Headteacher's Weekly Review

Dear Parents/Carers,

Welcome back for the Summer term.

During the Easter holiday Mr Beeson, Mr Dixon, Mrs Lang and Miss Bourne travelled to Iceland on the Geography tour of 2019. 29 fantastic Year 10 students saw the sights and sounds of Iceland including Geyser, Vik and the Blue Lagoon. They also had the fantastic opportunity to walk on the 3rd largest glacier in Iceland. This trip helped our students make real life connections to the GCSE course they are studying and staff were very proud with the way they conducted themselves in a new environment! Many thanks to all the staff and parents who supported this tour and made it so successful.

Three of our Year 10 students; Cyrus Howbrook, Tung Nguyen and Morgan Seymour competed in the Digital School House Esports Grand Final on the 10th of April at the GFinity Esports Arena. They triumphed against their first two opponents in the quarter and semi-finals, producing some excellent displays of communication and team work. Unfortunately, they were pipped at the post in the final by a very strong team who had not lost a map in the run to the final. Needless to say we are very proud of their achievement and look forward to them bringing home the trophy next year. 

This week Peter Heeney (7E), Isabelle Garbett (7I) and Edward Robinson (7G), attended the regional competition for the Languages Spelling Bee which took place in one of the lecture theatre at Southampton University. Students from various schools in the Southeast region battled to spell as many Spanish or French words in one minute from a list of 150 words. Isabelle Garbett and Edward Robinson valiantly competed against other schools but unfortunately, they did not reach the final round. Peter Heeney spelled 12 words in the final round and came 3rd overall. He will now represent the whole Southeast Region in the National Competition which will take place in Cambridge on 1st July. Congratulations to all 3 participants and we wish Peter the best of luck.

Year 11s who study French, German and Spanish took their GCSE Speaking exam yesterday (their first official exam) and MFL teachers were very pleased with their performance. We wish them good luck for the rest of their GCSEs.

Author Bali Rai visited our Year 9 students on Thursday.  He spoke to the students about his career as an author and some of the students were given the opportunity to attended creative writing workshops with Bali throughout the day.  Bali’s unique style captivated our students, thereby inspiring them to see reading and writing in a completely new way.

Congratulations to two students from our creative writing club who have become published writers. Amelie Jaye Willson-Rivers and Jessica Chan had their poems published in Surrey’s Get Lost in Poetry Escape Book. This is such a great accomplishment, especially for young writers.  The poems will be put up on the success display in the English department.

Also, congratulations to the following students, who have all successfully passed practical music examinations during the Spring term:

Y7 - Herbie Hunter – Grade 2 French horn – Merit

Y7 - Lara Milligan – Grade 2 Flute - Merit

Y8 - Adam Ahmed – Grade 5 Pianoforte – Pass

Y8 - Lorenzo Fantappie - Grade 1 Electric Guitar - Pass

Y9 - Kai Westaway – Grade 7 Piano – Merit

Y9 - Josh Ford - Grade 2 Acoustic Guitar - Pass

Y10 - Dora Savory – Grade 5 Pianoforte – Pass

Y10 - Emil Kautovaara – Grade 5 Trumpet – Pass

Y10 - Anaahita Lalljee – Grade 1 Pianoforte - Distinction

Y11 - Madeleine McClements – Grade 6 Clarinet – Merit

Y11 - Ben Koch - Grade 5 Bass Guitar - Merit

and alumni - Thomas Bates - Grade 8 Electric Guitar - Distinction

FRIENDS THAI EVENING

Saturday 18th May, 7.30 to midnight

Please remember to book your tickets for an evening of Thai food and dancing at the Somkid Thai restaurant, Weybridge.   The cost of the night is £25.00 per head for a delicious Thai food buffet followed by a disco.  We will also have a small raffle plus hopefully some other entertainment.

This will be a great opportunity to catch up over a relaxed evening out with some great food, while raising money for the Friends.  Please see attached booking form for more details.  We look forward to seeing you there. The Friends of Woking High School

Please note two letters that have been sent this week – one for Year 11 students who will be involved in an immersion timetable from 10th May and one for those students who will be participating in Ramadan.

Finally, can I please ask parents who drive children to school, to be very careful when dropping students at the gates.  The traffic can be very busy at the beginning and end of the school day and the roads around the school do become congested at times. Please be vigilant about other cars and pedestrians.  Parents’ cars should not come onto the school site unless they are dropping off VI students or those who need additional assistance.  In these circumstances, if cars are on site, please drive extremely slowly.

Best wishes,

Jane Abbott

Headteacher

Headteacher's Weekly Review

Dear Parents/Carers,

The last week of the spring term has been very busy.  Year 10s have continued with their indicative exams and will receive the results of their hard work when we return after the Easter break. These exams mark the half-way point in Year 10s GCSE studies, so the outcomes will provide a bench mark as they go forward into their final year.

On Tuesday our Year 8 students had the opportunity to meet the author Alan Gibbons.   Alan captivated the students with his ability to create a story from any situation thereby causing much laughter amongst the students.  The feedback from our Year 8 students has been very positive, they expressed how much they enjoyed meeting Alan Gibbons because of his unique style and approach to writing.

Thank you to the Friends of Woking High School for their chocolate fundraisers this week.  Due to the enthusiasm of the students they raised an amazing total of £250.  This wouldn’t have been achieved without the help of 6 parents and generous donations from Sainsbury’s in Brookwood and Waitrose in Goldsworth Park.

Also, the Friends wish to draw attention to another fundraiser taking place in May. Thai Night out - On the evening of Saturday 18th May, the Friends of Woking High School are holding a fund raising evening of delicious Thai food and dancing. Ticket £35 per person which includes an unlimited eat as much as you like Thai Buffet dinner plus a disco.  Drinks are not included.

The venue is:

Somkid Thai Restaurant

47 High Street

Weybridge.

Tickets are limited so please don’t delay in securing your place, see attached for details on how to book tickets.  This is a great opportunity to meet up with other parents and carers from your year or other years.

Congratulations go to Year 11 student Amy Szarvas who achieved a 92% distinction - LCM Grade 5 in musical theatre singing exam.

Well done to students Thomas Marton, Emil Kautovaara, Harry Gannon, Matthew Szarvas, Billy Webb, Rufus Hobbs, Marcus Rose-Sweetman, Finley Comerford, Thomas Henderson, James Khan, Max Hamson and Rhys Lloyd who travelled to Warhammer World in Nottingham to represent the school in the School’s League semi-Final tournament. Overall, they won the most sporting team award, meaning that they were awarded the most ‘best game’ awards by other players, and Emil won both the best painted army and individual model competition. Despite not making it through to the finals, the boys performed very well and displayed excellent tactics and teamwork skills.

Also, another well done to our Year 8 and 9 gardeners who have been participating in the RHS Green Plan It Challenge. They featured in RHS Life magazine this month.

We wish our Year 10 Geographers and our Year 10 E Sport Overwatch team the very best of luck.  The former departed on a 5 day Geography field study to Iceland yesterday and the latter will represent the school on Wednesday 10th April at the national finals.

Yesterday the school received news that it has been awarded two SSAT certificates recognizing the achievements of last year’s Year 11. The attainment of these students placed them in the top 10% of all schools nationally and in their progress, placed them in the top 20% nationally.  We are very proud of these awards and the success of our students.

Finally, may I wish you and your families a very happy Easter holiday.  We return to school on Tuesday 23rd April at 8.55 a.m. for the Summer term.

Best wishes,

Jane Abbott

Headteacher

Thought of the Week

“Easter is a symbol of hope, renewal and new life.”

J de Giovanni

Diary Events

Start of summer term Tuesday 23^rd April (Day 7) return at 8.55 a.m. /Newquay parents’ information evening 6-9 p.m.

Thursday 25^th Silver Duke of Edinburgh practice – Saturday 27^th

Friends of Woking High School Thai Evening

Saturday 18th May, 7.30 to midnight

Dear Parents/Carers

We are pleased to have teamed up for an evening of Thai food and dancing with the Somkid Thai restaurant.   The cost of the night is £35.00 per head for a delicious Thai food buffet followed by a disco.  We will also have a small raffle plus hopefully some other entertainment.

This will be a great opportunity to catch up over a relaxed evening out with some great food, while raising money for the Friends. 

Venue: - Somkid Thai Restaurant

47 High Street

Weybridge

KT13 8BB

Please can you return the form below to the office in an envelope marked Thai Night, Friends of Woking High School.  Payment can be made by cheque or electronically.  Please make cheques payable to Friends of Woking High School.  If you wish to pay electronically, please pay Friends of Woking High School at Account Number: 28995360 Sort Code: 30-93-23.  Please reference Thai and your child’s tutor group.  i.e. Thai 7W.  Please also email us at fowhs@wokinghigh.surrey.sch.uk to confirm that you have paid.

We only have limited tickets, so please book your tickets asap.  Tickets will be sold on a first come first served basis.  If we do not sell enough tickets though the event will be cancelled.

If you require any further information, please contact fowhs@wokinghigh.surrey.sch.uk

Yours sincerely

Lindsey Bostock-Cross

Secretary, Friends of Woking High School

Friends of Woking High School Thai Evening

Name :-……………………………………................................  Child’s Tutor Group  :- ………

Email:- ……………………………………………………………………

Contact number:- ………………………………………………......

Number of Tickets ……….  @£35.00 per head             Total Amount paid £ …………..

Wanting to sit with ……………………………………………………………………………………………..

Headteacher's Weekly Review

Dear Parents/Carers,

It looks as if spring has arrived this week and with the good news of sunshine has also come good news from several of our competitions.

On Saturday 23^rd March, 68 Year 9 participants undertook a morning’s navigation training in the Surrey Hills.  They were led by members of staff who encouraged them to understand the way the countryside is reflected in their maps.  By the end of the morning most of the students were able to use a map and compass and we are confident that they will be able to put this into practice during the expeditions to be held in the summer.

On Tuesday we entered a team into the Digital Schoolhouse Overwatch Esport Qualifiers in Stratford. I am delighted to say that against stiff competition our team performed amazingly well and went on to become regional champions! The team is expected to take part in the UK national final on the 10^th April in London @ Gfinity London arena.

Congratulations go to all team members: Cyrus Howbrook,Morgan Seymour ,Tung Nguyen.

In addition, Frances Machattie (Y11 and one of the 4 amazing Event Managers here at WHS) was offered an apprenticeship placement by SEGA and Splash Damage as a result of our visitors noticing her organisational skills during the heat round here at school.

After school on Tuesday we had another great afternoon of baking! 30 VERY keen Year 7 bakers took part and yet again standard was very high. We had full representation from all year 7 forms which was great and all teams really did a fantastic job!  Stephenson were the winning House gaining 500 house points for their amazing bakes!

House Team Results:

1^st Stephenson (500)

2^nd Brunel (200)

3^rd  Curie (100)

4^th Faraday (50)

Individual winners:

Bella Hornzee and Coral North 7W (50)

Alice Reynolds and Daisy Miller 7Y (50)

Later on Tuesday evening Woking High School students attended the H.G.Wells Centre to receive their Bronze (42) and Silver (20) Duke of Edinburgh Awards. They listened attentively to the guest speaker Jamie Gane who told them of his DofE journey and related it to their own achievements.  From speaking to them later, I know that many of them were inspired by Jamie to continue to the next level of DofE.  Yet again students from Woking High School were the most numerous from all local schools. Congratulations to all those receiving awards and thanks to all staff, especially Mrs King, Duke of Edinburgh Co-ordinator, who give so generously of their time to ensure students can participate in this great opportunity.

On Wednesday I launched the application process for the 2019/20 Head Girl/Boy team. All Year 10 students were informed that letters of application need to be submitted by Friday 26 April. A selection panel will then meet and several students will be invited to present to their year group and then a number will be called to final interview. The current Head Girl/Boy team spoke to the Year 10 students in assembly and shared their experiences with them. They will be on hand over the coming weeks to give support should any applicant wish to seek their advice. The timeline of 26^th April should give students adequate time to consider the position as well as focusing on their exams which began on Monday 25^th March and finish on 5^th April.

On Thursday 28^th March, a Year 8/9 team consisting of Nona Lawrence, Alex Heeney, Luke Holcroft and Adam Ahmed represented Woking High School in the UKMT Team Maths Challenge Regional Final at Lord Wandsworth College in Hook, Hampshire. The challenges involved answering a range of Maths puzzles as a team using only a pen and paper, with rounds including a relay race and a team crossnumber puzzle. The competition was fierce (with one team even rumoured to have been training for the event on Saturday mornings!), however our students performed well and finished a creditable 11^th out of 28 schools on the day. The students worked exceptionally well as a team and conducted themselves impeccably throughout.

For the third year in a row Woking High School received the Surrey High Sherrif’s shield as winners of the Surrey Heat of the Mock Magistrates competition. Four students from the team collected the shield from the Surrey High Sheriff’s Awards Evening, held on Thursday evening at the ExxonMobil House in Leatherhead.  Lily Harris, Lily Hallam, Tatiana Neeson and Joni Dervishi represented our team and reported back (in this order!) that the food was delicious, they were on a Q and A panel with the High Sheriff, they met the mayors of Guildford and Woking and had a lovely time all round!

Advanced notice of some chocolate themed events next week. 

The Friends of Woking High School are organising a chocolate tombola to raise funds for the Friends (please see attached) on Tuesday 2nd April at break 11.20 – 11.50 and lunch 12.50 - 13.30 to raise funds for charity. Please contact FOWHS@wokinghigh.surrey.sch.uk if you can help during one of the time slots. The House team are organising a mini Easter Egg sale on Thursday 3^rd and Friday 4^th April.

Please see the attached email re the 2019 Garden Safari.

Horsell Garden Safari 2019

Garden Safari – new garden call!

The programming for the 2019 Garden Safari is underway and we are now looking for new gardens to open for us. So all mums, dads, carers, grandparents of Woking High school – please consider opening this summer!

The dates for the Safari are Saturday 22rd (11-5pm) and Sunday 23rd  June (12-5pm). Each year we support the upkeep of the Village Hall plus a local charity through the funds raised as well as providing  a great outdoors event where visitors can have a relaxing stroll in lovely surroundings and  enjoy a cup of tea and cake.  Garden owners can choose to open for just one day  or both days and can offer refreshments and /or spare plants or enjoy chatting to visitors about their garden and gardening tips!   The diversity of our gardens is what makes it a really special event – there is always something for every taste – large or small, cottage style or formally landscaped, great for wildlife and / or children, tree covered or open.  Opening garden owners not only get to bask in the lovely compliments given by visitors but also get a ‘thank you supper’ where they can all meet up and share their great Safari stories .

Please get in touch with us about opening this year and becoming part of this successful Horsell event. – we need as many gardens as possible to make it a really good experience for visitors.  Join us and enjoy a weekend ‘on safari’ with the team!

Gail Bromley

07759313492 or bromleysglad@talktalk.net

Finally please may I draw your attention to a letter I have sent out today regarding a new option for our summer school uniform.

Best wishes,

Jane Abbott

Headteacher