Hi my name is Savannah, and my favourite subject is English as I enjoy reading and writing. Some of my hobbies include cooking, baking, biking, and swimming. My role in Never Second Best is to come up with cool recipes from all around the world- I hope you decide to try one out! Hi my name is Harixsan and my favourite subjects are Maths and Science. Some of my hobbies include music, cricket, reading, football, and coding. My role in Never Second Best is the Team Interviewer, so I was able to know my fellow students better! Hello my name is Orla and my best subject is DT. I love to play football and my role in Never Second Best is sports reporter which allowed me to discuss my hobbies! Hey! My name is Caitlin and my favourite subject is Art, but I also love Drama. My favourite hobbies are horse riding, dancing, and painting. My role in Never Second Best is the SubEditor which means I help make sure people meet their deadlines. I also am the House reporter and so I have reported on our recent charity work. Hi my name is Jessica and my favourite subject is Art. My favourite hobbies are dancing, hockey, and all things crafty! My role in Never Second Best is super varied- I have written about arts and crafts but also reviewed my favourite read!
Hi my name is Izzy, and my favourite subject is Art and some of my favourite hobbies are art, dancing, singing, arts and making things, sports, and music. My role in Never Second Best is the content manager and the wellbeing and positivity guru. Hello, my name is Jasmine and my favourite subject is Drama. My favourite hobbies are swimming, rollerblading and arts and crafts. My role in Never Second Best is to be the designer and I have taken some snaps of Reigate this winter to help us celebrate our area!
Hi, my name is Oliver and my favourite subject is Art. My favourite hobbies are drawing and football. My role in Never Second Best is the art reporter. I hope you enjoy seeing what we have created this year. Hi my name is Priyan! My favourite subjects are Maths and Science. My favourite hobbies are video games, reading and physics. My role in Never Second Best is puzzles and riddles designer- try them out at the back of this magazine! Greetings! My name is Sylvie and my favourite subject is Art. My favourite hobbies are music and drawing. My role in Never Second Best is the Agony Aunt. Feel free to get in touch if you feel I could help with a problem! I can also direct you to the school’s amazing pastoral team including Reverend Jackson and Jette Bovingdon (our school counsellor). Hi my name is Daisy, and my favourite subject is DT. My favourite hobbies are horse riding, arts and crafts and dog walking. My role in Never Second Best is VIP and arts and crafts reporter. Hi my name is Ruby, and my favourite subjects are Drama and Spanish. My favourite hobbies are hockey, guitar and swimming. My role in Never Second Best is the Editor, which means I ensure themagazine is ready for printing by organising designers and content managers.
Note from the Editor
Tis the Season to be giving back!
Book Review Book: Mike
Summary: This book is an inspirational story of a young boy named Floyd. In the first chapter, we see Floyd playing a professional tennis match. But Floyd can’t focus properly‌ because of a boy that had walked onto the pitch! This boy was named Mike. Who would I recommend this book to? I would recommend this book to people over the age of 11 but I would say that any adult would also enjoy this book. Perhaps, read it as a family? I would recommend it because Mike is a book that makes you think about how you can embrace your everyday life.
VIP Reporting In this segment of the magazine, we are turning the spotlight back on to outstanding members of our community. As Christmas is one of the best times of year to snuggle down with a good book… we’ve interviewed Graham Fulcher, judge for The Guardian newspaper Not The Booker Prize award!
What lead to you getting involved in book prizes? Book prizes are a great way to get some recommendations for new books. Most book prizes have a panel of judges who publish a longlist (typically a dozen books), then a month or two later a shortlist (commonly of 6 books) and then a month or two later announce a winner. Many of the book prizes are followed by readers around the world, so they are a way to be able to read the same books as a group of other people at the same time, to discuss them and even to argue in a friendly way about which books deserve to make the shortlist and then win. I say friendly but people can get very passionate about books they love (or hate) – so it is kind of like a way of combining reading with supporting a sports team. What are the most famous prizes? The best-known prize is the Booker Prize – the winner is normally announced live on BBC. How did you become involved as a judge? A new prize was set up called the Republic of Consciousness (RoC) Prize. Most publishing is now dominated by a small number of large conglomerates, who also use their budgets to dominate the well-known prizes. The RoC Prize was set up for small publishers – who have less than 5 staff – and also was looking for more experimental books. Also unlike the bigger prizes, it allows short stories and translated fiction alongside English language novels.
In my view the smallest publishers often produce better writing than the bigger and well known publishers – I am sure Never Second Best will be an example of this. In the first year, I read and reviewed the shortlist and in the second year (2018) I was asked to be a judge – as the organisers were keen to have some “amateur” readers as judges alongside some academics and booksellers from well-known bookstores. After that I also was picked to be a judge of a prize called “Not The Booker” run by the Guardian newspaper – which has the same eligibility as the Booker but relies on Guardian readers to pick the shortlisted books by a public vote and then for a public vote and votes from 3 judges to decide the winner. The books are debated on the Guardian’s website and every year the Guardian picks the 3 best contributors to be a judge – I was picked in 2018 and again this year. How did you enjoy being a judge and what were the best and worst bits? The RoC prize was great fun – we were sent around 30 books over a period of months, picked our longlist by voting and then had a long dinner where we discussed each of the books and picked a shortlist and winner. I attended events where the shortlist and then winner was announced and while it was great to meet the authors, it’s also tricky to chat to someone knowing full well that they will shortly find out you did not choose their book! The Guardian prize was different – the judges’ meeting is broadcast live on You Tube so that is a bit more nerve racking. In addition, the first year we picked a different book to the public vote, which caused a bit of a stir on the website and Twitter – we were accused of being elitists and out of touch with the public! What would you say to readers of Second Best who would be interested in becoming judges? A great place to start is to shadow the Carnegie Prize (the most prestigious children’s book prize)
A golden oldie!
Six-year old Susan Walker girl has grown up being told Santa Claus isn’t real. With Christmas Eve fast approaching and the Cole (an American department store)’s Santa confusing everyone, the real St Nicholas needs to get himself out of trouble before the big night and prove to everyone around the world that he is real! Susan has one very big wish that will prove whether Father Christmas is really capable of Christmas miracles!
Does Santa have what it takes to make a young girl’s Christmas dreams come true?
This thrilling and heart-warming movie is a great family film that will be sure to get you in the Christmas spirit. With both an old and modern version of it, this movie is great for all age groups from 9 to 99. So, go and snuggle down onto your sofas and watch this magical movie. Maybe even with a mug of hot chocolate and a mince pie. Enjoy!
The Christmas Chronicles is a blend of action, comedy, and adventure- all wrapped into one gift package to give you a wonderful Christmas movie to watch with all the family! Many have watched and adored the first Christmas Chronicles film that came out last year and we were all waiting for a sequel, and this year our collective Christmas wish was granted on the 2nd of December 2020 (UK time). Now, you probably want to know what the film is about (you should already know to be honest as it is a crime to not have watched it yet. It came out a week ago guys!) However, you will have to wait a little bit longer as it is time to meet the cast! Meet the Cast 1.
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Kate Pierce (played by Darby Camp)- Kate is the main character in the film and in this particular section she is having trouble readjusting to the changes in her life, so she decides to run away... Teddy Peirce (played by Judah Lewis)- Teddy is Kate’s older brother but he doesn't really have a big part to play in the second film, however he is always there supporting Kate and trying to get away from his previous life of crime... Santa (Kurt Russel)- Santa is a big part of Christmas and he has a big part in the movie. He wrestles a naughty elf with the help of Mrs Claus in order to save Christmas and bring back a good elf gone bad... Mrs Claus (Goldie Hawn)- Mrs Claus is around to help everyone retain their Christmas spirit, she makes everyone feel accepted and like thy have a place in the world. She is also an amazing cook... Belsnickel (Julian Dennison)- Belsnickel used to be a good elf, an elf adored by everyone and everything. However out of a jealous rage he slowly but surely turned into an elf everyone hated. Sadly, he had through some physical changes, and had to leave Santa’s village but he is back with a vengeance and ready for revenge...
The Film Itself The film follows Santa as he travels through time to save Christmas day after a naughty elf tries to destroy and take over Christmas. Kate comes into the picture when she is kidnapped after asking to disappear from her family's life, after feeling as if she was not wanted. Kate is rescued (of course- this is a kids film after all) and Santa travelled through time to boost Christmas morale and save Christmas, however, not everything is as it seems...
Festive Arts In the face of adversity, the show must go on! Albeit a little differently to usual! On Friday 4th December, a phenomenal RGS concert took place in Leatherhead Theatre, for a socially distanced audience of proud parents. The symphony, strings, swing band, sinfonia wind and vocal soloists preformed amongst others with a variety of music such as ‘Duke Ellington’ and, ‘Guns n Roses’. Many second formers and their families will remember their Carols by Candlelight debut last year! This year it has gone online and will be shown on the 20th of December 2020 for all to enjoy. There will be a phenomenal host of choirs are singing like angels as well as festive music from the brass and strings ensembles. The junior girls are filming on Friday and are very happy to know it will be sent to local care homes to add a little magic to their day!
RGS Drama also had a very busy few weeks with a very dramatic end to the term, which included the First Form’s production of A Christmas Carol! They rehearsed all day for a recreation of the Charles Dickens classic before filming it to share with friends and family. Mr Edwards said ‘all the first form did amazingly I can’t single out a particular pupil’. Well done! The Second Form production of Dare to be Different premiered at 7.00pm on Thursday 10 December 2020; and the results of the Monoslam were announced. Congratulations to everyone for taking part, and thank you to all the staff who have worked so hard to make these things happen in a socially distanced way.
Twinkle Twinkle Little Jar!
Paper Snowman This adorable snowman is easy to make and is a super cute decoration to put on your window sill or on a shelf at Christmas time.
To make this snowman you will need a pair of scissors, a glue, a ruler, a pencil, glue gun, white paper and an orange pompom, and possibly a rubber. You will need an orange felt tip if you are doing the easier version.
Repeat, these steps with more white paper but this time the strips should be half a cm in width and 10cm in length.
Your snowman should look like this!
Now take your paper and draw four strips of paper that are 1cm in width and 15cm in length. Once you have drawn them like the picture cut them out.
Fold all of the strips in half so that they have a crease down the middle then place them in a star shape glueing each strip of paper to the last.
If you have a glue gun then warm it up and stick on the orange pompom onto one of the strips of the top circle. But if you don’t have a glue gun then you can draw on a triangle with an orange pen for a nose.
Now draw on eyes and buttons
Now you can add extra details such as arms and a top hat. That is it!
Spritzgebäck INGREDIENTS - 120g Sugar - 100g Butter - 1tsp Vanilla extract or cinnamon - 1 Egg - Pinch of Salt - 250g Flour - 2tsp Baking Powder METHOD - Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius - Cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Once smooth and forms soft peaks METHOD whisk together your eggs and slowly add that in mixing between each addition.
- Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius
- Next sift in your flour, baking powder, salt, - Cream together butterdough and sugar and cinnamon until a smooth forms.until smooth. Once smooth and forms soft peaks
whisk together your eggs and slowly add that in mixing between each addition.
- Grab a piping bag with a star nozzle and - Next in your flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon until a smooth dough forms. pipe thin sift long strips onto a baking tray. - Bake for aten minutes until a your cookies - Grab piping bagorwith star nozzle and pipe thin long strips onto a baking tray. are golden brown.
- Bake for ten minutes or until your cookies are golden brown.
- Whilst cookies are still warm dust with icing - Whilst arejust still warm sugar or dipcookies in jam or have themdust plain.with icing sugar or dip in jam or just have them
plain.
Enjoy :)
The Best Brownies Ingredients for 9-12 brownies: 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.
90g of dark chocolate 150g of unsalted butter 125g of plain flour 15g of cocoa powder 300g of light brown sugar 1 pinch of salt 1 tsp of vanilla extract ½ a tsp of baking powder 2 eggs
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Preheat the oven to 180CĚŠ (350FĚŠ/ Gas 4). Grease and line the base of the baking tin with non-stick baking parchment.
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Break up the chocolate and add the butter. Melt the butter and chocolate over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Remove the bowl from the heat and allow the chocolate to cool slightly. Sieve the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. In a third bowl beat the eggs and then add the sugar and vanilla extract. Stir the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract together until they are just combined. Now add the melted chocolate into the egg mixture; then fold in the flour mixture. Once you have finished there should be no visible flour left. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Allow it to cool in the tin before cutting it into squares. You can dust your brownies with icing sugar
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Game Corner Game Review: Rocket League First, this year has exponentially exploded the world of Rocket League. Ever since Epic Games made it completely free, it has been the solution to lockdown boredom. With over 75 million players, it is obvious that it is something worth playing! Have you given it a go yet? Rocket League is essentially football with cars. Yes, you read that right: sounds crazy and it is! You can customize your car with over 66 quadrillion combinations of styles, from make to paint to wheels to hats! You can show off your bling in one of the many online modes and you can go it solo or play with friends. There are many play modes too like: traditional football, ice hockey, with powerups and scheduled tournaments! Play away to the top, collect brand new customization items, and have fun with your friends! Below you will find an explanation of all the modes. Traditional Football Play football in either one on one; two on two; three on three or four on four chaos! Stay in goal, racking up saves or take shots to try and win glory. Collect, boost and even fly! Play to win in the competitive version or play for fun in the casual mode. Extra Modes Snow Day Play three vs three on an icy pitch with an ice hockey puck that does not bounce. Slide your way to victory! Rumble If you are looking for more crazy modes, then look no further! Rumble is full of insane powerups like razor sharp spikes that come out your car or a giant boxing glove to punch the ball. Not for the faint of heart‌ Hoops Want a twist? How about hoops. The two vs two mode with basketball hoops instead of goals. Weird right? Tournaments Play in challenging three vs three tournaments to earn unique rewards! Prove you have what it takes, by coming out on top of 31 other teams. Work together to achieve victory. Play now to see what you have been missing out on!
Tech Report Dashing through the snow… at 670mph!
‘Tis the season to be jolly! So why don’t you get those worries off your mind?
I am the Agony Aunt for the Never Second Best newspaper, and if you don’t know what that is, I am all about helping other people and giving advice.
I will be answering the most asked questions from people our age and hopefully help you if you have a worry or if you are just curious about something!
We are ready to help! So send us in your questions like: - How can I revise effectively before an exam? - How can I deal with an out of hand friendship issue? - How can I pretend to like the itchy jumper my Gran got me?
In anonymous 2nd former recently got in touch to ask: How do I stop my friend from copying my homework? Try and sit away from them if you are doing work together after school. Perhaps offer to help them if they are stuck but if it carries on try to gently confront them and ask them to stop.
An anonymous 2nd former got in touch to ask for support: How do I ask my parents if they can make me vegetarian food instead? Try to slowly hint that you would prefer to eat non-meat products before making any big demands! They are your parents so they should support you in your choices. Perhaps also give them a few facts to explain why you feel this way.
An anonymous 2nd former asked for help: Am I too young to have a boyfriend? It is completely okay to feel like you want to be in a ‘relationship’ with someone and to have more than friendly feelings towards a person. But if most of your friends are in relationships or have ‘crushes, don’t feel pressured into acting the same! Just take your own time since you may feel uncomfortable having these new feelings. We are all different. At this age it is good to prioritise friendships and school work and sports/arts.
An anonymous 2nd former asked for help: I don’t have very much pocket money to spend on my parents Christmas presents, what shall I do to show them I appreciate them? Do something creative! If you make them a card from scratch or try to fix something old that they have (maybe check if it is okay first since it could be precious to them). Don’t worry if it doesn’t turn out so well because a good thing to know is that it was made with love! Not feeling crafty? If you play a musical instrument, a good idea would be to play them your latest tune or even make them a personal song.
Sport in Lockdown
Football Focus
Sports! This year has obviously been a bit different to usual in terms of school sports as we haven’t been able to compete against other schools in leagues! Instead, we have enhanced our skills and spent our time competing against our classmates and in House competitions. Look out for Mr Fenton’s big reveal on the results on who won all the House sports in his Christmas address!
See our latest league table: as you can see Team 2 have not given me a name – if anyone has any ideas they should send in their suggestion to Ms Sullivan on sos@reigategrammar.org Here are some lovely photos from the Netball and Rugby house competitions, check out the schools Instagram page: @reigategrammaractive to see photos from hockey, football and more...
Back in September, we were lucky enough to have a Hockey Masterclass with former England and GB captain Barry Middleton. He has played in four Olympic Games, four World Cups, eight European Championships and four Commonwealth Games so he knows what he is talking about. It was a great chance to learn from one of the best in the world! He ran a great session in which he ran through drills related to game play and the girls learnt some novel ways of shooting. There was plenty of time at the end for the odd photo and of course the ever popular stick signing!
Mindfulness What Is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is letting all your thoughts go and focusing on your breathing; being present in the moment and not letting your thoughts take over. You can focus on your feet, the steadiness of your breathing, the fresh air you breathe in, listening to your favourite music, or drawing or colouring. Position – Sit comfortably on your chair and have both feet firmly grounded on the floor. Focusing on your breathing – Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. As you inhale, think of your favourite smell; picture it in your mind. As you exhale, think of blowing out a candle. Slowly and steadily. Listening to music - Create your own playlist with calm songs. A playlist that will make you feel peaceful and happy. Take a walk – Take a nice walk. As you walk, carefully pay attention to the sounds you hear. Breathe in the fresh winter air and let your thoughts be still. Just listen to everything around you, all the things you wouldn’t notice on a day-to-day basis. Listen to the rustling of trees, the car engines, birds tweeting, or even your own footsteps. Reflection – Sit or lie down in a quiet place in your house and think about things you are glad for in your life – things you feel lucky to have (count your glads). Examples of this: your friends and family are all healthy, you had a good day at school, or simply recognising the good small things that happened in your day like one of your parents made you a great meal, or someone thanked you for something kind that you did for them. Colouring in- try to focus solely on what your hand is doing on the page. Lose yourself in your art. You can try this on the next page where we have designed a wintery scene for you to colour!
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Find all these Christmas words in the wordsearch! -
Baubles Candy-cane Cards Christmas Mince pie Nativity Presents Santa-Claus Sledding Snow Tinsel
- Tree
Winter Photos
House Christmas trees!
Winter berries!
Ice rink!
Remembrance service