16th March 2012

Primary school children from sixteen local schools visited Bolton School this week for the annual Primary Schools' Literacy Challenge. Year 5 pupils took part in three different sessions on the day including a reading challenge, a fun introduction to Shakespeare drama session and a third session of games and tasks based on 'The Odyssey'. The day concluded with the presentation of certificates and prizes. Every pupil received a certificate, bookmark and curly wurly for taking part, and all schools were given a book of children's poems as a memento of the day.
Pupils in the Girls' Division were encouraged to explore the option of continuing their education in Canada, with talks from two top universities. Damara Klaassen from the University of British Columbia and Janet Hurd from the University of Toronto visited the School to talk to girls from Years 10 to 13 about the option of studying abroad and the advantages it may present.
Year 11 pupil Holly Holt could be heard hitting some very high notes on Radio 3 on Thursday, live from the Bridgewater Hall! Holly is part of the Halle Youth Choir and was singing in their performance of Holst's Hymn of Jesus at the Halle Concert, which was broadcast live on the show. Holly has been singing since she was six years old and has always been involved in choirs at school. She has been a member of the Halle Youth Choir since September and also plays the flute in the Halle Youth Orchestra.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) Fun Day at Bolton School on Saturday was a huge success. The maritime-themed event, attended by the general public, included a wide variety of displays detailing the RNLI's work, displays on the Titanic and the rescuing of over 700 passengers by Old Boy Captain Arthur Rostron on the Carpathia, as well as information on Tenacity of Bolton, the School's own sailing yacht. A beach life guard unit was at the School along with members from the lifeboat at Lytham.
Beech House pupils have raised an amazing £1,128.90 for Marie Curie Nurses by taking part in a Mini Pots of Care campaign. All 218 pupils took part in the fun and creative fundraising activity. The School was sent growing packs in the Autumn and each pupil planted their own daffodil bulb, then cared for it over the Winter and watched it bloom in the Spring. There was a celebration of all the blooms on Mini Pots of Care Day and a number of prizes were awarded, including for the tallest and yellowest daffodil.
And Old Boy swimmer Daniel Sliwinski gave a sensational performance to win the British Gas Championships' 100m breaststroke, and book his place in the Great Britain squad for this year's Olympics. Daniel swam a time of 60.09 in the breaststroke final at the Olympic Aquatic Centre, in London. The Championships double up as Team GB's London 2012 trials and by claiming gold, Daniel has guaranteed his place at this year's Games.