We had some fantastic entries for our House Photography competition and were hugely impressed with the creativity shown in capturing images. Well done to all of those who took part- you will have received house points for your effort. Pictured above and below are all of the finalists and the eventual winners are listed here:

Year 7 winner – M. Barrow

Year 8 winner – M. Reid

Year 9 winner – S. Tindall

Year 10 winner – D Smotlak

Year 11 winner – E. Kropf

Year 12 winner – H. Wynn

Year 13 winner – J Lailey

A reminder that students cycling to and from school must wear a helmet and should also have appropriate lights on their bike. We are delighted that many students choose this method of transport but are keen to ensure all do travel as safely as possible.

On a similar note, we continue to work with our neighbours with regard to drop offs and pick-ups either end of the school day. We would remind families who do drive students to and from school to avoid blocking driveways and turnings even if this means they have to stop a little further from the school. A particular request has come from Parkside View where ambulances and other vehicles are struggling to access vulnerable residents with school traffic using the car park.

Thank you in advance for your support in both matters

It is fantastic to see the amazing work of Year 12 DT students. Their task was to create a fact file about a design or invention that they think will change the world. They only had 10 minutes to work on the task and here is what they came up with. Amazing work.

A huge well done to the cast of the sold out show, Velocity, last night. You were all amazing! We look forward to the performances over the weekend and will update you with more photos next week! 

Talking Additional Needs courses are now running a free 6week course for parents and carers. This course will help to understand your child with additional needs' behaviour and find strategies to help them. The dates are as following and pre registration is required.

Wednesdays: 22nd February, 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd & 29th March. 9.45am to 11.15am

Last month, the University of Hertfordshire hosted a visit for our Year 10 students.  We would like to share some of the student feedback of when they were asked "What have you learnt about university life?"

• “University is not as scary as it seems and there are a lot of opportunities”
• “You can take international courses”
• “There are a lot of opportunities”
• “It was nice to walk around the campus and see all of the facilities and subject areas”
• “My tour guide was amazing”

We are glad that the students enjoyed this visit.

Twitter: When new careers opportunities arise for all age groups at Sandringham we try to tweet about them from @SandCareers . Please do follow us there for more updates and anecdotes.

If you are in Year 12 and are interested in a summer programme to improve your German, applications for the German Pupil Courses & Scholarships Programme are now OPEN! Pupils could spend 2 or 4 weeks immersed in language, culture, and everyday life with a host family. These are fully funded by the German Government and you can find out more here.

The whole school theme this week is Online Safety in recognition of Safer Internet Day. Safer Internet Day 2023 will take place on the 7th of February 2023, with celebrations and learning based around the theme ‘Want to talk about it? Making space for conversations about life online’. Coordinated in the UK by the UK Safer Internet Centre, the celebration sees thousands of organisations get involved to promote the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology for children and young people. The students received an excellent assembly from Assistant Headteacher, Mr Allday, about chatbot artificial intelligence. This is a new tool that both students and staff can use to reduce copying and creating tasks to save time and make us all more efficient as a result. However, it has implications for plagiarism, information gathering and AI becoming too intelligent. We encourage all students to be critical of the information they read online and consider what they can do to stay safe online. 

Four ex-Sandringham students (Alex W, Max H, Ben C and Jacob T) started a band called APEX a few years ago and have been enjoying success: recently being played on “Made in Chelsea”, winning an audience vote at their last gig and being played by BBC Introducing.  Their next goal is to play at a top music festival and with your help that could become a reality.

Using the link here , please vote for APEX, by completing your first and last name and email address.  You then need to tick the terms and conditions box and finally once you receive a confirmation email from FIB Rising Stars (possibly in your junk emails) there is a button to click on in the body of the email which says ‘confirm vote’ or it won’t count.

The link is in Spanish but you may be able to change it to English in the menu (top right then click Eng).  All help is gratefully received and will give them a real chance to be considered. It is always great to hear from ex Sandringham students, so please join us in supporting them.

Half Term Virtual Work Experience:

WSP are running a free virtual work experience week over half term, for students interested in careers in sustainable engineering. There will be discussion on different engineering roles and case studies, as well as advice on the different routes into engineering.

WSP Engineering Work Experience

In addition, Springpod are offering many virtual work experience opportunities (deadline today!):

Springpod Virtual Work Experience

In our student spotlight this week, we feature Charles B in Year 11, who has been in boxing in competitions over the last few weekends. He now boxes for Repton and was entered in the Youth London ABAS fight recently. His first fight was in Tottenham against national champion London Bradshaw from Powerday Hooks and we are pleased to report that Charles beat him unanimously. This weekend, he was also in the London finals against Harrison Beaker and again beat his opponent with a unanimous decision. He is now London's under 67kg champion and has progressed to the England national quarter finals which take place next week. We know the hard work and dedication it takes to reach this level in sport so well done to Charles and good luck for your matches next week.

If you would like to nominate someone for the Student Spotlight next week, please email Melissa.holian@sandringham.herts.sch.uk with any details and/or photographs.

The next FO$S event for your diaries will be the Quiz night, held on 17th March 7.30pm.  Back by popular demand, Nick Grubb will be hosting a music themed quiz, along with prizes and drinks. Tickets are £7.50pp for entry and teams can be up to 8 people. Details on how to buy tickets to follow.

If your child has taken home any athletics vests from previous events - please could these be returned to the PE Office ASAP. There are some upcoming fixtures where the vests are needed. Thank you! 

For anyone interested in attending Oaklands College, there are open events at both campuses very soon in February.  These events give students the chance to visit the campuses, learn more about the courses offered and to meet staff.  Students need to check the list for their preferred subject areas prior to booking, as the two campuses will showcase different subjects. Please take a look and register here: Oaklands College Open Day Events

We are celebrating National Apprenticeship Week next week! The theme this year is ‘Skills for Life’.

We have picked out some fantastic virtual events you can access each day which can be found in the careers section of the school website. Aimed at Years 10, 11 & 12 & 13, the week sees a mix of webinars, events, and advice from key figures and a range of employers all about how to apply for an apprenticeship and learn about what’s available. 

Twitter: @Apprenticeships   #NAW2023   #SkillsforLife   #AmazingApprenticeships   #ASK

Congratulations are in order for T.K.Minimum, our Year 12 Young Enterprise Company that gives new purpose to old clothes by modelling and selling them! In a recent Dragon's Den-style Competition, they achieved Overall Winner for the East of England. First, a small group of them gave a presentation about their company and business model. To keep it interesting, two even modelled some of their merchandise. Then they had to tackle questions that such as how they ensure their stock is clean and how they will attract customers. We're really proud of this sustainable enterprise's success. Well done.

Well done to everyone who entered previously and got the answer right! This week's puzzle is shown above. For every entry you will receive 1 house point, if you answer correctly you will win 2 housepoints and if you are the fastest person to answer the puzzle correctly then you will win 5 house points!  To enter, simply scan the QR code and fill out the google form.  Good luck! Why not play at home and see who is the quickest to get the answer?

Fawcett take the lead back this week with 10,791 points. Newton and Shakespeare are not far behind with 10,685 and 10,387 points respectively.

Special mentions this week go to Yana M (7J) with 9 points and 8S with the highest average points overall (86.1)

UPCOMING EVENTS 

• Girls house football – (Year 9 & 10) TBC
• Year 12 house sport – In games lesson W/C – 20th Feb
• House Maths – Wed 8th March
• Staff badminton – Monday 20th March

FRENCH: Le mot de la semaine: Hautain

GERMAN: Das Wort der Woche: Arrogant

SPANISH: La palabra de la semana: Altivo/a

Thinking Questions

• An interlanguage is when people speak a mixture of two languages – how do these come about? How do these affect the development of the two original languages that have become mixed?

Stephanie's uncle Gordon is a writer of horror fiction. But when he dies and leaves her his estate, Stephanie learns that while he may have written horror, it certainly wasn't fiction. Pursued by evil forces intent on recovering a mysterious key, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source - the wisecracking skeleton of a dead wizard. Amulya I, 7E, who has recently read the book, says 'I like how the story builds suspense to the point where Skullduggery removes his mask, and how he saves a child even though it isn't his responsibility. It's a really funny book.'

H is for… haughty  [adjective]

Definition: Arrogantly superior and disdainful.

Example: They have a  look of haughty disdain.

Synonyms: cavalier, Imperious, snooty

Antonyms: humble, shy

Etymology: Derived from the French, who concocted it from the Latin ‘altus’ meaning  high.

Thanisk K in Year 7 has been invited to attend a special event for finalists of the World Class Schools Essay competition. This event will be held at Magdalen College, Oxford on 27th March and will be a fantastic opportunity to meet with the judge, Dr Robert Douglas-Fairhurst in person and experience a tour of the college. In addition Thanisk will have join a Q and A session with Dr Douglas-Fairhurst. Congratulations Thanisk!

Well done to the U15 Girls Basketball Team for their win against JFK in the County League. They are unbeaten this season! PP Honey S and OPM Hannah G and CP Mimi G

Several of our teams played again Simon Balle last Saturday. Our Year 7 teams were a mixed bag with the A Team losing and B team winning. Our Year 8 team won 6-4 with Anfield MOM for his hold up play. Our Year 9 team put in a good performance to win in what was an enjoyable, and competitive game of football! But our Year 10 team didn't fare as well against a strong Simon Balle team. Full credit to the numerous boys that did a stint in goal.

Our Year 8 football team also had an impressive performance against Samuel Ryder to see them through to the next round of the district cup winning 6-0 Goals from Tiago F (2), Oliver L, Bruce P, Nathan P & Max C.

Finally, our U14 boys football team had a tough afternoon yesterday, losing out to a strong St Columba’s side in R1 of the District Cup

Lots of netball news this week!

The U14A team beat Roundwood Park in the District Cup 18-15, taking them through to the semi finals. OP - Cerys, CP - Holly.

And there was a good win for the U15 Netball team 38-23 against STAGS! OPM - Bea B & CPM - Mimi G

The U16 team also had a great game of netball vs STAGS, but were unfortunately on the losing side of a 1 goal deficit! PP and CPM Emma Mc who was outstanding in defence!

And the U14 PS had an unfortunate loss against Berkhamstead in the county league. It was a great game with lots of combos tried out and lots learnt! PP and CP - Sophie B, OP - Cerys M

And finally another win for the U19 Netball Performance Squad 35-28 over STAHS! OPM - Molly C & CPM - Margot K

Last week our Year 10 & 11 Hockey team had an epic match against Queenswood. The teams were evenly matched with scoring opportunities and excellent defence from both teams. The entire squad played superbly well and with the score 0-0 at half time, there was real belief in the team going in to the second half. After a bright start, an injury resulting in the substitution of centre midfield Hannah, meant some moving of positions, but still the team adapted quickly and were on par. Unfortunately in the closing minutes of the match, Queenswood converted 1 of their chances with the final result 1-0. However, the entire team were superb and proud of a fantastic performance.

The Year 7 team played in a tough County Cup match against a Parmiters team with a number of club and county players. The team defended bravely with some excellent saves by first time goalkeeper Selina along with great team work and communication. However, the Parmiters team were too strong for them, resulting in a defeat for the less experienced Sandringham team.

The Year 8 team also played Parmiters last week in their County Cup and the greater experience and regular training on a hockey astro was the difference between the teams. The team fought well and defended with some determination but ultimately were defeated. The team have excellent team spirit and learned a lot from the match which they can take in to their next game.

This extraordinary I Spy game is nothing like the one you might remember from long car drives with your dad though.  Instead, it's a magical adventure full of fun, giggles and all your favourite sing along song including Head, Shoulders Knees and Toes, Sing a Rainbow, The Ants Go Marching and BINGO.

I Spy with My Little Eye is based on the popular children's book by author Steven Lee and was created alongside education and child development experts to be great for kids’ minds. So, it's not just wonderful entertainment for your little ones but good for them too!

After sell-out shows from as far afield as Dubai, Dublin and Derby the cast of the wonderful People's Theatre Company are bringing I Spy with My Little Eye to The SandPit Theatre!