I hope you enjoy browsing through our latest newsletter.

As always it is packed with news about some of the special events and visits we have held in school. The Languages department take centre stage with their trip to Paris and fabulous Languages week activities, but Arts, Science, Sport & Personal Development feature prominently too.

It all goes to show what great opportunities there are at Shirebrook beyond the normal 30 lessons in the school week. Education is about so much more than formal lessons, although they are obviously a vital part of what we do! It is great to see so many of our students taking advantage of the activities, teams, trips and special events that add so much to their life experience and build useful skills and confidence for the future.

We are about to start exam season for Year 11, they have worked really hard towards these exams. They don’t need me to wish them luck because if they are well prepared luck won’t come into it. Suffice to say that I hope they do themselves proud and get the results that they deserve.

Best wishes

Mark Cottingham

Principal - Shirebrook Academy

Traditional Seaside Fun & Games

Dr. Simon Singh

Professor Alice Roberts

Professor Steve Jones

Professor Al-Khalili

Professor Robert Winston

Sixteen Year 11 students, accompanied by Mr Wiles and Mrs Foyle, visited Sheffield City Hall for the annual GCSE Science Live event. The day was designed to allow students to discover what scientists at the cutting edge of their field are currently researching. During the day the students heard about the latest research into time travel, the nature vs nurture debate and the Big Bang from famous scientists and TV personalities such as Professor Alice Roberts and Professor Robert Winston. Between the sessions the students were given lots of useful exam tips from the chief examiner for science, Stewart Chenery. It was a great day enjoyed by all.

Around 30 students & staff from across several secondary schools came

together at Shirebrook Academy for the Young Voice event.

The Young Voice is made up of the youth councils for the Bolsover District Council area. They get involved in a range

of different activities from fundraising to tackling community issues.

On this occasion presentations were made by Mary Dooley, Deputy Leader of Bolsover District Council, to students who were ending their duties with

the council due to being in Y11. From Shirebrook Academy Brannan Brown, Libby Brown & George Banton all received a certificate for their service.

The manifesto for the youth council was discussed and project updates given in regards to the work they are doing for Teenage Cancer Trust.

Bolsover District Council have given each school £600 towards rewards for students to attend Pleasley Vale outdoor activity centre.

They then began creating the next newsletter and also did some fun icebreakers and other activities.

Pictured are the Y11 graduates from all schools present along with Richard Gadsby from Bolsover District Council,

Sandra Peake, our community liaison officer and Mary Dooley, Deputy Leader of Bolsover District Council

2nd PLACE – Rebecca Smith 11VN

1st PLACE – Amber Allan 11AM

3rd PLACE – Alice O’Brien 10CS

Year 11 student, Amber Allen who has only been taking photos for two years has won two prestigious prizes after impressing judges with her creativity behind the lens.

Amber won the top prize in the Rotary Club of Warsop, Shirebrook and District’s Young Photographer competition, winning £50 in prize money. Y11 student, Rebecca Smith took 2nd place and Y10 student, Alice O’Brien came 3rd.

Amber’s achievements didn’t stop there as she then went on to beat youngsters from over 70 rotary clubs across the Midlands and Yorkshire by winning first place in the senior category of the district stage of the Rotary International’s Young Photographer competition.

Her prize-winning photographs came about after Amber, during preparation for her photography GCSE exam, began experimenting with mirrors and flowers at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in order to create a reflected, distorted effect which she called “Night at the Museum”.

Amber’s other photograph came about by chance when she spotted a well-dressed man resting in a chair in the gardens of Chatsworth House, which she called “Joseph Paxton surveying the scene at Chatsworth”.

Art teacher, Mr Freer said: “Her entries were a fresh look at the theme of ‘Reflection’ and winning the competition is testament to her skill in the field of photography and her unique way of seeing.”

Students involved were;

Ciaran Warriner, Jordan Hall (Not in photo), Bradley Knight,

Brandon Lee, Leon Ali, Jack Mather, Ryan Allwood (Not in photo),

Thomas Carrington, Ashton Bown, David Frost (Not in photo)

Students from the Academy were crowned Champions in the recent Sports Hall Athletics Plus competition held at Queens Park Leisure

Centre. They won by just 4 points after competing in 8 track and field events and now

go on to compete in the County Championships.

Y7 students spent their Personal

Development day learning about the world

of work by playing the 'Make it Real' game.

The game involved taking on a job role,

forming a company, and researching the

job opportunities in the local area. In the

afternoon students took part in imaginary

'business trips' to other countries -

pictured are a group visiting Egypt! The

whole day showed Y7 how local businesses

can have international links with suppliers

and customers, and the importance of

language skills in the workplace.

Youth Council students, Karis Macdonald and Cian Robinson attended the 'Eats and Treats' event at Shirebrook Leisure centre recently. The event was attended by over 70 local elderly residents who came to find out about support services, enjoy a drink and a chat, and play some board games. The morning was a great opportunity for different generations to mix and get to know each other, we look forward to getting involved again and learning some more domino games.

The MFL department is pleased to offer a trip

to the Lille Christmas Market in France in

December 2017.

DEPART: 7th Dec at 7pm (approx.)

RETURN: 9th Dec at 7am (approx.)

Travel by executive coach and Eurotunnel

A full day exploring the city and famous

Christmas market.

A great cultural experience.

Students will need a valid

passport and EHIC card.

Collect a letter from

Mr Edwards ASAP.

Tuesday 28th March

Students met at 11:45pm on Tuesday 28th March ready and excited for the long coach journey down to Dover. Inevitably, students struggled to sleep, such was their excitement and anticipation of what was to come. Wednesday 29th March

The ferry to Calais was smooth and gave some of our students the opportunity to travel in this way for the first time. The coach journey from Calais down to Paris gave students the opportunity to catch up on some sleep, following a Paris related quiz led by Mr Sutton! Rafal Bunko and Chelsea Holland were victorious, demonstrating excellent knowledge of Paris before the trip had even started.

The first activity of the day allowed students to buy some lunch and indulge in some retail therapy at the popular Val d’Europe shopping centre – the most popular purchase for many students seemed to be mini-footballs – clearly excited for the trip to the Stade de France the following day! In the afternoon of the first day, students visited Montmartre area, where they had chance to purchase souvenirs, have a crepe and soak up some culture, before checking in at the hotel ready for our evening meal and a well-deserved first night’s sleep.

Thursday 30th March

Following an early morning wake-up call, our first full day began with a memorable tour of the Stade de France, which only the day before hosted the France v Spain friendly match. Students learnt about the history of the stadium and even had the opportunity to walk out towards the pitch down the tunnel.

Students enjoyed the Parisian sunshine in the Jardin des Tuileries, next to the

Louvre, which students enjoyed visiting that afternoon, taking in a range of spectacular pieces of art, including the world-famous Mona Lisa.

Following a delicious evening meal at Rivoli restaurant in the heart of Paris, students embarked on

a spectacular river cruise along the Seine, offering incredible views of Paris, as the sun began to set on

one of the most spectacular cities in the world.

Friday 31st March

The most memorable day for many students saw us spend a full day in Disneyland. Students spent almost 7 hours exploring the park, meeting their favourite characters or seeking adrenalin on some of the park’s scariest

rides such as Tower of Terror and Rock n Roller – for some students this was a first.

On return to the hotel, our 3-course evening meal was waiting for us, followed by a memorable game of Taboo (which is obviously not

Connor Davis’ biggest strength!) or time spent working on journals.

Sunday 2nd April

The journey home to Shirebrook allowed students to reflect on the memories they had made in Paris, filling in their journals and sharing stories. The journey home was broken up with an awards ceremony led by the staff, which saw students awarded with certificates for different reasons (such as owning a pair of French bowling shoes, being the worst Taboo player in history and losing a pair of glasses in the River Seine!) and a Disney related prize.

Our fantastic coach drivers, Dave and Kev, even managed to get us home a couple of hours early – giving us chance to get some much needed sleep in preparation for coming back in to school the next day, full of stories to share.

Mr Edwards, Mrs Booth, Mr Sutton, Miss Cameron and the 43 students, we would like to say a big

MERCI BEAUCOUP to Paris, for giving us such special memories

Saturday 1st April Time flew so fast and before we knew it our final full day in Paris was upon us.

A half day was spent in Disneyland giving students the opportunity to pick up some last minute souvenirs, take on their final thrill seeking ride, or just relax around the park.

The afternoon provided a once in a lifetime opportunity for many

students, with our trip to the Eiffel Tower, which included taking a lift right to the top of the world famous monument. Students (and staff –

Miss Cameron!) overcame fears of heights to witness spectacular panoramic views across Paris from the top of the Tower, made all the more special by the perfect sunshine which was beating down on

the city again. Students took selfies, panoramic shots and took in the breath-taking scenery together.

The day was far from over – students enjoyed their evening meal at Flam’s, a popular Flammkuchen restaurant in the heart of Paris – a delicious meal left students full of energy for their final activity of the night – bowling. Students were

able to release their competitive side, showing no signs of fatigue following another jam-packed day. The winning players were: Ilona Esanu, Sam Wright, Reece Nussey, Georgia Brindle, Ellie McBroom, Lauren Millband and Mrs Booth (Mr Edwards allowed her to win!). After the game, students piled back on the coach for their journey back to the hotel

– during which it emerged all except one of the students had remembered to return their bowling shoes. A memorable souvenir to take home.

Shirebrook Academy were once again the hosts for the North Derbyshire KS3 Boys Football, which saw five schools from across Bolsover, Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire compete. The schools were; Holly House, Netherthorpe, Shirebrook Academy, St Mary’s and Tupton Hall School. With some schools fielding two teams this saw a competition between eight experienced sides.

One of the Shirebrook Academy teams consisted of four year 7’s and one year 8 pupil. They finished top of their group to go through to the semi-final, where they met a team from Netherthorpe School. They won this semi-final 3-0 and consequently went through the final. Holly House, who were last year’s North Derbyshire Champions beat another team from Netherthorpe School and met Shirebrook Academy in the final.

Raising funds for the Y11 Prom

£1 to play and 50p to spectate.

Kick off around 3.45pm

Kick off around 3.45pm

The game was very tough for both sides, having already played four games to get to this point. In the end Shirebrook beat Holly House 2-0 to take the title of ‘KS3 Boys North Derbyshire Football Champions 2017’. The team are now going through the County Final on Tuesday 11th July at Trent College, which is the pinnacle of county finals. It is a multi-sport event where over 1000 children compete in their qualified event. A huge good luck to the boys from the Bolsover District School Sport Partnership.

Y6 MEASURE & TRY ON

20th May 3rd June 10am -4pm

in the theatre

Y6 PACK COLLECTION

10th July at the open evening

or available from the supplier shop in Mansfield after

this date

ALL YEARS SALE DAYS

9th August 19th August 24th August

10am -4pm in the Atrium

A busy and successful healthy week involved both staff and students becoming more active and more aware of the importance of a healthy active lifestyle. Events during the week included Yoga, for students during lunchtime and staff during enrichment. Staff enrichment also included gardening, golf, pottery club, staff football and a competitive table tennis tournament, showcasing the competitive nature of some of the staff.

BoxFit, the Y7 interform Futsal final, smoothie making, dance mats and healthy chocolate mousse (made from avocados and bananas) were just a few other activities to take place. One highlight of the week was wheelchair basketball, providing a fantastic opportunity for students to try a new sport delivered by a professional coach.

Mental health issues, stress related support and awareness around food choices were some of the form time activities, in addition to Key Stage 4 assemblies delivered by Brain Marshall from Shirebrook MAT Team and the School Nurse to help support Shirebrook students in preparation for their forthcoming exams.

Our sports leaders also led ‘Who’s Shirebrook’s Fittest’ competition to find out who was the fittest member of each year group.

Another huge highlight of the week was our fourth annual Gym and Dance Display. The display was attended by over 150 spectators who were dazzled by over 70 students showcasing their talents on the Shirebrook stage. The display was a spectacle of a variety of dance genres and some said it was the biggest and best display to date!

The finale of the week involved ‘challenge the teacher’, which took place in the atrium during Friday lunch. The PE staff were victorious against most of the student challenges, but the athlete of the day award has to go to Mrs Booth and her thighs of steel, after she saw off almost all of the students in a ‘wall sit challenge’, which lasted over 4 minutes. However, a victorious Przemysiam Bartoski snatched the title through gritted teeth.

An action packed week which hopefully gave Shirebrook students the most important lesson of life…… be active and stay healthy!

This year the theme of STEM week was change. During form time students were challenged with the task of 'changing' the function of an object given to them in a top secret envelope. Numerous interesting creations were produced including doll sized coat hangers made out of paperclips, plastic bottle chandeliers and Starbucks cup plant pots! The winner was Louise Barker (centre of the picture)

for her amazing egg box sculptures. Well done everyone!

science • technology • engineering • math

science • technology • engineering • math

The students

involved were

fantastic and created

some amazing

designs.

On Tuesday 2nd May, 60 Y9 students took part in a STEM Challenge day.

It was run by Smallpeice Trust and sponsored by the National Grid. It was an interactive workshop to introduce young

people to the exciting world of engineering – bringing science, technology, engineering and maths to life. The day

was about demonstrating the link between the wider world and building on student’s understanding and aptitude for problem-solving, creativity, design and engineering by building a functioning wind turbine.

Shirebrook Academy hosted its 6th annual Languages Week last month, during which a whole host of activities and events were arranged by the Modern Languages department, opening students up to a world of culture and showing that languages apply to many areas of life – not just the languages classroom.

Monday Lunchtime’s Italian art session gave students the opportunity to produce their own version of a famous Italian painting. Ilona Esanu (Y9) was the winner with her excellent interpretation of the Mona Lisa, taking home an art set as her prize. Abbie Fulleylove (Y9) and Sarah Jackson (Y8) took the second and third prizes of a voucher and chocolates respectively. Thanks to the art department for allowing us to use their facilities and helping to lead the session. Monday also saw the annual French boules inter-form competition. Winners were, Brandon Clarke (Y11), Kian Dixon (Y10), Gareth Worthington (Y9), Finnlay Key (Y8) and Dylan Thomas (Y7) – all wearing a French beret for the rest of the afternoon and taking back sweets for their forms.

Tuesday was an exciting day with the re-launch of the popular lunchtime activity: Chinese Chopstick Challenge and Russian Doll Racing. Students gathered in the lower atrium to transfer as much rice from one bowl to another in a minute using only chopsticks, and attempt to assemble a Russian doll in the quickest time possible. The chopstick challenge winner was Paddy Chi (Y10), he won a Lucky Chinese cat, and Bethany Stubbs (Y7) was the quickest Russian Doll racer, winning her very own Matryoshka.

Building on the success of previous years, after-school there was a French crepe making session. Students filled their crepes with a range of fillings, providing a brilliant end to the day. Thanks to Mrs Armstrong for allowing us to take over the food room. Kelsey Hind (Y7) was crowned winner of this session – she won a chef’s hat and a trophy.

Wednesday we welcomed special guest, Alain Launay (owner and head chef of Launay’s restaurant in Edwinstowe) who kindly agreed to come in to deliver a ‘Ready, Steady, Cook’ style activity to an audience of 27 specially invited students. Alain was amazing and took the time to answer questions about his life, French food and French culture. Max Gee (Y7) and Caitlin Tucker (Y8) were chosen to cook alongside Alain. The audience watched attentively as Max and Caitlin worked to create a delicious dish including mushroom soil and smoked cheese espuma, in the style of a plant pot. The audience then chose their winner – with Caitlin just pipping Max to 1st place. Both students received a signed chef’s hat and Caitlin got a trophy. Huge thanks must go to Alain for agreeing to be such a big part of our week. He would love to see you at Launay’s in the near future. Details (including how to book) can be found at the following website. . (http://www.launaysrestaurant.co.uk/)

Thursday lunchtime was Greek dancing. It was fantastic to see students from all year groups busting moves to classic Greek tunes. Miss Wheeldon led the session brilliantly and it was nothing short of spectacular. The sports hall felt like a Greek Taverna. The winner, Fearne Kerry (Y8) won a personalised Languages Week polo shirt, with Carla Bagshaw (Y9) taking 2nd place and winning a selection of Baklava.

The form time activity was a quiz based on the translation of the Harry Potter stories, put together by Mr Sutton. Winning forms won a bag of lollipops which originated in Spain.

Thursday’s after school activity was aimed at showing the students where their languages might take them one day. Students gathered on the 3G pitch to take part in a ‘France v Spain’ football match with Thierry Audel –a professional footballer from Notts County FC. Thierry told students about his background, his involvement with other cultures and language. Students heard how important languages are and how languages can support you in future life.

The game itself was wide open, a tense affair which ended 8-4 to France despite Spain galloping into a 4-0 lead. Thierry himself even scored a 20-yard screamer to help France’s cause.

Man of the match awards went to Pierce Barnes (Y9) and Przemek Bartosik (Y9) who received a signed football. Despite the rain, Thierry was happy to stay for photos and sign autographs. We are very grateful to him for giving up his time, enthusing and engaging our students who went home with lots of memories.

Friday saw Jakub Klosowicz of Y11 take centre stage in a memorable end to the week. Jakub has supported Languages Week so well over the last few years, and this year he took his contribution to the next level. Jakub is a talented musician and plays violin in the Chesterfield Symphony Orchestra. Fifteen members of the Orchestra, joined Jakub and members of the Academy’s music department to put on a concert over lunchtime and perform a number of classical pieces from famous European composers. Students had the chance to experience something new and enjoy a spectacular production which gave a fantastic new cultural element to our week.

The form time activity was a quiz where students had to identify a number of staff members in different locations around the world, expertly put together by Miss Wheeldon. Winning forms received sweets, this time a German selection.

After-school the MFL department again took over the food room, this time to lead the popular pizza making session. With toppings galore and of course tons of cheese, the session was once again a huge success. The winner, Filip Chylarecki (Y8) took home a chef’s hat and a trophy.

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MAY 2017

01 Bank holiday 03 Y10 Geography trip to Holderness 04 Y10 Geography trip to Holderness 08 Y10 Mock Exams all week 09 Y9 Mock Exams Start 15 GCSEs Begin 19 Rewards day Y7-10 24 Shirebrook Stars 2.30pm 26 FINISH FOR HALF TERM JUNE 2017

05 Students back in school 08– 09 PE Residential 21 Sports Day WHOLE SCHOOL 23 Y11 Prom 28 GCSE Exams Finish 30 Rewards Day Y7-10 JULY 2017

01 Family Fun Day 05 Target Review Day 06 Shirebrook Stars Challenge Day 07 – 09 Y10 PE Residential 10 Y10 Work Experience for 2 weeks 10 Y6 Induction Day/Evening 11 Y6 Lea Green Trip 12 Y6 early transition 13 Y7 Residential Trip 14 Personal Development Day Y7-9 21 Shirebrook’s Got Talent. FINISH FOR SUMMER BREAK 12.40

AUGUST 2017

24 GCSE results Day

Breakfast clubs are brilliant for the students who don’t get the

opportunity for a healthy start to the day. A way to begin the school day. Cereals, porridge, breakfast

bars & hot/cold drinks at low prices.

#breakfastisbest

Y11 ONLY

Raising funds for Y11 prom

If you need to speak to a particular member of staff and they are unavailable on the telephone, be

assured your details will be forwarded on and they will call you as soon as possible. Whilst we

appreciate there may be times when you need to see a member of staff regarding a specific issue, we ask that you please be aware that staff at the academy

work to a timetable and are often not available. Please do not arrive at the academy without an

appointment expecting to see someone. If you require a face to face meeting, please call our

reception on 742722 and we will endeavour to arrange an appointment for you at the earliest

convenience to suit both parties.

Thank you

“Wear what you want”

www.shirebrookacademy.org @shireacademy T: 01623 742722