Curriculum

This half-term, students have been exploring Relationships and Sex Education (RSE). These sessions have included Healthy Relationships, Consent and Boundaries. The Year 8 team have been really pleased with the way in which students have responded to these sessions; students were inquisitive, respectful and mature. The Year 8 students were also lucky enough to attend an assembly with a police officer where they explored County Lines. The students had lots of questions about this and made the most of this opportunity.

Children’s Mental Health Week 

Monday 7- Sunday 13 February was Children’s Mental Health Week. During tutor time, students took part in a range of sessions to focus on their own mental health and wellbeing.  Students also participated in an online assembly with Kooth, a fantastic online resource for young people where they were able to access online support and counselling. Kooth offer young people free, safe and confidential support. Please visit www.kooth.com for more information.

We also ran a college competition based around this year’s theme of ‘Growing Together’. Students were asked to create a poem, rap, song or poster that celebrates the importance of this as part of Children’s Mental Health Week. The deadline was Friday 18 February, and we look forward to selecting winners. All students that take part will win 1 college point for their college.

Rewards and Recognition

Year 8 have over 39,000 reward points which is fantastic!

The Top 3 Students are:

• 1^st Place -  Emily A (8BW01)
• 2^nd Place -  Andrew N (8PK02)
• 3^rd Place - Katie C (8PK01) 

On Tuesday 18 January, the Top 30 students in Year 7-11 were invited to attend a cinema event. This was a fantastic event which enabled us to celebrate and recognise students’ excellent attitude in school. Our Year 8 Reward Leaders were brilliant in supporting this event. Another celebration event will follow in Spring 2.

Colleges

This term saw our first college assemblies since lockdown and therefore, Year 8s’ first ever college assembly! It was lovely to see the students gather with a range of year groups, and we are looking forward to the events that will take place over the remainder of the year.

Careers

Parents will have received information from Mrs Barley-Morey in regards to the CEIAG Morrisby Quiz. Students complete this quiz in Computer Science lessons and it was great to hear the range of careers that students were exploring.

It was National Apprenticeship Week this half-term and students took part in some tutor time sessions to explore what apprenticeships are. Students engaged really well with the sessions.

Options

The Year 8 students are getting ready to choose their options and the Year 8 team have received some enquiries. Please be reassured that you will receive some information around this following half-term. We have a detailed plan to ensure that both students and parents/carers are prepared when selecting options. Please be aware that the Parents’ Evening on Monday 4 April will allow for an opportunity to discuss options with relevant staff members.

World Book Day

On Thursday 3 March, students in Y7 and Y8 will be able take part in an exciting event to celebrate 2022’s World Book Day. Please see below for more information…

What is it?

To celebrate World Book Day, we have organised a book swap on a gigantic scale.

When is it? Where is it?

Thursday 3 March at break and lunch in the library.

Why get involved?

This is your child’s chance to share books that they love with others. If they take part, they will end up with a new book for free!

How to get involved?

Your child should bring in a book that they have enjoyed reading but that they are happy to swap for another of their choice. After bringing in their book, they will be given a ticket so that they can ‘buy’ a new book with it on the day. Their book must be brought to form and given to their tutor by Wednesday 2 March.

What will happen to any spare books?

They will be donated to the library or to charity.

If you have any questions, then please contact Miss Kellow on jkellow@northleamington.co.uk

Thank You!

Thank you for the ongoing support of your child this half-term. We are really looking forward to starting the options process for Year 8 as they think about their next steps in school. Please can we ask for parental support in ensuring students are suitably equipped for school and their uniform is worn to a high standard. Please do get in contact with your child’s tutor if there is anything you wish to discuss.

Miss P Murphy

The more effort you give, the more commitment you show, the more opportunities you’ll make, the further you’ll go.

Tutor Curriculum

Relationship and Sex Education

This has been a compulsory part of the Tutor Time curriculum and has facilitated a greater understanding of a range of subjects including ‘consent and the law’ and ‘sexting.’ The Y10 Tutor Team and I have been really impressed with the maturity and thoughtfulness shown by all the students whilst covering such topic areas.

CEIAG/Careers Curriculum 

Monday 7 February marked National Apprenticeship week with Y10 looking at what apprenticeships are, the different levels of apprenticeships, what qualifications students need to access each level, and the qualifications they can achieve. In addition to this, students looked at the pros and cons of apprenticeships and accessed some real life stories of students for whom apprenticeships have been a successful route on the flightpath to their future.

Student Leadership-  CEIAG

Jess and Leo have been giving some independence to the Y10 Careers Leaders and they have been researching the sorts of jobs each year group can undertake. We will be sharing this with the different year groups over the coming term. Part-time jobs are an important opportunity for students to develop their independence and employability skills, and can enhance their CV for their future career pathway.

The team are also working on a variety of templates and strategies to support students in developing CV writing skills, which will be shared with the different year groups again over the coming term.

RE Mock Exam

The RE mock exam is taking place on Wednesday 16 February. This is another opportunity for students to practice exam questions under exam conditions, to identify areas for further revision focus, and to develop revision strategies to move their learning forward so that they can maximise their opportunity for the best success in the summer.

Rewards and celebration

The Christmas Celebration Assembly saw a whole variety of success within the year group. The following students in particular evidenced the very best of achievement in attainment, achievement, effort and leadership.

Tutor Group Commendation for outstanding student leadership

Christmas Hampers 

Tutor groups rallied to create Christmas hampers which were delivered to a variety of worthy recipients including FareShare Midlands, Craighaven nursing home and the Salvation Army. We received some wonderful correspondence of gratitude and supporting our community is an important part of NLS life.

Mrs Sarah Barley-Morey                                                       

Year 7 & Year 8 Drama

Students in KS3 are following a programme of learning that explores an introduction to Drama.  Year 7 Drama students are currently exploring Northwood Hall and the House of Secrets. Year 8 Drama students are exploring the play DNA by Dennis Kelly and considering how they could interpret the characters through the performer skills. They will also explore the play from the perspective of a designer.

As we mark the halfway point of the academic year, it is good time to reflect upon just what a busy half-term it has been for the PE department and our sports stars. As the light returns and we emerge from the depths of winter, warmer weather is surely on the way. It has also been a time of reflection for the PE department and whether we are meeting the high expectations of our department vision, which is to:

“Inspire all students to participate in and enjoy a broad and balanced PE curriculum, whilst recognising the importance of a lifelong healthy, active lifestyle. We aim to provide students wider opportunities to participate in sport both recreationally and competitively, whilst also enabling clear, personalised pathways and qualifications for students to pursue careers in the field of Sport & PE”

For a half-term of only 7 weeks, it is incredible just how much the department has been able to offer. Below is a flavour of what we have been up to and a snippet of what’s to come. Hopefully you will agree, we are doing our upmost in fulfilling that vision, to get the very best for our students at NLS.

Year 11 GCSE PE Moderation

Each Tuesday during Spring 1, our year 11 GCSE PE students were put through their paces in after-school moderation sessions in a range of sports. Student kit, attitude and perseverance during these filmed and staff moderated sessions has been exemplary, showing the very best of sport at NLS. As a department we have moderated table tennis, basketball, football, badminton, athletics and rugby. The sessions have frequently run past 5pm and run at a relentless pace; and despite a busy day of learning, our students have really risen to the challenge and will no doubt produce results they can be proud of in the 2022 final examinations.

Spring 1 Curriculum Review

This year our students have been involved in a host of different sports and activities during their curriculum – below is a rundown of what our students have been up to during Spring 1:

• KS3 Games – Dance, Football, Basketball & Fitness
• KS4 Games – Table Tennis, Badminton, Handball & Football
• KS4 Sport & Exercise (year 9) – Fitness Testing and Methods of Training
• KS4 GCSE PE (year 10) – Cardiovascular & Respiratory System
• KS4 BTEC Sport (year 10) – Fitness Testing and Training Methods
• KS4 GCSE PE (year 11) – Socio-Cultural, Engagement Patterns, Ethics, Media in Sport, Commercialisation
• KS4 BTEC Sport (year 11) – Training Programme Prep and Completion, Leadership
• KS5 A-Level PE (Y12) – Anatomy & Physiology, Sport Psychology, Emergence Evolution Modern Sport
• KS5 BTEC Sport (Y12) – Emergency First Aid, Analysis referee performances,
• KS5 A-Level PE (Y13) – Anatomy & Physiology, Sport Psychology, Deviance in Sport, EAPI Prep
• KS5 BTEC Sport (Y13) – Fitness Testing, Sport Psychology, Emergency First Aid, Proposal Planning Sport Events,

Cross Country Champion!

Archie Lane (Year 8) was crowned Warwickshire Schools Junior Boy’s Champion at Kineton School on 22 January, completing the course in a time of 12:48 – beating his nearest rival by a clear 9 seconds. As a result, Archie will have the opportunity to represent Warwickshire at the ‘English Schools Cross Country Championships’ at Hop Farm in Kent on 19 March 2022. All the PE department at NLS are incredibly proud of Archie and all our runners this academic year who have represented NLS, showing resilience and perseverance.

Results from the Warwickshire Schools Championships – 22/1/22:

Minor Boys (Y7) – Jacob Smith (10^th), Alex MacDonald (19^th), George Ochoa (30^th), Joe Taulbut (39^th)

Minor Girls (Y7) – Lucy Matthews (7^th), Bella Loveday (30^th) & Eva Cronin

Junior Boys (Y8) – Archie Lane (1^st), Laurie Fisher (26^th)

Junior Girls (Y8) – Esther Vaughan (12^th) 

Duke of Edinburgh Award

119 year 9 and 10 students are currently progressing towards their Bronze award. The numbers involved is testament to our pupils and their willingness to go above and beyond. Collectively our pupils are going to contribute over 1,500 hours of voluntary work in our local community this academic year and will make a real difference to people’s lives.

In March, both our year 9 & 10 cohorts will complete a day of offsite navigation training with Venture Outdoor, a company that NLS have worked with before, who will put our intrepid adventurers through their navigation paces as they begin their preparations for their practice and qualifying expeditions. Information regarding the March offsite navigation training has been emailed to parents and careers.

Key dates of note for Bronze DofE are provided below for years 9 & 10 respectively. There is a compulsory meeting for each cohort scheduled for after the feb half-term:-

Year 9

Year 10

The training sessions are compulsory, and pupils must successfully complete each stage of training before being allowed to undertake their qualifying expedition. Training will take place at the Sports Centre and will run from 3.20pm-5.30pm unless specified. 

Netball Round-Up 

Our Year 7 Netball team was successful in beating Campion 18-1 in the Plate semi-finals sending them straight through to the Netball finals night on the 16 March 2022. Our Year 9 and 10 Netball teams have also managed to get through to the Plate semi-finals and our Year 8s are into the Cup semi-final competition. Year 8 play Southam, Year 9 play Myton and Year 10 play Kings High in their semi-finals.

It has been fantastic to see all of the teams working so hard and the brilliant attendance at the extra-curricular club in the Autumn term. We wish all teams the best of luck in their next fixtures! Come on NLS, let’s all get to the finals!!

Chicago the Musical trip

Year 10 BTEC Dance students were able to watch a live performance of Chicago The Musical at The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham this half-term. It was great to be back in the Theatre after a long period of theatres being closed. The students had a fantastic time and were able to see professional dancers in order to learn about key performance skills for their assessment of ‘All that Jazz’. Big well done to Y10 dancers on their Jazz assessment!

Spring 1 Extra-curricular Round-Up- Other Sports

Spring 1 has seen the return of the ever popular basketball club to our extra-curricular offering following the 2020-21 lockout of the sports hall! In excess of 100 pupils have accessed the club across years 7-11 this half-term, as the PE department ran the club on 3 separate evenings to cater for all year groups. There has been some fantastic talent on display and some real shot making ability shown!

As our students made their way back to online learning following the Christmas break, the PE department spent the day being put through their paces by an instructor from England Boxing. This has now enabled the department to deliver fitness sessions which incorporate Olympic-style boxing techniques. This has initially been introduced as an extra-curricular activity for KS4, and is being drip fed into our KS4 and KS3 curriculums. The Spring 2 Extra-Curricular offer has this available to all students in Y7 & 8 with Mr Burt.

Miss Davis’ dance clubs at KS3 and KS4 have also proved popular with students at KS4 using the additional time to rehearse for dance recitals and KS3 students exploring different concepts through dance.

Mr Piper’s hockey club each Wednesday is still proving to be as popular as ever, and the return of the light has allowed rugby club with Gareth from Leamington RFC to resume post-Christmas, attracting students across all year groups and preparing them for the rugby tournaments during Spring 2.

Our Sixth Form footballers were victorious in a 7 a side tournament hosted at NLS in January. The tactical nous of Mr Beese ensured they won all games during the tournament and returned the trophy back to NLS!

Spring 2 Extra-curricular Timetable 

We aim to cater for as many students as possible throughout the academic year. To do this, we continually review and adapt our extra-curricular offering. Please view the updated extra-curricular timetable for Spring 2.

We have also included confirmed fixtures in bold across Rugby, Football and Netball for Spring 2. Please be advised our fixtures planner is live and regularly updated within department. We are currently in the process of arranging additional fixtures for Spring 2 for basketball, hockey and additional football fixtures.

We wish our students (and parents & carers) a restful half-term and we look forward to welcoming students back to the PE department the following week.

Mr Burt

OneNote

The Computer Science department have now become paperless! … Well, as much as we can be.  All teaching and learning resources are now accessed using OneNote which can be used by students both in and out of school. Students can login to their class OneNote Notebook from home by Googling ‘Office 365 Login’, logging in with their school email address and password and the OneNote icon is found along the menu on the left. Each student has access to their own individual electronic exercise book called a ‘notebook’. This provides lots of benefits including being able to access lesson material easily from home if accessing lessons remotely, improving literacy, no more lost or forgotten books and providing digital skills for future employability.

Smart Revise

 All GCSE and A Level Computer Science students now have access to an online learning and revision platform called Smart Revise.  This has been specifically developed to aid recall (therefore improving long term memory), developing understanding of key terms plus practising exam style questions.  Students have their own individual login, which can be accessed both in school and at home, and it is strongly recommended that students engage with this regularly to master topics taught to retain facts for longer.

In the Pipeline

Please keep an eye out for additions to the department later in the year, including enrichment opportunities such as CISCO Accreditation to enable the offer of industry recognised qualifications for our KS4 and KS5 students along with the relaunch of the iDEA Award for our KS3 students.