Cockwood School have been delighted to be involved in the Olympic banner project at Exeter Cathedral.

The banners are to celebrate the Olympic torch arriving in Exeter this week. All the children in class 1 and 2 were involved in working alongside professional artists to create the banners and when they were all on display in such beautiful surroundings they looked amazing.

The banners were made with help from Daisi artists as part of a project involving all ten schools in the Dawlish Learning Partnership.

We are very grateful for the support from The Helen Foundation which made these exciting workshops possible.

Gifted and Talented dancers from Dawlish Community College enjoyed a taster workshop working with teachers and students from Swindon Dance, Youth Dance Academy.

The students were invited to take part in a workshop where they were taught new choreography and enjoyed a performance by the team from Swindon Dance.  The academy  aims to provide access to top quality dance training and coaching for exceptionally talented young dancers and to help young people develop creative, performance and technical skills and knowledge.  The taster session gave the students from Dawlish a chance to showcase their talents and an opportunity to work with highly trained and experienced dancers.

Auditions to join the academy will be held in the area during May, June and July.

GCSE catering students from Dawlish Community College planned and prepared three desserts for the Dawlish Violet Ball.

They spent the afternoon making the desserts – dark chocolate mousse, mango cheesecake and Eton Mess. These were then served at the Violet Ball on Friday 11^th May. Some of the catering students helped with the buffet and enjoyed the experience of working as waiting staff at the function. The Violet Ball was held at the United Reform Church helping to raise money for Cancer Research. Guests commented that the desserts were delicious and were impressed with the professional service from the waitresses.

Congratulations to staff and children at Exminster Primary School, your film “The Countdown” about London 2012 went live on the BBC Big Screens site in Plymouth yesterday to help celebrate UK  Inspire Day!

These images are the proof! However, just so you know, the lines through the screen don’t actually happen on the Big Screen itself.

The Countdown is likely to be screened around four times every day over a two month period.

“It’s a lovely film and will work brilliantly on the Big Screen”.

Kevin Heathorn, BBC Producer, Plymouth Big Screen

“That film is FANTASTIC!

Jo Gardner, London 2012 Inspire Programmer for the South West.

You can see The Countdown on Youtube here.

Workshop details: 2.00pm – 4.30pm. Monday 11th June 2012, Red Rock Skills Centre, Sandy Lane, Dawlish. Google Map Here

We are pleased to announce that the National College has awarded us a grant to provide FREE school governor workshops.

Thank you to the many School Governors who supported our application.

The workshops will help you to share best practice and improve school leadership by:
•    encouraging collaboration and sharing of best practise across governing bodies.
•    in particular sharing examples of governing bodies’ contributions to school improvement.

The funding will provide three half day workshops over the next 12 months. They will be facilitated by Andrew Riley, Lead Primary Adviser, Babcock International Group (ex – Devon Learning and Development Partnership). Each workshop will be a mixture of input, activities and discussion. The workshops are intended for Chairs of Governors,  but any School Governor with an interest in taking forward school improvement is very welcome to attend.

The date of the first workshop is shown above, with the remaining dates to be decided by the group.

Workshops will cover the following topics.

1.    Understand the Ofsted key areas
A brief outline of the focus of inspections with particular reference to the role/expectations of the governing body.

2.    Assess your school’s strengths and weaknesses and being a critical friend to your school.
•    Knowing your school.
•    Achievement: What information, and from what sources, might you gather about your school’s overall performance, including key questions to ask about:
•    Achievement.
•    The quality of teaching and learning.
•    Leadership and management (including the curriculum).

3.     Shaping the vision and strategic direction for your school.
Describing your ideal school and developing further the vision and direction of your school.

4.    Provide effective support for your headteacher in managing change.
•    Clarifying the different roles and responsibilities of governors and headteacher.
•    Key things to know about change.
•    How governing bodies can support, advise and evaluate change.

To book a place on this workshop please add your details to the Leave a Reply box at the bottom of the page.

Children from Kenton Primary School and Oaklands Park School enjoyed a lovely day with Illana, a cultural champion from Brazil.

The day was hosted by Kenton where the children from Oak and Chestnut classes enjoyed working alongside pupils from Oaklands Park School in Dawlish to find out all about Brazil!

Illana held an assembly for the whole school and worked with children in years 3, 4, 5 & 6 during the rest of the day.  They learnt about Brazilian food, the rain forests and the way of life for children and families in Brazil. Illana was able to give the children a real feel for Brazillian music and dance when they looked at Carnivals and the sounds of Samba, the colours and costumes.

We are delighted to invite you to a fantastic evening of celebration by children from all DLP Schools on Thursday 21st June 2012 at the Great Hall, University of Exeter. Our celebration is inspired by London 2012, and during our build up to this event children, supported by The Helen Foundation,  have been busy making big banners to celebrate the spirit of the Olympics (which are on display in Exeter Cathedral from (16th-22nd May inclusive). They will also be on display at the Great Hall Raise OUR Game event.

In the week before Raise OUR Game children from all schools will have taken part in a DLP School Sports day and some schools will have taken part in the DLP Olympic Swimming Gala. All athletes and swimmers will appear on stage at the Great Hall.

For weeks children from all schools have been rehearsing a performance that reflects their chosen London 2012 country, together with two songs that we will all sing together on the evening for the first time. We will be supported by the DLP Samba Band, DLP School Orchestra and the River City Chorus.this is an evening not to be missed.

Easy Booking. To reserve your tickets simply use the Leave a Reply box below, stating just your school and how many tickets you need. We will then contact you to confirm your reservation and to ask you to call into your school office and pay for them as soon as possible. Payments to be made by cheque (payable to Devon County Council) or by cash in a sealed envelope stating name, amount enclosed and number of tickets requested.

You can also reserve your tickets at the school office. You can collect your tickets from the school office from Monday 18th June.

We are also asking pupils, students, parents, teachers and staff from all DLP Schools to tell us what makes you feel Proud, with prizes provided by Tony Pryce Sports for the 20 best entries. It doesn’t have to be about sport, it can be anything about anything that makes you feel proud, for example it could be learning or achieving something at school or in your leisure time, or how you feel about someone else and their achievement. All ages welcomed!

See the Heather Small video here.

Children from  Dawlish Learning Partnership Schools have been busy working with Daisi to create art banners on the theme of the Olympic and Paralympic values.

The children enjoyed art workshops, working with professional artists and children from a neighbouring school to produce a unique banner for their own school.  The pupils and students from Cockwood, Exminster, Kenn, Kenton, Starcross, Gatehouse and Westcliff Primary Schools together with Dawlish Community College, Oaklands Park and Ratcliffe Schools used a variety of methods to each create their own banner artwork using silk painting, silhouettes, marbling, painting and collage.

The workshops were very kindly funded by our friends at the Helen Foundation.

The banners will be shown at an exhibition in Exeter Cathedral from 16 to 22 May 2012 to coincide with the Olympic Torch relay through Exeter and will also be on display at our forthcoming sports and cultural performance, Raise OUR Game at the Great Hall in Exeter on Thursday 21st June.

The governing body of Oaklands Park is considering becoming a foundation school and acquiring a Trust with 31^st August 2012 as the proposed implementation date.

We are proud of our school and proud of our students.  We wish to make Oaklands Park even better and believe that we would have a greater capacity to do so by working more collaboratively with partners.

The proposed Trust will enable our school to benefit from the diversity of skills offered by our partners to further improve the personalised educational needs of each and every one of our vulnerable young learners and help them all to achieve their maximum potential.  By acquiring a mutual co-operative trust, supported by a range of partners and stakeholders who are united behind our vision, we hope to not only transform the life chances of every student with special educational needs within our school, but also to provide high quality support where possible to those within our local communities.

Trust schools are a new kind of school – part of the local authority system, but supported by a charitable trust which will appoint some of the governors. The governing body will continue to run the school and be responsible for its performance. It is not proposed to change staffing arrangements as part of these proposals.

Details of the proposals and the dates and times of consultation meetings can be found in the ‘SENtient Trust Information Leaflet’ which can be downloaded from this link ‘SENtient Trust Consultation Booklet One’.  You are also invited to attend a public consultative meeting which will take place at Oaklands Park School on Thursday 3^rd May at 6p.m. (until 7p.m.)

We hope that you will contribute your views to the consultation.  Details of how to make comments on the proposals are contained in the Leaflet and Booklet One and the Response Form can be downloaded from this link Response Form.

You may also want to read Booklet Two, the Information leaflet Questions and Answers (copies on our website or on request from the school) which provides a series of commonly asked questions together with answers which have been collated from the Department for Education (DfE) sources.

A copy of Booklet One, Booklet Two and the Response Form can also be obtained from the school or from our school website here.

Yours sincerely

Robert W Pugh, Principal and  Annie Raine, Chair of Governors

Congratulations to all the 700 plus students from Dawlish Community College who put on their running shoes to take part in the Sport Relief Mile challenge at the end of the Spring Term.

The students have been busy collecting in their sponsorship monies from family and friends and we are delighted to announce that they have raised a fantastic £2,386 for Sport Relief 2012.

Many thanks to Mrs Tilley and the P.E. team for all their hard work organising the event and to all those who sponsored the students.

My name is Abi and I am an elite gymnast training 14 hours a week at Exeter Gymnastics Club.

I have trained there since I was a toddler and have loved it ever since.  On the days I train I have to leave school a little early so I can get there on time.  I have recently competed at the English Championships in London and I came 18th out of 36.  I competed in the espoir category where gymnasts are aged 12 and 13 so I was pleased with my result being amongst the youngest gymnasts there.  I competed on all the pieces; bars, beam, floor and vault.  Following my result at the English I was chosen to represent the South West in the British Schools competition, I was over the moon when I found out about it!  I will be competing up in Newcastle, it will be nice to go to a different gym and to travel up there on a plane, I am very excited!

Abi who attends Dawlish Community College did very well in the British Schools competition and along with fellow team members secured the 4^th Place position in the team event.  Many congratulations Abi!

On Tuesday 24^th April, fourteen KS3 students from Dawlish Community College took part in the npower Big Dribble at Exeter.

The event was organised by Great Britain Hockey who were aiming to break a World Record for the furthest distance a hockey ball has been dribbled.  They have been touring the Country over 20 days, finishing in Trafalgar Square in London on May 3rd.

Our students spent an hour and a half dribbling hockey balls around the course at Princesshay, trying to add to the current total.  It was a great effort by all fourteen of them, who managed to do 1200 laps beating the previous record by over 100 laps set in Manchester.  Year 9 student Tom Brooks, on his own did 135 laps beating the record of 108 which was set in Edinburgh.

Congratulations!  Great Britain Hockey have confirmed that a New World Record has been achieved!

We are please to provide this information about the exciting activities running at Dawlish Leisure Centre and other local Leisure Centres, linked with the Air Show and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

Dawlish Community College is hosting an INSET workshop on

‘What makes the perfect Ofsted lesson’

Date – Tuesday 15th May, 4.00 pm start and finish at 5.30 pm.

Facilitator – Jackie Beere, OBE.  Jackie Beere is a leading educational trainer and consultant, author, a former Headteacher, a School Improvement Partner, Advanced Skills Teacher, AST Assessor, life coach and NLP Master Practitioner. In 2002 she was awarded the OBE for services to education.  Jackie’s session at Dawlish Community College will be based on her best-selling book, The Perfect Ofsted Lesson.

Venue – Millenium Hall, Dawlish Community College

Cost – This is free of charge. Dawlish Community College would like to invite each Dawlish Learning Partnership school to send one representative.

Key Stage/Phase – All

If you wish to attend this event please Leave a Reply below, adding your name (or names) and School.

Forty-six Year 8 students from Dawlish Community College were invited to attend a special day to discover for themselves what it means to go to University.

Staff at Exeter University organised the day as part of a project designed specifically for pupils who have the potential to achieve level three qualifications (A levels and higher BTECs) and wanted more information about what it is like to attend a higher education establishment.

Exeter University student ambassadors gave a tour of the campus and provided an insight into all aspects of University life including accommodation, finance, courses, clubs and societies.

The Governing Body at Westcliff Primary School is looking to recruit two new Community Governors.

A Community Governor is appointed by the Schools Governing Body to represent our Community. You do not need any specific experience, or even children at our school,  just enthusiasm, the desire to make a difference to children’s lives through education and the willingness to be part of our team.

As a Community Governor you may bring an external perspective or experience that can help us to raise the standards of pupil achievement and plan our school’s future direction. Governors are also accountable for the performance of the school to parents and the wider community.

For more information on the roles and responsibilities of a Governor, please visit our school web site Governor section Here

If you would like to have an informal discussion please contact Julie Vowden, Clerk to the Governors at Westcliff Primary School.

Telephone 01626 6862444                        You can Email Julie Here

We look forward to hearing from you.

Training for this role will be provided.

Being a governor is an enormously challenging and rewarding opportunity. It provides a real feeling of satisfaction through knowing children will benefit from your efforts.

Making our London 2012 “Raise Our Game” Banners

Preparing to ‘Raise the Roof!”

Teacher, James Tithecott took a group of students and staff from Dawlish Community College, to Courmayeur in Italy where they snowboarded at La Thuile, on a very successful snowboarding trip.

The breathtaking views over Italy and La Rosiere, France were enhanced by a late season flurry of snow which set for an idyllic scene. Students not only enhanced their skills but learnt to cope with a variety of weather conditions due to the late season snow and on occasion’s the lack of visibility.

Students were exemplary, a pleasure to be with and all gained a levelled award. The beginners did extremely well, especially P J Cockram who gained the top level of 2* distinction within his group. In the intermediate group Jasper Golding gained a level 3* distinction within his group and was chasing hard on the tails of the top group where Martyn Thomas achieved 4* Merit, Alex Jarrard achieved 4* Distinction and Alec White Cheshire achieved 5* Merit. Within the advanced group James Goldsmith gained the very highest award of 5* Distinction and was advised to become an instructor which we hope may be possible in the form of the very first scholarship awarded from Interski for snowboarding (fingers crossed James).

We will be launching next year’s ski trip very soon and hope that these students’ achievements will inspire others to take up this fantastic opportunity.

Thanks to all the staff and students for making this a very enjoyable week.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/awards-for-snowboarding-in-italy/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/come-racing-at-exeters-most-glamorous-meeting-of-the-year/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/come-racing-at-exeters-most-glamorous-meeting-of-the-year/#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:02:26 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=8506 Exeter Racecourse is delighted to announce its new sponsorship of Dawlish Community College and to mark the new association it has an exclusive offer to come racing on Tuesday, May 8. Exeter is offering parents the chance to come racing on Ladies’ Night for just £10 per person and experience the...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Exeter Racecourse is delighted to announce its new sponsorship of Dawlish Community College and to mark the new association it has an exclusive offer to come racing on Tuesday, May 8.

Exeter is offering parents the chance to come racing on Ladies’ Night for just £10 per person and experience the glamour, glitz and camaraderie of an evening at the races.

The race night is supporting the David James Foundation, and children, who can attend free if they are aged 17 or under, can meet the legendary footballer and have their photograph taken with him.

Also on the agenda is live music after racing with The New Heroes and fashion awards for the best dressed ladies and gentlemen. Prizes include a holiday for six at a luxury Hembury Court, a champagne tea at Bovey Castle, a host of goodies from Princesshay Shopping Centre Exeter, clothing from Leonard Coombe, jewellery from Silver and Sand, dinner at Strada in Exeter, luxury chocolates and head and neck massages.

To book Grandstand and Paddock tickets for £10 simply click here or call the hotline 0844 5793005 and quote dawlishmay8.

At Cockwood Primary, year 6’s have now been learning to cook scones and make the perfect cream tea in a bid to WOW judges in the competition to ‘cook for the Queen’.

They followed a very old traditional recipe  for plain scones from a local resident who has been making them and winning competitions for years. The children worked in pairs and carefully followed clear instructions.

The proof of the pudding was in the eating ……  and they were DELICIOUS!!!

Perfect …….  fit for a Queen. Well done year 6.

If you’re interested in teaching maths, physics, chemistry or modern foreign languages (MFL), then come along to a Premier Plus event in Newton Abbot, which is designed exclusively to support you in making the decision to apply to become a teacher.

The event will be held at Coombeshead Academy, Newton Abbot on 9 May between 5pm and 8pm.

There will be a presentation at 6pm covering funding, pay and progression and how to make a good teacher training application, followed by a question and answer session. You will be able to network before and after the presentation with training providers from the region as well as current trainee teachers.

More information here.

Children at Cockwood Primary enjoyed an assembly taken by Chartwell Dutiro this week.

He came to visit us and tell us about his forthcoming trip to our partner school in Zimbabwae.

Chartwell collected items we had prepared ready for him to share with the children of Chireseri School. We have sent a copy of the ‘Cockwood Chronicle’, a newspaper recording the events the school has enjoyed since September,an information booklet about the school and surrounding area and a collection of video diaries made by the children and a virtual tour of the school.

We very much hope the children of Chireseri School enjoy reading and learning about Cockwood and can’t wait for Chartwell to return with similar information so our children can begin to appreciate the similarities and differences between the two countries.

Since October 2011 I have been attending rugby training with South Devon Rugby Development Squad at Ashburton and Kingsbridge RFC after being put forward by the PE department at my school, Dawlish Community College. I play rugby for local team Teignmouth RFC and have been captain of the year 8 school team; I have worked hard during all of the training and following the final session, was selected to represent South Devon Rugby at the Devon festival held during the Easter Holiday break at Tavistock RFC. I will continue with South Devon Rugby Development as an Under 14 player for next season where I hope to develop and improve my rugby skills. I love playing and have since I was five at Pilkington Rec’s in St Helens where I played rugby league. I then changed codes to play rugby union for Liverpool St Helens RFC before moving to Devon and playing for Teignmouth. I would love to go all the way in rugby but there are so many good players it’s hard, but I love a good challenge!

At Cockwood Primary School year 6’s have been busy designing a menu fit for a Queen.

They are entering a competition to win the opportunity to cook in the kitchens at Buckingham Palace for the Queen as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The children have been researching local produce and finding out how local produce has shaped Cockwood’s past.

They were incredibly lucky to have a cooking masterclass with Head Chef at The Anchor, Cockwood, Andy. He demonstrated how to cook River Exe mussels and allowed the children to cook in a professional kitchen. In two groups they cooked two different types of mussels and then thoroughly enjoyed taste testing their efforts!!

We are sure the Queen would love to eat fresh River Exe mussels!

Thanks Andy!

Class 2 and class 3 at Cockwood Primary got into the Easter spirit during the last day of the Spring term.

Class 3 spent a wonderful afternoon in the sunshine painting a ‘Spring mural’.

The children discussed what makes them think of spring and then put their ideas into their artwork.

The work made a colourful display in the playground.

Both classes also had some special visitors on the last day of term …… some baby chicks. The chicks belong to two of our pupils and  were only a few days old. The children were very excited to handle and stroke the chicks and learned some interesting facts about the baby animals.

DLP Outdoor Maths workshops are being held on Monday afternoons on 25^th June, 2^nd July and 9^th July  from 1.30 – 3pm at Starcross Primary School.

The workshops are for Year 2-4 children to ensure they gain a positive attitude to maths, through outdoor learning. Each school is invited to send a maximum of five children.

There will be three different workshops running over a course of three sessions, run by Maths Coordinators from 4 of the DLP partnership schools.  These will be fun, creative and fully interactive workshops, where children will have hands on experience investigating maths outdoors.

As these workshops are taking place outdoors, the children need a waterproof coat and trainers. We will provide waterproof trousers should they be necessary.

Transport will need to be organised by each school and children will need to be dropped off at Starcross Primary School by 1.30pm and collected at 3pm. You are welcome to send members of staff to help support this wonderful opportunity.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children and any staff attending.

The Mathematics Faculty at Dawlish Community College invited over thirty gifted and talented Year 5 mathematicians from it’s partner primary schools to take part in a maths event at the Red Rock Skills Centre in Dawlish.

The event was a whole day affair, led by renowned mathematician Angela Gould. Pupils had a thoroughly stimulating, mathematically challenging and extremely enjoyable day, engaging in a wide variety of mathematical activities. These included accurately folding paper into regular pentagons and hexagons to make a giant football in teams of four, stretching their mental arithmetic skills by playing the ‘24 game’ and solving a puzzle involving the equivalences between fractions, decimal and percentages.

The day was rounded off by the whole group of pupils making three enormous paper pyramids, big enough for each of them to sit in and have their photo taken!

The DLP Samba Band is starting on Tuesday 24th April 2012.

The Samba sessions will be led by Faye Hill, a teacher at Ratcliffe School who has already led some fantastic Samba workshops earlier in the year.   The sessions will take place every Tuesday afternoon 4.15 – 5.15 pm at Dawlish Community College.

Cost – Parents/carers are asked to contribute £1.00 per week towards the costs of this opportunity.

Children from Year 5 and older are invited to attend from Dawlish Learning Partnership schools to develop their rhythm and drumming skills by playing as part of a Samba Band with other drummers from our local schools.  We currently have 30 places available in the band and would like to invite  3 children from each school in the first instance.

We are hoping that the sessions will develop into a performance at our Raise our Game concert later in the Summer Term.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children attending.

Just before the Easter break children at Kenton Primary School enjoyed a wonderful afternoon completing their Sports’ Relief Mile.

They started the day, organised by the School Council, by coming to school dressed in red.  During the afternoon everyone walked or ran at least one mile, supported by many parents and family members, many of whom also joined in with the fun.  The Orangery at Powderham very kindly provided all children with a drink of squash and a biscuit.  The afternoon finished with a cake sale and three year 6 volunteers being soaked in aid of the Sports’ Aid Charity.

In excess of £136 was raised and great fun was had by all.

On Monday 19^th March 2012, 14 Gifted & Talented science students from Dawlish Community College attended a practical science workshop which was hosted at Cornwall’s Eden Project.

During the session, the students gained first-hand experience of molecular biochemistry techniques, involving the use of high-tech specialist apparatus. The workshop curriculum theme included the path of evolution and natural selection – with a specific focus towards bacterial evolution and the development of antibiotic resistance.

Much of the 3 hour laboratory session included a focus on researching various DNA structures, which required the technique known as ‘gel electrophoresis and DNA staining’ – this paralleling with DNA fingerprinting.

The two leaders of the workshop (Robbie Kirkman & Ros Mason) provided the students with constant individual guidance and support with respect to the practical skills and analysis processing – which proved invaluable throughout the laboratory session.

During the visit to Eden, the students were able to experience the infamous biomes – which included visits to the desert and rainforest environments- before heading back to the College.

Four of our Year 11 boys have managed to secure places on the prestigious Flybe Apprenticeship Course that Exeter College run in conjunction with Flybe Academy at Exeter Airport. Joel Denton, Connor Chappell, Ben Bradshaw and Dougal Ironside-Smith passed a practical interview and impressed an interview pannel to gain access to a course that is popular with applicants from all over the country.

As a partner school to Flybe Academy and Exeter College, Dawlish Community College provides an innovative curriculum which produces outstanding students with the practical engineering and academic skills required by Flybe.  The College curriculum has been enriched and extended through this partnership.  Throughout the year, students from across the College have been involved in a model aircraft masterclass at Dawlish Red Rock Centre, Future Engineers Event hosted by Flybe Academy and Exeter University and an Up-Up-and-Away event at Flybe Academy during National Apprenticeship week.

Congratulations to Joel, Connor, Ben and Dougal. Well Done!

Members of our newly formed Dawlish Learning Partnership Orchestra were invited to a music workshop to play with the Devon Youth Concert Orchestra at the Red Rock Centre in Dawlish.

The DLP Orchestra, which meets every Thursday at Exminster School, only started playing together in January and have already grown into a rehearsed orchestra playing their first concerts in the coming weeks.  The members are all Gifted and Talented musicians from our local Primary Schools and Dawlish Community College.

Our young musicians thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to play alongside the accomplished Devon Youth Concert Orchestra, conducted by Paul Painter.

The morning workshops were followed by a short concert to family and friends at the end of the afternoon, with performances by DYCO, a sing-a-long to ‘Lean on Me’ and joint performances from both orchestras.  The result was amazing – over 50 young musicians playing some fantastic music together.

Click on the picture below to see the video!

Cockwood children were involved in an inter-house challenge to build an Olympic village out of lego.

Each house team had an hour in the village hall to build their contribution towards the Olympic village. The other challenge for the day was to produce a piece of work suitable for Chartwell to take to our partner school in Zimbabwe when he visits in April. Each team had a folder with a brief outline of their house challenge, they had limited adult input and had to organsie, prepare, research and work collaboratively to ensure they made the most of their time. One team had to produce a newspaper based on the events that have happened at Cockwood since September, one group had to produce a range of video diaries based on the life of a pupil at Cockwood School, one group produced an information leaflet on the school and surrounding areas and the final group had to write a script and make a powerpoint for Chartwell to use in an assembly in our partner school. A VERY enjoyable day and it was fantastic to see children as young as 4 working alongside children who are 11. The year 6’s rose to the challenge and took charge of organising their team groups and including every member regardless of age or ability. The children were scored on a range of areas including planning skills, team work and co- operation.

CONGRATULATIONS to EXE house who won this challenge.

Helen Brayley is offering this multi sensory, musical  storymaking workshop for Foundation and KS1.

Dates available from 20th April to 20th July.

Suitable for Arts weeks, Environment weeks or summer fun!

Contact Helen for more information.

We are seeking a part-time Receptionist/Administrative Assistant at Westcliff Primary School in Dawlish to join our friendly and welcoming School Office Team.

This is a part-time position during term time for 10 hours per week from 8.30am to 10.30am daily to support our very busy and welcoming School Office. You must be well organised, efficient, friendly and approachable with excellent communication skills.

Main tasks include: Reception, telephone, mail duties, clerical support, filing and other IT based tasks.

This position has the opportunity to progress due to the ever changing nature of work in education support.

Salary – £6.63 per hour

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.  A CRB disclosure is require for this post.

Closing date 18th April 2012.

Please download an application form here, or email admin@dawlish-westcliff-primary.devon.sch.uk

All application forms to be returned to Westcliff Primary School, First Avenue, Dawlish, EX7 9RA.

For further information please telephone the School Office on 01626 862444.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Year 7 students from Dawlish Community College have recently taken part in an ‘In 2 Hockey’ event hosted by St Peters School, Exeter.

The aim of the day was for the students to experience hockey coaching and competition and this also included a visit by a member of the Great Britain Hockey team, forward Simon Mantell.

Students from Dawlish Community College took part a very active Science & Technology Impact Day on Wednesday where they were given the opportunity to try many hands-on activities.

During the day the students used a variety of skills to have a go at building bridges, protecting Crash Test Dummies, building windmills and making and driving go-karts.  Year 9 students also made and tested rockets and parachutes.

The students enjoyed themselves whilst also gaining valuable experience of the practical aspects of Science & Technology.

Students from Dawlish Community College were keen to put on their running shoes and and take part in the College’s Sport Relief Mile last week.

All the students were given the opportunity to run or walk the mile long course around the College Sports Field and at the end were presented with certificates.

The 700 plus students who completed the challenge have  all been busy collecting sponsorship for their run from family and friends and hope to raise a significant amount of money for Sport Relief 2012.

Pupils from Dawlish Learning Partnership performed three fantastic dances at the recent 3D A Chance to Dance event at Exeter’s Northcott Theatre. The event led by Daisi (Devon Arts in Schools Initiative) gave the children the opportunity to perform on stage in a theatre to celebrate and share their dance work with an audience of family, friends and performers from other groups.  The children took to the stage along with 9 other groups to perform a variety of different dance styles.

Cockwood Primary School performed an African dance based on the theme of ‘Uchiseka’, which means ‘Laugh about it’ in traditional Shona.  The pupils have been learning about African culture, music and dance as part of their Global Citizenship.

Dawlish Community College students performed a dance, ‘Nenikékamen meaning ‘We have won’.  Based on an Olympic theme the students have been considering how each day we face new challenges, learn new skills and find out that if we work together and strive for perfection dreams can turn into reality.

The Dawlish Learning Partnership group consisting of pupils from  Kenton, Kenn, Cockwood, Exminster and Starcross Primary schools performed ‘Do You Want To Party?’.  The group have been studying breaking (sometimes known as breakdancing) at regular after school workshops.  Their dance incorporated their own choreography to showcase their dance skills.

Congratulations to all who took part!  To watch the performances during dress rehearsal please take a look at the video clip below.

We are pleased to announce that we have appointed ISS to take over the provision of school meals after the Easter Break at a number of DLP schools.

This follows an exhaustive procurement process which culminated in a final presentation. This included cooking and serving sample meals and portions to staff and children from various schools whose positive feedback was part of the final decision.

Schools included are Westcliff, Gatehouse, Cockwood, Starcross, Exminster and Kenn Primary Schools.

Jenny Jones, ISS Area Manager, has produced an initial menu and will be working with each school to develop more individual new menus for September.  Jenny will also arrange for each school to receive printed copies of the initial menus in time to go out as part of the parent packs on the 26th March.

In the meantime you can see a draft copy of the initial menu below. Click on the arrows in the bottom right corner to view in full screen.

Students within Dawlish Learning Partnership were pleased to learn more about Fairtrade issues at our workshop hosted by Westcliff School and supported by Dawlish Fairtrade Friends.

Pupils from Kenton, Starcross, Cockwood and Westcliff Primary Schools joined students from Dawlish Community College and Ratcliffe School to discuss the principles of Fairtrade and to find out more about the impact that it has on the lives and businesses of Fairtrade producers.

The students watched a film and learnt about the Mountain Fruits Company, apricot producers from Pakistan and took part in a variety of activities during the morning including a Quiz, the Banana Split Game which looks at the reality of who gets what from the sale of bananas and tasting of Fairtrade products including dried apricots and Geo bars.

By the end of the workshop the children had thought about ways of raising awareness within their own schools and local communities and in the coming weeks will be arranging assemblies and meetings with their Headteacher and School Council to discuss how to promote Fairtrade within their own school.

A children’s sports holiday course is being offered by Sporting World at Westcliff Primary School on Tuesday 10th April and Wednesday 11th April from 8.30 am – 3.30 pm.

Cost  - £10 per child per day.

Available for all primary children from Year 1 to Year 6.

For further information and to book places please contact Marc Troman.  Email Marc here.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/childrens-sports-holiday-course/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/gifted-and-talented-mathematics-day/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/gifted-and-talented-mathematics-day/#comments Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:50:19 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=8007 Gifted and Talented Mathematics workshop on Thursday 22nd March 9.30 am – 3.00 pm at the Red Rock Centre, Sandy Lane, Dawlish. The Mathematics Faculty at Dawlish Community College are inviting Year 5 able mathematicians from across the Dawlish Learning Partnership Primary Schools to attend a ‘Superlearning Event’.  The Year 5...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Gifted and Talented Mathematics workshop on Thursday 22nd March 9.30 am – 3.00 pm at the Red Rock Centre, Sandy Lane, Dawlish.

The Mathematics Faculty at Dawlish Community College are inviting Year 5 able mathematicians from across the Dawlish Learning Partnership Primary Schools to attend a ‘Superlearning Event’.  The Year 5 pupils will work alongside ten Year 7 pupils from DCC.

Angela Gould, a nationally recognised presenter of mathematics events will host the day and will be providing a range of stimulating and challenging concepts and tasks to engage the pupils. These include paper-folding to investigate properties of shapes and using these shapes to build a football and using a packet of sweets for a range of mathematical ideas such as estimation, graph drawing, averages, fractions and percentages.

The pupils should be accompanied by an adult from each school and will need to bring a packed lunch and drinks with them.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children attending.

Matt Macklin, an inspiring local Break Dance Artist is currently  running an after school dance project at Kenton Primary School aiming to promote high quality dance and to provide performance opportunities within our local community.

The group meets every Wednesday after school with pupils from Kenton, Kenn, Cockwood, Exminster and Starcross Primary schools participating.  The group are busy working towards their performance at the 3D Dance event being organised by DAISI (Devon Arts in Schools Initiative) taking place on Sunday 11th March at the Exeter Northcott Theatre at 6.30 pm.

Tickets for this performance can be purchased in advance from the Exeter Northcott Theatre box office on 01392 493493. Tickets are £6.00 for adults and £4.00 for concessions (students, OAP, low income) and can be purchased Monday – Saturday (10am – 6pm) or online at www.exeternorthcott.co.uk.

To see them in action during one of their sessions please take a look at the short clip below.

The Mock Interviews held at the Langstone Cliff Hotel in Dawlish were a tremendous success and another good display of the close working relationship between the College and the Rotary Club of Dawlish, with many thanks to the Rogers’ family who hosted the interviews at their Hotel.

The Year 11 students from Dawlish Community College have been given a series of lessons prior to the event and were taught how to produce CV’s, Letters and Record’s of Achievements, were educated about the art of Body Language, First Impressions and Interview Techniques.

The interview panel comprises of two interviewers who are drawn from business people in the local community who freely give up their time.

“The evaluations from the two days were a delight to read,” said Miss Gaskell, Head of Careers at the College. Some of the comments from the evaluations received were;

“Totally focussed, determined, obviously talented and with personality and self-confidence. An extremely impressive young lady.”

“A delightful young lady with obvious natural talent in many areas. Clear in her ambitions! She has so many options open to her.”

“…came across as a bright and enthusiastic young man with a clear ambition to excel in his chosen career.”

“…prepared well for the interview and came across as an enthusiastic and committed person who was a delight to interview.”

“Supremely confident but willing to take advice.”

“A shining star, very well thought out future plans and should achieve her goals.”

The joint enterprise between the College and the Rotary Club of Dawlish enable students to take part in this useful activity, prior to their interviews that will be shortly taking place for their post 16 options.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/students-first-interviews/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/bringing-books-to-life/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/bringing-books-to-life/#comments Tue, 06 Mar 2012 23:00:48 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=8058 Pupils from Cockwood Primary School brought books to life last week by dressing up as their favourite book character on World Book Day. They all looked fabulous! ]]>

Pupils from Cockwood Primary School brought books to life last week by dressing up as their favourite book character on World Book Day.

They all looked fabulous!

The Raise Our Game sports event has been arranged for Thursday 14th June.  It will take place at Exeter Arena from 9:45 to 2:30 and involve children from Years 3 to 6, along with students from Dawlish Community College, Oaklands and Ratcliffe.

Training is essential for this event to run effectively, teachers and the students involved will need to know what they are doing.

All events, with the exception of the distance run and relay, will take place simultaneously with year groups moving around a circuit of activities (see separate timetable). Schools are asked to send at least two adults, one who will be available for their children and one who will help manage an event with Year 9 students from DCC.

An INSET afternoon for members of staff has been arranged for Thursday 29th March at Dawlish Community College. It will last from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.

If you wish to attend this training please Leave a Reply below, adding your name (or names) and School.

Further information about the Raise our Game Sports Event.

Schools are asked to bring teams of 16 children, consisting of two Year 3 girls; two year 3 boys; two year 4 girls, etc… All children will compete in all events. Medals will be awarded for the top boy and girl from each year group, and points will be added up to give us the overall first, second and third placed primary schools. Students from DCC, Oaklands and Ratcliffe will do the events as one separate group, but compete against the other students from their own schools.

The events are:

• Hammer
• Long jump
• 100m Sprint (60m for Y3/4)
• Javelin
• Shot put
• Speed bounce
• 400m Distance run (200m for Y3/4)
• Relay

Coaches have been arranged to pick children up from their schools in the morning and drop them back off at the end of the day. Children will need to arrive in suitable clothing to take part in the competition (all competitors will be given a special t-shirt to wear), appropriate clothing and sunscreen to shelter from the rain or sun, or both, and a packed lunch with plenty of drink.

We have arranged for a catering van to be on site, which will sell the usual burgers, chips and drinks for parents who wish to watch from the stand. For your information, parents/family who do come along to watch may be asked to pay an entry fee of no more than £1 by Exeter Arena.

David Kay
Chair, DLP Sport Action Group

Fifty year nine students from Dawlish Community College took part in a science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) initiative funded by South West Water.

The students worked in groups to design and build an aqueduct.  The winning team where Phoebe Barton,  Emily Rolfe,  Imogen Chapman-Hunt,  Rhianne Hunt and Sophie Peters.  They showed enthusiasm, excellent team work and a good focus on completing their aqueduct.   The runners up showed some ingenuity in designing a box girder bridge, one which had not been in their original brief, well done to this team of boys.  Students showed initiative and creativity in their designs; eight of ten watertight aqueducts could withstand a weight of 3kg.

The day was enjoyable and well worth attending – well done to all the students who took part.

Big Dance 2012 is the UK’s biggest ever celebration of dance! We are giving the opportunity for different groups to down load the choreography, learn and rehearse for the global performance in a world record attempt. Currently the world record is held by the Netherlands with 264,188 participants in 1,472 locations.

Training is essential for this event to run effectively , teachers and the students involved will need to know what they are doing.

Hannah Dempsey from Dawlish Community College and Anna Leatherdale from Devon Dance will provide a free afternoon of INSET for primary schools teachers who will be teaching their pupils the dance on 14th March at the college in the gym 1.30pm – 3.30pm.

Hannah will also confirm transport arrangements, however we will be asking each student for a 50p donation towards these costs.

More information from the BIG Dance website here. This includes a choreography video and an option to register to access further teachers resources.

If you wish to attend this training please Leave a Reply below, adding your name (or names) and School. Please indicate how many pupils will take part in the BIG Dance (no names needed).

Great news …! We have successfully obtained an Arts Council grant to celebrate London 2012.

Together with the support already provided by the Helen Foundation this will enable children from all 10 DLP Schools to take part in some fantastic activities.

These will include;

• working with a Daisi artists to create a BIG school banner that celebrates the Olympic Spirit. These will be on display in Exeter Cathedral.
• competing in an inter school Olympics style sports competition at The Exeter Arena.
• taking part in a fantastic DLP Sports Medals awards and Raise our Game concert at the University of Exeter Great Hall.

Parent, carers and friends are of course very welcome to join us to watch both the sports competition and the Raise our Game performance.

Watch this website for details, you can see what we are doing on the purple London 2012 Raise our Game button at the top of the page. Even better subscribe above to be kept up to date with all developments and ticket announcements.

Below you can see children from two of our schools designing their school banners.

Year 10 Food Technology students from Dawlish Community College have been using apples to design and try out a selection of desserts for a competition organised by Sainsbury’s Dawlish to coincide with National Bramley Apple week.

During the last few weeks 60 students have been competing to get into the final, making lots of wonderful desserts using bramley apples.

12 students were chosen to be in the final where they had to prepare, cook and serve their desserts whilst being judged by 3 members of Sainsbury’s staff. After a lot of tasting and mmm sounds a winner and runner up were decided upon – Stephanie Blacklock won with her take on apple crumble, with a hint of lemon and topped with oats and runner up was Chloe Rabbage.

Westcliff Primary School are very pleased to have recently received a boost after cereal company Kellogg’s awarded a grant worth £450.00 to help fund the school’s Breakfast Club. The school is one of 500 schools from across the country to receive a grant after research by Kellogg’s revealed that one in eight breakfast clubs have been forced to close because of budget cuts.

The grant will really help the club with the money being spent on some new equipment including, crockery, cutlery and games for the children as well as a selection of the children’s favourite cereals.

For more information and to book places at Westcliff School’s Breakfast Club contact Julie on 01626 862444.

On Friday 10th February ten Year 9 students from Dawlish Community College travelled to the Flybe Academy at Exeter Airport to take part in the Flybe and Exeter College ’Up, Up & Away’ Challenge as part of National Apprenticeships Week.

At the new academy they were given a masterclass in the theory of Flight and then designed and built their own balsa model aircraft.

In the fly off competition the Dawlish teams competed against teams from Queen Elizabeth’s College – and produced the aircraft which flew the furthest.

Just before leaving they were taken to see the new simulators in action. This has been a most valuable experience for this ambitious group of students planning to join our BTEC Engineering course next year.

Children in Year 5 and 6 at Kenton Primary School are going to enter the Cook for the Queen competition where schools are invited to prepare a special menu for Her Majesty The Queen at Buckingham Palace in June.

The children have planned what they need to do for the project including finding out what foods the Queen likes, so have written letters to Buckingham Palace to ask her.

Fingers crossed for a response!

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/cooking-for-the-queen-what-does-she-like/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/year-11-catering-trip-to-trago-mills/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/year-11-catering-trip-to-trago-mills/#comments Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:26:20 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=7820 14 Hospitality and Catering GCSE students visited the new restaurant at Trago Mills, Newton Abbot. The students from Dawlish Community College were given a tour of the self service restaurant, kitchens and the tea room by the Catering Manager and Head Chef. They observed how meals are made in large quantities...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

14 Hospitality and Catering GCSE students visited the new restaurant at Trago Mills, Newton Abbot. The students from Dawlish Community College were given a tour of the self service restaurant, kitchens and the tea room by the Catering Manager and Head Chef.

They observed how meals are made in large quantities and were able to sample some of the food and drink on site. The tour also included looking around the store rooms, fridge and freezer, which was large enough to fit all the students in at once!

Many thanks to Trago Mills for allowing Dawlish students to have this tour and for their excellent hospitality. All the students loved their time there and learnt lots more about the catering industry.

The National College is offering one-off grants for Chairs of school governors who would like to run facilitated workshops to share best practice within their local area. The grants aim to improve school leadership by:

• encouraging collaboration across governing bodies
• improving the sharing of best practice across governing bodies
• sharing examples of governing bodies’ contributions to school improvement

We will apply for this modest grant if there is sufficient interest. To do this we will need chairs of governors from at least 15 schools to be interested in participating. This could include DLP schools as well as those in neighbouring Learning Communities.

We need to apply by 25th February. Please indicate your interest using the ‘Leave a Reply’  box below. You will be sent a simple form to complete to confirm your post, contact details and school improvement areas of interest.

In addition we are happy to announce a local forthcoming free workshop by the National College also aimed at Chairs of Governors. It will provide delegates with:

• personal professional development in regards to the importance of school governance in the current and future educational landscapes
• an overview of the National College’s new leadership development training offer for chairs of governors.

This takes place at the Rougemenot Hotel, Exeter, on 15th March 2012, between 2.00pm and 6.30pm.

Further information and how to register from here.

A group of 16 Food and Catering students were invited to attend a Fine Dining Experience at the Michael Caines Academy, Exeter College. The group from Dawlish Community College joined over 70 pupils from schools across Devon and not only got the chance to meet the region’s two Michelin starred chef and his Academy students, but also were treated to a formal fine dining experience

A fabulous 4 course meal was prepared, cooked and served by the academy students including slow cooked rump, duck terrine and dark chocolate and hazelnut mousse.

Michael Caines MBE gave a welcome speech and introduced our students to the Academy, the opportunities available and how to apply for a place on the course. He then joined us for the meal, asking the students questions about what they liked to cook and what they would cook for him if they were given the opportunity. Everyone enjoyed the fine dining, trying all the food, some of which was an unusual taste to them.

We are delighted to offer this workshop by Kerry Yelland.

Kerry is an Educational Welfare Officer with the Devon Learning and Development Partnership.

Date. Wednesday 7th March 2012 from 3.45 for coffee for a 4.00pm start. Finish at 5.30/5.45.

Venue. Starcross Primary School.  Google Map here.

Cost. This is free of charge.

Intended for. All primary practitioners, anyone who works in a primary setting with responsibility for safeguarding children.

Key Stage/Phase. Primary

Workshop overview. This workshop will help primary practitioners to:

• Recognise their role in safeguarding children
• Define different categories of child abuse
• Know how to respond to child welfare concerns

We are delighted to offer this
workshop by Pam Bragagnolo.

Pam is an Advisory Teacher on behaviour with the Devon Learning and Development Partnership and is well know in DLP schools.

Date. Wednesday 7th March 2012 from 3.45 for coffee for a 4.00pm start. Finish at 5.30/5.45.

Venue. Westcliff Primary School.  Google Map here.

Cost. This is free of charge.

Intended for. All Teachers and support staff, volunteers, Governors.

Key Stage/Phase. All

Workshop overview. Pam will include:

• Introductions
• School policy
• What does bullying look like?
• Cyberbullying
• What are the effects of bullying?
• The  use and effectiveness of anti-bullying strategies in schools
• SEAL  resources
• Other useful resources
• Feedback and conclusion

“While it is pleasing to see Dawlish Community College doing well in the league tables we will continue to focus on meeting the needs of every individual student in the school.

By having high expectations, challenging all abilities of students to reach their potential and providing fantastic support to our students we have seen standards significantly and rapidly rise over the past few years, particularly in this critical measure of 5A*-C including English and Mathematics but without the GCSE equivalent courses. The same equivalent courses which are currently being cut by the Government.

Our high standards were once again recognised by OfSTED just before Christmas when we were awarded a “Good” grading for both sections of the inspection which follows another record breaking set of GCSE results last summer and a “Good” OfSTED for Modern Foreign Languages in June.”

DLP Gifted & Talented PE Workshops – every Wednesday  for six weeks at Westcliff Primary School, 1.00 pm – 2.15 pm starting on Wednesday 22nd February 2012.

These workshops will take place over six consecutive Wednesday afternoons and will be led by Marc Troman, coach from Sporting World who regularly works with Westcliff School.

The workshops will focus on multi skills and ball skills for Year 2 children.

4 children are invited to attend from each Dawlish Learning Partnership Primary School.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children attending.

Fifteen more able Year 7 students recently attended a superlearning workshop at Dawlish Community College’s Red Rock Centre.

The workshops provided opportunities for students to demonstrate team building skills and a wide range of problem solving and lateral thinking techniques.

Events included transporting a ping pong ball for 50 metres without touching it and attempting to answer Fermi questions like; “How long would it take an ant to walk around the equator”.

The highlight of the morning was when the student teams built a domino rally where hundreds of dominos would collapse in sequence, climb a bridge and ring a bell.

Two Year 9 students, along with their teacher Mrs Emily Parr, Head of Art at Dawlish Community College were given a fantastic invitation to go along to The Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter to work and learn from one of the major exhibitions ‘The Road to Rome’, with which the newly refurbished Museum will be re-opening. Focusing on the European Grand Tour, the key work is an Italian eighteenth century portrait of Exeter nobleman, John Rolle Walter by Pompeo Batoni.

Mrs Parr, Chantelle Brown and Jack Henderson were also joined for the day by some local Devon Schools, key curators from the museum and the artist Sara Dudman.

Mrs Parr reports:

Our day began with a personal tour of the exhibition; with some fascinatiting facts about Botoni’s painting of ‘John Rolle Walter’,  this was a real treat to find out so much information and facts about the artwork and the artist.     We were then taken to the educational work rooms where we were introduced to the artist Sara Dudman.  Sarah gave us a few demonstrations on using paint to create tone, form, texture and colour with particular focus on skin tones and draped fabric.  Both the students and I really enjoyed this process and produced some experimental pieces linked to the painting of ‘John Rolle Walter’ – photos of one of our experimental outcomes are below.

It is great to have the museum back for public use and the long awaited opening is well worth it,  I would advise anyone to go along and see the displays and exhibitions, all for free!

Thanks to Chantelle and Jack for their company on this workshop, it was a real pleasure spending a day with them.

For further information about the museum and future exhibitions  - The Royal Albert Memorial Museum

The DLP Orchestra for Gifted and Talented Musicians is starting on Thursday 19th January 2012.

The orchestra sessions will be led by Graham Pearson, a local peripatetic tutor and will take place every Thursday afternoon 4.15 – 5.15 pm at Exminster Primary School.

Cost – Parents/carers are asked to contribute £1.00 per week towards the costs of this opportunity.

Years 4, 5 & 6 Gifted and Talented musicians are invited to attend from Dawlish Learning Partnership schools to develop their talents and skills by playing as part of a larger group with other young musicians from our local schools.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children attending.

Another successful Christmas cooking club took place at Dawlish Community College last term. 13 year 7 students and 1 year 8 student took part in the 6 week club, which included making their own Christmas cake and covering it with marzipan and icing. The students also had to decorate the cakes before they were judged by Mr Osborne, Year 7 Learning Manager.

The competition was the highest it has ever been and there were some outstanding pieces of ‘art work’.  Mr Osborne had the difficult task of judging all the cakes and after a lot of deliberation he decided on two runners up and first place, which went to Esme Barton.

The College hosted it’s third Specialism Awards ceremony where students from across the College received individual recognition for their performance within the specialism curriculum areas of Mathematics, Science & Design Technology.

The awards were presented by Dr Anna Nicholson, (a former student of the College), who also presented a brief overview of her own academic and career journey. Dr Nicholson is an excellent example of the calibre of gifted and talented students at the College and illustrates the great job the College can do in catering for students of all needs. Indeed she is one of a large number of our students who have very successful academic careers after their time at many good universities including most recently Ben Whitlock at Oxford University.

During her presentation, Dr Nicholson reinforced to the students, the importance of commitment, resilience and self-belief – all key attributes, which she believes significantly impact on personal success.

The thirty award recipients ranged from Year 7 to Year 11 students – all of which had been nominated by the College’s Faculty Team Leaders for their high performance within the Specialism curriculum areas over the 2011 Autumn Term.

During the ceremony the students received both a certificate and trophy, with an additional cup presented to the two students nominated for their overall Key Stage 3 & Key Stage 4 outstanding Specialism performance.

Lin Caunter, Assistant Principal and Director of College Specialism, not only praised the students for their excellent achievements, but also thanked them for being great ambassadors of the College. In addition, she also congratulated all students for their high performance across all curriculum areas; which is reflected in the continuing upward academic performance indicators of the college and the December 2011 ‘good’ rated Ofsted report.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/dawlish-community-college-technology-specialism-student-performance-ceremony/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/another-good-ofsted-grading-for-dawlish-community-college/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/another-good-ofsted-grading-for-dawlish-community-college/#comments Mon, 16 Jan 2012 23:31:09 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=7412 Dawlish Community College is delighted to announce that in an inspection by OfSTED shortly before Christmas the College achieved a “Good” grading. The College was inspected in the two areas of Student Achievement and the College’s capacity to continue the recent significant improvements that we have made. The College is proud to report that we achieved a “Good” grading...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Dawlish Community College is delighted to announce that in an inspection by OfSTED shortly before Christmas the College achieved a “Good” grading.

The College was inspected in the two areas of Student Achievement and the College’s capacity to continue the recent significant improvements that we have made. The College is proud to report that we achieved a “Good” grading in both categories. The inspector was full of praise for the College as indicated by the following quotes;

“Having considered all of the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time the college has made good progress in making improvements and good progress in demonstrating a better capacity for sustained improvement.

“There has been a rapid and sustained rise in the proportion of students achieving higher grades in GCSE examinations”

“Development of provision for students to practice and improve their literacy skills in subjects other than English is progressing well under the direction of the ‘literacy across the curriculum’ management group”

“… the review of the whole scope of the curriculum means it takes much better account of the learning strengths and preferences of this group of students, particularly for those in Key Stage 4”

“…… the college now provides an improved choice of subjects within four different pathways of study that can be highly personalised for individual students.  As part of the applied and vocational pathways, students can elect to participate in accredited courses that give them introductions to, for example, engineering, construction trades, hairdressing and catering”

“The college’s specialist status in technology has helped to ensure that students have access to a wide range of accredited courses.  For example, food technology and catering are also available as vocational qualifications as well as at GCSE and AS levels.”

The full report can be found on the school’s website alongside the College’s last inspection report for Modern Languages which was also graded as “Good” in July 2011.

Dawlish Community College Principal, Andrew Davis commented, “We are very pleased with another “Good” judgment on the College by OfSTED. We feel this reflects the hard work that students are putting in, alongside an incredibly skillful, dedicated and committed team of staff.

The College has made very impressive progress in the last two years, particularly with regard to examination results, and we are confident that this year will, once again, see our Year 11 students beat all previous GCSE records.

May I take this opportunity to thank our parents and carers for their continued support of the College and assure them that we will not become complacent but will continue to relentlessly strive to get the very best results possible for their children.”

The Countdown has started!

DLP Schools will be working closely to put on a range of exciting events during the build up to London 2012.

To start things off, teacher Kit Hardee and 6 Motions from Exminster Primary School have written and performed this fantastic song.

It was recorded and mixed in a professional studio and the whole school turned out to record the video. The experience was enjoyed by everyone and we are looking forward to London 2012.

Watch it and share it with family and friends on email, Facebook and Twitter!

You can also buy the track at The Schools Record Label, and support the participation in sports by local children in our Learning Community.

Lets make it number one!!

Teachers in DLP schools can download a HD version of the video by emailing David Carr here.

The Expressive Arts Department at Dawlish Community College welcomed students, parents and visitors to their annual Christmas showcase which included musical, dance and drama performances and featured an exhibition of  willow figurative sculptures.

The audience were treated to a wide range of soloist performances by Key Stage 3 and 4 students followed by GCSE drama students who performed a powerful piece entitled ‘Them and Us.’  Year 9 students from the College’s Expressive Dance Movement group also performed two dances.  The evening finished with christmas songs and carols from the College Choir.

Festive refreshments of mulled wine and mince pies were kindly provided by the Dawlish Community College Association.

Visitors also had a chance to see a display of willow sculptures with the theme ‘Figure and Form.’  The starting point for the art students, was looking at a range of different artists approach to documenting the figure either through drawing or in a 3D sense.  Each student was given the freedom to interoperate the figure in any sense or pose, which then lead onto the making process.  The students went through a range of materials using wire, straws, wool, clay and willow to create some Marquette’s for ideas for their final willow piece.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/expressive-arts-christmas-showcase-2011/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/students-get-on-their-bikes-to-take-on-the-haldon-trails/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/students-get-on-their-bikes-to-take-on-the-haldon-trails/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:06:08 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=7305 Year 9 Foundation Learning students braved the chilly elements to tackle the 6 mile blue cycle challenge trail at Haldon Forest. The young riders were made up of students from Teign School, Teignmouth Community School, Ratcliffe School and Dawlish Community College. This bike project involves understanding bike safety, riding skills...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Year 9 Foundation Learning students braved the chilly elements to tackle the 6 mile blue cycle challenge trail at Haldon Forest.

The young riders were made up of students from Teign School, Teignmouth Community School, Ratcliffe School and Dawlish Community College. This bike project involves understanding bike safety, riding skills and opportunities to tackle level 1 and 2 bike trails.

Cycles, Helmets and gloves were kindly loaned by Forest Cycle hire.

DLP Gifted & Talented 3D Dance Project.  All the schools within Dawlish Learning Partnership have a fantastic opportunity to be involved with the DAISI 3D dance project for 2012.

Matt Macklin, an inspiring local Break Dance Artist will be running an after school dance project aiming to promote high quality dance and to provide performance opportunities within our local community.

The project will consist of 8 sessions starting on January 11th 2012 with a performance on Sunday 11th March at the 3D Dance event being held at the Exeter Northcott Theatre.   As places are limited this workshop is available to 3 gifted and talented primary aged children from each DLP school.

Sessions to take place on 11th, 18th and 25th January, 1st, 8th and 22nd  and 29th February and 7th March from 4.00 pm – 5.00 pm at Kenton Primary School.

The cost for this project is £2 per session.  Children need to commit to attending all the sessions and the performance date.

Please register places for children from your school using the ‘Leave a reply’ box below with the name of your school and the number of children attending.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/gifted-and-talented-3d-dance-project/feed/ 5 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/ready-steady-cook/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/ready-steady-cook/#comments Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:17:20 +0000 Jan http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=7292 Last year the DCCA, Dawlish Community College Association (the College’s Parent Teacher Association) kindly agreed to fund a stand alone hob which could be used for both our disabled students as well as an additional cooking area within our very popular Food Technology classes. The College is delighted to report that...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Last year the DCCA, Dawlish Community College Association (the College’s Parent Teacher Association) kindly agreed to fund a stand alone hob which could be used for both our disabled students as well as an additional cooking area within our very popular Food Technology classes.

The College is delighted to report that following several modifications by our fantastic Technology Technician, Mr Parnell, the hob is now fully operational and in use by students within their lessons.

As you can see from the photographs this has totally transformed the way in which students with mobility difficulties can learn how to prepare and cook their own food.

Under the expert guidance of Mrs Hillyard and Mrs Boyne students have been preparing a wide range of foods including some fantastic bread which the College Principal, Mr Davis, watched being made and tasted absolutely fantastic!

The staff and students would really like to thank DCCA for their generosity and Mr Davis would like to congratulate and thank Ben, Mrs Hillyard and Mr Bird alongside the other staff who have helped on this project for making it such a great success!

Key Stage 2 children from Westcliff, Gatehouse and Kenton Primary Schools have enjoyed some friendly High 5 netball matches against each other over the past couple of weeks.

The teams were getting in some additional match play and practice in preparation for further matches which are planned for early next term before a regular competitive fixture begins.

Well done to all the teams!

At the end of their first year, the current Year 11 vocational hairdressers were entered into a competition hosted by South Devon College.

They were competing against in a group of 21 students aged between 14-16 who are also completing their VRQ level 2 based at South Devon College.  Over a number of weeks the girls designed hair styles, make-up and outfits to be applied to a model on competition day.

The top three awards all went to students from Dawlish Community College, studying at the Red Rock Skills Centre with Beth James (third), Laura Tate (second) and Chloe Foster taking first prize.  The girls were pleased to receive their prizes!

Chloe’s Winning Design!

Dawlish Community College have a fantastic opportunity to be involved with the DAISI 3D dance project for 2012.

Anna Leatherdale, a local Dance Artist will be running an after-college dance project aiming to promote high quality dance and to provide performance opportunities within our local community.

The project will consist of 8 sessions starting on January 11^th 2012 to develop quality Dance in preparation for the performance in March 2012. The project is limited to 16 KS3 students.

It is a brilliant opportunity for the College’s KS3 students to develop their understanding and ability within creating this dance and performing at Exeter’s Northcott Theatre in March.

The cost for this project is £18, which includes 8 sessions and the performance.

Please print and complete a consent form and return to Mrs Dempsey at the College who is helping organise and run the project.  Consent form available here

If you wish to contact Mrs Dempsey, please do not hesitate to call the College on 01626 862318.

Our new Incredible Years  Programme starts on the 4th January.

The first workshops will take place in Dawlish, details below.

They are being provided by Penny West and Liz Edwards.

Places on these workshops will be limited, but if you think you might be interested please contact Penny and she will be very happy to answer your questions.

The Co-operative  is offering schools with pupils aged between 5 and 16 a number of free Green Schools Revolution resources.

Put together by leading educationalists, they focus on the hot sustainability topics of energy, water and healthy living. They also cover a broad range of curriculum subjects, from science, geography and maths to literacy and art.

Resources are curriculum focused and carefully put together so you get the best in lesson plans, whole school activities, trips, games, puzzles, quizzes and the chance to show off your green credentials in their  Green Schools Revolution Week in March 2012.

More information here.

Your children can participate in the Dawlish Art Hub whilst you do your Christmas shopping ……….
Go along to the next art hub to create your own fantastic willow lanterns (in a choice of shapes), and decorations for Christmas!
Lanterns to decorate will be available for younger children.
Hope to see you there!

Visit the DHA Website Here

Students, parents, staff and visitors enjoyed an excellent evening at Dawlish Community College to celebrate the achievement of Year 11 students from last year.

The guest speaker was Mr Bruce Henderson, Business Development Manager at Exeter City FC.  Mr Henderson spoke about the importance of education and the role it can play in shaping the future for young people. He went on to talk about how Exeter City FC helped support young players in their education as well as their playing careers. He congratulated the Year 11 leavers on their achievements and wished them the very best for the future.

Over 60 awards were presented with the following students gaining special recognition:

The Helen Foundation Award was presented by Roger and Annie Kirk to Beth Porch

The Mayor’s Award was presented to Lauren Welsh by the Mayor and Mayoress of Dawlish, Councillors John and Linda Petherick

The Evelyn Connett Shield for Modern Foreign Languages was presented to Kellie-Ann Bond by Mr Alan Connett

An award in memory of two former students who tragically died was donated by Mrs Kathleen Whaling, Chair of Governors. The Richard Cridge and Kathryn Dunn award was presented to Rowan Ford by the families of Richard and Kathryn.

The closing address was made by the Mayor of Dawlish, Councillor John Petherick.

The evening concluded with a vote of thanks from the Principal, Mr Andrew Davis.

Photographs from the event are kindly contributed by Blackboard Associates Ltd. Additional photographs are available – view here

Kenton Primary School have a vacancy for a Mealtime Assistant (Grade A) for 5 hours per week.  This is a temporary contract to start as soon as possible.

This role will include the supervision, care and management of children in the playground and dining hall and supporting their play, in conjunction with our lunchtime play leader. We are looking to appoint someone who is enthusiastic and caring towards the children in our school.

A CRB disclosure is required for this post.

Hours – 1 hour per day Monday-Friday 12.00-1.00pm, during term time

Pay – £6.30 to £6.47 per hour (depending on experience).

You should:

-       Be able to build a strong, appropriate rapport with children.

-       Demonstrate the aptitude to work as part of a successful team.

-       Have good communication skills.

-       Be able to support children in their play, while maintaining the children’s safety and following the school’s behaviour guidelines.

-       Be able to demonstrate good food hygiene practices and adhere to school health and safety policies.

“We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.”

Application form available from the Headteacher, Mrs Amanda Somerwill, email admin@kenton-primary.devon.sch.uk , by collection from the School office or by sending a large A4 size SAE please to Kenton Primary School, Mamhead Road, Kenton, Exeter, EX6 8LX.

Closing Date: Monday 5^th December 2011   Interview Date: Monday 12^th December 2011.

Kenton Primary School have a vacancy for a Breakfast Club Play Worker (Grade B) for 3 1/4 hours per week, a temporary contract to start on 4th January 2012.

This role will include the supervision, care and management of children while at Breakfast Club, serving their breakfast and supporting their play. We are looking to appoint someone who is enthusiastic and caring towards the children in our school.

A CRB disclosure is required for this post.

Hours – 1 hour per day Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, during term time, 7.45 – 8.45am, plus ¾hour weekly to compile bills and receipts.

Pay – £6.63 to £7.64 per hour (depending on experience).

You should:

-       Be able to build a strong, appropriate rapport with children.

-       Demonstrate the aptitude to work as part of a successful team.

-       Have good communication skills.

-       Be able to support children in their play, while maintaining the children’s safety and following the school’s behaviour guidelines.

-       Be able to demonstrate good food hygiene practices and adhere to school health and safety policies.

“We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.”

Application form available from the Headteacher, Mrs Amanda Somerwill, email admin@kenton-primary.devon.sch.uk , by collection from the School office or by sending a large A4 size SAE please to Kenton Primary School, Mamhead Road, Kenton, Exeter, EX6 8LX.

Closing Date: Monday 5^th December 2011   Interview Date: Monday 12^th December 2011.

Kenton Primary School are looking to appoint a 15 hours per week Teaching Assistant,  5 hours per week Mealtime Assistant.

To start 4th January 2012 this is a vacancy for a temporary post – Grade B or C Teaching Assistant (depending on experience) with Grade A Mealtime Assistant.

This role will include the supervision, care and support of a child with Special Educational  Needs in Key Stage 1. We are looking to appoint someone with experience, who is enthusiastic and caring towards the children in our school.

The Mealtime Assistant role will involve maintaining the health and safety of children and supporting their play in the playground and in the dining hall.

This post is temporary due to the secondment of the current post holder.

A CRB disclosure is required for this post.

Teaching Assistant hours -

• Mon – Fri – 9.00am – 12.00

Mealtime Assistant hours –

• Mon – Fri 12.00 – 1.00pm

Pay – Teaching Assistant £6.63 to £8.72 per hour (depending on experience). Mealtime Assistant £6.30 to £6.47 per hour (depending on experience).

You should:

-       Be able to build a strong, appropriate rapport with children.

-       Demonstrate the aptitude to work as part of a successful team.

-       Prepare for, supervise and work with individuals and groups of children, following the instructions given by the Class Teacher.

-       Have a sound working knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)/ Key Stage 1 and ideally a relevant level 2 qualification.

-       Have a strong commitment to team working and a willingness to become a member of a highly motivated whole school team.

-       Have a commitment to child led learning.

“We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.”

Application form available from the Headteacher, Mrs Amanda Somerwill, email admin@kenton-primary.devon.sch.uk , by collection from the School office or by sending a large A4 size SAE please to Kenton Primary School, Mamhead Road, Kenton, Exeter, EX6 8LX.

Closing Date: Monday 5^th December 2011   Interview Date: Monday 12^th December 2011.

Over the first half of this term teams from Year 7, 8, 9 and 11 have represented Dawlish Community College at rugby.  Each of the year groups has entered a South Devon area competition with teams ranging from 7’ a side to 12’ a side.  Sam Rose, who took part in the Year 7 tournament reports on his experience:

Earlier this term, Year 7 had a rugby tournament at Churston Ferrers Grammar School and despite only training twice before as a team, we came second in the plate competition. We travelled to the competition in the school minibus in the morning – everyone was excited and looking forward to it. With everyone ready, we arrived about 20minutes before our game, just enough time to warm-up and pick a team!

It was great to play our first game, for it was the first time we had played a match as a team – it was amazing. Unfortunately we lost the first game but by only one try, the score 2-1 and despite this everyone was very pleased.  After that we played another game, same result, 2-1. The last game we played in the group stages was against Churston Ferrers Grammar School but we lost by 4 tries!

However we still managed to get into the quarter finals of the plate competition due to the points difference so this meant we had to play Paignton. We started off the game really well bagging 2 tries in the opening half. The second half didn’t go our way, Paignton hadn’t lost a game and they scored 3 tries, another narrow defeat.

Next time we hope to do even better. The tag rugby tournament was really good fun which everyone enjoyed. It was brilliant!

Samba is coming to DLP Schools.

Teacher Faye Hill from Ratcliffe School has begun a series of workshops that will introduce children from schools across the Dawlish Learning Partnership to SAMBA.

The aim is to develop an after school Samba Band that can perform at a major Olympiad event that we have planned for next year, but more of that to follow.

In the meantime take a look at this video, it only lasts for 7 minutes and it will give you an idea of how we encourage children to try Samba!

The final performance was produced after just one workshop.

St Peter’s School 0-9 Dawlish Community College

The U14 boy’s hockey team played their first game of the year away to St Peter’s on Thursday 24^th November. The team travelled there not knowing a lot about their opponents, but felt confident in them selves.

With many of the team playing their first ever competitive match, the experience of Captain and International player Tom Brooks would be needed.

The first half was a one way affair with Dawlish dominating.  Excellent midfield and forward work from Jack Henderson, Mika Morgan and Reuben Ward, saw Henderson scoring a hat trick within the first 15 minutes.  Solid defending from Dan Fox, Jono Fell and Dyllon Martin kept any St Peter’s attack at bay.  At half time the Dawlish boys were 5-0 up.

The second half once again was all Dawlish.  Isaac Kelly scored two goals from close quarters and Brooks scored a spectacular undercut that shocked the keeper.  Year 8 players of Justin Tonge, Jack Parfitt and James Bolt made a telling contribution in their first match.

St Peter’s did improve as the game proceeded and had a handful of chances.  Mo Scholey in goal was solid and dealt easily with any shots.

The final score reflects Dawlish’s dominance and the team now look forward to their next two matches in the New Year.

Goal scorers: Jack Henderson 3, Mika Morgan 2, Isaac Kelly 2, Rueben Ward 1 and Tom Brooks 1.

Children from Years 5 and 6 at Kenton Primary School have been experiencing life in a Victorian classroom.

Pupils came to school dressed as they would have been during the Victorian era and received lessons in handwriting, arithmatic, learning the Kings and Queens of Britain, and capital cities of the Empire.

Discipline and behaviour was also discussed, with inspections for clean hands before being allowed into class.

Nine vocational educational students attending the catering course at Red Rock Skills Centre showed their culinary talents in a big way last Thursday to a group of South Devon Head teachers.

The students from Dawlish Community College and Ratcliffe School are currently studying for an NVQ qualification in catering and are taught by South Devon College lecturer Mr David Wills at the Red Rock Skills Centre in Sandy Lane.  Although the students have only been on the course since September they were able to provide an imaginative and healthy 3 course lunch for the Head teachers who were using the conference facilities at Red Rock for their termly meeting.

Head of Vocational Courses at Dawlish Community College, Andrew Woodward commented,

“The students produced an excellent three course meal under tough deadlines for a demanding audience.  This is definitely a case of the proof being in the pudding!”

A number of Primary Schools in the Dawlish Learning Partnership are looking for a suitably qualified contractor to provide School Meals services from the 2nd April 2012.

The DLP schools involved are Cockwood Primary School, Exminster Primary School, Kenn Primary School, Starcross Primary School, Gatehouse Primary School and Westcliff Primary School.

Full details are posted at Tenet Education Services.

You may need to register to view the details.

Please note the closing date for Expression of Interest is 2nd December 2011 at 12 noon.

On Wednesday 9th November, four Year 10 pupils from Dawlish Community College were invited to attend a Gifted & Talented Maths Day at Exeter University.  The day was run by the Further Maths Support Programme and Plymouth University, with the aim of encouraging pupils to study maths at A Level and beyond.

The students Jacob Adams, Ellis Armstrong, Beth Perriton-Branch and Amy Yarde were introduced to topics from both the ‘Pure Maths’ and ‘Mechanics’ strands of the A Level syllabus.  All four quickly grasped the concepts related to ‘Matrices and Transformations’ and ‘Projectiles’ coping admirably when tackling questions.

The afternoon session focused on using maths to explain how certain ‘magical tricks’ work.  Again, the students performed well, impressing the course organiser with how they solved the hardest of these problem solving tasks.

Well done to all four students, a great success!

Dawlish Community College students from tutor group 10DCS and their form tutor Mr Clemens, spent 3 hours on Thursday night baking over 400 fairy cakes.  The students were creative in their designs aiming to sell all of the cakes for the Children in Need appeal on Friday 18th November.

The student’s sold the cakes at morning break and have made over £130.00 which will be added to the College total.  The students also supported a non-uniform day.

Mr Clemens would like to thank the students for giving up their time and thank the parents for contributing ingredients.

]]> http://www.mydlp.org.uk/cake-sale-for-pudsey-and-children-in-need/feed/ 0 http://www.mydlp.org.uk/making-sense-of-key-stage-4/ http://www.mydlp.org.uk/making-sense-of-key-stage-4/#comments Thu, 17 Nov 2011 13:17:53 +0000 David http://www.mydlp.org.uk/?p=7005 Over 90 parents of year 10 and 11 children together with students, recently attended a special parents evening at Dawlish Community College entitled ” Making Sense of Key Stage 4″. The evening was introduced by the Principal Mr Davis and was followed by an extensive presentation by Mr Simon, Senior...
Read the rest of this article »]]>

Over 90 parents of year 10 and 11 children together with students, recently attended a special parents evening at Dawlish Community College entitled ” Making Sense of Key Stage 4″.

The evening was introduced by the Principal Mr Davis and was followed by an extensive presentation by Mr Simon, Senior Assistant Principal for Key Stage 4. The topics covered included coursework, assessment, types of courses being followed by the students and a closer look at the core subjects of English, Maths and Science.

At the end of the evening parents received a free copy of the booklet “GCSEs – What a can a parent do? 101 tips to ensure success.

Parents also had time to answer any further questions with senior staff.

For parents and carers who could not attend the evening the presentation is shown below and will be available in the year 10 and 11 pages on the Dawlish Community College website.

Over the past 10 weeks Year 7 Students at Dawlish Community College have been learning basic hand skills in a ‘Key Skills’ module in Resistant Materials as part of the Design and Technology subject.

Students have designed by hand the components for a pen, then using computers designed the graphics and manufactured the nib holders for the pen on a CNC lathe. They have used traditional woodworking skills to manufacture a wooden pencil box to contain the pen once manufactured. The pencil box has a laser etched ruler on the sliding top and the students also get given a free pencil.

Mr Dave Clemens, their class teacher, believes there is no excuse for not having a pen, pencil or ruler for their studies!

Children from each of the Dawlish Learning Partnership Primary and Special Schools  experienced the Samba rhythm when they joined together to take part in two Samba workshops.

The drumming workshops which were led by Miss Faye Hill, a teacher at Ratcliffe School, are part of the DLP learning initiatives programme which gives children the opportunity to work together with their peers from other schools.  Both the workshops were also attended by a member of staff from each school as part of the DLP Continuing Professional Development.

Students from Westcliff, Gatehouse, Cockwood, Ratcliffe and Oaklands Park Schools joined together at Dawlish Community College on Tuesday afternoon to create a Samba band producing some fantastic rhythms.  The workshop culminated in an outside performance watched by Dawlish Community College students and staff.

The second workshop took place on Wednesday morning at Kenn Primary School where pupils from Kenn, Kenton, Exminster and Starcross Schools joined together to create a second band again producing some amazing Samba drumming!  This group finished with a performance to the whole of Kenn School.

Miss Hill who led the workshop said,

“It was so lovely to see students from different schools performing and being musicians together as well as give the groups an opportunity to perform to the rest of the school, a routine that they picked up in 2 hours.  I was amazed at the high levels of concentration and effort each student put in.  I hope that these performances inspired and motivated audience members to give it a try, as well as open their mind and ears to a style of music they may have never heard before.  I’m really excited about the potential opportunities that we can offer students from all our schools within the Partnership and I cannot wait to do it again!”

Congratulations to all the children who took part in the workshops and produced some fantastic rhythms in a very short space of time!

We hope that the children will be able to continue to develop their drumming skills as we plan to set up a DLP Samba band, which will then perform at our sports and performing arts Olympic themed event planned for the Summer Term.

A number of  Schools in the Dawlish Learning Partnership and Newton Abbot Learning Community are looking for a suitably qualified cleaning contractor to provide cleaning services from the 2nd April 2012.

Full details are posted at PublicTenders.net which provides details of the latest public sector tender announcements.

You may need to register to view the details.

Next Wednesday 16th November sees a great range of after school INSET opportunities for all DLP Schools Staff and Governors.

Please bring this information to the attention of colleagues and ensure that we get the maximum benefit from them. For further information just click on the blue ‘CPD’ box at the top of this page, and choose your workshop.

We are delighted to be able to invite parents to join our new Incredible Years Parenting Programme.

This course will take place in the new year in two venues, one in Dawlish and the other in Exminster.

They are being provided by our Parent Support Adviser Penny West together with our previous Parent Support Adviser Liz Edwards.

Places on these workshops will be limited, but if you think you might be interested please contact Penny and she will be very happy to answer your questions.