Haggerston Recorder April 2014
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Haggerston Newsletter of Recorder Issue 002_April 2014 Diary Dates Monday 7th April – Monday 21st April Easter holiday Thursday 24th April Y10 parents’ evening, Dear Parents/Carers, 5–7pm Monday 5th May I write this with two weeks to go until the end of the term, being able to see the welcome signs of spring in the weather and the increasing May bank holiday. day length. The warmer, drier weather and the lighter evenings tempt School closed more of our students to linger in the neighbourhood after school rather Monday 26th May – than going directly home. Senior staff encourage the dispersal of the students on their journeys home, throughout as much of the local Friday 30th May neighbourhood as we can, and this is to keep them safe and to prevent Half term potentially large numbers of young people making more difficult the Thursday 15th May safe passage of other pedestrians in the vicinity. We have just the same high expectations of Haggerston students being calm, courteous and Year 9 parents’ and considerate outside the school as we have of their behaviour in school. options evening, 5–7pm Recently, a member of the public told us of the kindness of one of our Friday 4th July students on a bus. Although we were unable to identify this anonymous student, it does the reputation of all of our students good when this PSHCE day happens, and it is always a pleasure to receive this sort of feedback. Friday 18th July In the first week of the holidays there will be revision classes on all End of summer term week for students in years 11,12 and 13, and I would like to take this Thursday 14 August opportunity to wish all of our students taking public exams this sum- mer the best of luck in these final weeks of preparation, the culmina- A-Level results tion of all the hard work they have put into their courses of study. Hard Thursday 21 August work is the theme of this issue of the Recorder, for without it there GCSE results would be none of the sporting successes and artistic and academic achievements on show within it. We hope you enjoy reading it, and that you have a very happy Easter holiday. Best wishes, Dr Jane Keeley, Headteacher Visit from MP Meg Hillier In December Hackney’s MP, Meg Hillier, visited to see the recently refurbished school in action. Meg had a whistle stop tour of the buildings and was able to visit some lessons, meeting with students and staff. In a year 7 science lesson and a year 13 maths lesson, she talked with students about the topics they were studying, and the relevance of qualifications in science and maths to the future job market. Meg’s visit also paved the way for the A level Government and Politics students to visit her in the House of Commons this term. Haggerston Recorder April 2014 Art Blog The Art Department has launched a blog for students to use as a support frame for homework and to extend learning beyond the classroom. The blog also showcases exemplar work and allows students and parents to watch YouTube Art and Design tutorials. The blog can be accessed using the link: www.haggerstonschool artdepartment.blogspot.co.uk Mr Wilson Art Teacher School production of ‘Macbeth’ On the 10th, 11th and 12th of December last term, students performed a ‘cold and clinical’ interpretation of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’. The cast worked tirelessly in rehearsals at lunchtime, after school and even weekends for over three months demonstrating excellent self–discipline and team work. Their commitment was evident in the confident and creative performances. The play was staged in our new South Studio and seen by five primary schools and around 500 family, friends and staff. Dr. Keeley, Headteacher, commented, ‘Each year, with Haggerston’s December production, there are some unique qualities which mark it out. Watching ‘Macbeth’ last night, there were two which stood out for me – that it was the first time there was an ensemble cast of boys and girls of equal ages, and that they performed so beautifully in Shakespeare’s language.’ Sue Goodman, Programme and Artistic Director from the Royal Academy of Dance, commented that the performance left her feeling ‘inspired and uplifted’ by the level of commitment and focus from students. London Fields Primary School commented, “It was truly spectacular and I was blown away by your students’ talent. My kids were also amazed – they were all saying how “sick” the performance was!” Thank you and well done to all involved. Miss Powell, Head of Drama and Ms Ray–Choudhuri, Head of Expressive Arts A level Life Drawing Classes Year 12 and 13 A Level Fine Art students were given the opportunity to experience a 7 week intensive life drawing course. Life drawing is an essential requirement for any student wishing to go onto Art College and the life drawing classes have enabled students to build a portfolio of work. The life model who took part in the classes has previously modeled for artist Yinka Shonibare and has also modeled for students at The Royal Academy of Arts. Drawing workshop using artefacts from the Japanese Embassy During October and November, the Art Department was given the opportunity to borrow a set of traditional Japanese artefacts from the Embassy of Japan. Year 10 GCSE students were able to complete a series of drawing workshops working directly from a range of Japanese artefacts such as traditional dolls, clothing, toys, lanterns and model sushi as part of their World Cultures project. Ms Ramos–Virley Head of Art Chess Club Chess Club has continued to maintain its popularity after school every Friday. The school is working in partnership with Chess in Schools and Communities (CSC) and our students have been benefiting from bespoke chess coaching at the after school club. Mr Pilling Geography Teacher Haggerston Recorder April 2014 Debate Mate On Monday 27th January Haggerston School hosted the first round of the Urban Debate League. The Debate Mate team faced tough competition from Walthamstow Academy, City of London Academy and Mossbourne Academy. The motion for the first debate was: “this house believes that the government should have the right to spy on all citizens”. Our students were up against impressive and experienced debaters from the other schools and managed to win two debates out of three. In the second round students were given a new and previously unseen motion which was: “this house believes school summer holidays should be reduced from six weeks to three”. In this round Haggerston students won all three of the debates that they took part in! It was a fantastic achievement for our students to win five debates out of six in total. Our students thoroughly enjoyed themselves and Maths successes it was great to chalk up a win in the first round of the league. continued… Debate Mate participants have over the years developed sophisticated Year 9 and 10 students took communication, higher–order thinking and interpersonal skills, whilst building part in the annual UKMT (UK their confidence and self–esteem. We are very proud of them and would like Mathematics Trust) Intermediate to thank them for their hard work and effort in preparing for this competition. Maths Challenge in February. Congratulations on your victory! We continued our amazing success in this national Ms Mangera and Ms Jeffers competition aimed at advancing English Teachers the education of children and young people in mathematics. The students achieved a record of 3 Gold, 3 Silver and 7 Bronze. The results are as follows: Gold • Adam Lawson (Y10) • Ford Fagan (Y9) • Oliver Stonehouse–Klyne (Y10) Silver • Paul Adeleye (Y10) • David Tran (Y9) • Saul Holliday (Y9) Bronze •Ali Qadir (Y10) • Muhammed Ali (Y10) • Ashwin Murray (Y10) • Vadiya Kirby (Y9) • Wahida Omar (Y9) • Elen Mitchell Reid (Y9) • Sulayman Desai (Y9) With these results, Adam Lawson has qualified for the Hamilton Olympiad (Gold) and both Oliver Stonehouse–Klyne and Ford Fagan have qualified for the Intermediate European Kangaroo (Gold). Ms Mohamed Maths Teacher Celebrating Student Success At Haggerston School we are always keen to celebrate the successes of our students. This year we have launched a new initiative to ensure that our students are rewarded for their success in terms of achievement, effort and citizenship. Students have been rewarded with points in these categories when they have: completed high quality work; persevered and overcome challenges; or been excellent role models in terms of their behaviour and conduct. These points are recorded centrally by the school and when students reach the Further Mathematics and Regional Maths required total they are awarded a Challenge success badge in the relevant category. Further Mathematics is an AS or A level qualification which both Students have already achieved very broadens and deepens the mathematics covered in A level Mathematics. high totals and bronze badges are Further Mathematics is taken alongside an AS or A level in Mathematics. being worn with pride on the blazers of students in all year groups! “Demand for jobs with Science, Engineering and Technology skills is set to grow by 2.4 million by 2014 – and all these jobs require maths skills. Highly Mr Lynch numerate disciplines are in great demand from employers – young people Assistant Headteacher with maths qualifications will find that their degrees can open doors to exciting and rewarding careers.” Susan Anderson, CBI. There is a government–funded initiative called the Further Mathematics Support Programme (FMSP). The FMSP run a national maths challenge for year 10 students with the aim of expanding these younger students’ mathematical horizons and hopefully inspiring them to study Further Mathematics at A–Level.