Week 33

Welcome back, I hope you are feeling refreshed after the half-term break. It’s hard to believe we are almost at the end of the school year already, but we’ve been straight back to it this week and have lots more planned to see out the end of the term.  

Second-hand uniform  

As part of our ongoing commitment to sustainability and supporting the Watling community, we are encouraging families to donate good condition used school uniform, which is no longer of use to you. Please bring clean, reusable uniform to the school office. We will accept all sizes and styles. We are planning a second-hand uniform sale, which is currently scheduled for Saturday 12^th July.  

Year 9 House Days 

Just before half-term, Year 9 took part in their enrichment days, with half the year group thrill seeking at Thorpe Park while the other half participated in their second ‘House Day’ of the year, before swapping the next day. Students took part in various activities following the theme of STEM and life skills, many of which took place outside to make the most of the glorious weather. Students showed their competence with metric measurements in the weights, costs and distances estimation activity but puzzled over yards, pounds and feet! Things got competitive in the team building activities where staff were particularly impressed by how fast students completed team ski events. ‘Taskmaster’ style exercises challenged students’ problem-solving skills from building tin foil boats, that could carry ducks, to navigating mazes with magnets and paper clips. Thank you to the House Champions for making the day enjoyable and engaging for everyone and to students for taking part with such enthusiasm. I’d also like to extend my thanks to parents who supported this rewards trip.

STEMx Experience 

We have been excited to host Oracle Red Bull Racing here all week delivering the STEMx Experience to our Year 8 students. These exciting half-day workshops include sessions on coding, engineering and building an F1 car, plus an inspiring talk on careers in motorsport. Students relished the opportunity to get hands-on with real car parts and gain a behind-the-scenes insight into the world of Formula One. 

Sixth Form project 

We are delighted with progress of the Sixth Form development. The buildings are now taking shape and we are all very excited to see our vision come to life. Over the coming weeks, a lot of progress will be visible and I know that everyone in our community will take interest in how things are going. I will share some photos of the progress in future bulletins.  

Easyfundraising 

I mentioned in my bulletin a few weeks ago that we had signed up to Easyfundraising to help raise funds to kit out the new Sixth Form and classroom block. Thank you to those of you who have signed up so far. With Easyfundraising, your everyday spending generates cashback for the Sixth Form project at no cost to you and all funds raised will be invested in furniture and resources for the Sixth Form. It’s quick and easy to sign up, just follow this link or scan the QR code below. Thank you in advance for your support – every donation, no matter how small, will make a difference.

Showcasing talent in our Art department 

Did you know our art department have an Instagram page? Our talented students have been hard at work, crafting incredible pieces that showcase their imagination and skill. Recently, we’ve featured stunning Tim Burton-inspired tonal artwork by our Year 8 artists plus some standout entries from the Portrait of a Hero competition. See their artwork, celebrate their creativity and support their journey by following @wa_art_dept. 

Disabled Parking Bays 

Please can I remind you to ensure that a blue badge is displayed at all times when parked in a disabled bay. There are many members of our school community who need access to these spaces. If you do not have a blue badge, please leave these spaces available for those who need them.  

Competition update 

We are excited to have two basketball teams in the Junior NBA Finals next week, good luck to our Year 7 & 8 teams. I’d like to wish the best of luck also to Raghav & Kirstiella as they head to the University of Bath to compete in the national final of the Spanish translation bee.

Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Fry 

Headteacher

What’s happening next week? 

• Monday 9^th June –  
  • Year 11 Exams AM: Biology, Combined Science
  • Year 11 Exams PM: PE
  • Year 10K Moneywise workshop
  • Year 8 Project Mind Matters Workshop
  • Spanish Translation BEE Final
• Tuesday 10^th June –
  • Year 11 Exams AM: Spanish
  • Year 11 Exams PM: History
  • Eco-Committee Vegetable Planting Activity
• Wednesday 11^th June – 
  • Year 11 Exams AM: Maths Paper 3
  • MEP China Trip – Pre-Departure Meeting
• Thursday 12^th June –  
  • Year 11 Exams AM: Geography 
  • Year 11 Exams PM: Further Maths
• Friday 13^th June –  
  • Year 11 Exams AM: Chemistry, Combined Science 
  • Year 11 Exams PM: Persian, Portuguese, Polish

  Sports Fixtures –

• Monday 9^th June 
  • Year 7 development football tournament 
• Tuesday 10^th June 
  • Year 8 development football tournament 
• Wednesday 11^th June 
  • Year 9 development football tournament 
  • Year 7 Tennis Tournament
• Thursday 12^th June 
  • Y7 & 8 Junior NBA Finals – good luck Watling teams!