In a well-balanced field of participants at the district soccer tournament for Competition Class III (WK III) in Kirchhain, the games were of a high standard, and many talented players from the district were able to showcase their skills on the field.

In the end, all three teams finished with the same number of points and goal difference, so the winner had to be determined by a “round-robin” penalty shootout. This is a first in the history of the county’s soccer tournaments for the “Youth Training for the Olympics” program.

Although the Steinmühle team won both penalty shootouts, the Kirchhain team ultimately prevailed in the overall standings by scoring one more penalty kick.

Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on our team’s side this time. Still, the team can be proud of its performance.

 

The written Abitur exams have begun for 72 students. The basic and advanced English courses kicked things off on March 13, 2015, and the basic and advanced physics courses will wrap things up on March 27.

The families and friends of the high school seniors have also prepared themselves, as can be seen from the “We’re keeping our fingers crossed for you” posters on the school grounds. Now, nothing should go wrong.

With financial support from Roche and through the efforts of Ms. Weidenbach from the “Friends Association,” a student laboratory was set up at Steinmühle and handed over to the chemistry department on February 24, 2015.

The use of the new student lab serves several purposes: to promote self-directed, inquiry-based learning and the experimental exploration and explanation of phenomena in science and everyday life. Based on their interests, students can come up with their own science-related questions or be inspired by the instructors to tackle specific projects. Participating in competitions such as “Schüler experimentieren,” “Jugend Forscht,” “Chemie mach mit,” or others is certainly a special incentive.

Dr. Beatrix Wissel, the representative of the sponsor, Roch Pharma AG Deutschland, and Ms. Weidenbach, the chairwoman of the Friends Association, handed over the laboratory to the students in the advanced chemistry class, their instructor Dr. Jutta Töhl-Borsdorf, and Mr. Gemmer, the principal of Steinmühle High School.

The student lab is intended for use by students in various grade levels :

• Offered as a WU in grades 8 and 9 ( participation in “Schüler experimentieren” or similar programs)
• Course offered as an elective in the introductory phase of high school ( participation in “Jugend Forscht” or similar programs)
• Option for upper-level students to submit a research paper asa “special academic achievement”for the Abitur (in lieu of the oral Abitur exam)
• Individual students who are particularly interested or gifted could also be pulled out of NaUnt classes(program for gifted students).
• Projects within the framework of GuFi or the lunch-time clubs are also possible.

 

As musicians of the Steinmühle, we considered it a great honor that the StoneMill House Band was able to provide the musical entertainment at this year’s New Year’s reception hosted by the mayor. Mayor Egon Vaupel had also come up with a special musical idea as part of his final New Year’s address. All the musicians participating in the evening, as well as the invited guests in the hall and on stage, would come together at the end to sing the Playing-for-change song “A Better Place,” in sync with a video streamed online, which served as the beat-keeper alongside its various musicians from around the world, thereby virtually connecting the festive gathering with people across the globe. This fit the focus of his New Year’s address, in which he made it clear that, on the one hand, it was the various individuals who had consistently supported him throughout his term in office, and that, on the other hand, this was precisely the point and the primary task of his work: to develop sound, solution-oriented policies that address the specific concerns of real people in their local communities.

Encouraged by the mayor’s charm right from the start, we took the stage and were able to open the evening with two songs from our annual program. The brass section, rhythm section, and vocalists performed a Caribbean version of Coldplay’s “Clocks,” followed by a more powerful rendition of Emeli Sandé’s “Heaven,” which built to a grand climax as the song progressed. Both pieces created a wonderful atmosphere in the hall, and we were delighted to have done such a good job. The fact that we were able to further develop the vocals into three-part harmony in many places thanks to Ulla Keller’s excellent coaching during the preparation week proved to be a huge asset. It was thus a special event and a wonderful start to the year for the singers Linda Balser, Paula Stauzebach, and Sonja Mecke; for the wind section, with Dominik Baran, Samuel Ruff, and Julius Hamel on trombones; saxophonists Philipp Kreiter, Antonia Kraft, and Tom Herfert; Malte Schweitzer and Alexander Christ on trumpets, as well as pianists Adrian Hamel and Hannah Boßhammer, guitarist Fynn Konnertz, Linus Boas on bass, Arthur Laux on drums, and Frank Wemme as band leader, providing support on percussion. The band would like to say thank you for this enriching experience and all the positive feedback.

(Frank Wemme)

 

I wonder who will be joining the 5th grade at Steinmühle on September 8, 2015? It’s an exciting question for parents, students, and, not least, the school itself.

 

Steinmühle had invited parents to information sessions in early November, which generated a great deal of interest. At the information session on November 5, the school administration presented the structure of Steinmühle to interested parents and provided details about its unique features.

On November 8, parents and children were given a tour of the school as part of an open house. The young students watched interesting experiments from science class, took part in a special kind of physical education class, got to try their hand at pottery, and listened to the 6th-grade brass band, while their parents had the opportunity to learn firsthand from the school’s parent representatives about their experiences at Steinmühle.