Headlines March 2015

Headlines

GRANGE SCHOOL

The House of Code

Russell Group Ready and The Brilliant Club Launch Tuesday 24th February was the launch meeting for the parents of students in year 7 and year 8 who belong to their respective Most Able and Talented cohorts. It was an extremely successful evening with great attendance and parental support.

Miss Way took the opportunity to launch the Russell Ready Group in year 7 and Miss Simms introduced the Brilliant Club with a pilot group of students in year 8.

Both programmes are designed to further progress the students through university based research tasks which are differentiated to make them accessible for the students.

The programmes enable the students to attend workshops led by university lecturers and PHD students.

The students will attend extracurricular sessions where they will begin to work on learning the different skills that are needed to help them ASPIRE to strive for university, in line with the school mission statement.

We live in a world surrounded by technology. And we know that whatever field our students choose to go into as adults, their ability to succeed will increasingly hinge on understanding how technology works.

That’s why our entire school joined one of the largest learning events in history: The Hour of Code, during Computer Science Education Week (8th -14th December). During this time lots of our students took part by completing 1 hour of coding in their own time after school.

Students were thrilled to complete coding tasks ranging from Disney’s Frozen challenge to the more challenging Java Script tasks. This week was a huge success and we are proud to say that are students helped to lead the way in Computer Science. We will look forward to future events .

Visit http://code.org/ to join in the Computing fun and try some of the challenges our students completed.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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British Council International School Award We have recently been awarded the British Council’s prestigious International School Award in recognition of our work to bring the world into the classroom.

The International School Award is a badge of honour for schools that do outstanding work in international education, such as through links with partner schools overseas. Fostering an international dimension in the curriculum is at the heart of the British Council’s work with schools, so that young people gain the cultural understanding and skills they need to live and work as global citizens.

Our international work has included links with schools in Oman, South Africa, China and The Lebanon. Teachers from our linked schools have also visited The Grange, worked with our students and also planned curriculum projects to enhance learning opportunities in both schools. Members of staff from The Grange have, during their holidays, visited our link schools to continue to work on, and enhance, the projects. Students have also been provided with opportunities to have direct experience of other faiths by visiting places of worship as part of the curriculum. The Grange is also involved in projects such as raising awareness of Fairtrade or campaigning for universal primary education across the world. This is just a sample of the international work that is undertaken throughout the school.

John Rolfe, from the British Council, said: ‘The school’s fantastic international work has rightfully earned it this prestigious award. The International School Award is a great chance for schools to demonstrate the important work they’re doing to bring the world into their classrooms. Adding an international dimension to children’s education ensures that they are truly global citizens and helps prepare them for successful future careers in an increasingly global economy.’

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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Alumni - Cathy Robbins My journey at The Grange began in 1987 where I became a member of A5, under the watchful eye of Mrs Harris! Since I can remember my favourite number has been the number 5, and I associate it with the good times and fond memories of being a pupil at The Grange School. My top 5 memories of belonging to The Grange School include: Being part of an awesome netball team, led by a stern but fair, and all round fabulous lady, Mrs Ellis Jones.

Achieving my Gold Duke of Edinburgh award, with the support and encouragement from Mr Moran.

Having the opportunity to gain an early taste of University life, thanks to Mr Elsby and Loughborough University.

Developing a love and understanding of Science, and growing in confidence thanks to Mrs Simpson.

The immense support and patience provided by the staff to ensure I achieved my potential; particularly Mr Burton and Mr Parkhill, whose patience was often pushed to the limit – in a good way of course!

The most valuable trait that my time at The Grange School gave me was perseverance and the desire to challenge myself and “aim high in all things”. I was accepted to study at Liverpool John Moores University, where I was awarded both a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences, and a PGCE, which started my journey into teaching. My first full time post was as a Teacher of Science in Manchester, and in a few short years I rose to Head of Science, Assistant Headteacher, and then to my current role of Senior Assistant Headteacher in an “Outstanding” school in Rochdale. In addition to this I have successfully fronted many key initiatives, including helping shape the curriculum at my current school, and have attained several educational leadership qualifications, and am currently working towards a master’s degree in Educational Leadership.

You could say I never really left school, but as I reflect upon my career in education, I would like to think that I have contributed positively to shaping the next generation of students, and potential future teachers, just as my teachers at the Grange did for me.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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Celebrate for Debate Mate In December, we announced that The Grange was all ready and set to host the first round of the Urban Debate League, one of the key competitions of Debate Mate – a nationwide scheme designed to improve oracy and thinking skills of young people through the medium of formal debate.

The competition took place on Monday 26th January 2015, when our students welcomed pupils from two other schools with open arms. St Edmund Arrowsmith Centre for Learning and Knowsley Park Centre for Learning joined us to debate the motion; ‘This house believes that people should be allowed to sell their organs’. All speakers had had two weeks to prepare for this first round of the competition, and had to prepare both sides of the case as they did not know which side they would have to argue until five minutes beforehand.

The second round of the competition considered the motion; ‘This house believes that parents should be able to monitor their children’s social media accounts’. Unlike the first round, students only had fifteen minutes to prepare for this debate – and teachers were not allowed to help!

We submitted two brilliant teams for the competition, and each team worked really hard in both rounds. Our first team (consisting of Cobi Campbell, Courtney Abbott, Luke Dyer and Chloe Day) won both of their competitions against the visiting schools. Whilst the second team (Rebecca Woodward, Cameron Sherman, Shannon Willis, Jonathan Brown, and Georgia Morgan) did not win their rounds, they received high compliments from the judge for skills and ability to quickly adapt in their debates.

Overall, The Grange School is currently ranked 2nd out of all the Liverpool schools who competed, and in the top one-hundred of 170 schools across the country for their skills in the Urban Debate League.

Well done to all those involved; you did an excellent job!

The second round of the Urban Debate League competition took place on 11th March. Along with members of the Tag Team, we travelled to St Edmund Arrowsmith Centre for Learning and competed against three other schools. We are currently waiting to hear the results of this competition but, whatever the score, our students did fantastically and were a credit to the school.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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National Speaking Competition The Youth Speaks competition is a well-established and successful competition promoted by Rotary International in Britain and Ireland. After being successful in the local heat, our team received sponsorship from the Halton Borough Rotary Club to proceed into the next round of the competition.

Our team was made up of three members: Courtney Abbott (as chairperson); Shannon Willis (as speaker); and Luke Dyer (as Vote of Thanks). This group, along with a number of their peers from Debate Mate who wanted to show their support, travelled to Stratham Lodge Hotel on Thursday 12th February to compete against two other schools.

Chairman of the League, Mr Burton, reports performance in February Managers of the month

HOUSE COMPETITION ‘Hollister and Co’, managed by the female football fanatics of 8 MLE, were the team of the month in February with 144 points.

This represents yet another win for BRIDGEWATER HOUSE in the competition. Chloe Anderson, Amy Doran and Holly Hayes join their equally enthusiastic Progress Tutor, Mrs Middleton, for a team photograph with the chairman of the league.

Individual Competition

He’s back on top!

Mr Carney’s ‘Gasworks X1’ heads the table, for the third time this season, with 159 points but Miss Symes, manager of ‘Symes FC’ is close on his heels with 152 points. With only 13 weeks to go until the end of the season it’s going to be a difficult one to call!

Whilst our team did not win, they were mentioned a number of times for their hard work, enthusiasm for the subject, and their maturity. On top of this, Shannon Willis was highlighted in particular as having a fantastic knowledge about her chosen subject, and answering the audience questions with great confidence and authority.

Our students learn a lot from the experience and will go on to refine their speaking skills so they can come back to the competition stronger next year.

Another fantastic effort from our students!

on

Overall Leader board As we go to press ‘Gasworks X1’ Mr Carney’s team are back in the lead with 836 points.

In second place, we have ‘Symes FC’. Miss Symes with 824 points and Mrs Hunt is in third place on 798 points with ‘Hunt’s Heroes’.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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Red Nose Day Ready… Set… Students and staff enjoyed a range of Red Nose Day events in support of this year’s Comic Relief. Events throughout the day, including cake sales and inter-house competitions, culminated in the highly anticipated main event - The Clash of the Titans. Students raised money throughout the week, throwing their money into buckets to see members of staff battle against the ’Titans’ in a gladiator style duel with the aim to knock the competitor off their elevated perch.

With battles throughout assembly, break and lunches, students had the opportunity to watch a whole host of teachers take to the stage as they attempted to prove themselves as the toughest teacher. Staff from the both the primary and secondary phases of the school took part in the event which saw students from Reception to Year 11 working together to raise money for the worthy cause.

The Grange raised over £1000 throughout the course of the day and with the Government matching amounts raised by school groups, the donations will go a long way to helping the education of children across Africa.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

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Merseyside Youth Games - Rachel Hunt When the Merseyside Youth Games contacted the school regarding a photography competition, Rachel Hunt, a year 9 student who is also a member of the school TagTeam, was eager to show off her photography skills and enter the competition. Working along-side the TagTeam and with the Year 10 & 11 football team within school, Rachel took a photograph which embodies the idea of teamwork and passion associated with true sporting events.

We are thrilled that Rachel’s photograph was chosen by the judges as the winning picture which will be used throughout the games. The judges commented not only on the quality of the picture, but also the values and ethos which it represents. As a prize for winning the competition, Rachel now has the opportunity to actively take part in the Merseyside Youth Games as the photographer for the primary school events, taking place at the Select Stadium in Widnes. Supported by the Everton & Liverpool women’s football teams. The event promises to be a fantastic opportunity for Rachel to showcase her skills. Her winning picture will be unveiled at the event and show to all those taking part in the games.

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.

GRANGE SCHOOL

Headlines Term dates Term

Opens

Closes

Spring 2

Monday 23rd February 2015

Thursday 2nd April 2015

Summer 1*

Monday 20th April 2015

Friday 22nd May 2015

Summer 2

Monday 1st June

Thursday 16th July 2015

* School is closed on Bank Holiday Monday 4th May 2015.

All parents are invited to attend a coffee morning at The Grange School.

Event

Date

Year 6 and 7 Easter Disco

Tuesday 31st March

Coffee Morning

Thursday 2nd April

All money raised will go towards the Head Boy and Girl charity The Teenage Cancer Trust.

Follow us on www.thegrange.com

www.facebook.com/grangeschool Thursday 2nd April 8:00am - 9:45am.

@grange_school

The Monthly Newsletter for Parents and Carers from the Head of School, Mr B. Carney.