News from Highgate Wood School arts college

CONSIDERATION COOPERATION COURTESY CONTRIBUTION Issue No 17 April 2014

April 2014

2

Spend and Raise, the on-line shopping link through which the PSA has raised nearly £1000 has now changed to easyfundraising,org,uk This new services should raise even more money to help the school. Easyfundraising does require users to register, and also requests that they install a toolbar. But it works in exactly the same way as the old version - donating money to the PSA for every on-line purchase made at a whole range of different outlets (including Amazon, John Lewis. Ebay and Marks & Spencer) if it is routed through our easyfundraising page. A link to this is on the school website.

MADFest, will be here before you know. The date has now been agreed as Saturday July 5th. More information will be available in the coming term.

The Chair of Governors, Charles

Wright, writes:

The school year can seem like a long

stretch, but amazingly we are now

two thirds of the way through, and

that means a serious focus on the

exams coming up.

Schools are inevitably judged by their exam results;

it is important that Highgate Wood continues to

make the grade, and we have impressively

improved our performance over the past years.

But the real focus must be on helping our students

to fulfil their potential, and get the opportunity to

move on appropriately, whether that’s into the

Sixth Form or other routes. That’s what our results

are really about, adding value at all levels, and

congratulations and good luck to all our staff and

our students who will be working together over the

coming weeks as the exams approach.

In that context it’s worth repeating that we are now

moving forward with a track record across the

board, including in maths and science where we are

in the top 8 and 15 per cent respectively of

comparable schools across the country.

Highgate Wood is about a lot more than exam

results though, and we’d like to say well done to all

who took part in the recent BBC School News

Report – including being chosen as one of just a

handful of schools whose students got to interview

Michael Gove.

Finally, our local authority governors Imogen

Pennell, Oli Blackaby and Cllr Edie Griffith, have

been reappointed for a further term.

Have a great Easter.

Cover picture: The cover features some images from our Season of Plays where three separate performance evenings showcased the talents of our Year 9 Drama Club, and our GCSE and A Level Drama students. More information on these productions is included in this edition of Insight.

Chair of Governors:

Charles Wright (Community Governor)

Vice Chair:

Imogen Pennell (Representative Governor)

Representative Governors:

Cllr Eddie Griffith • Oliver Blackaby • Brenda Allan

Parent Governors:

Diana Brown • Philip Cavendish • Elizabeth Hess • Chris

Tully • Rob White • Julia Chalfen • Paul Bennett

Community Governors:

Phil Cocksedge • Caroline Conlon • Violet Hazelwood-

Henry • Chris Parr •

Headteacher Governor:

Patrick Cozier

Staff Governors:

Audra Daws-Knowles • Emily Ford • Joe Demetriou

If you wish to contact the Governing Body please write to the

Chair of Governors, c/o Mrs K Ozturk, Highgate Wood School,

Montenotte Road, London N8 8RN (koz@hws.haringey.sch.uk)

HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL GOVERNING BODY

GOVERNING BODY UPDATE

April 2014

3

The Spring Term is already

behind us.

This has been another

exciting term at Highgate

Wood. Many positive

achievements (which you

will see reflected in this

edition of Insight) have

occurred, and as you

would expect, lots of hard

work and diligent effort from staff and students to

continue the high quality of learning that takes place

across the school. Our Year 11s and Post 16 students

are only a matter of weeks away from taking their

exams so they are preparing quite intensely at the

moment, and I know that many of them will be

coming in over the Easter break to continue these

preparations. Do spare a thought for them and their

hard working teachers.

I draw particular attention to how hard teachers work

because of the strike action that occurred in the

penultimate week of the term as a result of the

industrial action taken by the National Union of

Teachers (NUT). As you will know, we closed the

school to years 7, 8, 9 and 10 in order that the focus

of those teachers who were present on the day could

be targeted at our students preparing for exams. I

know that everybody has their views on whether or

not industrial action is a good thing, given the

implications for families and students; and I will never

use this message to exercise any particular views that

I may have in favour or not – nor is my decision to

open or close the school ever a reflection of my

views. However, what I will say is at Highgate Wood

all of our teachers (including those who took action

for something they passionately believe in) work

extremely hard for our students and take great pride

in what they do. They are all one hundred percent

behind our ethos that our students’ achievements

and experiences is the purpose of our jobs. I know

that this will always be the case and I am proud of the

staff that we have. I want to take this opportunity to

again publically thank them for what they do and the

great things that they make happen in our school

every day.

MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER During the course of this term I have had the genuine

pleasure of attending a range of events that have

showcased the talents of our students and

demonstrated some of what is special about Highgate

Wood. We have good reason to be proud, and when I

watch our amazing young people in action, it is

exactly that sense of pride that I feel. The highlights

for me have been;

Attending the final night of the series of drama

plays. The talent and creativity expressed by our

students is incredible and this was very much

displayed by the wonderful performances that I

saw on the last night. I am regretful that I did not

see the other performances on the two previous

evenings, but I am assured by those that did that

the performances were equally impressive;

Seeing our students impress in the annual North

London Model United Nations Conference. They

really do look and sound the part during the very

mature and sensible discussions that take place on

the day, trying to solve real world problems;

Watching Elisabeth Jahn Morrissey and Rory

Hammett participate in a panel interview (as

students from one of only six schools nationally)

questioning the Secretary of State for Education Rt

Hon Michael Gove about his educational policies. If

you haven’t seen the interview, then do visit the

school website and follow the appropriate link to

see it. It’s fascinating and another proud moment;

Seeing the enthusiasm of our students during

Samsung’s Apps for Good launch and watching

the exciting developments of Computer Science at

Highgate Wood School.

Watching our Post 16 boys’ football team play in

the Middlesex Cup final against Twyford School. As

the holders of the trophy (we won it last year), to

get to the final again was a great defence of the

trophy and showed their tremendous work ethic

and self-belief at its best. Although, they lost the

final 2-1, this was not down to lack of effort.

However, it was in defeat that I saw their

magnanimous, dignified, classy and very sporting

response; congratulating the victors, despite the

obvious disappointment they felt in losing. I

commend them on this, and thank my PE staff for

instilling such virtuous values.

April 2014

4

Post 16 at Highgate Wood

Following on from last two year’s excellent

recruitment, in the last few weeks I have had the joy

of interviewing some of our year 11 students

following their applications for places in the 6th

form. It really has been fascinating getting the

opportunity to listen to them talk about themselves

as learners and to hear about how much thought and

care they are putting into their decision making

about their future.

What has been really pleasing is listening to them

explain why they have applied to the Highgate Wood

6th Form. Students have talked about

The enjoyment that they have experienced at

Highgate Wood over the years and that they see

Post 16 as a natural continuation of the learning

that is taking place in Key Stage 4

The benefits or remaining at a school that they

know, but more importantly a school that knows

them; where their teachers know their strengths

and how to build upon them; where their teachers

are aware of their areas for development

The good progress that they are currently making,

and a belief that this will continue in the 6th form

The trust that they have (and the evidence that

they have seen and heard) that teaching in the 6th

form is of a high quality

The wide (and growing) range of opportunities

available to them at Post 16 to embrace extra-

curricular opportunities

Knowing that at HWS, they benefit from teachers

who really do care about them and will go the

extra mile to support them throughout their

studies to achieve their potential and go on to the

very best universities

It is heart warming to know that they are so proud of

their school and that they want to stay because they

feel that they belong and where they know they will

do well. A record number of HWS students have

applied which demonstrates their commitment to

doing well at this school. I am proud of them all and

want them to remain here at ‘home’ at HWS. I am

looking forward to having an excellent Year 12 cohort

in September.

Timetable roll and a few dates for your diary

I wanted to remind you all that there will be no early

timetable roll this year. This means that all year

groups will remain the same until September, and

their new curriculums and timetables will start then

as well. As a result there are a couple of changes to

the school calendar.

Monday 2nd June (the day back after the May

half term break) is now a normal school day and

not an INSET day as per the school calendar at the

start of the year

Monday 21st July and Tuesday 22nd July are now

INSET days, hence the last day of term for

students will be Friday 18th July 2014

The removal of Monday 2nd June enables us to re-

locate the INSET day to the 22nd July, and the

removal of the late start after parents’ evening (thus

giving our students back five hours of curriculum

time, allows us to take Monday 21st July as an INSET

day too. Consequently, the school will be closed to

students from 18th July.

Year 11 and post 16 students – Preparation for

exams

As referred to earlier, Year 11 and Post 16 students

are now entering into that final stage of preparation

leading up to their exams, hence the range of exam

preparation sessions available over the Easter

Holidays. Students are encouraged to make full use

of these and to follow the guidance that they have

been given by their teachers in terms of revision and

preparation. We are confident that they will all do

fantastically well – but they have to put in the hard

work to make sure! A reminder of our ambitious

2014 target (along with the exam results over the

last few years) is shown below.

5 A* - C including English and Maths

April 2014

5

Homework at HWS; what’s your view?

We are currently reviewing our homework policy at

HWS. If you are a parent of a year 8 student you will

have had the chance to give us some feedback about

your views on what we do at the recent parents/

carers evening. However, we are keen to receive

more views from a wider cross section of parents.

An online homework survey is now accessible on the

school website, under the Parents’ tab. Alternatively,

we welcome your written comments for the

attention of Mr Mansfield on

homework@hws.haringey.sch.uk.

We will be communicating a new policy to you

towards the end of the summer term, for

implementation in September.

Uniform Issues

The issue of school uniform is one that changes

throughout the year, mostly depending on the

overriding temperature. With the anticipation of

warmer months ahead and would like to reminder

parents/carers and students that:

Blazers are compulsory (and must be worn at all

times – other than in lessons), but jumpers/

cardigans are not – hence if students do not wish

to wear two layers on top of their shirts, it’s the

jumpers/cardigans that should not be worn

If at some stage the weather is very hot, then we

will relax the need to wear a blazer at all times –

however, we will inform you and the students if

and when this happens

No other alternative to the school jumper/

cardigan (with the HWS Blue trim) can be worn. If

they are they will be confiscated

Short sleeve shirts are a perfectly acceptable

alternative to long sleeve shirts for girls and boys

As always, we ask for your support in ensuring that

not only is the correct uniform is worn by all of our

students, but that it is worn appropriately, smartly

and with pride. This means that

Shirts must always be tucked inside trousers and

skirts

Ties must always be worn with the knot high and

at least five stripes being visible on the wide part

of the tie

Skirts worn unrolled with four buttons visible.

In the longer term, we are currently reviewing the

school uniform with a view to possibly making some

slight changes for September. We will make sure that

parents are informed at the earliest opportunity

should this have any impact on what you purchase

over the summer holidays.

Primary Secondary Transfer – September 2014 –

Highgate Wood Oversubscribed Again!

We have recently received data from the Local

Authority that shows allocations and preferences for

the schools across Haringey for secondary transfer in

September 2014. The list below is in alphabetical

order (apart from Harris Free School).

We have reason to be pleased that the number of

preferences has now topped 1000 for two years

running.

We have also maintained a high number of first

choices (237) for the number of places available

(243)

The data below shows comparisons with the other

Haringey schools.

School Total 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th

Highgate Wood School 1020 232 196 234 147 138 73

Alexandra Park School 1542 389 453 318 210 108 64

Fortismere Secondary 1334 360 346 299 151 104 74

Gladesmore Community 830 341 165 143 104 48 29

Heartlands High 1001 227 242 215 163 98 56

Hornsey School for Girls 388 68 66 82 80 47 45

Northumberland Park 359 141 54 69 39 33 23

Park View Academy 555 164 150 89 74 36 42

St Thomas More 618 134 113 109 84 67 51

Woodside High School 618 176 131 109 84 67 51

Harris Free School (Tot) 90 9 20 12 24 16 9

GRAND TOTAL 8639 2318

Greig City Academy 396 77 69 80 68 54 48

2005 1211 801 554 1750

April 2014

6

Apologies to parents/carers of year 9 students

We have now reached the point where all of our

students have expressed their preferences for the

options subjects that they wish to study in key stage

four from September. We will be letting students,

parents and carers know the outcome of the process

in the summer term.

During the options evening that we held a few weeks

ago, some parents and carers expressed

disappointment about what they felt was a lack of

consultation and communication over some of the

changes that we have implemented as part of this

year’s process. I do accept that communication could

have been better (or at least earlier). I can only

apologise for this, and reassure you that we have

heard your voices and, moving forward, will ensure

that we learn any lessons that we need to learn about

this.

Staffing

After a long period of absence through illness, John

Howley, has decided to follow a different path from

being a teacher at Highgate Wood School. His

contribution to Highgate Wood School over the years

was immense, especially in his role as Head of

Learning. We will all miss him, and wish him the very

best for the future.

... And Finally – Thank you for your support!

I would like to thank you all again for your valued and

continued support. I wish you and your families a

pleasant Easter break.

Please remember, we return on Tuesday 22nd April

at the later start time of 10.50am.

Regards

Patrick Cozier Headteacher

FIRE OUTSIDE THE ADAMS BLOCK

Mr Cozier writes:

On Tuesday evening, 18th March, a fire in a skip

close to the Adams building caused significant

damage to the boys’ toilets (as can be seen from

the picture above). As a consequence these

toilets have had to be blocked off and will need to

be entirely refurbished.

In the meantime we have to work with a

temporary solution. Immediately after the fire we

installed four portable toilets close to the Adams

block. Over the Easter break we will be taking

delivery of a more effective solution - a trailer

block of toilets. Neither solution is perfect, and we

are also exploring other possibilities. But there is

not huge scope of alternatives.

We hope to get the original toilet block

refurbished as swiftly as possible but in view of

the extent of the work required it is likely that this

will not completed until the summer.

We are still not sure what caused the fire and the

police are still investigating the case.

I would like to take this opportunity to again

thank the site staff for their prompt action, which

prevented the fire from causing even more

damage to the school. I would also like to thank

our boys who are dealing with the problems that

the fire has caused stoically and sensibly.

Ms Allaway writes:

Many thanks to all the members of the PSA

involved in the recent Staff Appreciation Tea.

This has now become quite a regular event in

school and is very much appreciated by staff,

especially at the end of such a busy term.

THANKS FOR TEA AND CAKES!

April 2014

7

HOUSE LEAGUE TABLES

Students of the term:

Kevonte Willoughby Williams

Anastasia Abramchuk

Lloyd Bolton

Louise Johnson

Shuhan Ali

Students of the term:

Isis Boundy

Haseeb Bakht

Alex Vidic

Jasmine Bell

Corey Oliver

Students of the term:

Ethan Fraser

Khalid Sahebzada

Sienna Parker

Neil Lavie-Driver

Agnes Szabo

Da Vinci: The best way to predict the future is to invent it

Seacole: From caring comes courage

Edison: Success comes from perseverance

House Charity: Rays of Sunshine

House Charity: Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice

House Charity: Action for Kids

54,761 this year

53,096 this year

54,447 this year

400V

Top Donors: Manel Ait Mouheb Melissa Guvenier Margerita Cimatti

808V

Top Donors: Madeleine Baron Isobel Crompton Amber McKenzie

817V

Top Donors: Tolga Kale Euan Escott Gabriel Monaighan

Top Vivo Earners: Alexander Diaferia

Freya Dougan

Jordan Dowden

Madeleine Baron

Amelia Doyle

Top Vivo Earners: Phoebe Berman

Luke Gosling

Sadie May

Rebecca Manoharan

Dennisha Edwards

Top Vivo Earners: Daniel Dop

Lucy Whelan

Tolga Kale

Leo Pitsillides

Euan Escott

Sports points

66 Sports points

53 Sports points

67

INVIGILATORS WANTED!

INVIGILATORS WANTED!

HELP THE SCHOOL AND EARN MONEY!

We are in urgent need of Invigilators for

the forthcoming public examinations

this Summer.

If you are interested, or know someone

who is, please get more details from the

Vacancy section of the school website or

contact our exams officer

Mr J Demetriou

jde@hws.haringey.sch.uk

PREPARE FOR YOUR EXAMS

PREPARE FOR YOUR EXAMS

YEAR 9, YEAR 11 and POST 16 STUDENTS

DON’T FORGET TO USE THE HOLIDAY TO

PREPARE FOR YOUR EXAMS.

Work out a revision schedule and try and

do some work every day.

But don’t revise all the time.

Holidays are for rest and relaxation too.

A dream doesn't become reality through magic;

it takes sweat, determination and hard work. Colin Powell

April 2014

8

Ms Burniston writes:

The ECS and History

departments arranged for

a Holocaust survivor to

visit the school on Monday

24th March.

Our guest speaker, Freda

Wineman spoke to our

Year 9 students. It was a

great privilege for students

and staff alike to listen to Freda experience, and

how the Holocaust affected her and her loved

ones.

Here is Cali Nice from 9I: “Freda Wineman is the

optimization of bravery in my eyes. It is

unimaginable to think of the hardship she went

through. Not only surviving the terrible Nazi death

camp, Auschwitz, but also having to live with no

immediate family, an ordeal that no one should go

through. She is someone that a lot of people can

look up too, and I hope she will keep telling her

story. It was an honour to listen to her.”

Ms Burniston would like to thank our Year 9

students for their great conduct during the visit.

They showed great compassion and empathy

towards our guest.

FREDA WINEMAN,A HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR, SHARES HER EXPERIENCES

FUNDRAISING FOR HILLCREST

Ms McGurk

writes:

Team South

Africa have

been working

tirelessly to

raise money for

their trip on

behalf of The

Hillcrest Aids

Charity this year.

Barney Mort and Kofi Morris held a raffle in which

entrants could win a donated iPad or the newest hi

-tech Colgate toothbrush. Barney and Kofi raised

an amazing £317.50 which has gone directly to the

Hillcrest Fund and their trip to South Africa.

Congratulations to Alex Diaferia who won the iPad

and Natasha Fairclough who won the electric

toothbrush!

Other fantastic fundraising activities have been

going on. Rukiye Tas raised £400 by staying silent

for a week. The team have provided refreshment

for many after-school activities and Parents'

Evenings. There are also other brilliant activities on

the horizon. Kofi, Barney and Joe Dodd are doing a

run to the South Africa Embassy in Central London

and look out for Barney in the coming weeks - he is

planning to spend a week in a wheelchair for the

cause.

April 2014

9

Ms O’Borne writes:

As part of BBC School Report, I accompanied Rory

Hammett and Elisabeth Jahn-Morrissey to the BBC

Headquarters to meet a team of 10 other students

from all over the country. Their task: to interview

Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education.

After discussing and revising their questions, the

students were given advice and a tour of the

newsroom by Fiona Bruce. More tips on interview

technique came from James Harding, Head of News

at the BBC, before we were whisked off to the

Department of Education by taxi.

By the time Mr Gove arrived the students were well

rehearsed and questioned the minister confidently

on a range of educational issues. Elisabeth's

determination to get at the truth led Michael Gove

to describe her as "tenacious". Her question was

"Why are AS levels being removed when this will

make universities rely more heavily on predicted

grades which have been proven to penalise working

-class students?" Rory and Elisabeth both

performed brilliantly under pressure and were a

credit to Highgate Wood.

Their work was broadcast on the BBC news and is

available at http://tiny.cc/hwsschoolreport

BBC SCHOOL REPORT

Ms Daws-Knowles writes:

Many congratulations to Berivan Korkmaz, Shauna

Paul, Eden Diffley, Robyn Cowie, Jada Sandy Hersh,

Maya Ameen, Elisabeth Jahn Morrissey and Rory

Hammett who took part in the BBC School Report

on Thursday 25th March.

Rory, Elisabeth and Ms O'Borne spent the day at

the BBC and the Ministry of Education interviewing

Michael Gove about education policy.

The rest of the team created a news report at

school which also demonstrates their talent and

professionalism as well as providing an excellent

representation of HWS students. Their fabulous

report can be seen on the school website or

through this link: http://tiny.cc/hwsbbc

April 2014

10

APPS FOR GOOD AND SPONSORSHIP FROM SAMSUNG

Mr Talbert writes:

On the 7th March, Highgate Wood School had the pleasure of

hosting the Samsung & Apps for Good to officially announce

Samsung’s sponsorship of the school for the Apps for Good

programme. Representatives from Samsung, Apps for Good and

our MP Lynne Featherstone were in attendance. The event

celebrated International Women's Day 2014 with both Year 8 and

Year 9 female students taking part in the event highlighting their

excellent work in the world of computing.

Eleanor (9S), Gizem and Melisa (8S) had the pleasure of presenting

their mobile phone app ideas to the visitors and received positive

responses. The visitors also had the pleasure of seeing further

groups of students as they developed their mobile app ideas. It was

a well-publicised event with the school receiving a tweet from the

Cabinet Office and Samsung Mobile’s first ever retweet.

As part of this unique sponsorship Samsung has donated to the

school various tablets and phones for the students to use to test

out their mobile phone app prototypes as part of the Apps for

Good programme.

The Apps for Good

programme is a

competition where

students in both Year

8 and 9 devise a

mobile phone app

idea with a helpful

use with the

possibility of it being

built and the

students gaining a

share of the profits.

April 2014

11

Mr Talbert writes:

During February and March 2014, nineteen Year 7

students took part in a unique opportunity to work

with BAFTA awarding winning games designer

Sophia George and the V&A museum to create a

series of computer games based on exhibits at the

museum.

The students were broken up in to small groups

where they decided to create video games based

on the museum’s China and Japan exhibits.

Students used a series of game making programs to

create their game and present to both Sophia

George and the V&A museum’s schools programme

manager Cara Williams.

It was a fantastic project with the students devising

some original and interesting ideas that they are

still working on today.

V&A VIDEO GAMEMAKING PROJECT

Mr Talbert writes:

In December 2013, five Year 10 students (Samuel

Martin (10S), Milo Fraser (10S), Aimeeliah Knight

(10D), Monique Christopher (10D) and Morgan

Mellows (10G) took part in the filming of a new

BBC Learning Zone programme on coding.

On Tuesday 25th March 2014, the finished pro-

gramme finally aired. It highlighted the world of

coding and how it can play an important part of

music, fashion and computer games. The students

featured in video game clip where they were play-

ing games developer Mitu Khandaker’s Red Shirts

video game.

The video is accessible on the BBC iplayer and the

BBC Learning Zone website and can be used as a

learning tool for computing lessons at schools

across the country.

Go to http://tiny.cc/hwscoding or use QR Code.

HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL STUDENTS IN BBC PROGRAMME ON CODING

DR MARK BRANDON AT HWS

MFL\PE SKIING TRIP

Ms Lacroix writes:

The GCSE students had a fantastic time at the

French Ski Resort of Alpe d’Huez on their combined

MFL\PE trip.

A full report will appear in the next issue of Insight.

Ms Hickey writes:

On 2nd April we were

delighted to welcome

Dr Mark Brandon, Polar

Oceanographer and

principal scientific

adviser to the BBC’s

blockbuster wildlife series Frozen Planet.

He spoke to Year 8 students about his work and

career before addressing our A Level geographers

and Geography students from other sixth forms.

April 2014

12

Miss Angove writes:

This term saw Highgate Wood School run its

second Year 9 Careers Fair. On 7th March, our Year

9 students welcomed 25 visitors to the school for

the afternoon to hear about a range of career

areas to inspire them and begin the year 9 options

process.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of

the wonderful volunteers who gave their time to

work with our students for the afternoon!

Madeleine Baron and Scarlett Monaighan write:

For the Year 9 careers fair we spent an interesting

afternoon talking to professionals about their

different careers.

We had an opportunity to discuss what their job

entails and how they got into their field. We also

has the chance to ask any questions we had.

We spoke to people of different professions

including a Psychiatrist, a Victim Support Worker

and an engineer.

The afternoon was a great success and it helped us

to think about what we might do in the future.

YEAR 10 WORK EXPERIENCE

Miss Angove writes:

Between 28th April and 2nd

May (one week after the Easter

holiday), Year 10 students will

undertake a week of work experience. They will be

getting an insight into places of work such as

accountants and law firms, banks, theatres,

hospitals, sports academies and vets to name but a

few.

All the students will have received their individual

Job Descriptions outlining the address/contact

details of the placement, the times of the working

day, the daily tasks and the dress code relevant to

the placement. This school holiday will give them

the opportunity to check on details such as journey

time and mode of transport, and to get in touch

with their placement to ask any questions.

This is an exciting opportunity to meet people in

their industry of interest, get a flavour of the day to

day work involved, apply their skills and knowledge

in a scenario outside of school and be ambassadors

for Highgate Wood. It is a great opportunity to

make an impression and who knows, there may

even be future offers of part time or summer work.

For some students it can confirm their area of

interest for future career paths, for others, it may

do the opposite! Either way, they will gain some

knowledge from this experience which we hope

will assist them in future choices. We will share

their success with you next half term!

If you have any queries regarding work experience,

please email: can@hws.haringey.sch.uk

Best of luck to all Year 10!

YEAR 9 CAREERS FAIR

April 2014

13

Pete Barnardo, schools work for n:Flame Trust

writes:

For over a year now, every Wednesday lunchtime,

we have been running Christian club. We've seen

many different groups of young people come in and

enjoy the community spirit and activities such as

drama, spoken word, music videos, debates,

games, or just chatting around crisps and cake!

We are open for people of all faiths (or none) to

come and get involved, chat and ask questions; we

aim to keep a relaxed and informal atmosphere. In

the coming weeks we will be providing new

opportunities with creative arts, and discussing a

question of the week. Come and check it out in

room D2!

Contact Ms Kemp for more details

CHRISTIAN CLUB

Mr Robertson writes:

At the beginning of the term our A2 Sociology

students were fortunate to be visited by Deborah

Coles from the criminal justice charity Inquest.

Ms Coles campaigns on behalf of the families of

people who have died in police custody and has

worked on numerous high-profile cases, including

the inquest into the death of Mark Duggan. She

spoke to our students about issues relating to

safety in custody, police accountability and the

challenges that families face in navigating a

complex criminal justice system.

Our students found Ms Coles' talk fascinating as it

relates not only to the crime unit we study at A2,

but also to many of their university choices for next

year. We were all incredibly grateful that she could

share her time and experience with us.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE Key Stage 3 CELEBRATING THE 4 CS

Ms Roberts writes:

On Friday 14th March we held a 'Rewards Lunch'

for Key Stage 3 students who have consistently

followed the four Cs as well as having 98%

attendance or more. For being such positive role

models and ambassadors for the school, they

enjoyed a celebratory lunch with members of the

house teams.

Jubide Begum Olivia Birkett Megan Boardman Thomas Bradshaw Holly Carter Tom Carter Holly Conroy-House Madeleine Cormican Joe Dawson Freya Dougan Amelia Doyle Evin Efe Iola Elson Euan Escott Ollie Freeman Alexander Harris Agnes Hellier Matilda Horton Khem Iglesis Barrull Anna Jevons

Ruby Jubb-Baddiel Lara Juneman Hope Kent Matthew Mulcahy Max Murphy Isobel Murray Heaven Myers Charlie Newbold Leyla Osman Scott Reidy-Martin Thomas Roberts Victoria Stogdon-Culbert Noah Stoneman Elliot Walker Erica Watkin Dani Weiss Eleanor Wetherall Jack Wilkins CJ Williams Kevonte Willoughby Williams

CONGRATULATIONS TO:

Well done, also, to Key Stage 4 students Faye

Heron, Rowan Juneman, Matthew Mulcahy, Liliana

Ricketts, Eleanor Brady, Cassandra Penfold, Maya

Schamroth Rossade, Aaron Skerratt and Yasmine

Hamchaoui. These leading members of the student

body celebrated their excellent attendance and

achievement with a celebratory tea with Mr Cozier

during the last week of the term.

Key Stage 4 CELEBRATING THE 4 CS

April 2014

14

Mr Robertson writes:

At the London International Model United Nations

conference in February, students from our state-

run comprehensive school debated against some of

the most expensively-educated undergraduates

from Europe's best universities. They were more

than equal to the challenge.

Their success is a just reward for their tireless

commitment to Model UN over the years and

shows the opportunities for our Year 11s of

continuing this incredibly rewarding programme

into our Sixth Form and beyond.

LONDON INTERNATIONAL MODEL UN

Sam Tims writes:

Highgate Wood School thrives at Model United

Nations. As a school we have attended conferences

across London and have even ventured to Chicago

for a conference, but now we are moving to an

even higher level of debate.

At the end of the February half term, a small

delegation of Highgate Wood students (mainly

from the sixth form) took part in the London

International Model United Nations. This is the

largest university level conference in Europe, with

a huge range of topics and attending were the best

debaters from across the world. No doubt future

leaders really were in the room.

Bearing this in mind it is incredible that Harry Vinall

-Smeeth and Blue Weiss, possibly the two

youngest delegates to ever take part at the

conference, managed to both win awards from

their committees. Knowing the capabilities of both

these students and the rest of the Year 11s I am

confident that Model UN will continue to expand

in new directions over the coming years.

At LIMUN myself and Silas Scott played the

positions of advisors to the President of the USA,

discussing a crazy revolution in Saudi Arabia, with a

style of debate that was incredibly foreign to the

both of us. Also taking part in the traditional style of

MUN were Hannah Barhouche, Abdi Adan, Farhan

Ahmed, Alfie Jenkins and Adam Khan. Everyone

came along with a vast amount of research and

confidence to go head to head with students that

have dedicated this part of their lives to studying

the topics that were discussed.

I would like to thank Mr O’Connor, for being the

original force behind Model UN at Highgate Wood

School, and Mr Robertson for spending part of his

half term with students… as if he hadn't had

enough of us already. Without you we would not

have been able to take part in this conference and

would have missed out on this amazing

opportunity.

HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL HOSTS NORTH

LONDON MODEL UN CONFERENCE

Mr Robertson writes:

We took just under 50

students to participate as delegates at the

conference; most were in Year 9 and were

attending their first ever

conference.

They committed an

enormous amount of work

just to be accepted as

delegates; they all attended a

training day during half term

and were sent away to write

detailed & well-researched

position papers for their

On Saturday 15th

March Highgate

Wood School hosted

the North London

Model UN.

The subject was

Poverty.

April 2014

15

respective countries. On the day, they represented

themselves and our school magnificently - debating

with a maturity, creativity & and passion which you

don't always see in 'real life politicians'. Eleven of

our students won awards and it could easily have

been more.

Each committee was run by chairs and directors in

Y11 and the Sixth Form. At the feedback meeting

with teachers from other schools, there was

universal

praise for the

way our

students led

their

committees:

the command

they had over

rules &

procedures;

the expertise

they showed

in helping

crafting

resolutions;

the sensitivity

they showed to including new delegates who found

the occasion all a bit overwhelming. They ensured

that the greatest number of students had the best

possible experience.

It was a wonderful day and everyone involved will

have left excited about what our students are

capable of.

NLMUN 2014—OUR DELEGATES

Alix Luka-Cain

Alex McLaren (HM)

Laura Moss

Sina Nafissi (HM)

Ruby Neal

Khadija Nooh

Lauren Page

Amber Paterson (BPP)

Shauna Paul

Tommy Pegler

Aaron Pettitt

Keja Pollard

Madeleine Rich

Lily Roberts (BPP)

Rosana Salonen

Jada Sandy-Hersh

Imogen Sheppard

Talvinder Singh-Baines

Maddie Stott

Nurselim Tekin

Ishmael Tikly-Young

Bonnie Tonkinson

Martha Berkmann

Phoebe Berman

Lloyd Bolton (HM)

Emmy Budis (BPP)

Jake Canton Perry (BPP)

Anouk Cavendish

Hannah Crabb-Krivine

Natalya De La Motte

Lui Donaldson

Sinead Duffus

Rosa Elson

Rachel Gamble

Harry Ghose-Coveny

Beth Gosschalk (BD)

Sadie Goswell (BD)

Anton Beka

Patrick Hegarty-Morrish

Faye Heron (BPP)

Athena Howard Brown

Eleanor Jones

Ruby Kelly

Berivan Korkmaz

NLMUN 2014 - Secretariat

Key: (HM) - Honourable Mention

(BD) - Best Delegate

(BPP) - Best Position Paper

Secretary General:

Fionnuala Stevens

Under-secretary General:

Jake Hamilton

Secretariat:

Alex Ahern

Amira Barkhouche

Blue Weiss

Ellen Boardman

Ellie Delamere

Ellie Whitlock

Hannah Barkhouche

Harry Vinall-Smeeth

Jake Hamilton

Jonah Berman

Kate Gosschalk

Lauren Gee

Lucy Newbold

Lucy Parfitt

Niall Kennedy

Rosa Gamble

Rosa Tully

Sam Tims

Silas Scott

Sushila Ghose-Coveny

Susie Friedman

See next page for Lily Roberts’ explanation of

Model UN

April 2014

16

Lily Roberts writes:

Model United Nations is a conference similar to the

United Nations in which students participate as

delegates to various UN Committees, researching,

debating and resolving vital issues which affect the

national community and its people.

Our most recent conference was based on the

critical issue of poverty and the problems that

surround it. It was a diverse topic which all

committees discussed in great depth, all

participants contributing their countries unique

beliefs on the matters and debating their opinions

strongly.

I represented Madagascar in the UN Women’s

committee, trying to get gender equality spread and

making efforts to eliminate gender discrimination

from my country.

Whether the issue is improving education in the

developing world, or fighting global climate change,

or addressing nearly any other challenge we face,

empowering women is critical to the development

of the worlds economic and social success. I learnt

about the opinions and laws of countries which I

would not otherwise have explored and about how

important it is to have a voice and express it in

order to change the inequalities facing individuals

and countries alike.

WHAT IS MODEL UN? My first conference was terrifying, but not at all as

intimidating as I originally thought it would be. I

think it was the scale of the conference and the

number of people who were there which scared

me so much to begin with, but as soon as we were

sectioned off into our separate delegations

everything became much less intimidating. It was

pretty good as far as first conferences go.

People who haven’t thought about doing Model

UN before, or people who find the idea of it

‘boring’ or ‘scary’ should give it a second thought

and consider trying it out. It’s fun, interesting and

and you really feel like you’re a part of something

big. Give it a go and see if you like it - you never

know, you might enjoy it.

Ms Daws-Knowles writes:

On Saturday 16th March the 2014 Model UN Media

Team designed and distributed two fabulous news-

letters that contained articles, interviews, quotes,

and photographs of our guests and participants.

Members of the team including Sixth Form and

GCSE students were Shannon Osei, Demi Walker,

Hayal Tapki, Sean Welsh, Nicholas Orford-Williams,

Mattie Moss Kendall and Emily Mort.

One of our students, Nicholas Orford-Williams, also

filmed the opening and closing ceremony and will

provide us with a short film very soon. All of the

students below should be congratulated on their

hard work and professionalism as well as praised

for creating a permanent record of a wonderful and

inspiring event.

THE PRESS TEAM

April 2014

17

Jack Coomber writes:

Our own DNA is a ticking

time-bomb. Each time a

cell is damaged, our

DNA orders a new copy

to be produced.

However this can only

happen a certain

number of times.

Cell copies are made by division, with the DNA

molecule(s) involved having to duplicate itself.

Each time this occurs there are little mistakes and

mutations that form in the DNA’s code. Little caps

on the tips of these molecules, known as

telomeres, play a vital role in preventing any

serious mutations from occurring but as we get

older, these begin to shrink. Eventually these

telomeres decide that the DNA code is so damaged

that making any further copies of cells is useless,

and so start a countdown, in which only a certain

number of divisions are possible until the cell can

no longer be replaced.

At this point our body is unable to function

properly, with our vital organs unable to replace

lost cells.

Scientists have been investigating whether

extending the telomeres can make human cells live

longer, with results showing that this is exactly

what happens. Perhaps even more exciting is the

idea that certain drugs may be able to destroy the

telomeres on cancer cells,.

Although immortality is a long way off, the

implications of research into aging as well as better

medical care has already caused average human

life expectancy to jump from being 24 in the 18th

century, to three figure numbers in our day and

age.

WHY AREN’T HUMANS IMMORTAL?

Louis Bell-Roberts writes:

The Year 13 Biology field trip is the perfect

opportunity to explore the context in which

sampling techniques, frequently mentioned in the

A2 syllabus, are used to investigate populations of

organisms.

The field trip is one of the first small steps to make

in pursuing a career in biology that will

undoubtedly blossom into a occupation sending

you to the most far-flung corners of the globe. But

first of all, you need to know how to use a quadrat

to estimate the abundance of all the species we

encountered along a transect (a designated area of

land under investigation). It required patience and

dedication but it provided a fully satisfying

experience when we were able to look over our

data and know that we collected all of it by

ourselves.

At first glance, statistical tests do not strike many

people as being particularly exciting. But ask any

professional biologist and they will attest to the

usefulness of statistics as a tool to maximise the

information they are able to gain from any

experiments that they perform, and reinforcing

the validity of the conclusions they draw. Never

mind the fact that the examiners love to catch out

any unsuspecting student who does not know how

to perform a stats test! After leaving the field trip I

felt confident in understanding why we use

statistical tests and how to perform each of the

ones I am required to know.

A LEVEL BIOLOGY FIELD TRIP

April 2014

18

Overall, the field trip was a refreshing experience

as it set aside time for our class to experience

biology in its most raw form - the great outdoors!

And with the opportunity to follow your instinctual

curiosity to learn about your surroundings. So, as

the biology field trip draws near; dress warm, bring

your calculators and experience the immeasurable

pleasure of watching someone else fall in the

mud... It's definitely worth it.

THE WORLD IN 2114?

Ms El-Damanawi writes:

Students across the school took part in a science

treasure hunt and learnt about some of the

inventions and lives surrounding past and living

scientists. It’s not all over yet though.

Students from all year groups are encouraged to

enter the national competition run by the British

Science Association. All you need to do is think

about what the world will be like in 100 years and

to share a vision of a development you think will

come into practice.

This could be a new product, a scientific,

technological or medical advancement or a design

to help deal with demands on natural resources by

April 18th. Submissions can include posters,

collages, graphic designs or photos of models.

All submissions should include a description of the

idea and how it will improve society. Entries will be

judged by a panel and the most innovative, best

researched and well-presented entries in each age

category will win a selection of prizes.

Visit http://tiny.cc/hws2114 for more details.

Ms El Damanawi writes:

February saw our talented sixth form chemists

participate in Round One of the UK Chemistry

Olympiad. Five thousand, six hundred and eighty

two students took part in the national competition

organised by the Royal Society for Chemistry, in a

bid to select four students to represent the UK at

the 10 day International Olympiad in Vietnam later

this year.

Twenty one Highgate Wood School students sat the

challenging written test of chemical knowledge.

Year 13 students Eleanor Paterson and Adam Khan

were among the top 30% of all candidates,

awarded silver awards. A further five students

were awarded the Bronze award: Abdiqanni Adan

and Mohammed Khadar from Year 13 and Natasha

Fairclaigh, Robert Merriman and Siidomar

Mohamed from Year 12.

The demanding questions covered fundamental

chemistry ideas in novel contexts and the

opportunity highlighted the enthusiastic

perseverance amongst our committed cohort of

students.

UK CHEMISTRY OLYMPIAD

Madeleine Baron (9A) writes:

During Science Week our class

made, tested and judged bath

bombs.

To begin with we learnt about

what features a bath bomb

needed to have. This included

a pleasant smell, a nice colour,

for it to react with water in a

reasonable time and to form a

safe neutral solution. We used

citric acid and bicarbonate of soda and

experimented with different amounts of each solid

BATH BOMBS!

April 2014

19

Ms Jones writes:

Students from the Year 11 Sustainability group

visited Alexandra Palace N22 specifically to plant

poppy seeds in commemoration of WW1 and the

celebrations being held for this at the People's

Palace. For doing this students were rewarded with a

Historical workshop and visit to areas of the Palace

the public are not allowed to see , including the

“Victorian Theatre” that is being rebuilt.

The theatre really is a treasure with the walls and

stage being so carefully recrafted. The students went

'under the stage' and were shown how the theatre

works from below e.g. the 'trap doors' 'pullies' .

Staff at the Palace were equally impressed by our

students, and praised their skill and their behaviour.

Their hard work also got a mention in the local

paper.

PLANTING POPPIES IN THE PARK

LSE SUMMER SCHOOL

SUCCESS ON THE RACETRACK

Ms Hastings writes:

Congratulations to Usman Khan and Kevin Mustali

for being accepted onto the Year 11 Summer

School at the London School of Economics.

Competition for these places are extremely fierce

and they did exceptionally well in getting a place.

The week long school summer school will allow

them to take part in a range of social science

subjects and lean about university along with

developing team-work, problem solving, project

and presentation skills.

Ms Said writes:

Brandon Abraham is only in Year 7 but he is already

getting himself a reputation on the racetrack.

He has become one of the Top 10 drivers to

compete weekly at Edmonton indoor go-karting

track and frequently gets into the top listings. He

has now started his outdoor Karting career at

Buckmore Park “Sisley Karting School” where he

has already for the A-Final.

Well done Brandon. Keep the good work up!

and eventually worked out that the best ratio was

3:2 of bicarbonate of soda to citric acid. We added

scented oil, shaped our bath bombs and left them

to dry for next lesson. When we tested them, Ms

Esirorie decided that the best ones were made by

Rachael , Julissa, Eliane, Eda, Sadie and Phoebe,

because of their bright pink colour, their innovative

use of perfume, its neutral products and how

quickly it reacted. It was a great activity and we

enjoyed it.

April 2014

20

POEMS

Snow is here by

Liliane Vitoriano (7G)

When the first snowflakes fall, so light,

The feeling of excitement grows inside me.

I’m always waking up in the middle of the night

Knowing that tomorrow there will be something I’ll

love to see.

It’s a new day now and I can’t wait to play., I look

outside to see everything covered in milky white

snow.

I sprint outdoors and see everyone so merry and

gay

This is my favourite time of year I definitely know

Winter is ending, everything is melting away,

A new season called spring is just around the

corner

Maybe next year I’ll see you again.

But I wonder when.

Lightning and Thunder

by D’Shaan Morgan (7G)

Dark clouds looming

Dimming skies

Spelling curse

That hides in haze

Thunder grumbling

Lightning lights

Disturbing the quiet

Fights for night

Pouring rain

On drowning streets

To narrowing alleyways

And roads that bend

Washing traces of self-made

grime

Burying secrets

That blind the mind.

Summer poem

by Assisa, Phoebe and Maddie (7D)

People playing on the beach

Finishing sandcastles, making them com-

plete,

Hot as it can be, surfing in the sea

Golden and yellow sand,

Nothing seems bland,

The city is bored

Waiting, waiting to

Surf, surf on a board.

Sea and Sand

By Sydney, CJ, Zachlah and Honor (7D)

Walking across the sand

My foot prints follow behind

The sea laps onto the shore

The sand between my toes;

First my toe; then my feet;

My legs; my stomach and then, before

I know; I’m under, under, under

the deep, dark, blue sea

Purple, pink, blue and green fishes;

I see.

April 2014

21

Mr O’Connor writes:

Year 10 students experienced a thought provoking

play called 'Sugar and Spice' from the 'Futures

Theatre Company' on Tuesday 1st April, that dealt

with issues of gender stereotyping and sexual

coercion. The play examined gender roles and

expectations of boys and girls in relationships in a

realistic and troubling scenario. But the Futures

Theatre Company went further than simply

performing the play by engaging the students in

actively examining the issues in the subsequent

forum workshops - questioning the key themes

raised, as they re-played key scenes with members

of the audience.

The laughter and critical thinking that followed was

given an added twist because the first performance

was solely for Year 10 girls, the second for Year 10

boys.

We wanted to give space for the maximum number

of students to be engaged and involved, and giving

boys and girls their own space to consider these

issues certainly did that. Having observed both

sessions, the reactions from girls and boys differed

significantly - we will see what happens next as we

pursue these questions in a joint discussions in the

classroom.

All students gave written feedback at the end, and

although the difference of views expressed was as

great within the genders as between them, there

were strong opinions from both groups that will

need to be challenged and explored. This event is

part of a series of initiatives aimed at raising issues

of gender stereotyping, sexism and healthy

relationships within the student body.

"Sexism isn't a problem in school" Year 10 boy

"A person isn't a person without rights" Year 10

boy

"Boys are better than girls, and girls should do

everything they ask them to" Year 10 boy

"The school needs to look for signs of inequality -

not just for girls, but also boys" Year 10 girl

"Sexism should be taken more seriously than it is"

Year 10 girl

"The play was funny and a good representation of

modern day troubles our generation face" Year 10

girl

April 2014

22

EASTER REVISION \CATCHUP SESSIONS

Mr Hartley writes:

There are a number of revision\catch-up sessions

for Year 11 students happening over the Easter

break. A full schedule of these is available on the

school website.

There are also a number of resources on the school

website to help you revise. Go to the Student Tab

and click on Exam Preparation.

Sessions during the school week when we return

after the Easter break are also available on-line.

Ms Zwicky writes:

The Art & Photography department had the

opportunity to visit Barcelona over the first

weekend of February half-term. With glorious

weather throughout, we were able to experience

the vibrant city and what it has to offer culturally.

The amazing architecture of Gaudi formed much of

the inspiration for the students to record through

drawing and photography, exploring his creations

and visions. Some of the highlights were Park Guell,

offering amazing views over Barcelona, as well as

observing Gaudi’s Mosaic work close up.

The Segrada Familia impressed the students with its

sheer size and transformative use of colour.

Throughout the trip Students kept sketchbooks,

some of which were awarded with prizes due to

their consistently high quality. They were; Natasha

Fairclough, Marley Pitsilides, Chace Theera, Abdi

Adan, Sonia Martinelli.

I love the fact that this trip has inspired many of the

students in their current work toward the exam,

evidencing their inspiration and influence of the trip

on their work.

BARCELONA!

April 2014

23

Mr Robertson writes:

The HWS Feminist group is a safe and friendly

environment in which girls can come and discuss

issues of sexism and discrimination which happen

throughout society. Over 50 girls attended our

first meeting and we look forward to having lots

more discussions and activities throughout the

rest of the year.

Anyone wishing to know more should contact me,

Ms McGurk or Mr O'Connor.

HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL FEMINIST GROUP

Rosa Tully writes:

For many years women have been fighting

injustices they face. It is often easy to now define

our society as equal and fair. However, on

Monday lunch time it became clearly that this was

in fact not the case. Girls that afternoon spoke

about a number of cases of sexism they faced

within and out of school and how that had

effected their lives. Feminism is simply the idea

that you accept that there are still inequalities

that disadvantage women and that you want to

be an active member of a group of people who

want to change that. Mondays meeting and this

group's aim is to remove any misconceptions that

surround feminism as well as creating a

comfortable environment for girls to talk about

these problems.

Sadie Goswell writes:

Last Monday, (on the half day) I, along with 30 or

so other girls attended a feminist workshop. It was

a half day, well spent.

Although the representative from UK Feminista

couldn't make it, the afternoon was a great success.

I now feel confident and able to speak out against

something that I believe is wrong and I no longer

doubt myself where I used to. Many boys reacted

negatively when they were told that they wouldn't

be invited to the workshop but it was really nice to

be in an environment where you knew you weren't

going to be attacked (arguing wise) and the

atmosphere was all round really positive.

I really look forward to the next meeting and

possibly even a future regarding feminism. I would

thoroughly recommend any of the girls to come

whether you have experienced first hand sexism or

not.

PositivYouth HARINGEY

Thanks to PostivYouth Haringey, not simply for the

fantastic work you are doing promoting the

achievements and aspirations of our young people,

but also for your health workshop work with our

Year 9 students.

Why not follow them on @PYNHaringey

April 2014

24

Mr Russell writes:

This half term has seen another eight students

experience what education is like in another

country. Joshua Rodney, Tre Jackson, Sam Ayres,

Jahidul Hussain, Scarlett Monaighan, Ebony

Walcott, Burcin Garip and Jace Griffiths,

accompanied by Ms Angove and Mr Talbert, made

the trip to Staatliches Gymnasium “Marie Curie”,

our partner school in Worbis, Germany.

During this trip

the students

contributed to

project work on

social media use

and education in

the UK, Belgium

and Germany.

They also experienced German culture, taking part

in activities which included: having dinner with

their German hosts, ice skating as well as going on

a sightseeing tour of the state capital.

The My World, our World, our Environment project

will continue in May with another eight Year 9

students travelling to Dilbeek in Belgium. Max

Hartel, Olsi Shehu, Anton Beka, Jake Canton-Perry,

Alisa Gudzinskaite, Janice Makambu, Hannah

Ramsden and Amber McKenzie will be contributing

to international project work focusing on the UK

education system of the past and how teaching and

subjects have changed.

They will present their findings on how education

has changed in this country from 1950 to the

present day. The project work will culminate with

the group creating their own ‘School of the Future.’

MY WORLD, OUR WORLD...

Ms Watkins writes:

On Thursday 3rd April, 9 Year 10

students will be attending the

annual Debate Mate cup final. This year it is being

held at the London School of Economics and is sure

to be an exciting day for all.

We will have two teams competing against schools

from across London. The teams are strong and we

already know how competitive they will be from

the practice rounds we have had.

We wish them all the very best of luck!

DEBATE MATE - CUP FINAL

Alexandra Horton writes:

On March 7th, a group of

Year 11 English Literature

students departed the

school for Central Hall, Westminter, a venue fit for

the bold personas whose poetry skills were

celebrated.

We were treated to poets such as the critically

acclaimed Simon Armitage and Carol Ann Duffy.

Six poets took the stage over the course of the day

and shared their stories and poems with over 2000

students from secondary schools all over London.

A highlight for everyone was the enigmatic John

Agard, who opened the show with an explosive

reading of some of his poems, including ones

studied for English Literature GCSE. This gave us an

exclusive insight into the mind of the poet and

opened up new interpretations. Agard, along with

all the other poets, performed not only their own

poetry, but one from another source, such as

Shakespeare.

Overall, the event was an unforgettable and

thought-provoking day, and had us talking all the

way home.

ARMITAGE, AGARD AND DUFFY

April 2014

25

Scene from “When I was a girl, I used to Scream & Shout”

Mr Contor writes:

Thank you to all the parents and friends who

supported the students’ productions that were

showcased at the end of February.

Drama Studio D3 was transformed into an intimate

theatre space which enabled the students to

perform a range of plays from Noughts and

Crosses; an adaptation of Marjorie Blackman’s

novel, several avante garde interpretations of

Metamorphosis by Steven Berkoff, to scenes from

The Crucible by Arthur Miller, When I was a Girl I

used to Scream and Shout by Sharman Macdonald,

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess and

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee.

The students had a real sense of theatre and were

able to use the performances for their acting exams

which were held during the following two weeks.

As usual, the students worked very hard to have

their plays ready for the three nights.

We are taking the cast of Noughts and Crosses to

see Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory soon

as a reward for their efforts. It was pleasing to see

the students use competently various acting styles

like Physical Theatre, Naturalism and Epic Theatre

during the production nights.

Scene from Year 9’s Noughts and Crosses Zoe Adamou-Dutton

Neena Afua-Nsafoah

Maya Aylott Harvey

Oscar Banyard

Amira Barkhouche

Phoebe Bennett

Georgia Bitmead

Kai Blyth-Foster

Shandice Bowsher

Eleanor Brady

Ashyha Broomes

Ty Candapa

Lucy Carter

Aldous Ciokajilo-Square

Ruby Clarke

Clara Culshaw

Ellie Delamere

Alaine Demosthenous

Jessica Eldridge

Charis Entwistle

Edie Fitt Martin

Jenny Freeman

Jace Griffiths

Gazel Guvenc

Daisy Hart

Karina Ioannou

Eleanor Jones

Maya Kally

Abel Kent

Leila Kikuchi-House

Laura Laughlan

Omar Lindsay

Amy Lowcock

Alix Luka-Cain

Imogen Marks

Jack Masson

Lola Mayers

Rosie McCann

Iman Meehan

Laura Moss

Sina Nafissir

Ellis Newbury

Cali Nice

Chloe Petmezas-Walker

Beatrice Plummer

Ella Pollak-Fleming

Takiyah Roach

Megan Selby

Megan Selby

Aaron Sherratt

Shakrah Siffre-Banerji

Alex Singhal

Fionnuala Stevens

Alex Vidic

Tony Williams Wood

Magda Zieja

SEASON OF PLAYS

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE STUDENTS INVOLVED

IN THE THREE FANTASTIC EVENINGS OF DRAMA

More photos from the productions are on the

front cover and will soon be available to view in

The Drum and also on the school website.

April 2014

26

Mr Goldberg writes:

On Wednesday 19th March the sun shone down on

Crouch End as students from Highgate Wood

School participated in the schools inaugural inter-

house relays for Sport Relief.

Runners from Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 formed teams of

five to run the 1km course around the school in a

simple relay format. The event also contributed

points to the 2013/14 inter-house totals. Thirteen

teams turned out in order to complete the 1km

course and start the ball rolling for Highgate Wood

Schools Sport Relief fund-raising tally.

From the off every runner committed their physical

limits to the cause in order to one, attempt to win

the event in representing their house but more

HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL DOES SPORT RELIEF

importantly gain the acceptance of the Sport Relief

Gods to raise money for Sport Relief.

The winning team were from Seacole House in Year

9 (Elio Cravid, Keenan Amos and Randal Harrison)

who, although down two men late on in the day,

two of the team stepped up to the plate to run

twice, no doubt adding weight to their fund raising

crusade.

The finish line atmosphere was thick with

excitement as the final runners came into the

home straight; cheers of jubilation greeted the fifth

runners through the gate. With high fives all round

April 2014

27

and congratulations a plenty, I could not have

been more proud of every single individual who

took part. The funds are still being collected but

the total will be revealed in the next insight. So far

however there have already been two £20

donations, a £23.35 donation and an amazing £58

raised by one student alone.

Additionally, the inter-house relays contributed

points to the house totals, the current standings

are below:

1st 67 points

66 2nd points

3rd 53 points

Mr Harlow writes

On the last Monday of the term singing students

performed songs they have been working on this

term in the hall. The school's singing tutor, Fran

Lewis, arranged the concert to show parents and

students the talent she works with. There were

songs form musicals and pop songs on show.

The recital gave an opportunity for some students

such as Zoe Hutchings, Jessica Eldridge and Libby

Archer to run through their songs in front of an

audience before their upcoming grade 8 singing

exams. Everyone who attended was blown away by

the quality of music they saw and the solos, from

students such as Melinda Azemi were particularly

moving.

VOICE RECITAL

The school calendar is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com

Keep informed Find out what is going on at Highgate Wood School and keep up with our news

visit us at our website www.hws.uk.com

follow us on twitter twitter.com/highgatewood

Check the school’s opening status

Call 02084087508 and give the school’s DfE code: 3094030

Insight is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com

SUMMER 2014

Tues 22nd April

27th—30th May

Friday 18th July

Term Starts

Half term break

Term Ends*

Year 10 Work Experience Week 28th April—2nd May

Year 7 Parent Consultation Evening Wednesday 14th May

Year 11 Leavers’ Assembly Friday 23rd May

Term Starts 22nd April

School starts again on

Tuesday 22nd April

at 10:50am

It will be Week 2

* Term ends for students

AUTUMN 2014

Mon 1st September

27th Oct - 31st Oct

Friday 19th Dec

Term Starts

Half term break

Term Ends

SPRING 2015

Monday 5th Jan

13th Feb– 20th Feb

Friday 27th March

Term Starts

Half term break

Term Ends

Year 9 End of Key Stage 3 Exams 23rd—25th April

The summer exam timetable (for both GCSE

and A Level (GCE)) is available on the school

website. Go to the Learning (or Students) tab

and then click on Exams

Please note that we will not authorise holidays taken within term time.