Let your light shine

DeCeMBeR 2014 CLAss OF 2014 AWARDs eveNING Mr Barry, principal and Mr McCann, Head of School, hosted the GCSe and BteC Award evening on tuesday 18th november for the Class of 2014. Staff, governors, students and parents were proud to welcome Ade Adepitan MBe, paralympic medalist and tV presenter who has inspired many all over the world, to present some Awards to the students. Ade gave an inspiring talk and showed some footage of his basketball accomplishments and other events he had participated in. we would like to extend a special thank you to Ade for his time and his encouragement.

MeSSAGe FroM tHe prInCIpAL we have come to the end of another long term and the whole Academy community is looking forward to a wellearned rest. Spiritually, our children have been preparing for Christmas with our special array of Advent Charity events, reward and achievement assemblies, alongside various nativity productions. our Gospel choirs have also been in fine voice and continue to inspire us with their uplifting singing and professional performances. we are blessed at St Matthew Academy to have so much to be joyful about, especially our wonderful students and caring staff who go the extra mile to support and give to those, less fortunate than themselves. thank you to all staff, parents, visitors and especially our children who have helped make this a memorable festive season, in the true spirit of Christmas. May the message of Christmas enter your lives and may you be filled with every blessing in the new Year.

Michael Barry, principal

the evening gave former students an opportunity to celebrate their educational journey and collect their hard earned exam certificates. Special awards on the night went to orlane Doumbe for outstanding Achievement and to Hannah Mambu for receiving the auspicious ‘Let Your Light Shine Award’. Congratulations to everyone who received certificates and awards.

A CHRIsTMAs PRAyeR Loving God, Help us remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and worship of the wise men. Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world.

Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting. Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children, and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

robert Louis Stevenson

A FIRsT WHOLe ACADeMy PHOTOGRAPH show, House competitions and a special feast. Finally, an historical first. the whole Academy photo which included all of our students from reception to Yr11, gathered together with staff to create a magnificent first.

on Monday the 22nd of September, the whole Academy celebrated the life of our patron saint with a fun filled, spiritual day of recognition and celebration. the day began with each House celebrating Mass, followed by a talent

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PRIMARy NeWs Sep

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MACMILLAn CoFFee MornInG

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InternAtIonAL DAY

the children were invited to come in wearing their own national dress. we had an exciting day of international activities. these included storytelling, African drumming, smoothie making and tasting as well as Bollywood dancing.

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the fire service visited early Years. the children had the opportunity to sit in the fire engine and operate the hose! they enjoyed meeting the fire crew and trying on their uniforms.

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our school hosted a special coffee morning in aid of the work of MacMillan nurses. our parents, staff and children all donated cakes and came together to meet and enjoy the cakes with a drink. we raised over £400 for this very worthwhile charity. oCt

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HArVeSt SerVICe

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GoSpeL CHoIr

our Senior Gospel Choir were invited as guests to take part in singing at the “Blackheath Goes Gospel” event. our children were amazing and performed brilliantly on the night.

GreenwICH LAntern pArADe

Both Year 3 classes worked with artists from Arty party. to make a lantern from the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. Children and staff were invited to attend the lantern parade in to open the Christmas Greenwich market. they paraded around Greenwich with their lanterns to mark the opening of the Christmas market- a great way to welcome Christmas.

we had a school Harvest Festival on thursday 16th october. we collected a generous amount of food which was donated to Lewisham Food Bank following our school service. this benefitted local people and families in need. noV

FIre enGIne VISIt eArLY YeArS

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tUrnInG oF tHe YeAr ConCert

About 200 primary children from different schools in Lewisham took part in a concert to celebrate the coming of Christmas. the KS1 choir representing the school were fantastic in their performance of “walking in a winter wonderland”.

reMeMBrAnCe SerVICe

we commemorated remembrance Day with real reverence and respect with a two minute silence at 11am. All children stood in silence beautifully. this then culminated in a balloon release. we were delighted to receive a phonecall about a week later from an eight year old girl, who had found the balloon on her farm with her Dad. the balloon belonged to Class 2e and had travelled 89.6miles to peterborough.

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roAD SAFetY eVent

Year 5/6 took part in a road safety workshop. they had to go into a crime scene and analyse evidence. Children learnt about distractions from phones, music, friends and peer pressure. they learnt about the emotional and physical consequences of poor road safety and the importance of using crossings correctly and understanding road-side danger.

ADveNT TALeNT sHOW 2014

was Victoria’s passionate spoken word piece, followed by Amari and tibo dancing.

to sing and silenced the crowd with her angelic voice.

BY preCIoUS opponG-GYIMAH

As if that wasn’t talent enough, niaz then threw some shapes across the stage. Michelle and naychelle followed him, wowing the crowd with their acapella singing! Beauty and noelia sang a delightful duet, closely followed by the three boys dancing ‘Diversity’ style Kyrece was even thrown into the air whilst back flipping! Becky then stepped up

we were drawing to a close now, but the organisers had arguably left the best ‘til last. Mohammed sang ed Sheerans ‘A-team’. Mohammed’s performance was flawless and, as a result, was the first act to receive full marks from all four judges.

this year’s Advent Charity talent Show was a spectacular event. proceedings started with a bang with last years winner Flore, (with the support of eguono and John) blew the audience away with their opening number. the show got started with Simone from year 7 singing Jessie J. Up next

DeBAte MAte newS It’s been a very successful term for the Debate Mate Club. this year every week 30 or more students have turned up to prepare for the Inter school competitions and the Debate Mate Cup starting in the new Year. we have members from every Year group and our mentor from the LSe, Julian ruseva said: “the standard this year is exceptionally high, I cannot believe that some of the students are only in Year 7”.

we thought that the level of talent couldn’t possibly continue, but then African

BIsHOP PAT WeLCOMes yeAR 7 Bishop patrick Lynch continued the annual tradition of welcoming all Year 7 children and their families to St Matthew Academy by celebrating Mass on the their first day in secondary school.

ACe NeWs 7ACe and 8ACe had the opportunity to take part in an indoor obstacle course during their team building lesson on 4th December. the students were sponsored, with funds going towards the school’s chosen advent charity - Anerley Across. the indoor obstacle course was designed to test the students balance, climbing, crawling and jumping skills. the winning students were Jaden and rebekah from 7ACe, and Bernny and Shauna from 8ACe. well done to all the students and thank you to Mr Saunders for organising and leading the event.

sNAPPeD! Head boy, Head Girl and Mr Barry welcome new students on their first day at St Matthew Academy in September.

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Beats took to the stage. the music started and the dancing began; the crowd, the judges and even the supporting staff were all on their feet clapping and dancing along. what an awe-inspiring performance! we then announced that both of the final acts would have to take the crown! what a night for SMA! what a night for me the Head Girl! X-Factor judge next stop?

THe PRINCe’s TeACHING INsTITUTe CeRTIFICATe

GIFteD & tALenteD MAtHeMAtICIAnS

the prince’s teaching Institute School’s programme believes that all children, regardless of background or ability, deserve to be introduced to enriching and challenging subject material.

Michelle Key-Lewis led the Maths department through a series of objectives to complete an extensive project in order to achieve the prince’s teaching Institute Mark. the team worked together to contribute to this award and are very proud of their achievement for the school.

SMA reMeMBer tHe GreAt wAr tHroUGH DAnCe the whole academy organised a number of magnificent and exciting events based on the Great war. Students got to re-enact the Christmas truce, build trenches and learn of the enormity and sadness of such young heroes who committed their lives for the nation. the Year 10 dance group were chosen to work with a professional theatre group in collaboration with Age Concern to create and perform a Great war¹ project

Some of our most Gifted & talented mathematicians in Year 10 were selected to take part in Summer School at King’s College London Maths School. the pupils worked on a series of ideas exploring the algebra and geometry link, learning techniques and solving complex problems in teams. there was also a talk each day from a mathematician working in a particular field. our pupils showed so much academic excellence that they have been invited to attend King’s College every other week this academic year to continue their exploration into the world of Further Maths. this is a fantastic opportunity for these students in preparation for mathematical study at A level and beyond. pupils: David Adesanya, Ade Adesanya-Shine, Alexa-ray Clarke, richard Donnelly, Sheng Huang, thomas Laver, Shawn Mutazindwa, Muna roble and Flore tahau.

at the Bridgewell theatre last summer. the production was called ‘why remember?’ and was extremely well received by the those who were fortunate to see the theatrical production in the west end. Congratulations to all the dancers involved. the Year 10 students, who were involved with the Great war project at the Bridewell theatre this summer, gave a sterling performance as part of the launch of the ‘why remember?’ School’s Campaign at the tower of London. the event was extremely well received and helped to mark the centenary of the First world war.

WILFReD LeTs HIs LIGHT sHINe wilfred nkouamen in Year 8Me had considerable success in his recent Karate competition in poland achieving an amazing two Gold Medals. He was representing england in the under 18s world Championships. He also went to Japan to train at half term. please congratulate wilfred on his outstanding efforts.

Congratulations to all those involved. Mizara Young from Year 11 attended an audition and was offered a place with the royal Academy of Dance Youth Company. She is working extremely hard alongside some of London’s best choreographers. well done Mizara! Dance Fusion continues with Sia Gbamoi, a recent finalist who wowed the judges in ‘Got to Dance.’ Sia’s energetic dance style is proving a real hit with the students in Years 7 & 8 who are working hard to improve their talents.

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Dance Fusion runs every tuesday evening in the Dance Studio from 3.30pm - 4.45pm (See Mrs Smith for more details.) A big thank you to Mrs Smith Head of Dance at the Academy for organising and leading the event.

SportS newS

CROss COUNTRy

FOOTBALL there have been many magnificent football performances and results to report this term. these include the very successful Yr7 and Yr8 boys’ and girls’ teams as well as Yr9 & Yr10 boys’ team. However it is the Yr10 boys’ squad who have reached new heights and shown a real team mentality in a variety of indoor and outdoor football competitions. the performance in a recent game away against Sedgehill was the icing on the cake. An outstanding performance by the boys in Yellow and Blue! Dandre Blackham, Clinton omenyi, Simon Achiri, Harry Blunt Bigwood, richard Doumbe, Giovanni Morgan, Kyrese Lawrence, Matthew Lebbie, rui Fernandes, Steven Shime, Ibrahim Balogun, Kevin Yoro,Cyrus, Idowu, elian Mansaray, Diego Sotelo

SMA athletes, before leaving to compete at the County Cross Country Competition. Year 9 Girls race: Catrina Creech - 8th Year 9 Boys race: Visar Xeba - 11th Year 10 and 11 Boys race: nicson Dabo - 2nd emmanuel Ibeh - 4th Simon Achiri 11th emmanuel Adelokunbo - 13th

ROWING A group of Year 10 and 11 Boys competed at the University Junior Indoor rowing Championships (UJIrC) at the University of east London on 10th october. All participants rowed to exhaustion and we again achieved some excellent results : Clinton omenyi (Year 10) - 6th Moyosore Bankole (Year 10) - 7th Danny Armas travez (Year 10) - 15th

these talented students were so impressive at the trials they now have been invited to train at the national squad training camp. we at SMA are so delighted with their achievements and look forward to celebrating their continued successes. InDoor rowInG A new indoor rowing record was set in at 10,000m by Javaughny Aye in Year 7 by attaining this high level within three weeks of joining the school!

yeAR 10 RUGBy the 1st XV (Year 10) team travelled to park House rFC in Bromley on 4th December for the play-offs of the Met Kent Championship South League. SMA took on Cooper’s School in the first game. prior to the game they knelt down as a line facing the opposition and, led by Kieran Underhill recited the School’s prayer. the referee said he’d never seen anything like it before

and said that it reminded him of the All Blacks Haka.

county player in the Cooper’s squad who ran in for a try and 5 more points. the final score was 10-7 to Cooper’s making them Champions and us runners up.

the game started and SMA drove Cooper’s back into their own half, scoring and conerting a try. we were 7 - 0 up with 8 minutes of the game to go, when Coopers scored a try making it 7 - 5 to SMA.

thirty minutes later, SMA retook the field to face Bacon’s College in the final game of the day and were victorious winning 24 - 0.

A penalty was awarded on our 5m line and Cooper’s opted to kick, the ball bounced off the crossbar into the hands of an experienced

St Matthew Academy, in only their 1st year and after only weeks of training rather than years, have finished 2nd in

ROWING CLUB

their first taste of competitive rugby and have won promotion to the premiership League next season. the Coaching team of Lee Saunders (S&C Coach), Matt eshmead (Asst Coach) tiago Azevedo (Lead Coach) and Jonny Morgan (Manager) are now planning for a 7’s competition and tour in the new Year and are proud of our boys’ achievement and hope you will join them in congratulating them and wishing them well.

so whether you are: a boy, girl or staff member; year 7, year 11 or aged 11, 15 or 40+! Why don¹t you join the successful sMA Rowing Club and yOU could be part of this great new revolution and... be OAR-sOMe!

the SMA rowing Club is a centre of excellence for talented students. the programme consists of: • training with Daniel Brighton (SHaC Coach) • Coaching Courses run by London Youth rowing for teachers and pupils alike from Lewisham Borough. • national rowing Championships • opportunity to row - on water at the LrC or Danson Lake

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KIntBUrY retreAt

sPORTs CeNTRe AND FACILITIes HIRe

the Year 7 students have made a magnificent start to their time at SMA. on the last three days of their first half-term each Year 7 House enjoyed a 24 hour retreat experience at the Lasallian Centre of St Cassian’s, Kintbury - sharing fun, faith and friendship.

Our brand new sports hall and fitness suite is now open for community use and we also have a range of other areas and rooms for hire. The following areas are available: • Sports Hall • Drama and Dance studio • All weather pitches - Grass and Astro turf • outdoor fitness area - ideal for bootcamps • Hard court multi-use courts suitable for games such as netball

• Classrooms • two halls • pC suites (only for educational use) • Cookery Classrooms • pA / Lighting and sports equipment available for

X FACTOR TALeNT vIsITs sMA on 21st november, Jordan Morris and Annastasia Baker from X Factor 2014 ,visited and gave an exciting performance to a full house of fans. Students got the opportunity to meet them individually and to get a photograph and autograph.

hire for use on the premises

The Fitness suite - with a wide range of cardio and strength building equipment - membership and classes coming soon

this event was part of the series of live concerts, held at St Matthew Academy for students throughout the year. SMA wish Jordan and Annastasia much success in their musical future.

prices range from £30 to £50 per hour, depending on the facility. please call our Lettings team on 020 8853 6250 to discuss your requirements.

pArent pAY Have you signed up to use ParentPay? It’s the easiest and most secure way to pay for your child’s school dinner, trips, music tuition and many more services!

All you need to do is email

[email protected]

with your child’s name and we will send you back a username and password-it’s that simple! Alternatively you can pay via card over the phone with our finance team on 020 8853 6299

Let your light shine

St Matthew Academy, St Joseph’s Vale, Blackheath London Se3 0XX t: 020 8853 6250 or e: [email protected]

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