Newsletters

From the Head

Last week, Priya Nayyar in Year 10 popped in to see me to show me her photos from the Miss Teen UK competition she had entered! Putting aside the obviously sexist undertones of Miss Teen UK, exemplified by the sheer number of ‘fashion’ rounds she had to model in, I was impressed by Priya’s determination to enter this competition. She explained to me that she was a ‘book worm’ (her own words) and that she wanted to do something that would take her out of her comfort zone, something that would throw her into a completely different world and challenge her. She also put up with the rain all weekend in Blackpool….. 

Priya’s desire to work outside of her comfort zone reminded me of the need for all students - and all teachers - to step outside of their comfort zone at times. This week, have a think about when you last asked students to work outside of their comfort zone and also perhaps, when you last did something that was a bit different and a bit challenging in the classroom.  I liked this quick read on ‘The Golden Lesson’ which explores risk taking and moving out of the ‘safe zone’ and the benefits associated with trying something a little different. It’s a 2-minute read here.

Thank you once again for the huge effort with the PPEs last week. Despite a few reminders needed to some of the students about what exam conditions actually mean, the vast majority were well behaved and focused.

Have a great week.

Mia

Learning and Teaching

Spotted!

A round up of some of the great learning and teaching strategies we’ve noticed being used around school recently…

> Ramona Poulier addressing misconceptions and supporting students to build up to the correct answer through deft questioning in A Level Business.

> Karishma Topiwalla setting her A-level students ‘Essential Prep’ (homework which they need to complete to be able to participate in a subsequent lesson) in A Level Chemistry.

> Alistair Newall using a metacognition when modelling to help students understand how to approach an exam question in A-Level Biology.
 

Learner Response Tasks

Thank you all for undertaking book looks over the last few weeks. One bit of feedback which came back strongly from many departments was the need for us to give a bit more time to students completing LR Tasks so that our effort in marking is really worthwhile!

Top Tips for making LR tasks accessible to students without creating a crippling workload:  

Kelly McCarthy

In focus: Pupil Premium

First, the good news! Our KS4 PP students perform, on average, significantly better here at GHS than many non-PP students in other schools!  Last year those in Y11 achieved a P8 score of +0.55 and this year we’re predicting +0.44, so there is only a relatively small achievement gap between our PP and non-PP students, which demonstrates excellent practice by everyone who works with them.

However, closer analysis reveals that there is a big difference between our PP Boys and PP Girls, with the former making more than half a grade progress less per subject.

So please, as a priority, identify PP Boys, especially Higher Band, that you teach in Y11 (on MINTclass, or flagged as ‘disadvantaged’ on your data spreadsheets), check their progress against target grades, and devise strategies for addressing their underperformance where it’s an issue.

And, of course, please share any success stories so we can learn what works!

Just a few of the things in place for PP learners...more to follow in future editions!

> Thanks to our partnership with PiXL, we have secured a small number of subscriptions for Pupil Premium students to GCSE Pod, an online resource of audio-visual “Pods” that aim to build confidence, knowledge and interest in the subjects that students study. We intend to use these to support revision and preparation for the upcoming PPEs and final GCSE exams. 

> Access to Physical Resources - sometimes there is no substitute for a student having the core textbook, a revision guide or a particular resource they need! If you have any of the Pupil Premium cohort and they are struggling to access the resources they need, please get in touch with me and we can discuss strategies to overcome this. There isn’t a massive pot of money, but we can help and support in some cases and circumstances! 

Top Tip to take away…Plan your behaviour management strategies:

Pupil Premium learners respond best to a positive learning environment. Our 50:50 policy is a great start to developing mutually respectful relationships with Pupil Premium learners! Use praise and rewards for positive contributions, good work and  exceeding expectations.

Thanks for all of the work you are doing with our PP students!

Emmet Waterhouse

Coming up...

Key Stage 5 interim 1

Tuesday meetings 12 November

Department time 3.15pm - 3.45pm (shortened meeting due to Year 8 Parents' Evening).

Thursday 14 November

Year 8 Subject Evening 4pm - 7pm (note extended time due to size of year group)