May 2013

Summer Half-Term

Year 7 Cook Off 2

London Transport

Museum Workshops

2

Gunnersbury Triangle

Trip

2

Sports News 2-3

Year 9 Graduation 3

MFL Ealing Town Hall

Visit

3

Cope Residential 4

Year 11 News 4

Inside this issue:

KEY DATES:

Half term: 27th May –

31st May

School Resumes: 3rd

June (08:45 am start)

Summer Term ends

Friday 19th July

Headteacher’s Message As always, the first half of the summer term has been characterised by the intensity of the work done by KS4 and Sixth Form students and staff to prepare for exams and assessments. All of those who have worked hard to make sure that the final results are as good as they can be deserve recognition for their efforts. I know that many families have also played their part – encouraging, supporting, and perhaps nagging students towards the finishing line. In the exams that have already taken place students have been purposeful and focused, which is an encouraging sign. I hope that we can all continue to support the students to remain strong and consistent in their efforts. For many of them,

the half-term week will be a crucial opportunity to revise and prepare, and I hope that families will encourage good sleep patterns, healthy eating, and the creation of a working environment without distractions – together, all of these things can make a huge difference. This half-term has also seen exciting cultural and sporting developments for many Acton High students. I was particularly pleased to see the wonderful opportunities created by the language exchange. The large group of visiting students, from Germany, Spain, France and Iceland, brought with them a range of experiences and ideas that will have influenced many of our students, and will, I hope, have given them the impetus to

explore these countries and their cultures further. Our sporting students have performed superbly this half-term, with many of our football and athletics teams doing particularly well – I was delighted to see students in Years 7, 9 and 10 triumphing in Borough competitions. As many of you who have visited the school recently will have seen, the extension to the Greer Centre, designed to house our expanding Sixth Form next year, is rapidly taking shape. I am delighted that the project is going well, and am confident that we will have our new and improved Sixth Form Centre ready to welcome students in September 2013.

~ Dr Andy Sievewright Headteacher

Recently students in Year 7 have represented the school in local sporting competitions, competing against other schools in the borough. We have managed pull off several victories, of which the most prominent is trampolining. The team was made up of: Daniel Braithwaite, Rashai Logon, Salad Omar, Quarmanie Matthews, and congratulations to Elleni Yiangu for first position!

Year 7 Sports

School Attendance: Medical/Dental

Appointments and Unauthorised Absence

Parents/Carers are reminded that medical and dental appointments should be avoided during school hours. There are exceptional circumstances when appointments during school hours cannot be avoided. Therefore, you are required to provide evidence, i.e., appointment letters/cards, and prior to withdrawing your child from school if unavoidable. In order to prevent an absent mark in the register your child should attend school prior to or after any unavoidable appointments. UNAUTHORISED ABSENCES: „Unauthorised absence is an absence where the reasons provided by the parent/carer are unsatisfactory‟. Absences are monitored closely; if your child is absent on a regular basis and has unauthorised absences of 15% or above, you may incur a Fixed Penalty Fine charge of £120 or a prosecution for the unauthorised absences of your child. Dr Andy Sievewright (Headteacher), Jakki Thompson (Education Social Worker) My Child at School: You can check your child‟s attendance at school, along with their achievement/behaviour points, and their school reports, via the My Child at School website. Please email kmahoney@actonhigh.ealing.sch.uk if you don‟t have your login details.

P a g e 2 A c t o n H i g h S c h o o l N e w s l e t t e r S u m m e r H a l f - T e r m

Year 8 Sports News CRICKET: AHS Vs Drayton Manor – Despite playing exceptionally well we lost by 12 runs. Well done for all the great efforts of: Karam

Kalsi 8I (Captain & wicketkeeper), Abdullah Ibrahim 8I (bowled very well), Samandeep Wadhwa 8N (bowled very well).

FOOTBALL: Zayn Daniels 8G played for the Year 9 football team who won the Ealing final. Zayn is a superstar, who is currently playing

for Watford Juniors.

ATHLETICS: The girls competed in the Ealing Junior (Year 9) Athletics Championships and performed exceptionally. Results included:

Laura Davies 8A 3rd in Junior (Year 9) 100m, Oumie Francis 8C 3rd in Junior (Year 9) 200m.

On 29th April Ms Singleton–Musgrave‟s Year 8 science class had the opportunity to understand adaptations and life cycles by observing the myriad of pond life at Gunnersbury Triangle nature reserve.

Gunnersbury Triangle

As an Inspire Engineering Partner School, Acton High School benefitted from a ‗Bridge

Building Workshop‘ this half-term facilitated by the London Transport Museum.

Charlotte Tupper, an Education outreach worker from the London Transport Museum,

challenged students to build bridges to meet a design brief and to compete in teams

to build a bridge that would support the greatest weight. Students learnt about the

need for bridges to support weight through tension and compression of the materials

selected. One team managed to construct a truss bridge that supported 2200 grams

using just straws and cardboard. Students were supported throughout the process by

Civil Engineer Sharanjit Gill, a graduate currently working for Transport for London.

Year 8 Students Learn Civil Engineering Skills

The Great Year 7 Cook Off In some recent cooking lessons, a “cook off” was organised to teach pupils about cooking and food safety. Some fantastic

cuisine was organised from all parts of the world. James Purser and Trey Vilasco celebrated winning with their “Chocolate

Landmine” by sharing out their cake. Other excellent foods were produced, including pizzas, salads, Jerk Chicken, and fruit

salad with a chocolate fondue. Well done all for these delicious dishes!

London Transport Museum Depot Students from the year 7 Gifted and Talented group recently visited the London Transport Museum Depot to learn about engineering. They were given a detailed tour of the museum and took part in interviews with engineers who offered their perspectives on careers within TFL. This was a very interesting day, which was devised to inspire students and get them thinking about careers in engineering. Students gained a “Crest” qualification for completing the day. The children‟s maturity and inquisitiveness impressed the staff at the museum. Students were given gifts as a “thank you” for their fantastic attitude during the day. On the right is a photo of one of students participating in one of the tasks; to design an underground network that can be run on a limited budget with safety and gravitational forces in mind. It was not an easy task and several eggs (which were to be transported) were broken! Well done students!

Upcoming School Events:

International Day: 25th June

Media Awards: 3rd July

Year 9 Graduation: 17th July

Activity Day: 18th July

“Learning expands great souls.” - Namibian proverb

P a g e 3 A c t o n H i g h S c h o o l N e w s l e t t e r S u m m e r H a l f - T e r m

Glorious Year 10 Triumph Again The Year 10 football team retained their

Ealing Borough championship trophy with

a hard fought 3-1 victory over big rivals

Cardinal Wiseman. In a fiercely contested

game, Acton struck first via Kobe King

and were thankful to goalkeeper Naveed

Ahmed, who made a string of outstanding

saves to hold a slender lead at the break.

Acton didn‘t come out at the start of the

second half and a defensive error allowed

Cardinal Wiseman to level the scores. The

Acton team did not let this deter them

and the outstanding back four gave the

team a platform on which to build and try

to win the game. Jaden Beaton struck an

unstoppable free kick into the back of the

net and Timon Khyne-Sam sealed the

victory with a poacher‘s goal after some

great work from captain Darnell Morien. A

fully deserved victory for the Acton team

and a special mention to our defensive

rock and man of the match Christopher

Sompa. Squad List: Darnell Morien

(Captain), Kobe King, Jaden Beaton,

Naveed Ahmed, Delaney Todd, Taran

Nandhra, Samatar Hiraid, David Ibrahim,

Abdelelah Mohamed, Kenneth Aqua,

Timon Khyne-Sam, Chris Sompa, Charlie

Mitchell, Roshawn James-Bailey. (Ryan

Djokaran and Pedro Dias did not play in

the final due to injury, but played every

other game.)

Year 9 Graduation We are proposing something that‘s never

been done before at Acton High School -

a Graduation ceremony for our Year 9

students making the transition into Key

Stage 4. We are looking at it as an

opportunity to celebrate the success and

achievements of all students in Year 9.

The date chosen for this event is

Wednesday 17th July. Students and

parents are invited to attend. A short

presentation from the Headteacher and

Chair of Governors, plus musical

performances and student reflections is

what is planned. Awards and certificates

will be given to outstanding students who

have contributed towards the school

community and raising their attainment.

To mark this occasion, students will

receive their Key Stage 3 results

highlighting any outstanding attainment

along with their upper school tie.

There is still time if you wish to take part

and there is a maximum of three tickets

per family. It is a ticket only event and the

deadline for informing the Year Team

office of your intentions, along with the £5

for the cost of the tie, is Friday 7th June.

There is no cost for the ticket.

Please help us to celebrate our Year

Team‘s achievements thus far and enjoy

an evening to remember.

Year 9 Football Boys Final - Winners As the whole team found out the news of

us reaching the finals, we were all

ecstatic, but in realising that we were

going against Drayton Manor at their

home ground, all of our passion slowly

drifted from us. Earlier in the season we

had played against Drayton, only to lose 8

–0. Now it all led to this on the 7th of

May. We were very nervous when we

arrived and started our pre-game

exercises. As we joined the Drayton team

for our handshakes, we remembered what

Egli had mentioned earlier; ―It won‘t be

about the team who plays the better

football, but the team who wants it more!‖

The whistle blew and we set off. Within

the first 20 minutes we had an early lead.

A penalty scored by our Captain, Shahid.

It was a tense battle but we fought till the

end of the first half. After encouraging

words from our Coach, Mr O‘Connell, we

started the second half. Deep into the

game Drayton played a beautiful 1–2

pass and gained a one-on-one opportunity

with our Goalkeeper. They successfully

converted their opportunity into a goal.

The scores were level. The players were

more eager than ever, but once again

Shahid gained possession of the ball and

beautifully ran through the whole of the

defence to slot one home for Acton. The

team went crazy! The next two minutes

were tense, but as the final whistle blew,

Acton‘s Year 9 team all fell to the ground

with exhaustion. They had managed to

become the best Year 9 Team in Ealing

(with the help of a year 8 student).

Drayton Manor had played the better

football, but Acton just wanted it more!

~ Mailo Conceicao 9I

MFL Exchange Visit to Ealing Town Hall

Icelandic, Spanish, French, and German

pupils visiting Acton High School as part

of as multilateral exchange, went to

Ealing Town Hall to make a presentation

about ―Good Citizenship‖. The pupils‘ visit

to the town hall was hosted by the Mayor,

Councillor Mohammad Aslam. The school

party was made of up pupils from Year 8

and Year 9. The visiting Spanish pupils

were from I.E.S. Juan Mairena School, the

Icelandic pupils were from Siduskoli, the

German pupils were from Starkenburg

Gymnasium, and the French pupils were

from Lycée Condorcet. During the week

that they were at Acton High School, the

exchange pupils went on several cultural

trips around the capital, from Buckingham

Palace, the London Eye, to the Supreme

Court. The trip was part of the multilateral

exchange programme (CIVIX), which aims

to expose pupils at Acton to the culture

and way of life in other European

countries. Pupils worked with their

European peers on projects relating to

sustainability and civil responsibilities. In

the same way, the European pupils

experienced our culture and were able to

use the English language in everyday

scenarios.

“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” - African proverb

P a g e 4 A c t o n H i g h S c h o o l N e w s l e t t e r S u m m e r H a l f - T e r m

Year 10s go South A group of Year 10 students spent the night at a brand new Youth Hostel

and Visitor Centre at gateway of the South Downs National Park near

Lewes in East Sussex. The residential was part of a short course

undertaken by students studying the level 2 COPE course and gave

students a chance to explore the countryside and take part in team

building exercises such as raft building. The students raised part of the

money for the trip by organising cakes sales, and other home cooked

foods which they then sold to staff and students. The residential was a

learning experience for students and they enjoyed the opportunity to

develop new skills in a fun and challenging manner.

Year 11 News As the final exam season has now started and the end of Y11 approaches the next few weeks are extremely busy for Y11.

Preparations for the final assembly and the Y11 prom are well underway!

Year 11 Study Leave When we return from the half-term break on Monday 3rd June, Y11 will not attend school full-time. Students need only attend school

for any exams, and for lessons in subjects which have not yet completed their assessment — by arrangement with class teachers.

When not in these lessons or exams, students should be off site .

Year 11 Revision Sessions Even though the exam season has started, there are still a number of revision sessions running.

English: Weekdays, afterschool. Students should see their English teacher for details of these sessions.

Maths: Morning—Coffee mornings from 8.15am – 9am Mon – Thurs. After school—Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays on Red

week, and Tuesdays and Wednesdays on a blue week. Each session covers a different topic – see school website or Y11 notice board

for further details. Saturdays: 10am – 1pm every Saturday – last session 8th June 2013.

Science: There are revision sessions in the morning prior to each exam from 8am, and drop in sessions every afternoon after school.

Saturdays are by invitation only.

Year 11 Prom & Yearbook

Year 11 Final Assembly Y11‘s final assembly will be on Friday 24th May at 2.45pm. Students should not arrive at school before 2.15pm, except to attend the

language, English Literature (KETO), and History exams on the morning of the 24th May.

Year 11 Exam Timetables Every student should now have an up-to-date copy of their own exam timetable with the date and time details of every exam they are

entered for, the location of the exam and also their seat number. Students should arrive at least 30 minutes before the start time of

their exam. If any student does not have a copy of their timetable they should see Ms Morgan, Mr Stevenson or Mr Brady immediately.

Year 11 Conduct During Exams It is imperative that students arrive to their exams on time. If students are late there is a possibility that they will not be allowed to

enter the exam room which could jeopardise their final results.

Full school uniform must be worn for every exam. This includes correct footwear, correct trousers and a school tie. The Y11 leavers‘

hoodie is accepted as uniform.

The Y11 team can confirm that the Y11 prom will be held at the Novotel in Hammersmith on Thursday 4th July and tickets will be

available for purchase, along with the yearbook, in the weeks after half-term.

Goodbye and good luck to all Y11 students about to go on study leave!