Extra-Curricular Activities

The following extra-curricular activities are available at Strabane Grammar School.

In addition to both Senior and Junior Choirs, the school has a 50 piece Orchestra, made up of pupils who are receiving tuition from WELB tutors. There is also an active Drama club. The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme operates at Silver and Gold Levels. Other interests are catered for through Chess and badminton clubs, Scripture Union, the Library, Public Speaking and Quiz competitions. A House System adds an extra flavour of competition to several of these activities.

  Each pupil and staff member at Strabane Grammar School, barring the headmaster, is a member of one of three houses: Abercorn, Alexander or Dunlop. These houses compete for house trophies every year in several events, the most important of which is the house competitions held on the last day of the Christmas term. For several weeks beforehand, the houses practice in several events and on the last day of term, perform in front of the whole school and a panel of judges for the house trophies.
The competitions are divided into two sections, with an interval in between. These are the performance and entertainment sections, which are described below.

The performance section consists of a choir segment and a public speaking segment. For the choral segment, the headmaster chooses three songs to be performed by the house choir, with accompaniment on the organ by a suitable pianist from the house, and led by a conductor also from the house.
For the public speaking segment, one orator is chosen from each house to speak on a prepared subject chosen by the headmaster. In recent years, topics have included such riveting topics as Should the 11+ be Abolished?

After the interval, the entertainment section begins. This consists of a solo performance, an impromptu speech and a sketch.
The solo involves one member of the house singing a solo piece, optionally accompanied by one person playing a musical instrument. The piece is chosen by the players themselves, so can vary drasically. For example in recent years, we have had such varied treats as modern classics as Oasis' Wonderwall to operatic masterpieces, obviously making judging very difficult.
For the impromptu speech, one member of each house is chosen to speak for three minutes on a topic chosen by the headmaster. The difference between this and the public speaking is that the topics usually given for the imprompu speech are generally lighthearted and that the participants do not get a chance to prepare beforehand. Indeed, they do not know what they are going to be asked to speak on until they step on to the stage. While the earlier orators are speaking, the others are kept out of earshot to avoid giving them an unfair advantage.
The sketch is usually the most eagerly awaited of the entertainment pieces. This is a comedy play lasting not more than five minutes. The sketch used to be a free for all, with each house making up their own plot, but in recent years, in an attempt to make judging easier, the headmaster selects a topic that the sketch will be based on and each house then bases it's plot on this topic. The plot, props and everything else is still provided and put together by the house.

The house competitions are always very much anticipated and enjoyed by the whole school, providing a relaxed atmosphere in the lead up to Christmas. During the last week of term, several classes are set aside for people taking part in the competitions to practice, but all the houses organise practice sessions outside of school time as well, usually in local church halls.

  The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme is to encourage a spirit of adventure amongst young people. Strabane Grammar School currently has 26 pupils enrolled for the Silver award and 12 for the Gold award out of a total student population of 364 - a full 10% of the total number of pupils at the school! Pupils commence work for the Silver award in Year 11 and in Year 13 for Gold.

The school supplies supervision, instruction and equipment for all pupils who wish to take part in the scheme. At silver level, a handbook is supplied with all the information necessary to gain the award. At least two practice journeys are carried out before the final expedition and first aid classes, taken by a trained member of staff, continue throughout the course.

For more details on the Scheme, see the official Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme web page.

  Another out of school activity is the school chess club. This is one of the longest running clubs in the school, and prides itself on having both experienced chess players and beginners within it's ranks.

The chess club meets every day at lunch time. There is an entrance fee charged for membership. This is currently set at fifty pence per member and the funds raised by this fee are used to buy new boards. Anyone and everyone is welcome to join. The club is run by a committee of dedicated volunteers who ensure that the clubs rules stay inviolate. This committee usually changes every year and is subject to approval by the headmaster.

The committee and other members would be happy to teach anyone who wants to join but doesn't know how to play chess. And please don't think chess is a game for the intelligentsia – it isn't. Most of our members are perfectly ordinary students who enjoy playing a quiet thought-provoking game that stimulates logical thinking.

1998 saw the re-emergence of a school dramatic production in the spectacular form of the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor^® Dreamcoat. This involved a cast of 60 and a backstage crew from all years of the school and almost all staff.
The success of the musical prompted a follow-up in the form of Grease, an even more ambitious choice.

The show of 2000 was Showtime. This would take the form of a selection of some of the best songs from the bigest musicals. This would not only be a superb way to showcase the wealth of musical talent in the school but would also involve many pupils with an equal workload.

In June 1999, auditions were held – the talent heard was very impressive and it was not a difficult task to cast the various "groups" for the selection of songs chosen. It was decided the format of the show would comprise of chorus members, small groups, duets and solos.

Rehersals began in the second week of the autumn term and the show began to come together nicely – many cast members were unsure of hte programme it would take until quite late on and where exactly they fitted in!

The show was expertly "glued" together by Jennifer Monteith and Neil Gamble who gave fluent and informative links between songs and the musicals from which they were taken

The variety of songs reflected some of the highlights from the West End and Broadway over the last fifth years with many favourite tunes enjoyed as well as some less familiar ones included. To complement some of the emotional solos we had light-hearted duets and small chorus numbers. From teh opening number, where the children in the orphanage from "Oliver" imagined their favourite dishes to the rousing "Do you hear the people sing?" from Les Miserables, all the songs chosen had something for everyone.

Many numbers were accompanied with dancing – an immense amount of talent was obvious area too. The colourful and energetic "Timewarp" was hugely received and was sung again as a fitting encore to the show.

The predominance of the musical has meant that the Junior Drama Club, which involves a range of activites and games to build pupils' confidence and develop their acting talents, has taken a back seat.  It is hoped it will recommence in the Spring term and that juniors will have a chance to eventually put on a small production.  It is essential to encourage enjoyment of drama if we are to maintain the high standard already evident.

The Key Stage Three Maths club meets once a week and gets involved in a variety of mathematical activities with using a computer to solve more complex problems.  These include simple programming in BASIC, using Logo and accessing the online Maths Club magazine on the Internet at www.nrich.maths.org.uk .  The online club is a useful source of puzzles and investigations aimed at a variety of age groups.  Pupils can work at these tasks for approximately three weeks and then email or fax solutions back.  The best of the solutions are mentioned in the online magazine the following month.

The Scripture Union is the school's Christian society.  It meets once a week to partake in a wide range of activities including drama, Bible studies, quizzes, games, videos and discussions.  It's leadership is made up of two members of staff and a committee of pupils chosen from the membership.
The SU has recently started publishing an internal magazine called Icthus with very successful results. Every year, there is an annual SU weekend trip, which is always memorable!
The SU always has an active membership, and often has external speakers in as well as former pupils continuing to maintain an active role in the society.

  Much valuable charity and cross community work is ongoing. The school raised almost £2500 for charity – a splendid effort indicative of the generosity and support of the whole school community. This included a special attempt by year 9Y to raise £1400 to buy a cow to send to Africa – starting by getting Mr. Hampton to wear a blond wig for a day!

Several pupils visited various locations in the USA as part of the Ulster project. In the Sperrin Ramble a large percentage of our pupils were selected to participate in the 4^th and final stage and one of our pupils won the top award of a three week outward bound scholarship.