Key Notes: 11 March 2022

11th March 2022

Non-Uniform Day for DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal

Today was non-school uniform day in aid of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.  Some pupils and staff chose to wear blue and yellow, to represent the Ukrainian flag. More than a million people have fled their homes to escape the conflict in Ukraine so far.  I am delighted to be able to say that we raised almost £1,500 which is a fantastic sum – many thanks to all who donated. This money will go to support DEC charities and their local partners who are providing aid for families fleeing the conflict in the form of food, water, shelter and medical assistance.

LFD Tests

We currently have a very limited stock of LFD tests and schools are no longer receiving replacement deliveries. In line with LA guidance we will therefore only be using these where families are unable to source their own and there is a confirmation or suspicion of a positive test. Kits are still available from reception for staff and pupils, but as we will not be able to place additional orders for kits, please use them sparingly.

Eco School Award

Our pupil Eco-committee met on Wednesday to work on their Action Plan. To qualify for the Eco School Award, they need to choose three topics and come up with actions for each one. They have decided to focus on Biodiversity, Litter and Marine.  So far the action points include having a gardening club, making some anti-littering posters, investigating whether some items of litter are more common than others and having litter-picking sessions around the stream that runs near the playing fields. They may be looking for some volunteer staff or pupils to help with the gardening at some point! 

History on the iPads

Year 7 history pupils have been using their iPads in lessons to track the effectiveness of strategies used of the English and French in the Hundred Years War. The lesson included cross-curricular links as they worked on interactive graph paper to track each of the battles to determine who won the war.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary Safer Schools Newsletter

The March edition of Cambridgeshire Constabulary Safer Schools Newsletter is being sent out with this edition of Key Notes. The subjects covered are as follows:

• Quiz Scams: Don’t get hacked – Caution regarding revealing personal information through social media
• Child Car Seats and Belt Safety: The Law – A reminder to parents/Carers about UK law and Safety advice
• The World of Gaming: Parental Support – Resources to help parents/Carers navigate and de-mystify the world of gaming
• The Highway Code: Are you aware of the new rules? – Improved safety laws within the Highway Code

National Careers Week

On Tuesday, our Year 9 pupils gathered in the hall for a presentation by guest speaker, Sandy Mill from Cambridge University as part of our National Careers Week focus. Sandy worked with pupils to explore what they knew about going to university and to expose some of the myths. The year group responded very well and some of them were surprised by what Sandy had to tell them!  He said he was not there to persuade anyone to choose university, but he wanted to make sure they knew the facts so they could make informed decisions about their own futures. Sandy will be back to run workshops with this year group and we hope to take many of them on a University visit so they can get a flavour of university life.

Sandy returned on Wednesday to run a “stretch and challenge” session with some of our year 11 pupils entitled “Thinking like a University student”. The session started with some background on applying to university and the importance of post 16 subject choices, depending on whether they knew what subject area they wanted to study post 18 or wanted to keep their options open. A number of pupils found the opportunity to speak directly to someone involved with University admissions very useful. Pupils were also shown how university funding works and what proportion of a ‘cheesecake’, they would end up repaying for their student loan, based on prospective jobs after graduating from university. In the picture above it’s the smallest slice (the other being income tax and national insurance!)

Pupils then explored one of 6 questions, adapted from Cambridge University interview questions, as part of a group. The one rule was that “YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ANSWER THE QUESTION!”. The aim was to explore the question, consider why it is being asked, and how they would go about answering it. The questions included:

• If human beings no longer existed, what would become the most dominant species on the Earth?
• What is the best way to cross a 50ft chasm using only items from your local high street?
• If the punishment for parking on double yellow lines was death, and therefore no one did it, would this be a just and effective law?
• How much can we actually claim to know about what happened on any given day in history?

Mr Willder said, “Our year 11 pupils were fantastic – they demonstrated really strong intellectual skills, and embraced the ability to think freely. The buzz in the room was infectious.” We hope the session will inspire pupils to think more about university and the options open to them.

Physical Education

Our Year 9 boys had their second football match this term away to Bassingbourn on Wednesday after school. The Y9s ran out impressive 6-1 winners in what was their first 11v11 game, with a hat trick from captain Aeron and goals from Nearijah, James and Fletcher. This score gave MVC a double win against our neighbours, as our Year 10s also won their game against Bassingbourn 4-3. We will host Cambourne next week (16th) and as competition for team places is increasing, pupils should ensure that they attend the football enrichment sessions.

The Year 10 boys have their County Cup semifinal match on Tuesday next week against Impington VC on the astro pitch. Kick off around 2.20pm. Good luck boys.

On Monday our Year 10 Sports Leaders hosted a netball tournament for local primary schools. It was a fantastic evening, thanks to an amazing team of sports leaders for umpiring. Six teams took part in the primary school netball tournament, 2 from Thriplow and Foxton and 1 from Meldreth and Melbourn. Due to Covid restrictions, most of the teams had only managed a couple of training sessions, but there was still some excellent play on display. Congratulations to all the teams who took part, especially Meldreth who were the overall winners. 

GCSE Science Live

On Wednesday 9^th March, a group of Year 10 and 11 pupils went to GCSE Science Live, at Cambridge Corn Exchange, to hear presentations from some eminent scientists. MVC was very fortunate to be sitting in the front rows of the auditorium and had a fantastic view. The first scientist to speak was Dr Anna Ploszajski, a material scientist at Cambridge University. She spoke about her swim across the Chanel and how the structures of materials, such as sugars and polyesters, had helped her journey. A pupil from year 10 said, “I found the talk very interesting. It inspired me to think more about the materials that we use in everyday life.”

Professor Lord Martin Rees from Trinity College, Cambridge, talked on the topic of “To Mars and Beyond”. He asked the audience “Would you travel to Mars?” and, if we did, “What would that teach us?” Professor Lord Robert Winston then gave a fascinating presentation about his pioneering work with IVF. Another pupil from year 10 said, that she found it inspiring.

Dr Hannah Critchlow, a neuroscientist from Magdalene College, Cambridge, spoke about how we can influence our brains. Professor Andrea Sella, from University College London, outlined the unique properties of water and explained how this was related to climate change.

In between each of the presentations, a chief examiner came on to talk about different aspects of the GCSE science exams. He told the pupils about how they could gain extra marks by making sure they understand the command words in the question, and to how to set out their work correctly.

Rebecca, a year 11 pupil, said, “I found the whole day really inspiring. I enjoyed Dr Hannah Critchlow’s talk because finding out about how the brain worked was the most interesting.”

Miss Jo Boniface, assistant principal, said “It was a fantastic trip for the pupils, and I was really impressed by how well they represented the school.” Head of Science, Dr Wilson said, “The speakers were inspiring for the pupils to listen to, and I had enjoyed listening to them.”  He was particularly delighted when Professor Lord Robert Winston came and sat next to him at the end of his presentation, but sadly he missed the opportunity for a selfie!

Cook for Ukraine

Year 8 pupils engaged with a cooking activity for The Ukraine on Thursday. They made Sweet Sochniki and Deruny; cheese cookies and potato pancakes. Pupils worked in pairs to produce the dishes and many said they had a fun lesson. Pupils tried the dishes themselves and commented on how tasty they were - they had never had cottage cheese in a cookie before! The Sochniki were served with a drizzle of honey and the Deruny with sour cream.  Miss Giles donated on behalf of the pupils to “Cook For Ukraine” – all proceeds go to UNICEF UK’s Ukraine appeal, supporting children and families. Pupils also said they would like to do more cooking at home and donate too! Miss Giles said, “It was a lovely lesson to support.”

Art Year 11

Year 11 pupils are in the middle of producing compositions for their final art pieces. They have been working hard, developing their ideas for the final outcomes which will be exhibited later in the year at the annual art exhibition.  We will keep you updated on this forthcoming event.

Coming up next week

• Thursday 17^th March: GCSE drama pupils theatre trip to see the play ‘DNA’ By Dennis Kelly at Comberton VC.

• Friday 18^th March: Y11 leavers’ group photo, prefects group photo and individual Year 11 photos. Please ensure that your child is in full school uniform for the photographs.

Andy Smith

Today Mrs Coghlan and I represented the college at the funeral of Andy Smith. Andy was a school governor at both MVC (and Melbourn primary) for 30 years and was, for a long time, Chair of Governors. As a longtime Melbourn resident he brought a wealth of Scientific knowledge and experience to our Governing body and was latterly our link Governor for PE and for Health and Safety.

Andy was meticulous and thoughtful in his work and a staunch supporter of the college. He helped to shape education in the village and, as such, is owed a huge debt by a large number in our community. Our thoughts are with his wife Lorna, his sons Daniel and Matthew (who both attended MVC) and their families. Donations in his name can be made to the Arthur Rank Hospice via his page here.

Spring is in the Air

We leave you this week with some Signs of Spring starting to appear now that the weather is improving. We are fortunate to be able to enjoy the lovely grounds, which are being maintained with a little help from our Eco Group!

Have a good weekend,

Simon Holmes

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