WelcomeI hope you all enjoyed the chance to rest and relax during the long weekend. It is so important to have some space to switch off. A recent health study suggested that actually short breaks are better for you than long ones – but only if you really do switch everything off. It is not easy to do that when your devices are showing updates, notifications and ´to do' reminders but of course it is possible to simply shut your device down and remember that the world will turn without you for a couple of days. The impact of too much screen time is well documented but it is not just the obvious things like strain on your eyes. We should also be conscious of poor sleep patterns, increased weight and potential loss of broad-based cognitive ability. Technology brings us so much value and richness and learning how to use it safely is certainly something we explore in our PSHE and Life Skills lessons here at BSQ. We also make sure that there is a good, healthy balance between screen time and other cognitive activities so that we can share the best of both worlds with our learners. EDI We are currently living in a world where knowledge is overflowing & can be overwhelming at times. By our natural state, we are subject to ignorance, meaning that there are many actions we take that may unknowingly hurt others which is why we want to raise awareness of ableist language. For context, ableism is the hate or prejudice against disabled people, rooting from the idea that they need to be 'fixed'. Ableist language you may unknowingly use; Stating 'I'm so OCD' because you are clean, tidy, or a perfectionist. There is the common stereotype that people diagnosed with OCD are people who organise their books by alphabetical order, their pens by colour, & grow annoyed when things are out of order. These behaviours are more perfectionist than OCD. A more accurate depiction of what OCD is really like may be other disorders such as Trichotillomania, where people have an uncontrollable urge to pull their hair out - often leading to bald spots. The misuse of this phrase perpetuates false stereotypes of what OCD is like, often leading to those who suffer from real OCD doubting their disorder - making them avoid help. Lame; The origin of the word lame dates back to the year 900 & it originally meant 'crippled', 'paralytic', 'with an injured foot or leg', or 'weak'. The meaning has now turned around to a word with connotations to 'boring' & 'uncool' sustaining stereotypes of disabled people being 'boring' or 'uncool'. R-Slur & Moron; These words began as medical terms to classify disabled people as 'lesser' & disabled people are now fighting in order for them to be formally removed from medical language. Sami – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee Do you have any questions? Contact us at: [email protected] BSL This week 4 of our Y1 students will be demonstrating 2 new signs, confused and sad, using BSL. Please watch this brilliant video: Ms. Hayley Dean, KS2 Lead Dates for your Diary As always please check this section carefully and ensure that you have all the details in your calendars.
Emma Newman Principal Being BSQ – Primary Update Following on from last week’s focus on Respect and Care and how we use the school values as a driver for many of the learning opportunities we undertake here at BSQ, this week I would like to explore our second school value and specifically the word ‘happy’: We live and learn with a happy and welcoming attitude to everyone. As a staff, we aim to explicitly refer to the school values when speaking with the students about their progress and personal development. Our Primary Student Council expanded on this concept of happiness by encouraging us all to:
This concept naturally links to our learning about respect and care – if we as an individual are respectful and caring towards those we come into contact with, it is more likely that they will reciprocate these attitudes and we will be happier and more content. At our weekly Star of the Week assemblies, we make a big point about celebrating each other’s successes and being happy for our friends if they have achieved something they are proud of. We also discuss with the students about the importance of recognising our own achievements, even if we sometimes are tempted to compare these to the achievements of others. Being content, happy and proud of our own achievements is a good starting point for being understanding and compassionate about others; if we are not satisfied with ourselves then we may show signs of jealousy of others. Recognising our own strengths and the things that make us unique is equally as important as knowing our areas for development and things we are not so good at. Now that the weather has changed, it is more important than ever that you make sure that your child has the appropriate clothing and sun protection each day, including a suitable hat and something waterproof in case it rains at home time. We have had several severe storm at exactly the time we leave for the buses or drive-through! On Saturday, we host our first online activity of the year, with a focus on Art and Design. Your child’s class teacher will share the exact details, with each class having a slightly different environmental focus. The students will join their Class Canvas page at 9am on Saturday for an introduction to the project, before working independently until about 11:30am, when they will join the Class Canvas page again to share their learning with their classmates. Marcus Madden Head of Primary Year 3A The children in 3A have recently completed learning about the famous ‘Dick Whittington’ traditional tale in Literacy. This links to the Big Question which has guided our learning in Topic lessons: Why do people move? We have learnt how to ‘magpie’ key words and phrases from different versions of the story. We have also worked on including key conjunctions to extend our sentences. In addition, the children in 3 A have learnt how to include setting description and dialogue in their stories and appeal to the reader’s five senses. Below are some example sentences of our recent ‘Hot Write’ which was later improved by editing and using peer assessment and self-assessment strategies: ‘Once upon a time, in a poor village, there lived a poor boy called Dick Whittington.’ (Daniel) ‘Tired and hungry, Dick Whittington slept in the doorway of a rich man’s house.’ (Viviana) ‘One day, Dick went out and found the best rat catcher in London.’ (Alfred) ‘Dick became a famous artist and he got married.’ (Ania) ‘‘I want to go to London,’ said Dick.’ (Sofia) ‘Dick was in London but he was sad because he didn’t see any money.’ (Bella) ‘The merchant, Bob, felt sad for Dick because he was poor so he gave him a job.’ (Julian) ‘Dick travelled to London because he had heard that the streets were paved with diamonds.’ (Victoria) ‘Dick couldn’t sleep because the rats bit him.’ (Mauricio) ‘Then Dick Whittington became King of London and he was so happy!’ (Aritz) ‘Jack slept by the fire but there were spiders biting him there.’ (Sergio) ‘Dick married the merchant’s daughter.’ (Lucas) Mr. Tim Graves, Y3A Teacher Year 6 Literacy Year 6 were studying Native American Myths in their Literacy and had focused on one particular myth, The Wise Owl. We broke the myth down into its various parts and discussed it's features and language before re-telling it in our own words and adding some innovation to the problem and resolution section. Both Indie and Jose Tomas showed incredible creative flare in their work, having incorporated a range of taught literary skills as well as their own ideas. We wanted to share their outstanding work with the school. Enjoy. Mr. Oliver Kyle, Year 6 Teacher Being BSQ – Secondary Update ‘Teamwork makes the dream work’ Thank you all for your patience and understanding on Monday whilst the Secondary school acted as a vaccination centre. This was an interesting experience for the teaching staff, suddenly thrust into the world of healthcare. It was good to see the bravery and determination on the faces of the students as they negotiated the needle without mum or dad who were perhaps in the car having to wait. The event ran super smoothly as ever due to the planning and communication executed by the Administrative team. It is good to see the teamwork when two groups of staff collaborate. Well done all. We also welcomed all of the year 7 students to the campus for the day. This was a huge success with lots of fun activities designed to engage some active learning and promote teamwork between this set of students. The activities arranged involved an escape the room exercise with lots of teambuilding work, there was also some PE where the students played Dodgeball, some Science experiments and problem solving in groups and finally, an investigation into the role rats and hygiene played in a death. Don’t worry, this was not a real incident but some learning about historical plagues. A nasty ending indeed! The middle of the week whistled past extremely quickly but we did have the opportunity to enjoy an international Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award presentation. This event was streamed online with Prince Edward addressing the global audience, amongst many other things of interest. All of our DofE participants were invited and hopefully the experience will go in some way to inspiring them for the future and achieving their own Gold Award. On the subject of DofE, the planning and training is gathering pace under the excellent leadership of Mr. Dobson. He has a number of staff helping and it is good to know that they are planning adventurous journeys for the New Year. The training for this is starting very soon on Wednesday afternoons and for students to take part in the trips themselves, they must stay and get involved in the activities which prepare them for the camping and navigation so that they are not only successful but safe as well. We are very lucky to have such an experienced set of staff who are prepared to give their time to these time consuming extra-curricular activities. It seems that the long weekend was planned in perfectly and this is just what we all need to rest and refresh for the run in to half term. When we get back attention turns to exams, especially for year 11 and 13. Things are gathering pace and the focus is rising for these important exam groups. I know that they all are working super hard to attain at the highest level. If cracks do start appearing at home, then please let us know so we can intervene. Finally, this week I would like to share an update on Joaquin and his equestrian achievements. Last Saturday, in the tournament held in Las Palmas Polo Club he won first place in his age category, the junior B event. His riding is improving all of the time and clearly he is a prospect for the future. Well done Joaquin. Remember, if you have news reading your son or daughter, do please drop me a line with an image. PE – Just Dance It has been fantastic to see the students give so much in their physical education lessons. Despite the long time out of school the enthusiasm and laughter in lessons has been a reminder of how much we have missed physical lessons. Whilst keeping to safety rules, students have been learning Lacrosse, Tennis and have been completing a series of baseline fitness testing. I have been very impressed as this is the first time students have played lacrosse and it hasn't taken long to see students improve across all components of fitness. On top of all this, a highlight since being back has been the whole school just dance competition. I look forward to seeing the students continue to develop their skills as we move forward with blended learning. Mr. Bradley Edwards, PE Teacher Year 8 Humanities Y8 has been studying ecosystems in humanities. We focused on the adaptations made by some specific animals in the desert environment and why they made these adaptations. For homework students were asked to design and create their own desert animals, making sure they labelled them with the adaptations of how they lived in the desert. Ms. Natalie Sawyers, Humanities Teacher
Have a wonderful week everyone. Lee Moors Head of Secondary
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May 2024
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