st angela's christmas newsletter 2015

in this issue: Music and Drama News and Events 6th Form

Enrichment ReportsSummer Work ExperienceEuropean visits

Anti-Bullying WeekSporting AchievementsDebating

Choir welcomes ChampionsChristmas Carol ConcertSchool Musical Reviews

2 St Angela’s Christmas Newsletter 2015

I hope this Christmas newsletter finds you well and I’m sure looking forward to the festive season with your family, after what seems like a very long but quick autumn term.We have had a very busy term beginning with the celebration of our excellent GCSE results from the summer. Year 11 are just completing their mock examinations at the moment and with year 12 & 13 taking theirs in January, we are fully back into the swing of securing success for next summer.We have had some excellent extra-curricular achievements in the term. The choir’s performance in welcoming the defending Rugby World Cup Champions was simply stunning and it was a great honour to be part of such a prestigious event as a school. To be “Legacy Champions” again for the third year in a row was also simply astounding and congratulations to Year 9 on such an amazing win! The return of another musical for the school, the students meeting royalty, trips abroad, as well as a feast of dance, music and work in the community, once again demonstrate the talents of our students and the dedication of our staff in creating these opportunities.All of the above is now complete and we focus our work in this final week in two very important areas, firstly in charity. As I said to the Sixth Form in their Christmas Mass, it is in their charity work that we see our Blessed Lord working through them. In raising money and organising hampers, we care for the poor and needy of our local community and our students, so blessed in their lives, rightly do this at this special time of year. The second area is that of preparation for Christmas itself. Whilst we as parents work hard to ensure our children have a good Christmas, it is their appreciation of the real meaning of Christmas that is of greatest importance – so I pray with you as we celebrate the coming of our Saviour for the continual spiritual growth of the students of our school.Have a happy and holy Christmas all,

Mark Johnson

Headteacher

Dear Parents and Carers,

3St Angela’s Christmas Newsletter 2015

http://tinyurl.com/nvh3yyp

St Angela’s Choir welcome the eventual Rugby World Cup Champions 2015, the New Zealand All Blacks

On 11th September 2015, St Angela’s Choir welcomed the New Zealand All Blacks Rugby team at the Tower of London. Having earned this opportunity through a video audition (competing against 117 other choirs), the choir wanted to justify Youth Sports Trust’s judgement in selecting them for the current champions New Zealand’s Welcome Ceremony. All those involved recognised the magnitude of this ceremony when Mr Ramos and Mr Carruthers were invited to Twickenham for meetings and the choir were invited to the Olympic Stadium for a photo opportunity with former England captain Lawrence Dallaglio OBE and the Webb Ellis trophy. They rehearsed for several months perfecting harmonies and choreography, even during the summer holidays. On the day, the choir were presented with their ‘Welcome New Zealand’ black T-shirts and then allowed to explore the Tower of London (they particularly loved the room of diamonds!). Finally, the time for their performance came. They confidently stood in formation and sang the famous “World In Union”. The entire New Zealand rugby team were only a few feet in front of them including Richie McCaw and Dan Carter. The choir was ably led by soloists Bella Clawson-Maila (Yr9) and Princess Olowogboye (Yr12), the 50 choir members did St Angela’s proud with their powerful singing. Afterwards, they had an extra special surprise when they met Richie McCaw and Steve Hansen (New Zealand Captain and Coach respectively) for a photocall in front of the waiting international media! Our memories are now even more special as the team went on to win the World Cup!

“St Angela’s did Newham

proud in welcoming the

current Rugby World

Cup champions. These

exceptionally talented

children saw off some

very tough competition to

be able to do so.”

Mayor of Newham, Sir Robin Wales

Follow us on Twitter

@newhamrecorder

24 Recorder Wednesday September 16, 2015

PRESS GANG

Choir welcome for All Blacks

Students given opportunity to perform for reigning World Cup champions

St Angela’s Ursuline choir performs for New Zealand Picture: Stuart C. Wilson/Getty for RWC

New Zealand’s rugby team will be

in action at the Olympic Stadium

later this month, so it seemed ap-

propriate that a group of school-

girls from Forest Gate were among

those to welcome the players to

England.St Angela’s Ursuline choir visit-

ed the Tower of London on Friday

to perform the song World in Union

in front of the All Blacks stars.

Dressed in the colour of the de-

fending champions, the girls from

the St George’s Road school weren’t

fazed as they performed in front of

a crowd that featured a number of

famous faces and important people

in the sport.

Richie McCaw, the New Zealand

captain, said: “It’s awesome to fi-

nally be here, and we’re really look-

ing forward to getting started.

“It feels like the excitement has

been building for a long time and

we could really feel that when we

were getting on the plane.

“The tournament is going to be

awesome and we’re really looking

forward to all the support.”

The choir was chosen following

an application process that was

open to all schools in England and

Wales.With more than 100 choirs enter-

ing, the standard was high.

The girls’ talent and effort led to

them being one of just 20 schools

selected to perform at the welcome

ceremonies, which were held at

venues across the country, one for

every nation competing in the Rug-

by World Cup.

JOIN IN THE FUN

Have an imaginary friend? Drop

into V&A Museum of Childhood,

Bethnal Green, on Sat, 11am

-3pm, and designers will draw

your description. Free. All ages.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Many happy returns our Press

Gang readers with birthdays this

week:Harry Palmer, 12, Barkingside;

Isabel Thornett, 14, Forest

Gate; Connor Allen, 12, Ilford

and Thomas Dorrell, 13, Heaton

Grange.

To see your child’s birthday

mentioned here, email their

details to philippa.cave@archant.

co.uk

INTERESTING FACT

Did you know...

Many countries have their own

currency, while some use a

shared currency. An example of

a shared currency is the euro,

used in the European Union

by countries such as France,

Germany and Spain.

JOKE OF THE WEEK

Q: What has four legs and can’t

walk?A: Two pairs of trousers.

WINNERS

The Down the Rabbit Hole

competition winners are Sally

Collins, Custom House; Ruby

Fenwick, Romford and Julie

Dudley Keen, Harold Wood.

Plunge into exciting book

When everyone has left

the house in the

morning, the bath

toys spring into

action and head

off on exciting

adventures in their

magical flying

bath! They have water

at the ready for any

emergency and are

always home for

the children’s bath

time at the end of

the day. The Flying Bath,

by Julia Donaldson

and David Roberts,

is perfect for

developing reading

confidence. It is an irresistible

book for young readers.

Jaida Jassi, six,

reviews the book for

Press Gang:

“I like this book

because the creatures in

the flying bath help other

creatures and the book is

very interesting. I would

recommend this book to children

my age.”The Flying Bath is published

by Macmillan Children’s

Books and Press Gang has three

copies to give

away. For your

chance to win a

copy, fill in the

coupon and send

it to The Flying

Bath Competition,

Press Gang,

Media House, 539 High Road,

Ilford IG1 1UD by Friday,

September 25.

Archant may wish to contact you about relevant

offers. As the parent or legal guardian of the

entrant, please tick here � if you DO NOT

WANT to be contacted.

Archant may send you relevant offers from our

advertisers and any third parties. As the

parent or legal guardian of the entrant,

please tick here � if you DO NOT WANT to

be contacted.

Any personal data submitted by the entrant

will be used solely in accordance with current UK

data protection legislation.

Full Archant terms and conditions apply (available

on request).

The Flying Bath

competition

Q: What do the bath toys have at the

ready for an emergency?

A. SandB. FlourC. Water

Name..................

....................................

Address....................................

..............

..................

....................................

..........

....................................

............................

Postcode............................. Age............

Tel no ....................................

..................

Philippa’s Shout

Hi guys, are you all getting excited

about the start of the Rugby World

Cup on Friday?

It would be fantastic if England

won, especially as the tournament

is at home. Sadly, the favourites

are New Zealand. I still wish them

luck, though.

Have you ever wondered what

happened in your bathroom while

you were at school?

Enter our competition to find

out. We are giving away copies

of The Flying Bath by Julia

Donaldson.

Six-year-old Jaida reviewed

the book for Press Gang and

thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you very much Jaida for

your contribution.

Finally, don’t forget – if you, or

someone you know, want to be Star

of the Week, want your school or

club featured, want to send in a

letter, weather picture or do a book

or DVD review, then get in touch

with me at philippa.cave@archant.

co.uk, by phone on 020 8477 3769, or

by post to the usual Media House

address.

Philippa x

Next week: Win copies of Bear and Hare Go Fishing by Emily Gravett

Star of the Week

Nine-year-old Harry learnt about

science during the summer

holidays when he visited the

Spark Festival at Queen Elizabeth

Olympic Park.

He found out about what bones

we have in our body and had a

guess at how many there are – the

answer is 206!

Other activities that could be

enjoyed at the festival included

making keyrings with your

fingerprint in and experiment with

iPads.There was even the chance to

pretend to be Lewis Hamilton and

sit in a Formula 1 simulator or

change the wheels of a car.

Philippa Richardson, who

organised the festival, said that

there were a lot of families having

fun.She said: “It went really well.

“You could learn about nano

technology using Lego or watch a

3D printer print a 3D printer.”

Hopefully attending the festival

will give Harry an advantage in his

science lessons now that he has

gone back to school again.

Have you learnt anything new

this summer?

Ask a parent, guardian or teacher

to get in touch with the Recorder

and you could be a future Star of

the Week, just like Harry.

Harry Watson


ANTI

BULLY

ING W

EEK

Monday blue bracelet making and nail bar • Tuesday your true selfie • Wednesday anti bullying bake off • Thursday x-factor • Friday photo booth and wear something blue

16-20 November 2015

What a busy week for all the anti-bullying ambassadors with loads of events going on throughout the week to try and raise awareness of the issue of bullying! On Monday we had a nail bar and made blue loom bands. It was great to see so many people wearing blue to show their support! Tuesday we had ‘your true selfie’ which allowed us to be creative and show off all the wonderful attributes that we each have. Wednesday saw The Great Anti Bullying Bake Off which had a fantastic number of entries with 21 fabulous looking cakes being entered, making it very hard for a winner to be chosen! On Thursday we had a sing along session whilst watching Frozen – everyone sang ‘Let it Go’ so loudly we were surprised the windows didn’t break in Merici Hall! Finally, on Friday we a photo booth where we could come and dress up with our friends and have some fun! A busy but great week for the ABA! Tracey Fernando, 8 Roosevelt

Student vote winner

Teacher vote winner

Best effort cake


Winner for review of Anti Bullying PlayDuring Anti-Bullying week , year 7 were very lucky to watch a play performed by theatre group Chain Reaction and arranged by Ms Illingworth. The play was called “Totally Together”. The play taught year 7 a moral lesson - that everyone of us is different.Issy-Trixy Hood, 7 Rossetti

ABA ambassadors meet HRH The Duke of Cambridge!

I had a blast! We met at Stratford at 8.30am and travelled to The Hammersmith Academy. The academy was beautiful and everyone there was really friendly. Before lunch we did some activities where St Angela’s girls got to work with pupils from other schools to get to know each other. I had a lot of fun and made some new friends. Once lunch was finished we prepared to meet the Prince! I was really excited. Not only did we get to meet

the Prince but also some other celebrities such as Will Poulter. Not everyone was able to meet the Prince personally but I tried my hardest to get to the front of the group and was given the opportunity to talk to him about the work that our school does to combat bullying. It was really amazing and I even ended up on the news with Prince William! It was a great day, which was full of excitement but also learning and working hard to try and come up with ideas about how to prevent bullying.

Skye, 8 Roosevelt

Bake Off WinnersBest effort - Year 10, Krizzel MapayeTeacher’s vote winner - Year 12, Shab-nam AswatStudent vote winner - Year 7, Amy Draper, Tanisha Chisanga, Georgina Ponge, Amara Vicencio and Katelyn Alvarado

Photobooth pictures can be found on the MLE in the Anti-Bullying

room

Greeting Azhar Academy

Chain Reaction Theatre


Calais AppealThe whole school came together and managed to collect a vast amount of essentials for the people of Syria. Sixth form and year 11 students worked tirelessly for a week to sort and bag clothes, shoes toiletries and tinned foods. All of your generous donations were sent via Ayaan Aid to Syria. Thank you very much for your generosity.

Rugby World Cup WelcomingPrior to the Rugby World Cup starting a group of Year 8 pupils went to see the Ellis Webb Cup at West Ham United Football ground. The group participated in a rugby quiz and had the opportunity to meet rugby legend Jason Leonard who won 114 caps for England, as well as Tony Carr who managed the youth teams at West Ham. After having their photo with the cup and a Q and A session the group were given a tour of the players changing rooms and they even sat in the manager’s seat pitch side. Jessica said, ‘It was a really good experience and I’m glad that I got to go’.

Getset Action is a brand new programme that aims to strengthen relationships between young people and their local communities through the Olympic Values (friendship, excellence and respect) and the Paralympic Values (courage, determination, equality and inspiration).

St Angela’s has been chosen as one of 100 schools in Britain to be a champion school and lead other schools to initiate community action projects. The Community Action group in the Sixth Form will lead this initiative.Francescar Attendar and Dionne Craig along with Ms Newland attended the training at Aston Villa Football Club. Watch this space for information about our future projects.


All of Year 7 watched a performance of the school musical on the afternoon of 21st October. The students were set the challenge of writing a six line review. The overall winner, Queen Bamgbopa 7 Duffy, received a gold merit, a letter home and lunch with Mr Johnson!

Winner The Captain and his crew fly up to space, Whenever there’s a problem his team is on the case.Everyone is focused except for one, The cook you see, has found his loveA girl called Miranda has ticked his box, But she wants someone with power Like what the boss has got.Queen Bamgbopa, 7 Duffy

2ndThe Forbidden Planet is the name of the play. It was great, fabulous and fantastic I say, It was full of light, beams and rays,All of this and we did not have to pay, Music, rockets before my eyes lay, It was truly a memorable day!Katie Fernandes 7 Rossetti

3rdThy Forbidden Planet, you have stolen my heart with thy singing and dancing. There were no characters or people playing a part in a musical, they became the person they played, and twas what made it enjoyable to watch . You could not tell the difference between this and a West End show. This musical had love laughter and loss, I will never forget it! I would , without a doubt, go and see it again. Sefora Daniel, 7 Brooks

The year 7 Football team this year swept the competition away with their win at the Newham

School Sports Association 5-a-side Football Tournament. With drenched kits and smiles on their faces, the girls carried on through the final matches with determinationand commitment. All girls made an extreme effort and

played smartly on the field against some good competitors. The girls who participated in this year’s tournament were: Catarina Mensah, Ana Lomelino, Chi-chi Arise, Timi Lawal, Ayo Adewale-Badero, Myka Defoe, Leigha Joseph, and goalie Anaise Campbell. The girls are planning to perform well at the National tournament representing Newham. Captain Catarina Mensah writes, “It has been an honour throughout this whole journey. After winning the tournament as a team, we are all looking forward to the national tournament, and of course, we hope to win it!”

Year 7 Football TournamentYear 7 Football Tournament


Macmillan Coffee Morning“Members of the Year 12 Community Action Group helped raised money for the Macmillan Cancer Support on 25th September. The charity group had a Macmillan Coffee Morning in the Blue Room where they sold a variety of cakes and hot drinks, as well as having fun activities such as

Spot the Cake. The Macmillan Cancer Support helps those who are diagnosed with cancer. The Charity Group managed to raise over £200 on the day and this will benefit the charity greatly.” Chelsea Anne

On 7th December 2015, 4 student who are taking part in the Young Enterprise company programme visited to Canary Wharf. We had a chance to visit the offices of MetLife, 50th floor, Canary Wharf, where we had the wonderful opportunity to advertise and sell our products: Personalised Christmas decorations (bauble, reindeer and angel). Our Christmas products are available till the end of term and we will be offering a new range of products in the new year… please look out for our posters and adverts!

Ann-Rose Delbert, Co-Managing Director, Celestial

East London Youth Dance CompanyOn 29th October, we went to audition at the University of East London for the East London Youth Dance Company. This was our first audition to get into the youth company and there were two groups with 17 dancers in each, so the competition was fierce. We had to learn and perform a dance piece choreographed by Sara Dos Santos. We did well and were called back for the second half of the audition, which was more intense. The choreography was more difficult and people slowly started to get eliminated this put a lot of pressure on us, as we were the youngest and least experienced dancers there. Our efforts finally paid off and we were selected to be part of the East London Youth Dance Company, hoping to do ourselves proud and represent St.Angela’s as a whole!By Ria and Manisha

Young Enterprise Team visits Metlife Offices


Year 9 Debaters celebrate 100 Years of Women in Transport

On 10th November 2015, the year 9 St. Angela’s debaters had a fantastic opportunity to debate in the 100 Years of Women in Transport for TFL. The debate was held in our school. Debaters were split in two teams and we had to debate against each other, this debate took place on a wonderful Tuesday morning at period two. While the whole school was in their lessons, around 20 of us were packed in room where we waited for two female TFL workers who would be judging the debate. It’s very important to highlight that they were women, as the debate was all about women working in transport. Eight out of 20 of us were participating in the debate, the other 12 were the audience (floor). We have been debating for more than a year now and are quite confident with the formalities of a debate.The motion of that debate was “This house believes that women working in transport in the 2000s have a bigger impact the women who worked in transport in the 1900s”. We had to go away and research for this topic and prep for this motion, we were judged on how well we have used evidence as well as how well we understood the motion also how well the judges agreed with our speeches.The tension was high in B2, as the following girls: Gabby, Canice, Tomi, Charlotte, Paula, Diana, Rafaella and Adelaide battled it out to win. We sat across from each other, waiting in silence for the judges to arrive. We also had Ms. Wharton

(our tutor, without whom this would not be possible) and Teddy, the head girl (an ex- debater, who has supported us greatly) as additional witnesses to our debate. We were at our strongest and ready to debate.Then the time arrived for the first speaker. Take it from the speakers, this debate was an exciting opportunity for us to showcase the best debaters ever, St. Angela’s! In that fierce debate the opposition had taken the win. The audience got to vote on who they thought were the winners, but at the end of day the final verdict came down to the judges.25 other school also took part in this competition nationally, in total 50 teams, out of the 25 St. Angela’s came 5th narrowly missing the opportunity to go to the House of Commons (as only the top 4 qualified). Our proposition team came 5th and our opposition team came 11th - very impressive outcome for our first competition of this academic year! Not only did we get to debate in a competition at our school but, we had the chance to prepare at our training day on Friday16th October. We were at the Crystal near the O2. This was an open opportunity for different school around London to come and meet the other school participating and get a chance to expand their skills. We had a wonderful tutor called Caroline who gave us brilliant skills and tricks to enhance our debate.Overall, we are very happy with the experience TFL has given us and are forever grateful for the opportunity. We have learnt that it is important to recognise women in transport and the influence over society they have. In the mean time we will continue to expand and develop our debating skills and hope to succeed again in the future.

By Rafaella, Mya and Gabby

Debate Mate

To mark the start of year 8 Debate Club, we went on a trip and watched a professional debate which was interesting and fun. It was really engaging and made you really want to go to the school debate club, every week.At school I find debate mate fun and a way to get to know people you didn’t know before or might not usually talk to. The club also builds your confidence, it has already helped me to go for things that I wouldn‘t have done before, the club has boosted my confidence a lot. In a way it helps with grammar and lets you speak your own opinion respectfully, without offending anyone else and freely without being judged!I believe it’s a great club!!Chloe Louis 8 Besant

Let

it

Snow

Some Highlights! September 2015After waiting a whole year, our exchange partners finally came to London and it was

very exciting! They stayed for a week and on one of the evenings we went to see the musical “Bend it like Beckham”. My partner and I

really enjoyed it! Elizabeth OgunsolaIn September our German exchange partners came to London for a week. The standout part for me was when we went to Brighton. We talked about the German & English language and some of us went bungee jumping on a trampoline. In the afternoon we had fish and chips on the beach for lunch. Es war lecker! Rhiannon KinghtIt was really lovely seeing my partner in London after a year, as we got on really well. I’d say my favourite memories are of

Greenwich Park and Camden town where we printed off photos in the photo booth. We got along really well as always and some of us are even thinking of going back to Kaiserslautern by ourselves next Easter! Lolu Ojo

St Angela’s Christmas Newsletter 2015

In their last week of term, two year 12 students of German Iani and Shanjidah went to Germany for one day. This crazy plan involved meeting up at Stratford at 5:00 am but it was definitely worth it as students saw a lot in such a short period of time. The first thing that Iani noticed was how

many trees there are in Germany. One of the biggest attractions in Cologne is the Dom, which is one of the most impressive Roman Catholic Cathedrals in the world. The students went on to climb all of the 532 steep steps to be rewarded with an impressive view. They then had a well deserved meal in a typically German restaurant of which Iani has the following to say:“After a long trip up and down the cathedral, we all felt it best to treat ourselves to lunch straight after. We ate at a typical German restaurant, it was so cute and the restaurant was everything I ever imagined it to be. The portions were enormous, I can’t even begin to explain. I got the Schweineschnitzel which is basically chicken and chips, pork version. It tasted amazing, especially with the salad and mustard. I tried my best to finish it. They weren’t kidding when they said most of German cuisine is meat- it literally was. Pork here, there and everywhere.”During the tour of the town, Iani and Shanjidah followed a very German tradition and rubbed the noses of the statues “Tünnes” and “Schäl” which brings good luck. The visit to the chocolate museum was also popular.

Kaiserslautern Exchange

After an intense summer organising everything for this new exchange, the Spanish students from Valencia finally arrived! It was a great experienced which all students enjoyed, they managed to improve their language skills, and create long lasting friendships!The Spanish exchange was a great experience. The most fun time for me was when we all went to Pizza Hut because that’s when I got to meet most of them and we bonded a lot. It also helped a lot with my Spanish vocabulary. Kelsey Boatey

Valencia Exchange! October 2015

Year 12 Students’ Köln Trip


Early in the morning on 5th November, a group of five St. Angela’s girls and six students from St. Bonaventure’s School (five boys, one girl) met at Stratford to embark on their German adventure. At the end of this trip, all agreed that it was one of the best trips on which they had ever been. But what made it special?For Rhiannon, it was learning about Berlin’s turbulent and divided past: “On the first day that we arrived in Berlin, we went to see the Berlin Wall. I was astonished that the wall had only been taken down a few years before I was born.”Shanice was impressed with how she coped with being in charge of transport for the day. She found it “nerve wrecking but we got through it”. During our visit, we explored several museum like the Stasi-Museum and Checkpoint Charlie. The excellent tour guide for the Stasi-Museum visibly moved students with her on-point stories about spying techniques. Shanice’s favourite museum, however, was the DDR museum as she learned a lot about the hardships of everyday life under a communist regime.On the second day of our visit, we met up with our German partner school: Otto Hahn Schule. About which Peace said, “Personally, it was my best day because I met

many new friends”. She also greatly appreciated the food the students provided and seeing how a German school operates. A highlight for Lolu was the trip to the Potsdamer Platz as she could see the Christmas markets: “I loved how idyllic the area was, and the Christmas lights made it even more beautiful – I finally see why people always boast about German Christmas markets, because Potsdamer Platz was truly ethereal”. Other activities during the trip were a tour of the Bundestag, which is the German house of Parliament, a visit to the Holocaust memorial, a trip to the Olympic Stadium and seeing the musical “Hinterm Horizont geht es weiter”.As a teacher of German, my personal highlight was the amount of German the students were able to speak and understand. So do follow Lolu’s advise: “If you are thinking about doing German GCSEs or A-level, you can look forward to a trip to one of the world’s loveliest cities during your A-levels.”

Berlin Trip for Sixth Form Students of German


On Friday 13th November, we had a very interesting visit from our French penpals. They met us in the TLC and from there we proceeded to communicate efficiently with one another.At first, speaking was very difficult. Before they arrived, I didn’t realise just how terrible my pronunciation was but eventually we all got the hang of it and were more or less able to speak! (with hand signs too!)We completed an array of tasks such as icebreakers, People

Bingo and a French-English factfile sheet – all of the students were encouraged to communicate in the language they were learning!Overall it was a good fun day – one in which we learned a lot!Mya Momi-Francis Year 9

W ELCOME TO ST ANGELAS

Adaptive Water Sports FestivalOn Friday 13th November we went to the East London Regatta Centre to take part in the Adaptive Water Sports Festival. We took part in lots of different water type activities some on the water and some indoor, like the rowing machines and the bell boating tank! Virginia said she enjoyed the boat ride at the beginning of the day where we all got to go on a power boat along the dock, it was a bit choppy and windy but it was still lots fun! Chloe said her favourite thing was the rowing machine race it was really competitive but everyone tried their hardest and had a really good time. Mercedes and Roxanne said they liked the sailing the best as they got to go out on the water and learn about different parts of the boat. Bella said her she liked the indoor fitness challenges as well as the boat ride along the dock. My favourite was also the rowing race as we got to compete against other schools and I won the race! Overall, we had a really fun day as we got the chance to take part in lots of different water type activities. By Wiktoria Kostka

London Children’s Ballet

I auditioned for a company called London Children’s Ballet for a production named ‘Little Lord Fauntleroy’. I have auditioned many times and have been offered a place in the tour ‘Secret Garden’ and ‘Nanny McPhee’. However, I have never performed on a London stage with the company.I went to audition at the English National Ballet School. I was nervous and excited when I went in for the warm-up. After that auditions I went in for a recall where people were called back if the director wanted you. Then I

went home and awaited for the email to see if I would be invited back for the final

audition.A week later I found out that I got through for the final audition. I came home from school and my mum told me

that I will be performing at the Peacock Theatre,

Aldwych in April next year. I was very happy and delighted to be given a place for this production and will represent St. Angela’s and my ballet school, Hallsville School of Ballet.

By Hannah Joseph

St Angela’s welcomes Lille penpals


Breaking Barriers

Following an assessment session in September twelve Year 10 pupils were successfully been selected to participate in Breaking Barriers in partnership with London Youth Rowing and St Angela’s Ursuline School. Breaking Barriers aims to equip young people with the skills and qualities needed to reach their full potential. As well as access to an organised rowing programme, the pupils will be attending workshops and mentoring sessions aimed towards developing their skillset and raising their aspirations. St. Angela’s girls, along with sixty other year ten students from five schools around London, will take part in fortnightly workshops with various companies in London for example CVB, PricewaterhouseCooper and Tesco. These will include workshops focusing on communication, presentation skills, project management and budgeting. They will get the opportunity to plan an event alongside their mentors, offering first hand experience into how a project is managed. They will attend rowing at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park alongside the mentoring programme. Congratulations to the Year 10 pupils who are participating on the programme:Favour Ogweremu Klaudia Alarva Suerte Kiera McCollin Keisha Acquah Esther Oloyede Kyara De Oliveira Taborda Daniela Jen Choi Derrisha Dickson LenetJessica Ottun Lisa VasconcelosJanine Mulombo Chelsea Andoh-Kesson

A huge congratulations to Vivian, a former pupil of St. Angela’s who attended the Panathlon Jack Petchey Outstanding Achievement Awards on Wednesday 18th November at the John Lewis Olympic Suite in Stratford Westfield. Vivian was nominated for an Outstanding Achievement Award for her success and dedication in the Panathlon competitions for a number of years. Vivian first took part five years ago, in year 7, where she showed us her true potential and passion for sport. After discovering her talent and winning gold medals in both long jump and sprinting, she quickly joined in a number of school activities, including athletics club, whilst also getting involved in different sports outside of school. Over the last five years, Vivian has joined in local community activities in a vast range of disability games in Newham such as tennis, rowing, cheerleading, athletics, football, cricket and disability community games just to name a few! She was also a part of the

successful Newham team that reached the Panathlon London plate final in June. Her performances in athletics were outstanding and contributed to Newham gaining second place at the finals. Vivian has come an extremely long way in not just her sporting abilities but these successes are what have driven her confidence and social skills. Vivian now makes herself understood by using hand gestures and sounding out words from her throat and has recently began to learn sign language and has developed into a confident individual who is always smiling.Vivian is an asset to the Panathlon team and as a senior member of the group has demonstrated excellent support and encouragement with her younger team mates. She is a role model for any one facing challenges in life and is a truly inspirational character. Vivian was awarded the Jack Petchey Outstanding Achievement Runner-up Award.

Jack Petchey Outstanding Achievement

Runner-up Award


Dancing at St Angela’sOnce I started at St Angela’s in Year Seven, the introduction of dance in PE was very different. It gave me a chance to analyse dance and see the processes behind choreography and introduced me to contemporary dance for the first time. In my early years at St Angela’s, I took part in dance club along with main other afterschool clubs in the PE department. There I had the opportunity to have fun after school and increase the hours of which I danced a week. Alongside this I first took part in the Dance Show in Year Seven, where I made friends who have stuck without me ever since. I have continued to participate every year- choreographing and putting on a show.

Centre for Advance Training (CAT) at London Contemporary Dance School, The PlaceI began training in Contemporary dance at the CAT scheme at The Place, and am now in my fourth year there. I have learnt the diversity of contemporary dance outside of the school environment. Having technique classes such as Ballet and Contemporary- where I learnt the many different types including Graham, Cunningham, Gaga and release. This put me in good stead technically, giving me the groundwork and strength for creative classes where we are encouraged to choreograph and find our own style. Another great part of the CAT scheme is the superb support we get in terms of managing our dance and school hours, taking care of our bodies in conditioning classes, regular screenings and triage appointments should we

need them.Intensives at CAT have allowed me to work to with numerous choreographers and artists from major dance companies including Matthew Bourne (New Adventures), James Cousins, James Wilton, Matthias Sperling, LC3, and this year Punch Drunk.

National Youth Dance Company (NYDC), Sadler’s WellsIn the summer of 2014 I auditioned for the National

Youth Dance Company of England, I was successful and I have spent the last year working with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (an Associate artist at Sadler’s Wells) and an artist from his company Eastman. Myself and 37 other dancers learnt his professional repertoire drawing from his most famous pieces of work including Babel (words) co-choreographed by Damien Jalet, Puz/zle, Loin and TeZukA: creating our own piece, Frame[d].

I have been dancing since I was 3 years old, starting with Ballet at East

London School of Dance in Forest Gate. Before secondary school, most

of my dance training was just for enjoyment, regular exercise and was

heavily ballet oriented.

Dance and Lucia


It is such a humbling experience to work with Larbi, a world renowned and respected artist and choreographer, and to see his mind working with such creative purpose. Also Larbi himself is such an inspiring down to earth person, who along with his artists are a pleasure to work with. NYDC is an invaluable experience, strengthening me as a dancer, artist and as a person. A premiere on Sadler’s Wells Main Stage was a truly exhilarating experience, performing to a completely sold out audience of 1,500 people in one of the most famous dance houses in the world.Following the premiere, we had a national tour in the summer, visiting venues such as Birmingham, Leeds, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Plymouth (U. Dance) Conference, Ipswich, Sadler’s Well Lilian Baylis Theatre and even the Waterfront Stage at Latitude festival. After our Tour of Frame[d] we performed it a final time on Sadler’s Well Main Stage this September 2015 as part of the dance festival Apex Rising, celebrating all three years of NYDC. I now look forward to one more year with NYDC working with another Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist, Michael Keegan Dolan of Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre as our new Guest Artistic Director. Also alongside my applications to university, I will also be applying and auditioning for dance conservatoires including London Contemporary Dance School, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, Northern School of Contemporary Dance and Trinity Laban.

By Lucia

Writers’ clubOn a Wednesday afternoon, I spend my time in B4, the home of stories and forbidden realms beyond our

reach. Here we can delve into the unseen and the unknown through our

minds. As a great writer once stated, ‘wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure’. I enter a world of emotions, a whirlwind of all things known to mortal men. Here I am free to release my imagination ONTO A BLANK PIECE OF PAPER. Nothing so sweet can come from a human mind such as yours and a pen. I see our pens as a tool for wonder. So come, and be inspired. Write like your heart depends on it, as in my case it does. Without reading with writing, our lives would have no meaning. Last year we entered a competition, Young Writers, a war of words. This poem was selected for publishing:

How people became dolphins

The man walks as if he walked with anotherHis evil twin brother.When his brother breaks out, take cover,He could kill his own mother.

Inside is a dark and cold spaceYou wouldn’t know itBut evil takes place.The mind is a complex and many layered thingA war of the mind?Who knows what it will bring?

The timid side that of his kin, tries to fight itBut is thrown into his chasm of doomHis thoughts become a tapestry as if by a loom.They’re all out to foil you to destroy youYour mind supernova, temptation bubbles over

And as they lock you in your cellYour brain dragged down into hellConfusion and delusionHallucinations and frustration

Your conscience is waningYour morality is fadingYour dual personality darkens your reality

With all the people liars and hatersRevenge is not debatedThis man is not aloneHe is haunted by himselfAll his honesty on a shelf

By Tahira Rogers

PE Trip to see The Lion KingOn 4th November the PE Department took a 30 pupils to see The Lion King at The Lyceum Theatre. Here are the thoughts of some pupils:‘Going to The Lion King was an extraordinary experience. It was great seeing it with friends and one of the best theatre shows I’ve ever been to. The characters were strong and the acting was magnificent. The show was spectacular all in all’, said Nahjoy.

Mya wrote ‘It was great. Seeing all the fantastic and strong characters was brilliant and even inspirational. As somebody wanting to take drama for GCSE it’s nice to have something to work up to. Overall, watching The Lion King was amazing and I would love to see it again’.

Canice said ‘Going to see The Lion King was spectacular! I had seen it before three years ago but it was much better seeing it this time with friends. It was better than I remembered and was just as funny and emotional. I would recommend everyone going to see it. I loved The Lion King!’


East London Rowing CompetitionCongratulations to the Rowing team who participated in the

Satellite Schools East London competition, which was held at the Sports Dock at UEL. Individuals rowed for 3 minutes against competitors from other schools and there were 350 young people competing on the day. Many of the Year 9 rowers were competing in their first event and achieved the following results:

Year 9s – out of 45 competitors Daniela Total 686m placed 10th Gremy Baby 666m placed 15th Letia Adeji-Montero 650m placed 19thDelina Daniel 613m placed 28thZuriel Ngahne 610m placed 29th Viktoria Kosta 606m placed 30th Belen Ebbuomwan 565m placed 34th Adele O’Brien 530m placed 35th

Year 10 – out of 38 competitorsJoanne Badmus 761m placed 2ndJoanne achieved a Silver medal and was presented with this by Olympic Rower Mark Hunter. He won a gold and silver medal at the Beijing and London Olympic games respectively in the lightweight double sculls. A fantastic achievement Joanne!

Year 12 – out of 15 competitorsTeddiana Saccoh 748m placed 5th

O2 Tennis World Tour FinalsSt. Angela’s partnership with West Ham United meant that we were given tickets to see the ATP World Tour Finals held at the O2. At the end of the Tennis year, the top 8 Tennis players in the world are selected to participate in this event. We were invited to attend on a Thursday afternoon session where Roger Federer was playing Kei Nishikori. It was a fantastic occasion which saw Roger Federer win in a thrilling three set match.Four out of the five girls who attended had never seen a live tennis match before and here are the thoughts of the pupils who attended:‘I enjoyed everything and also watching Roger Federer play was amazing,’ said Katie.Daniella said ‘I really enjoyed the build up to the match and watching it. The Fanzone was fun’. ‘I enjoyed the whole experience and I especially enjoyed watching Federer play’.

East London Dance WorkshopYear 10 GCSE Dancers had the opportunity to participate in a Dance workshop provided by East London Dance. ELD are looking to create a Youth Dance Company which will meet twice a week to develop dancers from East London aged 14 to 18 years.

The dancers worked with ELD Artists Sara Dos Santos and David. At St. Angela’s the dancers did a technical warm-up and then some travelling phrases across the floor. They then learnt a short duet which they performed with their partner.


On Thursday 24th September, the Yr 10 GCSE Dance students went to Trinity Laban, a music and dance conservatoire in Creekside near Deptford. We had a really good day, starting off with a tour of the building, followed by a careers talk and then two dance classes, a technique class and a creative class.

The building was so beautiful. Every part, every room, every wall in the building was built for a reason and created this idea that you could dance anywhere you wanted to. Even the field outside was created in a way to make a stage for outdoor performances. There were 12 dance studios, some had mirrors and some had chairs for an audience but they were all really spectacular spaces. They were designed to have glass doors so that when you walked past you could see what was going on inside. Even the staircases had ballet barres as hand rails. The students studying there always have a live musician playing for their classes. There were many different styles of dance going on; ballet, contemporary, contact improvisation, conditioning. I think my favourite thing about the building is probably the fact that everything was designed around the concept that you can dance anywhere. The careers talk was really simple but very useful. Katy told us about several different careers in dance, some of which didn’t involve dancing (dance critic, dance photographer) but just being a part of the industry. She also spoke to us about the differences between a university that offers dance and a dance conservatoire. In my opinion, I think a conservatoire is stricter and requires more hard work and dedication as you have classes from 8am to 6pm. Also, in a conservatoire people who only love dance surround you.

After the careers talk we had lunch before participating in a technique class. We also had a live musician, Bobby, playing for us so we had a taste of what a student at Trinity Laban would experience in class. It was great how he could respond to the request of the dance teacher, which meant phrases could be performed with more dynamic qualities at times. For the technique class we did different sequences to develop our stamina, core strength, flexibility, and coordination. We then did a really enjoyable creative class. It mainly involved taking part in some fun activities and games and then using that basis to create movement. At the beginning of the creative class, we played a game called ‘Sticky Icky’ where the teacher names two different body parts and you have to create an interesting shape, connecting those parts with your partner. We then developed this into a short dance phrase. After this, everything we did developed into the final part of the class, which was like a performance. People would travel onto the stage and make a shape and then other people would have to go over, under or around the shape and make another shape. You could also perform the short phrase you did before with your partner. It sounds really complicated but it was really fun. At the end of the class we performed all the phrases in the creative class together and it made a final performance. Everyone was involved and we had used our creativity and imagination.We really enjoyed our day at Trinity Laban and it also helped us to gain a better understanding of dance, pathways we could take and how to develop our confidence when performing. By Lisa & Shola

GCSE Dancers visit Trinity Laban Conservatoire

of Music and Dance


Arcadia Write upArcadia Write upTaking part in the intensive two week work experience course with Arcadia was greatly rewarding; within the space of a few days we learnt several aspects of the fashion retail industry including spending time in Arcadia’s head office, doing hands-on work in their stores and listening to talks from Arcadia’s industry professionals. Meeting Sir Phillip Green was the most memorable and exciting part of the experience. Listening to him explain the journey of the Arcadia company really informed us about the strict work ethic you must have in order to become a success in your own right. Working with the other students from Highgate and various other schools also built up our team work skills allowing us to improve our confidence when presenting ideas to a large audience of people. There were many activities we got involved in during the two week placement which we wouldn’t normally have taken part in if it were not for this opportunity and it was really beneficial to the entirety of the experience. Plenty of good came out of the two weeks, the infamous £100 Arcadia gift cards were definitely one of them, but also the opportunities to work in our designated stores permanently!

So as well as providing us with a valuable experience, we had each landed ourselves jobs at the flagship stores in Miss Selfridge (Oxford Circus) and Wallis (Marble Arch). Being involved in the Arcadia work experience programme taught us a lot about commitment and gave us an insight in to what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. It showed us, amongst many other things, how to be disciplined and careful about the way you go about starting a business – but most of all, how to have fun and treat yourself! The best part of the experience was the time we all spent together on the last day of the work experience placement in Gordon Ramsey’s Union Street Café. There, we received an inspiring and motivating talk from expedition leader John Sullivan who had set up numerous prime time programmes for the BBC and National Geographic Channel and a congratulations and certificate ceremony from the head of Highgate School followed by a delicious meal in the restaurant. From the competitive video interview process, to the eventual selection of 50 successful candidates, the entire Arcadia work experience programme was absolutely worth the effort and we are so grateful to have been chosen to be part of this advantageous opportunity.Victoria & Jennifer

The Importance of my SummerThis summer proved to contain some of the most pivotal moments of my life as it opened up a new window for my understanding of healthcare and what it means to provide care. More importantly, it also confirmed my decision of what I wanted to be in the future and the type of environment I wanted to work and thrive in. I was called upon to become independent and take it upon myself to search for opportunities to prove to myself that I was motivated by my decision in wanting to work in the health sector. One of these experiences was applying for and being chosen to be a part of the ‘NHS Career Taster Programme’ hosted in The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel. In all honesty I didn’t know what to expect from this opportunity. I was expecting 3 days in which we would have doctors and nurses come in to talk about their jobs and give insight on how we as young people can also be in their positions

in the future. Yes- having the opportunity to talk to doctors and nurses about their professions is always an exciting experience, however for an individual who didn’t want to be a doctor or nurse I felt as though this experience would be quite limiting in terms of seeking knowledge about what I wanted to do in the future- becoming a Biomedical Scientist.

To say I was surprised would be an understatement. Just from those three day I gained so much insight into the healthcare sector . The emphasis was placed

on understanding that the healthcare sector runs the way it does because of the many people, in a range of professions who contribute to the efforts of providing a service which to so vital to society. We had the opportunity to talk to a range of individuals, from surgeons specialising in throat, nose and mouth surgery, to teachers tasked with training professionals on what to do in accident and emergency situations, to rehabilitation teams who provide post-incident services such as counselling. For myself, the best moments of the programme

was actually meeting a Biomedical Scientist who worked in the hospital and having the chance to have a one- on- one conversation about what their role in the hospital entails. Additionally, taking part in a simulation exercise in the teaching and learning branch of the hospital, in which real working professionals are able to practise for accident and emergency situations, be recorded, and analyse after the exercise on what was done properly and what could be improved for real situations. Taking part in that exercise allowed me to understand the pressures of working in a hospital and the importance of a motivated, multidisciplinary group of individuals working hard to save lives. The experience itself is not one I will forget, I am only happy that I availed of the opportunity and as a result, became a more motivated, informed individual.Sandra Serwaa


Syeda

The reason I wanted to become a peer mentor is because I feel that it is essential for the current year 12’s to have some support during their AS Levels. On a personal level, I found AS quite a daunting experience; having to make new friends, getting the gist everything, keeping up-to-date with my notes and ensuring I was able to understand all the subject tasks and simply, not being afraid to ask for help when I need it. Having the best sort of help when it comes to exam techniques and understanding that GCSE’s and AS Levels are on two different ends of the spectrum. With the skills that I have acquired, and the confidence that I have successfully obtained through the past year, I to use uses these skills to help other students so they steer clear of some of the mistakes I made. I hope to

share techniques I found useful from exam techniques, to social skills I used . I feel that this will make the students feel much more comfortable in their environment (especially if they are externals) and with their teachers and peers.I look forward to starting my role as a peer mentor.

Rhianna

Although I am extremely proud of my AS Sociology grade, I still could have achieved a higher grade if I had applied myself more. Acting as a peer mentor would prevent my mistakes (and the

mistakes of many AS students) being repeated by Year 12 students. Informing students about the consequences of procrastination would enable me to prevent the mistakes that I have made from happening to them, which will encourage them to do better, therefore ensuring they reach their full potential. Asking questions in class can sometimes be an unnerving experience, especially if you are shy or feel that you are the only student who doesn’t understand. By mentoring a student, I can help them overcome this obstacle by building and reinforcing self-confidence which will later benefit their grades. I also wanted to become a peer mentor because I believe that a contributing factor to success is organisation, which some students often lack. Therefore mentoring would enable me to pass on my organisational skills and key tips in different subjects.

Peer MentorsPeer Mentors

What I did in SummerI attended A Global Health conference, which revealed to me the global importance of Health. I learned just how difficult it is to distribute medical equipment and methodologies across the world. Here I learned how women giving birth in Portugal has changed from being natural at home and female dominated, with the use of birth mothers, to a male dominated world in a sterile hospital environment. The work experience I did in St Bart’s hospital taught me about the typical roles of a professionals in a hospital and the responsibility one must have, which particularly appealed to me. I experienced a stimulation suite which gave me the opportunity to appreciate how much treatment goes into the care for one person and the importance of the individual workers within a hospital. I also spent time observing medical and biomedical workers who taught me about the science behind health and how much research it takes to

solve common diseases. A long with this, discussing nursing and midwifery with people who worked in the hospital and are skilled in this field, made me realise how women can be empowered by midwifes due to their particular communication skills and just how educative they can be. We also discussed the amount of follow up checks that are required for one family alone.

Throughout summer I was a part of Ursuline Links Social Justice Volunteering Scheme where I was placed in various food banks and churches serving those less fortunate. Here, I helped prepare food and serve food as well as making posters for the homeless centre. This role showed how responsible I can be working within a local team from various backgrounds and how important it is to improve my communication skills to help break down language barriers.Raven Ddungu

Why I Wanted To Become A Peer Mentor


Alumni AssemblyWe had a very informative assembly led by Alumni of St Angela’s Ursuline School. Both ladies gave us great knowledge and tips on participating in extra curricular activities that can be carried out before going to university as well as post university. They were also very approachable and now I’m looking into the ICS programme and how I can become involved. Loved it! Caitlin Osei-Ofosuhene

Summer of scienceOne thing I did in the summer holidays was visit the science museum. Though it was only for one day, I managed to explore and learn so much and it made me regret not having visited there sooner! Even as I reached the entrance I was already really excited about seeing the engines on display, amazed by how big they were and it made me want to see how they were made and questioned how they worked. The highlight of the day was visiting the materials section and finding out about interesting types of materials. There was a cute section which really fascinated me: it informed me about the special materials used when replacing things inside our bodies. This really helped me as I wanted to do Biomedical Engineering and I knew that there’s an important

element of materials science involved. There was also a whole floor dedicated to Maths and Computer science and honestly, I was so glad I explored it because it really rekindled my previously dying love for Maths. It was so fascinating seeing maths not in terms of numbers but by the aesthetically pleasing patterns and shapes that it created. It made me realise that maths isn’t just all about exact answers but there’s something creative and abstract about it, too. The last thing we explored was the history of medicine where I found out more about Medical physics and medical technology through the ages, such as the X-rays. Overall it was a really fun and insightful visit that helped me learn a lot in the space of a few hours. I do hope to return soon because one day wasn’t enough to explore everything in that museum. Iani Gayo

Extra Curricular 6th Form going for their dreams, already in the professional arena with wonderful entrepreneurial business careers and still heading to top universities.I created a YouTube Channel with my twin sister a year ago. From there, a myriad of opportunities had come our way; ‘putting myself out there’ had opened up plenty of doors for me than I expected, and I learnt quickly that my way into the fashion industry would begin with social media.In the summer of 2015, the work that had been put into our YouTube and Instagram account came into fruition; the recognition started with former ASOS Stylist, Freddie Tietcheu, complementing us on our style. From there, another fashion blogger Shopedelano had asked us to model for her collection named ‘Twoosie’. Companies began to contact us, such as Glossier: an American beauty brand praised by Alexa Chung. Another London based clothing brand Lazy Oaf had emailed us, asking us to model for

their ‘Winter Lookbook’,looking for people with a niche aesthetic to feature in a fun shoot with the brand’s winter pieces.We have done about 2 more shoots in the past 2 weeks- one last week, and one this week (today!), so I’m thinking about compiling all of those too, once the images come out. The first one is going to be put in an exhibition, and our images will be printed and put in a booklet too. It’s called the ‘black body exhibition’, surrounding the issues of masculine stereotypes about black people, juxtaposed by our feminine faces! The idea was formulated by Ronan Mckensie, a photographer who went to the university I plan on going to (University of the Arts London) but dropped out. I asked her about her experiences, which I can all add to the presentation. Today’s shoot was for a designer called Gideon who is just starting his collection.Jennifer, Year 13


McKinsey LeadershipAcademyArriving at the enormous private school, Wellington College, I didn’t know what to expect, what types of people would also be there, and what we’d be doing. The peculiarly named “Leadership Academy” led me to think that we would be taught leadership which I thought isn’t possible. Frankly, I was wrong. We were guided to find our own path of leadership and that was the main reason why it was so memorable.On day 1 we were introduced to our team through trust falls. This involved falling off the top of a 6 foot wall for the rest of your team to catch you. It was scary at first but it made the whole team comfortable with each other straight away. We then had a session on problem solving where we learnt the six steps to solving a problem.

Day two was focused on leadership. We had a talk from a former leader in the Army which was inspiring because he had much advice about leadership and unique experiences to share with us. We then began to plan our leadership project that we would undertake over the course of the next school year.Overall, the McKinsey Leadership Academy was an amazing two days and it just wasn’t long enough. I got some valuable experience and gained skills I could not have possibly gained elsewhere, and most importantly, I now have an inside link with McKinsey as a potential employee! I can’t wait to get underway with my leadership project this year and hopefully win the leadership prize.by Olamide Dele-Adeniyi, 13 Permaul

Pharmacy Application UCAS Personal StatementWork experience as a dispenser in a pharmacy allowed me to see the variety of drugs needed for different health issues that are common among our population; as well as helping me to find out more about the applications of Biomedical science. I encountered patients with various health problems and was shown the vast number of drugs that people are given as well as cherishing the difference this made to their lifestyle. Working in the pharmacy improved my team building skills as I had the opportunity to work with people of different ages and backgrounds as well as learning how to work independently. The skills gained from my pharmacy experience inspired me to shadow a career in Biomedical science that could benefit people’s health and has showed me how our metabolic pathway has been transformed by medical advances. Customer service was an important part of my work experience by which my confidence and fluency

in Gujarati and English helped me to communicate with the customers and staff. Alongside this, voluntary teaching in Gujarati has taught me to be responsible as well as realising the importance of time management as another skill. Leadership was also an important aspect of my volunteering where creating newsletters for the students every term gave me the skill of meeting deadlines, which had originally been reinforced in school. My leadership skills were strengthened further when I was nominated to be student leader in my previous school. Volunteering within the school environment included charity work for and raising money for different societies such as Cancer Research and Oxfam whereby I was able to broaden the horizons as well as offering service towards the greater good of our community. I partake in many sports such as swimming and badminton as well as a six week sailing course I participated in during the summer; activities which I still wish to pursue at university. Music has also been my keen interest as playing the drums and being part of a band last year gave me confidence when performing to a large audience. I have also successfully represented the school in the St Angela’s charity walk as well as being an ambassador at career fair and open days.

McKinsey Leadership Academy


Year 10 & 11 GCSE dancers went to see Rambert Dance Company perform at Sadler’s Wells Theatre as part of their coursework. Transfigured Night, choreographed by Kim Brandstrup was an interesting dance based on a relationship that was being tested. The ensemble saw fantastic group lifts and support as the two principal dancers excelled throughout the piece. The mood was sombre at times and this was reflected in the costume and lighting design. After the interval, Rambert dancers did a demonstration looking at the differences in technique between ballet and contemporary dance. The ballet exercise

New Views This year the

Writers’ Club has signed up for a

competition in connection with the National Theatre called New Views. As part of our participation of the writers group we are given the opportunity to see theatre productions at the National Theatre and we have a professional writer appointed to us who comes to the school to run writers workshops (almost like a writer’s clinic). The competition is for each member of our club to write

a 30 minute play based on a theme of politics. For me the two main objectives are to: to win the National Theatre competition and to have fun by learning new skills! So on Friday 9th October we went to see a play at the National Theatre: ‘Pomona’. This is a psychological thriller which is about a girl called Ollie looking for her sister in Manchester, only to find things she shouldn’t.At first, I found the play a bit confusing. I didn’t know why a dirty and run-down man was having a rave about Chicken nuggets, but that’s what I liked about the play. Not the fact the main character was talking about good food, but the

fact that the play took bits of everyday life and made them scary and interesting. I won’t give away any spoilers, but I think the characters were what made the story really interesting (that the alien head). Ponoma definitely deserved the 5 stars from ‘WhatsOnStage’. Sam Swann’s character and Sarah Middleton’s character were definitely a funny duo. A week or so after, we had a play writer, Christopher Hill come into the TLC to do a workshop with us. He gave us good tips on how to get ideas. He was very easy to talk to, gave good advice on how to start. What I learnt from this, was that good ideas can be anywhere. A good

idea is to take a notebook and if something or someone interesting, write it down! Any idea can be useful. Although, how you change it to fit your story is what is important. For example, you can put different quotes you’ve acquired, put them on a table and mix and match them. The writers club is also a great form of escapism and makes a change from all the studying. I am looking forward to a lot more in the club!Bernadette M. 12McLennon

RAMBERT DANCE COMPANY

and phrases were upright, light and fluid, whereas the contemporary dance phrase used a curved spine with a more grounded approach. The dancers in the company do either a ballet or contemporary technique class every day.

The final piece performed was Rooster choreographed by Christopher Bruce. This energetic and lively piece uses music by The Rolling Stones and represents a battle of the sexes. Most of the GCSE dancers enjoyed this iconic piece the

most as the male dancers strutted around the stage and were then taken on by the female dancers. It was amazing to see such excellent performers live as well as enjoy the complexity of dances created by professional choreographers.

Rest and relaxtion on Pankor Island


It’s clear to see we had an amazing time. The students commented on the fact that Ms Chavda and Ms Wharton, were fantatstic chaperones that allowed them to be independent and at times give them a gentle push initially in the early stages when they weren’t as confident. “They made this experience what it was and we couldn’t have asked for a better team to share this with!”

Following the World Challenge Project Cambodia 2017 assembly delivered to Year 11 and 12, there will be a information evening for parents in January with information from a World Challenge representative. It will a great opportunity to ask questions and erase any doubts or concerns before you are ready to sign up! A letter and information on this evening will follow in due course…

Malaysia was a fantastic experience. Being able to travel is such privilege, and it was enlightening to see southeast Asia. Volunteering with the children of Burmese refugees was hard work, but a valuable way to give back and make friends. Overall, the trip was eye opening, and I would love to return!

-Maya

My World Challenge... In the last week of the summer term, twelve sixth form student embarked on a world challenge to Malaysia where they supported two charities doing project based work in an elephant sanctuary and refugee school for orphaned children. Whilst the actual trip was in the summer of 2015, work for this trip began in November 2013 when we first signed up for the challenge. Initial meetings, followed by extensive fund raising, more meetings and fitness training were all part and parcel of this life changing experience. You’ll see from the photos, how awesome the trip was. It was challenging but fun and so rewarding. We all learnt so many life skills and had experiences that will leave an imprints in our memories forever:

“It was an amazing experience. I got to learn about another culture and created loads of memories. I met many new people and got to know my friends more. I would definitely do it again!”

Nicole

“Malaysia was honestly the best experience of my life. The skills and memories I’ve gained from it are very valuable to me. “

Mathuvi

“Malaysia allowed me to recognised that culture is beautiful, that learning from others allows you to develop yourself “

“It was an awakening experience which has made me more confident. I also learnt about the culture and would definitely go back if I could!!

“It was a great experience and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world”

Eli

“Going on the trip, put aside any possible future anxieties I would have about organising a trip in the future. It gave me such invaluable organisational skills and practical skills and now, I feel equipped for my independent journey at university”

“This was the most unforgettable experience, it was full of fun, laughter and tears. We were given the opportunity to experience all that Malaysia had to offer!

“Malaysia was an eye opening experience that taught me valuable skills. Volunteering at an elephant sanctuary and living in the village meant we were integrated into the community and their culture showing us their different way of living. Going to Pulau Pangkor was a great place to see the scenery and enjoy the beach. Overall, this was an invaluable time that I will cherish forever as great memories were made.”

Malaysia�2015WORLD CHALLENGE

Guandi Temple


After Exams this year, I was lucky enough to be chosen

to attend the Trowers and Hamlins Law firm week-long work experience. I had to apply via school which they sent off to the firm for all applications to be considered. All of the places this year were filled with St.Angela sixth form students which we are really proud of. The week gave us a chance to shadow solicitors in the offices and to take part in various

workshops in relation to studying law, the various routes that are available as well as the difference between becoming a barrister or a solicitor. The biggest challenge of the week was preparing a presentation proposing a ‘5 point manifesto’ if we were to become prime minister. We also had the chance to have a tour of the Royal Courts of Justice. This gave us a chance to listen in on different cases and appeals throughout the day.The entire week was extremely useful and now I can write about the skills I learnt on my personal statement.

“Through this programme I have had 3 law firm

placements and 1 Barrister’s Chambers

placement at Lincoln Inn! I have attended many workshops about the

Changing face of Law”

Social Mobility FoundationI applied for the programme and got references via the Sixth form and it has helped me incredibly. Through this programme I have had 3 law firm placements and 1 Barrister’s Chambers placement at Lincoln Inn! I have attended many workshops about the Changing face of Law. I have had a chance to attend workshops such as ‘Learn to debate effectively and project clearly’, ‘the City Woman’s working network’ and ‘How to get into Oxbridge: starting with the personal statement’ followed by ‘Interview practice’. I have also been assigned a mentor in my chosen field but there are many other fields such as ‘Medicine, engineering, design, fashion etc’ that you can choose from.

North London Half MarathonWe all ran together as part of the RUN DEM YOUNGERS running club who work with our sixth form to promote fitness. It was such an amazing experience – we ran 13.5 miles (21.7 km) in 2 hours!! It took us 6 hours to walk that during the Duke of Edinburgh award!

Enrichment Experience by Head Girl Teddy


Teen Tech CityOn 1st December a group of ten girls from both Year 8 and 9 were given the opportunity to go to an event hosted by TeenTech at the Copperbox Arena in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. TeenTech City has been held for three years previously but this was

our first time at the event. Throughout the day we were all given the chance to take part in a variety of different challenges, experiments and presentations that were given to us by a variety of different companies and universities, such as Samsung, UCL, JVC and BBC. Within these small challenges and experiments we were required to work in small groups to invent new ideas and designs, and one of our groups which included: Delveen, Gloria, Emily, Arlana and Chantel were able to win a DIY synth kit for having the best ideas for a particular challenge. As well as competing in challenges and experiments, we were also given the chance to test and try new products, such as Samsung’s Oculus Rift VR Headset which uses oculus technology to create a 3D effect for the user. We were also lucky enough to play a game on Samsung’s new curved UHD (Ultra High Definition) TV, which allows the user to see the screen clearly from all angles.

TeenTech hosts this event in order to encourage and motivate young teenagers to follow career paths in science, engineering and technology and so to inspire us to create new ideas, we were given the challenge of creating a new product that could make our lives simpler and easier. We decided that for our product we would create an automatic pet feeder which could be operated manually or through an app which can be downloaded on any mobile device. We were than given the chance to present our ideas to other schools and for presenting our product we were able to win an award.This event has not only opened my eyes and changed my view of science and engineering, but it has taught me about different career paths where I can apply the knowledge I have gained from science and computer science.Year 9 – Eanna Alarcio

Cricket Summer ResultsCongratulations to the U15 and U13 Cricket teams who won the Newham Cricket League at

the very end of last term. They played brilliantly throughout the season and are now in training for

the indoor season which is underway. Congratulations to:U15 Team - Nichole Trivino (Captain), Melanie Campos De Oliverira, Grace Baby, Ralitsa Angelova, Simone Tshuma, Jesufemi Onanuga, Kira Elliott, Peace Onuoha, Lydia Alatise, Bukola Okesade, Precious Olagunja

U13 Team - Jessica Sadiq (Captain), Connie Mckenzie, Manisha Shajan, Julitta Amdor, Maria Tony, Wiktoria Fronc, Angeleena Anto, Chanchal Joseph, Ashmi Savundrarajan, Jennifer Sasikumar, Dinosa Kirusnakulenthiran, Diana Veletian

Re-Writing Africa WorkshopLast half term, a group of year 12s and 13s attended a workshop regarding African literature and history. The workshop was given by a SOAS ambassador, who educated the group on some of the many stereotypes, both positive and negative that are related to the continent. We discussed issues such as imperialism and colonialism and how historical events such as the British and French Empires have assimilated Africa into a completely different entity. This discussion was closely intertwined by looking at Chinua Achebe’s Novel “Things Fall Apart”. We learnt how the Nigerian author’s novel uncovered many of the untold traditions and practices of pre-colonial Igbo Land. The topic of identity was also covered in the workshop. Many of the students and even teachers came forward to speak about their backgrounds and culture and how this has moulded their identity. It was an insightful experience to hear about the continent’s history and also the cultural experiences from my peers. I hope to do something similar again!

Chamber ConcertOur Autumn Chamber Concert took place on Thursday 19th November in Merici Hall, and featured performances from year 7 to year 12. Our GCSE music classes put together an impressive number of bands, and many members of the St. Angela’s choirs took the opportunity to perform solos and sing in smaller groups. The audience were very impressed by the wide range of instruments played by students preparing for grade exams, including guitar duets, piano pieces and even some jazz on the violin. Special mention should go to Almudena Espinosa Carrion, Faith Williams and Ashmi Savundrarajan, who all performed in concert for the first time, and Anna Perry who gave a storming rendition of Chopin’s challenging Fantasie Impromptu on the piano.


Computer ScienceApps World EventFor our Computer Science class, we attended App World on 19th November in the Excel Centre. There were many attractions and sights to see that were related to coding and computer apps. One of the first things we saw was the Google Networking Area. Here, we received fliers from Google who talked about the company and what the search engine was about. The workers were extremely pleasant and I learned what their environment is really like.Another thing we found was something similar to the Oculus Rift. This was the “BriztechVR”. This allowed us to play video games in a new and spectacular way. When putting on the headset, you turn your head and you can see the game. It is like you are immersed in the game! My friend Kelly managed to play Fallout 4 perfectly with a high score too. We also got to see how the app Angry Birds was tested. This was tested by a robot mechanism which had a mini camera and fake touch finger to play and test the game. Whatever was on the screen, was received by the camera

which made algorithms and performed instructions on what to do next. Maybe that’s how they managed to get it perfect at every level.All in all, it was a very fun trip with lots and lots of freebies (we got a lot of USBs, pens and flasks). In addition, we gained a very good insight to the world of coding.

Bernadette M. 12McLennon

TV vs Book

25th DecemberIt’s a Wonderful Life - based on The Greatest Gift

by Philip Van Doren Stern - 2.15pm C4 (U)A Christmas Carol - based on the book of the same name

by Charles Dickens - 2.20pm BBC1 (PG)The Wizard of Oz - based on the book of the same name

by L. Frank Baum - 3.10pm C5 (U)

TV vs BookDuring the Winter break, television channels will be overflowing with films to entertain the viewing public. However, take a step back to appreciate some of the great books that preceeded the films, get off the sofa, go to the library and find the book that inspired the production of your favourite film. Try reading and comparing the plot and characters; you may be surprised.

Winner of the St Angela’s Christmas card competition :Paula Total-Avwioroko , Year 9 Maathai. Well done Paula!

Wishing you a peaceful Christmas


Christmas Carol Concert 9th December 2015

This year’s Christmas Carol Concert was filled with phenomenal performances from many ensembles; the Main School Choir, Gospel Choir, Youth Choir, Orchestra, Brass and Guitar ensembles and of course the St Angela’s Primary Choir and Orchestra.

The spirit of Christmas was evident throughout with Christmas readings beautifully read by our liturgy reps and many congregational carols such as the carol “The Holly and the Ivy” led by Isabella Clawson-Maila (Year 9) and accompanied by the orchestra. Highlights include the every growing brass and guitar ensembles, the Youth Choir singing “Something Inside So Strong”, the Gospel Choir’s “Jesus Born On This Day” and the Main School Choir’s marathon “12 or So Days of Christmas”! St Angela’s Primary Choir’s rendition of “Ain’ No Mountain” was also a very memorable moment of the concert.

A special surprise for us all was when we were treated to a festive medley of songs and carols sung by no other than our teachers with an incredible solo by Ms Charles!The Carol Concert was a

fantastic experience for all. “It was a magical evening, full of festive joy”said Christiana Odewole (Year 11). A big thank you to everyone who took part and a massive thank you to Mr Ramos and Mr Carruthers for all their support and time spent on making the Carol concert amazing.

Hopefully, next year will be as wonderful!

Charlotte Venn Year 11

A Christmas Prayer

SPRING TERM BEGINS ON MONDAY 4TH JANUARY 2016

by Robert Louis Stevenson

Loving Father, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,

that we may share in the song of the angels,

the gladness of the shepherds,

and worship of the wise men.

Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the

world. Let kindness come with every gift and good desires

with every greeting. Deliver us from evil by the blessing which

Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.

May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,

and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful

thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake.

Amen.

A Christmas Prayerby Robert Louis Stevenson

Loving Father, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,

that we may share in the song of the angels,

the gladness of the shepherds,

and worship of the wise men.

Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the

world. Let kindness come with every gift and good desires

with every greeting. Deliver us from evil by the blessing which

Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.

May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,

and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful

thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake.

Amen.

st angela's christmas newsletter 2015

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