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Welcome to the December issue of our COAST magazine packed full of news stories. To jump straight to our year group news click Y7, Y8, Y9, Y10 or Y11. For subject news click English and Media, Maths, RS, Food, Computer Science, Science, Geography, PE, Art, History, French and Spanish. For our SEND update click here.

Sholing students leading the conversation on supporting young people to develop their emotional intelligence

Sholing students inspired a conference in London this week as they passionately shared a presentation about their big idea for the planet.

Three Oasis Academy Sholing students were invited to speak at the Aspire Bold Leadership conference taking place in Regents University in London, sharing their talk entitled “Developing the emotional intelligence of the youth of today.”

The students, known collectively as Team GROWTH, joined the conference to hear empowering and motivational speeches from a number of speakers from across industry and around the world, including business entrepreneurs and CEOs.

The Team closed the conference with their presentation, which they delivered with a confidence and maturity well beyond their years, showcasing some of their initiatives such as running workshops to support the mental health of young people. The presentation was met with a standing ovation and invitations to deliver their presentation globally.

Throughout the day the audience had been encouraged to share words to describe the speakers, and Team GROWTH were described as amazing, impressive, superheroes, cool, talented, knowledgeable, trailblazers, trend setters, pioneers, and advised: “Don’t let anyone dim your sparkle!”

The students were invited to the conference after reaching the final of Solution for the Planet’s Big Ideas competition. The competition connects students with businesses local to them to start conversations around a sustainable future whilst educating a diverse young audience about the many opportunities within the STEM sector.

Dr Saunders, teacher at Oasis Academy Sholing, commented afterwards saying:

“Watching these three young ladies present was an honour, and they have come so far from their initial idea, to reaching the final at the Big Ideas competition to seeing them present at the Aspire Conference today.”

“It only reinforced that if you have a passion for something, anything is possible and Team GROWTH have proven this time and again.”

This half term has seen students from all year groups work together to stage our school production of Disney's Frozen Jr!

Every Thursday from 2:40pm in the drama studio a little bit of magic happened each week as students found their voice, discovered their dancing shoes and took to the stage to bring to life their character of Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Olaf, Sven(s) and all their Arendelle Friends, in preparation for this years performances on December 8th and 9th!

The cast and crew - props managers, two fantastic stage managers from year 11 and our brilliant year 10 lighting designer - worked tirelessly and with the most wonderful creativity over the past six weeks since scripts arrived!

And while lines were practiced, positions blocked, and notes perfected, there was always a happy consistent heartfelt buzz of determination from wonderful art students as they created set and props to support the show!

A huge well done to all members of the cast, crew, and staff in creating a show full of joy, passion, and the enduring timeless message that love prevails!

We cannot wait to see that creativity once more "in Summer"!!

Our Senior Prefects for Challenge and Ambition, Amelia and Angelina were happy to welcome Kamal to the academy

In December, we welcomed Kamal Hyman from Aim a little Higher to stop by and lead an inter active session with our brilliant Year 11 students, challenging them to think about their own “student brand”, more specifically who they are, who they want to be, where they are now and how they can get there. College applications are due to close soon, which made this a perfect opportunity for students to reflect, review and visualise their next steps on their individual pathway.

Oasis Academy Sholing gives free books to students

Oasis Academy Sholing was proud to take part in BookTrust’s Bookbuzz programme this autumn. Book Buzz aims to get children reading. Children, who are entitled to free school meals in Year 7 and Year 8, chose a book from seventeen Bookbuzz titles. Oasis Academy Sholing purchased 145 books for the students to keep as their own, as well as receiving two copies of each book to add to our school library collection.

“We are proud to support this amazing programme that helps students discover a passion for reading,” explained Mrs Ridley, the School Librarian, “especially as 1 in 8 disadvantaged students in the UK say they haven’t a book of their own.”

Bookbuzz is run by BookTrust, the UK’s largest children’s reading charity that transforms lives by getting children and families reading. Each year BookTrust reaches 3.9 million children across the UK with books, resources and support to help deliver a love of reading.

We hope that the 17 titles will encourage our students to read more frequently, which will help improve their wellbeing, spark interesting conversations and inspire creativity.

The adventure does not end with these books though! No matter what their interests, there are thousands of fantastic books out there to discover. To find your child’s next read you can ask the school librarian, peruse our digital shelves at Welcome | Accessit Library Web App, visit your local public library, or go to BookTrust’s Bookfinder by visiting Bookfinder: find children's books for every age | BookTrust.

Rewards

As we approach the end of term, we have significantly increased the number of students who receive a 'Golden invite' to one of our rewards events. This a fantastic opportunity for us to recognise the hard work and dedication of our students.

In addition to the top 30 students (in terms of rewards points), we are also rewarding students who have been nominated by their tutors or by their subject teachers. Students with English, Maths and Science nominations will be rewarded at the end of the Spring term as there were so many nominations.

Year 7

Wow, Year 7 have already completed their first term of secondary school life and the time has absolutely flown by!

It has been amazing to watch them become such confident members of our school community and to find their feet as secondary school students. Our Anti-Bullying Ambassadors have delivered assemblies and tutor sessions, sharing their ideas about how we can all work together to improve our school for everyone. Our Tutor Reps have been busy planning celebration events and discussing ways to make school life as rewarding as possible. All of our Anti-Bullying Ambassadors and our Tutor Reps now have their badges and they are wearing these with pride.

Year 7 continue to display a positive attitude to learning during their lessons and tutor sessions. Their positive determination to learning was celebrated during the November Meet the Tutor Afternoon when so many parents were able to join us on site to talk about your children’s progress and achievements so far at OAS.

The positive approach that Year 7 students have demonstrated towards learning new skills and topics has meant that Year 7 have remained top of the school for the number of positive reward points earned per student. Year 7 have also remained top of the school for attendance, and I would like to thank all of our Year 7 parents in working with us to support your children in coming to school as this is also your success too.

Our top thirty Year 7 students who have the most reward points are listed below.

During their Food Tech lessons, Year 7 have learned how to make Leek and Potato Soup as well as Tomato and Pasta Bake and this will be followed up with puff pastry Chocolate Christmas Trees in the last week of term.

Our talented Year 7 performers have joined the cast of Frozen, our school play, and will be treading the boards on Thursday 8th and Friday 9th December 2022, so please do come and watch them if you can.

With the end of term swiftly approaching there will be celebration events to experience, the school Christmas Dinner to try, Frozen the school Christmas show to watch and over 100 members of Year 7 will have the opportunity to experience a trip to the Pantomime at the Mayflower as part of a Cultural Capital experience.

I can honestly say that Year 7 have been making the most of every opportunity that they have been offered and I look forward to seeing what the New Year brings!

Well done Year 7. Keep up the good work!

Mrs Rolls, Head of Year 7

Year 8

As we come to the end of our first term in Year 8, I would like to congratulate our year group on all the successes and achievements they have made. As a cohort, they have been making fantastic progress across the school from the scrumptious smells filling the halls of the food technology corridor to the imaginative works forming in the creative art building to the beautiful sounds echoing through the halls from the music rooms.

The creative bug hasn’t stopped there. At the time of writing this, many of our Year 8 students have been putting in the hours treading the boards and constructing the scenery in preparation for the Christmas production! I am very much looking forward seeing the students taking to the stage and dazzling us with their performances. Good luck to all of those involved.

I would like to extend my congratulations to the 29 students who are still achieving 100% attendance. Maintaining a high attendance is vital for our students to maintain their best possible progress. Working together, we can support our students in striving for high attendance and achieving their potential so they can be whatever they dream.

Shout outs for 100% attendance go to:

Joshua A, Ethan B, Melissa B, Esmae B, Luke B, Amber C, Alfie C, Lucas D, Brandon E, Megan E, William F, Rafael G-S, Junior G, Ryan G, Caleb G, Hayden H, Jessica L, Jack M, Iga N, Grace O, Jack P, Taylor P, Bobby P, Stanley S, Thomas S, Emily S, Ruby S, Sidney S, Selina T

As a year group, our 8’s have been steadily accruing an impressive quantity of reward points. In fact, we have exceeded 32600 reward points since September, with our highest achiever on over 300 reward points! As a celebration, we shall be putting on reward events for our students to show our appreciation for their hard work.

Here’s a shout out to our top 10 reward point achievers:

Brooke P - 322, Imogen H - 302, Caleb G - 290, Sophie S - 284, Jared W - 281, Amber C - 278, Riley C - 275, Demi H - 273, Neo H - 268, Bobby P - 267

I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you all a lovely and restful Holiday season, however you may be spending it, and look forward to seeing all the fantastic Year 8’s upon their return in January.

Year 9

As the term draws to an end, it is a privilege to be able to focus on rewarding our dedicated students. Here are the top 30 students in Year 9 in terms of reward points. They will be attending one of our 'Golden invite' reward events at the end of term.

Louisa A, Erin J, Tiani B, Emily K, Laila B, Thomas M, Grace B, Sophie M, Macey C, Phocea P, Matthew C, Ella R, Ellie-Mai F, Ruby R, Olivia F, Liam R, Bernard G, Georgia S, Taylan H, Reggie S, Jimi H, Lilly S, Timothy H, Aliesha T, Callum J, Emmanuella U, Ethan J, Annika VL, William J, Jack V, Archie W

Congratulations to these students for their continued efforts!

Ms Gale has been working with some of our students since Year 7 and they are currently working on a very ambitious project to create a news bulletin called HOST (Honest Oasis Sholing Television or similar - they chose it). Well done for their commitment to this:

Timothy H, Ellie-Mai F, Shiya P, Taylan H, Alexander D, Emily K, Olivia F, Laila B, Chloe G

9AS learnt about the Southampton Toy Appeal and immediately wanted to donate their own toys to the children. We spoke about how we might be able to help, and they decided that they should pool their money to purchase two children in care a Christmas gift. Between them, they raised £22 which allowed us to purchase four gifts for two children. We are SO proud of their selflessness and how they all worked together to decide on the gifts for each child.

Finally, we have been following the successes of team Growth, 3 Year 9 students on a mission to make change! Darcey, Grace and Phocea presented at a conference were fabulous.

Dr Saunders who has been working with these students said: "They were nervous and excited and at times overwhelmed. However, they overcame all this to give the most amazing presentation (I even had tears in my eyes) to see how much they are achieving is incredible. They did the school really proud." They may well have an invite to speak (via zoom) to a global audience in the USA. We are very proud of you! Well done.

Merry Christmas and Happy New year.

Miss Sothinathan

Year 10

We are now at the end of the first term of Year 10, and I’m pleased that students have settled calmly into their new subjects and are enjoying studying the subjects they have chosen in more depth. When they joined in September 2019 I asked them to imagine where they wanted to be doing ten years on, so when they were 21. I challenged them to have suitably ambitious visions for themselves, to create a vision that was the best version of themselves that they could be and where they were happy and we keep reminding students about this in assemblies and tutor times. To realise this vision students will need the best set of GCSE’s that they can get, and this comes down to hard work in lessons and excellent attendance at school. DfE research shows that students with 100% attendance achieve approximately 1 grade higher in their GCSE results than students on 90%. We know that it can be hard for students to get out the door and into school when they are feeling under the weather as many are at this time of year, however please do try to get them in to school and be assured we will look after them and send them home if they are really struggling.

We have begun the process of informing students of the exciting education opportunities available to them when they leave school at the end of Year 11. We had a visit from the National Apprenticeship Service in November who spoke to students in assembly, and are organising visits to Itchen College for some of our students in the New Year. Some students have been working with Saints Foundation on their literacy and numeracy skills, while others have been introduced to a mentoring scheme where they will meet with graduate mentors fortnightly to develop their understanding of the opportunities available to those who go to university.

A big well done to the 27 students who have managed to maintain 100% attendance over the entire term, with a particular mention to Benjamin Davidson, Konrad Lejman, Eddie Lin, Jakub Neter and Kiaran Shotter whose 100% attendance record is unbroken since at least the start of Year 9. I’m also really pleased to recognise the achievement of the following students who have the highest number of house points in the year group:

Miles B, Jack B, Heidi B, Grace B, Jack B, Lydia C, Matthew D, Lacie E, Charles F, Layton G, Rodrigo G S, Luke G, Callum H, Stephi K, Matthew L, Konrad L, Ethan L, Max M, Jessica M, Joshua N, Luke O, Charlie P, Megan S, Leo S, Kali S, Luke S, Elexie S, Toby S, Bethany W, Haleigh W

Have a lovely Christmas break, and as always if you do have any questions please do get in touch with us by contacting your child’s tutor or emailing year10@oasissholing.org

Year 11

As we fast approach the Christmas Break, it has certainly been an extremely busy time for Year 11. We held a Tutor afternoon where we invited Year 11 parents into school to show them how to help their children revise for their upcoming GCSEs and for parents to check in with their child’s tutor too. We had some lovely comments from parents who really appreciated all the information. We look forward to seeing you on our next parents evening which is scheduled for the 5th of January.

Year 11 sat their second round of Mocks and were excellent, their behaviour was second to none and I as well as all the staff were incredibly impressed with their mature approach towards these Mocks.

These exams will ensure that your child fully understands examination regulations, and how GCSE exams will run at Oasis Academy Sholing. They will also enable students to practise their revision techniques, and the feedback they receive from these mock exams will indicate where students need to focus their revision on. These examinations will provide your child’s teachers with a clear indication of where they may need additional support to be able to achieve their full potential during the summer 2023 exam period.

It is imperative that Year 11 continue to attend weekly revision sessions after school, based on evidence this will not only give them confidence, moreover, the necessary skills to succeed.

The concept of spacing out a student's revision has been shown to be highly effective in boosting student's memory and performance in assessments. The importance of these extra sessions is to provide support for those students who need enhanced provision to achieve the best possible outcomes”

SHOUT OUTS

Last week Year 11 Food Preparation and Nutrition pupils completed their technical skill dishes towards their GCSE final grade. The Year 11 produced a range of dishes showing some very challenging and a wide range of practical skills. I was very impressed by the thought, dedication, and independence of them all. Our focus now turns to week commencing January 23rd and our final practical exam.

A massive congratulations to Tommy Whitehead, who has been offered a scholarship with AFC Bournemouth. This is most certainly well deserved after all his hard work; we look forward to seeing great things ahead Tommy.

Well done to all the students below who all have a 100% attendance, amazing! Keep up the excellent work.

FROZEN

Dylan Sutton-Smith, Ciara Hawkins, Dea Miller, Ted WhitingGeorgie Butler and Taylor West who all took part in the school’s production of Frozen. Well done for not only attending revision sessions but also giving up extra time in your busy schedules to participate in this amazing show.

Finally, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year!

Best Wishes, Miss Sydenham

SEND

This section is written in the OpenDyslexic font to aid accessibility.

Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA)

Some young people find it hard to leave home and come to school. We know that the earlier difficulties are identified, and support is put in place, the more successful we are at developing young people’s ability to cope with their anxiety, come to school and access improved attendance and ongoing life opportunities.
There is a small amount of support outside of school so, in answer to this, we are working with the Southampton Educational Psychology Service to develop workshops for parents and carers. This will be additional to the work done by our excellent Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Kate Vasey. More news to follow in January.

SEND Coffee Mornings

Our second Coffee Morning is on January 12th 2023 from 8:45am to 9:30am.
If you wish to drop in and speak to a member of the SEND Team about any questions you may have- be it advice, information or support with your child, please do come and meet us.
Of course, free tea, coffee and biscuits will be available.

National Autistic Society Christmas Card Competition

The National Autistic Society are calling for all aspiring autistic artists to enter their Christmas card competition.
They say, ‘It's time to get creative and your artwork can feature wintry outdoor scenes, Christmas trees or something else entirely.’
Two winners (one adult over 18 and one child) will receive five packs of cards featuring their design, and the cards will be made available for purchase on our online shop during the Christmas 2023 season.
English

English

In KS3, the students have been completing their studies of Victorian literature. Year 7 have finished Oliver’s journey through London, opening their eyes to poverty and inequality in Dickensian London. Year 8 have successfully studied three Sherlock Holmes stories, exploring the mysteries of ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’, ‘The Red Headed League’ and finally ‘The Blue Carbuncle’. The students have witnessed Holmes transform himself into a vicar to trick ‘The Woman’ into revealing where a coveted photograph resides and track down the infamous Red Headed League making mind blowing deductions that even Dr Watson struggles to keep up with! Finally, they’ve enjoyed the festive fun of ‘Blue Carbuncle’ – witnessing how Victorians celebrated Christmas and where lots of modern traditions emanate from. Year 9 have explored the end of Jane’s childhood in ‘Jane Eyre’, seeing the tragic death of Helen Burns and understanding the formative events that forge Jane’s character into a strong and independent individual.

In KS4, Year 10 have been reading the end of ‘Macbeth’. As they read the final acts, they have been considering the transformation of Macbeth’s character from a loyal thane to a treacherous and duplicitous tyrant.

In Year 11, students have been reading the war poetry in ‘Power and Conflict.’ They have explored the effects of conflict on soldiers and civilians alike. We are proud of them for completing their mock exams, and how many have been attending revision. We are looking forward to seeing more students attending revision in the New Year, as we move towards the next set of mocks in the Spring!

Media Studies

In Year 10 we have been learning about the film industry, more specifically how celebrated Bond film, "No Time to Die" was produced, regulated and marketed globally to engage the widest target audience possible. Meanwhile, year 11 have now finished their NEA which is worth 30% of their GCSE and are studying 2010s, slick crime drama, Luther starring Idris Elba in preparation for Exam Paper 2.

Star students include Maya Moffatt and Luke Olden in Year 10 and Sophia Meffen, Bradley Young and Holly Hogger in Year 11.

Mathematics

Maths

Year 7

This half term Year 7 have built on their understanding of number by looking at negative numbers and their application in the real world such as temperature. We have then taken our knowledge even further by looking at how we can generalise ideas in maths using algebra, tackling some of the core concepts of this topic to build upon in future years. We were able to revisit some of our key number concepts from last half term such as factors when we did factorising.

Year 7 Stars

Year 8

Year 8 moved onto applying their algebraic knowledge to straight line graphs, they have developed an understanding of gradient and how this ties into the equation of a straight line. They then looked at how they can use rounding to make numbers easier to understand and use for estimation. They were introduced to the idea of a significant figure and how this can make rounding simpler when dealing with numbers of different place values.

Year 8 Stars

Year 9

Year 9 have focussed on algebra during this half term, developing their algebraic manipulation skills in a number of ways. They have recapped expanding and factorising from previous years and developed this skill further to include double as well as single brackets. As the half term moved forwards they have consider how they can use balancing to not only solve equations but how it can be useful for rearranging formulae, a skill they will also need in their science lessons. Finally they looked at probability and how it is the chance of something happening, this brought in some of the number concepts form previous terms such as fractions and decimals.

Year 9 Stars

Maths Homework Club

Need help with your homework? Maths Homework club is on every Wednesday after school in the Library.

Year 10

This half term Year 10 have revisited and developed their knowledge of fractions and percentages. They have encountered all the core basics and applied these ideas in different concepts. They looked at a key area where we see percentages used everyday in banking for interest, they considered different types of interest and how they can compare different investment offers from banks. Finally they applied their knowledge of fractions, decimals and percentages in the topic area of probability. They were able to explore set notation and Venn diagrams, before moving onto how we can look at probability where there is more than one event.

Year 11

This half term Year 11 have been looking at how we can mathematically represent two things that are not equal to each other using inequality symbols. They were then able to look at how we can represent these on a number line and identify values that satisfy different inequalities. Y11 moved onto graph work focussing on the relationship between y=mx+c and the straight line graph it created. They have been looking at how to use the y=mx+c format to be able to compare properties of lines such as parallel and perpendicular. They have also received 2 booklets which we have started working on in class time that are personalised to each individual student based on the mock exams. These target key areas each students needs to work on and will support students in identifying the gaps in their knowledge and how they can go about filling them.

Maths Puzzles

Using the numbers from 1-9, complete the grid

Sparx Homework

Sparx is an adaptive learning platform and adjusts to meet each students mathematical ability over time.

Homework is key to helping students consistently recall knowledge which in turn helps students remember more long term.

Sparx has videos that directly link to each questions to support students when they get stuck. If they continue to find it difficult they can speak to their class teacher or pop to Maths homework club on Wednesdays.

Religious Studies

Year 7 have been exploring the concept of reflection. They have trialled various reflection activities, some that they have enjoyed the most are using their imagination about what may have happened before or after a picture was taken; here are some examples:

They have also found mindfulness colouring very relaxing. They have produced some amazing mandalas both on paper and using apps on their iPads. They have been applying their maths knowledge of symmetry to have a minimum of two lines of symmetry. How many lines of symmetry that these students achieved?

Year 11: Visits to places of worship

We are proud of how well the year 11 GCSE class is working. We want to further inspire and make their revision come to life, by taking them to places of worship and meeting with religious believers. We hope to visit the Vedic Temple in Southampton and a church in Bitterne in the Spring term.

Core RE lessons

The football World Cup gave us the opportunity to consider important Human Rights and we investigated what various religions think about sexuality. This allowed us to reinforce our Modern British Values of celebrating diversity and promoting equality.

Our RS stars for Autumn term 2, who have an amazing attitude to learning and produce exceptional work are:

Year 11 Mariam Akinola and Brook Spearing

Year 10 Libby New and Keira Williamson

Year 9 Phocea Pereira and Riley Gailor

Year 8 Emily Parratt and Ellis-James Hickman

Year 7 Chloe Carrington and Jake Harrison

Food glorious food

Food

Year 7

This term, our Year 7’s have been learning the importance of a balanced diet. Pupils have been learning why calories are important for providing energy and how the Eatwell Guide must play a role in the planning of our meals.

They have also cooked a range of dishes such as tropical granola bar, potato and leek soup as well as most recently a tomato pasta bake, all dishes which have helped them become acquainted with using the hob safely.

This terms Foodie Heroes are Lilly Harris and Cameron Chetwyn-Hayes

Year 8

Puff pastry is the focus for our Year 8 learners this term, making a range of dishes such as cheese and onion turnovers, sausage rolls, and Danish pastries.

Pupils have been learning about how puff pastry is made and the way it works when being baked.

Well done to Year 8 for your excellent skills and outcomes this term.

This terms Foodie Heroes are Holly Bailey and Kelan Taylor

Year 9

Our Year 9’s have challenged themselves this term by making a range of challenging breads culminating in them producing a selection of enriched doughs.

Pupils have revisited key knowledge from last term about gluten, yeast, and fermentation but have also learnt how and why we might enrich a bread dough.

It has been very pleasing to see some high-quality baked products leaving the classroom and hopefully making it home, I am looking forward to visiting the Sholing bakery in years to come.

This terms Foodie Heroes are Madison Jupp and Raul Peica Balosache

Year 10

Our Year 10 Food Preparation and Nutrition pupils have been very busy this term. They have been learning about how food changes when it is cooked. Making dishes such as lemon meringue pie, cottage pie, and chocolate yule log to show the scientific processes that change our ingredients.

We have also been very busy after school with the start of our brand-new Year 10 cookery club and our yearly Rotary Club entrants having some time to practice their skills.

This terms Foodie Heroes are Mia Trudgeon and Phoebe Patrick

Year 11

Year 11 has reached perhaps its busiest part for our GSCE Food Preparation and Nutrition cohort. They have just begun their journey to completing their NEA 2, the second piece of assessed work towards their GCSE.

As I am writing this, our Year 11’s are producing their technical dishes, which allow them to show their wide variety to technical skills before they do their final practical exam later in the Year.

We are already so proud of the practical outcomes our Year 11 are producing and I am sure this will be replicated in their final practical exam in January.

This terms Foodie Heroes are Jake Brice and Ella Bailey

Computer Science

Year 7

Recently Year 7s have been building their knowledge of spreadsheets. They have learnt to use the key functions of Excel and applied this to investigate data sets using spreadsheets.

Year 8

Year 8 have been learning about different ways data is represented by computer scientists. For example they can now convert binary numbers and use logic gates.

Year 9

Year 9 have been discovering the principles of computational thinking and applying these to sorting and searching algorithms.

Year 10

In Year 10 students have been learning the important principles of programming and have started to create programs using python.

Year 11

Year 11 have been further developing their knowledge of the features of programming languages, this has included looking at the usefulness of an integrated development environment (IDE); a software application that provides comprehensive facilities to computer programmers for software development.

Extra Curricular

In Computing & Robotics Club, students have continued to develop their scratch games and have started to play other’s games. Our Pi programming team has now moved into the construction phase of the project after successful testing. They are starting to build the stand needed to allow solar panels to track the sunlight throughout the day. Any student wishing to join these clubs should speak to their Computer Science teacher for further information.

Mr Bull recently delivered a BOAST lunchtime lecture about personal data, making students aware of how much data they are giving away!

Science

Year 7

Students have developed their understanding of substances with a focus on dissolving and the particle model. Next students learnt the knowledge required to represent chemical reactions and formulas and are now able to represent reactions in word and symbol form. Next, we are shifting to study Biology, starting with cells as the fundamental building blocks of life.

Year 8

Students have returned to study electrical circuits, a difficult topic first introduced in primary school. They have been developing their understanding of the nature of charge and current, and the equipment used to measure both current and voltage. Students have had opportunities to use electrical equipment and simulators to investigate circuits. Soon, they are going to apply this understanding to study the amazing link between electricity and magnetism.

Year 9

Students have built upon their understanding of substances by studying the atomic model and using it to explain how atoms bond with each other to form the variety of substances around us. Then, they have studied a variety of common chemical reactions that are of great use to practical Chemists.

Year 10

This half-term, students have learnt about the levels of organisation in plants, how plant cells work together as bigger tissues and organs for specific functions. Students have spent time learning about the three ways substances can move in and out of cells including studying the movement of water in potato cells. Before we break up for Christmas students will learn about photosynthesis in detail looking at its importance to both individual plants and the wider world.

Year 11

After completing their mock exams, students have returned to Biology to learn about the Theory of Evolution, fossils and how humans manipulate evolution to their benefit. Did you know that we understand T-rex dinosaurs are carnivores as we have discovered fossilised T-rex poo that contains bones of smaller organisms… or how horses are selectively bred to be successful racehorses and how bacteria have been engineered to produce human insulin? Students are currently developing understanding of the nervous system and its role in responding to our environment. This will include investigating the impact of caffeine on reaction time.

Science Capital

It has been another busy half term in Science with lots of additional opportunities offered to our students. Our Year 10 Separate Science class visited the University of Southampton to attend the annual STAG lecture by the Southampton Theory Astrophysics and Gravity Research Centre. The lecture on the “The Universe: a detective story” was a fascinating insight into the start of the universe 13 billion years ago and how science has changed over time. The students took part in a masterclass with two other local schools and learnt how algorithms are learnt by computers (using a mixture of noughts and crosses and Starbursts). The students met current PhD students who talked to them about their research and life of campus. On the journey home they entertained staff with some early Christmas songs singing.

Students in science club have continued to tackle lots of different experiments and challenges. This has included students participating in bath bomb making, producing bouncy balls, designing rockets, and observing ‘elephants’ toothpaste.

Science Christmas Quiz

Students are encouraged to pick up a quiz sheet from their teacher before the end of term, there are some amazing Jurassic park goodies for the winners. The quiz theme is geology and dinosaurs, getting Year 7 and 8 students excited about our upcoming Jurassic Park lecture. This is being hosted by a Science advisor from the movie franchise!

Geography

Our vision is to explore a sense of place, embed skills, spark curiosity and encourage empathy.

Year 7

This half term Year 7 geographers have been learning about a range of countries including Ethiopia and India. They have analysed development indicators and considered what life is like in LICs, NEEs and HICs. After Christmas they will study natural hazards.

Year 7 Geography Shout Outs

Lucy Rowlinson and Sam Picken

Year 8

Year 8 geographers have studied cold environments this half term: in particular the Lake District and Antarctica. They have learnt about the landforms created by glaciation including U-shaped valleys and corries. Next half term the focus of study is climate change.

Year 8 Geography Shout Outs

Jaden Affleck and Lucy 0’leary-Brown

Year 9

In Year 9 students have investigated the question ‘what are the greatest threats to our planet’. They have looked at a range of topics including coral bleaching, overfishing and environmental refugees.

Year 9 Geography Shout Outs

Sophie Lac and Archie Whiting

Year 10 & 11

In GCSE geography students have focused this term on human geography units. Year 10 learning about the UK economy including: The North/South divide and the University of Southampton Science Park in Chilworth. Year 11 have studied life in Southampton focusing on opportunities and challenges.

Year 10 Geography Shout Outs

Alfie Gateshill and Harvey Eldridge

Year 11 Geography Shout Outs

Jessica Trewin-Parker and Dea Miller

PE

An exciting half-term has seen lots of clubs and fixtures run throughout the PE department. The boys’ basketball leagues have started up, with our U14 team making a strong start with 2 wins out of their first 3 fixtures. Our U16 team had the tricky start of playing the two strongest teams to begin their season, but strong performances in those gallant defeats have giving confidence to the team to make a play-off push. A few football fixtures were also squeezed in before the fading light became an issue and we had over 200 students take part in extra-curricular clubs this half-term! Well done to all who have committed to a club these last few weeks!

Basketball

Here are the match reports from the last two weeks:

U16 Basketball

Match week 1: Sholing 30-61 St George’s

Squad: Dan King, Rodrigo Nunes, Nicky Lin, Jack Pracy, Jack Smith, Rodrigo Saboia, Callum Hutchins, Pierre Oakley

Top scorer: Pierre Oakley - 10

Player of the Game: Pierre Oakley

A great game, with St George’s team having two England Youth players (one of them being 6ft 7 tall!) which really inspired our players and showed the elite standard for their age group. They kept great intensity throughout the game and managed to rack up 30 points against one of the strongest teams in the city. Dan King showed great athleticism and fitness, Rodrigo Nunes controlled the temp well as PG, and Pierre Oakley performed excellently against their best player, also top scoring for the team.

Match week 2: Bitterne Park 62-26 Sholing

Squad: Dan King, Rodrigo Nunes, Nicky Lin, Jack Smith, Rodrigo Saboia, Callum Hutchins, Daniel Sousa, Daniel Froud

Top scorer: Rodrigo Nunes 13

Player of the Game: Rodrigo Nunes

A tough trip awaited our U16s against top of the league Bitterne, but buoyed by a great performance last week, the team went in with confidence. A fast start in the first quarter saw us take the lead, although a good performance from our team, Bitterne Park’s quality showed through, but invaluable experience against the league favourites. Rodrigo Nunes was the standout performer with 13 points (2x 3-pointers).

U14 Basketball

Sholing 84-18 Oasis Academy Mayfield

Squad: Will Jones, Ellie Blunt, James Humby-Farmer, Ethan Smart, Lewis Smart, Rafa Saboia, Mo Jamarainien, Junior Grant, James Stinchcombe, Freddie Buckingham

Top scorer: Will Jones - 26

Player of the Game: Junior Grant

A fantastic bounce back from defeat to St George’s two weeks ago, the team were in the lead from the get-go and scored at least 20 points each half. Ellie Blunt transitioned well against the boys and showed a great range of passing, with Freddie and James H-F and James Stinchcombe showing great athleticism. Rafa was on fire in the 4th quarter, scoring 8 consecutive points, but Will Jones stole the show with an accomplished performance on both ends of the floor.

Wildern 45-48 Sholing

Squad: Will Jones, Ellie Blunt, James Humby-Farmer, Ethan Smart, Lewis Smart, Rafa Saboia, Mo Jamarainien, Junior Grant, James Stinchcombe, Freddie Buckingham, Andy Lin

Top scorer: Will Jones- 20

Player of the Game: James Humby-Farmer

Despite a last-minute change of venues, Sholing took control of the game in the first quarter, Will Jones leading the way and Junior keeping the scoreboard ticking over. Wildern came storming back in the second and third quarter to even the game up. The fourth quarter saw the lead change hands on multiple times, with Wildern in the lead with minutes to play, but vital buckets from Andy, Junior and Will Jones saw Sholing open a 5-point lead which they were able to hold onto for a close 48-45 victory. The team gained valuable experience in closing out a close game which continues their progress towards making the play-offs.

Football

Year 8 Boys

Oasis Mayfield 0-11 Oasis Sholing

Squad: Finley Sumali, Finlay Huntley, Charlie Colverson, Max Lees, Corey Grubb, Hayden Clifft, Emmanuel Mukasa, Albie Smith, Lewis Moody, Nathan Milner, James Stinchcombe, Thomas Vass, Luke Drummond, Owen Cooper.

The Year 8 team bounced back from defeat in their previous league fixture against Wildern, with a convincing win against their neighbours. A quick start from the team saw James Stinchcombe get on the scoresheet with an early brace. Emmanuel Mukasa was causing problems with his driving runs from midfield, Nathan Milner was electric on the wing and the defence barely allowed the opposition out their half, Finlay Huntley and Hayden Clifft were able to play as advanced and attacking full backs. With the scoreline comfortable halfway through the first half, substitutions and variations in positions allowed students to gain valuable experience. The second half also saw another influx of goals, but with tougher tasks to come, the students take confidence from this victory moving on.

World Cup 5-a-side Tournaments

With our first winter World Cup, we organised our traditional 5-a-side tournament to coincide with it. Four competitions were set up: Year 7 boys, Year 8 boys, Year 9 boys and Y7-9 Girls. 17 teams and over 100 students have participated with the competition currently at the halfway point. Here are the current tables and goal scorers at the time of the COAST magazine print:

Year 7-9 Girls
Year 7 Boys
Year 8 boys
Year 9 boys

Year 11 Art Gallery

History

Students in Year 8 have recently been learning all about the group of Puritans, known as the Separatists, who in 1620 decided to board the Mayflower and Speedwell and set sail to the ‘New World’. Unfortunately, the Speedwell proved to be unworthy for the long voyage and was abandoned. Leaving England in September the pilgrims, as they would be later known arrived at Cape Cod in November 1620 before eventually establishing a settlement at Plymouth Bay in the December of the same year.

The pilgrims would go on to face many challenges. Establishing a thriving community would prove to be rather difficult. Disease would ravage through their community, hostile Native Americans posed a constant threat and building a community from scratch proved to be near impossible.

Yet, surely they had Christmas to look forward to? Think again. The fact that Monday, December 25, was Christmas Day meant little to the Pilgrims, who believed that religious celebrations of this sort were an insult to the true word of Christ. Of more importance to them, December 25th was the day they erected the frame of their first house. “No man rested that day,” Bradford, a pilgrim wrote.

In a reversal of modern practices, the Puritans kept their shops and schools open and churches closed on Christmas, a holiday that some disparaged as “Foolstide.” In fact, from 1659 to 1681, the celebration of Christmas was outlawed in Boston. Anyone exhibiting the Christmas spirit was fined five shillings. After the American Revolution, English customs fell out of favour, including Christmas. In fact, Christmas wasn’t declared a federal holiday in America until June 26, 1870.

As always Mr Parsons, Mrs Jeffery and Mr Smart would like to thank all of our hard-working students. Thankfully, we are big believers in Christmas and would like our learners to reflect on another successful year. Let’s hope that 2023 is an even better year.

History Stars

Year 7: Grace Baulcomb and James Mcintyre

Year 8: Petra Thompson and Jack Page

Year 9: Sophie Lac and Alex Dibden Pine

Year 10: Grace Benge and Ethan Louw

Year 11: Summer Barnes and Ted Whiting

French

We have had such a busy term with all our learners across the years. It has been amazing to get back to our language routines after half term and to be able to build on from the foundations we learnt in the Autumn term 1!

Across KS3 & KS4, we have covered the topics of My world, Sports and Leisure, My area, Healthy Living, My neighbourhood! Our Year 11 have also completed a full set of French Mock exam including their French speaking exam. They are now ready to take on board all advice given in order to succeed as well as attending our Wednesday revision sessions!

Celebrations is always an interesting topic to look at for our learners as this is so different from in the UK. Both Miss Guiet and Miss Dejoie have mentionned their way of celebrating Christmas in France and showed students photos of their favourite Christmas dishes, enough to make our mouths water!

For our culture awareness this half term we have looked at how buildings look very different from one French speaking country to another, the fact that some sports like netball don’t exist in France but others are considered a national sport (boules played by 20 million French people!). One culture topic has however really challenged us linguistically: Extreme sports and how in France we have a real-life Spiderman – whose real name is Alain Robert!

Comparing countries and cultures is always a fun way to learn and making us realise that we all live so differently from our close neighbours, it always opens up to interesting conversations with our students.

We are looking forward to next year already and especially June 2023 when we will be heading to Paris for our first residential trip abroad in a long time!

Our French Stars

Year 7: Ayver Burke & Zuzanna Jurek

Year 8: Holly Bailey & Ashley Matthew

Year 9: Stefania Mitu & Chloe Medus

Year 10: Leo Shacklock & Lisa Nicholls

Year 11: Daniel Sousa & Hayden Williams

Spanish

Año 7 – My world

In Year 7 this half term we have been learning about Family, Friends and to talk about personal opinions on a variety of free time activities. Students have learnt how to call the different family members, and they have also learnt how to describe their personality and looks! Furthermore, they are now able to say express opinions about activities and what they like and do not like.

Estudiantes Excelentes: Bianka Bacskai & Grace

Año 8 – My free time

In Year 8 this half term we have been revising and delve into a range of opinions and justifications in the context of free time. Students have revised free time activities, the present and the immediate future tense.

Moreover, students have expressed their opinions about free time by speaking spontaneously with their classmates.

Estudiantes Excelentes: Rafael Saboia & Luke Drummond

Año 9 – My area

In Year 9 this term we have been learning different rooms and places of town in Spanish. Students have practised how to describe their houses and their city give their opinion about it. They have also learnt to use prepositions to be able to describe and give directions and say where the places are located to express where they would like to live in the future.

Our great learners are recalling all the knowledge from last year and putting it into practice this term, well done!

Estudiantes Excelentes: Jack Flower & Darcey Jenkins

Año 10 – Healthy diet

This term we have been learning different foods in Spanish. Students have practised how to talk about the food they like or prefer and have learnt how to give opinions regarding if they think the food is healthy or unhealthy. Very important skills for holidays in Spain! They have also embraced different cultures through getting to know traditional dishes from different Hispanic countries.

Estudiantes Excelentes: Benjamin Davidson & Miles Baker

Año 11 – Local area

This half term Year 11 has been taking their mock exams, revising, and delving into the topic of describing their city. Students have built upon the knowledge acquired on local area from Year 9, but now they have been able to discuss it with discuss more complex structures and details. They have also spoken and written about the advantages and disadvantages of their local area and global issues.

Estudiantes Excelentes: Erica Lee & Caden Gamblin

The Scholar’s Programme

For the past three years, we have been working closely with The Brilliant Club. We were given the formidable task of selecting 24 outstanding applications from eager students in years 9 and 10 to be part of the Scholar’s Programme. The Scholar’s programme connects PhD researchers with young learners. They share their subject knowledge and passion for learning with small groups of pupils aged 8-18 and helps them to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence to secure a place at a competitive university. Their seminars will begin in January and we can’t wait to see how this opportunity unlocks their potential. There were a fantastic and exceptionally high pool of applicants this year but the final cohort for 2023 are made up of a brilliant group of students and they're keen to get started.

We look forward to following their adventures.

Mrs Gale

BOAST

This year B.O.A.S.T has continued to go from strength to strength with students from across years 7-11 choosing to spend their lunchtime on Tuesdays with other curious learners and be challenged by one of our fantastic teachers. We've had enthralling talks from Mrs Read who posed the question "Does Travel really broaden the mind?", Mr Bull from our Computer Science department mused "How safe is our data?" and Dr Winstone from our maths team had students questioning: "How many holes are there in a balloon?" Students who attend BOAST have the opportunity to challenge themselves to learning outside the classroom. Our Tuesday BOAST sessions are my favourite day of the week!

Credits:

Created with images by PiyawatNandeenoparit - "Book stack on the table in the library room and blurred space of bookshelf background" • neirfy - "back to school" • itim2101 - "Cup of coffee latte art on wood table" • Nuthawut - "Flat lay or top view of black pen with calculator on vivid yellow background table with blank copy space, math, cost, tax or investment calculation" • Africa Studio - "Crowd raising hands on blue sky background" • galiyahassan - "Beef and caramelised onion sausage rolls on a wooden plate with vegemite sauce" • ijeab - " Investor working new startup project. Finance meeting." • Dmytro - "Green leaf texture background. Macro of a green leaf with veins." • Wafa Aima Farzana - "iceberg in antarctica" • Bits and Splits - "Basketball on dark background" • wavebreak3 - "Close-up of soccer ball on playing field" • Nelos - "Kids Hands Holding Colorful Spanish Word Hola Means Hello. Blue Sky As Background"