Open Evening is one of our favourite events and this year was certainly no exception. The staff team and over 100 students welcomed families from across our local area. As we looked across the Hall, it was lovely to see families who already have children in our school whilst also welcoming new families and, of course, we always enjoy meeting young people who we hope will soon become part of our school community.
Visitors entered the Hall to the sound of tuneful piano, played by Austin in Year 9 which definitely set the tone for the evening. During the presentation in the Hall where we talked about our vision and values, our visitors were interested to hear about the positive experiences of Ava, Henry and Rova who joined us in Year 7 in September. They talked about what it’s like to move to High School, outlining their anticipated worries against the reality! Their confident and enthusiastic presentation secured a round of applause from each of the three audiences across the evening.
Families were then able to tour the school, visiting every department and speaking with our students, some of whom were Prefects, Student Presidents, School Council members and Sports Leaders. There were very happy to talk about life at Boroughbridge High School and the improvements that we’ve made as a whole school community whilst supporting Year 5 and 6 students with a large range of curriculum activities. In English, against a nautical scene, students produced creative writing whilst in the Drama Studio, a rehearsal for the forthcoming pantomime was going on, ‘Oh yes it was!’. In Computing, students could discover what was inside a computer and in Chemistry and Physics bubbles were being ignited whilst in Biology, hearts were being dissected. The Sports Hall was packed with physical challenges with students on hand to help whilst, nearby, Students demonstrated how the Intervention Room and its resources are supporting them with their learning and in enjoying being in school. Following a food theme, Halloween breads were being made and sampled in Food Technology whilst the modern languages French café was very popular, as long as the request was made en francais! In RE philosophical questions were being asked, houses were located in Geography whilst bugs were sampled in the Bug Cafe and, in History, there were costumes galore and the opportunity to sample historical recipes. Artists engaged in watercolour work could be observed and spinning tops were made in DT. We’re all aware that students enjoy our school dinners so everyone was pleased to have the opportunity to sample them! Books could be bought at the Book Fair in the Library and close by the Pastoral Team and Wellbeing in Mind Team were sharing how they look after our students to make sure that they are safe, happy and successful. Visitors also enjoyed hearing our musicians in session and were able to find out more about the Duke of Edinburgh Award. And throughout, students were engaged in a challenging Maths trail. All in all, it was a fantastic evening and we all thoroughly enjoyed sharing our school with our visitors. We’ll look forward to welcoming Year 6 back into school for our three Induction Days in July!
In Sporting news this week, Mr. Field reports. ‘Thursday night saw the Yr10 boys compete in the York City Knights rugby festival at Archbishop Holgate School, York. The Boroughbridge boys played against four teams at the tournament from the York and district area demonstrating some scintillating rugby.
The boys’ first game against Selby was a close encounter with Boroughbridge edging a 12-8 victory. This proved to be a good basis for honing their teamwork as they rose to the challenge against York High. A domineering performance saw the boys run in six tries in a well disciplined game. The final result of 24-12 was just reward for the hard work applied by all team members. The unrelenting fixtures began to take their toll as the boys moved onto their third consecutive match against Joseph Rowntree. The game ebbed and flowed between the two teams, both demonstrating some good committed rugby. Jo-Ro edged the latter stages of the game and were leading 24-20 into the last minute. A great drive forward by T King saw the boys draw level with less than 60 seconds remaining. Two promising drives forward by Jo-Ro put pressure on the Boroughbridge defensive line but the resilience shown by the boys paid off with a handling error leading to a turnover of possession. An exquisitely executed kick from C Walsh turned Jo-Ro on their heels and with the blistering pace of I Buliruarua victory was snatched from the grasps of the York team, 28-24.
The fourth game proved a bridge too far for the team who were now battle weary from their previous games. The home team proved worthy adversaries and edged a well contested game. Teachers and coaching staff from York City Knights commended the boys on their excellent gameplay, acknowledging the David Vs Goliath comparisons of the schools involved. The team did themselves and the school proud with their commitment and resilience, I do wish the same could be said about the singing on the minibus on the way home, there is always room for improvement though!’
Following Mrs. Godsell-Wright’s assemblies last week on our core value of being respectful, this week I’ve been exploring how we can develop our ambition and resilience. I’ve also shared the new descriptors for Attitude to Learning, Behaviour for Learning and Homework which will be used at each tracking point and are now linked to our new values. It’s also given me the opportunity to reflect with students on the positive contributions that they’ve already made in this Autumn Term.
Next Wednesday (16th) we have our Year 7 Form Tutor evening. If you haven’t yet been able to book an appointment, then there’s still time to book one. We’ll look forward to seeing you then.
Have a lovely weekend!