Key Notes: 17 June 2022

17th June 2022

Some Like it Hot!

Summer has finally arrived with temperatures today hitting 32^oC in Melbourn.  Windows were open and pupils were encouraged to keep well hydrated and to stay in the shade at break and lunchtime. 

Meanwhile, the Peace Rose at MVC is enjoying the weather and looking amazing.

Train Strikes

The RMT union has announced three days of national strike action on Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June 2022 across Network Rail and 13 train operating companies. We have been informed that there will be a very limited service running on the mainlines only, with a vastly reduced service at Meldreth station on these days. Since there will also not be any rail replacement buses, pupils who typically use the railway will need to make alternative arrangements on those days. There is some overview of the information here - National Rail Enquiries - Industrial Action.

Coming up

• Monday: Induction Evening for Year 6 pupils and parents (6.30pm start)
• Tuesday: Year 6 Induction Day for pupils (arrive from 8.30am)
• Thursday: Year 11 Leavers Assembly (Period 3)
• Thursday: Year 10 Parents Evening
• Friday: Last GCSE Exam and Year 11 Prom.

Pupil Voice

On the 20^th, 21^st & 22^nd June, Mrs Joyce will be conducting a pupil voice activity regarding assessment and marking in humanities. This is the final step in reviewing a change we have implemented in humanities this year. Meetings should take around 20 minutes and pupils will be back to lesson swiftly.

SSC Leavers Day

Friday 10^th June was the last day in school for Year 11s and, from this date, they are only required to be in school for an exam. The pupils in SSC held a farewell party for Keeley, Jess and Zak. They had lots of cake and fun with Karaoke courtesy of Keeley!  Goodbye and good luck!

Comberton Sixth Form Taster Day for Year 10

We recently took 36 Y10 pupils to Comberton Sixth Form for a taster of A level and L3 BTEC lessons. Pupils had a talk from the Head of Sixth Form, David Clarke, about post 16 options and what it is like to be a student at Comberton Sixth Form. Pupils then had 3 taster lessons, having to navigate their way around the site. Here are some examples of what pupils did in some lessons:

• Physics pupils were calculating the lost energy on a marble run
• Chemists did a titration A-level style experiment
• Maths pupils looked at equations to describe the rate of energy loss in a cup of tea
• Economics pupils looked at opportunity costs
• Geography pupils studied earthquakes and associated hazards
• Music did work on composing at A level with discussions on musical scales
• Computing pupils did logic problems
• Business lessons were about creating products and target audiences.

Some pupils commented, “It was a good insight into sixth form life”. It is worth noting that there is a bus service to and from Comberton (starting in Royston) and going through local villages.  On June 22^nd there is an open evening at Comberton so parents can see the facilities too. On Tuesday 21^st June some Y10s will be visiting CRC for taster lessons there.

Y10 Parents – Post 16 open events

Please see the MVC post from Mr Willder regarding post 16 open events at all colleges and sixth forms. Some of the large Cambridge sixth forms and colleges have theirs in July. For all of these events pupils and parents need to sign up via the relevant colleges’ websites. It is well worth visiting as many as possible.  

Calling All Aspiring Roboticists!

Are you thinking about a career in robotics or artificially intelligent systems, but unsure where to start? Why not join the online careers panel discussion — chaired by Richard Waterstone, joint-lead of the Skills and Education in Robotics and Autonomous Systems (SERAS) programme — and put your questions to the panellists who have each had a different career path in robotics in academia or industry. This event is particularly aimed at UK GCSE and A-level students. The event will take place on Thursday 23rd June 4pm via Zoom Webinar.

Click here for more information and to register.

Year 8 Careers Event

On Monday, Year 8s enjoyed a “careers carousel” event.  Pupils met with various visitors, each of whom gave a short talk about their own career. Pupils rotated between the different visitors, learning about what it is like to be a police officer, a dog groomer, a structural engineer and a software engineer. This event is part of our careers provision where we aim for pupils to have as much understanding and ambition as possible to take advantage of the huge range of opportunities in the world of work.

Two of the visitors from engineering backgrounds commented that languages are very important these days, particularly Mandarin and Spanish.

Canine First Aid

Congratulations to Nyle in Year 7 who successfully completed his canine first aid course last week. He was presented with a certificate and a new friend, who he has named Chris.

Year 9 MEP Pupils Visit China Town

On the 14^th June, the Year 9 MEP group went on a trip to Chinatown in London, where they were taken on a tour of the area by a heritage organisation called China Exchange. The pupils learnt about the history of the area and about famous people who had lived nearby. The pupils enjoyed an authentic meal of tofu, ginger and onion chicken and aubergine in black bean sauce. In the afternoon they went to sing karaoke in an Asian-style karaoke bar, where they sang a few Chinese songs they had learnt in class, such as the classic ‘In that Distant Place’, followed by many more English favourites.

Sporting Achievement

Congratulations to George in Year 10, who has been invited to take part in the pre-season camp at Oakham with Cambridge United.

Year 7 Athletics Festival

This week it was the Year 7 athletics team who upped their Olympic Cup preparations with the same fixture as the Year 8s had last week. We again hosted Bassingbourn, Cambourne and Comberton with all visiting schools impressed with our ability to run several different athletics events including high jump and hurdles etc.

These pupils have benefited from the Tuesday after-school athletics enrichment, and coincidentally we are going to run an additional enrichment on Wednesday 22^nd after school for pupils to practise some more! Congratulations to Asher, Arthur, Benji, Josh, Dexter, Imogen, Ellie and Chloe for all performing well in their events, particularly Arthur who was victorious in the hurdles!

Reminder we have an athletics club on Tuesday after-school and an additional one this week on Wednesday open to all pupils.

Powerhouse Games

On Monday a group of children from SSC represented Melbourn VC at the Powerhouse Games in association with the Cambridge University Hawks and Ospreys Club. The pupils competed in a variety of activities and worked their way around different adapted sports stations, taking part in a range of inclusive and adapted sports such as boccia, sitting volleyball, goalball and walking football, rugby and kwik cricket. Well done to everyone.

Youth Sport Trust

On Tuesday, 5 year 10s visited Comberton VC to take part in a Trust event. The Youth Sport Trust (YST) sent Vernon Samuels, former GB Olympic triple jumper, to train the pupils to become mental health champions. The seminar was designed to talk about mental health and how we can aid pupils to have good mental health through physical activity. The pupils will be designing sessions over the summer to help support the new year 7s in September with the transition between primary and secondary school.

Science News

The new Science Noticeboard has now been put up in the science courtyard and will be a source of exciting science information! We currently have a ‘summer’ theme with a poster of the Power of Plants from the BBC David Attenborough TV programme, and some careers information about engineering. Pupils should keep checking for new displays!

Year 9 Art

Pupils in year 9 have been producing POP art lettering designs using mixed media inspired by Lichtenstein and Warhol. They are certainly very colourful! Well done.

June is Pride Month

Here are some events organised by the Kite Trust.

The Kite Trust 13-18s Camp 2022 - From 11^th-14^th August, we’re hosting a camp for LGBTQ+ young people aged 13 to 18. It’s open to all young people in this age group who identify as LGBTQ+. It’s free to those who have a Holiday Activity and Food Voucher code which they can redeem with us, and we charge on a ‘pay as you can afford’ basis for all other families. There will be a programme of activities and crafts, as well as all the fun of four days camping in the woods, with a focus on building community, making friends and taking time to relax! You can find more details about the camp and a form for young people to express an interest in attending here.

Pastoral Support

Centre 33 online wellbeing talks this month are on the topic of ‘Support & Friendships’ and are suitable for any young person aged 13-25 to attend.  The talks involve a 30-minute presentation over Zoom, followed by a 15-minute Q&A session.

• Getting Support (Thursday 23rd June 5.30pm): when you’re experiencing difficulties, it can be hard to know how to get support, where to get it, and how to ask for it. Our talk will cover these questions, potential worries you may face along the way, and some ideas and tips to help you get the support you deserve. Click here to register for this event.

• Supporting Friends (Thursday 30th June 5.30pm): is about being there for each other, but sometimes the things we hear might make us worry or feel like we are holding too much. In this talk we will explore ways to support friends while also looking after yourself, and when and how to get more help if needed. Click here to register for this event.

Eco Group

This week the Eco Group are sticking with the refill theme because yesterday was World Refill Day and one of our themes for our Eco Committee Action plan is the marine environment. This is where so much of our plastic waste ends up. Here are links to the websites of 4 shops in Cambridge that have refill schemes for products including shampoo, cleaning products, food, spices and lots more, including chocolate!

Shops with refill schemes: fullcircleshop.co.uk/, https://www.arjunawholefoods.co.uk/, https://dailybreadcambridge.org/, https://radmorefarmshop.co.uk/

We would love to hear from you if you have used these shops or know of other places where ‘refillable’ shopping is possible. Please email mel-ecoforum@melbournvc.org if you have any suggestions for refillable shopping in our area!”

Latest Covid Guidance

The Government have produced a leaflet on what to do if you test positive or suspect you may have covid.  Details on page 6 relate to children and are shown here. The complete leaflet is being sent out with this Newsletter.

Vacancies

We are currently advertising for a number of vacancies including Teaching Assistant positions in the Cabin and Student Support Centre.  For more information, please visit our website here.

Meldreth to Melbourn Underpass

This is a reminder from Amanda Silvester and Sarah Grove from South Cambridgeshire Communities Team that the survey for the upgrading of the pedestrian underpass between Melbourn and Meldreth railway station is now live.  This proposal was developed with the help of some of our year 10 pupils and is running until 18^th June. The community team would like more pupils, parents/carers and staff who use this facility, either for school or for leisure, to complete the survey and share your views via this link. 

Have a good weekend,

Simon Holmes

 

 

Back to News