Spotlight On South - CHS South Issue 7

Summer 2022

As we end the year with so much to celebrate, it seems strange to look back to September when we were still living in the shadow of the pandemic Together we continue to restore and renew our community to recover from the impact, but it does feel like we have travelled a long way together over the course of the past three Terms. From moving into our brand new school building at the start of the year, to ending the year receiving recognition for our work to support literacy, wellbeing, & community, this year our school has exemplified our ethos of being creative, happy and successful in so many ways; so much so that our Summer ‘Spotlight on South’ is a bumper edition!

In particular, I am especially proud that we were recently awarded the Manchester Evening News School Award for ‘School in the Community’. When CHS South was just a seed of an idea, one of the driving principles was that we wanted to provide opportunity and support for the Manchester community From opening in September 2018, through to the present day, time and time again our students, staff, families and community members have joined together through CHS South to provide for each other and it is wonderful to see this special quality recognised.

Wishing you a restful and safe summer, David David Prophet Headteacher , CHS South

WELCOME...

It’s worth remembering that it is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change..

Queen Elizabeth II

Platinum Jubilee

Year 9 used their photoshop skills to create an amazing window display for the Jubilee celebrations.

The images are in a Pop Art style and feature hidden meanings. They include lyrics of the Queen's favourite song, and using the queens favourite flowers

Well done to all of our talented young artists!

Look out for more brilliant Jubilee images further into this newsletter...

Arts Festival

This was the first year CHS South Art Department was able to hold an Arts Festival. Mr McGill and Mrs Murray were delighted to display work from students across all year groups.

Year 7 had a fantastic display of Ana Serrano inspired cacti 3D models, and paintings. Year 8 wowed our visitors with their 3D Graffiti houses.

Year 9 displayed their Photography work based on Sci Fi and the art groups included drawings of cakes and sweets, almost good enough to eat!

Our Year 10 art and photography students displayed drawings and photographs covering a wide range of topics

Parents who visited remarked -

“Fantastic work”

“Worth coming from Birmingham to see!”

“Congratulations to all the talented students at CHS South”

Woodland Walk Photography

Following the opening of the our wonderful new Woodland walk area in school, Year 9 students recorded a walk through the area in photographs, producing some very interesting results.

Festival of Dance

Dancers from across Year groups have been working extremely hard towards the ‘022 Dance Festival’ at CHS South. 022 Dance Festival is a night celebrating performance and is our very first Festival of Dance held in our beautiful new theatre A variety of performances flooded the theatre with spectacular music and lights. It was a pure delight

CHS South dancers performed choreography by themselves and also in collaboration with Miss Harper. Every Thursday, dedicated dancers meet to choreograph, rehearse and collaborate in our state of the art dance studio!

Why not join us?

Wake Up!

Year 9 students have been exploring different styles of theatre in Drama. This has included workshops around Artaud, who wanted to ‘wake up’ the audience through frightening techniques. The students had fun spooking their audience through using mask, music and lighting design.

Table Art

Jon Burgerman is the artist Year 7 have been looking at this half term.

After designing their own characters in the artists style they decided to change the scale of their work. The artist is known for drawing on walls etc, so Year 7 decided to draw on the tables. Working in groups to create these great ideas.

We used special pens, so don’t try this at home!

Monsters!

Year 7 students took their John Burgerman inspiration further as they created monsters based on his artwork! They used modelling clay to make creepy creations, mixing together different clays to produce the colours they wanted

Oracy Showcase

To celebrate The Great Get Together, students from across all year groups hosted a brilliant oracy showcase Our showcase saw crowds of over 100 people gather on a sunny Friday afternoon for performances across our different curriculum areas. Performances ranged from passionate poetry, inspiring ignite speeches and collaborative dancing.

Team English opened the showcase with Year 7 with their own poems describing where they are from. The Maths team created riddles explaining their methods to our audience and Science explored the greatest inventions of all time!

Outside we were treated to ice cream and refreshments as our young musicians performed songs of their choice that related to coming together. We were joined by local councillor Andrew Simcock who explored the importance of oracy and public speaking as we grow and move through life. A local poetry company Young Identity also joined us for our spectacular show and allowed us to see how poetry can be used to express our feelings and identity

Every student that was involved in our first Oracy Showcase in our new school building should be incredibly proud of themselves!

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Flourish with South

On Thursday 21st April 2022, we hosted our first ever Careers Fair at CHS South. The event was a huge success with several employers in attendance, sharing information about the different career paths and requirements. We had great musical entertainment and a delicious spread of refreshments

Thank you to the following employers for kindly attending and inspiring our students: Kids Allowed, HR in One LTD, Yipiyap, Royal Air Force, JMW Solicitors, Manchester University, Invisible Cities, Terence Paul Hairdressing, Kelloggs, Manchester College, Loreto College, Xaverian College, Trafford College, Shock Out, Barclays & Greater Manchester Higher

Debate

This term, students who have been attending Debate Mate sessions have had a fantastic run of competitions!

Taking part in both the Urban Debate League and the Debate Mate cup, the wonderful debaters of CHS South have really showcased their skills.

Easing them into the debating season was the nail biting urban debate league with schools from around Manchester. A super group of Year 7s, 9s and 10s went head to head in a fierce debate about the role of AI technology in society and came up with fantastic arguments against in the influence of AI.

Once they completed the first round, they impressed the judges and were invited back to take part in round 2. This time, the team expanded to include even more budding debaters. The finale of the debate season came in the form of the prestigious debate mate cup where students travelled to the renowned University Academy 92. Amongst some thought provoking and exciting debates, students also got the opportunity to consider their futures with an exciting talk from a UA92 representative who explained how their university works

Debate Mate has been a fantastic opportunity for students to develop their confidence as well as provide a chance to voice opinions on things that matter!

Exploring Our Community

The Geography Department were super excited to be able to go on their annual Year 10 Geography Fieldtrip this year after two years of not being able to because of Covid The trip took place on the second week in June

The students had a fantastic time visiting The River Medlock in Daisy Nook as well as Didsbury Village. Pupils recorded primary data from each of these locations and have followed up this work in lesson time, ensuring that they understand the fundamentals of geography fieldwork and preparing them for their up-and-coming GCSE Geography Exam in 2023. Pupils had a wonderful time and even had an opportunity to visit many of the lovely eating establishments in Didsbury. Furthermore, the weather was kind to us, as we had lovely sunshine after the previous weeks torrential rain. It was so good to be back out in the field doing Geography as it should be, out in the open environment

Years 7, 8 and 9 had the exciting opportunity to engage in a range of activities designed to improve their lives, the lives of others, and enhance their understanding of the world around them. They also met with professionals from outside agencies such as the arts, sports, media, charity and business and finance

Year 7 focused on an Environmental Emergency, working with a local performance poet to create passionate dance and art protests outside of the school building. They used their oracy and creative performance skills as a vehicle for raising awareness and supporting change.

After, they all enjoyed a day out at Chester Zoo!

We welcomed Odd Arts, to perform their play ‘Going Home’ for students from Year 8. Going Home depicts the 12 hours leading up to the 2021 Euro's Final and focuses on racism and discrimination faced by people from racially minoritised backgrounds in the UK They spent time in the humanities department learning about protected characteristics, celebrated world languages in MFL, and designed their own Unity T Shirts. and. and celebrated world languages in MFL.

Year 8’s ELE days culminated in a fun festival celebrating all things unity. They created their own festival bunting in Technology, enjoyed music from a local DJ, an Ice Cream van, and a photo booth to finish their celebrations.

Year 9 had a Happy and Successful day in preparation for Key Stage 4, learning techniques to help maintain a happy and healthy lifestyle

In a series of informative sessions, they explored positive masculinity, female empowerment, and healthy cooking. The homeless charity, DePaul, discussed lifestyle choices and the adverse impacts these can sometimes have.

Sessions on day two focused on inspiring good learning habits, including revision techniques, interview techniques and a money management Q&A with a local finance manager.

We also welcomed into school, an exgang member, who spoke candidly with our students about their previous life

They discussed tackling the myths about gang life glamour and showing the ways they can be susceptible to grooming.

After all that hard work they were rewarded with ice cream and a photo booth!

All 180 Year 10 students enjoyed a week of work experience after successfully securing a placement and we look forward to hearing more about their work adventures soon.

Keep Britain Tidy

Our school form champions for each year group took part in this year's Keep Britain Tidy 2022 campaign. Our students had completed litter picks around our school community and then recycled the items collected We had also set a challenge for our school community to collect one bin bag of rubbish in their own community within their own time to receive a certificate. Well done champions!

Have Your Say Day

Our hardworking school council rallied around, collating students’ opinions on Have Your Say Day! Fantastic suggestions regarding events, badges to collect and all importantly rewards trips. We love hearing about the brilliant ways our students are building our school community!

Bikeability Award

Due to the success of previous courses at CHS South, students have had the opportunity to take part and complete their Level 1 & 2 Bikeability award The course involved developing the skills and understanding to be able to make a trip safely to school or for leisure on quieter roads with adult supervision. We had 24 students in Year 7 take part and develop their confidence to use their bikes more. It was a great day and we even got a bit of sunshine. Well done to all those involved.

Scientists

During the Spring term, Year 8 students have begun to investigate the importance of modelling in science.

They used sweets to build DNA models and evaluated their use in science. Our young scientists were able to grasp complicated concepts which would be either too minute or difficult to understand.

Reactive Explosions

This term, Year 7 enjoyed learning about chemical reactions. In class, they have been burning magnesium, testing the reactivity of metals with acid, and observing how alkali metals react with water.

In Science club, Year 7 students have built their own volcanoes as their summer project. They should be ready to explode by the end of half term!

Transition - Welcoming Year 5 students

Miss Austin has had the pleasure of going into even more primary schools. We are working withOur Lady’s this term and the students have been a dream to work with. They are so excited at the prospect of selecting CHS South as their new school. So we hope to see an increase in numbers in the next coming years �� Miss Harper is also working with Wilbraham Primary School delivering dance sessions to a select number of students in order to perform in our dance festival at the end of the Summer 1 term! We are so excited to watch!

Beyond

Viktoria Vago The unsung hero of all students who are brand new to the country and who are new to the English Language.

With Miss Hall and her mum, they run one of the highest attended clubs on a Friday after school. Making these students feel welcome, supported and enabling them to make new friends, is truly special!

Mentoring Programme Begins

Miss Austin has launched the Year 7 academic mentoring programme and so far it is going extremely well.

A small group of students are set 3 targets every week which they enjoy working towards. Students are rewarded with achievement points if they complete their targets. A number of support staff are doing incredible work around the school in order to support our pp students. Please look out for the newsletter to find out what impact this is having on our students.

Family does not necessarily mean blood relatives but often a description of a community, organisation or nation.

Queen Elizabeth II

WINNING CONFIDENCE

Rounders is a great activity which permits students to read their environment and make appropriate decisions, allowing them to move confidently and with control in a wide range of physical activity situations.

The PE team have started to introduce striking and fielding activities into the curriculum and in line with this extra-curricular club, Rounders has replaced the netball on the Thursday after school.

The uptake from the girls has been great with particular interest from the Year 7 girls. The team is is already enjoying success! They won all their recent matches in the Inspire Summer Rounders tournament held at Whalley Range High School.

It's fantastic to see their training and determination paying off!

We are always recruiting new players so please tell your friends and come along

Walking for Fitness

Walking for fitness in Year 10 has proved very popular. Across the unit we are learning the benefits of physical activity whilst simultaneously working towards the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity every day.

The students have been wearing pedometers to track their steps throughout the lesson Each lesson we work towards beating our previous target.

Walking is a great way to:

Improve cardiovascular fitness

Strengthen your bones and muscles

Improve muscle endurance

Increase energy levels

Improve your mood, cognition, memory and sleep

Improve your balance and coordination

Strengthen immune system

Reduce stress and tension

Top Class Performance

Congratulations to the Year 7 boys football team on their 4 2 win away at Barlow A thrilling and competitive game with some fantastic performances from players on both sides. Hat trick hero Nathaniel with his debut up front stole the headlines but an outstanding all round goalkeeping performance from Jaiden did not go unnoticed. Also, a special mention to captain Luca who helped guide Nico and Ethan through their debuts in defence and made some crucial blocks to stop the equaliser before Ayub scored a spectacular goal to seal the win in the last minute.

It was great to see players from both sides showing respect and appreciation to their opponents at the end of game.

The boys were back in training 2 days later along with 20-25 other hard-working Year 7s to fight for a place on the next team. Well done Year 7 keep up the good work! (And a special mention to Mr Rees for his support in the last match)

Our Year 10 GCSE students have been developing their skills in the Summer term in climbing.

Working hard in preparation for their assessment, they have travelled over to Derbyshire and showed great resilience.

Students are now confident in a wide range of skills to include, belaying, bouldering, knot tying and can climb on a variety of different walls

Confidence Building

Above and Beyond

Team sport and our extra-curricular clubs are hitting n heights in the Summer Term, with the Year 7 and 8 B and Girls Basketball teams all progressing out of th groups and advancing to the play offs and Semi final the Junior NBA tournament

The Year 7 co ed and Year 7 and 8 Girls team havin very strong chance of making this year's finals becoming Northwest champions! They have defea Didsbury and Cheadle Hulme in the last round of 16 will face Wright Robinson and Nottingham in the se finals.

The girl's team remain unbeaten since they were f formed earlier this year and the boys have only suffere defeat since they were created. This is an incredible f already! They are a real inspiration to the school, and wish them all the best on their basketball journey

All the teams have a strong opportunity to win CHS South their first pieces of silverware in a team sport.

In addition to this, the extra curricular summer s have got off to a flying start with the Year 7 to Ye cricket attracting strong numbers on a weekly basi receiving high demand for fixtures to be arranged i Summer 2. The CHS South students continue to proud. Well done!

NBA Success!

Congratulations to our Year 7 and 8 Girls Basketball team who have made history by winning CHS South their first Manchester Excel Trophy as well as the JNR NBA Northwest Championship They defeated Northampton School for girls in their semi final before battling it out against Trinity C of E High School in a tightly contested final, Making them the number 1 ranked team not only in Manchester but in the whole of the Northwest. This achievement alongside playing the full season without defeat has left the whole school feeling very proud of this talented group of girls and hungry to continue their success going into September. Well done to all involved!

In the summer, the days were long, stretching into each other. Out of school, everything was on pause and yet happening at the same time, this collection of weeks when anything was possible.

Sarah Dessen

451 Mauldeth Road West, Chorlton. M21 7SX