Have a wonderful summer!

Dear Parents and Students

I want to thank you all for your hard work, effort and support over the course of Year 7. School life isn't always easy. We have our ups and our downs and moments where it feels like too much of a challenge.

You have all shown resilience and determination to make it through the year. We've also had lots of fun along the way and have created some incredible memories that unite and bond us as a team. I can already see that you are maturing into well-mannered, kind and caring young people and it is a privilege to be sharing this journey with you.

I also want to thank Mr Doherty, Mr Williams, all 8 form tutors and the entire Year 7 team who work tirelessly to make sure your life at school is as enjoyable as possible.

Have a great summer, look after yourself and get plenty of rest (and have lots of fun!).

I am incredibly proud of you all.

Best wishes

Mr O'Dowd

News/Current Affairs websites for young students

Dear Parents and Students

It is really important to keep reading over the summer! Students who read succeed!

Last term I set Year 7 students a challenge to hit a target of 5000 book loans from the library. We fell somewhat short of that at 3600, but well done to everyone who has been reading on top of all the other demands of studying, sports, ECAs and other out of school activities.

I have come across these two websites that I think are fantastic for my Year 7s:

https://newsela.com/ is a website for young students. When you click on an article you change the difficulty of the language used in the article by using the blue menu button on the right hand side. I think this is a great feature.

http://www.timeforkids.com/ is a superpb website resource that takes the content of the world reknowned Time magazine and translates it into suitable language for children.

Hope these are useful. Keep reading guys!

Mr O'Dowd

Enrichment today: Monday 12, June

Morning Students

Today in Enrichment you will be preparing for Academic Review Day that takes place on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, you will arrange a ten minute interview with your tutor. Parents are invited to this meeting and they have already been sent a letter advising them of the arrangements.

The purpose of the meeting is to review your progress, achievements and success in your first year at the Senior School. You will also set three targets that you will record in your homework diary next year and will form part of Enrichment sessions where we will review what you have done to acheive your targets.

In preparation for your Academic Review Day meeting, please complete this Google Form that is designed to get you thinking about what you have achieved both inside and outside of the classroom.

You are asked to set two targets on this form that you can take along to your meeting next Tuesday. One other target will be set with your tutor and that might be about behaviour, attitude, homework or another aspect of your school performance. Click here to access the form.

If you complete the form before the end of the lesson, please spend time reviewing and updating your Buddy Blog.

Have a good day

Mr O'Dowd

Depression in young people

Dear Parents

I had the great pleasure of meeting with psychiatrist Dr Layla Thamer today to discuss depression in young students during a teacher training session at school.

Globally, mental health in our children is becoming a more and more prevalent issue and it is always useful to be reminded of some of the symptoms of this condition.

As you may be aware, we do have a counsellor in school and you and your children are always welcome to discuss any concerns with the counsellor, myself or the form tutor.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

Calling all young actors and actresses!

Hi Year 7

I know we have some excellent actors and actresses in our year group. Perhaps this might be of interest to you.

If you decide to audition, please let me know!

Good luck!

Mr O'Dowd

Celebration of Achievement Awards: Sunday 11th June

Dear  Parents and Students

Please can I ask all prize winners to return the reply slip which was on the bottom of the letter notifying you of your award.

We require these to ensure there is adequate seating for all parents attending.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

Early finish: Monday 7th June

Dear Parents and Students

Please be reminded that tomorrow is an early finish for students. The day will consist of Periods 1 -4 and students should be collected at 1055.

Any questions or queries please let me know.

Mr O'Dowd

This week's assembly: Monday 29th May

Today's assembly was taken by Mrs Bourner and some of her Community Service Captains. They gave a talk about the presentation of the rucksacks to the migrant workers, which was a communuty service project the whole school were involved in last term.

Thank you to all of you wonderful Year 7 students (and parents!) who contributed to this appeal. As you can see, your contributions have made a big difference to those who really don't have a lot.

This week's assembly: 15 May, 2017 'What Now?'

Dear Students and Parents

In this week's assembly we talked about what the remainder of the year holds in store for Year 7. With exams now out of the way, some students may think that the hard work is done. As these slides used in assembly show there are still plenty of important dates and events coming up that require students to ensure they maintain regular attendance and continue to put in maximum effort at all times.

In the slides you will find important dates of Year 7 events and activities that take place between now and the end of the year.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

Monday 7th May - Maths exam

Morning all

We have an exam briefing this morning during registration in the Drama Hall. Please go straight there rather than to your form room. This is to address some issues with behaviour in the exams yesterday.

Today's only exam is Maths period 5 and 6.

Good luck

Mr O'Dowd

Sunday 7th May - English and History exams

As I am sure you are all aware, your first exams are today.

You have English Reading during period 3 and 4 and History period 7 and 8.

Good luck!

No assembly this week - W/C 07/05/17

Morning all

There will be no assembly during exam week. Please go directly to your form rooms.

Regards

Mr O'Dowd

Exam week - final reminders

Dear Parents and Students

First of all, I wish you great success in your first formal examination period at the Senior School next week. I have been impressed by how you have prepared and conducted yourselves in the lead up to this important time of year.

Some reminders:

Please bring the correct revision materials you need each day. Think about what you are revising for - whether it is examinations later that day or examinations the next day and pack your bag accordingly.

In some examinations it is permissable to read at the end of the test should you finish early. Please bring a reading book each day and listen carefully to instructions for each exam to find out if you should bring this in with you.

Lessons next week are set aside for revision, use this time wisely.

Also, remember what we have spoken about in terms of preparation: a good night's sleep, no late night 'cramming', eating breakfast and making sure you are here on time and prepared is as important as anything else.

Should you be late or absent, please let us know at your earliest convenience and attempts will be made to allow you take the exam on your return.

Finally, stay relaxed and calm. You have already proven yourselves as a confident and mature year group. You simply need to apply yourself in the same way you have done all year and you will continue to make us all very proud of you no matter what.

I have every faith in you all.

Have a great weekend.

Mr O'Dowd

7D Pizza, Poetry and Prose 'takeover'

Students from 7D gave a superb reading from Harry Potter at today's Pizza and Poetry and Prose event.

The weekly reading session usually sees staff read excerpts of their favourite texts to a small but loyal group of students in the library each Thursday afternoon with a hot slice of pizza served part way through the session to the hungry crowd!

However, today's session was led by Thalia, Emma, Saije and Ruby who held the audience's attention for twenty minutes with a shared reading of some early chapters from the first Harry Potter book. 

Mrs Holland organises Pizza Poetry and Prose with support form the library team and the activity is very popular among our Year 7 students. It was great to see so many staff and students turn out to support the girls today and hopefully this is the first of many student takeovers of Pizza, Poetry and Prose.

Well done girls, you did great.

Mr O'Dowd

This week's assembly: 24 April, 2017 *EXAM BRIEFING*

Good morning Students and Parents

I hope you all had a wonderful spring break and have returned to school refreshed and energized for the important term ahead.

In today's assembly I will be presenting an important exam briefing that contains lots of important information (the Mr Bean video is just for fun and an example of how NOT to behave!) and advice about the upcoming examination period.

As this is your first set of exams here at the Senior School it is important you are fully aware of how formal exams operate. Please review the information on the slides and speak to your class teacher, tutor or myself if you have any questions.

I have every faith in you all. We are right behind you.

Mr O'Dowd

Have a great Easter/Spring break!

Dear Students and Parents

I would like to wish you all a wonderful Easter/Spring break.

Wherever you are I hope the time away from school is enjoyable, restful and calm.

See you all for the final term of the year on Sunday 23rd April.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

via GIPHY

This week's Enrichment. W/C 09/04/17 '2017 Reading Skills'

In this week's Enrichment sessions we returned our focus to the importance of reading.

Students took some time to consider their own reading habits before they completed this year's 'St Chris Big Reading Survey'.

The results of this survey will help the English Department, the Library, Heads of Year and other teaching staff better understanding the reading habits of our students to enable us to create events and interventions suited to their needs.

The results of the survey will be discussed in future Enrichment sessions.

This week's assembly: 10 March, 2017

In this week's assembly we recognised the students who achieved incredible results in the recent Interim 2 reports.

We award certificates in the following categories:

• Outstanding effort: all 1 grades 
• Outstanding attainment: all A grades
• Effort commendation: 12/13 1 grades
• Attainment commendation: 12/13 A grades

We also have a progress award and the winners from that category will be announced at the start of the Summer Term.

Well done to all winners. I am really proud of you and you are an inspiration to us all.

Mr O'Dowd

Outstanding effort

Outstanding attainment

Attainment commendation

Effort commendation

This week's Enrichment. W/C 06/04/17 'Study Skills'

Today is a very important Enrichment lesson as tutors and students will be discussing the exam timetable and going through the revision booklet that has been uploaded to portal but can also be accessed here.

As well as going through the exam documents, students will be looking at a revision resource called 'Quizlet'. This free, simple and effective resource is a flashcard and quiz making app that is great for learning vocabulary, new terms, concepts and ideas.

This is a great app to use with your children if you are looking for ways to help them with revision.

Year 7 revision timetable and booklet

Dear Students and Parents

The Year 7 Exam Timetable and Revision Booklet is now available. You can access these resources here.

As part of our efforts to become a more environmentally friendly school, we do not print full copies of these resources off for each student, but this can be arranged should you have a particular need for a hard copy.

If you have any questions about the timetable of the examination period, please contact your child's tutor.

Kind regards

Jamie O'Dowd

This week's Enrichment. W/C 12/01/17 'Study Skills'

We are continuing our exploration of study/revision techniques and methods in Enrichment.

This week students were asked to work in small groups to research a specific revision technique from the following list:

•Concept mapping
•Making flashcards
•Making posters
•Testing a friend/each other
•Using online revision apps/resources
•Making notes
•Completing practice papers
•Reading through text books
•Making mnemonics or rhymes to aid memory

I hope that by exploring these suggested methods in more detail students will feel they have a more complete toolbox of strategies to help them approach revision over the next few weeks.

Here is Sofia's research into mnemonics:

Next week we will focus more on good study habits.

Mr O'Dowd

Homework Diaries and Google Classroom

Dear Parents

As you will already be aware, students are issued with a homework diary at the start of the year. This is to enable them to record and review the homework they have been set that week. It is also an important communication tool betwen the school and you as parents.

Recently, many teachers have begun to use Google Classroom as a way of setting and collecting homework. Students should continue to record homework in their diary, regardless of whether it is set on Google Classroom or not.

A quick inspection of a few diaries chosen at randowm suggests that this isn't happening. I have therefore written to all teachers alerting them to a function within Google Classroom called 'Guardian Email Summary' which I hope many will start to use.

This means that, when activated, you as the parent will receive a summar once a week of all the homework set through Google Classroom by your child's teachers. An example of the email summary can be seen here.

I hope that this will allow you to have a closer handle on the amount of homework set and upcoming deadlines.

Should you begin receving this emails from Google this means that you have been added as a guardian to your child's school Google account by one of their teachers.

I hope this helps. If you have an queries about homework, homework diaries or Google Classroom please contact me at Jamie.odowd@staff.st-chris.net.

Have a great weekend.

Mr O'Dowd

Teaching and Learning Afternoon

Over 150 students and parents packed into the School Hall to watch Year 7 present their Learning and Teaching afternoon.

The main event was presented by Areeba, Thalia, Iram and Talaal with another 25 plus students presenting on behalf of their forms,

The presentation covered topics ranging from ECAs, to teaching styles and parents were given lots of information about what is currently going on in class and important dates to look out for on the calendar between now and the end of the term.

I would like to thank and congratulate all students for their hardwork leading up to this event as well as thanking all tutors for their help and support in preparing the students for the event.

A special thanks to Mr Doherty for putting together the main presentation and managing the technical aspects of the presentation.

I will shortly upload the entire presentation. Here is the final slideshow used at the end of the presentation.

Arabic Language Week: Day #5 (Learn a phrase a day)

It is the final day of Arabic Language Week here at the Senior School. And what a positive phrase to end our 'phrase a day' blog update with: 'Everything is good!'

Have a great weekend.

Arabic Language Week: Day #4 (Learn a phrase a day)

I think this is my personal favourite Arabic phrase - and it has so many uses!

Hope you find it as useful as I will.

Community Service Project - The Rucksack Challenge

Dear Parents

This week in assembly students were introduced to the annual St Chris 'Rucksack Challenge'.

This community service intiative involves the form groups working together to pack two ruck sacks with much needed clothing, toiletries and essentials that are then given out to migrant workers at a labour camp in the local area.

Having been to a labour camp myself as part of this project, I can tell you first hand how grateful and important our support is to these hardworking and underpaid men and women.

Form groups will decide who is responsible for providing each item in the rucksack. In the past, some students have been so enthusiastic about the project they have taken it upon themselves (and their families) to provide additional full rucksacks themselves.

You can find details of the project here:

Presentation to students in assembly.

Arabic Language Week: Learn a phrase a day (Day #3)

Armed with your two phrases from earlier in the week you will be sounding fluent in no time! This next phrase will come in handy when telling Arabic speakers you understand what they are saying.

Arabic Language Week: Day #2 (Learn a phrase a day)

How did you get on with the first Arabic phrase yesterday?

I tested it out on the Arabic admin staff and after a few failed attempts I was guided in the right direction regards my pronunciation!

So here is the phrase of the day for Monday, 'With pleasure'.

Fikra haa'ilah!

Arabic Language Week: Day #1 (Learn a phrase a day)

This week is Arabic Language Week at the Senior School.

The Arabic department will be running a range of activities to promote and celebrate Arabic language throughout the week.

And we are always keen to get incolved in Year 7! So each day this week I will post an Arabic phrase. Let's see how many we can learn over the course of the week.

Today's phrase is 'Good idea' or 'Fikra haaílah'. Your challenge is not just to learn it, but see if you can use it at some point today.

Good luck!

An inspirational video - Sam/Manchester United FC

I thought I would share this wonderful video with you all that exemplifies the kind of positive attitude and perserverence that we all need to show to succeed in life! I think this young man is an inspiration to us all.

Enjoy, and have a great weekend.

Mr O'Dowd

Good luck to Year 7 'Legally Blonde' performers this week.

Good luck to all of the Year 7 peformers who are appearing in the Senior School production of Legally Blonde this week.

I know you have put a huge amount of effort into rehearsing for the show and I cannot wait to come along and see you in action!

I'm proud of you all.

Break a leg!

World Book Day/Reading assembly: 28 February, 2017

World Book Day!

Our assembly this week focused on World Book Day and the importance of reading. You can read more about World Book Day here.

Last year students completed a reading survey to help us learn more about their reading habits, preferences, attitudes, and trends.

Although the results of the survey have not officially been communicated yet, I was able to reveal that Year 7 are the most prolific readers in the entire school! In addition, they have the most positive attitude towards reading across all year groups.

As an English teacher as well as the Head of Year, this is great news. More importantly, we looked at many studies that have taken place around the world that constantly prove that children who read, succeed! Reading for enjoyment is closely linked to success in examinations, yet for many reasons students read less the older they get.

Reading Challenge!

With this in mind, I have set Year 7 a challenge. In the first half of the year we have borrowed a staggering 2430 books from the library - an average of over 13 books per student. My challenge is to see if we can break the 5000 barrier by the end of the year. Of course, the books borrowed must be read, otherwise that's cheating, but I am confident that as a year group we can continue to enjoy reading and at the same time boost our chances of examination success later down the line.

We looked at ways in which reading we can continue to read for enjoyment in school:

There are ways in which you can help at home, too. You can find some interesting articles here, here and here.

I have a real interest and passion for reading and encouraging students to read, so please get in touch if you would like any further help with regards helping your child read more at school and at home.

Happy reading!

Mr O'Dowd

This week's Enrichment. W/C 12/01/17 'Teaching and Learning'

Please be reminded that the date for this event has changed to Sunday, March 19th.

Student displays are now beginning to take shape. It has been really encouraging to see students so engaged with this project. I have been enthused to see students working during break time and forming close bonds as a form in preparation for the main event.

Here are some photos of the students in action:

This week's assembly: 13 February, 2017

Be a Buffalo!

In this week's assembly, we looked at a fascinating video taken in Kruger National Park, South Africa.

The video showed a typical scene of a pride of lions hunting prey. We saw how a baby buffalo was separated from the herd and pounced upon by the lions at the edge of the river. In an amazing twist, a crocodile also attempted to snatch the baby buffalo for itself!

And then an amazing thing happens. The buffaloes find the courage to turn around and confront the lions. Weighing in at up to a ton a piece, the buffaloes begin to advance on the lions.

There was an audible gasp from the Year 7 audience as the momma buffalo used her giant horns to toss one of the lions into the air. After a brief struggle the buffaloes chase off the lions and the baby buffalo clambers to his feet, a little dazed (and a little sore you'd imagine) to return to its herd.

The message of today's assembly: Strength in numbers. The power of standing up for yourself, your friends, your beliefs and your family - no matter what your position is in the 'food chain'.

Here is the video, I highly recommend a viewing. It is an incredible piece of footage and shows that we have lots to learn from the animal kingdom.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

Sports Day - photos from the morning

Year 7 are today experiencing their first ever Senior School Sports Day. There was a buzz of excitement as students arrived at the stadium and it was nice to see the sun put in an appearance to keep us warm for the morning session.

There will be a full write up of the Sports Day and more photos to follow in the blog and newsletter next week.

Mr O'Dowd

Outstanding work - Year 7 Art (Self Portraits)

Year 7 artists have been working on a self-portrait project in Art and, as you can see, the results are very impressive. Well done to all artists featured, outstanding work!

Heya Al Khalifa

Jake Bennet

Jean Coetsee

Shawna Norbury

Alez Zuchelli-Redshaw

Elisa Fereira

Outstanding work - Year 7 Art (Clay Sculptures)

I always enjoy a visit to the Art department and it is wonderful to see the students so engrossed in the different projects they are taken through in Year 7.

This week I spoke to students as they were carefully scultping monster pots as part of their clay sculpture project. It was clear to see they enjoyed the work and the time and effort that had gone into their creations was clearly evident.

Here are a few examples produced in Mr Mulleague's class by  Daisy, Rumesa, Sybil and Zara Hashim:

Outstanding Work - Year 7 Poetry

Students in Miss Looker's English class have been busy learning about Shakespearean Sonnets. The class have been using the form to write poems of their own and the results are outstanding. Please take a look at the selection below. Well done to all students for these well written and imaginative poems.

This week's assembly: 6 February, 2017

In today's assembly we spoke about the issues that often arise from reporting a behaviour issue to a teacher and why some people use the word 'snitch' to intimidate or humiliate those students who reach out to an adult for help with something they cannot deal with alone.

We looked at the origins or the word 'snitch' and it was explained that this idea stems back to American mobs who had to operate outside of the law for their criminal enterprises to be maintained. Modern gangs maintain this code of silence and fear in order to pursue their own criminal endeavours.

Students were reminded that as young people, not gangsters, they had every right to report inappropriate behaviour to an adult and should not be shamed or afraid to do so. The differences between tell-taling, snitching and reaching out for help were explained and every student was reminded that we have a collective responsibility to report anything that they feel is wrong or harmful so that action can be taken to stop it from reoccuring.

Year 7 Summer Ball Survey

Elissa Ferriera, our Year 7 Student Council Rep, has put together the following survey to ascertain if there is interest amongst the year group for a Summer Ball.

Please complete the survey to allow Elissa to consider taking the idea further.

Kind regards

Mr O'Dowd

This week's Enrichment. W/C 29/01/17 'Teaching and Learning'

The form groups are now in the full swing of the planning and preparation for the Year 7 Teaching and Learning Afternoon.

Each form has been assigned a specific focus and groups are busy making displays, movies and PowerPoints to delight you with on the big day.

I cannot wait to hear what the Year 7s have to say about the teaching and learning at the Senior School.

This week's assembly: 30th January 2017

This week's assembly was delivered by Mr Davies' 7B form.

The form group chose the subject of Social Media as the focus of their assembly. This coincides with completion of our Digitial Citizenship work in Enrichment and helped reinforce the message about the dangers of being online.

Thank you to Mr Davies and the students of 7B for delivering a very clear and important message in assembly today.

This week's assembly: 23rd January 2017

Students were introduced to the Year 7 Teaching and Learning event in this week's assembly. This event allows students to showcase the variety of learning activities that they come across in their different subject areas as well as presenting on other aspects of their daily school life.

This is a great opportunity for students to think about the ways in which they learn at the Senior School and for parents to find out more about the styles of teaching their children enjoy.

The event will be held at 3.30pm on Sunday 5th March.

Inter School Quiz Contest applications

Year 7 and Year 8 students

Students in Years 7 and 8 who may be interested in taking part in the Inter School Quiz 2017 should register their interest with Mr Keeble as soon as possible.

The preliminary round takes place on Wednesday 1 February 2017 starting at 4.00pm at The Asian School. Students are required to form teams of 2. The deadline for submission of applications is Wednesday 25 January 2017.

Mr Keeble

This week's assembly: 16th January 2017

This week we were treated to a superb assembly by Mrs Grantham's 7A. The focus of their assembly was a celebration of the diverse range of cultures and nationalities that we are so fortunate to have at St Christopher's.

We were treated to a multi-language greeting before being entertained with some authentic national dances. It really was a superb way to shake off the winter morning blues! Thank you to Mrs Grantham and every student in 7A for putting so much time and effort ito your assembly.

Mr O'Dowd

Enrichment: Digital Footprint

To conclude our topic on Digital Citizenship, students are looking at the meaning of a 'Digital Footprint' and how they can help ensure they convey a positive and appropriate image of themselves online.

As children get older it can be very difficult to keep track of what they are posting online. Here are some tips and advice about how you can help ensure your son or daughter maintains a positive digital footprint.

This week's assembly: 9th January 2016

To mark the start of a new year and the first assembly of 2017 we discussed New Year's Resolutions in the first assembly of 2017.

In particular, behaviour towards others. Nine envelopes were placed under random chairs in the Drama Hall. Students bought the envelopes out to the stage and Mr O'Dowd explained that the envelopes each contained a certain kind of behaviour.

The students, support by the audience, had to place their behaviour on a scale from least desirable/appropriate to most desirable/appropriate. The behaviours were: being a good friend, caring, being polite, trolling, roasting, mind your own business, bullying, teasing and name-calling.

The definitions for each behaviour were discussed and the message of the assembly was that, particularly at the start of a new year, we should try and display many more of the positive behaviours than we do the negative.

Here's looking forward to a great 2017.

Year 7 Newsletter W/E 5th Jan 2017

Y7 Newsletter W/E Thursday, 5 January 2017

Dear Parents

Welcome to the first newsletter of 2017. I hope you and your families had a wonderful winter break and I wish you every success for the New Year.

This week’s newsletter items:

Sports Day – change of date:

Please note a change to a scheduled event on your school calendars. The Senior School Sports Day has been moved from Tuesday 7 Feb to Thursday 9 Feb. More details about the arrangements for Sports Day will be announced nearer the time.

Enrichment this month:

This month we shall be continuing our work on Digital Citizenship. Students will be looking at the meaning of the term ‘Digital Footprint’ and will discuss ideas on how to maintain an appropriate and respectful online presence.

Year 7 Enrichment Blog:

This week we have updated the blog to reflect the work that students have undertaken on the subject of their ‘Digital Footprint’ and the implications of leaving behind in appropriate material on the internet which may be linked back to them as individuals. There are some resources on the blog that might be useful to you as parents in relation to protecting your children’s online reputation. You can access the blog by visiting http://y7enrichment.blogspot.com/ and pressing the blue ‘Follow’ button on the right hand side.

If you have any questions about the items covered in this week’s newsletter, please get in touch with your child’s tutor.

Kind Regards

Jamie O’Dowd                   David Williams

Head of Year 7                   Assistant Head Teacher