The Courier is printed locally on 100% recycled paper using vegetable inks. It is fully recyclable. Kind &Committed Inclusive Issue No 201 King Edward VI Community College Totnes Spring 2024 Walking Tors Courier
What a term it has been here at KEVICC. We enjoyed immensely the College production of The Tempest. Our students have gone on two residentials to Europe... and we had the pleasure of Sprung. Alan Salt Page 2 Principal's Hello This edition really does hold our college values at its heart. The pages drip with the commitment of our students and staff. The performance of The Tempest, with some of our youngest students taking leading roles, and Sprung 2024, both embody the dedication that we so often talk to our students about. The tireless work of our performing arts team is something we really do cherish. Similar efforts were shown this term by our Ten Tors teams, clocking up huge miles in their training. This enrichment, like so many other opportunities (detailed on page 6), rely on our brilliant staff giving hours of their time, in school and out. Our ethos of inclusivity is seen in the excellent Peace Garden Project. It has been heartening to see our students engaged so positively in preparing the garden for Spring. Highlights of the term? Seeing photos of the sunsoaked Malaga trip appear on our social media pages whilst we contended with yet another wet Devon day. Having our teachers 'pied' by our students for Comic Relief, and escaping that fate myself... or did I? Our Year 7 & 8 students' performance of The Tempest
February saw the start of our annual Ten Tors training programme. Student teams took to the moor in 'perfect' hiking conditions: low pressure, mist, drizzle, a cold wind and, of course, relentless enthusiasm from all involved! Page 3 Ten Tors 2024 Mr Earl and his team of volunteers give up a huge amount of their own time to facilitate the training and event itself. We are very thankful to them all. More training photos from our mega March walking weekend can be seen on pages 22 and 23.
Page 4 Students from Years 10, 11 & 12 took off to Málaga, Spain for five glorious sunny days just before half term. Warmly welcomed by their host families, all students benefitted from a fully immersive cultural experience. Hayley Turley, Language Teacher Malaga 2024
The students adapted well to their new surroundings and benefitted from being totally immersed in the language. Students attended 4 hours of Spanish lessons per day tailored to their ability (GCSE or A-Level), the lessons were engaging and fun and every student improved their confidence as well as their linguistic skills. We were lucky to have warm sun most days for our visits to the Alcazaba, the typical pueblo blanco, Frigiliana and Nerja and for our linguistic gymkhana and ball games on the beach. All students attended a cookery course and made and served paella which was delicious! The week of lessons culminated in the students being awarded certificates and performing their version of a Spanish song in groups. What an awesome week! ¡Hasta pronto Málaga! Hayley Turley, Language Teacher Page 5 Inspiring Experiences Extended Lanuage visits help develop linguistic skills and confidence. We find students make excellent progress as a result...
Page 6 We Go Extra Our clubs include: Chess, Art & Textiles, Photography, Climbing, Parkour, STEM, Folk Club, Archery, Dungeons & Dragons, LGBTQ+, Equestrian, Computer Building, DJ Club, Singing, Green Club, Book Club, Leaky Cauldron, Humanities Film Club, Technical Theatre Club, Gaming Club. These opportunities are made available by Dr Battershall, Mr Woodger, Ms Hooper, Mrs Siska, Ms Hansford, Mr Mckennzie, Mrs McInally, Mr Moon, Mrs Smart, Mr Collings, Mr Greig, Mr Earl, Mr Parsons and our PE Team. We have a growing number of students regularly attending one of our extra-curricular clubs each week. Come and get involved. Dawn Shaw, Enrichment Lead Teacher
www.kingedwardvi.devon.sch.uk Open Mornings KEVICC Thursday 4th July & Friday 12th July 2024 9.00am to 11.00am We are again oversubscribed in 2024 with another record number of Year 6 applications. Our Summer Open Mornings are a fantastic opportunity to come and see why so many students, parents and carers are making KEVICC their first choice school. Battle of the Bands 2022 Sports Day 2021 Year 7 Residential Slapton Fieldtrip 2023 Page 7
Our Student Council meets regularly to discuss topics such as our house system, homework, safeguarding and community links. Recently we were joined by Totnes Town Councillor Tim Bennett to discuss how we can create greater community links... The Student Council is open to every student and staff member at KEVICC and is an open forum for discussion. Students who are part of the council can take on further leadership positions, like Luis who is our chair person, charity leads, secretary and journalists. Our council members get orange badges which grant them privileges such as being able to jump the lunch queue! We want to continue to grow the student council as a body for student voice across the College and generate leadership opportunities. We continue to grow our commitment to our Rights Respecting School agenda of which the Student Council is a fundamental aspect. They work alongside the Tutor Ambassadors who are representatives of their form groups and contribute every half term to meaningful discussions about the changes that students would like to see at KEVICC. Sam Battershall Deputy Principal Page 8 Student Council
In February the guys from On The Hill, Devon joined our brilliant student team to get the Peace Garden ready for Spring. The day involved turning and mulching our raised beds, chopping wood, sowing beans as well as getting full use out of our wonderful pizza oven... Ready for Spring Page 9
A huge thanks to the Northbrook Trust, the Nineveh Charitable Trust, Totnes Horticultural Society and the Parents' Association for supporting the development of the Peace Garden. All these associations, alongside the brilliant leadership of Kate Frater, ensures our garden goes from strength to strength. Page 10 Outdoor Learning
Our Key Stage 3 students have been producing some excellent Gothic writing in their English lessons. We've included a snapshot of some here from Miriam and Arlo in Year 7... Page 11 English KS3 I ran, tripping over brambles as I went. My heart pounding in my chest like a drum. As I neared the brow of the hill, I noticed a vast, crumbling house standing proudly before me, ivy climbing up its walls. I froze. Should I enter the gloomy building or stand here and let them catch me? I trudged up the path, the house towering above me. A bramble caught my leg and dragged through my skin. The stinging pain crept up my leg as if sharp needles were digging into my flesh. I could no longer run. I had no choice. My mud-covered hands reached the door and clasped around its rusty handle. Thunder rumbled. Lightning struck. I pushed open the rotten wooden door and stepped into the house. I stared at the endless labyrinthine corridors before me. Silence. My heart thumped louder. The floorboards creaked underneath my feet. I was trapped. I Ran by Miriam Kempton, Year 7 I Walked Free by Arlo George-Cooper, Year 7 I wake and, all of a sudden, my eyeballs are flooded with artificial light from a lamp in the corner of the room. I rubbed the gunk from my eyes, diminishing all hopes of returning to the blissful Kingdom of Sleep. Before my senses could take in what was going on. The door burst open, and a man tramped into the room. He hadn't seen me. He pulled out Christmas decorations. They glinted and glowed like ancient treasure in the lamplight. Then he was gone as soon as he had arrived, leaving the rotting door ajar. For four interminable years, those four grimy walls had been my prison. But then, I walked free...
Page 12 Dance Inspiration Merryn is the rightful winner of this year's Dance Achievement Cup. Since joining us in Year 12 Merryn has thrown herself into the Performing Arts enrichment world at KEVICC, from her starring roles in Grease in 2023 to her lead performance in the Sound of Music last term... Merryn Hogan joined KEVICC as an external student in year 12. From day one she immersed herself into Performing Arts seeking all opportunities on offer to her. I have been particularly impressed with her maturity and professionalism over the last two years where she has balanced her studies with extra-curricular events and acted as an ambassador for performing arts. In dance she took ownership of inspiring younger students with workshops and clubs and acted as another dance member of staff. Merryn continually seeks to develop her craft in Performing Arts and is hoping to further her studies in Musical Theatre next year. I am proud to say Merryn has been awarded the Dance Achievement Cup this year. Sarah McInally, Dance Teacher
Page 13 Ski season hit KEVICC in February. Big time. A group of lucky students and teachers hit the Italian slopes. A 28 hour bus ride to the other side of the Continent paid off for our skiers... The KEVICC Ski Trip 2024 was a week to remember! Not only so much fun on the slopes, but also the evening activities such as ice skating, snowshoeing, swimming, pizza night and so on. There were also some funny moments like how people were dropping things on the chair lift so continuously, ski poles, goggles and even the ski itself (I honestly don’t know how that is possible). Clyde Davenport, Year 8 Student Sensational Skiing
Page 14 Alpine Adventures There were some amazing views, on the bus journey from the hotel to the mountain and on the mountain itself, you could even see the Alps on the very horizon from far enough up the mountain. And not forgetting the coach journey to and from Italy. Whilst I believe there is nothing worse than being trapped on a coach for over 30 hours straight, it did nothing to dampen morale. In fact the ferry from Dover to Calais was quite fun. Finally, I think it is fair to say thank you for the teachers who gave up their half term to sort out this trip, especially for me it has been a wonderful experience and I hope to be hearing that the KEVICC Ski Trip 2025 will be even better. Clyde Davenport, Year 8 Student Our students were exceptional, all week. Leticia Hooper, Science Leader & Trip Lead
As a college we were delighted to host our Careers Open Day at KEVICC in January. Years 8 to 13 had the chance to hear about routes into tertiary education from providers such as Falmouth, Plymouth and Exeter Universities. A range of colleges were present too including Bicton and DBS. Students discussed routes into law, marine biology, conservation, meteorology, the armed forces and loads more besides... Page 15 Careers Open Day
Page 16 Canine Companions We have three KEVICC dogs on campus with us these days. Spending their time between providing therapy, companionship and walks, each of them brings something special to our day to day life. Mr Salt's labrador Cu is a bundle of joy. Often seen hoovering up lunch leftovers in the Information Corridor. Ms Avis' Bear is a regular in the English Office on Redworth whilst Ms Wither's Luna spends much of her time up at Kennicott, occasionally frequenting the Peace Garden.
Page 17 English KS3 More incredible Gothic writing from our KS3. This time from Olive in Year 7... Towering cliff faces overlooked the ancient, derelict mansion, launching avalanches of crumbling rubble to bomb the terrain below. Perilous wind thrashed frantically through the creaking trees, lunging from one side to the other as it indecisively changed directions. Maddie stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of it. The creaking trees beckoned her to the follow the trail leading to the gloomy entrance of the building. The crumbling house sat in a lonely clearing of the howling forest. Suddenly, all Maddie’s attention was drawn to a slightly frosted-over window, staring out into the horizon. Along with it, a young girl gazed at Maddie, as if into her soul. Her long blonde locks ran down her back before revealing a dainty, pale hand, gently urging Maddie to enter. The ground beneath Maddie seemed to be moving. Maybe it was. Maddie was harshly thrown through the door by the rasping wind and shoved onto the chipped floorboards below. Towering Cliff Faces by Olive Shepherd Year 7 Maddie stared exhaustedly at the flickering lights of candle flames; it came to her that an old radio was playing in the room next door. Maddie stretched out a weak arm and carefully pressed the door open. Many people were leisurely dancing in pairs to a soft, classic Christmas track. The women wore wide rimmed dresses with a thick layer of patterned material on top. A tight corset wrapped around each lady, thinning their shape. The men wore coal black suits with posh, polished, pointed shoes and ties that coiled around their collars. They seemed to be dancing forever, as Maddie acknowledged every detail of each glorious outfit. A sudden movement startled Maddie as she peered round at a twisted, everlasting wooden staircase. A young girl with long, blonde locks came strolling down the stairs with her dress trailing behind her..
Page 18 Page 18 Just Dance Our Houses competed in Just Dance this February. Taking place over a series of lunch times our students competed to win points for their Houses, Babbage were eventually crowned the Dancing House! Davis came in fourth place with 14 points, Gyles were in at third 'tapping' out a respectable 17 points. Scott took second place with a 'jivin' 21 points. But 'moonwalking' into the top spot was Babbage who took the title with a huge tally of 29 points. Bring on the next one...
In March as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival our students put on a stellar performance of The Tempest... Despite being the youngest performers among the three schools taking part in the festival, our students showcased remarkable professionalism and dedication, delivering an amazing rendition of the play. Particular kudos to Jacob Shapter in Year 10 who stepped into the leading role for an ill student, managing to learn all the lines for this character in one day! Shakespeare himself would be proud... Taylor Smart Head of Year 7 & 8 Page 19 The Tempest
Page 20 Mary Lidstone Trust As a college we are very privileged in being able to offer financial support to students applying for Higher and Further Education courses each year through the Mary Lidstone Charitable Trust. Grants are awarded up to a maximum level of £5,000 per year of the supported course: i.e. a three-year degree course could see support of up to a maximum of £15,000 awarded over the three years. The level of support will vary according to need. Amy Withers, Head of Sixth Form Above: Dylan is a beneficiary of the Trust I’m now half way through my degree and have enjoyed everything the course has offered so far. My favourite module currently is Physical Ocean Processes in which I’m learning about the systems and flows that govern ocean biogeochemistry and the global climate. It’s also time for me to start thinking about my dissertation topic which will provide me with the opportunity to specialise by completing an independent research project to address an exciting scientific question. I’m continually grateful for the support of the Mary Lidstone Trust, it’s made university living affordable for me and will help to fund my third year field course to the Azores. This forms an essential part of my course, I’ll be learning about bathymetric mapping of the sea floor and stock assessments of commercial fish species. I encourage anyone eligible to apply for this support, it’s a great legacy that Kennicott have to offer and makes a real difference. Overall life in Falmouth is going well, I manage to balance my studies with lots of exercise, surfing and exploring. Living so close to the sea makes studying Marine Biology feel so much more meaningful. If anyone is considering a degree at Falmouth or Exeter Penryn Campus then I’d be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have. I’m heading back to South Devon in the summer to lifeguard for another season, if you’re visiting the beach then come say hi! Dylan Pegg Former Kennicott student All photos taken by Dylan Pegg
Page 21 Comic Relief Comic Relief was supported across the College with cake sales, a nonuniform day and that wonderful opportunity to 'pie-your-teacher'. A much-anticipated event in our calendar, Mr Gillard and Mrs Smart were in attendence for a second year running. This year Mr James, Mr Holbourn and Ms Vickery made their debuts. Kudos to our staff's humour and willingness to be covered in (Vegan) cream. So with that in mind, will Mr Salt finally make it next year? Students (and staff) hope so...
Page 18 Page 22 Walking The Dart Thirty of our Year 10 and 12 students walked nearly 30 miles over two days. The weekend saw students camping in Kennicott grounds. Night time temperatures fell to -2 degrees. Students were a credit to the college. The first weekend in March saw our Ten Tors team take to the lanes, bridle paths and footpaths that follow the Dart. Not even sub zero temperatures could lower spirits...
Sore feet and blisters featured heavily. Taking the ferry at Dittisham, the circular route encompassed Ashprington, Cornworthy, Stoke Gabriel and Berry Pomeroy... Page 23 Local Heroes
Page 18 Page 24 An ornate mirror stood in the corner of the museum. Josie snuck away from her class and walked towards it. She glanced out at the rain. Eight years ago, an ominous, grey cloud appeared, It hung there ever since making everyone utterly miserable. Approaching the mirror, she admired it's intricate engravings. Her reflection was moving of its own accord. As she glazed closer, a hand thrashed out from the glass, grabbing Josie by the jumper. She surged through an unknown passage, cold air whipping at her face. She stopped and a mysterious voice whispered in her ear. Finally, she understood. Miriam Kempton Year 7 student 'The Glitch' is a national creative writing competition that a number of our students entered this year. Tasked with keeping within a 100 word limit, students stood to win a £50 top prize as well as their story being published. Deservingly Miriam Kempton in Year 7 won the top prize for her brilliant entry shown here...
In February a group of year 12 students went to Exeter University to take part in a Languages Day. It was a very inspiring day in which students were able to have a guided tour around the university and meet students on the different language courses. On arrival we were welcomed by two undergraduate students that showed us the different buildings and facilities at Exeter University. We were blown away with the Campus and how helpful and enthusiastic the students were. After our tour, we attended some very interesting lectures on different languages. We learnt about the importance of learning Russian and how the lack of translators can lead to the spreading of disinformation. We also had the opportunity to learn some Italian and understand why it is such a popular language and culture in our country. We got an insight on how German is full of borrowed words from other languages and finally, we looked at the rising popularity of reading Arabic and Islamic studies at Exeter University. There is not doubt it was a very enriching day. Cris Fernandez Head of MFL Page 25 University Languages
Page 26 Exceptional Design Our students' designs this year have been stunning
Page 18 at Page 27 I’ve been teaching Science Fiction film to Year 10 Film Studies students for the last few months (to some of them it will feel like years, but that’s because they’re only interested in celebrities they’ve never met and who don’t care about them, than the people they have met and do care about them) and one thing they’ve been taught is that Sci-Fi films ask the question ‘what if…?’ Now, you may well be one of those argumentative so-and-sos who want to disprove anything uttered by another person. If that’s you then let me say this: 1) you’re annoying; 2) it doesn’t prove you’re smart, it just proves you’re argumentative for the sake of being argumentative (i.e. annoying); 3) think about what ‘what if…?’ question each of these films ask as it will prove I’m right: • The Blade Runner franchise: what if we made androids? • The Terminator franchise: what if AI decides to attack humanity? • The Matrix franchise: what if AI attacks humanity and makes us all human batteries because humans have the bright idea of extinguishing The Sun to stop the AI from winning? • The Alien franchise: what if there are horrible, scary aliens that want to merk you up rawly? • The Independence Day franchise: what if an advanced alien race wanted to take Earth for themselves? They could try but America will stop them because America is THE BEST. • The Avatar franchise: what if we merk the planet up so rawly that we have to find another planet to live on, but when we get there, we try to merk that planet up too because we’re greedy and want shiny things, which leads to the indigenous population merking humans up and thus leading the audience to cheer that their own species is being merked up by aliens, thus making us reflect on how stupid we all are? So, yeah, Sci-Fi films ask ‘what if…?’ and it’s normally a reflection of concerns that were present during production. If you disagree, see points 1 and 2 again. Anyway, Arrival is a very good Sci-Fi film. I don’t have anything bad to say about this movie. It’s complex enough to be interesting and original but not Tenet-esque levels of complexity (i.e. it’s not pretentious). It looks so, so good aesthetically. The soundtrack is excellent, with the non-diegetic sound clearly giving the spectator cues when to feel certain emotions. If you have kids (especially a daughter) it will likely make you cry, which is why I’ve banned Mr. Hibbard from watching it, because if anyone makes Mr. Hibbard cry I will have to have extremely firm words with them, and I can’t have firm words with myself as that’ll just confirm the general consensus of my lunacy. mation from them, like a form of dream espionage. However, is it possible to not just take something ‘out’ of someone’s mind, but also put something ‘in’? This is the main premise of the film. It’s not based on a sequel, a comic, a TV show or a remake Chilton's Film Review Mr Chilton reflects on the power of sci-fi as an artform The concept of the film is just so clever though. I’ll not spoil things here, but the film does ask some interesting questions like: 1. ‘If you knew the future of everyone you met, would you still attempt to get to know that person?’ 2. ‘If time wasn’t linear, would that infer that you no longer had free will?’ THINK: Why don’t Abbott & Costello stop certain things from happening? 3. ‘What is the Alien’s gift to humanity? And when you work out what that is, what does that tell us about humanity?’ THINK: Why 12 ships at 12 different locations? 4. ‘Is Denis Villeneuve a better Director than Christopher Nolan?’ Villeneuve is arguably the best Director of the Sci-Fi genre currently, with Blade Runner 2049 and the Dune films. They’re worth a watch if you like Arrival. 5. ‘Are the aliens already here?’ THINK: Where do the aliens go? 6. ‘What were Shang’s wife’s last words?’ You’ll have to Google that at the end of the film. You see, Science Fiction is one of the greatest genres when it’s well executed because it reflects on current concerns but in an imaginative way, thus remaining entertaining but not being so scary it causes anxiety in the audience in the present, but thought-provoking enough for them to change their attitude anyway. As any Year 10 and Y11 Film student will tell you, most Sci-Fi films have a xenophobic undertone (well, they may not use that word but they’ll say ‘don’t trust aliens’ is the main message of most of them), but Arrival does not, and if anything, tells us we need aliens to sort us out. Mr Chilton's Rating: ***** This is a serious one guys, about a seriously good film from a seriously good director... just don't let Mr Hibbard watch it.
We are very proud of our past students and their achievements. Here are some of our industrious alumni and what they've been up to recently... Page 30 Our Alumni Cosmo Jarvis Pictured above (left) with Barry Keoghan in the brilliant indie flick Calm with Horses (2019), Cosmo can be seen on screens currently in FX's Shogun (streaming on Disney Plus) and will be starring in the upcoming gangster movie Alto Knights alongside Robert De Niro. Oh and he also featured in the fifth season of Peaky Blinders (2020). Quite a CV there. Agnes O'Casey Agnes has had an incredible run recently. Starring in the leading role of BBC drama Ridley Road (2021), to working alongside Laura Linney, Kathy Bates and Maggie Smith in the Miracle Club (2023), to the brilliant Lies We Tell (2023). Joseph Mount As we were writing this it was great to be listening to a new Metronomy tune. 'Nice Town' (2024) is a brilliant collaboration with Pan Amsterdam. Bringing some Summer (De La) Soul vibes to 2024, we are very happy to see Joe and the guys back.
What a show Sprung 2024 was... featuring performers across all ages and stages of the college including alumni. Sarah and the team put on an incredible showcase of talent... Page 29 Spring has Sprung
Page 30 Dance Brilliance
Page 31 Student led Hockey Hockey club has been taking place every Tuesday after school throughout the Spring term. Students from Year 7 and 8 have been attending and receiving some coaching from two hockey players from the Sixth Form. Charlotte and Sasha, who attend Kennicott sixth form and are doing a Cambridge National in Sport with us, are integral to the clubs success. They ran a taster event before Christmas and now come to the club every Tuesday to support players' progression with skills and their knowledge of the game. We are hoping to get a friendly fixture before we get to Easter so watch this space! It has been an absolute pleasure seeing how some of these young players have supported each other in game play and progressed so far at the club. Carly Perring, PE Teacher With the hockey season in full swing, it's been a busy few months. Integral to the success of our Hockey Club has been the involvement of Sixth Form coaches...
King Edward VI Community College Totnes www.kingedwardvi.devon.sch.uk
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