The first half term of the academic year has been a busy and productive one across all our sites with many of our students working very well.
In Science at College House, 3B have been learning about atoms and molecules and have done really well to start to understand how to balance equations, something that they will need to do for GCSE science!
Year 11 GCSE classes have been learning how to make a salt and have carried out the required practical to make copper sulphate from sulphuric acid and copper oxide. All have done this successfully and safely.
Shakespeare is the theme across the English department this half-term. KS3 are studying Romeo and Juliet. KS4 are studying Macbeth. Classes are working hard looking at the life and times of Shakespeare in KS3 and the role of King James 1 & Witchcraft in Jacobean England at KS4.
On Friday 13th September all KS3 students were involved in Roald Dahl Day activities. In class, students discussed the life of Roald Dahl and spent time reading extracts from his books. KS3 classes also spent time completing in-class quizzes and mini-competitions linked to Roald Dahl.
Some excellent learning and progress from students in these areas- well done!
On our vocational pathway students have also worked hard this half term to gain new knowledge and skills. Students on the BTEC Tech Award in Child Development are currently looking at developmental milestones from birth to 5 years; and have been conducting research and using dolls to demonstrate gross and fine motor skills at various ages. They’ve learnt about the importance of supporting a babies head when they are new-born, and how 6 month olds can begin to sit unaided which aids digestion of food which is why weaning is recommended at 6 months.
In Beauty Therapy, students have been learning about customer services and have created their own code of conducts for our salon. They have also been designing nails for celebrations including Christmas, Diwali, Easter and Halloween. A good half term from our students on the Creative Pathway!
At Breck our KS3 students have been doing the following activities over the last few weeks:
Maths: using Activelearn on the computers to support our learning about pie charts and data.
PSHE: We tasted a variety of fruits and cold meats. We have also played group games and communication games where we have worked in small teams and pairs.
Science: Chemistry-we have looked at reactions and how a chemical reaction occurs (we used bicarbonate of soda and vinegar).
Physics-we are studying light and completed an experiment to investigate the angle of refraction and incidence.
The team at Breck have been very impressed with the progress made by students, in their learning and importantly how they are approaching learning and working with each other.
Mabel has continued to make her Friday afternoon visits as our companion dog in Golden Time. She has enjoyed being with students she knew from last year as well as meeting some of our new students who have joined us more recently. She has particularly enjoyed pouncing on the leaves in the school yard now that we are in Autumn.
On the MacMillan coffee morning we ran an event with student helpers at College House, with cakes also being sold on our Blakiston site. After a superb effort from students and staff we raised over £140 for the charity – a fantastic achievement, well done to everyone and special thanks to Tina and Frances for organising!