Year 9 visited the First World War battlefields of Ypres

94 Year 9 pupils visited the First World War battlefields of Ypres on a three-day trip between Wednesday 4^th and Friday 6^th October. 

After the long drive from Holt, they began the trip with a visit to the Casualty Clearing Station cemetery at Lijssenthoek where they visited the graves of OGs Nathaniel Henry Atlee Ready of OSH and Douglas Birch Richardson of Howson’s. 

On Thursday, a packed day began with a visit to German trenches at Bayenwald before they visited Essex Farm Dressing Station, where Miriam G visited the memorial to her great great great great uncle John McCrae, author of the poem ‘In Flanders Field’.

The group went on to have a guided tour of Talbot House at Poperinge, a welcome retreat from the traumas of the frontline.

In the afternoon they visited Hooge, including a personal pilgrimage for David R who remembered his great-grandfather’s brother John near to where he fell aged just 19, having no known grave.

They visited the Hooge museum, and several students got to try on gas masks, whilst Isaac B was dressed as a fully kitted British Tommy.

They explored Hill 60 and remembered OG and Farfield boy Charlie Kirch, close to the spot where he was fatally injured. After supper they attended the evening act of remembrance at the Menin Gate Memorial, where Jemima and Henry laid a wreath on behalf of Gresham’s. The trip concluded with three visits on Friday morning. They remembered German losses at the cemetery at Langemarck, visited the newly restored Gresham’s Memorial at St George’s Memorial Chapel in Ypres, where Irene T and Tristan B laid a wreath of remembrance, and finished with a visit to the cemetery at Tyne Cot where we remembered OG and Howson’s boy Clement Neill Newsum. 

Year 10 GCSE pupils enjoyed a typical German breakfast

The current year 10 pupils in the German GCSE group include Evie M, Hector B, Ulysses O and Hen C. They enjoyed a typical German breakfast with German dark rye bread, salami, gherkins, Emmentaler cheese and some Lebkuchen washed down with a slug of Erdinger non alcoholic beer, which is an isotonic drink and highly regarded in Switzerland as part of a healthy eating regime. The opportunity to taste the culinary delights of the country whose language they are learning, helps to bring the culture and quite literally the ‘tastes’ of the language closer to the pupils through their senses.

Congratulations to our U14 Rugby team who have won the County Cup

On Thursday 28^th September, the U14 rugby team travelled to Langley for the County Cup. They played Wymondham first, and in a physical encounter ran out 21-7 winners, with tries from Sam T, Elliott A and Henry K. They then put in an even stronger performance against Langley, recording a 24-0 victory with a hat trick of tries for Henry K, Henry R and Henry P, with Roland W capping off a fine display. Captain, Sam T lifted the U14 County Cup, which Gresham’s has not managed to win since 1994!

Eduvie spoke in Chapel to mark the beginning of our Black History Month celebrations

Eduvie helped us to mark the beginning of Black History Month in Chapel this week by delivering a brilliant talk on Nigerian history which was inspired by his Grandfather.

The History Department was involved in outreach work with Year 6 pupils in partnership with IntoUniversity

Gresham’s History Department was lucky enough to be involved in some outreach work with Year 6 pupils in Great Yarmouth in partnership with IntoUniversity in late September. Head of History, Simon Kinder, journeyed out to Great Yarmouth and spent two hours with a group of local schoolchildren. In a two-hour session, the pupils explored the origins of the Cold War and its major flashpoints. They also reviewed 600 years of medical change in just twenty minutes, identifying six key turning points. The pupils showed impressive concentration and engagement and the group contained many budding historians. At the end of a week of activities, they had a graduation ceremony at the University of East Anglia.

Visiting speaker Patrick Foster delivered a powerful message to Sixth Form pupils, staff and parents

Patrick is a former professional cricketer, insurance broker and independent schoolteacher whose life was torn to shreds by his pathological gambling addiction. Despite his idyllic upbringing and incredible success as a youngster, Patrick’s life became monopolised by gambling from his university days onwards as he found making the transition from playing sport and into the real world a huge challenge. His gambling addiction brought him to the verge of taking his own life in March 2018.  

Patrick delivered a powerful message to our sixth form, staff and parents not just about gambling but about addiction and the wider issues of not acknowledging or accepting help for mental health problems.

Drama pupils enjoyed a workshop with Paperbirds Theatre Company

On Tuesday 19^th September Year 12 and Year 10 GCSE Drama pupils had a workshop with Paperbirds Theatre Company. The company have become hugely influential with their powerful and thought provoking productions and their generous approach to sharing their highly accessible theatrical toolkit which they use for creating original theatre. Over the two hours pupils were given a 5 point approach to the devising process.

A Special Evensong marked the 50th anniversary of W H Auden’s death

W H Auden attended Gresham’s from 1920-1925 and 29th September marks the 50th Anniversary of his death. He was a leading poet of his generation and having collaborated with another OG and friend Benjamin Britten during their lifetimes it was only fitting the school should acknowledge him. A Special Evensong on Thursday 21st September in the full candle-lit Chapel where both Auden and Britten would spend many hours, included poems written by Auden. Stop all the Clocks and O Tell me the Truth about Love, were eloquently read by boys from Auden’s boarding House, Farfield and the choir sang Hymn to St Cecilia, Britten’s lyrical yet challenging setting of Auden beautiful poem honouring the patron saint of music and musicians. Former teacher Steve Benson delivered the address recounting the life of Auden.