RVHS Newsletter July 2016 by Roding Valley High School

Newsletter

Roding Valley H igh S choo l

July 2016

Rising to the Challenges Ahead It has certainly been a full year at Roding Valley High School and it has been an incredibly positive year for the school. We have had an intense focus on student progress throughout the last twelve months and every individual has been regularly assessed and monitored in every year group. The fact that GCSE examinations are becoming increasingly challenging has meant that we have responded by upping our expectations significantly. We take the view that every lesson counts and every day of education is vital, from Year 7 all the way through to Year 11 and beyond into the Sixth Form. The studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work and the progress that they are making are now more carefully scrutinised than at any time in the past and I am looking forward to seeing their outcomes improve across the board. As well as rewarding Progress we also have an ongoing focus on developing the studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Attitudes to Learning. In this way we can identify those performing very well but also put interventions in place for those where there may be barriers to learning.

My expectation is that every student will be given the support that they require in order to secure the grades that they need to get to the next stage of their education. Our Year 7s, 8s and 9s will be given the opportunities to excel at Key Stage 3 so that they can make informed decision about their Option Subjects for GCSE. The Year 10s and 11s will be provided with a huge range of support to ensure examination success so that there are many doors open to them Post 16. Finally our Sixth Formers will continue to enjoy a fantastic experience and thrive in a close-knit, collegiate environment which gives them a chance to plan a great future for themselves. I would also like to take the opportunity to highlight an area that I see as a real strength of the school. I have read a great deal in the press recently about the lack of high

quality Careers guidance in schools. I am delighted to be in the position to say that the students at Roding Valley High School are fortunate in that they have access to superb Careers support. Following a monitoring visit this term, the school has been recommended for re-accreditation for the Recognition of the Quality Award for Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance. The RoQA award is a prestigious accolade and I would like personally to thank Donna Mason for her enduring hard work in this area. Mrs Mason, Careers Development Manager, and her team are a credit to the school for their diligence in providing such crucial support to our students. The visit involved speaking to a number of students, all of whom were incredibly positive about the help and guidance that they have received, and I think that this deserves to be heralded as something to be enormously proud of as a school.

Mr J Luck Headteacher Alderton Hill, Loughton, Essex IG10 3JA t: 020 8508 1173 e: office@rodingvalley.net www.rodingvalley.net

Teaching and Learning at RVHS

Learning Matters

CPD at Roding Valley High School literally stands for Collegiate Professional Development. We had enjoyed the results of our in-school CPD programme during the Spring and Summer terms. Blinks Weeks During the month of March 2016, teachers flung open their doors (as we always do) to all staff during our Open Door Weeks. Observing staff were invited to BLINK lessons. A BLINK is a short informal observation focused on an important positive aspect in the Teaching and Learning environment – and it literally lasts for a short visit to classes. Observers then fed back to staff via email. A selection of comments follows;

A sea of yellow! I saw an excellent example today of Closing the Gap with your Year 8 class. Pupils were engaged and completing their work independently. Also it was lovely to see some of the pupils I teach in a different setting and subject. Thank you for allowing me to ‘Blink’ your lesson - I enjoyed how you broke down a difficult Shakespeare extract and made it accessible for your Year 7s. Thank you for letting me ‘blink’ your lesson. Good use of ICT to engage and enhance students’ learning. A very positive learning environment. Liked the starter with the timed questions. Really liked the questioning of the pupils showed real focus and understanding

Technology and Engagement Triads and Teacher Development Trust Triads Our RVHS TEACHMeet on the 14 June 2016 was the culmination of the hard work carried out by our Triads (groups of mainly 3 teachers) and the TDT Triads during the last 2 terms. It was a fantastic opportunity for Triads to share their findings, experiments and research with staff. New applications were discovered, older technology-based teaching and learning methods were reinvented and research behind the change in classroom behaviour by groups of students were successfully shared amongst staff. It was unanimously rated as a successful event, with staff being able to take away many practical strategies and useful apps to try out in their classes.

Creative Writing Competition Finalists Three Year 10 students at Roding Valley High School, Santiago Aldridge, Gabrielle Murray and Kara Pleasance, are finalists in a creative writing competition. Their work will be published in due course. Watch this space!

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

Teaching and Learning at RVHS

Shakespeare Drop Down Day On Monday 25th April we were off timetable for the whole day doing creative and interesting activities based around the famous playwright William Shakespeare in celebration of the 400th anniversary since his death in 1616. Our day consisted of many enjoyable activities including; making and decorating masks, creating props and re-creating a scene of Macbeth using our personalised crowns and swords. Also, we had an actor visit to complete some more exciting activities, which included mind mapping aspects about ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ and brainstorming ideas. When we finished we did a re-enactment of a scene from ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ and performed our short scenes or freeze frames to the class. However whilst some of us did activities with the actor others made raps and poems about Shakespeare or one of his plays.

We completed our wonderful day by finishing with an assembly in which we presented the work that we had created throughout the day. All of the students that presented their work received a certificate and the day ended on a high. I really enjoyed the day and would love to do another day like this because the experience was amazing and creating the masks was my favourite activity. By Ella Palmer 7S

Junior Maths Challenge We have had a very successful year so far with the UKMT Intermediate Maths Challenge and, for the first time at Roding Valley High School, with the Senior Maths Challenge. We also had two students sit the Intermediate Kangaroo Challenge and although they were not awarded a certificate, they did very well to be selected for this invite only Challenge. This does of course leave only the Junior Maths Challenge which was sat by 120 of our most able mathematicians in Year 7 and 8. They again performed very well, with 46 students awarded certificates recognising them for being in the top 40% of all those who competed across the country!

Special mention goes to Jayden Patel in Year 7 and Suzanna Cavadino in Year 8, both awarded Gold certificates (top 6% in the country!) and for achieving the highest scores in their respective year groups. Jayden also received the Best in School Award!

Roding Valley Maths Challenge Here are some questions that are taken from past UKMT Maths Challenge Papers. Are you smart enough to answer these questions? 1. The lightest seeds in the world are probably those of the Creeping Lady’s-tresses Orchid, 500 000 of which would weigh 1 gram. How many millions of these seeds weigh 1 kilogram?

a. 2 b. 200 c. 500 d. 5000 e. 1000 000

Junior Maths Challenge 2005

2. Beatrix takes a sheet of paper (shown below on the left), folds the sheet in half 4 times and punches a hole all the way through the folded sheet, as shown below on the right. She then folds the sheet. How many holes are there now in the unfolded sheet?

a. 4 b. 6 c. 8 d. 12 e. 16

Junior Maths Challenge 2005

3. If two of the sides of a right-angled triangle are 5 cm and 6 cm long, how many possibilities are there for the length of the third side?

a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3 e. 4

Intermediate Maths Challenge 2005

Teaching and Learning at RVHS

Maths Masterclass at the Royal Institution On Saturday the 2nd of July, I was invited by the UK Mathematics trust (the people who do the Maths Challenge) to the Royal Institution to attend a Maths Masterclass, with numerous other students from all across the nation. It was being hosted by a statistician/Professor of the Imperial College London and a PhD student from University College London. When I arrived, I was given my individual name sticker and a puzzle sheet. The first puzzle asked us to find other students who fit various criteria and write down their names, it was obviously designed to break the ice between the students. All of us (which consisted of 50+ students) were then taken into a Lecture Hall where we were introduced to Professor Emma McCoy. This was the first presentation in which we were going to investigate Leonhard Euler and some of his Theorems. We covered lots of things such as Magic squares/Latin squares. But one of the most interesting things I found was the Bridges of Koenigsberg puzzle. This was a puzzle in which there was a river with various bridges all around and you have to create a route that uses each bridge once. We then investigated why this puzzle was impossible. In order to explain to you why it is impossible, I have to explain that a Euler’s path (in graph theory) is a path that uses all of the edges in a graph/network

(a network in graph theory is a connection of vertices) once. According to this theorem the number of connections that a vertex has decides whether the vertex is odd or even - odd number of connections means it is an odd vertex and an even number means an even vertex. Euler said that if a network has more than two odd vertices than a Euler’s path is not possible. But there has to be at least one odd vertex for a Euler’s path to be possible. And to create a Euler’s path around a network, you must start at one of the odd vertices. Now for the Bridges of Koenigsberg, Euler marked out each of the main regions of the map of Koenigsberg and created a network that matched the bridges. You will see that Network below. If you look at the Network, you will see that vertices a, c, d have 3 connections so they are all odd and vertex b has 5 connections so that is odd. There are more than 2 odd vertices (no even ones for that matter), so a Euler’s path is impossible for the Bridges of Koenigsberg.

This also explains why you may draw an envelope using a Euler’s path. (as the bottom two vertices have 3 connections but all others have either 4 or 2.) Yet take the triangle on the top away and a Euler’s path is impossible (as all the outer vertices have 3 connections and the centre vertex has 4 connections) We then had a presentation called the science of chocolate fountains, which explained to us why in a chocolate fountain, the chocolate falls inwards (it’s surface tension by the way). At the end we were shown a 3rd year university science formula and were completely unfazed by it, all due to the things that we had learnt that day. I learnt a great many things from this Masterclass. It was really fun and I made new friends. What I just explained to you was just a fraction of what we learnt. I hope you guys work hard and get an opportunity to go. By Mashrur Khondokar 9U

Roding Valley High School Art and The annual summer exhibition of Art and Photography work took place at Roding Valley High School on Thursday 9 June 2016. We welcomed all of the students and their parents to see the end results of their hard work over the last 18 months, including all of their coursework, the exam final pieces and all of the preparatory sketchbooks as well. We had such a broad range of materials, techniques and scales this year including ceramics, pen, pencil drawing, painting, collage and assemblage. Each piece of work is individual, experimental and exciting, with some of the students producing work which wouldn’t be out of place in any A’ Level exhibition. This year, for the first time, we also exhibited the work of our A’ Level artists and photographers. This turned out to be of great benefit for our GCSE students as they could see the difference in scale and skill required for this higher level of study.

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

Parents and visiting staff were asked to record some of their thoughts about the work as they viewed it. Comments included: Inventive, inspirational, wonderful… A pleasure to be invited. Exceptional work…vibrant and colourful Superb detail… unreal imagination… presentation immaculate A good mix of painted/drawn work and sculpture The exhibition was fantastic!

Teaching and Learning at RVHS

Loughton Art Exhibition

Advance notice for 2017 The exhibition will be happening at the same venue again next year with our new Year 11’s but also we will be exhibiting in Epping at the Youth Makes Art event run by the Rotary Club (Last year we won 5 of the top 9 prizes there!)

Following on from our successful Art and Photography exhibition in school we then transferred a selection of the artwork to a second major exhibition at Loughton Arts Centre. This year the exhibition ran from 24 June until 8 July and was open to everyone. We tried to create an exhibition which showcased the huge range of materials and techniques which we use in our classes including pencil and paint, collage and clay. This year we found we were exhibiting a very large number of clay pieces in particular. The exhibition was open to the public and there was a visitors book in which

people left comments; these comments are always extremely positive and reflect the extraordinary ideas which teenagers seem to want to explore. The staff at the exhibition space tell me that this is the exhibition they most look forward to each year and they regard Roding Valley artwork as exceptional. I hope you were able to visit the exhibition this year and were impressed by the work.

Art and Photography Exhibition From June until September we are exhibiting examples of our student’s work at County Hall in Chelmsford. This is the first time we have ever exhibited at this venue after we were selected from every primary and secondary school in Essex. ☺

The exhibition is in the gallery approaching the ‘Members Dining Room’ which sounds extremely Hogwarts and is, unfortunately, in a secure area so cannot be accessed by members of the public, i.e., you and me. County councillors presumably like

to hoard the very best student artwork in Essex for themselves. Yet another shining example of the exemplary work that is done throughout Roding Valley High School.

Photography Exhibition Many pieces from this exhibition were also displayed at the Loughton Arts Centre, High Street, Loughton from Saturday 25 June to Friday 8 July. Congratulations to all of our talented artists who now await the August results. Also many thanks to Mr Baidoo, Mrs Costello and Mr Day for their dedicated and inspirational work with all of our students over the year. David Tisdale Head of Art

Enriching the Curriculum

Year 7 invade France On Friday 24th June about 90 Year 7 pupils were ‘in’ Europe, which was the joke of the day, considering the Brexit result the previous evening. For many it was their first time in France and for some their first trip abroad. The day started at 6am with many sleepy children, but they had certainly woken up in time to do a spot of shopping on the ferry. It was quite a humbling experience when we exited the port of Calais to see the migrant camps in France, and for many pupils I think it made them realise just how lucky they are to live where they do. Then it was off to a small town called St. Omer, about 45 minutes’ drive from Calais.

delights of France, mainly chips and ice-cream, which had to be ordered in French. After that, pupils had some free time to explore in small groups, whilst completing a project book. Then the last port of call was the Cité Europe hypermarket - to stock up with sweets for the way home! Believe me, they certainly got their sugar fix! Pupils arrived home tired, but happy, with an insight into French culture and their way of life. N.Chambers MFL Faculty

Lunch was eaten in the picturesque park, as the weather was kind to us for a change, sun cream and shades were needed. Then pupils we treated to a tour of the town and a visit to the cathedral. Students sampled the gastronomic Nathan Walters - Awesome! Jenny Smith - It was interesting. I’d never been to France before. The park was beautiful. Ella Reed - The travelling was a good experience. My first time on a ferry. Jada Ali - The ice-cream was nice and there were good shops. Casey Hurley - The weather was fantastic.

Suffia Hussain-Jordon - Exciting!. It was a good experience Sarah Cockram - It was fun. I liked the mini trollies! Isabella Marcus - The park looked nice. Lizzy Radley - I learnt how to ask for an icecream and used my French. Freya Kennedy - St. Omer is a place I’d go back to.

Emelia Spencer - It was nice to spend time with your friends. Emre Gulseren - The ice-creams were fantastic. Georgie Sadler - It was a nice town and nice people. Ella Storrar - It was amazing being in France because you got to see new things. George Jones - the cathedral was beautiful.

French School visit to Roding Valley High School The Languages Department invited a French secondary school from a town called Carcassonne, which is in the south of France, to join Roding Valley on Thursday 10 March 2016 for some fun and exciting activities. 42 French students and 4 teachers thoroughly enjoyed their day, helped by the Sixth Form students who interacted perfectly in French with our visitors. The day started at 6am with many sleepy The day started with a nice French breakfast in the canteen, followed by a Maths challenge which stimulated and engaged all the students and created a real buzz in the room. After break, the PE department, showed off their skills in Netball, a game not played in France. Later the French students even joined in this new game. The Art Department impressed and really inspired our visitors with the

outstanding work shown to them and with the activities planned for the day. The French students will certainly never forget the exciting experiments in the Science Department. It was really explosive! Straight after lunch, half of the French students had a question and answer session with a language group while the other half of students baked some delicious scones in the Food Technology Department. The visit was a real success thanks to all the Departments that got involved and the French visitors were delighted with the warm welcome they had at Roding Valley High School. In the future, the MFL Department at Roding hopes to establish an exchange programme with this French school, to give our pupils the opportunity to visit

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

the school in France and promote a love of French Language amongst our pupils. Mrs K Lasfer

Enriching the Curriculum

Year 10 Computing and ICT educational visit to Thorpe Park Roding Valley High School Computing and ICT students recently had the opportunity to visit the Thorpe Park theme park. Students took part in an educational workshop where they learnt about the different ways in which technology is used to manage the customer experience. They learnt the steps taken to design a ride as well as understanding how technology is used to improve the customer service at the park. Students then got the opportunity to test out all they had learnt!

“Thorpe Park was excellent. Conference on how computing is involved around the park was very informative and interesting and every single ride was thrilling and enjoyable.” Kaelin, Year 10 Computing student. “IGN 9/10, needed more Matt Davies. On a serious note, fun and enjoyable, a great day out!” Jamie, Year 10 Computing student.

Head of Faculty, Mr Hussain, said “It’s important that we give our students the opportunity to learn outside the classroom and contextualise what they have learnt within the classroom. Students had a very enjoyable day and I’m sure they will remember this experience in years to come”.

Year 10 Business Studies Trip to Cadbury World During the 2016 Summer Term, Year 10 Business Studies students were given the opportunity to attend an external visit to Cadbury World to deepen their understanding of topics such as Marketing and Production and to aid their coursework and exam preparation. The students were able to actively engage in the different aspects of the business through a tour, discussions and by enjoying the rides! The students were great ambassadors for the school and participants on the day. Well done!

Enriching the Curriculum

Bake Off Challenge Last Thursday 7th June saw Roding Valley’s very own Bake Off Challenge. 12 keen bakers from Years 7, 8 and 9 took to the whisks, ovens and icing bags to make for a fierce competition. Standards were high, making the judges’ job difficult... and finally resulted in first place being awarded to Ellie Blundy 8U, with a very close 2nd place to MaryAnn Thurgood. A huge well done to all participants and we’re already looking forward to the next competition!

Staff Healthy Eating Food Demonstration

Thank you to all the parents/carers for their continued support

Japanese visit to Food Technology On Wednesday 22nd June, our friends from Japan made a visit to our Year 7 students at Roding Valley High School. The students involved were treated to Japanese meditation, and how to play pass the parcel Japanese style, in which the students had to pass a marshmallow around to each plate with chopsticks!! Then it was on to the art of Sushi making and students were given a variety of ingredients in which to make their own scattered sushi. Students were also given a gift of a special Japanese cookie, homemade jam and a Japanese fan. The students and staff thoroughly enjoyed the visit and we look forward to another next year.

On Monday 13th June, we held a ‘healthy eating food demo’ after school for staff at Roding Valley High School. We had a really great turnout. Healthy bean-burgers were prepared, and then staff got to sample them in a tortilla wrap, pitta or brioche bun with choice of salad and dressings. A table was set out with lovely empty jars, ready to fill with salad and dressing the choice was amazing. There was also a healthy smoothie to sample. ‘The Green Monster’ contained banana, apple, spinach and coconut milk. Tasty! Thank you to Darren Clancy for the live music. All in all, we had a really great afternoon. Many thanks to all staff who came down to T1, you continued support is greatly appreciated. Heidi Collings

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

Enriching the Curriculum

Year 6 Transition Day Roding Valley High School welcomed Year 6 students who will be joining us in September for their transition day on the Friday 24th June. The day was full of fun and exciting lessons across a range of subjects, including a tug of war competition in PE. The students also sat some reading tests which were held in the IT rooms throughout the morning. Mr Hudgell said “It was a really busy and exciting day for the students who had the opportunity to meet some staff members and receive a taster of some of the subjects on offer at Roding Valley High School”.

Year 6 Transition Evening On Tuesday 28th June Roding Valley High School welcomed the Year 6 parents to attend a transition evening, promoting what we have on offer as a school and what is expected from our students in September 2016.

Mr Luck, Mrs Jenner and Mr Hudgell were the lead speakers along with Year 7 students Molly Spencer and Olympia Barnett (7W) who spoke with so much confidence about their school experience so far.

Referendum Day On Wednesday 22nd June the Sixth Form were involved in the “Virtual Referendum”. The RVHS Sixth Form Google Voting Booth (catchy name!) recorded an amazing 95.5% of Sixth Formers choosing to vote REMAIN in the referendum.

Year 7 students were also given the chance to exercise their vote and they shared a similar trend as observed in the country.

Mr Hudgell said “I am very proud to be Head of Year 7 in September. I thought it was a fantastic evening with not an empty seat in sight which fills me with great confidence that we have a very supportive cohort of parents joining us in September”.

Alice Redknapp wins the Speak Out Challenge! Alice Redknapp won the West Essex finals of the Jack Petchey Speak Out challenge on the 10 May 2016. She was amazing! Her topic ‘Eyebrows on Fleek’ was really well appreciated by the audience and the judges.

Extra-Curricular Excellence

Lion King Production Cast in rehearsals …. Everyone is eagerly awaiting the show.

PlayStation Schools Cup Finals The year 7 football team attended the PlayStation Schools Cup Final held at Reading FC (Madejski Stadium) on 17th June 2016. In order to reward the success of the students reaching the Essex Cup Final this year, they were able to watch a variety of matches alongside experiencing a range of gaming activities. Tottenham Hotspur and England defender Danny Rose was the special guest at the event where several of our Roding Valley High School students were able to grab

a few selfies with the international star, which was an added bonus. Mr Hudgell said “It was a fantastic opportunity for many of the students who all thoroughly enjoyed the experience; I just hope it inspires them to go one step further next year in all competitions as the Year 7 squad have the potential to excel again in 2016-17”. Mr C. Hudgell Head of Year 11 & Teacher of Physical Education

Sixth Best Handball Team in the County! On Tuesday 26th April, I had the pleasure of taking 10 GCSE PE Students to participate in the Essex County Handball Tournament at The Bromfords School, Wickford, home of the National Champions! The majority of the boys had only just completed this sport within their GCSE practical lessons, so it was a great opportunity for them to demonstrate their skills, knowledge and understanding in this new sport. It was an extremely

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

competitive tournament with all other schools having far greater experience than us at this level. The boys took the challenge head on and played extremely well in every single game. They worked hard as a team, encouraged each other and continued their knowledge and understanding of Handball. They represented the school brilliantly and this was a huge learning curve for all the boys involved. Well done!

Extra-Curricular Excellence

Year 7 Whitemead Residential Trip Early in June, 41 Year 7 students and 4 members of staff departed to the Forest of Dean for an action-packed week at Whitemead Forest Park. The students (and staff!) took part in a huge range of different activities including tree climbing, canoe games, survival skills and field zorbing. Despite some temperamental British weather, the group remained in high spirits and threw themselves into every activity! When asked what their highlight of the week was, many students spoke of the range of activities that they were able to experience. At the end of the week, to celebrate the achievements of individual students, the staff decided to award those who we felt had best represented the ethos and values of our school using the ‘We ARE Roding Valley’ motto. The Aspire award went to Nathan Walters. Throughout the week, Nathan gave every activity his very best effort, aspiring to be the best that he could be in every aspect. The Respect award went to Megan Allgood for her tireless efforts to help wherever possible and the respect shown not only to the members of teaching staff and instructors but also to her peers.

When deciding which students to award the Endeavour award to, the competition was extremely close as so many students had shown us willingness to push themselves beyond their comfort zone. After much consideration, two girls were recognized for their achievements - Chloe Cooper and Jenny Lycett. It was during the tree climb activity that Chloe particularly shone. Despite the challenging nature of the activity, Chloe refused to give up and persevered to reach the very top. Our second winner Jenny was recognized for her encouragement of every single member of her group as well as her own endless enthusiasm. Overall, the trip was a fantastic success, much enjoyed by student and staff alike! Miss K Stockings

Ella Freeman: “I had a great time on the trip - my favourite activities were field zorbing and water wars. It was a brilliant experience with friends.” Ryan Donnelly: “My favourite part of the trip was field zorbing because you have to try and control the zorb but you usually go tumbling down a hill. Finley Dickson: “I enjoyed going on the trip because I made new friends with the people in my group and the variety of activities to do each day was fantastic!”

Goodbye year 11

Year 11 Leaver’s Assembly On Wednesday 29th June we said our farewells to the Year 11 students at their Leaver’s Assembly. A variety of fun awards were distributed to the lucky winners, along with Jake Forecast winning the raffle for a mini iPad in the ‘Going for Gold’ competition. Jake also received an individual award for his contribution towards GCSEpod by Mr Naidoo.

Matthew Tinker and Doncho Atanassov were the driving force behind running such a successful assembly as was evident from the bundles of joy and laughter. There were also performances from Tyne Brownlie and Chloe Buckley who were brave enough to take to the stage and perform in front of the year group with so much confidence which reflected their amazing performances.

Mr Hudgell said, “It has been a privilege to have worked and supported the Year 11 students throughout their time here at Roding Valley High School. Both Miss Draper and I share the view that they are a remarkable year group and wish every student all the success in their GCSE exam results and their futures”.

Year 11 Prom Our Year 11 students gathered together for a night of celebration for their Prom which was held at Woolston Manor Golf and Country Club on Wednesday 29th June.

The year 7 football team attended the PlayStation Schools Cup Final held at Reading FC (Madejski Stadium) on 17th June 2016. In order to reward the success of the students reaching the Essex Cup Final this year, they were able to watch a variety of matches alongside experiencing a range of gaming activities. Tottenham Hotspur and England defender Danny Rose was the special guest at the event where several of our Roding Valley High School students were able to grab

Prom Dresses Sponsorship Roding Valley High School would like to thank ‘Twobirds Bridesmaid’ for the generous donation of three prom dresses for year 11 prom. The dresses were awarded to three hard working students who have made exceptional progress this year. Twobirds are a London based fashion company who specialise in bridesmaids dresses. Please visit their website: www.twobirdsbridesmaid.co.uk Mr M. Cocker

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

Many students arrived in style and it was obvious how much time and effort had gone into choosing their attire. It was a fantastic event with many staff and students in attendance. I would like to thank Woolston Manor for their hospitality and for making the evening so special for many of our Year 11 students. Mr Hudgell Head of Year 11

Sixth Form News

Head Boy’s motivational speech before the examinations Fellow students, I am not here to lecture you about making sure you are covering the specifications or doing the necessary past papers. I am here to give you some motivation, peer to peer. Focus on what you want for your future and understand you are laying the foundations for your future right now. I know the majority of you all have goals or things you are working towards and essentially this is key to your success. If you feel stressed out, or feel you can’t do it anymore remind yourself of what your aims are. If you feel yourself getting distracted and losing focus, remind yourself of what your aims are. If you are putting the hard work off, and avoiding your revision, remind yourself of your goals. Within a few short weeks, your AS examinations will be over and you will be glad you put in the hard work. You do not want to look back in a few years’ time regretting that you did not work hard enough. You do not want to look and think how you could do it all again differently, unsatisfied that you didn’t reach your goals. The summer Examination time is just a short period of your life. Put everything to one side for a moment and focus. The results you will gain from the hard work, you will have for the rest of your life to do whatever you want. Good luck everyone in the Summer Examinations. Will Cain Head Boy (Sixth Form). Roding Valley High School

Supporting Spurgeons Children’s Charity As you may remember, back in December, Year 12 students put together a series of Christmas hampers for Spurgeons Children’s charity. The second challenge we received from them was for gardening equipment for their centre based at Limes Farm. Nehal Butt and Hilin Yalcin have been busy with cake sales and have raised £110 towards the equipment requested. Nehal and Hilin have also used their personal money to purchase smaller items to build out a hamper of goodies including plant labels and seeds. A special thank you to Mrs Flaherty for her support on the initiative. Well done all.

Sixth Form News

Sixth Form Holocaust Talk by Eva Behar Many thanks to all Sixth Form students who attended Eva Behar’s talk. She spoke eloquently about how, on 11 May 1944, Eva, together with her aunt, uncle, sister, brother-in-law and 10 year old nephew were put onto a transport train to Auschwitz. She remained there until 1 January 1945, when she was chosen for transport to Bergen-Belsen. Eva then stayed at Bergen-Belsen until it was liberated on 15 April 1945. I was very impressed with students’ conduct throughout the talk and I was pleased to see how many of students stayed behind after the talks to interact with Eva and ask questions. Talks of this nature encourage students to reflect and remember that ignorance is never an excuse. Mr Harris Head of Sixth Form

Sixth Form Life Savers Course The Sixth Form took part in an excellent two hour life support training course in April. The first aid course evolved through the Sixth Form Committee links with Little Oaks Children’s Centre, which originated through their charity work with the Christmas hampers programme. All our students did the school proud. The certified first aid course was run by the fire service and, you never know, the two hour session might well save a future life!

Roding Valley High School Newsletter July 2016

Sixth Form News

Roding Valley High School Sixth Form support the Year 6 transition On Friday 24th June we had our Year 6 transition day. It was fantastic to see so many year 6 students supported for the day by Sixth Form volunteers. The Sixth Formers commented afterwards that the new Year 6â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s were a delight and that they would support around the school in September. An excellent example of the Roding Valley High School Community spirit.

The Sixth Form celebrates the Young Officials Badminton Awards Badminton England would like to personally congratulate Jessica Barclay, William Cain and Lewis Bowden on the completion of the Young Officials Award and becoming recognised Young Officials. Well done all, and of course, Ms Parry.

Year 12 Sports Day Friday 17th June saw students take part in the First Annual Sixth Form Sports Day. This was not your normal Sports Day, but a Sports Day with a difference with old style events to encourage wider participation and fun. Exactly what the Sixth Form needed post Summer examinations. 12R won the Sports Day by one point. The other forms have vowed to take revenge next year and take back the Sixth Form Winnersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Cup. The Sixth Form Sports events were followed by a BBQ prepared by the Senior Leadership Team and even a visit onsite by the local Ice Cream Van to provide further refreshments. A truly excellent day, and even the weather, whilst threatening to rain all day, held off! Well done all.

Sixth Form News

Roding Valley High School Sixth Form attend UCAS Conference With so many of our Sixth Form students making University applications, the recent London UCAS Conference was an excellent opportunity for the whole Sixth Form to go to the London conference and ask key questions to the representatives from top universities who were present.

The UCAS conference brought together experienced speakers from the higher education sector and provided students with comprehensive and up-to-date advice and information on the UCAS application process and the surrounding HE landscape. We wish them well in the UCAS applications, and continue to support them in making their future choices.

PTA News

It was great to chat with so many parents and staff after the event, making over £180 in the process which will help to make a difference to the school and education of our children. The PTA is always open to new members, ideas and offers of help in any form, please feel free to email us any time; admin@rodingvalleypta.net

2. E If the sheet of paper had been folded in half once then there would have been two holes in the unfolded sheet. Each additional fold doubles the eventual number of holes in the unfolded sheet so after four folds there will be sixteen holes.

The PTA would like to say a huge thanks to all those that ‘supported the cause’ by buying burgers and nearly new clothes at the Year 7 Transition evening. The odd cloud certainly didn’t dampen the spirits of the team.

3. C The side of length 5 cm cannot be the hypotenuse of the right-angled triangle as it is shorter than the side of length 6 cm. If the 6 cm side is the hypotenuse, then the third side of the triangle has length √11 cm. If the 6 cm side is not the hypotenuse, then the hypotenuse has length √61 cm. These are the only two possibilities.

Year 6 Transition Evening

Since one gram is the weight of half a million seeds, 1000 grams (i.e. one kilogram) is the weight of 500 million seeds. 1. C

Roding Valley Maths Challenge Solutions

Students follow us @RVHSTeam will be tweeting top tips, reminders, links and guidance for our students - everything from delays on the Central Line in the morning to revision tips and links for their GCSE’s.

SPORTSMARK

Alderton Hill, Loughton, Essex IG10 3JA t: 020 8508 1173 e: office@rodingvalley.net www.rodingvalley.net