Dear Parents/Carers,

I hope this email finds you well. It has been a really productive two weeks at Dr Thomlinson CofE Middle School.

Well done to the KS2 football team who took part in the Newcastle United Premier Five a’side competition.  The team did very well in finishing third in the competition.  Mr. Heath was very impressed with the team which comprised of Kobi; Finlay; Taylor: Oscar; Cerys: Katie; Greg and Isaac

On Monday, 3rd December our U12 boys five a’side team took part in a competition at Northumberland Church of England Academy. The team took part in a number of very close games. Well done to Luke who was our solitary goalscorer-Isaac was our team’s stand out performer.

Let it not be said that we are only interested in football at Dr Thomlinson’s as on December 5th our Volleyball teams took part in a inter school volleyball competition at Chantry.  Both teams performed well with Ben and Ellie being especially adept in this Olympic sport. For those of us who didn’t play volleyball,there was a Movie Night at Dr Thomlinson’s.  Thank you to the Friends Association for organising this, the film,popcorn and hotdog was much appreciated by all who attended.

On December 6th our KS3 Girls Rugby team played in a Inter School Competition.  The team enjoyed victory over Richard Coates with Megan being the team’s most valuable player.

TOP AWARD WINNERS Week beginning November 26th

5T George

5H Lewi

6OMia

6M Ben

7L Zac

7I James

8N Jessie

8S Bertie

TOP AWARD WINNERS Week beginning December 3rd

5T Daniel

5H Imogen

6O Kobi

6M Stanley

7L Trinity

7I Morgan

8N Issie

8S Adam

Well done to Rosemary and Max who won our Mathemagician Awards

Dr Thomlinson’s Got Talent – Wednesday, December 19th 7:30pm

Please note that Dr Thomlinson’s Got Talent will commence at 7:30pm and not 6:30pm as was miscommunicated on the school’s original letter to parents & carers.

Have a lovely weekend,

Liam

We will be fundraising for Children in Need on Friday 16 November.  Pupils are invited to come in non-school uniform for £1 donation.  Further fundraising stalls will be taking place during lunchtime.

Dear Parents / Carers,,

It has been a very busy two weeks at Dr Thomlinson CofE Middle School.

I know it has been often said that my emails are dominated by netball however I must begin with news that we have won another netball match!  I enclose Ellie’s blow by blow account for you all to enjoy, of our victory over Ashington on Tuesday, 2^nd October.  Like buses, we don’t win a school netball match for years and then we win two “on the spin” as they say.

Netball Match Report – Dr Thomlinson CofE Middle School v Ashington Academy

Ashington Academy undone by dazzling DrT’s in second match of the
season

Another amazing Dr T’s performance in our second netball match of
the season. Our side was hoping for another win after last week’s stunning and
historic win. Ashington Academy started the match confidently. They passed the
ball quickly but amazing blocks from Laila saw the ball changes hands
constantly in the first quarter. Unfortunately the ball was passed into the Dr
T’s ‘D’ and one of the Ashington’s players shot and scored. 1-0 to Ashington
Academy. We reacted brilliantly and a pass from Lilly to Bella enabled us to
attack Ashington’s ‘D’. One of our shots was intercepted allowing Ashington’s
side to break quickly and put pressure on our defence, they shot and scored.
2-0 to Ashington. We were glad hear the whistle to end a difficult 1^st
quarter. Even though we were losing we still had hope and knew we still had
three more quarters of the match to play. After a convincing team talk we went
back onto the court with more confidence.

Lilly started with the ball and passed it to Martha who passed it
to Laila, we were now in the final third. Milly got the ball and passed it to
Ellie who shot and scored. 2-1. Ashington were now on the back foot. Olivia did
an amazing jump and caught the ball from an Ashington pass. Olivia passed the
ball to Martha, who passed it to Bella, who passed it to Laila – we were now in
the middle of the court. Laila passed the ball to Milly who did a great bounce
pass to Ellie who shot and scored. 2-2. Dr T’s started to control the game and
a quick pass from Lilly to Bella saw us in Ashington’s final third. Milly
passed the ball to Lilly, who passed to Ellie.  Ellie shot and scored. 3-2
to Dr T’s. Ashington now had the ball and passed it all the way down into the ‘D’.
We defended well but the Ashington’s Player’s fine shot went in. 3-3.

In the third quarter things were tight. Lilly passed to Martha, we
were soon in their final third. Ellie passed the ball to Milly who shot from
the edge of the ‘D’ and it went in! What a shot! 4-3 to Dr T’s. Ashington’s
players reacted straight away and penetrated our defence and shot. 4-4. A great
combination of passes from Lilly, Bella, Laila and Milly gave Ellie an
opportunity to shoot and she scored. 4-5 to Dr T’s. Dr T’s started to grow in
confidence and Martha did a great block and got the ball back quickly. She
passed it down the line to Laila who passed it to Milly. Milly shot and it went
straight in the hoop! 4-6  to Dr T’s.

Milly wasn’t finished. The final quarter of the match saw her
receive another pass and once again her shot went straight into the hoop! 4-7.
Milly continued her fine form and shot and scored again 4-8. The last few
minutes were great. Lilly started with the ball she passed it to Bella who
passed to Laila. She passed to Ellie who passed the ball to Milly. She shot and
scored 9-4. The final whistle blew and we had won! Well done DrT’s!

The Team – Milly (5 goals and person of the Match), Ellie (4
goals), Olivia who did some amazing blocks, Laila who did some great passes,
Martha who did some great blocks and Bella and Lilly who were really  at
getting the ball down the pitch.

Year 8 Careers

On Wednesday, Year 8 enjoyed their trip to the Big Bang Careers Event in Sunderland. The Big Bang is a programme of UK-wide events that get students excited about science, technology, engineering and maths. Fun-filled theatre shows, hands-on exhibits, interactive workshops and a wide range of careers information from local and national employers – these are the kind of things you could expect to find at one of The Big Bang Near Me Fairs. This year, exhibitors included the BBC, Nissan, Caterpillar, Sea Cadets and ICE. The arena was split into different themed sections such as automotive, digital and civic and there was plenty of hands on activities for the pupils to try out.

The Big Bang Near Me programme plays a vital role in inspiring the UK’s future scientists and engineers at a regional, local and school level. It encourages more people to take these subjects, as well as celebrating young people’s achievements in science and engineering through displaying their STEM projects and letting them talk with engineers and scientists, face to face.

The UK needs many more scientists and engineers and equipping young people with skills in science, technology, engineering and maths is key to their future employability. The fairs are part of a UK-wide programme led by Engineering UK to bring science and engineering to life for young people.

_{Year 8 – Site Visit to Cragside Gardens, Rothbury on Tuesday 9}^th _{and Wednesday 10th October}

 Our Year 8 pupils were also invited to have a tour of Cragside Gardens, the new development site opposite our school.

Pupils began their tour in the manager’s office and walked through the facilities such as the canteen, induction room and mess room.  They saw the machines close up, with workers demonstrating how they work.

The pupils walked through the site and saw the houses constructed at each stage, ending up in the show home.

As part of our schools continued commitment to providing careers advice and support we are sure that this visit will further increase pupil’s awareness of career/work opportunities and increase their understanding of the link between education, qualifications and work opportunities.

Year 5 Roast Dinner Days

Thank you to all the parents/carers who attended our Year 5 Roast Dinner Days.  They were both very well attended.  Following the lunch, there was a chance for parents/carers to see and hear about our accelerated reader programme.

Further Sport

It is a busy week for sport activities

On Tuesday 9^th October @ Morpeth RFC our students took part in the County Cup Rugby competition.  They played three matches and lost to Chantry 35 Dr Thomlinson’s 0, then lost Newminster 15 Dr Thomlinson’s 0 but finished with a satisfying victory over Ponteland – Dr Thomlinson’s 20  Ponteland 0.  Well done to our try scorers – Charlie, Ben, Tom & Edward.

Our U11 Boys Football and U13 Boys Football on Tuesday 9^th October played Ponteland.  Both teams lost 5-1 with Finlay and Murray scoring our goals.

Unfortunately our netball winning streak didn’t continue to three games in a row but the team did very well in the U13 Girls Netball League on Wednesday 10^th October.  The score was Chantry 9 Dr Thomlinson’s 4 defeat with Milly and Ellie scoring.  Well done to Bella who wasplayer of the match.

Thomlinson Outstanding Pupil Awards – Week beginning 21^st September

5T Skye

5H Lucy

6O Gregor

6M Callum

7L Isla

7I Thomas

8N Chloe

8S Rhiannon

Thomlinson Outstanding Pupil Awards – Week beginning 28^th September

5T Lara

5H Polly

6O Rachael

6M Kaci

7L Ben

7I Dylan

8N Jessie

8S Jess

Thomlinson Outstanding Pupil Awards – Week beginning 4^th October

5T Isla

5H Euan

6O Maddison

6M Calaina

7L Jasmine

7I Elle

8N Charlie

8S Nolan

Well done to all of these award winners.

Have a lovely weekend,

Liam