PE Kit
It's pleasing to see so many of our older pupils making the switch to the new PE kit. The new shirts and sports college logo give the kit a smart look. I would like to congratulate our younger pupils who have responded very well to our new system of bringing and changing into their kit when they are injured. This new policy is helping those injured pupils feel more part of the lesson and helps them play a different role. We have had referees, umpires, line officials, judges, helpers with equipment and advisors.
I must say this small change in policy has improved lessons. Keep it up everyone!
Staffing News - PE Students
The PE Department have had 2 student teachers in school this term and
we are shortly to say goodbye for a time. I would like to take this
opportunity to thank Miss Bain and Mr Abraham for their hard work and
their contributions to after school sport. It is not a permanent goodbye;
we are expecting them back for a month in the summer term to complete
some research relating to assessment.
Extra Curricular Sport
You will have noticed by now that there is always a lot going on at
Priesthorpe in extra-curricular sport. The pupils are informed of seasonal
changes to what is available for them.
The notice board by the Gym has lots of team and club information. We
like to run clubs that are successful and have some real success stories
this year, especially Dance. Other areas have received big interest
also. If you are keen on a sport and know that others are also keen
then let the PE staff know and we will try to provide opportunities
if possible.
Rugby League
There are currently competitive teams in Years 7, 8 and 9. It is pleasing
to report that the Year 7 and 8 teams are in the last 8 for the Leeds
schools Rugby League Cup. Well done & keep going! Thank you to Mr
Bowker and Mr Ryder for their time spent training the boys.
Year 9 Soccer
The first half of the season has had its highs and lows. We have both
won and lost games and unfortunately suffered from a lack of consistency
with player absence and illness. We have managed to gain a place in
division three out of seven for the next half of the season, which restarts
in February. Our league includes Bruntcliffe, Boston Spa, Horsforth
and Woodkirk. We look forward to the second half of the season and will
be making efforts to improve both fitness and consistency.
The team has currently got two players involved in Leeds teams; Tom
McClure of Leeds City Boys and Luke Craven at Leeds Utd. Congratulations
to Tom Carlisle who was scouted by Leeds City Boys and may well be having
trials this month. Well done!
Year 7 and 8 Girls Football
The girls continue to train on Monday lunchtimes. They have now had
2 fixtures v Grangefield and Horsforth. Unfortunately they lost both
games but their performances in both games improved as the fixture progressed.
The girls will compete next year on Thursday 11th December against Crawshaw.
Dance Festival
On Wednesday 26th November Priesthorpe hosted its first ever Evening
of Dance. Over eighty girls took part from Year 7 to Year 11. The event
took place in the school hall and was a sell-out with over 220 tickets
being sold for the evening. The performances (24 in total) were all
very different in style and genre and reflected the current interests
and trends of the girls. Every single one of the dances performed on
the evening was fantastic and this was represented through the big smiles
on the girls' faces when they heard the response from the audience.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the parents who attended
the evening and of course a really big thank you to all the girls who
took part. Keep your eyes open for future dance and gymnastic events
taking place.
On Wednesday 26th November we organised a 'Dancethon' in the Sports
Hall for pupils from Priesthorpe, Grangefield and Crawshaw. Over two
hundred pupils took part and money was raised for Children in Need.
Lisa from the Workhouse in Farsley led the dance session and we hope
to see a lot more of her in school in the near future.
Young Sports Reporters
On Friday 28th November seven of our Year 7 pupils took part in a Young
Reporters training day. The day was run by staff from Yorkshire Post
newspapers. The pupils learned how to write sports reports so that they
can submit articles about sporting activities and achievements at Priesthorpe
to the newspaper on a regular basis. Reports which are submitted can
then be read in the Yorkshire Post 'Your Sport' supplement and also
found on their website.
The highlight of the day was an opportunity to interview Robbie Paul
from the Bradford Bulls. Robbie answered a barrage of questions, signed
autographs and had his photograph taken during his visit. The Young
Reporters day created an excellent link between the English Department
and Sports College work.
If you want to read articles that have already been submitted by Priesthorpe
pupils, log on to the Yorkshire
School Sport website and see for yourself what has been going on.
Born to Win
The PE department hosted a very successful 'Born to Win' day. The format
of the day was inspired by the BBC TV programme of the same name. Before
break, Year 7 pupils took part in a number of Physical Ability tests
and were encouraged by our Sporting Champion Tracey Neville.
Tracey, who is the most capped English Netball player, then spoke for
an hour to GCSE and A level pupils about her life. She highlighted her
training programme, her greatest achievements, her dedication to sport
and of course spoke about her two famous brothers. (We didn't ask her
about David Beckham!!!)
The day was thoroughly enjoyable and as a result of our experiences
we will be speaking at the National Sports Colleges Conference at Telford
in March 2004.
Year 9 and 10 Netball
The Year 9 and 10 netball teams have been valiant in their first matches
of the season. Strong opposition has meant that not all games have been
won, however enthusiasm and laughter has been in abundance! Keep going
girls we'll get there in the end!
Well done to the 6th form pupils who have successfully completed their First Aid course which has been running for the past 7 weeks. And well done also to those pupils who have got involved with one of the new sixth form games/qualification courses now run at Priesthorpe. They include Yoga, Aerobics and the Pool Lifeguard qualification.
