Castle Manor AcademySummer 2014 Newsletter 123rd May 2014

Feel proud

It hardly seems possible that we are now at the end of another half term. This has been a short, but action packed half term. We have, of course, seen the beginning of the exam season, which sees our eldest students bringing this stage of their learning to an end. I would like to note the level of effort given by all the students and staff in preparing for the GCSE and A level exams that have continued this week – I know there are classes going on over half term. We are all very hopeful that the results they achieve truly reflect their efforts.

I wrote in my blog post recently that I had been struck by the efforts that students at Castle Manor take to support those less fortunate than themselves through their charity work. With the results of House Charity Week now in after the collection of all the sponsor money and so on, it is terrific to acknowledge a record breaking effort of £1400 raised. My thanks to all the students and staff, particularly Ms Weston for her leadership in this area.

The theme of Castle Manor students giving was continued with two very different events that I was privileged to be at this week. On Monday, the Haverhill Rotary club honoured three Castle Manor students with their annual Book Awards for their service to others in the school community. On

Thursday, our house band “Nice Manors” played a fantastic concert for the Haverhill Gateway Club – for some of the students who were playing it was their last concert after several years of excellent performances – I know Mrs Sanderson is very grateful to them for all their efforts.

Elsewhere in this newsletter you will read about a host of activities that students have been involved in around our academy and beyond the gates. These range from excellent sporting opportunities, to charity work and finally to an amazing, once in a life time, trip. They are a small selection of the stunning effort that every member of our community puts in to making this such a wonderful place to work, to learn and to visit.

Over half term we will say goodbye to Teresa Bailey, from our Library, and to Rosa Pereira from maths. I would like to extend our thanks to them both for their work supporting students whilst at Castle Manor Academy.

I hope that you will have a wonderful half term break and return ready to face the second half of the summer term with energy and vigour.

Matthew GibsonHead of School

Suffolk’s Greenest School UpdateFollowing our award recently as Suffolk’s Greenest School we have continued to develop our academy gardens. The rate of change and volume of work has been huge and, as always, the students can rightly feel proud of their work. The raised beds are full of growing crops, tomatoes and herbs hanging baskets and wild flowers are popping up to attract wildlife.

Our orchard is quickly taking shape, young fruit is starting to emerge and wild flowers are being planted along the banks - funded by grow wild. By early July the orchard will be fenced in and will have its own summer house. Each day the area improves and these changes will see it become even more usable. Look out for further developments in the future!

This week we have also put our first lot of fertile eggs into an incubator. We hope to welcome a new generation of chicks in July, so watch this space!

Love Your Local Market

Castle Manor Academy students honed their trading

skills in May when they took part in Haverhill’s Youth

Market. The event was organised by St Edmundsbury as

part of the national Love Your Local Market initiative. The

students joined the market for the day, alongside other

young people. Castle Manor Academy were the only

school to take part and they provided a range of products,

sold by students from all over the academy.

New Head Boy, Head Girl and Student Leadership TeamThis week has seen the appointment of our New Head Boy and Head Girl. The process started with students writing an application followed by presenting their ideas to the Student Parliament.

The Parliament voted and whittled the group down to four students, two boys and two girls. These were Ethan Woodley, Callum Friel, Charlotte King and Emma Ellis. These four students then had to speak for 2 minutes in assembly for each of the four Houses. The final vote was held in tutor groups and was very tight!

Miss Read, Helions Head of House said “The standard this year has been very high and I congratulate everyone who put themselves forward to represent the Academy. Every student had a chance to vote and the final outcome sees Emma Ellis (Y11) and Ethan Woodley (Y10) being voted in for the next year.”

The last few weeks has also seen students applying to represent their House as House and Sports Captains. Students had to write letters of application and then the Heads of House selected the best for interview.

Final results were announced in House assemblies. The picture shows a selection of our new House Captains and Sports Captains.

ChauntryHouse Captain – Shannon Atherton & Mitch PorterSports Captain – Karolina Hryzsko & Chloe Arkesdon

Helions House Captain – Sam Law & Lia PhillipsSports Captain – India Bavester & Keiron Ager

WilseyHouse Captain – Victoria Harvey & Keira SheppardSports Captain – Prince Mutswunguma & Dominika SzaryHamletHouse Captain – Billy Hemmings & Molly NippressSports Captain – Ella Blowes & Andre Henrique

Catering students produced a Recipe Book, Vietnamese “Bahn Mi” (Pork baguettes) and also some flavour packed bouquet garni. On the business group’s stall you could buy a wide variety of sweets and a selection of ice cold treats, perfect for the hot weather. Finally there was a stall selling produce from our kitchen garden, including eggs from our rescue hens and herbs from the garden.

The market stalls were an excellent way for students to see another side of their learning and to try their hand at selling their produce on.

Sharon Fairweather, Market Development Officer, thanked the students for their effort and said that the Castle Manor Academy students were a credit to the town.

This term has seen our Digital Learning projects continue to thrive. Digital Learning is not just about iPads in Year

7, or about the increasing use of self managed digital devices in the Sixth Form, but also about a change in the approach to digital technologies throughout the academy. Each year group are increasing their use of Digital Learning in different ways.

Last week we saw some excellent programming in Key Stage 3, where students are using Scratch (A free visual tool for programming and animating produced by the MIT Media Lab). The output and quality of programming is stunning and we feel sure that we are seeing the next generation of innovators cutting their teeth. You can work on scratch yourself by visiting www.scratch.mit.edu. Students can also use the programme in lessons or at a dedicated enhancement.

Next year we will be working hard to continue to encourage an increase in the use of technologies. We plan to invest in an electronic planner system, which will accompany manor files for older students and work on iPads for younger students. If the tests go well, we think the system will allow students, staff and parents to work smarter from a wide range of internet enabled devices.

Exam ExcellenceThe exam season is well and truly upon us now! It seems that so much of the work of our school is focussed on the next few weeks, making sure that students are as well prepared as they can possibly be for the GCSE and A level exams and BTEC final assessments.

This is of course a very important time for our students, since the results of the exams and assessments open doors to the next stage of education, work, or training for the students. Everyone at Castle Manor Academy would like to extend a big well done for all of the exams that students have already completed and we would like to wish all the students doing exams “Good Luck” over the next few weeks.

Don’t forget the importance of the basic things during the exams - Keep well rested, eat a good breakfast and keep yourself well hydrated. Most of all do the best you can and remember to Feel Proud!

Half Term Revision Sessions:

Tuesday 27th May, 9:30am - 1:30pm Maths 11M

Wednesday 28th May, 9:30am - 1:30pm Maths 11C

Thursday 29th May, 10:00am - 12:00pm GCSE Science

Thursday 29th May, 9:30am - 12:30pm ICT

Thursday 29th May, 10:00am - 3:00pm Catering Drop In

Friday 30th May, 9:30am - 1:30pm English 11C

We are looking forward to the end of the term, when we

will welcome next year’s students. We are already planning

an action packed timetable of activities for them, which

will integrate them in to life at Castle Manor Academy.

Year 6 Transition

On an unseasonably

sunny spring morning, forty two students and six staff

left for Heathrow airport. After a panicked visa reapplication, we were through security and on the plane. Take off for many was a new experience, but before long, we were cruising steadily at 30,000 feet, on our way to Orlando.

The first day, the first Disney; The Magic Kingdom lived up to its’ name and we had a great day in the Florida sun. The weather continued with unabated brilliance as we held alligators, rode dragons and fought giant spiders (albeit Universal spiders with the help of a certain Mr Potter). The only rain fell during further entertainment from the font of Mr Disney, though it

did little to dampen our spirits, even if the animals did shied away. The food was truly American, portions that even Mr Wills struggled to finish, with breakfast creations that developed from day to day. The day before we left, with sun baking our skin, we visited the waterpark. From one of Florida’s highest points, to sea level in seconds was a particularly thrilling experience, and one of the best days had by all.

Finally there was the mall. This metropolis of shopping provided hours of entertainment, two nights running, and

bargains galore. The final morning struggle to cram purchases into straining supersized suitcases took much of the

morning. A final rush to the plane and we were homeward bound, through turbulent skies. We tried to sleep, though the coach journey home

provided the best opportunity to rest. As any student will attest, the trip was a great experience, seeing a new side of the States. We are already

planning America 2016…watch this space!

USA Trip 2014

This year’s House Charity Week was held between the 6th & 9th May and raised funds for the charity ‘Free the Children’. The charity was founded in 1995 by Craig Kielburger, after he saw an article about a boy called Iqbal.

Iqbal Masih was born in South Asia and sold into slavery at the age of 4. He spent the next 6 years chained to a carpet weaving loom. Eventually, he escaped and spoke out about children’s rights. The wide media coverage of Iqbal’s story and his brave voice ended when he was murdered by the slave traders who had imprisoned him.

Craig Kielburger was 12 when he read this story. He went on to found his charity because he felt he had to do something. His belief is that if one child can speak out, between us we can free children from poverty, exploitation and the idea that they are powerless to change things.

Across the Academy students have been contributing to fund raising to promote education and provide village schools in remote parts of India, to offer them the chance to change their world.

Each House was given £10 and challenged to use it to raise as much money as possible, each tutor group had a school shaped money box in which to collect small change, some students took part in a sponsored silence and the majority of students took part in a non-uniform day.

At the time of writing, the total raised is around £1400, with 4 more money boxes to be counted and more sponsorship money to be collected.

Miss Weston, Charity Week organiser said ‘I have been amazed by what our students can do when they all work together! I challenged them to aim for £1000 and they have blasted past that. The non-uniform day raised £595 and the sponsored silence around £560, with more to come. Special mention needs to go to Emily Dickinson who raised £86 on her own. It has been a real pleasure to watch students challenge themselves and to be part of the global community like this.’

Final results for each House will be announced in the end of year assembly when the Charity Cup is awarded.

The prize for heaviest money box goes to tutor group SP (Mr Powter) and for best decorated to SJ (Mrs Johnston), with special mention to GJ (Miss Jackson) who unfortunately missed the competition deadline but decorated theirs with grass, flowers and a chimney!

Charity Challenges

Community Action Suffolk would like to invite residents of Haverhill South to attend an PHT People’s Panel Meeting at the Leiston Centre, Leiston Road, Haverhill from 7pm on Wednesday 28th May.

The meeting will provide the opportunity to submit ideas and offer feedback on how to spend the People Health Trust £200,000 of investment for the ward.

Community Action Suffolk are looking for 9-12 volunteers from the local area to create a People’s Forum. The Forum members will become the decision makers and will create an Action Plan to be submitted to the People’s Health Trust around how and where the £200,000 will be spent.

For further information on how you can submit your Big Idea and be part of the People’s Forum contact Jon Eaton on 07775 907828 or email jon.eaton@communityactionsuffolk.org.uk

Have you got the Big Idea?  

 

PE UpdateIt has been a very busy half term in PE, which has seen us take part in a huge variety of activities; from the outstanding exam moderations, during which the examiners had particular praise for the attitude of our students, to the netball trip to Shrewsbury that you can read about here. We have also organised and hosted a Junior Football Organisers course for Year 9 & 10 girls.

In competition we have seen success on the football field, with both Year 10 & 11 boys getting to County semi-finals; there was heartbreak for Year 11 who lost 5-4 on penalties, but retained an excellent attitude throughout.

House competitions are a regular part of the PE calendar, with events for Trampolining and Volleyball. Don’t forget that there is a huge variety of sporting enhancements including Badminton, Tennis, Rounders, Cricket and Table Tennis. All of these activities will have plenty of fixtures after the break, so please do come along!

Sports Update

Equestrian ExcellenceYear 9 student, Kelly-Jean Wecke continues to impress as she represents Castle Manor Academy in equestrian events. Recently she rode her horse to success in the Blue Chip Winter Championships, h e l d at Hartpury College in Gloucester. The

event saw youngsters gather from far and wide with Kelly-Jean riding on behalf of Castle Manor Academy.

Keely-Jean won her competition, making her the champion in the 10-16 year old class. She was also the youngest

rider in that class. Well done Kelly-Jean!

Netball TripOur Year 8 & 9 Netball Players were treated to an excellent trip to the Shrewsbury Invitational Netball tournament over a weekend in May. This year was the second time our girls had taken part in the tournament, which saw students from a range of schools, both private and state, take part in netball tournaments and a range of outdoor activities.

The fun started after students arrived on Friday evening and managed to squeeze a tour of the grounds as well as a full set of activities, including a camp fire, laser maze and a very late night! Undeterred by the late night the team were up early and practising by 7:30am!

The girls played brilliantly with an exceptional goal by Olivia Mutemanga, met by riotous applause from all

the spectators! The morning also saw Beth Harding (Y8) and Erin Walsh (Y9) receiving Player of the Match awards.

Saturday afternoon saw the girls take on some different challenges, in high ropes, abseiling, zorbing, archery and a particularly high - Leap of Faith challenge! Erian Walsh, Maddy Stannard,

Beth Harding and Ms Read all managed to conquer the challenge!Sunday saw the conclusion of the competition with the girls playing

fantastically and making it through to the plate. Unfortunately they

didn’t make the final, but can be proud of their

performance!

Upcoming Events:26th to 30th May Half Term27th to 30th May Year 11 Revision (See website)2nd June Students Return27th July Year 11 Graduation4th June, 3 - 4:30pm Uniform Shop, Place Farm7th June, 9am - 12noon Uniform Shop, Castle Manor18th June, 3 - 4:30pm Uniform Shop, Castle Manor1st July Sports Day2nd & 3rd July Sixth form Induction4th July Year 11 Prom10th July Summer Concert11th July Rewards Trip14th - 23rd July Transition week24th July Summer Holiday5th September School starts (Year 7 & CB Sixth)8th September School starts (All students)8th September School Photos

www.castlemanor.suffolk.sch.uk@CastleManor

Cycling RevolutionThis term our love affair with cycling has continued. We have been extremely fortunate to have coaches from British Cycling running weekly workshops, both at Castle Manor Academy and at primary schools in the local area. The sessions have made excellent use of our site and have seen students riding Mountain Bikes and Road Bikes. The scheme is running initially for six weeks and each session has focused on a different area of cycling technique.

Sessions have included introducing the concept of the keirin, road racing, pacing in the peloton and corner technique. The seesions have been delivered as part of the PE curriculum, but also in an after school club each Wednesday, which has seen students from Year 3 (8 years old) up to Year 13 (17 years old), supporting one another in a true all-through experience.

Andrew Barratt, Team Leader for PE, is a keen cyclist himself and has been keen to promote the sessions “These are excellent opportunities, with students benefiting from the same coaches that are working with Olympic level athletes.” Mr Barratt is also relying on the support of a wide range of Sports Leaders “The Sports Leaders have been great, as they are with so many events that we produce. They are leading sessions, encouraging students and have even taking on some coaching themselves.”

British Cycling Coach, John Stockley, who has been delivering the sessions alongside fellow coach Mark Wyer, was full of praise for our young cyclists “The students have given their all, completing tough courses and improving each week.”

Sports Update

This newsletter is produced by Castle Manor Academy. If you would like another copy or would like to provide feedback please contact Jason André at JAndre@castlepartnership.org.uk or 01440 705 501

Uniform ShopYou can buy uniform anytime from the dedicated website, http://cpat.kiiwiiclothing.co.uk.

KiiWii Clothing are also holding regular “pop-up shops” in school, where you can buy or order uniform. Upcoming dates for these are:

Weds 4th June, 3pm - 4:30pm, Place Farm Primary Academy Sat 7th June, 9am – 12 noon, Castle Manor Academy Weds 18th June, 3pm - 4:30pm, Castle Manor Academy Saturday 5th July, 9am – 10am, Castle Manor Academy

Saturday dates are set aside for collection, but a small amount of stock will be available. You’ll also be able to place orders.