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News from Highgate Wood School arts college CONSIDERATION COOPERATION COURTESY CONTRIBUTION Issue No 24 May 2015 THE UNIQUE CLASS OF 2015
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News from Highgate Wood School arts college
CONSIDERATION COOPERATION COURTESY CONTRIBUTION Issue No 24 May 2015
THE UNIQUE CLASS OF 2015
Issue 24. May 2015
2
Charles Wright, our Chair of
Governors, writes:
At this time of year it's natural to
be focusing on exams, and I'd like
to thank all staff who have been
going the extra mile with their
students over the period. For all
of us, the work put in by
everyone - staff, students and parents - is extremely
important in making sure all our students get the
opportunities they deserve, whether academic or
vocational.
But it's also the time of year when big changes are
happening in the life of the school. Students coming
to the end of their time with us, or looking forward
to sixth form after the summer break, younger
students reaching the end of a first year at big
school, older students about to get into their GCSE
years, and of course that large cohort of Year Six's
going through their own changes and thinking about
the transition in September.
And of course it's the time to start looking forward
to a welcome summer break - much-needed by our
hard-working staff as well as our students.
Before that though, governors are looking at
priorities for the coming year. For me that means a
continued focus on all our students as individuals, as
well as a drive for consistent improvement across
the board - so that everyone at Highgate Wood
School is able to grow and develop, academically
but also as a whole person. That's the essence of
what a community comprehensive school should
be, and I hope we can continue our work to make
Highgate Wood the school of choice for everyone in
our community.
Good luck with the exams!
Cover picture: Friday 22nd May 2015 saw our Year 11s have their final assembly and celebration day. Because the exam timetable is so full they were only able to dress up after Insight had already gone to print. Photos from the day will be available on the website in due course, as will a report of the Celebration Evening on Friday 19th June.
Chair of Governors:
Charles Wright (Community Governor)
Vice Chair:
Paul Bennett (Parent Governor)
Representative Governors:
Cllr Eddie Griffith • Oliver Blackaby • Brenda Allan •
Imogen Pennell
Parent Governors:
Diana Brown • Philip Cavendish • Elizabeth Hess • Chris
Tully • Rob White • Julia Chalfen • Paul Bennett
Community Governors:
Phil Cocksedge • Caroline Conlon • Violet Hazelwood-
Henry • Chris Parr •
Headteacher Governor:
Patrick Cozier
Staff Governors:
Emily Ford • Joe Demetriou
If you wish to contact the Governing Body please write to the
Chair of Governors, c/o Mrs K Ozturk, Highgate Wood School,
Montenotte Road, London N8 8RN ([email protected])
HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL GOVERNING BODY
GOVERNING BODY UPDATE
The school lottery has just paid for two outdoor table
tennis tables, more outdoor picnic tables and a laser
cutter, benefitting all Highgate Wood School students.
We could buy so much more if only every parent/
carer bought just one lottery ticket a year at a cost of
only £12 a year!!!
Here's some maths to encourage you to sign up - if
everyone of us bought just one ticket we'd raise over
£12,000!
There are great prizes too! For details of how to sign
up follow the link on the school website OR email us
COME ON, IT COULD BE YOU (and the school!).
Don’t forget easyfundraising.org.uk. Visit
www.easyfundraising.org.uk/hwspsa
Issue 24. May2015
3
It’s May Already!
Welcome to the May edition
of Insight. As always you will
find this edition full of
information highlighting
many of the achievements of
our incredible students over
the last few months. We hope
that you will get a sense of
the amazing range of activities and opportunities
that our students benefit from at Highgate Wood
School thanks to our dedicated staff. As ever, this is
a very exciting time to be part of the school
community.
Post 16 Applications & Places Offered – An Update
We are delighted with the very high number of
offers that we have been able to make for places in
the 6th Form. This builds on last year’s significant
increase in popularity. I am proud of how well our
students presented themselves and I have been
impressed with the maturity that they have shown
in discussing their futures.
Looking at our progress over the last five years, we
have good reason to be pleased. The number of
places offered to Year 11 Highgate Wood School
students has increased over the last five years. This
rise is accompanied by a high number of offers
being made to Year 11s who currently attend other
schools across Haringey and beyond; maintaining
the school’s popularity in the community. This
confirms our feeling that Highgate Wood continues
to be more popular both within and beyond our
school than in previous years and that more and
more we are achieving one of our key aims of being
the local school of choice.
Importantly, and similar to the last three years, in
order to deal with what we expect to be a high
demand for places at the start of the autumn term,
we have taken the decision to hold our first day of
enrolment on Thursday 20th August – the day of
the GCSE results. We anticipate that this will give
HWS year 11s the first opportunity to secure places
onto their choice of courses.
MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER We are very proud of our Year 11s, we have every
faith in their ability to do well in their exams and
we look forward to seeing a large number of them
thriving in the 6th Form from this September.
Kirkland Rowell Survey
Thank you to those of you who participated in the
Parent Survey to give us some feedback about how
you feel the school is doing and how we can best
work with you as parents/carers. We have recently
received the feedback from the Kirkland Rowell.
Unfortunately it arrived too late for us to include
any detailed feedback in this edition of Insight.
However, we will include something more detailed
in the next edition after the half term.
However, as a brief summary, the good news is that
the results are very positive and confirms
that parents and carers recognise the very good
work that we do and appreciate the positive
difference that we make to the learning and
experience of your children. It is a significantly
more positive outcome than we got when we did
our last survey in 2010.
Parents and carers have overwhelmingly expressed
a view that their children learn well at Highgate
Wood and that they have a wonderful and
enriching experience at the school. As always, there
are some learning points as well that we will take
on board moving forward. Some of these include
thinking very carefully about some of the ways in
which we might communicate even better with
parents/carers and also some very useful thoughts
from year 7 parents about what we might do to
improve some of our transition arrangements.
Staffing Updates, Welcome and Thanks
From the start of this term Ms Burniston officially
began her role as Head of Seacole House. I wish her
every success in her new role, whilst at the same
time expressing huge thanks to Ms Roberts for
stepping into the acting role so capably last term.
Having supported Ms Burniston in a handover
period, Ms Roberts will now return to her
substantive role as Deputy Head of Seacole House.
Ms Ward, who has been the acting Deputy Head of
Issue 24. May 2015
4
Seacole House in the last term will continue to
support Ms Burniston and Ms Roberts in this role
for the remainder of the academic year. My thanks
also extends to Ms Kemp who has taken on the
acting Head of ECS role for the remainder of this
academic year in place of Ms Burniston.
In Drama, our new Head of Department Ms Crook
started on Monday 20th April. She has already
made a very positive impression, and has stepped
into her new role at Highgate Wood School with
fantastic enthusiasm. I am confident that she will
be a very positive asset to the school. I would also
like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Brown for
his excellent commitment and hard work in
fulfilling the acting Head of Drama role for two
terms.
Farewell to staff who have left during the course
of this half term…
Member of Staff Role
Ms D. Breed Cover Supervisor
Mr P. Allen Cleaner
Ms Breed served her last day at Highgate Wood
School on Thursday 15th May. She has been with
us since January 2011. Officially, her role is as a
Cover Supervisor, but anyone who has worked with
her will know that she is very much more than that.
Ms Breed has been an excellent teacher of a
variety of subjects during her time at the school,
has filled in as Acting Head of Year 9 for our current
year 11s, has acted as a mentor to so many
students and has been involved in as many trips as
most other staff put together! Always a ‘can do’
person and willing to go the extra mile is
something that you could rely on Ms Breed for. I
personally think of her as someone who really and
genuinely placed our students at the heart of
everything she did at HWS. She represented what it
means to be a member of staff at this school.
Mr Allen has been a cleaner at Highgate Wood
School for the last 31 years! That is an incredible
amount of service to our school and shows a level
of loyalty that is to be greatly admired. Mr Allen is
more than just a cleaner – he is a friend of every
member of staff how sees him first thing in the
morning; he always has a positive and cheerful
hello and good morning for everybody. I will
remember him particularly for our regular
conversations about our beloved Arsenal. I have
never met a ‘Gooner’ who was more positive and
confident of success, even when our team was
doing so poorly! His lovely nature and his
commitment to our school will be very much
missed.
We thank them both for their significant
contribution over the years and wish them the very
best for the future.
... And Finally – Thank you for your support!
I would like to thank you all again for your valued
and continued support. I wish you and your families
a pleasant half term break.
Please remember, we return on Monday 1st June
at 8.35am. It will be Week 1.
Regards
Patrick Cozier
Headteacher
Specialist officers from the Sexual Offences,
Exploitation and Child Abuse Investigation Team
are encouraging any victims of non-recent sexual
abuse in Haringey to come forward.
Anyone who wishes to report any information
should contact the Haringey Child Abuse
Investigation Team on 020 8721 6834 (between
8am and 6 pm). Alternatively, the NSPCC can be
contacted on 0808 800 5000 or email
HARINGEY POLICE APPEAL
Issue 24. May2015
5
THE CLASS OF 2015
It is like the end of an era. It also seems like the
end of a very long year of work but you have
pulled though and we’re almost there!
In less than a month these young men and women
will be dressed in finery and attending the
Highgate Wood School Celebration Evening, a few
weeks later they will nervously open their exam
result envelopes which will hopefully mark the
beginning of a new adventure at Highgate Wood
School - the beginning of their time in our sixth
form.
I have been thoroughly impressed with the
maturity, focus and dedication that so many of the
students in the year group have shown over the
last term. It has been a stressful time for
everyone, and that has sometimes led to upset and
tears. But we have made it through.
Along with their talent, hard work and diligence I
have also been impressed with the way Year 11
has pulled together in times of difficulty. They
support each other through thick and thin.
Whether that is preparing for exams, revising
together, or simply providing those words of
comfort and encouragement that we all need
from time to time, this year group have been the
masters.
I wish each and every one of you the very best of
luck for the future. I feel privileged to have known
you, and grateful to have been able to have played
some part in your successes.
I look forward to joining you in the celebration of
your achievements on June 19th and also on exam
results day in August.
Yours sincerely
Mr A Hartley
Issue 24. May 2015
6
Mr Dobrashian writes:
The Learning Support Department will be holding
an SEND Information Morning on the 17th June be-
tween 9.30 – 11 am,.
At this event Inclusion staff will explain their roles,
with an opportunity for parents and carers to ask
questions for the workings of the department.
-If you are seeking to attend, please confirm in
email to [email protected]
UNIVERSITY APPLICATION SUCCESS
Mr Charlesworth writes:
We are delighted to have had a record number of
successful university applications completed by
Year 13 students this year, which have been met
with a record number of conditional, and some
unconditional, offers of places for 2015.
The variety of degree courses that our sixth form
students are destined to embark on after the
summer is truly extraordinary. They include
Nursing, Business Management, Engineering,
Aerospace Technology, Chemistry, Criminology,
3D Design, History, Sociology, Psychology, Drama,
Zoology, Politics, Mathematics, Natural Sciences,
Biochemistry, Law, Economics, Film Production,
Industrial Design, English Language, Fashion,
English Literature, Computer Science, French,
Journalism, Music Technology, Philosophy and
Geography.
The range of institutions is similarly impressive. It
looks like there will hardly be a university town in
the UK that doesn’t boast at least one Highgate
Wood School student next year.
These include Oxford University, Manchester
University. The universities of Leeds, Bristol,
Brighton, Plymouth, Birmingham, Sussex, Chester
and Sheffield. We are likely to have students at
the University of Aberystwyth and at the
University of Central Lancashire. We will be
represented in London, Kent, Southampton and
Chichester. Some students are likely to be at the
University of Reading studying History, others will
be at the Southampton Solent University studying
Advertising.
Of course none of this would be possible without
the hard work of the sixth form team, the sixth
form tutors, Ms Birnie, Mr Pateman and Ms Lewis.
But most of all it is down to the hard work and
drive of our sixth form students, and our sixth
form teachers.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank them
for all their efforts, and wish all of our Year 13
students who are about to embark on the next
stage of their lives the very best of luck and
success. We all hope they achieve the results they
require.
SEND INFORMATION MORNING
Issue 24. May2015
7
HOUSE LEAGUE TABLES
Top Vivo Earners
Rasheed Kamara (Yr 11)
Rawan Ataya (Yr 10)
Luke Gosling (Yr 9)
Grace Heron (Yr 8)
Lottie Ezer-Ahern (Yr 7)
Top Vivo Earners
Jordan Dowden (Yr 11)
Randal Harrison (Yr 10)
Yusufcan Kir (Yr 9)
Brandon Durand (Yr 8)
Hugo Clague (Yr 7)
Top Vivo Earners
Umer Khan (Yr 11)
Ester Sanha (Yr 10)
Ceyda Karayigit (Yr 9)
Toby Wyckoff-Smith (Yr 8)
Louis Fletcher-Wheeler (Yr 7)
The best way to predict the
future is to invent it
From caring
comes courage
Success comes from
perseverance
46,343 so far this year
46,448 so far this year
47,529 so far this year
As usual Haringey has a whole range
of sports and activities available for young people
over the half-term break. Some will require
booking, some require payment, but the majority
are free to enter and you can turn up on the day.
Visit http://tinyurl.com/hwsmayhalfterm for
details.
HALF TERM ACTIVITIES IN HARINGEY PARENT INFORMATION EVENING
Mr Ashman writes:
Our ever-developing digital communications
systems continue to raise a whole range of new
concerns for safety and security, from cyber-
bullying and on-line fraud to radicalisation and self-
harm.
These issues will be discussed at our 2nd e-safety
Parent Information Evening on Wednesday 3rd
June. All are welcome.
Issue 24. May 2015
8
HWS MOCK ELECTIONS
Mr Robertson writes:
Over the course of the general election campaign,
many of our students became engaged with
thoughts of our democratic society. So much so, in
fact, that during March half term, Isabel Pountney
(8H) emailed the following idea: "how about doing
a mock election and have party representatives and
public debates and then a secret ballot?"
The idea was simple: each student would represent
one of the main political parties (from Labour to
UKIP), they would be given a list of questions to
research 24 hours before and would then debate
each other in a mock election hustings which all
students could attend in the hall.
The task of creating election questions was a team
effort which drew upon the ideas of our students.
Ms Sayer's Debate Mate group and Ms Gribble with
the School Council all volunteered ideas, and their
questions touched upon the state of the nation's
finances, immigration, school reform and what they
would do to promote gender equality.
Our 'candidates' researched thoroughly and
communicated their parties' ideas incredibly
effectively; skilfully answering our students'
questions, and even more skilfully avoiding
questions they were shy of giving a direct answer
to! I was particularly proud by how closely they
represented the parties they had been chosen to
represent, which certainly presented a challenge
for Harry, Blue and Jonah.
The event was extremely well-attended, and at the
end our student vote led to a comfortable Labour
majority. That did not reflected nationwide polling
trends, but it was impossible to deny that the
turnout represented a glowing endorsement of our
students' civic responsibility and their belief in the
importance of democracy.
Blue Weiss writes:
On the back of the Highgate Wood Question Time
in which the Sixth Form had the chance to probe,
question, and listen to the electoral candidates for
Hornsey and Wood Green, one year 8 asked if the
lower school would be given the same opportunity.
And so in a sense they did when on Friday the 1st
May we hosted our first mock general election with
five year 12 students representing the major
parties and a chair to moderate the debate.
The event began with the candidates on stage with
a minute each to answer a number of questions
from students ranging from 'what would the parties
do about gender discrimination' to 'why is there no
money'.
The same talk of 'long term economic plan' was
continuously spouted by the Conservative
candidate, with sprinkles of 'we tried' from the
Liberal Democrats, emphatic pledges from Labour
and the Greens and of course somehow UKIP
managed to take everything back to 'immigration,
immigration, immigration'.
The event was not exempt from political
squabbling but on the whole candidates did try to
engage with the audience, and did so with some
success. As for the lower school students, they
were given an insight into the dynamism,
pragmatism, and importance of politics in their
everyday lives. They were able to gain an
understanding or at least a snapshot of what the
parties stood for. But most importantly they were
given a voice which is so often denied from young
people in elections. And even more impressively
the results were broadcast round the school within
the hour.
Issue 24. May2015
9
HWS MOCK ELECTIONS DEBATE MATE SUCCESS
Ms Sayer writes:
It's been another exciting term for
the HWS Debate Mate team!
On 16th April we attended the Deutsche Bank
Debate Mate Cup at the London School of
Economics. Over 500 students attended and 90
teams competed for the cup.
Our prepared motion was: 'This house supports
eco-terrorism'. This was followed by a show
debate and then two unseen motions.
Both of our teams won two of their three debates;
a really impressive achievement!
We also recently had our last session with our
wonderful Debate Mate mentor, Thos. He taught
the students so much about the art of debating
and we'd like to thank him for all of his hard work!
Candidates:
Jonah Berman - Conservatives
Lucy Carter - Labour
Rosa Tully - Green Party
Harry Vinall-Smeeth - UK Independence Party
Blue Weiss - Liberal Democrats
Moderator: Lucy Parfitt
Photographer: Emily Mort
For more information on Debate Mate please
contract Ms Sayer
Issue 24. May 2015
10
MEDIA STUDIES STUDENTS AT THE BBC
Ms Daws-Knowles writes:
At the end of March, Year 11 Media Studies
students visited the BBC News Centre at Portland
Place to see first hand how the news is constructed.
The 2015 exam topic is Television News so it was
particularly relevant.
The students participated in a radio play using
sound effects as well as delivered the news and
weather using green screen technology. Everyone
had an enjoyable time and one that they will all be
able to make use of in their forthcoming
examination.
Good luck to everyone!
CHILDNET DIGITAL LEADERS PROGRAMME
Mr Ashman writes:
We are excited to announce the launch of the Childnet Digital Leaders Programme at
Highgate Wood School. Starting in September 2015 the scheme aims to empower young
people aged 11-18 years to champion digital citizenship and digital creativity within
schools and to educate their peers, parents and teachers about staying safe online.
More information will be made available shortly.
Ms Harding writes:
For the fifth year running, the history department
have entered year 8 students into the Historical
Association fiction writing competition. Two of our
students have won the competition in the last five
years.
All year 8 students had to research a topic and
then write an exciting story about a fictional
character living during that period. The Historical
Association are particularly looking for a
convincing setting in a past time and place.
It was extremely difficult to choose just three
stories from over 220 entrants, and the history
department would like to thank all the students
who took part. It has been another great success,
where the standard was very again high again.
However, the history department finally chose,
Noa Yaron, (8D), Isabel Pountney (8H), Victoria
Stogdon-Culbert, (8E).
Many congratulations to our three finalists. Their
stories will be sent to the Historical Association.
The winners will be announced in the Historical
Association by the end of June.
The winners also have their story published in the
Historical Association periodical, and receive a £25
voucher and a paper weight. The winners will be
announced by the Historical Association by the
end of June.
We would also like to acknowledge our runners
up, who also wrote fantastic stories. They are,
Tyler Zabel , (8H), Zackhala Francis, (8D), Hugh
Thomas, (8D), Charlie Newbold, (8A), Ava
Stevenson, (8T) and Brandon Durand, (8T).
HISTORY COMPETITION
Issue 24. May2015
11
YEAR 10 - ARE YOU READY FOR YOUR SUMMER EXAMS?
Mr Hartley writes:
Year 10 should now be preparing for their summer
exams that are taking place from 15th June and are
a critical milestone for the year group’s success in
summer 2016.
Students should make as much use of the revision
materials available on the school website as they
can, as well as the help provided by their teachers.
A revision timetable will be really helpful, and it is
a good idea to visit http://getrevising.co.uk so you
can get this created on-line.
There are also other useful resources to help
students make use of their time productively, and
learn how to deal with exams without getting too
stressed or anxious.
We distributed a guidebook to Year 11s that
provided them with some advice from Young
Minds about how best to deal with exam
pressures, as well as some useful tips and tricks.
Amongst these was some surprising information
about the value of different foodstuffs to the exam
process.
Everyone knows that it is important to drink lots of
water for your brain to function properly. But did
you know that there is evidence that suggests
eating popcorn can reduce stress levels, oily fish
helps you to concentrate and dark chocolate helps
your brain keep healthy!
The guidebook is available on the school website,
but the information can also be found at
www.youngmindsvs.org.uk.
It is essential that at least some of the half-term is
given over to preparing for these important exams,
but it is also important to rest and recharge your
batteries so you are ready to succeed!
Best of luck to everyone in Year 10.
Issue 24. May 2015
12
OUR NEW LEARNING SUPPORT AREA
Matt Dobrashian SENCo writes:
I am delighted to announce that the Learning
Support Department at Highgate Wood School has
now moved into new accommodation.
We are now based in what used to be the
caretaker’s flat, but which has now undergone
major refurbishment so provide a purpose built
area to support Special Educational Needs and
Disabled students, and others.
The area comprises a number of rooms where we
can offer specialist support and intervention for
groups and individual learners. We have extended
the school computer network to this area, and now
have the latest LED touch-screen display screens to
help the delivery of specialist programmes as well
as more regular lessons. We have also invested in
a bank of light-weight HP tablets that are currently
allowing selected students to use ICT in all lessons
where appropriate.
This new resource is particularly welcome with the
many changes that have happened to our work
and the new requirements that have come as a
result of changes in the SEND Code of Practice.
Our students have welcomed the change, as you
will see from the comments here, and we hope to
continue to develop our provision for SEND
students so they continue to thrive and flourish.
If any parents or others would like more
information about changes to Learning Support at
the school please visit the Learning Support pages
on the school website (under the Learning tab) or
email me directly: [email protected]
We have been asked by Gary
May, the SEND Reforms
Programme Manager at Haringey
Council to alert parents and
carers of the “Local Offer” information that is
available on the Haringey website. The Local Offer
is the range of information, support and services
available for parents and carers of children and
young people with special educational needs and
disabilities (SEND).
Haringey Council are currently promoting an on-
line survey that they hope will provide some
information to help them improve their services in
the future.
To access the Local Offer and also the survey please
visit: http://tinyurl.com/hwslocaloffer alternatively
please email [email protected]
HARINGEY COUNCIL “LOCAL OFFER”
STUDENT COMMENTS:
“I love the way the space is so quite and ordered” L L (Year 8)
“I like the fact that we now have a dedicated area,
and how calm the atmosphere is” C W-S (Year 9)
“I love the new interactive whiteboards.” F P (Year 11)
“It is like an office, much more professional than
other areas of the school” C F (Year 10)
It’s a nice, open space.” LL (Year 7)
It’s comfortable, almost like home.” O K (Year 8)
Issue 24. May2015
13
Tracey Copley - Medical Needs Assistant writes:
As summer approaches please ensure your children
come to school prepared for the hay fever season
bringing with them plenty of tissues and any
medication they may need to take during the
school day.
Please also be reminded of the following:
Students are expected to come to school and
stay in school the whole day even if they have
head colds, hay fever, headaches, period pains
or any other mild ailments.
It is the student’s responsibility to come to
school prepared with any medications or
supplies they may require during the school
day.
Students should go to the Treatment Room to
take any medication brought in from home.
We are unable to store or administer any
medication to students unless it is
accompanied by a GP’s prescription detailing
the dosage and timings.
If your child has an injury they can have their
dressings changed at school as long as the
necessary dressings are brought in by the
student.
Could you please also remind your child that they
are not allowed to use their mobile phone in
school. If they need to contact home for any reason
they should go to the school office where
arrangements will be made, if appropriate, for
home to be called.
Thanks for your continued support
Ms Allaway writes:
Some of you will be
aware that we have
introduced a new system of detentions to support
our Behaviour for Learning policy. The intention
behind this is for students to experience the
consequences for not meeting school expectations
as being automatic and inevitable.
We have been running with the new system since
the beginning of term and early indications suggest
it is working well. Students are more aware than
before of the need to follow those basic rules that
we have and conduct themselves appropriately for
good learning and personal success.
The system works automatically. If any student
receives four or more behaviour points in Sims in
the period Wednesday to Tuesday they will be
required to attend a House detention that
Thursday. A text message is sent home on the
Wednesday to inform parents and carers that a
House detention has been given, and the students
themselves receive a note during the course of
Thursday. They then need to go to that detention,
which begins immediately after period 5 and lasts
until 15:45.
House teams and Form Tutors are kept up to date
of those students who have a House detention in
any given week so they are able to follow up any of
the issues that may lie behind the problems.
If a student fails to attend a House detention they
will automatically be placed in Whole School
detention which takes place on Friday. This is a
more serious sanction, lasting a full hour and being
noted on the students’ behaviour record. As with
House detentions, parents and carers will receive a
text informing them that their child has been
placed in Whole School detention.
In order to ensure that this system continues to
work well and improve behaviour and learning
around the school we ask parents and carers to
make sure that we always have their correct mobile
phone number so we are able to send the
appropriate text if and when we need to.
With thanks for your continued support.
HOUSE DETENTIONS - THE NEW SYSTEM
Issue 24. May 2015
14
GCSE ART - EXAM AND EXHIBITION
Barney Terrington
Ms Zwicky writes:
On 28th and 29th March our Year 11 art GCSE
students sat their 10 hour exam to the theme of
Apart and/or Together. Over the space of 10 hours
we were able to observe the ideas which have
been developed and researched over the previous
eight weeks come to life.
As ever the breadth of work has been astonishing,
ranging from digital and darkroom photography,
large to scale painting in a wide variety of styles,
collage, marbling, drawing, as well as 3-
dimensional work created from books (Emma
Skinner) and old coke cans (Rowan Juneman).
Some students have worked very conceptually,
creating pieces of work based around emotions
and exam stress (Libby Archer) or bringing a
worldwide community together in a collaborative
piece of postal art (Faye Heron).
We were hugely impressed by the inventiveness of
our students this year, and also their technical
prowess.
We wish them the very best of luck for all their
summer exams. They deserve to do extremely
well.
MADFEST
We are fast approaching the biggest event of the
summer: MADFest 2015 on Saturday 4th July.
The PSA will shortly be requesting members of the
school community to bring in books, music, prizes
and other items to help make that a success. At the
same time our students will begin auditions for
MADFest performances.
Many of our performers will be amongst the 75
students going on the Italy music tour the following
week. They will be taking part in three concerts in
Lazise, Torbole and Riva as well as visiting different
towns and hopefully having a great time. We take
this opportunity to wish them a fantastic tour.
Along with nine members of staff, the tour group
comprises the following students: Alex Ahern, Andrea Ahern, Libby Archer, Melinda Azemi,
Faber Bell, Rudy Berman, Megan Boardman, Charlie Butler,
Rory Butler, Alex Carter-Jones, William Carter-Jones, Anouk
Cavendish, Esme Cavendish, Hi-Lim Chang, Gabriel Clarke,
Robyn Cowie, Amy Davis, Iola Elson, Rosa Elson, Ethan
Fraser, Lola Fraser, Sarah Free, Fraser Frengley, Everest
Freya, Choon Fuller, Maddy Grant Pyett, Jacob Gryn, Rory
Hammett, Toby Heale, Patrick Hegarty, Alfie Hellier, Agnes
Hellier, Faye Heron, Florence Holmes Kelly, Zoe Hutchings,
Alex Irvine, Lauryn James, Eleanor Jones, Ruby Jubb-Baddiel,
Rowan Juneman, Mia Knight, Ty Knox, Nancy Levy Vegh,
Sam Marks, Maddie McBroom, Lucy Newbold, Charlie
Newbold, Nye Newcombe, Raph Nuzzoli, Emi Oguri, Asha
Oguri, Kate Owen, Lucy Parfitt, Eva Parfitt, Maya Pennicott,
Chloe Petmezas, Ella Phillips, James Ramsden, Joshua
Rodney, Billy Scott Price, Hope Selby, Imogen Sheppard,
Fionnuala Stevens, Emer Stevens, Noah Stoneman, Joe
Stoneman, Maddie Strawson, Sam Suarez-Ronay, Ethan
Wadsworth, Charlie Walker, Sian Walker-Evans, Eleanor
Weatherall, Blue Weiss, Danni Weiss and Lucy Whelan.
Issue 24. May2015
15
Amelia Jordan Wass
GCSE ART - EXAM AND EXHIBITION
Elif Celik
Nin
a W
ang
Issue 24. May 2015
16
Ms Jones writes:
Congratulations to Caleb Wyckoff-Smith and Adam
Lloyd for continuing to develop and improve our
school garden.
Whether it is constructing a new greenhouse or
repotting some summer flowers, they are both
helping transform our environment - and learning
some very valuable skills into the bargain!
GARDENERS WORLD
Mr Grimmett writes:
This term our Year 10 Geographers took part in
their first field trip, an important part of their GCSE
course and also a fantastic experience for their
general education.
Tommy Escott reflects on the day’s events:
We arrived at a windy, but sunny area of Essex
called Walton-on-the-Naze at around 11am. After
a quick walk to the beach, we began our task -
collecting primary data for our GCSE coursework.
This included measuring beach gradients using a
special device called a clinometer and completing
bi-polar surveys.
Working along the coastline can sometimes be
unpredictable, at the beginning of the day it was
windy yet sunny however toward the end of the
day we experienced torrential rain, unlike anything
we had ever seen before. However we didn't give
up, we braved the brunt of the storm and
completed our work. Despite being pounded by
the rain it was a really interesting and enjoyable
day and we picked up some really important skills
for our GCSE.
FIELD TRIP TO WALTON-ON-THE-NAZE
TWENTY POUNDS AWARDS!
Mr Ashman writes:
Last term the PSA kindly donated £200 to reward
Year 11 students who made the best use of SAM
Learning.
Congratulations to Liliana Ricketts, Reece Cooper,
George Tonkinson, Jessica Parker, Billy Scott Price,
Jessica Krahn, Malina Antochi, and Rasheed Kamara
who have all received a £20 gift voucher for their
productivity with SAM Learning.
We will be awarding the final two prizes after the
examinations are over.
If you still need your login for SAM Learning you
can email [email protected] or you could
just try and work it out yourself. Your username
and password are the same and is made up by your
date of birth followed by your initials. So if your
name is Brad Pitt and your date of birth is 22nd
March 1999 your SAM Learning login is 220399BP.
The Centre ID is N8HW.
Issue 24. May2015
17
Quentin Reeb writes:
The future of our world rests
entirely with children, the
young minds that
will take the places
of old ones and grow
up to uphold the
legacy of the world.
And this is what we
need schools for—to
mould and shape these minds.
I go to Highgate Wood School., but I come from
America. I have lived in Germany, and I have
French heritage. So I’ve witnessed the differences
in school systems in a few places. There are
differences in grading systems, tests, classrooms,
schedules and a never ending list of other things.
In America most students come from the outskirts
or suburbs of the cities, and it can take a long time
to get to school. Some have their journeys to
school over hills or even lakes. It can take a while,
and usually it is a pretty long time until you get
back home, American school days are, on average,
longer than that are her in England. For me it was
8:00 am to 4:00 pm and I barely had time to do my
homework after that. Our homework was almost
always due the very next day.
Our schedule was never different, every day it was
the same. That perhaps gave us a clearer focus and
structure, but it was also a bit monotonous and
boring. And we were always doing a lot more tests
and quizzes than I’m doing here, which was very
tiring.
As they are everywhere, the students were all
different shy ones, cocky ones, popular types,
focused types. They were different individuals, like
they are here—and of course they all had an
American accent! But since there was no uniform,
and in Texas, where I lived, it was very hot, so we
tended to wear Nike Dry-fit or Adidas Climacool.
Personally I found them a bit awkward.
I’d like to say thank you for taking the time to read
this. I’m having a very good time at Highgate Wood
School.
AN AMERICAN ABROAD
By Sophia Doncheff 8T
I’m sitting here thinking about tomorrow,
MONDAY.
The deciding day which marks out if I will have a
good week or a bad week, sort of like a fortune teller
revealing its witchcraft and sorcery.
I’m very rarely lucky.
My anxiety on Monday,
unaware if I will have to endure
trauma and mocking from my form.
My migraine on Tuesday from your hurtful words
spitting out of your mouth like a machinegun.
Vomiting your despicable feelings about me
all over my heart.
My determination on Wednesday
desperately trying not to cry
my face fixed as hard as a rock,
my hope spilling into the room
being emptied by your attempt to embarrass me by
tripping me up and taking my chair from beneath
me.
I stood as hard as ever.
My depression on Thursday from all I have been
through this week.
Hurting myself so as not to feel any pain from your
words.
I numb myself to take my mind of all that hate you’ve
shown me.
Alcohol, drinking away my misery.
I am 13.
The last day
Friday, my day of my exasperated heart
all these little things make a young one cry
all these little things want to make them give up
leave school but we can’t
we are forced to face everything as a teen.
No bunking, No crying, No giving up.
I am 13 years old.
DREADED TIMETABLE—A POEM
If you feel bullied or upset you must tell someone
- a teacher, a mentor, another member of staff.
You can also report your worries through the
bullybox on the school website.
Issue 24. May 2015
18
Ms Allaway writes:
Congratulations to our new
Jack Petchey Award Winners
MADELEINE BARON
Reason for award: Madeleine
has been a constant contributor
to the school. She works as a peer mentor and has
been praised by students and staff for her
dedication to this role. She is always willing to help
with open evenings and parent’s evenings to work
in front of house situations and helping to provide
refreshments. She works to the best of her ability
in class and upholds all that is best about our
school.
MANEL AIT MOUHEB
Reason for award: Manel is a fantastic student
always willing to contribute to school life. She has
worked as an office helper and really impressed
visitors to the school and prospective candidates
for jobs where she promotes the school and the
student body. She has helped at the open evenings
and the parents evenings too. She has a really
positive attitude to all her school work and
subjects.
NATHANIEL STARK
Reason for award: Nathaniel has been making
incredible efforts to improve his grades this year.
He has also made contributions to the Citizenship
unit on human rights where he put together an
assembly and presented it across all the year
groups, this was very well received by all the heads
of house. He is always supportive of the school and
continually tries his best in everything he does.
STACEY SLAWINSKI
Reason for award: Stacey is an incredibly helpful
student who works hard for the school. She has
been recognised for her enthusiasm and initiative
and has been complemented by visitors to the
school as an outstanding example of our school
values.
JACK PETCHEY AWARD WINNERS
The leader award for Di Breed has been approved
and will be presented at the Jack Petchey
celebration night in June at the Bernie Grant Arts
Centre
Di is a very special person who cares enormously
for the students in the school. She has contributed
to the school way beyond her job role by
mentoring individual students and helping them in
their difficulties.
We value the work she has done and the difference
that she has made and we wanted to recognise this
by nominating her for this award.
Congratulations, Di, and many thanks for all your
many contributions to Highgate Wood School, its
staff and students.
LEADER AWARD
APPS FOR GOOD AWARD 2015
Mr Talbert writes:
We are excitedly waiting to hear from Apps for
Good whether Nancy Levy-Vegh and Rhea Patel
might have qualified for their major Awards event
in June.
We have been told that schools will be informed
about those lucky enough to be recipients of their
prizes on their website next week.
Please visit www.appsforgood.org on Thursday
28th May to see if we have been successful.
If we have that will be fantastic, if we haven’t the
school is still incredibly proud of the achievement
of Nancy and Rhea whose App concept has already
gained the support of will.i.am and Water Aid, as
well as everyone else who has taken up the Apps
for Good Challenge this year.
Issue 24. May2015
19
Ms Masters writes:
Congratulations to Matilda Horton (year 8) and
Giuliano Plantamura (year 11) who had their
artwork selected as part of the Young Art
competition 2015.
Their work was exhibited at the The Royal College
of Art and their pieces responded to the theme of
'City Living'. This year celebrated the 25th
Anniversary of the competition which is held to
promote young art and to raise funds for Cancer
Research UK. Over 8300 students entered their
work and 760 students’ work were shown.
Well done to both of you.
YOUNG ARTISTS AWARD
MOBILE PHONES IN SCHOOL
A reminder to all parents/carers and students that we will
continue to stick to our policy that requires student
mobile phones to not be visible at any time whilst
students are on the school site. This includes any time
during the school day, including before and after school
sessions.
We will also continue with our policy to confiscate mobile
phones when they are seen and/or heard by a member of
staff.
When a phone has been confiscated it will be deposited
for safekeeping with the Headteacher’s Personal Assistant
Ms Kiymet Ozturk. A phone confiscated on any school
day will be only be returned on the following Thursday.
Issue 24. May 2015
20
SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS
Aisha Shallo (co-chair) writes:
We know that there hasn’t been much going on
with school council for many months now.
However, we are glad to say that school council is
back.
Every month we will be meeting to discuss issues
that you feel need addressing. Our main purpose is
to help you be the best students you can be. With
Beth GossChalk (Year 11) and myself, Aiesha Shallo
(Year 9) as co-chair persons we are here to listen to
the voice of the school.
Anything you feel needs addressing please speak to
your class councillors who will feed back to us. We
will do the best we can to unite the Highgate Wood
School family.
If you want to contact the School Council directly
you can now email
[email protected] and we will
receive it.
Ms Gribble writes:
On the penultimate day of last term, when we had
a non-uniform day, Phoenix Education Trust came
into the school to provide training to members of
our school council.
PET is a charity dedicated to improving Student
Voice and they provided of activities, insights and
support to help us get our School Council to start
making a bigger impact on the day to day running
of the school.
It was a fantastic day that was enjoyed by
everyone who took part. It has also helped the
School Council develop their vision of where they
want us to be.
Already the council have had three further
meetings, including a meeting with Mr Cozier and
Mr Hatch, our Business Manager. There are lots of
plans for things that will happen in the coming
weeks, and some even sooner. For example the
School Council has now started to have a formal
role in the appointment of new members of the
teaching staff.
By the next issue of Insight we hope to bring you a
lot more news.
Issue 24. May2015
21
CAKES FOR NOAH’S ARK
Ms Crook writes:
This year was a roaring success for our Year 13
Drama students, whose practical exam pieces blew
away AQA’s external examiner, not to mention
fellow students, family members and Highgate
Wood staff.
As the new Head of Drama at Highgate Wood, I was
thrilled to have arrived just in time to see such high
quality, inspiring work from the class.
Both exam groups worked with a range of classic
texts, drawing from the work of Angela Carter,
Edgar Allen Poe and Christina Rossetti. Their hard
work and perseverance over the course of the unit
resulted in two stunning, original performances
that skilfully placed classic themes, characters and
narratives into new and innovative contexts.
On behalf of the Drama department, I’d like to
thank those who were able to attend the students’
performance and offer their support and
encouragement, prior to their final exam.
A LEVEL PERFORMANCE SUCCESS
Ms Harding writes:
On Monday 18th May,
9T sold cakes to raise
money for the Seacole
house's charity, 'Noah's
Ark.'
Noah's Ark is a children's hospice that provides
vital care and support to over 150 children and
their families living in North London.
I would like to express my gratitude to my tutees
that baked goodies over the weekend to sell for
the charity.
A special thanks to, Selin Has, Finn Lilburn, Jack
Howard-Mendonca, Diamonte Adeniyi, Zahrah
Bakht, Amy Giles, Alex Diaferia, Maya Eagles,
Mohamed Mohamed, Louis Ludlow, Armelinda
Idrizi, Maria Lyons, Mel Ketaruth, Sonny Davies,
Stanley Adepegba-Ogidan, Charlie Clarke & Isobel
Crompton.
I would also like to thank the food tech department
for donating ingredients. Mr Lopez kindly gave up
his time after school on Thursday and Friday to
bake cakes with Maria, Armelinda, Alex, Maya and
Isobel.
Ms Burniston, Ms Birnie, Ms Smith, Ms Kemp and
Mr Lopez also kindly gave up their break time to
help sell the cakes with us.
Thank you to all the students and staff that bought
cakes from us for this worthy cause.
Thanks to everyone's great effort, we raised
£115.95 for the charity.
Sarah Latchford, from Noah's Ark will be in school
on Thursday 21st May to collect the cheque.
Issue 24. May 2015
22
BOOK LAUNCH AT THE LRC
HWS BOOKCLUB
If you would like to join add your name to the
sign-up sheet in Mr Gowen’s room (A25)
CHATTERBOOKS
Every Monday Week 2 After school in the LRC
Intellectual & fun discussions about books you love
and hate, film adaptations and a lot more.
For Years 9, 10 & 11
Ms Ereira writes:
The Learning Resource
Centre hosted a launch
party for Keren David’s
new book, This Is Not A
Love Story, published on
the 7th of May.
The book is set in
Amsterdam, and Keren
brought Dutch liquorice
for us to try while she
talked about how she came to write the book.
Louise Roberts won our prize draw and took home
a signed copy of the book.
We’ve got a few copies in the LRC now too, so
everyone else can read it!
Ms Ereira writes:
Author Non Pratt visited us on the 28th of April. Her
debut novel, Trouble, has been shortlisted for
several awards.
Non gave a very lively and entertaining lunchtime
talk in the LRC to about 40 students. She discussed
censorship and talked about the process of writing
her first novel and her journey to publication.
Non then spoke to the whole of Year 9, challenging
gender stereotyping in popular culture. She
introduced the Bechdel test to the students and
asked them to apply it to blockbuster films, asking
whether the films contain at least two named
female characters who speak to each other about
something other than a man. She then moved on to
ideas of male and female fiction and discussed
contemporary teen fiction in this context.
AUTHOR VISIT
Issue 24. May2015
23
CARNEGIE BOOK GROUP
Ms Ereira writes:
The Carnegie book group is
going strong, with almost 40
members divided into two groups which meet on
alternate weeks.
We’re reading the books shortlisted for the
Carnegie Medal and debating which should win. We
have our own page on the Carnegie website, so you
can read the group’s reviews and vote in our poll by
visiting: http://tiny.cc/hwslrc15
7A
Louis Ashworth (12)
Joe Bruce (12)
Gloria Kelly (10)
7AE
Adam Lloyd (3)
Charles Nelson (2)
Rose Erbil (2)
7D
Jago Strongman (11)
Rosie Allison (8)
Sylvie Keen (7)
7E
Aaron Bell (15)
Tallulah Cox (6)
Carlias Simeone-Murrells (4)
7G
Joseph Screene (14)
Ramneet Bains (5)
Romilly Gosling (4)
7H
Lottie Ezer-Ahern (23)
Jenner, Anouk (16)
Tia Ezer-Ahern (15)
7I
Willow Miller-Teece (7)
Cameron Tomlinson (6)
Sinead Newland (4)
7S
Billy Owen (6)
Quentin Reeb (6)
Laurie Taylor (5)
7T
Alabama Cawley (14)
Katherine Ley (13)
Vukasin Winrow (12)
7W
Joshua Kingston (6)
Selin Tas (3)
Lois Fletcher-Wheeler (3)
8A
Rosie Ashworth (5)
Ella Reynolds (4)
Keje Koca (3)
8D
Billie-Jo Hayden (4)
Zackhala Francis (1)
8E
Natalie Manoharan (5)
Jem Clift (4)
Freya Dougan (4)
8G
Rebecca Manoharan (7)
Tia Dyett (5)
Leyla Osman (4)
8H
Amy Davis (7)
Isabel Pountney (5)
Yasmin Walton (4)
8I
Milou-Mai Law (6)
Ella Phillips (5)
Max Murphy (4)
8S
Charlotte Whelan (5)
Jeannie Coles (4)
Jack Thornton (4)
8W
Cameron Destouche (7)
Joseph Ferando (7)
Rico Fergus (5)
Years 7 and 8 have continued with the Accelerated
Reader programme. Congratulations to the follow-
ing students, who have passed the highest number
of quizzes in their tutor groups:
ACCELERATED READER
When Mr Dog Bites by Brian Conaghan
Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan
Tinder by Sally Gardner
Cuckoo Song by Frances Hardinge
The Fastest Boy in the World by Elizabeth Laird
Buffalo Soldier by Tanya Landman
The Middle of Nowhere by Geraldine McCaughrean
More Than This by Patrick Ness
CARNEGIE SHORTLIST
The school calendar is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com
Keep informed Find out what is going on at Highgate Wood School and keep up with our news
visit us at our website www.hws.uk.com
follow us on twitter twitter.com/highgatewood
Check the school’s opening status
Call 02084087508 and give the school’s DfE code: 3094030
Insight is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com
School begins again on
Monday 1st June
at 8:35 am
It will be Week 1
* Term ends for students
AUTUMN 2015
Fri 4th Sept **
26th Oct– 30th Oct
Friday 18th Dec
Term Starts
Half term break
Term Ends
SUMMER 2015
Mon 13th April
25th—29th May
Friday 17th July
Term Starts
Half term break
Term Ends*
SPRING 2016
Mon 4th Jan
15th Feb– 19th Feb
Friday 21st March
Term Starts
Half term break
Term Ends
Half Term Begins Monday 1st June
Digital Safety—Parent Information Evening Wednesday 3rd June
Learning Support induction day Thursday 25th June
School breaks up for summer (early close) Friday 17th July
Year 10—end of year exams 15th—26th June
Year 11 Celebration Evening Friday 19th June
Sports Day Friday 26th June
New Parents’ Evening Tuesday 30th June
Transition Day (Year 6) Wednesday 1st July
MADFEST Saturday 4th July
End of Key Stage 3 Celebration Evening Friday 10th July
** Term starts for students