Dear Parents and Carers,

I am very excited about this half term’s newsletter as we have so much to share with

you and all of it is good news!

The first news we have to tell you about is of our Ofsted inspection which took place

on Tuesday 18th and Wednesday 19th March. Inspections now happen with only half a

days notice as inspectors want to see how a school really is and do not allow any time

for pre preparation or “pulling the wool over their eyes” so to speak. You can be very

proud of your children as they were wonderful (as always.) The inspectors spoke highly

of their manners, their appearance and their conduct as well as how well they focused

on their learning in lessons. The staff worked together as a real team during this quite

stressful event and really showed the inspectors how skilled they are in teaching our

children and how they make the lessons interesting and often exciting. I am sure you

have all heard how much the inspection regime has changed and that the criteria by

which we are judged is very demanding. There are only two categories to pass the

inspection, good or outstanding, and outstanding is proving very difficult for any school

to achieve. We are pleased to inform you that we were found to be good overall with

safeguarding being awarded outstanding. The full report is on our website for you to

read and if any of you want a hard copy please contact school and we will provide one

for you.

That brings me to the next bit of exciting news, our new website is now live. It is not

the finished article yet as we are aware there are many things we can add to it so it

will be a work in progress, but at least we now have something that is working and

there is some key information on it. If you have a look at it and have any ideas of what

may be worthwhile having on the website please let us know; we want it to be as useful

as possible to you all.

The final fantastic piece of news from me is that on Wednesday 2nd April we had the

formal opening ceremony of our new sports hall. It is a wonderful new building and the

children are so excited about their PE lessons being in this new, large and airy building,

not to mention Mr Johnston and Mr Gairn! It’s even got under-floor heating so the

children’s feet won’t be cold when doing gymnastics. The sports hall has been named

“The Mike Hanford Sport’s Hall” after our Chair of Governors, who retired last year,

after serving the school on a voluntary basis since 1997. Jamie Burdekin, Bootle’s well

known para Olympian tennis player joined Mike and many other V.I.P’s from the local

education authority to formally cut the ribbon. Jamie spoke to the children about the

power of determination and that with hard work and commitment anything is possible,

as he was paralysed after a car accident but has learned a new sport and is now seeded

4th in the world.

As you will see in the newsletter there have been many more events and stimulating

activities this half term so please enjoy reading it. Have a very happy Easter and we

will see the children back in school on Wednesday 23rd April as we L.E.A.P together

again for the summer term.

Mrs. Oxton-Grant

This term, Year 11 pupils have been looking at advertisements across various

media, at the end of which, as part of their final coursework , they each

produced their own advert based on independent research.

9SB have been studying William Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ this half term. They

have really understood the characters of Macbeth and his descent into evil

ways. Here you can see Tyronne Lougue’s ‘Macbeth’s

Mood Graph’. You can also see Jack McCluskie’s idea of

what Macbeth might write in his diary.

On the last day of Spring 1 (14th February), Mr Bellis did an assembly

based on ‘Valentines Day’. At the end of the assembly, he set a challenge in

the form of a poetry competition.

Jack Woods from 7LM won the competition with his poem simply called

‘Love’.

Year 7 have been adding and

subtracting in columns.

Year 8 have been rounding and

ordering numbers.

Year 9 have adding and

subtracting decimals and larger

numbers.

Pupils have been using a new piece of

software called Bitstrips to create comic

strips. It is useful in developing literacy

skills in a fun way. Pupils can access the

software at home on

www.bitstripsforschools.com

8C have been busy testing materials. They tested a range of materials including

plastic, foil wrapped crisps, fabric, sponge and paper towel.

They predicted that the sponge would not be waterproof, but found out that the

water floated on the top of it. They found out that the glossy side of the

wrapping paper is more waterproof than the plain side and that the plastic and

foil wrap was waterproof.

This half term Year 10 pupils have been exploring Science and our Universe,

one of the units in the Entry Level Pathways Qualification. They have learnt

about the structure of galaxies and our solar system, how craters are formed on

the surface of the moon and studied images taken using different telescopes.

To improve understanding of this difficult topic we visited Spaceport in

Seacombe. There we experienced the Explorer Simulator, the planetarium dome

and had great fun with the interactive exhibits including a whole floor dedicated

to Dr Who!

Year 7 while studying the unit ‘Passport to the World’ have looked at tribes in

Africa and why they wear particular masks. Here are a few important tribal leaders

below!

Year 8 have been looking at animals of the Amazon Rainforest – using a range of

questions and key words pupils must guess the animal behind them.

The Year 10 and Year

11 GCSE geography

group have been looking

at the United Nations

Millennium Development

Goals and how far they

have been achieved

through case study

examples . Here are a

few examples.

Year 9 have been studying

World War One. They have

been looking at

DORA—Defence Of The

Realm Act 1914. Binoculars were

banned in case people thought you were a spy.

Quick! There’s an OFSTED Inspector.

Two Year 10 History

groups visited the Imperial

War Museum this half

term. All students enjoyed

the trip and we are

arranging another one very

soon.

Year 7 learned about how Christians like

to confess their sins before Lent

starts. They then came

up with their own

confessions!

Year 8 have been studying Judaism.

Jews celebrate the ‘Passover’ every year

to remember how they escaped from

slavery. Each Year 8 class had their own

special meal.

In the run up to

Easter Year 9 have

been looking at people

who have given up

their lives for others:

Sacrifice. We have

looked at Oscar

Romero, Sean

Devereux and Edith

Cavell.

Our Easter Service was a lovely occasion with Lander Road Primary

School choir joining us once again. Our themes were sacrifice, new life

and giving. It gave us time to reflect on how people help us and how

we can help them.

During PSHE 7LM have been looking at road safety. Mr Jones became the lollipop

man and they learnt how to cross the road safely. They have been looking at

where is a safe place to cross the road and what the key rules are when doing so.

1. Think about where to cross.

2. Stop at the side of the road.

3. Use your eyes and ears.

4. Wait until any cars have passed.

5. Look and listen and check again that all is clear.

6. Cross. Keep looking and listening!

They were awarded with their own road safety certificates.

Year 11 have been working hard over the last couple of months on a textile piece

for their Entry Level Coursework . They researched ‘Art Of Other Cultures’ and

produced a final piece using fabric paints based on the work they had done.

We have been doing Short Tennis in school this half term with KS3. At KS4 we

have been playing the full size game. We have been fortunate to be able to use

the courts at Campion Tennis Club and the new courts at Victoria Park. KS4

have also had the benefit of one of Andy Murray's former coaches Ben

Saunders. We managed to get funding from the Lancashire Tennis Foundation

to enable us to use Ben to give us some top class coaching.

On Thursday the 27th of March, 15 Year 11 pupils from Crosby High

attended the annual Duke of Edinburgh awards ceremony. The pupils received

their bronze award for completing 3 months volunteering, 3 months of a skill

and 6 months physical activity as well as two separate 2 night expeditions. The

pupils where lucky enough to receive their award from the high sheriff of

Merseyside and the mayor of Sefton. The 15 pupils involved were fantastic

ambassadors for the school and should be very proud of their achievements.

Year 7 have been learning all about Gamelan Music, music from Indonesia. They

have all been composing their own pentatonic patterns!

Kane O’Dea, Nathan Melton, Thomas Bebbington and Josh Siddon, all from 7PE,

hard at work!

Year 8 have been learning about Celtic

music. They have had a go on a Tin

Whistle and have all composed their

own jig. All the jigs were inputted in

to the computer using a programme

called Muse Portable. 8LVJ even had a

go at Irish Dancing.

8LVJ having a

go at some Irish

dancing steps!

Year 9 have been performing and researching Britpop!

Bread & Cheese Pudding

Jack Woods

Fruit flapjacks

Ellie Roberts

Sausage rolls

James Mullen

Marmalade Bread &

Butter Pudding

Molly Clarke

Cheese & Onion roll

Laurence Waite

Bread & Cheese Pudding

Chloe Newman

Shortbread biscuit

Kieron Hignett

Sausage rolls

Thomas Bebbington

Garlic Bread

Peter Rogers

Bakery

In this topic Year 7 have been learning to:

recognise foods sold in a bakery and to develop ideas for new products that

could be sold in a bakery.

Year 11 are making

wooden jumping

jacks and they have

carried out research

and produced ideas .

They then produced

templates and can be

seen making a

working mock up in

card. The jumping

jack is then

reproduced in wood.

Year 10 are working on a design and make task. They have been asked to

manufacture a wooden toy with an animal theme.

Year 9 have been making the numbers for

their clocks using a die cutter. They have

also been using pop up mechanisms to make

Easter cards.

Year 8 have been building the circuit

for their light up picture. Natasha can be

seen assembling some of the necessary

components.

Year 7 have been

carrying out research

and using this to

produce ideas for a

birthday card, for a

person of their

choosing.

Spring has arrived in LEAP! We have been very busy planting our vegetables

ready for our new allotment.

We have visited Lady Green garden centre to research what type of vegetables

to grow, there was a lot of choice but we decided to grow salad vegetables and

potatoes. Our cress grew very quickly and we were able to make some lovely egg

and cress sandwiches. Watch this space to see our progress!

Well done to the team and keep up the good work!

As part of Curriculum Enrichment, groups of pupils have been taking

part in All Things Bling. Pupils have been designing and making their

own jewellery, bag charms and brooches, which has helped to improve

fine motor skills, hand and eye co-ordination and creative skills.

Our best sellers have been our hair accessories, which have been made

to order in colours chosen by the children. Samples of the hair

accessories are given below. Should you wish to order any hair

accessories, please complete the order form and return to school to

either Mrs. Harrison or Miss McKeown.

Order Form Please return to Mrs Harrison or Miss McKeown

Name of pupil:

We have school colours or your own choice of coloured

ribbon. We also have - One Direction, The Wanted and

Justin Bieber ribbon (please indicate preference where

it say ribbon choice).

Number of Bobbles

Number of Headbands

Number of clips

Prices

Bobbles £2.00

Headbands £3.00

Hairclips - small 50p large £1.00

Colour Choice

Ribbon Choice

Colour Choice

Ribbon Choice

Small

Large

8LVJ joined in World Book Day by visiting the school library and choosing

a favourite book. We dressed as our favourite characters. We were joined

by Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, Tom from Tom Brown's School Days,

Lilo from Disney's Lilo and Stitch. Steve from Minecraft, Wolf from Wolf

Blood, Tracy Beaker from Jaqueline Wilson's popular books, Wally from

Where's Wally a pupils from Mallory Towers and the famous Harry Potter.

Hi my name is Sophie and for all of you who

don’t already know me, I am the Speech and

Language therapist here at Crosby High

School.

It's been another busy half term in Speech and Language Therapy with

lots of group and individual intervention taking place.

Our vocabulary group consisting of Ryan Fenwick, Debra Wilson, Megan

Foster, Joe Park, John Muirhead, Jake Wilson and Chloe Williams was a

great success with all students successfully learning how to use a 'word

wheel' to support their word learning.

I was particularly pleased with Kieron who has been

working hard to develop his listening skills. Keep up

the good work Kieron!

A special mention to Laurie Waite and Holly Woods

who both continue to make great progress with their

speech sounds! Well done!

Over the next half term Sophie Hankin, Megan Wafer and Che Brady are

all attending a social skills workshop whilst Joshua Siddons, Lawrence

Siddons and Callum Bradshaw-Croft will be attending a storytelling club!

Don't forget you can contact the School's Speech and Language Therapist,

Sophie Humphries, via school on Wednesdays and Thursdays to discuss any

queries you may have.

On Wednesday 2nd April we had the formal opening of our new sports hall. The new

building has been named ‘The Mike Hanford Sports Hall’ after our former Chair of

governors, who retired last year after sixteen years of service. Jamie Burdekin,

Liverpool’s own Para Olympian tennis player joined Mike to cut the ribbon.

Come and have an informal chat about any

school issues or concerns which affect

yourself or members of your family. We

are able to guide and support on many

issues including;

Dear Parents and Carers,

This is my first item for the newsletter. For me it is the ideal opportunity to

express my gratitude to all the staff of Crosby High School for achieving

such an excellent result from the Ofsted inspection. This result was only

achieved by hard work from all the staff and excellent leadership from the

leadership team.

The drive to ensure that the school achieved the rating of ‘good’ came from

the Head Teacher, Mrs Oxton-Grant. She has been tireless in her efforts to

ensure that everyone in school achieves their best.

I believe that we can truly say that we act together as a team and that

includes parents/carers, the teaching staff, admin, maintenance, caterers,

cleaners and Governors. We all follow our vision and L.E.A.P. together.

I would encourage all parents and carers to get involved with your young

person’s education and engage with the school as I know many of you do. Our

young people only get one opportunity to make themselves ready for the next

stage in their life so let us all make sure we are part of the team ensuring

that they L.E.A.P. together to a bright future.

We are always keen to welcome any parents and carers to the Governing

body; your views are vital and valued. If you would like more information

please contact the school.

Finally well done Crosby High on being rated ‘Good’.

Yours sincerely

Peter Halls

Peter Halls

Chair of Governors

Attendance Awards As you know the attendance target for Crosby High School is 95%, and any

attendance at this level is excellent. Currently our whole school attendance figure

is 93.71%.We reward 100% attendance with certificates for form groups every

week and for individuals at the end of each term. Below are the high attendance

forms for Spring Term 2.

Well done everyone, keep on “leaping!!!” into school every day.

Congratulations for excellent form attendance of 100% this half term go to;

w/e 28.02.14 7PE, 8PM, w/e 07.03.14 7PE, w/e 14.03.14 11KL w/e 21.03.14 8DG

w/e 28.03.14 7KH, 7PE, 7LM, 8PM, 8DG, 10IB

Every Monday we have our “Celebration of Achievement” assembly where many

certificates are given to the pupils. One member of the form is chosen to receive “Pupil of

the Week.” This means they have been recognized for extra effort, (for

example receiving the top grade of “5” in their work) or they have shown a positive

attribute (for example being kind to someone or showing an improved attitude)

Well done to all those pupils who have been pupil of the week this half term.

They are;

7KH M Wafer, T Parr x 2, E Roberts, S Barrett

7PE P Rogers, J Siddons, L Siddons, K O’Dea, J Mullen, N Melton

7LM L Waite, K Hignett, C Newman, C England, J Woods

8PM K Guildford, J Wright, R Fenwick, C Brady, T Ainscough

8DG J Wilson, L Williams x 2, C Williams,

8LVJ M Clarke, M Hind, L Nelson, D Mayor, H Woods

9SB L Kelly, S Lodders, T Logue x 2, L Cole, J McCluskie

9JJ , J Park, C Larsen, S Hankin, J Muirhead

10IB A Quinn, W Yung, W Green, A Sutcliffe, D Dunn,

10PP C Grange, J Pomford, K Crebbin, P Lloyd,

10BJ N Stafford, A Bloomberg, J Cobham, N Stafford

11JA T Duncan, C Catton, K Rushton

11KL P Brady, B Henderson, T Higham, R Spencer, D Edwards

11JB L Silcock, L Woodward, G Thomas, J Usher, S Tripp

Holiday List for 2014-2015

Autumn Pupils return Wednesday 3 September 2014 Half Term Monday 27 October till 31 October 2014 Pupils return Monday 3 November 2014 Term Ends Friday 19 December 2014 at 1.30pm Spring Pupils return Tuesday 6 January 2015 Half term Monday 16 February 2015 till 20 February 2015 Pupils return Monday 23 February 2015 Term Ends Wednesday 1 April 2015 at 1.30pm Summer Pupils return Monday 20 April 2015 May Day Bank Monday 4 May 2015 Term ends Thursday 21 May 2015 Half Term Monday 25 May till 29 May 2015 Pupils Return Monday 1 June 2015 Term Ends Tuesday 21 July 2015 at 1.30pm

It’s here at last…. Crosby High School Website

If you want to have a look at our website please log onto www. crosbyhigh.org

We know it is not yet the “finished article” and so we would very much welcome your comments and ideas to improve the site as we want to

ensure it has all the information you need on it. Please contact Mrs. S. Redwood at the school if you have some suggestions.

Dates for your diary

School opens after the half term break - Wednesday 23rd April

Tuesday 29th April - Friday 2nd May Y9 residential to Kingswood

May Day holiday - Monday 5th May

School closes for half term - Friday 23rd May

School re-opens after the half term break - Monday 2nd June

To all families and pupils of Crosby High School we wish you a very happy Easter.

Year 11 Examination Information

Dear parents and carers of Y11

As you know the summer term marks the

beginning of the exam season for Y11. Below are

some key dates;

Tuesday 13th May in the afternoon -

Geography GCSE paper 1

Wednesday 14th May in the morning - ICT OCR

Thursday May 15th in the afternoon - RE GCSE

Friday 16th May in the morning - History GCSE

Thursday 22nd May in the morning -

Geography GCSE paper 2

We would encourage all of Y11 to use some of

the Easter holiday for some revision.