We Would Love to See You at Woodlands. “The ‘To the Moon’ Project Made Me Feel Very Happy to Be Joining a School Where People Are So Creative and Positive
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SCHOOL PROSPECTUS 2021 We would love to see you at Woodlands. “The ‘To The Moon’ project made me feel very happy to be joining a school where people are so creative and positive. The staff are all positive and interested in your work.” Scarlett-Rose – Year 7 student 2 Contents 4 Welcome 22 Our Expectations 6 Our Vision and Values 24 Care and Guidance 8 Curriculum Learning and Outcomes 26 School Uniform and PE Kit 10 Location and Facilities 29 Extra Curricular Activities 12 Enhancing Learning 31 Contacts 15 From Primary to Woodlands 16 Case Study 18 Admissions Policy 20 Teaching and Learning 3 Welcome At Woodlands we pride ourselves on the warm and friendly atmosphere of the school. Relationships are important and our aim is to ensure that every student feels safe and happy. We strive to provide the best for them and believe that every young person deserves the chance to feel successful at school. Our motto, ‘Aspire and Achieve’, sums up our hopes and expectations for every student who is part of our school community. We want all of our students to excel and recognise that, for this to happen, they must aspire to achieve ambitious goals and work hard to reach these. But, we know that having aspiration can be tough; after all, if you dream big, there is a chance that you might not always reach your goal. This is why we are here as well-qualified and committed staff to both support and challenge all young people to aspire, to dream of what might lie ahead and to work hard to make an ambitious goal possible. When aspiration and hard work are combined, people achieve amazing things. That is what we strive for at Woodlands: to see every student aspire to reach or exceed their potential and work hard towards that goal. In turn they will receive excellent teaching and support to achieve it and to feel a sense of self-worth and pride in doing so. We want our students to be good citizens, demonstrating leadership, awareness of global issues, regard for others and courage when faced with challenge. Our success is built on a strong partnership between students, parents/carers, staff and governors; a partnership which flourishes in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect. You will see on page 6 how ‘Aspire and Achieve’ is woven in to the fabric of our school through our vison, values and aims that everyone, students, parents/carers, staff and governors have contributed to. It is a touchstone for how we want to be as a community and is under constant review to maintain this focus. We are lucky to be a thriving school with a growing intake, a broad curriculum and are proud to provide superb extra-curricular opportunities in sports, technology and the creative and performing arts as well as possessing tremendous facilities. This continues through to A level where our sixth form gives the opportunity for further study in preparation for university or apprenticeship. If you would like to know more, take a good look at this prospectus, visit our website or speak to those who know us best – our students and parents/carers – and visit us, at the moment through our online virtual Open Evening, to find out for yourself and get a feel for what Allestree Woodlands School is all about. Gemma Penny Headteacher 4 5 Our Vision: Aspire & Achieve Enabling aspiration and achievement for all students through delivery of a knowledge-rich curriculum underpinned by our CORE values. CORE Values: Courage – to be brave in the face of challenge Optimism – to look for solutions and see positives Regard – to care for and be kind to others and yourself Endeavour – to work hard and persevere to achieve one’s full potential 6 Our School 1 A refusal to accept discrimination; promotion of cultural diversity, British We are an inclusive secondary school in north values and the acceptance of difference. Derby for over 1300 students aged 11-18 with 1 A school community including (but not 1 a broad and balanced curriculum limited to) students, staff, parents, carers in years 7-11. and alumni that celebrates success for all, 1 a wide educational offer in years 12-13. where all voices are heard, fostering a 1 a great range of extra-curricular sense of pride and belonging. opportunities in sports, technology 1 Aspiring to lead by example in our care for and the creating and performing arts. the environment and move towards being a 1 excellent facilities and outdoor space. carbon neutral school. 1 provision for those with additional needs 1 Broad engagement, partnership and including an enhanced resource facility for collaboration within the school and across the hearing impaired. the community including with other schools, employers, parents and carers. What does this look like? 1 The school of choice for the families in our 1 People who are inspired, dream big and are catchment and wider community. self-motivated to strive to achieve their best 1 Across all subjects, students including Enablers those who are disadvantaged and those 1 Safeguarding – we are committed to with Special Educational Needs & safeguarding, promoting the welfare of our Disabilities progress in line with national students and expect all our staff, governors averages or better. and volunteers to share this commitment. 1 A regularly reviewed, inspiring curriculum 1 Staff – we aim to have the best possible that is relevant to our students and society, teaching staff, support staff, leaders, encouraging them to expand their horizons. governors and volunteers to enable our 1 Wide enriching experiences within students to achieve their full potential. and beyond the classroom, leading to 1 Relationships – a clear understanding of personal growth. expectations, consistent implementation 1 A thriving sixth form integrated into supported and maintained by all. the school community. 1 Wider community – engaged and 1 Students well equipped for their next steps supportive parents and carers with effective after Allestree Woodlands School. two-way communication. 1 A professional learning community 1 Facilities & Financial responsibility – where staff are supported to develop buildings, IT, website and subject specific continuously their expertise and skill. facilities that enable the curriculum and wider development of our students within a 1 A climate that encourages balanced and controlled budget. personal wellbeing and good mental & physical health, encouraging Adopted by the Governing Board July 2020. positive relationships with support structures including peer mentoring. 7 Curriculum, Learning and Outcomes at Woodlands At Woodlands, we have a wide range of subject specialists Year 11 GCSE 9 – 1 Results 2020 that allow us to deliver a breadth of subjects across the Standard different year groups. We deliver lessons drawn from a well Pass sequenced curriculum that builds on knowledge and skills 9 – 4 % over time. To this end, students’ learning expectations are Art 85 high. We expect all our students to show endeavour and a Biology 96.1 positive attitude by working hard both in school and at home. Business Studies 78.9 At Woodlands, students will be taught a broad range of Chemistry 94.1 subjects that incorporate an academic curriculum with the Computing 73.3 arts and sports. We are committed to delivering a knowledge- D&T 57.7 rich curriculum that has a focus on key subject knowledge which prepares students for their future success. We also Drama 75.9 incorporate elements of our CORE values into our wider English Language 76.3 focus on personal development and believe that if students English Literature 79.1 can develop courage, optimism, regard and endeavour, that these principles will set them up for a successful future. Food & Nutrition 71.4 French 80.5 We are proud of our attainment at Woodlands, where our Geography 79.2 students achieve a high percentage of grade 4s and above German 61.5 across the range of subjects: History 66.4 Maths 76.4 Music 76.9 PE 76.8 Physics 95 RE 78.7 Science (Combined Trilogy) 56.9 Spanish 54.1 Creative Media 76.9 Engineering 31.3 Health & Social Care 76.2 8 Home Learning At Woodlands school, SCHOOL LEARNING we call any piece of work 1 Teacher demos that is being completed and ‘having a go’ at home ‘home learning’. 1 Learning This could be a piece of new content work set by the teacher, 1 Revisiting watching an educational prior content LEA OOL RNI H NG SC video, completing an 1 Questions answered online quiz or revisiting notes from a lesson. 1 Support with All these type of your learning activities are designed HOME LEARNING to build on what a 1 Microsoft Teams student has been 1 Re-reading taught – we call this your notes HO G the home learning/school ME LEARNIN 1 Revisiting and learning cycle. self-checking 1 Video sessions on BBC bitesize, National Oak Academy Assessment at Woodlands At Woodlands, we assess our students’ knowledge on a regular basis. We do this through a range of methods such as quizzes, quick fire tests and questioning on a lesson-by-lesson basis. These are designed to both inform the teacher so they can adapt their teaching and support individual students and to enable students to understand their learning needs. In addition to this, we also set end of unit and year assessments that monitor student performance over a longer period time. This will inform students, parents and carers about what progress is being made and help us to direct our support where needed. Keeping you informed We believe that a positive partnership between parent, school and student is the key to success. It is, therefore, important to us that we are able to keep our parents and carers fully informed.