Parent bulletin week ending 29th September 2017 by Roding Valley High School

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RVHS Parent Bulletin Aspiration Respect

Endeavour

Week ending: Friday 29th September 2017 “Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world”. Nelson Mandela

Message from the Head of School. Last night we enjoyed a fantastic Open Evening. The school was filled with prospective parents and it was great to see so many people wanting to visit our school. During the evening I had the chance to speak to a large number of parents and the amount of compliments and positive feedback about the school as a whole was brilliant. Our students who acted as guides or helped in departments were outstanding, many parents have emailed today to compliment them. We had over 350 of our students helping on the night, acting as tour guides or taking part in activities in faculty areas. They are all true ambassadors of our great school. I would like to take the opportunity to thank all of the staff who worked so hard to make the evening such a memorable one. I would especially like to thank the four students who spoke during the presentation to parents in the Hall; Matthew Tinker Head Boy, Lauren Humphries, Head Girl, and two new Year 7 Students Henry Foster and Amy Lewis, each student spoke confidently and warmly about their experiences at Roding Valley. Over the last two weeks it has also been my privilege to have been able to visit a number of our local Primary schools. It has been wonderful experience to speak to both the students and their parent about all of the positive things that are happening at our school and help to ease their minds about their child’s transition to secondary school. It has been lovely to receive so much positive feedback about our school that I was reassured that the school's reputation remains strong in the community. This week we have had the excitement of opening our new 3G astro pitch. Please read the media release attached, it was opened by GB athlete Laviai Neilson with the help of our Year 7 football team. Please sign up for Everything Epping Forest to receive regular media updates of events at the school. It is really exciting and a reminder that students need to be wearing the correct moulded footwear to play on the pitch. If you are a Year 9 parent, please note that next Thursday the 5th October is the parent information evening which starts at 6pm. Have a good weekend.

Ms. S Jenner Head of School

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MEDIA RELEASE Issued: September 27, 2017

Great Britain athlete Laviai Nielsen opens new 3G pitch at Roding Valley High School PICTURES: A full slideshow of pictures of Laviai's visit can be viewed HERE Great Britain sprinter Laviai Nielsen visited Roding Valley High School in Loughton to officially open the new 3G pitch. Laviai, who came fourth in the final of the women's 400m at the 2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships and was a member of the Team GB silver medal-winning 4x400m team at the World Athletics Championships in London, cut the ribbon watched by the Year 7 football team, Head of School Sharon Jenner and vice-chair of governors Paul Wershof. Mrs Jenner said: "It was an honour to have Laviai officially open the new 3G Astro Pitch. She is an inspiration to our students and I was delighted that she also agreed to speak to them during their morning assembly. She was warmly received by the Year 10, 12 and 13 students as part of the week's pastoral theme of 'Resilience'. It is a really exciting time for the school and this new first-class facility further adds to our wonderful sports facilities. It is great that we will be able to give our students the opportunity to train and play sport on this high level pitch. The main reason to use a 3G pitch is the reliability of the surface without match postponements due to waterlogged or frozen pitches. By having a surface that is unaffected by rain, sun and ice it never suffers damage and can be played on morning, noon and night without any harm to the surface. Our sports teams are already very successful and this fantastic facility can only encourage increased participation and higher level play." Roding Valley High School is also building a new teaching block with additional classrooms, library and Sixth Form study area. These facilities will be open to students from September 2018. Mrs Jenner added: "This is the time that the school will also be taking an extra form of entry into Year 7 based on local demand. I want the school to be able to offer our students the best possible education in terms of facilities available to them but also in terms of the standard of teaching and learning. Our results are improving, our Sixth Form is going from strength to strength and our New Year 7s are an absolute delight. I am really proud to be Head of School at such an exciting time and delighted to be able to offer our students the very best of facilities." During her talk to students Laviai recounted her time when as a 16-year-old volunteer at the London 2012 Olympics she was kit carrier for British heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill. In 2015 she won gold in the 400m at the 2015 European Junior Championships in Sweden. In February this year she recorded her personal best time of 51.90s at an indoor meet in Birmingham before reaching the final of the 400m at the 2017 European Indoor Championships in Belgrade in the summer.

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Morning Drop Off

Please can Parent /Carer remember that Students must be delivered to school in a safe and secure manner, students must be dropped off in Brook Road, not stopping or pausing your vehicles on the yellow Zig Zag lines. Please do not stop and let your child out of the car while you are stationary in traffic at the front of the school on Alderton Hill. Remember your child’s safety is our priority.

Mobile Phones

Please assist us in becoming a:

We would like to ask Parents to remind our students that all Mobile Phones should be switched off at all times throughout the school day. If they are seen or heard by a member of staff they will be confiscated.

Date

Event

Monday 2

October

Thursday 5 October

Year 8 Assessments Begin Chelsea’s Choice Year 11’s Off Timetable to work with Andrew Bruff Year 9 Parents Information Evening

Friday 6 October

McMillan Coffee Morning Year 11’s Off Timetable to work with Andrew Bluff

Updated Parent Bulletin th

Monday 9 October

Mock Trial Legal Conference Year 7 Assessments Begin

Thursday 12 October th

Thursday 5 October

Year 12 Parents Evening Chelsea’s Choice Year 9 Parents Information Evening

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Year 7 I would like to commend Henry Foster 7U and Amy Lewis 7W who represented our school at our Open Evening on Thursday evening and gave an insightful speech to prospective parents and students, discussing their experiences on Roding Valley. .

Year 7 Form Representatives Form

Student Names

Lola Collings

Harry Wells

Sonny Binet

Grace Craven

Latiah Hajdar

Harry Cain

Louis Medhurst

Aamir Khan

Ruby Coyte

Henry Twyford

Sara Shahparifar

Flavius Timis

Denn-Geovontai McKoy

Tanika Luba

Freddie Jarvis- Atkins

Eesha Gandhi

Alex Loveman

Cecilia Davey

â&#x20AC;&#x153;For their impeccable and compassionate behaviour in the communityâ&#x20AC;?.

Our New Year 7 Netball Team 7A

This group of students has been elected to represent the views of all students and to help and support the progress of Roding Valley. Our year 7 rep will be Cecilia Davey, congratulations Year 7 Form Tutors Cecilia!!!

I am pleased to announce our Year 7 Netball squad: Sophie Reed

Emily Reed

Bronya Overington

Demi Watts

Sienna Moy

Tallulah Wall

Artemis Barnett

Grace Craven

Amelia Weekes

Kaylin Archer

Year 7 Tutors Form Group

Form Tutor

Mrs. Daly

Miss Zerrington

Mr. Cocker

Mrs. Patel

Mr. Liddle

Ms. Druce

Mr. Dobson

Ms. Kalair

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Year 7 Cross Country League 2017 Boys

Girls Name

Time

Name

Time

Faith Mensah

7.19

Archie Sherrin

6.56

Bronya Overington

7.22

Bailey Allen

7.17

Sara Shahparifar

8.04

Elan Wainer

7.27

Mia Harrison Wall

8.20

Charles Garner

7.34

Charlotte Maris Hopwood

8.35

Sonny Binet

7.35

Emily Bagshaw

8.40

Harry Cain

7.36

Maisie Southgate

8.59

Ralfie Paris

7.37

Grace Craven

9.11

Ryan Dadson

7.37

Alice Richards

9.82

Haydon Porter

7.42

Alicia Acheampong

10.02

Harry Marcus

7.43

Year 7 Road Safety Event Update The Whole of year 7 had a road safety play during September and October. This is part of Safer Essex Roads Partnership’s (SERP) Road Safety Programme and delivered to highlight key road safety messages at a time when students will be making independent journeys. Students learnt about the importance of being safe and not being distracted around the roads when moving to and from school. The play was delivered by ‘The Riot Act’ and the play consisted of three actors assuming the roles of three teenagers who are dealing with their own issues and not paying full attention the roads they are near. The actors’ performance was fantastic and was delivered with music, video imagery and references that the pupils could really relate too…namely ‘Pokémon Go’. After the play the actors broke character and conducted an interactive workshop to analyse the story and their characters and to go over some of the sad and hard hitting facts about the tragedies that occur on the roads in the UK particularly with the students’ age group. The pupils thoroughly enjoyed the play and certainly left the hall with a fresh perspective on the dangers of being around the roads. On Page 13 students have the opportunity to get more involved with this scheme.

Ms. Williams Year 7 Progress Leader

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Year 10 Thoughts of the Week.

Classes of the Week

It has been another great week for year 10. Walking in to lessons it is clear to see the enthusiasm and effort that year 10 have towards their learning and this is great to see (long may this continue).

10A/Sc3 (Miss Edwards’s class)

I have also been really impressed with the number of Year 10 students who are offering their services to help out at RVHS Open Evening. Obviously they are proud of their school and want to show it off as much as we (the staff) do.

“For outstanding effort and work.” 10A/PE5( Mr Price’s Class)

“For their efforts and commitment in rugby”

After Mr. Mammam gave a great assembly on motivation and achieving goals year 10 were fortunate to have a special guest speak in their assembly. Lavia Neilson who is a Great British athlete (part of the 4 x 200 metre GB team) came in to speak to year 10. Lavia told the inspirational story of how she became a Great British Athlete and spoke about the barriers and ‘hurdles’ that she had to overcome to reach her dreams. Lavia left the pupils with the sentiment that ‘no dream is too big’ BUT to achieve requires hard work and effort!

Form Group

Well done to 10T who were the top of the attendance leader board with 98.9% attendance just beating 10S who had 98.3%.

To All Year 10 Form Representatives, The first Meeting will be held next week. Lots to be discussed.....

Form Tutor

10Q

Mr. Baidoo

10R

Mr. Goodall

10S

Mr. Kendall

10T

Mr. Beda

10U

Ms. Barron

10V

Mr. Perera

10W

Ms. Wilson

10X

Ms. Langlet

Mr Price Year 10 Progress Leader

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Year 11 11C/Gg1 Tariq Riaz “For being kind and helping Year 7 students feel welcome and settle in. Tariq's parents must be very proud of their son”. Nominated by Miss Sargeant.

Exams 2017-2018

The Provisional (Version1) GCSE and GCE Examination Timetables for May/June 2017 are now available on our school website. Dates/days / times may be subject to change at this stage so it is always best to ensure you have the latest version, so please check regularly for updates You will also find all relevant links and information regarding examinations. All documents and information will be updated as they become available. It is vital that students and parents read and understand the information provided. Should you have any questions regarding examinations, please contact Jenny Draper (Examinations Officer) on 020 8508 1173 or alternatively I can be emailed directly at jdraper@rodingvalley.net

“Because they've come back to school with a new attitude whereby they want to make the most of their learning hours." Nominated by Miss Stockings

Advance Notice The first Exam Week for Year 11 starts immediately after they return from half term break, Monday 30th October. The students will sit exams for all of their subjects and the results will be used for their post 16 applications be that sixth form, college or/and apprenticeship. If your son/daughter has not already started preparing for these exams, they must start NOW!" Year 11 Form Tutors Form Group

Form Tutor

11Q

Mr. Rahman

11R

Mrs. Vemaak

11S

Mrs. Rahman

11T

Mr. Qureshi

11U

Miss Bleakley

11V

Miss Bates

11W

Mr Ehsan

11X

Mr Ryan

Mr Quirk Year 11 Progress Leader

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Roding Valley High Sixth Form Improving Your Reading Skills: (Working Smarter) Improving your reading skills will reduce unnecessary reading time and enable you to read in a more focused and selective manner. You will also be able to increase your levels of understanding and concentration. This guide shows you how to read with greater efficiency and effectiveness by using a range of different reading skills.

Reading for Study You already use a range of reading styles in everyday situations. The normal reading style that you might use for reading a novel is to read in detail, focusing on every word in sequence from start to finish. If it is a magazine you are reading, you might flick through the pages to see which articles are of interest. When you look in a telephone directory for a particular name, you purposefully ignore all other entries and focus your attention on spotting the name you want. These everyday reading skills can be applied to your studies. To improve your reading skills you need to: 

Have clear reading goals;



Choose the right texts;



Use the right reading style;



Use note taking techniques.

Use your reading goals to help you identify the information that is relevant to your current task.

Choosing a Text You will need to assess the text to see if it contains information that is relevant to your reading goals.  Check the date of publication. Is the information up-to-date?  Read the publisher's blurb at the back or inside sleeve for an overview of the content.  Check the contents page for relevant chapters.  Look up references for your topic in the index. If the text does not seem relevant, discard it. Once you have selected a text you can use the following techniques of scanning and skimming to help you identify areas for detailed reading.

Scanning Scanning is the technique you might use when reading a telephone directory. You pass your vision speedily over a section of text in order to find particular words or phrases that are relevant to your current task. You can scan:  The introduction or preface of a text;  The first or last paragraphs of chapters;  The concluding or summarising chapter of a text;  The book index.

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Skimming Skimming is the process of speedy reading for general meaning. Let your eyes skip over sentences or phrases which contain detail. Concentrate on identifying the central or main points. Use this technique to:  Preview a selection of text prior to detailed reading;  Refresh your understanding of a selection of text following detailed reading.

Detailed Reading and Note Taking Once you have selected useful information, you can begin to read in detail. Note taking techniques provide a useful aid to reading. Use:  Underlining and highlighting to pick out what seem to you the most central or important words and phrases. Do this in your own copy of texts or on photocopies - never on borrowed texts;  Keywords to record the main headings as you read. Use one or two keywords for each main point. Keywords can be used when you don't want to mark the text;  Questions to encourage you to take an active approach to your reading. Record your questions as you read. They can also be used as prompts for follow up work;  Summaries to check you have understood what you have read. Pause after a section of text and put what you have read in your own words. Skim over the text to check the accuracy of your summary, filling in any significant gaps. These techniques encourage an active engagement with the text as well as providing you with a useful record of your reading. Avoid passively reading large amounts of text; it does not make effective use of your time. Always use a note taking technique to increase your levels of concentration and understanding.

Increasing Your Reading Speed It is more important to improve your reading skills than your reading speed. Being focused and selective in your reading habits will reduce the time you spend reading. If, in addition to using a range of reading skills you want to increase your reading speed, then the following technique will be of use. The average reading speed is about 240-300 words per minute.

Summary 

Have a clear focus for your reading. Set your reading goals.  Survey the text before you spend the time and effort involved in detailed reading.  Scan and skim to select the text for detailed reading.  Scan and skim after detailed reading to reinforce your understanding.  Use a form of note taking whilst reading in detail, to keep you concentrating, aid understanding and provide you with a record of your reading.  Using clear reading goals and a variety of reading skills is more important than increasing your reading speed.  To improve your reading speed, don't increase the speed of the eye across the page, but increase the number of words the eye recognises in a single glance. Use this guide wisely and we believe your progress will increase.

Mr Harris, MA (T&L) Raising Standards Leader, 6th Form

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Year 9 Green Economy Day The Y9 Green Economy day got off to a (rainy) start at High Beech! Their first activity is to collect as many animals as possible from a forest area. Taking care of course... Joel also wasn't too impressed with his compulsory water proof he was given...

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Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme (DoE) The Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award will be open to students in Years 9 and 10. This is a great opportunity to develop many skills, including leadership outside of the classroom environment. The students have the opportunity to then go on to complete the Silver award in Sixth form.

For more information, please contact Ms. Edwards

Event

Date

Time

Venue

PTA Meeting

Monday 2nd October

7pm to 9pm

Main Reception

Year 7 Disco

Friday 20th October

6pm to 8:30pm

Main Hall ( See Flyer)

Christmas Market

Thursday 23rd November

7pm to 10pm

Main Hall

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Year 7 Disco. £5.00 per ticket, ENTRY only. Golden ticket SALE: lucky student to buy the GOLDEN ticket will get a free pizza plus a treat pack on the night!! Friday 20th October 2017, 6.30pm— 8.30pm. Refreshments sold. Buy your own fresh personal Domino Pizza £2.50 on the night. Tickets on sale now from the wooden foyer area at lunchtimes ONLY No tickets available on the evening.

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Year 11 NOW is the time for students in year 11 to start thinking about post 16 choices. Next week all students in Year 11 will be given a further education booklet containing lots of information to assist with the decisions and choices to be made post 16. All students in Year 11 will be offered an individual careers interview appointment time with me this term and parents are very welcome to attend the interview. Following the meeting I will be posting home an individual careers action plan detailing what has been discussed during the interview.

Year 12 and 13 What Career Live? and What University Live? On 6 & 7 October, What Career Live? and What University Live? is launching at Olympia London, offering the unique opportunity to compare both universities and apprenticeship providers side-by-side. Free to attend, it is the ideal place for students to explore the full range of post-school options, gather advice and talk face-to-face with top companies and leading universities, to decide which path is right for them. To find out more visitwhatcareerlive.co.uk, call020 8394 5290 The Careers Department have a Twitter account where regular updates regarding apprenticeships, College, Sixth Form and University and all things careers related will be regularly published. Follow @RVHS_Careers to keep up to date with careers news.

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If you are passionate about improving your own road safety, your peers safety, the surrounding environment and the local community

Volunteer to become a Road Safety Ambassador The Safer Essex Roads Partnership *(SERP) is working hard to ensure that the roads in Essex, Southend and Thurrock are safer for everyone. However, we are all responsible for safety on our roads and this is how you as a Road Safety Ambassador can help. We would like you to represent Road safety within your school/6th Form to your peers. The overall aim is to reduce the number of casualties and deaths on the roads in Essex. You will be helping to spread the message in your school/6th Form. We are looking for support with our campaigns which we run throughout the year. The statistics show that young drivers/motorcyclists and moped riders have the highest collision rates of all car/bike drivers/riders in Essex, Southend and Thurrock. This can be achieved in a number of ways by you depending on your strengths. 

Promotional display/write up in school/college newsletter.



Ensuring that information is posted on the interactive screens around the school/college and on the school/college website/twitter



Working alongside road safety staff when they visit the school/college.

We will support you with the various national and local campaigns and any ideas that you may have for a road safety campaign of your own. 

Road safety weeks



Seat Belt and Child restraints campaign



Be safe be Seen



Powered Two wheeler campaign(win a bike)



#My Small Change. (win a car)



Drink/Drive and Drug/Drive campaign



Mobile phone campaign



Speed campaign

This role is entirely voluntary. You will receive a badge and an information pack to get you started. Volunteering for this role will also help you when applying for jobs and applying for a university place. If you have any questions please contact Donna Bond donna.bond@essexhighways.org

*The Safer Essex Roads Partnership is a partnership between Essex County Council, Essex Police, Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, Highways Agency, Southend Borough Council, Thurrock Council and the Essex& Herts Air Ambulance Trust

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. Student Absence If your child is unable to attend School for any reason please report their absence by phoning the school number by 9.30am at the latest, you must also ring in each day of your child’s absence. 020 8508 1173 On their return to School please ensure your child brings with them a letter or medical evidence if requested explaining the reason for the absence for our records.

Medical Appointments Please make sure you make any medical or dental appointments outside of school time. If this is not possible then please try to ensure that your child attends before and/or after their appointment.

Holidays in Term Time It is not school policy to authorise any holidays during term time except in exceptional circumstances. A ‘Leave of Absence’ form must be completed (these are available at Student Reception) should you require leave for your child, a letter detailing your exceptional circumstances should accompany it. Please be aware if the absence is not authorised and the holiday is taken, the case may be referred to the Education Welfare Service who may issue a Penalty Notice for £120 (or £60 if paid within 21 days) to each parent for each child taken out of school. For full details regarding attendance please see our Attendance Policy which can be found on our website or contact Mrs Jeanette Low, our Attendance and Welfare Manager on the school number.

Guidance for Common Ailments Please see the following guidance from the NHS of common childhood illnesses; this advises what type of illness requires time off from school and what does not. Should you require further guidance please contact the school.

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School Communications: We have been communicating by email for over a year now in a bid to get information to you quicker and more cost effectively. We found, however, our previous parental communication system did not give the functionality that people expect from smart phone apps today. So the school has invested in a new communication system call RS Connect Ed and with this comes a shiny new App.

MyEd is the free parent app that gives you a multitude of communication and information features to stay in touch with what is going on at school. The app gives you direct access to your child's attendance, timetable, absence records, achievements, behaviour and much, much more. You will also see that we update and change the information in the app as the school year moves along. Click here to see a short video about the app We are able to send you messages directly to the MyEd app relating to important information about your child's education and to remind you of events that are taking place at school. We can also embed links to regularly used systems, for example ParentPay & Doddle so you can keep everything in one place. You will receive a notification if we send you a message and there is no charge for the messages you send to us. The App can be downloaded by anyone and they will have access to information also available on our website Only parents will be able to access their own studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s information as long as we have the email address and mobile number you are using to access the App. Everyone will be able to see image to the left. But only parents of students in the school will be able to access this when clicking on the My Students tab.The MyEd app is available for both Apple iOS and Android devices and can be found using the links below: Step 1 - Go to your App Store Step 2 - Search for My Ed Step 3 - Download the Free app Apple iOS App Google Android App Once you have installed and opened MyEd, search for Roding Valley High School and follow the simple instructions to identify yourself. Please do not hesitate to contact the school if you are having any problems and we will help you get set up.

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EXAMINATION INVIGILATORS REQUIRED Roding Valley High School is currently looking to expand our team of Invigilators for the forthcoming and subsequent examination sessions and is looking for efficient, flexible and well organised people. The role involves overseeing and supervising examinations and ensuring Awarding Bodies guidelines and regulations are followed. There are also internally scheduled examinations held throughout the school year where you will be required. Hours will be on a varied/ad-hoc basis, held throughout a school day. We do ask that you can commit to working 8-10 hours (per week if required) during exam periods. There will be appropriate training for successful candidates. Please contact Jenny Draper, Examinations Officer on 0208 508 1173 for further details.