11 June 2020
After Year 11’s Brave New Wold programme of studies concludes in period 3 on Friday 12 June, the students will come together online from far and wide to join with staff in a celebratory farewell lunch. Earlier in the week they enjoyed talking to Upper Sixth students Shivani, Sarah, Angel, Sparkle, Keisha and Rosie who led an online session on ‘What I wished I'd known at the start of Lower Sixth’ hosted by Mrs Chambers. Year 11 students were able to ask them about applying to university, getting work/volunteering experience, developing co-curricular and extra-curricular activities to boost their CVs and personal statements. Among the useful tips from the Upper Sixth were:
- Get a shake on in the Lower Sixth as you’ll have less time in the Upper Sixth and you need to get experience in the Lower Sixth for your UCAS personal statement
- Reach out to others for help and work experience – friends, teachers and other contacts
- Join a club or start one and enter competitions
- Keep a journal, note down all you do and reflect on it
- Take part in classroom to boardroom
- Make an effort with your teachers!
Year 10 students have been set a ‘Kindness Challenge’ where they are encouraged to carry out an act of kindness every week for the next five weeks. It transpired many of them have already been making amazingly kind gestures, including producing more than 200 meals for people in need, shopping for an elderly neighbour and making dinner once a week at home. Mrs Norman’s message to her year group was ‘well done and keep it going!’
This week students in Year 9 have focused on respect for each other and how diversity makes us a stronger community. Appropriately, the song for the week was Respect by Aretha Franklin. The students also had a THRIVE session on growth mindsets and how we can all learn, improve and be better.
Year 7 and 8 Mardeners explored the topic of fake news in their THRIVE sessions this week. The students were tasked with looking at stories and deciding if they were real or fake. Some stories really shocked the groups and fake stories were mistaken for real ones and vice versa. This engendered a discussion about trusted sources and the use of language in news reports. Students looked at tweets about a gorilla escaping from its enclosure at London Zoo. Some tweets were fact, some opinion and some speculation. Students had to pick out three facts about the incident and write a brief news report about it. Some shared their news reports with the group and Amie’s excellent report came complete with a newsroom background. Miss Owens and tutors also used the opportunity to consider how gossip can also start in a year group.
We’re looking forward to hearing about Year 7’s ‘virtual’ Grandparents’ Tea Party Week later this month. Normally in June Year 7 students invite their grandparents to Woldingham to show them around and tell them about their first year at Woldingham. As we can’t do the same this year, we’re asking Year 7 students to keep up the tradition but in a slightly different way.
Year 7s have a week to host their real or virtual tea party and they can use the open morning film to show grandparents around the school if they haven’t visit Woldingham yet.
It was back down to their studies this week for the Lower Sixth, following last week’s assessments. The Ribbons team is working on plans to highlight issues raised by the Black Lives Matter movement, which will include an assembly next week and taking over the school’s Instagram account for a day. Lower Sixth students are also preparing for a higher education day later this month in preparation for applications to UCAS next term.
