Week 8 (21-25 October 2024)

Emotional Resilience

How to deal with making mistakes

A lot of people find it difficult to learn that making mistakes is a natural part of life. This is especially true for young people, who can have severe and unhealthy reactions if they do not know how to deal with their emotions. The National College have produced ten top tips for supporting young people to build emotional resilience; check out their guide, which features expert advice.

Learning from Your Mistakes

A bit more about our Theme of the Week

Re-drafting is a key part of learning. After every written assessment at all key stages, re-drafting is a crucial part of our classroom processes. Sometimes, after teacher-led or peer-to-peer feedback, students re-draft not only once but, often, two or three times. Whatever it takes, the best students display resilience when re-drafting their work to reach the “best version”. Watch this short BBC video-clip about the importance of editing your own written or visual production. We also recommend this amazing and joyful US primary school video, to see how expert peer-to-peer feedback can support re-drafting which results in rapid progress.

Positive Masculinity

Presenting positive male role models

At every opportunity, we are eager to break the mould about the confusing conception of masculinity. Given this, after half-term, we are planning to introduce a number of internal and external PSHE workshops to Year 10 students on the topic. Nationally, while boys and young men dominate statistics on exclusions, homelessness, addiction, prison populations and suicide, at Isleworth & Syon we proudly and proactively challenge these negative preconceptions.

Instead, we endeavour to present profoundly positive, alternative pathways where modern masculinity is viewed as a real strength. This often involves allowing our young people to talk openly in safe, non-judgemental classrooms as well as listening to and valuing their open and honest opinions. Student voice is highly prized within our school and, in order to construct positive models of masculinity, we are consistent about the values which we want exhibited by the kind of men, friends, partners and fathers they wish to be in the future. We strongly support our young people to become the kind of men this world badly needs.

So, in every classroom and across our extensive range of enrichment, our boys and young men can be seen, heard and given centre stage; oracy is full and central in every classroom. Of course, we sometimes have to have difficult conversations about issues often considered taboo within the male world, but we attack these with transparency and honesty. We also want to bring back the joy and pride in masculinity by exploring the hidden potential of so many amazing young men. They need to have a wholly positive impact on our community – indeed, the world – to counter the overwhelmingly negative social narrative around their masculinity.

Coming Up!

Dates for the diary, for the next two months

You can access the entire calendar via this link.

Sixth Form Open Evening

Why join our outstanding Sixth Form?

Our Sixth Form Open Evening takes place just after half-term. Prospective students and families will have the opportunity to hear of the successes of the Sixth Form from Mr Doyle (Sixth Form Leader) and from our senior students. There will also be the opportunity to speak to subject specialists and students currently studying in the Sixth Form.

Read the letter to parents/carers and view our flyer.

Partnership Working

More about our constructive partnership with the Met Police

Among a multitude of highly successful external working partnerships, one of our most regular meetings is with the Metropolitan Police through our Safer Schools Officer (SSO). Our designated SSO is PC Dixon; she works with young people who require guidance and support with their behaviour in school and/or the community.

One key feature of her role is not to unnecessarily criminalise young people, so she often proactively targets and warns individuals who have, for example, displayed anti-social behaviour. On this note, parents/carers as well as students should be aware that strong disciplinary action is always taken against any individual student found to be involved in nuisance behaviour, harassment or public disorder. Indeed, we always report any such behaviour in our community as crimes to the police through our SSO. In some cases, robust internal school action will also be supplemented by external police action, namely warnings, arrests and formal charging as well as convictions. PC Dixon’s approach mirrors a number of our whole-school mantras, in particular, those linked to promoting British values, namely the importance of:

• The rule of law
• Tolerance
• Mutual respect
• Individual liberty
• Democracy

PPD – Feedback

Some parent/carer comments from last week

Thank you again to the parents/carers who attended our annual Progress & Partnership Day (PPD) last Friday. It was fantastic to see so many families on-site and enjoying constructive, meaningful conversations with school staff.

On the day, we asked parents/carers to complete a short survey. As a school, we pride ourselves on transparency – always driving to improve and asking for ways in which we can do that. We received some lovely – and constructive – feedback, some of which you can find below.

• “They have clear values and expectations for both student and support network, and value every level of learner, and the extra-curricular learning excels for supporting student personal development as an individual which in life is so important. They have a great sense of motivation for Boys – love the golden ticket, and behaviour points.”
• “[I would recommend the school] for its person centred focus and teaching pathways for boys. My son is very encouraged by the teachers and the school’s curriculum.”
• “This school is really concentrating on student development not only in study but also in other activities as well which is important for any child.”
• “Values important to me: Students being looked after and cared for as part of a family; Education designed specifically for boys.”

Hounslow Matters

School appears in council’s magazine

We were delighted to feature in the latest issue of Hounslow Matters, a quarterly magazine produced by Hounslow Council. If you have received the print edition already, you can find us on pages 4 and 5, as the article summarises the Year 11 Results Day in August. Alternatively, we have scanned the spread, which you can view below (click to view full size).

Extra-Curricular Spotlight – Years 7 & 8 Drama Club

A chance for students to hone their physical movement

Every year we run Year 7 and 8 Drama Club, to give students the opportunity to develop performances for our five arts events. This club is led by Year 13 Drama students Kye Page and Stevan Nenezic, alongside Miss Thomson. This term, the club has focused on teamwork, which has involved playing lots of games like Zip Zap Boing, Bunny Bunny, and He Hi Ho.

We are now working on our piece for the Winter Concert, which takes place on Thursday 12 December. Together, we decided that the piece will be be inspired by Physical Theatre, so we are creating a journey through different environments in the hope of finding Santa! To find out more information, and to sign up, speak to Miss Thomson.

Extra-Curricular – Top Performers

Congratulations!

As a school, we are extremely proud of the opportunities we offer our students outside of the classroom through our extra-curricular programme. We believe that the variety of clubs on offer enables each student to find an activity that they can enjoy and learn from. Attendance to extra-curricular opportunities is strongly encouraged so students can get the most out of their time at Isleworth & Syon; check out the full timetable for next half-term. Below are our top attenders for Autumn Term 1:

Key Stage 3 (Years 7-9)

• By sessions attended: Vincent MATHAI (9Sn)
• By number of clubs attended: Arshnoor Singh JASSAL (8Br)

Key Stage 4 (Years 10-11)

• By sessions & number of clubs attended: Abdur UR REHMAN (10Tu)

Key Stage 5 (Years 12-13)

• By sessions & number of clubs attended: Ollie GILMOUR (MAS)

Pride of House

A new set of award winners

The final Pride of House awards for this half-term have been revealed – 40 outstanding students who have shown dedication and commitment to school life. Click a house badge below to see who they are!

Success Stories – Anya Brucal

Celebrating our first ever female Head Student

Anya Brucal (2022-2024)
Crane Park Primary School
Brentford School for Girls
Isleworth & Syon School
Queen Mary, University of London

Anya had a highly accomplished academic and ambassadorial two years at school. She reports how being able to volunteer in school for the library and leading Maths Clubs helped her to quickly bond with her peers as well as build strong connections to the lower school. 

Teachers remember Anya as someone who made profoundly strong connections between her classroom work and what was happening in the wider world. She was eternally positive, confident and charismatic. One stand-out memory is of Anya speaking formally to school Trustees about her short but unique insight of school; Trustees were glowing about her passion and contribution to the school over an intensive two-year period.

Appointed as Co-Head Student in her final year, Anya made invaluable contributions to House assemblies and the School Council.

Anya left us for a degree in materials science and engineering. Her ambition is to create things that can aid the development of communities in need in order to make an impact in the wider world.

Safeguarding and Personal Development

Be safe, not sorry, with fireworks

At this time of year, it is imperative that students and adults are safe, not sorry, when it comes to fireworks. This means:

• Only adults should purchase, ignite and dispose of fireworks
• Plan your firework display with safety in mind to make it more enjoyable.
• Always use one firework at a time and keep all fireworks in a sealed damp-proof box.
• Read and follow all instructions via torchlight if required on each firework before using them.
• Light a single firework at a time with a taper at arm’s length.

We recommend reading this really good guidance from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).

If you have a concern about the safety or welfare of your child, please email the safeguarding team at safeguarding@isleworthsyon.org. A member of staff will be monitoring the account. If there is an emergency call 999 or, for non-urgent matters that require police attention, call 101.

_{Photo by Matheus Bertelli on Pexels.com}

News

Rewarding students for outstanding attitudes – plus students head out on exciting adventures!

Old Vic Schools Club

This year, we are delighted to be part of the Old Vic Schools Club once again. This is a prestigious grouping of schools that only a few schools in London, including us, have been invited to join. Throughout the year, a small group of acting enthusiasts will receive four free workshops from The Old Vic theatre in London, as well as attending four West End shows – all for free!

The first workshop took place a few weeks ago. Led by trained practitioners from the theatre, it introduced students to the club and particularly focused on performance elements. Students acted out scenes from ‘The Real Thing’ – prior to going to see the production on Wednesday this week. The play itself was popular with the students; they particularly enjoyed how the piece repurposed a minimalist set into multiple different environments. In their feedback, students also commented about how they enjoyed the play’s portrayal of different types of love. One student summarised, “It was an amazing play and I’m grateful for the opportunity.”

Geography Fieldwork – Seaford

This week, our three Year 11 geography groups have headed to the coast, visiting Seaford and Hurstpierpoint. Luckily, the weather held out for the students as they conducted fieldwork exercises on the beaches. This meant examining key coastal processes and management as well as land use. It was the best way to put their classroom studies into practice, preparing them for planning their independent fieldwork later this year.

Senior Maths Challenge

A few weeks ago, we wrote about 54 high performing maths learners taking the Senior Maths Challenge. Now, the results are in! Congratulations to the three students who have qualified for the next round – Ayaan Memon, Jonah Shaw and Ayman Shah. Their gold medal performance has earned them a place in the Andrew Jobbings Senior Kangaroo next month.

Overall, 10% of the students – made up of Years 11-13 – earned a silver or gold while a further 30% achieved bronze. As well as their achievements above, Ayman and Jonah earned the top score in their respective year groups. For Year 12, the top performer was Uzair Ansarey – so well done to him. Next up is the Intermediate Maths Challenge for Years 9-11 in January.

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Co-Heads Rewards – Autumn Term 1

In school, one of our key strategies is FABB – First Attention to Best Behaviour. This means rewarding students for what they do well. To that end, Co-Headteachers Mr Fisher and Ms Higginbottom organise a half-termly reward breakfast for students who are exceeding expectations and well representing the life of the school. For Autumn Term 1, students were selected for having the best Attitude to Learning and Independent Learning scores in their year.

They sat down with the Co-Heads this morning (Friday) in The Pantry. Students had the opportunity to chat to the senior leaders about a number of topics, including the school’s enrichment offer and how we support them with their next steps. This sort of student voice is so important to help students feel invested in their school. Well done to the boys for their achievements.

Finally, the Co-Heads presented a special reward to the student with the best Attitude to Learning in the whole school – Syon Chatterjee (pictured second above). He was presented with two tickets to an upcoming Brentford FC football match. Well done, Syon!