Summer 2015 Newsletter 2

MFL & International News ContinuedWhitley Students Pay their respects at NormandyWritten by Student TravellersEveryone arrived bright and early at 6.30am on themorning of the 22 nd , except for the teachers (blame MrAnderton!). By 7am, the parents were beginning to leaveafter being told that they were cramping the students’style. Off we went, waving our fond farewells and then thesweets started to be unwrapped and consumed in theirvast quantities!After a relatively calm ferry crossing where Ricky andMatthew purchased numerous toy cars to amusethemselves, we arrived safely in France to begin our fourhour trip across to Normandy. We were treated to anauthentic French dinner, with of course an extra serving ofgrumbling from the students. Following dinner, roomswere allocated and students had the chance to strut theirstuff on the dancefloor prior to going to bed at 10.30pm,tired but excited for the adventures ahead.On Saturday, the group was extremely busy as we soakedup the beautiful sights of the UNESCO World Heritage siteof Mont St Michel. There was some free time to buy giftsand to appreciate the atmosphere of this beautiful place –there was even time for a tour of the abbey and itscloisters.On Sunday, we paid respect to the D-Day landing beaches,visiting firstly Juno, the Canadian beach, then Gold atArromanches where we watched the 360 degree cinemafilm ‘100 days of Normandy’; lastly we moved on toOmaha beach, the American beach and the cemetery atColleville sur Mer, an experience which will remain with allas a very poignant and memorable afternoon. Wereturned home exhausted after a long day of sightseeingwhere the majority of us collapsed into bed following anopportunity to play Frisbee and football on the beach andwalk into the local town of Merville.On our penultimate day (Monday), we went to theBayeux tapestry and to the British War Memorial, wherewe laid a wreath in respect from the Academy – ourstudents were respectful and excellent ambassadors forour school. After another tiring day in the sunshine, andsome shopping in the city of Caen, we returned to thehotel for our final meal of the week and a presentation ofcertificates for both educational and amusing reasons.On our final morning we were up and ready (albeit blearyeyed) at 8am sharp for our final room inspections. After aleisurely breakfast we loaded up the coach with suitcasesthat were twice as heavy as they were coming overthanks to some impressive souvenir collecting. We set offon our long trek home at 11am. We stopped off at ahypermarket to use up the last of our Euros, (as well asproviding certain members of staff the opportunity to restocktheir wine cellars!). The ferry trip and coach journeyback up to Coventry was relatively uneventful as werelaxed and watched DVDs all the way. At 9.30pm wewere reunited with our relieved parents, tired but happyafter a thoroughly enjoyable trip!8

Whitley Academy Pupils become Tourists in LondonA group of 29 student reporters from Whitley Academyvisited the Houses of Parliament and the Tower of Londonin time for the General Election.The students first journeyed to the Portcullis building for atour of Portcullis House, rubbing shoulders with MPs asthey walked through the halls, before continuing to WestminsterHall. They discovered that more than 600 tonnesof wood were used to create the roof beam of the Hall,before moving on to the Central Lobby, the CommonsChamber and the Lords’ Chamber.After the tour, the group went back to Westminster Hallfor a workshop about elections and voting before learninghow to make their own manifestos.The students then participated in a ‘mock election’ wherethey had to present their manifestos to each other, beforevoting on who they think should be ‘Prime Minister’.Khalid in Class 7B was unanimously voted for as the PrimeMinister, with Oliver in class 8A as the Deputy Prime Ministerand Corey in class 7D being elected as the Chancellorof the Exchequer.After a break for lunch in Parliament Square, the staff andstudents caught the tube to the Tower of London, wherethey participated in an Imprisonment, Escape and Executionworkshop, visiting the Salt Tower and seeing the oldgraffiti left by prisoners many years ago.The group then went to the tower’s execution site, whereAnne Boleyn was beheaded before heading to the CrownJewels building, the final stop on the trip, where studentswere able to catch a glimpse of the crowns of Queen Elizabethand the Queen Mother and the Imperial State Crownbefore returning home to Coventry.9

Whitley NewsYear 8 RSA/WarwickUniversity Taster DayOn the 4 th June, 20 pupils from Year 8 were invitedto take part in an RSA ‘taster day’ organised byWarwick University. The day began with anintroduction to the University of Warwick and anoverview from the School of Law and WarwickBusiness School. This was followed by two differentinteractive activities linked to the topic of the day.The aim of these activities was to give the studentsa basic understanding of the different aspects ofLaw and Business and how they can be interlinked.During the afternoon, students were given a tour ofthe University Campus which showcased thefacilities they have at Warwick such as the Student’sUnion, Warwick Arts Centre, the Library and theSports Centre.Live ScreeningThis term Year 9 were treated to a rare opportunity…towatch a live stream of Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado AboutNothing’ straight from the RSC to the comfort of WhitleyAcademy.All of Year 9 gathered in the hall at the start of the day towatch the three-hour production. ‘Much Ado AboutNothing’ tells the story of Benedict and Beatrice andClaudio and Hero who, after much ado and lots of twists,share a double wedding to give the play a happy ending.Despite the length of the play, year 9 enjoyed theopportunity and most appreciated seeing it the way thatShakespeare intended – on the stage.Mrs SeckerSLE English“Before I came to Warwick University I hardly knewanything about University life, but now I have learntmore especially after the campus tour and sitting inthe business and law classes.”Students completed an evaluation at the end of theday. One of them wrote the following:“I enjoyed the tour and the Business class the mostas the lecturer was very friendly and gave us abetter understanding of what university would belike and what could expect.”13

Girls’ PEThis term has been an exciting time for girls core PElessons as groups Y7 S Band and Y10 Core PE havehad a Rugby coach coming in to coach them. Theyhave all enjoyed these sessions and look forward toparticipating in some more Rugby in their up andcoming years. Y10 E/F Core PE have had theopportunity to complete some outdoor adventurousactivities such as rock climbing and archery at the AT7Centre this half term. Well done to all those whoattended and pushed themselves to completeactivities they never thought they would do.There are variety of clubs which are optional for allyears during the summer term. On a Monday afterschool it will be Tennis, Cricket and Golf for Y7’s, on aTuesday after school it will be Rounders and Tennisfor all years, on a Wednesday it will be Athletics forall years and on a Thursday it will be Cricket andSoftball/Longball for all years. Alongside this we havea loyalty card scheme running; if you attend an extracurricularclub 6 times you will go into a prize draw towin some fantastic sports equipment.The RSA Sports Day was a huge success with Whitleybeing the overall winners! Well done to all those whoparticipated in this day! Sports Day for Y7, Y8 & Y9 ison Thursday 9 th July 2015, so we shall look forward tothis day. We are also hosting a Rounders tournamentand BBQ on Tuesday 7 th July 2015, lots of teams willbe entering and parents are welcome to come along.Kaseyleigh Wykes (Y7) for the long jump and the relayand Phoebe Wooliscroft (Y7) for the javelin. Thechampionships is on Wednesday 24 th June 2015 atWarwick; good luck to all of those.Rounders NewsRounders has also been a main sport for girl’s PE thishalf term with many tournaments taking place. Thisweek it is the turn of the Y7’s, we wish them all theluck. Lots of pupils have represented the school fromyear 7-9 and have worked hard to do us proud. Eachyear group has participated in the Coventry SchoolsRounders tournaments over a variety of dates. OurY9’s took part in their tournament on Tuesday 9 thJune 2015 and came 4 th out of 6 beating schools TileHill Wood and Coundon Court. The Y8’s played onTuesday 16 th June 2015 and came 3 rd out of 8 schools;the girls got through to the semi finals where theylost against Bablake by 1 rounder; the player of thematch was Abigail Cleverley. Well done to all thosewho have participated this year!Netball NewsA huge well done to the Y8 Netball Team who havewon the Coventry Schools League this year (2014-2015). They each received a certificate and a medaland we also have a shield with our school engraved into keep for this year.Athletics NewsOur athletes have been attending the Athletics meetson a Wednesday at the University of Warwick andLyng Hall, with some excellent wins. The Super Sixestook place on Wednesday 17 th June at Lyng Hall; welldone to all that participated! Lots of our pupils thisyear have qualified for many different Athleticsevents; well done to Demi Woollaston (Y8) forqualifying for the javelin, Sharday Johnson-Graham(Y7) for the 75m, hurdles and the relay, ImogenHastings (Y7) for the 600m and the relay, Rileigh-Morgan Freeman (Y7) for the 75m and the relay,14

Awards EveningCongratulationsto this years winners of theWhitley Academy Awards EveningKS3 Student of the YearMollie McNamaraKS4 Student of the YearDaniel GummadiPost 16 Student of the YearBarbara DuarteOutstanding Contribution to Whitley AcademyMrs ElliottSportsperson of the YearCharlie McConnachieStudent Leader AwardLaura DuarteMost Improved StudentDaniel MorrisseyStudent Reporter of the YearLouise AingeStudent Councillor of the YearMartyna AdamsTeacher of the YearMrs ComerfordSEN Staff Member of the YearMiss ChatlandOffice Catering & Cleaning Staff of the YearMr BoyneInclusion Staff of the YearMr RuleCongratulationsto the runners up of theWhitley Academy Awards EveningKS3 Student of the YearGrace TebuttEliana MucoloWilliam BurdekinKS4 Student of the YearAimee SimpsonCatherine BellamyPost 16 Student of the YearPavani KondaHelen AustinOutstanding Contribution to Whitley AcademyMr EltonMr OpenshawMr PurslowSports Person of the YearMorgan HarleyParis WilliamsLouie PerryStudent Leader AwardHarry McConnachieRhiannon BolgerAmber TremainMost Improved StudentJan KaczanowskiJayden JenkinsRebecca AshfieldStudent Reporter of the YearJoseph LeaKian RoseStudent Councillor of the YearErin-Mae EvansNadra AbdullahTeacher of the YearMrs LatueMiss RutlandMrs DevgunSEN Staff Member of the YearMr AndertonMrs WinterburnMrs BrownOffice, Catering & Cleaning Staff of the YearMs ReevesMrs OwenInclusion Staff of the YearMrs StanbrookMrs BoyneMr Byrne15

Learning Resource CentreSummer News from the LRCBest Teen Books about RealProblems…Carnegie 2015The Carnegie Medal is awarded annually to thewriter of an outstanding book for children.It was established in 1936, in memory of the greatScottish-born philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie(1835-1919). Carnegie was a self-made industrialistwho made his fortune in steel in the USA. Hisexperience of using a library as a child led him toresolve that "if ever wealth came to me that itshould be used to establish free libraries."Tanya Landman’s Carnegie 2015 winner.Her book Buffalo Soldier was inspired by the truestory of former slave Cathy Williams, who was theonly known African-American woman to enlist inthe US army, under the guise of a man, serving forthree years before her true identity wasdiscovered….Available in the LRC.You are very welcome to borrow them to read in yourown time.Tanya Landman and her bookSummer Reading volunteers at Coventrypublic librariesOver the summer holiday this year Coventry publiclibraries are looking for volunteers aged 14 to 18 to helpout with their summer reading activities.It is a great opportunity for you to gain some workexperience which will surely be very handy when you areapplying for paid jobs. More information can be foundat: http://coventry.gov.uk/srcFor all our latest news andupdates please refer to ourschool website:www: whitleyacademy.com16

Student Reporters - Summer Term NewsIt is another very exciting term for the student reporters.Let’s look at their hectic project work over the past fewmonths!Tuesday 17 th March – Live Speaking Forumat the RSA HQ LondonThe reporters ,Years 7 and 9, went to the RSA HQLondon for a speaking forum, “New Voices on ClimateChange”. It might be the topic that many young peoplemight overlook. However, the evening went by with verypassionate and inspiring voices from students across theRSA Academies (Mollie McNamara of 9A representedWhitley Academy).Details of the live forum can be found at: https://www.thersa.org/events/2015/03/new-voices-on-climate-change/We were assigned to do an online article for the day. Ittook us a bit of time to get used to the massive roomsaround the BBC Mailbox. Then we got back on track veryfast. We went around to different school groups andinterviewed teachers and BBC staff members. It was soreal. We got to know what the other school reporterswere working on.After a short lunch break, we got back to our online articlebefore it was finalised. It now can be viewed at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolreport/31969374Tuesday 31 st March – The visit to WhitleyAcademy by Lucy Marcus (C.E.O of MarcusVentures)Lucy spent an hour in the Auditorium to talk to ourBusiness students from different year groups. Theremaining 30 minutes was spent in the company of thefour BBC School Reporters with ‘A Conversation with Lucy’.“Today at Whitley Academy, 120 students from Year 9through to Year 13 had the opportunity to engage withLucy Marcus. Lucy is the Founder and Chief Executive of herown Business Consultancy that takes her all over theworld. She is a Professor of Leadership and Governance atIE Business School and still finds time to write opinioncolumns for the BBC and host her own show on Reuters,simply entitled, ‘In the Boardroom with Lucy Marcus’.”Thursday 19 th March - BBC School Reportthe BIG DayMr E. Price, Head of Business DepartmentThis year we were invited to go to BBC BirminghamMailbox to work alongside the BBC journalists andreporters. There was Miss Uratak and her two students(Reika and Kirika) from our link school in HiroshimaJapan accompanying us.17

Student Reporters/Whitley NewsFriday 19 th June 2015 – attended theBOPA event at Belgrade Theatre(BOPA stands for British Organisation for People of AsianOrigin)14 of us went to the Coventry Belgrade Theatre toattend a city-wide event for young people tocommemorate Asian contribution in WW1.It was very well organised with lots of inspiring speakers.There were two brilliant singers including Ms Tally Korenwith her song ‘Two Kisses’. It was powerful to listen tothe lyrics of the song…the personal grief as a soldier saidgoodbye to his sweetheart before going to war, never toreturn. We loved the experience so much ….Uniform SalesOpening Times3rd August to the 28thAugust inclusive10am - 2pm OnlyPayment has to be by cash and /or cheques foruniform and unfortunately we will not be able totake payment by card.Whitley students collectprestigious awardsHugo Hildreth, Casey Wilson and Sonny Bestonrepresented Whitley Academy at the prestigiousWork Related Learning event, hosted by Free Radio.The event was a celebration in recognition of thestudents' hard work and commitment over the pasttwo years.Hugo, Casey, and Sonny, each formerly receivedtheir awards for Performing Arts, Health and SocialCare, and Land Management.15

Coventry Citizens Advice Bureau has teamed up with numerousschools across Coventry, including Whitley Academy, to deliver aninnovative new project. The Children and Young Person Project(ChYPP) is aimed to help schools work alongside the Coventry CABto support families and students to gain access to help, advice andinformation on various issues.The service is free, impartial, confidential and independent , ithelps families and young people on a daily basis with variousproblems such as free school meals, food bank vouchers, debt,benefits, housing, immigration, language barriers, domesticviolence and abuse, the ChYPP project has helped a large amountof families across Coventry.For further information please contact Laura Watson on 024 76 302 580.http://www.coventrycab.org.uk/chyppwww.adviceguide.org.ukFree School Meals19

School DiaryThursday 16th JulyWhitley Festival 12pm - 3pmFriday 17th JulyTerm Ends 1pmSaturday 18th JulySummer HolidaysTuesday 1st SeptemberTeacher Training DayWednesday 2nd SeptemberTeacher Training DayThursday 3rd SeptemberTerm Starts for Pupils 8.45 amTerm DatesAutumn 2015(74 – including teacher days)Term Pupil Dates Teacher DaysThursday 3 rd September toFriday 18 th DecemberHalf Term BreakSaturday 24 th October to Sunday1 st NovemberChristmas HolidaySaturday 19 th December to Sunday3 rd JanuaryTuesday 1 st September 2015Wednesday 2 nd September 2015Friday 27 th November 2015 (TBC)Spring 2016(54 including teacher day)Tuesday 5 th January to Thursday24 th MarchHalf Term BreakSaturday 13 th February to Sunday21 st FebruaryEaster HolidayFriday 25 th MarchSunday 10 th AprilMonday 4 th January 2016Joint RSA Academies DaySummer 2016(67 including teacher day)Tuesday 12 th AprilWednesday 20 th JulyMay Day HolidayMonday 2 nd MayHalf Term BreakSaturday 28 th May toSunday 5 th JuneSummer Holiday startsThursday 21 st July 2016Monday 11 th April 2016

Health and SafetyVehicles on SiteParents/guardians are advised NOT to bring their motorvehicles on site except for medical reasons. This is especiallyimportant on the 16th July (Whitley Festival) as there will be alot of onsite transport. Please help us to reduce traffic; yourchild’s safety is our priority.Crossing Busy RoadsCan all parents and guardians please advise their children totake extra care when crossing busy roads. Make sure yourchild uses the pelican crossing and that they look in bothdirections and only cross when the vehicles have stopped. Inrecent weeks there has been an accident and a couple ofnear misses on the roads surrounding the school. Childrenare also advised not to listen to music on their portabledevices, as this distracts them from the noise of the traffic.good brakes and tyres at correct pressure etc.Pupils are advised that they should ride along the drivesafely, rather than the pavement or grass where they are adanger to themselves and pedestrians. If cyclists do not usethe drive, they should NOT mount their bicycle until they haveleft the school grounds.Thank you in advance for your co-operation,Mr D SinghHealth & Safety ManagerSummer at SchoolAs the days are getting warmer, children are advised to bringwater bottles with them.Cycling in SummerNow that summer is here, can all parents/guardians pleaseencourage your child to wear high visibility clothing. Ensurethat the bicycle is in good, safe condition for summer use i.e.Family LearningLearn a new skill with your child in ICT, Art or Cooking after schoolI would be interested in doing Family Learning at no charge.Tick as appropriate:ARTICTCOOKINGName of Parents: ……………………. …... Signature: ………………………Name of Student: ……….. ………. …. ….. Tutor Group: …………………Is there any other class you would like?Please specify:Please return to School Office orContact: Mrs A Nagra on 024 7630 2580Email: admin@whitleyacademy.com

FacilitiesConference and ICT RoomPresentation HallFor all your needs: Conferences, TrainingCourses, Presentations...Available for hire in term time and during theschool holidaysNewly refurbished auditorium available atWhitley Academy for hire in the evenings andschool holidays. 220 fixed seats, new sound system, large display screen projectorSuitable for : conferences, presentations performancesCricket PitchAn all weather outside cricket pitch availablefor letting to local cricket teams this season.ContactFor more information or any enquiriesabout our facilities please contact:Mrs A NagraPhone024 7630 2580Emailadmin@whitleyacademy.com

Our Whitley Arts students havebeen very busy with their artworkand producing their final pieces.We have updated our Whitley Artsshop with some of their work.Please support them and the Artdepartment.Visit our shop onlineThe 2015 Arts calendar is ready topurchase at just £5.00.www.whitleyarts.co.uk