We are pleased to introduce our November bulletin – it’s the 50th bulletin we have now sent out! In our bulletin this month there’s updates from the library, information about our new film club and photos from our open evening.
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.
GCSE Film Studies is a brand new course at Northgate, which we started teaching from this September. We currently have a small cohort of 14 pupils and are hoping for further interest for next year as the Year 9 pupils decide on their options.
This course really is all about film! From analysing different aspects of the medium like sound, camera shots and editing, through to discussions about representation and how current world issues are tackled in films – the course really fosters a passion for the way film-makers put across their ideas. We study a really diverse range of films that broaden pupils’ knowledge of the Hollywood, British and Global film industries. We have six core texts and then look at a range of other film clips to help us discuss genre conventions and the history of film. At the moment, students are studying Slumdog Millionaire by Danny Boyle with Mrs Christie and Skyfall directed by Sam Mendes with Mrs Smith.
Pupils also have the opportunity to create their own horror film opening for the coursework element; where they will research, plan, shoot and edit their material to become aspiring film makers.
The course has proved to be a real success so far, with students receiving excellent grades on their knowledge tests and contributing some very thoughtful ideas in their film analysis. They also impressed on our recent open evening, where they talked about their experiences on the course to prospective Year 6s and even demonstrated some of the practical side of film making too.
We also try to provide extra curricular opportunities to further inspire pupils. The most recent event was an online webinar hosted by the prestigious British Film Institute in London. The 1 hour session focused on two of the core texts that students will study for Component 1, comparing two films of the same genre. We have chosen to compare Dracula (1931) and The Lost Boys (1987) – two new films added to the Eduqas specification for 2022.
The webinar explored common conventions of the vampire genre (think the usual blood, fangs, capes and creepy accent) as well as the ways that vampire films have changed over time. Here is what some of our students had to say:
Corey – “It was really interesting to learn about the context of the two films. It was so useful to have an overview of what we will study later on in the course.”
Ben – “I personally thought that the talk was really engaging and helpful for my learning and knowledge of Film Studies.”
Chloe – “The speaker was engaging and I really liked watching the different clips and comparing ‘Dracula’ with ‘The Lost Boys.’”
Tom – “It taught me a lot about the films and how they have much deeper meanings to them. I have since applied some of these ideas to several other lessons.”
On Friday 7th October, Year 10 and 11 dance students took part in a dance workshop held by the National Youth Dance Company. It involved lots of movement that none of us had ever seen before, and we all agree that we learnt a lot, and had so much fun in this session.
We began by trying a warmup that they use at the company, involving turning, sinking into the floor, and emphasising arm gestures. We were taught this thoroughly and struggled a bit to begin with, but with the professional help meant we got the hang of it in the end.
We also took part in a travelling practice across the room and attempted to learn a section from a piece they had just performed. This involved a basketball sequence which we were later inspired by to create our own sequences. We were put into small groups and taught each other what we had just made- making use of everything we had been taught in the session so far. We performed these to the class and got the opportunity to appreciate the hard work everyone had put in.
To round off our session, we had a short improvisation challenge – let the music take over and just dance! This was really fun and it was the perfect way to finish.
Thank you NYDC for taking the time to come and teach us!
Mrs Ellis joined Northgate back in 2005 and has taught thousands of students in the years since then, whilst working in the Geography Department. Two of our new budding Northgate News Team reporters, Setaita and Oliver, spoke to Mrs Ellis to find out a bit more.
‘Earlier in the term we interviewed Mrs Ellis and found out some very interesting facts about her that w thought we might share’
What would you have done if you didn’t become a teacher?
I think I would have worked for the environment agency.
Why did you become a Geography teacher?
I like the mix of the human and physical world and how they interact.
What motivated you to become a teacher?
I wanted to share what I had learnt.
What are some hobbies of yours?
I like cycling – about 3 times a week.
Have you been abroad and if so where and what did you do?
I did a sky dive in Australia (I’m shocked too) and saw the ancient world in Italy.
What was your favourite subject in school?
Textiles.
Do you have any goals?
I would love to visit my dream destination of New Zealand and also learn how to ski.
What subject would you have taught if you didn’t teach Geography?
Biology.
A big thank you to Oliver and Setaita for interviewing Mrs Ellis and to Mrs Ellis for taking time to answer their questions. We look forward to our next staff member interview.
We are pleased to introduce our October bulletin. In our bulletin this month there’s comments from our new Year 7s about settling into Northgate, news about clubs our students can join and a throwback to our Past, Present and Future event held last year.
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.
We are pleased to introduce our September bulletin. In our bumper edition bulletin this month you will find out all sorts of information and updates including links to recent blogs, upcoming events, photos, merit and house competition updates. There’s news about our Year 7 transition days and Summer School, curriculum enhancement days, sports day and much more.
We hope that you are able to take some time to read our bulletin and enjoy seeing what we got up to at Northgate in July and August. Please share with your friends and family via our Facebook and twitter pages.
Miss Theobald (School Council Coordinator) + Northgate School Council.
GCSE Film Studies is a brand new course at Northgate, which we started teaching from this September. We currently have a small cohort of 14 pupils and are hoping for further interest for next year as the Year 9 pupils decide on their options.
We began by trying a warmup that they use at the company, involving turning, sinking into the floor, and emphasising arm gestures. We were taught this thoroughly and struggled a bit to begin with, but with the professional help meant we got the hang of it in the end.
Mrs Ellis joined Northgate back in 2005 and has taught thousands of students in the years since then, whilst working in the Geography Department. Two of our new budding Northgate News Team reporters, Setaita and Oliver, spoke to Mrs Ellis to find out a bit more.
