Honywood Gazette - 21st July 2017

Issue 597 - 21st July 2017

Celebration of Learning Page 5

Afternoon Tea Page 7

End of Term Picnic Page 4

Cohort 7 Recognition Celebration www.honywoodschool.com | Tel : 01376 561231 | Fax: 01376 563067 Page 6

Headlines

By Simon Mason

Celebration of Learning Evening Last week we held our third in a new style of evenings to celebrate the learning successes our youngsters have enjoyed this year. We took the decision over a year ago to move away from evenings where, during a ceremony, learners were awarded a certificate, to evenings where learners present themselves to our community, talking about the learning in which they have engaged which has led to them gaining an award.

In the three evenings we’ve held this year, a number of learners have brought along examples of the learning outcomes they have demonstrated in their subject sessions and talked to our audience about the ways in which they have secured those outcomes.

Others have performed outcomes on the evening; last week we saw some fantastic dance, watched our mock magistrate’s team hold a simulated court case and were entertained to a show of football skills by our brilliant Cohort 10 Boys team.

Every learner is capable of winning a celebration award. By attending on the evening, you not only gain the positive feelings of our community as they engage with you about your success, you also practise a key life skill – being able to present your learning to an audience, something we all have to do when, for example, trying to secure employment.

Can I congratulate every learner who has been invited to one of our evenings this year and encourage those of you who’ve not had that honour to try even harder next year to be part of this fantastic celebration of learning at Honywood.

Start of Term Arrangements Can I remind everyone that the new school year begins on Monday September 4th. To help our new Cohort 7 learners settle in, all other learners will not be required at school until 10.40 am.

Buses will be organised to arrive at school by that time. Families will need to arrange to bring Cohort 7 learners to school on their first day, arriving at 8:45am. Cohort 7 learners will return home using school buses (where this is appropriate) and will have their first journey to school by bus on September 5th. Can I remind families of youngsters in our new

Cohort 7 that we’d like you to provide a packed lunch on Monday 4th, as during the day we’ll be ensuring youngsters’ catering cards are set up ready to be used for the first time on Tuesday 5th.

In Gazette 595 I set out clearly our expectations for our dress code. Can I remind everyone that when we return in September jumpers will once again be a requirement of our dress code, so do make sure that you have yours ready.

Sponsored Walk 2017 As mentioned in last week’s Gazette, our next sponsored walk to Marks Hall will take place on Wednesday September 20th.

Could I encourage every learner to try their hardest to raise sponsorship, starting during the summer break, to ensure you have the best possible chance of helping our Learner Leadership Team to make another real impact at the school; sponsorship forms were distributed during Learning Session 3 last week and another copy has been inserted in Gazette today. We have set up Parent Pay to accept donations from families. To send us your sponsor money in this way simply log on to Parent Pay in the usual way and you’ll find, under the ‘pay for other items’ list, ‘sponsored walk 2017’ please use this heading for your donation. Please then annotate your sponsor form to indicate that you have “donated on parent pay” for any amounts paid in this way.

Thanks To Becky Clark (9DGu), Ethan Craddock (9HBr), Esme Davis (9DSc), Megan Evans (9KHo), Joe Gafney (9EFo), Jack Greenaway (9MMe), Max Handley (9ATo), Alfie Holland (9HBr), Alana Kettle (9HBr), Alex Lewis (9HTr), Alex Mansfield (9HBr), Karta Morley (9KHo), Lily Owen (9ATo), Ivy Pearmain (9ATo), Tom Powell (9MWo), Adam Read (9HTr), Sam Riches (9EFo), Esme Scott (9HBr), Jack Seadon (9MMe), Sam Stinton (9HTr), Anya Sullivan (9ATo), Ellie Trout (9HTr), Joe Watson (9ATo) and Matt White (9HTr) for their support with the recent MLA Day for Cohort 8.

To Zac Steel (7CRs) who was particularly thoughtful toward another learner recently.

To parent Karen Evans for her support with our German mock speaking exams for Cohort 10 recently.

To parent Anita Frost for her support for our Family Learning Team in recent weeks.

To Maisie Armstrong (10CFr), Thomas Awad (10CHo), Dylan Bentley (10CHo),Shannon Cartwright (10SAr), Georgia Castell (10CGa), Henry Chambers (10SAr), Bethany Clark (10DGu), Louis Clements (10CFr), Harry Coker-Shephard (10CGa), Scott Collins (10CFr), Sam Cousins (10CHo), Olivia Cowan (10MWh), Maisie Cox (10DGu), Harry Critchley (10MWh), Jack Day (10FJo), Jade Flack (10AMi), Rosie Fulford (10MWh), Josh Greene (10CGa), Olivia Harrod (10FJo), Morgan Harrod (10HBy), Megan Harris (10CGa), Rhyse Hudson (10DGu), Tavia Johnson (10CFr), Amber Jordan (10AMi), Oliver Jordan (10SAr), Karina Kilgour (10MWh), Ella King (10SAr), Jacob Higgin (10AMi), Annabelle Kitching (10CFr), Ben Lown (10AMi), Ethan McCabe (10DGu), Philippa Miller (10CGa), Emily Milner (10MWh), George Panting (10HBy),Josh Pitt (10CGa), Ella Poole (10CGa), Ben Robins (10CGa), Jack Rice (10CHo), Billy Seager (10CGa), Maria Nicola (10AMi), Poppy Skubich (10AMi), Rosie Staton (10CGa), Abbie Steele (10CHo), Megan Stevens (10MWh), Sam Washbrook (10CFr), Ethan Webster (10HBy), Amber Wheeler (10CHo) Megan Whitter (10SAr), Matthew Wooldridge (10CFr), Hannah Wright (10CFr) and Charlie York (10CFr) for their support for our Cohort 5 Taster Days recently.

To George Panting 10 (HBy) for handing in a lost phone.

To Toby Hughes 8SLo and Yazmin KnoxCrichton 8TGi for their support with visitors to the school this week.

To Mitcham Brand (10CGa) for his responsible actions on his journey into school earlier this week.

Mitcham found an abandoned car which appeared to have been broken into. He removed the keys and brought them into school so that we could pass them on to the police.

Congratulations To William Brassington (9HBr), Ruby Cosford (8KCo), Oscar Crofts (8KCo), Connor Garrett (9MGr), Max Handley (9ATo), Matilda Hartman (8TGr), Louis Kendle (9ATo),

Dominic Larner (9MGr), Molly Watts (9MGr) and Samuel York (9MGr) all of whom have been supporting elderly members of our community through a project with Abbeyfields Retirement Home.

To Owen Tregoning (8TGr) who has passed his City & Guilds Level 2 Food Safety Certificate; an excellent achievement which Owen succeeded at whilst supporting our catering team this year.

To Harry Rolfe (10DGu) for breaking his brothers long standing 400m record. Harry is now the new record holder with the time of 55.55 seconds - a great achievement.

To Cameron Poulter (7CRs) whose football team won their league this year!

The Summer Break Our youngsters have, once again, enjoyed an exceptional year where they have consistently tried their best to succeed in all areas of school life. The Gazette and our Facebook pages have been packed with our learners’ achievements be they in learning sessions, on school residential visits, in the sporting arena or in the arts. Following such a busy year, all our youngsters have certainly earned their summer break and I trust all of you will enjoy your break whilst remembering that a safe return in September is the first thing we must all do to guarantee success in 2017/18.

Our youngsters could not, of course, succeed as they do without the support of parents, carers and staff.

I am very grateful for the efforts staff, parents and carers bring to the education of our young people, ensuring they have the best opportunity to succeed.

My very best wishes for a pleasant summer go to you all.

Cohort 8 Liquid Nitrogen Experiment This week our Science team have been demonstrating to C8 the effects of liquid nitrogen and will be showcasing their "finale" on Friday at 9.00am Over the course of the week the youngsters have watched a demonstration

by Mr Ciaravella in their teaching groups. As part of the demonstration they have seen the effect that liquid nitrogen can have on every day substances - flowers, food, rubber and liquids. The sessions were very exciting and informative, culminating in a wonderful demonstration of how liquid nitrogen added to warm washing up liquid can result in hot/cold exploding bubbles!

Thank you to the science team for such a great way to finish the science learning this year!

Cohort 7 End of Term Picnic Cohort 7 have been model learners this year and they have all settled into Honywood extremely well. We decided, as a year group, to celebrate their success with our first annual picnic.

Learners spent their LS3 sessions leading up to this event learning all about the importance of eating a balanced diet and what food is the most nutritious for a healthy body and mind. Learners then brought their picnic in to share with their learning group. The learners pulled off some amazing (and delicious) spreads!

The fun didn't stop there. Not deterred by the rain, we engaged in learning group dodge ball! Even the learning group leaders could not help getting involved in the action.

All of the learners and staff involved with cohort 7 had a fantastic time.

We are already planning next year’s!

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 the MLA’s, represented the school or outside organisation in a regional or national event, or completed a challenge.

Each learner who is nominated for an award is invited to the Celebration of Learning Evening, where they are able to showcase the work they have been nominated for, in the presence of friends and family. There are three such events over the course of the year, and the final event for this year was held on Thursday 13th July.

More than 106 learners came along to the evening, to showcase their learning and share their journey with all of the visitors in attendance. Anyone who has attended a Celebration of Learning Evening previously will know what a fantastic event this always is; and this evening was no exception. The confidence and commitment shown by the learners as they showcased, engaging in conversation with their visitors about their experiences and being able to describe with such clarity the skills and attributes that they had developed in order to achieve success, was inspirational.

We would like to acknowledge once again the contribution made by the learners who were nominated, and congratulate them for their superb achievements. Well done!

The next Celebration of Learning Evening will take place on Thursday 18th January, and staff will be nominating learners from the beginning of September.

Cohort 7 Recognition Celebration

On Friday 14th July learners nominated for the final Cohort 7 Learner Recognition Celebration of the year gathered to receive their certificates and enjoy the provided snacks. Learners are invited to attend after they have been nominated by their Learning Group Leader for the outstanding way in which they have demonstrated characteristics of the Learning Attributes which are at the heart of the Honywood curriculum.

Learners understand and appreciate being recognised in this way and look forward to hearing whether they have been nominated and to see the attribute their Learning Group Leaders has recognised. This is not an award for which they can apply for, it is for putting into practice the attributes that are so much a part of their lives here at Honywood. Congratulations to all those learners that have been nominated this year and we look forward to seeing what you can achieve in Cohort 8.

Those nominated were: Ashtyn Newley 7KAr, Joseph Morris 7KAr, Harry Regan 7KEg, Kieran Ward 7KEg, Sommer Dowsett 7PBl, Luke Furguson 7PBl, Tallulah Skyes 7DCa, Cole Robbins 7DCa, Kaelin Dunne 7KGu, Katie Speed 7KGu, Grace Morris 7JMc, Hugh Morris 7JMc, Felix Standen 7CRs and Adam Edwards 7CRs.

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Employer Workshop Following on from work experience and to give our learners real-world connections with employers, we invited a number of employers into school from different occupational sectors on Thursday afternoon to pass on the benefits of their experience. Amongst other things, they were able to discuss their own career routes, the demands of their jobs, the skills they consider important for work, the personal qualities/abilities required, qualifications necessary, how they have dealt with with tough problems, the breadth of different careers within a sector, the level of competition in gaining access to courses or employment and so on‌ This was an inspiring afternoon and generated lots of questions from our learners! We want to give a big thank you to employers (some of whom were parents of learners at Honywood School) who willingly gave up their time for the benefit of our youngsters!

Duolingo A huge congratulations to everyone who has played Duolingo! The MFL team have been very impressed with the levels of participation. They are delighted to announce the Duolingo champions for the year: Cohort 7 Fred Frost 7PBL, Emily Hasler 7CRs Cohort 8 Anna Evans 8KBr, Guy Anderson (the longest daily streak of 241!!!) 8KBr Cohort 9 Maddie Smith 9KHo, Adam Romano- Critchley 9KHo Cohort 10 Thomas Awad 10CHo, Ella King 10 SAr Staff Mr Mason and Tayrina Ferguson (school governor).

Also highly commended awards for: Radvilas Venckus 7KAr, Roxie Orrow 8KCo, Holly King 8AMc, Charlie Wilson 8LBr, Ellie Tames 8JWi, Daniel Dowsett 8SLo, Olivia Hodgetts 9MWo, Thomas Sutton 10AMi, Lois Jones 10AMi, Mrs Downes and Mrs Brinkley.

Thank you to all for taking part, the competition will return in September so remember to keep playing!

Afternoon Tea in the 1950’s

A group of Cohort 7 youngsters have been attending a Wednesday LS5 activity in Enterprise Solutions. A few weeks ago, they presented their idea to Mr Mason and other members of the Leadership Team to hold an afternoon tea with a 1950's theme for elderly members of our community. They had researched and planned their presentation and the idea was approved. On Wednesday catering preparations started ready for the tea Thurday afternoon, as with the support of Mrs Frid Catering Manager, they began baking! We are immensely proud of the youngsters for developing the idea, presenting and staging the event.

1950

2017 Work Experience Award Employer reports on our learners were brilliant and it was difficult to choose a winner. This year the Award went to:

HARRY ROLFE FOR HIS TWO WEEKS OF WORK EXPERIENCE AT MASTERFRAME AND THEN THE WILDERNESS PROJECT

Harry demonstrated the attributes any employer would want to see of an employee. Harry: • Planned ahead and considered his options relating to his career aspirations; he had an idea what he wanted to do in the future and was determined to secure a placement linked to these aspirations.

• He demonstrated tenacity in securing placements linked to his aspirations.

• He attended every day, was punctual and reliable.

• He set himself high standards and was willing to build on his existing knowledge to improve his performance.

• He asked relevant questions and persisted, even when he found a task difficult or sometimes boring.

• He received excellent employer and teacher visit reports – the employers from both companies stated that he had “fulfilled expectations and gone beyond, he was always respectful and helpful, showed great initiative, and was reliable, confident and capable”.

• He was specifically praised for his teamwork and business awareness e.g. his ability to contribute and listen, the respect he showed for his employer and colleagues understanding the need to work towards a common goal (the company needs to make a profit!).”

• He developed his self-confidence as he learnt more and had a positive attitude throughout.

Well Done Harry – You have won £25 worth of Smiths vouchers!

Cohort 10 Creative & Cultural Festival Digital, Creative & Cultural Festival for Cohort 10 learners at Essex University Friday 14th July 2017 Digital technology is having a profound impact on our everyday lives and inspiring our youngsters to pursue subjects beyond compulsory education and into industry is key to addressing the skills gap we’re currently facing, offering a rewarding career path.

On Friday 14th July 2017, a number of Cohort 10 learners who had expressed an interest, visited Essex University for a Digital, Creative and Cultural Festival. The first interactive workshop was in the Lakeside Theatre where learners discovered how to integrate technology creatively into a performance to engage audiences and our eyes were opened to the widespread use of theatre and technology in all areas of industry.

The second workshop was an introduction to making games, where learners had the opportunity to use software to make their own games.

A third session used accessible digital technologies to explore how to get the audience on their feet and interacting with a show.

In the afternoon there was a marketplace of employers demonstrating Digital, Cultural and Creative careers and innovations and finally , everyone had the opportunity to “Walk the Plank” in a virtual reality workshop.

It was a really exciting and interesting day – definitely one not to miss if the University offer this trip next year!

End of Year Primary Summary of Taster Days This week we enjoyed our final primary event of the year, our second pair of Cohort 5 Taster Days to which we welcomed youngsters from Earls Colne, Lyons Hall, Kelvedon St Mary’s, Cressing and Oxford House. The youngsters had a fantastic time, dealing with the challenge of an Alien Invasion by conducting research in a variety of subject areas.We have had an incredibly busy year working with local primary schools and have enjoyed working with youngsters across a range of cohorts. Scott Caygill and I have enjoyed visiting a number of our feeder primary schools, to get to know some of the youngsters and to give them an experience of learning at Honywood. In some cases we have taken Cohort 10 Ambassadors to talk the Cohort 5/6 children to help prepare them for the transition they will shortly be making. So far we have engaged in this way with St Peter’s, Feering, Kelvedon St Mary’s, St Andrew’s, Copford, Earls Colne and Lyons Hall and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with our local primary schools in this way again next year. Primary Challenge clubs have continued to run on a Wednesday afternoon and we have seen over 100 Cohort 5 and 6 learners join us for lots of fun in PE, Dance, Technology, Science, Art, MFL and PE over the year. We look forward to welcoming youngsters for Primary Challenge clubs again next year. At the end of this year we had our first group of youngsters receive awards at our Celebration of Learning evening in July. Over the course of the year, we have welcomed nearly 1000 Cohort 5 youngsters for either Primary Learning Days or Taster Days throughout the year and we have thoroughly enjoyed having them with us! We look forward to many more opportunities to collaborate with our local primary community over the course of the next year.

Here are some of the lovely things the Cohort 5 children had to say about their engagement with Honywood: Primary Learning Days/Taster Days “I enjoyed seeing how you learn here and how supportive everyone is” “I loved dissecting the heart and learnt that it has a thinner side and valves in it” “I found out that learning is a lot of fun in Honywood” “I learnt that you get to take Science further and we got to make slime and dissect a heart” “I enjoyed learning how to speak French” “I learnt that Honywood is a brilliant school and the lessons are interesting” Ambassador visits to St Peter’s “I really enjoyed the Cohort 10’s coming in to school today as they told me lots of positive facts about Honywood” “I found out that there was nothing to worry about going to secondary school and that there are people who can help you if you get lost” “I now feel a lot more confident and excited about going to Honywood”

H O N Y W O O D

Cohort 7 and 8 Indoors    

White polo shirt Navy shorts White socks Training shoes with non-marking soles

Outdoors     

Navy blue Rugby shirt with royal blue side stripes and yellow piping * Optional alternative – Navy blue ¼ zip sweatshirt with royal blue side stripes and yellow piping * Navy shorts Blue football socks Studded boots

In cold weather learners may wear leggings/base layers under their shorts/tops in a plain blue or black colour. In wet weather, a towel may be required for learners to shower. We would strongly recommend that all learners wishing to participate in rugby and/or football are equipped with shin pads and a gum shield. Should your child need to be excused from PE for medical reasons then please provide a letter explaining the problem. Learners will be expected to bring their kit so they can still participate in the learning session as a coach or official where fitness allows. * Please note that a rugby shirt or sweatshirt can be purchased. However, due to the zip, the sweatshirt will not be permitted in rugby.

Polo shirts, rugby shirts, sweatshirts, shorts and blue socks can be purchased via the link to Anglia Sports and Schoolwear on the school website.

Cohort 9, 10 and 11      

Royal blue rugby shirt with yellow hoop for colder weather.

White polo shirt Navy shorts Plain black/navy sports leggings or plain black/navy tracksuit trousers White socks/blue football socks Training shoes with non-marking soles

GCSE PE In addition to the above GCSE PE learners are encouraged to purchase the GCSE PE shirt available from Liss sports (link on the school website). Surnames are printed on the back of the shirts to make learner identification easier when external examiners visit to assess the practical component of the course.

Please note: If you are in Cohorts 8-11 the old style rugby shirt is still acceptable, however you are welcome to purchase the new style rugby shirt or sweatshirt should you wish to do so.

Useful websites: GCSE PE Top

www.lisssport.co.uk

Select Schools and Colleges from the top menu and then Honywood School

Honywood Dress Code including PE items

www.yourschoolwear.co.uk

Scroll down to find the link to Honywood School

Name

Address

Amount

Paid

Sponsored Whole School Walk 2017

On Wednesday 20th September everyone at the school will be taking part in a sponsored walk to Marks Hall. All monies raised will go to the Learner Leadership Team who will decide as to how they are spent; please enter the amount below that you wish to sponsor.

Learning Group

Name

Total raised Name

Address

Amount

Paid

I verify that this learner completed the walk and is authorised to collect the sponsorship monies.

------------------------------------------ (Learning Group Leader) A voucher will be awarded to each learner who raises the most money in each cohort. There will also be a prize for the Learning Group with the best fancy dress costumes.

Do you ever feel that you wish there was a user manual to tackle the teen years? Are you anxious about how to tackle typical teenage problems? Do you get along well with your child and hope that will continue? Or, have you started to have conflict in your relationship and want to address this?

Both leaders are excellent, very approachable and not judging us.

Enjoyed every minute of it and will miss coming.

Brilliant, good fun, down to earth. Felt like we could talk about anything

Realised my child is completely normal

I am more patient and understanding of her feelings

Really enjoyed it every week, will miss coming – it was like therapy

Understanding Our Teenager A free ten week course, which aims to assist parents in understanding and coping with young people’s problems. It’s two hours a week, on a Tuesday evening and is fun and friendly, plus the coffee and goodies are fresh!

Course begins: Tuesday 12th September, 7-9pm To book email: Jacy Thomas on Jthomas1@honywoodschool.com

Digital Theatre Summer School For 11-14 year olds 24-28 July 2017

hACkT IS BACK, REBOOTED AND AUTOMATICALLY UPDATED FOR SUMMER 2017!

Monday 24 - Friday 28 July 2017 A week long summer school for young people aged 11-14 to explore drama and theatre making through digital technology and computer game design. Young people will work with Mercury Theatre professionals and Teaboy Games and can expect to use drama, video game design software, choreography, Raspberry Pi’s, filmmaking and coding to experiment and explore the possibilities of digital creativity.

Young people do not need to have prior experience in the theatre or technology, just enthusiasm, curiosity and a desire to create something new!

For ages 11 – 14 £100 per participant Places must be booked in advance. To book your place visit our Box Office at Mercury Theatre, Balkerne Gate, Colchester, call 01206 573948 or visit www.mercurytheatre.co.uk.

My Learning Choices

Important Dates

It’s never too early to start thinking about which subjects you might want to book My Learning Choices appointments for in September.

Why not reflect on the past academic year and consider the following; Which MLCs did I attend that helped me the most?

Back to School Monday 4th September 2017 Week A

Family Learning Team

For families or learners who may want to contact or speak with the Family Learning Team we will be in the school offices throughout the summer holidays. You are able to contact us by e-mail flt@honywoodschool.com or by phone on 01376 564774.

We wish you all a restful and enjoyable summer.

Family Learning Team

Were there any subjects I neglected?

Did I make the most of the MLCs on offer?

MFL English Maths Science Art Technolgy PE Business Studies Enterprise & Solutions Computer Science History Geography Philosophy and Ethics

Well done

to our Cohort 8 Duty Receptionists Cyrus Rowshangohar Fraser McLauchlan Mia Nichols Jess Rudling Alisha Oddy Zachary Stowers

We are absolutely delighted to share our new promotional video with families. With thanks to Hannah, Rafe, Beth and Mr Harrison for agreeing to take part in this film and to share their experiences and learning journeys.

Please check our Youtube channel to see the new film! https://www.youtube.com/user/ HonywoodSchoolEssex

My Learning Hub Resources Our autism support centre welcomes its first learners in September and we are on the hunt for donations of unwanted or spare items. If you have any of the following that you could spare please let Mr Cordy-McKenna know via hcordy@honywoodschool.com Many thanks!           

Shells from the beach Postcards Unwanted packets of seeds Chocolate or biscuit tins with lids Old wellington boots!

Plant pots Left-over shed paint (not boring brown though…ideally some pastel colours) Unwanted drainpipe An old sink that could still be plumbed in A pond filter and fountain pump Children’s books suitable from around age 10 to 16