We are certainly in the Revision season, with practical formal exams already underway. With this in mind, our focus in lessons is to ensure that our Year 10 and 11 students not only have the subject knowledge content that they require but also the skills to be successful. So to give you a flavour of what has been happening around the school,
In Science, students have been completing past paper questions and getting feedback on exam technique. As you’d expect, each week the questions have been strategically selected so that key areas of content have been revisited and where there are gaps in knowledge, retaught. In particular, in Biology, students have been revising diseases and how we can prevent infections. There has also been the opportunity to redo the required practicals. In Chemistry, students have been looking at the language used in the question before identifying the scientific language needed in the answer and looking at how to answer extended questions.
In English Literature, students have been Revising the Power and Conflict poems using strategies for learning quotations off by heart, reading model essay responses written by examiners and deconstructing model essays to write their own plans. They’ve then had the experience of writing a timed essay using revision grids and learned quotations, comparing Exposure and Remains. Meanwhile, in English Language, students have been focusing on Paper 1 looking at 8-mark questions examining language and structure and revising terminology.
Up in Humanities, in History, students have been working through past papers for the Early Elizabethan England topic which is on Paper 2. They’ve looked into the language of the questions and techniques used to answer the questions. In GCSE RE students were “Brain vomitting” everything they knew about various moral issues and then playing a game of last team standing to see who could recall the most before then structuring their learning into knowledge organisers which focused their revision on the themes that may arise in the summer exams.
In DT, students are covering materials and processes at using tabulated worksheets and image sorts with Powerpoint whilst in Music, students have been working on exam technique and how to structure responses for 8-mark questions for the Set Works.
In MFL, students are preparing for the different elements of the speaking exam, honing speaking skills by reading out loud and self-correcting pronunciation using the phonetic spelling. They also practised using prompts and the first letter of every word to learn a sentence, using timers to develop fluency and practice preparing role plays in 4 minutes! Finally, they used hot seating where you speak in French for as long as you can, getting a partner to time you!
Alongside this, there are revision and intervention sessions at lunchtimes and after school and we’ve also developed a Form Time revision programme where students look at generic revision techniques during one tutor time with further tutor times on Maths, English and Science.
Looking to the future, Year 11 students who have applied to King James’s School in Knaresborough for their post-16 studies had an interview with Mr. O’Hara, Director of Sixth Form this morning.
In assemblies this week, Miss Kelly, a member of our English Team and leader of PSHCE talked with students about the Growing up in North Yorkshire survey, a Health Related Behaviour Survey, which you’ll have received a letter about this week. The survey is completely anonymous and has proven, over the years, to be a valuable way of finding out the views of our young people to enable us to ensure that they get the support that they need.
The Month of the Military Child, in April, is a campaign to raise awareness about the important role Service Children play in the Armed Forces community. As part of this, this afternoon, ten of our students, created a tile each, as you can see, which will be used, along with contributions from other local schools, to produce a piece of artwork of 100 pieces to raise awareness.
You will have received a letter about a Federation reading event hosted at King James’s School in Knaresborough on Tuesday 7th May where you will have the opportunity to hear from Gervase Phinn, a local author, along with how you can support your child with reading.
This weekend, 25, Year 9 students will be carrying out their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh expedition. We wish them well for a successful weekend.
I hope that you have a lovely weekend too!
You may remember the weather last weekend. It wasn’t great but, whatever you were doing, you’re likely to have been warmer and drier than our Year 10/11 students out on their Duke of Edinburgh Silver Practice expedition. But, as ever, they showed remarkable resilience. Mrs. Murphy reports,
In assemblies this week, Mr. Grierson has explored how being creative and ‘The Arts’ can help our mental health and well-being. He talked about the power of mindfulness and using activities such as colouring or dancing to support positive mental health. Staying with the creative theme, in Art over the last couple of weeks, Year 8 have been looking at the illustrations of Tim Burton and layering whilst Year 9 have been exploring using acrylic paint and blending with great success.
It’s been an important week for William in Year 7 who has juvenile arthritis and was invited to be the first ever child guest speaker for Versus Arthritis at their annual Arthritis Fellows Conference. William prepared and presented his own PowerPoint describing what it is like to have juvenile arthritis at the age of 11. His audience was over 100 adults comprising of consultants, scientists, fellowship students, researchers, Versus Arthritis staff and campaigners. William described what it is like to have arthritis as a child, what his pain is like, how it affects his daily life, how he sometimes has to use crutches and the help he needs.
It’s been reading all the way this week to mark World Book Day. A book inspired Bake-Off enabled students to use the medium of cake to show remarkable creativity with winner Zander (Y8) representing ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ by Roald Dahl, and runners up Freya (Y8) representing Ghostbusters by John Sazaklis and Freya (Y9) representing ‘A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’ by Holly Jackson. They were then put to a very good cause with students buying a delicious slice with funds raised going to the Read for Good charity.
In Geography, Mrs. Gomersal and Year 8 and 9 read part of ‘The Explorer’ by Katherine Rundell which is a best selling children’s book about four children that crash-land into the Amazon Rainforest. Mrs. Gomersal says, ‘Although Geography related, I like the message of the book. The four children learn that although utterly alone, in order to survive they must work together and trust each other.’
Working with a similar theme, Madame Joly in French with Years 7 and 8 explored ‘Le Petit Prince’ which is a book which talks about the importance of taking care of the people important to you. Years 7 and 9 looked at ‘Voyage au Centre de la Terre’ by Jules Verne with Madame Llaurado who said ‘Jules Verne in general, and this book in particular, is good in nurturing critical thinking and stimulating understanding of other cultures.’
We’re looking forward to the BHS Big Quiz tonight, the first event organised by the newly formed Friends of BHS. We thank them and you for your support with this and look forward to future events.
The week started well with our second phase of tree planting. Mr. Woodward reports,
In preparation for World Book Day next week, in assemblies, Mr. Cockerill has been talking about the value of reading in supporting positive mental health and wellbeing before looking at some of the books which have had a significant impact such as ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ and ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’.
Earlier in the week Mr. Field reports that ‘The Year 8 and Year 9 rugby teams took their chance to shine in the recent York Schools’ 9 a side rugby tournament. The boys impressed the York Knights’ staff with their resilience and positive gameplay throughout all of the games. The boys played games against King James’s, Manor, Tadcaster Grammar, York High and Joseph Rowntree. There were some positive results for the boys in some tough competitive matches against strong competition.’ We are really proud of the commitment shown by the boys and by the fact that we were the only school to field two teams in the tournament.
You’ll be aware that next Friday is our BHS Big Quiz night, the first event organised by the newly formed Friends of Boroughbridge parent/carer group. Tickets are available on Parent Mail and at Reception for £10. We hope to see you there. 
In Science Club this week, students have been testing their designed and constructed parachutes. The winning parachute was made by Cole, Ethan and Connor! Miss Camy was very pleased with their efforts commenting that ‘It worked so well due to the large surface area of the parachute slowing the fall of our plasticine models.’ Science Club takes place every Thursday lunchtime in B9 at 12.45p.m. and is open to students in Years 7, 8 and 9.
We were delighted to hear that, over half term, Alice in Year 8 who is a keen bell ringer has become a qualified member of the Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers, one of the youngest to do so. To do this she had to ring a quarter peal which took the team of six ringers 43 minutes and involved 1260 changes. A superb achievement indeed. Following this, Alice was asked to do a Radio interview with BBC Radio York on Thursday morning.
We’ve also been able to celebrate students’ success in assemblies by awarding certificates to those students who have done consistently well in their Attitude to Learning, Behaviour for Learning and Homework, as shown in their recent tracking.