Parental Bulletin - 23rd November 2018

Parental Bulletin
23rd November 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 – 23rd November 2018
(available on our website)
I was delighted to be able to select our school Christmas card this week. We had 86 entries, all of which will be
receiving points for their houses and we had great difficulty in reducing this number to four entries.
Congratulations to Jenny (8 Templar) on a stunning piece of work, but congratulations to the three runners up as
well (see article later in this bulletin).
I do hope that you will support our sixth form students and come and see the ‘Sixth Form Panto’ next week. Their
production of ‘Snow White and the seven dwarfs’ starts on Wednesday 28 th November and runs until Friday 30 th
November.
You will be aware that GDPR has meant that all organisations have had to change their practices to ensure compliance.
This effects our school as well of course! I will be seeking your permission to use your child’s name in school
publications (bulletin, twitter etc.) between now and the end of the term, but until then we will only be using your
child’s first name in our publicity correspondence. Thank you for your understanding on this. The full range of
GDPR documents are available through our website. (https://ktemplar.herts.sch.uk/Data-Protection-G-D-P-R)
Last night we held our sixth form open evening. If you missed the evening, we can still arrange a tour for you, so
please do contact us. Also, the presentation will be on the school website from today. Applications are now open.
Please be reminded that the school will be closed on Monday, the 26 th November.
Finally, I would like to inform you that I am having a knee replacement operation on Wednesday 28 th November.
This will mean that whilst I will be in communication with the senior leadership team, I will be off school for the
rest of the term. My Deputy Headteacher, Miss Barker, will be in charge of the day to day running of the school in
my absence. Whilst I am hoping to be able to attend one or two of the lovely Christmas events we have, that will
depend on my recovery.
Kind regards,
Tim Litchfield
Headteacher

Dates for your Diary
Sunday 23 November 2018 6th Form Panto Rehearsals
Monday 26 November 2018 Occasional Day—School Closed
Tuesday 27 November 2018 Technical Rehearsal - 6th Form Panto
Yr7 Boys Rugby Match
Wednesday 28 November 2018 Yr11 Art GCSE Mock
6th Form Panto
Thursday 29 November 2018 6th Form Panto
Helping the Homeless
I am collecting items for Kings Arms night shelter. If you have any of the following that
you are willing to donate, please can you drop off at Reception.
Sleeping bags, pillows, blankets, duvets, towels, adult winter clothing, hats, gloves,
scarfs, socks.
If you have any questions, please email mhorscroft@ktemplar.herts.sch.uk.
Many thanks
Marilyn Horscroft (Receptionist)
Geography News

Geographical Association – Physical Geography Photo Competition
This week features Samira (9TEM) entry to the Geographical Association’s Physical Geography Photo Competition.

Christmas Card Competition
86 students entered the Christmas card competition this year and we were thrilled with the standard. A small selection is
shown below alongside the winning entry and runner ups. Thank you to Miss Moyes for her help in inspiring the students to
enter and her assistance with the judging.
Winner—Jenny (8TEM)
Runner Up - Emma (8TEM)
Runner Up— Jenson (8TEM)
Runner Up - Olivia (8PEM)

Friends of Knights Templar News
Want to know more about your family tree? Searching for an original festive present for someone
special?
We are delighted to share this Family History Research opportunity that is being offered by school
governor Cath Connolly aimed at raising money for the new Amphitheatre, the current fundraising
focus of the Friends of Knights Templar.
Please find attached a leaflet for more information and contact details.
You could have more people around your Christmas table next year!
Jane Smith
Chairperson
Message from Hertfordshire County Council
Calling all parents!
If you’re the parent of a child or young person aged 18 or under, we want your views. Hertfordshire County Council’s
Public Health team can provide advice and information to support you with your child’s health and wellbeing.
We would like to better understand your needs and how we can reach you so that it helps us improve the information
we provide. We’d be very grateful if you could let us know your thoughts by completing a short survey,
which should take no more than a couple of minutes of your time. The survey is available at https://
surveys.hertfordshire.gov.uk/s/11XAJ/

Library News – November 2018
Give hope this Christmas…
@ 50p X 4 = £2 =
1 book to a child living with war
Our Year 11 students are spearheading Swap a Book scheme in the Library from November 2018, to encourage
more reading for pleasure, connect students across the Year Groups AND raise money for Book Aid International!
Get involved! For 50p bring in a book no longer wanted and swap it for a book of choice from the Swap Box!! It’s a
simple as that!
Please note : Books MUST be in very good condition to qualify.
More information on Book Aid International’s website : https://bookaid.org Charity No. 313869
CHRISTMAS EVENTS COMING UP IN DECEMBER IN KTS LIBRARY :
Scholastic HALF PRICE Christmas Book Fair Wednesday 5 th to Wednesday 19 th December (also at the Christmas
Fete on 7 th )
Library Christmas Activity Week 10 th -14 th December : FREE Christmas Crafts for Years 7 to 9.
All Year 7s should have now received their free BookBuzz title of choice via English Department. The aim of the
BookBuzz scheme from Book Trust is to encourage pupils to read often and widely, to discover all the advantages of
reading for enjoyment, namely :
improving critical thinking – more brain power
developing imaginations – new ideas for essay writing, richer conversations
relaxation – ideal for bedtime and downtime
empathy - gaining a better understanding of other people and their lives
Mrs Evans, Mrs Martin and Mrs Boddy, KTS Library Staff

Year 10 Work Experience
Just a reminder that all consent forms and payments need to be returned by the 21 st December 2018. Own
placement forms aren’t needed back until Feb 2019. If you need either of the documents again they can be found
at the following link:
https://www.ktemplar.herts.sch.uk/Work-Experience-documentation/
Mr Breadmore and Mrs
queries, please email them at
Gunnell are on hand to answer any
wex@ktemplar.herts.sch.uk
Music News
It’s been a busy week in the Music Department.
On Monday evening, we held our KS3 Music Makers Concert. Thank you to everyone who came along to support
our young musicians; the students always enjoy performing to their friends and family. The concert included
performances by the Little Big Band, Year 7 and Junior Choirs, Year 8 Performance Group, Junior Orchestra and
the Brass Band. A selection of the Year 9 composition work was also showcased. The concert raised £230 from
donations and this will be used to support our extra-curricular music groups.
On Tuesday morning, Ms Bailey and Mrs Fraser accompanied 20 of our young musicians on a Baldock Primary
School Music Roadshow! We visited St. Mary’s Junior School, St. John’s RC Primary School and Hartsfield
Primary School and their students were treated to performances by our Junior Choir and Year 8 Performance
Group as well as violin and brass solo performances. The students were a credit to themselves and Knights
Templar School and thoroughly enjoyed performing to the primary school students and staff.
Thursday morning saw the final Year 8 Artist in Residence workshop. The students have been working hard in
recent weeks on creating their own stories and music with accompanying shadow puppets and their parents
were invited to come along and see their excellent work. Well done to all those who took part and thank you to
Dr. Kate Romano for leading the sessions.
With December just around the corner, a reminder that our Community Carol Service will take place at St. Mary’s
Church, Baldock at 7pm on Monday 17 th December. We hope you will be able to join us. Further details will be
issued next week to the students taking part.
Community Choir
The Community Choir will be singing the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah at the Community Carol
Service. Heather Johnson will lead.
Rehearsals will be:
Thursday 6 th December in K1 6-7pm
Thursday 13 th December in K1 6-7pm
Concert night 17 th Dec at St. Mary’s 5.45-6.30pm
If you would like to join the choir for this performance, please email Fiona Roper, froper@ktemplar.herts.sch.uk .

Movember for Mr Matthews and Mr Breadmore
Movember for Mr Matthews and Mr Breadmore
Mr Breadmore and I have been busy cultivating two magnificent Mo’s to maintain the fine tradition at KTS as part
of Movember. Since the beginning of the month both of us have been carefully growing a fine moustache to raise
awareness about men’s health issues. This year we are focusing on men’s mental health and using Movember to
raise awareness in school about the terrible number of young men who take their own lives in the UK. The biggest
killer in men under 35 in the UK is suicide and Movember aims to tackle this shocking waste by encouraging
men to talk about their problems and to seek help before things become too serious. Movember also funds counselling
sessions to help men come to terms with mental health issues. In simple terms our message is this… It is ok
not to be ok.
Mr Matthews will be delivering an assembly to year 8 on this topic on Tuesday morning and members of year 8 will
be going round school during form time to collect donations. Year 8 also selected the design of Mr Matthews Mo.
If you would like to donate to this important cause please follow the link below. On behalf of Mr Breadmore and I
may I take this opportunity to thank you in advance for those of you who feel able to donate and support us.
Please enjoy the photos below!
https://uk.movember.com/mospace/13725799
Mr Matthews and Mr Breadmore

PE News
The Senior District Hockey Tournament took place at KTS on Monday, the team had high aspirations going into the tournament
having beaten the other teams within the league.
The girls lost their first game which meant the pressure was on for the next 2 games, they went on to win against St Francis
and JHN scoring 8 goals across the two games, this meant KTS took home the gold medal and became district champions.
Congratulations to all the girls who competed.
Rachel , Emma , Millie , Mia , Felicity , Verity , Zara , Imogen , Maisie , Rebecca , Anna , Niamh & Molly .
Mrs Shelley Gamester

Rambert Workshop
The GCSE and A level students took part in an intense dance workshop with a dancer form Rambert as
professional and renowned dance company based in London.
The A level students had a question and answer session on the history and context of Rambert which supports
their theory exam in the summer. They then took part in typical Rambert company warm up which lasted as
long as their normal dance lessons!
The GCSE students learnt about ‘A linha Curva’ which is a current piece of repertoire at Rambert and one of their
6 set works they study in their anthology. The year 10 and 11 dancers learnt 2 different motifs called ‘Iris’ and
‘Wagner’, the students will be able to discuss these motifs in their GCSE theory exam.

Year 8 Rugby
KTS defy the conditions to serve up a feast of running rugby against John Henry Newman
On a cold, dank and dark afternoon the KTS Year 8 Rugby Team maintained their unbeaten run this season with a
superb team performance. From the kick off the team moved the ball to the left wing through excellent passing
and Jake showed excellent speed to beat the cover defence and score a great try. Soon afterwards KTS forced an
error following some ferocious defence and from the turnover moved the ball to the space and Jake rounded off
another brilliant try. Fly half Matt scored the third try, again following up some ferocious defence from Max. Max
was superb all game in the centres and unleashed a string of bone crunching tackles which stopped the attacker in
his tracks and knocked them back.
As half time approached the boys continued to play well and scored two more excellent tries. However, the
momentum of the game swung towards the visitors. KTS had a moment of madness by kicking the ball from the
restart directly to JHNs most powerful player who promptly returned the ball and scored at the posts, scattering
defenders in all directions. This gave JHN confidence and for 10 minutes they dominated the game and scored two
more soft tries as KTS fell off tackles.
Half time arrived at the perfect moment and following some very direct feedback from Mr Matthews the KTS boys
ripped into our visitors in the second half. Baillie and Sam came on in the pack and were carrying the ball well
through the contact area and hitting the breakdown hard. After soaking up another period of pressure KTS got
back on top and scored a string of good team tries. Baillie, Max and Louis all adding to the score. Alfred, Finn and
Dan were outstanding all game both in defence and attack.
The final score was a fair reflection of a great game of schools rugby, 40 – 15 to KTS. Huge credit must go to the
team for playing such fluent attacking rugby considering the conditions. As we move towards Christmas the team
will be working hard on defence and rucking to ensure they continue to progress as a unit. A special mention to
Jack Petre from year 13 who refereed the game and delivered an outstanding performance with the whistle.
Mr Matthews

Calling all year 13 students! If you are planning to apply to university
this year it is imperative that you complete your application,
book a meeting with Ms Thompson and speak with your
tutor about your reference ASAP. Time is running out- please
ensure that you make this a priority over the next couple of
weeks!
Sixth Form Pantomime: Snow White
In this week’s assemblies, Years 7 to 11 have been treated to an excerpt from this year’s Sixth Form pantomime and
a trailer for the performance that is sure to whet the appetite for more.
If that was not enough, those involved in the show’s production have described it variously as ‘exhilarating’, ‘fun’
and ‘discombobulating’.
Come and see what the fuss is all about. The performances are on 28th, 29th and 30th of November.
Tickets are on sale in the Dining Hall, each break and lunchtime, for £4 or you can purchase by emailing Eve Wenham,
ewenham@hotmail.co.uk.