6th Form News

We welcome Mrs Curling as Ms Wheaton now goes off on maternity leave. The Sixth Form team and both cohorts wish Ms Wheaton all the very best with her new arrival and are looking forward to working with her maternity cover, Mrs Curling.

University of Kent Canterbury Campus

On Monday 17th April we took the Yr12 cohort to the University of Kent, Canterbury Campus. We had an early start to make the most of the campus trip -

“Visiting the University of Kent opened my eyes to the possibility of going to a campus university. I previously had only considered city universities, so seeing a self-contained campus helped me realise that I would love the community feeling, and the easy-access facilities. It has also broadened my search, as I am open to living at the university rather than limited to choosing something closer to home” - Nancy

“I found the trip to the University of Kent very helpful as it confirmed my desire to go down the route of choosing a University instead of doing an Apprenticeship. The trip also helped me realise that campus universities were not for me and really I would prefer to go to a city one. The student Q&A at the end was quite informative and helped me understand the financial aspect of university a lot more and gave me lots of useful information for taking specific courses like BA history for example” - Gabriella

This week’s employer - Clegg Clifford Insurance Company visited Roding Valley sixth form this week. Charlie, who left only last year, came back to inform students all about the apprenticeship route he has taken. Clegg Clifford are still recruiting and full details can be found on the sixth form bulletin.

National Theatre - Connections Festival

A big well done to Lili Warden and Emma Bracher for their role in the production at Queen’s Theatre on Friday 21st April. The school’s entry to the competition was exceptional and these two sixth formers provided invaluable support to the year 8-10 cast. Thank you also to those families who came along to support.

Politics Project Visit

On Friday 21st April Eleanor Laing visited Roding Valley High School to speak with A level Politics students as part of the Politics Project. This is the second year that Roding Valley High School has worked with the Politics Project to ensure young people are able to have powerful conversations with politicians at all levels of government. Eleanor Laing was kind enough to take part in a Q&A session answering students' questions on topics ranging from Eleanor's experience and advance for women who want to get into politics through to whether the House of Lords is an effective chamber. The students were delighted to be able to ask questions to their local MP and the Senior Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons. We thank Eleanor Laing for her time and look forward to working with her again in the future.

Chelsea Foundation Sixth Form Team

FITC Academy 3 vs Roding Valley 2

Roding Valley qualified for the semi-final of the Essex League Cup. In a season which has seen the players reach a final and go unbeaten in the league, to make it this far, has been thoroughly deserved.

The game started off very frantic, with FITC academy taking a two goal lead by the 38th minute. However, just before halftime Sonny Binet pulled a goal back on the stroke of half time.

The second half saw a much more dominant display from Roding Valley, with Sonny picking up his second of the game early on. Both teams had chances throughout the second half and in the 87th minute FITC Academy took the lead.

The Sixth form team have had a good season, with some great moments, well done to all involved.

Upcoming Exams

Year 12 PPEs will take place in the week commencing 8th May 2023

Year 13 final exams begin on 15th May 2023

Here are the last two sixth form bulletins -

6th Form Bulletin 27

6th Form Bulletin 26

To celebrate British Science Week in March, pupils were tasked to make a poster on this year's themeConnections. There were many fantastic entries, but the winners were…

Here is your latest Accelerated Reader update: what is occurring in the race for the championship?

7b/Lb2 have maintained their stronghold at the top of the tree, now just over 3 million words ahead of second placed 7b/Lb1. 7b/Lb4 remain in 3rd place, closing in on the 20 million word mark. Can either 7b/Lb1 and 7b/Lb4 make inroads on 7b/Lb2's lead this week?

In mid-table, 7a/Lb2 hold 4th place, having passed 10 million words: a notable achievement. 5th placed 7a/Lb1 have managed to reduce the deficit between themselves and

7a/Lb2 in the mid-table battle. 7a/Lb3 are not too far behind, but will need to get quizzing to avoid being left adrift in 6th.

Once again, a special mention goes out to 7aEn5, who have increased their word counts by a further 35% Keep it up!

Roding Reads

To see our latest edition of Roding Reads please click on the image on the left.

During the half term we were lucky enough to travel to the USA and experience some of the beautiful skiing conditions on Cannon mountain and at Waterville Valley resort. During our time here our instructors were amazing and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the group skiing. Whilst at our stay in The Snowy Owl Inn we were able to indulge in the different evening activities that were available to us just a short distance from our hotel. Some of these included visiting the Legends Adventure arcade, Walmart to enjoy a taste of classic USA shopping, visiting Plymouth State University for a private ice skating session, Lincoln cinema and the Town as well as a quiz night. These were enjoyed by everyone and gave a real variety to our evenings. The food options catered for all and the travel to and from the mountain was very well organised which was essential after a long day skiing! On our final full day, we transferred to HI Hostel in Boston to experience some of Boston's culture. We were lucky enough to visit the famous Fenway Park to watch a MLB game between The Boston Red Soxs and Pittsburgh Pirates. This was brilliant and was a real eye opener into a sport that is not commonly played in England. That evening we enjoyed a lovely dinner at the famous Fire and Ice which was delicious! This was a great way to end our final day in Boston. Before setting off for our travel back to England we took another cultural visit to Harvard and were given the opportunity to look around this fantastic University before a final spot of sightseeing and shopping in downtown Boston; visiting Assembly Row Outlet Mall. A big thank you to all the staff for giving up their half terms to allow us to experience these amazing opportunities. A special thanks to Miss Edwards for all of her hard work in organising this!

Hannah Luxton & Makayla Steele – Y13

Roding Valley High School has the great fortune to be able to offer FREE Microsoft Certification Training to pupils in year 9, 10 and 12

Every Friday from 3.05-4.30 pm, in IT3, students can join an online session led by a professional Microsoft Certified Trainer and work towards a Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Examination and Certification.

Via the Microsoft website, this would cost an person £600, and the exam would be £69, however the introduction, the course and the first examination are all FREE through RVHS. It will run every Friday (except for half term and the week after half term) until near the Summer holidays. It will be starting on the Friday 5th May.

Staff will be there to supervise and students do not have to be taking Computing subjects in order to join in with this.

If you child is interested in joining in, please get them to email Miss Bleakley at cbleakley@rodingvalley.net by Wednesday 3rd May.

Here is a powerpoint shown to year 9, 10 and 12 this week: Microsoft Certification Presentation

Team Drama Presents…

A play about grieving and complicated friendships by Ed Harris

Thursday 11th May 6.30pm in CA1

Tickets available now via Parentpay

Many thanks to the Year 7 and 8 artists who have joined me for my Spray Painting Club this year. I had so many applicants for a place that I had to do 4 x 6 week sessions, just so everyone could get a chance to try it out. The students all seemed to enjoy themselves, created some interesting, layered paintings, learnt how to use sharp blades and aerosols, and we had (hardly any) serious incidents and no injuries, which is always a relief. The final session is finishing on Monday next week.

Mr Tisdale Head of Creative Arts

Congratulations to Patsy Stow, a former student at Roding Valley, and last year a Teacher of Art with us, who has recently staged her first art show in London as part of her degree studies. Patsy actually took one of the ideas she explored in her A Level studies and remodelled it for her degree, which goes to show just how high the quality of her A Level work was – Mr Tisdale

Huge congratulations to the Year 9 football team who won the West Essex & Harlow District Cup final tonight 5-4 pens after a 3-3 draw at the end of extra time! A cracking game to end the season with! Goals: Kevin, Blu, Jo. Man of the Match: Dexter

Well done to the Year 9 Rugby team who won their rugby 7's fixture earlier this week. There was some brilliant rugby played and some excellent tries scored

Congratulations to the following students for their fantastic work in Literacy and during Drop Everything and Write (DEAW)

A pupil is defined by the Government as a ‘persistent absentee’ (PA) when they miss 10% or more schooling across the school year for any reason; this can be authorised or unauthorised absence. This means if a student's attendance is 90% or below they are PA Student - 90% is the equivalent to half a day missed each week over a school year!

If you would like further information regarding attendance please see our Attendance Policy here

If you have any attendance concerns or queries please contact our Attendance Officer Ms A Parsley (aparsley@rodingvalley.net) or your child’s Year Progress Leader.

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

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Chat about online safety little and often: Young people are likely to want to explore new apps 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.

Support your child with Thinkuknow websites

The age appropriate Thinkuknow websites are a great way to start and continue chats about online safety.

 11-13yrs Thinkuknow website: https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/11_13/

 14yrs + Thinkuknow website – https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/14_plus/

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 )