Calendar 2017-18

Page 8

Dear Parents/Carers,

The Spring Term has seen further changes at the Centre with the KS3 students using The

Sea Cadets building as their base. Access to this facility has also given the school an addi-

tional room for meeting with parents and professionals involved in the children’s wellbeing

and support.

Work has already started on a major refurbishment of the primary classroom and I look

forward to welcoming new KS1 children to St George’s after Easter.

I would like to thank all parents and carers for their support in introducing a new school

uniform for secondary school students and in managing students’ mobile phones within the

Centre.

Since January, the school has benefitted from some staff moving into their new roles.

These include Lesley Bull as Work Experience/BTEC Co-ordinator, Sarah Bradley as Al-

ternative Provider Lead and Barbara Duckworth as Hard to Reach Lead.

I wish to take this opportunity, on behalf of all the staff at St. George’s Centre, to wish you

a happy Easter and we look forward to seeing the pupils back on Monday 16th April 2018.

Best wishes,

Miss Sam Stocken

Introduction

Easter 2018

Cheltenham & Tewkesbury

Alternative Provision School

Important Dates:

Wed 28th March

Parent Review Day

Thu 29th April

End of Term

Mon 16th April

Term restarts

See what’s been hap-

pening in girls’ group

on Friday afternoons

Lovely costumes Ladies!

Find out all about World

Book Day on p7

Inside this issue:

Primary 2

Bridge Training

3

Behaviour Reward

Money 3

Meet Our New Chef 3

Police Horse Visit 4

Friday PHSE 4

World Book Day 5

Pet Project 5

My Plans 5

BTECs 6

Bike Project 6

Land Based Studies 7

2017/18 Calendar 8

What have the boys’ group

been up to in PSHE?

p4

This term our topic has been

Travel and Transport .We

have looked at different

modes of transport and some

countries around the World.

In Literacy we have been

researching famous inventors

such as George Stephenson

and Sir Malcolm Campbell,

the land speed record holder.

Our students have researched

these topics and produced a

spider gram. They have

talked about journeys which

they have completed and

used exciting language in-

cluding adjectives, allitera-

tion and idioms to describe

their experiences. We have

been looking at the features

of fantasy writing and the

students have composed their

own fantasy journeys.

Numeracy

The students have been look-

ing at different ways of col-

lecting data and measure-

ments. We used the equip-

ment in Cookery to measure

quantities and also investigated

the lengths of objects including

cars around the centre.

Allotment

We have continued to work

hard in the allotment but also

had a great time as you can see

from the photo below!!!! We

have been building scarecrows

and preparing the ground for

some vegetables. Yum-

my!!!!! Broad beans, peas,

potatoes and onions!!!!!!

World Book Day

We celebrated World Book

Day by creating our own book

cover for a fictional or non-

fictional piece of writing.

Expressing what makes

them happy or sad

Enjoying some quiet

reading time on World

Book Day

Jenson enjoying himself

at the allotment

Page 2

Primary’s work on

George Stephenson

“The Father of Rail-

ways”

Look at me and

Ducky having a

wheelbarrow ride!

This is a great story!

What’s your book

about?

Check out what

primary have been up

to!

Shakespeare Week

We have been learning a little

about Shakespeare, the great

play writer and poet.

PSHE

This term we have been look-

ing at things that make us hap-

py and some things that make

us sad. We have also talked

about what bullying is and how

it can show its ugly face in and

out of school.

Primary have made dif-

ferent modes of transport

Primary

Page 7

A new group of students

have been undertaking

their BTEC LEVEL 1

Award in Land Based

Studies.

Once a week the students

get the opportunity to

engage in numerous out-

door activities, that are

related to the running of

the farm.

This Term they have been

patiently waiting for the

arrival of some baby

lambs, making sure the

mothers are kept well fed

in preparation for this

exciting event. There were

8 healthy lambs born in

total, and students have

been helping to keep them

this way, by bottle feeding

the ones that need a little

extra milk, bathing the

eyes in camomile, and

docking the tails, which is

when the tail gets short-

ened. This improves the

health and welfare of

sheep and lambs. It pre-

vents fecal matter from

accumulating on the tail

and hindquarters of the

animal.

The boys have also been

very busy constructing a

wall, making chicken pens

Land Based Studies

and building

a den - keep

up the good

work!

This is a work-related

qualification teaching the

children Land Based skills.

The Award concentrates

on Animal Health, Care of

Farm Animals, Animal

Movement and Animal

Accommodation. The

qualification gives learners

the knowledge, under-

standing and key skills

they need to prepare for

employment.

On The Farm

At the start of term 3 we

re-introduced BTEC’s in

to the curriculum. These

qualifications are awarded

by Pearson, the UK’s

largest awarding body

offering academic and

vocational qualifications

that are globally recog-

nised and benchmarked.

The three BTEC Special-

ist qualifications we are

offering are Food Studies,

Hair and Beauty and

Road Safety.

They are work related

qualifications that are

available from Entry to

Level 3. They are de-

Page 6

signed to give learners the

knowledge, understand-

ing and skills they need to

prepare for employment

in a specific occupational

area.

The qualifications have

been developed to give

learners the opportunity

to:

Engage in learning

which is relevant to

them and will pro-

vide opportunities

to develop a range

of skills and tech-

niques, personal

skills and attributes

essential for suc-

cessful perfor-

BTECs

The Bike Project

The Bike Project continues

to be popular with our stu-

dents, with many wanting

to take part in the new

course this term, where

students are lucky enough

to be given a used bike to

refurbish and then keep as

their own.

Georgie, Kaiden and

Shawn have formed the

new group , learning the art

and craft of bicycle mainte-

nance and repair, and have

been doing extremely well.

The course really helps to

encourage young people to

see themselves as having

the skills and ability to cre-

ate a bright future for them-

selves, as long as they put

the effort in.

mance in working

life

Achieve a national-

ly recognised Entry

or Level 1 voca-

tionally related

qualification

Progress to related

general and/or vo-

cational qualifica-

tions

Progress to em-

ployment in the

relevant sector

Develop their own

personal growth

and engagement in

learning

Students taking part in the

motor vehicle and con-

struction courses continue

to work hard towards

achieving their qualifica-

tion at Bridge Training.

The Hair and Beauty

group are also getting on

well. Some students have

completed their nail art

unit and are now working

towards gaining their

plaiting and twisting ac-

creditation.

For year 11 students, the

practical skills they are

learning will allow them

to enrol on further courses

next year, giving them the

qualifications required to

work successfully in the

industry. Therefore, this

is a great opportunity to

take those first steps to-

wards a great career in

one of these sectors.

For those who wish to

take advantage of this, we

wish them all the best in

achieving their future

goals.

We would like to take this

opportunity to welcome a

new member of staff to

the St Georges team and

that’s our lovely new chef

Sherralyn.

Page 3

ing students the confi-

dence to do well in

the

kitchen, will ensure

they leave the centre

with a positive atti-

tude towards cooking,

fresh on site again.

In the past, students

have enjoyed helping

out in the kitchen. If

students had completed

all their work, as a re-

ward they were allowed

to go and help prepare

the lunch. This is some-

thing Sherralyn is keen

to start again, as being

able to prepare healthy,

nutritious food, is an

important life skill. Giv-

Behaviour Reward Money This term we have

introduced an excit-

ing new reward sys-

tem for students,

where they have the

incentive to earn real

money, in return for

being on time for

lessons, respectful in

class and engaged in

learning.

Students can receive

between 10-15p per

lesson, having the

opportunity to gain

an additional 10p at

break and

lunchtimes, and for

wearing the correct

May it be noted, that

under no circum-

stance will we pro-

vide students with

actual cash.

So far, some students

have spent their re-

ward money on pool

cues, one student has

Bridge Training

uniform. They can

use the money they

have secured for a

particular reward of

their choice. They

may decide to do this

on a weekly basis, or

save up in order to

purchase a bigger

reward.

purchased some

parts for their scooter

and one is even sav-

ing up for some gym

equipment! - Keep

up the good work!

Sherralyn joined us this

term and has been busy

getting the kitchen back in

order, which is now look-

ing spick and span!

Since November, we have

been without a chef and

since January have been

getting our food from The

Ridge. Although we ap-

preciate the efforts of the

cooking staff there, the

students can’t wait until

the food will be cooked

We have a new Chef!

Police Horses

One day after Christmas,

huge police horses came

to visit us at St George’s.

At first I was shocked to

see them round the back

on our court. Then I slow-

ly crept towards them and

started stroking their

necks. I was talking to the

police officer about how

they arrest people on

horses and he told me that

they grab the back of peo-

ple’s jumpers to get them

close to the horse but not

too close so the people

are safe. It was interest-

ing to ask questions, and

I enjoyed seeing the

horses.

Boys’ Group

Deep in discussion

Page 4

This term Friday after-

noons have been dedicat-

ed to PHSE sessions.

PSHE education is a

school subject through

which pupils develop the

knowledge, skills and

attributes they need to

keep themselves healthy

and safe, and prepare for

life and work in modern

Britain. It aims to develop

skills and attributes such

as resilience, self-esteem,

risk-management, team-

working and critical

thinking, in the context of

learning grouped into

three core themes: health

and wellbeing, relation-

ships and living in the

wider world.

We have divided students

and staff in to a girls’

group and a boys’ group,

and students

have engaged in

various activities based

around subjects such as

healthy relationships,

body image, racism and

sexism. We have also

provided students with

the option of a physical

activity, under the theme

of health and well being.

The boys have been en-

joying some time up

Cleeve Hill and the girls

have been participating in

some Zumba sessions.

Jacqueline explains:

“My name is Jacqueline

and I am a Science teach-

er here at St. Georges,

however, I am also a

trained Zumba instructor

and have taught Zumba in

different schools for many

years so recently we de-

cided to start running

Mounted Section

Following a successful tri-

al, the mounted section are

now a permanent part of

Gloucestershire Constabu-

lary. Now, communities

across Gloucestershire will

see police officers on horse

back patrolling the local

area.

Two years ago an interna-

tional project was conduct-

ed which showed that hors-

es are a useful tactic for the

police, both in terms of

reducing crime and serving

the public.

Mounted officers have the

same powers and capabili-

ties as any police officer,

and can contribute to polic-

ing in a variety of ways,

including operations, target-

ing offenders and crime

prevention. They will be

based in Gloucestershire's

communities to offer reas-

surance and advice.

We had the pleasure of two

of these police officers and

their horses visiting the

centre earlier in the year in

Term 3.

This is what Amelia

Saysall, one of our key

stage 3 pupils had to say:

Girls’ Group doing Zumba

Friday PSHE Zumba sessions here in

the centre on a Friday

afternoon as part of our

PHSE girl's group. I was

amazed by how quickly

and enthusiastically the

girls picked up the steps

and took to it,

especially the cheerlead-

ing routines with the pom

poms and the belly danc-

ing with the Indian skirts.

They have been a real joy

to teach and as part of

this we are now moving

onto the girls developing

their own routines to their

own music tracks. The

aim of these sessions is to

promote healthy relation-

ships through team build-

ing throughout the inter-

active dance routines and

also to raise self-esteem

and positive body image

in the girls through exer-

cise. Hopefully they will

achieve all of this as they

continue to develop their

own routines which we

are all looking forward to

seeing!”

Police Horse Visit

World Book Day

Page 5

The Pet Project

World Book Day was celebrated

across Great Britain on Thursday

1 March, where all students and

staff were welcome to come

dressed as their favourite book

character. We also had various

reading activities planned for the

day, to inspire our pupils to read,

but the arrival of the ‘Beast from

the East’ meant that, unfortunate-

ly, many students were unable to

get in to school, and those that

did, were sent home early due to

the heavy snow fall.

However, we had been taking

students out all week to Water-

stones in order to spend their £1

activities throughout the week

that they had planned for this

event.

Staff were also keen to share

with students the type of books

they enjoy reading, and photos of

us reading our favourite books

were displayed for all to see.

David Walliams

Gangsta Granny

Peter Pan and

Nanny Mcphee

Here at St Georges

we are running the

Pet Project for those

pupils that have an

interest in looking

after animals and

perhaps pursuing a

career in animal wel-

fare.

The Pet Project looks

at all aspects of car-

ing for different ani-

mals but especially

book tokens, generously given to

all young people by World Book

Day Ltd, who are a small, regis-

tered charity. It is not a govern-

ment initiative as many people

think. The financing of World

Book Day comes mainly from

contributing publishers, the gen-

erous sponsorship of National

Book Tokens Ltd, some literacy

partnerships and other support-

ers, as well as the participating

booksellers who fund the entire

cost of the Book Token redemp-

tion.

Nevertheless, the following week

staff went ahead with various

chickens and we are

hoping to be incubat-

ing and hatching out

our own chicks after

Easter!

As part of the course

we have visited the

animal shelter in

Cheltenham and the

City Farm in

Gloucester.

Funny Bones by

The Ahlbergs

“I shall be getting

my students to do

some reading

about Edward

Jenner, the fa-

mous scientist, as

part of their stud-

ies of pathogens

and immunisation.

And I like to read

books about the

human body espe-

cially really big

ones like this!”

My Plans

My plans are now well estab-

lished and we have found it a

great benefit in meeting with

parents to discuss them. This

has enabled all of us to be able

to share support and monitor

progress of students.

My profiles summarise the

support on the My Plans to help

staff implement the right support

and differentiation in the class-

room and around school.

We welcome any feedback or

actions that parents/carers can

add to help us with improving

support for you and our stu-

dents..