Greig City Academy - Summer 2015, Issue 11

Jumping for joy

Five go to Kentucky Why are Tanvir, Umar, Benedict, Mitchell and Max so excited?

Why are they in Kentucky?

e b l l i w All n o d e l a e rev Page 5.

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Achievem e

A letter from our Principal

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Dear students, parents, carers and friends of Greig City Academy, Welcome again to our school magazine. I hope you enjoy reading the articles and find them informative as well as entertaining.

Writing this letter gives me an opportunity to reflect on all that has happened in the past year. Our Year 11 and Sixth Form students have just finished sitting their GCSE and GCE Examinations and are now awaiting their results before going on to meet the challenges of the next step in their education.

Whatever results day brings, their qualifications will be the outcome of a sustained, high-quality and enthusiastic effort by students and staff working together with genuine commitment and common purpose in an atmosphere of trust and respect. I am sure we will all be proud of their achievements and we wish them luck.

In the pages that follow, you will read about the achievements of our students in events at local, national and international levels. An impressive number of students have taken part in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme at silver and bronze levels and we look forward to seeing our first gold award winners next year. Our basketball teams came away from the National Schools Finals with three gold, one silver and two bronze medals, demonstrating yet again that their disciplined approach to training pays off.

Our technology students have had an exciting year. Year 8 Roboteers represented the UK in an international robotics competition. Year 9 students have built and tested an electric car as part of the international FIA Formula E programme. The car will be racing in the London e-Prix event which takes place in Battersea Park very shortly. Year 10 students reached the national finals of their rocket competition, and Sixth Formers gave demonstrations to professional audiences at the Farnborough Airshow. In so many fields, from business and enterprise challenges to maths competitions and debates, students have successfully tested themselves against the best that other schools have to offer.

This year we have introduced sailing to our outdoor education programme and, as I write, another group of eager youngsters are working towards their Royal Yachting Association qualifications. Our outdoor education trips form one of the most important features of Academy life; most students will take part in at least one activity every year. Our thanks go to all the staff involved whose commitment, dedication and organisational skills ensure these activities continue to be successful and safe and of course fun!

I am very pleased that standards of behaviour and school uniform remain excellent and that high levels of attendance and punctuality are maintained. As a result visitors continue to be impressed when they visit the Academy. I thank parents and carers for their continued commitment and support in achieving these high standards.

As a school community we are proud of the Academy and look forward to another successful year with genuine anticipation and confidence.

I wish you all a splendid summer break.

Yours faithfully,

Mr P.V. Sutton OBE

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Well done!

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Congratulations to all the students and staff featured on the next eight pages, who have excelled in so many different ways.

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All-round achievement – Pupil Profile Award winners

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Year 9

Year 10

Rebecca O’Connell

Ervans Caushi

Rozelin Akkaya

Alexandra Fitzekova

Aisha Farrance-Grier

Zephrah Gibson

Jessica Mendes Moniz

Melissa Andrade

Shania Hylton

Garcia Sterling

Jagoda Szymczak

Priya Kaur

Andrei Rimban

Gloria Ocran

Alyssa Lorde

Nailaa Islam-Bint Hosen

Hudson Primus

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Ya-Jing Chen

Aila Asan

Huang Rou Chen

Baris Mutlu

Year 11

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Year 8

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Year 7

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The Pupil Profile Awards recognise students who have consistently met the high expectations the school has of them in terms of academic progress, attendance, punctuality and being prepared for learning. There are four levels – bronze, silver, gold and, the highest award, platinum. Congratulations to the 67 students who won a platinum award in both the autumn and spring terms. Summer term results were not available at the time of writing.

Darshan Leslie

Christelle Modi

Nakasha MortonPindling

Victor Okoro

Nana Omari-Amoako

Kofi Omari-Amoako

Dawid Stelmach

Barash Hyusein

Anita Pirro

Jurginija Simkunaite

Halima Miah

Fatmata Barrie

Paradice Primus

Erik Palushi

Rikma Miah

Cheriece Bailey-Adair

Sheariah Masagazi

Kehinde Olorunfemi

Kacper Frankiewicz

Tasnimah Begum

Juan Ferreira

Wanqin Huang

Kevin Cardosa Coca

Jacqueline KankamHope Camilo Orobio Cordoba

Tanzina Bashir

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Kerem Keles Oliwia Dziatkowicz Daniella Tewogbade Zelal Pirbudak Maria Pitigoi Achitophel Buenze

Haniyya-Islam BintHosen Masoom Ahmed

Alex Awobimpe Natalie Ocansey Ayse Pirbudak

Robert Dogaru

Sariah Cesario Karlisa Rees Kymani Small

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Napoli Hannah Fofana Nelson Lopes Carvalho

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Eslavik Medina

Costin Zaharia

7LN is the tutor group with the most Platinum winners so far this year. Ms Newman is extremely proud of them:

‘I am really proud of my form, they worked very hard to improve their behaviour and have made great progress in their classes. Having the most platinum awards in the school is a fantastic achievement, which reflects their daily hard work towards this long term goal.’

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nise students who

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And how was the experience for the team?

When GCA’s first ever roboteers team became National Champions in the VEX IQ Highrise Challenge they won a place in the International Finals held in Kentucky in Aprill.

‘We learned how to use components we’d not used before.’ Mitchell

Victory in the regional heats – Max, Umar, Mitchell, Benedict and Tanvir, all Year 8, swept the board in the regional heats. They were victorious in all three categories of the competition, using a robot they designed, built and In action at the UK finals programmed themselves. In

the programming event the team scored the highest UK total. As well as awards for programming, skill and teamwork, judges awarded GCA the trophy for ‘best robot design’.

National champs – The boys went on to compete in the national finals at the Big Bang Fair at the NEC in Birmingham. And guess what? They won the main event as well as picking up the award for excellence – we think this was for their unique robot design.

International finals – as national champions, our team represented the UK in Louisville, Kentucky. They came a highly creditable 40th out of 152 national champions worldwide and US state champions. This was the school’s first ever team to compete in VEX IQ and they started their campaign seven months after its launch, so spent only one third of the time that other teams had to design, build, test and develop their robot.

Mr Garcia said: ‘I’m tremendously proud of the boys. I’m particularly impressed by the fact that they worked so hard to improve their design after their first attempt. Their design is not a copy of the many successful designs that can be found on YouTube – it is unique. This was a very impressive achievement and to have won so convincingly is a tribute to the boys’ hard work and skill.’

Well done!

Smart movers go to the USA

‘We learned a lot even though

we didn’t win.’ Benedict

‘The different designs that we saw in the States inspired us to create new designs.’ Max ‘We got ideas from other teams that we can use in this year’s challenge.’ Umar ‘We strove and we did well.’ Tanvir The new robotics season has started and we have six teams signed up for robotics challenges in Years 7, 8 and 9 – with more girls than boys this time.

Tanvir, Benedict, Umar, Mitchell and Max will compete again this season and they will also be mentors and coaches to the new teams.

We are very grateful to the Tallow Chandlers Livery Company and the Hornsey Parochial Charities for sponsoring the team’s USA visit.

Thank you. Big thanks to Mr Garcia, Ms Adams and Mr Hearn who made sure the trip ran smoothly – no missed flight connections unlike some other unfortunate teams.

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Well done!

STEM bursary winners In September, for a second year, we were delighted to welcome members of the Tallow Chandlers Company for a presentation of academic bursaries to sixth formers.

The Company is generously supporting STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) programmes at GCA. This support includes academic bursaries for the highest achieving students at AS level.

Each student received a cheque of between £250 and £500. Provided they take a STEM subject at university, they will receive a further bursary during their first year.

The Master of The Tallow Chandlers, Mr Ian McIntyre, presented certificates and cheques to: Joseph

Rowland

Joseph Simeon – Physics Rowland Rich – Chemistry Zohir Foukroun – Product Design Max Mellor – Mathematics John Brobbey Oteng – Biology

Zohir

Max

Joseph, who had the best AS results overall, will receive £2000 during his first year at university and the other four will receive £1000 provided they take a STEM subject.

John

In April, the award winners, their parents, Mr Corrigan and Mrs Taylor, Chair of our Governing Body, attended an Awards Luncheon in the Tallow Chandlers Hall in the City, an impressive building that dates from 1672. The luncheon celebrated the achievements of award winners from schools, universities and apprenticeships.

‘It was a great experience and very surprising. The hall is magnificent and, before lunch, we had a chance to talk to members of the Company, including past Masters, who asked us about our career plans. Lunch was very different from lunch in the school canteen – four courses of amazing food. I want to study architecture at university, preferably at Nottingham or Northumbria, so the award will be very welcome.’ Zohir Foukroun

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Three GCA students covered themselves in glory at Haringey Council’s Outstanding for All Awards at Alexandra Palace in December.

‘We are extremely appreciative of the support The Tallow Chandlers Company gives us. It helps us promote the value of STEM across all age groups and we can see that these subjects are increasingly popular with GCA students.’

Mr Hearn

Dawit Zerai won the Achievement in the Arts award against stiff competition from the other shortlisted candidates.

Dawit was nominated

by Mr Mishra and Mr Unugur for the enormous contribution he makes to music and drama at GCA. He was a key member of the group that shone in last year’s Schools’ Shakespeare Festival, acting and working on sound and lighting.

Dawit – Achievement in the Arts winner He plays the guitar and coaches younger students in guitar and piano. Dawit is active outside school as well, taking dance classes at Jacksons Lane Centre. A true all-rounder, and modest with it. This is what he said on the night:

Well done!

Outstanding for All

‘I wasn’t expecting this but it’s one of the greatest achievements in my life. It feels like the Oscars.’

You can see Dawit here receiving his award from Peter Desmond, Haringey’s Head of Performing Arts.

GCA’s outstanding students – Sharif and Daria

GCA at the Tallow Chandlers’ award luncheon

Sharif Matovu and Daria Wilk were nominated by GCA for academic achievement awards. Sharif was the top performing boy and Daria the top performing girl in the 2014 GCSEs. Their A*s owed much to their solid work effort over the whole five years since joining GCA. Sharif and Daria can be seen centre stage in front of the Mayor of Haringey.

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Well done!

Michal wins a prestigious scholarship

Sharif wins a new science award

Last year we told you that Michal Wensierski was waiting to find out if he had won an Arkwright Engineering Scholarship.

Sharif Matovu was delighted in December to find that he had been chosen to receive a new award for science.

The Observatory Opticians is generously sponsoring an annual award for the GCA student with the best results in GCSE Triple Science. Greg Mayor, Muswell Hill branch manager, surprised Sharif in an assembly where he presented him with the first ever award – a shield and a gift card for books.

Michal is awarded his scholarship

He completed an application, took an aptitude test and was put through a challenging interview. He told us then that he came out of the interview with a smile. Confident or overconfident?

Well, Michal was justifiably confident as we soon found out. This year he was presented with his scholarship by his sponsor at a presentation event.

If engineering is for you, don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Speak to Mr Garcia about the application process asap.

The rewards are great: • A £600 financial award • Mentoring about engineering and technical design • Enrichment opportunities • Free CREO software and training There’s also a chance to apply for an Arkwright Undergraduate Scholarship worth 10-12K. Don’t delay!

Sharif receives his award

Sharif’s 10 A*s and one A included A*s in each of the sciences. He also had the highest marks in the school in those subjects. Well done, Sharif.

t o g u o y e v Ha x e n n o e your ey ? d r a w a s ’ year

Joshua gave his view on London’s financial services Sixth former, Joshua Campbell, was this year’s winner of the Worshipful Company of International Bankers’ (WCIB) essay competition. The topic was: Does the UK as a whole benefit from London’s pre-eminence in financial services?

Joshua won £100 for himself and another £100 for the school. He is taking A levels in biology, sociology and media studies and is keen to study economics at university.

‘I was already interested in economics but this competition gave me a great chance to do some research into the whole area of financial services and what I learned has strengthened my interest. The opportunity was also a test of my essay writing skills so I am pleased I did so well.’

Joshua

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Head Girl – Nezere Parkin Head Boy – Joseph Simeon Deputy Head Girl – Miracle Nwabuokei Deputy Head Boy – Obinna Okoro Year 7 Rebecca O’Connell, Morray Smith, Madiu Balde

Djalo, Paradice Hudson Year 8 Alexandra Fitzekova, Max Hahn, Sab Singh,

Ervans Caushi Year 9 Aisha Farrance-Grier, Kevin Cardoso Coca,

Odu Olokodana, Shaniqua McKoy Year 10 Ebenezer Fasoranti, Elisha Campbell, Jackie Le,

Precious Adediran

‘The response to our request for students to apply to be leaders was amazing. I had lots of positive conversations with students I’d never even seen before. We truly do have some exceptional young people at GCA and I’m sure the years will show that this can be a way of recognising their efforts in a new and exciting way.’ Ms O’Brien

Well done!

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Well done to the 24 student leaders who were appointed this year:

Leaders hold their post for a year. Their tasks include guiding visitors around the school, interviewing prospective members of staff and working in the library They all belong to one of three committees: charities, student clubs or their ‘News and Views’ magazine. The role is still evolving and we expect great things of next year’s leaders who will have been elected by the time you read this.

Year 11 Andrea Arhagba, Daniel Ossorno Reyes,

Fatmata Barrie, Senanur Duven

Our head girl and boy are pictured on the left. Years 7-11 leaders wear a distinctive tie. We persuaded four leaders to pose in the freezing cold so you can see it.

Nezere and Joseph

Fatmata, Rebecca, Jackie and Aisha

Congratulations to all these students who did so well in the 2015 Maths Challenge: Intermediate Year 10

Best in Year, Silver Certificate: Gabriel Durojaiye Bronze Certificate: Sahin Ocakkuran, Issa Sheik Chand, Silvainho Cameron Year 9

Best in Year, Silver Certificate: Abdus Ali Silver Certificate: Yu Qing Dai Bronze Certificate: Ya-Jing Chen, Aman Raja, Chideraa Ikpa Junior Year 8

Best in School, Best in Year, Gold Certificate: Ervans Caushi Silver Certificate: Alexandra Fitzekova, Benedict Whitehead, Addarah Mure, Ajivewin Mugundharajah, Ye Fang Bronze Certificate: Erik Palushi, Umar Raja, Nurul Ashaab, Mitchell Kingsland, Albin Aliu Year 7

Best in Year, Silver Certificate: Abiye Amachree Bronze Certificate: Alvi Islam, Hudson Primus, Michael Gayle, Rebecca O’Connell, Masoom Ahmed, Erca Mandal GCA

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Well done!

The Jack Petchey Achievement Awards

Valentina

This award scheme is run by the Jack Petchey Foundation, which was set up by a London businessman to recognise ‘extreme endeavour’. Every month of the school year, a student is selected to receive an award. The Foundation also gives the school £200 for each of the months that we give the award – nine a year.

Winners get to choose how they want to allocate their £200 to support a school or community activity.

Daniel with Mr Horner

Year 11 student, Daniel, was our first winner of the academic year. Daniel was nominated by Ms O’Brien for his excellent achievement in modern foreign languages. As well as being bilingual in English and Spanish, Daniel speaks French and German. Ms O’Brien said: ‘Daniel has a natural gift for languages but he doesn’t just rely on his talent. Rather he works hard, puts lots of effort in and practises a lot. He is a delight to have in class.’

Daniel allocated £200 to the MFL department to buy a camera.

Valentina, Year 10, was nominated

by Mrs Lunt who said she has an exceptional talent for cookery, both in terms of theoretical and practical work.

Mr Hearn said that Valentina shows an interest in all her subjects, is selfmotivated and that she always sets her sights high. Valentina’s £200 bought two pasta making machines and other cookery equipment, all of which is getting good use.

Sariah with Ms Brown

Sariah, Year 10 was nominated by Ms Brown and Ms Snaddon who said she is doing extremely well in all her subjects and that, in sociology, she consistently achieves the highest marks in the group. Sariah works in the library from 7.30am and stays on at school until 5pm every night, as well as working during lunch and breaks. Ms Snaddon said that Sariah is supportive of other students in the class, helping them with homework.

Sariah allocated £200 to help set up a sociology lending library.

Aisha

Aisha, Year 9, was nominated by Mr Unugur who explained that she is an excellent role model for her fellow students in drama and that she performs to a high level. He described Aisha as a focused, disciplined and inspiring student in all aspects of her work. Aisha’s commitment to the ethos of the school was recognised when she was selected as one of four student leaders for Year 9. Aisha’s £200 bought costumes for GCA’s three drama clubs.

Lorenze, Year 8, was nominated by Ms Heywood-Lonsdale who said that in classics he is always enthusiastic and willing to learn more about Latin and the historical side of classics and he is also a great speaker when it comes to reading ancient texts and plays. She also said that Lorenze is a fantastic and enthusiastic public speaker. He is very reflective when learning from mistakes and this has resulted in a productive and engaged attitude. Lorenze has bought philosophy books for the Great Books programme.

Lorenze

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to reco ‘extre endeav

Well done!

Yu Hong

Yu Hong, Year 10, was nominated by Mrs Arhagba who said that she has an excellent talent for graphics and is a very diligent worker. Yu Hong takes part in many enterprise activities and challenges where she works well as part of a team and is supportive of her fellow students. She gives up her time at weekends for many of these activities. Yu Hong has bought a heat press and accessories for Graphics.

Kesi

Marko

Kesi, Year 10, was nominated by Ms Frewin and Mr Bird for the way she completed her Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award. Kesi faced her biggest test on the practice expedition when she felt ill and weak. She soon found out that she had Type 1 diabetes and was initially doubtful that she would be able to complete the final expedition. Not only did she complete it but she took second place in two of the hikes. Truly an inspirational performance. Kesi’s £200 will purchase cooking pans for camping trips.

by Ms Frewin and Mr Bird for gaining a Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award in difficult circumstances. Marko worked hard on his modules: weightlifting for the physical; video and film making for the skills; and reading with Year 7s for the volunteering module. He had surgery on his foot before taking part in the expedition and had to hike 40km on crutches. He described the hike as one of the hardest things he has done but felt there was no option to opt out.

Marko has allocated his £200 to the DofE team to buy a good camera to record expeditions.

Marko, Year 12, was also nominated

Leader’s Award Alvi

Alvi, Year 7, was nominated by Mr Ullah, his Head of Year. Alvi has had an outstanding record since he started at GCA in September. He applies himself exceptionally well and takes a lot of pride in his work. His attitude to learning, his behaviour and his commitment are first class. He is a credit to the school. Alvi had yet to decide on how to allocate his £200 at the time of going to press.

ognise eme vour’

The Foundation recognises that lots of the great work, projects and schemes that young people take part in would not be possible without the support of their adult leaders so they created the Leader Award. This year, Mr Unugur won GCA’s Leader Award. Here’s how some of his students praised him: ‘Mr Unugur is passionate about drama and passes on his passion and enthusiasm to all of us.’

Mr Unugur enthuses

‘He is very professional and organised and he handles pressure well; that makes us try to act in the same way.’

‘He sacrifices a lot for students and the school as a whole, giving us so much time and help.’

‘He makes sure that we all get the best possible chance to show our skill in assessed performances even if the part we play is small.’

And here’s what Mr Sutton said: ‘Thanks to Mr Unugur, drama results at KS4 and 5 are improving year on year. We have an annual drama festival and strong links with RADA and university drama departments. Mr Unugur’s impact goes way beyond his own department and is felt throughout the school. I am very appreciative of the work he puts in and the impact this has on students in all year groups.’

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Books brought to life

We called into the library to ask some students what books they would recommend for young people of their age.

Darnéll, Y7, likes Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories: ‘They have a lot of murders in the stories and people are often deceitful so you don’t know who is telling the truth. I particularly like The Raven which is in poem form. It’s about a talking raven who visits a man whose wife had died and the raven keeps repeating “Nevermore”.’

Sounds spooky, Darnéll!

Ms Brewty recommends “Hate” by Alan Gibbons. Here’s why: ‘Occasionally there is a book that sends shivers down the spine but has nothing to do with ghosts, monsters or the supernatural. This book is one. Beautifully written but not shrinking from the true horror of the situation, it has brilliantly created characters that the reader will instantly empathise with and it provides numerous discussion points too.

What do you when a boy who witnessed your sister’s murder, but refuses to acknowledge it, joins your school? Even worse, your best friend fancies him. Eve, still grieving and trying to cope with the changes this has wrought in her life, has to deal with all the sorts of feelings and emotions that his presence brings.

Darnéll

Hannah is one of Ms Brewty’s Y7 helpers: ‘When I go to my local library, I am glad there is a librarian to help me. That’s why I volunteered to help in the school library – to be able to help others.’

One of Hannah’s favourite authors is Rachel Renée Russell who writes the Dork Diaries. Why? ‘They are amusing. Many books are about people with perfect lives but she writes about young people whose lives are not so great and who have to deal with embarrassing parents.’

Don’t we all!

Hannah

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Anthony was there that night.

Shocked at seeing Eve and realising that his dreams of a Ms Brewty’s new start are over, what does recommendation he do? That night haunts him too but talking to the police isn’t an option. Where does he go from here?

The book is based on the murder of Sophie Lancaster, the 20 year old girl who, along with her boyfriend, was set upon in a public park in 2007 because of her Goth like clothing and looks. Prejudice is tackled head-on and there is mature content contained within this book. However, it is a truly powerful read which stays with the reader long after it is finished.’

y l l a n o i ‘Occas a s i e r e th t a h t k o bo r e v i h s s send down the spine’

Books brought to life

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In character on World Book Day March 5 was World Book Day and GCA staff and sixth formers celebrated by coming into school dressed as characters from books or from history. Spot staff and students in these photos:

War horse at work

Alice and the Mad Hatter photobombed by Macbeth

Watch out – Cruella de Vil’s about!

Who knew the March Hare was a basketballer?

Robin Hood takes time out

All children, except one, grow up

My name is Katniss Everdeen

The Artful Dodger shows off his pickings

A warm welcome to GCA from Pocahontas

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The joy of language

Modern foreign languages are a popular choice at Key Stage 4 and an encouraging number of students are now realising the value of studying them at A level and beyond.

Angela Mascolo is one of them. Already bi-lingual in Italian and English, she studies two other languages at A level – German and Spanish. Ms Worham asked her about her choices: MsW What made you choose to study foreign languages in the 6th form?

AM

Learning languages is very useful for the world of work but the main reason is that I have enjoyed learning Spanish and German since I started at Greig. I find it really interesting that there are other people out there who speak the same language I am studying whilst they study English. I also love to travel and studying languages at advanced level will provide a good foundation for communicating and understanding the language abroad.

MsW What do you hope to do after Year 13?

AM

I hope to do a joint honours degree in an arts subject (English or history) with a modern foreign language. Hopefully I will be able to work or study abroad in the third year. I would really like to immerse myself in the language by communicating with native speakers and to experience their culture.

MsW You are bi-lingual, do you think your Italian helps you?

AM

I believe being bilingual has boosted my self-confidence because it makes me more enthusiastic and open to learning other languages.

Speaking Italian is particularly useful for my Spanish because I can identify similarities in vocabulary, but it also helps me to learn sentence structures and grammar rules in both Spanish and German more quickly.

MsW What advice would you give to someone thinking about studying languages in the 6th Form?

AM

It is important to immerse yourself in the language as much as possible; e.g. reading articles/short novels, watching movies or short clips and listening to music in the language. GCA’s Activities Week trips to Germany and Spain are a great opportunity to improve your speaking skills. It is good to see how native speakers actually put their language into practice, and it will help you identify grammar rules that you have already learnt.

MsW Thank you Angela – I wish you well with your studies.

ovels n t r o h s d les an c i t r a d a e R nd clips a s e i v o m Watch music o t n e t s i L

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Angela

The joy of language

Ein fantastischer Besuch in Köln It was a very early start for Year 10 German students as they set off for a four-day trip to Köln. Luckily no one overslept and the coach was able to leave on time.

After a fun filled journey, during which I taught Nabiira to crochet we reached Köln. Following a good night’s sleep in our lovely hostel we set off to explore the beautiful city.

Students were given a treasure hunt to complete which involved them using all their language skills as well as an element of orienteering. Thankfully all our students found their way to the location and enjoyed ein Eis. They were all impressed by the magnificent cathedral and how clean the city was.

I was very proud of how much GCA students tried to practise their German. We had a great time on the trip and I know that it has helped students to improve their speaking and be more confident. Well done everyone.

Mrs O’Brien Köln

Ms Garzón aims to get you speaking like a native Ever thought you could speak a language reasonably well until you actually went to a country and ended up tongue-tied? It’s been the fate of so many people taught a lot of grammar but not given much chance to speak.

GCA students get plenty of opportunities to engage in conversation in language classes and Ms Garzón is here to give you that extra boost that won’t have you lost for words in Germany or Spain.

Ms Garzón is the department’s Higher Level Teaching Assistant who focuses on breaking down students’ inhibitions about speaking. She works with A level students on a one-to-one basis and with younger students in small groups.

‘I did a degree in interpreting and translation in Seville, my home town and, during that time, completed an internship in a school where I taught English and German. I did a year on an Erasmus exchange program in Graz, Austria, where I studied intercultural communication. It helped me improve my German and

Ms Garzón

also made me more open-minded.

I’d definitely recommend it to GCA students who are thinking of studying languages at university. I really enjoy working with GCA students; they find having a conversation challenging at first but as they begin to feel more secure in their skill they develop a keener interest in the language. I’ve learned something too – I think my career path has to be in education rather than translation and interpreting.’

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The joy of language

Gnothi seauton, The Bacchae, hypotrimma and smelly fish sauce September saw the first session of our new Classics Club for Year 8 students.

Since then, the club has journeyed through the worlds and language of ancient Rome and Greece and through modern times too, searching for the influence of classics all around us. Each session has a focus on the Latin language alongside some aspect of classical history, warfare, culture, art or literature.

Semolina pudding – a popular dish

They have played body bingo, speed-assembled Latin verbs, acted out scenes from Roman history and literature and devised curses to throw at one another.

A visit to the British Museum had them scurrying around answering questions in a treasure hunt.

They prepared for a performance of The Bacchae at UCL by acting out scenes from a translated version. The play also introduced them to the concept of pathos and they touched on the pathetic fallacy.

Philosophy sessions introduced students to cognitive, attribution and ingroup biases as well as ‘gnothi seauton’ or self-knowledge, a concept of fundamental importance to Aristotle’s philosophy.

In December, they busted out of the classroom for the Great Roman Bake Off where they tried their hand at making food served at Roman feasts. First, they had a tour of ingredients available to the Roman cook: caroenum (condensed grape juice); date syrup; fish sauce (smelly!); and dark sourdough bread.

Gungor, Gizem and Anna created hypotrimma, a sweet, herby cheese dip. Max and Benedict took on the hefty challenge of ham and figs in pastry. A delicious and beautifully presented dish even if the cooking time went to the wire! Bruno and Andrew tackled the most unusual dish to modern palates – lettuce patina, a sort of vegetable baked custard. The dish was cooked to perfection, even if it wasn’t to all tastes. Another patina for Jamelia and Lai’larni, this time flavoured with wild mushrooms. Nailaa and Trevelle produced a real crowd-pleaser, a honey-flavoured semolina pudding with almonds and raisins. And that leaves us with Kacper (‘I don’t cook’) and Tanvir (kitchen whizz).

Well, they obviously made a good team because their melon in mint sauce went down a storm.

A tense moment as the judging begins

A winning dish

Once all the dishes were ready, the tasting and judging began. Two winners were declared by Ms HeywoodLonsdale: ham and figs in pastry and the melon with mint. Euge!

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e c u a s t n i m n i n o ‘mel ’ m r o t s a n w o d t n we GCA

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BSL for sixth formers

It’s not just Year 8s who’ve taken an interest in classics. Last summer, Year 11 students jumped at the chance to apply for the Classics Summer School at Wadham College, Oxford.

A group of keen sixth formers developed their British Sign Language skills in an afterschool class run by Ms Torr.

Here’s Daria’s report:

‘We had an Ancient Greek language class for an hour each day right after breakfast then two seminars a day delivered by experts in their field. Some seminars included learning about Ancient Greek and Roman history and about views on race and gender through art and ancient texts.

Daria at Oxford We visited the Ashmolean museum where we looked at ancient artefacts. We were set a 1,500 word essay on a chosen question linked to views on race.

The joy of language

KS4 students at Wadham College

They all learned how to fingerspell their names but they also chose their own sign names. They learned that whenever you sign a word you should also mouth or speak the word you are signing partly because lip reading is a vital part of communication with the deaf but also because expression is important.

‘We were assigned student mentors who helped us with our essays and accompanied us to language classes every morning.

Our essays were marked by professors with whom we had a one hour tutorial where we discussed the ideas we’d presented.’

There was time to explore the city with the extra reward of a trip to a famous Oxford icecream parlour. Overall, we had a great time. We made new friends, learned new things, explored Oxford and had a true university experience as undergraduates. I would recommend this to anybody who is interested.’

Spot GCA’s students

Wadham’s Tutor in Ancient History, Peter Thonemann, commented: ‘The students on this year’s summer school showed a remarkable range of talents and enthusiasm; there were some fantastically lively discussions after the six seminar talks, and all of the tutors on the programme were deeply impressed by the participants’ articulacy and intellectual commitment.’

Amanda signs

Everyone was shocked to find out that BSL has a history of oppression by hearing people and that it wasn’t until 2003 that it was recognised by the British Government as being a full, independent language. They were interested to find out that there are considerable differences in regional dialects. The BSL used in Belfast, for example, is very different from the dialect used in the Channel Islands. Despite the large range of differences, there is a strong feeling within the British Deaf community that sign language is a single language, and most signers have no problem communicating with each other across regional dialects.

‘hello’

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GCA outdoors

We are sailing Sixth formers have always enjoyed sailing on their annual Ireland trip but now we’re getting lots more students out to sea.

GCA’s fleet includes: A 22ft yacht – a Macgregor A German Frers A mirror dinghy Two Hobie Cats – catamarans Two GP14 sailing dinghies

Our sailors were energised by a talk from Tracy Edwards, roundthe world yachtswoman, in April.

Tracy met lots of opposition when she announced plans to enter the Whitbread Race with an all-woman crew but the negativity only made her more determined: ‘I don’t have it in me to give up.’ Lesson learned!

We found out that Tracy got into sailing more by chance than design when she was offered a job on a boat whilst backpacking. And would you believe she can’t swim and gets seasick?

At the end of Tracy’s insightful and amusing talk, sixth former, Okorite, said: ‘Tracy brought so much energy. She really inspired me.’

The yacht that carried the first allfemale crew across the finish line was Maiden. She has been languishing in the Indian Ocean for years but now Tracy and her crew are raising funds for a refit in Cape Town before sailing her back to UK waters.

We wish Tracy luck and thank her for this encouragement for our own sailing plans:

In Poole harbour

‘I think what you are achieving is awesome. You are walking the walk instead of just talking about it. Your pupils are a credit to you. I have rarely walked away from a school talk with such a spring in my step. Please keep me updated on your progress and I look forward to the day when we can take you all out sailing on Maiden!’

Working on the Macgregor

The boats are not sitting in school doing nothing. Over the summer Mr Holt and his crew have been taking students down to Poole in Dorset for a Royal Yachting Association Youth Level 1 course in sailing and we expect to have over 100 students qualifying for their Adult Level 1 by the end of summer.

Mr Holt and Mr Letford are also organising one-off events to broaden the experience of the keenest. This includes crewing ocean racing boats, sailing from Dorset and sailing on board a 78ft Maxi Yacht from Glasgow.

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Y10s out at sea

Tracy with GCA students

GCA outdoors

All this sailing doesn’t mean we’re holding back on all the other activities we engage in:

abseiling, climbing, cycling, obstacle courses, canoeing, high ropes, gorge scrambling, surfing, coasteering, kayaking ...

GCA students get opportunities like these throughout the year and there’s always a queue for places. Thanks to all the staff who give up their weekends and holidays to make these trips happen.

Mrs Dowle treks Just two weeks before Nepal’s disastrous earthquake, Mrs Dowle was at Everest Base Camp – a high point of her 15-day trekking trip in the Himalayas.

The trek is really arduous so why did Mrs Dowle do it?

‘I’ve climbed all the mountains in England and Wales and have done the Inca Trail. This was the next big thing. We set off from Lukla and took in villages such as Thame and Khumjung on the way to the base camp. The mountain views were outstanding and we crossed some amazing – and

wobbly – suspension bridges. The trekking itself was not a problem for an experienced walker. It was the cold, snow and rain as well as the effects of the high altitude that made it all so difficult. We had days when we could acclimatise but the altitude difference still made walking an effort.

Fortunately, I’ve never suffered from altitude sickness.’

Would she recommend the trek?

‘Only to the very fit.’

Who knew Mrs Dowle completed the London Marathon 12 years ago? What will she do next?

Mrs Dowle at Everest Base Camp GCA

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Duke of Edinburgh Award

A resounding well done to all the students who gained their Duke of Edinburgh awards this year.

Bronze achievers

Richard Acheampong Seun Afariogun Kesi Allen Siwinho Cameron Silver achievers

Renee Bradbury Nezere Parkin Okorite Amachree Marko Nonkovic Michal Wensierski Joseph Simeon Max Mellor Zohir Foukroun Sheku Dumbuya Sheila Genc Yeliz Sonat Sara Fulton Winnie Simeon Shamyer Howe

Tyreece Coleman-Paul Shenelagh Deacon Jessica Dedgjonaj Montel Fagan-Jordan Ebenezer Fasoranti Kellise Fenton-Williams Liam Lawrence Fahima Khatun Jackie Le Tamari-Lee Ledgister Halima Miah Karim Ming Sahin Ocakkuran Giovanna Oliveira Shabazz Patterson Karlisa Rees Sade Russell Garcia Sterling Jordane Vassell

Ready to r o f p u n g i s ? r a e y t x e n

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The awards comprise four elements. Young people must do some voluntary work, engage in a physical activity and develop a skill. To round all this off they go on a three-day expedition, camping and carrying all their gear.

Kesi gained her bronze award against the odds ‘I wanted to do something out of the ordinary. I volunteered in my Girls Brigade, supporting younger girls. For the physical activity I took up badminton and for the skills section I provided evidence of my guitar practice – I’ve been playing since I was in Year 6. The expedition was the most difficult element. First we went on a practice expedition and I was just so tired and weak, feeling sick at times. But it wasn’t just that the hiking was hard – I found out some weeks later that I have Type 1 diabetes.

‘I was a bit hesitant about carrying on but my mum, dad and friends encouraged me to keep going so I decided I’d definitely do the final expedition in the New Forest. I was determined not to be Kesi last in the hikes and so was pleased to come second in both of them. I’m keen to move on to my silver award.’

‘Kesi’s achievement was fantastic. She has dealt with the demands of the award and her diagnosis of diabetes with composure and maturity.’ Ms Frewin

‘Duke of Edinburgh was an experience like no other; the skills that we learnt, the map reading, hiking and overall teamwork are vital in terms of self-progression. The personal skills we learnt, such as resilience, determination and a will to succeed were, in my opinion, the most important. DofE is an expedition that is almost enlightening; you learn things about yourself that you never knew, and, after three days of hiking, you come out as a new person, someone that you never knew existed. You are a better version of yourself.

‘In my case, I did the expedition on crutches and it was by far one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

There was no option to opt out. The crutches just upped the level of difficulty I was facing, and blistered hands and sprained wrists didn’t help the situation. I think the only reason I made it through was due to my fear of failure and the help of my three teammates who were there for me every step of the way, providing incredible amounts of moral support.’

I can honestly say that doing both Duke of Edinburgh Bronze and Silver awards has changed my perspective on the world and what I can achieve. It feels as if the world really is my oyster and my potential to achieve success is limitless.’

Marko with Renee, Okorite and Nezere

‘Marko completed a hike of over 40km in three days, all of it on crutches.

He never complained once, nor asked for any special treatment. He showed a lot of courage, determination and perseverance.’ Ms Frewin Thanks to all the staff who made sure the expeditions, as well as all the other award activities, went so well. Special thanks to DofE leaders, Ms Frewin and Mr Bird. Thanks also to sixth formers, Michal Wensierski and Benardo Haxhiu, who assisted on the bronze award expedition and were described

by Mr Bird as ‘beyond impressive, making all male members of staff feel quite inadequate all weekend.’

Duke of Edinburgh Award

Sixth former, Marko, completed his silver award expedition on crutches

Duke of Edinburgh Award Presentation In March, we welcomed parents and siblings to celebrate the achievement of students who have completed their DofE awards over the last two years.

We heard from these hardy young people about what the programme meant to them. We won’t reveal the names of the group that got lost and managed to cover twice the distance as all the rest of the group. In the photo here you can see Paxina, Andrea and Andrea who told the audience about their DofE experience.

Paxina, Andrea and Andrea

It’s good to get something about DofE on your CV and in your UCAS application but what’s more important is the chance to help people in your community, get fitter, develop new skills, as well as a chance to gain new experiences, discover your talents and make friends. You’ll learn to rely on your peers when necessary but also to be self-reliant and not to expect to be told what to do.

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GCA on stage

‘All the world’s a stage’ As You Like It, Shakespeare Here’s Mr Unugur’s feedback on an exciting year in drama: ‘GCA actors are producing remarkably high standards. Students, Ms Ajoku, Ms Jackson and myself have spent four years together and we are witnessing the rewards of a department that has grown together.

Orpheus

‘The festival was the most exciting and rewarding experience in my four years at GCA.’ A massive thank you to the ten drama groups, consisting of 143 students, for the enormous amount of work you have put in. I am very proud of you all. Special thanks to sixth former, Michal, who built two wooden doors that featured in Room Service and four wooden rifles for Antigone.’

Greek myths brought to life Sixth form drama students enthralled their audiences in December with performances of four Greek myths: Theseus and the Minotaur Pandora’s Box Jason and the Argonauts – the Quest for the Golden Fleece Orpheus and Eurydice

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Pupils from five primary schools – North Harringay, St Mary’s, Rokesly, Campsbourne and Weston Park – were appreciative audiences.

Here’s what Jil Pughe, deputy head of Rokesly School, said:

Our students devised the plays. They researched the myths, developed the characterisation and script, devised the staging and created the costumes.

They took 10 to 12 weeks to get the plays ready for viewing and this involved many hours’ development and rehearsal in addition to timetabled sessions.

‘Please pass on our thanks to the drama department for a fantastic theatre trip yesterday. The children really enjoyed the performance and everybody fed back on the high quality of the show. It was so lovely to feel we could just pop over the hill and give the children such a rewarding experience. Many thanks.’

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Theseus and the Minotaur

GCA on stage

Yet another amazing drama festival This year, our actors performed 14 plays over three weeks. A wide-ranging selection included Shakespeare’s Tempest, Sophocles’s Antigone, Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Godber’s Shakers, Orwell’s 1984 as well as devised plays based on biblical stories featuring, amongst others, Potiphar and Moses.

Of Mice and Men

Room Service

Shakers

Fallen Angel

Dawit Zerai played Orpheus in our Greek Myths cycle and Lucas Miller, TV and film director, in Room Service, a classic farce. We asked how he varied his approach in performing these two very distinctive roles.

‘I’m more used to acting in serious drama so performing in Room Service was a good opportunity to extend my range. In a comedy like this you play an exaggerated version of a character. There’s also more of a risk of unpredictability in a farce. You can improvise but so can all the other performers – and someone with a tendency to do so is Isham – so you have to be disciplined and keep your composure if you’re going to react in the spirit of the play.’

Dawit added that Mr Unugur is an ‘awesome’ teacher – nothing to do with the fact that Mr Unugur was standing right next to him as he spoke!

Late news – drama students achieved a 100% pass rate, with over 75% gaining a distinction. Great work!

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The world of work

Year 10 students enjoy a week’s work placement in March. The range of opportunities includes positions in sectors such as: Law, retail, journalism, education, banking, city farms, catering, transport, insurance, health, sport, architecture, horticulture, charities… and much more.

Congratulations to just a few of the students who shone on their week out: Reece Andrew and Martin Safo-Frimpong did so well at the HR Sports Academy that they were invited to work on the Academy’s Easter sports camp.

‘Your interaction with the participants was impressive. I just want you to know that your work hasn’t gone unnoticed. We all thank you for your professionalism. You have shown potential to be GREAT at whatever you pursue.’ Mickela Hall-Ramsay, HR Sports ‘It was a great experience. I was working with 6-7 year olds and even when I was tired they cheered me up because they were always so happy. The staff were so good to me and they treated me like one of their coaches.’ Martin

Martin

Reece and Martin have been invited to apply for a coach development programme run by the Academy. Well done.

Sahin (centre) with his pharmacy colleagues

Sahin’s Year 10 work experience took him to MedChem Pharmacy where he helped customers, answered the phone, and delivered medication to those who couldn’t get into the pharmacy.

‘The thing I enjoyed most was serving customers and getting to know all the people that worked there. I was comfortable there and I felt we became friends.’

Can you spot Teo?

Teo’s placement with the TUC gave him a chance to visit the House of Commons where he attended the launch of a government White Paper aimed at boosting the number of young people training to be engineering technicians.

‘It was a pleasure having Teo with us for the week. Without exception, my colleagues and I were very impressed with his attitude, manner and approach to the experience.’

Paul Clarkson, TUC

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Chereice (on right)

Chereice enjoyed her experience with Exposure north London’s premier youth magazine: ‘I’m interested in a career in graphic design or the media. I was given a chance at Exposure to write for their website and found it different from the writing I do in school. People don’t tend to read long articles on a website so I had to make sure I got all my points across in a concise and snappy way.’

Chereice’s article covered recent research that suggests young people develop useful skills from taking part in activities such as fundraising or volunteering for charities. She concluded by saying that developing problem solving skills, and by being independent and resilient, people of her age would get a better start in life.

Hear, hear!

The world of work

During the year, Mrs Arhagba’s team seek opportunities for sixth formers to get some experience of the professions or organisations in which they are interested or where they can practise their considerable skills.

Leo and Anastasia used their linguistic skills Leo and Anastasia, Year 12, spent a week with the International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO). Every four years a week-long conference is held with ambassadors from different countries.

Leo explains:

Sarah

Sarah had a ‘phenomenal’ week Year 13 student, Sarah Acheampong, rated her work experience week with the North Middlesex Hospital very highly. After a seminar where specialist doctors talked to students about their profession and the students’ career paths, Sarah was able to spend time in areas including: the antenatal, maternity and labour wards; operating theatres; critical care wards; the ophthalmology clinic; the radiology department; urology, gastroenterology and cardiology departments; and A&E. Phew!

Sarah described her week as ‘absolutely phenomenal’ and is now keen to pursue a medical career.

Sarah won her place on the scheme by writing an essay entitled ‘Is medicine a science or an art?’ in competition with 70 other eager students.

‘I was chosen because I speak four languages. I worked on the registration and information desks, welcoming ambassadors and this allowed me to use French, Spanish and Italian as well as English.

I had to speak to ambassadors for a variety of reasons and it was crucial to be able to communicate well.

I was able to watch the proceedings from inside the conference room and also from the interpreters’ booths and had a chance to sit with Leo the Director General and the Head of Finance at the Chairman’s table where all the important decisions regarding safe shipping and satellite communications were made.

There were eight student workers in all, five 21-year olds, an 18-year old, and myself and Anastasia, the youngest at 16. Everyone was very welcoming and I met interesting people from different universities and countries. We all spoke on level terms and everyone was open to discussion whilst remaining very professional.

Leo at IMSO

I’d recommend this type of opportunity to anyone interested in the world of business or anyone interested in using their languages or even someone interested in communications and satellites. I’d definitely be willing to do this job again and I’d even say I’d be interested in doing this sort of work in the future.’

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The world of work

Sheanne, Amanda and Sarah tried out their sales technique L’Occitane en Provence is is an international retailer of body, face and home products with many outlets in the UK. The company offered two-week summer internships for 10 lucky students. To have a chance of winning a place, our girls took part in an assessment day in April.

‘The first exercise was to give a presentation explaining the qualities of the ideal worker. This is what we came up with: having a passion for the product, willing to learn, a handson attitude, good body language.’ Sarah Then participants were given a different item and one minute in which to sell it. Sarah got a pair of scissors, Amanda chopsticks and Sheanne make-up pads. Just think what you could say in a minute on each of those! A more difficult scenario was the one where they had two products to sell at the same time as dealing with a difficult situation such as an angry customer.

They created a mood board and a micro site for a product and finally were ‘interrogated’ on their CVs in a 15-minute interview – and they still managed to stay lively and interested.

All agreed the day, particularly the interview and the chance to interact with people from all walks of life, was a great success.

Congratulations to all three girls on gaining a sought-after internship, starting in June.

Chioma

Buckingham Palace, spaghetti and marshmallows Sixth former, Chioma, will be working at Buckingham Palace during the summer as an information assistant.

She gained the opportunity – paid employment – after an assessment day where she clearly shone.

Another assessment day at HSBC was an opportunity for Chioma to develop her employability skills even further.

‘I thought I was going to learn about investment banking but the day was more about the skills and qualities you need to get an employer to select you. We were split into groups and rotated around three activities. The first activity had us building towers made of spaghetti and marshmallows. This was designed to test how we worked as a team. A one-to-one interview was followed by an exercise where we had 15 minutes to find out about HSBC’s Water Aid programme and then give a presentation. The strategy I agreed with my team was to focus on the most interesting facts and consider how to make them interesting for the specific audience we had.

We won! What’s more there were only three of us on the team whilst all the other teams had six people.’

What did Chioma find most useful about the day?

L’Occitane interns

‘The chance to work with people I’d not met before and the feedback I received on my performance from the organisers.’

The good news is that Chioma was accepted onto the HSBC Aspiring Female Potential Programme, along with Brianna, Dionne and Sarah O.

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GCA Enterprises goes from strength to strength, creating and selling new products in school and in markets like Spitalfields.

The world of work

A Green Award for GCA’s entrepreneurs

Through their years of work with GCA Enterprises, Jie and Andrea learned the importance of producing high-quality products – the quality had to be good for customers to buy.

Everything they learned as members of the company has helped them focus on quality in their graphics GCSE. Here you can see Andrea’s promotional material for a tennis event at Roland Garros in Paris and Jie’s packaging for a children’s activity pack aimed at keeping children occupied on a long journey.

At Spitalfields Market

This year the company won a Green Award in the Deutsche Bank Young Entrepreneurs Competition for their brand ‘Simply Gifts’. The award focuses on a company’s ability to produce creative and sustainable products. Here’s what the judges said:

‘GCA Enterprises showed the best example of being a “Green” company ... the products have been produced with great consideration for the environment. All of their products are produced by either recycling materials, reusing and repurposing existing products, and reinventing their own product lines to avoid waste to meet current customer demands.’

Jie’s activity pack

The judges also praised our students for ‘their great team spirit’.

Our team was made up of Year 9 and 10 students whereas all the other teams were in Year 11 and the 6th form so GCA did incredibly well.

Well done to Nafisa, Samiihah, Chideraa, Odunayo, Shamika, Anitha, Yu-Hong, Deborah, Gloria and Fahima.

Andrea’s promotional pack

The judging begins

Green Award winners

Many thanks to Gideon, Dawit, and Chioma in the 6th Form for supporting the team in the creation of the video for the competition.

n o s u c o ‘f quality’ GCA

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Sports

Basketball news This year’s haul at the Basketball England National Schools Finals came to: ls nd U18 gir a 5 1 U , 3 1 he U Gold for t s he U13 boy t r o f r e v Sil rls and U16 gi 4 1 U e h t Bronze for The U15 girls made it three in a row after winning gold in 2014 as U14s and, in 2013, as U13s. In the semis, the team swept past their opponents, scoring 20+ points in each of the quarters to record a 92-34 victory and set up a final showdown with Nottingham Academy. The final brought them a convincing 66-40 victory.

Most Valuable Player: Victoria Somoye-Unsby, team captain ‘The atmosphere was incredible. I’ve captained the team for three years and it’s been wonderful playing with the same group of girls. We train hard and get lots of support from our coaches and from one another. ’ Victoria

The success of our U13 girls bodes well for the future of basketball at GCA. They stormed to a comfortable 62-29 victory over Elton in the semis and proved way too strong for Aylesbury In the final with a score of 89-27.

Victoria (centre) on court

GCA’s U18 girls played Oaklands College in the final in what proved to be a close match. Both sides played hard but GCA came out on top winning 65-59.

MVP: Brenda Kipewu

MVP: Ashley Uzochukwu ‘I am very proud of the team.’ Victoria, team captain ‘I put our success down to hard work and disciplined training. I couldn’t have achieved MVP without the encouragement of my team mates.’

Ashley Ashley shoots

The victorious U18 team

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Brenda (right) storms through

U15s – third gold in a row

U13s – the future of basketball

the final quarter, our boys came out a worthy second with a score of 70-79.

In the U16 girls’ play-off, GCA proved too strong for Aylesbury, finishing with a 12 point lead to pick up a bronze – 63-51.

The U14 girls’ play off was another closely fought game,

International Blackpool Cup winners yet again!

The under 17s played 3 group games. winning 3-0, 1-0 and 5-1 against teams from Switzerland, Scotland and Ireland. The semi-final was a convincing 3-1 win over Pollock Soccer from Scotland, Mehmet Karaarslan adding two goals to his two from the group stages.

Sports

The U13 boys played against St Matthew’s RC in the final in what proved to be a hard fought contest. Despite winning

In March, a Y7 team took part in a Futsal tournament run by First Futsal in aid of World Autism Awareness Week – First Futsal managed to raise almost £1000 for the National Autistic Society.

which saw GCA come out on top at 67-60 to give GCA another bronze.

Jay-Ann continues to shine Jay-Ann Bravo-Harriott made it to the GB candidate list for Eurobasket 2015 earlier this year along with two other GCA alumnae, Mrashi Karumba and Janice Monakana. All three took part in May’s preparation camp and Jay-Ann was the one to survive three rounds of cuts to gain a place in the 12-strong GB squad for the tournament. Jay-Ann is the youngest player in the squad.

Victory in Blackpool

The final was a much tighter affair with both teams appearing nervous and keen to avoid defeat. It finished 0-0 and went to penalties. Goals from Sharif Matovu, Obed Ofori-Attah, Joseph Willis and an important save from Phillip Willis left the deciding penalty in the hands of Kolawole Oshun, who coolly stepped up and slotted into the side netting, leading to scenes of jubilant celebration.

The team’s application was fantastic, led admirably by captain Joseph. The U16 team also performed very well and were runners up in the Challenge Cup. ‘It was a defensive game but we persevered and were happy and relieved when Kolawole got the final penalty.’ Joseph

Sixth formers Ben, Jonathan, Kola and Malvin volunteered at the event as did Nasuf Serifi, a GCA alumnus now at Brighton University. Nasuf is a member of the university’s Futsal team which has just won the 2015 British Universities & Colleges Sport Futsal Championship.

Ms Roberts ran the London Marathon ‘So that’s it – after nearly five months of early morning training in the freezing cold, the London Marathon has been and gone. It was truly one of the best experiences of my life. I know everyone says that, but it really, really was! Running alongside 38,000 other runners, Paula Radcliffe running her final marathon, the event celebrating its 35th anniversary, and more than £50 million being raised for charity, it felt like an extra special year to take part and I couldn’t think of any better place to mark the milestone than in mighty London!’ Ms Roberts

Well done to all the team and their magnificent coach, Drew Tyler.

Jay-Ann

g n i n i h s A star

Jay-Ann has certainly made her mark at the University of Toledo, Ohio, where she holds a scholarship. Toledo Rockets play in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and Jay-Ann was honoured by MAC this year with their Women’s Basketball Freshman of the Year award.

Ms Roberts shows her well-deserved medal GCA

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Creativity is contagious

‘Creativity is contagious, pass it on’ Albert Einstein

This year, GCA’s artists – both students and staff – have been inspired by people, places and ideas and have passed on their enthusiasm in and out of class.

‘We aim to develop in students the confidence, skills and experience that will help them express themselves. They will visit galleries, research and learn from practitioners, and will have a chance to experiment with a wide range of techniques and processes. In the end, though, creativity is individual.’ Mr Unwin, Head of Art Here you can see some of our very ‘individual’ and talented artists at work.

Inspired by Kew ‘In October, a group of 33 young artists visited Kew Gardens. Curious minds were engaged, excellent visual investigations were recorded and much fun was had.

The results of their research informed their experiments in many different media.’

Mr Chorley

Social media takeover – pen and pencil

Here you can see Jackie Le’s lino prints influenced by the work of German expressionists belonging to the Die Brücke movement and featuring a leaf found at Kew. ‘I really enjoyed creating them because it gave me a chance to do very detailed work – detail is a characteristic of my work.’

Jackie’s lino prints

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Jackie doesn’t restrict his creativity to his art classes. On the right are two drawings he created in his spare time.

Jackie’s dragon – chalk and pencil

‘I focus first on the message I want to get over and then I decide on the medium. The pen and pencil piece is a comment on the way social media is taking over and the dragon is part of a storyline I’m developing.’

Art or technology?

Ms Hembury runs a club every Thursday after school where staff can learn to use different media:

Art or technology? Both, of course. These marine propellers were created by Mr Knappert using Solidworks, a modelling program. He also used the program to test whether the propeller would flow correctly. Finally, he printed them with a 3D printer. Functional and beautiful.

‘I decided to organise an art club and exhibition as a celebration of creativity at GCA. It was an opportunity for staff to showcase their work to promote their skills and talents. I made the ceramic and mixed media vessel you can see here to show and teach a variety of techniques to colleagues. It is work in progress!’

Busy hands

Ms Hembury’s ceramic vessel

Ms Dunn, GCA’s busy Exams Officer, escapes to the art room whenever she gets a few minutes at lunchtime: ‘I get a moment to clear my head whilst doing something with my hands. I like all sorts of media and am having a go at pottery at the moment.’

Creativity is contagious

Staff art club

Ms Dunn’s painted glass

Here are more of the works on show in the exhibition

No prizes for guessing the model maker

Ms Garrett’s seascape

Mr Sutton’s oak sculpture

Mr Unwin’s lino relief prints

Mr Earle’s Thunderbirds image drew lots of praise.

‘Pupils show a great interest in animation, gaming and movie special effects. Thunderbird 2 was one of my favourite toys as a youngster, so when I was deciding what I could do as a project to learn 3D animation, it just popped into my head. I wanted to see if I could produce a photorealistic image. The model was made using 3ds Max and Adobe Photoshop.’

Thunderbirds are go!

Ms Dudley’s atmospheric photos of Paris GCA

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Catch-up time

We’re always looking for ex-students to feature on our website because their stories inspire our younger students, particularly those getting ready to apply to university.

If you are in contact with any of our alumni, please pass the message on.

News from Nikolija Nonkovic in Wales ‘I’m reading French and Spanish at Swansea and having the time of my life. I wanted to get away from London, live by a beach and it has been the best couple of years. I can do outdoor education and hiking in the Brecon Beacons whenever I want, as well as water sports, kayaking, windsurfing and paddle boarding in Swansea Bay. It’s like having Mr Holt’s outdoor ed. trips on my doorstep!

‘As for my course, I’ve already learnt so much and I’m not even halfway through.

It’s so easy to get out of bed on a rainy Swansea day when you’re doing a degree you actually enjoy.

‘Next year, if all goes to plan, I’ll be teaching English with the British Council in Montpellier, France, which will be an incredible experience.

‘I’m doing loads of volunteering, helping disabled kids with surfing and doing an age exchange programme with elderly people in a retirement home, listening to their stories.

‘I’m really excited to see what the next two years will bring.’

Nikolija loves the outdoor life

Let’s hear from Ramone Matthew-Franklin up in Leeds ‘I’m in my first year at Leeds Beckett University where I’m studying architecture. The course is challenging yet incredibly enjoyable. My favourite project has to be a competition to design “a unique piece of architecture,

described as a large container of activities” on the site of a car park of a monastery in Lisbon.

‘The group I was in took into account the need for sustainability and came up with core structures made out of cork (a material part-harvested in Portugal) that could be stacked as the site became more popular. You can see my design here.

‘Our group didn’t get through to the final but a few tutors said we should consider entering the competition independently as our response to the brief was very analytical and thorough.’

Ramone (tallest in the room) with Prince Charles

Ramone’s Design

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In November, Ramone was invited to meet Prince Charles when the Prince’s Drawing School, which he attended for a number of years whilst at GCA, was renamed the Royal Drawing School.

‘I am in my first year of a biochemistry degree at the University of Alberta. I can’t believe my first year is nearly over as it seems like it was yesterday I arrived in Canada. I have been able to engage with a different culture by volunteering for community events such as the Green and Glow festival run by the university Alumni Association. This was a winter festival with innovative exhibitions for people in the community to enjoy as well as university students. My expectations of university have been met because I’ve had the opportunity to study courses that have been intellectually stimulating as well as very interesting; for example I take science alongside arts courses. I have particularly enjoyed the emphasis on community involvement in my residence as well as the university. At Christmas, I was part of the first black tie affair run by the University of Alberta’s Women in Science and Engineering chapter, to which I belong.

This was a great chance to network with professionals and be inspired to “do great things”, which is the motto of the Alumni Association. This motto has been a huge part of my first year and hopefully there are greater things to be done and more amazing experiences to come!’

Catch-up time

Morenike Ajidagba does great things in Canada

News snips Nasuf Serifi is in his second year at the University of Brighton studying sports journalism. He’s a member of the university’s Futsal team which has just won the British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Futsal Championship 2015.

Nasuf front row second left

Mirela Ivanova, 2nd year historian at Wadham College, Oxford, packed in a number of internships last summer in the City, St Petersburg and Annapolis, Maryland, USA. A well-travelled woman!

Rianna Carter is studying for a BSc in Sociology and Social Policy at Aston University. At the time of writing she had assignment deadlines and exams on the horizon so was extremely busy.

She does get a little spare time, though, and has picked up basketball and long distance running.

Rianna has been elected treasurer of the Sociology Society. She’s also a very active student ambassador and mentor to students in Birmingham schools.

Keep up the good work, Rianna.

Check out our sports pages for news of another inspiring alumna.

Morenike in Alberta

e v e i l e b t ‘I can’ s i r a e y my first ’ r e v o y nearl

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With a lot of help from our friends

‘Thy friendship makes us fresh’

Henry VI Part 1, Shakespeare

Every year, GCA works with people and organisations that offer us fresh ideas and experiences and we all benefit. A big thank you to the following:

Tallow Chandlers’ members for their mentoring café It was great to see so many Tallow Chandlers’ members talking to sixth formers in their annual mentoring café, which is organised along speed dating lines. The aim of the café is to raise awareness of educational and employment opportunities in the fields of science, technology and maths. Sixth formers learned about each mentor’s education and experience and had a chance to ask questions before moving onto the next mentor.

Mentoring café

Highgate School’s Chrysalis Partnership – what’s a nimber?

Getting to grips with nimbers

A group of Year 9 students joined students from five other schools at Highgate School on a Chrysalis Partnership activity to tackle some seemingly simple strategy games that actually had a cunning mathematical property: with the correct strategy, you could ensure that you were always the winner. Students played the games and noted any patterns that emerged.

After getting to grips with binary numbers, they were introduced to ‘nimbers’ – binary numbers with a slightly modified way of conventional

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addition. In essence, manipulation of nimbers was what would enable them to win the game. With this in mind, students returned to their games and effortlessly disposed of each other in a raft of strategy games.

optimal strategy required is complex.

Headway was made in determining that the first to play can always win so, if you are offered a game in the playground, suggest Hex and ask to play first!

The final game, Hex, stretched everyone to their maximum in understanding the mathematics of turn-based games, pioneered by the game theorist, John Nash. Players must simply connect opposing sides of a rhomboidal board with hexagonal pieces. The rules seem simple but the

‘It was a very challenging class that required a lot of thinking but it was still a lot of fun.’ Chideraa ‘I enjoy maths because I like solving puzzles but it was also good being able to socialise with students from other schools.’ Aman

Our ever-increasing group of HE friends

Eight sixth formers, Daria, Krystal, Velislava, Dionne, Luke, Eden, Moses and Lateefah, enjoyed a visit to the European Parliament thanks to ACDiversity’s enrichment programme. Here’s what Velislava thought of the experience:

Whether it’s GCA students visiting universities to get a feel for academia and the social life they can enjoy or it’s university students visiting GCA to share their experiences, we’re very happy that we have so many long-standing links with HE institutions.

‘During our trip to Brussels to enhance our political knowledge, we stayed at a youth hostel very close to Parliament. We went to the EU Parliament and had the pleasure of meeting Jean Lambert, an MEP for the Green Party. We left with a clearer understanding of Green Party policies and the party’s involvement in the EU. We also understood how the chamber in Parliament works, how debates Krystal and Daria in the EU Parliament are carried out and how EU laws are passed. We attended a debate at the European Economic and Social Committee about family businesses and, afterwards, got to meet young professionals who explained their achievements and careers. The Parliamentarium was a favourite for us all. We learned about the EU’s history and that World War II led to the introduction of the EU. We also learned about future policies and plans as well as about potential candidates for the EU. It was a wonderful, informative and enjoyable trip.’

With a lot of help from our friends

ACDiversity for taking eight sixth formers to Brussels

Reading, Cambridge, Roehampton, Essex, Anglia Ruskin, Sussex and Middlesex are our regular haunts and we’ll be adding Exeter to the list soon.

Angela Oteng, Year 11, could think of only one word to describe her study visit at Cambridge: ‘amazing’. She did repeat it a few times though. Her feedback went something like this …

Amazing!

Amaaaaazing!!

Amaaaaaaaaaazing!!!

ACD goes to Brussels

Andrea, Andrea, Angela and VJ in studious mood at Cambridge

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With a lot of help from our friends

Girls Talk speakers for inspiring GCA girls Girls Talk London brings together girls with successful women in technology, business, the media and financial services to hear their stories and question them about how to tackle challenges facing women. The aim is to increase the number of women entering competitive industries and maledominated professions.

In March a group of GCA girls took part in ‘Lift As We Climb’, a Girls Talk mentoring event and here’s what two of our girls learned: ‘I enjoyed listening to Hermione Hudson who is a senior partner at PwC. She told us that any kind of experience in business is good.

She aims to make people feel they can do anything and says you need a balance between family life and work. I asked Hermione how she deals with problems and she told me problems are challenges that just need a little time and reflection.’ Yu Hong Wang

Our primary friends for taking part in our Primary Enterprise Challenge Every year we have lots of enterprise activities for our students but this year, for the first time, we hosted an exciting challenge for local primary pupils led

by Brett Kingsworth and Chris Cuckson of Enabling Enterprise.

St Mary’s, Campsbourne, St Gildas’, North Harringay, Rokesly, St Paul’s and All Hallows, Mulberry, St Ann’s, Trinity and Weston Park all fielded enthusiastic teams for Operation Moonbase.

The focus was on developing eight core skills or qualities: teamwork, leadership, listening, presenting, aiming high, staying positive, problem-solving and creativity.

Pupils explored different careers by creating a new society on a distant moon. In one challenge, they explored leadership skills by becoming managers. They were asked to select a crew to support them on their mission. In another challenge, they became architects and builders and applied their problem-solving skills to create their dream city.

After building their cities, teams prepared a short but persuasive presentation in a bid to win the judges’ votes.

And the worthy winners were …

Campsbourne The results were read out in reverse order and Campsbourne pupils realised that they had gained first place when the runners-up name was called. They let out a whoop of joy and rushed to claim their trophy.

The delighted winners credited their success to the fact that ‘we were positive and believed in ourselves and we worked really well as a team.’

Girls talk

‘It was useful finding out how to get into media and publications. The speakers gave me tips on getting together the evidence needed to show interest; for example, by doing some writing, blogging, working in radio – however small the activity might be. The message was that things don’t come to you, you have to go out and get them.’ Andrea Arhagba

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Campsbourne’s city is nearly complete

Feedback from primary staff and pupils was so positive we are determined to run the event again next year.

Teachers particularly noticed children growing in confidence and seeing their healthy competitive spirit come to the fore.

‘Awesome. I met so many different people and made some amazing things.’

‘I did enjoy the day! Obviously, I mean who wouldn’t?’

‘Epic!’

‘Would have been better if we could have made a whole galaxy.’

With a lot of help from our friends

Pupils’ comments included:

Our parent volunteers Parents and carers support us in so many valuable ways.

In addition to supporting their own children, there are some who go much further, regularly coming into school to help out at events or in departments.

This year we’d like to thank Cynthia Matthew for the unstinting support she has given to enterprise and workrelated events.

Thanks to all our primary friends for such an entertaining day. Thanks also to Year 9 students who made the day such a success – Georlaine, Anitha, Kevin, Deborah, Chideraa, Kiyoni, Nafisa, Odunayo, Gloria, Azat and Szymon.

Georlaine judged teams alongside a teacher and was surprised by the high quality of the presentations.

‘They all tried their hardest. They knew what they wanted to say and were very articulate. I really enjoyed the day.’

Cynthia

‘Cynthia is keen to be involved in all school activities. She works closely with students on projects and accompanies them on visits to companies. We owe her a lot.’ Mrs Arhagba Another welcome regular is Helen Riley who volunteers in the library.

‘Helen has been working with me in the library every Friday afternoon since September.

Her invaluable help during busy lunchtimes and undertaking admin tasks makes my job much easier. I very much appreciate her support and commitment.’ Ms Brewty

Georlaine totting up marks

Thank you very much, Cynthia and Helen Helen

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Design and make

Here are just a few of the products GCA technology students have designed and made this year.

Sara explains how she created her commercial building: ‘I designed it using architectural software – Autodesk Revit. Then I exported the design into visualisation software to get a new perspective before playing around with different materials.’

Sara plans on studying architecture at university starting in 2016. She wants to spend the next year developing specific skills that will improve her chances of getting onto the course she finally decides on. One area she wants to

Another view of Sara’s building

Sara’s commercial building

investigate through online courses is that of sustainable energy. During the holidays, Sara will be taking part in a summer school with STORE, a London-based association of artists, architects and designers – all good experience.

Ilexcy’s jewellery box

Daniel’s storage table

Jawad’s fish tank

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Design and make

Kamily’s dolls’ house

Lateefat’s adustable coffee table

Mercyn’s cat castle

Michal’s adjustable chair

Mohit’s versatile shelf

Sebek’s wall-mounted storage unit

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STEM challenges

There has been so much going on this year in STEM. You’ve already seen what our roboteers have been up to. Here is just a flavour of other activities GCA students have been enjoying.

The Internet of Things The technical skills of a group of Year 10 computer science students were put to the test when they took part in HackEd15, a project organised by the London Knowledge Lab, a collaboration between two of the UK’s most prominent centres of research – the UCL Institute of Education and Birkbeck College.

The Mineshaft Challenge Year 7s were challenged to rescue several hundred mineworkers trapped underground when a mineshaft collapsed. The problem was that the mineshaft had a very restricted opening and couldn’t be accessed through traditional methods such as a lift.

The aim of the project was to get Designing for a smart city students working on an ‘Internet of Things’ , a scenario in which objects can transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.

Their specific task? To design, prototype and build projects for a ‘smart city’.

Students worked on: HandE – a glove fitted with sensors to control the home environment, from regulating the temperature of the room to controlling a TV. DogBot – the concept that a robot could offer support to the visuallyimpaired as guide dogs do today.

Sortbot – a coin-sorting device and gamification approach to persuade students to gather small change, usually discarded on the floor, to feed into a device as part of a points reward scheme.

Education technologist Tony Parkin, a group mentor for HackEd15, said:

‘The groups were incredibly independent and self-sufficient; they all ran like a dream for the two days. They were really impressive and worked stunningly. Everything that was feasible to solve in two days was done by the students and their projects were all of really high quality. They all hit some hard challenges but they overcame them.’

At the end of the event, our students gave presentations in front of an audience at the London Festival of Education held at the Institute of Education.

Professor Rose Luckin said:

‘Credit should go to them for presenting their projects on a large stage to a public audience. Not an easy thing to do for anyone let alone young students. They did this brilliantly and should be proud of their achievements.’

Presentation time

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The challenge was to build a structure that could straddle the mineshaft and lift the injured people out using a pulley system.

‘It was a fascinating and inspiring day.

My brother wants to be an architect and now I’m also starting to think about a career in that area. We learned about different structures and realised how important teamwork was. If you’re working on the most complicated structure in the world you need to work well with your team.’ Paradice, Year 7

STEM challenges

The Formula E Challenge Formula E’s School Series takes place in five cities – Buenos Aires, London, Miami, Long Beach and Berlin – during the 2014/2015 FIA Formula E Championship. In each city, ten teams from local schools are given a kit to build their own mini electric race car, which then competes in a special support race on the full-size Formula E track. The challenge is designed to promote sustainable engineering and technology amongst young people.

Mr Knappert applied for, and secured, a kit for a Year 9 team and they have been enthusiastically building and testing the car during the spring term.

Putting the parts together

It looks rather complicated

‘I’d like a career in engineering, preferably aerospace engineering.

I’ve not had a chance to do anything like this before so it’s been a great opportunity for me. It’s been fascinating learning about the different parts of the car, where they fit and what they do and I’ve learned from my mistakes.

My friends are interested in what I do although they aren’t interested in engineering but the Formula E team are all very keen so it’s good being able to socialise with them.’

Aliyah

Aisha’s first test drive

At the time of writing our team had just completed their first test drives. They will be racing the car at the end of June in a combined 20-minute practice/ qualifying session followed by a 20-minute race. To secure pole, they must take into account not only their speed but also their energy efficiency as they race around the circuit tracked by a special data logger fitted on the car. Teams will then line up in this order for a race to the finish using the same circuit as used by Formula E drivers. The top three finishers will each receive an award on the actual race podium.

Final touches

The Formula E team

Racing at Goodwood

‘It has been wonderful, a oncein-a-lifetime opportunity. Not many schools can offer you something like this.’ Aisha GCA

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STEM challenges

The Faraday Challenge One of our Y8 teams came a close second to Fortismere in the Faraday Challenge, which we hosted this year. Well done Mitchell, Bruno, Benedict, Umar, Sab and Max. Next year they’ll be going for first place.

Happy to be runners-up against strong competition

The challenge, run by the Institute of Engineering and Technology, aims to switch students on to technology. The task involved designing and prototyping a device that is 3D printed. Priya, Melissa and Alexandra explained that team members had to allocate themselves different roles. In their team, Priya and Melissa took charge of 3D print design whilst Alexandra had overall managerial responsibility.

Science and Technology Challenge Zeynep and Osa, both Year 10, won the Haringey and Enfield Science and Technology Challenge and went on to represent the two boroughs in the Southern England Challenge at King’s College, London. They gained a creditable third place as well as a stronger interest in engineering.

‘I find engineering challenges interesting but I don’t plan on engineering as a career. Instead, I hope to study maths, sciences and psychology at A level with a view to becoming a psychologist or paediatrician. I still got a lot out of the experience, developing my programming skills and having a chance to be part of a team with students from another school.’ Zeynep

But we can say no more as the challenge season is not yet over and we can’t give an unfair advantage to other schools yet to take part. Our lips are sealed.

Final touches

Rocketeers take the stand at the Farnborough Airshow

Surafel, Joseph and Michal

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Members of our rocket club were thrilled to be invited to give a practical demonstration at the Farnborough Airshow. Here you can see sixth formers, Surafel, Joseph and Michal, with Group Captain Wilkinson, an engineer in the Red Arrows squadron. All three worked into the small hours of the morning to get GCA’s stand ready.

Zeynep and Osa

a t r e c s It’ g n e l l a h a c .

M E T S n i

Calling all parents and carers

Calling all parents and carers Are you interested in being co-opted onto the Student and Community Committee of GCA’s Governing Body?

Fr Tim Pike, Chair of the Committee, invites parents and carers to express an interest in joining the committee as a co-optee.

We have three parent governors, two of whom serve on this committee, but we are keen to have the contributions of one or two more parents. You will need to commit to attending three meetings a year, one per term. These are evening meetings running from 6.30pm for about two hours.

As a co-optee you will not have voting rights but will take a full part in discussions.

This committee has responsibility for the following areas: • Well-being • Safeguarding and child protection • Admissions • Attendance • Behaviour • Student engagement • Communication with parents/carers • Equalities matters • Relations with people and organisations in the wider community • Marketing

If you are interested or would like to know more, please contact Viv Oxley on 020 8609 0100 or by email: voxley@greigcityacademy.co.uk

n e e b y l n ai ging year

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y

Achievem e

G

re

Christi an

munity om C

na ti n

ig

C i t y A cad

em

Greig City Academy is a co-educational comprehensive school for students aged 11 to 19.

It is a City Academy with independent status and is maintained directly by the Department for Education.

GCA’s Principal Paul Sutton OBE, BSc (Hons), MA

GCA’s Chair of Governors Sheila Taylor MA (Hons)

The Greig Trust and the Church of England sponsor Greig City Academy. David Greig, a successful local businessman, founded the Greig Trust in memory of his parents in 1949. The Trust was established to provide funds to assist in the education of Hornsey children in accordance with the Christian faith.

Greig City Academy, High Street, Hornsey, London N8 7NU T: 020 8609 0100 E: enquiries@greigcityacademy.co.uk W: www.greigcityacademy.co.uk

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