Introduction
Not by choice, but I have had one of those disjointed sort of weeks. Perhaps it was because of my advancing years that as no sooner had I “celebrated” my 57th year I was felled by what I will argue was the most severe bout of flu ever experienced by man! Well anyway, sufficient to knock me out over the weekend, keep me bed bound on Monday and Tuesday and then a “manful” struggle through for the rest of the week.
Tuesday evening and Wednesday was spent with Secondary Heads and key colleagues from the LA as we entered into preliminary discussions about the development of 6th forms on our school sites. Many parents will know that Richmond Council are committed to the development of post 16 provision in its secondary schools. Whilst we are only in the very early stages of planning and consultation it is nevertheless, following on from our rebuild, an exciting venture and one that I am very excited to be leading on behalf of the school.
Consequently, my first day in school was Thursday, and only then in the morning as I had a Local Authority meeting that I Chair in the afternoon. It was disappointing for me that I missed Wednesday’s Curriculum Enhancement Day as I really enjoy their diversity and the way in which our children embrace the challenges and opportunities that these days afford them. They are always very detailed in the planning and very tiring to deliver, but always appreciated and enjoyed by all. A regular timetable of lessons is absolutely crucial for a large secondary school to work effectively, but I think it is equally important that children do get the opportunity to learn in a different kind of way, in a different environment, understanding the interlinking nature of discrete subjects and to apply subject knowledge to practical situations. These aspects are frequently achieved within classrooms but to collapse the curriculum occasionally and to plan activities without normal boundaries can be a wonderful learning opportunity for children.
I was, however, back in school in the evening for our annual yr11 Leavers Certificate Evening, where children and many parents come back to school for the last time to meet up with old classmates and teachers for the last time and to collect their examination certificates. Even though our students had only been away from us for a few months they arrived at the evening looking older and more mature than when they left us. Whether it’s the fact that they are no longer in school uniform or whether their first three months in a different environment has had this effect on them is difficult to tell. They all really enjoyed being back in school for this final evening and one that allowed them to officially draw a line under their Teddington School days. Students, staff and parents all enjoyed the evening and felt that it was a fitting end to the five years at Teddington for this excellent year group. It was a pleasure also to receive the many thanks to staff of the school both on the evening and by email on Friday, from parents/carers who wanted to express their gratitude for our efforts over the last five years.
Highlights of last week & Congratulations (and entered onto our Achievement wall)
- Congratulations to the following boys who represented Richmond last Saturday at cross country in the first London Youth Games competition for 2012. Team Richmond retained their cross country title, which was a great start to their defence of the London Youth Games after becoming champions last year. The boys were;- Sebastian Bray, Jamie Millbank and Evan James – well done boys.
- And more congratulations to members of our science club who made a video called “Chemical reactions” for the 2011 NPL Science Film Challenge. Mr. Brown who runs the club heard late last week that the video has been nominated for a prize in the category of “Best Chemistry Video”. An excellent achievement and well done boys. Mr. Brown informs me that the final decision will be announced at the beginning of December – we will keep our fingers crossed for them. Either way, it is a smashing video and you can see it by …..Ed? Our scientific film stars are Ben Fleming (8BS) John Barman (8BW) George Osborne (8AY) and Max Chinnock (7BS)
- Curriculum enhancement day, as I mention in my introduction, was another varied and interesting day for our students, and is now being used as the focus for our student vote topic this week. A video and photo montage of the day can be viewed here.
- On Friday, a group of yr11 students were addressed by Lord Haskel in their PSHE lesson on Friday afternoon. After a tour of the school Lord Haskel then spoke to the students about the importance of politics and the role of the House of Lords.
Results – last week
| Date | Year | Gender | Sport | Opponents | Venue | Competition | Result |
| Tuesday 22nd Nov | 9 | Girls | Netball | Orleans Park | Home | Borough League | LOST 11-19 |
| Tuesday 22nd Nov | 10/11 | Girls | Netball | Orleans Park | Home | Borough League | LOST 3-7 |
| Tuesday 22nd Nov | 7/8 | Girls | Hockey | Orleans Park | Away | Borough League | DREW 1-1 |
| Tuesday 22nd Nov | 10 | Boys | Rugby Union | Enfield GS | Home |
Middlesex Knockout Cup Semi-final |
LOST 7-62 |
| Wednesday 23rd Nov | 7/8/9 | Girls | Badminton | Various | Twickenham Academy | Borough Tournament | 4th |
| Wednesday 23rd Nov | 10/11 | Girls | Badminton | Various | Twickenham Academy | Borough Tournament | 4th |
| Thursday 24th Nov | 11 | Boys | Rugby Union | Isleworth & Syon | Away |
Middlesex Knockout Cup Semi-final |
LOST 24-28 (aet) |
Fixtures – this week
| Date | Year | Gender | Sport | Opponents | Venue | Competition | Time |
| Friday 2nd Dec | All Years | Boys | Cross-Country | Various | Richmond Park | Borough Championships | Leave: 11.55am Approx return: 2.45pm |
| Friday 2nd Dec | All Years | Girls | Cross-Country | Various | Richmond Park | Borough Championships | Leave: 11.55am Approx return: 2.45pm |
What’s on this week (for those involved)
- Monday pm – selected students on a “Oxford” course – Waldegrave School
- Wednesday – School closed to students
- Friday p1&2 – Music exam
Theme for the week – World Aids Week
In the news – Selected this week by 10AY
This is an interesting weekly section. Both the Theme for the week and “In the news” can be accessed by the “Student News” link on the school website.
Last week’s student vote topic and outcome – Managing Litter – after over 300 votes cast, 50% of these were in favour of our “litter louts” being made to wear hi-visibility jackets!
This week’s student vote topic – Curriculum Enhancement Days – are they a valuable part of school life?
General
You will know that we recently hosted a TEDx event, the first ever to be held in a state funded secondary school in this country. We were particularly proud of the outstanding quality of our young speakers on the evening who amply demonstrated that young people can perform publicly at a level which is commensurate of that of a very competent adult. Ticket numbers were limited by TED, but happily now, you can see these wonderful talks and those from our staff and visiting speakers by clicking here. Dr Hui gave the year group assemblies last week, explaining the significance of TED and TEDx and showing the students the highlights of TEDxTeddington. They were particularly impressed that the TED website is the first website shown onscreen in the current Apple iPad2 advertisement on TV!
A reminder that the school will be closed on Wednesday 30th and I apologise for any inconvenience this causes you. I am in the process of reorganising the cancelled yr10 parents’ evening and will inform those parents involved as soon as I am able.
What made me smile this week
As I said in my introduction, we had a very pleasant ex-yr11 Presentation Evening. As I was leaving for home, a group of boys were having some very friendly banter with me when one of them said “So I can call you Richard now then can I?” I said “Yes, I suppose you can”. There was a pause and then the following reply “Oh, right, thank you Mr. Weeks.”
Have a good week.
