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@ARKElvinAcademy

A very positive start to 2016

Welcome to our Spring 2 newsletter. We have highlighted just some of our great achievements so far this

year. As you can see we managed to pack a lot into the short Spring 1 half term. Spring 2 is even shorter,

with only 23 school days; you can see key dates at the end of this newsletter.

Our big focus is on helping all of our pupils to continue to make excellent progress and achieve their targets.

We are particularly proud of our year 11 pupils and our sixth form students. They have taken the final push

towards their exams very seriously and are ensuring that they do everything they can to achieve. Year 11

now have assemblies 4 times a week where we give key tips on how to improve grades and get the very

best results this summer. Please help and support your child during what can be a very busy and stressful

time of year, and reassure them that with support and advice from family, teachers and friends they will be

able to achieve their targets and go on to be successful. We are very proud of all of our pupils and students

here at Elvin and I look forward to sharing more of their success with you later this term.

Ark Elvin Academy

Newsletter Spring 2 February 2016

Finally, as we are now in our 5th full term as Ark Elvin Academy we are expecting an Ofsted inspection at

some point in the next couple of months. We are very pleased with the progress which we are making as a

school and are very much looking forward to showing this to inspectors, along with our plans for further

improvement. When the inspection comes we will receive notice around lunchtime of the day before. I will

inform all of the pupils that afternoon and send a letter home with them to let you know as well. The full

visit should last two days and I will send out details of their findings as soon as it is complete. Thank you in

advance with your support with this and for your continued support as we strive to improve our school and

outcomes for our children.

Best wishes,

Elvin Learning Support Assistant wins prestigious award

Congratulations to Ms Abdul-Rahman for winning the Ark Schools award for Secondary Teaching Assistant

2016. The award was presented by Ark chief executive Lucy Heller at the Ark Schools conference, in front

of 2,000 teaching staff from all Ark Schools. Ms Abdul-Rahman, who was selected for the award ahead of

learning support assistants from schools across the country, was recognised not only for the tireless work

she puts in to our pupils on a daily basis, but also for the training she has delivered to teachers on how to

support pupils with hearing or visual impairments.

INTEGRITY COURAGE COMMUNITY MASTERY

Miss Bates said “Miss Abdul-Rahman is a real asset to Elvin and I am proud that she has won this well-

deserved award. She is passionate about helping children to overcome any barriers they may face and never

sees special educational needs as an issue, but rather as a series of challenges which we need to learn to

overcome with the child. She puts the needs of our pupils at the centre of everything she does. She is a

fabulous colleague and all children and adults in the school think she is wonderful!”

Year 11 GCSE preparation nears the final stretch

Our year 11 pupils have shown excellent attitudes and effort as they near the final weeks before GCSE

exams start in May. The level of support and attention they have been receiving also increased over the last

half term. The year started in January with all year 11s receiving their mock results in a special assembly in

the hall, nervously opening envelopes as they will be doing in August for their final results.

Year 11 have also had assemblies four mornings a week,

focussing on a range of topics such as revision techniques,

planning for the future, the importance of attendance, and

skills for maths, English and science. Specific year 11

resources for many subjects are now on our website,

with some of these updating on a weekly basis, and most

pupils have been attending extra sessions after school or

during half term.

All year 11 pupils also sat mock exams in the hall for maths and English earlier this month, and will have a full

set of mocks for all subjects later this half term – see the last page for more details.

We’re incredibly proud of the effort all our year 11s have been making and look forward to seeing the fruits

of this when they receive their final GCSE grades in the summer.

Sixth Formers’ premier university and careers workshop

Sixth form students at Ark Academy and Ark Elvin Academy were given top league training on preparing for

university and their future careers in a session organised by Barclays LifeSkills.

The students were taught on getting ready for the world of work by representatives from the bank during

an intensive session on CV writing, interview skills and professional presentation. LifeSkills also helps to

improve access to work experience opportunities, traineeships and apprenticeships to give them the key

skills and experience through businesses across the UK. To help inspire them to go for the top, students

were able to pose for a photo finish with the Barclays Premier League Trophy.

Head girl Olufunke said that "The sessions were really helpful and about developing yourself as a person".

Fellow sixth former Naveed added that "They really help you get a little further in life and with your career"

Elvin was selected from hundreds of schools to host the trophy and receive Barclays LifeSkills sessions.

Kirstie Mackey, head of LifeSkills, commented: "We are delighted to reward Ark Elvin Academy with a visit

from the iconic Barclays Premier League Trophy. We’re proud of the positive impact we have on young

people’s lives and are honoured to be part of the journey which helps shape their future.”

Miss Bates added: “It’s vital that we work with partners such as Barclays LifeSkills to ensure our students are

well equipped to enter a competitive university and employment marketplace. As well as learning vital work-

readiness skills, it was a real privilege for Elvin students to see the trophy first-hand. Not only is the Barclays

Premier League an important part of local life in Wembley, but our school is also named after Sir Arthur

Elvin, an inspiring individual who worked hard to make Wembley Stadium what it is today.”

INTEGRITY COURAGE COMMUNITY MASTERY

Year 9 visit to Rothschild’s Bank

On the 28th January, a group of year 9s went to visit

Rothschild, a top global bank, in central London for a day of

career workshops. Miss Patel writes:

Miss Abdul-Rahman and I were fortunate enough to accompany

some pupils from 9 Amethyst and 9 Coral to Rothschild’s in Bank.

The pupils had an amazing day discussing transferable skills in

jobs, CV strengths and weaknesses, 'hot' and 'cold' jobs, and

educational routes that they can take following GCSEs and school.

Following a tour of the office building (and the company gym and

doctor's surgery of course!), they were also treated to a lovely

lunch on the 15th floor overlooking London. Even at this height, the pupils managed to stuff themselves silly and avoid

any sickness! The day came to an end with an opportunity for groups to design and pitch their ideas for an

educational app to four of the dragons of Rothschild’s! A prize was then awarded to the best group pitch.

The pupils were an absolute credit to the school and I couldn't have been more proud. Their behaviour was

impeccable and all facilitators were particularly impressed with their confidence, participation and engagement! The

Chief Officer of Security for Rothschild’s has given me his card in hopes of having a follow up with the pupils and has

offered to visit the school and volunteer in any way that he can.

All in all, the day was a fantastic opportunity for the pupils and greatly enjoyed and appreciated by all.

Budding Elvin Engineers visit Alstom Train Care Centre

On Wednesday 10th February, our year 12 Physics students went to the Alstom depot in Wembley to see engineering

in action. Shangar writes:

“Alstom is a train care centre and manufactures modern day trains such as the Virgin Pendolino. The

experience gave us a fantastic opportunity to see how the physics we learn in class is used in

engineering industries like Alstom is a train care centre. We were given a tour of the centre and got up

close to the wheels of the trains and also saw how the engineers at Alston repair the wheels. We also

learnt how important safety is in the engineering industry as we had to wear safety hats and shoes. For

me personally the best part of the trip was learning about the industrial

machines and their uses. To top this off we were allowed to sit in the drivers

area of the Virgin Pendolino and we were also shown how the drivers operate

the trains.”

Nikita adds:

“I really enjoyed the trip to Alstom Train Care Centre, on which we learned that much of our

classroom learning could be applied to the real world. We were also able to see the extraordinary

mechanical process; of which train wheels undergo to be fixed when damaged. Furthermore for me the

highlight of the trip was being able to go to the driver’s cabin, where we looked at how most of the

controls worked. Overall it was a great experience.”

INTEGRITY COURAGE COMMUNITY MASTERY

Individual achievements

Lisa represents Elvin at the Brent finals of the Jack Petchey Speak Out competition, with a passionate speech

about the importance of not judging people.

Halema receives a Young Leader of the Year award, presented by England international Rachel Yankey, from

the London Football Journeys charity.

Year 10s commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day

On 27th January, twelve year 10 pupils went to JFS school in Kingsbury to take part in a commemoration of

Holocaust Memorial Day. One of the pupils sent this report:

The Holocaust was the destruction of 6 million Jews by the Nazis in the years 1933-1945. Individuals would be

persecuted and would be annihilated based on many reasons for instance religion, race, appearance and ethnicity.

We recognised Holocaust Memorial Day, at Jewish Free School on the 27th January 2016.

We got the chance to hear people who were in the holocaust speaking about their experiences and the thoughts

which ran their minds.

There was a speaker who spoke of her experiences in the holocaust. Her name is Mrs Renee Salt who was born in

Poland in 1929. During the holocaust she was in the Lodz ghetto and later in the concentration camps. She was one

of the survivors of the holocaust, she shared her story by showing her perspective.

In addition, we heard from Mr Ray Hill, who was born in Lancashire in 1939 and after spending 3 years in the British

army became involved in the far right 'racial preservation society'. He later became a well-known police informant

and subsequently dedicated and devoted his life to anti-fascist and anti-racist education. He spoke of the dangers of

racism and anti-Semitism.

During the workshops, we learnt about the victims, perpetrators and bystanders of the holocaust. We ended the day

by considering the moral dilemmas of the holocaust.

By Klea (Year 10)

Spring 2 Key Dates

Please put these dates in your diaries:

Monday 22nd February: Start of Spring 2 half term

Monday 7th March: Staff training day (no school for pupils)

9th – 17th March: Mock exams (year 11)

14th – 17th March: Mock exams (year 12/13)

14th – 18th March: Assessment week (years 7-10)

21st – 24th March: Review week

Thursday 24th March: Last day of half term for pupils