Junior Great North Run

Eskdale School had another great day in Newcastle...

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In this edition...Keep up to date with all the news and views from Eskdale School.

Pearl of Africa Choir

Restart a Heart Day Year 7 Rugby Development Session

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HERE& NOWWINTER 2014 EDITION 1

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5th January 2015 School Re-opens

15th January 2015 Year 9 Subject Parents Evening

24th January 2015 Ski Trip to Austria Begins

29th January 2015 Year 9 Options Evening at Caedmon College

4th February 2015 Year 8 University Experience Day

5th February 2015 UK Maths Challenge

8th February 2015 London Trip Begins

12th February 2015 Year 7 Subject Parents Evening

Half-term 16th to 20th February

23rd February 2015 School Re-opens

6th March 2015 French Exchange Visit Begins

12th March 2015 Year 8 Subject Parents Evening

27th March 2015 Break up for Easter

Up & coming Events Spring Term Calendar

Welcome to HERE & NOW our brand new Eskdale School Magazine which will help students, parents and others keep up to date with all the news and views from the school.

HERE & NOW will be published at the end of each term.

This first edition will take a look at some of the amazing things which have been happening here since September. Many of our stories demonstrate the way we believe that education is both helping students achieve academically and encouraging them to become responsible citizens in our school community.

I hope to see you at our parents evenings next term and at our Your Say meeting on Tuesday 3rd March at 6pm, where we will be discussing how to help your child stay safe online as well as hosting a general discussion about school life. This is an informal meeting which helps us to improve our school for your children.

Our website is changing too, and I hope you use it to keep informed about upcoming events and to see whats happening in school.

Yours sincerely

Sue Whelan

...WELCOME

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More information about Your Say can be found by emailing admin@eskdale.n-yorks.sch.uk

Your SayAs we prepare for the start of a new term, the school would like to remind all parents about the opportunity to join our special focus group.

We recognise the important role that parents and carers play in a students education and as a school we invite you to share your views in a number of ways. Your feedback is an important part of helping us to continuously improve and one of the ways we do this is through our Your Say group.

Your Say brings together parents of students across all year groups to look at various aspects of school life. Meetings are just once a term and last no more than an hour, and is a simple and effective way for you to play a role in helping to improve the experience for all our parents

Meetings are very informal and you dont need any particular qualifications or experience to take part you simply need to be willing to share ideas and feedback.

The group is open to all parents and if you would like to know more you are more than welcome to come along to a our next meeting on Tuesday 3rd March at 6pm, 2015.

More information about Your Say can be found by emailing admin@eskdale.n-yorks.sch.uk

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Battlefield TripFollowing our successful trip to First World War Battlefields last summer, the History Department is now planning once again to take our students back to France and Belgium in 2015. The trip will take in some of the key museums, war cemeteries and memorials around Ypres and the Somme. Students will also take part in the nightly Menin Gate ceremony of remembrance. If you are interested please see Miss Boucher for more details.

Pearl of Africa Choir The Pearl of Africa Choir joined us in school on Thursday 2nd October to perform to Eskdale and some of our primary students. In addition the Choir held singing, dancing and drumming workshops during the day.

The choir came from Uganda and each year visit the UK to raise vital funds to support their orphanages back home.

Youth Speaks CompetitionOn Wednesday 26th November, three of our Year 9 students competed in the Rotary Clubs competition, Youth Speaks at the Saxonville Hotel. They worked hard as a team to put together a persuasive case based on the title,

Education is not the filling of empty vessels but the lighting of fires.

This is a variation of a quote that has been cited by the likes of Socrates and William Yeats.

Charlotte Brown was the Chair and introduced the team with excellent clarity. As the first team to compete, Charlotte was the first speaker in the whole competition. It was commented on by the judges about how calm she was, as well as what a great speaker she was. Harry Reeves delivered the main speech and again performed in a calm and controlled manner whilst it was remarked upon how he used expressive language to create imagery in his audiences minds. Sam Gower was the proposer and he was again congratulated upon his clarity but also for the humorous element which he introduced.

I was very proud to see these young people represent our school in such a highly competitive situation and really hold their own! The judges stated several times that this year the competition was incredibly high.

Well done, Charlotte, Harry and Sam.

Ms J Parlby

Musical Workshop The Hut PeopleStudents enjoyed the workshop by visiting musicians The Hut People. The 2 hour workshop enabled students to perform as part of an ensemble on a variety of percussion instruments and using their own. Some of our students went on to participate in an even larger ensemble when they joined musicians from around the world at Whitby Pavilion. Musicport is a festival that attracts some of the most respected world and folk musicians from many different countries. Many thanks to Musicport for inviting our students to participate in this event.

Visit to Middlesbrough College A group of Year 9 students visited Middlesbrough to see what a College of Further Education is like and the types of courses that they offer post 16. After a tour of the College and lunch in one of the cafes, students chose a workshop in sport, catering, construction, childcare or media. These gave them an opportunity to see what the various departments did.

Eskdale School House System Eskdale has had a house system since the earliest days of the schools existence over 60 years ago. Traditionally all students have been put into one of four houses long before JK Rowling stole the idea for Hogwarts! In the last few years the house system has been a bit neglected, but since September we have decided to breathe new life into it. The house system is designed to give the students a sense of belonging and to encourage them to take responsibility for the success of their house (as well as hopefully being fun!)

We are encouraging all teachers and students to set up inter-house competitions, for which the winners will be awarded points for their houses. So far we have had an inter-house Halloween ghost story competition, inter-house quizzes, inter-house cross country as well as two inter-house pigeon races! In addition to this, all the Vivo Rewards that students are awarded by their teachers go towards the total number of points that each has got.

The four houses are named after four historic Yorkshire abbeys. Each house is made up of the members of three forms. All teachers and teaching assistants are also allocated a house. The houses are as follows:

Mr I Bloor

Children In NeedWell done Eskdale for baking cakes for Children in Need over 350 so far, and still some more to come in.

Shoe Box AppealOnce again Eskdale students have excelled in their generosity, providing 60+ shoe boxes for this years Love in a Box Children in Distress Appeal. In giving these boxes we are helping to spread the Joy of Christmas to children, babies and senior citizens living in poverty in Eastern Europe.

Over the past month students have been collecting items such as a flannel, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, gloves, scarf, hat, socks, tights, comb, brush, hair accessories, sweets, cuddly toy, colouring books, notebooks, pencils, pens, felt tips, puzzles and a Christmas card to donate to their Form shoe boxes. There was also a fantastic response from individual students. Each year we are reminded of what caring and thoughtful students we have at Eskdale School.

We would like to thank everybody who took part in this years appeal.

RIEVAULX

HOUSE COLOUR Red

FORMS DB / DP / SM

STAFF Mr Bloor Ms Brogan Mrs Parkin Mr Matthewson (Mr Edwards) Mr Cox Miss Whisker Ms Parlby Miss Ward Mr Angus

BYLAND

HOUSE COLOUR Blue

FORMS EN / JM / BR

STAFF Mr Dixon Mrs Norman Mr Milner Dr Rahn Mr Phillips Mrs Bradley

FOUNTAINS

HOUSE COLOUR Yellow

FORMS RB / AH / KS

STAFF Mrs Scales Miss Boucher Mrs Smith Miss Hartley Mrs Watson Mrs Bedingfield Mrs Collier Mr Lorains

KIRKHAM

HOUSE COLOUR Green

FORMS BG / JD / JW

STAFF Mrs Whelan Mr Raw Mr Gallagher Miss Doody Mrs Westwood Mrs Briggs Mrs Dixon Mrs Teasdale Mrs Ward Mr Hunter

Musicport is a festival that attracts some of the most respected world and folk musicians...

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STORMBOUND THE ROHILLA DISASTER WHITBY 1914

This term Eskdale students had the opportunity to meet and work with the author Malcolm Rose, His work includes the popular Jordan Stryker series, he brought his bionic hand to inspire, amaze and stun (not literally) his audience.

Malcolm is a scientist with experience in forensics and an interest in medical technology who writes thrillers and mysteries for teenage readers. He seems particularly keen on explosions!

Malcolm reported that he enjoyed his afternoon very much and seemed keen to come back for a future visit. Following his visit to Eskdale Malcolm Rose sent an email saying I really enjoyed my time with you as I hope you could tell. The students were a pleasure to address. They remained enthusiastic, attentive, respectful and well behaved throughout. They were a credit to the school.

The library stocks several copies of his books to borrow in the library, including the Jordan Stryker stories featured in his talk.

Visit to Eskdale by Malcolm Rose

I really enjoyed my time with you as I hope you could tell.

This year marked the 100 years anniversary of the Rohilla disaster in Whitby. It was one of the most famous rescues in the RNLIs history. The hospital ship was wrecked on 31st October 1914 at Saltwick Nab and 85 people lost their lives whilst 144 were saved by the lifeboat and local people.

Richard Grainger, a professional musician and arts practitioner, invited some of our students to take part in the weekend of Commemorations. Eight Year 9 students from the Wednesday afternoon choices group began work in September, bringing poetry to

life and working with professional actors and musicians.

The end product was a huge performance in St Hildas Church on West Cliff. Relatives of survivors were invited as well as other important people from the RNLI and the media. The whole group performed a poem as a non-nat-uralistic piece where their voices echoed throughout the church. Three of our students played the children of a lifeboat man attempting to rescue the passengers in this dreadful storm. They added light humour through the innocent eyes of children, acting alongside

professional actors. Finally two of our students recited a poem each by Rudyard Kipling. They were accompanied by ambient music and were lit by a single blue light. Their delivery was beautiful and incredibly moving. They were given many complimentary comments, not least from a Channel 4 newsreader who said he was convinced that some of our students had the potential to become actors or newsreaders themselves. They also brought a tear to many eyes in the audience!

These eight students: Megan Ahmed, Kyle Douglass, Kathan Elcoate, Sam Gower, Nicole Humble, Tasha

Maher, Ellie Moss and Harry Reeves were fantastic ambassadors for our school and I would like to thank them again for their hard work and dedication.

I would also like to thank Richard Grainger and all the other people involved in the project for giving our students this great opportunity.

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Visit to Eskdale by Malcolm Rose Restart a Heart DayThroughout this academic year, staff and students are working together to develop and embed the notion of responsibility. With this in mind, we enrolled our students to participate in a world record attempt today, Thursday 16th October. The event, Restart a Heart Day, has been launched by Resuscitation Council UK in conjunction with the British Heart Foundation. The challenge is to train as many young people in a single day in CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation). Approximately 56 schools in North Yorkshire participated with the hope of training 12,000. Our students received a lead up session about why it is important to learn CPR, appreciate why their own safety comes first and recognize when someone is in difficulty and when to take action. Throughout the morning four local volunteers gave first aid training: Jayne Scott, Helen Chapman, Steve Smith and paramedic Mike Picket. The school would like to thank them for their enthusiasm, support, patience and valuable time. The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

I loved it! It was great to get first-hand experience, although my hands were red raw by the end of the session! I think I might have broken a few imaginary ribs from pressing so hard! I was nervous at the start but having the songs Nelly the Elephant and Staying Alive really made it memorable. I feel more confident about doing CPR but I hope I never have to. Year 8 student.

The mannequins that were used during the day are now to remain in school, with an aim of students taking them home and educate family members using their new knowledge and skills.

I hope your son / daughter came home describing their experience and all being well we will know in a few weeks if they were record breakers.

Gothic Horror Story SuccessInspired by the gothic horror stories that Year 8 were studying last half term, the English department launched a spooky short story competition before Halloween.

Students were invited to petrify with their prose and alarm with their adjectives, as they tried to convince the judges that they were the next Bram Stoker, Susan Hill, or Edgar Allen Poe.

With a limit of just two pages, the competition entries had to focus on creating tension for the readers, by using imaginative and precise vocabulary choices.

Mrs Bradley was overwhelmed by the high standard of the entries. Lily Hoods fantastic time-travelling tale of 17th century witches was a clear winner in the Year 8 category. Year 7s category was won by Olivia Hancock, with her sinister first-person monologue, describing the after-effects of witnessing a terrible crime!

The overall winner was Abigail Motson, whose chilling ghost story The Girl Who Never Returned gave Mrs Bradley a few sleepless nights! By narrating through different mediums such as newspaper clippings and flashbacks, Abigail carefully crafted a genuinely sinister story that made her the clear winner. Such an achievement for a Year 7!

The next English department competition is Christmas-themed and based around Year 7s current topic, poetry. We look forward to announcing the winners shortly.

More than Tea and ToastThis term has seen the opening of the Schools new Breakfast Club. The club is held in the Food Technology Room from 8.15am until the beginning of school. Students are able to purchase a healthy breakfast snack, socialise, complete homework and have a safe and warm place to stay before the school day begins.

Our Breakfast Club supervisors are also committed to supporting our students with their learning. If your son or daughter wishes to attend, they simply need to turn up during opening hours where a warm welcome awaits.

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Eskdale School Council This school year we have re-launched and revamped our School Council. The purpose of the School Council is to give our students the opportunity to contribute to the way in which the school is run. Eskdale believes that it is essential that we take the views and opinions of our students seriously. We need honest feedback from all of our students in order to make sure that the school is a safe and happy place in which to learn.

At the beginning of the school year each form group elected a representative from Year 8 and Year 9. These representatives ask the other members of the form for issues they would like them to raise at the School Council meetings and each form sends one of the representatives to the meeting. There are therefore 12 form representatives at each meeting, which is chaired by Mr Bloor.

The School Council meetings take the same format as the schools leadership team meetings and in each meeting there is a focus on:

Health and Safety issues Teaching and Learning Behaviour

The plan is for the School Council to meet at least once every half-term. We have already had two meetings and Mr Bloor has been incredibly impressed with the way that the School Council members have taken their responsibilities seriously. The ideas and views that they have shared at the meetings have been highly perceptive and very useful in helping the schools leadership team decide on priorities for the future. In particular the students have shared their views on:

What works well for them in lessons How they learn best What makes a good lesson What is and isnt acceptable behaviour both in and out of lessons Homework and developing a fair school homework policy

At the next meeting later this month students will be asked to share their thoughts about the expectations we should have of all our students in terms of the way they approach their learning. They will be helping the schools leadership team to decide the criteria for issuing students with their application to learning levels what makes a good or outstanding learner?

STEM Enrichment DayIn October two Year 9 science groups worked with an education officer from the Smallpiece Trust to design and build a wind turbine, a reservoir and pumping system in order to create a sustainable island. The winning group were complemented on all aspects of their teamwork to produce the best overall results.

Students are able to purchase a healthy breakfast snack, socialise, complete homework...

Junior Great North Run Eskdale School had another great day in Newcastle taking part in the 2014 Junior Great North Run. This year the students chose to donate all the money raised through sponsorship to the charity Help for Heroes. Well done to everyone who took part.

Literacy DevelopmentsA fantastic new literacy board has been created! Located on the corridor near to PE, the regularly updated board features eye-catching displays, inspirational quotes and quirky facts, designed to encourage students to keep literacy at the forefront of their minds.

Supported by two Year 8 students, Elena Bloor and Hermione Richardson, the board was created with the aim of contributing to Eskdales mission to raise the profile of whole school literacy.

Students are invited to take part in the half-termly literacy competitions advertised on the board, to be in with a chance of winning exciting prizes. There is also a Word of the Week, which encourages students to expand their vocabulary by using the word in a sentence in exchange for Vivo Rewards.

The board also displays details of our weekly DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) sessions: a special time of the week where the whole school, staff included, take 15 minutes out to simply enjoy a book together. There is also a poem of the month, which aims to be thought-provoking and relevant.

Scarborough Engineering WeekAll Year 7 and 8 students went to the Spa in Scarborough on Wednesday (15th Oct) to experience the wonders of technology used in the Engineering and Manufacturing Industry. They were able to experience an array of practical hands-on activities and see specialist equipment in action, as well as seeing the Bloodhound, the 1000mph jet and rocket powered car. One of our ex-students, Aaron, was even there to show them what he is doing now.

They were able to experience an array of practical hands-on activities

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Eskdale School Cross Country Record BrokenEskdales cross country record has been broken by Year 7 student, Billy Fewster.

Billy beat the Year 7 boys Cross Country record by 1 second, taking away Callum Halleys three-year record on his third attempt.

Billy is a keen runner and footballer, who is naturally very fit and after two unsuccessful attempts he managed to shave a record off the 12.03 record previously posted by Callum when he was himself in Year 7.

Billy is now eyeing up the Year 8 and 9 boys records, currently held by Harvey Clacherty and Jay Ferns.

PE ReportEskdale Schools Cross Country Runners Excel in the final Scarborough and District Race at Duncombe Park.

On Tuesday 11th November the third district cross country race was held in the Duncombe Park Grounds in Helmsley. After recent rain parts of the course were soft and sticky, giving runners a real test and a taste of the final cross-country event. The cold, north-east breeze and damp conditions made life distinctly chilly for officials, supporters and spectators.

Eskdale had 6 teams, both boys and girls representing all three year groups in the Junior Boys and Girls races.

The boys gave their all in a testing hill climb that involved running around the perimeter of the grounds and a section of the fields. Some excellent timed finishes from Harvey Clacherty (11th) Joe Lees and James Ford gave the boys a good start.

However it was the Eskdale girls who achieved success winning the Key Stage 3 Junior Girls Shield. Every race was a tight affair with runners jostling for positions throughout, eventually Tilly Adasmki (2nd), Eleanor Collier and Ellis Price securing top 20 places, proving their resilience.

Year 7 girls on their first outing in the grounds looked impressive with Maia Hall, Eva Adamski and Heidi Price all in the top 15.

Eskdale Schools PE department would like to take this opportunity to thank parents for their continued support. A huge well done to all runners, who have worked hard to progress in a sport that is so challenging.

SPORTS

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Billy beat the Year 7 boys Cross Country record by 1 second...

SPORTS LEADERS The Year 9 Sports Leaders have been very busy within the first twelve weeks. Events, tournaments and festivals have been coming thick and fast. The Year 5/6 Football Tournaments were delivered at Eskdale in September; leaders officiated, scored and managed teams throughout the two afternoons.

Next up was the Indoor Primary Athletics, held at Whitby Leisure Centre. This event required the leaders to plan and organise indoor stations that the Year 4/5/6 students could move round and attempt the different throws and jumps. This event went on for two afternoons and the students with the highest scores were rewarded with certificates and medals.

The final festival before the Christmas break required the leaders to plan, organise and deliver a sports afternoon for primary children in the area with a variety of disabilities. This was the hardest challenge yet for the leaders. The level of one-to-one work required to support the students meant all the leaders had to step up and show resilience.

Mrs Watson who ran this event praised the leaders for their hard work and Mr Hopper and Mrs Raw also expressed how positive the leaders have been with the first few events. There is a long way to go and the complexity of the events will progress but so far Eskdales Sports Leaders are stepping up to the challenge.

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English Schools Football U14 Girls The girls team have made a strong start to their season beating St Augustines School 10 6. The game was played on a sticky surface but the team started strongly from the first whistle. Although this was the first game of the season the distribution from defence to midfield ensured the ball was fed across the pitch to the attackers, Jasmine Parkes, Eleanor Collier and Emma Leckie who were the goal scorers of the game.

Team cohesion was at its best; the level of communication and team spirit was a delight to see and the girls sportsmanship was a credit to the school.

Squad: Naomi Garbutt, Jessie Locker, Jodie Moore, Sophie Walker, Ellis Price, Tilly Price, Cerys Hunter, Emma Leckie, Mia Ferns, Izzy Hogarth, Fiona Searle, Jasmine Parkes and Eleanor Collier

Year 7 Rugby Development SessionThis term Eskdales Year 7 Boys headed to Fylinghall School to join in the first Rugby Development session ran by the Sixth Form students.

Eskdale and Fylinghall were joined by Caedmon College. The sessions were designed to develop ball handling, basic tackling, contact development and running from deep.

The Sixth Form students were excellent and kept the boys progressing throughout the 2 hour session.

Eskdale students were superb, tackling with desire and passing with poise. Most improved player went to Ben Locker and best player went to Alfie Barber. A great effort by all involved.

A big thank you to Mr. Coates and his Sixth Form team.

School Address:Eskdale SchoolStainsacre LaneWhitbyNorth YorkshireYO22 4HS

T: 01947 602856F: 01947 605748E: admin@eskdale.n-yorks.sch.uk Eskdale School@EskdaleSchool

Local Education Authority (LEA):121-123 High StreetNorthallertonNorth YorkshireDL7 8PQ

T: 08450349494

Area Education Office:CYPSJesmond House31-33 Victoria AvenueHarrogateHG1 5QE

T: 0845 0349 467

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SEE YOURSELF HERE...

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HERE& NOWWINTER 2014 EDITION 1

BAD WEATHER ARRANGEMENTSAs winter is closing in, we would like to remind you of our arrangements in the event of bad weather. Firstly, whatever the weather conditions, please assume that the school will be open as normal.

However, with variations in weather forecasts and contrasting road conditions across our large catchment area, it will always be difficult to choose the right moment to close the school. We therefore cannot guarantee that such a decision can be made in time to meet the expectations of all our families, but we will endeavour to keep you informed in as timely a way as possible.

If the school cannot open for whatever reason, parents will be informed by text, Twitter @EskdaleSchool or e-mail admin@eskdale.n-yorks.sch.uk. This information will also be broadcast as close as possible to 7am on Yorkshire Coast Radio (96.2FM), BBC Radio Tees and on Radio York (95.5FM). www.yorkshirecoastradio.com/schools/school-closure-list/

If the regular bus your child uses to get to school is not running on any day because of snow, please do not deliver your child by your own transport instead. In addition, if you live in one of the outlying villages, please do not send your child to school if there is a foreseeable possibility that they will have difficulty in getting home safely later in the day. Even if the school is still open do not send your child if you feel there is a risk to their safety in making the journey.

Bus companies and taxis will make every effort to honour their normal contracts, even if they arrive very late. However, if they have to advise us during the day that local roads are about to close, then sometimes there is no safe alternative to early closure of the school so that both students and staff can get home. Where this happens senior staff will remain on the premises until the last child leaves safely.

If the snow arrives suddenly, please do not ring the school (unless it is an emergency) since this jams the school switchboard and prevents us contacting the bus companies who need to update us about any changes to student collection. Your son/daughter will make contact with you to inform you if they are leaving school early.

In the exceptional cases where the school has to be closed early and your child cannot get home, or you cannot collect them, please have an arrangement in place with a relative or family friend so that your child has somewhere local and safe to go. This is a vital arrangement to make for children who live in very rural areas. Please ensure that your child knows what this arrangement is in advance, to avoid trying to telephone them on the day with this information.

For further up to date details you please visit our Website.