Dear Families,
I hope this email finds you and those closest to you in good health. I have a brief update this week to mark the end of term and the beginning of the holidays.
Start of Term Arrangements
School will close down for much of the Christmas break. We have a staff training day on Monday 9th January with all students returning to school at normal time on Tuesday 10th. Our timetable will be running as normal with registration and form time at 8.40 followed by the usual 5 lessons that your child studies. Please check this with students prior to their return to ensure they have all the necessary equipment, including PE kit where appropriate, and all of their uniform ready. It will be a Week B.
Year 13 Mock Examinations
Our Year 13 students have worked through a gruelling set of mock examinations over the last fortnight in preparation for the real examination series this summer. They have worked hard and taken them seriously and will hopefully be rewarded with the grades they deserve in January.
Data Point 2
Families of students in Years 10-13 will have already received your child’s most recent academic report. However, the format and content of KS3 reports has been revised from previous years so that it provides you with a more informed insight into how your child is progressing. A covering letter will accompany the report which will now only be sent electronically; it will explain how your child’s progress has been assessed and how you as a parent can support us in helping your child consolidate their learning. We hope this new format will diagnose the specific areas your child needs to work on to succeed in each subject. I’m aware that it is a very long and detailed document and we are interested in taking feedback on this to refine it throughout the year.
Family Support Drop In
Thank you to those who attended our last family support drop in session. As promised, Mrs Steans has another date booked in for Tuesday the 31st of January from 3.20 till 5pm. Again we will have Louise Bieluch and Davinia Hammersley from the STePS team to offer their expertise and support. STePS Social Communication and Autism Team are a team of experienced teachers and education practitioners for children and young people with Social Communication needs, Autism and Sensory needs. Their role is to support children and young people in mainstream schools. A child or young person does not need to have a diagnosis of ASD to access this support.
This drop in session is open to all parents who feel that they would benefit from some additional guidance in supporting their child, would like to chat to other parents in similar situations or have some questions about how to access specific support.
Sensory needs was one of the most common discussion points in the previous meeting and we have decided to focus on this in our next drop in. In preparation for attendance please use this link to access the Occupational Therapy Teams sensory videos. You can watch all of the videos or just select the videos which you feel are most relevant for you. Hopefully at the next meeting you can feed back about how useful they were. If you need your child to attend with you due to childcare issues, please do so.TO confirm your attendance, please email Mr Reddy.
Sports Update
This week the Year 7 Girls played their final set of fixtures at Lees Brook. With the team sitting in 3rd in the league table prior to the games it was a chance to try and make up some ground on the league leaders. In the first of the night’s three games, Derby Moor were victorious beating hosts Lees Brook 3-0 with a hat-trick from IC and some great midfield play from FC and AB to provide the opportunities. In the second game of the afternoon, the girls took the lead against Chellaston through a goal from AB, however some sustained pressure in the second half of the game lead to Chellaston pulling level, before an important late save from AA ensured the points were shared. In the final game it was FC who was the hat-trick hero as Derby Moor ran out 4-0 winners against West Park with another clean sheet for the defence partnership of AA, AJ and EG. The results mean that the Y7 girls finished the league in 2nd place with an impressive record of 5 wins, 5 draws and only 1 loss, scoring 14 goals and conceding just 4 across 11 games. It has been a massively successful tournament for the girls, who continue to develop and improve as a team. Player of the Tournament: FC. Top Scorer: IC
School Nurse Service
The NHS Young Person’s Practitioner (School Nursing Service) will be visiting school throughout the next term on 24th Jan, 21st March, 16th May and 11th July. They will be based in the learning hub during lunchtime promoting their service to the students and available for drop ins.
Computing Update
Our computing team have provided a link from ITV’s ‘This Morning,’ compiling a list of internet safety tips and organisations to contact over this period if you are worried or need help.
Final Thoughts
Our students and staff are ready for the holidays. I have written about so many highlights in these updates since September and it is great have been able to recognise student achievements and share with you the wide range of experiences our youngsters have had so far this year. We have also had some challenges and none more so than the recent passing of one of our own students, Laila. The shock of this has been felt across our entire community with many of us struggling to come to terms with this tragedy. Our thoughts continue to be with her family and friends at this most difficult of times.
I do hope the fortnight’s break allows you to spend time with those closest to you and perhaps reconnect with those you see less often. I hope our children and staff have chance to relax and recharge their energy ready for January and, importantly, spend quality time with families. For those of you who are celebrating Christmas I wish you good tidings and safe travel if you have journeys ahead of you. And to everyone, I wish you the very, very best for the New Year.
Take care,
Scott Doyle
Principal
