Welcome to this week's news from Year 8.
WEEKLY BULLETIN
14 FEBRUARY 2025
ENJOY - ACHIEVE - EMPOWER
KEY SCHOOL DATES
HEADTEACHER’S MESSAGE
This week a number of our talented performers have been involved in a joint production of Bugsy Malone with Hampton Boys School. I’m sure everyone who saw the show enjoyed it as much as I did and maybe drove home singing the songs. It was clear the students had a wonderful time.
Y10 Ski Trip - 15 - 22 February Half-term - 15-23 February No school, staff INSET Day - Monday 24 February Friends of Waldegrave Quiz & Curry Night - Friday 28 February
A MESSAGE FROM OUR HEADTEACHER
We have been running a number of practical mock exams this week, A level linguists had an opportunity to complete oral exams and our Year 11 Food and Nutrition students also tested out their menus. On Tuesday the winners of our Wildlife Photography competition were taken to the Natural History Museum to see the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition as a prize and to inspire them further. We will be running the competition again this year, so please encourage your children to take part. We were thrilled with this year’s entries and the wonderful calendar. Tomorrow our skiers are heading to Austria for a week in the snow. I am sure that the fresh air and adrenaline will be a wonderful way for the students and staff to see off the winter and start looking forward to the coming spring. I hope that everyone is able to relish the week’s break, enjoying time with loved ones. I know that our students in Year 11 and 13 are preparing for exams, but they too should remember the importance of switching off for a few days. Please remember our first day back after half term is a staff training day so I look forward to welcoming students back on Tuesday 25 February when we can begin to enjoy the lighter days.
HOLIDAYS & NATIONAL DAYS
International Mother Language Day - to promote cultural diversity and multilingualism - 21 February World Thinking Day - 22 February Introduce A Girl To Engineering Day - 23 February
WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Send us your achievement stories and photos to share by email to
~ Ms Tongue, Headteacher
HEALTH AND WELLBEING
info@waldegravesch.org STAY CONNECTED WITH US:
11th February was Safer Internet Day and this year’s theme was ‘Too good to be true? Protecting yourself and others from online scams’, aiming to start a conversation about how to spot, respond to and report all types of scams online. Scams can take many forms and may target anyone, including young people. The UK Safer Internet Centre have shared some very useful tips for parents and carers, including encouraging the use of 2 factor authentication. This year, Safer Internet Day has coincided with concerns about the online safety of teenagers being in the national news, as the parents of four British teenagers are suing TikTok following the deaths of their children linked to a dangerous online challenge. The UK Safer Internet Centre’s guidance on this issue recommends de-escalation strategies for responding to worries about online challenges, including not panicking and not naming the challenge, as doing so can inadvertently draw attention to the challenge and the potential harm it can cause. Best practice guidelines for parents and carers from The UK Safer Internet Centre can be found here.
Head to ParentPay now to book your place at our Quiz & Curry Night
A MESSAGE FROM HEAD OF YEAR 8
This week I have been encouraged to see how hard all our wonderful Year 8s have been working in their various subjects. I visited a number of the classes this week and it was wonderful to see the brilliant work of our students. Today, pupils were very proud to show off the amazing shorts and skirts pupils have been making this week in their DT enrichment sessions - great work! I was very impressed by their enthusiasm for learning and great attitudes, especially at the end of a very busy half-term! We had the pleasure of watching the Poetry by Heart Final in assembly this week. Poetry by Heart is an initiative that is run in Year 9 where they might get the opportunity to perform at The Globe Theatre in London. As part of the process students perform their poems for the Year 8 assembly. This is watched and judged by the Senior Leadership Team who help select the finalist that we’ll submit to the National Competition. It was a joyful assembly and it was really inspiring for the Year 8s who will get the opportunity to do the same next year. At the start of this week Year 8 played Netball against St Catherine’s and were narrowly defeated but showed great teamwork, perseverance and resilience on what was a very wet and cold afternoon - we are proud of you! A special mention must go to the Year 8 students who have been taking part in the joint production of Bugsy Malone at Hampton School. Their performances have been outstanding and all the commitment to rehearsals has certainly paid off - very well done! Topping our individual leaderboard for epraise this week is Man K N (8EBH), followed closely in joint-second place by Lillia B (8STR) and Erin D (8STR). 8PUN continues to be the leading tutor group with a staggering 1,729 points. Our year group total stands at a fabulous 10,727 points. Well done to all the students who are continuing to demonstrate the enjoy, achieve and empower aspects of school life. I am immensely proud of all of the students in Year 8 and it has been a very enjoyable half term. I look forward to welcoming them back into school after the half term break! Thank you for your continued support.
MRS LYDDON, HEAD OF YEAR 8
BOOK OF THE MONTH
‘My name is Mina’ by David Almond
In the form of a journal, this book is a prequel for the book Skellig, and focuses on the character Mina before she has met Michael and Skellig. It focuses on her troubles with school and family and shines a light on her creativity. It is a fun, but serious book all at the same time and has many different forms of creativity like poetry and made-up stories. Overall, it’s a very personal and emotive tale, with lots of much needed honesty about school and the stories that are missed of kids who struggle in school. - Isabelle H, Y11
Please contact us with any queries or problems you may have. To get in touch with a member of staff from your child’s year group, you can: Please contact us with any queries or problems you may have. To get in touch with a member of staff from your child’s year group, you can: Send an email to KS3@waldegravesch.org Or you can contact the school via phone by calling: 02088943244 WALDEGRAVE SCHOOL Fifth Cross Road, Twickenham, Middlesex, TW2 5LH HOW TO CONTACT YEAR 8 HEAD OF YEAR AND TUTORS Send an email to KS3@waldegravesch.org Or you can contact the school via phone by calling: 02088943244 WALDEGRAVE SCHOOL Fifth Cross Road, Twickenham, Middlesex, TW2 5LH HOW TO CONTACT YEAR 7 HEAD OF YEAR AND TUTORS
FRIDAY MATHS PUZZLE Our learning focus for tutor time on Fridays this term is mathematics, with the maths department setting some thought provoking brain teasers each week for pupils to grapple with. Maths puzzles help students to build persistence and patience. Maths is a concept that many children find difficult to grasp. Even worse, they can find it boring. Maths puzzles add a fun element that encourages pupils to persist at a problem because it feels more like a game than a chore. Please have a go at this week’s problem, talk to your child about how they approached it and what the solutions were. We hope you enjoy these at home as much as the students have enjoyed them with their form!
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SPORTS FIXTURES
Date
Fixture
Result
Won U14 fly, Won U15 backstroke, Won U15 freestyle, Won U15 Team freestyle relay.
07.02.25
RSSP Swimming Gala
10.02.25
Y8 Netball v St Catherine’s
Lost/Lost/Drew
11.02.25
Y7 Netball vs Turing House (friendly)
Lost/Won
12.02.25
Y8/9 Rugby vs London Youth Games Qualifiers
Lost/Won
13.02.25
Y7 Netball vs Teddington School (friendly)
Lost
Well done to the team of 21 pupils who attended the Richmond Schools Sports Partnership swimming gala with some excellent results to celebrate! Penelope C (Year 9) won the U14 fly, Scout T (Year 9) won the U15 back- stroke and Sophie B (Year 10) won the U15 freestyle. Our U15 Team also won freestyle relay. On Monday we kicked off a week of sports with a fantastic effort from our Year 8 netball teams playing against St Catherines, our A and B teams both fought hard but were outplayed this time, while our C team drew in a closely fought match. Netball continued with friendlies for Year 7 against Turing House and Teddingston School.
Our Year 8/9 Rugby Team joined the Borough Rugby Tournament in an effort to qualify for the London Youth Games. They played extremely well winning two of the three games played. Captain Marie Hawkes lead from the front, scoring one try and player of the tournament was Keira Enninful scoring 5 out of our 6 tries!
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