National RecognitionI am pleased to inform you that over the last month the school has secured further national recognition for its achievements. At the start of the half term we were congratulated by the Department for Education for being one of the top 100 state schools for student achievement and attainment. This accolade was soon followed by the school gaining National Teaching School status. This amongst other things allows us to train new teachers, and develop professional development programmes for staff from other schools.

Being in the top 100 schools and being a National Teaching School are fantastic

One of the top 100 state schools

achievements; achievements which everybody connected with school should celebrate. However, we cannot, and will not rest on our laurels; we will continue to ensure that every student is given the very best educational experience every single day. If we do this awards will follow, but more importantly we will have happy, confident, resilient students who are capable of achieving absolutely anything.Have a great Easter everybody, and for those students busy revising over the holidays please be assured, your hard work will pay off when you get your brilliant examination results in August.

Mr Samra, Headteacher2

Marian modelled by Ms Thresher) or the dark and murderous theatre of Shakespeare (Lady Macbeth, minus the bloodstains, modelled by Ms Rhodes); these were joined by Hamlet, Candy, Pocahontas, Willy Wonka and many more. Most impressive perhaps, was the unity demonstrated by the Science Department in their fellowship of the ring.

Students scoured the school matching characters to faces as encouraged by Pippi Longstocking, Ms Coleby, Librarian. We hope we have inspired some students to try something new: as Tolkien said “there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

Mrs Watkins

World Book DayCelebrating the Serious Business of ReadingStaff seized World Book Day as an opportunity to demonstrate their infectious enthusiasm for reading. Staff across many departments selected characters from favourite texts whether from childhood or beyond. Teachers’ favourite characters spanned fable, fiction and fantasy trilogies.We know how important reading for pleasure is for students' cognitive development and staff wanted to model their love of literature. We all have stories that have stayed with us since childhood, whether it is the adventurous fable of Robin Hood (with Maid

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Sixth Form Geography Trip

While the weather in Warwickshire was somewhat damp, we enjoyed some beautiful Spring sunshine. Students showed great teamwork to gather their data, and this teamwork was further developed through some gorge-walking in the Afon Ddu (all in the name of revising river processes!).The students were a credit to Southam College, showing a great attitude throughout the 3 days. We hope they can use this memorable experience to help them in their upcoming exams.

To develop their fieldwork skills and prepare themselves for the AS GEOG2 exam, the Y12 Geography students attended a 3-day residential course at Marle Hall Outdoor Education Centre, North Wales, from the 9th to the 11th March.

The main focus was to investigate characteristics of the River Aber, collecting and analysing primary data in the stunning surroundings of Snowdonia National Park.

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# Visit from Dr Kevin Moffat, University of Warwick

There are a wide range of sessions taking place in school over the Easter break. Revision sessions will focus on areas that were highlighted in the recent mock exams, in order to support students in their progress towards the final summer exams.Full details can be found by clicking the link below -https://southamcollegeyear8.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/easter-2016-holiday-plan.pdf

Have We Got News For YouTwenty of Southam's fantastically talented Year 9 students took part in the BBC's School Report News Day on Thursday 10th March. The BBC initiative encourages students to take on the role of reporters finding the news, writing and reporting it. Our team demonstrated ambition in their selection of serious news topics and their thorough investigative skill; they synthesised knowledge of local resources with research from global sources. We had students writing articles on topics as diverse as trialling cures for blindness, our possible exit from the EU and the impact of International Women's Day.We are hugely proud of students’ awareness of our global community and their confident, critical voices. The finished newspaper ‘The Scribe’ can be accessed here.READ THE SCRIBE.

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Easter Revision Sessions

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Sixth Form Interview Year 9Our fantastic Sixth Formers deserve real credit for interviewing Year 9 on their Records of Achievement, career aspirations and the steps they need to take to achieve their dream job.

The Sixth Form were very impressed with the vast majority of Year 9. Having a clear dream job in mind helps motivate students to strive to get those crucial grades.

These interviews were great practice for Year 9 as they will be interviewed by business people in Year 10 to further develop their employability skills.

Mr Eadon, Deputy Head

Buddhist Visitin Philosophy and Ethics, Year 8 students had a visitor within their lessons; a local Buddhist from the Forest Hermitage Centre spoke to students with regards to practising the Buddhist religion. It fitted perfectly with the topic they are currently working on which is 'Codes for Living.' Students were fantastic and asked some great and intriguing questions.Thank you to The Hermitage Centre for this memorable experience!Mrs Thomas

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Southam College is delighted to support Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal.Thank you to our Year 8 students for giving up their time and selling the daffodils.

Sixth Form Quad bike trekkingYear 13 Travel and Tourism students went Quad bike trekking in Warwickshire on Wednesday 2nd March 2016. The trek was on 250cc quad bikes through mud, fields, woodland and more mud. Adventure Tourism is about “no risk, no fun” where we take managed risks in adrenalin-filled activities, to build confidence, skills and to have fun. Quad bike trekking certainly gave that adrenalin rush and everyone learnt to handle the bikes even in mud, mud, mud!

Many thanks to Adventure Sports, Warwick, for a great experience which is summed up by students, It was awesome! It was soooo good!

NEW THIS TERMKey Words for each subject are now on display around the school. Teachers have selected specialist words that students should know and be able to apply in their subject areas. All students are encouraged to learn them and use them in their lessons.

Orienteering ChampionshipsMarch 13th- Well done to all of the students who took part in the Octavian Droobers Schools Orienteering Championships at the Memorial Park in Coventry.Competing in the Year 7-9 Lower Schools category for the first time, our students from Year 7 and Year 8 did fantastically well. Notable performances were Izzy Fairhurst finishing 3rd and Ana Lovett 7th in the girls competition, Team captain Joe Quinney 7th in the Boys and our team finishing 2nd overall, not bad for our event!With some more competitions coming later in the summer term and some local club events coming up as well, hopefully this will just be the start to many more successes.Mr MacGibbon

Year 8 Netball TournamentMarch 8th - Year 8 played in the Central Area Netball Tournament which took place at North Leamington School. The Team was led by Cerys James (C) and also consisted of Carmen Ellis-Greenway (WA), Poppy Bastin (GA), Madison Smith (GS), Kacie Morby (WD), Eleanor Crane (WD), Lily –Fraser-Pope (GK), Alice Dillon (GK) and Lucy Parker (GD). The girls got off to flying start winning all their group games with ease. There was excellent play from both attack and defence and the shooting was amazing. Madison Smith was on fire in the last game of the group; she made it look so easy with every shot going in beautifully.The semi final was against Myton; Southam got off to a rocky start due to the memories from last year. Nerves and pressure of winning was evident in the play from both teams. Unfortunately Myton got ahead and scored the first goal; Southam fought hard for the ball but just could not get the ball in the net. Going into the second half Southam were losing 0-1, finally they equalised 1-1. Tension was high and again Southam got another goal, 2-1. In the last 30 seconds Myton score, 2-2 and the final whistle goes. The game continued, one minute each way, the score remained 2-2 to the final whistle. Both teams wanting to win so desperately kept the score line tight, not one of them wanting to allow the other team to win. The game is played on to decide the winner and was achieved by the next team to score going through to the final. Unfortunately Southam just miss out, Myton score and go through, 3-2! The team were all absolutely devastated, it possibly could not have happened again. The girls worked hard and did not give up; they demonstrated true determination and grit. They did not make it easy for Myton which was reflected in how the team going into the final was decided. The team cannot wait for next year already so we can put these demons behind us.Despite the overall result not being the one we wanted all of the team should be very proud of their performance and achievements. They certainly have every right to keep their heads held high. Once again I am extremely proud of the team; it is a privilege and honour to be part of this group of very talented young ladies! Well done and thank you, Miss Evans.

Sports News

The Year 9 girls had to battle their way through the wind and the rain during their area netball tournament. Southam took 2 squads to the event due to the commitment the girls have shown to training.Southam B squad captained by Jodie Coombs-Prole had a tough group having to face some very difficult teams. The girls had a mixed bag, losing 5-1 to Myton, 4-1 to Kenilworth, drawing 2-2 to Trinity and beating Campion 2-0. Unfortunately they finished in 3rd place not seeing them qualify to the semifinals. Some excellent play throughout the evening in all aspects of the court.The other Southam squad captained by Katie Cummings saw a ropey start with the girls just beating North Leam 2-1 in the first match with a few silly mistakes and loose balls. The girls soon warmed up and won the following matches 4-1 and 10-2 against Kingsley and Aylesford respectively. Finishing top of their group and progressing to the semifinal. The girls faced Kenilworth in the semifinals in which the weather started to deteriorate seeing the temperatures plummet and the rain/sleet to arrive. Marie playing had to attempt to keep her hands warm whilst the ball was down the other end of the court to ensure she could still shoot when she had the opportunity. Some excellent balls into the circle from Jodie and Lydia saw Marie and Amy put Southam through to the final with a score of 6-2.The girls faced a very strong Myton side in the final, a team they have lost to in the league already this year. However the girls came out fighting as the light started to be lost and the heavens opened. Again, some excellent play from Jodie in the centre role and some brilliant turn overs from the defensive pairing of Katie and Clarice saw Southam win 4-0 and take the crown of winners for the second year running. The girls played extremely well together and only conceded 6 goals all evening and retained their title in fantastic fashion by winning every match.A huge thank you to Hope Aris who came along to help coach and cheerleader whilst she is unable to compete due to injury.Well done to all 14 girls who played this evening you have really done yourself proud and played your socks off.

Netballers win the Emerging schools tournament 2 years in a row!

The Equestrian Team would like to say a huge thank you to local business 'Wildside' for their very generous donation of equipment for the team to use when they are out competing. It is lovely to receive such a gesture and will be fantastic to have the team looking so smart when they represent the college. The team look forward to modeling the kit when they next compete.

Thank You

March 4th - The team made a positive start to their match, passing the ball effectively up the court and intercepting the King’s High passes proving a tough match for the opposition. At the end of the first 10 minutes Kings High led 1-0 thanks to the strong defence of Olivia Constable, Rose Hill with support from Erin Jones and Sarah Costa. Charley Furey provided further support in WA and fed accurate and strong passes into Ellie Cumberbatch and Charlotte Wain. After the second quarter Kings High led 4-1 and the focus for Southam was to maintain their strong passes and meet the ball to ensure the opposition couldn’t intercept passes easily. Katy Black and Bo Crump came on to provide excellent support in both defence and in the centre court. The team worked hard to maintain possession and although the final score ended 12-1 to Kings High the team worked well for each other and were able to take some positives from the game.

Well played! Miss MacLachlan

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