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Crickhowell High School Ysgol Uwchradd Crughywel NOVEMBER 2012 NEWSLETTER M ORE FANTASTIC FUND RAISING NEWS INSIDE Also inside this issue YEAR 11 WORK EXPERIE NCE PICTURES OPEN EVENING - A G REAT SUCCESS WWW.CRICKHOWELL-HS.POWYS.SCH.UK CHS Newsletter - Page 2 Headlines Crickhowell High School celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2013 and this has provided the school community during the new academic year the opportunity to reflect on the reasons for our success as a school over the years and what we need to do to make sure we continue to be successful as a school for the future in our curriculum, in our learning, through harnessing Rhian in the new technology in education, working with the community and our general wider provision to meet C21st needs. We live in a rapidly changing global Driving Seat society with increasingly sophisticated technology and therefore a lot of Excerpt from House and Hound very different educational challenges to face from when the school was first – 20 September 2012. Victoria established 30 years ago. I hope the school community and the wider Foods Company Carriage Driving community will help us celebrate in 2013 the 30 years of endeavour and Extravaganza 8-9 September 2012 excellence and help us continue to build on this incredible foundation of educational achievement. Youngster tops the line-up Fourteen-year-old Rhian Ralph and Once again I have been extremely proud as the Head of Crickhowell High Penclose Wotsit claimed the South School of the way all colleagues have worked so hard through the year, whether Western Exercise Vehicle ensuring the school operates effectively in our administration, or with the Championships. Rhian teamed up students through guidance or delivering quality education through effective with Anthea Birch’s eight-year-old lessons. This was especially so during the months leading up to our Estyn Welsh section C in March. Inspection in September. The school did very well in this inspection with good “He had been driven before he advice on how we can improve even further to offer a World class education that came to me, but I’ve tried to bring allows all of our students to achieve to the very best of their ability. It was our him on – he has a great students who really impressed Estyn, a fact echoed by all secondary heads and temperament,” said Rhian of the senior officers of Powys when they held their regular meeting at Crickhowell HS pony bought in Bolton via an advert recently. The Awards Evening held at the Clarence Hall at the start of the new on a driving website. academic year celebrated personal, sporting and academic success of the school and it was a privilege to see what our students can aspire to through their hard work and endeavour. We achieved our best exam results ever in 30 years from the summer placing Crickhowell as one of the highest achieving schools in Wales and the UK both in terms of GCSEs and A Levels. Estyn recognised this fact and also commended highly the incredible guidance and well-being pastoral structures that make sure our students are also supported fully in addition to the academic side of school. There is a very lively and positive atmosphere around school this autumn and students are achieving fantastic things on the sporting Parent Voice field, through the creativity of the forthcoming school play, “The Canterbury Tales”, in work experience and in the community; many of which are included in If you are interested in joining, this magazine. Our development in global learning continues to go from strength there is a link on our website. to strength and has been recognised by the British Council with recent video Also see our Twitter feed for conferences with schools in Singapore, Siberia, the USA and Canada. We are all instant information very excited about the impending Exchange visit of students from partner school https://twitter.com/crickhowellhs Gar-Field School HS in Virginia, USA. They are here from 21 November to 26 November, and we hope they will all enjoy their stay in Wales especially as it will be Thanksgiving. Our thanks go to the families who are hosting visitors and the Homework staff involved in the organisation of the visit. Club The exam season begins again shortly, and I know that a lot of students are working hard, and I want students to know individually that you can all achieve A Homework Club is available in great results. The full support of all the staff of the school is available to you, ICT1 for everyone from 1.25 until please use it and ask for help if you feel you need it. 2.10 pm Monday to Friday. There will be an LSA on hand to help May I take this opportunity to wish you all, parents, carers, students alike, a very you with any work you are Happy Christmas and Peaceful New Year. struggling with. Jackie Parker - Headteacher The LSA Team Page 3 - CHS Newsletter Year 12 pupils in the garden they made for Crickhowell Primary School CHS gets Future Dynamics a new The final week of term saw Year 12 designed to require varying degrees of enjoying our 3 day Future Dynamics initiative, research, planning and programme. The aim was to engage execution, were designed to benefit salad bar pupils in an exciting and dynamic the school, the local or wider project, similar to those they may community or all three. We are delighted to announce meet in their future employment, that there is a new salad bar for and to give them the opportunity to We were delighted to welcome judges pupils and staff in the canteen. focus on a discipline outside the from the Rotary Club to look at the This has been possible with the regular curriculum that was not only various projects. The pupils’ help of the Eco Committee, the of interest to them but gave them the achievements had exceeded all Sixth Form and various other opportunity to impress staff and expectations and the judges were students. The Eco Committee judges. We were very keen that the blown away time and again. voted to further develop the food projects should not be hypothetical Several projects were highly provision by having a new salad but would give the pupils a chance commended including plans for a facility in the canteen. We had a to be involved in something that music event for Crickhowell which non-uniform day in the summer would make a real difference. would link into funding opportunities term as part of our Eco Week to brought to our attention by Arts Alive raise funds for this scheme and The programme included sessions run Wales and ambitious and innovative made over £300. by business entrepreneurs and fundraising plans using the No18 bus. professional trainers who shared some Powys Catering said that they were of their “trade secrets” with the pupils. Many thanks to the pupils and staff for incredibly pleased with our efforts, One of the sessions, run by George all their hard work, and to all those and so they funded the rest of the Savva of 7 Seconds Ltd, was an involved including Black Mountain, total required for the new salad bar. innovative and interactive session Number 18, Crickhowell Primary, St We hope that with this in place, about presentation skills which the David’s Hospice, CRiC Oriel Gallery, people can look forward to a wider pupils found particularly interesting Arts Alive Wales, Greenhill Residential range of fruit and vegetables, and useful. Home, Maes y Ffynnon sheltered keeping a healthy and balanced housing and the Rotary Club for being diet. Armed with this information the pupils part of our thoroughly enjoyable Future selected an “enterprise” activity to be Dynamics week. Martha Rolley, involved in. The activities, which were Chair of the Eco Committee Pupils entertained residents at Greenhill Residential Home in Crickhowell with afternoon tea and live music. CHS Newsletter - Page 4 Linking leaders: why school leaders partner with peers in other countries News from The LRC There have been some changes to the LRC – in the Junior Fiction section. The organisation of the books has been changed to a School staff can get just as much "And this seems to be key for most system where the books are out of international collaboration as schools; international collaboration sorted into genre. They are now students do. Here, we explore the helps staff to go beyond their own categorised into Adventure, War professional development benefits school grounds to seek ideas for Stories, Animal Stories, of working with schools in other improving their school, teaching Suspense, Sci-fi and Fantasy, and countries. practice and lessons." Family and Friends categories. It is hoped this will make the books There's not a list long enough to detail Robert has been involved with global easier to find for students, all the benefits of international learning for many years, on a range of especially if they have an interest collaboration for students. Teachers and projects, funding, programmes and in a particular type of fiction. heads talk about how working with worked with schools and educational schools and students overseas boards around the world. As such, On 22 November we will be holding motivates, inspires, adds real meaning Crickhowell has designed programmes another Scholastic Book Fair. This and purpose to learning, is an to ensure teachers, school leaders and was a great success last year, and opportunity to build soft skills, support staff get contact with we are hoping that there will be strengthens employability and develops international partners - as well as some answers to your Christmas an understanding of other cultures.