Newsletter - February 2016
Transcription
Newsletter - February 2016
Thamesview School S p r in g T e r m 3 February 2016 T HAMES V IEWS Business & Enterprise Inside this Issue: 2 Headteacher’s Letter This year the annual ‘Thamesview’s Got Talent Show’ was supported with an evening of Creative Arts. The 3 first half of the evening was a hotly contested Talent Show which was followed by a variety of Creative Arts 4 acts in the second half. Half Term Revision Charity & Competitions Congratulations to Mia Lancaster-Usher who was this year’s winner and the runner ups Rebecca Gardiner & 5 The talent show was kicked off by Year 9 Mia Lancaster–Usher who opened the show with a Katie Ayres and Sophie Nibblett. Well done girls! splendid rendition of ‘I Found Myself’. However it Ms O’Reilly, Creative Arts 6 wasn’t just Mia that shone and we were soon treated to a plethora of talent including; Sophie Niblett 11 (Vocals), Abbie Hollamby (Vocals), Rebecca Gardiner and Katie Ayres (Dancing), Caitlin Parrott (Dance), 12 Alex Austin and Thomas Gosbee (Acting) Charlie Anne Armstrong (Vocals), Ellie Coyle (Dancing) Carmen 14 Sizer (Vocals), Braden Fenlon (Vocals), Chloe McLeavey (Dancing) and Destiny Jackson, Catherine Prosser and Courtney Trimming (Dancing). It really 16 was a tough decision for the judges but they eventually chose a winner. Money Raised Business & Enterprise Sodexo Menus Creative Arts News Library Corner Dates to Remember Special points of interest:Enterprise Challenges Talent Show Photos The second half of the show was students from all Year groups taking to the stage as we enjoyed a variety of musical, dance and drama acts. The musical talent of Jodie-Ann Midgeley was clear during her keyboard rendition of Stay with Me. There was also brilliant vocal performance of the Pitch Perfect Favourite from the Thamesview Choir. There were also many more amazing acts. The Year 11 Duo Ed Backhouse and Millie Ramsey, sang a beautiful rendition of You Don’t Own Me. Drama students treading the boards included Abbie Hollamby, Catherine Prosser, Katie Dixon, Molly Maxted and Amy Connolly who performed exceptionally, whilst we also saw a delightful Scene from Rhiannon Broad, Ben Kavanagh and Ellie Tye. World Book Day Community Name All acts were brilliant but the winner of Thamesview’s Got Talent 2015 was Mia Lancaster-Usher, whose rendition of ‘I Found Myself’ literally blew people away. Points Challenger 38 Discovery 40 Endeavour 36 Enterprise 20 As always the dancing was of a high quality with two Year 9 classes, a wonderful routine to ‘You Don’t Own Me and a fabulously choreographed routine to ‘Feeling Good’. There was also a beautifully choreographed routine to ‘Wade the Water’ and ‘Once Upon a Dream’, performed by Year 11. Last but by no means least was the finale dance ‘I Gotta Feeling’ which featured students from all Year groups which incorporated so many students that they couldn’t all fit on the stage! Well done to all that participated in the group dance. To see so many students on stage, it really was a great way to finish a wonderful evening. A huge thanks to everyone who made the night possible. A special thank you to the Judges, Frankie Fitzgerald, Vikki Green and Paul Robinson. Page 2 Spring Term 3 Welcome to the half term newsletter. It has been a very busy time with students working hard all term and Key Stage 4 students sitting Mock exams. I am pleased that so many people were able to come to the Talent Show this year and hope that they all appreciated the effort and talent that was on show in the evening. There is always a vast array of performances from brave and talented students and it is always a really hard decision to pick a winner. Yeah 11 students have done very well in their English GCSE exams so far. This year 60% of Year 11 now have a secured English GCSE grade at C or above. This is a fantastic achievement for all the students and hopefully this year we will have more students than ever passing exams successfully and leaving school with a wide range of options for their future education. You may have noticed that the Department for Education's League tables were published in January. These league tables rank schools in terms of their exam performance in 2015; mainly based on 5A*-C GCSEs including English and Maths but also taking into account the progress made in key subjects. I am pleased to report that Thamesview was again one of the top performing non-selective high schools in Kent. These tables are just one indicator of a school’s success and there are many other measures that we take into account when we look at school improvement and what to do further in order to make sure that our young people have the best chance of success. I would like to notify parents of the revision sessions that will be happening at Thamesview over the half term holiday. You can find a rundown of days and subjects on the opposite page. The revision sessions always help students to catch up or have some structured time over the holidays to do revision so I would encourage all students who are invited to attend. I would like to really thank the staff who are involved in these half term sessions and those that provide revision sessions throughout the year for their hard work and commitment. This newsletter is packed again with the students’ achievements across this term and in particular our commitment to business and enterprise education. All the students that are involved in business and enterprise events show great commitment to the school and are amazing ambassadors for Thamesview School. We know this because of the feedback from employers/business people that visit our school and also from teachers in other schools who work with our students. Well done to all those students who have been involved in those business and enterprise events and thank you for representing the school so well. I hope that you have a restful holiday and are ready to come back to Term 4 feeling refreshed. Mr Ingham Headteacher Free Digital Resource High School Survival UK – Free Digital Resource As part of a nationwide campaign, Hanley’s Publishing has developed a free digital resource called ‘High School Survival UK’ which can be used as a vital resource for information and help on issues that affect school pupils between the ages of 10 and 18. It is important for the youth of today to understand any concerns that may be troubling them, as well as knowing how to deal with them and where to go for help or advice without fear of judgement. The guide contains editorials on bullying, abuse, racism, smoking, teenage development, sex & sexual health, alcohol, drugs, as well other issues. Next to each editorial are help and contact numbers such as Childline and the NHS Stop Smoking Helpline. The guide is full of lots of helpful information and may be useful for both students and parents. This free digital resource is an excellent learning and educational tool which can be found online at www.thehighschoolsurvivaluk.co.uk Don’t forget to verify your account with Parentmail pmx. You should have received an email from Parentmail pmx asking you to verify your account. Once verified, parentmail pmx generates an email verification message to your email account and you are connected! It has proven to be very useful to receive parentmails and/or text messages with important information i.e. up and coming events, receiving the school’s Newsletter and if the event should arise, school closure; so please don’t delay in responding to Parentmail pmx to verify your account. https://pmx.parentmail.co.uk Page 3 Spring Term 3 February Half Term Revision Sessions English Maths Mon 15th Feb 9-1.30pm (LS, LS) Ev PE Fri 19th Feb 1.30-3.30pm (IC) C 9-2pm (EM) C 10-3pm (PF) Drama Studio 9-3pm (KB) Food Room 10-3pm (PF) Drama Studio 10-3pm (PF) Drama Studio 10-3pm (PF) Drama Studio 10-3pm (PF) Drama Studio 10-3pm (RB) Dance Studio Dance Vocational: Construction Salon Services Thur 18th Feb 10-2pm (BSt) C Business 9-3pm (ET) BE1 Technology: ICT/Computer Science 12-2pm (KA) Food Room Food Creative Arts: Drama Art Music Wed 17th Feb 2 x 2 Hours session 1 x 4 hour session (CA catch up) Science Humanities: Geography History B&V MFL (French) Tues 16th Feb Hair Year 10 10-2pm Voc Block Hair Year 10 10-2pm Voc Block 9.30-1.30pm BE1 Keep connected with the school by checking out our new Mobile app! Scan the QR code to go straight to the download page! Keep connected with the school by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter Spring Term 3 Page 4 Are You Smarter Than A Year 8 Student? This year the school decided to try out a new event which was designed merely so that parents/carers and students could have fun whilst working together at school. The ‘Are You Smarter Than a Year 8 Student?’ quiz was supported with a buffet and fantastic prizes. It was clearly evident that all who took part had a great time, working together on the picture round and some were singing on the music round. Overall it was great fun and a big thanks to all who came to support the event. After a tight competition it was difficult to split the top three but ‘The Worthingtons’ just pipped ‘Paynes Utd’ to glory, with ‘The Bears’ coming a very respectable third. It was great to get such positive feedback, the runners up said they had a “fantastic afternoon” and winning Year 8 student Leah Worthington said “It was fun working with my mum and we won!”. Well it was fun having all of you there and we hope you enjoy spending your hard earned Bluewater vouchers! 1st Place—The Worthingtons, 2nd Place—Paynes Utd, 3rd Place—The Bears The Cupless Cup Communities at Thamesview have been collecting for their own charities over the first two terms and the winners were rewarded with the funds of a non-school uniform day for their chosen charity. After fierce competition, during which the lead changed several times, it was Challenger who nipped in at the end to win through. Challenger are officially the most charitable community and have raised a total of £698.67 for ‘Help for Heroes’. A huge congratulations must go the blue part of the school for the continued efforts in doing such great charitable work and all for the benefit of someone else. CUPLESS CUP T1&2 CHARITY 16/12/15 CHALLENGER Help for Heroes £87.03 ENDEAVOUR Cancer Research £64.47 DISCOVERY Children with Cancer £56.55 ENTERPRISE Make‐A‐Wish £38.11 Page 5 Spring Term 3 Charity Champions at Thamesview! The amount of charity work that takes place at Thamesview really is quite incredible and the kindness and support shown by staff, students and parents/carers is second to none. Since the start of the school year the charity department at Thamesview has raised a whopping grand total of £3,312.74. As well the consistent Cupless Cup where communities raise money for their own charity as decided by the students, there has also been a wealth of fundraising for a variety of reasons. The year started with us collecting animal food for the Battersea Cats & Dogs home which was led by Miss Skipsey, an annual event for a great cause which is always popular and well supported. The office staff were next to get creative, spending countless hours baking in preparation for the well known MacMillan Coffee Morning and what a success it was, raising £767.82. Lest We Forget that Mr Martel then led an inter-house competition where communities all tried to raise as much as possible for the Poppy Appeal. As well as raising £302.12 in total the students were also learning the importance of remembering those that went before us. Children In Need was a fun day which gave students the opportunity to take part in a range of activities which included the very popular ‘sponge-a-teacher’, the Student Council lead this event and raised an amazing total of £957. Mrs Fox organised another fantastic ‘Read-A-Thon’ in the library where students were encouraged to ‘keep reading’, an event that raised a brilliant £187. The Creative Arts team were next to get involved as the Music students organised and ran a raffle at the Christmas Concert, raising a super £141 which was evenly split between the Make-A-Wish foundation and the Oliver Fisher Special Baby Care Unit. All these events added onto the on going Cupless Cup demonstrates what an amazing school ethos we have when it comes to helping others less fortunate than ourselves. In the remainder of this school year the Cupless Cup will continue and we still have Sport Relief to look forward to in March, when no doubt the students and staff will be challenging each other to a variety of activities. Overall it is clearly evident that with the support of staff, students and parents/carers we really are charity champions at Thamesview! MONEY RAISED THIS SCHOOL YEAR! CHARITY TERM DATE Battersea Cats & Dogs Home 1 Sep‐15 £100 MacMillan Coffee Morning 1 Sep‐15 £767.82 Children In Need 2 Nov‐15 £957 Poppy Appeal 2 Nov‐15 £302.12 Make A Wish & Oliver Fisher SBCU 2 Dec‐15 £141 Readathon 2 Dec‐15 £187 Help for Heroes ‐ Challenger Cancer Research ‐ Endeavour 1,2 Dec‐15 £87.03 1,2 Dec‐15 £64.47 Children with Cancer ‐ Discovery 1,2 Dec‐15 £56.55 Make‐A‐Wish ‐ Enterprise 1,2 Dec‐15 £38.11 2 Dec‐15 £611.64 Help for Heroes ‐ Challenger NSUDay Overall Raised TOTAL RAISED £3,312.74 Spring Term 3 Page 6 Business Networking On Wednesday 20th January Thamesview was once again invited to help out at a council networking event, which included a Better Business for All exhibition. Meghan Love, from Year 9, met me at 7:00am to set up the registration desk and welcome the guests. It was a busy morning but Meghan coped very well. We had the chance to catch up with a few ex-students from Thamesview, who are currently completing an apprenticeship with the council, including: Dwain Hicks and Toby Gilhooly. Careers Inspiration At the beginning of December we invited two young men who are currently enjoying success in their chosen careers, into school to speak to Year 9 students about their journey so far. Joe Slater is a musician, whose first love is music and he auditioned for X factor but then got selected for a part in Waterloo Road. Joe freely admits he didn’t do as well in school as he should have and now, even at 19, regrets this as he feels more people would take him seriously if he had done so. Hussain Manawar has always worked hard and tried his best, even after realising that he is not naturally academic. Hussain believes in working as hard as you can and to try your hardest to achieve your personal goals. This paid off recently when he won a completion to go into space in 2018 after giving a speech on mental health issues, in front of 1500 people, in rap form. Page 7 Spring Term 3 Enterprise Primary School Challenge In term 3 we took our Enterprise Primary School Challenge to Copperfield Academy. This is the first year we have worked with this school and the children were very excited. As Copperfield has two Year 5 classes we visited them twice and worked with each class separately. Four Year 10 students came along to help: Rosie Taylor, Abbie Freeman, Rehanne Fuller and Sadie Crawford. These students supported the younger students with their activities and acted as buyers for the Jewellery Jangle task. The winning team from each class will take part in the grand final at Thamesview in July, where they will compete against other local primary schools involved in the challenge. Enterprise Week Enterprise Primary School Challenge On Monday 11th January we ran our first Enterprise Skills Week at Thamesview. Each student was issued with an Enterprise Skills Card with 10 skills listed. Throughout the week they had to get each skill signed off during a lesson, form time or in an after school club. The aim was to make students aware of skills they have and use daily; and which can be On Thursday 21st January we delivered transferred to all areas of life i.e. college, 6th Form and work. our Enterprise Challenge to Year 5 students at Cobham Primary School. Two Once completed, all cards were posted in boxes provided and each student who completed Year 9 students helped out at the event: a card received a certificate and Bronze Enterprise Skills badge. A random card was Gemma Allen, an ex-student of Cobham, selected for each Year group and this student received £50 in Bluewater vouchers. and Bridget-Jaie Douglas. Cobham Primary was the first winner of the grand final and Winners of the vouchers were: also won the second year, so have a really strong background in the challenge, and Year 7 William Stringer were extremely competitive on the day. Year 8 Louie Watkins Year 9 Laura Daniova Year 10 Holly Edwards Year 11 Harley Daelen The staff winner was Mr O’Regan, but unfortunately no voucher for him. Spring Term 3 Page 8 Gravesham Council Business Networking Event This term we were invited to run the reception desk at the Festive Networking event, held at the Royal Clarenden Hotel. Ben Smith, Bethany Murray and Kieran Stoneham, three Year 11 students, came with me and we welcomed the guests issuing name badges and delegate lists as they arrived. The students had the opportunity to speak to local business people and to see first hand how they promote their services etc. Different companies are involved in Christmas activities and fundraising so students could see how they give back to local communities. M.A.D Revision To start the new term off we held a revision morning where a company came into school and ran some workshops for Year 11 students. The workshops introduced different ways of revision using memory techniques such as mind maps and imaginary journeys. These work by association such as physical location or item association. Students were given a wide variety of tips for revision as well as examples of how to deal with exam nerves and stress. This is the second year we have used this company and each session was as informative, with students engaging in activities, as it was last year. Almost 70 Year 11 students took part in the two workshops and certainly demonstrated that they had retained information during the morning as well as learning new revision techniques. Page 9 Spring Term 3 Nestle Challenge During the term Miss Terry has been running the Nestle Challenge in her business lessons and enjoyed this new activity and got involved. The challenge was to create a sustainable, environmentally friendly business whose sole purpose is to turn factory waste into a marketable product. Students had to research waste products, how a factory may have innovative ways to use the waste, explain how it works and why they chose it, come up with a company name and a name for the products or service. It really was a close competition but the winners were : Grouch—Robyn Lacey, Silvia De Andres Quevedo and Desi Dimitrova who used the factory waste to make school furniture such as tables and chairs. In second place was: Green Team—Fraser Lee, Connor Garcia and Marcus McFarlane, who’s actual presentation really was well prepared and stood out from all of the other presentations on the day. Third place went to Josh Goodman, Abid Khayer and Matthew Williams who's really innovative idea of using waste for bike parts impressed the judges. Enterprise Primary School Challenge In Term 2 we visited Singlewell and Shorne Primary schools to deliver our Enterprise Challenge. Macauley Bushell and Jodie Plumb came with me to Singlewell Primary school, the defending champions from last summer’s final. The Year 5 students were very excited and showed commitment and enthusiasm throughout the day. Our next visit was to Shorne Primary school, the runner up in the final for the last three years, so the students were very keen to turn the result round this year and really engaged in the activities and showed determination all morning. Again two Year 10 students came along with me, Bradley Lewis and Matthew Jeffery. The contest between teams was extremely close throughout the morning! Spring Term 3 Page 10 Future Plans At Thamesview we have a careers programme offering impartial information and advice to students at various stages of their education. We have a contract with CXK (formerly Connexions) who are regularly in school to support our programme and students. On 10th March it will be Year 11 Parents’ Evening and we will have a careers advisor from NK college in the Heartspace, along with members of the CACT (Charlton Athletic Community Trust) with details of the National Citizen Service programme for young people. In the meantime if you have any concerns please do not hesitate to contact me [email protected] 01474 566552 ext 1213 Mad Revision For Students & Parents Thamesview have booked ‘Positively Mad Revision’ to come into school and work with Year 11 students on a specific Maths Workshop – how to revise for maths and how to remember specific maths skills for the exam, this is very bespoke on maths. They will deliver to students in two groups from Period 1 through to Period 4. There will then be a parental workshop that will give guidance to parents on how to support their child’s learning in maths from 3pm – 4pm. To make this more convenient for parents this has been scheduled on the same evening as the Year 11 Parents’ Evening on Thursday 10th March, which runs between 4pm—7pm. If any parents would like to attend the maths revision support sessions before the parents’ evening please email me directly and I will reserve you a place. [email protected] - Tel. 01474 566552 ext 1213. Year 9 Canterbury Christchurch Visit On Tuesday 26th January we took fifteen Year 9 students to Canterbury Christchurch University, Medway campus, to take part in a programme of workshops and one to one interviews being delivered by Careers Guidance students. Year 10 Mock Interview Programme This year the Mock Interview day was held on 29th January and we had fifteen employers or business people come along and help us on the day, ranging from members of U3A (University of 3rd Age) to a doctor, specialised in psychiatry, to people who have worked for companies such as: the BBC, Channel 4, Disney and Google. The students had attended a workshop, on the previous day, to apply for a job by completing an application form. These forms were then given to the employers to use as the basis for the interview. Each interviewer was ask to nominate their top student—who they would give the job to. These The workshops were interesting and fifteen students now have the opportunity to go forward to the next round. Some employer inter active; they were also relevant to our feedback included: “A really uplifting afternoon, what excellent young people. They all Year 9 students as they related to decision exceeded my expectations in one way or another. Thoroughly enjoyed the experience! I making, investigating what jobs are out think this is a great idea and I hope the students find it a positive experience.” there, role models and destinations. As Year 9 students will soon be selecting their This proved an extremely hard decision for the interviewers, as so many students stood out GCSE options the day was very helpful and on the day but the top fifteen students were: Macaulay Bushell, Paige Luchford, Poppy useful. Students returned to Thamesview Hoare, Frazer Lee, Ellie Barker, Matthew Jeffery, Holly Edwards, Bethany Jarrett, Maddie more confident of making the choices in Elliott, Matilda Harrison, Lily Fothergill, Chloe Spinks, Abbie Freeman, Holli Symonds and the near future. Demi Watson. Spring Term 3 Page 11 Sodexo Example Menus and Price Lists Above is an example lunch menu of the food Sodexo provide to students from the canteen area. Each day a main meal is available for £2.26 (first daily option listed above). From the café area they serve a wide selection of sandwiches/baguettes, cold pasta and salad pots, a selection of cold desserts, fresh fruit and hot and cold beverages. Food is available from 8.00am to 8.25am Breakfast, 10.55am to 11.15am Morning Break and 1.15pm to 1.55pm Lunch. Please note the following: Cashless catering cards have a maximum £10 daily spend allowance Credit on a student cashless catering card is solely for their own use Card owners must not credit their cards with money from other students to make purchases Example Breakfast Menu From 8.00am to 8.30am Bacon rolls Ham/cheese toasties Toast Muffins Fruit Milk £1.25 £1.70 50p £1.20 40p 45p Example Morning Break Menu From 10.55am to 11.15am Sausage or Bacon in a roll Breakfast wrap Veggie pizza slice Cheese muffin Hot cross bun £1.25 £1.80 £1.35 £1.20 70p If your child is entitled to Free School Meals (FSMs), the daily lunch allowance is £2.26. If you think you are entitled to FSMs please visit www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children and click on the link Free School Meals; alternatively you can collect a form from the Main School Office. Page 12 Thamesview Singers take to the Stage! In December 2015, the Thamesview Singers embarked on their first ever choral performance outside of the Thamesview walls. The girls had two big performances to take part in. On 4th December, The Thamesview Singers represented the school at Gravesend Fayre on the Square. The girls sang to a huge audience, amongst them was Eastenders Ricky Northon and Edele Lynch, Irish actress and lead singer of girl group B*Witched. The choir sang with a backdrop of beautiful twinkling stars and so gave a warm glow to the proceedings and was set on an Open Air stage. They were amid many schools to sing amongst big artists such as The Voice finalist Jamie Johnson and Britain’s Got Talent gospel singers Revelation Avenue. This was an amazing experience for the girls. Less than a week later the Thamesview Singers packed up the minibus once more and headed to Bluewater, where they performed at The Sound of Christmas: Bluewater Carols. Here the girls had to perform for one hour. This has been one of the longest performances for the girls to date. With the support of parents and grandparents the girls pulled off a wonderful performance. They showcased a variety of Christmas songs, from Away in a Manger to Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree. It is only up from here with the Thamesview Singers. There are many great performance from them in the pipeline for us to look forward to. The Girls would like to thank Mrs Fox, Ms Fallon, Mr Davis and Mr Henderson for accompanying them on their outings. Spring Term 3 Page 13 Spring Term 3 More photos from the Talent Show It’s all about the choices you make. Spring Term 3 Page 14 Accelerated Reader Year 7 and 8 students are participating in a multimedia reading programme called Accelerated Reader (AR). Through reading comprehension tests, students are told their ideal reading book levels. When they finish their books, students take an online quiz. This quiz tests to see if they have finished the book and more importantly if they have understood it. Homework Students are expected to read at least 20-30 minutes a day. Reading logs need to be completed and signed by a parent/carer every day to confirm that the reading has been done. Every term students are given a points target that they are asked to meet. This helps staff determine how much students are reading. The points students are asked to achieve are ideal to challenge but not overwhelm them. Top AR Students Students with the most 100% quiz results in Term 2 Year 7 Paul Jodka Matt Jankus Sileena Farrell Caitlin Parrott Year 8 Evelina Ursu Rhyley Berry Jack Baker Luke Sinden Students who read the most words in Term 2 Year 7 Kaitlin Theobald— read 1, 003, 623 words Year 8 Evelina Ursu—read 836, 473 words From Reluctant Reader to Champion Reader Year 7 Year 8 Paul Jodka Ronnie Eccleston Sophie Abrey Pizza Party To celebrate their accomplishments, a pizza party was rewarded to the community with the most students who reached their target. It was a close call towards the end of Term 2 but the winners were Year 7 Endeavour and Year 8 Discovery students. Good food, loud music, a Wii and of course a dance off made it a party to remember! World Book Day World Book Day is on 3rd March and to celebrate, the library will be holding the following events. World Book Day Tokens Students will be given a £1 book token that they can use to purchase the £1 books below at most local bookstores and some supermarkets like Asda and Tesco. Students can also use their book token to get £1 off any full price book instead. The World Book Day Book Tokens are valid from Monday 29 February–Sunday 27th March 2016 Page 15 Spring Term 3 Book Quiz Thamesview School will be joining groups from all over the UK in an attempt to help World Book Day break the Guinness World Records title for the MOST PEOPLE PARTICIPATING IN SIMULTANEOUS BOOK QUIZZES on 22ND FEBRUARY 2016 If you are interested in being part of this amazing experience please let Mrs Fox know. Book Amnesty From 29th February — 4th March the library will be having a Book Amnesty. Students can return long forgotten books to the library, no questions asked! So have a good look on your bookshelves and behind your sofas and return all those library books! And remember Thamesview, keeeeeeeeep reading!!!! Senior Students’ Day Out On Monday 7th December, 15 Senior Students and I toured the Palace of Westminster, on the invite of the Gravesham MP, Adam Holloway. The students were impeccably behaved, despite a long delay before the commencement of our tour. The Police Officer on the entrance gate commented that Thamesview's students were the "smartest lot today, so far". Liam Hubbard says: "It was an interesting day in Westminster and the Tour Guide was very knowledgeable. It improved my understanding about the history of the British Monarchy and various wars/conflicts that destroyed the Palace of Westminster over the years. I made some links between the Tour and my History lessons.” It was a great day and a highly recommended tour. Members of the public can book by contacting the Office of Adam Holloway on 0207 219 8402. Students in attendance were: Ejemen Ebosele, Chloe Sharp, Ed Backhouse, Liam Hubbard, Chloe McLeavey, Henry Harrison, Luke Dennard, Katie Ayres, Elizabeth Harwood, Kieran Stoneham, Tom Bailey, Ben Smith, Sapphire Boyle, Lucy Smith & Jade Hooper. Miss L Fackrell Spring Term 3 Page 16 Key Events: Mon 22nd Feb - First day of Term 4 Thurs 3rd March - Year 9 Options’ Evening Thurs 3rd March - World Book Day Thurs 10th March - Year 11 Parents’ Evening (4-7pm) 14th—18th March - School Musical Week Thurs 24th March - Last day of Term 4 Mon 11th April - First day of Term 5 Mon 2nd May - Bank Holiday Tues 3rd May - Staff Development Day Thurs 12th May - Year 7 Parents’ Evening (4-7pm) Mon 16th May - Start of Public Exams Fri 27th May - Last day of Term 5 Mon 6th June - First day of Term 6 Tues 28th June - Last day of Public Exams Thurs 14th July - Sports Day Wed 20th July - Summer Concert Fri 22nd July - Last day of Term 6 - Staff Development Diary Dates Staff Development Days: Monday 22nd February to Thursday 24th March Tuesday 3rd May 2016 Friday 22nd July 2016 5 (2016) Monday 11th April to Friday 27th May Bank Holidays: 6 (2016) Monday 6th June to Friday 22nd July 1 (2016) Monday 5th September to Friday 21st October 2 (2016) Monday 31st October to Wed 21st December 3 (2017) Tuesday 3rd January to Friday 10th February Monday 2nd May 2016 Please note that the school will be closed on these days for students. The new term starts for all students on Monday 22nd February 2016. School Fund Reminder In October 2015 we wrote asking for contributions to our school fund. This money is used to support a variety of activities throughout the year and to help ensure the various clubs in the school continue to flourish. There are a number of students whose contribution for this academic year has not been recorded. This may be because students have been carrying it around and have forgotten to hand it in. However, if you have not made a payment yet will you please consider doing so. I do hope this letter will encourage you to make a donation because, without your help, these extension activities would be very difficult to finance. We are asking for a contribution of £10.00 from parents with one child at the school, and £15.00 from parents with two or more students attending. Please return your donation in an envelope marked with the student’s name and form to the Finance Office. Every contribution will be treated as strictly confidential. If you have already made your contribution may I take this opportunity to thank you and ask you to ignore this reminder. Please contact me in confidence if you feel you are unable to support this fund. Thank you in advance for your support. All contributions are greatly appreciated. Lesley Hilling Business Manager Parent Views At Thamesview we value our parents’ opinions and continued support. We offer parents the opportunity to tell us your views at school events and have been very pleased by the positive responses. You are invited to complete our parent view questionnaire at the web address below: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/tvsparentview We look forward to hearing your views. Dates 4 (2016) Day - NO school for students First day back reminder… Term Lost Property Please can Parents/Carers put their child’s name in ALL their school uniform, i.e blazers, trousers, skirts, full PE kit including trainers. With the cold weather approaching please remember to name your child’s school coat as well. Every effort will be made by the school office to return all named items to their owner, but items not named are difficult for us and students to identify. Due to the overwhelming volume of lost property, all items will only be kept for 7 days. Thank you for your assistance in this matter.