Rossett News Update - 18 December 2020
Important Changes to the start of the Spring Term
school inset day - monday 4th january - school closed for all students
Rossett School, in line with Government guidance, will be closed on Monday 4th January for staff to receive instruction and training about the publicised testing regime for schools. We apologise for the late notice of this INSET day; the school only received details of operational guidance for January yesterday, Thursday 17th December.
Years 11 and 13 will be required to attend school from Tuesday 5th January onwards and examination classes and teaching will be held physically on the school site for all of these students, unless there is a medical reason why they cannot attend.
All students in Years 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12 are not required in school from 5th of January, up to and including Friday 8th January. This first week of term is the start of education for all from Tuesday 5th; it is not an additional period of Christmas holiday, and all students will either be online completing work each day, or in school.
Important Information
Parents will receive two important letters today about the start of term and when students are due back in school. Please take the time to read these carefully.
End of Term Musical Celebration
In the absence of being able to hold our usual end of term celebration this year, our wonderful Arts Department have put together a fantastic selection of music and performances by our very talented students. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we did. Click here to watch the performances.
Foodbank Donation by the Sixth Form
A ’Christmas Dinner for Everyone’ was the target of a festive appeal organised by Sixth Form students this week. The students, led by designated Charity Prefect Emily Farquhar, have been collecting donations for the Harrogate District Foodbank. The foodbank is part of a nationwide network supported by The Trussell Trust, which works to combat poverty and hunger across the UK. Food items ranging from everyday essentials to festive treats were donated by the school community, and will be delivered to the foodbank today. Thank you to everyone who contributed.
Year 7 Poetry Competition - Reflections of 2020
Being a reflective learner is a key element of our 3R’s ethos at Rossett School. As we approach the end of what has been an unprecedented year for us all, we are taking the opportunity to remember what will undoubtedly become a significant part of modern history, by putting together a collection of ‘Reflections of 2020’.
We are inviting students in Year 7, along with students in Year 5 and 6 at local Primary schools, to produce an anthology of poetry and prose to mark 2020 for generations to come.
Over the forthcoming Christmas holidays, we are asking students to think back on their experiences of the pandemic and over the past year and put together a reflective piece of writing of no more than 250 words. Ideas could include lockdown and home-schooling; new hobbies or interests that have begun; the role of key workers; and the rise in community spirit. There will be a prize for the wining submission which we hope will be printed in the Harrogate Advertiser and publicised locally, and a further selection of entries will be chosen to be included in a printed anthology.
The anthology will be produced early in the New Year for students and parents to purchase. The funds raised will be donated to JustB to support their important work around mental health and wellbeing for young people in the local area. All submissions must be completed electronically and be submitted via the following link reflections2020@rossettschool.co.uk by Friday 15th January.
Masterclass Tutorial Programme
You may recall that earlier in the year, Patrick Fleming and Yael Braunstein in Year 10 were successful in their application to take part in the Maths Masterclass Tutorial Programme promoted by Alex Gerko and Simon Singh. The two students had access to four introductory sessions and we are pleased to update you that Patrick and Yael have performed well in the quizzes, and received good tutor feedback on engagement and potential across the four sessions. They have reached the next stage and been selected to continue to participate in the programme. We are incredibly proud of them and wish them luck in January 2021.
Mathematics Department Fun Christmas Quiz
Our Mathematics Department launched a fun and challenging Christmas competition for each year group during Form Time this week. If your child loves Maths and wants a challenge over Christmas, or if you need extra questions for those 'Zoom' family quizzes click here.
Isaacs Physics Winners
GCSE and A Level Physics students recently participated in the annual Isaac Physics Competition. Students were tasked with completing twelve Isaac Physics' tasks over twelve days for a chance to win prizes. ' Isaac Physics' is a site designed to offer support and activities for Physics problem-solving to teachers and students transitioning from GCSE (Year 11), through to Sixth Form (Year 12 and 13), and then on to university - combining an online study tool with face-to-face events.
In Year 13 Sam Gilmartin won, completing all of the problems first. Well done to Karthik Krishnan who also completed all of the problems. In Year 11, Millie Hampson won, completing all of the problems. Well done also to Casey-Leigh Pycock also in Year 11 who came in second place.
Winners received a £10 voucher and Isaac Physics merchandise. All students who took part received an Isaac Physics book.
I
nter-form PE Results
This half term saw the return of the PE inter-form competition between forms groups in Year 8 and Year 9. All students competed in mixed sports of basketball, handball, dodgeball and 'capture the flag'. The students were incredibly enthusiastic and really 'got stuck in', showcasing some individual performances as well as the importance of teamwork, encouragement and resilience. The Year 7 inter-form competition results for the first half term will roll over to February's competition. For the Year 8 results, click here and for the Year 9 results, click here.
Rossett Adult Learning - Spring Programme 2021
We are delighted to share with you our Rossett Adult Learning new Autumn Programme for Spring 2021 here. Many of our adult education courses are currently online so learners from any location can take part. We are also featuring a limited number of in-house 'socially distanced' learning opportunities.
In response to the current rules about social distancing and meeting in groups, Rossett Adult Learning have developed an exciting range of interesting and thought-provoking classes to stimulate and occupy you, or simply because you might like to learn new skills.
These include, new languages courses such as Japanese, Greek and Latin for beginners. There are many options to join exercise classes online and in-house, and general interest courses including' Introduction to Philosophy', Psychology, and Family History. Also new for this term is 'An Introduction to Patisserie' which is booking-up quickly!
We also have a guide to Inheritance Tax, Wills and Powers of Attorney led by a qualified solicitor; the History of England - 1485-1603 The Tudors; and African drumming. We are sure you will agree there really is something for everyone - we even have a 'grow your own vegetables' course on a Sunday morning! Please visit the Adult Learning website here for further information.
Harrogate Theatre Panto Stories with Tim Stedman
If you are missing your annual visit to the Pantomime this year, Harrogate Theatre in conjunction with The Stray Ferret are launching 'Panto Stories' with Harrogate Pantomime legend, Tim Stedman. Featuring stories from Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk and many more, simply logon to The Stray Ferret www.thestrayferret.co.uk each evening next week to enjoy some festive fun.
Face Coverings
We would like to remind you that face coverings must be worn by students when moving around inside the school. This means that they must be worn in corridors, communal areas and anywhere where social distancing cannot be maintained. Students should not, however, wear a face covering in the classroom. When in the dining halls, students can remove their face covering when they are eating, but should wear it when queuing and when sat socialising in their groups, after eating.
As the term has worn on we have found that a number of students have arrived at school without a face covering, or have lost their face covering when moving around the school. It is very important that students come to school equipped with a minimum of two face coverings in case they are lost or misplaced. Face coverings should be surgical or made of plain fabric and should not bear words, slogans or images that may distress or offend.
Students who travel on school buses should continue to wear a face covering at all times during their journey. This has been an expectation since September.
PTA
The PTA would like to thank everyone who has participated in the national schools lottery. Each week there is a guaranteed winner from Rossett school and so far this term ticket sales have generated over £800 for Rossett School. If you would like to purchase a ticket and at the same time help raise funds for the school, please visit https://www.yourschoollottery.co.uk/lottery/school/rossett-school.
Don’t forget to visit our Uniform Recycling site on the Rossett PTA website page here. If you have any new style PE kit to donate, please contact us for ways to safely pass this on. We will start to accept donations of other uniform again once we have exhausted the demand for our current stock. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far.
Mental Health and Well-being
The following links may be helpful in signposting your child to further support should they need it during the Christmas break.
The Go-To – www.thegoto.org.uk – is a portal or ‘single point of information’ for the wide range of mental health support services available to help children and young people in the county address their social and emotional health needs.
https://www.kooth.com/ https://www.minded.org.uk/
Important Diary Dates
MONDAY 4TH JANUARY 2021 - inset day - school closed to students
tuesday 5th january 2021 - school opens for years 11 and 13 and for the children of keyworkers and other notified groups
MOCK RESULTS FOR YEAR 11 STUDENTS WILL BE ISSUED ON WEDNESDAY 6TH JANUARY
With my very best wishes for a peaceful and healthy Christmas and New Year, and with festive wishes from the staff and governors at Rossett School.
H Woodcock
Headteacher
