Senior School Weekly News

News from Senior School this week: 4th March 2024

Mrs Séguier

Deputy Head of Senior School

Book Week/ fortnight continued this week with all sorts of events:

The author Toby Glover came to visit Year 3 and Year 4 to talk about his books on Wednesday. The pupils really enjoyed his visit.

Yesterday, Léo the labradoodle also came to visit and read with all the Year 3, Year 4, Year 5, and Year 6 pupils. He had an absolutely fantastic time and had a great opportunity to learn about a lot of things including analysis of football matches and what animal feet do for example. He read a few dog books and handled it very well when a cat character came into the stories! He picked up a few ballet techniques. He was also read a little “Harry Potter”, the beginning of “Winnie the Pooh” and was introduced to the “Narwhal” from “Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea”. Both Léo and I enjoyed listening to all the pupils read throughout the day. They were all proud to read a little bit of their favourite books or the book they are currently reading, and put a lot of effort into bringing their passages to life with their intonation. Well done to all of them for their effort!

Today, the Year 7-10 assembly was dedicated to the power of reading and the reasons why students are always encouraged to read. Ms Meredith went through not only the health benefits of reading but also the career prospects given to people who read a little bit but consistently every day. From Year 3 to Year 10, throughout the day, we have been Dropping Everything and Reading. Year 8 this morning literally dropped everything and read!

A big thank you to Ms Shuttleworth and the English department for organising so many events throughout last week and this week to celebrate Book week, the joys of book and the pleasure of reading.

As you are aware, our wonderful APA is organising a pub quiz at School on Thursday 21st March in our Theatre in the evening. It would be fantastic to have as many of you as possible join! If you are interested, you can book your tickets here:

https://www.tickettailor.com/events/abercornparentsassociation/1142396

You can buy individual tickets and you will be assigned to a team. You can also choose to form a team of 4-8 people and register all together. The £30 ticket price includes: veg curry dinner, beer, wine and soft drinks, and the quiz. Additionally, there will be summer used uniforms available for purchase.

I hope you have a restful weekend.

Leo’s visit for World Book Day!

Year 3

Another action-packed week has flown by in Year 3, filled with some very exciting learning opportunities. It's hard to pinpoint just one highlight as 3W have been involved in so many enjoyable experiences. From cosy reading sessions with Leo the Labradoodle, pancake tossing in French lessons with Madame Sharp, to the spectacular costumes for World Book Day, our 3W class has truly embraced both fun alongside lots of learning throughout the week.

In English, the children embarked on an awesome journey into the world of Greek myths. They were captivated to discover how these ancient stories unveil the cultures and beliefs of the Greeks, all set in real locations. Delving into the tales of Zeus and the gods of Mount Olympus, the children eagerly immersed themselves in our first Greek myth, "Pandora's Box." This sparked lively discussions about curiosity and the vengefulness of Zeus's character. 3W are eagerly anticipating more of these fascinating tales.

In Maths, our Year 3 Mathmagicians continued their exploration of fractions with enthusiasm. They delved into important concepts such as comparing unit fractions, understanding that the larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction. They also tackled the comparison of non-unit fractions, grasping the idea that when denominators are the same, the greater the numerator, the greater the fraction. Applying their newfound knowledge to solve word problems and analyse fractions on scales, 3W demonstrated fantastic mathematical prowess.

In Science and Geography, plants continue to be our topic of interest. In Geography, the children continued to explore plants which grow in desert biomes which led to some very interesting conversations about how plants adapt to their environments such as cacti and camel adaptations similarly store water in their interiors to survive long periods without rain. The children had a real wow moment during our science experiment when our first of 3 observations revealed that a plant growing in the dark, actually grows quicker, although the children did notice a pale yellow colour on the new sprouts. I wonder what they will look like next week.

Congratulations to all our Year 3 for their enthusiastic participation in our World Book Day celebrations. We were thoroughly impressed by the creativity displayed in their fantastic costumes and their dedication to extra reading activities. Well done, Year 3!

Wishing you all a delightful Weekend - Mr Ward

Year 4

We have had a very busy and eventful week celebrating World Book Day and completing our pop-up books. Our rainforest pop-up information books are now near completion. The children have been working on the contents and glossary pages for their books. Next week, they will produce a written blurb for the back cover of their book and an eye-catching front cover design complete with their own publisher’s logo. Using persuasive language in their blurb, they will aim to encourage readers to pick up the book and start learning about the earth’s amazing rainforests, and alarmingly, its continued and rapid destruction.

Rehearsals are well underway now for our show, The Emerald Crown. The students have largely learnt all their lines and are beginning to show greater confidence in delivering their lines with expression, clear diction and more polished acting skills. Do check with your child and get them to say their lines aloud to you at home! Next week you will receive an email detailing costume requirements for your child’s show costume. We will be able to supply most of the costumes but will communicate where you will need to step in and help.

On Wednesday, children’s author, Toby Glover, visited the school. He entertained the children with his funny stories and explained to them how he became an author. On Thursday afternoon the Year 4s enjoyed the company of Labradoodle, Leo. His his company they sat and read in small groups of five students. Friday 8th March was dress-up day! All the students came dressed and enjoyed the day! Thank you for your contributions to our school charities.

Have a lovely weekend! Kind regards, The Year 4 Team

From the Computing Department

Mr Murphy - Head of Computing

The Computing Department consists of myself, the Head of Computing, Mr Steve Brackley the IT Manager and Mr Antonio Rodrigues IT Technician.

Computing is one of the most popular subjects at Abercorn School. Students have weekly Computing classes from Year 1 to Year 10. With the 10 students having the option to undertake GCSE Computer Science.

Mr Murphy is originally from Australia, but has a broad range of international teaching experience, from Japan, the Philippines, the UK and Australia. Mr Murphy coordinates the Google Classroom Learning Management System at Abercorn School and ensures that all staff and students a confident in using Google Classroom to undertake online learning and homework activities

Mr Murphy also runs a Coding club at Senior school on Wednesday afternoons and teaches students how to use Minecraft to undertake learning challenges. As part of the Computing curriculum, we run regular e-safety classes for students and we are now teaching students about AI (Artificial intelligence) and how it could be used in the future.

Year 5

For the first half of the Spring term Year 5 students were having fun with students were Crumble Microbit controllers. This was part of our physical computing unit, They assembled their Crumble Microcontrollers and then programmed them with a range of sequences from light patterns to motor inputs. In the second half of this term, we have been learning how to manipulate data in a flat-file database. Students were given a range of data challenges to look up, they then used their databases to filter their fields and produce data to answer their class challenges.

Year 6

In the first half of the term students in Year 6 were learning about Spreadsheets. They learnt how to organise data into columns and rows to create their own data set. They then learnt about the importance of formatting their data to support their calculations, They were introduced to formulas and learnt how a formula can be to calculate data. Finally, they created charts and evaluated their data to present clear answers to questions. In the second half of the Spring term, students began working on a 3D modelling unit. They created their own 3D house and added windows and doors. During the upcoming STEAM week, we are planning to print some of our 3D designs.

Year 7

Year 7 students have been working on a Spreadsheet unit. They began learning the basics of spreadsheets and then moved on to analysing data models. Students were given a range of questions to answer from a data set. They learnt how to create and use basic formulas to perform calculations. Then they moved to using Comparative Operators, COUNTIF statements and Mathematical Operators. From the data students produced a range of charts, including Pie charts, Bar graphs and Line graphs to display their findings.

Year 8

In the first half of the term, we were learning about the famous people and devices in Computing history. These included the Antikythera mechanism, the Step Reckoner and the Difference Engine, created by Charles Babbage. Students were then gradually introduced to binary digits, they learned how these binary units could be used to represent text and numbers. Finally, they learnt how to convert decimal numbers into binary numbers and binary numbers back into decimal numbers.

Year 9

In the first half of the term Year 9 students were continuing to work on text-based programming challenges using the Python programming language. They began with simple programs involving inputs and outputs, and then gradually moved on to arithmetic operations, randomness, selection, and iteration. Students continued working on their Python assignments and learnt how to create programs that processed data using sequences which can include lists and strings. In the second half of the Spring term, they began a unit on Data representation. Learning how to convert binary numbers into visual representations.

Year 10

In the first half of the Spring term Year 10 students were continuing to work on their GCSE Python programming challenges. They worked on sequencing simple programming tasks, which involved the manipulation of inputs, outputs and the use of selection statements. Students then moved on to flowcharts and Computer systems. They learned that computer systems can be made up of a CPU, a Main Memory, different types of storage devices and the Fetch, Execute and Decode cycle. (FDE) In the second half of the Spring term learnt about adding Binary numbers and the operation of Computer Networks in a variety of environments.