TAHS Weekly Newsletter. 

Headteacher’s Blog

We have just completed our staff training day and it has been incredibly useful. It was lovely to welcome our new CEO Sarah Clarke to the Multi Academy Trust. I am excited to begin working with her from January.
We hope students and staff take a break to recharge their batteries, but are aware that many students will be wanting to combine time for relaxing with time revising ready for their trial examinations in December. Some students may want to revisit content taught in this term.

There are some fantastic resources to support parents and students with revision techniques one set is at GCSEpod https://www.gcsepod.com/free-resources/student-resources/. Thank you to the parents who attended the training session at Year 9 parents evening on Unifrog and GCSEpod. As we mentioned, we have purchased access for Year 9, 10 and 11 students to both packages.

We hope Year 11 parents can join us at revision evening on Tuesday 5th November at 6.00pm in the Theatre. We have some materials we will be giving away on the evening. If parents of a child in any other year group would like to attend please feel free to join us. The session is usually finished by 7.15pm.

Finally, on this rather rainy evening, I wanted to wish our World Challenge students well as they take on the elements this weekend, camping in the peak district. Thank you to the staff who are working with them.
I hope you all have a lovely half term

This upcoming week is a week to plan, to get ahead and to start thinking about the upcoming mock examinations. It is a week to complete personal statements, look at apprenticeships and to look at completing UCAS applications.  It is a week to find time to sit, relax and contemplate how much our students have completed in eight short weeks.

All students must not forget to bring their data collection sheets back to school when they return.  If their uniform is not quite right then it is a time to make those changes.  We would also like to state that all students should be in school between the times of 8.40 – 3.05. If they leave school at break or lunch then they must sign out, this is a mandatory requirement.

Upcoming events for the Sixth Form are: Body Worlds Trip, Maths Inspiration Trip, GCSE Prize Giving, Year 13 Parents Evening, UCAS Design Your Future Art Trip and Year 13 mock examinations.

6th Form Tutor Time Activities

These are the weekly activities for 6th form registration for Monday 4th November’, then the above under Y12 and Y13.

Year 12

Read the Which guide to higher and degree apprenticeships.  Consider which is the right route for you.

Year 13

Spend some time working on your personal statement.  Talk to your tutor.  Read the TAHS personal statement advice on Twitter.  Consult Unifrog advice and exemplar statements.

Year 11 Revision Evening

On 5th November 2019 6pm we would like to invite all Year 11 students, parents and carers to attend a Revision evening to share key information about revising for cores subjects and effective strategies for exam success. Please join us to support your preparation for the mock exams.

Robotics Challenge

Our first Robotics UK challenge team made up of pupils from year 9 through 13 are busy preparing for their first event on 4th December at Staffordshire University. This will then be followed by a regional competition at RAF Cosford in the New Year. Keep an eye on the school social media for updates and links to their own social platforms.

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idea Award

Three more students have attained their idea.org.uk Bronze award in Digital Literacy in their 6th Form 7 time. They are now working towards their silver award. Congratulations to Harvey, George & Jack.

Sports News

Lifesaving Training

The PE Department successfully completed the RLSS National Rescue Award on Wednesday.A full day of training was delivered by Miss James, covering aspects of pool safety, operating procedures, CPR and basic first aid. The test included practical rescues, demonstrations of first aid techniques and questioning. Completion of this award will allow for more swimming lessons to be delivered on our curriculum.  

U18 ESFA Cup

On Tuesday our U18 boys bowed out of the FA cup at the second round stage going down 4-2 to John Taylor.  After taking the lead through Lewis Dawson we took the foot off the gas and allowed the home side back into the game. Poor defending allowed a 3-1 deficit before Archie Whitehead pulled a goal back. We then missed an open goal, hit the post and had another disallowed- It was not going to be our day.

U16 BDSFA Cup

On Thursday we travelled to Robert Sutton in the semi-final of the district cup.  Despite playing some lovely football we went down 3-0 to a very strong side, in what was our first defeat of the season.

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Science News

This week’s Science Students of the Week selected by Mr Crum are:

Year 9

Lucy Blood for excellent effort

Harmony Green for superb attainment

Thomas Yeomans for his enthusiasm and effort in lessons

Year 10

Charlie Hallam for his consistently high effort and attainment

Harley Walkenden for exemplary effort this half term

Isaac Stanier for excellent effort and attainment

Year 11

Chloe Yates for consistent effort

Abi Wildman for always trying her best every lesson

Year 12

George Mothershaw

Katelyn Poole

Ben Seaman

Leyton Tyers for their brilliant efforts towards their forensics assignment at Staffs University

Year 13

Elliot Jones for superb effort all half term

Luke Langley for consistent excellent effort

Sian Rendell for her conscientious approach to her studies

Well done!

Maths Revision

Maths after-school support sessions start after half term for Year 11, 12 and 13.  Come along if you need help with any topics or want to work on practice questions.

Apprenticeships

If your child is thinking about whether to go to university or to do an apprenticeship, please read this guide to help with your decision.  Y12 have been watching useful videos on this topic during registration this week.  We would also advise researching university websites.

Geography Revision

Optional Geography revision sessions, every Thursday in room 6B from 3:05 to 4pm.

Sadfishing

SadFishing’ is described as a behavioural trend where people make exaggerated claims about their emotional problems to generate sympathy and attention. The term was created at the beginning of the year by a blogger using the term to describe certain celebrities who embellish their emotional difficulties to generate sympathy and gain more followers. The term has now gained traction and is seen as a growing trend on social media. The challenge with sadfishing is that sometimes real problems can become overlooked or young people can even be bullied for having shared their problems online.  

A guide for parents from the National Online Safety Centre can be found here:

Support for D & T

We are looking for support from local businesses in giving some real world examples to our A level DT students who are covering some complex Industrial practices in preparation for their main exam. If you feel that you could support our students by sharing your own expertise and experience, giving them examples to refer to in their coursework and exam, then we would love to hear from you. We are looking at Manufacturing systems and strategies including Concurrent Manufacturing, Project Data Management and Enterprise Resource Planning, Scrum, SixSigma, DMAIC and DMADV. Please contact office@tahs.org.uk and I will get back to you. Many thanks, Mr Swindlehurst

Vacancies

We require a number of exam invigilators for our exams in December. Please see the attached for full information.

We also have some vacancies in our Special Needs team.

YESS Drop in Sessions

Parental Help with Fortnite Chapter 2

Links

School Website

School Shop

TAHS Weekly Newsletter. 

Headteacher’s Blog

I joined Mr Cartwright this week for his assembly on on-line safety. The message was a powerful one. If you have chance to ask your sons and daughters about the assembly, please do as this may help them reflect on the key messages which were shared. 

The PTA raffle has gained incredible momentum with some amazing prizes including a £250.00 shopping voucher. Please look out for the tickets as your PTA has done an incredible job in sourcing the prizes.
We look forward to meeting Year 9 parents next Wednesday (23rd) to review how everyone has settled in. If you haven’t booked your appointment, please do so. 

On the 5th November, we will be holding our Year 11 revision evening. The hall is always packed on the evening and we hope you can all join us. We will be starting the evening at 6.00pm. It will be an opportunity for you to hear from our Heads of Science, English and Maths on the final steps before the GCSE examinations. We will also be sharing some generic revision skills which you can support your sons and daughters with. 

I have seen the first plans for our new gym. there is no doubt in my mind that If we can make it happen it will be a fantastic resource for anyone wishing to do some training on site. I am personally excited to see the vision brought to reality! 

Assemblies: 14th October

Assemblies: w/b 21st of October

Heads of House will be leading assemblies this week on the theme of ‘ ‘Celebrating Success’

Thought(s) for the Week 

“Competition is a by-product of productive work, not its goal. A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others.”–Ayn Rand

‘Taking the initiative’ is an ethos that we promote within the Sixth Form so it was no surprise to us that the Sixth Form Council decided to wear a red tie to school to show support for Show Racism the Red Card campaign.

It is very relevant especially after the recent incident involving English football players, well done.

One of year 13 students, Amanda Clough is very involved with outreach programmes in the community and is hoping to raise awareness and encourage participation in life saving events.  Amanda is going to allow her hair to be shaved! Please read the follow article from Amanda.

‘Brave The Shave, is where I shave my head for charity. I will be doing it on 6th November 2019, at lunch time in the Theatre. I am doing it in memory of a loved one and in support of Macmillan Cancer Support. Everyone is welcome to come and watch, and there will be a 50p entrance charge. The person who donates the most, gets to do the first shave, currently the amount to beat is £30, so if you want to do this, or simply just donate follow this link – https://bravetheshave.macmillan.org.uk/shavers/amanda-clough -, or google “Brave The Shave Amanda Clough” and you will find a link to my Macmillan Profile page, alternatively you can donate on the day, when paying the entrance fee for the Theatre, (you will not be able to shave my head if donating on the day). Happy Donating everyone, and a massive thank you! I will also be sending my hair to the Little Princess Trust’

To add to this amazing effort Amanda also volunteers for St John Ambulance.  They are running a Restart A Heart Day, where you can come along to the St John Ambulance Unit, Carter Street, Uttoxeter, ST14 8EY, and learn the lifesaving skills of CPR and how to use an AED (defibrillator). If this sounds interesting to you, come along on Saturday 19th October 2019, from 9am until 12pm.

Each week Mrs Bell organises an activity for Year 12 and Year 13 forms which enable them to help plan for the future. This is completed each Monday and over the year we will have covered a range of skills and topics. Work, university, apprenticeships, finance, time management to name a few. This coming week we will be:

 Y13

How well do you use source material? 

Y12

Is university right for you? 

Why go to uni?

Apprenticeship or uni?

Advice to help you prepare for an open day

With these topics in mind the Sixth Form Team have processed all the UCAS applications for Oxbridge and competitive courses.

French Exchange

Applications need to be with Mrs Clemett by the 24th October please.

Year 9 Tutor Evening

Year 9 Tutor Evening Wednesday 23rd October 4.00pm – 6.00pm
We are looking forward to welcoming year 9 parents on Wednesday evening.  It will give parents the opportunity to meet their son/ daughters form  tutor as well as attending workshops on Unifrog, a destinations platform, GCSE pod and a most able workshop. There will also be an opportunity to purchase revision materials at a reduced rate too! Look forward to seeing you Wednesday.

Appointments are made via the Parents Evening menu on your parental Insight login (not the child’s login). If you are having issues logging in please email insight@tahs.org.uk

Year 11 Revision Evening

On 5th November 2019 6pm we would like to invite all Year 11 students, parents and carers to attend a Revision evening to share key information about revising for cores subjects and effective strategies for exam success. Please join us to support your preparation for the mock exams.

Data Checking and Photo Consent

Envelopes containing data collection sheets, photo consent forms and our Privacy Notice have been given out to students this week.  Parents should check, sign and return data collection sheets and photo consent forms and return to the school office by Thursday 24th October please.

Sports News

U15 Netball

v’s John Talor. Our Year 10 girls first game of the season ended in defeat to John Taylor.Our girls battled hard but a very strong John Taylor side did not allow many TAHS many opportunities to scoreNext fixture is against Robert SuttonTeam – Calladine, Martin, Carr, Robins, Perry, Berry, Young, Page

U14 Netball

At the half way point of the staffs moorlands competition TAHS are leading having won 5 games out of 6.The latest fixtures saw a 9-2 win against Painsley, a 13-0 victory against against Cheadle and a 2-0 defeat to Moorlands.Well done girls

U16 District Football

On Tuesday we hosted John Taylor in the Burton and District Cup, winning 2-1 with two goals from Ashton Bagley and a man of the match performance from Ethan Clarkson.

Team- Whitehead, Kenny, Cope, Beech, Van Hoek, Hocking, Clarkson, Evans, Brunt, Bagley, Stockbridge, Hall, Lunn, Mangon, Wildridge

Fixtures next week-

Tue U18 FA Cup away v John Taylor

Thu U16 District cup away v Robert Sutton

Thu U14 District cup home v Pingle

U15 National and county cup Rugby v QMG Walsall

On Monday in torrential rain we hosted the powerful QMG Walsall.  While matching them in many aspects of play their match experiences coupled with 2 super stars made the difference to the score line.

Team- Pattinson-Lycett, Edwards, Gascoigne, Wilson, Watt, Forrerester, Gwynne, Hensman, Moorfield, Hodgekinson, Plant, Buxton, Chouhibi, Ward, Moody, Pagett, Craven, Young

Science News

 

This week our Year 12 BTEC Forensic and Applied Science students visited Staffordshire University’s crime scene house and specialist laboratories.  Below is an account from one of our students.

‘The Forensic and Applied Science groups went to Staffordshire University to take part in learning how to investigate a crime scene.  We started off with a brief on what we were doing and how to investigate, package and record certain elements before we began the investigation.

After the brief we all got taken to the investigation house and got suited up in an investigation kit and then went into our room and began finding evidence and packaging them up properly.  We also learnt how to take pictures properly, take finger prints and draw a sketch of our room to try and solve the crime. 

Overall, it was a really fun day out and was very interesting to learn new skills.’

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This week’s Science Students of the Week selected by Mr Mitchell are:

Year 9

Joseph Hall for brilliant work rate, and out of the classroom with excellent homework and research tasks.

Frankie Groom for brilliant answers in Science and completion of work.

Year 10

Alyssa Whitehall for a brilliant work ethic and application to Science in the classroom.

Zoe Hunter for excellent work in Physics.

Year 11

Hannah Davis for a great start to the year with attitude and progress in Chemistry.

George Foster for a tremendous start to Year 11 with a really mature work ethic and high test scores.

This week’s Year 10 Animal Care Students of the Week selected by Mr Harris are:

Toby Minshell and Josh Gascoigne – both students have worked really hard and really sensibly throughout the start of Animal Care.

This week’s Year 11 Animal Care Students of the Week selected by Mrs North are:

Taylor Corkin, Ben Guntripp, Izzie McLeavy, Spencer Reeves for excellent results in a recent end of module test.

Well done!

INSET Day

A reminder that students finish school at 3.05 on Thursday 24th October and return at 8.40 on Monday 4th November.

With this in mind the canteens ‘fish and chip Friday’ will be on Thursday next week.

Geography Revision

Optional Geography revision sessions, every Thursday in room 6B from 3:05 to 4pm.

Exam Invigilators

We require a number of exam invigilators for our exams in December. Please see the attached for full information.

YESS Drop in Sessions

Parental Help with Fortnite Chapter 2

Links

School Website

School Shop

TAHS Weekly Newsletter. 

Headteacher’s Blog

This weekend I am fortunate to be able to join Outward Bound, who offer our Year 9 a residential experience, at their outdoor centre in Eskdale. For a long time educators have been clear that  adventure learning programmes can have a positive impact on academic outcomes, as well as other skills like resilience and motivation. We hope to continue to build our outdoor education provision into our offer at Thomas Alleyne’s High School by having a close working relationship with Outward Bound and by providing opportunities like Duke of Edinburgh and World Challenge. 

On a different note, thank you to all parents who contacted us regarding the anxiety workshop we are offering to parents. 

If you are interested, and have not replied, please email headfteacher@tahs.org.uk. For those parents who have expressed an interest you will be contacted by our office staff who will offer you dates for the sessions.

Anxiety Workshop

We all experience anxiety at certain times in our life, when it reaches high levels it can cause us physical and psychological distress. As an experienced counsellor and trainer, I have developed this 3 hour workshop to help you understand anxiety and learn how to feel more in control, not to fear it.

·        Understand what anxiety is

·        Why and how anxiety works, biologically and psychologically

·        The effects of high levels of anxiety and panic attacks

·        Effective coping techniques to reduce your level of anxiety

·        How to feel more in control and achieve your goals

·        Helpful for anxiety at work and in your personal life

·        Students preparing for exams and parents supporting them

This workshop is aimed at everyone who would like to learn more about anxiety for themselves or others. It is useful for those experiencing life events which may cause increased levels of anxiety or anyone with longer term anxiety issues. It is a psychological educational workshop aimed at helping you to feel more in control of your life again. Come and join me in a relaxed atmosphere and increase your sense of wellbeing.

Thank you also to everyone who supported us on the Post 16 open evening this week. If you were unable to attend but are interested in studying with us please contact the sixth form team.

This week, as part of our process of school improvement. We are working with two secondary schools to share best practice. A review has taken place this week, which has been helpful in continuing to look at how we continue to introduce school improvement strategies. 

We look forward to seeing Year 9 parents at the Year 9 induction evening on 23rd October. Appointments can be booked on Insight. Please also allow some time to join us for a presentation on GCSEpod and to meet with our gifted and talented co-ordinators. We hope to see you there. 

Assemblies: 14th October

Assemblies: w/b 14^th of October

Mr Cartwright will be leading assemblies this week on the theme of ‘ ‘Staying Safe Online’

Thought(s) for the Week 

“The internet is insecure by default.”
― David Chiles

“The internet isn’t written in pencil, Mark. It’s written in ink” – The Social Network

I do a love a good Open Evening, and this year seemed to be the best yet. It was a great turn out by our Year 11 students and it was nice to see so many parents. One thing that Mrs Walton also comments on is the amount of external students that we talk to on these evenings, the reason we have so many each year is due to the positive ethos that we promote in and around our community.

I would like to personally thank all the Year 12 and 13 students who gave up their time to help, please remember to log the hours you volunteered so that you can start working towards your Lions certificate.

Thank you to the students who have taken the time to help keep the Sixth Form Common Room and clean and tidy space to work. All students need to remember that it is everyone’s responsibility to tidy up after themselves.  The reason I mention this is because on Monday we had to close the Common Room and the Study Room due to the poor behaviour of a few students. The facilities they have at their disposal are a privilege and not a right. I hope I do not have to close this to students again this academic year.

As we draw close to half term, could I recommend that if students have not started preparing revision materials that they think of using the time to do so. Last week I purchased a pack of ten revision cards and a box to store them in for under £10 from a local shop, these were for my daughter who, although she may not have been as enthusiastic as I had hoped, will need them soon. So please encourage your child to start revising sooner rather than later.

French Exchange

The details about the French Staffordshire- Limousin Exchange have been given out to interested Y10 students this week . Reply slips need to be in by the 24th October. Please see Mrs Clemett In room 11 for more details.

Year 9 Tutor Evening

The year 9 tutor evening takes place on Wednesday 24th October between 4 & 6pm. This is your chance to come into school and meet with your child’s tutor to discuss how they have settled in at TAHS.

Appointments are made via the Parents Evening menu on your parental Insight login (not the child’s login). If you are having issues logging in please email insight@tajs.org.uk

Year 9 Talk the Talk

On 15^th – 17^th October, students at Thomas Alleyne’s High School will work with expert trainers from the education charity Talk The Talk.

Talk The Talk’s mission is to improve students’ communication skills to enable positive interaction in all life situations.

Talk The Talk has trained over 25,000 students in the past twelve months in England and Wales and nearly 80,000 since we first started – using a programme developed over the past six years.

Talk About Communication is an exciting and engaging master-class in essential speaking and listening skills within a creative classroom environment teaches students how to use persuasive language techniques to get ‘their message’ across. The day highlights and nurtures employability skills, interview techniques and key presentation skills.  Via numerous speaking opportunities, students are coached and supported throughout the day to deliver a structured two-minute presentation, on a topic for which they have a genuine passion, to their peers.

There is no doubt that grades open the door to opportunity for our students. But when they walk through that door – it is a completely different set of skills. We are striving to ensure that all young people are suitably equipped with the essential tools and skills to communicate confidently in a variety of situations – both within school and in their lives beyond.

Tuesday 15th: 9UD, 9HB, 9HL

Wednesday 16th: 9HD, 9HA, 9HS

Thursday 17th: 9UA, 9UB, 9UL

Sports News

QEGS Ashbourne 1 – Thomas Alleyne’s 5

On Wednesday our First X1 travelled to neighbours QEGS in the first round of the schools FA cup.  On a wet boggy pitch Alleyne’s wasted 3 good chances before opening the scoring from a corner with a well taken finish from centre back Alex Brain fresh from a successful loan spell.
The lead was doubled after good pressure led to Archie Mcnair bundling the ball into the net. A third shortly after was a precision free kick from Harry johnson which had the keeper rooted to the spot.

Great sportsman ship from captain Whitehead to hold his hands up for offside after missing a clear chance- this then put doubt in the linesmans mind and the skipper had a goal debatedly chalked off moments later.
A defensive mix up allowed QEGS back into the game via a free kick for a back pass.

The goal gave QEGS heart and the 2nd half was a more even contest until our greater class told through a great move which saw Joe Haywood place the ball into the bottom corner. A fith was added with a great pass from player’s player Alex Shaw to Lewis Dawson.  The game still required some great defensive work from the younger Bussell brother Frankie who took the an of the match award.

Team- Rodgers, Brain, Shaw, Bosworth, Archer, Bussell, Dawson, Johnson, Whitehead, Mcnair, Haywood, Coates, Flanagan, Simon, Cope, Bednall

Year 9 Football

Well done to the year 9 football team who progressed through to the next round of the Burton and District Cup.  Facing a strong and established John  Taylor side, the year 9’s came from a goal down to deservedly win 3-2.  Led by Sam Pick up the team played some nice football in difficult conditions but conceded a goal half way through the first half. 

After a couple of tactical substitutions the team regrouped and drew the score level with a goal from Liam Archer.  John Taylor from the restart gained a corner and scored.  Not to be out done, Alleyne’s increased the pace of the game and improved their commitment.  Two good goals from Ali Dawson sealed the contest.  A good team performance with Bertie Ingram Man of the Match.  Well done.

U15 Rugby
On Monday we play QMG from Walsall in a County and National Cup double header. 2.30 ko. Team-

Tim Hensman, Toby Minshall , Lewis Forrester, Ben Ogden, Connor Buxton, Josh Gascoigne, Oliver Gwynne, Leo Hemmings, Driss Chouhibi, Sonny Ward, Luke Watt, Will Gregory, Duncan Craven, Toby Patterson-Lycett, Hal Thornton, Aiden Moorfield, Ben Pagett, Billy Oakes, Tyler Edwards, Mark Hodgkinson, Daniel Forrester, Cole Moody, Blake Plant, Joe Wilson.

U16 Football

On Tue 15th Oct we entertain John Taylor High School in the 2nd round of the Burton & District Cup.

Science News

 

This week’s Science Students of the Week selected by Mrs Pavey are:

Year 9

Sylvia Stocks for always being ready to learn

Jimmy Kirkman for achieving highly in his assessment

Year 10

Martha Cope for showing resilience in lessons

Joseph Upson for a positive start to the year, paying off in assessment performance!

Year 11

Always persevering in lessons and having a positive attitude to the tasks:

Katie Gilbert

Katie Simister 

Year 12

Taking responsibility for their learning and showing resilience:

Isaac Pattinson-Lycett

Rachel Agnew

Year 13

Will Taylor – for having a very conscientious attitude to his learning and a determination to master the topics!

Tom Bagnall – for exceeding his target grade in the recent assessment

Well done!

November 11th – 18th November is Samaritan’s Purse Operation. 

Samaritan’s Purse Operation helps children around the world by collecting shoebox gifts and ensuring they get something for Christmas.

Fill your shoebox with a selection of fun toys, hygiene items, pens and pencils. Once you have filled your shoebox attach the appropriate label marking if your box is for a boy or girl and select what age category.

If anyone would like to get involved you can collect a leaflet and shoebox from Mrs Brown in the Main School Office.  

Young Minds have an excellent website provding advice for parents and guardians on how to help your child with specific mental health conditions, and life events which might be negatively affecting their well being. They also show you where you can get help. 

The link to this valuable resource can be found here:

YESS Drop in Sessions

Links

School Website

School Shop

TAHS Weekly Newsletter. 

Headteacher’s Blog

Thank you to all students who supported us during our open evening this week. A particular mention to our student speakers, Thomas, Ella, Kieron and Emilia, and to Corey and Reuben  who organised the lighting. We had some wonderful feedback on how helpful all our student leaders were. Student leadership is important to us at Thomas Alleyne’s.

This week, I was urged by  one of our Year 12 students to re-watch Greta Thunberg’s speech at the United Nations Climate Conference. I appreciate his commitment, clear thinking and  strategic approach to trying to respond to her speech and reduce the school’s carbon footprint. 

Over the next few months, I will be working with him to address the priorities he has raised. 

This year, we would like to trial a workshop for parents on supporting children with anxiety or with their mental health.The workshop will be led by an accredited  member of BACP (British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy). We are planning to cover the cost of the workshop for all attendees. There are 10 places available on the first workshop. If you are interested in the course, please email headteacher@tahs.org.uk and put Mental Health Workshop in the email subject. The dates and times will be confirmed once we have our first group of participants.

It’s never too late to learn to swim!

Lane 1 swim school, who operate in our school pool during the evenings, have just opened bookings for adult swimming lessons on Friday evenings. They have a number of classes ranging from adult swim classes for non-swimmers to a masters class. As someone who learned to swim at the age of 23 and has enjoyed swimming ever since, I think this is a fantastic opportunity for people in our community.

If you are interested  please see https://www.facebook.com/pg/lane1coaching/posts/

Finally, if your child is in year 11, please don’t miss out on our Post 16 open evening on Tuesday (details below). Thank you to everyone who has supported us by sharing the details of the evening in the community. The larger our sixth form, the broader the offer for our young people.

 

Assemblies: 7th October

Assemblies will be lead by Miss Jones on the theme of Mental Health, out though for the week is as follows:

People assume you aren’t sick
unless they see the sickness on your skin
like scars forming a map of all the ways you’re hurting.

My heart is a prison of Have you trieds?
Have you tried exercising? Have you tried eating better?
Have you tried not being sad, not being sick?
Have you tried being more like me?
Have you tried shutting up?

Yes, I have tried. Yes, I am still trying,
and yes, I am still sick.

Sometimes monsters are invisible, and
sometimes demons attack you from the inside.
Just because you cannot see the claws and the teeth
does not mean they aren’t ripping through me.
Pain does not need to be seen to be felt.

Telling me there is no problem
won’t solve the problem.

This is not how miracles are born.
This is not how sickness works.”

― Emm Roy, The First Step

On Tuesday it is our Sixth Form Opening evening where we encourage all students in Year 11 at Thomas Alleyne’s High School and students from other schools to come and see the Sixth Form Team and meet the Sixth Form teachers. Taster sessions will be running all evening as well as an introduction to the application process from Mrs Dodd as well. Mrs Walton will be on hand with our Senior Prefects and other Sixth Form students to answer any questions you may have and to help guide external applicants to and from classrooms. It is always a lively and busy event so please come along and see what we have on offer. The evening is a s follows: 

•     6.30-7.00pm – First Information session in the school theatre

•     7.10-7.20pm – Subject talk One

•     7.30-7.40pm – Subject talk Two

•     7.50-8.00pm – Subject talk Thee

•     8.10-8.20pm – Subject talk Four

•     8.30-8.40pm – Subject talk Five

•     8.45-9.15pm – Subject questions and answers OR

•     8.45-9.15pm – Second Information session in the school theatre 

I would like to say a big thank you to those students who helped us on Wednesday at the Year 9 Open Evening, many parents stated how helpful the students had been at showing them around and sharing such valuable information.  It is these small gestures from your children, our students, that make our Sixth Form so special.

Thank you to all the parents that have signed up on Unifrog, remember the information was sent via Insight so is still available for you to access. Year 12 students will be receiving this soon, and the Lanyards will be distributed to Year 12 students at the beginning on next week. Once issue these have to be worn all day whilst on the school site. The school day starts at 8.40 and finishes at 3.05. Students should all be on school site between these hours, the only exceptions are where they leave the school site at break or lunch. If leaving the school site then students should ensure that they have signed out in the correct way.  When these lanyards have been issued then the students will have a gate card, both Year 12 and Year 13 students must not be entering or exciting the school via reception or using the fire exit near the history stairs.

Students that drive to school have been given permission to park their car on the rear car park of Bradley House. It is £1 per day to park here and they must see Mrs Walton if they plan to do this. Parking must be paid in advance, most pay for a week at a time. A card must be displayed in the car window at all times.  Students may park for free at Tesco’s but must park near the recycling centre if they wish do this. If students are see parking their cars elsewhere on the car park then Tesco’s will revoke this privilege.  Alternatively, students can park their cars on the Maltings car park and pay the daily charge. 

 

Are you a Cyber Expert?

Photography Trip

The Year 12 Art and Photography Trip to Birmingham City Gallery and Library went really well this Thursday, the weather held off and our students were able to get some brilliant images and drawings to develop in the next stage of their coursework- A big thanks from Mr. Robinson-White, Mrs. Cornell and Ms. Edge- who thought the students were exemplary in their spirit and attitude. 

Year 9 Talk the Talk

On 15^th – 17^th October, students at Thomas Alleyne’s High School will work with expert trainers from the education charity Talk The Talk.

Talk The Talk’s mission is to improve students’ communication skills to enable positive interaction in all life situations.

Talk The Talk has trained over 25,000 students in the past twelve months in England and Wales and nearly 80,000 since we first started – using a programme developed over the past six years.

Talk About Communication is an exciting and engaging master-class in essential speaking and listening skills within a creative classroom environment teaches students how to use persuasive language techniques to get ‘their message’ across. The day highlights and nurtures employability skills, interview techniques and key presentation skills.  Via numerous speaking opportunities, students are coached and supported throughout the day to deliver a structured two-minute presentation, on a topic for which they have a genuine passion, to their peers.

There is no doubt that grades open the door to opportunity for our students. But when they walk through that door – it is a completely different set of skills. We are striving to ensure that all young people are suitably equipped with the essential tools and skills to communicate confidently in a variety of situations – both within school and in their lives beyond.

Sports News

Netball

The Year 9’s played their first fixtures for Thomas Alleyne’s on Wednesday, participating in the Moorland tournament. They came away with three comprehensive victories from three fixtures and not conceding a goal, against Moorside, Painsley & Cheadle. Amelia, Chloe and Evie all successfully scored when playing the GA and GS positions. Lucy. Evie and  Harriet were heroic in the defensive positions to limit the opposition to very few shots, intercepting the ball before it could reach the D. Kiera, Lucy and Molly were creative and composed across the centre court to allow TAHS to play some controlled netball.

The Year 11 team also played against Moorside, Cheadle and Painsley and they left the competition with one defeat and two victories. Ella, Eve and Holly made up the defensive unit, Anna, Feya and Jess rotated around the shooting positions and Frankie running the show at centre. As always the team played some excellent netball but lacked some height in the defensive circle against Painsley. Many thanks to Andrea Adams who umpired and was team manager.

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Clubs & Fixtures for Next Week

Monday – Lifesaving 3:05-4:15

Tuesday – Girls Football 3:05-4:15, U14 football V John Taylor (H)

Wednesday – Girls Rugby 3:05-4:30, U18 football Vs Quegs (A)

Thursday – Climbing club 3:05-4:15, U14 netball match @Cheadle 3:05-5:30

Friday Badminton Club 3:05-4:15

Year 10 Football Victorious

Congratulations to the year 10 football team who beat Kingsmead on Tuesday night in the first round of the County Cup 2 – 0. On a very squally evening Alleynes travelled to Cannock to take on Kingsmead. Playing with a strong wind behind them Alleynes made a good start scoring early on. Throughout the first half Alleynes played the better football through George Arnold and Leighton Thomas with Charlie Ratcliffe leading from the front. In the second half with the wind in their faces and playing up hill Alleynes defended well and kept Kingsmead out, winning the game.

As were the Under 16s……

Great start to the county cup for our Yr11 boys with a 5-2 win over St Peters.

A hat trick from Jed Brunt, and goals from Callum Stockbridge and Reuben Kenny. Great defensive performance from Owen Evans first half and a Bryan Robson esque performance from Ethan Clarkson in midfield.
Team- Whitehead, Wildridge, Van Hoek, Evans, Clarkson, Kenny, Hocking, Brunt, Stockbridge, Hooker-Myles, Lynn, Hall, Beech, Mangon, 

Science News

 

This week’s Science Students of the Week selected by Mrs Hughes are:

Year 9

Jed Fry and Amy Jones for making an excellent start in Chemistry.

Year 11

Jess Banner and Felicity Burgess for making an excellent start to Year 11.

Year 13

Emily Barton and Emily Whieldon for commitment to Chemistry.

This week’s Animal Care Students of the Week selected by Mrs North are:

Year 11

Scarlett Simister for an excellent attitude towards her Animal Care studies so far this year.

Finlea Boot for all the work she has done with Johnnie, our new bearded dragon.

Year 10

Megan Brown

Louisa Page

Jessie Johnson

Blake Plant

Bailey Redshaw

Jessie Johnson

Bethany Hoskins

For their enthusiasm and commitment to the department during Open Evening.

Well done!

YESS Drop in Sessions

Links

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School Shop