Silverstone Study Centre

The Introductory days, which have been a great success, incorporated a tour of the famous sites of Silverstone Circuit. After a morning of TV Commentary and Racing Lines the children encountered the delights of Peter’s minibus driving around the outside of the six-mile Silverstone circuit.

Starting at the F1 Race Control centre, the children were able to find out how to respond to incidents on the track. The F1 Podium made the children feel like champions, emulating Raikkonen, Alonso and Hamilton!! Ferrari’s and Lotus were some of the irresistable cars the children viewed when they got to see the mechanics and visit the prestigious workshops. A big thanks to all of the Silverstone Circuit staff for an unforgettable experience on the tour of the circuit!

Students from Campion School tried their hand at television commentary today. We watched the start of the 1995 Monaco Grand Prix on the big screen and recorded commentaries on the centre iPods.

It wasn’t quite as easy as we thought but most students coped admirably with the pressure. Listen to some of the results below.

MonacoGPCommentary1

During the recent PfS introduction days the students got the opportunity to write a very short piece of writing about themselves or something important to them. We emphasised the need to ensure that the opening sentences of our pieces drew the reader into wanting to know more. There is only one opening line so we need to make the most of it! Here are some good examples. Click through to read more!

Megan - Cola is as fast as a racing car but Basil likes his snacks.

Amrinda - Aman, the young two-year-old girl, was as tiny as a breadcrumb when she was born.

Max - “Arrrrggh….” I screamed as I fell to the freezing-cold ground.

Alex - Formula One is fast and sometimes hard to keep up with. Yet it is awesomely exciting. The thrill makes my heart race almost as fast as the cars themselves.

George - Smashing the ball past the keeper, rattling the back of the net to win the cup, is the best feeling ever.

Anna - Street dance is a passion.

Joe - Food technology is my life.

Jacob - Kicking a football is the best feeling in the world - actually doing something rather than sitting at home.

….

Here are some Fordy examples inspired by the writing of the students at the time.

Fordy1 - Devouring chocolate cake is a passionate of mine, secondary only to watching Everton Football club win the Merseyside Derby!

Fordy2 - Playing for Everton Football Club is my dream but it is slowly slipping away as the years pass. I have to face the truth - I am probably not ever going to lead the attack in the Merseyside Derby!

It’s been a great week of Playing for Success Introduction Days. Roade College students were particularly fortunate on their track tour. Anthony Dunn, one of Silverstone’s elite racing instructors, took them into the pits area and introduced them to a number of Ferrari 360’s and Lotus Exige’s. They also took the opportunity to ask Anthony questions. It is always effective when the students get to talk to a ‘real’ professional racing drivers, particularly when they are as engaging as Anthony. It is not hard to see why his clients speak so highly of him. You can find out more about Anthony on his website at - www.anthonydunn.co.uk. Here is a clip of Anthony in action behind the wheel.

Last week we enjoyed the visit of Roade Primary School, who were brilliant in attitude and deed. I’m sure that Old Stratford will be just as excellent today. You can find out what we are doing by clicking here.

The Playing for Success programme at Silverstone is taking shape. We are very much looking forward to meeting the students on their PfS Introduction Days that begin next week with a visit from Roade Primary. We have an exciting mix of activities planned including a material-gathering tour of the circuit in the afternoon.