Weekly Bulletin – Week 5

This week in tutor time Year 7 have been discussing the various positions of responsibility and what they involve and then carrying out elections. Students have been able to put themselves forward for these roles and have the opportunity to support their tutor group & form tutor in various ways.

They have been finding out about the journalism club that started this week and how to become a roving reporter for our school student-led online magazine.

Show and Tell presentations have continued which have been great to watch. Well done to those Year 7s who have taken part already.

The epraise tutor group leaderboard sees 7SDE fly to the top, 7EHO are in 2nd and 7PGO are in 3rd place this week.

This week’s student ePraise champions are Ruth H and Ilinca G, both from 7SDE. Well done to them for their hard work and to everyone who has achieved ePraise this week demonstrating our school values: enjoy, achieve and empower.

On Wednesday next week Year 7 are looking forward to their first Drop Down Day, when students across the school do off time-table activities to enrich their learning experience. Year 7 will take part in a morning session about the production of the Lion King and then we will travel to the Lyceum theatre to watch the matinee performance. Please ensure you and your child are aware of all the information regarding this day.

Macmillan’s Coffee Morning is coming up on Friday 9 October. The bake sale would not happen without our students’ amazing baking skills. We would love it if students could bring in any cakes, cupcakes, traybakes or similar. Remember, that there should be no nuts, whatever students bring in must already be split into portions and pupils should also name any tins/ containers they bring in. All students wishing to buy cakes on the day will need a cake token purchased in advance from ParentPay. Please note token sales will close at midday on Wednesday to allow time for tokens to be distributed.

Each year the Waldegrave English Department raises money for an amazing charity called Read for Good (Readathon). We invite Year 7 to try and get sponsored for their reading. This can be as little as £1 and this money goes towards providing books and reading sessions for children in hospital as well as some being used to get more books in our library. We have raised over £50,000 for this charity in the last 20 years and we appreciate any money that students are able to collect. There is a link for payment on ParentPay, as we can’t take cash from students.

Thank you in advance for your support with this. It’s also part of our commitment to encourage reading for pleasure. This runs for the whole of October. Their English teacher will give them more information in a lesson this week.
Here is a link to the Read for Good website for more information: https://readforgood.org/

Wishing you a lovely weekend.

Mrs Bashford-Hynes, Head of Year 7

The Year 8 students did an exceptional job showing around prospective parents and students during the open morning tours. Feedback from staff and prospective parents all highlighted their positive attitudes, knowledge of the school and enjoyment of learning here. Well done Year 8s!

Well done to Evelyn J 8FKI and Divina N-U on 8EHA who were awarded the highest number of ePraise points last week and received a reward from Mr Gerald!

8SRI is currently topping the form leaderboard for ePraise, closely followed by 8SPI and 8PCL. Keep up the great work.

On Sunday, Ms Wood took a small group of Year 8, 9 and 10 pupils to meet the Black Ferns, the New Zealand Women’s Rugby Team to engage in a rugby workshop. The students came away with autographs, some new rugby attire and big smiles. Well done to each of them for embracing this opportunity.

Each year the Waldegrave English Department raises money for an amazing charity called Read for Good (Readathon). We invite Ys 7, 8 & 9 to try and get sponsored for their reading. This can be as little as £1 and this money goes towards providing books and reading sessions for children in hospital as well as some being used to get more books in our library. We have raised over £50,000 for this charity in the last 20 years and we appreciate any money that students are able to collect. There is a link for payment on ParentPay, as we can’t take cash from students.

Thank you in advance for your support with this. It’s also part of our commitment to encourage reading for pleasure. This runs for the whole of October. Their English teacher will give them more information in a lesson this week.
Here is a link to the Read for Good website for more information: https://readforgood.org/

Macmillan’s Coffee Morning is coming up on Friday 9 October. The bake sale would not happen without our students’ amazing baking skills. We would love it if students could bring in any cakes, cupcakes, traybakes or similar. Remember, that there should be no nuts, whatever students bring in must already be split into portions and pupils should also name any tins/ containers they bring in. All students wishing to buy cakes on the day will need a cake token purchased in advance from ParentPay. Please note token sales will close at midday on Wednesday to allow time for tokens to be distributed.

Have a lovely week.

Ms N Ansell, Head of Year 8

Year 9 are very much back into the swing of their lessons this week and are hopefully all feeling settled back into the school routines.

There are lots of opportunities for students to get stuck into clubs outside of school, from photography to music to PE clubs. Auditions will also be starting soon for the school production of Oliver. We encourage students to get involved with something new this year and this also allows a great opportunity to meet new friends!

Congratulations to the majority of students for getting stuck into their lessons and trying their best as they start a new year. Well done!

Lola P and Lily KJ, both 9PCO, are this week’s ePraise champions, well done to them and to everyone for earning ePraise this week.

A reminder that we have Year 9 options taster day on Wednesday 7 October next week as part of our Drop Down Day curriculum. This will give students an insight into what these GCSE courses involve and will hopefully allow them to feel more prepared to make their choices in January.

Each year the Waldegrave English Department raises money for an amazing charity called Read for Good (Readathon). We invite Ys 7, 8 & 9 to try and get sponsored for their reading. This can be as little as £1 and this money goes towards providing books and reading sessions for children in hospital as well as some being used to get more books in our library. We have raised over £50,000 for this charity in the last 20 years and we appreciate any money that students are able to collect. There is a link for payment on ParentPay, as we can’t take cash from students.

Thank you in advance for your support with this. It’s also part of our commitment to encourage reading for pleasure. This runs for the whole of October. Their English teacher will give them more information in a lesson this week.
Here is a link to the Read for Good website for more information: https://readforgood.org/

Macmillan’s Coffee Morning is coming up on Friday 9 October. This is Macmillan Cancer Support’s largest annual fundraising event, encouraging people to host gatherings with coffee & cakes. The money made from every purchase is donated to support those living with cancer in the UK.

Last year Waldegrave raised £2665.04 in support of the charity. Let’s see if we can do even better this year!!

The bake sale would not happen without our students’ amazing baking skills. We would love it if students could bring in any cakes, cupcakes, traybakes or similar. Remember, that there should be no nuts, whatever students bring in must already be split into portions and pupils should also name any tins/ containers they bring in. All students wishing to buy cakes on the day will need a cake token purchased in advance from ParentPay. Please note token sales will close at midday on Wednesday to allow time for tokens to be distributed.

We appreciate your support, have a lovely weekend!

Mrs H Porteous & Ms G Wood, Heads of Year 9

We have had a very busy week again. It has been lovely to see so many students involving themselves in the different opportunities at the school. During tutor time this week. Our focus has been on equipping students with essential study skills. Over the next few weeks we will look at different ways you can improve your study skills or find new ways to learn.

To support academic success and promote healthy reading habits, we have been embedding our ‘Read with Me’ scheme every Monday morning. It has been wonderful to see the students engage so positively with their reading at the very start of the week.

This week our Year 10 Art Students visited Kew Gardens on Tuesday. The students enjoyed sketching the Henry Moore sculptures and natural forms and visiting the Shirley Sherwood Gallery.

Well done to Zara B, 10STR and Ella M, 10STR who collected the highest number of epraise points in the entire year group last week. To commend outstanding efforts Mr Gerald has set up a fantastic new initiative where top performing students receive a special celebration and reward each week. Please encourage your child to demonstrate positive behaviour, high effort, and active contributions to learning and school life so they can collect epraise points and collect future awards.

I am delighted to report that Emily H completed the second stage of the Middlesex U16 Rugby Trials last weekend and was selected as part of a very strong Middlesex Squad. This is a fantastic achievement and we are incredibly proud – well done!

We would love to hear about and celebrate our students’ achievements outside of school. Please be sure to let us know of anything your child has been involved with that deserves recognition.

Next week we have our Autumn Term Drop Down Day which is focussed on Jack Petchey Speak Out – Y10 will be preparing for the oral requirement of their English GCSE with their English teacher and a team from Jack Petchey.

Macmillan’s Coffee Morning is coming up on Friday 9 October. The bake sale would not happen without our students’ amazing baking skills. We would love it if students could bring in any cakes, cupcakes, traybakes or similar. Remember, that there should be no nuts, whatever students bring in must already be split into portions and pupils should also name any tins/ containers they bring in. All students wishing to buy cakes on the day will need a cake token purchased in advance from ParentPay. Please note token sales will close at midday on Wednesday to allow time for tokens to be distributed.

I want to say well done to all our students for adhering to the uniform policy and parents for supporting us with this. The huge majority of students have all of their equipment which is wonderful to see.

Thank you for all your continued support. Have a wonderful weekend!

Mrs N Lyddon, Head of Year 10

As we reach the end of week four, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on how incredibly well our Year 11 students have settled into this crucial academic year. The maturity, focus, and determination they have shown over the past month have been fantastic to witness. They are truly rising to the challenges of Year 11, and we are incredibly proud of their positive start.

A special mention must go to our Head Girl team, who did an outstanding job delivering speeches during our recent Open Morning. Speaking in front of a large audience is no easy feat, but they represented our year group and the school with immense eloquence, confidence, and grace. They are wonderful role models for the rest of the school.

Well done also to Immy RT, 11EMU and Anastasiia M, 11FCO who are the Year 11 ePraise champions this week. Keep up the hard work!

Looking ahead, we have a very exciting and important Drop Down Day coming up next Wednesday, 7 October. This day has been carefully designed to support your child both academically and holistically as they navigate their GCSE year.
During the day, students will participate in:

• Targeted study skills sessions with their core English, Maths, and Science departments to sharpen their exam techniques – session on exam technique and revision delivered by Michele Miller
• Specialist wellbeing workshops led by professional yoga teachers, focusing on mindfulness and positive mental health practices to help them manage stress

To complement this student day, we are also hosting an invaluable parental session on the evening of Wednesday 7 October from 5:00 PM to 6:15 PM. We are delighted to welcome Michelle Miller, who will be delivering a session specifically for Year 11 parents on how to best support your child through this demanding year. We highly recommend attending this workshop.

Macmillan’s Coffee Morning is coming up on Friday 9 October. The bake sale would not happen without our students’ amazing baking skills. We would love it if students could bring in any cakes, cupcakes, traybakes or similar. Remember, that there should be no nuts, whatever students bring in must already be split into portions and pupils should also name any tins/ containers they bring in. All students wishing to buy cakes on the day will need a cake token purchased in advance from ParentPay. Please note token sales will close at midday on Wednesday to allow time for tokens to be distributed.

Finally, a quick reminder that the upcoming mock exam schedule has now been finalized. A copy has been sent home to you, and the full schedule has also been posted directly onto the Exams Google Classroom for students to access. Please take some time to review this timeline with your child so they can plan their revision effectively.

Thank you for your continued partnership and support. If you have any questions regarding the mock schedule or the upcoming events, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Mrs O Mortimer, Head of Year 11