The Cherwell School Summer Newsletter 2023

SCHOOL

Dear Parents and Carers

It is a pleasure to write to you as we move towards the end of the school year.

As always, I do hope you have a chance during the Summer break to take a look at what has been happening in school since the Spring. It has been exceptionally busy and I am delighted by the range of opportunities that continue to be opened up for our students. As you will see, these are across curriculum areas, through our pastoral teams and as part of our wider enrichment work. I am so grateful to our staff for opening up these experiences and we are already thinking deeply about our September programme.

We have had two visits from Ofsted this year. Our first school inspection for 14 years was in October and then Oxfordshire Teacher Training (which has its home at Cherwell) was inspected in May. Both inspections led to outstanding judgments. You can read more about the School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) Inspection on page 4. Do pass it on to anyone who you know is considering a job in teaching. The national recruitment crisis is a real phenomena and it is so important that we work together to get a new generation of staff into the classroom.

We do have a number of both teaching and support staff who are leaving us at the end of term. It is always tough to see colleagues who have given so much to our school moving on. I know you would want to join me in wishing them well. I do need to mention our Assistant Headteacher Lindsey Alexander. Lindsey and I started at Cherwell on the same day in 1992. Since then for over 30 years she has been a crucial fixture within our school impacting on many areas, most notably our Sixth Form. She is widely respected and admired. All who have worked with Lindsey recognise her kindness, her consistency and her optimism. She has been appointed to be a Deputy Headteacher in another RLT school and we are lucky that she will remain close by.

It was a real delight to host the Cherwell 60 Alumni event earlier this month and you can find out more on pages 9 -11. It was wonderful catching up with ex-students. I especially enjoyed listening to the experiences of the first students who arrived at Cherwell School in September 1963. Almost all of those children hadn’t scored highly enough in their 11+ exam and therefore rather than attending one of the Grammar schools in Oxford they were admitted to this brand new Secondary Modern school. So many of these ex-students (now in their 70s) had such positive memories of the school. I was able to hear how they grew into their new environment; how the fields were not yet ready to play sport on so that had to go up to Cutteslowe Park to play matches, how some of them were able to go to Paris in 1964 which was the first foreign exchange trip and how they worked hard to raise money for a swimming pool (which was finally built at the Ferry Centre in 1976)

They did talk about finding a point of connection, a sense of belonging and of hope in their new school. I have shared some of this back with our current students, as I do think it is important for us all to understand our shared history and indeed the legacy we leave . We take so much pride

Continued…/

Inside this issue:-

Welcome Page:Pages 2 & 3

Oxfordshire Training School:Pages 4 & 5

Cherwell’s Sustainability & Climate Change Strategy:Page 6 & 7

Teacher Internship Programme 2023:Page 8

Cherwell 60 Alumni Event::Page 9 – 11

Year 8 Human Library Event:Page 12 & 13

Year 10 Mock Interview Day:Page 14 - 16

Locker Advertisement:Page 17

English News:Page 18 & 19

Geography News:Page 20

Cherwell Hair Festival:Page 21

Academic Enrichment:Page 22 - 29

Science Enrichment:30 - 33

Year 13 Leavers Celebration:Page 34 & 35

Year 11 Prom:Page 36 & 37

German Dept News:Page 38 & 39

Performing Arts News:Page 40 - 45

Venture Award 1 & 2:Page 46

DofE Bronze & Gold Qualifying:Page 47

DofE Silver Practice for German Exchange:Page 48

DofE Bronze & Silver Certificate Mini Celebration May 2023:Page 49

Year Team News:50 - 54

PE News:Page 55 - 59

in having a culture of no limits in this school and a belief that every single one of our young people has the ability to develop and improve. It was inspiring to be reminded of the origins of this culture on a beautiful summer day at school.

We will continue to work with our young people to develop our own current sense of connectedness and belonging at Cherwell. It is so central to our school and our values. I finished my brief speech at the end of the Alumni day with the quotation from Goethe that was shared with me recently.

“The world is so empty if one thinks only of mountains, rivers and cities; but to know someone here and there who thinks and feels with us, and though distant, is close to us in spiritthis makes the earth for us an inhabited garden.“

Do have a peaceful and enjoyable Summer break

Chris Price Headteacher

The Oxfordshire Teacher Training SCITT, which is partially based at The Cherwell School, had an Ofsted inspection in May, and we are delighted that the final report has now been published.

As a teacher training partnership that works closely with a wide group of schools across Oxfordshire, we are pleased that once again we have been judged as Outstanding in all areas.

The report highlights many strengths and gives a clear set of insights into why our schoolled approach to teacher training is so effective. Some highlights from the report include:

‘Trainees get their chosen careers off to the best possible start. That they are known as Associate Teachers’ is a mark of the provider’s high expectations of them and the esteem in which they are deservedly held. Demands of trainees are high, but realistic. The programme is superb preparation for the realities of teaching. On top of this exceptional professional induction, well-being support is also first class.

The coherence across all training elements is seamless, the joins undetectable. There is impressive consistency of high-quality mentoring. Incredibly well-considered tools, training, quality assurance and support make mentors’ vital but demanding role doable. Clearly defined ‘phases’ of trainees’ development and the ‘principles of effective lessons’ provide additional layers to the programme’s ingenious composition.

These programme innovations come about as part of leaders’ tireless passion and deep commitment to training teachers as the lifeline of the wider sector. This provider is at the cutting edge of this work, often anticipating wider developments and the direction of travel.’

We're really proud of the achievements of all our Associate Teachers. Of our most recent cohort who have graduated this Summer, one of the inspectors said that, 'Associate Teachers have an atypical level of confidence in their ability to reflect and respond effectively to the realities of the classroom.' - this is a huge testament to them all and their desire to learn and improve.

At a time when our education system is not always awash with good news stories, we are heartened that this vital work is a source of positivity and pride. This formal recognition that what we are doing is making a difference brings further reinforcement of those things. In his generous final comments when he described our work as truly exceptional the Lead Inspector said:'The contribution that the partnership makes cannot be less than life-changing for children in Oxfordshire and beyond.'

Application to train with the SCITT in 2024 will open in the Autumn and details about all our programmes can be found at https:// oxfordshireteachertraining.co.uk/

Patrick Garton and the SCITT team

Reflections on the SCITT programme from one of this years fantastic Associate Teachers;

“As I approach the end of my training year with the Oxfordshire SCITT, it is wonderful to reflect on all that I have learnt and how much my confidence has grown with the course.

Working as an Associate Teacher in the English Department at Cherwell has been an invaluable experience

I have been introduced to the department's Highly Intentional Processes, which have strengthened my pedagogical knowledge and my teaching practice.

I have been able to collaborate with excellent, experienced professionals in the department, who have always given me their time and support: be that to discuss a particular lesson or resource or to discuss their own practice after I have observed their teaching and wanted to know more!

I have been introduced to a wealth of educational research by colleagues, which has sparked my interest in trauma-informed practice and various ways to incorporate film into English Literature teaching to deepen students' understanding; I look forward to continuing to read research on these areas and develop my practice further throughout my career.

In addition to my inspiring colleagues in the English Department, I have been part of a year team, working with a tutor group and learning about the pastoral role of a teacher. Having the opportunity to build relationships with students outside of the classroom setting has been so rewarding and I will certainly miss welcoming them to school and preparing them for the day every morning!

Overall, I have loved every minute of my placement at the Cherwell School. It truly is a school that embodies its values, where every student (and staff member!) is provided with a wealth of opportunities, takes on responsibilities for the community, and achieves excellence. I hope to cross paths with the school again in the future!”

Charlotte Morris (English Associate Teacher)

CHERWELL SCHOOL’S SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE STRATEGY

By Mr Cappleman

Our rationale for whole school action on Sustainability and Biodiversity

As a school we understand and accept the threats we face due to the current climate and biodiversity crisis. We believe they compel us to take more coordinated and wide reaching action in order to meet our obligations to help build a sustainable future. Our school has taken a number of significant steps towards sustainability in recent years, but we understand the considerable challenges facing the whole of humanity, and the need to go much further, acting in our locality to decisively embed change in the ways we individually live and collectively operate as a school.

The context of this work:

At Cherwell school we have already made a number of significant steps over the past decade. Our promotion of sustainable transport to and from school, installation of solar panels with our local partner Low Carbon Oxford North, installation and restoration of gardens to support biodiversity and most recently our installation of LED lights across the school are some of those successes. In education, we have developed strong learning opportunities across the curriculum and support that with increasing extra-curricular provision. In 2018 we were awarded Eco-Schools Green Flag status in recognition of the work we have done. As soon as the shock of the pandemic subsided we started to formulate action plans to move towards the next level of our schools work on sustainability. We now have a Sustainability Development Group’ which meets termly and includes the Headteacher, Eco-schools Coordinator, School and Site Development staff and Sixth Form student representatives. We have been focusing on four areas for development, curriculum, external areas, buildings and school systems in 2022-23:

• We planned and delivered the planting of 22 new trees and 600 new native hedgerow plants across three new hedgerows with Year 7,8,9, 12 & 13 students across our two sites in

• In 2022 we planted two disused areas with flowers supportive of pollinators. The planting was so successful that in 2023 we organised for staff and student volunteers to grow and plant sunflowers around the garden spaces of our school to celebrate our school’s 60th Anniversary by supporting pollinators.

• We are currently working on the issues of recycling and waste reduction across our sites, formulating plans for a Sixth Form trial before a whole school launch.

With our academy trust, ‘The River Learning Trust’, we are working on plans to evolve wider sustainable operating practices, which include long term plans to decarbonise our buildings. We are pleased to announce that due to the work of RLT colleagues all our electricity has been purchased from a green energy supplier for the past year in addition to the energy we already get from our solar panels. Over Summer, the program of replacing the old single glazed 1960’s windows will continue, with the replacement of the windows on the north side of the teaching block.

Future Developments

We are currently evolving a ‘10 year Nature Restoration Plan’ to build on the successes above and to take action to help tackle the biodiversity and climate crises. Our plan is to plant our grounds to support wildlife and provide cool shade for students in hot Summers along with building habitats such as bug houses, bird and bat boxes etc;

We aim to start a ‘Cherwell Young Naturalists Group’ from September 2023 to help build the engagement of our students with the natural world. This is part of our work to evolve education to equip students with knowledge and skills they will need for the growing green economy. As a school we plan to trial the forthcoming GCSE in Natural History, which is currently due for first teaching in 2025.

By Mr Cappleman

TEACHER INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME 2023

By Mr J Thomas

The Cherwell School were delighted to welcome 13 undergraduate students for 3 weeks to be part of the Teacher Internship Programme 2023. This programme is a Department for Education scheme which is aimed to give current university students considering a career in teaching, first hand experience in a school setting.

The programme was rich and varied and included visits to The Swan School and New Marston Primary School. Specialist Training sessions on Social Wellbeing, Behaviour for Learning, Building Positive Relationships with Students, Teaching & Learning and Safeguarding were extremely well received by the interns and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. By the second and third week, interns were delivering teaching segments to put into practice the skills they were developing as a result of the Internship Programme.

Interns left the programme with a wide range of examples, experiences and information to support an application into teacher training. A representative from the Department for Education visited and was in awe with the programme put together, the opportunities given to the interns and the comradery between the interns themselves.

If you are interested in finding out more about the Internship Programme (which will run again next year), please do not hesitate to contact the Teacher Internship Lead - James Thomas (jthomas@cherwellschool.org) who will be happy to share more information with you.

Anna Vines (MFL Intern) teaching a Year 9 German Class

Becky Porritt & Rosie Wanstall (Maths Interns) visiting The Swan School and observing a Year 12 Maths Class

CHERWELL 60 ALUMNI EVENT

By Claire Starkey

On Saturday 1 July, we were delighted to welcome back to school around 300 of our former students and staff to celebrate 60 years of the Cherwell School.

The afternoon began with assembly! A welcome by Chris Price was followed by words from two of our early students Frances Mower, our first Head Girl, and Adrian Hewitt, Head Boy 1974, accompanied by former teachers Francis Josephs and Roger Battley. Smiles and laughter filled the room, and set the tone for a joyful afternoon catching up and looking back on happy times. Afternoon tea (with scones provided by the Leonardo Hotel) was served and memory walls of photos through the decades decorated our Sixth Form centre along with items from our archives. Our Class of 1985, led by Nicola Watrasiewicz, recreated the group photo they spotted on our display, whilst others looked through old registers to find their names!

Looking for names in the old registers!

Nicola Watrasiewicz and the class of 1985

CHERWELL 60 ALUMNI EVENT

By Claire Starkey

Student ambassadors organised tours for our alumni to visit some of their old classrooms many of which are little changed from the 1960s!

The afternoon finished off with more reflections in the school hall from former teachers John Fox, Jackie Wheatly and our very own Mr Moss (still teaching after 35 years), plus former students Julie and Kim Hillsdon, who met at Cherwell and have been married over 45 years.

It was lovely to see so many of our alumni sitting chatting in the same spot they sat, for many, over 50 years ago and was a fitting end to a wonderful afternoon.

CHERWELL 60 ALUMNI EVENT

By Claire Starkey

YEAR 8 HUMAN LIBRARY EVENT - 24 MAY 23

By Mrs Dale

At the end of May we invited a wide range of employers into school to be ‘human library books’ to talk to Year 8s about their own career area. These included Business, Construction, Engineering, Healthcare, Hospitality, Law, Media, RAF, Science, Social Care, Sport and Teaching.

Using both gyms on South, students rotated around the room to learn from and question the employers – a bit like speed-dating. In the space of one hour students learnt a little about a variety of careers.

Year 8 were beautifully behaved, polite and respectful, and full of interesting questions.

Grateful thanks to our Human Library Books:

Carol Taunt, Christiane Norenberg, Cristiana Padilla, Deanne Hope-Fowler, Debbie Moors, Dr Saleh Bagdhadi, Elaine Johnstone, Evie Bennett, Hannah-Jane Mason, Helen Ramsay, Prof. Ian Page, Jack Tutton, Jinghuan Li. Karl McConville. Kasey Watson, Kate Garrow, Lorna McAleavey, Prof. Nathalie Seddon, Sgt Andy Mears, Shilpa Bhatt, Vivienne Lee, Shontelle Magenty, Chris Price, Tom Hilton and Jason Davis

MOCK INTERVIEW DAY FOR OUR YEAR 10 STUDENTS

By Mrs Dale

Once Year 10 had sat their GCSE Citizenship exams, they used their remaining Citizenship lessons to start preparing their CVs and personal statements. They were coached by their Citizenship teachers in interview techniques, including looking smart, shaking hands, maintaining eye contact etc.

26 local employers were invited into school and, where possible, they were matched up to students according to their career area.

On the day, Year 10 arrived looking extremely smart and confident. Although the majority of the students admitted they were nervous, all of them came out of their interviews with big smiles on their faces!

The employers were incredibly impressed by the confidence and maturity of our students. Students were given immediate verbal feedback, including advice on what they could improve on their CVs and how they came across in their interviews. Written feedback was given to the students the following week.

We are very proud of our Year 10 students and feel this experience will stand them in good stead for subsequent interviews and give them confidence when they do their work experience in October.

Quotes from employers:

• Absolute pleasure interviewing these youngsters

• I was very impressed with their professionalism, humour and candidness

• Many of them overcame obvious nervousness and did a really great job

• There were some brilliant CVs and others were able to add to theirs after the discussion

• They were extremely professional and a joy to interview

• The parents and teachers should be very proud of these children

Grateful thanks to our employers: Gemma Parry, Jack Ponting, Saranga Ranasinghe, Doug Hart, Simon Fulfit, Jinguan Li, Declan Campbell. Karl McConville, Dr Alessia Garguilio, Rob Whitty, Marieta Bakova, Sally Max, Sam Ridgway, Nick Richmond, Jack Higgins, Sgt Atama Cavubati, LCpl Kyle Edward, Katie Lowe, Sarah Flynn, Janice Masel-Chan, Emma Gravell, Jack Tutton, Ben Wallington, Shontelle Magenty, Tom Hilton and James Thomas.

ENGLISH NEWS YEAR 7 SHAKESPEARE’S LIVING LIBRARY 12/13th JULY

Wednesday 12th July and Thursday 13th July saw the English Department’s annual Shakespeare’s Living Library’: an event which enabled all of Year 7 to demonstrate their knowledge of Shakespeare and to celebrate the various elements of his world. Students chose their favourite aspect of Shakespearean England from the range covered in our lessons and they completed guided research to develop their knowledge. We then invited all parents and staff to see what the students have learnt and to ‘borrow’ Year 7 students from the library to learn more about the different elements of Shakespeare’s world. The students became experts on different areas including the monarchy, Shakespeare’s life, colonialism, attitudes to the supernatural, theatres, Shakespeare’s plays and the expectations of women of the era.

All of the classes in Year 7 put in enormous effort that was well worthy of the Bard. Not only did they talk with confidence about a range of contextual knowledge, but there were also sonnet readings and mini quizzes about Shakespeare’s life to top it all off. We’re pretty certain that some of these students could have been on the stage of the Globe or Blackfriars had Shakespeare seen them himself!

Of course, the most important element of the event was to allow students the opportunity to present in a formal way and to showcase their extensive knowledge to anyone and everyone who was willing to listen. Year 7 were truly impressive in their ability to talk about a range of Elizabethan and Jacobean world issues with pride and were enthusiastic and confident in the knowledge that they have built on the subject. They handled their questions from parents and staff like absolute professionals.

Thank you, as ever, to everybody who was involved in making the days such an enjoyable experience: to parents and staff that came along to celebrate and to those who also supported by helping make cue cards, practising presentations and generally talking about Shakespeare at home!

A massive well done and thank you to all involved - we’re so proud of you.

Ms Hathaway and Ms Reeves

GEOGRAPHY DEPT NEWS

By Mr Littlewood - Head of Geography

Year 10 GCSE Geography Rivers Fieldtrip to Combe Mill

In late June, the Geography Department took 150 Year 10 students over three days to Combe Mill in the Cotswolds to do their physical geography fieldwork investigation. They looked at the channel and flow characteristics of the River Evenlode, and we were blessed with weather which was not too hot! The students were a credit to the school, and really enjoyed getting into the river and trialling the different techniques, especially with the waders!

For the second half of the day there was a guided walk led by experts from the Cotswolds National Landscape Group, who inspired the students with their in-depth knowledge of the landscape, and helped them investigate flood risk and local ecosystems, including a great demonstration about how the local limestone can hold water underground in aquifers! I would like to thank them and Combe Mill for having us, and we look forward to coming back again next year.

I would also like to thank the staff who helped to support the trip: Mr Huck, Ms Pearson, Mr Wilcox, Mr Harrison, Ms Lygate and Mr Walters, as well as the support and admin team who helped to make it possible. Thanks also, to colleagues who helped to cover lessons while we were out, and most of all to the students who were enthusiastic, diligent, curious and a credit to the school.

CHERWELL HAIR FESTIVAL

MARCH 2023

- By Ms Codrington

On March 22nd and 23rd we ran the first ever Cherwell Big Hair Festival, with activities on both North and South Site. Students were able to listen to a talk by a hair expert in curly, wavy and Afro hair. We are very grateful to our external patrons Busayo Olupitan and Traci Walters who provided 11 boxes of full sized Sof n Free hair products (shampoo, conditioner and curl mousse) each retailing at about £5 each.

We ran a hair product exchange where students could bring half or full hair products and exchange either for a full product or from the donated stock. Students were recommending products to each other which created a positive and lively lunch time!

Also a thank you to Dr Bonsaver and Ms Teixeira (the librarianson both North and South) who allowed us to take over the Library spaces to give out hair products and advice to students across Year 7 to Sixth Form.

A quick thank you to all students who were involved in the first Hair Festival and for the feedback which was mainly 'When are we doing it again?' and 'Can we get more products and choices?'

If you would like to get involved next year then please do get in touch, especially if you are a hairdresser, braider, barber or hair trainer - we would love for you to share your experience with the students. We have set up an online photostream https://photos.app.goo.gl/KLdSdrTL1YNsn6CG6 if you would like to see some of the pictures of the event. Students are encouraged to send me pictures so I can upload as a celebration of everything Hair, just include name and year group.

Now you got the freebies, what next? Nothing comes for free!! :)

We have created a google photo book and we need more pictures from you.

Thank you to everyone who made this festival a success.

Ms Codrington

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European Parliament Ambassador Schools

EPAS Transnational Symposium, Cyprus (30 March - 2 April)

8 of our Year 12 students travelled to a two-day transnational symposium for delegates from the UK, Cyprus, Ireland and Malta. The symposium theme was jobs and international networks of the future, with contributions from employers, politicians and experts. Alongside a series of talks, discussions and workshops, they enjoyed a sightseeing tour of the capital city, Nicosia.

European Parliament Ambassador Schools

Academic Enrichment

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

@CherwellEnrich

22 April

Students participated in a network gathering of five European Parliament Ambassador Schools from across the UK for a virtual Europe Day celebration. The event entailed an introduction on the origins of presentations from each school’s ambassadors on what Europe (and EPAS) means to school quiz (we won!) and a European continental breakfast.

European Parliament Ambassador Schools

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

European Youth Event, Strasbourg (8 - 11 June)

16 of our Year 12 students travelled to a two day ‘ideas exchange’ of young people, with workshops by experts, activists, influencers and decision-makers; the theme of which was democracy and youth advocacy. They also enjoyed sightseeing around Strasbourg and Paris.

Careers, UCAS and Higher Education

Academic Enrichment @CherwellEnrich

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

Post-18 Choices Morning

Our Year 12s took part in a carousel of sessions, giving them information on a wide variety of options and routes, including: university, apprenticeships, creative courses, gap years, Oxford and Cambridge, personal statements and finance, with one-to-one guidance options. We were joined by former students who pursued a range of study, career and life paths post-A Levels, who were available throughout the day to give information and advice. We hope that the students found this opportunity valuable, and that they have a clearer sense of what the right fit for them might be, and know what they need to do next to test this out and to realise their ambitions.

World Of Work, Sustainability & Green Futures

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

World of Work: Sustainability and Green Futures

Our Year 12s completed an exciting day of work-based placements. Through the generous support of 16 different employers, they were able to gain an insight into a variety of sectors, developing their team work and taking an interdisciplinary approach to the theme of sustainability.

Find out more about our World of Work days on the Sixth Form website.

World Of Work, Sustainability & Green Futures

19 Beaumont Street Surgery Active Oxfordshire

Atkins Global BAM Construct UK

Blenheim Palace

BMW Mini Creative Agencies

Grant Thornton

Ignite Sports

Low Carbon Hub

Oxfordshire Schools Teaching Association

Oxfam and Oxford Earth Academy

Oxford Earth Academy

Oxford Environmental Change Institute

Reuters Seacourt

And, of course, to our wonderful key speaker, Dr Roz Savage!

A huge thank you to our employers, for giving their time and expertise so generously:

Beyond Cherwell

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

Royal Literary Fund’s ‘Bridge’ Programme

Students had the opportunity to work with professional, award-winning author (and Cherwell alumni), Rachel Seiffert. Together, they explored the challenges of academic writing, identifying the components of a good essay.

Beyond Cherwell Awards Day

Students in Year 13 who contributed to Beyond Cherwell during their time in Sixth Form were invited to an evening of celebration, along with their families. All students were presented with a certificate and prize in recognition of their participation. A special congratulations to Juniper Sweet, Rowan Hector-Turnbull and Francisco Garippa, all of whom received the Caroline Parker Award, which generously offers a contribution to their future endeavours.

Higher Education Convention

Our Year 12 students visited the University of Winchester, where they were able to speak to representatives from various universities and apprenticeships. This experience offered them valuable, tailored advice, which enabled them to begin making informed next steps towards their potential academic or vocational pathways

Beyond Cherwell

Academic Enrichment

Contact: enrichment@cherwellschool.org

A group of our Sixth Form students generously offered their time to help out at the Year 11 Induction Days. The prospective students valued their expertise, and we know that their friendly faces and support will certainly

Volunteers

Our Year 12 'Cherwell Changemakers' enjoyed meeting former students and teachers from the school’s past sixty years. They led tours of the school, heard stories and shared experiences as part of our 60th anniversary celebrations.

We hope they'll be back on the other side in 2063 for our 100th!

Get Involved!

We have many opportunities for our Sixth Form students to get involved in the school (and local) community.

You can find more details and our current opportunities in the weekly student bulletin!

If you have any questions, email us at enrichment@cherwellschool.org

SCIENCE ENRICHMENT

By Ms Ghaffar, Science Enrichment Co-ordinator

Terms 5 and 6 have once again seen a variety of science enrichment opportunities on offer for students, from various KS5 events to our annual chicken hatching project for Year 7s.

Creative Destruction Lab – Girls High School Programme

At the very end of Term 4, a group of nine Year 12 girls participated in the Girl's High School programme organised by the Creative Destruction Lab at the Said Business School.

This programme aims to encourage young women to get involved in STEM Entrepreneurship, and the day included participating in small meetings with mentors and start-ups, and observing & taking part in some large group discussions. All the girls involved were truly a credit to themselves and to our school; well-deserved congratulations for trying out something new to:

• Elsie Powell

• Ivie Nosakhar

• Efua Appiah

• Esra Deyab

• Linzzie Gikory

• Marina Michalari

• Lily Lim-Holmes

• Claire Yindom

• Sophie Meredith

Year 7 Astrodome

Early in Term 5, all of our Years 7s were fortunate enough to experience the wonders of the cosmos through our interactive Astrodome- a lovely way to cement their curriculum top!

KS3 Living Eggs : Chicken Hatching Project

Science club has focused on our special Chicken Hatching project: In June, we were delighted & just a little eggs-cited to host this ever-popular project for Year 7s. The eggs arrived on a Monday and were incubated in a climate-controlled brooder - a couple of days later we were rewarded with 9 fluffy chicks! All our Year 7 students involved in this project showed both maturity and responsibility in their duties, and were able to watch the chicks grow and develop. We especially enjoyed taking them outside. Two of our female chicks were re-housed at the end of two weeks with a member of staff – we trust they will grow up to be very happy egg-layers – it was eggs-cellent work all round!

Chicks - Wilma & Betty at their new home (Elaine Williams)

SCIENCE ENRICHMENT

By Ms Ghaffar, Science Enrichment Co-ordinator

Cambridge Chemistry Challenge – 2023

A massive well done to our 29 Year 12 students who took part in this year’s Cambridge Chemistry Challenge, a competition aimed to stretch and challenge students interested in Chemistry. Special congratulations to the following medal winners:

Silver

• Ioan Glyn-Jones

• Isaac Green

• Jacob Walker Mace

• Sophie Meredith

• Lily Murfett

Copper

• Tom Akerman

• Lily Lim-Holmes

• Sam Hill

• Alexis Gomez

• Jemimah Pritchard

• Adrian Poma

• Mair Drummond- Curtis

• Matilda Crown

• Riyanshi Gupta

• Arlo Alexander

• Holly Holmes

Year 6 Science & Health Days

Once again, we were delighted to welcome over 265 Year 6 pupils from some of our local primary schools to our Science & Health Day, a day packed full of scientific discovery and enquiry run by the Science Faculty, together with various physical activities run by our Sports Leaders and the PE Faculty. The pupils had an opportunity to attend a Chemistry Tricks show, investigate the properties of fizzy drinks and construct a number of everyday molecules (supervised by our Year 12 Chemists!)– a rich hands-on experience of the wonders of science, and a taste of what’s to come in secondary school.

From Ms Ghaffar, Science Enrichment Coordinator; follow us on twitter: Cherwell School Science @Cherwell_Sci

Year 13 Celebration 2023 - At the Crazy Bear

We were delighted to host the Year 13 Leavers Ball on Thursday 27th April at the Crazy Bear Hotel in Stadhampton. This stunning venue was the perfect backdrop for students to enjoy delicious food and dance the night away as they celebrated their time in the Sixth Form. We have missed their friendly faces around the school site and are very much looking forward to seeing them again on A Level Results Day on Thursday 17th August.

Mrs Fowler, Head of Year 13 and Ms Howse, Deputy Head of Year 13

Year 11 Prom 2023

GERMAN DEPT NEWS GERMAN EXCHANGE 2023

By Mr Mehrabian

This year, Cherwell has celebrated our 42nd Anniversary with the Peutinger Gymnasium in Augsburg, Bavaria. German students came to Oxford in March and as I write this piece, we are nearing the end of our very enjoyable time here in Germany. In addition to spending a day in school observing lessons, we have spent time in Munich, visited Nördlingen with its medieval town walls in the central part of the Romantic Road. Another highlight has been travelling into Southern Bavaria and hiking around the lake, known as Alpsee. The adrenaline junkies amongst the group, particularly enjoyed sprinting up to the summit of Bearfalls and then travelling back down on the Alpsee toboganns- the longest toboggan ride (3km) in Germany!

If your son/daughter is in Year 9 and studying German next year in Year 10, we hope to launch the German exchange in September and can highly recommend the German exchange experience to your child. The experience represents the best chance we offer for our students to practise and improve their German language skills.

My thanks to Mrs F Shelley and Miss S Raymond- Barker for supporting me with our return visit to Germany and well done to all of the Year 10 students taking part in the exchange!

Dr Andrea Feucht- German Language Assistant

After over 10 years of service, our German Language Assistant is leaving us. We are incredibly indebted to Andrea for supporting so many students over the years, both at KS4 and KS5. Students have benefitted from Andrea's wealth of experience and our students’ ability to speak German has greatly improved thanks to Andrea's brilliance, of getting the most out of our students - some of these students have then gone on to study German at university.

Danke schön Andrea and we wish you all the very best for the future!

PERFORMING ARTS

By Mrs Hollindale and the Team

We have had yet another busy term in Performing Arts, across Drama, Dance and Music. Even more extra curricular activities, trips and workshops have been running and allowing students to access activities beyond the curriculum. In total this year, the Performing Arts Faculty has run 39 trips, workshops and events!

Dance

The Dance Department have had another great term, getting to go on more trips and taking part in more workshops. In May, Year 10 dancers performed in their first showcase for friends and family in Music 2. It was a chance to show the work they have done in and out of the classroom. In June, dancers from KS3 Dance Club and Year 10 GCSE group got to take part in another Juka Dance workshop, courtesy of Friends of Cherwell. These same dancers then were lucky enough to watch English Youth Ballet perform Swan Lake at The New Theatre in Oxford, free of charge thanks to their kind invitation.

Drama

The Drama Department has run more practical exams, this time for Year 10 and 12. In May, students in KS3 Drama Club, along with KS3 Dance Club, performed A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The North Wall Theatre in a really fantastic show. They also performed different fairy-tale inspired pieces for the sold-out audience.

PERFORMING ARTS

By Mrs Hollindale and the team

Music

The Music Department ran a further number of trips this term for Music students throughout Year 913 alongside practical examinations. In May, Year 12 and 13 students were fortunate to hear Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique performed at The Royal Festival Hall in London. The following week, students in Year 10 and students taking GCSE Music next year, went to Birmingham Symphony Hall to see The Music From The Lord Of The Rings performed, which included music from different films for students to see live. Sitting in the choir of the hall, we had prime seats to view the orchestra at close range which students found really exciting.

We were also delighted to welcome one of our singing teachers, Nikki Wallis, to run a vocal workshop with students in KS3 to see what it would be like to have singing lessons with her and learn new singing techniques. The last week of term saw an amazing Samba workshop for students in Year 9 -12 who then performed at our final concert

We finished the year with our biggest and final Performing Arts event, A Journey Through Stage and Screen, on 13th July in North Site Hall. Students from across the school and the various Performing Arts Departments came together to put on a fabulous evening of music, dance and drama from the stage and screen, with an outside barbecue. Thank you to all our students, extended team of peripatetic staff and workshop leaders. Have a great Summer.

Journey Through Stage and Screen

Photography by Mr Coatsworth

VENTURE AWARD LEVEL 1

VENTURE AWARD LEVEL 2

Year 7 headed off to Hill End in April.

Year 8 headed off to Youlbury in April

BRONZE QUALIFYING JULY 2023

Year 9 - Started at Long Hanborough and camped at Hill End and back again. July 2023

GOLD QUALIFYING JULY 2023

Year 12. Peak District. 10-14 July

By Ms Overbeck

SILVER PRACTICE FOR GERMAN EXCHANGE 2023

Year 10 - Ross on Wye

March and June

DofE BRONZE & SILVER CERTIFICATES MAY 2023 - MINI CELEBRATION

YEAR 7 NEWS

By Mr Massiah & Mrs Blake

Year 7 have had a momentous first year at Cherwell. One thing that reminded us of this was our recent Transition Day, when the school opened its doors to incoming Year 6s for a day. When we saw the Year 6s, we immediately remembered when Year 7s came to school on Transition Day and felt immense pride at how much they have settled in, matured and developed as fully-fledged Cherwellians over the past year. They are going from strength to strength and we are excited to see their continued development in Year 8.

Year 7 are a distinctly active year group, with many sports and activities being self-organised at break and lunch time and high levels of participation in sports clubs, so enjoying Sports Day will be particularly pleasing for them! Many of them have been creatively making banners that they will display with pride to support their teams on the day! We are also looking forward to our end of year celebration assembly, when we will reflect on Year 7's journey so far. Particularly remarkable milestones include: the Winter Festival, the Science Fair, the Venture Award Trip, tree planting, Year 7 Reward Day, the Shakespeare Living Library and their many sporting achievements to name a few. What a great year it has been for them participating in the fullness of the extra-curricular experience at the school.

As we think ahead to the Summer holidays, we want to take this opportunity to thank our wonderful Year 7 tutors, teachers and all staff who work so closely with our Year 7s to help them make progress in their lessons and give support where needed. We also wish you, parents and carers, a fantastic Summer.

With warm wishes

Kerry Massiah, Head of Year 7 Amanda Blake, Deputy Head of Year 7

YEAR 8 NEWS

By Mr Madden & Mrs Goble

This term has been a busy one for our students in Year 8! We are preparing for the move to Year 9, and have been working towards stepping up to the next year at school.

In Year 9, students will start their GCSEs (they start their Citizenship GCSE, which they take in Year 10) and much of their classwork will be geared towards GCSE style questions or topics. To help Year 8's think about next steps, our onsite Careers Advisor - Jason Davis organised a Year 8 Careers Human Library which took place in June. This was a fantastic event and the students had a chance to ask some brilliant questions to the 30 or so professionals who came in to speak to them. Students really benefited from speaking to adults in the world of work and conducted themselves with real maturity and gratitude. In addition, students also had the opportunity to sit through a live STEM show which gave them an insight towards working in Space and the Royal Navy. Again, students really enjoyed this experience and asked some very insightful questions regarding the topics involved. Continued overleaf…/

A huge highlight for us this year has been The Venture Award, which 60 students are on their way to complete. We had a great (and very sunny) trip to Youlbury where the students learned all kinds of new skills and made new friends. They are continuing to complete their booklets and many look forward to moving to the Duke of Edinburgh Award next year.

Students have also enjoyed our end of Year Rewards Trip to Jump in Bicester. This was a chance for Year 8 to celebrate all of their hard work this year. A great time was had by all the students who attended. We wish you all a happy Summer holiday and we look forward to seeing our students return to Year 9 in September with continued positive attitude and work ethic.

YEAR 9 NEWS

By Mr Hopkins and Miss Evans

Thank you for such a brilliant start to the Summer term and the transition to North Site. This has been an incredibly busy time with lots of change and adjustment. Well done to you all.

On the topic of change, I must also thank Mr Jarvis for his efforts with temporarily leading Year 9 with the wonderful support from Miss Evans and the Tutor Team. I know the students have really taken to Mr Jarvis and this feeling is most definitely reciprocated.

The transition to North Site has been very successful with students quickly learning their new routes to lessons, free time spaces and meeting key colleagues who support them each day. I have really enjoyed the sense of community which is established through the roll call routines each morning on the tennis courts. I must also recognise the fantastic effort shown by the students each morning with their excellent punctuality, attendance and assertiveness to the morning notices.

We are taking daily steps to support the students in preparation for the next two years as they start their GCSE courses. I know they are eager to find out which courses they have been assigned with, this information being shared with you towards the end of term. We pride ourselves on the small things, the 1% changes which enable sustainable progress and excellent outcomes. This of course is aligned to their academic outcomes as well as their skills to communicate, work with others, demonstrate manners and politeness and keep themselves and each other safe.

I would like to say a massive well done to the Boys Football Team, who were winners of The RLT Summer Cup. We loved celebrating their success, with the trophy being presented by Mr Wallington in a recent assembly. I know that this cohort has a huge talent pool in sports, the arts, creative writing and so much more. I cannot wait to capture and celebrate these things over the next two years.

As I am writing this, our Safer Schools Officer PC Lee-Anne Berry has kindly offered to deliver a presentation to the students on Online Safety. From experience with working with KS4 students, their online safety is of great importance for their wellbeing and success in school. Thank you again to LeeAnne for delivering her presentation at such short notice.

Looking ahead, we have a nice finish to the term with the Thorpe Park trip and the best day in the school calendar Sports Day!!!

Overall, we are extremely pleased with how well Year 9 are doing across all aspects of school life. I continue to feel a real sense of pride and privilege to be able to see their development as we approach the final stages of the academic year. We wish you a very happy Summer break and look forward to the final push at the end of the year.

Ms

Mr Hopkins Head of Year 9 (Term 6)

Evans - Deputy Head of Year 9

Mr Madden - Head of Year 8 & Mrs Goble - Deputy Head of Year 8

YEAR 10 NEWS

By Miss Bristow, Mrs Kidd and Mrs Fox

We are at the end of Year 10. The past term has felt particularly busy and students have achieved real success in lessons and outside of lessons.

Citizenship GCSE

Since Easter, students have completed their first GCSE after sitting their Citizenship Exam. They conducted themselves in a mature and responsible manner. It was clear how motivated and enthusiastic they were to do well and achieve the best of their ability as they all sat and tested each other with their revision cards.

Mock Interviews

Further into the term the students took in their Mock Interviews. Employers from all over the county were blown away by their attitude and engagement in their learning, employers said:“He was fully aware of his strengths and weaknesses” and “They did well with their answers and improved throughout the interview. ties and blazers in hand. They spoke with confidence and eloquence and presented themselves wonderfully. Well done Year 10, you have made us all very proud.

Mock Exams

The year group have continued with momentum and they have ended the term by practising exam skills and techniques in their end of year exams. Their ability to be organised with their equipment, seating plans and revision improved as the week went on. I think the practice and exposure to exams has given them the time to reflect on their revision techniques and how confident they felt coming out of their exams. It is important to learn the ability to organise all you need, to be successful in the exam and to practise efficient time management in order to provide the opportunity to answer every question.

Well done to all of Year 10. We hope you have a well deserved rest over the Summer so that you can return ready for your final year as Year 11s!

Have a wonderful Summer, be good, be safe and be careful.

Ms Bristow, Head of Year 10

Mrs Kidd and Mrs Fox, Deputy Heads of Year 10

YEAR 11 NEWS

By Mr Hopkins, Ms Wells & Miss Devine

We have made it to the end!!!

Firstly, I must start with a huge well done for reaching the end of the exams season. A time which you will remember for the rest of your lives and hopefully one fuelled with warmth and positivity for the incredible efforts which you put into the exam period.

Last term you guys came together as one tight knit group and pulled each other through the challenges and hurdles associated with exam season. We were so impressed with your resilience, your determination, your work ethic and your ability to maintain a smile and positive attitude despite the immense pressure you were under.

I must also use this time to recognise the huge team behind making the Summer term a huge success. The Tutor Team, Ms Wells and Miss Devine, Mr Davies and Mr Hilton. The Exams Team and invigilators and of course your subject teachers, who prepared you so well for the big day. The Admin Team also did such a great job in preparing the Summer revision timetables which helped shape the work we were doing in school.

To our parents and carers who helped to get you through the door despite illness, fatigue and so much more we also say, thank you, to you.

Whilst the end of the year brings around many celebrations, it is also important to reflect on this being a farewell and goodbye for some students at Cherwell. I know I speak on behalf of the whole school in saying we wish you the very best of luck in your future endeavours. Please come and see us again and tell us about the next chapter of your new journey.

The celebration assemblies and evening were wonderful events. Clement did a sterling job in hosting the assembly and I know the students were so grateful for the brilliant show he put on. I will never forget the phrase ‘hand clap’ for the rest of my days.

The celebration evening was again a night which I will never forget. To see you all dressed up so beautifully and having a brilliant time with each other is a very special moment for all staff involved. We were all blown away by the kind messages on the night as well as the thank you cards, emails and calls which are still coming in today. The prom committee must also get a special mention for raising a huge pot of money to use towards a magician (who was incredible), the pic n mix stand, photo booth, decorations and our resident DJ Platinum who really did get the party started.

We are so proud of you all and we do genuinely wish you all the very best for the future.

Mr Hopkins, Head of Year 11

Ms Wells and Ms Devine Deputy Heads of Year 11

YEAR 12 NEWS

By Ms Kelbrick & Mrs Fisher

The Year 12s have been amazing this term. They approached their end of year assessments with the focus and maturity they are known for, and we’ve been talking to them about how to receive effective feedback when they get their tests back over the next few weeks.

Just before the study leave period, we were lucky enough to get a session with our At the Bus partners. It was a morning focussed on creativity and wellbeing and some beautiful bags were made.

Students spent their first morning back after study leave reflecting on the assessment period experience, then we focused on looking ahead to post A level goals. Students chose from a carousel of activities, including workshops and alumni drop-ins to share experiences, give advice and shape thoughts on apprenticeships, creative courses and university. In the afternoon, as a reward for all their hard work, they had an ice cream from the ice cream van and they spent time relaxing with friends. Students brought picnics and we provided games like giant Jenga as well as setting up basketball and football games, (photos below). It was lovely to see them so happy, despite the rain.

We have talked about the importance of maintaining momentum during the last few weeks of term as we get a start on Year 13 work and how important it is to then relax and recharge during the Summer. They’ve done themselves proud this year and I look forward to seeing what they achieve next year.

Ms Kelbrick Head of Year 12 Mrs Fisher Deputy Head of Year 12

CHERWELL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Another brilliant year for Cherwell PE!

In Key Stage 3 PE lessons, the curriculum we refined last year has gone from strength to strength! Subject experts have forensically curated schemes of work to allow all students to develop competence and become strong performers in a range of skills, and we have invited in, subject experts from Badminton England, Oxford Hoops, and Oxford Harlequins Rugby to be a part of this curation which will allow us to provide cutting edge teaching in line with developments in the sports. We bridged our core provision across KS3 and KS4 to streamline the provision of activities over 5 years. This change has allowed students to study each topic in depth for half termly blocks of time, allows us to make effective use of our facilities and equipment, and gives students joining North Site new activities to learn. We have also welcomed the opportunity to model our good practice to other schools in the RLT.

Our GCSE and A-level classes continued to make us proud with their work ethic, commitment to the subject, and absolute excellence. On moderation days, both at The Headington School, the standards exhibited by Cherwell students were of the highest standard and they performed well above the level of their peers. Mostly though, the approach and confidence they felt walking in and out of their exams was something that filled Miss Cox, Mr Jarvis, Miss Woodcock and myself with the utmost pride. We await their results in August with genuine anticipation of grades that they will be very happy with.

Extra-curricular sport has thrived and we welcomed back the Sports Awards Evening, which is detailed in the next page.

I would like to publicly state my thanks and gratitude to the PE team for their continued excellence and absolute commitment to doing their very best for our students. I am privileged to work with such a team. As you scroll through the PE pages here you will read some of the opportunities that have been provided by our brilliant team and their dedication. A little glimpse into the department for you After every single fixture throughout the year the staff member who took it, texts the result to the Department’s WhatsApp. Every single time there are replies of support and celebration from everyone for every fixture. It really is lovely and indicative of a group of people who are passionate about what they do.

I would also like to thank the many parents I have been in touch with this year regarding PE. I love discussing all things PE with you and welcome you to get in touch with me whenever you would like to. My final thanks go to our supporting coaches, staff members, students and parents who have helped us provide clubs and classes this year. Thank you so much.

Please enjoy reading the rest of the PE pages, there are some developments for next year to share and some great pictures too. Please do get in touch with me if you have anything to discuss. I hope you all have a great Summer.

Ben Wallington, Head of Physical Education Faculty.

Our new club shop for extra-curricular teams and sports

All available for purchase now at: https://www.kitlocker.com/education/school/cherwell -school

The link can be found in all your Google Class-

CHERWELL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

The Sports Awards Evening was a truly special evening at school. This amazing school has a long history of celebrating our wonderful students and this event is an evening that shines a spotlight on our incredible young sports stars and gives them the recognition they deserve.

This year we competed in over 160 fixtures across Football, Netball, Rounders, Basketball, Athletics, Cross Country, Cricket and Tennis.

We won 88% of games played across all sports, and dominated Netball leagues across Oxford, and the County Cup competitions in football. On the national stage we competed up to QF stages in football, with our Year 7 Boys team getting to the English School national semi-final, losing narrowly to the eventual champions.

Some sample pictures from the event are below, alongside some recognition for students who have competed at national and international level in their sport.

CHERWELL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

CHERWELL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

CHERWELL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Athletics - In Athletics we have attended three competitions over the last term.

The first was the City Schools, where we took 30 students ranging from Year 8 to Year 10. Overall the Year 10 girls team came 4th out of 6 schools, with notable performances including Jonia coming 1st in the Triple Jump, Rebecca coming 1st in the Long Jump and 200m and Ruby coming 1st in the High Jump.

For the Year 8 and 9 team the girls came 6th out of 10 schools, with notable performances from Eve W and Paula coming 2nd in the Discus and the Javelin. The Year 8 and 9 boys team came 5th out of 8 schools, with a notable performance from Thomas P coming 2nd in the 300m.

In total we had 6 students who came 1st or 2nd in their event. This led to them being selected to represent the city at the County Schools Championships.

The second fixture we attended was the English Schools Track and Field Cup. In this event there was a maximum of 12 students per team from both Year 7 and 8 and they were only allowed to compete in two events. Overall the girls finished in 4th place, while the boys finished in 3rd place. Notable performances include Georgia C earning 33 points for the team in the 200m and High Jump. Meanwhile, Taylun earned 38 points in the 800m and the Relay.

The final athletics events to occur this term have been the Year 7 and 8 City Quadkids Championships. In both events the students worked hard to complete in the 4 events of 100m, 800, Long Jump and Vortex Throw. All 4 teams won overall in the city, beating teams from TOA, Greyfriers, Lord Williams and Rye St Antony.

By Ms Woodcock

Rounders

Warm sunny days can only mean one thing - a great game of rounders! Our Year 8s took advantage of just that and have been training each week to develop their skills and tactical awareness of this great game. Both girls and boys have been participating and have been hugely successful with wins against Rye St Antony, Oxford Spires Academy and The Oxford Academy, meaning that we are officially undefeated this year!

We are going to explore further avenues with this team in a national competition next year so will hopefully continue to go from strength to strength. I'm really proud of their development and commitment to training and competitions and look forward to being part of their progress next year.

By Mrs Green.