News from Highgate Wood School arts college
CONSIDERATION COOPERATION COURTESY CONTRIBUTION
Issue No 15
December 2013
GOVERNING BODY UPDATE The Chair of Governors, Charles Wright, writes: As a long term ends and we approach the welcome Christmas and New Year break, it's worth looking back at what has been another successful year for Highgate Wood School. Our Sixth Form continues to do well, and I’m delighted that more and more current students are staying on rather than moving elsewhere. And we continue to be oversubscribed, fulfilling our role as the community comprehensive school of choice for our area. The governing body has also been looking closely at two other aspects of the past year. Firstly, the move to a house system, which is bedding down well. We will continue to monitor the system to make sure that it is delivering the increased focus on all students, academically and pastorally, which is its intention. Secondly, our GCSE results, where we have started to look at detailed data. As well as maintaining performance overall, the good news is that we continue to “add value”, doing well by all our students, and that our results in maths and science are particularly strong – in the top 8 and 15 per cent respectively of comparable schools across the country. Credit is due to all our students, staff and parents, as well as to my fellow governors, so well done all! Governors will be looking closely at performance to make sure that we maintain and improve our performance over the coming year. Finally, can I welcome our new parent governors, Julia Chalfen and Paul Bennett Wishing everyone a restful and enjoyable holiday, and a peaceful and successful New Year. Charles Wright HWS Chair of Governors
2
Don’t forget to use spendandraise when shopping on-line. It is the easiest and completely cost free way to raise money for the school! If you do any shopping online please visit the sites you want through: www.spendandraise.com/hwspsa
HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL GOVERNING BODY Chair of Governors: Charles Wright (Community Governor) Vice Chair: Imogen Pennell (Representative Governor) Representative Governors: Cllr Eddie Griffith • Oliver Blackaby • Brenda Allan Parent Governors: Diana Brown • Philip Cavendish • Elizabeth Hess • Chris Tully • Rob White • Julia Chalfen • Paul Bennett Community Governors: Phil Cocksedge • Caroline Conlon • Violet HazelwoodHenry • Chris Parr • Headteacher Governor: Patrick Cozier Staff Governors: Audra Daws-Knowles • Emily Ford • Joe Demetriou If you wish to contact the Governing Body please write to the Chair of Governors, c/o Mrs K Ozturk, Highgate Wood School, Montenotte Road, London N8 8RN (koz@hws.haringey.sch.uk)
Cover picture: The cover features images from the Winter Concert. A total of 145 students took part in the production which ran over three days in the last week of term. Photographs from our Official Photographer will be available on the website very soon.
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN GOVERNANCE AT THE PROPOSED NEW PRIMARY FREE SCHOOL IN HARINGEY? MTO Primary Free School is planning to open in Crouch End and has asked us to publicise the fact they have Governor positions available. If you are interested please visit their website www.mtoprimary.org or email info@mtoprimary.org
December 2013
MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER Welcome to the last Insight of 2013! Much has happened since I last wrote to you in October as you will see when you read through this edition. What you will see is that the achievements of our students, supported by my excellent staff continue to create magical moments and positive experiences that really sum up what Highgate Wood School is all about. We also had very recent confirmation from the Department for Education (DfE), in the form of their latest data release, that we are continuing to do well as a school. The data shows that our students are making better progress in their learning than ever, and the exciting news is that we know that we can still improve a whole lot more! There is more on this later in my message. However, our evaluation of how we are doing does not begin and end with the likes of the DfE and Ofsted. Your views are also critically important to us, and having recently conducted our 3rd annual survey of parents/carers’ views, we have very good reason to be pleased with your responses. They show that overwhelmingly you are very happy with how the school is doing and about the way that your child is being supported to engage fully, learn well and get a valuable and positive experience. We are very proud of this. We also take great heart from your honesty with us about the things that we can and should improve. We will never be complacent and, as always, we will take on board your comments when reviewing how well we are doing in giving the very best to our students and your children. Thank you as always for your very valued and valuable feedback. Post 16 Open Evening – the natural route from Year 11 into the 6th Form We held our Post 16 Open Evening on Thursday 19th December for all current year 11 students (and some year 10s) and their parents to come and view the school and find out more about what we do in the December 2013
sixth form. Like the previous two years, I was thrilled with the number of people who attended the event – particularly the mix between students who currently attend HWS and students from across Haringey (and beyond). This is a testament to our growing reputation locally. I am proud that more and more we are being considered by our community as the local school of choice for A levels too. This autumn, the number of students who chose to stay at (or join) HWS was the highest ever. There was a significant increase in the number of Year 11s who stayed on and a record number of places offered to and taken up by external students who were keen to join us. The trend is illustrated by the table below.
Consequently, we had the unfortunate situation at the start of September of having to let down a number of disappointed students and parents for whom we did not have sufficient places on courses, or where students did not achieve the grades required for their chosen courses. We are keen to continue this trend of as many of our Year 11 students remaining here as possible as we believe that it represents a very good and positive decision for them to do so based upon... Our belief in the 7 year commitment that the school has to all of its students that tracks their education, growth and progress from Year 7 to Year 13 – we see Post 16 as a natural continuation of the learning that takes place in Key Stage 4 The benefits or remaining at a school that students know, but more importantly a school that knows them; where their teachers know their strengths and how to build upon them; where their teachers are aware of their areas for development and will not allow these to be overlooked or left unchallenged – our standards and expectations of our 6th form students are high
3
Remaining at a school where they have made good progress, knowing that progress in the 6th form is further accelerated according to all national benchmarks and measures The knowledge that teaching in the 6th from is of a high quality The wide (and growing) range of opportunities available to our students at Post 16 to experience leadership roles and responsibilities and to ‘give something back’ to the school community that has helped develop them A belief that our Year 11s are very much a part of HWS and HWS a part of them... a partnership and relationship that is beneficial to all during A’ level study at Post 16 Knowing that at HWS, our students benefit from teachers who really do care about them and will go the extra mile to support them throughout their studies One of the most important things to emerge out of the evening is the clarity that our Year 11s now have about the expectations of them in terms of securing a place in the 6th Form. For every student that wishes to secure their place they must... 1. Work really hard between now and the summer exams to secure the very challenging grades necessary to gain access to our Post 16 courses – for many students there is now a realisation of just what it will take to secure their place 2. Understand that not everyone will automatically be offered a place. The days of Highgate Wood sixth form being a ‘reserve option’ are long gone – a number of students missed out on places on courses that they wanted to enrol on through using us as a back-up offer 3. Be committed to doing their absolute best in the sixth form which includes taking full responsibility for their learning, making learning their first priority and ensuring excellent attendance and punctuality to all lessons/study sessions 4. Ensure that they continue to make a positive contribution to HWS as a positive reference from their tutor or their head of house is also a prerequisite for entry
We will have, early in the New Year, a whole series of activities for Year 11 students which are designed to give them all a taste of what to expect in the sixth form and to aid the choices that they will have to make. I look forward to yet again being involved in the interview process and look forward to seeing our very successful Year 11s here in August 2014 at enrolment. HWS students make better progress than ever! The new statistics released by the DfE recently suggest that Highgate Wood is now among the top schools in the country according to the progress that students make. The unvalidated RAISEonline1 data that we have received is based upon last year’s Year 11 (summer 2013). What is also pleasing from our perspective is although the 5+ A*-C (with English and Maths) figure fell slightly from 72% (2012) to 68% (2013); the actual progress made by the Year 11s in 2013 was better – i.e. they started from a lower starting base than the 2012 cohort, but made up ground; they have made better than expected progress and in terms of comparisons with national norms, significantly so. The table below shares some of the highlights.
Category
Value Added Figure
Progress in Best 8 GCSEs studied
HWS students progress is in 1013.9 the top 26% of schools nationally.
Progress in maths
Student progress in maths is 1003.0 in the top 8% of schools nationally
Progress in Science
Student progress in science 1002.6 is in the top 15% of schools nationally
Progress of students on FSM
Free School Meals students 1002.6 progress significantly better than other schools
Commentary
Note: A RAISE value of 1000 indicates expected progress. Anything over 1000 is better than expected. Anything less than 1000 is less than expected
1
RAISE stands for Reporting and Analysis for Improvement through school Self-Evaluation
4
December 2013
In addition, the proportion of students making expected (or better than expected) progress in English and Maths at Highgate Wood are shown in the table below in comparison to the national averages.
% Making expected progress Expected Progress
% nationally % at HWS making making expected expected progress progress
+/national average
English
74%
69%
+5
Maths
86%
70%
+16
% Making better than expected progress Better than % at HWS making Expected better than Progress expected progress
% nationally making better than expected
+/national average
English
43%
30%
+13
Maths
59%
32%
+27
The above tables are just some of the highlights, and the detailed analysis points to many other very positive areas of the performance of Highgate Wood Students. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate my students from last year’s Year 11 on their achievements and to publically thank my very skilled and dedicated team of teachers for their excellent contribution to these impressive results. Moving back to a September timetable roll for 2014 For the last few years at Highgate Wood we have rolled our timetable in June, meaning that each year group has progressed to their new year prior to the summer break. We will not be doing this anymore with immediate effect. This means that all students will continue with their current timetables and teachers until the end of the summer term and will begin their new classes in September. We believe that rolling the timetable early was a good strategy and certainly has helped our students (particularly in Key Stage 4) achieve better grades through having more time allocated to their GCSE courses. However, in response to a number of national changes and having considered some of the
December 2013
difficulties presented by the early timetable roll, we have decided that it is time to move to a September start. However, this move is not a move backwards to what we had before. Along with a change in the timetable roll, we are also making some changes to the curriculum time being given to our option subjects at GCSE. We will increase the time allocated to GCSE option subjects (such as geography, history, business studies, art, music, drama, media studies, economics, etc.). Over the two years of GCSE study, this will more than compensate for the time that would have been lost by moving the start of GCSE back by half a term. Core subjects like maths, English and science will be unaffected by this change as they will be able to begin GCSE teaching as and when they think it is most appropriate. This is still to be determined. This decision to change particularly affects those students who are in Year 9 in terms of the impact on the process of choosing their options and starting their GCSEs. We will be writing specially to those parents to explain the implications. Highgate Wood remains oversubscribed for September 2014 The local authority have recently released figures showing the number of preferences expressed by parents of children in Year 6 for secondary schools for the coming September. I am very pleased to report that for the second year running we have been able to attract over 1000 parental preferences. Only Fortismere and Alexandra Park schools have matched this overall level of popularity in Haringey. This means that yet again, we will be oversubscribed in Year 7. I am humbled and enthused by the support that we continue to receive locally from our parents/carers and our community. It is pleasing to know that this (along with other indicators referred to earlier in this message) demonstrates that we are achieving our aim of being the school of local choice.
Total Preferences PAN 243
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
995
967
879
1009
1001
5
House system working well so far…
Staffing
The new house system is working really well so far. As you know, the houses have been named (da Vinci, Seacole and Edison), the Vivo rewards system is in full swing, and the school council have been selected and is active.
Unfortunately we will be losing two members of staff at the end of this term.
The next phase of developing our House identities has been the adoption of House charities. Each House has been asked to nominate a local charity that is focused on helping people who are less fortunate than themselves. Later on in this issue of Insight we reveal which charities have been chosen by our students. In addition, the new House groups are engaged in a range of inter-house tournaments and competitions in PE. Thank you for supporting the school by purchasing the new PE kits. They are smart and the students look great in them – and I think it adds to that sense of pride and identity with their new Houses. I hope that the concessions that we put in place for the new kits (especially for those families who needed it and for the year 10 GCSE students) helped to cushion the financial burden on families. The three Heads of House feel that Pastoral matters are more manageable than before due to having proportionately more members of staff assigned to supporting students. They are pleased with how the development of the House identities is going. They talk very positively of the work of the Deputy Heads of House and the team of Pastoral Care Mentors and just what a positive difference they are making. I would like to thank them all for their hard work in making a very new system work so well during this term. Our students’ commitment to making a contribution On the theme of charities touched on above, it is also worth noting that our students have donated over 6000 of their hard-earned Vivos to the very worthy cause of the people in the Philippines. I also need to make a special mention of Ms Diego-Garcia and her tutor group 8I for raising an impressive £141 for the same cause through a cake sale! As we already knew, our students have a strong moral conscience, and it is very pleasing to see it in operation.
6
Our Learning Resource Centre (LRC) Manager (and English Teacher) Richard Lamb has departed. Richard has only been with us for a year, but in that time he has made a very positive contribution in the LRC. His impact, in terms of the events that he has organised (e.g. Debate Mate) and a range of speakers that he has invited into the school, has been significant. Katarina Roberts one of our two Pastoral Care Mentors for da Vinci House has also left the school. She has been such a positive presence in the school and has been able to demonstrate great skill, personable qualities, empathy and patience in supporting some of our most vulnerable students. We will miss her tremendously. We wish them both the very best for the future! Other Staffing Issues for your attention Unfortunately we currently have a couple of members of staff who are absent on long term sickness. •
Hope Hastings (Head of Business)
•
John Howley (Maths Teacher)
We are hopeful that both members of staff will be back to work shortly. ... And Finally At the end of another successful and busy year, I thank you all for your continued support. I am tired, as we all are, but also fulfilled with the sense of reward that comes with leading such a wonderful school. For those of you who celebrate Christmas, have a good Christmas! For those of you who don’t, please enjoy the break. I wish you all good health for the holiday period and the very best for the New Year ahead. Regards Patrick Cozier Headteacher
December 2013
SIXTH FORM OPEN EVENING
Da Vinci House Council
Mr Charlesworth writes: We had a steady stream of visitors to the 6th Form Open Evening on Thursday 12th December, with a noticeable increase in the numbers of from outside our school as well as our own Year 11 and Year 10 students. So many of our post 16 students helped with the occasion, but I would like to say a special thank you to Barney Mort and Gabriel Neophytou who showed such talent as public speakers. The deadline for first application is 24th January so please ensure you have your application forms completed in good time.
8I RAISES ÂŁ141.20 FOR THE PHILIPPINES APPEAL
Year 7 H: Kieron Matthews Anna Jevons I: Alasdair Ellis Mya Josiah G: Jamie Mutaba Rebecca Manoharan Year 8 H: Zoe Pavey Gabriel Bazzarelli dos Santos I: Darius Ju Pierre Holly Hart G: Luke Gosling Ashley Forde Year 9 H: Andreas Bevilacqua Hannah Ramsden I: Margarita Cimatti Joshua Rodney G: Jahibul Hussein Maddie Stott Year 10 H: Amin Adan Louise Johnson I: Berivan Korkmaz George Tonkinson G: Oakley Koumbas Elisabeth Jahn-Morrissey Year 11 H: Cansu Gunal Carsel Ryan-Small I : Sacha Morris Harvey Clements G: Freya Everest Toby Buchan
Seacole House Council
Ms Diego-Garcia Congratulations to the amazing 8I who raised an astonishing ÂŁ141.20 for the Philippines Disaster Fund. They are truly an inspiration to us all!
December 2013
Year 7 A: Bruno Jakupi Lydia Sheppard. T: Alexander Harris Rugul Ozdemir E: Billy Tibballs Ellie Starky Year 8 A: Hope Peacock Jason Jordan-Rose T: Isobel Crompton Finn Lilburn E: Cassius Shanahan Jasmine Bell
Year 9 A: Talvinder Baines Ayca Kose T: Frankie Foster Amber Mckenzie E: Annie Stanford Sina Nafissi Year 10 A: Pablo Oliver Amy Haynes T: Imogen sheppard Tariq Jogee E: Eden Diffley Reece Osborne Year 11 A: Abdullahi Hashi Tess Eva Johnstone T: Alex Whitlock Felix Brown E: Tomer Raphael Kazinethi Lungah
Edison House Council Year 7 W: Emer Stevens Jasvinder Kumar D: Stephan Avramov Trulie Mynott. S: Charlotte Whelan Toby Wyckoff-Smith Year 8 W: Elle-Mae Netherton Joe Williams D: Thorn Myers Briar Brunner S: Sian Leigh-Moore Max Cowie Year 9 W: Gabe Watson Phoebe Bennett D: Joachin Harris Kesanna Bryan S: Burcin Garip Herbie Lee-Bramble Year 10 W: Fred Linhart Isabella Considine D: Florence Penfold Barney Terrington S: Aaron Pettitt Hamdi Dalmar Year 11 W: Sushilla Ghose-Coveney Innes Peacock D: Adyna Moseley Oscar Clements S: Jordan Briscoe Cassandra Penfold
7
Thank you to all the parents and carers who completed our Parental View questionnaire on Learning Review Day in November. It is important to us to hear your views, both positive and negative, so we can be know we are continuing to move in the right direction. Globally the results are very encouraging, with 89% of parents and carers either agreeing or strongly agreeing with the positive statements in the survey. However we are also mindful that there are 6% who have some concerns about aspects of school life. Over the coming weeks we will be looking more carefully at the survey results and seeing where it may be possible to address those concerns. My child enjoys school.
The teaching is good at the school.
The school keeps my child safe.
My child is set an appropriate level of homework.
The school informs me about my child’s progress.
My child is making enough progress at school.
8
The school makes sure my child is well prepared for the future.
The school meets my child’s particular needs.
The school helps me support my child’s learning
The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour.
The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle.
The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns.
December 2013
The school is led and managed effectively.
HWS STUDENTS MEET PRINCE WILLIAM
Overall I am happy with my child’s experience at this school.
To the best of my knowledge... My child has never been bullied Has been bullied, told someone at the school and it was dealt with effectively. Has often been bullied but never told anyone at school. Has been bullied, told someone at the school and it was not dealt with effectively No opinion
71%
13%
Mr Talbert writes: In November, Highgate Wood School had the pleasure of taking ten Year 7 Beta Tester students to the launch of the BAFTA Young Game Designers competition. Prior to the event students had to devise an idea for a video game which they would further develop at the event. The students came up with brilliant ideas and were excited not only about going to BAFTA but also meeting HRH Prince William. The students learnt about the process of how a video game is made and had a fantastic and inspiring time. Maya Pennicott talked to the Prince about her drawing of a chicken which was a funny encounter as Prince William confessed she could draw a better chicken than he could. Sheni Barry described it as “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” and said of the industry experts at the workshop: “They have given us a lot of help to develop our games further”.
2%
HWS NOMINATED FOR LOCAL AWARDS
2% 0%
This survey is now available to complete online, either via the school website (on the Parents’ Tab) or directly through http://tinyurl.com/ hwsparentview The results of the survey will be monitored half-termly.
December 2013
In the recent Outstanding For All Awards Highgate Wood School was nominated as Haringey’s “Most Inclusive School”, naming Julia Said, Maria Diego-Garcia, Karen Harding and Neil Robinson in particular as Outstanding Practitioners. At the same event Assistant Headteacher Claire Allaway received a nomination for the Lifetime Achievement Award. In her nomination Ms Allaway was referred to as being “the living embodiment of an effective, dedicated and caring teacher.” In the end we missed out to other nominees in both categories. But congratulations are certainly still in order. 9
AN AMAZING CHRISTMAS PARTY
Nino Geliashvili writes: Despite the fact that I went a little early to the disco, the moment I walked in I knew that I would have a brilliant time there. Because it was only 6pm, I knew the disco would have started in 30minutes so I offered to help. As soon as the lighting and the music went on, me and Mr Adams started to decorate the room with beautiful sparkly baubles and different coloured glowing sticks, and wrapping paper around the room. Helping out decorating meant the time went extremely quickly, but once the Year 7s started to come in they had big grins on their faces I knew it was all worth it. Later on everyone started to dance and enjoy themselves. There were fizzy drinks, sweets, crisps, pizza and pretzels. There was only one word to describe the disco and that word was amazing.
OPERATION SHOE BOX
Ms Kemp writes: The shoe box appeal for Operation Christmas Child has been a great success providing gifts for disadvantaged children around the world. We will find out in the New Year where the boxes went. Thanks to everyone in Seacole house and others who joined us to collect around 25 boxes. Beth of 10T donated 2 boxes, one for a boy and one for a girl. 10
BBC SCHOOL REPORT
Ms O’Borne writes: On Thursday, 12th December five year 10 Media Studies students took part in a practice day for BBC School Report. Alongside other students across the country, the students had one day to research, film and edit a news bulletin. Despite having little previous experience of making video, our reporters did a fantastic job putting together three stories. They captured staff and student reaction to the recent death of Nelson Mandela, caught up with preparations for the Winter Concert and investigated a local charity event at the Haberdashery cafe. They also had great fun in the process! You can watch their finished report on the school web-site. The five students, Berivan Korkmaz, Julian Bock, Robyn Cowie, Hamdi Dalmar and Elisabeth JahnMorrisey worked brilliantly as a team, managing the day with very little help from me! We learnt a lot about deadlines and dealing with technical hitches and are now looking forward to the real BBC Newsday on March 27th, when we hope to bring you bigger and better stories. A big thank you to all staff, students and local residents who took part and congratulations to the team for making great news! December 2013
COMENIUS PROJECT
Mr Russell writes: Our partner schools from Belgium and Germany. Regina Caelilyceum and Marie Curie Worbis joined us for three days in November to complete the My World, Your World, Our Environment project which focused on the similarities and differences of working and learning in Europe in the 21st century. The aim of the project was to develop lifelong learning skills and competences in different fields such as environmental sustainability, mathematics and science, ICT and foreign languages. Initially, students and staff discussed ideas ranging from the significance of our own identity, daily routines and cultural norms. We then advanced to creating heritage maps which celebrated the variety of cultural backgrounds of those on the project. Our guests were also lucky enough to experience some Highgate Wood School teaching by sampling lessons such as: Spanish, Art, Maths, Science and ICT – many thanks to those staff involved! Another valuable experience occurred when the Form Representatives in Year Nine were asked to accompany our guests on a tour of the City of London. The trip included visiting many famous landmarks and was an exciting chance for our students to inform our guests about their capital city. Highlights included the London Eye and a fabulous boat cruise along the River Thames. The day ended with the majority of Form Representatives inviting a guest home for an evening meal – many thanks to those parents involved! The Project ended on Saturday with a historical visit to The Tower of London. After seeing the Crown December 2013
jewels, chatting to Beefeaters and avoiding the mischievous ravens, we headed to Covent Garden for lunch before boarding an open-top bus to tour of the City. The project encouraged participants to consider the lives of those whom they had previous thought of as different. Burcin Garip’s comment on the top deck of the open-top bus best summarises what this year’s project taught us – ‘At the end of three days we have more in common with them than we first thought.’ Many thanks to all the staff, parents and form representatives involved in hosting what was a very successful project.
YEAR 9 WORBIS VISIT Ms Christodoulou writes: Planning and preparation has begun for the next phase of the Comenius partnership work. Almost 40 Year 9 students have applied for the opportunity to participate in a school linking visit to Worbis, Germany in February 2014. Competition was fierce and Mr Russell and I were extremely impressed by the high quality of the applications. Eight lucky students have been selected to go on the trip. They are fully aware of the hard work they will need to do before they go, during the visit and on their return. The focus of the visit will be on ‘safer use of social networks’. 11
MEDIA MAGAZINE STUDENT CONFERENCE
ROYAL VETINARY COLLEGE VISIT
Ms Pinnick writes: On 13th December, Ms Daws-Knowles and Ms Pinnick accompanied thirty-five Media Studies students to the Post 16 Media Magazine Conference at London University’s Institute of Education. The keynote speech from Professor David Buckingham analysed the relationship between the media, marketing and young people. This was followed by a masterclass from film-maker Robert McKillop, focusing on direction and editing. He showed extracts from his graduation film Strays and talked us through several extracts from A Young Doctor’s Notebook, featuring Jon Hamm and Daniel Radcliffe. Dr Laura Harvey, a researcher at Brunel University, then presented aspects of her research on celebrity culture before the highlight of the afternoon: a presentation by David Brindley on the issues and challenges of his role as Producer and Director of Channel 4’s Educating Yorkshire. We learned some interesting facts such as: the production team spent 9 months in the school before filming started to get to know the teachers and students there were 64 cameras rigged up in the school, though the production team could only use three of these at a time to record footage they shot 22, 000 hours of film in the school. Our students came away with a much better understanding of current issues in the media plus a fascinating insight into the construction of media texts.
Ms Roberts writes: In October a group of Year 11 and 12 students visited the Royal Veterinary College in Camden to find out about some of their courses. They were given a tour of the University's facilities, including the dissection room, anatomy museum and the stables where the University's horses are kept! Our students found out what life is like for a biological research scientist and did their own research into each other's blood pressure under different conditions. Current undergraduates were on hand to offer advice on how to successfully gain a place at the University and what student life is really like. They had a closer look at some of the specimens in the anatomy museum and at x-rays from a range of domestic and exotic animals. Giorgia ChianelloBent says "I really want to be a vet so it was a great opportunity to go around the campus and find out what needs to be done to get a place on the course. The students we met emphasised the importance of gaining lots of different work experience, one of them said she'd worked in an abattoir which is something I wouldn't have thought about before. I don't like the sight of blood which I know I need to get over to be a vet but having seen the dogs which had been dissected it wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be!”
12
December 2013
YEAR 7 BETA TESTERS
MINECRAFT COMES TO HWS
Mr Talbert writes: Year 7 Beta Testers is a new lunchtime club for students interested or new to the world of Computing. The aim of the club is to give Year 7 students the ability to both learn and develop their skills in computing and get an advance preview of what they will be learning in Key Stage 3. The beta testers have tested out programming software like Kodu and Stencyl. They also tested Minecraft before its introduction to other students. Rebecca Manoharan one of the club's founding members said "I really enjoy the club, it gives me a chance to get a head start exploring programs that I never used before, and become an expert and be able to help others in my class."
Mr Talbert writes: Yes the hit game has now launched as lunchtime and after school clubs. Minecraft is the hit survival world building exploration game that has taken the world by storm. After extensive testing by the Year 7 Beta testers the launch was a success with the club being oversubscribed . Due to its success some students are now exploring ways in which it can be incorporated in other subjects like Geography and Maths. Lead student and Year 7 Beta Tester Max says "I'm really pleased that we have Minecraft in school I suggested getting it in to Mr Talbert and I'm glad I did as it is one of the highlights of the week."
DIGIGIRLZ 2013 AT MICROSOFT
Mr Talbert writes: In November, sixteen Year 9 students travelled to Reading for the annual DigiGirlz event at Microsoft’s UK headquarters. The event was aimed at giving girls an insight into working at a large enterprise organisation like Microsoft, whilst challenging female stereotypes of the high-tech industry. Students had an inside look at what it’s like to work at Microsoft and the opportunity to interact with Microsoft employees and gained exposure to careers in business and technology. December 2013
The girls took part in fun and interactive activities with Angelica Udenweze winning a prize for getting a health and safety question correct. The students really enjoyed themselves working in teams to come up with an idea for a new mobile phone app. Bryony Hillman and Leila Kikuchi-House both said that they found the experience enjoyable and fun but also educational as they got a detailed insight to how a technology business works. Highlight of the day was Neve Maher tearing up the dance floor in a dance off with students from other schools playing Just Dance on the Xbox One. Neve won and now goes by the title “Dancing Queen”. Although the girls mobile app idea did not win on the day the girls are considering entering their idea into the Apps for Good competition so let’s hope they succeed there. 13
YEAR 11 ART & DESIGN REVOLUTION Ms Zwicky writes: Recently the Year11 Art & Design cohort completed a 10 hour exam, where they created their vision and final idea in response to the theme Revolution. As usual the responses and outcomes varied widely in discipline. The responses included women's rights activists’ work, as well an ambitious installation based on the conflict in Palestine. There was also work around the revolution of the gaming industry, animal rights, and intricate Portrait studies. The Art department is very proud of the entire cohort, as to how well they were able to focus throughout. The ability to work in an autonomous way will be of huge benefit in the upcoming time when students will be working on the exam unit, where the ideas are developed independently from the beginning. The work will be on display in the GCSE exhibition in May, date is to be confirmed.
Juan Pablo Ferro Paredes
Maya Schamroth Rossade
Maddie Spragg Day Alexander Ahern 14
December 2013
SAFETY ON THE ROADS
Berfin Celik
Mr Hewitt writes: In the last few weeks we have had a number of incidents on Montenotte Road that could have been very serious. In one a student was actually knocked over by a car. Can I urge parents and carers to show consideration when they are driving down Montenotte Road. Outside the school gates is not a safe place for either stopping or attempting a three-point turn. The police have been informed of our concerns and will be keeping an eye on the area. Can students also be similarly mindful of the dangers of the road, and pay full attention to the traffic. There is a particular danger to students listening to music through headphones, as was highlighted in a Mayor of London campaign.
Tilly Aldhous
Please do not attempt a 3-point turn outside the school gates.
Tilly Aldhous December 2013
15
POETRY Ms O’Borne write: Year 7 have been writing poetry during the course of this term. The quality has been extraordinarily high. Here are a few of the poems that are particularly impressive. Congratulations to all our
Red By Eamer Stevens Red is the colour pulsing through my veins Red is the phone ringing, it drives me insane. Red is the anger when people do not hear my voice, Red is the danger that lingers in choice. Red is the adrenaline when I drive off a cliff, Red is the annoyance when I fall or trip. Red is the confusion, no where else to go, Red is the colour of my hair Iikes to show. Red is the loudness of a shout or a scream, Red is the dance in the fire and the sea. Red is the colour I see is true, Red is the colour I feel for you. Red is the daytime, red is the night Red is the strength I need in a fight. Red is the beauty of a star that has shone, Red is the confidence I always have on.
Flower By Mia Cambell Fiawoo Like tissue paper Delicate summer petals Blooming this season
16
Summer By James Berkmann The rush of the sea, The whirl of the wind, The call of the seagulls, The long cliff walks, The beautiful skyline, The sumptuous barbecues, The lovely ice-creams, The awesome surfing, The warm sand, This remains in my heart with me.
The Fox By Alper Ibili Walking towards the prey, Silent and careful, But fierce, too, His deep red fur And long whiskers Glowing , He runs across the moonlight.
A Dog By Grace Heron I wag my tail enthusiastically, I sprint across the field at full pelt. I can feel the morning dew wetting my paws, I can smell the world. I can hear the leaves falling and the birds tweeting I bark at the air, but it doesn’t reply I am a dog .
IMPROVE YOUR HANDWRITING Ms Fikret writes: Handwriting Workshop are coming in the New Year. Some Year 7 students will be invited to attend after school sessions. More details to follow from your English teachers. December 2013
1.
1.
THE CLOTHES SHOW
OTHELLO FOR REAL
Mr Brown writes: This was the 14th year that Highgate Wood School has taken students to the Clothes Show at the NEC. This year the Clothes Show was celebrating its 25 anniversary with a spectacular Catwalk Show in the Fashion Theatre. Along with Key Stage 3 and 4 students, we also took eleven 6th Formers who have started the A-Level Textiles, one of the new subjects being offered in the sixth form this year. As ever, the students had a fantastic time. Throughout the day there was a non-stop parade of catwalks and fashion shows, with the college show and people’s catwalk, make overs and designer brands all on display.
Ms Pinnick writes: Ms Pinnick and Mr Russell's Year 10 English groups have been studying Othello this half-term for their Shakespeare controlled assessment. The focus of the essay is on the causes of effects of jealousy within the play. The students participated in a two hour workshop run by Shakespeare4kidz. The facilitators engaged the students (and teachers!) in sword fights, speaking key lines from the play and analysis of the language.
GOTHIC WRITING CONFERENCE
Melisa Kaplan writes about the A Level Gothic Literature Conference The conference proved useful in exploring ‘Gothic’ literature through a series of lectures explaining how this genre came about. It also focused on the novels and plays that we will be examined on:. The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter, Dr Faustus by Christopher Marlowe and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. A few other texts such as Macbeth and Frankenstein were also referenced in the lectures. One lecturer also made many references to how the recent film, The Hunger Games, has developed the female Gothic protagonist. Overall, it was an enjoyable and interesting day to learn about why and how the Gothic genre has been so influential. December 2013
DESIGN A CHRISTMAS CARD FOR 2013 Ms El-Damanawi writes: The Prince’s Teaching Institute is looking for designs for their Christmas cards for next year! If you are interested please contact me. It can be a drawing, painting or a photograph. The only requirements are that the artwork needs to be winter or Christmas related. The deadline is the end of January.
SAMLEARNING AND VIVOS Mr Ashman writes: I am delighted that 27% of our students are now active home users of SamLearning. This means they are using it of their own accord, without being asked to do so for homework or revision. We have been rather slow in linking SamLearning hours with Vivorewards. But that will definitely happen over the holidays. Our SAMLearners will be rewarded! 17
BAFTA AND BBC COMPUTER SCIENCE FILMS
Mr Talbert writes: In December, five Year 10 students had the opportunity to appear in a BBC Learning Film. The film’s aim is to inspire the next generation of coders, and prominent British programmers who use coding technology to create innovative products from fashion, music, games, live art and apps. The film will be broadcast on BBC 2 and iPlayer and will be a useful tool for teachers across the UK to illustrate the importance of computer science at GCSE level. Filming took place at BAFTA headquarters in central London. At the filming the students met one BAFTA’s breakthrough Brits, Mitu Khandaker and had the pleasure of playing her new video game Red Shirt an intergalactic take on social media. It was a fun packed evening which the students enjoyed.
TOMORROW’S ENGINEERS
Mr Talbert writes: Four Year 10 students had the pleasure of attending the launch of Tomorrow’s Engineers Week which was held at Facebook in central London. At the event students did some programming and met the Business Secretary Vince Cable and Jo Swinson MP. Muna Sharif was the star at the event being interviewed by Radio One Newsbeat. The students also appeared on ITV News. 18
PSYCHOLOGY AT CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY
Robert Merriman and Kwame Sisulu write A few weeks ago students from the Psychology AS course went to Cambridge University to attend lectures on Psychology. It was an valuable experience as it allowed us to consolidate some of what we already knew and see what we may be doing in the future. The lectures were longer than your average lesson and there was no note-taking, but the lecturers managed to keep us interested in the topics by the speakers showing some of the research they have conducted and adding their own expert thoughts and opinions. Throughout the lecture at the debating hall at Cambridge Student Union we were free to ask questions or ask the speakers to elaborate. They covered therapies for anxiety and depression in adolescents, Memory, Attachment theory and research methods all of which were engaging topic areas. Someone who had never studied Psychology would have had a lot to learn and pick up but people who were more experienced would have been able to invoke conversation with the speaker and get a lot out of it too. It was easy to see that Highgate Wood was of course, the most involved and engaged group there. We were confident, asked most of the questions and brought up many points which the speakers said were interesting and thoughtful We would definitely recommend this trip if you ever get the chance to go. We learnt a good deal about Psychology, enjoyed visiting Cambridge and, most importantly, had a lot of fun on a day away from school. December 2013
Logo designed by: William Jenner 7G Caleb Wycoff-Smith 8I
Logo designed by: Cassius Shanahan 8E
Logo designed by: James Lenton 8S
Students of the term: Tia Dyet Imaru Lewis Phoebie Berman Sarah Manzeke Nicholas Orford Williams
Students of the term: Natalie Manoharan Charlie Clarke Jenny Freeman Nina Wang Usman Khan
Students of the term: Amalie Heath-Born Rory Moody Tolga Kale Sinead Duffus Abdul Zoobi
House Motto:
House Motto:
House Motto:
The best way to predict the future is to invent it
From caring comes courage
Success comes from perseverance
House Charity:
House Charity: Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice
House Charity:
Rays of Sunshine
Year 11 Senior Leaders* Carsel Ryan-Small Freya Everest
Year 11 Senior Leaders* Oscar Clements Cassandra Penfold
Action for Kids
Year 11 Senior Leaders* Tomer Raphael Kazinethi Lungah
* Year 11 Senior Leaders are members of the School Council who have been recognised for their dedication to academic studies, contribution to whole school environment and being a positive role model. These students will work with all student council members and closely with all Year 11 representatives to create a focus group to improve daily life at Highgate Wood School.
34,103
33,016
33,605
this year
this year
this year
VIVO DONORS Congratulations to all those students who donated Vivos to the Philippine Disaster Appeal.. So far more than 6000 Vivos have been donated by students at our school. In the New Year you will also be able to donate Vivos to your House charity December 2013
Our top 10 donors: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Khem Iglesis Barrull Sadie May Carolina Cimatti Nathaniel Stark Nikhil Dumree
6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Ceake Maddix Rachel Gamble Angelica Udenweze Birhak Dogan Elif Celik 19
MODEL UN: TACKLING GLOBAL POVERTY Mr Robertson writes: As always, our delegates debated passionately, negotiated maturely and responded creatively to the problem of global poverty. A number of Year 11 students also chaired committees for the first time and impressed everyone with their discipline and fairness. I am really proud of all their efforts, and to be involved in a programme in the school which inspires students to become young leaders OUR DELEGATES Beth Gosschalk Imogen Sheppard Patrick Hegarty-Morrish Natalya De La Motte Phoebe Bennett Liliana Rickets Amber Paterson Gabriel Brown Sina Nafissi Jace Griffiths OUR CHAIRS
BALOON BUGGIES Ms Went writes: 7E proudly showing off the Balloon Buggies they designed and made. They worked in design teams of two, tested the buggies for how far they could travel in a straight line on one balloon full of air and the raced against each other.
Silas Scott Sam Tims Fionnuala Stevens Rosa Tully Harry Vinall-Smeeth OUR AWARD WINNERS Imogen Sheppard (Distinguished Delegate) Gabriel Brown (Distinguished Delegate) Sina Nafissi (Best Delegate) Jace Griffiths (Honourable Mention) Patrick Hegarty-Morrish (Distinguished delegate)
An explanation by Natalya De La Motte and Beth Gosschalk: Model UN is a recreation of the 'real' United Nations. This conference took place at the UN's International Maritime Organisation in London, and throughout the two days, delegates tried to solve global issues while maintaining the role of a particular country. The focus of this particular conference was the 'Elimination of Poverty'. Our experience of the conference was really good and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We learnt a lot and met lots of new people who we will keep in touch with. 20
December 2013
WHICH WAY ARE YOU WIRED? Eliot Austin writes: Have you ever wondered why girls tend to out preform boys nationally in writing? Or why boys are generally more thrilled when a P.E lesson is next on their timetable? Well researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have finally conducted a study to analyse why this is. An in-depth brain analysis of 1000 men and women aged between 8 and 22 used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), which follows the movement of water molecules in the brain. The machine produced an image which shows that in males there is a greater connectivity between the left and right hemispheres of the cerebellum. Brains with this feature will be more spatially aware and will have improved hand eye coordination. In contrast females seem to have better connectivity within each hemisphere which is heavily linked with being better in cognitive processes and having better analytical skills.
December 2013
This may explain the assumption that females have better cognitive processes such as memory and males have better physical and practical skills such as map reading. Another important thing to come out of this research is scientists may have to develop slightly different treatments when it comes to treating neurological diseases. It is important to remember the human brain is not ‘hard wired’ and it is made up of many complex groups of nerves. It therefore is not fixed and is constantly changing, due to the age range of the sample it is not yet clear as to whether these differences in the brain change again in later life. Interestingly the changes in the brains between sexes only occur after the age of 13 leaving a gap for more research as to what happens throughout early childhood and later life.
GOING BANANAS! By Jack Coomber Have you ever wondered how we manage to grow bananas? You may think the answer could be as simple as “seeds”, but you’d be wrong. Open up a traditional yellow banana and all you’ll find are tiny little specks in the centre where seeds used to be. This is because you’ve been eating, most likely, the same banana your whole entire life, as they are all genetically identical to one another. Cuttings from bananas have to be used to produce banana plantations, but all can be traced back to a single banana of the Cavendish variety. You may think this is a recent thing too, but no, the Cavendish has been around since the 1950’s, and before that the Gros Michel was the banana to be found in every household, until a single strain of fungus managed to destroy every single one. The scary thing is that this could happen to the Cavendish variety too, scientists are already isolating new types of bananas in case disaster strikes again. So you should count yourself lucky, as in a few years you may never taste the banana you grew up on again. 21
QUIZ NIGHT FOR WORLD CHALLENGE
Joel Archer writes: On Wednesday 27th November, the Highgate Wood World Challenge team had a quiz night for parents, staff, teachers and friends who created teams of six or more with the winning team getting a crate of wine! A couple of weeks in the planning, Max Gerstein and Gabriel Neophytou were our quizmasters, whilst Yusuf Sule worked the ticket door and myself and Callum Jackson sold food and drink. It was a fantastically successful night enjoyed by all, we raised just over ÂŁ550. It was a combined effort from the team who all pulled together the quiz as a whole, we had a couple of members to create the actual quiz questions whilst other members set up the room and another to work all of the technical aspects such as the screen, microphones and lighting. The quiz, lasting roughly 2 hours, consisted of 12 rounds on a wide variety of subjects covering general knowledge, sport, history and others. Along with a bonus Malaysia round! During the quiz food and drink was sold throughout as well as a 20 minute interval we sold crisps, pizza, soft drinks, pretzels and sweets.
JACK PETCHEY AWARD WINNERS Ms Allaway writes: Many congratulations to our Year 11 Jack Petchey Award winners: Yunus Korkmaz (11H), Lucy Parfitt (11A), Ellie Delamere (11A) and Kazinethi Lungha (11E). 22
GIRLS FOOTBALL
Ms Howard writes: The girls have made a fantastic start to the 2013/14 football season. The squads have been working very hard in Wednesday lunchtime and Friday morning training sessions (Years 9. 10 and 11) Tuesday morning fitness sessions and in the numerous friendly games played after school on Wednesday. There has been a rapid improvement in the execution of their skills and understanding of strategies, thereby developing both as individual players and teams. As a result, both the U13 and U14 teams are through to the quarter finals of the Middlesex Cup. The Year 7 girls team are the Haringey indoor and outdoor 5-a-side champions. The outdoor 5 a side team will be representing Haringey in the London Youth Games. The Under 16 team are due to play their Middlesex Cup game on 8th January. We wish them the best of luck.
YEAR 11 BASKETBALL
Ms Breed writes: The team have worked solidly this year with Coaches Imahni and Ms Breed Each member demonstrated the drive to succeed. We look forward to the season -playing local schools and registering HWS firmly on the Haringey Basketball map. Good luck team for next term !. December 2013
CHRISTMAS COMES EARLY FOR SPORTS
HWS SPORTS COUNCIL
Mr Goldberg writes: Very exciting times have been had this half term in the PE department with the most enticing, in depth and broad extra-curricular timetable offered to students for a number of years—thanks in part to funding from the PSA, a six strong team of PE teachers and eagerness and enthusiasm from the students to take part. From rugby to trampolining, running club and cross country to badminton and table tennis, the list goes on. In particular basketball has been given its first lease of life at Highgate Wood for some time with what was a satisfyingly successful Inter-House basketball tournament. This was the first of six Inter-House competitions that will take place over the year including the much anticipated swimming gala and sports day events. Thirty teams of eight, one boys’ and one girls’ team for each year, were selected to represent their respective houses Da Vinci, Seacole and Edison. House
Boys
Girls
Total
2nd Da Vinci
7
12
19
3rd Seacole
10
5
15
1st Edison
9
12
21
The other competitions will be football, rugby, netball, House relays and, of course, the Swimming Gala and Sports Day. There are plenty of opportunities for all students to get involved and really get into their House spirit by representing their House across a variety of sports.
December 2013
YEAR 11 HOUSE CAPTAINS DaVinci
Harry VinallSmeeth
Lauren Gee
Seacole
Keanu Greeves
Rebecca Franks
Edison
Teddy Nash
Sushila GhoseCoveney
The Sports Council at Highgate Wood has begun to formulate ideas and put into place processes to improve extra-curricular participation across Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4. The first part of this was House Colour Captains being given the responsibility of organising their Inter-House basketball teams. In addition, discussions about what they would like to see introduced in school sports have taken place and a meeting with the Executive Committee which consists of the six House Captains in Year 11 will take place after Christmas. The fitness clubs for girls on Tuesday morning and now boys’ fitness on Thursday after school have continued to see high numbers leading on from the first half of term. Similarly netball has seen high participation on a Monday after school resulting in very high level performances on the court. Lastly, on Friday 29th November thirty-one students attended the Haringey cross competition of which six members of the team qualified in 8th or better for their age group to go through to represent Haringey schools at the Middlesex Schools cross country in January at Harrow School. Those who qualified were Tom Carter (7A), Ollie Selby (7A), Marco Reeve (7S) who finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively in the junior boys, Trulie Mynott (7D) who finished 7th in the junior girls, Kitty Pinder (8E) who finished 8th in the intermediate girls and Lucy Carter (11T) who stormed to victory with first place in the senior girls competition. Overall our Junior Girls finished 3rd, Junior Boys an amazing 1st and our Intermediate Boys 2nd in their respective age groups.
23
School starts again on Monday 6th January 2014
at 10:50am It will be Week 2 Monday 6th January
Term Starts
Thursday 16th January
Year 11 Mock Results Day
Thursday 16th January
Year 11 Parents’ Evening
Friday 24th January
HWS Sixth Form Application Deadline
Tuesday 28th January
Year 10 Parents’ Evening
Tuesday 4th February
INSET AFTERNOON:
Friday 14th February
LAST DAY OF HALF TERM
School closes at lunchtime for students
Parent Consultation Evenings 2014
AUTUMN 2013
Year 7
Wed 14th May
Year 8
Tues 25th March
Year 10
Tues 28th Jan
Year 11
Thurs 16th Jan
SPRING 2014
SUMMER 2014
Mon 2nd September
Term Starts
Mon 6th Jan
Term Starts
Tues 22nd April
Term Starts
28th Oct - 1st Nov
Half term break
17th Feb– 21st Feb
Half term break
27th—30th May
Half term break
Friday 20th Dec
Term Ends
Friday 4th April
Term Ends
Friday 18th July
Term Ends* * Term ends for students
The school calendar is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com
Keep informed Find out what is going on at Highgate Wood School and keep up with our news visit us at our website www.hws.uk.com follow us on twitter twitter.com/highgatewood Check the school’s opening status Call 02084087508 and give the school’s DfE code: 3094030
Insight is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com