Curriculum Enhancement Day

On the Thursday 21st & Friday 22nd July 2022, we will be offering a range of trips/activities as part of our Curriculum Enhancement Days.

Please see below for more information about the activities that we have offer.

Using this link, please complete the Google Form to select the activities that your child would like to take part in (please make sure to read the infomation included on the form carefully).

If there are any questions, please contact Reception.

Banham Zoo

Taking Place: Thursday

Cost: £20
Spaces: 40

Visit to Banham Zoo to tour the facilities and to experience one of the educational sessions, where students will have the opportunity to get up close to lots of different animals and to learn about their habitats.

Lego Robotics Challenge

Taking Place: Thursday / Friday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 15 (each day)

This activity is an in-school Lego Spike based robotics challenge.

Day 1 – students will be completing 5 challenges ranging from building a robot hand to creating a moving vehicle, using Scratch style programming language, sensors and a programmable multi-port Hub. The Spike App also allows them to develop their Python programming skills in a fun and hands-on way during the day(s).

Day 2 – we will be using the colour sensor and race our robots as one of the challenge, again using Scratch style programming language, sensors and a programmable multi-port Hub. 

Skiing Experience and Team Building Activities

Taking Place: Thursday AND Friday

Cost: £45
Spaces: 40

Day 1 will be spent at Norfolk Snowsports Club at Trowse where pupils will have the opportunity to have a skiing lesson and tubing experience. Day 2 will be spent at Northgate where pupils will take part in a variety of team building challenges.

This is open to pupils on the February 2023 Ski Trip initially, but there will be spaces for others who wish to choose this activity.

Pleasurewood Hills

Taking Place: Thursday

Cost: £25
Spaces: 50

– Oversubscribed –

Thrill rides at Pleasurewood hills. Explore the park and its attractions. There will be rides for everybodies taste, don’t fancy going backwards on a rollercoaster, then you can take a skyride. Merry go round not your thing, then try FIREBOLT. Large pirate ship or small, it is all your choice. There will also be an opportunity to purchase food and refreshments.

Travel by coach from school and park entrance included in cost.

Muckleburgh Collection and Castle Acre

Taking Place: Thursday AND Friday

Cost: £30
Spaces: 30

Visit some local historical sites covering nearly 1000 years of history. Day 1 starts at Castle Acre, taking in the castle and priory ruins before moving on the a walk around the grounds of Blickling Hall. Day 2 visits the Muckleburgh Military Collection, with a chance to see tanks, guns and vehicles from all over the world, with a tour of the site in a working military vehicle.

London & Theatre Visit

Talking Place: Thursday

Cost: £60
Spaces: 30

Travel by coach to London. Visit Covent Garden and wander around Theatreland. Take in the world famous show “Mary Poppins” with seats in the dress circle.

Coach and theatre ticket included in cost. 

Cooking Skills

Taking Place: Thursday / Friday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 14 (each day)

Students will develop cooking skills making a selection of Indian recipes. The 3 recipes will introduce students to making different foods from India. This will provide students with the skills to cook something tasty and different for their family and friends. We will be making Lamb Rogan josh, raita, naan bread and a side salad. (vegans/vegetarians will be able to make suitable alternatives)

Rutland Water Aqua Park

Taking Place: Thursday / Friday

Cost: £26.70
Spaces: 50 (each day)

Visit to Rutland Water Aqua Park which is a giant floating inflatable obstacle course. For more information on the Aqua Park please visit their website

The cost of the trip will cover transport to and from the Aqua Park, entry into the Aqua Park and hire of a wet suit and buoyancy aid (both compulsory to wear on the Park). Pupils must bring with them a suitable swim suit, towel and a packed lunch as there will be no opportunity to purchase food. Trip will depart approx 8.30am and return to Northgate by 3.15pm

The Aqua Park does have certain requirements and restrictions to attend. All participants must be
• 120cm or taller
• able to swim 25m unaided or 50m with a buoyancy aid.
• All participants must observe a safety briefing prior to entry into the Aqua Park
• All confirmed participants must complete and sign an online waiver on the Aqua Park website. Failure to complete the disclaimer will mean that entry is refused and payment is non-refundable. This is the Aqua Parks policy

Puppet Theatre

Taking Place: Thursday AND Friday

Cost: £20
Spaces: 20

Day 1:
Norwich Puppet Theatre is allowing us to enter the magical world of puppets. The day will start with an introduction to puppetry and a guided tour of Norwich Puppet Theatre.  After the tour, we will be able to make our own puppets, which we can also keep and take home. The theme of the day will be “Summer Vibes”.
On completion of our puppets, we will have lunch and a stroll through Norwich Lanes and Elm Hill before our return to school. 

Day 2:
We will be setting off to have a guided tour of Norwich Cathedral. Our tour guide will talk us through the fineries of this magnificent building steeped in history. We will also be able to have lunch in the cloisters at the end of our tour and imagine what it would have been like to have lived and been part of the clergy who made up this Anglican community.  We will be able to take many photographs and intend to return to school to do a workshop with all the pictures we have taken during our trip.

Film Club

Taking Place: Thursday / Friday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 60 (each day)

Films can be exciting and entertaining, transporting us to a different world. They can also provoke discussion, challenge us to reconsider our ideas and views. Watch and learn.

Harry Potter Day

Taking Place: Thursday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 30

Various Harry Potter themed activities in school, including mini ‘escape room challenge’, craft and finishing with afternoon Harry Potter film.

Book Art & Craft Day

Taking Place: Friday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 30

Book recycled art and craft – including Book Nooks, paper folding, book sculptures

STEM Day - Egg Challenge

Taking Place: Thursday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 16

Students will spend the day making rockets and cars that need to keep an uncooked egg safe from smashing when launched. They will design and make some creative inventions

STEM Day - Eco Transport

Taking Place: Friday

Cost: Free
Spaces: 16

Students will design and make a Solar powered car and a ballon powered car.

Northgate Council – December Bulletin

Northgate Council – December Bulletin

We are pleased to introduce our December bulletin. In our bulletin this month you will find out all sorts of information and updates. There is news about Anti-Bullying week, a sustainability project with schools in Spain, Germany and Italy, and updates to our recycling programmes.

We hope that you are able to take some time to have a look at all the goings on at Northgate from the last month and enjoy seeing what we’ve been up to. Please share with your friends and family via our Facebook and twitter pages.

Miss Theobald (School Council Coordinator) + Northgate School Council.

 

 

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ERASMUS ‘Humans First’ – a project on Sustainability and Renewable Energy

ERASMUS ‘Humans First’ – a project on Sustainability and Renewable Energy

From 8th – 12th November a group of Year 7-10 students took part in the Erasmus programme called Humans First. The aim of the programme was to look at sustainability and in particular, renewable energy, whilst working with students in Spain, Italy and Germany.

Pip, Emma and Milo from our Earth Summit team, proudly presented work that the team have completed on various projects over the last year, our eco successes and awards, as well as plans moving forward, not only to raise awareness and educate others about their environmental impact but also to take action.

The week also involved a number of online sessions, virtual talks with an atmospheric scientist and one about writing an impactful and persuasive speech on climate change. There was plenty of time for experiments and presentations. Students split into three groups, each researching an experimenting on a different type of renewable energy – wind, solar and thermal energy. They collected and processed the data and drew conclusions about which energy source was more efficient. Our students worked incredibly hard throughout the week and have written about their experiences below.

The Wind Turbine group share their findings:

In our group, we measured different wind speeds around our school; this gave us varied results but this was a prediction we had made earlier as we knew that different areas have open land and some areas were more built up, meaning that the wind would either flow freely making the turbine turn faster, or the buildings would block the flow of the wind.

In our experiments we used a voltmeter to measure the voltage of the different wind speeds. This fluctuated from 0.1 depending on the area of which the turbine was placed. The voltmeter has readings of 0-15 volts and this was used to measure the amount of energy harvested from purely wind.

We have also collectively been trying to find ways to make our school more energy efficient using wind turbines; even on a smaller scale a build-up of these turbines can produce high voltage which can be used to power our school.

Also, during our experiments we found that at 10:00am, we had our highest reading of 3 volts. If this was done on a wider scale and we had more turbines harvesting this unused energy, we would be saving money to use elsewhere or further increase this harvesting. With this simple improvement our school would be even more environmentally friendly and this would put us further towards our target of the UK being Net Zero by 2050. If this was done across all schools then we would achieve this target nationally. If more international schools took small actions to help reduce carbon emissions, the global impact would be incredible!

Mia from the Solar Team shares her findings:

In the Solar Team, we had a kit that contained a solar panel that was 12cm by 6cm long, a voltmeter, two cables, a propeller, a buzzer and a red light bulb. We were mainly focused on using the buzzer and propeller to measure the rotations per minute and the decibels produced.

For our experiments, we placed the solar panel in our school field at different times during the day. We then angled the solar panel in a certain way and plugged in the voltmeter which told us how many volts we were using. Our team also used a decibel meter to measure the sound from the buzzer. To measure the rotations per minute for the propeller, we used a slow-motion recording to count how many times it spun.

Our findings told us that the experiments from 09:20-09:30 produced slightly better results than the ones at 14:00. We also discovered that the voltage, RPM (rotations per minute), watts and decibels were the highest at a 45-60° elevation. We reached a voltage of 2.4, 20 decibels, 0.96 watts and 960 RPM.

In conclusion, solar panels are a very effective way of producing electricity, and are the best option out of the other two experiments: Water Heating and Wind Turbines. This surprised us as England is often very cloudy but it still gave us great results. If schools were able to have solar panels installed, it would be extremely beneficial for the environment and the staff.

Kyra, shares her experiences of the week:

I really enjoyed being a part of ERASMUS 2021 as it was such an eye – opening experience. At the beginning of the week, we virtually met the other German, Italian and Spanish schools. We discussed the different things we currently do that make our schools more environmentally friendly and where we see our schools (environmentally) in 10 years.

During the afternoon, we started our investigations into whether Solar, Wind or Hydro-Energy is the best source of renewable energy for Norfolk. As I was part of the Solar Team, I helped to measure the voltage of the small Solar Panel we had in our Photovoltaic kit. Our results for that day and Tuesday, produced approximately 2.4 volts each day as it was sunny.

Over Wednesday and Thursday, the weather was damp and cloudy and so our experiments showed a decrease in voltage by about 0.5 volts. We then put together a presentation that compared our findings and research between the different groups of renewable energy.  What we found was completely different to our prediction that wind energy would be the most effective renewable energy as it was actually solar energy.

We shared our presentation with the other schools and some of the information they had found out from their investigations contradicted some of my initial thoughts about their country’s use of renewable energy. In the afternoon, Esme, Annabelle, Ella and I went on a litter pick and managed to clear most of the Year 7 and Year 8 areas as we were eager to make our own difference even with the smallest changes.

Lastly, on Friday we had a workshop called ‘Dare To Speak Up’ which gave us really great tips on how to use your voice to make a difference. My favourite thing was that we were taught how to write a speech about what environmental problems we are most passionate about and wish to change. I was inspired to raise the issue of fast fashion pollution and hope to be able to use it in the future. It was a fantastic week!

Students spread kindness during Anti-Bullying Week

Students spread kindness during Anti-Bullying Week

From 12th – 19th students and staff at Northgate supported Anti-Bullying Week with the Anti-Bullying Alliance. The theme this year was ‘One Kind Word’. Year 8s, Evelyn, Seren and Kyra tell us all about the week and what students got up to.

Last week was anti-bullying week. During form time, we have been looking at an anti-bullying powerpoint, that was created by our Wellbeing Team, to help prevent bullying around the school and raise awareness. We have been asking questions about bullying and learning about the real definition of bullying, what to do if someone is being bullied and how bullying is caused. We looked at different scenarios and what you could do to spread kindness and stop bullying. Finally we looked at how to disagree kindly. Members of the Wellbeing Team also went into the lower school assemblies to highlight the importance of speaking out against bullying and being kind to one another. They played the following video from the Anti-Bullying Alliance.

As a whole school, we have been trying to spread ‘one kind word’ and have been trying to create a ‘ripple effect’ of kindness throughout the school community. An example of our ‘one kind word’ project would be ‘compliments’. Giving occasional compliments to people around the school makes people happier and feel good about themselves. This may encourage a chain of kindness around the school. If one person gives a compliment, and they share a compliment, it ripples throughout the whole school. Complimenting people makes you feel good about yourself and others and gives you a positive mindset. If someone compliments you, it also makes you feel good about yourself and boosts your self-esteem.

On Friday, we had a visit from Irini Mando who is currently touring, and we were lucky enough for her to come visit us. Irini Mando is an urban-pop singer and songwriter based in London. Pre Covid, she supported Gabrielle and Kaiser Chiefs on their UK arena tours and is now signed to Island Records. Irini recently performed at over 20 festivals in the Summer and is due to be a support artist for a big arena tour this year.

She asked us if any of us have struggled with our mental health and what we did during lockdown to make sure we were happy. She talked about mental health and how to deal with grief, bullying, stress of workloads and body image. Irini talked about how she found it difficult in lockdown, especially with her job as an artist. She told us about ways to take your mind off troubling and worrying things such as drawing, exercising, and focussing on one thing at a time and not multiple all at once. Irini Mando is originally from Greece and Germany, and told us she worried about her accent, but learned that it isn’t a bad thing. Even though we can get support from teachers and family members, it was amazing to know that someone like Irini has the confidence to talk about these things, so it means we can to. She also spoke about how important it is to put yourself first when it comes to how you feel and said ‘How can you help someone else with their problems when you may have your own problems?’

That was inspiring for us to believe in ourselves and our individual differences that make us unique. We were also inspired when she told us she first sang to an audience at the age of nine.

We were lucky enough to have Irini perform for us. She sang Ring Ring, MVP(most valuable player), Outlaw and Trouble. The songs were very motivating and we had the opportunity to join in with one of her songs – Ring Ring. Her songs were really enjoyable and it was a great experience for everyone. Having Irini talk to us about anti-bullying and mental health made a difference to the way we view this topic and helped our understanding of Anti-Bullying Week. We also received individually signed photos and Irini also had her photo taken with us!

Northgate Remembers

Northgate Remembers

The past two years have resulted in our Armistice Day service in school, being restricted in a socially distanced way. This year however, we returned with a special service and showed our respects to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, during The Great War (WW1), along with (WW2) and every campaign to date. The school fell silent at 11am as students and staff paid their respects. The service, at the front of school, was attended by a number students representatives, those in uniformed organisations and also by staff.

The service was coordinated by Mr MacDonald, who made sure it involved representatives from both sites – Northgate High School and Dereham Sixth Form.

A poppy cross was placed along with a commemorative poppy pebble, by students from all year groups from Year 7-13.

Lewis, Head Boy, alongside Freya Head Girl, read “For the Fallen” by Robert Laurence Binyon.

Mrs Graves, Head of Year 7, read the poem “In Flanders Fields”. Music to accompany the service was played by two students, Emmanuel Year 9, playing the piano beautifully and Dexter Year 10, who played trumpet and the Last Post.

Mrs Galley and Dr Hone, Heads of Northgate and Dereham Sixth Form College, placed a cross on behalf of staff and students, and they also paid tribute to former pupil of Northgate – Private Lewis Hendry.

Mr Hambling, (CEO) of Unity Education Trust also paid tribute to the late Mr Mike Salt (Governor), closing the service with the reading Kohima Epitaph.

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