st nicholas’ newsletter · 2019-05-07 · st nicholas’ school newsletter - spring 2019 three...

Kitty Grosse from Year 11 enjoyed a culinary experience in Italy after winning a national competition. She was crowned the national winner of the Rotary Young Chef Competition and enjoyed a two-day trip to a cookery school called Toscana Saporita in Tuscany. While there, Kitty had the opportunity to be taught by renowned chefs, learning the art of true Tuscan cuisine in the heart of the Tuscan countryside. The cookery school is located about thirty minutes from Pisa and is owned by Sandra Rosy Lotti. Under the tutelage of chefs such as Keith DiLauro, Alessio J.M. Da Prato, Magdalena Morales, Chris Covelli and Sandra Rosy Lotti, Kitty tried her hand at making pizza and biscotti. “I particularly enjoyed seeing how olives are collected at Toscana Saporita’s very own olive grove and then having a tasting session of different olive oils. I learnt how to tell the difference between new and old oil, and tasted both the school’s own oil as well as Filippo Berio’s, whose company sponsored the competition and provided the prize. I had no idea that one kind of oil could taste so different just because it came from a different region!” said Kitty.With every lesson, the teachers provided an insight into the origin of where the foods Kitty was using came from and provided her with some unforgettable culinary advice.Kitty said, “Not only did I get the opportunity to cook, but I also visited Lucca and Pisa. Italy is a beautiful country, and these towns were no exception. I was able to go up the leaning tower of Pisa and survey the surrounding area which was breath-taking. And, of course, I took the classic photo of holding it up.” Kitty added, “Since arriving home, I have been in the kitchen as much as possible, making biscotti and bread, eager for my friends and family to try true Tuscan cuisine and learn as much as I have about the craft of cooking!”

ST NICHOLAS’ NEWSLETTERSPRING TERM 2019

VOLUME 61

A TASTE OF ITALY FOR KITTY

ST NICHOLAS’ SCHOOL NEWSLETTER - SPRING 2019

Three young cooks from St Nicholas’ competed in the first round of the national Rotary Young Chef competition 2019 for a place in the District Semi-Final at South Thames College, Merton Campus, in Morden, Surrey. The event aims to help young people develop cookery and presentation skills, encourage healthy eating options as well as proving their organisational skills and the ability to cope in a demanding situation.Year 10 student Florence Pattenden was judged the winner by Tony Paksoy and Alexander Fung from La Casa restaurant in Fleet. Florence has since gone on to win the District Semi-Final.

RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

26th September is European Day of Languages but, this year, St Nicholas’ celebrated the occasion with a whole week of festivities, assemblies, activities and workshops at lunch-times.

The workshops ranged from a Japanese taster class, sessions in German, Italian, Greek, Russian, Turkish, as well as a Mandarin fun game about how to use chopsticks properly and a ‘Sevillanas’ Spanish dance workshop. There were also many activities within each department and within lessons, such as quizzes in geography, history, art, science, English, food tasting and fun games in PE.

Throughout the week, international cuisine was served at lunch-time. The event culminated on Friday with everybody coming into school dressed in a typical international costume of their choice. The hymn for Friday’s assembly was accompanied by sign language.

INTERNATIONAL WEEK OF LANGUAGES

St Nicholas’ pupils enjoyed celebrating the diverse languages and cultures of the world

Young Chef entrants Ellie Buckingham, Florence Pattenden (winner) and Freya Kemp

Winner Florence Pattenden with judge Tony Paksoy

Learning team-building skills and having fun at PGL!

Year 7 pupils spent three action-packed days at the PGL centre in Marchants Hill, Hindhead, in Surrey. They took part in a variety of challenging and team-building activities.

The girls enjoyed a range of activities at the 45-acre site which included raft-building, climbing, aeroball, problem-solving and quad-biking.

“The sun shone for the entire trip and the girls enjoyed spending time with one another, and getting to know the new girls who have joined the year group. A fun time was had by all and they came home ready for a good night’s sleep!” said Director of Sport, Mrs Naomi Jackson, who organised the trip.

ACTION-PACKED ADVENTURE AT PGL MARCHANTS HILL


Erin Wylie, Emily Torr, Alice Cleak, Hannah Trueman, Nina Carter and Cara-Lou Hutchinson from Year 10 attended the 18th annual Model United Nations conference held at Calthorpe School where they spoke on their chosen topic of nuclear disarmament. 180 young delegates met to draft, debate and vote on resolutions. It is an educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations and the United Nations.

“It thoroughly tested the girls’ skills of research, analysis and diplomacy, and was a very rewarding and fun experience,” said Head of History, Mrs Joanne Edwards.

Year 7 pupils enjoyed a visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum to see the vibrant Frida Kahlo exhibition: ‘Making Her Self Up’.

The exhibition presented an extraordinary personal collection belonging to the iconic Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. The collection had been locked away for 50 years following her death in 1954, according to the wishes of her husband. Many photographs, letters, medicines, 300 items of her brightly-coloured clothing and even her prosthetic leg were found. Kahlo crafted her own identity through dress, painting and photography and this was reflected in the fascinating exhibition.

Senior students and their parents were given an opportunity to talk to former pupils about their experiences and career paths during a recent Careers’ Evening. Students in Years 9-11 were encouraged to find out about courses and careers that they might not have considered. They also had the chance to talk to representatives of nine further education colleges.

Former St Nicholas’ pupils have forged careers in areas as diverse as medicine, law, television studio production, sales, recruitment, sport management, publishing, finance, veterinary work, marketing, business, robotic engineering, psychology, show jumping, funeral arranging, lecturing and central government. Others have shown their entrepreneurial skills by starting their own businesses.

A Remembrance Service was held to mark the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice.

MODEL UNITED NATIONS

FRIDA KAHLO EXHIBITION

REMEMBRANCE DAY

Keen debaters at the Model United Nations

Alice Cleak playing the Last Post

Year 7 at the Victoria and Albert Museum

The Careers’ Evening

GCSE DRAMAYear 11 GCSE drama students presented their work based on responses to six survivor stories from the Titanic disaster.

INSPIRATIONAL CAREERS’ EVENING


Year 8 pupils Katie Prickett and Evie Line acquitted themselves very well in a Debating Competition held at Sherfield School. They had to take part in five different debates and finished in a very creditable third place.

Year 11 gave an energetic and lively performance of the panto-style musical “Cinderella Rockerfella”.

Year 11 students attended “GCSE Poetry Live!” at the Hexagon theatre, in Reading. They enjoyed performances from several AQA Anthology poets, including Carol Ann Duffy and Simon Armitage. A Chief Examiner also provided useful advice on how to tackle the unseen poem.

The Senior Chamber Orchestra opened the Senior School Service of lessons and Carols with a performance of Handel’s ‘Arrival of the Queen of Sheba’. The Senior Chamber Choir performed ‘Jesus Christ the Apple Tree’ by Elizabeth Poston and ‘Thy Little Ones’, a piece based on the Prospect hymn tune, arranged by Brian Galante.

All pupils from the senior school performed ‘The Colours of Christmas’ by John Rutter and the Senior Choir sang ‘The Holy and the Ivy’ and ‘See Amid the Winter’s Snow’.

The service was brought to an uplifting conclusion by the Swing Band who performed ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree’ followed by an arrangement of ‘All I want for Christmas is you’.

Year 8 pupils spent an enjoyable day in the River Loddon, near Basingstoke, as part of their geography studies. They investigated how aspects of the river change downstream by measuring it at different points along the river. They also looked at the biotic index of the river, to show whether or not the river was a clean environment.

Pupils in Years 5 to 7 enjoyed a Fun Food Show presented by chef Fay from the Chartwells team and assisted by Catering Manager David Clayton.

After an introduction from Fay on the importance of healthy eating, two teams of two girls and a member of staff were chosen to compete in a ‘Cook Off ’. The red and the green teams had fifteen minutes to create their dish.

While the young chefs were busily preparing their culinary creations, other pupils were invited on stage to act as food critics and to see how both teams were progressing. Some lucky pupils were chosen as judges and asked to sample the tasty dishes.

After an audience vote, the red team were declared the winners with their dish of chicken curry with couscous, flavoured with lemon, curry paste and lots of herbs. The green team produced a beef dish with noodles.

“I would like to thank Fay and David from Chartwells for putting on the event, and showing us how we can all produce something delicious and nutritious in just 15 minutes,” said Dr Olwen Wright.

YEAR 8 DEBATING TEAM

CINDERELLA ROCKERFELLA!

POETRY COMES ALIVE!CHRISTMAS MUSIC

FIELD TRIP TO THE RIVER LODDON

READY, STEADY, COOK!

Year 8 geographers splashing about in the river!

On your marks, get set, go!


“Mystery at Magpie Manor” was this year’s junior Christmas play. Set in the roaring 1920s and steeped in legend, Magpie Manor is in a great state of disrepair and Lord and Lady Pica must take drastic action to save their crumbling manor house. The whole family come up with a plan. However, things do not go too smoothly and there is a thief in the midst of it all!

The girls really rose to the challenge of this ‘tricky’ whodunit and performed, as usual, with great flair and confidence!

Parents were invited to the Junior Christmas Assembly. Each form performed a reading on the theme of Christmas. There were also splendid performances by the Junior Choir, the Junior Chamber Choir, the Junior Orchestra and the Junior Guitar group.

Year 4 pupils celebrated the festival of Diwali as part of their topic on Hinduism in Religious Studies. Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights, which is celebrated every autumn in the northern hemisphere.

The children dressed in colourful, traditional costumes and took part in some Indian dancing, made paper lanterns and prepared and ate traditional Indian sweets.

Year 3 girls made some new friends when they visited Finkley Down Farm, in Andover, as part of their Science topics, ‘Teeth and Eating’ and ‘Animals and their Habitats’.

The girls gained information about different animals’ habitats and diets. They met some carnivores, herbivores and omnivores at the farm, and learned about the different types of teeth that these animals have and the variety of different foods that they eat.

In addition to holding some baby rabbits, and grooming ‘Freckles’ the Shetland pony, the girls were also able to touch a snake and stroke a long-bearded dragon when they visited the farm’s reptile house! They were even lucky enough to visit the farm’s newest editions – four meerkats. They enjoyed watching them at play and learning about their diet, which included scorpions!

MYSTERY AT MAGPIE MANOR

JUNIOR CHRISTMAS ASSEMBLY DIWALI CELEBRATIONS

FUN AT FINKLEY DOWN FARM


Year 6 pupils attended a Victorian Day at Reading Museum. In an authentic Victorian classroom, they were able to experience life as a Victorian schoolchild. They wrote on slates and wore pinafores as Victorian girls and waistcoats as Victorian boys.

In the afternoon, they took part in a Victorian Christmas workshop where the girls were shown toys and gifts that Victorian children might have received. They then performed the pantomime ‘Aladdin’.

Junior Eco Reps have been busy trying to reduce plastic waste. Inspired by a visit to a local junior school, the girls interviewed St Nicholas’ kitchen staff to see how they could help. The staff then attended a Year 6 assembly, on the theme of recycling, where they were presented with a post-box for recycling milk bottle tops. In addition, they are also saving all of the tin cans that they use and these will be recycled by the art department.

Year 6 pupils recently visited the BAYLAB, in Reading, where they took part in a Pigments and Dyes workshop.

PUPILS STEP BACK IN TIME

REDUCING PLASTIC WASTE

BAYLAB VISIT

‘Change’ was the theme of this year’s National Poetry Day. The junior girls presented a selection of poems on the theme, including some which they had composed themselves, at a special assembly.

TIME FOR CHANGE

Two teams recently entered the annual Aldershot Rotary Club’s Youth Speaks competition. Year 10 students Cara-Lou Hutchinson (Speaker), Alice Cleak (Chair) and Isabel Cann (Vote of Thanks) gave a presentation on the topic of ‘Body Image Pressure on Women’. Erin Wylie (Speaker), Nina Carter

(Chair) and Anna Arevalo (Vote of Thanks) spoke on ‘Uniform’. The standard was extremely high and they narrowly lost out to a place in the next round. Erin received a cup for being the best individual presenter in the senior category.

ROTARY YOUTH SPEAKS

GCSE drama students visited the Wilde Theatre, Bracknell, to see a performance of “Sherlock Holmes: The Sign of Four”.

First of all, the students enjoyed a workshop with Luke Barton (Sherlock Holmes) and Stephanie Rutherford (Mary Marston).

It was an incredible experience for the girls; they took part in practical devising techniques, as well as exploring some of the scenes from the actual production.

They were also able to put many questions to Luke and Stephanie about their roles in the play, and were given practical advice about careers in the performing arts.

The evening production was a slick, ensemble piece of theatre. It was a new adaptation by Blackeyed Theatre of this classic Sherlock mystery and the students were able to make lots of notes about the design, technical and performance aspects, ready for their follow-up lessons back at school.

SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE SIGN OF FOUR

SPORTING SUCCESS

The Year 11 netball team remain undefeated and are hoping to be crowned champions at the end of the season.

In the junior cross country league, the St Nicholas’

team finished in third place, after two league runs.

Isla Roddick came second in the first league run

of the season.

Many girls have competed in cross country

‘friendlies’ (Years 7 and 8) and ‘districts’ (Years

9-11). Several girls have been selected for the

county stage.

The Year 6 hockey team

The Year 10 netball team have lost only one game.

The U12s are improving dramatically with the help of a specialist hockey coach for training sessions.

The U16 hockey team recently won their match against a local school.

The U16s are undefeated in the basketball league. They have two games left to play to secure their spot as champions!

The U14 (Years 8 and 9) football team have won the first round of the cup and will play in the second round later this term.

The Year 7 football team competed in the indoor 5 a-side tournament at All Hallows School last term. The girls played some excellent football against far more experienced sides. They did not qualify for the final stages of the tournament but gave a splendid performance.



CHARITIES

St Nicholas’ School, Redfields House, Redfields Lane, Church Crookham, Hampshire, GU52 0RFTel. 01252 850121

St Nicholas’ pupils have been busy fundraising for a variety of charities:• Jeans for Genes Day raised £330.• Year 11 raised £267 by selling cakes and

hot chocolate for the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support.

• Year 7 pupils raised £66 for Help for Heroes by holding a cake sale.

• Year 8 sold cakes made in their Food Technology lessons and raised £151 for the Children in Need Appeal.

• Senior pupils ran Christmas stalls and raised £391 on St Nicholas’ Day. The money was divided equally between the Brain Tumour Charity and Water Aid.

• Junior pupils in Year 4 raised £71 by holding an Indian sweet sale for the Hope Foundation.

• Clova Day, Tia Eldridge, Ella Forbes, Niamh Moss and Martha Pittman from Year 5 raised an incredible £510 for Step by Step. The girls organised a festive food sale.

• The Juniors took part in Action Aid’s Big Me Day and raised £90.

• Year 2 held a fruit and cake sale and raised £30 for Diabetes UK.

• Staff and pupils wore Christmas jumpers and raised £308 for Save the Children.

• A collection at the Senior Carol Service raised a further £423 for the Brain Tumour Charity.

News from Branksomewood

Years 1 and 2 performing ‘Big Bad Ben of Bethlehem’

The children enjoying their Christmas party Nursery and Reception children performing ‘The Wriggly Nativity’

The Harvest Festival The Christmas party entertainer Mr Elf

It has been another busy term for the children and they have enjoyed a number of activities.

st nicholas’ newsletter · 2019-05-07 · st nicholas’ school newsletter - spring 2019 three...

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