The pupils braved some very low temperatures to camp out in the school woods during a January weekend. They enjoyed a take-away curry, flame-grilled popcorn and a breakfast fry-up, as well as sleeping in the outdoor cabin’s hammocks. This was a great opportunity to develop resilience in both staff and pupils; a great time was had by all!
As part of our Services programme, our Amnesty International Write for Rights group re-launched this month. So far, the group have written to governments and victims in both Bangladesh and Cameroon, where human rights abuses have been highlighted through specific cases. Anyone can join the campaign and information is on the Noticeboard Team under the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion tab.
This year, the festival fell on 22nd January and marked the start of the Year of the Rabbit. Although generally calm, gentle and loving, Rabbit people can be very ambitious and intuitively know how to get ahead in the world.
To celebrate Chinese Luna New Year, Senior pupils studying Chinese paid a visit to a restaurant in Norwich for a New Year meal. They had the opportunity to bring their learning from the classroom into practice within a celebration of culture and enjoyment. An especially big thank you to Mr Nelson for joining the group for the celebration and for driving them safely.
Year 9 have been learning how to use tools such as a saw, axe and knives to effectively prepare firewood. This included making pegs, techniques for splitting logs and making kindling.
The following week, they put their new skills to the test, in order to build and light a fire. They discovered that isn’t quite as easy as it looks, but teamwork makes all the difference!
The boys then moved on to shelter building. They made the most of their teamwork skills to build a shelter that could fit the group, and concentrated on the roof.
They then had to contend with windier conditions in which to create a fire the following week, so they found objects to work as a wind break (some found themselves the best option!) Mr Majid then demonstrated how to fillet a mackerel and some of the group took the opportunity to try this themselves and then cook their efforts.
Whilst the Year 10 pupils have been preparing for their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, the Year 11 and Year 12 pupils have been completing their classification training to develop their understanding of the principles of flight, flying operations and airmanship knowledge. In an effort to give rather complex theory some practical application, Cadet Flight Sergeant Julius R had the Year 12 cadets display air power in the form of paper aeroplanes!
After the home weekend, the cadets will be moving into the shooting range to start their small arms training – watch this space!
At the beginning of term, a group of 15 Year 7 & 8 pupils visited the Productivity East building at the University of East Anglia. During their visit they learned about what it takes to become a fully qualified engineer. They toured the building and were able to see a range of sophisticated equipment, used to do anything from 3D printing to milling components out solid blocks of metal and testing the stresses and strains on materials.
Recently in Lent term senior games, girls have had the option to choose football and have been very fortunate that the school has made new links with Norwich FC Community Sports Foundation. Our thanks go to Rosie Filby for coaching and inspiring the next generation of female footballers.
On a blustery day, the Lent term football season kicked off as the long-awaited fixture against the OGs finally arrived. Having been postponed from September, the OG side (consisting of former pupils who left in 2021 and 2022) arrived with many beards and slightly longer hair, but in good shape and ready to play!
The game kicked off and was even, with both sides having good possession of the ball, but 10 minutes in Gresham’s took the lead, with a goal kick from Jakub N being flicked on by Jude P into the path of Albert W, who scored his first of the game with a confident finish. The score shortly became 2-0, as Jude P finished after a run at the defence, firing low inside the post and the first team were on top. The lead would have been extended, except from some excellent defending by OG Nick Morgan and some outstanding saves by OG keeper Harry Short.
The OGs did not give up and a good passage of play led to their first goal, with a ball over the top being latched onto by Joel P, who scored to reduce the deficit whilst the home team debated the lack of an offside decision! Half time and the score was 2-1 and it was still anyone’s game.
The OG’s gave Gresham’s a fright after the break, with a clearance from a corner being volleyed home in spectacular fashion by Bobby Rash, restoring parity and bringing the score to 2-2. This galvanised both sides, as they both pushed for the decisive goal that could win the game. However, in the final 15 minutes of the match the Gresham’s first team took charge, with another three goals from Albert W (the second of which was a sublime curling shot) and a header from a corner by George B ending the contest.
The final result was 6-2 to Gresham’s first team. This was a competitive game played in an excellent spirit and it was fantastic to welcome back some former pupils to the school. Many thanks to all who took part and for the many spectators who came along to watch.
Our Year 10 pupils celebrated the new year in French with a slice from a ‘Gallette des Rois’ – a traditional French cake eaten on 6th January (and throughout January) to mark the feast of the Epiphany. Within the cake is hidden a ‘fève’ which used to be a bean, and is now a porcelain figure. The finder then gets to be King or Queen for the day. Congratulations to Henry for finding the fève!
Mother Tongue Other Tongue is a national poetry project, led by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. In the Eastern region, the competition is being led by Routes into Languages East and this year, five pupils of French at Gresham’s – Phoebe W, and from left to right, Issi L, Ella L, Ruby P and Romilly H – were all shortlisted in the East Region category (Other Tongue) for their original poems. They will all receive certificates and their work will be published in an anthology alongside other shortlisted regional entrants. This is a fantastic achievement and we wish them the very best of luck as their entries move forward for judging in the final, which takes place in March.