December 2023 Edition 17 A Giant Success! Our first show (Ella) consisted of a cast and crew made up of 17 students. Fast forward to today, and there are over 60 students involved in all aspects of the show, from performers to running the technical aspects of the show. This is a true testament to the dedication and hard work of the entire cast This year, we say a fond farewell to a number of talented students who have been a part of the ‘Pembroke Tale’ for a number of years. I’m sure you will agree that their commitment and dedication has been second to none, and we wish them the very best of luck when their time at Pembroke comes to end. We hope that even more students have been inspired by what they have seen and take the leap to sign up next year! Keep your eyes peeled in early 2024 for an announcement of our next adventure! December saw the culmination of months of hard work as the Pembroke Panto cast shared the story of ‘Jack… A Pembroke Tale’. The story follows a young farm girl who is forced to sacrifice her friendship and overcome terrifying challenges in order to save the family farm. Through her journey, Jack encounters many surprises, which you wouldn’t believe if you hadn’t seen it for yourself. The idea of Jack was born just days after last year’s show, and it has been non-stop since. Auditions began in May with so many talented individuals choosing to return to the Pembroke stage. Fast forward to September, and we were overwhelmed with the passion, courage and enthusiasm shown by the new intake of Year 7 students. So much so that a few have secured principal roles. These students are definitely ones to watch over the next few years. As the cast took their final bows, we have to stand back and reflect on the incredible journey we have been on in just three short years.
Wisely Supporting Our Primary Schools Another academic year begins, and we continue to promote Pembroke through liaising with our local primary schools. I continue to teach art each week at Cherry Primary and am thrilled to have been part of such a positive Ofsted inspection. It’s a ‘Good’ school with wonderful students, who have been very busy with their art work. Year 4 have studied an ‘Animals’ topic which involved looking at a range of artists resulting in some great collage and felt making work. Year 2 have been looking at Portraits with drawing, painting and some rather funky clay faces. They all now know how portraits originated in the art world and can recognise the effects the camera had on artwork. Year 6 from Reepham visited for a few afternoons to make card Lancaster Bomber models to accompany their WW2 topic. This involved a lot of tricky measuring and cutting for accurate assemblage. Every student left with a complete plane after 3 sessions and successfully took the fleet back to their school for display. I have visited Fiskerton too this term. Badgers (Yr5 & 6) class have been looking at the art of Ancient Greece which is mainly sculpture, so we decided to sculpt a clay bust over scrunched up paper on a teaspoon! The range of characters and expressions modelled in the end were just brilliant. Next door the Squirrels (Yr 3 & 4) were studying the Romans, so I introduced them to a range of Mosaic artists. We began with traditional ancient Roman work and ended with contemporary artists who create mosicas in potholes and some out of toast. We explored how this technique was applied effectively and began work on a large mosaic of the schools new logo. This was made from tiles, glass nuggets and a lot of patience and is going to replace the old logo in their school hall.
Curious Trips And Visits On Wednesday 18th October, 106 Year 8 and 20 Year 10 students set out on an early-morning journey to Hampton Court Palace. The trip, partially funded by the Historic Royal Palaces Access Fund, gave students the opportunity to learn more about the Tudors in Henry VIIIs favourite palace. Students took part in a workshop with Palace staff, discovering more about Tudor trade and exploration with the Americas and the Islamic world through art work and artefacts. Students then spent time exploring Henry’s Great Hall, spotting the ‘Eavesdroppers’ carved into the wooden beams of the ceiling and investigating the tapestries that decorated the walls. They also looked at the (haunted?) processional route passing famous Holbein paintings and gazing in awe at the stunning surroundings of Henry’s private chapel before heading into the gardens. A very long journey home made for a tiring day, but one that was full of new experiences and a chance to experience the Tudor story in the seat of its power. On Monday 6th November, we were delighted to be selected as one of the schools in our local area to host the ‘London Festival Opera’. Four professional Opera stars who regularly perform in venues across the globe, having performed in the houses of parliament the previous day, visited and wowed our students with a wonderful performance of a range of Opera classics. We learned about the different types of Opera performers, the importance of practise and warmups, enjoyed some group activities, and immersed ourselves in a day of operatic culture. It was truly impressive and inspirational to watch and enjoy. Students in Year 7 and those taking GCSEs in music were enthralled. One student asked ‘Can we do that again? Those singers were unbelievable’. A member of staff said, ‘I thought that was a recording, not a live performance. They were that talented.’ In the afternoon, we hosted Year 5 and 6 pupils from Fiskerton, Reepham and Cherry Willingham primary schools who were equally exhilarated and looked on in awe and wonder. The opera stars moved among the audience and were truly masters of entertainment. We would like to extend out thanks to Lincolnshire Music Service for their involvement in this amazing opportunity and we hope to enjoy many more opportunities to further enhance our cultural capital in the future. On the 9th November, a group of Year 10 Business and Year 10/11 food students had a chocolatey adventure at Cadbury World, Birmingham. After an early start, we arrived in time for a talk to find out more about Cadbury and their history. Did you know that they cater to different tastes around the world and produce a chilli chocolate bar to the market in India? Apparently, Australians also go wild for white chocolate Freddos! Who knew? By being owned by Mondelez, Cadbury is also able to produce some product collaborations such as Diary Milk Philadelphia, Oreo Dairy Milk and Dairy Milk Ritz! Have you tried any? After finding out about their interesting past, we had a wander around the museum of old memorabilia and some of us (mainly the staff) recognised many of the cups, toys and tins from time gone by. On entering the Cadbury factory, we were greeted with free chocolate bars. Most of which didn’t make it into the factory as they had been demolished within minutes. Students had the opportunity to learn more about the history, see the factory in action and learn about the process. They were also able to have a go at tempering chocolate, see chocolate being made, a ride through coco bean world. We finished the day with a 4D experience on the Crunchie rollercoaster with iconic Cadbury characters such as the Cadbury Bunny. An insightful, chocolatey day!
Careers Wisdom Generosity Shown Pembroke always enjoy supporting a range of charities. We begin with our annual wellbeing walk on 29th September, which ends in a fabulous MacMillan Coffee Morning back at school. So many students donated cakes and after a bit of a muddy stroll around the nearby villages, we were all ready for a sweet treat. We raised over £550. In memory of Mrs Pickersgill & the time she dyed her hair pink, we supported Breast Cancer Care with ‘Wear it Pink’ day on 20th October. Staff and students were invited to wear something pink with their uniform. Staff went all out and we even had pink custard for pudding. We raised over £150 which was brilliant. Children in Need was next on 17th November and we had a SPOTacular day. There was a house quiz, students drawing spotty things on spots to make a Pudsey face and again we wore yellow or spotty items of clothing. Almost £100 was donated. #generosity! Even though it's only the first term of the academic year, there has been lots going on in the world of Careers. We launched our Work Inspiration Trips with Year 9 and students with an interest in early years or education spent the day working in a classroom at Cherry Primary School. In November, we took a group of Year 10 and 11s to the NHS Health and Care event where they got to speak to employers from a wide range of different careers in or working with the NHS. They also participated in workshops for medicine, nursing or adult social care. Year 8 have had two opportunities so far this year (with many more to come). In September, we took a small group of boys with an interest in construction to Lincolnshire Showground where they got to experience several careers in the construction industry. Another group took part in the Lincoln College experience day where they got to sample what it would be like to take a course at college. There was something for everyone including childcare, police, hairdressing, art, IT and many more. With Year 11, the big focus is on where they intend to go after Year 11, so we are providing several trips for those who missed or were unable to attend open days. Year 11 have had a busy term with their focus on life after Pembroke. Every Thursday morning, they have had an assembly by a different post-16 providers from Lincoln College to UTC. Career guidance interviews continue to ensure everyone has had the opportunity to meet with a Career Advisor for an in depth discussion about their thoughts and ideas behind what their career path might look like. Miss Romain has been busy having lots of conversations with the students to support them to make decisions, applications and prepare for interviews. Life lessons have been focusing on employability and by the end of the module, Year 11 will all have CVs for Mock Interview Day on the 31st January.
Passion For Clubs & Competitions With almost 600 students filling Pembroke this year, the desire for clubs and enrichment is thriving. Our staff enjoy running weekly clubs and opportunities for students to try new things. As well as all the sporting clubs, we provide World Cooking, Chess, Lego, Crafts and Dance. We also work hard to maintain a variety of competitions to keep our House system in the forefront of every students mind. As well as their daily stamps and pledge awards earning them house points, students can earn more from entering competitions. We had ‘Bake Off’ this year with some amazing entries, including some students who have improved their entries even more from last year. This year’s winner was Iris Dinnie with her meringue sponge cake, carved to look like a pumpkin, then coated in a lemon butter cream, fondant and then painted to look more realistic! We did the Inktober Competition again for those who love to draw. A daily ink drawing in response to a given word is great fun. Well done Riley, Isla, Olivia and Abbie for winning this one! We also held Spooky Writing competitions, make a Christmas tree decoration and house badminton matches. The House totals are very close!
We have so much sport to try and remember to write about this term. We kicked off the fixtures this year on 19th September, with the Year 9 football team playing in their first game of their competitive league season away at Branston Community Academy. Facing the Lincoln and Gainsborough overall league winners of last year in their first game was always going to be a tricky one. Final score: Branston 6 vs 1 Pembroke This Pembroke team may have a different look to it this year and will see some Year 8s stepping up to play in the place of others. Usually our striker, Oliver Neal played in his club positon and put in an excellent performance in defence for us. The Phillipson brothers also showed their talents in periods of the game, and gave lots of positive leadership to the team from these boys. A physical presence, Carlton played his Pembroke debut and slotted into the midfield as if he’d been in the side for years, picking the ball up in key areas and driving forwards to create chances. Despite a hard result to take, these players gained some good experience playing together, some of them for the first time too. On the same day, the U16 girls started their National Cup campaign at home to Banovallum school from Horncastle. The girls started quickly with Katie smashing home a great distance strike into the top corner within the first 5 minutes. We put on the pressure and managed to feed Katie through for a second 10 minutes later. There was lots of excitement throughout the game with the score finishing Pembroke 5-2 Banovallum We now advanced to round two against Lincoln Minster. On Wednesday 20th, the Year 7 and 8 girls travelled to St Georges Academy, Ruskington for a friendly match before their cup competitions start. Despite the wet weather, the girls were outstanding having played together for the first time. Maisie P got us off to a great start putting us 1 -0 up at half time. Amber G slotted home early on to make it 2-0 before we were then awarded a penalty. What a penalty from Izzy M! Final score Pembroke 5-1 St Georges. On Tuesday 26th, the Year 9 boys were away at the Banovallum School in the Small School’s Cup. The result ended 5-2 to the hosts. A cagey first half, our boys were 1-0 at half time and just struggled to find any cohesion in the second half. Goals scored: Asher Phillipson (Pen) and Daniel Hopkinson. On Wednesday 27th, the Year 7 boys played their first match in a Pembroke shirt against Lincoln Castle Academy. A James Warnock rocket to the roof of the netting from range in the second half, and some wonderful strikes by Jack Wilkinson led to a final score of Pembroke 7 vs 0 LCA . On the day after, the Year 7&8 girls football team hosted a very strong Sir John Nelthorpe school in the small schools National Cup. The opposition were very organised and were able to link up with some great passages of play. It was the opposition who scored first, but by half time it was 1-1. The second half saw the Pembroke girls really push on and pile on the pressure. The girls kept pushing and our defenders were the first to any ball they played forward. When the final whistle went, it was Pembroke 3-2 John Nelthorpe. On 19th October, the Year 9 football team played their second league game of the season last night at The Gainsborough Academy, and won 4-2! With a number of players out of the squad for various reasons, the team really had to pull together, but when captained by our solid centre back Oliver Neal, Pembroke stood a real chance at bringing home something to cheer about. We were 1-0 after a few minutes when a pass through the lines from Carlton in the midfield found an on running Melody Pease, who struck the ball low into the bottom right. First game, first goal for Melody in the team! Ollie Neal and Tom Pett in particular showed some great resilience to close the ball down and get stuck in, clearing the ball in dangerous areas. With another ball from Carlton in the midfield found her again, Melody Pease making an identical run to the first, took a touch with her left foot and struck it hard into the roof of the net. Third goal was from Nathan Smith in the box to tap home to make it 3-2. 3 points on the board, ready to go again after half term! On 15th November, so very courageous Year 7 girls went to the Lincoln Rugby Festival at Nettleham. It was an incredibly cold day with a biting wind, but the girls had a great time. In the morning, they learned how to play the game and by the afternoon, they had won 2 games and drawn one. They were so thrilled and showed true determination in their new skills, that some were asked to go and train again that weekend. Wow! That same night saw the Year 8 boys football team hosting the Lincoln Castle Academy. It was 0-0 for the majority of the game, Pembroke had large spells of possession and created half chances on goal mainly from outside the area not leading to much. Our boys managed to score the 1 goal that would be needed to win the match, with a late Jayden Ford shot from close range! On 17th November, we saw a very impressive display of football from the Year 7/8 girls. The team headed over to Doncaster to play against XP School. The pitch was a lot smaller then we were used to playing on, but the girls’ determination was far from small. Courageous Sport News
Courageous Sport News Straight away, they were winning the ball off the opposition within 5 seconds and stringing together passes and creating attempts at goal. Maisie P opened the scoring and then from that point on, the girls were deadly and scoring from all sorts of positions. Pembroke went on to win 11-0 to progress through to the last 32 teams. We have also had House Badminton for all year groups taking place during lunch times over the course of one week. A tricky competition to slot into 30 minutes, but we have some serious Badminton players at Pembroke and the competition was on! Overall, the results were close in terms of points, but a range of houses and year groups won their individual matches. We have also seen our first Netball match win. The Year 8 girls played the Branston B team on 14th November and won 5.1. The girls were delighted and can’t wait to play again now they have some confidence! On 20th November, nine Year 8 girls headed over to Brigg to take part in an indoor cricket competition. None of the girls had played cricket before and were very nervous going into this. The girls were chucked into the first game and following some very impressive bowling and superb catches, the girls managed to win this one 67-54. Now full of confidence the girls continued to play some great cricket, adding in some impressive shots to their game. Unfortunately, one team messed up their bowling completely. This allowed the opposition to score 127, however 27 runs came off of a batter’s bat. The rest were no balls and over throws. The opposition beat them on runs scored by 26 runs. A fab effort for our beginners! There was a second game for the Year 11 boys team on 21st November against Lincoln Christs Hospital School this term. The boys agreed at the start of the year that they didn’t want league pressure; they just wanted a game here and there. Having lost 3.2 last time the teams met, our boys were well up for a rematch. Lady luck was smiling on them as they won 2.0 with Paul scoring both goals in the second half. Monday 27th and Tuesday 28th saw both the U15 and U13 girls team take part in their next games in the National Cup. Our U13s were beaten by a very talented team from Leeds. They had an exceptional goal keeper who really made the difference. The U15s however beat their competition from Nottingham 9:2 with some really fantastic football on show. Both matches were cold and damp, but we are so proud of our girls teams and how they astound us with courage and passion in every game. On Wednesday 29th November, our Year 8 boys took part in a tournament and finished in the top two, which means they go through to the next round. Fantastic work from those, too. On Friday 1st December, 46 Pembroke students from Year 7-11 headed out for the district cross country qualifiers. The morning brought with it a thick layer of frost and freezing fog, difficult conditions for all runners. As we went through the day, working our way through the year group races, the Pembroke students were putting in some great performances. By the end of the day, we had 8 pupils finish in the top 14 and gaining automatic qualification to the county championships. Three more students are in the reserve spaces for their age groups. A fantastic effort by all of our runners with 100 pupils in ever year group race. A special mention to Asher and Finian who finished in first and second respectively. PE Department OVERALL STANDINGS 1st De La Haye 170 2nd De Ferrers 160 3rd De Valance 150 4th De Clare 120
Generous To Share Our Favourite Books? Our students & staff have some recommended reads for you... ‘Nineteen Steps’ by Millie Bobby Brown After hearing Millie talk about this on ‘The One Show’, and being a big Enola Holmes fan, I just had to read this book. It’s fiction but it encompasses a few tales from Millie’s grandmother which she has brought to life in the story. Nellie is the eldest of three children growing up in London during WW2. It’s her story of young love during the war and how a tragedy one night causes her world to come crashing down around her. I really enjoyed meeting the characters and the pure excitement of imagining I was a young girl on a first date with a handsome American soldier. If you enjoy history and fiction, then this book is for you. Miss Neal ‘Swan Song’ by Gill Lewis Since Dylan started school, everything has become too much to handle. He has been expelled and is forced to move to the tiny village in Wales where his grandad lives. But when Grandad invites Dylan out on his boat to watch the Whooper swans return to their winter feeding ground, things begin to change. This is a really enjoyable book: it’s wholesome, relatable and easy to read. As the story goes on, the plot gets more intriguing. I would recommend this book. It got me into reading and it’s just amazing! Elsie 7.2 ‘A Secret of Birds & Bone’ by Kiran Millwood-Hargrave In an Italian city full of a deadly plague, Sofia's mother carves beautiful mementoes from the bones of loved ones. But one day, she doesn't come home. Sofia and her little brother are sent to the convent orphanage but soon escape, led by a new friend and their pet crow, Corvith. I enjoyed this book. I genuinely couldn’t put it down. I would defiantly recommend this book. If you are prepared for mysteries, betrayal and puzzles, you won’t be able to put it down either. M 7.3 For your chance to WIN a £20 Amazon gift card—send your answers to the following three questions on an email with your name and address to: Pembroke@prioryacademies.co.uk. All correct answers will go into a draw and the winner will be announced on our school facebook page on 5th January. 1. Year 4 at Cherry Primary were studying what topic? 2. Where is Cadbury World? 3. How much did we raise for MacMillan? 4. Who won our Bake Off Competition? 5. Which House won the House Badminton Competition? Don’t forget to follow our stories daily on social media. My name is Logan Elliot and I’m in Year 7 and my main passion is reading. The way a book allows you to dive into an imaginative world and actually create a new one around you is a wonderful experience. Different books tell different stories about different worlds, cultures and morals. A book contains everything to make the story come to life in your mind like a movie. I just love reading and I hope you are inspired to read some of the books recommended on this page. ‘The Boy at the Back of the Class’ by Onjali Q Rauf I enjoyed this book because it is about a boy who came to a school who is a refugee. He name is Ahmet and at first he seems quite mysterious and I think the rest of his class are a bit scared of him. It’s a great story about how at he is befriended and these new friends help him find his parents. Poppy 7.4 ‘I, Ada’ by Julia Gray Having seen that ‘I, Ada’ was one of the recommended readers in the Year 8/9 list, and given my new role teaching Computer Science, I just had to read it! Although a work of fiction, the author carefully creates a story around what she calls the ‘tumultuous teenage years of Ada Lovelace, the world’s first computer programmer’. The story is incredibly accurate, historically, based on painstakingly thorough research by Julia Gray, the author. At the same time, the story does not get overly bogged down in technical detail which would put many potential readers off such subject matter. I enjoyed the book so much that I recommended it as a book choice for a group that I belong to. I am pleased to say that ‘I, Ada’ was equally well received by everybody who attended the group too. Be curious – read I, Ada! Mr Brewer
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