Welcome from the Co-Headteachers
Helping students be independent learners
With the onset of important, internal examinations, it has been great to witness Year 11 students taking yet another step towards gaining their independence. All Year 11 students have been incredibly well-organised and mature in their approach to their academic studies. Congratulations to students as well as parents/carers for preparing our young people for this necessary “hoop” to jump on their educational journey.
Pictured – Year 9 students work hard creating their ‘low relief albrije’ – Mexican folk art.
Again, throughout the week, Year group assemblies have also been messaging students about becoming stronger independent learners and, in particular, breaking the cycle of avoidance. This means making good decisions about revision (“little and often”) and being more responsible; it is about becoming what employers call ‘finishers’. This means:
- completing classwork
- completing PPA (homework) and
- completing our expectation of reading for 20 minutes every day.
Key to successfully breaking this cycle is a shared responsibility; a partnership between school, parents/carers and every student. Given this, we encourage all parents/carers to devote time to discussing – and checking – these important positive habits with their son/ward.
Finally, the highlight of the week was undoubtedly the Year 7 Induction Assembly. This powerful, celebratory event acknowledged the immensely successful transition which our Year 7 “inductees” have been on and, crucially, passed. You can read more about that – plus lots more – below.
Got any feedback to make this newsletter even better? Let us know via this link. Please note that all comments are anonymous.
Simon Fisher and Jo Higginbottom
Making Choices
More about our theme of the week
We all make choices every day, big and small. From what we eat for breakfast to who we choose to be friends with, these choices shape our lives. Given this, it is important to remember that we have the power to choose, and that power can help us change our lives for the better or worse. Obviously, positive choices can significantly improve our own lives (and those of others) in both the short and long term.
At school, we all too often hear students blame others for their problems and say things like, “I had to” or “he made me”. But these phrases are just easy excuses. We are all responsible for our own choices, no matter how we feel. It goes without saying that, on a daily basis, school staff are endlessly going the extra mile to make our young people realise that even the smallest student decision can be impactful.
Simply, if students make good choices today, it will be easier for them to make good choices tomorrow. But, if our young people procrastinate on good choices, their decision-making will only become harder to make later. This is because our hard-wired psychology is complex; every choice we make affects the next one. We can either control our choices or let our choices control us. If we control our choices, we are in charge of our lives.
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com
Coming Up!
Dates for the diary, into the new year
- Thursday 5 – Thursday 19 December – Year 11 & 13 December Examinations
- Thursday 12 December – Winter Concert
- Monday 16 December – Senior Awards Evening
- Friday 20 December – End of Autumn Term (students dismissed at 12.30pm)
- Tuesday 7 January 2025 – Start of Spring Term
- Tuesday 7 – Friday 14 January 2025 – Year 12 Internal Examinations
- Tuesday 7 – Friday 14 January 2025 – KS5 External Vocational Examinations
- Thursday 16 January 2025 – Year 7 Parents/Carers Evening
- Thursday 30 January 2025 – KS5 Parents/Carers Evening
You can access the entire calendar via this link.
Christmas Charity Drive
Helping those in need this holiday season
For the week beginning Monday 9 December, I&S will be holding its next charity events. Firstly, students will be encouraged to collect donations in the form of food and other products to help support a local community project called The Community Food Pantry at the Bridgelink. The pantry aims to provide food relief for those most in need in the local area. The number of UK children in food poverty has nearly doubled in the last year to almost 4 million, so this is an extremely worthwhile cause that affects our local community so that we hope that families that are able to do so will be able to contribute.
Secondly, students are invited to participate in our Christmas Jumper Day, on Thursday 12 December, to support the Save the Children charity. To participate, students are encouraged to make a £1 donation via SCOPAY and wear their Christmas jumper on the day. Do read the letter and get involved if you can. Taking part in these worthwhile causes is a fantastic way to teach students the importance of being mature, caring citizens. Thank you for your support.
The Pantry Account Balances
A note about our school canteen
Please be aware that a few students have managed to go ‘overdrawn’ with their canteen account. The policy is now being strictly applied to stop student accounts becoming ‘overdrawn’ – students are only permitted to be ‘one meal’ in debt. Students will always be informed of this at the till. Families will also receive an email at the end of the week informing them that their child cannot purchase any further food until the account does not have a negative balance. The Free School Meals daily allowance will not be affected by this change.
As a reminder, school accounts can be topped up using our SCOPAY service. Through that link, parents/carers can easily see their child’s balance and a record of all purchases made. Thank you for your support.
Senior School Production
Some audience feedback plus images from this superb show
As we look forward to next week’s concert, we also wanted to reflect on last week’s outstanding senior school production of ‘Julius Caesar’. You can see full cast and crew photograph at the end of the slideshow below, after action shots from this thrilling show. We have also collated some of the superb audience feedback below. Well done to everyone who took part, both on stage and behind the scenes.
- “Genuinely the best school play I have seen… speechless.”
- “An excellent production – ambitious, bold and shot through with emotional truth. A particularly strong ensemble with some standout performances.”
- “A fantastic portrayal of a classic. The boys’ energy and interpretation was superb and consistent throughout the whole performance.”
- “The music and lighting should be commended for setting the mood.”
- “A powerful and moving adaptation.. loved the personal atmosphere of the drama room.”
- “The acting was exceptional. Lighting was tasteful with clear consideration for both light and shadow.”
- “A thoroughly powerful piece of theatre.”
- “I liked the choice of stage because it allowed for audience engagement.”
- “What a joy to see the senior students perform such a challenging piece. The simplicity of set and the great use of the wonderful space, allowed a real focus on the words and performance.”
- “Wow! Powerful stuff. I loved the contemporary feel of this production. It made Shakespeare feel brand new.”
Extra-Curricular Spotlight – Woodworking Club
Year 7 can learn a new skill
Building on the success of one of several D&T clubs from last year, a group of students are currently learning advanced construction skills in the Year 7 Woodworking club. To start with, the boys have been following plans and learning the skills needed to make high quality wooden products – in this case, wooden toys.
Many in the club are making their products for other family members, while some are even planning to sell what they make at local craft fairs. In the new year, the boys will learn even more skills (like wood-turning and 3D printing) to construct their own LED lamp project. The DT team will also launch a Cycle Maintenance club; more details will follow.
Winter Concert 2024
Last call – tickets still available!
Rehearsals are in full swing as the performing arts department gets ready for our festive extravaganza, the Winter Concert. Over 100 students will take part in a feast of music and drama to finish the term. We really do recommend coming along if you can – it takes place on Thursday 14 December and will last for about 90 minutes starting at 6.30pm. Tickets are from just £1, with all proceeds donated to charity. Find out more by clicking the banner below.
Pride of House
A new set of award winners
As we rapidly approach the end of term, well done to this week’s ‘Pride of House’ awards, who have shown commitment to excellence towards the very end. Well done to this week’s 40 winners – click a house badge below to see who they are.
Extended Project – Taran Malhi
More on an outstanding Sixth Form essay about AI
In Extended project qualifications (EPQ) are a highly successful part of our Sixth Form offer. They are part of our KS5 toolkit which allow Sixth Form students to develop a range of advanced study skills to support them in further studies. Many universities and employers highly value applicants who have shown their ability to work independently which EPQ project-work strongly enhances. EPQ work also allows students to demonstrate their passion or personal interest in a particular subject on an issue which, previously, they may not have developed in school.
This week, we are signposting a project on artificial intelligence by Taran Malhi (2024). Focusing on the potential benefits and negative consequences of AI the financial and medical employment sectors, Taran summarised his EPQ research as follows:
- Artificial intelligence (AI) can automate tasks, making life easier and more efficient, but it could also lead to job losses; the focus of this report was on the financial market and medical employment sector.
- AI systems can be biased if the data they are trained on is biased, which could lead to unfair outcomes.
- AI has the potential to improve education by providing personalized learning experiences, but it is important to ensure that these systems are designed ethically and protect student privacy.
Click the full title below to read Taran’s excellent essay, which earned him an A grade.
Safeguarding and Personal Development
Signposting some community issues
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Following police reports of anti-social behaviour on Hounslow High Street as well as the misuse of the new accessibility lift at Isleworth train station (pictured right), all local schools have been asked to reinforce the importance of community safety. Within our study support sessions this week, a considerable amount of time has been spent on reinforcing the importance of being respectful and responsible in our community. Parents/carers as well as students should be aware that strong internal disciplinary action is always taken against individual students found to be involved in nuisance behaviour, harassment or public disorder. Furthermore, we always report any such behaviour in our community as crimes to the police. 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.
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.
News
The prestigious partnership with a West End theatre continues, plus Year 7 are celebrated
Old Vic Schools Club 2
This year, we are proud to be part of the Old Vic Schools Club, a prestigious club of schools. Throughout the year, a small group of Isleworthians will receive four free workshops from The Old Vic theatre in London, as well as attending four West End shows – all at zero cost!
Following a successful first show in October, the second saw students watch a captivating performance of ‘A Christmas Carol’ a few weeks ago. Then, this week, practitioners from The Old Vic came into school for a brilliant workshop. It was hands-on learning at its finest, with students creating a costume for Bob Cratchit by adding sweat, dirt and creases to a plain white t-shirt.
Then, students were then shown how to undertake a “quick change” (pictured above) – a costume change in a very short timeframe backstage during the performance. It was something completely new for many of these students, and a brilliant activity. One student described it as a “wonderful enrichment activity” while another commented that the play was “magical”.
‘Duchess’ West End Theatre Trip
On Thursday night, we offered a very special co-curricular subject, with A level drama and English students given the chance to see former ‘Doctor Who’ star Jodie Whittaker on the West End stage! A group of students travelled on the tube to the Trafalgar Theatre to see Whittaker star in ‘The Duchess (of Malfi)’. An adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play, this exciting production was brilliant for both cohorts. From an English perspective, ‘Malfi’ is a set examination text; for drama, they need to write about live theatre in those summer exams. Students loved this production; one said,
I learned about the story more clearly and understand the characters more.”
Poppy Appeal
In November, we took part in the Poppy Appeal, run every year by the Royal British Legion to raise money for members of the British armed forces and veterans. Our student ambassadors sold poppies at break and lunchtime, and we raised a total of £125.58. Well done, everyone!
Carol Crew Performance
This year, the music department have set up a Carol Crew – a vocal ensemble bringing some festive cheer to the local community in Isleworth, as well as our own Winter Concert. The first live performance for this talented group took place at the Christmas Fair down at the local St Mary’s Church, just around the corner from the school. It took place last Saturday. Students performed a number of carols during the service and were a credit to the school. Well done, boys!
December Exams Begin
The December examinations have begun in earnest for Years 11 and 13. These internal examinations continue until 18 December and give students the chance to gauge their progress so far, less than six months away from their public examinations. Students will sit assessments in all their subjects, with results released in January. We wish students well – and urge families to re-read our notices from last week’s newsletter about coping with exam stress.
Year 7 Induction Assembly
And finally – this morning, we welcomed Year 7 parents/carers to celebrate students’ success as they reached the end of their Induction process. Mr Dargan led the assembly, where each and every Year 7 received either a bronze, silver or gold medal to reflect their progress so far. It was lovely to see form representatives speak eloquently about their journey so far.
Students could be seen wearing their medals with pride at the end of the assembly and for the rest of the school day! Thank you to those parents/carers who attended; one said afterwards, “Brilliant event, very well organised, extremely friendly and welcoming by all staff and students. I felt proud to have my son attend such a respectable school.”
