Bulletin for Parents – November 2012

Prize Winners 2010-2011

The School Annual Prize Giving was held on Wednesday 19 September. This year’s guest Important Dates speaker was the broadcaster John Hardy, a former pupil at the school, who gave us an 04.12.12 entertaining and relevant speech. It was good to hear how proud John is of his roots at Parents’ Evening Yr. 7 Dyffryn Ogwen. Our guests were Mrs Beryl Orwig – the Dafydd Orwig Scholarship, Mrs 21.12.12 Mary Jones – Chair of the Bethesda Community Council, Mr Rhys Llwyd – Chair of the Last day of term Llandygai Community Council, Mr & Mrs Thomas – the Carwyn Thomas Shield, Mrs Sharon 24.12.12 – 04.01.13 Williams – Careers . Christmas Holidays 07.01.13 The school would like to thank the following sponsors for their financial contributions School re-opens for everyone towards the Prize Giving.

Jones & Whitehead, . Owen & Palmer, Bangor. The Medical Centre, Yr Hen Orsaf, Bethesda. E H Ellis, Penygroes. David Jones & Son, Dwyran. Menai Blinds, Caernarfon.

Year 7 Prizes :- Martha Evans Gwenllian Owen Elin Rowlands Sophie Williams Elen Wyn Steffan Davies Owain Morgan Tomos Griffith Subject Prizes :- Homework Club Welsh Emily Roberts Gwion Williams English Gethin Sherrington Cara Thomas French Cara Thomas Tomos Griffith Music Sioned Francis Rhiannon Llwyd Mathematics Henri Williams Gethin Sherrington Science KS3 Carys Jones Cai Dickinson Science KS4 Cara Thomas Ben Roberts Science KS5 Henri Williams Gethin Sherrington History Cara Thomas Rhian Owen The Homework Club is open from Geography Iwan Harper Adam Hughes Monday to Thursday from 3:20 to Religious Studiesl Luke Crowe Annest Rowlinson 4:20. Physical Education David Hayes Adam Hughes This is a great opportunity for pupils Art Emily Robinson Ben Owen-Robinson to get help with their school work. Hospitality Emily Roberts Catrin Williams All pupils from years 7 to 11 are Design and Technology (Resistive) welcome to attend the Club. Gareth Walker Rhiannon Llwyd Progress Prize Callie Bewley Richard McCarthy Effort Yr. 7 Tomos Griffiths Lisa Carr Effort Yr. 8 Shona Roberts Tristan Walker Effort Yr. 9 Ianto Shea Sara Evans Effort Yr. 10 Elan Jones Gwynfor Rowlinson

Prizes forTUDALEN Attendance 2 Steffan Davies Nic Hayward-Jones Free School Cadi Rhys Morgan Jones Manon Hughes Luke Crowe Meals Iwan Roberts Gareth Williams Mari Wyn Jones Sports Champion of the Year Bl. 7 Steffan Davies Fflur Puw Sports Champion of the Year Bl. 8 Lewis Hall Manon Hughes Your child may be entitled Sports Champion of the Year Bl. 9 Morgan Owen Lowri Sherlock to receive free school Sports Champion of the Year Bl. 10 Elis Jones Seirian Puw meals if you receive any Team of the Year Prize The School Junior Choir of the following:- Best Performance at GCSE Cara Thomas Adam Hughes * Income Support Best Performance at A Level Henri Williams Gethin Sherrington * Jobseeker’s Allowance Carwyn Thomas Shield Mari Davies * Child Tax Credit (only) Athlete of the Year Trophy Morgan Owen * Pension Credit Frank Rhys Jones Memorial Prize Charlotte Speddy Guarantee Contact the Benefits Bethesda Community Council Scholarship Llinos Bolton Department in Caernarfon Dafydd Orwig Memorial Prize Rhiannon O'Marah Gwion Williams on 01286 682689.

School Uniform Grant

You may be entitled to receive a school unifom grant for your child if you receive any of the following:- * Income Support * Jobseeker’s Allowance * Widowed Parent's Allowance * Pension Credit Guarantee Contact the Benefits Department in Caernarfon on 01286 682689.

Diaries Staffing Changes All pupils in years 7-13 have received a personal diary in order to organise their work at all times. The diaries are also an important channel of We welcomed three new teachers at the start of the term, communication between the school and parents. Mrs Llinos Murphy, Mathematics, Miss Amy Hargreaves, We will use the diaries to give you information about English, and Miss Lowri Evans, Welsh and three assistants, Mrs the following:- Julie Hughes, Mrs Heidi Parker and Miss Leusa Williams. We also welcomed a new cook in the kitchen, Mrs Ellen Roberts. A warm welcome to all of them. We offer our best wishes to the staff who left us at the end of • Homework last term, Ms Sarah Ozanne, Mrs Rhiannon Thomas and Mrs • Reports and Assessments Glenys Rowlands, the cook. • Monitoring and tracking progress against targets • Tutorial Interviews • Letters to Parents • Examinations/Controlled Assessments • Attendance

We would kindly ask you to discuss the contents of the diary with your child and to sign it each week.

ExaminationEMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER Results, 2012 Family PAGE 3 Holidays in The school’s external examination results this year were excellent. We had the best GCSE results ever in the history of the school Term with 95% of the pupils achieving results that correspond to 5 A*-C grades and not one pupil left without gaining a qualification. Time The results are a credit to the dedication of the pupils, the We have received support of their parents and the hard work of the teachers. The guidance on this from results were very good across the ability range and we must give the Welsh Government. special praise to Cara Thomas from Tregarth, who gained 4A*s We do not support and 6As. As a consequence of this nearly half the year have releasing pupils for returned to the Sixth Form this year. One difference this year was family holidays during that in general the boys did better than the girls – contrary to the usual pattern. term time. We ask for your co-operation to The A Level results were also very good with all the students succeeding in winning a place at the avoid such situations college or on the course that they chose. Special congratulations are due to two of the boys for arising. excellent results – Gethin Sherrington from Tregarth who achieved 1A* and 3As and is now at Manchester studying Physics, and Henri Williams from Llanllechid who achieved 2A*s and 2As. Henri has gone to Jesus College, Oxford, to study Mathematics. Hearty congratulations to them all.

Pupils’ Attendance Punctuality All pupils are Regular attendance at school is essential if the pupils are to take full advantage of the educational expected to be opportunities available to them. In order to maintain and improve attendance levels at the school in school by we have adopted a system for contact on the first day’s absence that enables us to send a text 8:50am in order message directly to parents and carers. We would ask you to follow the procedure below when to ensure an orderly your child is absent. start to the day. We ask for parents’ co- operation. Pupils who 1. We would like you to contact the school before 8:45 on the first morning that your child is arrive late in the moring absent:- Telephone 01248 600291. or who are late for their 2. If the school has not received a telephone call by 9:15 in the morning telling us why your lessons will be kept in at child is not at school, we will then try to contact your home or workplace. dinner time or after 3. You are requested to note the reason for the absence in your child’s diary. school.

Thank-you for your co-operation.

Leaving the School Premises Year 7 – 11 pupils are not permitted to leave the school premises during break and dinner times. Pupils are not permitted to leave the school premises after their buses drop them outside the school in the morning.

Smoke-free School The school buildings and grounds are no-smoking areas. Smoking is not permitted on the school minibus or on the school buses. Smoking in these places is now against the law and we will contact parents if pupils are caught smoking.

Help with Homework The Library Service offers help 24 hours a day with Homework. By registering online at www.gwynedd.gov.uk/llyfrgell pupils can get free access to resources like the Encylopaedia Britannica and other excellent resources.

WelshTUDALEN Department 4 - Two exciting Music – the School Choir visits schemes Disneyland Resort, Paris Last term the department co- After a number of auditions, the school choir learned recently operated with our primary that they have been invited by schools on two exciting Disneyland Paris to perform in their St. catchment area schemes. A David’s Day Festival over the second group of our pupils went with weekend in March 2013. This is a great Catherine Aran and Miss Bethan opportunity for the choir and also an Hughes (who was with us as a opportunity for the rest of Europe to trainee teacher) to Ysgol Penybryn to hold a legend making hear the talents of our pupils. Their next workshop with Yr.6 together with Yr.6 pupils from Ysgol performance will be in the Dyffryn Llanllechid. A few weeks later the author Bedwyr Rees (who Ogwen Eisteddfod and then they will be busy learning a new won the Drama Medal in the Vale of Glamorgan National repertoire for this unique experience. Eisteddfod 2012) came to the school to start to create an adaptation of his book “Isio Bet?” in a workshop with Yr.5 pupils from Ysgol Bodfeurig and Ysgol Tregarth. We hope to complete both schemes this term and then share the good work created.

Physical Education Department

Congratulations to Manon Hughes, yr.9, on her recent selection to represent Eryri in the under 14 Netball trials in Bangor. Over 60 girls from schools in Gwynedd, Anglesey and Conwy competed for places in the squad. Manon will train with the squad for a few weeks before going on for further trials.

During the summer holidays 8 of the school’s pupils were given the opportunity to take part in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in London. The school had been chosen because of our links with schools in Indonesia and our promise to support the Indonesian team during the games. The pupils had been chosen on the basis of their work on the school’s Sports Council or for raising money in a sponsored walk for the Physical Education Department. The pupils were asked to make a flag reflecting Indonesia for the project and this was made in the school under the supervision of Mrs Julie Jones, the Head of Art. They then had to wave the flag during the “Guard of Honour” for all the athletes who paraded into the stadium in the opening ceremony, giving special support to the Indonesian team. As part of the project it was arranged for the pupils to visit the Indonesian Embassy in Grosvenor Square, London, before being taken on a tour around the Olympic park and taking part in the arrangements for the ceremony. We managed to have a few pictures taken with world famous sports stars (Usain Bolt and Novak Djokovic) and to get a number of signatures on the red dragon flag, including Tom Daley and Louis Suarez.

EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER PAGE 5 Head Pupils Pupils’ Council

Here are this year’s Council members:-

Dafydd Williams and Mari Gwyn are the Head Pupils and Emily Pritchard and Gethin Williams are the deputies for the 2012 -2013 academic year. We wish them well in their work. Year 7 – Esme Crowe, Joshua Heaton, Cadi Roberts, Pedr Owen, Cai Griffiths, Chloe Jones. Year 7 Induction Course Year 8 - Elin Rowlands, Cian Price, Osian Price, Sophie Davies, at Rhyd Ddu Dylan Jones, Chloe Davies. Year 9 - From the 16th to the 18th of October, all the year 7 David Williams, Catrin Jones, Dyddgu Sargeant, Ben Jones, classes had the opportunity to go and stay overnight in Casey Briggs, Math Owen. Rhyd Ddu as part of the Induction Course. The aim of Year 10 – the course is to welcome new pupils to the school in year Elin Cain, Joshua Williams, Ianto Shea, Sioned Carran, 7. It is a good opportunity for them to get to know each Carys Jones, Jake Williams. other, the staff who work with them and the sixth form Year 11 – buddies who are there to support them. Sioned Jones, Sean Carson, Jack Henry, Katie Jones, Bethan Hughes, Erin Roberts. They had a day of walking in the mountains, with each Year 12 – group managing to reach the summit of Yr Aran. Adam Hughes, Emily Roberts, Manon Davies, Josh Ward. Although we encountered wind, rain and cloud on the Year 13 – way, everyone was able to see at least a little of the Dafydd Williams, Mari Gwyn. view from the summit. The sixth form buddies had been very busy taking cookery lessons in advance and so spaghetti bolognese was provided for supper - lovely, well done, cooks! The other activity was building a shelter in Parc Meurig, Bethesda – every team was give a bucket of tools and a challenge to work as a team to build a dry and cosy shelter in the woods – loads of fun, and a good opportunity to develop skills of working together.

Everyone went home tired but having enjoyed themselves – knowing each other better and feeling really part of Ysgol Dyffryn Ogwen. A warm welcme to you! We are very grateful indeed to all the staff and sixth form students who were willing to stay overnight in Rhyd Ddu in order to give the pupils this opportunity.