English A Level Conference

"On Thursday the 27th November, English Language sixth form students were given the opportunity to attend a conference, hosted by emagazine at Friends’ House in London for the entirety of the day, where five different linguists discussed the A level syllabus from a well-grounded academic perspective. With a 10:30 start, George Bailey  introduced the topic ‘Dialects and machines’ where he explored how using technology to classify regional variations could be done. This was followed by  Dan Clayton who outlined ‘Words throughout years’, highlighting how words reflect the times. He identified various words of the year including 'goblin mode' - 2023 word of the year, showing how words develop through the years by different generations being exposed to new forms of technology. He also shared the shortlisted Oxford University press words for 2025 . The winning word “rage-baiting” was announced on Sunday. After a brief break Jasmine Anderson covered the topic ‘Is the cockney accent dying out?’, delving into what it means to be cockney today and illustrating its influences and associations with other types of language including Essex, MLE and Estuary English. After a lunch break there was a panel discussion where questions from students were answered and debated. To finish, Christian Ilbury talked about the influence social media has on language change, challenging the idea that ‘TikTok’ language is the driving force for language change."

Amae B and Denise C

Order Your Christmas Tree & Support The School.

Remember to order a beautiful quality Nordmann Fir tree delivered straight to your home with Christmas Treeasy and help raise £3.50–£6.50 for our school/PTA per tree.

Free delivery, optional recycling, stands, and logs available. Some of the delivery dates are now full so be sure to get yours booked in asap to avoid disappointment.

Order online here or scan the QR code attached, and don’t forget to select our school to ensure your donation counts.

Congratulations to our lovely Yr 11 GCSE Dance students who completed their first practical exam last week!

You've all worked so hard and should be very proud of yourselves.

Bring on the next 2 in the Sprint term!

Foreign Currency Exchange Fundraiser Success

During Austen & Elgar’s Charity Week, our students and staff took part in a special Foreign Currency Exchange fundraiser in support of Youth Talk, one of our chosen charities that provides free confidential counselling to young people across St Albans.

Thanks to the generosity of our school community, and a wide assortment of coins and notes from around the world, we are delighted to share that the initiative raised £937.25.

A huge thank you to everyone who donated their leftover travel currency and helped turn small change into meaningful support for young people in our local area.

Sandringham Wellness Writing Advent

December can be a whirlwind full of festive fun, but also busy schedules, deadlines, and the occasional festive freak out. That’s why for the month ahead, we’re inviting our students, staff, and families to take a moment each day to pause and reflect with our festive, yet mindful, Instagram advent countdown.

From 1st–24th December, our Wellness Writing Countdown will share a simple daily writing prompt to help you:

• Slow down and take a moment to breathe
• Check in with your thoughts and feelings
• Spread a little kindness and positivity

Join in whenever you can, whether daily or just now and then, and make December a month of reflection, and festive cheer!

Follow along if you're not already @sandringhamsch1

Into The Sixth Information Evening 

Join us on Thursday 8th January, from 5:30 - 8:15pm, and discover what it means to be part of the Sandringham Sixth Form community.

Explore our school, speak to staff and students, and learn more about the wide range of subjects and opportunities on offer.

There will also be a keynote talk from our Executive Headteacher at 5:30 and 6:30pm.

We look forward to welcoming all students and their families!

Community Carols - Saturday 6th December at 4.30pm

Why not make the weekend extra festive and head to the Free Community Carols on Saturday at 4.30pm outside Marshalswick Community Centre.

The St Albans Community Pantry will be offering mince pies generously donated by COOK alongside hot drinks, while the wonderful Marshalswick and Baptist Church choirs perform a selection of favourite Christmas carols.

This is a free event and open to all, so please do spread the word and come along for a joyful, festive celebration with our local community.

The Upside Down is calling…

Velocity Dance Show tickets are officially on sale!

Don’t wait for the gate to close - head over to The Sandpit Theatre website and secure your seats now.

We recommend grabbing your tickets early… before they vanish into the Upside Down...

Harpenden Christmas Carnival Success for ‘Cosy Co.’

On Sunday 26th November, two teams of six Sandringham students headed to the Harpenden Christmas Carnival to represent their Young Enterprise company, Cosy Co. Across the day, our 12 students worked together as one team and achieved an incredible combined revenue of nearly £600 in just five hours. This is a fantastic accomplishment, and we are extremely proud of their hard work, teamwork and professionalism.

Below, you can read the article written by both groups, sharing their experience of the day.

"The Harpenden Christmas Carnival 2025 was the biggest moment of our Young Enterprise journey so far. After weeks of cutting and knotting we finally got to sell our handmade sustainable-fabric wreaths to people in attendance at the carnival.

Setting up our stall was actually really exciting. We’d spent so long planning and making our wreaths that seeing everything laid out on the table felt like a mini celebration of all our hard work. At first, we weren’t totally sure how to make our display stand out, so we experimented - moving things around, propping up signs, and trying different layouts until it finally looked like a proper festive stall. As the day went on, we realised that advertising didn’t just mean having a nice setup; it meant being active. We started chatting to people walking past, explaining how we made the wreaths, and showing off the sustainable fabrics. Once we got the hang of promoting our stall, more and more people stopped to have a look, and our confidence grew with every conversation.

What shocked us was how much people loved the idea of wreaths made out of recycled materials. Lots of customers wanted to know the story behind them - where our fabrics came from, how long each one took, and why we were doing this in the first place. It felt amazing seeing people genuinely seem interested in our product and it felt rewarding talking to people who clearly really appreciated our product. There were lots of things that we learned from the experience but the main ones we found were: You can’t just hope people will stop - you have to pull them in!
We realised that selling isn’t passive. Smiling, greeting people, and actually starting conversations made a huge difference. Once we became more confident and outgoing, way more people came over. As well as this we also learnt that Sustainability is a selling point, but only if you explain it properly. Loads of customers were interested in our wreaths because they were eco-friendly. We learnt that there are much more efficient ways of advertising your product, for example actually going out into the street with your product instead of just waiting by your stall."

Written by Jack R.

"I really enjoyed just how many stalls there were for Young enterprise and the variety of products that were designed and sold at each stall. I think that the decorations that we sold went really well because of just how many kids and adults came up to us to design their own Christmas tree decorations. I learned that we can change the prices of our products on how well or bad they are selling so that we can sell as many as possible while still making a profit. A lesson I will take away from this is to leave enough time to create prototypes for our product and not to just rush into things without designing and prototyping enough designs and sizes to know which was the best."

Written by Xavier H.

Preloved Uniform Sale 

A reminder that, alongside all the festive fun at this year’s Christmas Fair, we’re pleased to confirm that the Preloved Uniform Sale will be taking place in the Old Gym.

It’s a great opportunity to pick up some good quality uniform items at affordable prices, while supporting sustainability at Sandringham.

We are also putting out a friendly plea for any unwanted, good condition preloved uniform including football boots and sports trainers.

Thank you for helping us promote reuse, reduce waste and support families across our community.

The Red Shoes 

An amazing dance trip on Wednesday evening to see Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes.

Students loved the production, the adaptable set design, storytelling and balletic movement.

It was a great opportunity to see an A level practitioner’s work live. 

Senior Kangaroo Mathematical Challenge Success 

Last month, a number of students from Yr 12 and year 13 sat the Senior Kangaroo Mathematical Challenge run by the UK Mathematics Trust.  

This was a fantastic opportunity which offers students the chance to develop their mathematical problem-solving skills. It encourages mathematical reasoning, precision of thought, and fluency in using basic mathematical techniques to solve interesting problems.

Students that perform well are awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze certificates, overall 2 students achieved gold, 3 students achieved silver,  and 6 students achieved bronze certificates.

Special congratulations to Matthew-Jeremy M and Oscar F (both Y13) who achieved joint Best in School and to Henry T (Y12) for achieving Best in Year.

Congratulations to all students who took part.

Sandringham Christmas Fair – Tomorrow, Saturday 6th December

December has arrived, so we have finally stepped into Christmas!

Tomorrow, our Christmas Fair will take place between 11am -  3pm in the Main Hall.

There will be lots of festive treats, fun stalls, and activities for the whole family to enjoy.

Come along, enjoy the festive atmosphere, and help us make this year’s Christmas Fair a wonderful celebration for the whole Sandringham community.

We Need Your Help 

We are looking for volunteers to assist with our Yr 11 ‘You’re Hired’ day on Tuesday 20th January.  If you have experience with interviewing, can you spare a few hours to interview some students individually and help prepare them for the future? 

Please email Carly Eady eadyc@sandringham.aetrust.uk.

Thank you in advance.

BBC Bitesize ‘Other Side of the Story’ Christmas Kahoot Quiz

Students across the country have been invited to take part in the BBC Bitesize Other Side of the Story Christmas Kahoot Quiz taking place live in the final week of term.

The 45-minute interactive quiz features 15 questions based on the popular “AI or Real?” format, where students must decide whether an image of a celebrity is genuine or AI-generated. Selected schools will also have the chance to appear live on air to say hello to the presenter during the stream.

The quiz will be livestreamed at 2pm on Wednesday 17 December, and students will take part as a class with one teacher submitting their answers via Kahoot.

If any classes are interested in being featured with a live greeting during the broadcast, teachers can contact the programme team at othersideofthestory@bbc.co.uk.

What a great festive end of term challenge?

Lessons and Carols – 15th December 7pm

Our annual Lessons and Carols will take place on Monday 15th December at 7pm in St Paul’s Church, St Albans.

This is always a special evening that involves our choirs and a number of our instrumental groups. All students involved in the event should have received an information letter via Parentmail last week and tickets are now available from the Sandpit Theatre.

This is a popular event and tickets will not be available on the door, so we suggest buying your tickets early to avoid disappointment.

Need Someone to Talk To? Just Shout 85258

There is always someone out there to talk to - If you ever feel stressed, anxious, low, or just need someone to listen, you can text SHOUT to 85258 any time, day or night, and a trained volunteer will listen and help you find a way forward.

It’s completely free, available 24/7, and totally confidential.

You can find out more by visiting their website here.

Sixth Form Video Shoot – Monday 8th December

This coming Monday, 8th December, we will be filming a dedicated Sixth Form video in the school.

Students, if you see us around with cameras, please remember to:

• Smile
• Look smart
• Be helpful
• Carry on as normal 

We’ll do our best to work around everyone respectfully, and your cooperation will help make the video a success.

Thank you in advance for your support - we can’t wait to showcase our Sixth Form in action.

Christmas Fair Raffle Tickets 

Don't miss out on getting your Raffle tickets for our Sandringham Christmas Fair which are available to buy via ParentPay.

A list of all the prizes can be found here in our Christmas Brochure.

We want to extend a huge thank you to all the wonderful contributors who have been incredibly generous with their donations. As you can see, there is a fantastic variety of updated prizes to be won, so make sure you get your tickets for a chance to be part of the draw.

Don’t miss out, so grab your tickets and keep those fingers crossed they call your number!

HOUSE POINTS

Fawcett have entered the top 3, with a 12 point lead over Elgar... such a close race taking us up to Christmas.

1. Shakespeare 11,317
2. Turing 10,049
3. Fawcett 9,643
4. Egar 9,631

Special mentions this week:  

• O McMenamin (7E)- (13) – Most points this week
• T Tearle (7A) - 162 - Highest scoring year 7
• O Hunt (8T)- 140 - Highest scoring Year 8
• T Somers (9S) - 147 - Highest scoring year 9
• G Birkin (10s) - 97 - Highest scoring year 10
• L Jones (11H) - 41 - Highest scoring year 11
• F Evans (12S) 33 - Highest scoring sixth former
• 12S - Highest quiz score - 87/95
• Newton most house points this week - 393

Make a Difference in Education – Become a Trust Appointed Governor

We are looking for passionate individuals to join our team of Trust Appointed Governors within Ambition Education Trust. We currently have vacancies across several of our primary schools. No previous experience is needed - just your enthusiasm, desire and commitment to help shape the future of our children’s education.

Through our Ambition Academy programme, you will receive comprehensive training and ongoing support to help you thrive in this important role

(Please note: applicants must not have a child currently attending the school they wish to support)

Get in touch today with our CEO, Alan Gray should you wish to find out more or to apply, 

complete the AET Governance Application form here: https://bit.ly/48aGLwU

We look forward to hearing from you.

Last Chance To Order Whole School & Sixth Form Photos

This is a reminder that your Whole School & Sixth Form group photographs taken earlier in the term are still available to view and order via the Tempest Orders website.

A weblink is supplied below which will take you directly to your photographs and place an order should you wish:

https://htmp.st/261351-39WSGandSIXTHFORM

For assistance, please call 01736 752411

Option 3 - Place an order

Option 5 - Customer services

If your order is intended as a Christmas gift, we recommend placing your order before 10th December to give the best chance of receiving your photograph before the Christmas holidays.

The Puzzle of the Week is a Mathematics challenge run weekly. This week's puzzle is shown above. For every entry you will receive 1 house point, if you answer correctly you will win 2 house points and if you are the fastest person to answer the puzzle correctly then you will win 5 house points!  To enter, simply follow the link on your House Google Classroom (it will be posted on Monday at 8.a.m.) to fill out the Google Form. 

Good luck! Why not play at home and see who is the quickest to get the answer (unfortunately we can only accept answers from students).

Twilight by Stephenie Meyers

This week’s book of the week is an old favourite. Twilight was originally published in 2005 and the series has recently been rediscovered here in the LRC by a new generation of readers. Our reviewer this week is Katarina H who comments, “The book is about vampires and romance and couldn't be better written. Every chapter is full of emotion, love and danger.”

When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret……

M is for … malaise [noun]

Definition: A general feeling of discomfort, illness, or unease whose exact cause is difficult to identify.

Example: There was a general air of malaise after the meeting.

Synonyms: Unhappiness, Melancholy, Angst

Antonyms: Comfort, Peace, Pleasure

Etymology: From French malaise, from mal (‘bad’) + aise (‘ease’, from Latin adjacens, ‘lying nearby’).

Thank you to Mrs Posner for creating our fabulous Christmas book display. Whether you’re looking for a funny Christmas-themed story, a winter adventure, a thriller or fantasy to lose yourself in, or a seasonal romance, we’ll have something for you. We even have a number of wrapped ‘surprise’ books for students to borrow. Don’t forget to think about your Christmas reading well in advance to make sure you don’t miss out on what you’d like to borrow for the holidays. Avid readers are able to take extra books and librarians are always more than happy to suggest and recommended.

French: le malaise

German: Das Unbehagen

Spanish: malestar

Thinking Question: This week the word of the week is a French word. How many other words in the English language have we borrowed from French? Can you think of any examples?

Yr 10 Girls: Congratulations to this U15 football team who secured a convincing win in round 4 of the National Cup. A brilliant effort from all with goal scorers spread amongst the team.

Senior Boys: The Senior B team are through to the last 16 of the B Team ESFA National Cup after a dramatic penalty shootout win this week.

1-1 AET the boys rallied to win 4-3 from the spot kicks.

Special mentions to S. Montet for our goal and T. Veich for two penalty saves.

Congratulations boys.

Yr 8: Well done to our Y8 A + B Netball teams who both played SJL this week. Both games showed some fantastic Netball with lots of new combinations in the Bs and a win for the As! Great job girls!

Senior Boys: The Senior basketball team get through another BasketBall England U19 Group Game to keep their 100% record up, and see us progress to the last 32 in the country.

A Solid performance form the team with valuable minutes from all. Well done!

Only two weeks left of the Autumn term, and there continues to be a huge amount of sporting fixtures pushing us on until Christmas. Good luck to everyone playing, we look forward to seeing the results next week.

Yr 7 Boys: Lat week was the U12’s ESFA Round 4 game v's Beaumont. 3 first half goals were enough to seal the victory to see the boys progress through to round 5. Well done boys.

Yr 11 Boys: A County Plate win for this Sandringham team as they beat KWS 3-2 this week. Anfield hits another school hat-trick to secure a place in the next round. 

Sandringham School Dance Department invites you to step Into the Upside Down. 

This year, the theatre transforms into Hawkins, Indiana, where nothing is quite as it seems. As you enter, be prepared to cross the boundary between worlds and embark on a thrilling journey inspired by the secrets, shadows, and supernatural energy of Stranger Things. From the neon pulse of the ‘80s to the eerie echoes of the Upside Down, our dancers will guide you through a story where courage, friendship, and mystery collide.

5th - 7th February 2026

We are offering a Velocity 2026 VIP Package, which includes:

• Priority front row table seating
• 2 programmes
• Games on your table
• Stranger Things themed cocktail/mocktail
• And a few surprises from the other side…

Tickets are now on sale here - be sure to get yours quickly to avoid disappointment. This is one show not to miss!

Join Sandringham Music Faculty at St Paul's Church for an evening of joyful and upbeat tunes. 

This event takes place at St Paul's Church.

Get your tickets here