Newsletter, 4th March 2022

Good afternoon,

I hope that you and your family are well, and that your child has enjoyed a positive week in school.

YEAR 10 PARENT & CARER FEEDBACK

Thank you to all the parents and carers who have given us their feedback following the Year 10 parents evening. We’re pleased to have received lots of positive feedback once again, and, as ever, we are determined to find ways to improve on those areas in which feedback is less positive.

YEAR 11 PARENTS’ EVENING

Teachers of Year 11 are looking forward to a final formal opportunity to meet with parents/carers of Year 11 students at next week’s Year 11 Parents’ Evening. Prior to the evening, parents/carers will receive their child’s report which will include details of their grades from the most recent mock exams, as well as a predicted grade – or ‘Most Likely Outcome’ as we call them. We know that the conversations that will take place on Thursday will be very important as they are an opportunity to share crucial feedback on how students can improve and best prepare for exams that are now just 7 school weeks away.

GCSE SCIENCE LIVE

Well done to our students who visited the ‘GCSE Science Live’ event this week. Our science team were delighted with the attitude these students demonstrated at this event, at which some of the nation’s pre-eminent scientists spoke, including Professor Robert Winston. We hope that this event will have inspired our students to continue to develop as great scientists in their own right!

OXFORD UNIVERSITY TRIP

A group of our Year 11 students are currently enjoying a two-day visit to the University of Oxford, where they are getting a taste of life at one of the world’s best universities. Students have been staying in dormitories, have met current Oxford students to learn about their experiences of studying there, and have enjoyed taking part in a practical Chemistry session in the university’s laboratories. We expect that lots of the students on the visit will be back in Oxford as university students in two and a half year’s time!

ACKNOWLEDGING AND UNDERSTANDING THE CONFLICT IN UKRAINE

A number of our students have understandably been interested, concerned and upset by the past week’s events in the Ukraine. Ms Hunter and Ms Siddall, with the support of Callum in Year 10, produced some excellent resources that form tutors have used to support our students to understand some causes of the conflict and the events to date. The following resources may be helpful in supporting discussions you may wish to have with your children about the terrible events in Ukraine.

• Ukraine conflict: How to help yourself, your kids, and others BBC News
• How to Talk About War and Conflict with Kids, According to a Child Counselor | Save the Children
• War in Ukraine: What's happening there? CBBC Newsround

 

With many thanks for your ongoing excellent support.

 

Joe Birkbeck

Head of Westfield School