2011 Term 3

Special points of

interest:- Aimhigher

Year 10 Mock Interviews

School Access Change

Baking Challenges

Inside the Issue:

Headteacher’s letter 2

Extra-curricular 12

Challenger Community 4

Discovery Community 7

Endeavour Community 6

Enterprise Community 5

Important Dates 11

Thamesview School

THAMES V IEWS

Spring Term 3

February 2011

On Thursday 16th December, our

school hosted yet another sell-out

success. Family, friends, staff and stu-

dents gathered together to enjoy Music,

Dance and Drama acts from all year

groups across the school. The evening

was planned and organised by the Year

10 BTEC Music class. As part of their

coursework they were responsible for

roles in advertising, scenery, front-of-

house, finance, sound & light,

backstage, performing or presenting for

the Christmas Concert. The night itself,

opened with Olivia Devaney and

Kaitlin Lovelock, two confident

Year 7‘s reciting ‗A Thamesview

Christmas‘, a poem celebrating our start

in

the

leaving from Thamesview at

6.15am, but with all looking very

smart, we headed off for the day.

Upon arrival we were taken to

our show stand, set up the

Thamesview School banners and

the students received their brief

for the day ahead. The students

then had 4 hours to interview

trade experts, photograph new

vehicle releases and create

new school and

written by our very

own drama teacher

Mr Ferguson. There

were plenty of talented group acts to fol-

low such as the Year 9 Dance and Music

groups, the Thamesview Singers, the

School Show Cast and even a début

performance from our new school Soul

Band. Solo acts and duets were also

plentiful and ranged from a harmonica

playing Chay Bellingham and his rendition

of ―Fairytale of New York‖ to an original

dance mix performed by Bethany Caller.

There was of course the traditional festive

performance from the Voc Block staff,

which as always, was comical with its

three ‗wise‘ men , angel and Mrs Claus.

It is safe to say that an excellent eve-

ning was had by all and if you missed it

then you definitely missed out. It was a

perfect way to showcase the talent of

students here at Thamesview, as well as

coming together as a community in the

first ever Christmas Concert in our new

school.

We look forward to seeing you there

next year, but if you can‘t wait till then, you

don‘t have to—there‘s our ―Evening of

Drama and

Dance‖, ―Gleek‖

(this year‘s

school show)

and our outdoor

―Summer Con-

cert‖ all to look

forward to.

Miss J. Cormack

Autosport Mania On the 13th January 2011, the

Motor Vehicle Department were

invited to attend the Autosport Show

at the NEC Arena in Birmingham, to

work with a Company called Burn-

ing2Learn on creating a four-page

publication showcasing the event.

It was another early start for the

Young Apprentices with the coach

Christmas Bauble Concert

Guess the

member of staff

below and be

entered for the

Cinema Ticket

Draw. Entries to

Miss Hughes

by Friday, 4th

March

2011.

a publication on the event. This was

another fantastic opportunity for

Thamesview‘s students to see the

connection between vocational

courses and the world of work. With

excellent links made we have already

been approached about future events

to work with industry experts.

Mr M Francis,

Vocational Centre Manager

What a

Cracker! The Thamesview fes-

tive staff and student

Christmas meal was

again a resounding

success with many

savouring the full feast,

including a cracker and

jolly songs to enjoy the

holiday spirit.

I think the novelty

Cracker

toys

went

down a

treat

with

some!

Page 2 Spr ing Term 3

‗I have created a

book like a mem-

ory pillow..... all the

dreams I have, come

from

ideas

inside

the

pillow I

sleep on.‘ Kayleigh

Newson.

‗My book is

like an

imagination

hat....words

are fed into

your brain.‘

‗My book is a

mirror book

– it is your

imagination

– you think,

it writes....‘

Jack Evans

I have been selected to attend Meapa Gym on a Wednes-

day night to take part in various gym activities. Before I at-

tended Meapa Gym I was doing stunts and free running in

dangerous places which led me to break my wrists twice and

even break my foot.

Attending the gym has helped me become more confident

and has allowed me to try the stunts in a safe place.

I enjoy going as now I have something positive to do and

meet new people. I can now confidently do a J Step, Double

Front Flip and am learning to do other basic skills.

By Conner Simpson (pictured below right)

I too attend the gym on a Wednesday Night; these ses-

sions have really helped me improve my attendance at

school. The gym is brilliant because I have learnt new skills

and have grown in confidence. I now don‘t care if people

laugh if I do a new stunt

wrong because at least I am

trying new skills and giving

things a go.

In the past, I have come close

to injury and fallen badly

doing tricks and stunts in the

wrong place. I have also

taken silly risks and have

even tried jumping from

windows at home—not recommended! Attending the gym and

going to Meapa has allowed me to try new stuff and be

taught and shown the correct way to do stunts and land

properly in a safe environment.

By Aaron Mills (pictured above left)

Get Fit, Gym Fit

Dear Parents, Carers, Governors, Staff,

Students and Friends,

It was with much sadness that the new

year began with the news that one of our

LSAs, Maureen Lines, lost her fight with

cancer. She was a courageous woman

who was determined to carry on with her

school duties despite battling with her

health. Special Community assemblies

were held to honour her passing, and to

allow students and staff quiet time to

reflect and share their grief. Our

thoughts continue to be with her family.

Despite sadness and challenges,

young people are remarkably resilient

and they forge ahead to teach us

profound lessons in life, as we try to

equip them in as many ways as possible

for the world beyond secondary school.

You will read in our packed newsletter

again, how many activities, trips, clubs

and curriculum opportunities are offered

at school to help your child find that

special something to interest them for

life. Please encourage them not to leave

school at 2.55pm each day, but to opt

into the many activities where they can

socialise with students of all ages and

abilities, and continue to develop more

rounded skills like communication,

team-work and self-management.

Year 11s are in their final months at

Thamesview, and need to really channel

their energies into revising and focusing

on skills to help them achieve at least

their potential grades in all courses.

Remember, attendance and achievement

go hand in hand, and research proves

that the more time a student spends in

school each year, the higher the levels of

attainment and progress. Please

continue to avoid term-time holidays, as

the school‘s position is now very clear

about not sanctioning these holidays, and

Kent County Council will issue Penalty

Notices where parents choose to take

their child away without permission. I am

sure you want the best results for your

child, so please organize family holidays,

during the allocated school holidays.

I was notified this week, that Thames-

view has been recognized as one of the

10 most improved schools in the area,

and that the Specialist

Schools and Academies

Trust would like to pay the school to

carry out a case study on some of the

initiatives we have taken to achieve

this success. Of course, this may take

some time to convey to the

researchers, because so many

initiatives are led by so many staff, and

the essence of our success comes

from us all working together as a team;

and, what a fantastic team we have!

After the holiday, we are again

focusing on standards of appearance,

which means that students may find

that outdoor items worn indoors, will be

confiscated and only collected in the

first instance, at 3.15pm. Should an

item be removed twice, we will ask

parents to collect items. It is a

student‘s responsibility to conform to

school expectations in respect of

uniform, including the wearing of a

blazer. Responsible use of telephones

and i-pods, respectful use of furniture,

keeping areas free of litter and ensur-

ing that only stud earrings are worn as

items of piercings are also very clear in

our expectations. I want to make these

policies clear with parents, as they

have already been communicated with

students through Communities and

assemblies, so that there is no

misunderstanding should a student not

conform to our clear high standards.

To finish on a positive note, I would

like to say that I have had a number of

influential visitors to the school in

recent weeks, including government

ministers, headteachers and celebri-

ties, and all have been impressed with

the quality of teaching and learning,

and with the calm atmosphere and

focused student behaviour. I wish to

congratulate the many students who

come to school with the attitude that

they want to learn and who will do

everything to ensure they can and do

learn.

Best wishes for a happy holiday,

Rhiannon Hughes

Headteacher

These are some of the creative and imaginative ideas

generated by 20 students from EBL, who took part in a

Creative Partnerships workshop. This was part of the first

phase of many organised literacy workshops building-up to

the launch of Thamesview‘s new library. Students learnt

about the human brain, our memory and our imagination.

They showed just how imaginative and creative they could

be by making their own books. Books were hand stitched

and opened to reveal their own stories. Their stories had

tension, suspense

and cliff hanger

plots. A lot of liter-

acy talent was

discovered

amongst these

students. Well

done!

Mrs Simone Lok

Learning

Facilitator - EBL

In Loving Memory of Mrs Maureen Lines, who sadly passed away on Friday January 7

th 2011.

We will miss her; she was a

very caring and dedicated

LSA. Our thoughts and

prayers are with her family.

Creative Literacy

‗I have created a book

like a best friend.....

read me when you are

happy or sad....let me

entertain you.‘

Callum Lane

Hazel Williams below with

last year’s winning entry.

Careers education provides young

people with the knowledge, skills

and understanding they need to

manage their own learning and to

make informed choices. Thamesview

School endeavours to provide its

students with effective careers

education, which motivates students

in order to raise aspirations for their

future.

Last week, all Year 10 students

came off timetable for one day to

participate in a range of engaging

activities focused on career progres-

sion. Throughout the day students got involved with tasks that allowed them to

identify their key employability skills and qualities and also looked at the

importance of creating a positive first impression. As part of this day, students had

to visit the Thamesview ‗Job Centre‘, read through a range of job adverts and then

apply for any of the fictitious posts. Upon successful completion of the job applica-

tion, the majority of Year 10 students then had a mock interview with a local em-

ployer.

This event is a great way for students to prepare for college, university and working

life. It also creates an opportunity to give local employers experience of interviewing

the future employees of the area.

Events such as this do not happen without the help of a lot of dedicated and

supportive people. Special thanks to Andrea Head, Layla Fackrell and Tim Spoerry


During January, some

lucky Year 9 students

had the opportunity to

participate in a Perform-

ing Arts event at the

University of Folkestone.

Thamesview students

spent the day working

with a university lecturer

and a drama student to

develop their acting

skills and their ability to interpret and learn scripts. During the afternoon, the

workshop focused on masks and expressions. Our students produced some

stunning ad-lib performances and the university lecturer was eager to praise

their ability and high standards of performance.

Aimhigher works with students to help them learn more about Further and Higher

Education. Here are just a couple of the events we have run this term:

Performing Arts Work-

shop - University Centre,

Folkestone

Art & Writing Competition - Entries Needed!

Aimhigher is again running its annual art competition. They are looking for original work from

aspiring artists and writers in Kent - it‘s up to you what you create and how you go about it, but it

will need to be inspired by the theme:

Nothing in the World but Youth This is an amazing opportunity to have your artwork or writing exhibited alongside professional

artists in an exhibition at Turner Contemporary Gallery, Margate.

We had some wonderful entries for the competition last year and Hazel Williams (now Year 11) was

lucky enough to win one of the many prizes available. Help us to make Thamesview a winner again

this year! For more information speak to Mrs Head or look at www.pageturner.org.uk. Please give

your entry to Mrs Head (B & E Office) before Wednesday 2nd March. Good luck! Mrs Head

Local Employers Conduct „Mock‟

Interviews with Year 10

for giving up their time to help make this event a successful and

memorable one.

Benefits to students

Experience of an interview situation to help them when

applying for college, university or jobs.

Develops confidence and self-esteem.

Opportunity to meet local employers and discuss future career

plans.

Understand relevance of school life to the world of work.

Benefits to Employers

Better understanding of the education system

Possible future employees

Staff Development Opportunity

Positive experiences with teenagers in our community

Jo Ryan—Director of Business and Enterprise

Nerys Sandy—Business and Enterprise Administrator


Welcome to Challenger’s news pages!

This term KS3 students have been exploring our public ser-

vices and investigating different roles within those services.

The students have been researching the following:

Police

Education

National Health Service

Fire Services

Armed Forces

Students have been registered with www.u-explore.com

which is a fantastic resource giving the students access to

many career choices. They are able to seek information on

qualification requirements, person specifications and, in

some cases, take an interactive guided tour around

different job roles.

The expected outcome of the current project is to create

a detailed informational booklet about one chosen area of

the public services.

Not only is this website a great resource for KS3

students, but KS4 ones as well in order for them to

research possible career paths. Ask your son/daughter to

have a look and you will see the wealth of information and

guidance available to them.

Attendance is a key factor in your son/daughter’s progress. Poor attendance can have a detrimen-tal effect on their achievement. We appreciate your continued support in minimising your son/daughter’s absence. To appreciate the impact attendance can have on achievement, please see the graph below:

We are dedicated to your son/daughter‘s progress whilst at

Thamesview and in order to support your child we have in-

troduced a Positive Progress Monitoring Report. The report is

issued to students whom require mentoring and setting of targets in order to

support them in achieving their full potential term on term. The report is a

positive process in which subject teachers are able to set targets in order to

help your child progress towards their progression grades/levels. The reports

will be issued and reviewed each term. If your child requires a positive pro-

gress report you will receive a copy once staff have completed their targets.

If you wish to have more information please contact:

[email protected]

190

Days at

school

10 days

absence

19 days

absence

29 days

absence

Half a

term

missed38 days

absence47 days

absence

180

Days at

school 171

Days at

school 161

Days at

school 152

Days at

school 143

Days at

school

100% 95% 90% 85% 80% 75%

GOOD! WORRYING SERIOUS

Court action!

Yet another successful term for Challenger, as we celebrate some excellent

successes amongst our students. It is always pleasing to see students making

progress and achieving results in all their subjects, but as we know, English and

Maths are key to future success. We had a number of Year 11 students who were

entered for exams in November and Challenger had some real successes. The table

below shows students who achieved GCSE grade ‗C‘ or better in Maths or English.

This has put these students into a

strong position as they start to apply

for Sixth Form and College places.

Another part of the application

process is the ability to perform well

in interview, and to help with this

important skill, Yr10 had a careers

and interview day this term where

all Yr10 students had a mock inter-

view with an outside employer.

These employers were very im-

pressed with what they saw, and

nominated the best 12 in the year

group. Well done to Alex Terry and

Julia Johnson who were in the top

12 of the year group (see below).

Also well done to

Alfie Smith and

Michael Bruford

who were part of

the drama team

that have made it

through to the

regional finals,

winning the Grave-

sham and Dartford

area competition.

Ella Gamman is leading our VIVO table, and it

is also good to see a number of Year 9 and Year 8 students in there as well. Remem-

ber that the VIVO points can be traded in for prizes whenever you want, or you can

continue saving them for bigger prizes. These VIVOs also indicate that our students

are doing really well in their academic achievements. This is shown in the latest

tracking results

where Challenger

were top in three

year groups out of

five, and 2nd place

in another. Well

done to all, and

keep the level high

for the rest of the

year.

Mr Hodges

Assistant

Headteacher,

Challenger.

English. Maths

Sara Port– C Shaun Grimes– C

Callum Owen– C Zoe Appleton– C

Jade Dellbridge– C Matthew Brown– C

Bradley

Bowden-Coleman– C

Chris Hutchinson–

C

Alyce John– B

Tamara Cook– C

Matthew Brown– C

Gemma Waters– B

Extended Learning Club When: Wednesday‘s 3-4pm

Where: NASA Area

Why: To gain support with your current

extended learning project.

Who: Open to KS3 students and is supervised by our

Learning Mentor, Mrs Berry. Refreshments Available.

Miss L Howe - Challenger LSL

Positive Progress

Extended Learning - Term 3


After a very cold and busy end to the

year we have started the term again in a

very positive way. The new Extended Learning project on Hollywood has started and students are

already discussing films they have been watching and their own production ideas. I am hoping that

we will see some fantastic trailers for their own films. VIVOS have continued to be given out to a

range of students for academic achievement, progress in attainment and for contributions to the

school. It is pleasing to see different students getting rewarded for their efforts each term.

PSHE continues to explore important issues such as Money and Drugs, which students have found

interesting and beneficial. In particular, Year 11 have been applying for further education places

online and have had help writing their CVs. In this term’s Thames Views edition, I thought it would

be good for you to hear what each of our tutor groups have been up to and see them all in their

Enterprise tutor bases.

Mr G Robinson

Assistant Headteacher, Enterprise

In EPGF we have found a new interactive game that we like to play.

It is the game ‘Countdown’ . The good thing about it is, it is just like

the television programme with the clock and the sounds. The stu-

dents have enjoyed developing their literacy skills through an edu-

cational but fun interactive game.

Mrs G Finelli

In EPEA we have played many team-building

games. One involved the boys against the girls

trying to keep a balloon in the air until they

crossed a given distance. This also got

students thinking creatively as they were not

allowed to touch the balloons with their hands.

The boys beat the girls. We have challenged

EPMP to numerous football matches as a way

of socialising with other students.

Mr Atiase

In EPJC we have been doing

various competitions in form

time. Students have been

working in small groups with

other students from different

years. So far we have had a

‘Capital of Countries’ quiz, a

‘Spelling B ’ and we will be

having ‘General Knowledge’ quizzes once a week from now

on. We have also been also

been catching up on cur-

rent affairs by reading

national and local newspa-

pers once a week and we

have enjoyed sharing news

and stories we have read

about. Mrs Collins

During my time as form tutor

for EPMP I have arranged a

variety of activities during

form time such as ‘Spot the

Difference’, football and

basketball matches, Maths

quizzes, General Knowledge

quizzes, word searches and

crosswords. As a tutor group

we all really enjoy taking part

in fun competitions, especially

when we play

against other

forms.

Mr Daines

During my time leading EPED we do

many fun activities. One activity in-

volved splitting the form ( boys compet-

ing against the girls), to come up with as

many words as they can using all their

initials. The girls managed to beat the

boys on a number of occasions.

Students have also enjoyed finding out

about each other by explaining two

facts about themselves and one lie.

Everyone then had to try and figure out

which one was the lie.

Miss Simmons

In EPSL we have been enjoying a variety of

activities. These include testing each other

with memory games and a magnetic darts

competition within the form, which could

spread as a challenge across the community.

There are also lots of budding artists in the

form so a game of Pictionary is always excel-

lent fun to get students thinking creatively.

Miss Lok

During form time we have played games like

Family Fortunes, True and False and Catch-phrase. We have also done ‘build a story’ where

students were given a list of items and names

and they had to write a story and tell it to

everyone else. We have tried the "problem to

solve sheets", which motivated the students to

try and solve as many as they could.

Mr Cooper

One activity that we have done in EPJR and EPGS is a Listen-ing Game. This involved students listening to a song and

looking out for a word in the song that started with A,B,C and

so on. All the students really enjoyed this activity and they

discovered that you can learn more when you pay attention to

listening. Another activity was Getting to Know You. As our

two forms have not been together in the past, we played a

number of getting to know you games in order to find out

about new people in our joint form.

Students spent this time chatting

to other students whilst trying to

collect information about them.

We have also played the game

Scattergories, which has helped

students think in logical ways.

Miss Ryan and Mrs Smith

Happy New Year!


Congratulations to all of our top achievers from last term. We have had

a very successful beginning of the Year in Endeavour with over 53% of the

Year 7s achieving their target grades or being above them in English,

Maths and Science - well done everyone and keep this up. Special men-

tions must go to Tonicha Gilbert, Andrew Bardo and Rio Douglas, who are

our top performers in Year 7.

Year 8 Danny Coyne, Daniel Spurr and Jamie Rae came out on top and

Hayleigh Cutmore, Laura Hobson and Stephanie-Louise Tunnicliffe were

the most academic performers in Year 9. Everyone needs to keep working

hard, as our Year 11s I‘m sure will tell you - it pays off in the long run!

GCSEs are not that far away and our Year 11s have a big job ahead of

them to revise properly and get the grades they deserve.

Endeavour Community are really beginning to collect Vivo‘s. It isn‘t

going to be long before someone trades their points for a reward.

Vivo‘s are being rewarded for attainment and effort. Each week, in

assembly the three highest achieving students are recognised and re-

warded with a certificate and more Vivo‘s. The table below shows the

highest achieving students in our Community this year. Well done to

you all and keep up the good work.

Business and Enterprise Day

On Thursday 3 February and Friday 4 February, the Year 10

students took part in mock interviews. The following Endeavour

students were named as the top interviewees based on their

confidence and verbal skills:

Daniel Gray Megan Limbert Maha Njie

Jason Rawlins Amy Morriss Megan Amis

Congratulations to the following Year 11‘s for

achieving a ‗C‘ grade early in either English or Maths

Kathryn Twitchett, Shakirat Bankole, Harry Bridger

Chelsea Carter, Antonio Olvero, Danielle Pentland,

Holly Richardson, Hazel Williams, Sophie Williams

Oscar Winners in the

Making

We are very proud of the follow-

ing Endeavour students for

being selected to represent

Gravesham at the finals for a

Kent Drama production. They

will be performing at a theatre

in Sevenoaks. They have been

working with a trained actor to

perfect their performance.

Congratulations:

Kane Harman

Sam Goddard

Joseph Nightingale

Miss Arndt , Assistant Headteacher, Endeavour

Extended Learning

The theme for Extended Learning this term has come from a form

within Endeavour - thank you EvMY! The theme focuses around a

‗Dream World‘. Students are using literacy and numeracy skills in

their work at home and during form times, to create and describe a

world, as well as fill it with interesting items and things to do to

entertain anyone that would visit their Dream World. I‘m hoping to

see lots of exciting ideas and some brilliant numeracy and literacy

skills on show this term! Miss Rogers, Endeavour LSL

Attendance Matters Attendance is very important to me. For the last two

terms we have been trailing behind in third place. I

know we have had the bad weather and winter illnesses

to contend with, but we now need to show some stam-

ina and reclaim our place as the top attendees in the school. All your

individual attendance goes toward points given to Communities each

week, which keeps us in the Community race. I‘m a bit bored with Dis-

covery winning all the time! We are now giving VIVOs to all our students

who show an improvement in attendance and everyone has a chance

to earn these as we look at our attendance on a weekly basis. So,

even if you were unwell one week, you could earn yourself some VIVOs

the following week. We will continue to award VIVOs for Form of the

Week and non-school uniform on a Friday for 100% attendance. Please

become part of the attendance race and put Endeavour back on top.


―Diary of a Wimpy Kid‖

By Jeff Kinney

This book is all about a boy whose

mum keeps buying him a diary for Christ-

mas. The boy‘s name is Greg and he has two brothers;

one older brother (Roderick) and a younger brother

(Manny). Greg is very lazy and makes his best friend

do most of the hard stuff, while Greg is making up ex-

cuses to get out of it. Greg is also very vain and thinks

he is the best person in the world so when it comes to

New Year‘s resolutions Greg said that he is already

perfect so he made resolutions for other people! His

older brother always blackmails him for stuff that he

wants and he is jealous of his younger brother be-

cause he gets away with everything! I like this book

because it‘s funny and I enjoy reading it. When I start

reading it I can‘t stop.

By Chloe Parfitt, DSFL

―The Enormous Crocodile‖ By Roald Dahl

The book that I‘m reading in school is the Enormous Crocodile. It is about an enormous crocodile that lives in a brown river in Africa; he gets bored of eating fish from the river and wants to eat some children from the town nearby. He came up with some horrible tricks to help him catch some children. He is on his way to the town when he bumps into Humpy-rumpy Hippo and the horrible crocodile tells him the mean and nasty plan. The enormous crocodile walks on till he bumps into Trunky the Elephant. The enormous crocodile tells him the plans. He walks on and he bumps into Muggle-wump the Monkey, who also tells him the plans. He walks on till he bumps into the Roly-poly Bird and tells him the plans. The Roly-poly Bird said that it was a horrible plan; the crocodile bit some of his feathers off and carried on to the town. He pretends to be all sort of things but the animals he told about the plans keep saving the children. At the end he goes to the picnic area and pretends to be a bench but Trunky the Elephant picks him up, spins him around and chucks him so far away he goes into the sun and dies. I like this book be-cause it is funny and the animals can talk. I think that it is good because it is telling you not to be nasty to others.

By Charlotte Harwood DMJS

Dear Parents, Carers and Friends,

The end of yet another very successful term in Discovery Learning Community...where is the year going? This term has seen

us continue to have the school‘s top attendance, surge into the lead in the community competition and many of our

students have gained their important GCSEs in either Maths, English or both.

Our encouragement of reading has taken hold with our readathon. Students in Years 7,8 and 9 have been bringing in

books to read and share two mornings a week while our Year 10 and 11 students take part in Maths and English booster

sessions ready for exams later in the year. Another successful term nearly over and, I‘m sure, another on the horizon!

Mr Chapman

Learning Stage Leader

There has been some fantastic work completed by

students for their recent extended learning project.

Some of these students have been benefitting from addi-

tional support provided in school. Our learning mentor,

Miss Weedon, provides this support in the NASA Area

during lunchtimes. Any student is welcome to go along

and complete their extended learning work in a relaxed

area and receive any help they may need. Alternatively,

Miss Weedon is available after school on a Wednesday.

Any student who is interested in this, please see Mrs

Weedon for further details.

Some of our diligent students are pictured completing

their extended learning with the help of Mrs Weedon.

Who says reading is not fun? Well in the past term we have

completed the first stage of our ―Readathon‖ in Years 7, 8

and 9. On a Tuesday, students have been encouraged to

bring in a book of their choice to read during form time. On

a Thursday they have the morning tutor time to share their

stories with other students within the community before

they swap books once they have finished

reading them. This initiative has been very

successful students and staff bringing in many varied

books to take part in the Readathon! A very special men-

tion to DSFL and DKD who have managed to bring in the

most books to share. Well Done all!

Below are two book reviews from two keen readers, Chloe

Parfitt and Charlotte Harwood. Why not try their

recommendations!


History trip to London

On Tuesday 18th January 2011 the students studying the Public Service course were invited for a tour around the Houses of Parliament by Mr Adam Holloway MP for Gravesham. The students were given a guided tour of the Palace of Westminster including the House of Commons. The House of Lords were in session and had been for the entire night. The students learned about the history the Palace holds as well as its political importance in the modern society today. Following our visit the students are now able to complete their unit looking at legislating of the Public Services with a more in-depth insight into political debating. Mr Chapman

The House of Commons looks

much bigger on TV than it really

is.

M

olly Brett.

I never knew how old the houses were until we visited them. Tony Lambert.

A really enjoyable

day!

Jonathon Wood.

On Friday 21st January, 39 Year 9

students with Mrs Collins, Mrs Coleman and

Miss Arndt set off for a day trip to London.

Our main focus for the day was to find out

about the conflicts in the 20th Century that

Year 9 will be studying as one of their

History units in their Humanities lessons.

We visited the Imperial War Museum

and spent time in the First and Second

World War exhibitions. We visited the Trench

Experience and were quite shocked by the

poor conditions and the smell that the

soldiers had to live with. We learnt about

the weapons and transport used in war and

how they have developed through time.

We lunched in the grounds of the museum,

enjoying hot dogs and chips and watching

the squirrels. After lunch we visited the

Cenotaph and had a minute‘s silence while

we remembered all the soldiers who have

died fighting for our country. Miss Arndt gave

us an interesting and entertaining commen-

tary as we drove through London.

It was an enjoyable and informative day out

and all the Year 9 students behaved impecca-

bly and were a credit to the school. They

learnt a lot and showed their curiosity through

asking interesting questions and having

in-depth discussions once we arrived back at

school.

Mrs Collins

Tyrone Osiera ―I learnt that

more than one million British

people died in World War I.‖

Amber Hollins ―Today

was a very fascinating

day at the war museum,

we saw many interest-

ing artefacts and mod-

els of what life was like

in WWI and WWII.‖

Paige Skehan ―The real tanks and

bombs were fascinating and made

the experience more real. It put the

war into perspective and made me

empathise more with everyone who

went through it all!‖ Bradley Collins ―I

would like to go again;

it was really good.‖

Ben Rush ―Today‘s trip to the

war museum was extremely

beneficial to my Humanities.

One of the things I hadn‘t

previously given much

thought to was what war was

like for the younger generation.

The thing I enjoyed the most

was the life-size model of the

trenches because you could

see how hard life was...Overall

a very good day.‖

Jaimi Lee Basson‖ The dis-

play of weapons was great.‖

Lewis Foreman ―I

learnt about how the

children saw the war

through their eyes. I

liked to see how small

and narrow the air

raid shelters were.‖

Maria Parker ―It was hard to

imagine what life would have

been like, when I found out about

the 14 year old who lied about

his age to join up and then died

fighting, I was shocked, I couldn‘t

think about doing that.‖

Sam Goddard ―I recommend going

to the Imperial War Museum if you

are currently learning about the

World Wars, it was very educational

and I learnt a lot from it.‖

Jamie Gilbert ―My day was

very good and Miss

Arndt‘s tourist talk around

London was good.‖

Stephanie

Tunnicliffe ―I learnt

about MI5 and

MI6‘s role in the

wars and what they

did...It was a really

good day.‖

Nicola Thompson ―The worst part of today was

seeing the two graves of the 5 year old girl, who

died in an air raid and the 14 year old boy, who

lied about his age and died fighting.‖


Year 10 & 11 Young Apprentices‟

Winter Work Experience The Young Apprentices (YA) in Construction

continue to work extremely well completing

many projects in the community with the aid of

Mr Jim Rowe, their teacher. They have, in

December, completed projects for the vulner-

able, elderly and disabled in the community,

which comprised of clearing and levelling ac-

cess paths and drives to their homes. This also

developed into internal works included easing

of internal doors and decorating and lowering

kitchen cupboards for accessibility.

The beginning of January 2011 saw them

all carrying out some emergency remedial

works at Hope Hill Scouting Centre, making

some walkways level and square, using timber

shuttering and finishing with Type 1 Road stone.

They are currently embarking on re-decorating

particular areas in Woodville Halls and have been given

an open canvass on colour schemes and designs.

With Woodville Halls nearly completed they are

moving onto Chantry Road Primary School. They had

previously cleared an open area and will shortly be

constructing an outdoor teaching area in timber with

soft open play areas and gardens for the young children.

The work of these Young Apprentices is unbelievable

and is really helping the community and giving these

young people first-hand experience

Mr Jim Rowe and

Pauline Blayney

Year 10 Health and Social Care students spent a day completing their Appointed Person‘s

First Aid Exam. This was a hands-on experience which will help the students on their course

and will give them another relevant life skills qualification.

Pauline Blayney

Students from Year 10

YA Construction and the

Year 10 Diploma stu-

dents in construction,

spent the day working

with the Army on ‗Build a

Barracks‘. This was a

logistical problem which

they had to solve, and

gave construction stu-

dents the opportunity to

work on real problems

that they might face in

the world of work

Pauline Blayney

Director of Vocational

Education

Coming to Your Aid

Build a

Barracks Winning Footballers

This term has seen more football matches for Thames-

view school. There have been narrow losses for the

Year 7 team (against Swanley) and Year 9 team

(against St. Georges) and a victory for the Year 10

team (against Swan Valley), with goals from Michael

Carey and Toby Boyd. A victory was also awarded to

the Year 9 team as Swan Valley failed to field a team.

A big thanks to everybody that

has contributed to the football

so far, including players, staff

members and parents.

Matches could not happen

without everyone‘s support.

Training will continue to

happen on a Tuesday night

after-school for all years.

Mr S Franks


Staff Christmas “Pass it on” To finish off the Autumn term Food Technology hosted a staff training

session on ―Food for Christmas‖ Mr Cooper and his team invited all staff

to a session of ―pass it on‖ with recipes, demonstrations and taste testing

of different foods for Christmas.

Mr Francis and Mr P Robinson replaced their spanners and PE kit to

cook a tasty Halloumi cheese Pasta dish. Meanwhile Mrs Dance was cook-

ing a special Bread and butter pudding made from Panetonne. This des-

sert was very popular and very tasty. Mrs Finch showed how to make an

Italian Dessert called Volcano, with Panetonne soaked in Marsala wine

and then covered in lots of cream and chocolate. Everyone wanted sec-

onds. Yum yum.

Miss Skipsey shared her bespoke special chocolate recipes with all.

The selection of popular and unusual mixtures to suit everyone‘s pallet

kept everyone quiet as they tried the selection. But Christmas isn‘t just

about Turkey, cream and chocolate. Miss Dugmore showed how to make

a Vegetarian Green Thai Curry to add different flavours to the Traditional

Christmas Fayre.

And to finish off Mr Cooper represented Food Technology by demonstrat-

ing a Fidget Pie, which consists of layers of Apple, Ham, Onion and Potato

under a flaky short crust lid. As he demonstrated how the pie was made

the staff were treated to

mini mince pies and Christ-

mas Bread, with the fla-

vours of Oranges, Lemons

and sweet fruits. All made

pigs of themselves and

went away full and in the

right frame of mind for the

culinary delights of Christ-

mas.

Mr M Cooper

Year 8 are currently studying the Victorian era in EBL; the

exciting age of invention, exploration and exploitation!

Students have been finding out about the seedier side of

life, in the backstreets of ‗Olde London town‘, and in particu-

lar, learning about

the crimes of the

real-life villains

such as Jack the

Ripper and Mary

Ann Cotton. But

not all notorious

Victorian villains

were real ...

Sweeny Todd and

The Barber of Fleet

Street was the

creation of Captain

Merry. Merry‘s

story was

published in instalments in the notorious, ‖Penny Dread-

ful‘s‖ (also called Penny Horrible, Penny Awful, Penny

Number and Penny Blood).

Sweeny‘s despicable disposal of human meat inspired

Mrs Curley‘s group, 8X2, to design and create their own

‗Gruesome Grub‘. Just like Mrs Lovett, they encased meat,

vegetables and some rather unsavoury looking concoctions,

in their home made pastry to create a range of pies and

savouries. The results looked delicious, but who knows what

lurked beneath the crisp, golden pastry ...

Gruesome Victorian Grub

... and just what is that lurking under the crust of

Harry Flatman’s pasty?

Are they maggots inside this fishy pie?

As part of their

Food Technology

lessons, Year 9

have been undertaking a bread baking

challenge. They had to come up with a

flavoured bread. There were some inter-

esting flavours including Pizza flavour,

bacon and cheese, and cinnamon with

chocolate.

From their evaluations some of the

comments are below:

―It was really yummy, I really enjoyed

shaping the loaf,‖ wrote Jodie Bundock.

Tigi Barry said, ―The beautiful aroma of fresh

bread and garlic made me hungry!‖

Jaimi Basson said, ―My loaf looked like a BLOB!‖

Mr Cooper & Year 9 Food Students

Tigi Barry

Year 9 Baking Challenge


Term Dates

Holiday Monday 21st to

Friday 25th February

4 Tuesday 1st March to

Friday 8th April

5 Tuesday 26th April to

Friday 27th M ay

6 Monday 6th June to

Friday 22nd July

Community

Name

Points

Challenger 172

Discovery 210

Endeavour 160

Enterprise 208

Community

Positions

Other Key Events:

Thursday 3rd March - Year 9 Options Fayre

Thursday 10th March - Parents‘ Forum

Tuesday 22nd March - Key Stage 3 Parents‘ Evening

Thursday 24th March - Key Stage 3 Parents‘ Evening

Thursday 31st March - School Show

Friday 1st April - ―Gleek‖ The School Show

Thursday 7th April - Year 11 Parents‘ Evening

Thursday 16th June - Year 10 Parents‘ Evening

Thursday 23rd June - Parents‘ Forum

Thursday 7th July - Year 9 Parents‘ Evening

Thursday 14th July - Summer Concert

Thurs 21st July - Reserve date Summer Concert

I was asked to write a piece about being a

parent governor and my views on the school.

I‘m quite new to being a parent governor since

this is only my second year, but here goes!

I started off being a parent governor at my

children‘s primary school; I found it very inter-

esting to be involved with how a school is

generally run, curriculum matters and also

various sub-committees that you can get

involved with. When the vacancy came up at

Thamesview, I thought, I‘d enjoyed the last

governor post, so why not get involved with

Thamesview‘s Governing Body, after all, how

different could it be?

The first meeting of the full governing body

came and I was made to feel very welcome by

the governors, some of whom I knew from

parents‘ meetings and open evenings, so I felt

at ease.

Even though I am new to the position, I am

finding the role very interesting and, at times,

challenging, trying to understand the ‗jargon‘,

which I‘m sure comes with experience and

time. I have enjoyed being involved with the

new school project and watching events

happen as Thamesview moved to the new

building. My view of the new school is that I

feel the open spaces and relaxed teaching

areas enable the children to learn and interact

with others easier. The facilities that are now

available in the new building are second to

none; especially the food technology room,

Drama area and large sports hall, which are

prime examples of vastly improved facilities.

Lastly I would like to say how very proud I

am of the way the Headteacher and the staff

have made Thamesview such a great place,

full of positive atmosphere for my children and

I‘m sure for others, to learn skills for life. I am

hoping to continue for some time as a

governor, to gain new experiences and await

the completed site of Thamesview School.

Sue Perry

Parent Governor

A Governor‟s View

Please, please, please .......

could you make sure that every

item of your child‘s school uni-

form has their name in it, even if

it‘s just written on the label. It

costs you so much to replace if it

gets lost and items that have got

names in will be returned to their

owners — we can‘t return it if we

don‘t know who it belongs to and

for that reason, we‘ve got a large

collection already built up in the

main school office.

Lost Property

Piercings! A reminder to parents and

students that the only piercings

allowed at school are stud earrings

in the ears only.

Any facial piercings must be

removed. Students are not

permitted to cover these with

plasters, as they invariably fall off,

and create a situation for conflict

between staff and students.

We will send home any

students who do not comply with

our expectations in an effort to

continue our high standards.

Schools are like work places,

we all have our dress codes that

need to be adhered to and this

expectation is in our school

prospectus.

Thank you for your support in

complying with this.

THAMESVIEW PARENTS

We are very keen to involve parents in the educa-

tion of their children at Thamesview School and

always welcome your views and suggestions.

How can you get involved? 1. Attend Parents‘ Forum Thursday 10th March.

Any suggestions for agenda items please let us

know. (50 VIVOs for your child if you attend!)

2. Join the school PTFA

3. Become a parent Governor

Your child is now eligible for their final Diph-

theria, Tetanus and Polio Vaccination (DTP)

essential for protection against these serious

infectious diseases.

All Children need this vaccination but it is even more important if they are:

Considering foreign travel. Wishing to attend a further education, college or university.

Considering a career in health, with animals, or outdoor work. Accident prone!!

Sometime between January and July 2011, your son/ daughter will receive a DTP

consent form through Thamesview.

Please complete the consent form

and return it to us. REMEMBER

this is the final Dose to protect your

child!

PARENTS OF YEAR PARENTS OF YEAR

10 STUDENTS10 STUDENTS

School Access Changes Our building works are progressing and although

delayed by adverse weather conditions the main school

entrance (off Thong Lane) will be ready for use as from

the start of next term, 1st March. It has been

completely redesigned and now has two distinctive elec-

tronically controlled entrance gates one for pedestrians

and one for vehicles.

To enable further landscaping of the grounds, all

access onto the school site via Cervia Way will be

closed, and from 1st March pedestrians will need to use

the Thong Lane entrances only. The current designated

vehicle drop point in Cervia Way will remain unchanged.

For the safety reasons parents are asked not to drive

their vehicles onto the school site.

Diary Dates Staff Development Days:

Monday 28th February 2011

Monday 27th June 2011

Bank holidays:

Friday 29th April

Monday 2nd May

Please note that the school will be

closed on these days for students.

Page 12

Term 4 sees Thamesview kick-off with a variety of clubs and activities. The students

have spoken and we have listened. Take a look at the table below and see all that is

on offer. The yellow areas are clubs that are coming soon. Make your interest known

to the member of staff running the club. Any interests that you may

have for other clubs please do not hesitate to state ―WHAT YOU WANT‖.

By the looks of the table there is a lot to get involved with already!!!

Enrichment days are also coming soon, dance workshop days, ice

skating and much more! You have no excuse to be bored after school!

See Mr Robinson (pictured left), our Enrichment Co-ordinator, if you

want more information about clubs/activities around the school.

Have some fun and join in—what have you got to lose?!

Healthwise is Sodexo's nutrition, well-being and life-

style philosophy. It is our commitment to promoting

healthy living amongst our employees and customers

Try for a Prize The Six Nations Rugby tournament

starts in February and we have linked

up with Matt Dawson to

promote dishes from the

countries taking part in

the tournament. There

will be a chance for our

customers to win prizes

such as signed T-shirts. Fairtrade

Fortnight

This starts on28th February and

highlights our Fairtrade products.

£2.09 £2.09

Thamesview‟s Food Providers

www.sodexo-healthwise.co.uk

Chinese New

Year This year we are cele-

brating the Year of the

Rabbit with recipes

from Ching‘s Kitchen.

Operation

Christmas Child

It‘s remarkable

what a simple shoe-

box filled with gifts

can do for a child in

need. This year

Thamesview filled

nearly 70 boxes that went on to put a smile

on the face of a child in difficult

circumstance last Christmas.

Can I take this opportunity to thank all staff

and students who

took the time to

generously fill a

shoebox and

donate it to

Operation Christ-

mas Child.

Just look at the

stack of boxes to

be sent off.

Pictured are some of

our student con-

tributors preparing

their gift boxes.

Thank you to

everyone for

making

another child‘s

Christmas more

special.

Jo Ryan, Busi-

ness and Enterprise Director

Nerys Sandy, Business & Enterprise

Administrator

Spr ing Term 3

Club Time Day Where? Staff/Coach Football Mornings/Lunch 8am – 8.25am Mon – Fri Sports Hall Mr Robinson, Mr

Pascoe and Mr

Daines.

Girls/Boys Football 3pm – 4pm Tuesday After school

Dip/Playground/

Muga

Mr Franks – Boys/

Girls outside coach

Badminton 1.15pm – 1.50pm Tues + Thurs Lunch? Sports Hall Mr Robinson

Trampolining 1.15pm – 1.50pm Wednesday Lunch Sports Hall

Miss Rogers/ Mrs

Smith

Girls/Boys Basketball 3.10pm - 4.15pm Tuesday After School Sports Hall

Penny – Youth

Worker

Hockey 3.15pm-4.15pm Tuesday After School Muga Mr Pascoe

Fitness 3.15pm-4.15pm

Tues/Weds/Thurs—

must see the staff to

check which days

each week. Fit Net

Miss Coleman &

Miss Dean

Street Dance 3.10pm - 4.15pm

Monday After School

(Girls) Activity Studio

Bethany Price –

Girls

Street Dance 3.10pm - 4.15pm

Wednesday After

School (Boys) Activity Studio

Mr Robinson and

Kaizen Company –

Boys

F1 Engineering Challenge Coming Soon Coming Soon Vocational Centre Mr Francis

Pop,Bang,Fizz 3pm – 4.15pm

Wednesday After

School Science Labs Mr Pascoe

Fishing Club See Penny

Ongoing Course –

Wednesday after

school Local Community

Penny – Youth

Worker

Can Cook Will Cook Coming Soon Coming Soon Coming Soon Mr Cooper

Ballet/Tap Dancing 3pm – 4pm Friday After School Dance Studio Mrs Beaumont

Graffiti Course

Ongoing Course (8

weeks) Riverside Centre?

See Penny – Youth

Worker

Art/Design Club 3pm – 4pm Thursday Art Room Mrs Doolan

Karate/Self Defense 3pm – 4pm Monday Activity Studio

Outside Coach -

Already going on.

Babysitting Course See Penny Ongoing Course Local Community

See Penny –

Youth Worker

Actors Society 3.10pm - 4.15pm Thursday Drama Studio Mr Ferguson

Documents

2011 Term 3