Thursday 20^th May 2010

Dear Year 7 and 8 parents,

We are delighted that we have been able to welcome back all students in Years 7 and 8 from Friday 21^st May.  We would like to sincerely thank you all for your support during this difficult time and for the feedback that we have received from parents on how we have responded to the closure of the main wing of our school.

Now that we have students back full time we would like to outline our plans to ensure that not only are they brought back on track with immediate effect but that we can work to ensure that their progress has not been affected by the disruption of this half term.

Firstly, we would like to respond to some of the points raised by parents who met with the us earlier this week and those that have been communicated to us by e-mail.

1. We intend to congratulate all students and look to positively reinforce their effort in working independently at home.  We know that parents have been impressed by how students have attempted to complete tasks at home and as a school we have been impressed by their maturity when they have been navigating the school site. 
2. This is the first time that we have had to use the MLE on such a wide scale and we appreciate the comments from parents about how the system itself could be improved.  We have a working team who are developing the MLE and we will pass all comments onto them.  Parents felt that a more uniform approach to recording work on the MLE would be appropriate.  All of this will be noted as we try to move forward to develop the MLE as an accessible and stimulating working environment.
3. We will be working with our teachers to ensure that future work on the MLE will be posted with clear deadlines and directions on how long to spend on each task.
4. Subject teachers will give full feedback to students on work they have completed on the MLE.
5. We note with interest comments from parents about having paren't reps to work with the FSA in order to support better communication.  We will certainly consider this as an option for the future.

In addition, points have been raised about how we intend to provide support to our students in order to help them catch up and readjust to the curriculum on a full time basis.

1. There will be NO movements between sets for students in Years 7 and 8 for the rest of this academic year.
2. Departments have been instructed to move formal assessments as far back in the term as they can in order be able to carry our assessments and report to you.  This may mean that final Learning Reviews dates will not be published until the final week of the summer term.  We have also asked departments to publish dates of assessments and details of tasks and how to perform well in them to parents well in advance of the assessments themselves.
3. Subject teachers will carry out informal assessments immediately to ascertain if there are any students who have significantly fallen behind with the progress they were previously making.  These students will be targeted with departmental interventions many of which are detailed later.  This may include target setting, attendance at subject specific workshops, or contact with parents to discuss progress.  This will vary from case to case.
4. Focus in lessons will largely be on ensuring that key skills in each subject area are being developed.  All staff have been clearly instructed that film texts and DVDs will not be shown throughout the duration of this term in any lesson.  This is obviously unless the text is vital to the delivery of an aspect of the curriculum.

The following departments will be having drop in sessions after school for students to complete work that they have been doing out of the classroom.  For students who have been targeted for extra support staff will be contacting them and their parents about attendance.  When other departments offer these workshops they will be contacting parents directly.

English - The Wednesday Club (N10)

Maths  - Maths Workshop Mon-Thursday (N12)

Art - Wednesdays after school (North Wing art rooms)

MFL - Catch-up club, Friday (N18)

History - Workshops on Fridays from after half-term (Venue TBC)

PE - The PE department have arranged extra sports activities after school for the summer term (A full list to be published on the MLE noticeboard)

In addition the Technology Department have handed out a booklet called 'Real Meals' which has been produced by the DCSF.  These contain activities around the creation of products that can be managed in the Home.  In the Autumn term they will offer 'Lets Get Cooking' workshops among other activities.  All food technology classrooms are currently inaccessible.

If you would like any advice about the progress your child is making generally as to whether they are getting back on track please contact your child's Learning Manager (Ms Paul (Yr 7), Mr Hibberd, (Yr8).  If you have concerns in individual subjects areas please contact your child's subject teacher in the first instance.  They will be able to arrange appropriate interventions with you.

We would like to be clear that ensuring the re-integration back into the day to day routine and the monitoring of progress of our Year 7 and 8 students is at the forefront of the school's priorities for the remainder of this term.

Thank you again to parents who have offered to help us and to those who have taken the time to offer us messages of support during the start of this term.

Yours sincerely,

      Aydin Onac                                   Zoe Judge

      Headteacher                                 Asst Headteacher Key Stage 3