INA Secondary Newsletter
29 April 2016
Notice of Fundraising Events The Events Team are co-ordinating the following events to help raise money for the school production. Please help support the production!
Penalty Shoot Out Competition! Challenge the PE Teachers to a Penalty Shoot Out! 50p for 3 shots. Prizes for a hat trick! Date: Friday 6th May When: 4.30-5.30pm Where: MUGA Tickets on sale soon….
Cake Sale All cakes 50p Date: Tuesday 10th May When: Break time Where: Dining Hall
Non Uniform Day Theme to be decided – watch this space! £1 per student Date: Friday 1st July
2 INA Newsletter
Dear Parents and Carers
A s you will be aware, our end of year exams take place immediately after the
half term break. In all subject areas, staff are preparing students with details of what they will need to revise and, importantly, HOW to revise effectively. The guardian article on this matter in this edition of the newsletter will be of interest to you. A letter will be sent to you from each curriculum area in the week beginning 3rd May to ensure that you are fully informed about the details of the exams and can support your daughter/son to perform to their potential. I would ask that you do not make any out of school appointments from 6th - 21st June. In addition to the end of year exams, Year 10 students are preparing for GCSE controlled assessments in Science and Languages currently. These are hugely significant assessments, counting towards the students’ final GCSE grades. It is essential that they are fully prepared for the Controlled Assessments. I spoke with Year 10s in assembly earlier in the week about what we expect of them and what they need to be doing to ensure that they reach their target grades. Please do contact us if you have any queries. On Monday 6th June all students will be released from school early to give them a stretch of time to carry out final revision and organisation for the exam fortnight. Please see the item from Mr Crowther-Green for further details. With best wishes, Rachel Macfarlane
RP
achel Macfarlane, rincipal
INA Newsletter 3
Year 7 English and Humanities visit to Rochester Final Reminder:
The year 7 English and Humanities trip to Rochester is fast approaching - Friday 6th May (ISAC) or Monday 23rd May (NEWT). The deadline for payment and the return of slips has now passed. If your child has not paid the outstanding amount of £12.50, then please can you ensure that this is done as soon as possible using their Wisepay account. If there is real financial difficulty, then please contact your child’s Humanities or English teacher in order to inform them of this in writing. It is also essential that all reply slips are returned to ensure that all medical and contact details are up to date. The work your child will do on the visit will complement the History scheme of learning on Medieval Times and the English unit on Journeys, which your child is currently studying. We have run the trip for the last 3 years and it would be fantastic to have every single student in year 7 attending the trip once again. Failure to return reply slips and /or pay the requested amount will prevent your child from taking part in this educational experience. If there are any concerns or questions then please contact Mr Woracker.
Monday 6th June is an Independent Learning Day On this day the students will arrive to school at the usual time but will be dismissed early. In the first part of the morning each year group will be escorted into the exam hall to be talked through our exam expectations and rules. With their tutor and co-tutor they will complete their end of year reports. Once these tasks have been achieved, students will be dismissed. The earliest this could happen is following the exam venue training as outlined below. The purpose of the shorter school day on 6th June is to support the students in independently preparing to be ready for the exam fortnight. Once dismissed, students should go straight home to revise and prepare. Their teachers will have supported students with this process in the preceding lessons. If the early dismissal will present you with any problems, please contact us to discuss arrangements to supervise your child’s study at school. You should contact Mr Crowther-Green by Friday 6th May. Exam Venue Training Schedule and earliest possible dismissal time Y10 Y9 Y8 Y7
9:30-9:50am 9:50- 10:10am 10:10-10:30am 10:30-10:50am
Mr Crowther-Green Mark Crowther-Green Assistant Principal
4 INA Newsletter
ISAAC NEWTON ACADEMY MOCK LONDON ELECTION 2016
Zac Goldsmith
-‐Conserva4ve
Caroline Pidgeon -‐Lib Dem
Peter WhiSle -‐UKIP
Sian Berry -‐Green
Sadiq Khan -‐Labour
The ‘MOCK LONDON ELECTION’ is finally here. Find out about the main poli4cal par4es and candidates for London Mayor and vote for who you think should run the city. Cast your votes on
Wednesday 4th May and Thursday 5th 2015 Polling sta4on: Key stage 3 Assembly Hall Before school 8-‐8.20am, break-‐4me, lunch4me and aMerschool 4-‐ 4.30pm
Bring your Lanyard with you to vote You Discuss You Debate You Decide INA Newsletter 5
Saturday Strech - Electronic Engineering On Saturday 23rd of April we were lucky enough to be visited by a graduate in Electronic Engineering from Southampton University. Sally Shi led a Saturday Stretch session detailing what her course is all about and how it feels to be a university student to a group of excitable students from years 7, 8, 9 and 10. Sally said the following: “From various science subjects that I learned in middle school, I was particularly interested in physics and always fascinated by the way electronic devices and systems work and advance. To find out more, I started my degree of BEng Electronic Engineering at the University of Southampton after graduating from Shandong Experimental High School in China. During my degree, I carried out two summer internships with the Nanoelectronics and Nanotechnology Research Group in my department and further developed my knowledge in Nanoelectronics.” The session began with a timeline of technology which was a great visual demonstration of how technology has evolved over a short space of time. Sally then told us all about Moore's Law, which is one of the most celebrated ideas in the technology industry. It predicted that every two years for at least the next decade, processors would shrink in size and the components within them would double. What ultimately guides Moore's Law is the idea that the number of components in a circuit (the brains of a computer) would double every two years, thereby boosting performance. In order for that to occur, however, transistors, which switch electrical signals on and off so devices can process information and perform tasks, need to increasingly be added to chips. The more transistors on a chip, the faster that chip can process information. The original size of a transistor was half an inch long. The next generation of Intel's processors aims to get transistors down to 10 nanometres, which is smaller than the vast majority of viruses affecting human health! In other words, a 10-nanometer transistor is very, very small! Take a look at the diagram below to see just how small! Sally then talked to us about Electronic Engineering at university and the different courses available (see the below model). Each course covers a variety of modules including: • Electronic circuits • Electronic systems • Electronic design • Digital systems and microprocessors • Programming • Computer engineering • Solid state electronics • Electrical materials and fields • Devices • Communications and control Sally talked to us about the career possibilities available to a graduate of electronic engineering. It was interesting to know that there are lots of varied and diverse career paths that lead on from this particular degree. • Telecommunications – mobile phones, radio, TV and satellite communications • Data communications – PCs, tablets and ATM machines • Scientific research – acoustics, optics, physics and nanotechnology • Medical instruments – clinical and laboratory equipment • Defence – communications, navigation and weapons systems • Aerospace – avionics, radar, navigation and communication systems • Manufacturing – programmable logic controls (PLCs) and industrial machinery. Overall, it was an engaging and eye-opening session for all involved and the students were very responsive. When asked the question ‘do you think the session was helpful?’ some students said: “Yes, it really helped me to understand the subject! ” “Yes, it made me feel excited about the next stages in life.” “Yes, it has opened my eyes to different courses we could study.” When reflecting on whether the session had made them consider studying this subject at university, some students said:
6 INA Newsletter
Congratulations to Sumayyah Ali
who recently passed her Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award with the police cadets. She won a special award at the annual awards ceremony for her dedication and commitment to the cadets.
INA Newsletter 7
From the Guardian Newspaper: The science of revision: nine ways pupils can revise for exams more effectively Ditch the highlighter and teach a friend. Psychology shows us a lot about how to improve our memory and avoid distractions – here are some dos and don’ts Highlighting might not be as helpful as you think. It isolates information whereas pupils recall more if they can link what they learn with other pieces of information. Photograph: Alamy
The weeks and months leading up to exams can be challenging for students (and parents and teachers alike). Now more than ever, young people seem to be feeling the pressure. So how can students revise better? Which techniques really work, and which don’t? What can students do to improve their memory, mood and concentration?
Before you do any revision 1. Eat breakfast It is estimated that around 27% of boys and 39% of girls skip breakfast some or all of the time. It’s not called the most important meal of the day for nothing: research has found that skipping this meal significantly reduces students’ attention and their ability to recall information. Simply having a bowl of cereal will give students the concentration and memory boost they need. Evidence suggests students who study in a quiet environment recall more than those who revise while listening to music 2. Put your phone away This should be an obvious one, but for many it isn’t. Phones can be distracting; they are linked to fomo (fear of missing out), and evidence shows that undergraduate students who spend more time texting and using social media get lower grades. In another fascinating study, researchers found that the mere sight of a phone was enough to reduce a person’s ability to focus. The implication couldn’t be clearer: out of sight really is out of mind. During revision sessions 3. Start early and spread it out Actors don’t leave their rehearsals until the day before opening night. Athletes don’t only train the day before a match. To commit something to memory takes time. Spreading out your revision sessions on a particular topic (eg one-hour sessions over 10 days) is more effective than spending the same amount of time in one go (ie 10 hours in one day). This effect, known as “spacing”, helps because it allows time in between revision sessions to forget and re-learn the material. This strategy has been labelled as “one of the most robust across the entire history of experimental research on learning and memory” (pdf). 8 INA Newsletter
4. Test yourself Leading researchers in the field of memory consider testing yourself as one of the most effective ways to improve your ability to recall information (pdf). Testing yourself also helps you check for any gaps in your knowledge. Practice papers provide a good starting point, as well as quizzing yourself at the end of your revision session. 5. Teach someone After you have tested yourself, teach the material to someone else. This has been found to help aid memory and recall: it is known as “the Protégé Effect”. Teaching someone else requires you to learn and organise your knowledge in a clear and structured manner. 6. Think twice about using highlighters Despite being the favourite weapon of many students tackling revision, research suggests they don’t work very well. People learn and recall information better if they connect it to other pieces of information. Highlighters don’t do this, they isolate single pieces of information. Quite often, students end up highlighting whole chunks and passages of text, which can give the appearance of having worked hard, but is of little value. 7. Don’t listen to music Parents around the world rejoice: you now have a legitimate reason to insist that your child stops listening to Justin Bieber on repeat. Students who study in a quiet environment can recall more than those who revise while listening to music. Extroverts, and those with an exceptional ability to control their attention, are not negatively affected as much: but it doesn’t help. At best, for these students, it just doesn’t hinder them as much as everyone else. 8. Get some fresh air and exercise You cannot work all day, every day. Nor should you. Revision has to be about quality, as well as quantity. Going outside and getting some fresh air helps people feel refreshed and better able to focus afterwards. Furthermore, doing a little bit of exercise helps people deal better with stressful situations: it reduces anxiety and increases self-esteem. Practice makes perfect: why mock exams are great for students’ brains
9. Sleep Students are encouraged to work hard and revise a lot before their exams: however, there comes a time when they need to stop and go to sleep. Knowing when can be tricky. There is a link between being a perfectionist and struggling to sleep. If a child is falling asleep within five minutes of their head hitting the pillow, they should probably be going to bed earlier. Other sleep tips include having regular bedtimes, not being on your mobile phone in bed, but if you are, turning down the backlight on it. As research into psychology continues to develop, we learn more and more about how best to help students learn. Revision time can be challenging as it often requires students to monitor their own behaviour when working independently at home. Hopefully, by teaching them about what helps improve their memory, mood and concentration, we can better equip them to meet the challenges head on. INA Newsletter 9
PE AT ISAAC NEWTON ACAD News & Results Year 10 Boys Handball vs Mayfield Year 10 Boys Handball vs Mayfield With it being a very long time since the Year 10 boys picked up their medals from the Redbridge Championships, we organised a friendly to dust off the cobwebs. The Year 10s started very strong and soon realised they were going to have to be at the top of their game to beat the big Mayfield keeper who was proving very hard to beat. At the end of the first third INA led by a single goal and they knew a slip of concentration could cost them the win. With excellent collaboration skills and great determination to work hard for each other it was no surprise that INA finished the second third still a goal ahead. However Feizan had made some incredible saves in goal to keep Mayfield trailing by a single goal. With the final third upon us and tiredness kicking in, INA had to show real grit to see out the final third and leave with the win. This started brilliantly, with INA scoring 2 goals in quick succession, giving them a 3 goal cushion. This invited a lack of concentration amongst INA as they gifted Mayfield with 2 late goals. The score finished 8-7 to INA. Great performance all round! The team voted Feizan Kiani (10W) as their man of the match for his unbelievable bravery in goal.
10  INA Newsletter
DEMY After school DAY CLUB
TEACHER VENUE
Mon
Handball
DB
Sports Hall
Girls Can
EH
Astro
Boxing
Activity Studio Sports Hall
Lunch time Day
1st Lunch 2nd Lunch (Year 10) (year 7,8 &9)
Mon
Badminton Badminton Boys and (Year 7, 8 & Girls 9) Boys and Girls Girls Can! (Year 7,8 & 9 Girls) Basketball Basketball club Boys (Year 8 & and Girls 9) Boys & Girls Handball (Year 7, 8 & 9) Boys and Girls Basketball (Year 7) Girls and Boys
Tues
Judo Club
External provider External
Wed
Yr 8 S+C
BH
Sports Hall
Yr 10 Football Table Tennis
AT
Astro
GA
Tues
Resistance Sliding Table Tennis
External provider CD
Activity Studio Ks3 Hall
Wed
Softball
LAJ
Activity Studio Astro
Zumba
External KS3 Hall provider External Sports Hall provider EC, DH, BB MUGA
Thur
Fri
Badminton club Bike Club
Girls running RM club
Thur
South Park
Fri
Improve your skills! Try something new! Keep fit! Make new friends! Unleash your energy! Increase your chances of getting into a team! INA Newsletter 11
Well done to the following students who are this week’s Mathematicians of the Moment. Please collect a merit from Mr Dukes
Here are the scores so far
7I
190
8I
7S
100
8S
90
9S
7A
130
8A
500
9A
7C
30
8C
30
9C
7N
430
8N
100
9N
1330
7E
90
8E
290
9E
320
7W
370
8W
9W
540
8T
9T
1900
7T 12  INA Newsletter
9I 1150
The Mathematics department would like to encourage all students to enter next week’s Mathematician of the Moment competition. Look out for the new problem next term.
INA Newsletter 13
Scavenging Michelle Reader - Art from Waste London-based artist Michelle Reader makes recycled materials into sculptures, often incorporating mechanical elements such as the working parts of toys and clocks. Michelle scavenges city dumps, roadsides and charity shops to find materials she can recycle, including both household and industrial waste. Michelle says ‘I love the unpredictability of found materials and enjoy the inventiveness necessary to transform them into a sculpture. I try wherever possible to use materials that are reclaimed, things with a history that have been discarded and might otherwise end up in landfill.’ Perhaps her most famous work is the family portrait known as ‘Seven Wasted Men’ that was made from one month of household waste from the family.
TOP TIPS STUDENTS Use knowledge and skills learnt in one lesson in all your lessons. Transfer knowledge and skills that you learnt at INA outside of INA. If you need help with IL, think about where you me might find it yourself e.g. library, newspapers etc. Look round the house and see how many potential resources to help your learning you can find
PARENTS Discuss with your child what learning ideas they have scavenged and recycled during the week. 14 INA Newsletter
W
& Recycling
WHO HAS SHOWN SCAVENGING & RECYCLING AT INA? Iman Latif in 8S uses information gathered from Science programmes and reading to enhance class discussions and her knowledge. Amber Khandwalla scavenged and recycled concepts and ideas when she was on the Phillips Exeter summer school. Studying robotics, computer science and maths, in a cluster called ‘An Odyssey of the Mind’, Amber transferred ideas and knowledge between the three subjects. Ms Broadway and Mr Bowry transferred their knowledge and experience of setting up INA secondary to design the building, and building management systems for INA primary. Ms Broadway visited other primary schools, scavenged ideas from them and re-used them when designing the INA primary playground.
SCAVENGING & RECYCLING Being able to seek out knowledge, understanding or positive behaviour and re-use in the future. Being on the lookout for materials, resources and forms of support in the environment that can help you in your current learning or problem-solving. Taking stock of what you have learnt, distilling knowledge down to a pure form and using what you have learnt in other ways and contexts.
BEHAVIOURS Seeking out opportunities to knowledge, information, ideas and learning strategies in new situations, transferring skills and knowledge gained between different situations, using what you learn at INA outside INA and vice versa, using ideas that you have developed, read or heard in your own learning, recycling learning ideas and materials at INA and in everyday life. INA Newsletter 15
BRIDGES we build learning power and developcharacter characteratatIsaac Isaac Newton Newton Academy HowHow we build learning power and develop Academy “We build too many walls and not enough bridges.” Isaac Newton
“We build too many walls and not enough bridges.” Isaac Newton The secondary BRIDGES programme commences on Monday 14th September. BRIDGES are
The secondary BRIDGES programme commences on Monday 14th September. BRIDGES are habits of mind or learning characteristics that develop a student's character and learning power habits ofenable mind them or learning thatindividuals develop a student's character and to growcharacteristics into well rounded and resilient learners.and learning power and enable them to grow into well rounded individuals and resilient learners.
On a two weekly cycle throughout the year, Year 7 and 8 students are introduced to one or two of cycle mind throughout or learning characteristics will8permeate the curriculum. On anew twohabits weekly the year, Yearthat 7 and students throughout are introduced to one or two This will take place through a range of interactive activities. In addition, the students will new habits of mind or learning characteristics that will permeate throughout the curriculum. This experience BRIDGES learning objectives in each and every lesson throughout Isaac Newton will take place Year through a range lessons of interactive activities. In addition, theBRIDGES students will experience Academy. 9 BRIDGES will focus on strengthening certain learning BRIDGES learningthrough objectives in each of and every lesson characteristics exploration PHSE topics andthroughout themes. Isaac Newton Academy.
Year 9 BRIDGES lessons will focus on strengthening certain BRIDGES learning characteristics Eachexploration fortnight you findtopics top tips in themes. the newsletter of ways of supporting your child to through ofwill PHSE and develop the BRIDGES habits of mind and learning characteristics within the home.
Each fortnight you will find top tips in the newsletter of ways of supporting your child to develop the BRIDGES habits of mind and learning characteristics within the home.
ATTENDANCE Regular attendance is a 7A crucial factor in students’ educational development 7N and ability to achieve their 7E full potential.
99.2
8E
98.4
9N
99
10N
100
99.1
8A
97.4
9I
99
10E
98.7
98
8W
97.9
9N
99
10W
98.6
7S
97.8
8N
97.4
9A
97.3
10A
98.3
7T
97.8
8S
97.1
9E
95.7
10S
98.3
7W
97.7
8C
96.8
9W
95.2
10I
97.1
7C
93.9
8I
96
9S
94.8
10T
92.7
7I
92.4
8T
95.2
9T
91
10C
91.4
At Isaac Newton Academy every student is set the target of 100% attendance. We know that attendance has a direct link to progress, and would urge you to really consider if a day off school is necessary.
Well done to 10N who have got off to a flying start this term with 100% attendance.
Ms. Abbott-Jones Lead Pastoral Leader 16 INA Newsletter
Year 8 97% Year 7 97%
Year 10 96.9%
BRIDGES Mentoring Wednesday 18th May The first BRIDGES mentoring session takes place on Wednesday 18th May from 1:45-4:15pm. All students will be given a fifteen minute 1:1 coaching session with their BRIDGES mentor. This is an important opportunity for KS3 students to reflect on how they have developed or strengthened their BRIDGES dispositions, to discuss the dispositions they consider to be their strengths and the ones they need to work on further. Year 10 students will be engaging in a mock interview focusing on their preparedness for the Year 10 exams and work experience, and how they are further strengthening their BRIDGES dispositions to achieve success at GCSE and beyond. Arrangements All students will complete lessons p1 – 4 (Y10 students will complete lesson 4 as per KS3 timings). Students will leave school at 1.10pm. Students who are eligible for Free School Meals who request lunch in advance (via form tutors) can collect a lunch bag from the student reception as they leave. Students are expected to go directly home and return between 1.45-4.15pm for a fifteen minute 1:1 coaching session with their BRIDGES mentor. Appointment times will be issued to students at the start of next week. Students must attend their session on time. KS3 students must wear full school uniform. KS4 students may wear either school uniform or professional work wear (no jeans, hoodies, trainers, jewellery). We are unable to supervise other students as all staff are BRIDGES mentors and will be engaged in mentoring session throughout the afternoon. Parents are not required at the sessions but will be given feedback on how their son or daughter’s BRIDGES skills are progressing later in the year. Please note that enrichment will be cancelled on this day. Jo Spencer Vice Principal
Y10 Work Experience information evening Wednesday 11th May 6-7pm On Wednesday 11th May 6-7pm the process for Work Experience will be explained to parents Students have received this information but are welcome to attend Thanks Mr Crowther-Green INA Newsletter 17
Praise & Recognition
cc
Merits
Year 7 T C S N W E I A
1352 1255 1073 1029 869 882 739
648
Year 8 W N
1139 1101
C
E S I A T
Year 9 T E
1148 758
1081
N
906 984 902
Year 10 W E
489
555
N
315
W S
467
S
297
477
I
283
C
438
T
279
895
A
352
C
231
832
I
28A
A
207
357
Ahmed Al-Khafaji Award (Peer Commendation Award) Ahmed was well known for being kind, for helping others and for being extremely polite. He was also someone known for his hard work and absorption; the idea, therefore, is that the winner should be someone that encapsulated one of these qualities in that week. Year 7: Arjun Bhogal 7T Year 8: Travis Barrett 8C Year 9: Jeshuran Jeyason 9A Year 10: Rajan Virdee, 10C
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Gabriel Ayerh Year 9 Pastoral Leader, i/c Praise and Recognition
Good Deed Feed • Mr Butler-Zanetti: Anish Mistry, 7C, for helping Usman Umarji, 7C, with his reading. He did this completely on his own initiative, noticed a student was struggling and spent about 10 minutes listening to him read, helping him with difficult words. •
Mrs Gurm: Muhammad Khan (Sal) year 8 for helping a student who had got a concept wrong
•
Mr Woracker: Anish Mistry 7C – For helping a fellow student with a lower reading age with his reading. He often gives one to one support to another student who is struggling with reading difficult words. He goes even further by listening to him read, all without a teacher asking him to.
• Mrs Stylianou: Umer 8T is always extremely polite and holds the door open in the morning when we have line up •
Mrs Abbott-Jones: Hawwa Imran 7S and Rhea Virdee 7S have just been really helpful in my PE lesson. They do a great job of setting up equipment so that we make the most of our time playing football.
•
Mr Vaghela: Mohammed Awadh (9A) – A fantastic class demonstration on CAD: 2D design today, (how to vectorise and edit and image) Nikhill Bansaree (7A) – Fantastic Team player in class, assisting students, sharing great CAD practice, excellent progress with year 7 bottle opener project. Aiysha Dakri (year 10) – Great independent work put into Graphics controlled assessment, excellent team work and sharing of practice. Aafreen Khaliq (year10) Great independent work put into Graphics controlled assessment, excellent team work and sharing of practice. Gabriel Ayerh Year 9 Pastoral Leader, i/c Praise and Recognition
INA Newsletter 19
Key Dates for the Summer Term 2015: Secondary Summer Term Monday 11th April - Wednesday 20th July Half Term 30th May - 3rd June INSET days: Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th June, Friday 8th July Wednesday 4th May Thursday 5th May Friday 6th May Friday 6th May Wednesday 11th May Wednesday 18th May Thursday 19th May Friday 20th May Monday 23rd May
Sept 2016 new Reception Parents’ Information Evening Year 7 to Oxford University Year 10 Maths Challenge Year 7s to Rochester Year 11s & Parents Work Experience Evening BRIDGES mentoring. No lessons in the afternoon Year 10 Geography fieldwork at Stratford Year 10 Geography fieldwork at Stratford Year 7s to Rochester
Wednesday 25th May Wednesday 25th May Friday 27th May Friday 27th May Monday 6th June Tuesday 7th - Friday 17th June Monday 20th –Friday 24th June Wednesday 22nd June Thurs 23rd & Friday 24th June Mon 27th & Tuesday 28th June Thursday 30th June Friday 1st July Monday 4th & Tuesday 5th July Wednesday 6th July Friday 8th July Wed 13th & Thursday 14th July Monday 18th July Tuesday 19th July 20th July
Year 10 Science controlled assessments New Year 6 Parents’ Information Evening Music Recital Year 10 Geography Field Trip to Wales Early close for Year 7-10 Independent Study/Revision Year 7-10 EXAMS Year 10 Work Experience Bug Man visit to year 7 INSET Days: no school for students Year 10 Art exams Year 6 Transition Day Non Uniform Day Year 7 English Trip Sports Awards INSET Days: no school for students School Production Secondary Sports Day KS3 Graduation Awards Assemblies. End of Term. Early close.
20 INA Newsletter