The final half-term of the academic year is always very busy, and this year has been no different. Last week we welcomed our new Year 6 cohort and their parents into Roding Valley for their first official function as the newest members of our school community. On Thursday was the transition event, which gave staff, students and parents the opportunity to meet ahead of the new year. The BBQ and waffles went down particularly well! Our Student Ambassadors were brilliant and really helped to settle the nerves of some of the new cohort- a huge thank you to you all for helping.
0pts
The previous week we met at 8 Rocks for a fantastic wine tasting event. It was great to see so many people and I'm delighted to say that it was a sell out! In the Autumn Term we will be sharing a new calendar of events for all things PTA related.
5
0pts
On 12th June we held interviews for the Head Prefects. There were a staggering 32 applicants, our highest ever number. All candidates were put through their paces on the day, completing a challenging goldfish bowl exercise to start. 10 students were then shortlisted to be interviewed by myself, the Head of Sixth Form and the Chair of Governors. I am delighted to announce that the following students were successful; Head Prefects – Louis James and Jasmine Singh. Senior Prefects – Rosa Marshall, Sydnae-Rose Smith, AJ Crawford-Kite and Amber Gordon.
Last week was also Year 11 Leavers Day. This started with a celebratory assembly, shirt signing and the handing out of various (and some rather dubious) awards as well as the Class of 2024 Year Book. In the evening was the Year 11 Prom. A wonderful time was had by all, and despite the late night staff were unanimous in it being our ‘best ever’ prom!
This week the year 11 students have their Transition Day where they gain first-hand experience of what Sixth Form life will entail.
At the end of this week we have Sports Day. Our students are incredibly excited about these two days and already selecting which event that they will compete in. Please make sure that they come to school with plenty of water, sunscreen and a hat.
On 9thJuly we have the KS3 Summer Showcase. The KS3 Summer Showcase is an excellent opportunity for students within years 7-9 to take part in creating a project that enables them to express their ideas and experiences in a creative and thoughtful way. Following the presentation of this year's chosen theme of ‘Culture, Identity and Me’, students have been tasked with creating a project of their choosing that relates to this theme. We are encouraging students to be imaginative in the way they present their projects so that it reflects them and their personality. Upon the completion of their projects, students will present them at the KS3 Summer Showcase whereby, they will be able to speak passionately about their creations to teachers, parents, carers and governors. This will also provide students with an opportunity to express themselves verbally so that they can justify and detail why they have created their projects and what importance it has to them. The event starts at 4.00pm and promises to be another great evening.
Our final event of the year is the Sports Awards on 16th July. As you can imagine, this is a very popular event so please do respond ASAP when you are contacted, should you wish to attend.
Throughout this half term we have also been running our Super Curricular Lectures for KS3 students. In total there are 23 lectures with a variety of topics including, ‘The development of liberal ideology through a Mary Wollstonecraft shaped window’, ‘The different interpretations on the origins of the First World War’, ‘Balancing my social and extracurricular activities with my school life’ and ‘Is the world becoming more dangerous?’. The feedback from both the presenters and student audience has been phenomenal and we look forward to continuing this fantastic programme next year.
In previous bulletins, I have referenced changes that we are making to our Rewards Policy for September. We know that the recognition, rewarding and celebration of success is fundamental to any young person’s school experience. I am very excited about these new changes and the positive impact it will have on our school community. Alongside this will be some additional tweaks to our Student Leadership and Student Voice. We hope that next year will be our most successful yet and one filled with both hard work and celebration.
Thank you, as always, for your continued support.
Mr D Charlton Headteacher
Messages from Our Year Progress Leaders
Our team is proud to be your child’s Year Progress Leader and very much looking forward to supporting your child and with such a great cohort of students, we are sure it will be a great half term. To ensure that you are aware of who your child’s Year Progress Leader is and who to contact, please refer to their details below:
Year 7: Ms Hegerty
To contact Ms Hegerty, please email chegerty@rodingvalley.net
Year 8: Miss Reed
To contact Miss Reed, please email hreed@rodingvalley.net
Year 9: Mr Ryan
To contact Mr Ryan, please email fryan@rodingvalley.net
Year 10: Mrs Wills
To contact Mrs Wills, please email rwills@rodingvalley.net
Year 11: Miss Pinches
To contact Miss Pinches, please email tpinches@rodingvalley.net
Year 7 News
Message from Ms Hegerty
Year 7 are well into the swing of their final half term of this academic year and summer is well and truly here! Besides the warm weather, we have had some exciting events and trips over the past couple of weeks and some coming up including sports day!
On Friday the 21st June RVHS hosted a Fusion event where students were able to share their cultures, heritage and religions with the rest of the school. We had brilliant performances of songs, dances, poetry and speeches from an array of different students from across our school from Albanian folk dancing to original Jamaican songs. It was fantastic to see students embracing their personal culture and sharing it with the wider school community.
I would like to give Duaa G from 7Li a special well done for her performance of a traditional Pakistani folk dance - you were amazing!
Over 80 year 7s have just got back from the PGL residential trip at Caythorpe Court in Lincolnshire where they took part in all sorts of outdoor activities such as wall climbing, archery, axe throwing, orienteering and many more! A huge thank you to our brilliant RVHS staff who gave up their time to supervise what was an exhausting trip! A special thanks to Ms Reed, Ms Joseph, Mr Ifrim, Ms Burke, Mr Jones, Mr Saghir and Ms Lasfer!
Year 8 News
Message from Miss Reed
I trust everyone has now received their son/daughters school report. A reminder to contact subject teachers if you have any queries regarding their progress.
I would like to congratulate all the students in Year 8 who took part in District Sports last Friday. It was a lovely warm day at Chelmsford and students performed exceptionally. A huge well done to Bobby W who reached the 100m finals and came away with 3 medals in total. Tyleah E also performed exceptionally well in her events.
We have now returned from the Year 7 and 8 residential trip which took place at Caythorpe Court, Lincolnshire. Year 8 students had a wonderful time and faced new challenges. Activities that students took part in included Jacob's Ladder, Climbing and Axe throwing. Students also had the opportunity to toast marshmallows around the campfire as one of our evening activities. A special mention to Ruby F who was nominated by Mrs Lasfer. I would also like to thank all the staff who assisted on the trip for all their hard work.
Wishing everyone a lovely weekend.
Attention Year 8 Parents and Carers
Please click on the following links for information regarding our Year 9 History Trip March 2025
History Trip Letter
Year 9 News
Message from Mr Ryan
We are very quickly coming to the end of the academic year. At this point GCSE courses are well underway. The amount of positive feedback I have had about year 9 is phenomenal. They have really started their GCSEs well and I am ecstatic about this. They have also been really sensible and mature about the options process and any issues have been rectified.
We have the end of year celebration assembly coming up and I am really looking forward to congratulating as many students as possible. I would like to congratulate Ryan NJ for scoring 200 on Bedrock last week.
It was also a delight to see so many year 9 students participating in our Fusion Event and also to hear about how well we did in the West Essex Athletics Competition.
I would like to thank the following students for their hard work with the year 6 students who had their transition day on Friday. These students are exemplary in their approach to school and really do represent Roding Valley well.
Freddie E
Tom B
Asya K
Luanha C
Suden P
Max F
Freddie L
Oliver C
Matthew S
Nyima S
Freiya G
Gracie H
Daisy-
Samanta D
As always, if you have any questions or concerns please contact your child’s Academic Mentor in the first instance.
I want to say a huge congratulations to Year 10 on the way that they conducted themselves during their exams for the last two weeks. I hope that it was a valuable experience for them to get a feel for what the final GCSE exams will be like and help to prepare themselves accordingly. Once the tests are marked staff will be going over the areas for improvement and a final progress report will be shared with you.
Now that exams are over it is time to look towards the end of term and lots of exciting things.
Next week is Sports Day and I hope that Year 10 will really throw themselves into this, being their final one. Some of the year group will also be attending New City College for an exciting taster day. If you have not completed the consent form please do so asap (this was sent via Evolve to your email). Students also need to complete this form to select the course they want to try. NCY taster day options choices. The letter with information about the day is here 2024 Parent Consent New City College Taster Day
More information in regards to the 6th form taster day will be shared soon.
The final week of term is the careers week. As you know Tuesday 16th July is the Take Your Child to Work Day. If you have still not completed the form please do so now. TYCTW day form
Finally, I am pleased to announce that we have a wonderful team of YES prefects who have already begun to help out with the new intake of Year 7 and were a credit to the school at the open evening.
Year 11 News
Message from Miss Pinches
It is a very strange feeling sitting down to write the final bulletin for Year 11, and my last as a Head of Year. It has been a wonderful journey with this cohort, and what an opportunity to be part of their support system these last 5 years. I know that I speak on behalf of all the staff at RVHS when I say how proud we are of this cohort! It has been a fantastic week of celebrations to cap off a wonderful year. The friendship in our cohort is amazing to see as we come together to do a final RVHS send off!
Class of 2024, you will be missed!
Best of luck to every student and enjoy the summer holidays!
For a final time, Miss Pinches
6th Form News
Message from Ms Wheaton & Mrs Curling
Welcome - Student Executive
Well done to our 6 successful students, who now hold these prestigious posts at the top of our student leadership structure. The Head Prefects had their first big event on Thursday 27th, speaking to all prospective year 6 students and families.
The House Captain interviews will take place on Thursday 4th July 2024 and we are looking forward to sharing our successful candidates in a couple of weeks.
6th Form News
A big thank you to our Year 12s who have been supporting the Super Curricular Lecture programme by delivering lectures to our lower school students. This year is the first year that year 12 students have been invited to present to students in years 7-9 and they are doing themselves proud. The presentations last 30 minutes and each year 12 student has created an absolutely brilliant presentation to impart knowledge onto their younger peers. It has been noted that they are delivering high quality lectures with passion and are engaging our younger students in thought-provoking concepts. We are proud of you Year 12!
Sydnae-Rose S - Volunteering and Food Banks
Freddie B – What is Parliament?
6
Form News
Natalie M & Ema Z – Balancing social & extracurricular activities with my school life
Work Experience
William F – Is the world becoming dangerous?
Work experience week is fast approaching (15-19th July). Please ensure all paperwork has been completed and returned to Ms Sellears.
Dates for your diary:
● W/c/ 1st July - resits for any students achieving an E or below in the PPEs
● Wednesday 3rd July - Yr13 Leavers day and Senior Prom
● Thursday 11th July - Year 12 concerns evening (invite only)
Latest 6th Form Bulletins: 6th Form Bulletin No.31 6th Form Bulletin No.32
On the 24th May 2024 a number of Year 8 students attended an educational activity on Magnetism at the Royal Institution - Young Scientist Centre. They were exposed to how magnets work, how to create magnets, creating rail guns (safely!) and seeing how superconductors can be used for transportation. Students were given the opportunity to share their ideas on magnetism and discussed ways in making their rail guns more effective.
We are proud of what the students have achieved. Again, the students demonstrated and applied teamwork, leadership for some students and application of their scientific skills during the activities.
This activity helped students to appreciate the use and the application of magnets and magnetism. We believe that they appreciate the way magnetism is a useful non-contact force used in life. (Picture on left – Liquid oxygen being magnetised between the pole of a horseshoe magnet)
We hope in the Science faculty that we can continue to inspire our students in Science and provide them the opportunity to apply their skills from other subject areas for future educational visits.
What about for next academic year?
If there are activities you would like to do in or outside of school please complete the following Form via the link below (copy the link if you cannot access the form). This form will be available as from Monday 1st July until Wednesday 31st July 2024 Form link: https://forms.gle/MrygZ3ArgF5aU1gw9
This week we made and decorated bug hotels as a continuation of the previous session where we learnt all about the important roles’ bugs play in our ecosystem.
The Super Curricular Lectures (SCLs) are underway! The students have already listened to talks on the benefits of involving themselves within their local community through volunteering at food banks, busting the myths surrounding attending a collegiate university, how to manage their extracurricular life with their school work and they have also engaged in a riveting lecture on all things politics. Our students are behaving exceptionally well and are fully embracing this opportunity which is fantastic to see.
On Friday 21st June, we celebrated our second Fusion event at Roding Valley. This event has grown since the spring and we included poetry, dance and song from many different cultures from our school. In the event we saw Nicaraguan and Moroccan dance, a Pakistani/Arabic mash up, and Balkan dance, to name just a few. The event ended with a Bollywood Mix, performed by students from year 7 right up to year 12.
This event demonstrates how committed our students are to celebrating their home cultures and languages. The main student organisers were Maira K -12T, Madalena S – 12U, Marce S – 12U, and a brilliant addition to the team from the spring, Amber G – 12S.
The team completed three performances; the evening event, and daytime performances for our students and students from Staples Road Primary.
We are already looking forward to our autumn event!
The Computer Science department's lunchroom transformed into a battleground of epic Mario Kart racing the past two Wednesdays! Students demonstrated good competitive spirit as they drifted around corners shooting shells and using Mario mushrooms to boost speed and a love of Mario Kart, competed fiercely (but friendly!) in the house competition. Seasoned pros and drift-happy rookies alike enjoyed the using Mario stars to beat the competition.
We're off to see the Wizard! The word is out: The Roding valley High School whole school production for 2025 is The Wizard of Oz!
This exciting news was delivered on Thursday morning, by our amazing sixth form production team, via this video, which they made.
Students were treated to songs from the show during break time.
Auditions for The Wizard of Oz will be in September, after which tickets will go on sale via ParentPay. The show dates are 12th to 14th February 2025.
On Thursdays 20th June 20 students took part in The Food and Nutrition Department Cupcake House Competition The cupcakes were amazing meaning the judges had a tough time choosing the winners!
LOST PROPERTY
To report any property lost, please email: lostproperty@rodingvalley.net
We ask if you could provide a detailed description of the item you have lost so that we can reunite you with your missing property.
In England, a Free School Meal (FSM) is a statutory benefit available to school aged children from families who receive other qualifying benefits and who have been through the relevant registration process. Recently, the process of applying for Free School Meals at Roding Valley High School has changed to an online application in order to improve speed and reduce the burden of paperwork for parents. For more information on the qualifying benefits and for more information, please visit our Free School Meals page on our school website. It is important that parents register their children for free school meals if they are entitled as the school receives additional funding known as the Pupil Premium to support the children’s learning. The use of the pupil premium is personalised to meet the needs of the children who are entitled to support, such as 1-1 tuition, additional LSA support and intervention groups, access to school visits, Learning Mentor, speech and language assistants, Family Support and counselling. If you believe that your child is eligible for Free School Meals, please click here to use our Free School Meals Checker. Your Certificate of Eligibility will then need to be emailed to finance@rodingvalley.net
University of Essex Sport Science Trip
Wednesday 19th July saw 11 students from sixth form and Year 11 visit the University of Essex’s Human Performance Unit to experience Performance Profiling testing and what it would be like to be a Sport Science student at the University for the day.
Students carried out a range of different tests on power, strength, speed, agility and coordination over the course of the day in the Universities Sport Science Laboratories and their fantastic indoor arena.
It was a brilliant insight into the knowledge and skills used by University students covering a sport science course as well as seeing what life was like at a campus University. The students were praised on their competitiveness and willingness to give everything a go on the day, which made the whole day a really enjoyable one.
District Sports 2024
Friday 21st June saw the PE Department take a 68 plus strong squad of students from Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 to the West Essex and Harlow District Sports at Melbourne Park, Chelmsford. As one of the highlights of the school calendar it was great to be back at a fantastic athletics venue and the application, attitude and effort of the students involved was brilliant all day.
Alongside the athletes competing were a group of CTec Sport students from Year 12 who were supporting the running of any of the field events and timing of the races. A huge thank you to these students for their hard work and help during the day that was recognised by all the other school staff on the day.
The day was a hugely successful day from an individual students’ perspective and as a collective team Roding Valley perspective. We had a lot of students finishing 1st, 2nd and 3rd in their events and these successes will be released in the next bulletin but we also had a lot of students who finished 4th, 5th and 6th in their events over the course of the day which helped their teams’ overall points totals. This led to Roding Valley getting their joint ever highest finish at the West Essex and Harlow District Sports of 3rd out of 15 schools competing on the day.
Well done to all the students who took part on the day and represented the school brilliantly on what was a hugely successful day!
Congratulations to the following students for their fantastic work in Literacy and during Drop Everything and Write (DEAW)
Summer P – Y7
Millie M – Y7
Crystal-Leigh M – Y7
Ben K – Y7
Colette L – Y7
Amelia S – Y7
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.
0208-508-1173
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
The school does not authorise any holidays during term time except if the Headteacher deems it an exceptional circumstances. A ‘Leave of Absence’ form must be completed (these are available at Student Reception) detailing your exceptional circumstances.
Please be aware if the absence is not authorised and the holiday is taken, the case will be referred to the Local Authority 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 here.
Who to contact
Should you have any concerns about your child’s attendance or punctuality please contact your child’s Year Progress Leader or our Attendance Officer Ms A Parsley (aparsley@rodingvalley.net)
Explore together: Ask your child to show you their favourite websites and apps and what they do on them. Listen, show interest and encourage them to teach you the basics of the site or app. 1
Chat about online safety little and often: Young people are likely to want to explore new pps and websites this month, whether that is for learning or for fun. Take this opportunity to talk to them about how to stay safe on these new services, and in general. Ask if anything ever worries them while they are online. Make sure they know that if they ever feel worried, they can get help by talking to you or another adult they trust.
Help your child identify trusted adults who can help them if they are worried: This includes you and other adults at home, as well as adults from wider family, school or other support services who they are able to contact at this time. Encourage them to draw a picture or write a list of their trusted adults.
Be non-judgemental: Explain that you would never blame them for anything that might happen online, and you will always give them calm, loving support.
Talk about how their online actions can affect others: If your child is engaging with others online, remind them to consider how someone else might feel before they post or share something. If they are considering sharing a photo/video of somebody else, they should always ask permission first.
Parental controls: Make use of the parental controls available on your home broadband and any internet enabled device in your home. You can find out more about how to use parental controls by visiting your broadband provider’s website.
Direct your child to age appropriate information about relationships and sex: It’s natural for young people to start exploring their sexual feelings online and adolescents are more inclined to take risks. It’s important to understand this and to talk to your child in a positive way. Thinkuknow, Brook, The Mix and Childline all provide age appropriate information about relationships and sex that you can signpost your child to.
Make sure they know about CEOP: Young people can report a concern about grooming or sexual abuse to CEOP at www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/ and get support from a specialist Child Protection Advisor. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Support your child with Thinkuknow websites
The age appropriate Thinkuknow websites are a great way to start and continue chats about online safety.
Our websites provide open and honest guidance for young people on friends, relationships and the internet, covering topics like dealing with pressure; consent; and getting support when you are worried.
You will find lots more advice on keeping your child safe online at www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents.
If you are worried that a child or young person is at risk of harm online, you should call the police. Young people can make a report to CEOP at https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/
Other Recommended Resources
Parent Info: Expert information for parents about building their child’s resilience both online and off. Produced by NCA-CEOP and Parent Zone. This free service can be embedded on to your child’s school website. www.parentinfo.org
Brook: Information and advice for young people on sexual health and wellbeing, including staying safe online. https://www.brook.org.uk
The Mix: Support service for young people with information and advice on sex and relationships. https://www.themix.org.uk
Internet Matters: A useful tool showing how to set parental controls across a range of devices and websites. http://www.internetmatters.org/parentalcontrols/interactive-guide/
NSPCC Net Aware: Provides reviews and guidance on the most popular social networks, apps and games that children use. https://www.net-aware.org.uk/
Childnet – Information and advice for parents and carers on supporting people online. https://www.childnet.com/reso urces/supporting-youngpeople-online
How Can I Access Edulink?
EduLink can be accessed on any device – PC, laptop, tablet or mobile device – via the web browser or via the EduLink app. The link to access the EduLink login page on a web browser is www.edulinkone.com
Alternatively, you can download the EduLink App which is available to download for free on Apple or on Android.
Both the App and the web browser will display this log-in screen.
The School ID is ‘Roding’.
Parents/Carers will need to enter the Username and Password they have been provided with and click ‘Log in’.
The displayed is dependant of the platform you are logged in to:
• Via Web Browser
• Via the EduLink App
Navigating Edulink
You are able to navigate each of the following areas in EduLink:
• Achievement: You van view all positive achievements that have been awarded to your child
• Account Information: In this section you can view the current address we have for your child on file, your child’s Year group and the name of their Form tutor
• Timetable: In this section you can view your child’s daily timetable
• Absence Reporting: This feature will allow you to send a direct message to our Attendance Officer, to notify us of any absence for your child
• Linked Resources: This section contains links to all the schools learning resources available to your child both at school and at home
• Update Information: This section shows all of the contact information we hold for yourself and your child. You can review and update this information with any changes that may occur
• Exams: You can see all of your child upcoming exams; your child can also access this information so they can manage their own exam schedule
• Documents: In this section you can view your child’s reports
Parents can access information on all their children currently admitted to Roding Valley High School. If you require any assistance, please contact Mr Vermaak or Miss Stewart (mvermaak@rodingvalley.net or lstewart@rodingvalley.net )
How to Log on to Google Classroom?
Classroom
Students can log into their Gmail using their school email address and their password. Their school email will be the year they started at RVHS started plus their first initial and surname @rodingvalley.net (example- 19plarkin@rodingvalley.net).
Once your child has have logged in, they will need to click on the google apps button and then select ‘Google Classroom’
Your child will then be able to see all of the classes they belong to. They will then need to click on the class they want to use resources for and take a look at everything that their class teacher has posted for them to work on. They will be able to download items and make comments on them. Teachers will be regularly posting new work on their Google Classrooms.
What to Do if your child is a Missing a Subject their Google Classroom?
If your child is missing a Google Classroom for one of their subjects, they will need to click on the addition symbol, followed by ‘Join Class’ and then enter the Class Code for their missing subject. Class Codes are available from their subject teacher.
Top Tips for Our Students
Students must keep up to date with their lessons by using Google Classroom every day.
Use their workbooks to complete the work shown on their Google Classroom.
Don’t slack on presentation! Keep their notes in order of the lessons on the Google Classroom.
Year 11 and 13 Students: There will be revision materials available on Google Classroom. Please use them.
What is Seneca?
Seneca is a free home learning & revision platform that is very popular with our students. It is based on cognitive science, has adaptive learning and can be accessed by our students via their phones!
What Content is available to our Students through Seneca?
Seneca has resources available for KS3, KS4 and KS5 students that has been supplied to them from AQA, OCR, EdExcel Pearson and IGCSE.
Our students will be able to access content designed for each of their subjects and also for their specific courses. There is so much to choose from.
Some areas are even linked to the Exam Boards Course Specifications.
Year Progress Leaders
Year 7: Ms Hegerty – chegerty@rodingvalley.net
Year 8: Miss Reed - hreed@rodingvalley.net
Year 9: Mr Ryan – fryan@rodingvalley.net
Year 10: Mrs Wills – rwills@rodingvalley.net
Year 11: Miss Pinches – tpinches@rodingvalley.net
Sixth Form: Ms Wheaton/Ms Curling – lcurling@rodingvalley.net / awheaton@rodingvalley.net
