KEVI Newsletter 17th March 2023

Senior Leadership Team Update

As part of our quality assurance process this week we have had the pleasure of being in lots of lessons. The academy was very calm and students' behaviour and engagement was excellent. We are increasingly proud of Year 11 students who continue to engage positively with the intervention and exam preparation sessions we are running. Teachers are now going through mock papers and closing some knowledge gaps, although grades and final percentages will not be shared until mock results day.

Aspiration is one of our values and we are keen to share what a university experience is like with our students from an early age. All Year 7 students visited Lincoln university this week. Please see the article below for more details. We also take students in Year 9 to another university such as Anglia Ruskin or Nottingham.

We had our Year 6 Friendship Afternoon where we invited our new Year 7 cohort in. They sampled a number of activities and finished with a short musical performance. We were very proud of a number of Year 10 students who supported the event and were great ambassadors for the school.

Have a lovely weekend

Mrs S Jones - Executive Principal

Mr M Wilkinson - Acting Head of School

Stop, Understand and Move On (SUMO) – A course for adults to help support children

We are excited to announce that, after Easter, we will be hosting a free adult course at KEVI aimed at providing the necessary tools to help children develop resilience and embrace their wellbeing. The course will be delivered by two experts in their field, Ed and Sarah Scrase-Hollamby. They have a wealth of experience in working with families and their course follows the principles of bestselling author Paul McGee in his book SUMO.

Children do not always have the knowledge and experience to deal with challenges in life that involve emotions, self-worth, resilience and confidence. This course is open to parents, carers, grandparents, and any other adults who support or work with children in some way. It will explore and share new ways to help children (and adults) navigate through life.

The course will take place at KEVI on Saturday 22 April from 10:00am to 4:00pm. It is funded by Lincolnshire County Council which means that it is completely free to attend, and there is no limit to the number of people who can come along. All we ask is that you let us know in advance that you wish to attend. You can do this by emailing Mr Riley (priley@kingedwardacademy.co.uk) with the subject “SUMO” and include in the body of the email how many places you would like to book.

Here is a summary of the four sessions that will be covered during the day and the intended outcomes of each:

Me, you and the big world out there.

In this session we will explore the meaning of wellbeing. For us and our family what does this look like? How can we be in control of this and how can we help our children be in control of this for themselves too? We will look at the importance of learning to press ‘pause’ to self-regulate, think and make good choices.

Shall we think about that?

We think a lot. We spend almost all of our time thinking, however, is all of that thinking healthy and helpful or can it sometimes be unhealthy and unhelpful? In this session we will be learning how to tell the difference between the two. We will understand how our thinking is strongly linked to our emotions and actions. We will explore how our brain works for us but can also work against us.

Let’s Flip it and it is ok not to be ok

Following on from all the thinking we have done in the last session, this session is full of simple and practical tips and tools to help use when “faulty thinking” creeps in to help us to have healthy and helpful thinking patterns rather than unhelpful and unhealthy. We will also be discussing what we need to do when it all gets too much and how this time can provide us with the valuable opportunity to make choices about how we best move on.

I can’t, I won’t, I don’t

Have you ever felt like you were speaking a different language to other people? Have you ever felt frustrated that you are not heard or really listened to? This session investigates the idea of perspectives and how these can affect how we respond and react to one another. This final session is also about looking ahead, exploring why we put things off and how we can find ways to overcome those barriers especially when we believe in the power of yet!

Why we do what we do -Academy Rationale

Teaching and Learning

At KEVI we use a lot of evidence-based research to inform our planning and the way we deliver lessons. An educationalist called Barak Rosenshine has ten principles he recommends for effective teaching. We use his work to guide our delivery in lessons.

Throughout the rest of the year, we will explain the rationale behind each of the principles and how we use them in our lessons.

Principle 5 - Guide Student Practice

We don’t necessarily think that practice makes perfect, but it certainly helps. This principle highlights the importance of providing students with enough time to ask questions, practise retrieval, or get the help they need. It’s not enough for a student to learn information once, they have to keep rehearsing it through summarising, evaluating, or applying this knowledge. If teachers rush this process, then students’ memory on lesson material will be diminished.

Year 9 Update

As you know by the end of the month Year 9 students will have chosen their options. We have included a list of the important dates in this process:

• 03/03/2023 - Key Stage 4 options book sent out.
• 07/03/2023 - Options evening in school, 6.00-8.00pm
• 09/03/2023 - Five minute meetings with each Year 9 student and a member of the Senior Leadership Team, Heads of House or House Champions
• 21/03/2023 and 22/03/2023 - Online survey issued via MCAS to select option choices at home.
• 23/03/2023 - Students not making a choice at home will complete the form during tutor time.

Sixth Form Update

Applying for University Accommodation

Students should start by getting an idea of what’s available once they have decided on their university. The type of student accommodation they choose to live in could make all the difference when it comes to the university experience. Everyone has their own preference. Some students jump at the chance to share an apartment in a city centre whereas some might prefer a shared house on campus.

Students can filter their search by:

• room type – e.g. with/without private bathroom or a private studio/flat
• accessibility – e.g. elevators, wheelchair access
• bedroom features – e.g. wifi, desk, double bed
• bills – e.g. are bills and content insurance included in your rent?
• property features – e.g. security, car parking, laundry, outdoor area, communal study area

Student accommodation varies in all shapes and sizes – and of course, cost.

Rent varies depending on where it is and what amenities are nearby or on site. Some accommodation includes more bills than others too, so it’s worth thinking about what the budget might be and what can be afforded.

Students should think about:

• How are you are paying for tuition fees and living costs – what’s the budget?
• Are you getting a student loan? If so, how much can you spend on rent?
• Can you get any bursaries or funding to increase your budget?
• Do your ideal universities have accommodation in your price range?
• Could you rent privately in student house shares for less money?
• Would you be able to get part-time work to top up your budget?

You will also need to consider what is included in the rent. It’s important to understand what is and isn’t included in the price, such as TV licence, insurance and WiFi for example. Don’t forget to ask about utilities too (gas, electric, water, etc), and look out for any fair usage caps in the contract. Some (mainly university provided) may include some catering.

Many halls will also provide free or subsidised social programmes and events (sometimes known as Residence Life) and these are a great way to get settled and meet other students.

When applying for accommodation, universities will usually have a small questionnaire as part of the application process, where you can specify what sort of flat or accommodation is the best fit for you. It’s important to remember the university won’t allocate you into halls based on specific characteristics unless you ask/request it.

It is often a case of first come, first served. Universities operate this way when it comes to accommodation so Year 13 need to be keeping an eye out for UCAS emails.

Mrs P Prince - Head of Sixth Form

Attendance

Attendance for last week was 92.2%, a little down on the previous week.

.

House Attendance

If you would like to discuss your child’s attendance or need any support with attendance, then please contact Mrs Kwee or Mrs Ziller on 01790 756704 or tkwee@kingedwardacademy.co.uk to discuss ways to support your child's attendance.

Mrs T Kwee Attendance Manager

Seafood Chef of the Year Junior Competition

The Grimsby Institute is calling for all budding chefs in Years 9 or 10 to show their skills by producing a short video of them preparing a seafood-based meal for two which costs less than £7.50 per person.

The closing date is 28th April 2023 with the finals taking place on 19th May 2023.

Teen Support

Internet Safety

NGL: We have been made aware of an app called NGL (Not Gonna Lie) which is an app where users share a direct link to their Instagram or Twitter story, inviting their followers to give anonymous feedback.

Please follow this link to see the risks associated with this app and some parental advice.

Tik Tok: TikTok has set a 60-minute daily screen time limit for under-18s. Please see the following link to the article. TikTok said the new limit comes after it brought in a prompt last year to encourage teens to manage their screen time. Parents of children using the Family Pairing option on the app will also be able to set screen time limits, as well as access a dashboard which would give a breakdown of app usage. Please see the rest of the article via this link.

Times Tables

Years 7 and 8 will be reciting their times tables to help embed them in their long term memory.

At the end of each lesson, they will stand behind their chairs in silence, preparing for themselves for the next lesson and just before they leave the whole class will chant the timetables assigned for that week.

Week commencing 20th March 2023 - we will be chanting our 6 times table.

Mrs H Johnson - Head of Maths