During the course of this half term, Year 7 have enjoyed a plethora of whole school events. It is hard to believe that the trip to Whitemoor Lakes was during this half term, as we really have been so busy since! It is great to see the confidence of the year group grow, and I believe that our adventurous activities in Whitemoor have contributed to that growth.  

We celebrated World Book Day on March 6 when students had plenty of literary activities to enjoy throughout the day. In tutor time, College groups competed to guess the books based on some clues given to them. It was a tough competition, but the winners were: Park - 7PK01 and Blackdown - 7BD01

Our annual Race for Life took place on Friday 21 March with students challenging themselves to complete as many laps of our school playing field - approximately one mile - during the afternoon. Thanks to the incredible efforts of our students and staff, and the generosity of our school community, we successfully raised £2,393 through donations and sponsorships in support of Cancer Research UK. A huge thank you to everyone who took part and contributed to this important cause! This event is always one of the flagship charity events of the year and it was a pleasure to see the Year 7s make such a positive impact in their first Race for Life of many.

The English team have also arranged for Year 7 to enjoy a screening of A Monster Calls or Stormbreaker on Monday 31 March. This sort of event really supplements the curriculum and was a great success.

Year 7 had their final careers event Wednesday 2 April during Tutor Time and Period 5. We arranged to have a guest speaker coming in from Stratford College to introduce Year 7 to some of the future pathways open to them. Our careers team work incredibly hard because we truly believe that showing the students what could lie ahead of them, even from Year 7, is a huge motivator to succeed in school and in life. Once again, Year 7 behaved impeccably and I know they took so much from the session

Tutor Curriculum

During  Tutor Time, students have been focusing on Essential Life Skills with their Form Tutors, from decision making to resilience. We have also had a focus on Digital Literacy, and it has been great to see the students sharing their ideas together as a group.

At the start of the term we welcomed two representatives from  Warwickshire Police, who delivered assemblies on community safety.   This initiative forms part of our wider PSHE programme as we continue to hear about knife crime and community conflict. Some useful links were also shared during the assembly to support students and were detailed in Mr Lowdell's Parent Letter 28 February which is also on our website.

During this half term we have also been lucky enough to have Mrs Farrell, the Deputy SENDCO deliver an assembly about Neurodiversity, which I know prompted a lot of discussion in Tutor Groups about the ways we can be inclusive in school.   

This half term has also seen the Year 7s have their second attempt at their Self-Reflection Reviews. This is the process where the students are supported by their Form Tutors to look at their progress data and create achievable targets for themselves. This latest data drop is the Year 7’s first full measure against their target grades. We are proud of how they are all doing and the Self-Reflection process will help them to move forwards, and make even more progress.

Information regarding the Tutor Curriculum, along with the Tutor Time Learning Journey can be found on our website via the following link Tutor Time Curriculum.

Rewards and Celebration

Reward Points remain crucial to the Year 7s’ experience in school.  All students have shown that they demonstrating our CORE values of Commitment, Opportunity, Respect and Excellence. Year 7 have accumulated over 100,000 reward points. This is a huge sum and shows just how ingrained these CORE values have become since September. All of our students earn lots of reward points, and we are proud of the hard work of every single member of the Year Group.

On Monday 7 April, the students with the highest number of points were invited down to the canteen for a freshly baked cupcake. We love to celebrate their achievements! There will be another Rewards Event in the Summer Term for all of the Year 7s to aim for. 

Below are the highest Rewards earners this half term from each College. It is always such a pleasure to acknowledge their extraordinary efforts. Well done!  

Students with the Highest Number of Reward Points

Top Two Students in Each College for Reward Points

Attainment 

Tutor Awards:

Sports Success

I was delighted to hear the success of our Year 7 Football and Netball teams, with both teams reaching the respective District Cup Finals. 

I am thrilled the boys won their Cup Final 3-0, and very proud of the spirited performance from the girls in a hard-fought final where they were runners-up.

Congratulations to you all! 

 

 

Calendar

The next half term is going to be a short and sharp one for the Year 7s, this gives them a great opportunity to really make the most of their time in school.

After two-week break, we will be full of energy for the four week burst. In this spirit, on Friday 23 May we will be holding a Celebration Event for the Tutor Group with the highest attendance next half term. The highest attending Tutor Group from each year group will be invited down with their Form Tutor to celebrate with some pizza. We know how much attendance matters in school and we are looking forward to seeing which Tutor Groups will come out on top!

During the first week back beginning 28 April 2025, students will have the opportunity to swap their usual PE top for a sports top of their choice! Whether it’s a football, rugby, cricket, or basketball top, they can take part by donating £1, with all proceeds going to Prostate Cancer UK. Donations can also be made through ParentPay. Join us in supporting a great cause while showing off your favourite sports team

On Tuesday 29 April 2025, the Loudmouth Theatre Company will be visiting the school again to work with the Year 7 students around a program titled ‘Bully 4 U’. This well-researched theatre in education programme brings to life the impacts of bullying, whilst also supporting the National Crime Agency's alert to schools on the rise of sextortion. The programme also takes key messages about bullying and applies them to a range of situations to explore their link with crime. The drama looks at criminal activity such as sexual harassment, coercive control, hate crime and sextortion through the lens of bullying to support students in identifying these types of crimes and understanding the impacts they can have to prevent future involvement in crime. 

I wish you all a restful break, and I look forward to welcoming Year 7 into the Summer Term.

Joseph Piper
Year 7 Lead