2016 saw the 100th Anniversary of the Battle of the Somme.  This was remembered at Woodham Academy with a series of assemblies in the first week of July, exactly 100 years on from the start of this battle.  Miss Powell, the Head of History, led these assemblies.  The students were so moved that she received a spontaneous round of applause. In year 9 students study the topic of the First World War in depth and were clearly moved by the suffering that existed.  This week has seen the students bring in a homework  creating replica trenches.  The history teachers at the school have been extremely impressed by the quality of some of the work that has been produced and the attention to detail that has been included in the work.  Miss Powell reported that she had been impressed by the phenomenal effort that the students had put into the project.  She said: ‘The students have shown great maturity and respect dealing with such sensitive issues.  As you can see by the photos of their work it really is top quality.’  As part of the remembrance week Mrs Dickinson, Assistant Headteacher, led a further assembly about the Battle of the Somme, relating it to the Durham Light Infantry and the losses they experienced during this battle.  Students were shocked by the number of losses  and were fascinated by the effect it had on the local area.  Mrs Dickinson described how it is always difficult for students to understand the scope and the scale of World War One and the horrors associated with it she said:  ‘I really feel that through our assemblies and our PCC activities, students have really begun to understand and appreciate the men who laid down their lives in World War One, particularly in the Battle of the Somme, for us to enjoy the freedoms that we have today.’ Students were keen to show their gratitude for the sacrifice of previous generations, the Student Council requested that Woodham Academy take part in the Remembrance Day service and lay a wreath to show their respect for all those who had lost their lives in a conflict.  John Clough, a year 11 student and a very keen historian, was selected to lay the wreath, accompanied by Ms Hall, Director of Student Support.  Ms Hall explained what a proud moment it was to see Woodham Academy represented at the service and was so pleased to hear so many positive comments from members of the public about how nice it was that young people wished to take part.