ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS
A
t the heart of NLCS is the highly academic curriculum, and despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, the quality of our offering to students has not diminished. This year has shown that NLCS is an adaptable and resilient institution, and we are so proud of staff and students who have continued to excel in all areas of academic challenge.
CHEMISTRY
CLASSICS
Students from Years 10, 11 and 12 participated in the C3L6 Chemistry Challenge, a competition run by Cambridge University, to stretch and challenge students with a passion for chemistry. Thaleesha (Yr 12) achieved the highest award only given to the top 0.7% of participants; this is an outstanding achievement. This award comes with an exciting invitation to attend a special Cambridge Summer School, an offer extended only to the top achieving pupils in the country. In addition, Jenny (Yr 11) achieved an Au award, and Shreya (Yr 10) was awarded a Cu award and was only one mark off an Ag award, which is incredible for a student in Year 10.
SUMMER FESTIVAL Students took part in an incredible variety of activities on the theme of ‘Communication’. They designed and built model tension structures, created Sustainable Art and discussed their ideas in STEAM and humanities symposia. Presentations by students included those on holograms, wearable tech, nanomedicine, animation in Japan, freedom of the press, the power of language and more. We had talks on topics from British Sign Language and the print revolution to blasphemy and the Opium Wars. On the final day, Year 12 students organised a Festival Fair allowing younger students to understand the vibrancy of the NLCS Enrichment programme and take part in activities, ranging from communication in medicine and designing escape rooms, through to a feminist Zine Workshop.
BIOLOGY Biology Workshops
Chemistry Cambridge
Our Biology Department was awarded the 2020 Prince’s Teaching Institute (PTI) Subject Leadership Mark. Launched in 2007, the Schools Programme recognises and rewards school departments that develop inspirational ideas and activities and commit to increasing the challenge of their subject provision. Year 13 Symposium
Summer Festival 7
Three students were awarded prizes in the ARLT Latin Reading Competition. The students spent several weeks practising reading aloud prescribed passages of Latin, which were recorded and sent directly to the judges. Irene (Yr 9) was awarded 1st prize, and Lina (Yr 9) was ‘Highly Commended’ in the Junior section for their for readings of a story from the Cambridge Latin Course about a fatal riot in Alexandria (‘tumultus II’). Tara (Yr10) read the scene in Virgil’s Aeneid II which describes the tragic and brutal death of Priam, king of Troy, for which she was ‘Highly Commended’ in the Intermediate section. Congratulations also to Shivani, the only student in Year 8 to submit an entry to the competition.
ENGINEERING & DESIGN TECHNOLOGY Year 7 and 8 students responded to the Design Ventura Mini Challenge run in collaboration with the Design Museum. The brief of ‘improving everyday life’ saw students establish usercentred design problems and respond to them. Niyara (Yr 7) was selected by Design Ventura as a winner for her ecofriendly Ocean Jewellery design.
STEAM With the support of our Chemistry, Physics and Engineering, Design & Technology departments, Amelie & Masha in Year 11 made the top 7 finalists for The UK Junior Water Prize this year. The competition, organised by the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management, aims to solve environmental challenges linked to water. Participants had to identify an issue and undertake research and experiments to find a practical and innovative solution. Their ‘AquaFibre’ was designed as a filtration system to catch microfibres, with an aluminium plate charged at a high voltage to attract the fibres for cleaning.
