larger university. She explained that both universities offer access to world-class resources, facilities, and
academics, but also have a thriving extra-curricular and social life. She reassured students that the costs of
studying at Oxford and Cambridge are less than at many other universities and that there is lots of financial
support available. Pravahi explained that the universities are looking for academic ability and potential, which
is developed through A Level studies. But they are also looking for your interest and enthusiasm, your
exploration of your subject beyond the curriculum, and your capacity for independent thought, all of which
needs to be pursued and developed outside of the classroom.
The Aim Higher handbook, including information, advice and guidance on applying to Oxford and Cambridge, is
available on the Sixth Form website: https://www.sixthform.ktemplar.herts.sch.uk/aim-higher
Follow @KTSAimHigher for more opportunities to explore and prepare for your post-18 options.
Year 13 Interview Workshop
Pravahi stayed to run a Year 13 interview workshop for our Year 13 applicants to Oxford, Cambridge, and
medical schools. We were delighted to welcome students from John Henry Newman, Hitchin Boys’, Barclay
and Highfield Schools to the workshop. The students gelled fantastically, shared their love and flair for their
subjects with each other, and challenged and supported each other in tackling mock interview questions. The
students discussed how many atoms are found in a brussels sprout, deliberated over whether law creates
morals, or morals create laws, and evaluated what a historian can learn from a critical assessment of
Eastenders. We wish all of the students the best of luck with their ongoing university applications.
Very many thanks to Pravahi Osman for all of the time, information, and support she offered our students this
week.

Shall We Stay Or Shall We Go? -Brexit Talk
On occasion, Mrs Brando, who is part of the business department at The Knights Templar School, arranges for
motivational or engaging speakers to come in and educate the students of the Sixth Form.
On Thursday the 10th of October, the students of year 12 gathered in their enrichment hour and engaged with
the official spokesman of a new campaign group called Our Future Our Choice (OFOC). This campaign is run by a
group of ‘20-somethings’ and their objective is to ‘prevent the UK from leaving the European Union, regardless
of the referendum result.’ Femi Oluwole, 27, is the co-founder and chief spokesperson of OFOC and has been
recognised for his efforts (and success) in highlighting Brexit issues and mobilising young people to get involved
and take action. He has been seen discussing and debating the issue all over the media recently, particularly on
the social media platform of Twitter, in which the campaign has raked up an impressive 18,000 followers within
six months and Femi having 85,600 himself! The campaign has described itself as ‘a group of angry, determined
young people who think Brexit is a disaster and should be stopped.’
What was the purpose of this talk? In this hour, Femi advanced the year group’s knowledge further in the matter
of Brexit and how it will affect their futures. OFOC believes that in five years’ time we will be living in a
population that would have wholeheartedly voted to stay in the EU. OFOC also believes that in terms of the
economy, the UK could be ‘sacrificing’ market access to our closest neighbours. Leaving the EU would make
everything a lot more expensive for us, it would deny us the right to ‘freely’ live in parts of Europe unless we
have a visa and more importantly, it will threaten the peace process of Northern Ireland - In a previous interview,
Femi says we cannot have open borders with Ireland and closed borders with the EU and that we can either have
Brexit or the Good Friday agreement, both is not an option.
As a student myself who was not particularly well-informed on Brexit, I really benefited from the question and
answer talk as I think it is important we, as the future generation, are aware of political challenges that will affect
us in the near future.
For those interested, there will be a march held in London on the 20th of October to create awareness and also
to try gain a people’s vote.
By Amreen Sidhu.

Emma makes a splash!
Year 12 student Emma Shoobert was recently selected to represent Bedfordshire in the Swim England
National County Team Championships in Sheffield. Emma swam in the 16/17 years old category, finishing 5 th
in the 100m backstroke, just outside her PB. Emma also swam in the medley relay and mixed 6 x 50m
freestyle relay.
Ex-KTS student hailed as a ‘leader of tomorrow.’
Former KTS Sixth Form student Rachel Croker has
recently been presented with The NFU Mutual Careers
- Agribusiness Leader of Tomorrow Award.
The award recognised the best student graduating
from the Agri-Business degree at Harper Adams
University.
Course Manager Pam Whitehouse said: "Rachel was a
student on the BSc (Hons) Agri-Business course and has
achieved first class honours.
"Rachel secured a Scholarship with Wilson Wraight in
her second year and carried out her placement with
them and will be returning as a graduate.
"Rachel wrote her final year dissertation on 'Does
arable farm size impact on the importance of diversification on profitability in East Anglia?'
"I am sure this has been excellent research for her graduate career.
"We think that Rachel definitely has the makings of an Agri-Business leader of tomorrow and wish her well."
We are very pleased to hear that Rachel has gone onto achieve such positive things during her time at university
and we have no doubt that she will continue to be a success in the future!

Tennis ace packs his bags for Glasgow.
David Latter (year 12) is one of our highest achieving students academically
but he also flourishes on the tennis court.
Over the last few years, the intensity of David’s training, conditioning and
competition schedule has significantly increased but it all appears to be well
worth the effort, thanks to an invitation to compete in the main draw of the
LTA British Tour in Glasgow!
The British Tour 2018 provides a circuit of tournaments designed to give up
and coming players the opportunity to gain experience in their quest to
become professional tennis players, to provide competition for professional
players in between competing in professional events at home and abroad, as
well as providing a national level open competition circuit. The tournaments
are grade 1 (premier & tier 1) & grade 2 (tier 2) and therefore primarily aimed
at performance players with a rating of 4.2 or better.