Weekly Newsletters

Since the last newsletter we have enjoyed the superb Christmas Community concerts supported by Mr Norman, our Choir and the local primary schools. These events were superb, and the quality of performances were a joy to behold.

On Friday we held the annual Christmas Lunch where members of our local community joined together to celebrate the spirit of Christmas.

For me, what is adpoted at Christmas needs to be a daily event and not a seasonal one. Christmas is not a time nor celebration, but a state of mind we need to have all year round; to cherish peace and kindness, to be reflective and have the determination to grow despite whatever problems we face.

I have chosen five examples of the meaning of Christmas and how we can all apply them all year round (with a modern twist).

1. Honestly reflect on 2017 - what went well (WWW) and what could have been better (EBI). 
2. Do something about the EBI's! Set small goals that will help you make a positive 2018. 
3. Visualise what you want and go and get it; if you do not know what you want make this the biggest present you need! 
4. Seek help if you want to change things but do not know how to. In school and within your circle of friendship/family there is always someone willing to listen. 
5. Offer a little smile, a word of cheer, a bit of compassion to whoever, for example, "how are you?" or "best wishes for the coming year". Take the time to check on your next door neighbour, friend, aunt/uncle, etc, and offer support or take a few minutes to say hello. It doesn't cost a single penny but is worth its weight in gold.

Finally, the modern aspect of Christmas sadly requires me to mention that gaming sites can be great fun for young people but, as with any online technology, it is important to take precautions to keep them safe: -

• Keep the computer in a family room so you can monitor what games they are playing and check they are age appropriate. 
• Encourage them to report anyone who asks them to do anything which makes them feel uncomfortable. 
• Explain the risks of talking to people they do not know in the real world.  Ensure that your children only share login and password details with parents or trusted adults.

To our students, make sure you are in control of situations, particularly, when parties take place.

• If in doubt, say no, avoid and talk to someone about it. 
• Make plans in advance to get home safely - pre-book a taxi or make sure you know how you're getting home. 
• Look out for your friends and arrange a safe meeting place in case you get separated. 
• Save an ICE (In Case of Emergency) number in your phone, stash some cash in case you lose your purse or wallet.

Return date after the holidays

• Please note that all students return to school on Thursday 4 January at the normal school starting time. This will be week 1.

Standards and expectations

• Any uniform issues identified at the end of term must be resolved over the holiday period as this is more than reasonable time period to address the small number of students that are not meeting our high expectations. 
• Remember = Dress Smart - Act Smart, therefore, the following items are not allowed:
  • No hoodies. 
  • No trainers (unless there is a verified medical condition). 
  • No un naturally coloured hair. 
  • No nose/tongue/ multiple piercings beyond the school uniform guidance.
    You can view our full Uniform Policy here

Standards need to be kept, and we will not hesitate to either confiscate or isolate students until the matter is resolved.

Principal's Commendations

I am pleased to share with you that the following students have received Principal's Commendations for this half term. Congratulations to:

Morgan Abbott

Neann Abdallah

Lewis Andrews

Holly Banister

Connie Baxter

Jorja Bettany

Niamh Butler

Nikki Chapman

Kye Crompton

Shantelle Daley 

Jay Davitt

Fletcher Saffron

Mary Fountain

Abigail Franks

Anisha Freeman

Cameron Gater-Condon

Alex Gazo

Caroline George 

Abi Guerin

Nathan Hall

Paddy Hall

Tru Hicks

Rianna Hobbs

Marc Humpherys 

Lsabel Johnson

Lewis Johnson-Westgate

Aleksandra Korczak

Abigail Magee

Sam Malcolm 

Tyler Marchant

Abigail Merritt

Sevens-Jorens Miljons

Allana Miller

Charlize Miller

Courtney Nielander 

Anastasia Piekarz 

Ana Pinto 

Paige Posnett

Chloe Rayment 

Molly Rickards

Amiee Robbins

Paige Rowton

Caitlin Rust 

Soraia Santos

Luca Scalla-Cooper

Kayla Scott

Emily Shadwell

Jasmine Smith

Loius Smith

Simona Stalmukaityte

Karol Staruk

Roxanna Tansley

Jemma Thompson 

Molli Tilney

Oliwia Wojdyla

Gracie Woodcock

Max Woods

Chantelle Wymer

I want to wish you all a merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Bryan Erwin
Principal

The exams in the summer are stretched over a much wider period of time so planning their revision should be easier. Every week I will be sending out resources students can start using at home called the final countdown, this may seem premature but there are only 75 teaching days left to the first summer exam and revising gradually is much more effective. Using the countdown alongside Hegarty and other revision resources will really make the difference in closing the gap on areas students still have issues with. Please find attached week 2 of the extra questions students can do at home with the support of parents as mark schemes and examiners reports are also attached. Every week I will continue to attach five topics that regularly appear on examinations, there is also a Personal Learning Checklist so students can track what they feel they have mastered and what they need more help on. This can be used alongside Hegarty maths which has video tutorials to help students understand topics.

Revision guides are available in school at cost price saving you more than 50% on the RRP. There are 3 books at £2.50 each and an answer book for £1. Please see your class teacher, Mr Hussain or Mr Donnelly if you wish to purchase these. Alternatively you could pay on the school's parent pay system.

Mr Donnelly
Second in Mathematics/Numeracy across the curriculum Coordinator

However, we’ve increasingly found that the sheer number of badges we have available in the Rewards and Behaviour area is confusing and limiting what is being awarded. In an effort to address this problem we will be rolling out a new slimmed down version in the Spring Term. By limiting the number of badges available we hope that students will be more evenly rewarded and sanctions will be clearer. 

From January, when you log into Connect and see your child's timeline you may see the icons below which correspond to differing levels of House points.

As part of this update you may have noticed an increase in communications from the system. We now automatically alert parents via email and app notifications when a student is being detained for detention – regardless as to whether this is during the school day or after – as we believe this will help you to support us and vice versa. Should we not have your email address on the system we will continue to phone home if a student is being detained at the end of the school day. Finally, as mentioned in previous newsletters, Connect is now available from your app store. Click on the relevant link below to download and install. The app will allow you to easily see notifications from the system as well as giving you easy access to your child’s timetable, homework and timeline. For Android devices click here, iOS devices, click here. If you don’t own an iOS or Android device you can still access the majority of this information via your device web browser by clicking on the link on our website. If you require login details for Connect or have any queries please do contact us.

Mr Treliving
Assistant Principal

The day was fundraising for The Malcolm Whales Foundation, a charity that supports young people affected by cancer. At 6.45am 95 Key Stage 3 students arrived, almost awake and nearly ready to begin the marathon endurance test.

The day was an incredible success. The 12 hours included a host of sports and activities ranging from trampolining to basketball and dodgeball. Amazingly the students' levels of stamina and effort were fantastic throughout. My ability to listen to multiple basketballs bounce for 12 straight hours straight was also severally put to the test!

Alongside KSCS on Friday, Ely College were also taking part in the same event for the same cause. They too had nearly 100 participants taking part and between the two schools we managed to raise nearly £4000 for charity.

The Foundation has set itself a number of important goals. One key goal is to provide students with an opportunity to be involved with the end product. With the event’s proximity to Christmas and £2000 being in raised by KSCS students, it was felt appropriate to find a local link. The Peterborough City Hospital is running a scheme called ‘Love from Lapland’. This involves all patients in the hospital receiving a present on Christmas morning. The Malcolm Whales Foundation in partnership with KSCS decided to donate £500 to this campaign.

On Thursday of this week, we took eight Key Stage 3 students down to the hospital to donate the presents and help wrap the hundreds of gifts. The students involved did a fantastic job and will hopefully have helped to raise the spirits of those people unlucky enough to be in hospital over Christmas.

More photos can be seen on the school Facebook page and The Malcolm Whales page.

On behalf of both The Malcolm Whales Foundation and KSCS I would personally like to wish you a very happy Christmas.

Mr Whales
Vice Principal

The effort is outstanding in several classes and students have excelled at including as many features of a castle as possible. A huge congratulations to all students who have submitted videos of themselves talking about castles, extended PowerPoint presentations, booklets, sketches and models. 

Miss Walker
Teacher of Humanities

More information can be found in the letters home section of this newsletter. Book appointments here.

Aspire hang on to first place this week. However we have had a drop in attendance for all Houses, due to the high number of illnesses. We understand that sometimes this can't be helped. The following guidelines from our policy are there to aid you when trying to decide whether to send the student to school: For sickness, students may return 24 hours after the last sickness. For flu, please return when the student’s temperature is normal. If absent for more than 2 days we will need a document from a medical professional. We can hold medication at school, with the appropriate form from Admin. We strive to ensure that every lesson counts.