We are collecting both Sainsburys Active Kids Vouchers and Tescos for Schools & Clubs Vouchers during the Spring Term. Collection boxes can be found in Reception and the Library (LRC).
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Commendations Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Lower 6th Upper 6th
Year 7
Sean McCoy 100, Andrew Garrido 86, Tom Fuller 82.
Daniel Sherlock 102, Jamal Ottun 98, Sean McNamara-Guiheen 96.
Henry Ludlam 68, Andrew Sinclair 65, Connor Powell 64.
Ajay Tirumalai-Adisesh 68, Daniel Dobrowski 56, Krisanth Ragudhas 53.
Jack Ashton 59, Rawa Burhan 50, Christopher Wilkins 49.
Harriet Forsyth 38, Thomas Diamond, 27, Usmaan Umar 26.
Edward Stedman 33, Joshua Heath 25, Amal Vaidya 24.
ANTI-BULLYING
The Anti-bullying work group is currently working towards informing the staff, and eventually the student body, of all the various forms of bullying that presently exist. The main focus of the group is to ensure that by educating both staff and pupils, bullying at Wallington will be eradicated. Our primary aim is to demonstrate that no form of bullying will be tolerated at WCGS, whilst also ensuring that members of staff are adequadely trained to comfortably deal with situations regarding bullying.This will be introduced by student-led training to utilise the first hand experiences of pupils at the school and is currently being looked into by the group.
Josh Adams and Will Thornton - 6th Form
ART
YEAR 11 WELLCOME COLLECTION TRIP 01/02/11
On the 1st of February 2011 the Year 11 GCSE Art classes were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to visit the prestigious Wellcome Collection founded by Sir Henry Wellcome containing over one million objects.
We travelled by British Rail to London Victoria and via the London Underground to Euston where the gallery was a short walk away. As I walked in, my first impression of the gallery was that it was very modern with the initial art work being quite abstract with an impact on the viewer.
The first exhibition we visited was "High Society" containing art work and pieces relating to the effects of taking drugs in history and today's society. For example, there was a triptych of webs where each spider had consumed a different drug and the effects of each could be seen in the webs produced.
In aid of the 2011 GCSE exam topic of similarities or differences, the tour guides explained certain pieces in the "Medicine Now" and "Medicine Man" exhibitions in relation to the disciplines of art and science; both of which are closely intertwined at the Wellcome Collection. For instance, the "Medicine Now" exhibition contained art work based on medical research on genetics and the human body which is something I found intriguing in particular the work on the similarities and differences in genes.
We then took part in an activity to design our own exhibition and had the opportunity for another quick look at some of the exhibitions before concluding our day at the Wellcome Collection. I personally would like to visit again and highly recommend that people should visit themselves to appreciate some of the astounding art work.
Simeon Greaves - 11S
SCOLA FESTIVAL OF YOUTH ART EXHIBITION
SCOLA (Sutton College of Learning for Adults) held their twelfth annual Festival of Youth Art exhibition this month, with the exhibition opening to the public on Monday 7th February. Work produced by pupils from fourteen schools in the borough of Sutton is displayed in the Europa Gallery in Sutton Library. WCGS was well represented by our talented artists with excellent pieces by pupils from Year 7 through to the Upper 6th.
At the Private View, the Mayor of Sutton presented certificates to those artists who had produced work that was exceptional. Congratulations to Zachary Barnett and Tayler Burke (Year 8), Romer Kitching (Year 10) and Tom Diamond (Lower 6th) who were recognised for their stunning artwork. The Mayor was keen to remark that the exhibition was the best ever, and it was fantastic for the work of WCGS pupils to form such a prominent part of the show.
SCIENCE
Science Olympiads
Over 30 students at Wallington have entered the British Biology and Chemistry Olympiads for 2011 maintaining our proud tradition of participation in these events which have run for the past 25 years and is entered annually by more than 2,000 talented young scientists, who complete an Oxford University test out of school hours.
Wallington has annually entered the Olympiads under the auspices of Mr. Moran (Chemistry) and Miss Farlow (Biology) and later this year we plan on entering the our first Physics Olympiad. Chemistry teacher Mr. Moran said “Last year one of our pupils, Gogulan Karunanithy obtained a Silver Award putting him amongst the top 15% of pupils entering the competition, this year we are going for Gold!”.
Science Lectures
Wallington’s innovative science lectures have continued this term after the outstanding success of the Christmas Lectures at the end of last year cumulating in a guest appearance by TV personality Johnny Ball. This year the school has already been paid a visit by professional science communicator and chemist Ian Dunne who presented on the “Magic of Science” and we are shortly due a visit by the Red Cross who will be taking about the impact of HIV & Aids.
These lectures have proven themselves extremely popular with both parents and pupils coming back time and time again and as many as four other schools have come along to our events this year. Indeed we have started a trend with some other schools starting their own lectures series up this term.
Still to come are lectures on Alien Life presented by Dr. Dartnell and Galaxies presented by Prof. Binney of Oxford University and many more over the rest of the year.
SATRO Problem Solving Challenge
It was a hectic but exciting time for the teams of students from Wallington as they raced against the clock to create a “Magic Wand” capable of picking up metal washers using the principle of electromagnetism. Given only rolls of plastic, glue, paper clips, a battery and a roll of wire our pupils gave a great account for themselves with our 6th Form Team beating over 30 teams to win a place at the national finals later next month pipping Wilsons by only a few points.
CREST Awards
This year has seen the launch of the British Science Associations CREST Awards at Wallington for the first time this year, with projects at all levels from Bronze to Gold. These projects involve pupils working on their one projects and submitting a detailed report on their findings with Bronze Awards involving over 10 hours of work, Silver over 30 hours of work and Gold over 70 hours of work.
Already we have awarded our first set of Bronze Awards with the very first one going to Kishan Anusheelan Y8 for his investigation in “Places where Germs are”. By taking swabs around the school he was able to discover that his hands had far more bacteria on them then even the toilet floor. There’s an advert for washing your hands if ever there was one!
Other projects currently still running include silver projects looking at Maglev Trains, Hydrogen Fuel Cells, Sundials and Teeth Decay, while our Gold teams are attempting to build a buggy, investigating Space-Time and Fuel Efficiency.
Environmental Group
Our environmental group have got off to a flying start this year under the leadership of Noeline Nadarajah U6 as they attempt to win the coveted Green Flag Status for the school. Already this year they have helped the school win a bid for £30,000 worth of Solar Panels and been involved in a partnership with Sutton Ecology Centre to apply for funding from the lottery for £50,000 to start a new educational programme for the public on ecology. In March this year our school will also host the 1st Sutton Earth Summit where pupils from across the borough will gather together to question politicians on environmental issues.
At present Noeline and her group are planning a recycling campaign for the school and have set in place targets to help the school reduce its carbon footprint. As part of this the environmental group will be taking readings around the school and analysing the data for future use.
Science Shows
Pupils at Wallington were treated to a number of science shows in January in the School Hall as presenter Ian Dunne looked at the “Magic of Science”. Over 300 pupils attended these shows which featured demonstrations on electrostatics, combustion, neutralisation and harmonics to name but a few. Many of the demonstrations showed pupils the science behind many well known “Magic” tricks including the cut rope trick and the rabbit in a hat. Watch out for budding entertainers at home.
NASA’s Space Settlement Challenge
Wallington has once more won a place at the UK final of NASA’s Space Settlement Challenge at Imperial College. A team of 6th form students drawn from our very own science community put together a video on 'a holiday to Mars' to win this place, going the extra mile to prepare our entry in the snow conditions that beset us a few months ago. Now the team will head off to Imperial for a high intensity weekend that will stretch them to the very limit as they attempt to design the space ship of the future and put their design to top NASA and University officials for judgement. Last year we not only won this competition but sent a team to the USA to win the world finals. Our team is determined to repeat this feat this year.
Young Entrepreneurs show they have a Heart
Enterprising students at Wallington have been putting people before profits as part of their lessons.
Pupils have set up social enterprises as part of the Sixth Form enrichment programme, which aim to make a profit – but also benefit the local community.
Two companies have been set up, with Spectrum helping elderly people in care homes in Sutton and Wallington by organising activities for them to get involved in.
Members of the second social enterprise, called Colours, have been using their experience of education and exams to deliver a tutoring scheme for younger students.
Rohan Mehta, managing director of Colours Enterprise, said: "Who better to teach people how to get into grammar schools than grammar school kids themselves?"
Both businesses are already getting off the ground, with Spectrum in talks with local care homes about the provision of their services and a number of parents discussing their children's needs with Colours.
John Hutchinson, Director of Science at the school, said: "The students have been putting the likes of Goldman Sachs and UBS to shame with their noble aims. If they are truly successful their results will not be reflected just in balance-sheets but in improvements in the local community.”
"They've also been learning valuable lessons, such as the importance of doing market research, and have had to tackle some difficult challenges, with both social enterprises facing funding issues."