Preparing for University

Bridging the gap between school and University is the first hurdle new University students have to face but prospective History undergraduates Jessica Cooke and Vita Unwin had the opportunity to attend a recent course at Cambridge University, entitled: 'Bridging the Gap'.  Here, Vita shares her thoughts on the day:

Mr Reffell, Mrs Dennison, Jessica Cooke and I battled through heavy traffic last Wednesday to make it to Cambridge University for a History day on ‘Bridging the Gap’. The aim of the day was to teach both students and staff how best to prepare for the leap from studying History at school to working for a History degree at University. The day proved invaluable. The transition between Sixth Form and University is great for most subjects, but it was useful to find out exactly what was required of a University Historian. There was the opportunity to visit Cambridge Library at mid-day and Jess and I were interested to see a large display of 20th Century books on Russian architecture and design collected by Catherine Cooke. After a delicious lunch in one of the colleges, we were divided into small groups and participated in a seminar identical to those at University on Sutton Hoo. In the afternoon, there was a challenging, interview-style presentation delivered by Dr Peter Claus, Senior Research fellow in History at Pembroke College Oxford. We were forced to think outside the box and to respond to sources and images we were not familiar with, trying to make a coherent interpretation on the spot.  It was a very valuable day and a wonderful experience.                                    - Vita Unwin U6

Aspiring Medic Has Paper Published

Aspiring Upper 6 medic, Millie Adams-Davies, has recently published her first paper.  “Medlink invited me to submit a paper on a gedanken experiment (thought experiment) about stem cells. I decided to look into Osteoarthritis because last year I went to the RJAH Hospital research centre in Gobowen where they focus on research into osteoarthritis using stem cells and other cartilage cells. I enjoyed the visit and thought it was so interesting. I got back in touch with them and they were really helpful and sent me some research papers I could read.” Click the link to read Millie’s paper.

http://medlink-uk.net/images/documents/pathprojectsstemcells2012/AdamsDaviesA.pdf

Biologists Focus on DNA

Sixth Form biologists attended a DNA conference last week at Glyndwr University. We listened to talks by professors and doctors from across the UK covering everything from how DNA was discovered to current DNA research. Our aspiring medics were really interested in the talk that outlined the new potential treatments that could avoid babies having mitochondrial disease passed onto them by their mothers. There was a fascinating talk on how the native plants of Wales are being DNA barcoded to help with records and another on how the knowledge of genes is used to help conserve the most endangered animals in the world.  -  Georgina Muir (U6)

Bronwen Society: The Role of the Military in the Modern World

Being part of the generation that has been brought up with daily news of the war in Afghanistan (and admittedly not understanding what was happening most of the time), I was particularly interested in how the UK got involved in the war and what the future holds. Mr Lang, erstwhile Lieutenant-Colonel and now serving as a teacher in the Maths department, served in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Kosovo, the US, Iraq and Afghanistan. He gave us a fascinating insight into what the UK and American armies have been doing in Afghanistan as well as his opinion on how the country will fare in the future. He also talked about the vast history of invasions of Afghanistan and how its geography has allowed it to become the ‘hide and seek capital of the world’. To a packed audience, Mr Lang answered our challenging questions on the future of the war on terror and inspired us to delve further into the history and geography of this troubled yet remarkable country.                                           – Millie Adams-Davies (U6)

Spoken English

Business and Professional Women's Public Speaking Competition

Moreton Hall students walked away from the Business and Professional Women's Public Speaking Competition this week as the winning team and with two prestigious awards, confirming their outstanding abilities in the field. The team will now compete at the North West Finals in February. Photographed are the winning team of Shelby Moyer, Roisin Ni Culchain (also awarded 'Best Chairman') and Amelia Adams-Davies (who also won 'Best Vote of Thanks').

The Rotary Club ‘Youth Speaks Competition’ also saw Moreton triumph as the team of Alice Williams, Martha Stewart, Isabella Owens won the Intermediate Competition this week at the Rotary Club of Oswestry. Three Moreton teams took part. The winners’ outstanding debate on the topic of ‘Dyslexic, not stupid' means they now go through to the Area Finals against schools from Wales, Cheshire, Shropshire and the Wirral.

SPORT

Northern England Lacrosse Champions

Moreton Hall is officially the top school for Lacrosse in England’s North following an outstanding performance by all three teams at Saturday’s North Schools’ Lacrosse Tournament.

Seven schools from the North of England battled it out at the tournament at Queen Margaret’s School, York. Moreton beat strong teams from Harrogate Ladies’ College, Queen Margaret’s - York, Casterton, Queens - Chester, Bolton and Uppingham resulting in Moreton Hall’s 1st and 2nd teams both being crowned the winners of their respective tournaments. “England is divided into just 3 areas for lacrosse: North, South West and South East. This result means Moreton Hall has England’s strongest school teams north of Birmingham,” comments Head of Sport, Kate Groves. “Our first and second teams scored an incredible 68 goals between them and had just 8 scored against them. The third team were also looking very strong.”  

Pictured right: Moreton's 1st Team: Alex Meehan, Charlotte Gittins, Isabella Mason, Rose Booth, Niamh Frain, Immy Hill, Tira Brown, Kate Pumphrey, Alice Mitchell, Ella Edwards, Molly Edwards, Alice Smith, Sophie Scott, Sarah-Grace Spencer

Eight Moreton Girls Selected for North of England Lacrosse Squads

Eight outstanding Moreton Hall Lacrosse players have been selected for the Regional ‘North’ A and B squads. With only 40 players chosen from the whole of the North region (north of Birmingham) places in the squads are fiercely contested. “For us to get eight players into the squads is a fantastic achievement and confirms why Moreton has been chosen as the English Lacrosse Association’s Regional Centre for Lacrosse, ” comments Head of Sport, Kate Groves. The girls are: Kate Pumphrey, Alice Smith, Charlotte Gittins, Olivia Wade-Smith, Rose Booth, Sarah-Grace Spencer, Immy Hill (not pictured is Ellie Jones).

Moreton First

Emma Wins National Art Competition

The Good Schools Guide - in association with The Renaissance of the Portrait Foundation - launched a national competition to mark the Queen’s Jubilee, inviting pupils to produce a portrait of The Queen in any media. Four eminent judges including Brian Sewell - Art Critic and Sir Timothy Clifford, former Director of the National Galleries of Scotland, gave 'critical acclaim' to three Moreton First pupils: Dylan Santos, Year 3, Emma Barnes, Year 2, Amelia Farmer, Year 4. Emma was then chosen as the winner in her category. She receives £100 and a certificate signed by Lord Lucas of Crudwell & Dingwell. Her painting may soon be printed on London posters; some winners' portraits have already been displayed in The Houses of Parliament.