Weekly Newsletters

Thanks to Mrs Patman and Mrs Gregg who have been arranging for all our students and staff to feel it is OK to seek help.  I attended one of the assemblies and was amazed by the confidence and talent of Matthew Hyman in Year 11; so much so that I have shared him performing a song around this issue.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.  Well done to Matthew for being so brave to tell his own journey and to perform so confidently in front of his peers!

Bryan Erwin
Principal

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Miss Beckingham & Miss De Lorenzi
MFL

Abi Guerin led the sessions supported by Anais James, Molly Simpson, Kayleigh Pell and Eden Brown. They taught the students and staff the routines, progressing to dancing with music and at quite a pace!  A large number of students attended the sessions and it was certain to say that many laughs were had, especially when the staff made the wrong moves!  Well done to all students who took the opportunity to give something new a try and we hope it inspires you to continue dancing. Abi Guerin led the sessions supported by Anais James, Molly Simpson, Kayleigh Pell and Eden Brown.

They taught the students and staff the routines, progressing to dancing with music and at quite a pace!  A large number of students attended the sessions and it was certain to say that many laughs were had, especially when the staff made the wrong moves!  Well done to all students who took the opportunity to give something new a try and we hope it inspires you to continue dancing. Abi Guerin led the sessions supported by Anais James, Molly Simpson, Kayleigh Pell and Eden Brown.

They taught the students and staff the routines, progressing to dancing with music and at quite a pace!  A large number of students attended the sessions and it was certain to say that many laughs were had, especially when the staff made the wrong moves!  Well done to all students who took the opportunity to give something new a try and we hope it inspires you to continue dancing. 

Mrs Gregg & Mrs Patman

The first game saw them take on a well organised and competitive Hampton side. There were not too many goal scoring chances in the opening exchanges, but as the half went on the lads started to create some good opportunities. An excellent half volley from Bobby Ponsford saw the Hampton goal keeper pull off an excellent save, then moments later he was at it again, pulling an excellent one handed save from a fierce drive from Logan Carter.

In the later stages of the first half the team started to concede possession and territory to Hampton, resulting in them conceding a goal just before half time from a cross shot that looped over the Ken Stimpson goal keeper and sneaked in under the cross bar, to give Hampton the lead. Then after a talking to by the management staff, the boys got on the front foot hitting the cross bar with a shot from Bobby Ponsford. Then there was a complete mix up in the Kenny defence with both centre backs leaving the ball to each other to clear and allowing the Hampton forward to get on the ball and round the keeper to make it 2-0 to Hampton. The lads kept working hard and were unlucky not to pull one back by hitting the post in a goal mouth scramble. However they were unable to turn it round with Hampton Vale running out 2-0 winners.

With the defeat still fresh in their minds, the lads travelled to AMVC for a local derby. The boys were on the front foot from the word go, creating opportunities. Then just 10 minutes in Harleigh Camfield rounded to the keeper to give us a 1-0 lead. The lads continued to dominate the game in the first half scoring 2 further goals from Logan Carter to put us 3-0 up at half time.

In the second half the home team came out fighting, starting to put us on the back foot. Henry Bradley had to pull off a good one on one save to prevent the AMVC team from pulling one goal back. This then spurred the lads on to get control of the game again; with Bobby Ponsford scoring with a right foot shot from outside the box to put the boys 4-0 up. The scoring did not stop there with the boys grabbing two further goals from Bobby giving him his hat trick and the boys running out 6-0 winners.

Next week sees the boys back in action against Nene Park.

Man of the Match – Bobby Ponsford

Mr N Gray
PE

Both the Year 7s and Year 8s put in a massive effort and worked extremely well as a team against some tough competition! (If only the singing on the minibus was as enjoyable to listen to as it was to watch the girls come together as a team on court!)  Although the results may not have all gone our way, the girls continued to make headway as the tournament progressed.

A huge well done to the following students for their participation, determination and for representing Ken Stimpson in such a positive light:

 

Ms J Sothmann
PE

Firstly, I know that many students have made an effective revision timetable and are sticking to it, however, there are students who haven't. I have attached here an Excel spreadsheet that contains all the Science exam dates, revision sessions and times to do your own revision, as well as relaxation days. Please remember that this subject is worth two GCSEs with higher than average content in each, and your revision time should reflect this. It is easy to edit to add other subjects and follow a similar pattern of revision for other exams. Please take a look and adopt it and adapt it as an important organisational tool. 

Secondly, I have attached a PowerPoint that has good tips for improving exam technique. This can apply to many subjects and should be looked at regularly to keep it fresh in your mind. There are past papers for Combined Science (9-1) and the individual sciences on the Edexcel website. Download those and their mark schemes to practice your technique. Another important tip is to read the examiner's notes that come with the paper. Written by the people that design and mark your exams, these give real insight into what they expect to see in your answers, which you can apply to this year's papers.

Here are some points that have been made in PPE review lessons which should be taken note of:

• Bring a calculator for all exams, even Biology. Easy marks were lost because you couldn't provide an answer.
• Show working out for all equations, as you get marks for that even if your answer is incorrect.
• Learn all equations even if they appear on the Physics equation sheet. You need to be confident with rearranging them, so equation triangles are even better to learn.
• Know and use units, especially in your final answer.
• Do not leave any questions blank, write key words to do with that topic if you can't think of anything.
• Write something for the 6 mark question! 
• Look at how many marks the question is worth and write that many points.
• Study graphs and data given until you really understand what you are seeing, then make sure you are using the data you were given in your answers.
• Be clear on the command word so you answer the actual question.
• DO NOT WRITE THE WORD IT!!!! Use the name of the object or data.
• Be specific in your answers, i.e. don't write 'It goes up', write 'The concentration of CO₂ increases as respiration increases'.
• Make sure your writing can be read.
• Allocate 1 minute per mark so you don't run out of time.

Lastly, there are a lot of revision tip videos and websites easily available, but I have attached a good revision guidance document that is used inthe Science Department. Please read this thoroughly and refer to it when you plan your revision schedule. Use whatever method works for you. Remember that revising a Science topic also involves learning the associated core practicals.

As I remind students every week, Mr Mantell has set homework on ActiveLearn and there are revision sessions on Monday, Thursday and Friday. Extra resources are in Student Workgroups. Please see or email your teacher for help or more details regarding any of these.

Year 11 Revision Timetable

Revision Guidance

Exam Technique

Mrs K Young
Science Key Stage 4 Coordinator

There are three papers lasting 1h 10m each. Students should be preparing with a lot of independent study at home, especially over the Easter holiday. They are currently revising in class and have been made aware of the importance of these exams. Y10 should have all the tools necessary for effective revision at home, which is essential to cover a whole GCSE-worth of content in enough detail. Please note that students in 10A4 will not be taking these exams. 

If you have any questions please email the Y10 class teacher

Revision Guidance

Exam Technique

Mrs K Young
Science Key Stage 4 Coordinator

For Maths, students should be revising SMART using their PLCs to specifically target their individual areas of weakness. All the the students scores for individual questions have now been uploaded to the PiXL maths app which will help staff and students identify areas of weakness. Students can revise SMART using the app and the multiple resources they have access to including individualised booklets that have been printed after analysing their PPEs.  

It would be great to see a good turn out at parents evening and at the revision session over Easter, students on these occasions will gain invaluable advice which will make the difference between grades. The PiXL Maths App points were reset on Monday morning and at the same time every week I will be taking a snap shot to see who has been using it most effectively and allocating the prizes for the week.

Maths academic catch up continues to run on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday for all years. As well as all Maths staff taking revision sessions I am in 3u23 on each of these days primarily helping students with areas they are struggling with on the PiXL Maths app. 

One area that continues to frustrate me is the fact that students throw away silly marks due to either not having the right equipment or not knowing how to use it correctly. A cause of this issue for some is they do not bring the equipment to school with them every day to learn how to use it. If students do not have the correct equipment it can now be purchased using the school ParentPay system. Pencil cases with all essential equipment (pencil, ruler, rubber, sharpener, protractor and compass) are available for £3.00 and scientific calculators for £7.00 each.

Every week I continue to send out resources students can start using at home called the final countdown, this may seem premature but their are only 24 teaching days to the first summer Exam and revising gradually is much more effective than last minute cramming. Using the countdown alongside the PiXL Maths app and other revision resources will really make the difference to closing the gap on areas students still have issues with. Please find attached week 6 of the new for 2019 extra questions students can do at home with the support of parents as mark schemes and examiners reports are also attached. These are now split into two types of questions, one designed for foundation students aiming for a 4 or 5 and the new one for higher tier students aiming for grades 6 to 9. Every week I will continue to attach five topics that regularly appear on examinations. Students can also use their individualised PLCs on the the PiXL Maths app to target areas of weakness, using the video tutorials and PowerPoints to help them better understand topics.

Revision guides are also available in school at cost price, saving you more than 50% on the rrp. There are 3 books at £2.50 each and an answer book for £1. Please see your class teacher, Miss Harvey, or Mr Donnelly if you have paid for them through Parent Pay. 

Part 06 - Final Countdown - CROSSOVER - Mark scheme and examiners report

Part 06 - Final Countdown - CROSSOVER - Questions

Part 06 - Final Countdown - HIGHER ONLY - Mark scheme and examiners report

Part 06 - Final Countdown - HIGHER ONLY - Questions

This week Aspire House hold first place, with Success House very close behind them!  At this busy time of the year it is very important to keep all absence to a minimum and medical appointments where possible should be held outside of school hours. I hope the revision is going well for our Year 11 students!

"When the world turns upside down, the best thing to do is turn right along with it" - Mary Poppins

Mrs S Blackledge
Attendance Officer