Mr. Washington “I am a keen Manchester City supporter...”

INSIDE THIS TERMS EDITION: PRINCIPALS WELCOME KEY DATES ASPIRATION DAY CAREERS CHRISTMAS FAIR THE VOICE KIDS SUPPLY LESSONS SKI CLUB UNIFORM AND LOTS MORE!

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The Chalk Hills , High Street, LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 1 20/12/2017 08:28:34 PRINCIPALS WELCOME Dear Parents & Carers,

It has been a very busy term at The Chalk Hills Academy. In September we celebrated Roald Dahl Day with a with a number of fun and engaging activities linked to his famous works. There was a fabulous display all week in our Learning Resource Centre, and members of the senior team read Roald Dahl extracts to our Year 7 students. September also saw a number of our Year 10 students win The Young Careers Challenge at Cranfield University, which was a fantastic achievement. Charlie Addison, Abigail Atkins, Louise Evans and Aaron Kedzierski, completed their winning project titled ‘How to Make a Home Sustainable’ It was a tremendous success.

The past term has seen us develop our ‘Personal Best’ curriculum for all our Key Stage 3 students, and we successfully launched new sporting initiatives including fencing, tennis and karate. We have some seriously sporty students who have relished the opportunity to actively participate in new activities.

At Chalk Hills we have developed a strong focus on charity, and acting selflessly. November saw us raise money for Macmillan Cancer Research through hosting a coffee morning attended by parents, staff and governors. I also had the opportunity to hold the first of three parental ‘drop-ins’ which enabled me to meet with parents and carers and discuss any concerns and issues. Please note the next session will be held in the New Year.

Our Academic Review Day in November saw a record turnout of parents and carers and was held over a two day period. Feedback regarding the event was extremely positive.

Finally, December saw us presenting our Academy musical ‘School of Rock’. The event proved to be exceptionally popular, and the musical had parents, carers, staff and students literally dancing in the main hall!

The lead character Dewey Finn was played on alternate nights by Mason Burgess and Abraham Contreras, while Chaise Wood proved to be an exceptional Principal Mullins. Lead roles were also played by Josh Holding, Kiyana Maragh, Emma O’Brien and Beth Richards. The ensemble was made up of many talented students who were a credit to the Performing Arts Department. Gabriele Ignataviciute gave an impressive vocal performance as Tomika. Our Christmas Fair also ran on the first night of the production, and was a great success, with a wide variety of exciting stalls and tempting treats.

Can I take this opportunity to wish all our students, parents and carers a peaceful and relaxing Christmas holiday. Strive, Achieve, Believe is clearly at the heart of all we do.

I hope 2018 will be a successful year for all.

Best wishes,

Louise Lee. Principal The Chalk Hills Academy

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 2 20/12/2017 08:28:49 Encouraging Life Long Readers The Academy firmly believes in the importance of promoting a positive reading culture. All students are encouraged to read widely, often and for enjoyment. To encourage positive and memorable reading experiences the Academy organises and supports a number of reading initiatives.

Reading Champions: KS3 students support our Literacy Leader with promotional events, Academy displays, competitions, assemblies and reading walks. They are fantastic reading ambassadors and wear a purple badge on their blazer.

Drop Everything And Read: Calendared KS3 sessions throughout the academic year allowing students to engage with their reading and discuss their book with their teachers.

Roald Dahl Day: A celebrate event throughout the Academy to commemorate the life and works of this great author.

Accelerated Reader: All KS3 students participate in this reading programme and have a dedicated lesson to improving their literacy skills. During this hour students are tested on their weekly spellings and are given the opportunity to visit the LRC and quiz using the AR programme. More details regarding Accelerated Reader are available on request.

Book Buzz: The Academy provides every Year 7 student with a book of their choice from a selection available through the Book Buzz initiative. This is to promote different authors and genres to the students to widen their reading choices. This year, 268 books were given out from 13 different authors.

Reading Clubs: The Academy run a number of reading initiatives to develop our students love of reading including small group reading during and after school, LLIP, tutor class readers and groups led by Year 9 and Year 10 prefects. We are very proud of our reading provision and the students enjoy the sessions.

Upcoming Events: Next term sees ‘National Story Telling Week’ and we are busy planning a number of fun and engaging activities, including a visit from an author or poet.

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 3 20/12/2017 08:28:58 2017-18 Key Dates - Chalk Terms 3 & 4

8th January INSET Day 16th April INSET Day 9th January Start of Term 3 for 17th April Students Return to the all students Academy 22nd January Principals Surgery For more dates, please visit our website; 9th February Term 3 - Break up chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk 19th February Start of Term 4 for all students 19th February Start of Year 11 Trial Exams 26th February Start of Assessment Week 12th March Start of KS3 World Maths Week 14th-17th March Science Big Bang Fair 28th-29th March Year 9 Immunisations 30th March Bank Holiday and End of Term 4

My name is Faith McNevin and I am a Year 8 student at The Chalk Hills Academy. Earlier this year I applied for ‘The Voice Kids’. I have loved singing and performing since I was three years old so I decided to see where my hobby could take me. I saw an advertisement on TV asking for applicants so I thought ‘Why not give it a try!’ I applied online via the Voice website and after two months of waiting, I was invited to take part in an audition at the ITV studios in London. On the day of the audition (my birthday) I arrived at the studios and I was informed that there would be two stages – stage A and stage B. In Stage A I had to sing A cappella, if I was successful I would then go through to Stage B. I was so happy when I was informed that I would go through. For Stage B I had to sing a song of my choice to music, both auditions were in front of a vocal coach and a producer. Therefore, after a lovely day and a successful audition I am waiting to hear to see if I have made it through to the blind auditions, fingers crossed!

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 4 20/12/2017 08:29:04 Aspiration Day at Wadham College On Tuesday 21 November, a small group of Year 9 & Year 10 students visited Wadham College, Oxford for a taster session and to raise awareness of a Russell Group University. The visit started with an introductory talk and then an academic taster session where students attended a lecture. After lunch, a student ambassador took them on a tour followed by a question and answer session. The day ended with a tour of the Natural History Museum. Overall, the students had a great insight into university life.

BUSINESS EDUCATION SKILLS PARTNERSHIP On Wednesday 29 November, the Baker from Mark Rutherford High launch of the Business Education School who gave a ‘School’s View Skills Partnership (BESP) took place of BESP’, Lucas Chamberlain from at Putteridgebury Conference Centre. Leonardo who spoke of why employers The purpose of the launch event was to should engage with schools and Trevor inform as many employers as possible Holden, CEO about the project, the timetable of who spoke of The Luton Investment planned meetings for 2018, the impact Framework and Skills. employer engagement can have on Two students from Year 10, Sophie a young person’s aspirations and the Cerasale and Alice Fry, represented benefits to the employer in engaging the Academy and supported the event with schools in this and other projects. and are pictured with Trevor Holden. Speakers at the event included Sam

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 5 20/12/2017 08:29:12 Business Studies Enhancement The business department recently hosted a revision evening for all year 11 boys in preparation for their Unit 2 finance exam. This involved a focused and targeted revision session looking at topics relating to breakeven analysis, cash flow forecasts and balance sheets. Following this, learners were invited to play football on the astro turf with three 5-a-side games taking place at any one time and a number of teachers partaking including Mr. Langford (evidence below) with Mr. Cronin and Mr. Golding more than happy to dust off their boots and lend a hand (foot). In the sports hall with me was Mr. Ali who was more than happy to show off his ability to dunk (evidence not available) in a game of basketball with the students. Students were provided with dinner as a thank you for their hard work over the term and to facilitate discussion in relation to the outstanding sporting prowess of said teachers. The department look forward to hosting an evening for the female cohort in the new year to thank them for their continued hard work.

Christmas Fair We had an outstanding response from local businesses, ‘mumpreneurs’, makers and crafters for our Christmas Fair this year! Our refectory area was transformed into a magical Christmas market for the evening with sparkling decorations and Christmas music. Ms Richards and Mrs Stewart- Anderson prepared some fantastic Caribbean food to warm us on what was a very chilly evening, compliments to the chefs! Several of our Year 9 prefects worked tirelessly greeting visitors, manning the tombola stall and serving hot drinks (after a quick tutorial from our Principal, Mrs Lee, on how to make a proper cup of tea). There was a lovely festive feel to the evening while parents, neighbours, friends and staff from across our Trust shopped for beautiful gifts and crafts. Our stall holders were all very happy with their sales and are keen to join us again next year!

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 6 20/12/2017 08:30:46 Mr. Washington What is your experience? Let me introduce myself; my name is David Washington, Assistant Principal and SENCo. I have been a teacher for over 20 years and worked in a range of different schools from Special schools to a large STEM College. I have been a Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo) for the last eleven years. I currently hold the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASENCO) and the Specialist Assessor Award at Level 7 to support the assessing and teaching of Specific Learning Difficulties. I am also a trained SEN Expert for . I have recently trained as a trainer for the Outstanding Teaching Assistant programme to support the Teaching Assistant’s within the Trust. What do you do in your spare time? I have been married for over 15 years and have three daughters of which two are identical twin girls. As you can imagine my evenings and weekends are taken up by clubs. My hobbies are football, indoor climbing and snowboarding. I am a keen Manchester City supporter having grown up in the Manchester area. Why did you choose Chalk Hills? Having been in my previous role for 10 years, I felt that I needed a new challenge and having previously lived in Luton, Chalk Hills was an obvious choice. I came to look around the school and meet the students and I was impressed by the calm nature and supportive feel of the school. After speaking to Mrs. Lee I new that SEND was a main focus for change in the school and i then knew Chalk Hills was the school for me. What does a SENCO do? The SENCO in school is the teacher who is responsible for assessing, planning and monitoring the progress of children with special educational needs and disabilities across the Academy. I am also responsible for Medical needs within the school. Who is in the SEND Team? Mrs Wingrave is the Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA) who manages the day-to-day support in the Support for learning room. She has worked in the school for over 14 years. We have numerous TA’s with experience in: Autism Awareness training; English & Science; Visual Impairment; Hearing Impairment & Communication difficulties; CAMHs Tier 3 well-being; CHUMs well-being; Level 3 mentoring; Grief counseling awareness; Physical Education; Sounds Write; Letters and Sounds; 1:1 tuition and Luton Literacy Intervention Programme (LLIP) to name but a few. Who do I if I need help for my child? As a parent your first point of contact would be your child’s PL tutor or Head of Year who could deal with any concerns, but you can come direct to myself either at one of our “Drop in” sessions throughout the year or arrange a meeting any time during the week. Identifying SEND: Students will be identified through on-going assessments by the child or young person’s teachers, and brought to the attention of the SENCO if they are making less than expected progress, in spite of high quality, differentiated classroom teaching targeted at the child or young person’s area of weakness. Author David Washington, Assistant Principal & SENCO Tel: 01582 884100 Ext 4167 Email: [email protected]

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 7 20/12/2017 08:30:53 SCIENCE CLUB The Science club is a space for year 7 and 8 goal for the summer term will be to students who are passionate and enthusiastic make some extra modifications to our about Science to explore their capabilities and robots such as adding temperature interests outside of the curriculum. We meet sensors, LDR’s and additional every Monday at 3pm after school in Sc3. Our infrared detectors. This will give vision for this year started out as an exploration our bots enhanced functionality of a variety of different topics ranging from such as an alarm that will sound forensic techniques to some modern day alloy when temperatures get too low, a alchemy. light that will switch on when it gets dark and an intruder detector. All great projects start with a dream At Science club we put new experiments to or an idea, at Science club we like the test every week. When we aren’t making big ideas and big dreams. Our bouncing bubbles or trying to generate hydrogen students are our future, therefore from a fuel cell, we build and program robots. I thoroughly encourage any Our new focus for Science club is on robotics. student with a project idea to come So far, students have made a simple robot and share it at Science club. I would with two motors to drive it. Students have also also like to mention a big thank you learnt some basic programming using Python. to Mr Harvey the D&T technician Previously the science club students have who has provided us with endless been working on controlling the motors on the materials, without him our Robots Raspberry Pi bot they have built by programming would not have a chassis to drive! the H Bridge, this allows for independent motor control. Our goal for the beginning of next year is to finish and demonstrate two Raspberry Pi bots, which we will compete with each other. The finished robot will have an infrared sensor, ultrasonic sensor and a line follower so that it is able to detect objects and move around them in addition to following a simple line map. Our

KNIFE CRIME WORKSHOP On Thursday 7th December, Miss Smith and the radio advert competition! Miss Smith and Mr Sterecki took 7 students to the University Mr Sterecki would like to thank Shimaz Shibly, of Bedford. The students took part in a knife Jaymin Patel, Tharun-Ram Sasidharan, Taran crime workshop, looking at the consequences Grewal, Safi Hassan, Sami Hassan and Leah of carrying a knife, the law and preventative Jay. They behaved impeccably and worked very steps. The students worked as a team and hard. created a radio advert. All students worked very well and made a fantastic radio advert about preventing knife crime. The students are keeping their fingers crossed that they will win

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 8 20/12/2017 08:30:59 YOUNG CAREERS CHALLENGE A group of Year 9 students went to Cranfield University where they were shown many innovative projects that they were currently working on, including a project funded by Bill Gates to invent a self-flushing toilet for underdeveloped countries. They were then set a challenge, along with two other schools, of designing their own project to improve THE sustainability of our planet.

Our students were split into two groups. Group 1 did a project on ‘How to Make a Home Sustainable’ and group 2’s project was on a ‘Glass Roof Top’.

Each group made a 5 – 10 minute pitch to a panel consisting of Sir Peter Gregson – VC Cranfield, Helen Chapman – Director of Careers and Jan Flawn – Chair of Women in Leadership. Following their pitch, each group was questioned in depth about their project and then given a feedback.

All projects covered different areas and were all highly commended.

The overall winners were ‘How to Make a Home Sustainable’ consisting of Charlie Addison, Abigail Atkins, Louise Evans and Aaron Kedzierski. Congratulations to all who took part.

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 9 20/12/2017 08:31:02 Chalk Hills Charity Contributions We launched our year of charitable giving in September when we held a coffee morning in support of Macmillan. Students and staff baked and sold cakes and our boardroom transformed into a pretty café where we welcomed members of our community to pop in for coffee and informal chats, we were also joined that day by Malcolm Skinner, one of our governors.

In November we supported Children in Need by hosting our own Spotacular event. This year the campaign fell in the calendar at the same time as Anti-Bullying Week so we combined the events, students were encouraged to wear something blue in recognition of Bullying UK or something spotty for Pudsey. PL Groups were pitted against each other and took part in the BBC Big Quiz and we had a fabulously professional Yr9 Bake Off. Senior staff were invited to judge some very impressive creations. Blue and spotty cakes were sold during break time to raise money for this great cause.

At Chalk Hills Academy, December is traditionally a time where we think of those less fortunate than ourselves and look at ways we can give a little back to our community. This year we are supporting two local charities; Women’s Aid Luton and Level Trust. Each PL Group in Yr10 and Yr11 will be asked to donate items to be given to children and families supported by these charities. Women’s Aid have refuges to house women and children who are fleeing domestic abuse. They arrive to escape violent homes, be protected and recover from their experiences. Some children will be spending this Christmas at Women’s Aid refuges in Luton and we are going to show them that we care by filling a Christmas stocking with gifts and surprises. Women’s Aid will make sure these children get something special from us on Christmas Day. In Luton 1 in 4 children are living below the poverty line. Poverty can put barriers up that mean a child doesn’t love learning as much as they could. Level Trust provide support, learning resources, shoes, school uniform and PE Kit to children in Luton who experience poverty for all kinds of reasons and circumstances beyond their control. Students in Yr7, Yr8 and Y9 will be donating items to fill Christmas gift bags for some of the neediest families in our community. St Hughes Church will also assist in making sure some gift bags are distributed locally to those that need them most.

December is also a time where we get to be a little bit silly by joining in with National Christmas Jumper Day in support of Save The Children. We will be donning our best (and worst) Christmas knits for a donation. The funds raised will go towards providing essential healthcare, education, protection and food to millions of children around the world. ‘..nothing’s out of bounds, except good taste’.

Unclaimed lost property will be donated to NOAH’s, a local award winning charity who have been supporting the homeless people in Luton for 30 years. NOAH’s have set up a second hand furniture business and a charity shop, both employing homeless people, a soup kitchen and welfare centre and an education centre to support people who are homeless build their skills and find employment.

In the New Year we will be reflecting on the lives of people effected by the Holocaust from 1933 to 1945, and in fact all subsequent genocides. In collaboration with the Anne Frank Trust we will seek to learn the lessons of the past and to recognise that genocide does not just happen on its own, it’s a steady process which can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked and prevented. Using Anne Frank’s life and diary as a starting point the charity ‘empowers young people with the knowledge, skills and confidence to challenge all forms of prejudice and discrimination’. Several students will complete training to become Anne Frank Trust Ambassadors and will then show staff, students and visitors around an exhibition.

Spring brings some better weather and Sport Relief week, an opportunity to get active and raise money to change the lives of vulnerable people here in the UK and across the world. Our PE Team will deliver a whole program of fun and sporty sponsored activities for students and staff to get involved in.

It is really important to us a Chalk Hills that we reach out to our local, national and global community in every way we can, we will continual to plan new projects and events throughout the year and keep everyone informed about our activities.

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 10 20/12/2017 08:31:04 Parent Pay – Our New Payment by standing order Payment System and faster It’s simple, safe, convenient and your child payments will no longer needs to carry cash into school. be available ParentPay is an online payment system soon. Your ParentPay for schools. It allows parents to pay balance can be used immediately quickly and securely for school meals, to pay for any of your children’s items at trips and activities, uniforms, music any school using ParentPay. lessons and fees. The academy has already issued all You simply top-up your ParentPay parents with login details, if you have not account online by debit or credit card, received yours, please call the academy or in cash through PayPoint stores. and ask to speak to Mr. Ali.

‘School of Rock’ Amazes Audience at TCHA

The School of Rock performance was held on the 30th November & 1st December at TCHA. The event proved to be exceptionally popular, and the musical had parents, carers, staff and students literally dancing in the main hall! The lead character Dewey Finn was played on alternate nights by Mason Burgess and Abraham Contreras, while Chaise Wood proved to be an exceptional Principal Mullins. Lead roles were also played by Josh Holding, Kiyana Maragh, Emma O’Brien and Beth Richards. The ensemble was made up of many talented students who were a credit to the Performing Arts Department. Gabriele Ignataviciute gave an impressive vocal performance as Tomika. The production had been carefully crafted and managed by Ms Lawson and Mr Lloyd along with support from Mr Stone, Miss Spencer and Mr Peirce. The ‘band’ gave a faultless performance, and was made up of Jack Topham on trombone, Niaina Guedegbe on guitar, Hasan Anwar on percussion, James Routledge on the trumpet and Mr Peirce on keys. Two truly sensational evenings which will not be forgotten! Thanks to all our parents, carer, staff and students who supported the show!

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 11 20/12/2017 08:31:15 Craft Club Does Christmas Craft club meet on a Thurs- day from 3-4.15. Over the last few weeks students have been busy choosing and cutting fab- ric squares to make decorative wreaths. See the results for your- self here. Don’t they look great?

We have some spaces at the moment so if you would like to join us after the Christmas break please see Mrs Chandler in the LRC or Mrs Wingrave in SFL

Staff Well-being Dressing the Relaxation Tree at St Hugh’s The Chalk Hills Academy has introduced to December 2017 their staff a number of opportunities for relaxation and wellbeing, this has included Students Mark Stanford, Kyran Failla, Lucy on site car washing and as pictured below Cole and Zohaib Amin were invited over complimentary massage service. to meet our friends at St Hugh’s Church last week. They had a great time building At The Chalk Hills Academy we value and and dressing the Christmas tree with lights appreciate our staff and these events and and baubles, only stopping momentarily to more will continue in the new year. enjoy a mince pie. Thanks to Chris Norman for taking some time out to join us.

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 12 20/12/2017 08:31:24 TCHA Ski Club - Eddie the Eagle better watch out! On Friday 8th December our students accompanied by Mr Dimond and Mr Vandenbergh braved the harsh climates of the Milton Keynes Snow Dome. It is the first outing by the Ski Club and it was extremely successful with all students skiing the entire slope on their own without falling over! – A fantastic achievement by all. Notable improvements were made by all students but in particular Saheim’s ability to control his turns was impressive. The next Ski Club is will be on Friday 22nd January 2018- Please collect a letter from the PE Department if you wish to attend (all abilities welcome).

A Trip to the Science Museum! The Science department organised a trip flight, medicine, recycling and many, many to the Science Museum and activities to other very important Scientific ideas. celebrate International Space Week over Whilst at the Science Museum students the last term. saw real rockets and space probes, as well Students from years 7, 8, 9 and 10 visited as Spitfires and Tiger moths. All students the Science Museum in London. Some had were impeccably behaved and many of the never been there before, whilst others museum staff complimented our students had been many times before. Whilst there, for their positive attitudes and enthusiasm. students learned about space exploration,

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 13 20/12/2017 08:31:32 Uniform We are grateful for donations of uniform which we will have pro- fessionally cleaned. We then supply uniform to families who may need support in purchasing them. We encourage all parents and students to donate whatever they may have grown out of or no longer need.

Learning Focus in Supply Lessons As one of our top priorities, the academy has always emphasised to reducing the number of occasions were teachers are absent from their lessons. Such occasions could be, on permitted leave, attending external teacher training courses or absent due to sicknesses. Where this is not possible, we make arrangements by booking qualified supply teachers from local and regional teacher supply agencies. Our structure of supply booking priority is as follows: 1. Contact multiple supply teacher agencies in order to book a qualified subject specialist teacher of the lesson that requires covering. 2. Where we are unable to book a subject specialist teacher, we endeavour to book a strong and experienced non-specialist but a qualified teacher of another similar subject who can at least fulfil most of the teaching as per lesson plan left by our absent teacher. We also have two fulltime strong internal cover teachers, who have great knowledge of multiple subjects and a strong personality where they innovatively engage with our students in a manner that would focus on ‘learning by student led activities’. These colleagues are also excellent in classroom behaviour management skills due to the fact they know the students by name and their individual learning needs, which they can view through class register. We want our parents and community to be informed of this policy where learning never stops at The Chalk Hills Academy and that we always endeavour to keep our teacher absences to a minimum.

Mr. Miah Cover Manager

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 14 20/12/2017 08:31:45 Barcelona Trip

34 students from Year 9, 10 and 11 visited Barcelona for 5 days to give them the opportunity to practise their Spanish and learn about Spanish culture. After a two- hour flight we arrived at our hostel on the outskirts of the centre of Barcelona. After leaving our luggage in our rooms, we started to explore! We first went to the Plaça de Catalunya where we saw houses built by the famous Spanish architect, Gaudi. We then returned to the hostel for our first Spanish meal, before settling into our rooms for the night. The next morning, we awoke to blue skies and enjoyed our tasty breakfast. We then took the underground to the Magic Fountain and the National Art Museum of Catalunya, where we sat and enjoyed the Spanish music. We then spent our afternoon in El Poble Espanyol where we toured small shops, the art museum and bought typical Spanish souvenirs, before returning to the hostel by underground. T h e n e x t d a y w e v i s i t e d a g o t h i c c h u r c h i n a historical part of town. We also got to taste ‘churros’ with chocolate. A spanish delight! We the spent some time in the local market specialising in natural products and returned once more to our hostel. Our next day was a dream for chocolate lovers as we visited the ‘El museu de xocolata’, a chocolate museum! We then went to the beach for the afternoon where we relaxed, sunbathed and played games. We then visited the famous aquarium of Barcelona for a couple of hours. The next day, we stopped to see the famous Gaudi church: Sagrada Familia, on the way to the theme park PortAventura. We spent the whole afternoon in the sunshine, trying out all the rides and we enjoyed the biggest rollercoaster in Europe! On our last day, we walked to the famous fooball stadium Camp Nou, where we had a tour and visited the museum. Amazing for Messi fans! We then flew back home, exhausted but excited by our amazinfg week in Spain. At Easter 2018, Students from Year 8 and 9 will have the opportunity to spend 5 days in Chateau de la Baudonniere in Normandy, France. They will also have an unforgettable experience!

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 15 20/12/2017 08:31:50 Chalk Hills Academy Remembrance Commemoration The staff and students at The Chalk Hills Academy held a very moving remembrance service on the morning of Thursday 9th November. Mrs Lee, the Principal read the poem ‘For the Fallen’ by Lawrence Binyon to mark the opening of the service. The Revd. Joe Pienaar, Vicar at St Hugh’s Church in Luton, led Year 7 students and staff in prayer during the ceremony. Musical accompaniment was provided by Joe Eldred and James Routledge as they played the ‘Last Post’ and sixth-former Beth Richards sang ‘Fields of Gold’ accompanied by Mrs Lawson on piano. The Art Department led by Ms Chauhan created a wonderful installation where students were able to lay a poppy and reflect on the importance and significance of those who lost their lives to protect freedom and liberty. A two-minute silence was honoured by the Chalk Hills Academy at 11am. The service proved to be a very moving event for the Academy community.

The Chalk Hills Academy, Leagrave High Street, Luton LU4 0NE chalkhills.thesharedlearningtrust.org.uk | 01582 884 100 | [email protected]

Autumn 2017.indd 16 20/12/2017 08:32:12