Latest Parent Briefing - Friday 13th September

Retrieval Practice

Next week in assembly, Years 7, 8 and 9 will be spoken to about the importance of retrieval practice to academic success. This is particularly important considering how GCSE exams come at the end of a two-year course with students required to recall information from the duration of it. Retrieval practice is the act of recalling learned information from memory and every time that information is retrieved, it changes the original memory to make it stronger. The result is that students become more fluent in recalling knowledge which in turn means they are better placed to apply that successfully and learn new knowledge. This, however, requires concentrated effort over a long period of time. If we can provide students with the skills and habits to do this in Key Stage 3, then hopefully the experiences of GCSE and beyond will be much more manageable and successful.  In assembly we will look at three practical strategies for doing this that students can apply independently at home. Over the next fortnight, all students will be set a retrieval style homework by each department where they can practice these techniques in a way suitable for each subject.

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Attendance Matters

The link between attendance and attainment is clear. In 2018/19, just 36% of persistently absent (below 90% attendance) students in KS4 achieved 9 to 4 in English and Maths GCSEs, compared with regular attendance. More than half (54%) of students who were PA in Year 10 and then rarely absent in Year 11 passed at least 5 GCSEs compared to 36% of students who were persistently absent in both years. However, attendance is important for more than just attainment: Regular school attendance can facilitate positive peer relationships, which is a protective factor for mental health and wellbeing Please speak to our attendance officer, Mrs Kendall, if you or child needs any support with their attendance to school. It's important for us to ensure that every student maximises their learning opportunities. To help with this, we need to understand the difference between "authorised" and "unauthorised" absences. Authorised Absence refers to any absence from school that is approved by the school. This includes reasons like illness, medical appointments, or family emergencies, provided the school is informed in advance and proper documentation is provided. Unauthorised Absence, on the other hand, is when a student misses school without the school's permission or a valid reason. This might include absences for holidays taken during term time, shopping trips, or any other non-emergency activities.
Maintaining regular attendance is crucial for your child's educational success, so please ensure that any absences are communicated to us promptly and are for genuine reasons. The list below is not exhaustive but provides a clear guide as to what would be authorised or unauthorised. We would always encourage students to 'give it a go' each day to help develop their resilience.
Authorised	Unauthorised
High Temperature Physical Sickness and Diarrhoea Migraine - Medical Evidence Ear Infection	Headache Period Pains Feeling Sick Toothache Cough Sore Throat Cold/Cold Sores Conjunctivitis Head lice

COMMUNICATIONS

We have 4 telephone lines available in our school. Please use the correct one, to ensure we can work as efficiently as possible with you. #1 Attendance - For any attendance notifications or queries, #2 Students in Years 7-9 including any behavioural related query, #3 Students in Years 10-11 including any behavioural related query, #4 Any general queries, for example term dates or training days.

ARBOR

The most common queries we receive are about behavioural incidents and detentions. This information is available to you on ARBOR, please click the link for instructions on how to access - https://support.arbor-education.com/hc/en-us/articles/203792032-Behaviour-on-the-Parent-Portal-and-Parent-App

16 EVENTS

Many of our Year 11 students will be thinking about their next steps and alongside information in school it is really worthwhile attending the Open Events that are held by the various post 16 providers.  Most of these events do require you to register your interest and obtain 'tickets'.We regularly post on our social media to signpost events that are happening. 

TWITTER @Crawshawacademy

INSTAGRAM @crawshaw_academy_official

We also have a programme of providers coming into school to deliver assemblies to Year 11 and also run drop in stalls over break and lunch. Students are given all the information on in-school events via Form Tutor notices during registration in the morning.

CAREERS - Employer engagement

We are currently working on our careers programme and we are interested in hearing from any employers who would be able to come into school to engage with our students.

This may be presenting in an assembly or to a small group or mentoring individuals. A ‘meaningful’ encounter with an employer is one in which the student has an opportunity to learn about what work is like or what it takes to be successful in the workplace.

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Physical Education Activities