Longdean Link
Headlines
Edition 17– 10 June 2016
Dear Parents, Guardians and Friends
Welcome back to the final half term of the academic year. Students have already settled back into
the routine of school and many are currently working hard in their examinations. The attitude of all
the students has been excellent thus far and I am sure that all of their hard work will translate into
the results they deserve.
The new building is moving on at a rapid pace. We are currently working on procurement of
furniture and other equipment for the new building and we are also working closely with the
contractors on aspects of the building such as paint and floor finishes, signage and room layouts. All
of this is very exciting and we are also taking over small groups of staff and some students to see the
new building.
I would like to remind parents that as part of this move we have had to extend the Summer Term to
Wednesday 27 July and that on this day there will not be an early finish. School will go on until
3.20pm. This extension is ensuring that we do not lose any days of learning caused by the extension
to the October half term in the next academic year. Full details of term dates for next year will come
out during this half term.
I would also reiterate to parents the importance of attendance in this half term. All students at
Longdean move up a year group and start their new classes on 4 July. For students who move into
Years 9, 10 and 11 this will mean beginning their new GCSE option or the start of GCSE classes in
general. It is vital that students hit the ground running with these courses and do not lose time and
ground due to absences from school.
As part of this process students in Years 7 and 8 will also be graduating into the next year.
Graduation at Longdean is earned by students and is not automatic. Graduation is an important
event for students as it marks the end of either a key first year at Longdean or the end of a Key Stage.
These events will run alongside Charity Walk Day, Games Day and STEAM week. On Charity Walk day
we will once again be raising money for our chosen charities but we will also be attempting to break a
world record relating to the most number of people reading a book at one time. All in all it will be a
busy, exciting and productive half term.
Best regards
G Cunningham
Headteacher
Numeracy
At a party 28 handshakes were
exchanged. Each person shook
hands exactly once with each of
the others.
How many people were present?
The ratio of gold to other metals in a piece of jewellery
is used to work out the value of the item.
A ratio is a way to compare two or more
quantities.
You can use this to compare the performance of
different cars.
Good luck
Answers in the next issue of the Link
Answer to last week’s quiz: 28, the days of February
Mr El Amine - Maths’ Teacher and Numeracy Coordinator
ROCKET SCIENCE
A massive congratulations to all the Year 9 Space Scientists who undertook the ROCKET SCIENCE experiment.
Longdean received two packets of seeds from the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society), on behalf of the European
Space Agency – one blue and one red!
One of the packets of seeds had spent six months in a microgravity environment on the ISS (International Space
Station), and the other had not. We were not told which one had.
After planting the 200 seeds on Wednesday 27 April we had to wait four days for germination to take place. Thereafter, measurements were made every week of growth of plants and any deaths. Trays had to be turned every
morning so that all the seedlings got an equal amount of sunlight. After 35 days we took the final measurements,
and sent these to the RHS Rocket Science database. Over 8000 schools have taken part in the ROCKET SCIENCE experiment, and we are now waiting to see which set of seeds were in space with Tim Peake. This extensive experiment will show if there are any affects of microgravity on seed germination and plant development.
We think it was the BLUE bag of seeds!
Special thanks to Honey Panchal, , Roozba Malik, Rosie Wakeling, Stephen Hendley and Ollie Grossman for being
team leaders of the experiment.
M Walters
Science Department
Please could parents not park on the pavement, corners or hazard lines outside school. Students in wheelchairs have recently had trouble trying to leave school or getting down the road due to parents being parked across the sloped curbs or
too close to hedges. Thank you for your understanding.
G Segal Deputy Headteacher
NEW BUILD PRIZE DRAW
As part of our ongoing commitment to raise funds for the school, the Longdean School Association is pleased to announce a
Prize Draw specifically for the New Building which all our students will benefit from, tickets for which are now available to
purchase.
Please return the envelope to the LSA c/o the Finance Department with any stubs and payment (cheques made payable to
Longdean School Association); any request for more tickets to be sold to friends and family; or any unsold tickets (so that we
can sell them on to others who would like to purchase them.)
The draw will take place on Friday 25th November 2016 and all winners will be notified by phone.
We would like to take this opportunity to THANK YOU for helping us to fundraise over the past 12 months.
The Committee
Longdean School Association
[email protected]
Independent Learning and Homework at Longdean
Please remember to discuss your child’s Independent Learning and sign their Independent Learning Planner. Students record
an overview of their homework set in their Independent Learning Planner. Students are supported in taking responsibility for
their own study, supplementing study set with e-learning – We recommend half an hour a night, Monday through Thursday,
on sites such as Sam Learning, GCSE Pod, BBC Bitesize, Linguascope and MyMaths. Links to these sites can be found on the
Exam Support and Homework sections of the LLP.
Mr R Muskett
Assistant Headteacher
http://www.gcsepod.com/parents for a parent's guide
www.samlearning.com Centre ID: HP3LS Username and password are in the
format: DDMMYYII, for example Mr Muskett's would be 050582RM.
www.mymaths.co.uk - students have an individual username and password from
their Maths teacher
MFL—Ask your Teacher for the username and password for Linguascope.
Further e-learning links can be found at:
https://moodle.longdean.herts.sch.uk/mod/tab/view.php?id=8888
Dear Parents/Guardians
A Gentle Reminder
Given the increased temperature in the weather please remember to provide a water bottle for your child.
Thank you.
D Wilkins First Aider
Help us win £5,000 of National Book Tokens for the school library and £100 of book tokens for yourself! Just enter the
competition online at http://www.nationalbooktokens.com/schools#.V1gnaa1gncu It only takes two minutes to enter.
Thank you!
G Segal Deputy Headteacher
ART DEPARTMENT
EXHIBITIONS
A LEVEL ART EXHIBITION
21st June 2016
3.30 – 6.00pm
BTEC FASHION EXHIBITION
Welcome to KS 4 Evening
Save the date: Welcome to KS4 Evening (current Year 8s, 9s and 10s)
In order to support students and parents with success in the GCSE courses we will be running a Welcome
to KS4 Evening at 6pm prompt on Tuesday 5 July 2016 which aims to provide parents with an overview of
the various KS4 courses; key dates; and also some ideas and tips about how you can support revision and
study for GCSEs away from school. Students moving up to Year 9 that week (i.e. current 8s) and their
parents will have a session in B Hall, followed by an options subject session in a classroom related to
their child’s first option subject. Students moving up to Year 10 or Year 11 that week (i.e. current 9s and
10s) and their parents will go straight to an option subject session in a classroom about that year’s
option subject. More information will be coming out by letter during the next fortnight.
G Segal
Deputy Headteacher
Careers News
Year 10 Work Experience 27 June- 1 July 2016
Everything should now be in place ready for the forthcoming work experience week.
All students should have contacted their placement and made arrangements for a preliminary visit and interview if
necessary.
If there are any problems with the placement students must see me as a matter of urgency.
We are looking forward to a successful week and some excellent work experience reports.
Mrs Cooke
Director of Learning- Careers
Year 9 Work Shadowing – Wednesday 29 June 2016
All Year 9’s need to return the Work Shadowing form, with the details of their placement and the person they will
be shadowing, by this Friday – 10th June.
If student’s are unable to find a placement they need to indicate this on the form and return it to me.
Students can collect a spare form from reception or my office.
Thank you for your support.
Mrs Cooke
Director of Learning- Careers
Year 11
If students continue to need Careers advice and guidance after their exams please be aware that we are still here
to help.
This may be particularly relevant to those looking for apprenticeships.
Students should just email me or pop into school to see me or leave a note on my desk.
Mrs Cooke
Director of Learning- Careers
Year 9 English Poetry
My Year 9 English class have been working on different ways to explore poetry in a creative way.
With a focus towards the Wifred Owen poem Dulce est Decorum et the students created storyboards;
short drama pieces; and their own poetry to explore the themes and ideas created in the poem.
This has proved to be really beneficial as most students have improved their analytical paragraphs in
time for their assessment.
E Rudling
English Department
Important Dates
Monday 13 June
Wednesday 22 June
Friday 24 June
Saturday 25 June
Monday 27 June
Wednesday 29 June
Thursday 23 June
Monday 4 July
Tuesday 9 July
Yr 12 Return from Study Leave
Games Day
Charity Walk Day
Saturday Study Day
STEAM Week
Yr 9 Work Shadowing Day
Yr 11 Prom
New Timetable
Welcome to KS4 Evening Yrs 9,
10 and 11
The next Saturday study session will take place on Saturday 25
June 2016 between 9.00am and 11.00am in the ISC. Year 9, 10 and
11 students are invited to attend the session to work towards enhancing the quality of their GCSE grades. No uniform is required
and attendance is voluntary.
Letters that have been sent
home recently, via Schoolcomms where appropriate:
Year 8 Warner Bros Trip
Charity Walk and a Guinness World Record
attempt!
Year 9 Theatre Trip to Macbeth
Miss C Ardley - Behaviour Manager
Attendance
Pascal
96.0%
Da Vinci
95.3%
Gates
94.8%
Franklin
94.0%
0%
100%
Overall Attendance since 3 September 2015 is 94.1%
Would you like to add something to the next Link? Let us know using our email address:
[email protected]
Longdean School, Rumballs Road, Hemel Hempstead, Herts HP3 8JB
Website Address: https://moodle.longdean.herts.sch.uk
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 01442 217277 Fax: 01442 233098 Absence Line: 01442 205760
Link Dates
The Longdean Link is published every two weeks, via the Schoolcomms e-mail system to all those for whom we have an e-mail address, and on the LLP. Next issue: 24 June 2016