NewsletterFebruary 2024

I am so very proud of our students and the incredible hard work they continue to demonstrate in their lessons.

Our ‘Work Hard; Be Kind’ Trust ethos resonates through everything we do and we have rewarded many students for being kind to others within our school community. 

Mr Rahman, our CEO, visited Suthers this week. He continues to be impressed with how articulate our students are and how they talk so positively about their school experiences. They shared with him their gratitude for the enrichment offer after school along with the lunch time clubs and rewards trips. Students were also happy with the opportunities to ‘turn and talk’ during lessons which is part of our  ‘think, pair, share’ strategy. Positive student voice is fantastic but our students were also able to share how they feel the school could be improved. Regular voice from students, parents and carers continues to help us strengthen teaching and learning and character development for all learners. 

We have had a number of staffing challenges this half term and, as always, I am grateful for your understanding and support. To enable the consistency of our teaching and learning strategy, we always seek specialist cover teachers where possible. As you can imagine, it is sometimes difficult to secure a subject specialist for on the day absence and we therefore try our very best with our teaching staff to minimise the disruption to learning. The majority of our students show great respect for the learning opportunities they are given when their class teacher is absent. Our Heads of Department work tirelessly to ensure all cover work, where possible, is the continuation of learning for your child’s year group and curriculum plans. 

We have had a few parents and carers raise the issue of homework. As a result, teachers have formed a  working party in school who have volunteered their time to develop our strategy around this agenda. As soon as the strategy is finalised we will communicate it with you. In the meantime, staff will continue to set homework as per their department expectations. If students do not submit their homework on time, students are given 48 hours to hand it in to their classroom teacher. If the deadline is missed, the classroom teacher may issue a catch up session so students can be supported to complete it.

Year 11 have shown their tenacity and hard work through their mock examinations. In addition, the rest of our school community showed their respect by following our ‘indoor voice’ policy by allowing them to focus and do their very best. It was pleasing to see their understanding and we are looking forward to sharing the mock results with Year 11 after half term. 

School trips have been well received by our students. I am grateful to staff who volunteer to plan and lead these opportunities, otherwise it wouldn’t be possible. We have started linking educational trips to each curriculum area and have also developed our student voice around reward trips. The majority of our students get it right everyday by following ‘The Suthers Way.  As a result, they will be offered the opportunity to attend their year group trip. 

Golden tickets are a huge success. Miss Allen works hard with student voice to establish what rewards and prizes they would like to see for the half termly draws. This half term has seen students winning early lunch visits, free fish and chip lunch, cinema tickets and Amazon vouchers. Our rewards continue to grow and Miss Allen has some amazing prizes lined up for next half term and for the end of the year.

Our next Family Forum will take place on 18th March at 5.30pm. Mrs Adams and Miss Leek will deliver a session on our strategy around our enrichment offer and our Personal Development curriculum. If you have any questions in advance and would like to attend, please send through to lwallbank@suthersschool.co.uk so our staff can prepare their responses in advance.

If you collect your child from school, you will notice the traffic congestion. I ask for your support to park away from the school grounds so we have lighter road traffic as our students depart school. We continue to keep them as safe as possible once they leave the school site but as our intake of students is increasing we are finding the traffic, on occasion (particularly on a wet day), is becoming unmanageable. Our local MP, Councillor Johno Lee along with the Highways and local businesses are in support of making our roads as safe as possible to prevent any unwanted accidents in the near future.

I would also ask you to not turn into the car park unless you are a parent or carer collecting your child who has a disability. These bays are allocated to blue badge holders only. 

Finally, I would like to thank you once again for your continued support. I wish you all a happy half term break and I look forward to welcoming all students back at 8.25am on Monday 19th February.

Best wishes,

Nic

Teaching and Learning at The Suthers School

By

James Griffiths (Deputy Head Teacher)

At The Suthers School lessons follow an approach known as Fully Guided Instruction. Lessons include:

1. Connect – all lessons start with a ‘connect’ retrieval activity which supports pupils to recall relevant prior knowledge that supports the learning of new content within the lesson.
2. I Do – subject teachers deliver powerful knowledge by modelling to pupils who listen, make notes and annotate, as instructed by their teacher. The subject teacher also models aloud how to apply new knowledge to a task.
3. We Do – the subject teacher, through directed questioning, models how to apply new knowledge using a collaborative approach with pupils. This might include class discussion, paired work or whole class engagement.
4. You Do – pupils work independently on a similar task to that modelled by the teacher. Pupils use their modelled examples from the ‘I Do’ and ‘We Do' as a scaffold to support them achieve their full potential.
5. Review – subject teachers use this final part of the lesson to check that pupils have understood the main learning points of the lesson.

Spotlight on Learning;

In this spotlight on learning I will be focussing on the work we have been doing with all our students on revision skills. This will include:

• Cornell Note Taking 
• Flash Cards 
• Tassomai (Years 10 and 11) 

Cornell Note Taking 

Cornell note-taking is a popular note-taking method for taking, organising, and summarising lesson or topic notes. 

1. Taking Cornell notes is straightforward. Points 1-4 below relate to the diagram.  
2. Start by writing the title of the lesson or the topic being revised. 
3. Make notes on the lesson or the topic being revised. 
4. Write out titles/keywords or questions that relate to the notes you’ve made. 
5. 

Summarise your notes in 50-100 words. This will show that you’ve understood the content. 

These are two examples of Cornell Notes from Year 7 History

Flash Cards

• These are quick and easy to make. They can be bought online or made by cutting out pieces of card.
• The question goes on one side of the card and the answer on the reverse of the card (see example below)

What are the MAIN causes of World War One?                                ð Militarism

                                                                                                                                         ð Alliances

                                                                                                                                         ð Imperialism

                                                                                                                                         Nationalism

Students can test themselves or be tested by parents/carers using the Leitner Flash Card method which is outlined in the diagram below. For further information follow this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C20EvKtdJwQ&t=22s

Tassomai (Years 10 & 11)

• Tassomai is an award-winning adaptive learning program helping students at all levels to achieve outstanding results.
• Using Tassomai builds subject knowledge, boosts confidence, and reduces exam stress.
• Every student in Years 10 and 11 has been provided with a free account so that they can revise the following subjects: English, Maths, Science, Geography and History.
• Parents/carers have also been signed up to receive a weekly e-mail update on their child’s progress.
• In our recent Year 11 mocks there was a clear link between those students who have completed their Tassomai Daily Goals and those achieving or exceeding their GCSE target grades.

Personal Development Update – Term 3

Year 7: Careers and Dream Jobs

Our Year 7 students have been on a fascinating journey exploring the concept of "Dream Jobs." These lessons have allowed them to not only dream big but also to understand the significance of their interests and passions in shaping their future careers. Moreover, students have also looked at how our TORCH values could help them in their various career paths. Students also had the opportunity to watch a Stacey Dooley documentary ‘working 9 to 5’ where Stacey takes 5 teenagers on work experience to various employers across the UK. Students are excited to undertake their own work experience even if it is a few years off yet!

If you would like to continue the conversation surrounding careers at home. The following websites are a good starting point:

https://www.firstcareers.co.uk – On the First Careers website you can get behind the scenes of some of the UK’s most interesting jobs. Search through over 150 job profiles and discover career opportunities, inspiration, and advice. First Careers offers guidance to primary and secondary school students in making decisions about future careers and professions.

https://barclayslifeskills.com – Barclays LifeSkills website offers a range of free tools, tips and interactive resources that are constantly updated to help students recognise and develop the skills they have. The tools can help to build confidence, boost employability, and stand out from the competition.

Year 8: Tackling Prejudice and Discrimination

In Year 8, our students have been engaged in thought-provoking discussions surrounding prejudice and discrimination. By delving into topics such as xenophobia, sexual discrimination, and the Protected Characteristics outlined in the Equality Act of 2010, students are learning to navigate the complexities of the world around them. These lessons aim to cultivate empathy, tolerance, and understanding, fostering an inclusive and supportive school environment.

For parents seeking additional information on the Equality Act of 2010 and the protected characteristics, there are some links provided below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4MWVEAww2g – A short video produced by the Equality and Human Rights Commission which explains the Equality Act 2010 and the Protected Characteristics.

Year 9: Navigating Relationships and Consent

Year 9 students have been exploring different types of relationships, differentiating between healthy and unhealthy relationships. Furthermore, the importance of consent is a central theme, empowering students to make informed decisions and respect the boundaries of others. These lessons are designed to equip students with essential life skills, promoting healthy interactions and communication in their personal and social lives.

For parents interested in deepening their understanding of these topics and fostering open conversations at home, we suggest looking at the NSPCC website linked below:

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/sex-relationships/healthy-relationships/#:~:text=Consent%20means%20actively%20saying%20yes,and%20behaviour%20change%2C%20check%20in. – This website contains advice for parents and careers as to how to talk to children about relationships. There is also a short video where three parents discuss how they have approached these conversations with their own children.

If you have any questions regarding Personal Development lessons, please contact me via email.

Miss K. Leek

Associate School Leader – Personal Development & Careers

kleek@suthersschool.co.uk

Year 11 Mock Exams: 

It has been a busy term for Year 11, as they have entered their first mock exams of the year. Mock exams provide students with a run-through of the exam process and a chance to gauge their own learning stage and move forward with their learning journey in order to achieve their best. It has been a pleasure to see the determination with which they have faced this period, demonstrating the TORCH values throughout. The staff at The Suthers School would like a say a big well done to the Year 11 students for their hard work during mocks. We look forward to welcoming students back for a mock results day, where croissants and juice will be served, and results will be handed out. Students will also be provided with a candidate information pack which will help them to understand the exam process prior to the exam season beginning.

Below is the revision workshop timetable for February half term:

Day                                                                                                                                                     Subject

Monday 12th February                                                                                                         Art 9-11am

                                                                                                                                                             I media 9-11am

                                                                                                                                                             Drama 12-2pm

                                                                                                                                                             Geography 12-2pm

Tuesday 13th February                                                                                                         Engineering 9-11am

                                                                                                                                                             French 12-2pm

Friday 16th February                                                                                                             Science 9-12pm

Timetables for the summer exam period will be shared with students after February half-term. 

Hello,

I am writing to introduce myself as the school Data and Exams Officer. I joined The Suthers School in January 2024 and am responsible for exams administration and delivery, results administration, and data collection and reporting. 

I have previously worked as a Teacher for five years in an SEN setting and was dedicated to providing high-quality education and opportunities for pupils. As I move into a new role, I am keen to support The Suthers School from a different angle, providing me with opportunities to ensure students are able to demonstrate their best selves during exams. I am available to contact via phone or email and, should you have any worries or queries, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Many thanks

Courtney Gray

Exams & Data Officer

The Suthers School

The CAMHS Mental Health Support Team is a collaborative service across health and education, available in  Nottinghamshire. They are an early intervention mental health and wellbeing service in schools aimed at providing support for children, young people and families around low-level emotional wellbeing needs, such as anxiety, low mood, managing emotions, and sleep. They will also take self referrals from young people and their families directly: https://www.nottinghamshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/camhs-self-referral

YMCA

On Wednesday 31st January, 43 of our year 10 and 11 students travelled to Sheffield City Hall for the GCSE Science Live event. This is a conference style event, introducing students to some very well known scientists - our day included presentations from Professor Sir Robert Winston, Jim Al-Khalili, Andrea Sella, Tim Gabriel and Sophie Scott. The topics covered were varied, and had links to the GCSE curriculum; we learnt about reversible reactions, nano chemistry, reproductive health, the science of black holes and time travel and the neurochemistry of laughter. Alongside this, students engaged in two short sessions on how to best answer the exam questions and boost their grades, which was well received by many of them in the run up to the exams! Overall a fantastic day, where our students demonstrated The Suthers Way and enjoyed hearing about exciting and innovative research.'

 Conngratulations to James in Year 10 for his continued success in the Boxing ring. In his latest fight he took on an opponent with an outstanding record. James started the fight with pace and went toe to toe with his opponent. At the end of the fight James was awarded the victory by a unanimous decision. James now moves ahead to the England National Championships full of confidence.

Read Your Way 

Please follow the link for case study from Izzy on the Nottingham Forest website. 

https://nottinghamforestcommunitytrust.co.uk/confidence-through-changemakers/ 

Let me first pass on my congratulations to our dedicated Year 11 geographers who continued to demonstrate tremendous commitment, returning from our Christmas break straight into mock exams. Your hard work and perseverance set a great example for the entire school community.

Whilst our Year 11's have been concentrating on their own futures our KS3 geographers have been gazing into the exciting world of geography careers. 

Year 7: Cartographers and Aspiring Geologists. Our Year 7 students have completed their fascinating journey into cartography, learning the art of mapmaking. The exploration continues as they dive into the captivating realm of geology. Who knows? The next generation of scientists studying the Earth's composition and history might be among them.

Year 8: Tectonics and Human Development Analysts. Having conquered the world of tectonics and the exciting (some may say dangerous) work undertaken by Volcanologists, Year 8 is now unravelling the intricacies of human development. Careers as human development analysts' beckon, allowing students to analyse how individual countries development is measured and by whom,  and the well-being and contribution to global progress. Taking time to consider their own quality of life / well-being. 

Year 9: Coastal Guardians. A big shoutout to Year 9 for delving into the dynamic world of coasts. As they explore measurement and protection, potential careers as coastal engineers, working for the UK's Environmental agency, environmental scientists, and marine biologists await these young coastal guardians.

The journey in geography not only broadens horizons but opens doors to diverse and impactful careers. Let's encourage our students to dream big and explore the many possibilities that lie ahead! 

School Production

The school is letting out their facilities to the community to use at nights and on weekends. We have been inundated with requests.

Suthers School at Fernwood has now launched an electronic system to make bookings easier.

For more information or to book the facilities click here.

The school has a number of different types of facilities available for hire.

These include grass football pitches that are well maintained, a theatre room which can hold up to 125 people and the sports hall.

The sports hall can be used for sports such as Football, Netball, Basketball, Badminton and Volleyball.