Year 7 Information Evening October 9 th 2013

1. Year 7 Information EveningOctober 9th 2013

2. ‘The school is very commendably avoiding any hint of complacency to ensure it continues to be at the forefront of best practice’ – Ofsted November 2011

3. ‘Students were observed to be making outstanding progress’ – Ofsted November 2011

6. Topics to be covered…> Key Stage 3 curriculum> Home Learning / School Organiser> Extra-curricular activities> Reporting, APs and Target Setting> Working with parents/carers

7. > Year 7 students come from over 20 feeder primary schools> It ranges from 3-5 students from each year per tutor group. The vertical system includes students from Year 7 to 11.> Tutors see their tutor groups daily and are the first point of contact for parents/carers> House system Tutor Groups

8.  Maths, English, Science IT Technology – Resistant Materials, Textiles, Food. History, Geography, RE Spanish Art Music  PE Year 7 Curriculum

9. How does the curriculum change?German or FrenchDrama

10. ‘The school’s unrelenting focus on improving teaching and learning has paid off’ – Ofsted November 2011

11. Selection CriteriaKey Stage 2 level and position, CAT test data, internal assessment data, end of key stage 3 target dataSets 1 and 2 – students working towards level 7 and 8Set 3 – students working towards level 6 and 7Set 4 – students working towards level 5 and 6Set 5 – students working towards level 5 Setting - Mathematics

12. > Recording of homework> Homework timetable> Should be homework every week - students should spend between 20-30 minutes on each subject per issue> Home/School contact –Signed by tutor and parent/carer Home Learning Policy

13. Uses:for students to record homeworkfor parent/carer to communicate with tutorfor tutor to communicate with parent/carer Should be:signed by parent/carer each weeksigned by the tutor each week School Organiser

14. > Lesson times can be found on the notice board in the music department> Cupboards in the music department are available (and big enough) to store musical instruments> Y7 will be eligible to join various ensembles – the list is available on the music corridor – this information is also in the Handbook Music Lessons

15.  Details of the PE clubs can be found on the school website and in the PE department P.E. Clubs

16. W/b 18 November - MagnaTrip and Nottingham Mosque & Synagogue tripW/b 2 June - English Trip to Harry Potter Studios W/b 23 June - Lincoln & Gainsborough and Dovedale visits Trips

17. All lost property is stored at Student Services.It is very helpful if uniform, PE kit etc. has a name tag on it Lost Property

18. Parents/carers will receive the report from their child. There will also be a replyslip with a section for parents/carers to write any comments or concerns they have. This information is then collated by myself and any concerns or questions raised will be passed onto the relevant member of staff or I contact parents/carers directly.If you require more than one copy of the reportplease inform your child’s tutor. Year 7 Reports

19. > Supports identification of students preferred learning styles – helps teachers to plan lessons> Helps identification of strengths and weaknesses in particular core skills, for example literacy and numeracy CATS Tests

20. > Reading age> Spelling age> Leads to support to remove barriers via Learning Support, such as Lexia Reading and Spelling Tests

21. > Targets based on prior attainment at KS2 in English, Maths and Science> Cognitive Ability Tests (CATs) – verbal; non verbal; quantitative> Target levels set to end of KS3 in core and foundation subjects; milestones in Y7 and Y8 > APs will use sub-levels to communicate the level at which your son/daughter is currently working at> Two APs and one full report a year Target setting and reporting on progress

22. Attitude to Learning • This grade gives a description of your son/daughter’s approach to his/her learning. • The grade given is an indication of the types of attitude he/she displays. • It is a best-fit model and your son/daughter may not display all of the characteristics in the category.

23. Attitude to Learning There are four categories: 1 – Outstanding 2 – Good 3 – Requires Improvement 4 – Unacceptable In some cases there may be a code attached to indicate specific areas of concern: Behaviour (B), Contribution to class (C), Organisation (O), Home Learning (H), Punctuality (P).

24. Progress

25. AP1 example

26. AP2 example

27. AP3 example

28. > AP1 – ATL> AP2 with report (Attainment, ATL, Progress, Target Level)> AP3 - Attainment, ATL, Progress, Target Level> CATS and reading test results are communicated to parents/carers this term Assessment Points

29. Attending school is a legal requirement.For every 17 days absence from school, a student can drop one GCSE grade.Only 10% of students with poor attendance achieve 5 A* ‐ C grade GCSE’s compared to 58% of students with good attendance.21% of students with very poor attendance leave school with no qualifications compared to 3% of students who have regular attendance. Equating attendance with performance

30. ‘The huge central atrium has become a relaxed meeting place at all times of the year’ – Ofsted November 2011

31. The MSPTA Committee meet on a monthly basis to plan and organise social and fundraising activities throughout the year as well as organising voluntary help for the school. MSPTA

32. > Form tutor> Week beginning 14 October – tutor contact week> AP1 issued – Friday 29 November> Year 7 Parent Forum – Thursday 5 December > Reports (and AP2) issued – 21 March > 7CR Parents’ Evening – 3 June> 7TW Parents’ Evening – 12 June> AP3 issued – 18 July > eNewsletter> Parent/Carer Handbook> Schoolcomms Involving Parents/Carers

33. Questions….