Headteacher Update

Please find attached a letter from City of York Council offering an overview of the remote learning provision on offer to families across the city. This is a useful document that highlights that whilst schools are following similar overall principles there is a wide range of different ways that schools are endeavouring to keep students engaged throughout this challenging period of remote learning.

Remote learning – information for families FINAL.docx

Please also find attached another document that may be helpful to some families who are on low incomes and struggle to afford to pay for childcare. The documents provides a list of charities and organisations who might be able to support families to access childcare and remove some of the financial barriers some families face.

Organisations and charities to support families just over threshold of eligibility criteria for two year old funding

A reminder that at school we also have the Unity Fund that can offer confidential and discrete support to families who are struggling financially. If you need help in any way please contact us and we will do our best to help:

krobinson@archbishopholgates.org
gstainsby@archbishopholgates.org

We have had a very good response to the student survey to ensure that no student has fallen between the cracks in terms of being provided with a device for completing their work. This has already identified about six families who we have been able to support over the last two days. As such I’d encourage any family who haven’t to fill in the short survey issued though Google Classrooms. The survey can also be found at:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1hBYYOaMmte3jtMWUPAHCzIj-CtCd1bmsrnBDVn2CunA/edit?usp=sharing

I would like to draw families attention to the following courses organised by ‘Family Matters’ starting after half term:

Handling Anger in the Family
Monday afternoons 12.45 to 2.45pm for 4 weeks starting 1st March, online via Zoom.
Monday evenings 7.15 to 9pm for 4 weeks starting 1st March, online via Zoom.
For flyer click
Tuesday mornings 9.30 to 11.30am for 4 weeks starting 2nd March, online via Zoom.

Time Out for Parents – the Teenage Years:
Thursday mornings 9.30 to 11.30am for 5 weeks starting 25th February, online via Zoom.

Time Out for Parents – the Primary Years:
Wednesday afternoons 12.45 to 2.45pm for 5 weeks starting 24th February, online via Zoom.

Time Out for Parents – the Early Years:
Tuesday evenings 7.15 to 9pm for 5 weeks starting 23rd February, online via Zoom.

To book a place or for further information please contact:
Helen Atkinson on 07393 147259 email helenatkinson@fmy.org.uk
or you can find more information about at https://fmy.org.uk/parenting/

Year 8 Pathway process
Our Year 8 students will soon start to consider which subjects they will study within their transition year in Year 9 and then into their Key Stage 4 studies.  We are keen that students are given as much support and guidance as possible as they make these key decisions.  There are certain subjects that all students must study by law and the Department for Education makes additional recommendations about some of the other subjects a student should study up to the age of 16.  Nationally each student must study Mathematics, English Language & Literature, Science, Geography or History and where possible a Modern Foreign Language.  At Archbishop’s all students will also study RE at GCSE.  However, the school recognises that every child is an individual and as such offers different pathways and course combinations to allow all students to be successful in their studies at KS4. Further information regarding the pathways will be provided later in the year, at the GCSE Pathway Information evening as outlined below.

The table below summarises the steps that are in place to provide support to parents, carers and students through the option process.

The subjects available are as follows:

GCSE subjects
MFL
Geography
History
Computer Science
Art
Textiles
Drama
Music
PE

Vocational subjects
BTEC Business Studies
BTEC Art & Design – Graphics
OCR Sport
BTEC Media
BTEC Travel and Tourism
BTEC Engineering
BTEC Health and Social
BTEC ICT
Catering and Hospitality

All students will study either Geography or History, the vast majority will study MFL and then students will choose one other subject. On Monday the 1^st of February Year 8 parents and carers will receive a pathway booklet which provides details for the particular pathway and the subjects that are available for your child to study within the transition year (Year 9) and beyond. The pathway booklet that your child received is specific to them and it will ultimately be used to help select their additional subjects for GCSE study.

Further information regarding the process and specific subject information will be available to be accessed through the school website on Monday the 1^st of February. There will be a number of short videos that can be accessed to find out further information not covered in the pathway booklet. We are proud that we have constructed a curriculum that prioritises personal development alongside academic development. In Year 7 & Year 8 all students have the opportunity to develop a broad and rich curriculum through studying x14 subjects before moving into their transition year. As part of the transition year all students in Year 9 will complete the Arts Award through their continued engagement to the creative practical based subjects. This rich experience allows students to keep the breadth of their curriculum whilst selecting specific courses they wish to study at GCSE. The student’s KS4 journey begins in Year 10 for students as they start their GCSE studies in order to prepare for the summer GCSE examination period in Year 11.

Year 9 – the transition year
The whole school curriculum has been created to include a transition year in Year 9 which is central to the development and mastery of key skills and knowledge that underpin higher order concepts within KS4 teaching alongside character development and curriculum enrichment. As part of the transition year all students in Year 9 will work towards completing the Arts Award through their continued engagement to the creative practical based subjects. Personal development is rooted in the Yr9 curriculum through character and culture lessons, curriculum enrichment opportunities, ICT, PSHCE and creative arts and STEM enrichment trips to external organisations and providers across the country.

Students will study x16 subjects within this academic year, with students having opportunity to study new subjects available to them. Some subjects may start covering content towards the end of the academic year to ensure sufficient time for revision and student well-being in Year 11. Students continue their engagement with creative practical subjects through the completion of the Arts Award. Formal teaching of GCSE material will commence when students move into Year 10.

Head of Year update – It’s Mr Avery and Year 9…
What do the Rolling Stones, Guns n Roses, Kasabian and Year 9 all have in common? They are all brilliant live!
I apologise for starting with such a cringe worthy joke, but I have been blown away with the fantastic engagement and effort year 9 have shown toward their live lessons this week. The students have shown an immense amount of maturity in logging on to their lessons in good time, eager to learn from their teachers. The feedback I have had has been very pleasing, with many students claiming they far prefer the interactive nature of these lessons, which is really pleasing to hear. Once again I have been very pleased with the feedback I have received from teachers, and have received endless examples of some of the brilliant work they have produced. Every week I will try and share some of this feedback.

Lenda Moharrk, Georgia Owen, Elliot McNulty, Thomas Ellis and Kelsy Wheatland are great examples of scoring very good results In their recent Science assessment. Well done! Mr Evans

I’d like to give a special mention to Brooke Osborne in my Year 9 Science class for quietly getting on and producing some good work on Google classroom. Well done. Mr Williams 

Thank you to my year 9 groups for stepping up to a challenge and working hard this week. Particular mention goes to Harrison Kershaw, Emily- Sue Toye, Hannah Commins, Alisha Langhorn, Jorja Geesing, Jackson Bennett, Verity McDonald, Sophie Green and Ruben Wood. Miss Gray

I have also been very impressed with the work of the year 9 GCSE students, who as an interactive part of their lesson were asked to re-create a human skeleton using objects from around the house. Well done to Dan Clarke, Zoe Cardy, Esme Pounder and Henry Tegetmeier for these efforts.

This week also saw the start of form group Google meetings, which will allow form tutors to check in with their students. This seems to have gone really well, and I know many are looking forward to Fridays where the whole form has the opportunity to come together. We really hope by doing this will still give Y9 an opportunity to feel part of the school community.

As I have expressed in previous bulletins, we are very keen to focus on the wellbeing of our students during this difficult time. I am delighted some of the students in school are having the opportunity to learn how to cook with Mrs Cobb, something I wish I had the opportunity to do at their age! However my mind turns to the students who are not in school, and I have been thinking about different ways they may break up the day. Discussing this with Year 9 students the other day was very helpful, who suggested they liked to do the following to break up the monotony of lockdown: 

1. Baking their favourite treats (apparently making the mess is just as fun as the bake!)
2. Finding the time to watch a film together as a family (popcorn optional)
3. Going for a walk at lunchtime and after school to break up the day
4. Video call with a family member they have not spoken to in ages
5. Making up dance routines to their favourite songs (something I won’t be doing… honest…)

Whatever the students choose to do, I hope they are finding time to have some fun in between their live lessons. This week’s collective worship was about ‘beating the January blues’ and focussing on the positives. In it, I gave the students many different examples of the positives going on in the world, including advancements in electric car technology, Covid vaccine numbers and the first ever female Vice President being voted into office. I hope this was well received by the students who need to remember that ‘happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light!’ (Albus Dumbledore).

As ever, should you have any wellbeing concerns about your child, then please feel free to contact either myself or Miss Clark on navery@archbishopholgates.org and we will be happy to help in any way we can.

Student Wellbeing – Wonderful Wednesday

Collective Worship
This week our Form Tutor Collective Worship is on the theme of Holocaust Memorial Day which falls on Wednesday 27th. Our collective worship has been created by students at Alsop High School in Liverpool. It explains what Holocaust Memorial Day is and explains some of the events of the Holocaust. It contains a moving speech by Holocaust survivor Ziggy Shipper. Our daily quotes are on the theme of Living Together.

Wednesday – “Differences can be wonderful in adding colour and spice to our lives…. the more colour there is, the more beautiful the world becomes.” – Holocaust survivor Ernest Levy