NT Live - Twel�h NightSummer Term BeginsGCSE Art ExamNT Live - Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are DeadYear 10 ExamsYear 8 Meet The MentorJunior Maths ChallengeCinema Screening: InfernoYear 8/10 Athle�csSYD Juniors PerformanceYear 10 Silver D of E Prac�ce Expedi�onYear 10 Drama – Devised Performances

Year 8/10 Athle�csYear 10 Drama - Devised PerformancesNT Live: ObssessionSawston Fun RunGCSE ExamsYear 10 RoundersNT Live: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Year 9 ReportsYear 7/9 Athle�csYear 8 Parents’ EveningYear 7 ReportsHalf Term

Welcome to the second newsle�er of the Spring Term and a huge thank you to all of the parents who ba�led through the DfE Fair Funding Consulta�on process. It certainly was not easy, and it became apparent that the dra� responses that had been produced for the schools in South Cambs did not quite match up with all of the DfE’s ques�ons, but we are confident that, combined with responses from all the other schools, we have made our views clear to the Government. We now await their response.

In the mean�me, we are busy suppor�ng Year 11, who are about to begin the last lap of their �me at SVC. It is hard to believe that their five years at the College are nearly over. We have also had some incredible successes in regional and na�onal compe��ons recently, especially in Maths and PE. Well done to everyone involved! Finally, the College was delighted to be recognised by the DfE for the quality of our school improvement work by being designated a Na�onal Support School, which means that the Regional Schools Commissioner can call upon our exper�se to work with other schools in need of help, a well-deserved accolade for the hard work and skill of my colleagues in delivering the outstanding provision celebrated in this newsle�er.

As a result of their performance, both in lessons and extra-curricular commitments, 20 of Sawston Village College’s talented trampolinists were selected to par�cipate in a Schools Trampolining compe��on. A�er the U14 Elite Boys team was placed 1st in the regional and zonals rounds, they secured themselves a place at the Na�onal Championship Finals in Gateshead. Six clean rou�nes later, packed with impressive difficulty, Toby Chapman, Abhi MacDonald Marlow and Gabe Strydom-Green were crowned Na�onal Champions in the U14 Elite Boys category. As if this team success was not enough, Gabe even managed to secure himself an individual ranking, coming 7th na�onally. Congratula�ons boys - an outstanding achievement!

Trampolining Na�onal Champions in the Under 14 Elite Boys Category

Professor Sir Richard Evans visited the College recently to speak to The 1930 Society (our history society). He is one of the world's leading experts on Hitler's rise to power and the Third Reich. The Walnut Gallery was packed to hear him speak about the methods of control used by the Nazis and to dispel the myth of the Gestapo hiding behind every door. He also spoke about German opposi�on to the Nazis and how historians' interpreta�ons of this period of German history have changed over the years.

Gym and Dance Display29 March saw 110 pupils, ranging from Years 7 to 11, take to the stage in Sawston’s Gym and Dance Display 2017. The show incorporated an exci�ng blend of gymnas�cs and dance, with disciplines ranging from Ballet to the increasingly popular Cheerleading. All of the pupils worked incredibly hard to ensure a slick and professional rou�ne: their commitment and dedica�on to the countless hours of rehearsals were a real credit to each and every one of them. The display as a whole was highly successful, and I hope that the pupils con�nue to strive towards the values of par�cipa�on, excellence and, most importantly, enjoyment through showcasing their talent in the future. We look forward to seeing some new and experienced faces performing again next year. Well done to all involved!

Under the thoroughly professional leadership of Lucy Main, of the Pupil Senate, pupils have been raising money for Comic Relief. A�er the record-breaking success of Children

in Need, pupils organised a week-long series of fundraising ac�vi�es.At the start of the week, a�er years of trying, pupils finally beat the staff at netball. A thorough review is underway regarding the complacency and clear lack of prepara�on that some staff demonstrated. On Wednesday, despite the wind chill, a crowd gathered to throw wet sponges at several members of staff, thoroughly soaking them.Keilan Grant, Head Boy, led the produc�on of the highly amusing Sawston edi�on of Channel 4's ‘Gogglebox’, starring a comedy duo from the Computer Science department and revela�ons about Mr Mas�n's domes�c servant. Lucy Main and her team deserve huge congratula�ons for their ini�a�ve and organisa�onal skills, without which none of this would have happened.

On 8 March 2017, the Cambridge District Secondary Schools Sports Associa�on (CDSSSA) hosted the annual Roy Burrell Awards at The Netherhall School and Sixth Form Centre. These awards celebrate the excellence, par�cipa�on and sportsmanship of Year 11 pupils across Cambridgeshire.Seven pupils from Sawston Village College accepted awards for their spor�ng ac�vi�es. These were George Weston (Hockey), Freya O'Sullivan (Rowing), Bronagh Whisken and Jus�ne Ross (Swimming), Joshua Jeche (Football), and Hector Cope and Harry Weber (Basketball).The night was a superb celebra�on of the talent in Cambridgeshire schools. All the young people who a�ended are inspira�onal role models not only to their peers, but also to their PE teachers. It fills me with great pride that I was able to be part of such an event.

The school-run Sawston Cinema has enjoyed full houses recently for some of the fantas�c broadcasts from Na�onal Theatre Live. Fortunately, there are

more s�ll to come with Twel�h Night and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead due shortly, among others. On the standard screening programme Inferno is coming up soon, and more films are s�ll to be scheduled. Visit the website www.sawstoncinema.org.uk to see the full cinema programme, buy �ckets or to find out more about each screening. You can also email cinema@sawstonvc.org.

If it is March, then it must be the Music Department’s annual concert – the highlight of the year for all those musicians who work so hard at weekly rehearsals and for the audience who packed out the West Road Concert Hall. The programme was the usual eclec�c mix, including folk and rock, samba and a drumline, Mozart and Tchaikovsky, Bacharach and Woody Herman. There was some fantas�c singing from the Junior Choir, the Madrigal Singers and the Madriguys; chamber music from the Sax Quartet, Flute Choir and Brass Ensembles and show-stopping numbers from the Senior Band and the Jazz Band. Congratula�ons to all who took part.

Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) undergo an extensive, dedicated professional learning programme, in school and in partnership with the CASSA alliance of schools. Most recently, they have been exploring contras�ng educa�onal philosophies. There is much debate amongst educa�onalists about the rela�ve importance of knowledge and crea�vity in the curriculum, and about the role of the teacher: as expert to impart wisdom or as facilitator to guide pupils' explora�on. It was a pleasure to lead a discussion and debate amongst CASSA NQTs, including many from Sawston, exploring the theory and principles behind these different approaches to teaching. At Sawston we pride ourselves on cri�cally engaging with educa�onal theory, and it was great to see this approach to professional learning epitomised by our newest colleagues.

We are now coming towards the end of our courses for this term and are star�ng to plan our 2017/18 programme. We would love to find some new and exci�ng courses to offer and would, therefore, welcome your thoughts on any new courses you would like to see provided, or any course you would be interested in teaching. Our summer term courses start the week commencing 24 April, and we have workshops planned for Saturday, 17 June. These include making a floral heart wall-hanger workshop and making a patchwork and quil�ng bag.For more informa�on on all our courses, please visit our website, www.sawstonadulted.org, email community@sawstonvc.org or telephone 01223 712424.

Sawston is one of the few schools to offer pupils the chance to study either modern or ancient history, and the

ancient historians recently travelled to Rome with their copies of Livy’s History of Rome and Virgil’s Aeneid to visit the places men�oned by these Roman writers. They climbed the Pala�ne hill where Romulus purportedly built his first se�lement in c.753 BC and where the first emperor, Augustus, built his villa in the 1st Century BC. From the top of the hill they could see Remus’ Aven�ne hill, the Circus Maximus and the Va�can. We spent a morning walking around the Colosseum where thousands of Romans, plebeians and patricians watched the games. The Va�can Museum opened up its treasures of the famous statue of Augustus from Prima Porta, and various gods and goddesses, while the Capitoline Museum on top of Rome’s highest hill gave us the chance to see the Etruscan sculpture of the legendary she-wolf who rescued Romulus and Remus. And no visit to the Eternal City could be complete without lashings of gelato for pupils (and coffee for Mr Mas�n and Mr Robertson).

The College was delighted to welcome 24 pupils and their teachers from Skals E�erskole to the school on 29 March. The Danish pupils joined Year 10s for lessons, and members of the Senate gave a presenta�on about the school and invited the Danish visitors to add a label to their World Display Board.Sawston pupils making

their Display Board.

Arera Davies, Antonia Ren, Calum Rayner, Lucy Main and Izaak Van Dongen hosted 16 pupils and teachers from Spain and Finland on 17 March. They were presen�ng their work as part of the interna�onal Erasmus Project - Kids Inspiring Kids in STEM (KIKS). Izaak led a workshop on Chaos Theory, whilst the others made presenta�ons about their

experiences of teaching Physics and Astronomy to their peers this year. A truly dedicated and inspiring group of pupils, they impressed their visitors, both in the content of their work and the high quality of their delivery. They are now looking to further their experience by presen�ng at a conference in Budapest. We are also seeking dedicated and self-mo�vated pupils who wish to take up the baton of represen�ng their school and country in the next phase of the KIKS project. Any pupils interested in this should see Mr Whi�on.

A full Easter holiday programme for children is being offered at Sawston Sports Centre. Ac�vi�es include our ever popular All Stars and Shoo�ng Stars Camps, the new Wobstacle pool inflatable, Archery with Adam, Intensive Swimming Lessons (at the fantas�c price of £1.00 per child per lesson), Trampolining with Fleur, Water Zorbing and our fun-packed Krazy Kidz Club!

Please contact Recep�on on 01223 712555 for further informa�on or to book a place. Please like us on Facebook and follow us on Twi�er @SawstonSports for up-to-date informa�on and offers.

At the end of March we entered a Mathema�cs tournament held at Cambridge University. The tournament is part of a wider na�onal event run by the United Kingdom Mathema�cs Trust.

Our team comprised four talented mathema�cians from Years 8 and 9.

These were Lena Van Dongen, Rowan Mather, Amy Keller and Guy Semple.

The team worked really well together, ba�ling hard in the different rounds. In the end, the team came second out of 30 and the pupils are now through to the na�onal finals in London to be held in June. Well done, an outstanding result!

The Year 11s performed their scripted scenes across three evenings to family, friends and our Year 10 Drama cohort. The wide variety of play choices ranged from the classic naturalist play, Hedda Gabler, staged as a classic proscenium arch piece, to a series of 20th Century immersive scenes in our newly refurbished Studio Theatre. The pupils worked very hard to deliver some dense and complex scenes with a focus on societal issues, exploring different behaviours within different communi�es and the close observa�on of ephemeral human nature and all its paradoxes. To perform to a public audience undoubtedly boosts our Drama pupils’ grades but this opportunity would not be possible without the help and support of other staff and young technicians. Thank you.

Over 175 people filled the Henry Morris Hall on 22 March to watch 80 performers in the annual Dance Showcase. 30 KS2 pupils from Shelford Primary School’s a�er-school Dance Club took part, as well as dancers from Sawston’s a�er-school Elite Dance Group and the first and second year GCSE Dance pupils. The first years introduced the new dance specifica�ons with group pieces based on A Linha Curva and Ar�ficial Things from the new Dance Anthology and their set phrases, while, for the second years, the showcase was a mock modera�on for their GCSE prac�cal. The evening was a great success, with the dancers rightly receiving lots of praise and posi�ve comments. Thank you to everyone who supported the evening.