Dear Parents and Carers
I hope this letter finds you well. It has been a busy term and we are incredibly proud of our students who have continued to impress us with their positive attitudes and engagement in lessons. I am sure you are all looking forward to the May half term break as much as we are.
The exam season has had a great start and we are really pleased our students have engaged in all the revision activities we have implemented. Last week year 12 were on work experience and we are really pleased to hear that they really enjoyed their placements. We are looking forward to year 10 attending their placements this week before we finish for the half term.
A few updates for you to be aware of below:
Queen Jubilee celebration
We have timetabled activities in lessons this week to celebrate the jubilee event with our students. We will also be arranging for ice cream vans for students on Wednesday 25th May as part of the celebration.
| Subject | Outline of activities |
| English | KS3 – Newspaper Articles about previous Jubilee celebrations to springboard students’ thinking to write their own. Y10 – Looking into QE2 only becoming queen due to her uncle’s abdication. |
| Media Studies | The Big Jubilee Lunch celebration – analysing the mise en scene of a TV advert |
| Languages | Link to the Royal Spanish family – describing people in your family |
| Geography | The Commonwealth – Creating a Choropleth map of Commonwealth countries & populations |
| History | What is the role of the Monarch in 2022 and how has this evolved? How have royal jubilees been celebrated in the past? The life story of Queen Elizabeth II |
| RSE/PSHE/Citizenship | What it means to be a British Citizen |
| Art | Bunting and pinwheels |
| DT | Paper engineering- crowns |
| Food | Jubilee cake baking |
| Science | How Science and technology have evolved over the years of her reign |
| PE | Students experience three traditional sports including; Lawn Tennis, Croquet etc |
| Dance | Royal Court Dance |
| Drama | What is status and hierarchy and how can this be communicated through performance? |
| Music | Learn to play the National Anthem |
| IT | How Technology for environmental issues has changed during the Queen’s reign. |
| Maths | All year groups are going to be planning a street party for the Jubilee. Using skills of ratio, money, area and perimeter. |
May half term revision
We will be continuing with our offer of revision sessions over May half term, please encourage students to attend as wherever possible.
| Monday
30th May |
Tuesday
31st May |
Wednesday
1st June |
Thursday
2nd June |
Friday
3rd June |
| GCSE History 9-12pm
GCSE PE 9-12pm GCSE Spanish 12.30-3pm KS5 Sociology 10-2pm |
GCSE Maths 9-12pm GCSE Science 12.30-3pm GCSE Geography 10-2pm KS5 Politics 9-12pm KS5 Psychology 10-2pm |
GCSE English 9-12pm
KS5 Politics 9-12pm KS5 Media 10-2pm |
Bank holiday
no revision scheduled onsite |
Bank holiday
no revision scheduled onsite |
Year 11 and 13
Students will continue to attend the academy as normal until the last exam, we will be writing again after half term to inform you of leaving plans and the arrangements for their last day and prom. Year 13 are being reviewed regularly in terms of their exams and timetable, again this will continue until their last examination date.
Further to previous correspondence, Year 11 Chomebooks will be collected during form time during the first week back after half-term w/c 6th June. It is important that Chromebooks are returned in good-working order and with their charger. For any queries related to this please contact Anna Sheldrick, Assistant Principal – anna.sheldrick@stroodacademy.org
School timings consultation
You may be aware of the recent White Paper shared by the government which outlines expectations and changes recommended for schools and education establishments. As part of the proposals put forward we will be looking at the timings of the school day to bring us in line with the recommended 32.5 hours as suggested by the government. The school day will need to be extended in order to meet the recommended 32.5hrs. We are therefore proposing the following changes to the school timings.
| Timings of school day Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fri | |
| 8:00-8:30am | Students able to arrive at school/ breakfast available in canteen |
| 8:35-9:00am | Form time |
| 9:00-10:00am | Period 1 |
| 10:00-11:00am | Period 2 |
| 11:00-11:20am | Breaktime |
| 11:20-12:20pm | Period 3 |
| 12:20-12:50pm
12:50-1:20pm 12:20-12:50pm 12:50-1:20pm |
Key stage 3 lunch
Key stage 3 right to read programme Key stage 4 and 5 lunch Key stage 4 and 5 revision/intervention programme |
| 1:20-2:20pm | Period 4 |
| 2:20-3.20pm | Period 5 |
| 3:20-4:00pm | Intervention Year 11 and 13 (students will be invited to relevant sessions) |
| Timings of school day Wednesday | |
| 8:00-8:30am | Students able to arrive at school/ breakfast available in canteen |
| 8:35am | Movement to lessons |
| 8:40-9:40am | Period 1 |
| 9:40-10:40am | Period 2 |
| 10:40-11:00am | Breaktime |
| 11:00-12:00pm | Period 3 |
| 12:00-12:30pm
12:30-1:00pm 12:00-12:30pm 12:30-1:00pm |
Key stage 3 lunch
Key stage 3 right to read programme Key stage 4 and 5 lunch Key stage 4 and 5 revision/intervention programme |
| 1:00-2:00pm | Period 4 |
The information in this letter has also been sent to governors for consultation along with the local authority and our bus companies used to transport students to and from school. After the consultation period the times will come into force from the new academic year in 2022. I believe that these changes will be beneficial to the school community, and will have a positive effect on your child’s education.
I appreciate that these changes may affect you, in terms of childcare or working arrangements. For this reason, I would like to invite you to give your feedback by Monday 20th June sending your responses via the attached form:
We will write to you to confirm the structure of the day once the consultation finishes on 20th June and we will publish the new times on the school website.
Key dates
Start of Term 6 Monday 6 June
Thursday 9 June Year 10 Parents’ Evening (virtual)
Monday 4 July Year 7 Hercules Kingswood Trip
Friday 8 July Year 11 Prom
Monday 11 July Year 7 Trafalgar Kingswood Trip
Friday 15 July Staff INSET day, no students in school
Monday 18 July Year 7 Victory Kingswood Trip
Tuesday 19 July Performing Arts summer show (6pm – 7:30pm)
Wednesday 20 July Sports Day
Friday 22 July End of term, 12 noon finish
Thursday 18 August A Level Results day
Thursday 25 August GCSE Results day
Finally, I would like to wish you a wonderful May half term holiday. I hope you manage to enjoy the lovely weather and celebrate the Queen’s jubilee with family and friends. We look forward to seeing the students in term 6.
Yours sincerely,
Numera Anwar
