Plashet Post – December 2015
Transcription
Plashet Post – December 2015
Issue 45 Working together to promote & celebrate achievement Name & Tutor Group: 11 December 2015 Headlines by Rachel McGowan End of Term Arrangements To ensure everyone has enough time to plan and organise, I thought it best to include in the final Plashet Post of 2015 logistics for activities taking place next week our last school week of 2015. Student Christmas Lunch is on Tuesday 15th December, costs £2.40 and the menu is as follows. Traditional roasted Norfolk turkey served with sage & onion stuffing, chicken chipolatas and cranberry compote. ***** Christmas Ragout: butternut squash, parsnip & sweet potato in a rich tomato & basil sauce. ***** Roast potatoes, panache of vegetables & lashings of gravy. ***** Chocolate Yule Log or Mini Mince Pie or Exotic Fruit Salad. Tuesday 15th December 2015 Festive Lunch dining arrangements & timings 12.00 - 12.30pm Years 8 & 9 12.30 – 12.45pm Re-laying of tables 12.45 – 1.15pm Years 10 & 11 1.15 – 1.30pm Re-laying of tables 1.30 -2.00pm Year 7 First sitting Second Sitting Third Sitting Whilst the Year 11 & 10 Christmas lunch sitting is taking place Years 7, 8 & 9 will have the opportunity to come to our Winter Wonderland Cinema in the South Hall. After their lunch sitting Year 7 will also have a special afternoon activity. 12.35 – 1.35pm Years 7, 8 and 9 Winter Wonderland Cinema - South Hall 1.35pm Year 8, 9, 10, 11 Back to Lessons 2.15 onwards Year 7 Year 7 Festive afternoon in the South Hall Students wishing to eat their packed lunch will be able to do so in the South building G rooms. On Wednesday 16th December we will hold our Christmas Bazar in the South Hall. This is being led by Year 11 and will have an array of stalls. Then on Thursday 17th December between 4.30 and 6.15pm we can all enjoy our Christmas Musical Medley evening of performance in the South Hall. Tickets are available from Miss Carne, Mr Wong and Miss Sanderson. Finally on Friday 18th December we have our festive non-uniform day. Students donate £1 and each year group decides where their money will go. Our school day on Friday 18th finishes at 12.35pm. I would like to wish all students and parents a very pleasant Christmas break and a happy and prosperous New Year. This autumn term has been a long one for our school community and I am sure that we are all ready for a well-earned rest. I look forward to welcoming all students back on Monday 4th January 2016 at 8.50am. Headlines by Rachel McGowan cont’d Year 9 Parents’ Evening Our Year 9 students will in the New Year begin to enter their GCSE decision making phase. To begin this process we will be holding our evening for parents to meet with subject teachers on Wednesday 13th January between 4.15 and 7.15pm. This is an important opportunity for teachers, students and parents to celebrate work and progress in all subjects and discuss GCSE options as well as targets for the remainder of this year. The timing of the evening is deliberate to ensure subject specific guidance can be given prior to the guided GCSE choices process. Please ensure that you make appointments to see as many teachers as possible when your daughter brings home her appointment sheet after the holiday. During the meetings, we will discuss how hard each student is trying in each subject and agree actions that each needs to take to make at least expected rates of progress is not more rapid. These meetings are a key way in which we can work in partnership to focus on our core aim – ensuring that every student makes the correct choices and reaches her potential. New Build I am delighted to announce that demolition to prepare for our new building is well under way after two years of working to secure funding and design our new facilities. We are expecting our new building to be ready at this point next year. It will comprise of a Sports’ Hall, new Drama, Music and English rooms, an ICT suite and a new Dining Hall and Toilets. This is an artist’s impression of how we expect our new building to look when finished. Rachel McGowan 2 Diwali Event On Thursday 5th November we celebrated Diwali with a fantastic event in our South Hall. Janvi Joshi (11P) and Meera Trivedi (11G) guided the event which included a wide range of traditional and modern dances along with spoken word and sung pieces. The performers: Vinu Anbarasu 7E, Hajera Begum 10N, Keshana Chandramohan 8E, Saba Farooq 10L, Sobinya Gunaratnam 8E, Charu Kuganantharajah 7N, Sharlini Kumarakulasingan 8T, Minaal Meer 7H, Sanam Mehboob 9N, Roshni Mohandas 7A, Sathana Navaneethan 8P, Sahana Naveethan 10E Nandana Nettoor 7A, Meenashi Neshan 7P, Arooj Nasir 9N, Khadija Patel 7A, Arya Pillai 8E, Yogasri Raman 9N, Tayyibah Rashid 8L, Nawal Rasool 8L, Neha Rasool 9N, Farah Rekarda 7A, Rattan Kaur Saggu 9P, Sobana Satchithananthan 8N, Harista Shankar 7A, Farhana Shajahan 7A, Nafisa Sheikh Maliat 7A, Tasneem Sheikh 8P, , Firyal Sirage 8T, Ashaiya Sriskanndarajah 8G, Raeshma Venkantesan 10S and Vipusha Vithiyananthan 8P were committed and professional in their contributions. The audience was very appreciative of all their combined efforts and those of the Staff who supported the Event. Miss L Sanderson Assistant Headteacher 3 POSA Citizens of the Year 2014-2015 We are extremely lucky at Plashet School to have a strong connection with a variety of our former students. Our alumni are very keen to remain part of our community and meet every other year in the Summer term at the school. Alongside their regular meetings, the Plashet Old Students Association (POSA) sponsors our Citizens of the Year Awards annually. The award winners for 2014/15 met with Mrs McGowan to receive their prizes and to celebrate their achievements collectively on Wednesday 3rd December and, as you will see from the photograph, it was a very positive experience. events and initiatives across the school. From Year 7, Sumaiyah Patel 7L (now 8L) contributed to school life throughout the academic year by leading her Tutor Group in a variety of challenges and by raising funds for a whole host of charities. Similarly, Rattan Saggu 8P (now 9P) collected the most plastic bottle tops in the school - a pretty impressive feat - for the French charity we support and she was involved in a variety of charity work within the local community. Rattan also showed real commitment to life at Plashet School and supported Harleen Kaur 9N (now 10N) was an active voice in the Newham Youth Council alongside her commitments to the Police Cadet group she found time to manage a local football team! Harleen has always shown an enthusiasm for supporting our school and she was an excellent Peer Mediator, and an active Drama student. Amirah Aktar 10E (now 11E) has constantly taken advantage of everything Plashet School has to offer. She has been a Tutor rep for our Student Council, undertook the responsibility of becoming a Prefect in 2014/15 and has raised hundreds of pounds for Macmillan Cancer research by participating in a 10k charity run. Her example was such that three teachers were so impressed that they also joined in the run and raised hundreds of pounds as well! A separate award was made to Meera Trivedi 10G (now 11G) for her outstanding contribution to the study of ICT at Plashet School. Meera became Deputy Head Girl during the course of last academic year, and yet she has not lost any of her commitment or enthusiasm for her studies. She has championed ICT within her class and been a constant source of support for her peers, hence why the ICT Team believe she is a worthy recipient of the award. Miss L Sanderson Assistant Headteacher 4 Students are inspired by Matilda the Musical On Tuesday 3rd November, the Music Department took 30 Year 10 and Year 11 students on a trip to watch an evening performance of Matilda, a musical production of the famous book by Roald Dahl. The students absolutely loved the show, and they were amazed by the set design and special effects! The students knew all the words to the songs but had to stop themselves from singing along! Zoeyanna Molton 11L, while pointing at the stage said, ‘That’s where I want to be!’ That’s where we want her to be too. Music Tech Live The Music Department recently won some funding through the Jack Petchey fund to buy some more musical equipment. We decided to run a creative Music Technology project called Music Tech Live. The project aimed to; Develop music technology knowledge, skills and interest Use music technology to enhance creativity Encourage students to work outside of their pop music comfort zone The project ran for approximately six weeks and students from Plashet and Chobham Academy performed their work together at a concert on 26th November. Some of the pieces were really creative (one piece was a remix of a ring tone!) and others were really beautiful. We will be putting up the recordings on to Plashet Music Blog in the near future. Christmas Concert 2015 Festive greetings everybody! This year we have a jam packed concert/extravaganza which we hope you will come along and enjoy with us. If you came to watch Hairspray last summer, you will be pleased to know that we have a mini musical production stashed into the second half of the concert! Get your tickets before they sell out! £2.50 per ticket (under 8s go free). Ms L Carne Subject Leader for Music 5 Y10 Citizenship participation in the Bar Mock Trials Programme Saturday 21st November Plashet students spent seven weeks preparing to participate in the Law in School’s Bar Mock Trail programme. Students were given two legal cases that may have been presented in a real Crown Court. The students spent after school sessions thoroughly researching and questioning the evidence in each case and took on a variety of roles as barristers, jury members, court clerks and witnesses. They were helped along the way by a professional barrister who gave them an insight into careers in the legal profession. On Saturday 21st November, 16 students travelled to the Inner London Crown Court in order to compete against other schools in the programme. The barristers wore real wigs and gowns and some of the defendants even had to sit in the dock! The programme allowed the students to practice their public speaking and oral literacy skills, encouraging them to fully analyse evidence. They also learnt a lot about the legal profession. The barristers in their wigs and gowns It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and the girls performed extremely well against students who were a few years older than them, even beating Sixth Form students in one round! They should be extremely proud of themselves. The participants were: Urooj Fatima 11S (Court Clerk), Juma Rahman 10L (Usher), Selina Begum 10H (Prosecution Barrister), Saiyara Zaman 10H (Prosecution Barrister), Anonna Chowdhury 10P (Defence Barrister), Saira Ahmed 10P (Defence Barrister), Katelin Dharamajan 10H (Jury Foreperson), Ifra Ali 10H (Jury Member), Eleanor Tranter 10T (Jury Member), Anisha Islam 10N (Jury Member), Tay-Yibah Shabbir 10G (Jury Member), Anika Kahir 10L (Jury Member), Fiza Rana 10P (Prosecution Witness), Mehzabeen Hairsoo 10E (Prosecution Witness), Nida Rafiq 10E (Defence Witness), Ubeydah Shah 10T (Defence Witness). Miss A Forshaw Curriculum Leader for Geography History & CPHSE Model United Nations Winter Conference 2015 On Friday 27th November, nine Year 10 students took part in this biannual conference at Mulberry School; the theme for this conference was ‘Ambitious Action on Climate Change’. After two months of preparation, students from schools across London represented different countries, debating and then writing resolutions, all with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the impacts of rising global temperatures. At the end of the conference, two of our students won prizes for their contribution in their committees: Juma Rahman and Sadiyyah Shaikh, 10L. ‘I cannot emphasise enough how much I loved attending the MUN conference. As a result, I have gained a lot of confidence speaking in front of others as well as other skills such as listening and organisation.’ Maya Badal, 10N ‘’It gives you an idea of how the United Nations works on a miniature scale. As I was in a Crisis Committee I produced a press report and directives; It was outstanding! Words cannot describe the excitement and the adrenaline rush.’ Anisha Islam, 10N 6 Post 16 Transition Event On Wednesday 4th November 2015, the Year 11 families were invited to School for the Post 16 Transition event. The Event was designed to give families the opportunity to talk with the institutions, answer any questions that they may have, and hopefully gain a clearer insight into the plans and decisions that our students have to make. The event was really useful for finding out general information about the process in the different institutions. The colleges/training providers that attended were: NCS – Newham Collegiate Sixth Form, NEWVIC, NEWTEC, Redbridge college, Westminster Kingsway, Ursuline Academy, B6, LAE, Brampton Manor, Central Foundation, St Angela’s, LDEUTC, George Monoux, Mulberry School and the College of North East London. The event was very busy with 144 students and 47 families attending. The Education and Schools Act 2008 means that EVERYONE has to stay on in education or training until they turn 18. This is not the same as raising the school leaving age – that will stay the same. But students at Year 11 will have to make one of the following choices: To stay in Full time education – a Sixth Form School, Sixth Form College, or College of Further Education. Work-based learning (such as an apprenticeship); or Full-time work or volunteering alongside part-time training that leads to an accredited qualification. They will be able to choose the post-16 option that is best for them, but they must stay in one of these options until their 18th birthday. If you require any further details on this, then please Email me on [email protected]. Miss F Clark Careers Education, Information, Advice & Guidance, Work Experience and SEN Teacher 7 Year 12 Returners’ Evening The resounding success of our Year 12 students GCSE results achieved last year through the hard work and dedication of students, teachers and parents was celebrated in the Returners’ Evening on Wednesday 18th November between 4.00 and 6.30pm. Students met with their form groups and tutors for one last time to catch up briefly before going on to the formal setting of the South Hall to pick up certificates and also awards for outstanding contributions in different curriculum areas. When all of the students were seated the Deputy Headteacher, Miss George, welcomed our main speaker Detective Chief Inspector Chaudhri, Mrs McGowan, Mrs Abena, Mr Bateman and myself to the stage with enthusiastic applause. Mrs McGowan welcomed the year group back with a speech of warmth, fond memories and hopes for the future. This was followed by a pithy monologue by Detective Chief Inspector Chaudhri , an ex-student of Plashet School, reminiscing about how things have changed for girls in this school and some of the battles she has faced through her career, finishing with a few life lessons she shared with our girls for their ongoing journey. At this point students were announced one at a time onto the stage by their form tutors where they were presented with their certificates by Mrs McGowan and Detective Chief Inspector Chaudhri. Next, Mr Bateman revealed the names of the memorial awards for Art, Science, CMD and the STEM awards to the worthy winners. It was then left to me to tell the students who had won the subject prizes and then wish our year group one final goodbye. It was a real delight to see our old year group back again, to notice the increased confidence and maturity and to hear of the many transition experiences from Plashet School to the various colleges. Our year group talked fondly of their time at Plashet and many talked about how grateful they are to the school and teachers for the preparation they have experienced for their next stage in life. The special relationship that students and tutors have formed over the five years was very much in evidence during the brief meeting before the ceremony as I wandered from form to form and I am sure that many of those bonds will be there for a lifetime. Mr P Murphy Year Coordinator 8 Year 8 and 10 Urdu trip to Cinema and Restaurant After anxiously waiting many months, both Year 8 and Year 10 students finally embarked upon the now popular annual ‘Movie & Lunch’’ trip to Ilford! Leaving excitedly in the morning, students were welcomed by Cineworld staff as VIPs after having the screen exclusively booked for Plashet School use only. Following the usual animated chatter at the concessions stall, students finally got to see the Bollywood blockbuster ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’, starring global superstar Salman Khan. The movie was a huge hit with the girls, which of course, meant all the talk afterwards was centred on the cinema visit. Students then rode the bus to Mirch Masala restaurant next to Goodmayes Station, a popular chain serving up the finest in Asian cuisine. Waiters were ready to serve the girls who, of course, did not need any second invitations to get stuck into the delightful buffet that was on offer. The conversation was flowing thick and fast, with the girls discussing the movie plot in depth, and also talking about the latest Bollywood TV shows and fashion. Once the girls were full to the brim, with barely space to breathe, the throng of students made their way back to school, with an air of contentment certainly in the air. Overall, the trip was, yet again, a huge success and a pleasure for both students and teachers alike. We would like to thank all the teachers who accompanied us and supported the event. This is what the students said: “The movie was very funny but at the end it made me cry a little.” Haniah Memon. 8T “It’s such a good family movie.” Nayab Shafique 8N “The food was delicious and we had a lot of fun.” Bismah Kokar 8T With such success, we will be ensuring to continue these educational trips, and perhaps even venture out further to other cities! Mrs I Ijaz Subject Leader for Urdu and Bengali 9 Year 10/11 Sociology Cinema Visit “Suffragette” On 7th and 11th December the Sociology and History Department decided to join forces and visit the Stratford Picture House to watch the award winning film ‘Suffragettes’. In both curriculums, girls in Year 10 study feminism and the Suffragette movement. It was an event that was enjoyed by both staff and students. We all came away feeling inspired and motivated to become strong, young women who fight for equality in all aspects. Zara Teles Subject Leader for Sociology On Wednesday 4th November, Sociology students from both Year 10 and 11 attended a lecture on Research methods. This lecture was aimed at students expected to attain top grades which was conducted by Ms Jo Sell. Ms Sell is currently doing a PhD at the Institute of Education which is focused on student voice regarding relationships and religion. Ms Sell has worked closely with the Sociology Department for her PhD research and with Plashet girls. It was very exciting and inspiring to have Ms Sell give us a lecture on the research methods and relate it back to the research she was currently doing, especially since we were involved. It certainly put our learning into perspective. Ms Sell really enhanced our knowledge using higher level key words, she showed us how our learning would be put into practice as well as giving us revision on the topic. Overall, it was a great evening that was informative, helpful and allowed students to get a much better grasp of the Research methods topic. Madeeha Sharief, 11L 10 Rosetta Stone Science Programme - Space Tech Imperial College Over the past few weeks, 12 students and I have been attending a Space Technology workshop run by Joanna Griffin. This programme focused on the importance of space technology and how it has evolved of the past 50 years. We worked on one main spacecraft called the Rosetta, which went through quite a long process to be where it is now, on a comet. At the end of this programme we are expected to write an essay explaining what source technology is based on different people’s opinions. On 27th November we had our first session in which all of us got an introduction to the topic. We also analysed different sources such as a fascinating documentary about the Rosetta’s hibernation and awakening called Comet Catchers. For our second session we went on a trip to the Science Museum and Imperial College. We first went to Imperial College, where we met scientists that are working with space technology such as satellites. The scientists explained why it is so important to have space technology. As we went on we attended several other sessions in school that explored the different areas of the topic. At the Science Museum, we attended an exhibition called the Cosmonauts. This exhibition was about Russian space technology and it showcased numerous achievements of the Russians in space. Overall, I found this workshop very interesting because I got to learn about what is out in our universe and the machinery needed to take a closer look into space. I have taken in a lot of information from it and I hope to have more opportunities like this to broaden my knowledge. Noshin Sadia 8N 11 KS3 Day of Dance On 26th of November, a group of year 8&9 students took part in the annual ‘ Day of Dance’ festival which was held in the south hall throughout the course of the day. It was really fun and amazing! We learnt a lot of new things. The morning class with Caroline, who has her own company called ‘The Forest Company’, was about techniques in dance, which was a fantastic lesson. We learned how to point our toes, how to jump correctly and to move in and out of the floor with rolls and turns. The second class was held by Ella. Her class was about the conventional actions and expectations of women, for example we are not allowed to be loud and have to be polite to others etc. We had to come up with do and don’ts of how to act like a lady and from those we choose five feelings like proud, winners, frustrated, annoyed, restricted, proud and motivated then change it to movements to a sequence in a group. It was really fun because while we were learning step by step we were developing and working as team. Raya Haroub and Ayeesha Ahmed 9A Visit to the British Museum On 23rd November myself and eight other students, who are in the RE Matters Group, travelled to The British Museum to collect ideas for our religious legacy canvases. We also discovered different religious beliefs about life after death, and considered the purpose of human existence! When we arrived at the museum we joined other schools in Newham; different groups were given rooms to explore, and were giving the opportunity to find religious artifacts that interested them and discuss them. It was a day of exploring and thinking very hard about what life is really all about. Zaina Quadir 9A Getting creative at Manor Primary School The canvases are going to be layered pieces of work. This means that we will build different elements that relate to our personalities onto the canvas, using different symbolic images. The first layer is a single layer of paint, which represents a character trait. As a group we associated our different colours with different emotions and feelings. For example, blue represented a caring and calm personality. We then chose another character trait that we would also like to be remembered for, which was symbolised in the form of an object. I, for example chose to use a trophy to represent my commitment to achieving my goals. This is an on-going project so you’ll have to wait until next time to find about more about our legacies. Alia Khan 9P Matilda and Laela getting creative. 12 Science End of KS3 Exam All Year 9 students will be sitting their END OF KS3 EXAM in the last week of January 2016. This is a very important assessment as it will be the students’ overall KS3 level and will form part of the Department’s criteria for allocating the correct course for their GCSE class, including entry into Triple Science. In order to prepare for this exam, students will need to use a wide variety of resources to become fully confident. These may include: Their exercise books (Year 7-9) Keerboodle books (Year 7 and 8). These are available to access online. Past SATs papers. These are available to access online with mark schemes. BBC KS3 bite size. The topics which will be tested are: Working Scientifically B1.1 Cells B2.1 Health & Lifestyle B2.2 Ecosystem Processes B1.2 Body Functions B2.3 Adaptation & Inheritance B1.3 Reproduction C2.1 Periodic Table C1.1 Particles C2.2 Separation Techniques C1.2 Atoms, Elements, Compounds C2.3 Metals and Acids C1.3 Reactions C2.4 Earth C1.4 Acids and Alkalis P2.1 Electricity & Magnetism P1.1 Forces P2.2 Energy P1.2 Sound P2.3 Motion and Pressure P1.3 Light P1.4 Space Please ensure that sufficient revision takes place during Christmas holidays to prepare for the end of KS3 Exam. Ms S Taninki KS3 Science Coordinator 13 Poetry Trip to West Ham United Football Stadium I recently accompanied Mrs Virdee, SENCO, and two Plashet students to perform their poetry at West Ham United’s football stadium. The stadium hosted a conference for teachers, focusing on the emotional and educational well-being of girls. Plashet students were chosen to participate in the conference because of the fantastic work they have been doing during the Tuesday and Wednesday poetry lunch clubs that I run. I chose Saniya Jojan (10P) and Laila Ali (9G) to perform their poetry for the teachers at the conference, based on the fact that they have been two of the most dedicated and enthusiastic attendees of these clubs. Both Saniya and Laila were an absolute credit to the school. They performed with enthusiasm, and were wonderfully articulate, insightful and confident in the question and answer session that followed. I am proud to present two of the poems that Saniya and Laila performed. My Words by Saniya Jojan (10P) At times I feel lonely, And so completely alone But my words give me strength Strength to stand back up When I fall down My words helped me to truly find myself – When I felt lost in a crowd Of unfamiliar faces. My words make me unique and sets Me apart from the millions of People that surround me. My words made me visible When I was invisible. My words make me Me. Growing Up by Laila Ali (9G) You have to wake up early for school. You have an evil alarm clock, Barking at you to wake up. You have people telling you You’re too old for toys. Joshua Seigal (Poet in Residence) 14 Library News Carnegie Shadowing Earlier this term it was announced that 93 books had been nominated for the 2016 Carnegie Medal, an award presented each year to an author judged to have written an outstanding book for children or young adults. Students at Plashet are now shadowing the award process by trying to read and review as many of the books as they can before the shortlist is announced next March. The aim is to encourage an understanding and appreciation of quality fiction writing, especially for more able readers who like to challenge themselves by reading well-written, thought-provoking books by authors they may not have come across before. One of the nominated books is The Honest Truth by Dan Gemeinhart. This is what Farzana Begum in 8P thought of it: ‘This book is about a boy called Mark who had an illness who runs away with his dog. On this journey, Mark learns new things and experiences many things, good and bad. This book was amazing and opened my eyes to illnesses and how they can affect a person. Dan Gemeinhart’s writing made me bawl my eyes out with both sadness and happiness. Throughout the book you get so attached to the characters that even after you finish it, you cannot put it down. I had originally planned to read this in a few days but I read it in one.’ If you would like to read the books which have been nominated for the Carnegie Medal, please speak to a member of library staff. Ms A Clifford-Smith Librarian/Resource Manager Manga Mondays Do you have an interest in drawing or learning how to draw? Are you a person who wants to express feelings through pictures? Then this is your chance. We are Year 9 and Year 10 students who have been interested in Manga for w while now. We offer sessions which will help you develop Manga as a hobby. We want you to join us in the South Library on Monday lunchtimes. We have age appropriate books and are supervised by a member of staff. We hope to see you on 4th January. If you have an interest in this then come and sign up in the South Library. There are limited places! Fatima Iftikhar 10L 15 16