Madeley High School test their fitness levels in new taster session!

On Tuesday 19 May, 14 excited Year 10 pupils from Madeley High School took part in a Fitness Instructing taster session at Newcastle-under-Lyme College (NULC).

The visit was designed to give pupils a realistic idea of what the fitness industry is all about and what potential careers are available. Information was given to the group about NULC’s new fitness courses and the relevant entry requirements to gain a place.

The taster day was ran by NULC lecturer in Health, Exercise and Fitness Reza Gholamali who organised different activities for the pupils. The first activity was a fitness testing session where students were able to use specialist equipment to record their individual fitness levels.

Madeley High School P.E teacher Mr Edwards was very pleased by the fitness testing session, commented: "The Hi-tech equipment used was very useful to the pupils who haven’t seen or used them before."

The second part of the day included a talk from NULC Gordon Banks Sports Centre Duty Manager James Mountjoy, who was previously a professional fitness instructor on cruise ships. James talked to the pupils about what type of fitness programmes he provided for his clients on-board and what the typical daily schedule would include.

James then talked to the pupils about the realities of being a fitness instructor and what it is like working with different clients and their specific lifestyle needs for example: he would often start his day at 6:00am as many clients wanted to fit their exercise in very early in the morning.

James Adamson said: “I liked hearing about the daily schedule of a fitness instructor and what type of career opportunities would be available.”

Academy of Sport Manager Trevor Humphreys was on hand to talk to the pupils about the sporting opportunities at NULC, and which sporting teams we have such as netball, football, golf, basketball and more.

The final activity of the day was a practical fitness class which was organised by NULC BTEC Level 3 Sport & Exercise Science student Molly Line. Molly ran a circuit training session as part of her course that the students really enjoyed. This was a great opportunity for both Molly and the pupils to work together in the class as it gave Molly a chance to orchestrate her own fitness class and gain practical experience.
Tyler Beaver was very impressed with the practical session ran by Molly, he commented: "The variety of different exercises working on all the muscles made it challenging and fun."

There will be more Fitness Instruction tasters at NULC, if you are interested in finding out more, please contact either Gareth or Tara on 01782 254347 or e-mail schools@nulc.ac.uk

Maths May-hem!

On Friday 1 May excited pupils from Excel Academy, Biddulph High School, Clayton Hall Business & Language College, Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy and Madeley High School joined NULC for Maths May-hem challenges!

Maths May-hem was planned by a group of trainee teachers from Staffordshire University, who are currently studying for their Post Graduate Certificate in Education (Mathematics). The PGCE students designed a range of fun but challenging activities to enhance the pupil’s knowledge and interest in maths. Pupils were split into groups and the activities were put in different rooms. Each group then worked in competition to gain a maximum of 50 points per room.

The various activities included a ‘Problem Solving Room’, where pupils had to test their spatial awareness skills using coloured cubes to construct objects in a certain order. The ‘Statistics and Probability Room’ took pupils to a day at the races. Whilst there were no over-sized hats required, pupils were asked to use their maths knowledge to work out the different horse’s probabilities of winning.

The Year 9 and 10 pupils were surprised by how much fun the ‘Algebra Room’ was in which they took part in a fast-paced relay race that challenged their ideas and also taught them when certain equations may not be needed. The ‘Standard Challenge & Super Challenge Room’ was described by one pupil as: “fun and energetic!”. They were given the choice to stick at a standard challenge or gamble for a super challenge to gain more points.

All of the challenges were varied to strengthen pupils overall knowledge on maths. Abigail Hancock, a Year 10 pupil from Excel Academy, said: “There was a variety of fun puzzles and problems to solve in each session. It has been very interesting and I really enjoyed the competition.”

Everyone then gathered into the auditorium to a final maths based treasure hunt. The groups worked in competition and were given instructions to start on a certain problem. Once the team had solved the problem, the answer would then be a clue to find the next problem! Rebecca Massey, a pupil from Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy, enjoyed the afternoon: “It has been both challenging and fun, overall I’ve had a fantastic day.”

The winning teams, who came in joint first place, were Madeley High School and Clayton Hall Business and Language College. The schools look forward to retaining their title at next year’s event!

Ineke Drijfhout, a Year 10 pupil from Madeley High School, summed up her day; “The day was fun and enjoyable and the staff were all really nice, helpful and encouraging.”

If you would like to book a taster session, or be involved in our next school challenge, please contact Gareth & Tara on 01782 254 347 or email schools@nulc.ac.uk