Principal’s Weekly Post – Week 29

Dear Parents and Carers,

Looking towards next week, our thoughts and best wishes are firmly with our Year 11 students as the GCSE exam season officially begins on Tuesday! Our students have put in months of hard work, revision sessions, and mock exams to reach this point. To our Year 11s: believe in yourselves. You have prepared for this, and now is the time to show exactly what you are capable of. We are incredibly proud of your dedication, and the entire school community is rooting for you.

As we move into May, we are beginning to see the first signs of summer weather. We know that classrooms can get warm, and we want to ensure students remain comfortable so they can focus on their learning.

• Summer uniform: We will officially transition to our summer uniform requirements once the warm weather becomes consistent at a later date.
• Daily assessments: In the meantime, we will assess the temperature and forecast each morning.
• Jumpers: If the weather becomes hot during the day, students will be given permission to remove their school jumpers to stay cool.

With the rising temperatures, it is more important than ever that students stay hydrated throughout the day. Please ensure your child brings a reusable water bottle to school every morning. We have several water stations located around the site where students can refill their bottles during break and lunchtime. 

Wishing everyone a great weekend – don’t forget that school will be closed on Monday for the May Day Bank Holiday.

Warmly,

Gavin Kumar
Principal

Year 10 Work Skills 

In Work Skills at the moment, we are looking at the interview process. Students are currently working on a project with Jess from The Place in which they are hiring for their Italian restaurant! This week, students shortlisted their preferred candidates and next week will be preparing to conduct interviews.

Students were great and we’re looking forward to seeing their interview style!

Year 10 assembly on post-16 options

This week’s Year 10 assembly looked at post-16 options available to students, and where these options can be studied. The slides on the options, including T Levels, A Levels, apprenticeships and the incoming V Levels are available here, to support conversations at home about potential post-16 study routes.

Memories made at Carlton Lodge

We’ve had an unforgettable few days at Carlton Lodge with our Year 7s! From laughter-filled moments to tackling brand new challenges, it’s been incredible to watch pupils step beyond their comfort zones and grow in confidence. The teamwork, new friendships and genuine kindness shown to one another have been truly inspiring. So many special memories made – ones that will stay with us all for years to come.

Teechers – trip to Hull Truck Theatre

On Thursday 23 April we took a group of Year 8, 9 and 10 students to Hull Truck Theatre to see a production of John Godber’s ‘Teechers’. This is a script we look at in Year 9 Drama and involves three characters multi-rolling to act out their time at Whitewall High.

We received the following from the theatre: “We are pleased to report that we have received feedback from another member of the audience praising the behaviour of the young people in the audience at the matinee performance, which they have asked us to pass on to the relevant schools.”

Well done to all students who were involved. We hope they enjoyed the experience.

Duke of Edinburgh

If your child is doing the Duke of Edinburgh award, please check in with them to ensure they have started their volunteering, physical and skill, otherwise they risk being unable to complete the award in this academic year. Details of the assessed expedition will be shared in the coming weeks. There will be a student meeting and a parent Google Meet. Details will be shared via the newsletter and email.

Play and Drama Club

Some of you will be aware that we run a Drama Club with Pilot Theatre in the summer term. This year we were delighted to have 57 young people initially sign up. The limit for Pilot Theatre’s workshops is 32. As such, we decided to have a group of students doing the play: This Changes Everything and some students who are part of a Drama Club. Everyone will be performing on 7 July.

The first part of the evening will be the Drama Club performing extracts for a range of plays that they have chosen. Students in the club will get the opportunity to have a workshop with Oli O’Shea, the assistant director with Pilot Theatre. The second half will be the play itself. We look forward to sharing details of ticket sales next half term.

REACH – Key Stage 3 (KS3)

REACH is a project which works with York Council and York St John University. This is a new venture aimed at looking into whether creative opportunities can open doors for students within school and wider.

We have identified a small number of KS3 students who might benefit from working in a small group in this kind of environment. Sessions will look at: Connection to the arts; Confidence in creative tasks and activities; Awareness of creative careers; Wellbeing. 

You will have received a phonecall and/or an email with details about this opportunity if your child is involved. Sessions run Thursdays after school until 4:30pm until May half term.

The sessions will take place in either the Drama Studio, PA1, Hall or TA2 and students will be told ahead of time via the notices in form time in the morning. We will provide refreshments. The facilitating teachers are Mrs Turner (Art) and Mrs Lancaster (Performing Arts).

Excel Learning Trust Arts Fest

This year’s ELT Arts Fest is on Thursday 25 June at the University of York. Rehearsals started this week, but if anyone else would like to join in, please speak to Mrs Lancaster.

We are doing songs from ‘Annie’ but students do not have to have been in the Musical to take part. Anyone can come. Usual rehearsals will be on a Tuesday form time.

Instrumental and vocal lessons

Timetables for this term’s lessons have been shared with the students, are in the tutor notices and are displayed in the Performing Arts Corridor. Please support students in ensuring they know the time of their lessons.

If your child would like to take up instrumental or vocal lessons, please get in touch with Mrs Lancaster.

Tuesday Tuition – Y10

Come along to Tuesday Tuition at The Place, 3.45pm-5pm each Tuesday during term time.

Free 1:1 tuition for York High School pupils by University of York students studying the subject, as well as The Place team.

Laptops provided as well as toasties and hot drinks.

Get academic support which is tailored to you, for help with:

Word of the Week

This week, our Word of the Week is ‘vast’.

‘Getting Sorted’ at York College

The Wellbeing Team at York College is offering drop-in sessions for any students anxious or worried about starting at York College in September. The ‘Getting Sorted’ events are running on:

• Tuesday 28 July
• Wednesday 5 August

There’s no need to pre-book and it’s a great opportunity for students to go along at any point between 10am and 3pm on these dates to find out more and ask any questions they may have.

Apprenticeship vacancies

York College is currently advertising a number of apprenticeship vacancies which can be seen on the attached pdf. Each vacancy has a hyperlink to the Apprenticeship Service website, where you will find full job details and where you can submit your application.

A note on closing dates: vacancies often close earlier than the stated date, so if you are interested, please make sure you apply as soon as you can.

You can also read the attached guidance on how to write a strong application to ensure the best chance of success.

Community Cupboard

Our school is committed to helping those in need through our community cupboard, ensuring that every student and family has access to essential food/household items. Donations are always welcome and greatly appreciated, as they help us continue to support the local community.

If you or someone you know needs any support, please contact Aimee a.stewart@yorkhigh.elt.org.uk or Emma e.masterman@yorkhigh.elt.org.uk, or pop into main reception.

All requests will be handled with care and confidentiality.