Please see this week's newsletter from our Principal, Mr Harvey
Dear Parents and Carers,
At the end of my first week as Principal, I am delighted to contact you regarding the exceptional start made by the students at King’s Academy Ringmer. I have been hugely impressed by the level of politeness, courtesy and positive engagement from students at our school. As a school community, I also thank you to the parents who have taken the time to introduce themselves at the school gate. I look forward to meeting you all in due course.
In my opening assembly I discussed with students how my vision for the school is that we become the best school in Sussex. By this, I mean that students at Ringmer will receive a better education at our school than any other in the region. This will be our journey to excellence. I told them that they are the most important part of this, and that my job as Principal is to ensure they have the highest possible standards and expectations of themselves in everything they do. I was clear that this begins with exemplary behaviour and uniform, and is underpinned by respect, politeness and being ‘obviously kind’. I have introduced some ‘Ringmer raffle tickets’ for any student going above and beyond in meeting these standards, and I have been delighted to speak to those who have received them.
Within my first letter, I made clear that a key part of my leadership will be developing parental engagement and affording greater opportunity for you to communicate with the school. This begins with the ‘Meet the Principal and Year Group launch’ evenings on the following dates:
Monday 11th September - Year 8 - 5.30 - 6.15
Tuesday 12th September - Year 9 - 5.30 - 6.15
Wednesday 13th September - Year 10 - 5.30 - 6.15
Thursday 14th September - Year 11 - 5.30 - 6.15
On these evenings, there will be some key information from our pastoral leaders setting out what children are learning for the year ahead, and how you can support them at home. I hope you can attend on these evenings. You will have received a link to confirm attendance if so.
If you would like to attend one of the above launch evenings, please email my PA, Amanda French at Amanda.french@kingsacademies.uk confirming the following:
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which event you would like to attend? Please specify date and year group
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how many of your family will be attending? Please note that your child/ren may also attend
Once again, I thank you for the welcome afforded to me from the school community. I have no doubt that our students are capable of excellence, and I look forward to working with you in partnership.
Kind Regards
Mr Chris Harvey
Principal
Dates for your diary
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Student Progress Evenings for 2023/2024
Year 7 - Thursday 19 October 2023
Year 11 - Thursday 30 November 2023
Year 10 - Thursday 14 December 2023
Year 8 - Thursday 11 January 2024
Year 9 - Thursday 22 February 2024
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Remaining INSET Days for 2023/2024
Friday 1 December 2023
Friday 9 February 2024
Friday 15 March 2024
Duke of Edinburgh
We will be opening applications from Year 9 and Year 10 students very soon - please watch this space! If you missed out last year, now’s your opportunity.
Work Experience - Year 10
Keep an eye out for the letter coming into your inboxes regarding work experience for Year 10 next July.
ECO Club
Eco Club will be up and running again from Monday 11th September during lunch time in the Eco Hub building. Any new year 7's are very welcome to come along and find out more and sign up. If there are any students in other year groups who are interested in finding out what we're doing, then please also come along and hear all about it. I look forward to seeing you all and getting started on our activities once more.
Best wishes, Mrs Teague
English Department – Year 7
What better way to start off the new term than with a book fair. Scholastic are coming to King’s Academy Ringmer to help inspire the new Year 7s to get into reading. They will be here on the 22nd of September 2023. Here is what they had to say about it:
Our Book Fair range is curated by experts and includes the latest titles and trusted classics from over 60 different publishers. Books start at just £2.99, so there's pricing for all pockets! We're so excited about the selection you'll find on your bookcases this term – visit our website to get a sneak peek of some of our highlights! - https://bookfairs.scholastic.co.uk/bookcases
Furthermore, we are delighted to be able to offer the new Year 7s the opportunity to own their very own book. There are 16 books to choose from including fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels and dyslexia-friendly text in a range of genres. The books should arrive in school mid-October. A link for more information can be found here: https://www.booktrust.org.uk/what-we-do/programmes-and-campaigns/bookbuzz/students/bookbuzz-books/
English Department – Years 10 and 11
We would like to welcome back the new year 10's and 11's and remind the year 10 students to ensure as per the letter sent out, before the end of term last school year, they need to have the relevant GCSE literature texts to begin their GCSE literature course this year. It is important for the students to have their own copies of the texts as it will allow them to make their own notes in the texts as well as support their revision which will enable them to be successful in their GCSE exams.
The ISBN numbers and a list of the texts are shown below:
An Inspector Calls (for Autumn 2019): Heinemann ISBN: 9780435232825
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (for Spring 2020) Scholastic 9781407164267
Macbeth (for Summer 2020) CGP ISBN: 9781841461205
AQA Study Guide Power and Conflict: Scholastic ISBN: 9781407183213
The English Department has limited class copies for students who have not had time to purchase the set books and students can use these in the interim.
With regard to the year 11 students, the Spoken Language Endorsement module of their English GCSE course will begin on Monday 11th September. Last day is Monday 18th September. We would like to remind students to speak with their English teacher if they are unsure of their speech or need extra support preparing for their assessment.
Thank you, Ms. A. da Nobrega, Director of English
PE Department
As of Monday 11 September, we will be starting both Football and Netball clubs in which all students are welcome to attend, they will run up until 4.20pm.
Monday: Year 7 & 8 Football / Year 9,10 & 11 Netball
Tuesday: Year 9, 10 & 11 Football / Year 8 & 9 Netball
Fixtures: We will be shortly starting to have fixtures against other schools in which we may be required to drive students in the school minibus so can you all please fill out the following consent form to allow your child to take part:
PE Kit - Please ensure that you name all PE kits and write names on Inhalers. We have already had numerous items including a whole PE bag left on the field but have not been able to reunite them with students as they are un-named.
Best Wishes, Mr Coulthard, Head of PE
Music Department
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1:1 and small group lessons for Instrument or Voice at Kings Academy Ringmer
On Friday 8th September during lesson 3, Year 7 and 8 students listened to a concert organised by the Music Department with Create Music to promote music and show the opportunities for learning an instrument and voice at Kings Academy.
Learning to play a musical instrument provides children with an experience that enriches their lives in so many ways. Through learning an instrument, children will learn musical skills that help develop a lifelong love of music. Research has also shown that there are many other benefits associated with learning to play a musical instrument including:
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raising confidence and self-esteem
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improving teamwork, concentration and many other skills for learning
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connecting with new people and broadening horizons
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improving their well-being by becoming happier and healthier
Lessons take place either individually or in small groups during the school day. If your child already knows which instrument, they are interested in learning, you can apply for lessons directly via our website: https://createmusic.org.uk/for-children-and-young-people/lessons-at-school/
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Learning Drums at KAR with Ollie Green
https://www.sussexdrumlessons.co.uk/drums-at-school/secondary-schools/rcc.html
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Learning an Instrument at KAR with Create Music
Watch these clips to find out which instrument you can learn at KAR. Vocals, keyboard and guitar (both electric and bass) are VERY popular so if you are interested, sign up quick!
https://createmusic.org.uk/for-children-and-young-people/lessons-at-school/the-instruments-we-offer/
If you have any questions or would like any advice about what your child should learn, then please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Francesca Urquhart, Subject Leader for Music
Safeguarding
Parents please be aware that some manufacturers are now producing vapes that look just like ordinary highlighters ... young people can easily hide these in their pencil cases and any unsuspecting parent or teacher may completely overlook them as they are so authentic looking
