The STEAM Careers Convention was a dynamic and buzzing learning event, celebrating the exciting collaboration of employment and education with a focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics). STEAM subjects are used in a variety of employment sectors and higher education courses.

The event welcomed all Senior School pupils, Year 7 Prep School pupils, and pupils from Alderman Peel, Cromer Academy, Fakenham Academy, Sheringham High School & Sixth Form. This collaborative gathering fostered a shared enthusiasm for exploring future pathways.

A standout feature of the day was the creative contribution of Rebecca Graphics, whose stunning illustrated wall captured the energy, curiosity, and insights of the pupils. This vibrant artwork brought their learning experiences to life, serving as a vivid reminder of the inspiration gained throughout the event.

This event perfectly demonstrated the vital role of STEAM in education and employment, and how linking the two can shape future learning, careers, and opportunities for both pupils and employers.

As part of STEAM Week, we were delighted to host Oliver Logan, professional sports practitioner working with elite athletes and representing Team GB at four Olympic Games. Oliver’s visit provided a remarkable opportunity for our pupils to gain first-hand insight into the role of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) in the world of high-performance sports. His extensive experience showed how STEAM drives the success of Olympic and Paralympic athletes, enhancing performance in events such as Diving, Swimming, Athletics and Archery.

Oliver’s talk to both Sixth Form pupils and younger year groups offered a fascinating perspective on the sophisticated science and technology that underpin athletic excellence. His expertise shed light on the pivotal roles played by biomechanics, fluid mechanics, materials science, motion capture, artificial intelligence, and engineering—all of which contribute to pushing athletes toward peak performance.

In addition to his talk, Oliver engaged directly with pupils across various sports sessions, working alongside our athletic development pupils, coaching swimmers, and interacting with our GCSE and A level Sports pupils. His presence extended into classrooms as well, where he contributed to subject learning in Computer Science, Physics, and Maths. These immersive sessions brought STEAM concepts to life, demonstrating to pupils how real-world data and technological tools are essential in refining training, improving technique, and enhancing overall performance.

Through hands-on activities, such as using motion capture for technique analysis, studying fluid mechanics to optimise swimming, and exploring artificial intelligence in performance monitoring, pupils gained a deeper appreciation of how STEAM disciplines directly impact athletic achievement. Oliver’s guidance provided a practical understanding of how precision, problem solving, and innovation are essential to the world of elite sports today.

Oliver Logan’s visit was an outstanding celebration of STEAM in sports. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Oliver Logan, fostering enriching experiences for our pupils as they explore the limitless potential of STEAM in their studies and future careers. For more about Oliver’s work in performance enhancement, visit Logan Performance.

Art students studying at GCSE, A Level or Higher Education were invited to submit work to the competition, which was assessed by a small panel of professional local artists. A short list of 10 artists was generated, and after viewing original artwork, one winner & runner up will be chosen.

The competition aims to help promote youth art talent in Norfolk, help young artists get a foothold in the professional art market and boost the influence of new artists at the show.

Year 12 pupil Sophia did incredibly well to be shortlisted, and she has therefore been invited to exhibit two original pieces of artwork at this year’s Norfolk Show, which takes place at the Norfolk Showground on Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th June. We wish her all the best for when the winner of the competition is announced!

As Team Frog prepared to catch their flight home, they reflected on their journey over the past three years.

They have competed in multiple regionals across the UK and reached two National finals. They have achieved multiple awards including their Innovate award that ultimately got them to the VEX World Finals in Dallas, Texas.

They were among over 850 teams in Dallas which puts them in the top 5% of teams from across the world. They finished in the top 200 in the skills challenge which puts them in the top 1.2% in the world.

Georgina, Chloe-Leila and Emily have shown such resilience and determination over the past 3 years in VEX and the confidence and maturity at finals was a product of all this hard work. They plan to mentor upcoming VEX groups at Gresham’s to support future teams wishing to reach the dizzy heights of worlds.

There were over 115,000 people who visited the finals in Dallas with robotics teams from over 45 different countries, it was a wonderful experience for all, and lots can be taken from it.

On the final day in Texas, they explored Dallas city centre via a tour bus and soaked up some of the atmosphere and culture.

Many thanks for all the support to get these young women to World’s!

The overall winners of our STEAM Primary School Competition, which is held in the school’s Dyson Building, have been announced. Congratulations to Hattie, Charlotte and Delilah from Reepham Primary School who have won this year’s trophy, funded by The James Dyson Foundation. Their superb work was scored on success, performance, and design.

11 primary schools took part in the final, including Reepham Primary, Astley Primary School, Sheringham Community Primary School, Tunstead Primary School, St Mary’s Roughton, Aldbrough Primary School, Langham Village School, Wells-next-the-Sea Primary School and St. Peter’s Easton Primary School. The pupils were challenged with navigating three different tasks; building and launching rockets, coding sphero bots to complete a predetermined course in the fastest time possible and building a model space station whilst exploring a ‘real’ space station using VR goggles.

Since February, we have welcomed over 30 local primary schools, including over 610 pupils, to take part in the competition, with pupils leaving ‘excited and inspired’ after enjoying the tasks. Working closely with The James Dyson Foundation, the Dyson Building is now a hub for STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) education in Norfolk. This project has enabled a large number of children to work with Gresham’s staff in the Dyson Building, inspiring them to consider STEAM subjects as future careers. It has been a very popular event, one that will also happen next year with the hope that even more schools will take up the offer to come and compete.#

The F24 Greenpower electric car team (Grace S, Freddie L, Sam H, and Alastair S) travelled to the Lotus test track at Hethel to take part in the team’s first F24 race.

It was a great day, the car performed well initially but had some teething problems with wires being shaken loose and we managed to shred a tyre. However, they finished many laps in the hour thirty race and finished mid table. The team has many ideas on how to develop the car for the next race and had a great time.

The STEAM outreach competition 2023 started this week, with Reepham Primary being the first of over 30 Norfolk primary schools attending. The pupils were fantastic and fed back that they were all ‘excited and inspired’.

Our VEX Robotics team secured the top 2 positions at the VEX Robotics Competition that took place in Sunderland on Wednesday 8^th February. The pupils competed with and against 20 registered teams from all over the UK. The action-packed day required high school and sixth form students to execute the 2022-2023 VEX Robotics Competition game, Spin Up presented by the Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation.

As regional champion recipients, the team has qualified for the National competition in Telford in March extending their journey as they seek to qualify and compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship in Texas USA.

Georgina B, Chloe-Leila G, Avis F, Gabriella H, Emily M and David K prepared for the tournament by working together to design, build and program a robot using VEX V5, that could quickly and efficiently solve specific challenges that come with playing the 2022-2023 VEX Robotics Competition game, Spin Up.

Each week, they applied what they’ve learned about STEAM in the classroom, to build these semi-autonomous machines. An equally important set of skills is learned through the competition — communication, project management, time management, and teamwork.

Robert Hazelwood, the team’s advisor (STEAM Coordinator) said, “I am extremely proud of this group of students, some have been developing their skills in VEX for over 2 years within the Dyson Building. This achievement is the reward for hours of extra-curricular commitment and vast amounts of resilience and teamwork. To achieve a top 10% position nationally is an achievement in itself. I hope they enjoy the national competition and who knows, we could be travelling to Texas for the World Championship!”

The VEX Robotics Competition team meets every week during GAP’s. The pupils learn about electronics, programming, mechanical systems, animation, 3D CAD, computer-aided machining, web design, and materials fabrication.