Academy Eye

Did you know that rubbish attracts unpleasant and unwanted animals such as rats and seagulls? It does! And that is why we all need to be aware of where we throw our rubbish.   How can we prevent being surrounded by such unwanted animals and birds? The answer is relatively simple: throw rubbish in the bin instead of on the ground! If you really want a clean environment then you should use the bin and keep doing it! Our generation and the next to come will benefit from your small gesture to the environment.  If we have a clean environment, we are also protected from terrible illnesses and diseases which the pest animals bring with them. This assumes of course that you do not want to suffer from any illnesses which could come from the animals. So be aware of where you throw your rubbish; and always keep in mind that it should go in the bin!

    Louise Jallbjoern & Christiane Hoerstge

On Monday 2nd December, eighteen students from Years 11, 12 & 13 accompanied Mr Hardy and Mr Smith from the Maths Department to a lecture at the Open University in Milton Keynes. The lecture entitled “Phenomenal Mathematics,” provided by Professor John Mason covered many mathematical phenomena that are evident in everyday life today, and have been through the ages. His interest and enthusiasm for his subject is inspiring and was a great insight into what is waiting to be discovered when delving deeper into the world of mathematics.  Professor Mason began his Mathematics career at the age of fifteen when he was asked to tutor a fellow student at school, and continued when he became an ‘official’ tutor for students in years below himself while still studying at college.   Examples that Professor Mason highlighted included:  

·         The use of gears in vehicles and other mechanisms, and how through the ages these have been used less than effectively. Our ancestors’ farms, vehicles, and pumps could have been far more productive if they had thought about the maths! 

·         The relationship between two coins, one rotating around the other. How would size and proportion affect the number of turns the rotating coin would make?

·         The Gossip Problem – Using algebra, how many conversations would it take for ‘p’ people to all know all of the gossip?

·         The midpoints of curves on quadratics – some unusual relationships highlighted by manipulation.

·        Newton’s Cradle – What is the mechanics behind this piece of apparatus? How does it work? Why does it work? What if it is adapted?

Newton’s Cradle

A key pointer from the lecture was that in Mathematics one of the most effective means of learning is to question and reason. Make a conjecture, form an opinion on why you believe your particular answer is correct, and then step back. Make an argument for and against your answer. Break it down. Flip it round and look at all angles. Argue with yourself and if you haven’t come to a proven outcome or correct answer, your understanding of the process and stages of reasoning will still be greatly increased. This is how we progress and enhance our knowledge, getting our brain cells actively debating rather than following the trends.  

G.Smith Dec’08

On Friday, 26th September, year 12 BTEC PE students were involved in helping with 3 schools that came to Northampton Academy to take part in the multi-sports festival.  

 Year 6 students came from Bellinge, Saint Andrews and Lings to take part in the festival. They participated in 3 different sports, and including mini basketball, indoor athletics, and tri-golf.  

The BTEC students were split into groups and then were allocated to a group of year 6 students. These students were from mixed schools, and had different abilities. The Year 6 students learnt the basics of mini basketball, participated in indoor athletics and tri-golf activities. Mini basketball involved passing, dribbling and shooting drills. The indoor athletics consisted of the long jump, triple jump, and javelin; to finish off the indoor athletics, the students raced against each other. Finally, they did a number of activities in tri-golf, starting with basic putting, then moving on, trying to get as many points as possible by hitting the balls in the designated target. 

The Year 6 students developed their skills within mini basketball, indoor athletics and tri-golf.  Also, the 6th form students learned more about how to take control of a multi-sports festival, as well as the skills and the motivation needed to manage a group of year 6 students.

Since February 2007, 12 Northampton Academy pupils in years eleven and twelve have been chosen to represent our school through the art department. They attend meetings and hold discussions to build a more ‘Creative Britain’. We are very proud to be one of 12 schools that the Tate Modern sponsors.  

In October there was an award winning night where Mr Hunter gave an exceptional speech about how proud he is of this school and his role in the art department. 

This is great news to those who are aspiring high to be creative, including the designs department, music and drama.

This school year Northampton Academy welcomed three exchange students from Denmark, Italy and Germany, which gave all of us the opportunity of studying A-level for a year. 

We foreign students arrived with the same aims in mind; to improve our English and become more comfortable speaking the language, to try to see as many landmarks in the history as possible as well as all other significant sights, and to get a real in-depth experience in the British culture.   

The Academy achieved a gold star standard in helping us to settle in, while at the same time keeping track of all the new 6th formers, which shows how organised the staff on the school have been from the very beginning of the year. Other students who have been attending the Academy for several years but also come from other parts of the world have expressed that the Academy is very good at welcoming new students in comparison to other schools these students previously attended. Apparently the other schools have not had the same friendly and helpful teachers and students as the Academy has.     

All three of us have notice a great curiosity towards us from both students and teachers about the culture we come from and why and how we got the idea of taking a year aboard. And the most popular, if we are here with our family, and no, we are here on our own staying with English families who have opened their homes and hearts for us. It, of course, is hard and very brave to jump out in the big world all alone, leaving friends and family back at home, but it is also very exciting and much fun especially when you meet some great people on the way. 

It is without exception we on the very first day realized big dissimilarity from our school back home in Denmark, Germany or Italy to the Academy.

In general the whole school system is something completely different; just take the grading system and the fact that none of us have ever been on a school where there is a rule for school uniform.  In the meantime, all these differences have not made us regret our decision on coming to England. We have no regrets but simply live with the saying “it is not wrong it is just different,” and remembering it is all for a better future.