Supporting Your Child through Year 9 Parental Engagement Shelley College 2009-2010

1. Supporting Your Child through Year 9Parental EngagementShelley College 2009-2010

2. Parental Engagement Research has highlighted that the parent-child relationship could be the most important factor in a child’s academic and social development. Professor Tanya Byron reported: parental or carer engagement is key to a child’s educational success, but many parents are struggling to get involved with their child’s learning. Just 16% of children actively share any information with their parents about their school day. 43% of parents find it either difficult to extract information from their child about their day at school. 31% of parents admit to feeling ‘excluded’ when their child won’t tell them what they’ve done at school that day.

3. Fulfilling Your Child’s PotentialSteps to success • Support the school in supporting your child • Discuss progress with them • Encourage them to get grade 1’s (outstanding) for their Effort, Homework & Attitude • Take decisive action when 3, 4 or 5 grades regularly crop up. • Come to Parents’ Consultation evenings & Progress Review Days

4. Minimum Target Grades • Based on Prior Attainment – SATs & Teacher Assessments • They are the minimum level we expect the students to achieve • Students should aim to exceed their minimum target levels

5. What do Shelley College Reports look like? • They match Predicted Level against their Minimum Target Level in every subject studied • They report on students’ Attitude, Effort & Homework using a 1 to 5 Grading Scale: • 1 – Exceptional • 2 – Good • 3 – Satisfactory • 4 – Work to be done • 5 - Poor

7. Areas for Improvement

8. Report Descriptors

9. Reporting and Assessment – Year 9 • Academic Progress Review Days November 20th July 5th • Monitoring Home November 13th March 19th June 25th • Options’ Evening March 9th • Parents’ Consultation Evening March 23rd

10. Year office intervention and support.

11. Intervention Targeting underachievement Liaison with parents/carers Interpreting information Highlighting specific students Tracking underachieving students

12. Support Year Office to overview progress of individual students. Identifying students for each Tutor to monitor. Use of outside agencies where necessary. Monitoring attendance

13. Mentoring Academic monitoring Direct 1 to 1 student support both academic and organisational Convening meetings with Parent and carers Linking Student, subject , parents and carers

14. KS3>4 Science at Shelley College

15. Term 1 Term 3 Term 2 UNIT 1 exam(17%) GCSE Biology Triple Science UNIT 1 exam(17%) GCSE Chemistry UNIT 1 exam(17%) GCSE Physics KS3/4 Science Transition Course Modules in: Biology Chemistry Physics GCSE module exam UNIT 1 (17%) KS3 exam GCSE Core Science 21st Century Science UNIT 1 Modules in: Biology Chemistry Physics

16. Core Science GCSE • Exams: (worth 17% of the GCSE) May 21st – Unit 1 • In terms of the whole GCSE: • Y9 is worth 17% • Y10 will be worth 83% (33% is coursework) • What’s Next? • In Y11 most students will take a second GCSE in science • A small number of students will study for 1 Science GCSE over Y10 & 11

17. Triple Science GCSEs • Module Exams: (worth 17% in each subject) Biology Unit 1 - May 21st Chemistry Unit 1 - June 9th Physics Unit 1 – June 28th • In terms of the whole GCSE: • Y9 is worth 17% • Y10 will be worth 50% (33% is coursework) • Y11 will be worth 33%

18. ENGLISH

19. Key Stage 3Year 9 Key skills: En1 – Speaking and Listening En2 –Reading En3 Writing

20. Key Stage 3Year 9 • Areas to cover: • Prose • Poetry • Drama • Media • Original writing • Speaking and listening • Non- fiction writing • Exam skills

21. Key Stage 3Year 9 Due to the removal of the SATs, we have re-designed the Year 9 course so that it becomes a preparation for GCSE. We will, after Christmas, start completing GCSE English coursework, which depending on the standard may/may not contribute towards their final GCSE English coursework grade.

22. Key Stage 3Year 9 Year 9 – teaching skills which will prepare students for GCSE e.g. this half term – essay comparing two poems and persuasive speech and writing

23. Mathematics at Shelley College GCSE and beyond

24. Year 9 – Sept to Feb half term • Students will cover the four main areas of the mathematics curriculum: • Data Handling • Number • Algebra • Shape and Space • This is covered through traditional lessons and investigational work

25. The Maths GCSE Pathways • Information gathered will help us decide as to which pathway students should pursue • The Maths GCSE will be new for your sons/daughters • The main addition is that functional maths skills (application of maths to the real world) will be embedded into the exams of the award.

26. Pathway 1 – Most Able • GCSE Mathematics and • GCSE Statistics and • Additional Mathematics – (a Free Standing Mathematics Qualification) • Fits between GCSE and AS Level • Recognised nationally • Worth valuable UCAS points

27. Pathway 2 – Mid-ability • GCSE Mathematics and • GCSE Statistics • 2 full GCSEs awarded by the end of year 11 • Students will have an added ‘string to their bow’

28. Pathway 3 – Mid to low ability • GCSE Mathematics - covered over two and half years • Full support and time given to students who find mathematics a challenge • This will ensure that students achieve their best in the subject • The majority of students will follow this route