"The First Thursday Newsletter No. 57."

The meeting of parents with the OFSTED Registered Inspector will be held at 7.00 pm on Tuesday 20th April in the Great Hall. The Registered Inspector will be accompanied by the Lay Inspector.

A formal notice of the meeting with fuller explanation, an agenda and a questionnaire will be sent out shortly. It is hoped that as many parents as possible will attend the meeting in order to give a balanced view of parental opinion.

New Governor. The Revd Nick De Keyser was welcomed to his first full Governing Body meeting.

Re-appointment of First Governor. Mr Jim Murray, Chairman of Curriculum and Pupil Welfare, and SEN Governor, was willing to remain as a First Governor until the school's status changes on 1st September 1999. It was proposed and seconded that this continuation of governorship be accepted. The Governing Body thanks Mr Murray for his continued service and commitment to the school.

New School Category. The Governing Body made the final decision to re-affirm and adopt the indicative category of Foundation as required by law. Therefore from 1st September 1999 the Dover Grammar School will become a Foundation School which means that the governing body will continue to

New Instrument of Governance. The Governing Body completed a pro-forma Instrument of Governance which will be submitted to the LEA for approval. Once approved the necessary arrangements can be made to re-constitute the new Governing Body to operate from 1st September 1999. See below for a comparison of the current and new Governing Body formats:

Current		New
Parent 1		Parent 1
Parent 2		Parent 2
Parent 3		Parent 3
Parent 4		Parent 4
Parent 5		Parent 5
Parent 6
Parent 7

Current		New
Teacher 1		Teacher 1
Teacher 2		Teacher 2
Staff 1
Headteacher		Headteacher
First 1		Partnership 1
First 2		Partnership 2
First 3		Partnership 3
First 4		Partnership 4
First 5		Partnership 5
First 6
First 7
First 8
First 9
		LEA 1
		LEA 2
		Co-opted 1
		Co-opted 2
		Co-opted 3
Total 17		TOTAL 21

The process of reconstitution cannot be started until the new Instrument of Governance has been approved which the LEA will do by 1st June 1999.

Hugh and Montague Leney Trust. Mr Jim Murray represents the Governing Body at Trust meetings and reports that money is available to boys who wish to pursue a worthwhile cause during their gap year. Written and verbal presentations must be given by any applicants to the trustees. Please contact the School Office for further details.

The Governing Body congratulates the Headteacher and all the staff for achieving Investor in People status. This is a reflection of the staff's genuine commitment and enthusiasm within the school of which the governors, parents and boys can be justly proud.

Mr R Terry - Chairman of Governors

I am pleased to report that the Library has now re-opened as a resource for the whole school following six weeks of decorating and refurbishing in the corridor area and adjoining rooms.

The initial reaction has been very positive and encouraging. The book issue rose considerably last week to over 150 items.

The Internet is now available on three computers and is constantly in use all day. The 6th Formers have the most access with teachers accompanying younger year groups in lesson time as the need arises. Years 7-11 will have access during lunch break with each year allocated a day beginning with Year 7 on Mondays.

Tesco Computer Vouchers: These have begun to roll in with 2,000 to date. We have a long way to go to match last year's total of 19,000 plus. This year smaller items may be purchased across the board, although another computer and printer would be most welcome!!

Free Books for Schools: Tokens from newspapers and crisp packets are progressing well. During this month I will endeavour, with some assistance, to have a cutting and counting blitz and place our first order for books. All your collecting is much appreciated, please keep up the good work.

Lenten Appeal: A 1999 Library Book and Literary Quiz is being compiled at present. There will be prizes to be won and all for a good cause.

Romeo and Juliet: I think the group performed Romeo and Juliet very well. The actors and actresses all played their parts extremely well. They used many different emotions which I think is very hard to do, especially crying.

The way in which the stage was set out, on the same level as us, and the way the actors talked brought the audience into the play. It was like we were all citizens of Verona and were actually involved in the storyline rather than just being observers. The only thing I didn't like about the stage were the scene props. They only had a box for the balcony which I think could have been improved on, and also some street pictures could have been painted on to the green backing sheets.

The sword fighting was very realistic as was the hand fighting. Even though they never actually hit each other the sound effects and looks were real.

My favourite actor was the man who played Mercutio. He was brilliant at his part and he expressed his feelings extremely well. He always spoke loudly and everybody could hear him.

There was one thing I noticed about the way they performed that I don't think would have been done in a real theatre. This was the fact that it was more like a pantomime because they wanted us to call out. Also it was much more humorous than a real play which I think was good because it will become more interesting to people who don't know the storyline.

Toad, Mole, Badger, Rat and all the animals of the riverbank invite you to join their capers in a spectacular production of "Wind in the Willows".

The play is being staged at Dover Grammar School for Boys from Thursday 11th March to Saturday 13th March inclusive. It is an ambitious production, with a cast of 28, which includes some girls from Dover Grammar School for Girls.

The play, by Alan Bennett, is adapted from the original book by Kenneth Grahame.

The lead role of Toad is played by 12 year old Noel D'Arcy, with Edward Smith as Rat, James Garlick as Mole and Paul Mitchell as Badger. The play is directed by Drama and English teacher Mrs Lynne Watson.

Toad's splendid caravan has been constructed by the school's Technology Department and the animal masks have been made by the Art Department. The play is suitable for young and old and tickets are £3.00 or £1.50 concessionary. Performances start at 7.15 pm with tickets available from the School Office.

The Production Team of "Wind in the Willows" would like to acknowledge the generous support of our sponsors:

Pharos Insurance Brokers
The London Fancy Box Company
Pfizer Ltd
Dover Harbour Board

Lunchtime Concert: On Tuesday 9th February a large and appreciative audience attended a Lunchtime Concert in the School Hall. Performances by the Brass Ensemble, Jazz Group and Big Band were well received and another Lunchtime Concert which will also feature the Training Band is planned for the near future.

Spring Concert: The main event of this half term is the Spring Concert to be given on Wednesday 24th March at 7.30 pm in the School Hall. The programme will follow the usual pattern with music played by the Brass Ensemble, Jazz Group, Big Band and Training Band interspersed with a variety of solo items. During the interval a choice of Wine and Cheese/Light Refreshments will be served, to be included in the adult admission charge of £3.00 for adults, £1.00 for children. You are warmly invited to attend.

Sponsored Practice: As announced in last month's First Thursday over the February half term holiday the schools' musicians completed a Sponsored Practice to raise money to support the Music Fund. This has been very successful and already £150 has been handed in. Many thanks are due to all those who took part and their sponsors. All sponsor money still to be brought in to school would be appreciated as soon as possible so that we can move on to awarding the prizes to the three pupils who raised the most.

The PFA are pleased to welcome Ian Munford as the new Treasurer. We are grateful to him for volunteering to take on this responsibility.

On Friday 5th March we are holding a Wine & Wisdom Evening, please contact Sandra on Dover 820709 if you would like to join us. The quiz starts at 7.30 pm and the cost is £3.00 per person - 8 people per team. Bring your own food and drink.

Second-hand Uniform. We keep a good stock of second-hand clothing which is one sale every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon from 3.30 to 4.00 pm. It will also be on sale on Monday 8th March from 4.00 - 7.00 pm. We would be pleased to receive any items of clothing you wish to donate.

1st £25 Mrs J Neale (132), 2nd £15 Mr M Collins (105) and 3rd £10 Mrs G Martin (102).

Can I remind all those participants who pay bi-annually that the next six months subscription is due on 1st March.

February was another good month for the CCF. Half term saw another successful NCO Cadre, with nine Cadets from this CCF attending amongst 25 candidates from various units, including Maidstone Grammar School, King's School in Rochester and The William Parker School in Hastings. Cadet Corporal Tom Robinson and Cadet Earnshaw received awards in recognition of their achievements. Also Cadets went flying in Bulldog Aircraft at RAF Manston and target shooting at Hythe Ranges.

March will be another busy month with a two-day exercise planned with 4th Army Air Corps sending Lynx helicopters to help. Another exercise is planned mid-month, as well as a range day at Hythe and, over Easter, Cadets will be going to RAF Laarbruch and RAF Bruggen in Germany for 8 day camps, courtesy of the Royal Air Force.

Year 10. Developing Rugby Schools Tournament at Canterbury RFC - 3rd February

Far too many errors, a lack of basic defensive tackling and weak support play did not lead to a very successful outcome in this tournament. Some improvement was achieved over the afternoon in beating Christchurch School and drawing against Castle Community School. A lot of further training is needed to improve the basics.

An outstanding team performance saw all of our four matches being won. Our final grouping gave an excellent win over Dane Court Grammar School with some very good tackling and support play. To decide the final positions we played against Simon Langton Grammar School and playing some fine running rugby beat them to win the competition. All members of the squad are to be congratulated on a fine effort. As a result of this win we go on to play in a countywide competition later this month.

Year 9 put together a useful performance against Brockhill Park School away, winning 48-19.

Year 10. With a large number of players not appearing a weakened side were well beaten by Brockhill at home 47-14. Those boys who did play worked hard throughout the match. Sam Smith scored both tries.

Wed. 10th Year 7 East Kent Rugby Tournament at Folkestone.
Tues. 16th Year 8 Rugby -v- Oakwood Park.
Fri. 19th Year 7 Daily Telegraph Regional Rugby Tournament at Dorking.
Sat. 20th Years 7, 8 & 9 -v- Maidstone G.S. (A)
Mon. 22nd Year 9 County Final at Aylesford.
Tues. 23rd Year 8 County Final (Anchorians)
Wed. 24th Senior Inter House "7's"
Thurs. 25th Year 7 County Final, Gillingham

The Table Tennis House Matches League will start on Monday 15th March in the dinnertime period from 1.10 to 2.00 pm. It is imperative that those taking part turn up on time and with the relevant footwear, plus a dark coloured shirt and of course their table tennis bat, although bats can be provided for those without.

For some houses, the chance to play in a table tennis tournament within the school has been very popular and more than four have put their names forward for consideration. Where there are enough for more than one team in a form, I will endeavour to accommodate multiple teams competing for their house.

The following boys have put their names forward and should organise themselves in teams of four. Where multiple teams in a form are playing the teams will be called any of the following Gold, Platinum, Silver, Tungsten or Titanium.

7 Priory - D Borello, M Friend, J Shaw, M Emmerson, L Cochrane, S Clark, M Chivington, A Davison, R Thompson, L Armstrong.

7 Port - A Parks, P Cairns, J Clements, S O'Brien, D Sowman, C Matthews, M Marsh, J Towe, S King, M Farthing, R Hayward, M Hogg, B Thomas, D Lam, S Golden.

8 Port - S Arter, D Ashby, R Bulmer, N D'Arcy, R Doel, J Howland, J Hutchinson, G Mulhearn, P Mulhearn, J Sutton, C Walker, N Willson.

9 Channel - O Craggs, I Chan, B Blaskett, M Carley, S Hornsey, C Jacobs, D Gill, J Miles, L Cassidy.

9 Port - No players wanting to represent their house to date.

If there are any more players who would like to be added to the list, please ask form tutors to forward me the names before Wednesday 10th March 1999.

The different teams will be given notice of when they are to play. The following days will be reserved for the following Years.

Monday - Year 7, Tuesday - Year 8, Wednesday - Year 9. Thursday and Friday may be available if there is a need.

Lenten Appeal Week will be held from Monday 22nd - Friday 26th March (inclusive).

The Powell Cup - Inter House Cross Country Championships will take place at 2.00 pm on Friday 26th March.

End of Term: Tuesday 30th March
Term Commences (for boys): Tuesday 13th April
(Staff Development Day: Monday 12th April)