PRESS RELEASE

22 Jan 2018

Step Right Up! Step Right Up! NewVIc students learn to juggle and spin!

NewVIc Sports Academy is running a series of sessions dedicated to teaching circus skills with help fromSplats entertainment whichis an organisation that running circus workshops at schools, festivals, homes and other events.

Learning these skills are not just good fun and good exercise, but they have other benefits too:

• improve confidence

• relieve stress

• learn rhythm and balance

• Improve coordination

• Improve on focus skills

The first session commenced on the 16 January and saw students learning circus acts such as:

Diabolos:The diabolos circus prop traditionally consists of two cups which create an hourglass or egg timer shape. It's origins derive from the Chinese yo-yo. This object is rotates and spins along a string attached to two sticks which are held in each hand, to create a multitude of tricks.

Juggling:This uses balls, bean bags, anything that can be caught and lifted. Natascia Bernadi, the NewVIc Sports Academy's Get Active Officer said ‘'Learning to juggle is such an amazing educational tool. It helps to refine movements and improves coordination. Some students really impressed me because they could juggle with three balls after just thirty minutes of practicing!''

Plate spinning:This is where the performer spins plates, bowls and other flat objects on poles, without them falling off.

Slacklining:This has students walking or balancing along a suspended length of flat webbing that is tensioned between two anchors, similar to slack rope walking and tightrope walking..

To keep the circus skills as authentic as possible, Natascia attended a workshop in Whyteleafe to learn the how to teach these traditional acts. "The main thing is practice! I've learnt that to improve you need to practice for at least 10 minutes per day to get better at it."

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For more information, please contact Seema Bolakee,Marketing and advertising Officer

NewVIc (Newham Sixth Form College) is a place to learn, thrive and achieve for students aged 16-18. It combines high quality facilities with excellent teaching, tailored support and a strong sense of community. An investment of £10million in a new building which opens in 2017 provides a new university-style learning resource centre and lecture theatre.

Established in 1992, the College celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2017. It has 2,500 students and is based in Plaistow, Newham.