Debating Enrichment
Calling all students with a passion for debating their point of view! Mr Zafar, Mrs Davis and Miss Bye are running a Debating enrichment every Tuesday at 3.35pm in the ILC where current controversial topics will be the talk of the evening. We hope to enter National debating competitions with the team; watch this space for future success!
Love Art? Take Part!
Students can now enjoy art every lunchtime in the ILC, where the walls come alive with colour for the 'Love Art? Take Part!' Enrichment.
The project started during the summer holidays when Sixth Form students Sonia Chopra, Poonam Masih and Salema Yasmin dedicated their free time to help Miss Bye redecorate the Independent Learning Centre (ILC). The Year 13 girls painted characters and quotes from various novels throughout the ILC, which will now form part of their portfolio work for an Art Award. Ms Robinson even committed her holiday to paint a book cover on the ILC wall.
Students have been delighted by the transformation and now frequent the ILC at break, lunch and after school.
All are welcome to join Miss Bye every lunchtime to continue the impressive Art Mural! Many thanks to Daniel Kaczorowski, Kia Dunell, Sorie Jalloh, Sonia Khattun,William Dilling, Kieran Sleap, Hannah Ovenden, Tia Forbes, Poonam Masih, Sonia Chopra and Fozia Kauser for their excellent artwork this term!
Media Production & Journalism
Future journalists, photographers and broadcasters congregate every Thursday at 3.35pm in the ILC with Miss Bye and Miss Greenacre!
Students have been busily working on the Academy Newsletter to meet their tight deadline and are excited to await the response to their creation! Meanwhile they will be working on video production for Academy events. All students thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the BBC School News Report, where students had the chance of broadcasting their news story live on the BBC News on 15th March 2012. Watch this space for School Report 2013!
Author Visits
Budding author, Sarah Alderson, is set to visit the Academy this July to share her remarkable story with Academy students. Sarah, who has risen to fame through her debut novel, 'Hunting Lila', will visit ahead of the release of her latest novel and share tips on how to write and publish a novel.
Students were lucky enough to receive a detailed lecture from childrens' author, Barbara Spencer, this term. Barbara gave a brief overview of her fascinating life followed by a lengthy and thorough introduction to writing as a profession. Barbara presented students with helpful advice and tips on how to write creatively and what path to follow to make it in the publishing world. Following the three lectures, Mrs Spencer kindly sent in her compliments on our students' behaviour and maturity. Several students (and staff) also visited her the next day in Waterstones Bedford to get their copies of her books signed!
Science Lecture
Over one hundred Academy students are set to enjoy a lecture on Artificial Intelligence, delivered by a Professor from the Univeristy of London on Friday 27th January 2012. The lecture aims to both inform and inspire students to follow a career in Scientific fields. Year 8 students from local middle schools will also be invited to experience a university lecture.
Theatre Visits
Lion King (London)
Thirty-nine Academy students are set to enjoy Disney's 'The Lion King' at the Lyceum Theatre in London this July. Students will also take a tour around the British Museum to view African art ahead of the Serengeti-based performance.
War Horse (London)
Thirty-nine Academy students enjoyed the superb opportunity to visit Festive Covent Garden (London) this December to watch the award-winning and sell-out performance of War Horse at the New London Theatre. Students visited festive Covent Garden, world famous Leicester Square, took a tour around The National Gallery and had excellent seats for the evening performance of War Horse.
War Horse is a thrilling and spectacular production based on the celebrated novel by Michael Morpurgo.The First World War is the backdrop for this tale of bravery, loyalty, and the extraordinary bond between a young recruit and his horse. Actors, working with astonishing life-sized puppets by the internationally renowned Handspring Puppet Company, take audiences on an unforgettable journey through history.
Competitions
Students were invited to enter a range of competitions last term to win exciting prizes! These included the Cathy Cassidy competition to win signed copies of her books, the Financial Mail's essay competition to win an iPad and the National Literacy Trust's competition to complete a graphic novel strip; watch this space to see if our entries result in winners!
This term, students can win a Samsung Galaxy Tablet by creating a 140-word story starting with the line 'Please sir, I want some more...' Entries need to be with Miss Bye by the end of May 2012.