Welcome to the Kingsthorpe College newsletter.

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Welcome from the Principal

Dear Parents

The weeks seem to get busier and busier with more and more exciting opportunities for our students. I have been incredibly impressed with all our young people this week especially those preparing for their exams. All the lessons I have walked into the students have been focused, have been working hard and they are determined to get very high grades in the summer. Many of them have already done a number of their examinations this week. I know they are tired, but I also know they are keen to keep pushing themselves forward. They deserve a rest this weekend although exams do not go away next week. The half term holiday will give them all a chance to refresh again.

I have also had the pleasure this week of appointing a number of outstanding new staff who will be joining Kingsthorpe College. It is such a privilege to interview staff who are excited, keen and passionate about working with our young people and I look forward to them all joining our team from September.

My most nerve wracking time this week was being interviewed by BBC Northampton. Whilst I am extremely confident about addressing hundreds of parents, staff and students in various settings, sitting in a radio studio with a microphone in front of me was a very daunting task. That said, it has been lovely to see how many year 6 parents must have listened to that broadcast and have decided to rethink their choice of secondary school from September. I have had the privilege of meeting a number of year 6 parents this week who have decided to make Kingsthorpe College the secondary school of choice for their family and they will now also be joining us in September. We welcome them all to our team and hope they will enjoy reading their first copy of the Kingsthorpe College newsletter.

My Senior team have been working busily with me this week looking at the curriculum to be offered to our year 12 students from September and interviewing all those year 11's who are excited about staying on in the sixth form. We have also been planning some exciting new courses for our present year 9's to take up as option choices when they start year 10.
It has been a busy yet very productive and exciting week in many ways and I think staff as well as students are looking forward to a relaxing sunny weekend.

Wishing you all the very best

Ms. Morrison
Principal

Listen to the interview with BBC Northampton

Star of the week

Red House Star of the Week
Chloe Thompson Year 8

The Principal received a letter from Chloe in light of the media coverage on metal detectors in schools after the recent tragedy of Ann McGuire. The letter was well written and very insightful. Well done Chloe.

Gold House Star of the Week
Phoebe Horne Year 8

Phoebe is an all-round credit to the College with a perfect attendance record this year, excellent behaviour and loads of achievement points!!! Phoebe is a student who encapsulates everything KC stands for as regards core values and certainly is a Gold House star.

Blue House Star of the Week
Callum Patching Year 10

Callum has shown how great he can be in a number of ways recently. His general attitude is positive and he has lead a number of tutor activities. These have been delivered very well involving the whole tutor group. Callum has really impressed us..

Purple House Stars of the Week
Emma Ashton and Lauren Twelftree Year 11

Emma and Lauren have used some of their PE curriculum time to study further qualifications and have achieved a Level 2 in Personal and Social Education. Emma has been awarded the Level 2 Certificate ( 2 GCSE equivalent) and Lauren has been awarded a Level 2 Award (one GCSE equivalent). A great effort from both of them – well done!.

Green House Star of the Week
Jordan Leslie Year 11

Jordan has an excellent attitude towards his learning, 100% attendance and is generally an all round good student with good grades to back it up. A brilliant student in many ways and a pleasure to have at KC.

Textiles News

After being inspired by the recent “Great British Sewing Bee” on BBC 1 Year 10 Textiles decided that they would run their own “Kingsthorpe Sewing Bee” and take on the “T-shirt Challenge”.

Students worked in groups of two or three and were given a large man’s T-shirt. Their challenge: Transform and construct a different garment using the t-shirt and fabric found in our classroom. I think you will agree they did a fantastic job!

The winners in 10c are… Jemima Williams, Emma Johnson and Billie Cockerill. The winners in 10a are Deanna Lear and Olivia Pattison.

Well done to everyone!

NCS – A fantastic opportunity for Yr11/12 Students

We have been notified by our local provider of the National Citizen Service (NCS), that there are still places available for the Summer Programme which starts on 4^th August 2014 for 3 weeks plus their social action project.

The programme provides young people with the chance to build skills for work and life, whilst taking on new challenges, making new friends and contributing to their local community.

We encourage all students to attend NCS and believe that it carries immense value in young people’s transition to adulthood, further education and employment. It is also a great way to spend the summer after completing their recent exams. For further information of the programme, please visit www.ncsyes.co.uk

The programme fee is just £35, as the rest (over £1000 per student) is funded by the NCS trust. There is also a bursary scheme available for students entitled to Free School Meals and families in financial difficulties – please speak to NCS Northants directly on 01832 731375 if you wish to enquire about this scheme.

Places are allocated on a first come, first served basis and to book a place on NCS please either e-mail sarah@gatewaygrowth.co.uk or call them on 01832 731375

Inter House competition

The inter-house competition is entering the final weeks and it is a close run thing between Blue and Green House. There are only 128 points between them. The final week where the Houses will be judged on attendance, punctuality, stamp counts and behaviour will be week beginning 12th May.

The totals will then be collated in the final week before half-term. Students in the winning House will have the first opportunity to purchase tickets for our annual rewards trip to Alton Towers. If there are any remaining tickets, these will be offered to students in other Houses who have worked hard and have good attendance.

House Points

Blue - 15915
Green - 15787
Red - 14683
Purple - 13354
Gold - 12235

Exam Reminder

The exams can be a stressful time for our students but there are some tips that can help reduce this stress such as:

Get a good nights sleep before the exam
Have a good breakfast and lunch
Drink plenty of water
Bring the correct equipment
Arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the exam
Relax, don't get stressed
Use a revision timetable.
Revise in a quiet environment
Revise in chunks of no more than 40 minutes
Take regular breaks
Attend revision sessions.

Revision Breakfasts

Year 11 Students sitting morning exams are encouraged to come into the college for a revision breakfast in the dining hall. During that time, as well as making sure students have something to eat and drink before the exam; we will focus on key concepts and exam techniques to get everyone in the best frame of mind possible.

Next week’s breakfast sessions are:

Monday	19^th May	German	MFL Classroom
Tuesday	20^thMay	English	Dining Hall
Thursday	22^nd May	Geography	Dining Hall
Friday	23^rd May	History	Dining Hall

Prom 2014

Tickets for the prom are selling fast. The event takes place on Thursday 3^rd July at the Marriott hotel from 7pm. A huge thank you to Mrs. Bunker for all of her time and effort she has devoted into what will be an amazing evening for our year 11 students to celebrate the end of their time in the main school and a reward for all of their hard work.

The day following the prom is the Leavers assembly. It will start at 9.40am in the Main Hall. Uniform is not required and students will be free to leave after the event.

Diary dates

Friday 23rd May:
End of Term 5

Monday 2nd June:
Term 6 Begins

Tuesday 1^st July:
Fact Finders Day

Monday 7th July:
Transition Day – Year 6 students at the College all day
Y6 Parents Evening 6.30pm

Thursday 26th June:
Progress Day 3

Wednesday 23rd July:
End of Term

County Music and Drama Ensembles

Applications for auditions for membership of the County Music and Drama Ensembles run by NMPAT have now opened. Northamptonshire's County Ensembles have a reputation for being amongst the best in the Country and we have a number of young people who participate..

You can find more information and a flyer advertising the auditions on the Hot News page of the website www.NMPAT.co.uk

KC Music Recital
Tuesday 3rd June 2014 at 7.15pm

Come and join us for an evening of music from our talented staff and students. There will be a varied programme offering something for everyone, with beginners and more seasoned performers alike!

Tickets are available from the Finance Office at break, lunch and before or after school.

£3 adults / £2 concessions

The Time of Fasting

In the Holy month of Ramadan
The moon rises
And we start a fantastic day.

Every single muslim
Fasts and prays

We love our religion so much
It will stay in our hearts

We invite each other,
Break our fasts
And have a party with delicious
Mouth watering food

We had the best fun
And stayed in a happy mood
For 30 days

We have a celebration
With fancy clothes
Which is called Eid.

Hopefully our prayers
And wished will all
SUCCEED!

Habibah Hannan Year 7

Life Wings

She’s been there since day one
She’s my one and only mum.

She will cry with me
She will lie for me
She will die for me
And is there for me.

Being a mum is a full time job
Unpaid
No break
Just wake up
And clean up

Just remember one thing
Mum’s are not just mum’s
They are precious life wings.

Najeeb Ali Year 8

Education

Sometimes I wonder did education lose its voice
or did we give it no choice.

I wonder and start to think will paper and pen
help you later in life and its quests.

I think the hardest part is teachers want to see our success.
They want us to hold the key to our future.

Well, don’t forget that teachers were once students too,
And don’t forget that every problem or question you create,
we have to solve or answer to see our success and help us in the future.

Many issues face students and teachers, so think to yourself
Are we all going to change the future?

Laura Aggett Year 9

Here are the Sports extra-curricular clubs taking place for the next week...

TUESDAY:
Cricket (All Years) with Mr Davis/Mr Hancock/Mr Wright in the SPORTS HALL/CRICKET WICKET (3.10PM to 4.00PM); Rounders’ (All Years) with Miss Newell on the FIELD (3.10PM to 4.00PM).

WEDNESDAY:
Athletics Club (Key Stage 3) with Mr Wright/Mr Hancock/Miss Newell/Miss Crossland (3.10PM to 4.00PM).

THURSDAY:
Tennis Club (All Years)with Mr Hancock on the TENNIS COURTS (3.10PM to 4.00PM).

FRIDAY:
Kingsthorpe Kobra’s Badminton Club in the SPORTS HALL (External Provision – Cost Applies 4.30PM to 6.30PM) *See Miss Bennett for more information.

Upcoming Fixtures:

Wednesday 21 May - Under 15 Cricket versus Northampton Academy (Home)

Thursday 22 May - Under 15 Cricket versus Caroline Chisholm School (Away)

Friday 23 May - Northamptonshire Schools Golf Association Under 18 Team Championship at Cold Ashby Golf Club