Service Area Drop-Down Day - 13th March 2024
On 13th March we held our second Service Area Drop-Down Day of the year. Read on for more information about the activities the students took part in for each service area.
Charity
The charity service area focused on ‘Acts of Charity’ and chose to support Marie Curie for this drop down-day. We are so grateful for the support so far, and the Just Giving page is still open if you would like to make a donation. So far we have raised over £280.
https://www.justgiving.com/page/acle-academy-nonuniform-mariecurie2024?newPage=true
We had a number of great activities for our Year 10 and 11s, which included a full morning and afternoon of football (skills, drills and then a match). The Year 11s played brilliantly, with a score of 7-6. Well done!
We asked each pupil to bring in a jar and would like to thank everyone who donated jars. These were put to great use by the pupils, who each painted a jar then filled these with spring daffodils, which had been kindly donated by a local farm and former pupil. The jars were then delivered personally by each pupil to our staff community to recognise the work they do.
Each group learnt about the importance of charity actions and work. They had the opportunity to plan their own fund-raising tasks and think about important issues they could support through charitable acts. We also ran a session of designing and making charity badges to showcase individual’s charities of choice.
As the prom is fast approaching for our year 11s, one of our sessions was focused on how to raise funds for the Prom. This session included a number of great skills, such as budgeting, venue planning, event management and designing invitations.
Community
During the morning of the drop-down day, Year 8 students designed and produced a range of resources for the Easter Egg Hunt, to help make the upcoming Year 6s feel welcome at Acle Academy. Throughout the morning, students designed a map of the school, created an Easter card with a supportive message included, designed a keychain and created some pom-pom animals. To say thank you, students were given the opportunity to decorate (and eat!) their very own Easter-themed biscuits. A massive thank you to the Norse canteen for providing these.
In the afternoon, Year 9 students designed a square explaining what community meant to them, due to be displayed proudly at the front of the school, and helped to improve the beauty of the school grounds by painting some previously bland benches. Students were particularly proud of the bench they were able to paint bright pink!
Additionally, throughout the day, a handful of students left the school grounds in order to help tidy the streets of Acle by participating in The Big South Norfolk Litter Pick 2024. A massive bag of litter was collected and all students represented Acle Academy in a superb manner.
DICE
In the modern Western world, issues of race and prejudice have come to the fore, highlighting the painful inequalities that still exist. Something that we have all been very aware of in the last decade is racially motivated police brutality, which has led to the deaths of many innocent people of colour, especially in the US but also in the UK to a lesser extent. With this in mind, our Year 10 and 11 students had a screening of the film ‘The Hate U Give,’ which is based on the novel of the same name by Angie Thomas, an African-American author who writes about the impact of police brutality on young African-Americans. The film also touches on a lot of other issues of race which are important for everyone to understand, regardless of race or ethnicity. For more information about police brutality in the UK, visit this link: https://www.inquest.org.uk/bame-deaths-in-police-custody
Enrichment
The Enrichment Service Area welcomed Year 8 students in the afternoon. Students rotated around a range of activities ranging from learning sign language to building the tallest straw tower. The range of activities were all house-based competitions. Luckily, the weather stayed good and students were able to enjoy a penalty shootout session against one another.
Study Support
Year 9 students thoroughly enjoyed learning about a range of professions and how their studies here at Acle can connect them to a wide variety of exciting career pathways. Thank you to Norfolk's Edge Catering, Green Balance Veterinary, Yarmouth Oilskins and Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service for inspiring and encouraging our young people.
Year 7 tackled a variety of fun learning games to develop memory, thinking, practical and team skills to enhance their studies.
Wellbeing
Year 7 students took part in a range of activities to boost their health and wellbeing, combat stress and anxiety and improve mental and physical wellness. They rotated around the following activities.
Haka: Students were introduced to a tradition of Maori culture called Haka. Haka is performed in a group and includes actions, gestures and chanting. It derives from a war cry that was used to lift morale, but is now recognised as a technique that can be embraced by all to reduce stress and anxiety and improve wellbeing. Students worked on their own haka in groups and performed it at the end of the session.
Positive affirmations: This session introduced students to the concept of positive affirmations. These were short statements to either be said out loud or written down. Students learnt about the power of positive language and how it can impact themselves and those around them. Repeating up-lifting, positive statements improves self-esteem and combats stress and anxiety. Students were encouraged to write their own affirmations relating to anything they are dealing with – or choose from a bank of positive statements to create positive affirmation cards for themselves or to give to somebody else.
Dodgeball: Physical activity is proven to provide a boost to energy and mood, as well as relieve stress and tension. This is particularly true with team games, so students were invited to participate in quick fire rounds of dodgeball to get them moving, increase heart rate and boost their mood. Dodgeball requires no training, skills or money, so it is a wellness activity accessible to all.
Mindfulness: This session covered simple mindfulness techniques like drawing, colouring, bracelet making and painting. Sampling each activity allowed students to find which best suits their way of relaxing and consider how they can work short bursts of mindfulness into their days to reduce any stress and anxiety they might be feeling.
Singing: This mood-boosting activity was included to give students the opportunity to laugh and smile, which is so important for wellbeing. They were invited to sing along to their favourite songs on karaoke, either individually or in pairs or groups – whichever made them happiest!
Board Games: Students were introduced to a range of board games that they could learn to play with friends or family as a way of relaxing and having fun. Games are always available in Inspire, so students can seek them out in school during breaks to assist with wellbeing and mood as and when needed. The games also help develop thinking and memory skills.
To see more photos, please follow this link to our gallery;
