Issue 622 - 16th March 2018
Onatti Production
Page 8
Art Visit Page 5
Norwegian Visit Page 8
BBC News Report Page 6
www.honywoodschool.com | Tel : 01376 561231
Headlines By Acting Head Jo Hickford
Each New Year begins with a flurry of good intentions and new gym memberships. Maintaining these good intentions through gloomy weather and long winter days when Spring is still to show itself does, however, present a challenge. Thinking back to resolutions that you may personally have made, some are likely to have been practical in nature, hence progress and success is relatively easy to measure. Other commitments made may well have taken the form of guidance or advice that you intended to follow. Perhaps you have assured yourself that you are going to approach certain situations differently, to push yourself out of your comfort zone, to face a challenge, to be a better version of yourself…. Judgements on how well you may have acted on these intentions are less tangible, but lead me to consider Why do we do the things we do? What is it that drives our behaviours? And importantly, how can we sustain motivation and momentum behind our good intentions? The reasons for learning are endless but the secret to success is rooted in the science of motivation. Motivation is not a very tangible concept, and this intangibility may account for why the concept is perceived in many different ways. Extrinsic motivation occurs when we are motivated to perform a behaviour or engage in an activity to earn a reward or avoid punishment. A traditional and widely-held view would be that studying to achieve a good grade would therefore be extrinsically motivated, with behaviour motivated by a desire to gain a reward or avoid an adverse outcome. Intrinsic motivation, however, involves engaging in a behaviour because it is personally rewarding; essentially valuing the purpose for its own sake rather than the desire for some external reward. There is a substantial and growing body of research supporting the view that extrinsic rewards have an adverse effect on intrinsic motivation, countering the belief that rewards and punishments are the most efficient way to motivate. When the thinking is towards focusing on the reward rather than the task, the effort therefore becomes de-valued. “Do this and you’ll get that” makes people focus on the “that,” not the “this” (1). Studies have supported this, demonstrating that offering excessive external rewards for an already internally rewarding behaviour can lead to a reduction in intrinsic motivation, a phenomenon known as the overjustification effect . The person being rewarded will most likely focus exclusively on the elements of the task being rewarded, and this also runs the risk of undermining incidental learning. When someone is offered an incentive, it not only changes the way the person solves the task, but it also changes their whole approach; people that are incentivised tend to choose easier tasks and become result-fixated. It makes sense that this might happen; when the focus is on reward attainment first and foremost, tasks are preferred that are simple and predictable, as this will reduce the risk that the reward might not be achieved. The underlying assumption of this idea is that we only work in order to obtain rewards. Most will probably agree that this is an oversimplification of human nature and that reasons for exerting an effort go beyond simply being awarded. In practice, of course, people tend to have a variety of reasons, both intrinsic and extrinsic, for why they want to learn, and different aspects motivate them at different times. For Cohort 10, motivation has come from the realisation that mock exams will begin immediately after the Easter break. For other youngsters, discussions with former learners at our Pathways event this week prompted thinking about possible opportunities that may never previously have been considered. Within our choice model pedagogy and dual-focused curriculum, the development of intrinsic motivation therefore is pivotal: the desire to do something because it matters, because it’s interesting and because it’s part of something important.
We know that the stereotypical characteristics of teenage behaviour are reflections of an important stage of brain development. A better insight into the turbulent times through which teenagers are navigating creates also a better understanding of how natural changes in the physiology of our brains impact on behaviour. Add that to the pressure, be it perceived or real, of being judged by peers and of needing to fit in, with social-media sites designed to appeal to young people’s desire to share information about themselves and to be evaluated by others, and motivation can indeed often seem an elusive concept. All of which gives even more weight behind the framework of ‘Where was I? Where am I? and Where could I be?’ as being critical in generating authentic motivation. Using this reflection tool in your everyday thinking, in your approach to study and in your development and growth of attributes focuses on your own personal goals and your own personal motivation to reach them. (1) Kohn, Alfie (1999). Punished by Rewards: the trouble with gold stars, incentive plans, A’s, praise, and other bribes To read the article ‘What’s Going on inside the Teenage Brain’ by Sarah-Jayne Blackmore. For the full report please click here Thanks To Shannon Grealis (10OCi), Rhiannon Ellis (10KHo), Maryann Cooke (10NPo), Connie Sarti (10HTr), Lizzie Grinter (10MRa), Georgia Meyer-Hek (10OCi), Cameron Newton (10OCi), Imogen Pearey (10HBr), Emmanuel Kemble (10MGr), James Smith (10MRa) and Lily Vickers (10MWo) for supporting Norwegian visits this week. To Cameron Poulter (8CRs), Emma Hornsby (8PBl), Evie Higgon (8PBl), Emily Pyatt (8KAr), Gabrielle Assuman (8PBl), Pacey Wells (8PBl), Hannah Read (KAr), Joe Partridge (8DCa), Luke Evans (8AIs), Summer Garvey (8AIs), Sienna Gray (8APr), Joseph Morris (8KAr), Jack Newnham (8KAr), Evie Snowling (8AIs) and Niels Wright (8EPe) who have supported our Norweigian visitors tours this week. To Basant Sherif (7 RPh), Holly North (7 RFl), Harlie Turp (7 DPe), Charlotte Warwick (7 AGi), Marcia Swain (7 DPe), Florence Every (8EPe), Zac Steel (8KGu), Luke Evans (8AIs), Emma Hornsby (8 PBl), William Brassington (10 HBr), Olivia Hodgetts (10 MWo), Amy Heaton (10 HBr) and James Baker (10 KHo) from C7, C8 and C10 for their energy given to interviewing, filming and editing for the BBC School News Report. To Megan Hewitt (9CHa), Toby Hughes (9SLo), Harry Jones (9KCo) and Evie Plumridge (9KBr), for
representing the school in the Coggeshall Community Youth Project.
To Rhiannon Ellis (10KHo), Maryann Cooke (10NPo), Connie Sarti (10HTr), Elizabeth Grinter (10MRa), Imogen Pearey (10HBr), Emmanuel Kemble (10MGr), James Smith (10MRa) and Jorja Scles (10HBr) for doing an excellent job greeting and supporting parents and families that attended Guided Choices Evening on Wednesday.
Parents’ Time Members of the Leadership Team will be available to see parents without appointment: Monday 9.00am—9.45am Tuesday 7.15am—8.00am Wednesday 3.00pm—3.45pm Thursday 5.00pm—6.00pm Friday 7.15am—8.00am
Celebration of Learning Each month, learners who have gone above and beyond in their commitment to learning in and out of school are recognised through the Celebration of Learning Awards. Nominations can be made for circumstances where learners have demonstrated commitment to learning beyond expectation, exceptional progress in the development of one or more of their My Learning Attributes, represented the school or an outside organisation in a regional or national event, or completed a challenge. Each learner who is nominated for an award will be invited to the Celebration of Learning Evening, where they will be able to showcase the work they have been nominated for in the presence of friends and family. Our next evening is on Tuesday 10th July. Nominations are made by any member of staff in the school and learners can also nominate themselves or their peers through their Learning Group Leader. Congratulations to the learners who have received a Celebration of Learning award in February. Charlotte Baker
7AGI
Madison Willson
9TGI
Harry Freeman
7CTH
Jake Wood
9SLO
Erin Kinsella
7CTH
Maryann Cooke
10NPO
Basant Sherif
7RPH
Jess Elmer
10ATO
Harlie Turp
7DPE
Tierney Faraway
10MGR
Issie Brewer
8DCA
James Goodchild
10HTR
Luke Evans
8AIS
Sarah Allars
11AMI
Emily Hasler
8CRS
Maisie Cox
11DBR
8KGU
Billy Seager
11CGA
Lewis Tracey
9KBR
Samuel Washbrook
11CFR
Kareena Williamson
9JWI
Hannah Pyatt
Feel Good Fair On Sunday 11th March saw the return of The Feel Good Fair on a drizzly Mothering Sunday. It was great to see even more Honywood families and staff visiting the event with a focus on Cosmetics. We had pampering sessions available, talks on natural and cruelty free cosmetics, and henna as well as the usual Ethical Market and street food. This month we raised ÂŁ357 for Spirit of Honywood, the PTA that is working hard to raise vital funds for the school to provide better learning experiences for our youngsters. The next Fair will take place on April 15th with a focus on "make do and mend" and plans are already in place for bicycle maintainance, textile repair, and household DIY fixes. Check out the Fair's Facebook page for more information and general inspiration for green living.
Jack Petchey Peony Lawrence 11CHo has been involved with Explorers for the last 10 years. In the latest expedition she undertook a 2 day kayak trip down the Ardeche river in France, followed by 4 days in Italy taking part in lots of different challenging activities such as white water rafting and swimming under waterfalls. This took Peony completely out of her comfort zone and was a massive challenge both physically and mentally. Peony has signed up for the next expedition which will take her to Hong Kong and Australia for 3 weeks over the 2018/2019 new year. She will to have to fund raise ÂŁ3000 to cover the cost of her trip.
Art Visit to London Cohort 9 Explore Architecture and Art in London: Cohort 9 are about to commence their second coursework unit entitled ‘Structural’. This unit has an architectural focus and references contemporary artists and approaches, to influence the work that learners will be making. In order to gather a wide range of resources for this work they were in London to visit Tate Modern and St Pauls Cathedral. This is a fabulous opportunity for learners to collect visual information, not only from an extensive range of contemporary artists but also from a huge variety of architectural styles, from the classical stonework of the cathedral to the modern steel work of the turbine hall.
BBC News School Report
What a fantastic day! The question we have been exploring is "Is it ever to early to start thinking about your career?" Learners have had the opportunity to interview a range of professionals to try and get one step closer to answering this question that so many young people struggle to prepare themselves for when they leave secondary school. With the help of staff at Honywood and guests to the school (magazine editor and BBC Early Breakfast presenter), learners have been able to hear first hand how different people have entered the professional world. Exploring whether your dream job at 16 is the profession you end up with when you enter the working world is something that they were intrigued to find out.
Easter C11 Subject Support Days /Sessions Easter Cohort 11 Subject Support Days/Sessions Day Subject Time Room
Monday 2nd April Easter Monday
Tuesday 3rd April
Subject Time Room
Monday 9th April
Thursday 5th April
Friday 6th April
Media Studies 10am-12pmAll learners welcome. MS1- LSt/AGi
Media Studies Coursework 10am-12pm Invitation Only MS1 LSt/AGi
ESSEX RINGERS USING ALL GROUND FLOOR ROOMS, MAIN HALL AND TOILETS IN PE, DRAMA, VISITORS.
ESSEX RINGERS USING ALL GROUND FLOOR ROOMS, MAIN HALL AND TOILETS IN PE, DRAMA, VISITORS.
Maths9am-12pm Foundation MA4 TGr NPo Higher MA1 NRa SHa
German 10am-12.30pm All Welcome ML2 SAr
Chemistry- Paper 1 9am -12.00pm All Welcome SC4 CGa
Chemistry-Paper 2 9am -12.00pm All Welcome SC4 CGa
French 10am-12.30pm All Welcome ML4 PBl
Biology Paper 1 12.30pm - 3pm All Welcome SC4 SCa
Computer Science 12.30-3pm All Welcome CS1 MWh
Media Studies 12pm-2pmAccessing A/A* MS1- LSt/AGi
Day
Wednesday 4th April
Tuesday 10th April
Physics Paper 1 9am-12pm All Welcome SC3 TGi
Biology Paper 2 9am -12pm All Welcome SC6 KGu
Geography Paper 3 All Welcome 11am -12.30pm HU4 KBr
History 9am-12pm Invitation Only HU2 MWo
GCSE PE 12pm-3pm All Welcome EN1 FJo/LBo
Philosophy and Ethics 12.30pm-3pm Invitation Only HU2 MWo
Food Technology & RM 9am-12pm Invitation Only TE1 TE2 TE6 SLo/CHo
Wednesday 11th April Geography Paper 1&2 All Welcome 9am-12pm HU4 KBr
Thursday 12th April Physics Paper 2 9am-12pm SC5 CHa English Language 9am-12pm All Welcome EN1, EN2, EN3 CPe HGo VSp JHa KCo
Friday 13th April Music Listening Paper 9am - 12pm All Welcome MU2 RPh English Literature 9am-12pm All Welcome EN1, EN2, EN3 AMc JHa CPe CRs ECa HBy
Subject Teams on Twitter
Follow our Subject Teams on Twitter to see Learning in Action
Onatti Productions Fabulous morning on Wednesday 14th March for Cohort 7 as they watched a French play performed by Onatti Productions. An interactive performance encouraging the youngsters to explore basic French vocabulary and to take part in the performance! A wonderful way to engage youngsters in language.
Norwegian Visit This week, we hosted two visits for 17 school leaders from 5 different school in Oslo, Norway. On Monday we were visited by 3 Headteachers, 3 Deputy Headteachers and 5 Assistant Headteachers from Skøyenåsen School, Bøler School and Skullerud School. The focus of their visit was around three topics, which were, depth of learning, digital resources and learner outcome, and evaluation and follow-up of learner progress and outcome. They had an opportunity to discuss the vision and ethos of our school and how this is implemented with Simon Mason. They also spent time talking to a variety of staff and learners about learning, curriculum and use of technology. In addition to this, they observed a range of learning sessions to experience learning in action, these tours were confidently led by some of our Cohort 8 learners. They were really impressed with everything they saw and found their visit incredibly useful and inspiring. On Friday, we hosted a second visit for 6 school leaders from two schools, Lindeberg and Ellingsrud also in Oslo, Norway. Their focus was very similar, they spent the morning immersed in learning sessions, expertly guided by some of our Cohort 8 learners and also had the opportunity to speak with learners and staff. After lunch, they spent time with Simon Mason discussing how we invest in our staff and develop them to be the best practitioners they can be. Again, they were really impressed with what they experienced during the day. We always welcome the opportunity to showcase our school and share our vision for learning. The feedback we receive from these types of visits is always extremely positive and reaffirms to us that we are delivering a learning curriculum which enables our learners to be happy and successful now and in their lives ahead. Jo Brook Deputy Headteacher
Honywood School Presents
On
Tuesday 20th March Tickets on Sale DR1 at Breaktime and Lunchtime only. Adults £ 4.00 Children £2.50 Doors Open at 6.30pm for 7.00pm Start
My Learning Choices Enterprise & Solutions
MLCs this week are available to C7 learners that would like to develop their understanding of ‘what a business is’ and ‘what a franchise is’, following their first few sessions of Season 5. Sessions will also be available for C8s that would like to explore key leadership and management strategies, as well as different motivation theories.
Business Studies
Important Dates 19th - 23rd March Quintet Week 3 20th March - Spring Expressive Arts Show 27th March - Ambassadors Assembly 29th - March Last day of Term finishing 3.20pm 2nd - 13th April Easter Holiday We will confirm alterative dates for World Book Day and Non Uniform Day
MLCs this week will be focused on the ‘Business in the Real World’ for the C9s, focusing on revision techniques before the end of unit assessment. Sessions will also be available for C10s who would like to revise specific aspects of the course, as they continue preparing for their mock exams.
English
Please spend some time reviewing your most recent learning points in English. What is it you need to do to improve? Do you know how to move forward with your learning? We have many members of the English team available for you to book an MLC appointment with. Your 1:1 or small group MLC session could be focused on improving an aspect of your writing or tackling a particular question on the GCSE language papers. It might be that you’re finding poetry tricky or the study of a particular text is causing you concern. Whatever it is, don’t hesitate to book an MLC today.
Colchester United Football in the Community are holding a Sleep Out event at the Weston Homes Community Stadium on Friday 23rd March starting at 7:30pm and running all the way through to the following morning, finishing on Saturday 24th March at 8:00am. The event is fundraising for two fantastic causes. Firstly, Colchester United Football in the Community are excited to announce we are launching our new Disability Sports Programme in April 2018 which half of the fundraised amount will be put towards. Secondly, our partner in the event, Colchester Rough Sleepers Group who already do some fantastic work within Colchester supporting Homelessness. Colchester Rough Sleepers Group are raising funds to support the renovation of their new and exciting bus which will travel round local communities to offer the homeless somewhere warm to sleep. If you wish to get involved please see below the link to the tickets with further information to be found. h t t p s : // w w w . e v e n t b r i t e . co.uk/e/sleep-out-2018-tickets43548266036?aff=es2
MFL
Modern Languages MLCs are available to all Cohorts for French, German and Spanish. Following World Book Day, why not book an MFL MLC to practise your reading skills in a foreign language?
Well Done to our Cohort 8 Duty Receptionists Daniel Dance Zac Steel Aiden Bailey Lauren Baker Isabella Dubbini Keelan Ellis
Family Learning Team
email FLT@honywoodschool.com If your youngster is absent please email attendance@honywoodschool.com