Progress Opportunity Individuality
Parent teacher communication
Following surveying the views of parents last year, it was clear that many parents missed the opportunity to meet their child’s form tutor face to face. For this reason, we have decided to reintroduce face to face parents evening for years 9 and 12. All parents will receive a letter with further details.
Bookings for tutor appointments will be available via Talaxy from Tuesday 11th October. Please contact your Head of House if you are unable to book an appointment. We are keen to meet all parents.
During the evening, we will be running a series of important information sessions on unifrog and GCSEpod. We hope all parents will be able to join us for these.
Year 9 – parent information sessions
GCSE Pod
Unifrog
Year 12 – parent information sessions
Unifrog
Extended Project Qualification
Important Reminders for Years 11 and 13
Year 11 and year 13 trial exams commence on 21st November. Students will be provided with their examination timetable prior to October half term.
All students are asked to revise all content from Year 10 and Year 12. In addition, please ask your sons and daughters to focus on specific areas identified by their teachers.
We are pleased to be able to offer year 11, 12 and 13 students a ‘Studying with the Brain in Mind’ workshop on 11th October to support them with their revision.
Please access further support on the school website – where you will find revision strategies, templates and lots more.http://www.thomasalleynes.uk/page/?title=Revision&pid=281. In addition, we have purchased GCSEpod for all students.
Attendance
This week, in addition to speaking with students about ensuring their conduct in school and out of school is excellent, we held attendance assemblies.
The purpose of these assemblies was to highlight the overall impact of below average attendance. Please see the graph below, which shows the progress of all students who attended less than 85% last year. Students below the line made less than average progress.
After school revision/support sessions for Year 11
Extra-Curricular
Art Competitions available for all to enter – deadline for all entries 30th November.
Student Showcase: A-Level Art…
Each week in roundup we will be showcasing a different student from across KS4-5 in roundup to highlight the hard work and effort our students have been putting into their work…. This week’s A-Level Art unit was based on “intelligent design” … looking at the relationship between science and religion, investigating how the design of cell biology and biochemistry function in different life forms….
Music updates
Please see the music noticeboard for instrumental and vocal lessons times.
House Dance and Drama
A reminder please that rehearsals are Wednesday afternoons until 4.15pm and if students wish to rehearse at lunchtimes, please contact Mrs Mood on TEAMS to arrange a time and location. Please bring clothes that you can move into Wednesday rehearsals.
Opportunities in Sport
Rugby
Swimming
English Schools Swim Gala
On Thursday we travelled to Newcastle Under Lyme School to compete in the Freestyle and Medley relays.
Intermediate Girls team – I Edwards, M Carrington, E Byrne, A Brown
Senior Girls team – L. Oldham, A Jones, L Blood, C Woods
Intermediate Boys team – H Oldham E Bulmer, D Simister, L Slack,
Senior Boys – O Edwards, W Bulmer, B Pickering, J Minshall
Interested in becoming a lifeguard? Please see information below. This is a great opportunity to get involved and achieve a NPLQ qualification!
Lifeguarding
National Pool Lifeguard Course (NPLQ) with Emergency First Aid at Work (EFAW) and Automated External Defibrillator (AED)
When? 8th, 9th, 15th, 16th, 22nd & 23rd October 2022 (3 x weekends)
Where? Trentham Community Sports Centre, Trentham ST4 8PQ
Times? 8.00am- 5.30pm
Price? £250.00
Pre-requisites of course:
16 years of age on or before final day of course
Dive/jump into deep water
Swim 50 metres in less than 60 seconds
swim 200 continuously (100m front 100m back)
Tread water for 30 seconds
surface dive to floor of the pool (2m)
Climb out unaided
Interested? email: JILL.BRIDGWOOD.1@sky.com or call Jill 07966422238
Rugby
Year 9 have their first competitive game on Wednesday. Numbers at training are over 30 and the team are making good progress. Training on Tuesday after school all welcome.
Uttoxeter Rugby Club still require more players at all age groups Sunday Mornings- see club face book page.
Football
Boys Football
Another busy week for boys and girls football with 16 new boys representing the school against Abbotsholme on Wednesday and a combined total of 96 at training!
On Monday Year 10 play their first round English Schools FA Cup match against QEGS Ashbourne. Year 10 Girls play the same opponents on Thursday in the 2nd round.
Year 9 & 10 boys then face JCB on Thursday in a district fixture.
Girls Football
Girls football club will be on Tuesday this week in preparation for our match on Thursday. Year 9,10 & 11 all welcome
Girls U15 football fixture vs QEGS away on Tuesday 13th October
Netball
Tuesday – Yr 9 netball vs John Taylor (a)
Wednesday – Year 9 netball Club
Thursday – senior netball Club
Many thanks to Mrs Edwards and Mrs Lyon who have assisted with umpiring last week.
Fitness Club
Fitness club will be every Friday 3:05-4pm with Mr Scott in the new pavilion Gym. Please see Mr Scott for more details.
Mental Health
Our club will not be running this week, but I look forward to seeing you all next Wednesday
Interested in becoming a MENTAL HEALTH AMBASSADOR?
Join us on WEDNESDAY EVENINGS in A11 3:15-4:15pm
The WHAM Plan is delivered by young people and anyone who has completed the full course is able to deliver the sessions to others, such as in a school or youth organisation.
There are a variety of different topics that we cover, including:
- What is emotional wellbeing?
- The food-mood connection
- Positive activities for wellbeing
- Healthy relationships
- Helping others
- Planning ahead for troubled times
- Mindfulness in nature
School Newspaper
If you are interested in the school newspaper or would like to have your writing or art published, please come along to A6 on Friday lunchtimes. Feel free to bring your lunch.
Latin Club
Anyone who would like to learn Latin should come along to A6 on Friday after school.
Allies Club
Allies club is a place to come and explore issues around equality. If you are interested in making the school and wider community more inclusive and want to help celebrate our diverse communities, please come along to A6 on Tuesdays after school.
Department News
English
An Inspector Called…
The much-awaited theatre trip took place this week, with 73 Year 11/10 students thoroughly enjoying their trip back to 1912. The production really brought the text to life, and will help support revision for Y11, including key quotations and how the text must be considered as a play for performance, not a novel to be read.
Thank you to Mr Hulme for organising, and all the English teachers (plus special guest English teacher, Mrs Oliver) for giving up their free time to support the trip.
Calling all aspiring poets!
This week was National Poetry Day, and in response the organisers have teamed up with Greenpeace to launch a new poetry competition. You have until 1st December to enter, so it’s a great one to bear in mind for a rainy day over half term. Even better – grown-ups can enter too!
https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/resources/poems-planet-competition/?utm_source=EduCo&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=secondary&utm_id=Poems.Planet&utm_term=competition&utmost_content=2&gator_td=Q%2fm1e%2bhAg1L9EjGbBPBl6GTHFU3xEDd%2fLuynVGcA7zlznqn%2bjyBNz0PHjVnDiFVXkQjd%2bPgBmFrAn2%2b5LHLYkdxk8KyQVDOrc1HnO6xe1RQrP%2fJVhBC%2bd%2fS2R1u86AU97TtEYLMq8hSpIER5EbQB6ICVwtzjx763zamkhPeUzsyIxYOFkhQP7MPSGDs8fmhUZxVPixgbN2eglODTfk722Y%2f8FOfc%2fF47J3rRE1Wm9e8%3d#rules
Staff&Sixth Form Book Club
Starts next Thursday lunch (13th October) at 1.20 in room 6A.
If you enjoy reading and would love the opportunity to read new books, this group is for you. Every time we get together, we will all take home the same text to read and then meet a few weeks later to discuss our opinions of the book.
Suggestions for good reads will be taken in the hope that we can read your recommendations!
Please bring lunch with you. Tea, coffee and hot chocolate will be provided.
Revision Tip of the week
If you attended the really useful Revision evening two weeks ago, you’ll remember Mrs Hunt supporting Mrs Lindsay (and Mrs Ibbs) in their recommendation of flashcards. These are a really effective way to learn quotations – put the quotation on one side and then why it matters / what comments you could make about it (language and meaning, as well as plot/character and context) on the reverse.
They’re particularly useful for revising Power and Conflict poetry, as you can practice ‘pairing’ quotations.
Flashcards can be homemade; digital (check out quizlet.com), or even prebought – CGP do a great range.Bedrock
Unfortunately, we were *deprived* of our *burgeoning* weekly vocabulary sharing in Roundup last week. However, we shall emerge *unscathed,* and *(re)invigorate* ourselves, pledging to be more *meticulous*… There are some fabulous vocabulary choices being explored this week by our Y9 learners. From the life of Charles Dickens to the Harlem Renaissance and the Great Fire of London, students are encountering these words in context through some really interesting topics. It’s been lovely to see these words highlighted in other lessons, too.
A different parameter for our shout outs this week: time spent. In the last week, members of 9UL are dominating the time spent leaderboard, with 5 of the top 10 places belonging to this group. Miss Beevor and Mrs Bowler have added credits for all students who contributed to the class’ success – well done!
Across Y9, 10 students have spent at least an hour building their vocabulary skills and will have credits added. Well done to Illiya K, Rayna S, Delilah O, Lacey J, George B, Joseph R, Oliver W, Daniel H, Fran dP, and Freya H. Credits have been added for your commitment.
Work of the Week: It’s English, but not as we know it…
Year 13 English Language students had a creative approach to their feedforward work following a recent assessment: creating a display to address their own areas of weakness and celebrate what they did well. Students have loved learning about American as a variety of English and exploring both its standard and non-standard variations. If you want to know why “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” links to inner city Manchester, or why “fall” as a season is not as American as you think it is – check it out on the stairs to A15.
Particular thanks to Evie and Alyssa for co-ordinating this.
Maths
Year 11 GCSE Maths Revision Guide and Practice Papers
All Year 11 students have been given a letter about purchasing a GCSE maths revision guide (£4.99) and a pack of practice exam papers (£3.15). Both of these are available now to buy via ParentPay. These will be very useful for the upcoming mock exams as well as the final GCSE exams in the Summer. The deadline for ordering these is Friday 7th October.
Social & Health Studies
Our departmental star students this week are those who did an amazing job on the open evening. Alex and Megan did a great job of demonstrating bandages. Milly, Keira and Kylah showed parents all the fabulous coursework produced by students in Child Development and Health & Social Care. They all did a really super job!
BTEC Tech Award Sport Activity & Fitness
Please see attached video on BTEC Sport 6th form course suitable for anyone in Year 11
Year 10- All students are currently completing an assignment on Technology in Sport and are planning practical delivery of warm ups.
Year 11- All students need to complete and upload to Teams coursework on Body Systems, Injuries and Technology before October Half Term. Students who got below a L2 Distinction on their exam have been entered for a resit in February for the opportunity to improve their grade.
Year 12- Students are studying Anatomy & Physiology for exam in January.
Year 13- Students are practicing planning training programmes and lifestyle changes in preparation for January exam.
Drama
Last week, year 13 got to grips with Brecht in their practitioner studies. The students showed excellence in their understanding of this challenging module.
Rehearsals are well underway for House Dance and Drama which takes place on Tuesday, October 18th during the school day. Below Kyle W directs Orme students for the devised drama section.
Independent Study Zone
Now students wanting added challenge in their drama lessons can take advantage of a The Student Alone Zone in K9 to develop independent study and drama literacy skills.
School Lottery
Thomas Alleyne’s PTA is a successful and friendly group of parents and staff. We help at school events by serving refreshments and using the proceeds of these events to donate money to departments across the school. This year we have donated to the Art, Music, PE and provided calculators to ensure all students have the access to equipment needed for exams. We have thoroughly enjoyed helping at the performance of Grease, the Summer Concert and Junior Prize Giving. We would like to take this opportunity to let you know that our AGM is on Monday 26th September at 7.00pm at Thomas Alleyne’s. We would like to recruit parents of students in Years 9-13 to come along and support the school. If you can’t attend the AGM but think that you could help at one or more of the events that the school hold throughout the year then please email Mrs Young at younge@tahs.net
Head of House updates
Whitmore – Miss Jones
Attendance has been high at extra curricular clubs by Whitmore students. The hard work and dedication is needed in the next couple of weeks with the house drama and dance competition. Keep up the hard work in rehearsals
Elkes – Mrs Brooks
I’ve been incredibly proud this week. We are currently in the lead with 30 house points!
To further celebrate our success, I’d like to introduce the Elkes biscuit award. A weekly award given to the student who ‘takes the biscuit’ for their excellent work, effort, courage or kindness.
The student who takes the first Elkes biscuit is: Rhys Morgan (nominated by numerous teachers for effort and resilience).
Torrance – Miss Arrowsmith
I would like to say a big thank you to all of the students working hard lesson after lesson, who are in the correct uniform and making Thomas Alleyne’s a great school to be part of. We have given out thousands of credits out so far, this academic year to students who are working hard. Thank you and well done to any students that have either helped out or participated in any house competitions or open evening.
Torrance are currently coming second in the school rankings for house points. We are only 4 points behind Elkes and 5 points from coming first!! Let’s all dig deep, continue to achieve credits and see if Torrance can overall finish top for the first half term!
Orme – Mr Brassington
Very important message this week in assemblies about attendance. Keep coming to school and working hard and you will see the rewards soon follow!
Data Collection Sheets
Data collection sheets have been distributed to students this week. Thank you to parents in advance for checking and returning sheets to the school office as soon as possible. We politely request at least two contacts; this information helps us to contact you in an emergency. Please also advise the school office if your contact details change during the school year.
Please check the information on the sheet and add any amendments/changes clearly. In line with ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ we need at least two emergency contacts for your child.
Please sign and return the sheet to school as soon as possible.
Sixth Form updates
| 16-25 Railcard – Have you got yours? I represent Trainline and believe we’d be a great fit for your ‘Contact’ landing page at https://www.thomasalleynes.uk/page/?title=Contact+Us&pid=2 Given the current cost of living crisis, we’ve put together a guide to the 16-25 Railcard (also known as the Student Railcard or Young Persons Railcard) to help your students travel around UK and save money on train tickets. It would be great if you would consider linking to our page https://www.thetrainline.com/trains/great-britain/railcards/16-25-railcard |
Academic support – revision talk Sixth Form
On Tuesday 11th October we have an external company coming in to speak to all our Sixth Form students. This is to support in revision and how to prepare themselves for exams and their academic studies.
These sessions are taking place in the theatre as follows:
Year 13 – period 1
Year 12 – period 3
All students must attend this session. If students are being taught then they will be accompanied by their class teacher, all students who are on a non contact or 6F7 session must also attend. Registers will be taken to ensure all students are accounted for.
Date for diary
Year 12 Work Experience week – Monda 28th November to Friday 2nd December
All Year 12 students are to undertake a week’s work experience. You need to be actively looking for a placement. You will need to register your placement via your Unifrog account. Mrs Young will be going into more detail regarding this during a Year 12 assembly. If you are having trouble accessing your Unifrog account please contact Mrs Walton on walton@tahs.net
Sixth Form Finance:
The school has been allocated a Discretional Bursary Fund (DBF) which students are able bid into throughout the academic year providing they meet the financial criteria set by the school and outlined in our DBF policy.
For the academic year 2022-2023 students are eligible for funding of up to £400 if their parental income is below £27,000 (proof required) or if they were designated as pupil premium. If a student is a looked after child (LAC) they may be entitled to up to £1,200 of financial support. Students must use this funding to support their Post-16 education. For example, Sixth Form uniform, transport costs to and from school, textbooks, revision guides, course materials, IT equipment (up to £150), educational visits, UCAS application Fee, University entrance tests etc.
More detailed information will be available in the DBF booklet which students can be obtain from Mrs Walton in the Sixth Form office or by emailing sixthform@tahs.org.uk
TUTOR TIME ACTIVITIES W/C 10th October 2022
Year 12
Monday:
Do you have a fixed or growth mindset? Open the ‘Bridging The Gap’ document. Complete the quiz on p20 – 22. Fill in the questions on p26. Each student should have a strength and area for development at the end of the session, as well as more awareness about their learning styles.
Thursday:
Watch this Derby University webinar ‘Is University Right For Me?’ https://derby.cloud.panopto.eu/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=0dc06d9c-c36f-4605-af83-acfa00c04b8c
Year 13
Monday:
Watch 3 clips to help students prepare for university and what they can expect with videos from Oxford Brookes, Edinburgh and Leeds Beckett Universities. Discuss any fears, uncertainties or questions they might have.
Wednesday:
Time to choose a mooc or continue with one already started.
Thursday:
Fab four future intentions choices: improve their personal statements; plan open day visits; improve their CV or research live apprenticeships on Unifrog.
Sixth Form Finance:
The school has been allocated a Discretional Bursary Fund (DBF) which students are able bid into throughout the academic year providing they meet the financial criteria set by the school and outlined in our DBF policy.
For the academic year 2022-2023 students are eligible for funding of up to £400 if their parental income is below £27,000 (proof required) or if they were designated as pupil premium. If a student is a looked after child (LAC) they may be entitled to up to £1,200 of financial support. Students must use this funding to support their Post-16 education. For example, Sixth Form uniform, transport costs to and from school, textbooks, revision guides, course materials, IT equipment (up to £150), educational visits, UCAS application Fee, University entrance tests etc.
More detailed information will be available in the DBF booklet which students can be obtain from Mrs Walton in the Sixth Form office or by emailing sixthform@tahs.org.uk
TUTOR TIME ACTIVITIES W/C 10th October 2022
Year 12
Monday:
Do you have a fixed or growth mindset? Open the ‘Bridging The Gap’ document. Complete the quiz on p20 – 22. Fill in the questions on p26. Each student should have a strength and area for development at the end of the session, as well as more awareness about their learning styles.
Thursday:
Watch this Derby University webinar ‘Is University Right For Me?’ https://derby.cloud.panopto.eu/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=0dc06d9c-c36f-4605-af83-acfa00c04b8c
Year 13
Monday:
Watch 3 clips to help students prepare for university and what they can expect with videos from Oxford Brookes, Edinburgh and Leeds Beckett Universities. Discuss any fears, uncertainties or questions they might have.
Wednesday:
Time to choose a mooc or continue with one already started.
Thursday:
Fab four future intentions choices: improve their personal statements; plan open day visits; improve their CV or research live apprenticeships on Unifrog.
Summer Career Experiences in London
For the ultimate experience in Law & Finance-related careers, students should register for our Summer Experiences. Trade the stock market in a City skyscraper, argue a human rights case in the Supreme Court, value a FTSE 100 company and much much more.
Students can register for these now at a 15% discount.
TERM DATES ACADEMIC YEAR 2022 – 2023
Inset day: Friday 21st October
Holiday: Monday 24 October – Friday 28 October
Term ends: Friday 16 December
Holiday: Monday 19 December – Monday 2 January
Spring Term 2023
Inset day: Tuesday 3 January
Inset day: Wednesday 4 January
Term starts: Thursday 5 January
Holiday: Monday 20 February – Friday 24 February
Term ends: Friday 31 March
Holiday: Monday 3 April – Friday 14 April
Easter Sunday: Sunday 9 April
Summer Term 2023
Inset day: Monday 17th April
Term starts: Tuesday 18 April
May Day: Monday 1 May
Holiday: Monday 29 May – Friday 2 June
Term ends: Tuesday 25 July
Holiday: Wednesday 26 July – Friday 1 September
Thomas Alleyne's high school 