19 June 2015

This year, Bolton School Sixth Formers have completed over 10,000 hours of volunteering in the local community. The School recently held its annual awards ceremony celebrating the pupils' inspiring commitment and dedication. Sixth Form students received vInspired certificates for their efforts; the charity also commended the School for being the highest achieving establishment in the country this year.

Yesterday the Junior Girls welcomed E. B. Colin - the author of Pyrate's Boy - to Hesketh House for a day of swashbuckling storytelling. The girls were really excited to meet a real author, particularly those girls who had read the book, which is shortlisted for this year's Bolton Children's Fiction Award and was also the basis of a recent writing competition in the Junior Girls' School. Year 5 and 6 pupils listened to the author reading two exciting passages from her book and also took part in collaborative creative writing sessions to make up a pirate story of their own.

During the recent good weather, children at Bolton School Nursery tried their hand at bread-making over an open campfire during Forest School. These weekly sessions allow children in the Nursery Class for 3 and 4 Year Olds and the Butterfly Room (3 to 4 years) to learn in a natural environment and offer the opportunity to try new activities.

A gallery of photos from Forest School sessions is available here.

Four girls in Year 8 recently took part in the Salters' Festival of Chemistry at the University of Manchester. The girls were selected for their enthusiasm for the subject, and were able to take part in competitive, practical Chemistry activities on the day.

Year 6 pupils at the Junior Girls' School put on their annual Shakespeare production yesterday evening. In front of a packed audience in the Girls' Division Theatre, the young actors took to the stage to retell Romeo and Juliet in their own words, giving the classic tale a modern twist. The girls studied the play to get to grips with the plot and themes before reworking the well-known story to make it their own. They did an amazing job and gave an enthusiastic performance on the night.

The Joint Junior Orchestra also put on a show this week at Clarendon Primary School. They performed several pieces, and there were even opportunities for some pupils in the audience to get involved. The primary school children really enjoyed listening to the music, and this opportunity also gave the musicians some excellent experience for the future.

Old Boy Sir Ian McKellen has donated original artwork to the Boys' Division's "Pop Up" Creative Arts Exhibition. This will be part of a Secret Postcard Sale, encompassing work by artists in the Boys' Division and also by famous creative practitioners such as illustrator Chris Aaran! The theme of the overall exhibition, which includes work from pupils in the Art, Music, Drama and English departments, is "Conflict" and there will be some very thoughtful pieces on show. The exhibition will be held in the Market Place in Bolton on the 27th of June.

In news from alumni, Old Girl Natasha Lomas has been offered a place with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. She left the Girls' Division last summer to study music at the RNCM.