College Life - February 2022 Edition

Digital

COLLEGE LIFE The newsletter of St Edmund's College | February 2022

Headmaster's Welcome Welcome to the February edition of College Life.

Please click on me for a more personal introduction, and then browse to your heart’s content!

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Headmaster's Book Students that have produced outstanding work or have had a remarkable personal achievement are recognised by being selected to sign the Headmaster's Book. Congratulations to the following students for signing the Headmaster's Book during this first half term.

Zak Jordan

German

Guy Omotosho

German

Tanishaa Chudasama

German

Patrick Marshall

Art

Megan Crook

History

Isabelle Lai

Christmas card competition

Megan Crook

English

Jessica Bowley

English

Eva Olaiya

English

Arabella Piccirillo

English

Aidan Cosgrove

English

Cosimo Cavaleri

English

Keira Ferns

Achievement in football

Ahana Matharu

Geography

Megan Crook

Geography

Anabel Turley

English

Tife Ibironke

English

Josh Mackaill

History

Avneet Chawla

Edmundian Spirit

Rian Patel

Edmundian Spirit

The Edmundian Have you browsed the 2018-2020 edition of The Edmundian yet? If you haven't, please click below to flick through digitally. This year, we printed on-demand to support our #PlantingNotPrinting initiative. Our most tremendous thanks go to Mr Woodward, Head of Media Studies, for creating this superb edition.

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Musical Theatre Programme Our talented students are in rehearsals for the upcoming performance of Side Show! Side Show is coming to St Edmund's College in March. Tickets are coming soon!

In the meantime, Mr Veasey, Head of Musical Theatre, is continuing to train our talented students through our new Musical Theatre Programme. Click below to listen to Katie, Rhetoric II, practising 'Breathe' from the 'In The Heights' soundtrack.

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Sport The College has played several fixtures this term against Wellingborough, Brooke House, Forest and UCS School. There have been some outstanding results in the fixtures and some notable performances.

Mr Cunnah, Head of Boys' Games and Challoner House Master

The Elements side are now in the Semi-Final of the u12 County Cup Competition. Some excellent performances in the cup have led to an exciting home tie vs Clement Danes School. Good luck to the boys! Excellent victories against Simon Balle, Wellingborough, Forest School and Nicholas Breakspear have been the highlights of the term so far.

The Rudiments side is also in the Semi-Final of the U13 County Plate Competition. Some excellent performances in the cup have led to an away tie vs John Henry Newman. Good luck to the Rudiments! Excellent victories against UCS, John Warner School, Simon Balle and Marlborough School have been the highlights.

The Grammar students have made excellent progress and were unlucky to be knocked out of the County Cup Quarter Finals vs Queens School. The side has played some outstanding football with some wonderful displays against Brooke House, Wellingborough and Simon Balle.

The Syntax students have worked well this term and recorded two excellent victories against Simon Balle and Wellingborough School. The students also battled well against Brook House School to record a 1-0 victory.

The Seniors have played some good opposition this term. They have also enjoyed playing on the new Chapel pitch. The Seniors have played against Haileybury, Forest, Brook House and Wellingborough. They recorded an excellent victory against Brook House. The highlights of which can be seen on our Sport Instagram page sec_sport.

Sport This half term has been a great success for girls’ sport in netball.

We have been action packed with fixtures, which has been great to see. A great weekend for the College was against Queenswood school.

The U12A team were dominant across all areas of the court where they secured an impressive 23-5 win. The U13s were not to be out played by the U12s and were equally as impressive as they ran away with a 29-8 victory.

Mrs Robinson, Head of Girls' Games and Pole house master

The U15s clawed their way back into their fixture with Queenswood after being down at half time to bring the game back to draw by the end of three quarters. Unfortunately, the opposition scored in the last four seconds of the game to take the win, but what a fixture to be part of.

A few other highlights throughout the half term include the U12A team at the Chigwell netball tournament, sadly one team had to pull out. However, our girls were dominant with a 23-0 win over Chigwell and an 11-3 win over Forest. The U12B and C team also thoroughly enjoyed the Chigwell tournament with the B team notching up a victory against Chigwell 12-2.

The U14s had an extremely competitive match against Chigwell, the defence executed well timed interceptions, with the attackers making the most of their opportunities at goal to secure a 13-11 win. The first and second teams have been out representing the College and gelling in their new combinations. The first team were held to a 27 all draw against Forest, in what was a competitive end to end game. The first team have a semi-final for the county cup to look forward to when they return after half term against Chauncy school.

High Achievers Wrap

By Dr Eves Arkwright Scholarship

Ming Song, Poetry Talbot, has prepared and applied for an Arkwright Scholarship. He spent the Michaelmas term designing, creating and building his very own Dr Octopus arms. Ming undertook the Arkwright Aptitude paper at the start of February and all going well will be invited to the final round of interviews in April. Good luck Ming!

Physics Olympiad

Lewis Parry achieved a Bronze certificate in the extremely competitive British Physics Olympiad.

Advanced Mathematics Support Programme

Eight of our brightest Syntax Mathematicians attended a conference at the University of Hertfordshire run by the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme. Amongst a number of challenges against other local schools, they grappled with the power of the golden ratio and twisted their minds around warping the geometry of the arcade game Asteroids. Who knew Maths could be this much fun…

Virtual Tour of CERN

The Physics Society organised a Virtual Tour of CERN in late January. An eye-opening presentation into the details of an experiment to observe the motion of anti-matter under the influence of gravity was topped by a live tour inside one of CERN’s famous detectors. Our guide being temporarily absorbed by a black hole only added to the occasion.

University of Oxford

– Philosophy with Science Taster event

Some of our highest achieving Scientists and Mathematicians explored the possibilities afforded by a Philosophy degree at the University of Oxford in early January. Undertaking a course of selfstudy, the week culminated in attending an excellent live Q+A event with students and faculty members at Oxford.

Industrial Cadets

The top Scientists from Rudiments and Grammar have kicked off their projects with the goal of gaining recognition as Industrial Cadets under the CREST award scheme. Mr Mostyn can look forward to a variety of projects landing on his desk in early May recommending changes to the school architecture under the broad themes of “Zero Waste World”, “Healthy World” and “Futureproofing buildings for Climate Change”.

Elements STEM rotation

Elements have begun their Period 7 STEM rotation. They will be designing, building, and most importantly, launching their own rocket cars prior to the Easter holidays. A trip to the Silverstone Interactive Museum in early March should provide inspiration.

St Ed's Award Our St Edmund's Award students had a fantastic time planting trees this half term!

Heart Dissection Our Syntax, Poetry and Rhetoric I students were dissecting hearts with Mr Plummer!

Music

By Mr Woodhall

It was a tremendous honour for the Schola Cantorum to be invited to sing for the Vigil Mass at Westminster Cathedral on Saturday 29th January. The choir sang the St Anne’s Mass Setting by James MacMillan as well as Jubilate and Ave Maria by Philip Stopford. It was wonderful that so many parents were able to attend the Mass and hear the choir sing.

The Jazz Band continues to thrive under the direction of Mr McNiff with help from Mr Webster.

All wind and brass players are welcome. The Rock Band (with assistance from Mr Kelly) is sounding great too. Do speak to Mr Woodhall if you would like to join these ensembles or the Orchestra of Choirs.

One of our A Level students, Gabriel plays the Marimba. We are delighted to have both a Marimba and a Harp in the College and if you would like to learn one of these fantastic instruments, or any of the more usual ones, do speak to a member of the Music Department.

The Colour of Blackness

By Whitney Udigwe

Oh, how different our looks may be.

Her hairs braided, his curly and some wavy.

Many have deep brown eyed that could rule over land.

Few have crystal eyes that could protect the sea.

From her melanin enriched skin, To his white glossy texture, These are the colours of our blackness Displayed for all to see.

But everyone’s lives differ even more so, As we all have struggles that not always show.

Some have money to fill up pockets, And some make up the cash as they go.

Scholars, teachers, lawyers, Students, criminals, doctors.

We all may be different, but there is one thing that I know.

These are the colours of our blackness, Whether you are a friend or a foe.

So, here’s the point I’m trying to make, We are all different in our own way, But when we come together, we are all the same, All our colours contribute to one shade.

The colour of blackness, forever and always.

The colour of my black: Red, green, purple, and blue.

The colour of your black: Pink, grey, yellow, and maroon.

There are so many shapes and shades to our blackness and our pain Because at the end of the day we are all the same.

Him, her, me, and you.

Bake Off

For a number of years, Talbot House has held a ‘Bake Off’ for charity. The Bake Off this year took place on Monday 7th February.

The baked goods were sold at break, with the proceeds going towards the College charity, The Keech Hospice, who provided William Lang and his family such support over the last couple of years.

Our House prefects have decided the theme for the Bake Off this year is, “Animals” and students are encouraged to get creative!

As well as a fundraiser, we will be judging homemade entries before they go on sale and prizes will be awarded for Best sponge cake, Best brownie, Best cookie, Best cupcake/muffin, and Showstopper!

Amount raised for Keech Hospice - £357.60!

MedSoc

Mayura- President

Hey guys! My name is Mayura, and I have the pleasure of being your new MedSoc president! I’m currently studying maths, biology and chemistry, aiming to study Dentistry at university. I look forward to aiding and inspiring other students hoping to pursue a career in healthcare by organising lots of engaging events. :)

Gabriel- Vice President

I am Gabriel, the vice president of MedSoc. Studying medicine is a thought I had after I saw the doctors curing and taking care of my grandmother who had cancer. They really motivated me to help people and to study medicine. Joining MedSoc allows me to prepare for my application earlier, as well as to know more in-depth about medicine.

Leo - Current Affairs Secretary

Jan - Secretary of Neuroscience

Hello, I'm Leo. I joined MedSoc to get a better idea of what it would be like to be a doctor as I had always considered it as a possible career for me since I enjoy learning about the body and applying my knowledge. My role, as Current Affairs Secretary, is to keep the society updated on recent discoveries in the fields of Medicine and Biology as well as current challenges facing the NHS.

Hi! My name is Jan and I am the Secretary of Neuroscience at MedSoc. I am interested mostly in the neural part of medicine. I have joined MedSoc because I wanted to have a greater participation in the college life as well as try to expand my knowledge in medicine. My goal is to help those interested in medicine to join and to help them find a suitable place in the MedSoc team.

MedSoc

Bethany - Wellbeing Officer

I'm Bethany, and I am the wellbeing officer for MedSoc. I am hoping to become a paediatrician of some kind, due to this I became part of MedSoc to get a head start in the process and provide me with valuable knowledge before going into the application process. I am hoping to increase the wellbeing of the group so if you need something for this or a suggestion to make the group better, please inform me and I can sort it.

Lydia - Secretary of Surgical Research

I’m Lydia and I am the Secretary of Surgical Research in the MedSoc team, aiming to study medicine. I am inspired by the variety of skills that surgeons have and this motives me in all my studies. I find surgery astonishing because I know how life changing it can be.

Nkechi

Hester

Serena

Kiana

Hi, we’re Hester, Nkechi, Kiana and Serena and we are the MedSoc Digital Team. As the digital team, we hope to bring our MedSoc to the internet to help people in other schools without access to one in their school, and to encourage more people to get into medicine.

Food Technology

By Mrs Cumming

It has been wonderful to be able to, once again, enjoy our end of rotation picnic. Our Elements all enjoyed making tacos during the lesson and then venturing outside into the “fresh” January sunshine to enjoy them, along with a cup of warm hot chocolate.

For the month of February, we will be observing #fibrefebruary by challenging students to improve their fibre intake to 30 grams a day.

Did you know?

We can all improve our fibre intake and appreciate the health benefits. Fibre is essential as it helps keep our digestive systems and bowels working and contribute to healthy cholesterol levels and promote healthy gut bacteria.

Specifically, fibre helps us to feel full and prevent constipation. There is evidence showing that diets rich in fibre may help reduce the risk of colon cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Building a library Mrs Ager has a connection to village schools in Gambia. They have been busy building a library after Mrs Ager sent some books no longer used by the English Department before the pandemic!

The work there continues with a floor being laid recently in the Daru Deaf Unit.

Mrs Ager made up several boxes of novels and added these to donations from the Geography Department! These have now arrived and Empower (the organisation behind the school project there) posted these photos to show the progress!

Pictured with Empower's photos: Mrs Ager passes books to cousin Sue Read, who has made several visits to the schools to work as a volunteer.

Languages Exciting Opportunities in the German Department!

St Edmund’s College now has a partner school in Germany. The Arnold Janssen Gymnasium is a Catholic grammar school in Neuenkirchen, near Münster. The link was made when Joanna Gardner, Head of German, was awarded a place at a Partnership Seminar organised by the UK-German Connection last December. It was supposed to take place in Düsseldorf but ended up being virtual.

The Arnold Janssen Gymnasium

Activities so far have involved a Grammar German class jointly compiling a Padlet about what they do at Christmas with a partner class from Germany, then on Teams we had a joint lesson, where we first challenged them to an international game of Blooket, followed by jointly working on a Padlet about what they like eating, school dinners etc. The Germans made their contributions in English, and the SEC students wrote in their best German.

The school’s new chapel, incorporating the original entrance

We had a surprise visit from Mr Mostyn, who introduced himself then spoke to the Germans in fluent German, which they had not expected!

Students were very excited to see the partner class on the screen, as it made their learning come alive to realise that they could interact with other young people in Germany. Frau Willermann and Mrs Gardner are planning more projects for the future.

Grammar students in class with the German students on the screen

Languages Rhetoric students doing German A Level are also benefitting from the school partnership, as they have linked up with Abitur students in the German school to have weekly conversations on Zoom or Teams.

We are looking forward to developing this partnership in the future as it will motivate students and increase their awareness of the wider world, as well as building relationships with students in Germany.

- Mrs Gardner, Teacher of German

On Thursday, 3rd February, as part of their Period 7 Junior Language Leaders Activity, James Brookman and Lara Yagudaev, both in Grammar, went to the Prep School (thank you very much, Mr Cartwright and Ms McLauchlan!).

They had prepared a lesson on food and drink in Spanish and taught both Year 5 groups enough words to order when they next go to Spain!

Year 5 particularly enjoyed the games, which inspired them to practise the new vocabulary.

James and Lara are looking forward to preparing another lesson to be able to visit again soon.

Religious Life Sleepout

On Friday 21st January we held our annual sleepout to raise money for the homeless.

Andrew Hollingsworth from ‘The Passage’ spoke to the students about homelessness and the work of ‘The Passage’, a homelessness charity based in London.

54 students and staff members took part in this year’s event, in which we were all sponsored by friends and family members to sleep in the cold. Throughout the evening, we participated in several activities highlighting the difficulties faced by the homeless, including listening to our visiting speaker, and watching an eye-opening documentary on the ‘hidden homeless’ those who do not sleep on the street, but have to care for their children while moving from hostels and friends’ houses. The evening came to a close with a candlelight vigil, where we all held candles, listened to an Elements dramatic performance, and reflected on what we had learned from both the speaker and the documentary. Though none of us anticipated a warm and peaceful sleep, we didn’t expect the night to be quite so cold. Many of us were unable to sleep at all, and this truly opened many of our eyes.

If there was anything that could really help us to empathise with those less fortunate than ourselves, it would most definitely be the lack of sleep we received that night. We must remember that this was only for one night, and we can all go home, yet the homeless have to face this every night. In the morning, we all participated in a reflection service, where we each wrote a short prayer and reflection, looking back on the night we had just experienced.

- Ellis Kontkowski

Religious Life Holocaust Remembrance Day

Holocaust Memorial Day encourages remembrance in a world scarred by genocide. It is kept on the 27th January to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, alongside the millions of other people killed under Nazi persecution of other groups and in genocides that followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.

27 January marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp.

The Holocaust threatened the fabric of civilisation, and genocide must still be resisted every day.

Our world often feels fragile and vulnerable and we cannot be complacent. On holocaust memorial day students were invited to think about the various holocausts and commit themselves to a world where the dignity of each person is recognised. They showed their commitment by leaving their fingerprint on the College coat of arms

Keech House Hospice

Parents, students, and staff were invited to buy a St Edmund’s Hoodie.

All profits from the sale of the hoodies went to Keech House Hospice, our chosen charity for this year.

Art During the Period 7 Elements rotation programme, our Elements have been creating Julian Opie style digital portraits using Photoshop! Take a look at the portraits they have created below!

Isla

Henry

Charlie

Henry

Anishka

Sophie

Oliver

Captured at the College Our staff and students take wonderful photos of St Edmund's College. Below, we share a few of our favourites.

With thanks to Mr Hull for the above photographs.

Stay Connected We hope that you enjoyed our February digital edition of College Life. If you would like to be featured in our next half term edition, please do email your stories or achievements to pcollison@stedmundscollege.org.

You can also stay connected with us by following us on our social media platforms:

@stedmundscollegeandprep

@stedmundscollegeandprep

@stedmundsware

Please also visit our website at stedmundscollege.org to stay up to date with the latest news and events.

We wish you a restful half term break and look forward to bringing you the next edition of College Life in March.

Avita Pro Fide!