Weekly Update - 4th March 2022
It has been another busy and productive week at the academy.
All year 11 students have completed their second round of PPE exams this week, and some will sit their real exams in Child Development, Health & Social Care and Health & Fitness next week. I would like to thank all staff who provided additional revision sessions over the half-term break to ensure that students were as prepared as possible for these, and would also like to wish all students the best of luck for their results.
Our year 9 Parents’ Evening was held “virtually” on Tuesday 1st March. We are aware of the technical issues with our School Cloud system, which caused some connection difficulties for parents and staff, and for which we apologise. We have taken on board parental feedback and, as a result, the remaining Parents’ Evenings for this academic year, and those in future years, will be held face-to-face on-site. We feel that this is particularly important, given the extreme circumstances of the past two years, which have meant that some parents have never had the opportunity to see their child’s teachers in person. Further information in this respect will be sent to you shortly.
Following the Parents’ Evening, we held an “Options showcase” for all year 9 students on Thursday morning, to provide them with further information and insight into the subject choices available to them. This was supported by subject staff, as well as current Key Stage 4 and Sixth Form students. The showcase was full of energy and enthusiasm, and it was lovely to see the interest in new subjects it inspired in the year 9 students, as well as the genuine passion displayed by current students. I have included some pictures below. We will also be holding a drop-in “Options clinic” on 10th March, prior to the final submission of options choices, to support any students and parents who may still be undecided, or who may require further information.
Thursday 3rd March marked “World Book Day” in the academy. Several imaginative activities took place, including “Dress a potato as a character”, “Judge a book by it’s cover”, “Share your favourite book” and “Pets reading books”. I have included some pictures below to give you a flavour of these activities. In addition, Year 8 student, Lenny conducted an online interview with author Joanna Nadin. This can be viewed on our Facebook page: Ormiston Rivers Academy | Facebook
Today we have held the first round of the “Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge” with Year 10 students. It was wonderful to hear the voices and opinions of our students on a range of issues. We also enjoyed a visit from John Whittingdale, M.P., today, who enjoyed the students’ speeches, as well as a tour of the school and the opportunity to meet a range of staff and students. (Pic).
It is really great to be able to reintroduce more events and activities for both students and parents, following the difficulties of the past two years. This is such an important part of school life; providing experiences and opportunities, which enhance and enrich the academy’s curriculum offer.
We will be holding an introduction evening on Tuesday 15th March from 5.00 – 6.30 pm, to provide you with the opportunity to meet myself and members of the Senior Leadership Team, to share our vision for the future of the academy and all of our students, and to listen to your feedback and suggestions. This will be followed by regular Principal/Parent drop-in surgeries to continue to develop strong, positive relationships. These will commence on Tuesday 22nd March and continue weekly on Tuesdays from 3.30 to 4.30 pm.
In the meantime, I wish you all a happy and enjoyable weekend.
