Thursday 22 October 2015

Open Sessions

We have just concluded a very successful period of open sessions

for prospective parents. For both the open evening and the open

sessions, the conduct, friendliness and pride demonstrated by the

students involved, both as participants in the open evening and

tour guides for the open mornings, was clearly noted and highly

praised. The pupils’ willingness and enthusiasm for supporting the

school on these occasions is a real feature of our school

community and we thank all participants for their contributions.

Nigel Hill

Deputy Headteacher

“Watch It Made” Workshops We recently had a fantastic visit from Lindsay Chapman, a NPL Scientist telling us all about time. To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Atomic Clock, NPL are running 'Watch it Made' workshops in half term where participants will be able to make their own customised NPL watch. Aimed at Years 7 - 9, the workshops are free apart from a £10 charitable donation and run throughout the week. If you would like to book a place for your child please click this link for further information. http://www.npl.co.uk/news/watch-it-made

Upcoming Events Friday 23 October Start of Half Term School closed to all students Monday 2 November End of Half Term All students back in School 08.40 Wednesday 4 November Sixth Form Open Evening 18.30 - 21.00 Friday 6 November Year 12 Safe Drive Stay Alive Dorking Halls 10.30 - 14.15 Friday 6 November Year 12 Psychology Conference Institute of Education 10.45 - 16.00

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Sports Awards

Thursday 15 October marked the Sports Awards 2015 at Teddington School. Please read below for some students accounts.

For me there were many highlights, but my favourite was winning an award for trampolinist of the year.

This is the second time I have received this award but it still takes me by surprise to be recognised.

There were a lot of different categories including sports achievements, behaviour and school values.

These awards were given out by Topsy Oji, a famous rugby player. The evening was a great

experience and I already look forward to attending next year.

By Jasmie Bates, 9S2

I really enjoyed the Sports Awards 2015, it was a good experience and well-organised. I liked the fact

that Topsy Oji came in and gave us a talk about how he became who he is, it was very inspiring. The

highlights, for me, were when I won two awards. One with the Year 7/8 basketball team and another

for Effort and Achievement at Key Stage 3. I will be attending again next year even if I do not win any

award; just to cheer people on.

By Jessica Molyneux-Zelenczuk, 9T1

The Teddington School Sports Awards are most definitely the highlight of the school calendar;

happening once a year to come together and celebrate our sporting successes as a school community.

This year did not strive from greatness and, despite mostly celebrating individual awards, it was an

evening that emphasised how caring, supporting and empathetic our students can be. It also gave the

PE department a chance to show off their success over the past year and allows excelling sporting and

non-sporting students to be recognised for their hard work and endeavour. However, it is important to

remember that it is not only a night for the sporting elite but also a night for the students who show

great effort and integrity throughout PE lessons and other sporting events like Sports Day.

By Joe Nolan and Alice Griffiths, 11Y2

Cricket Training Session With Bushy Park Girls

Come and play cricket at Bushy Park Girls CC open day. Try your hand at bowling, batting and fielding

with our friendly qualified coaches. No previous experience necessary and no special equipment

needed. Just come along in trainers and tracksuit bottoms. Free for all.

Who: Girls aged 9 to 12 years old.

Date: Saturday 14 November

Time: 1.00 pm to 2.30 pm

Venue: Teddington Sports Centre, Sports Hall, Teddington School, Teddington, TW11 9PJ

The session will end with a free take-away packed lunch courtesy of our sponsors Waitrose. To

register please visit the website at www.bushyparkgirls.org. Places will be offered on a first come first

served basis

Applying For Oxbridge

Having recently submitted their applications to Oxbridge through UCAS, some of our students wished

to outline their experience of the process since many students are not fully aware of the steps involved.

The first step is considering whether you would like to attend one of the institutions – this entails

looking at their websites for course information, entry requirements and the universities themselves.

Since Oxford and Cambridge are high calibre institutions, applicants will need to show a passion and

commitment to their subject as well as academic ability. The first piece of evidence for this is your

personal statement. After receiving your AS results, you will begin fine tuning your personal statement

with help from your tutor, subject teachers and the leadership team. At this stage, the school will be

writing your reference. The deadline for Oxbridge, as well as Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary

Science applications is always on the 15 of October so you will need to ensure all aspects of your

application are completed by this deadline. The school will assist you in other aspects of the

application, such as student finance, predicted grades and education history. At this point, you will

begin having mock interviews, which are run by the school, to prepare for potential interviews. If you

are invited for interview and subsequently receive an offer then congratulations. If you don’t’ receive an

offer then don’t worry! Oxford and Cambridge are very competitive universities and only 1 in 5

applicants will receive an offer, there are many other great universities that will enable you to study the

subject you love. Best of luck to all future applicants!

By Ashley Allen, Zong Yan Zhuang and Annabel van der Kooy, Year 13

Applying For Oxbridge

I have applied to study computer science and mathematics at Cambridge as well as at Imperial

College London, Warwick, Bristol and Bath. I have always wanted to study computer science at

university but since studying further mathematics at A-Level, I have also developed a great interest in

mathematics so I am applying for a joint honours degree since I am eager to study both. Cambridge

require that computer science and mathematics applicants take the sixth term examination paper

which is a challenging maths paper designed to test a student’s mathematical prowess and lateral

thinking skills. Cambridge also requires that all applicants submit a supplementary application

questionnaire which asks for your UMS grades at AS as well as other personal details.

By Ashley Allen, 13LR I have applied to study mathematics at Cambridge as well as applying to Imperial College London,

UCL, Warwick and Southampton. Mathematics has always been the subject I am most interested in

because of two things: the excitement and satisfaction I get from reaching a solution to a problem, and

seeing the commonality of the maths in every aspect of our life. After all, mathematics has a pervasive

influence on our everyday lives and contributes to the wealth of the country. Cambridge require that

mathematics applicants take the sixth term examination paper which involves normal mathematics

learned from school but often requires a lot more “thinking outside of the box”.

By Zong Yan Zhuang, 13PG

I have applied to study materials science at Oxford as well as Sheffield, Birmingham, Manchester and

Imperial College London. Materials science is an amalgam of physics, chemistry and engineering and

is at the forefront of technological development. If you study maths, physics and chemistry at A Level, I

would definitely recommend having a look into it. Having submitted my application last week, I am now

in the daunting yet exciting stage of waiting to hear back from universities to find out whether I have

been invited for interview. As part of my application to Oxford, I am taking the physics aptitude test in

November.

By Annabel van der Kooy, 13LM

Uniform

I would like to thank all parents who, in response to my previous letters on uniform, have shown their support and appreciation for our drive for greater consistency regarding this important aspect of our school culture. It is wonderful to see that more and more students are sporting the correct footwear and that our skirts are being worn at a more appropriate length. Please may I remind parents that after half-term, students who are still not complying with our school uniform will, in the first instance, be asked to go home to change into the correct uniform and Year Leaders will contact home. Many thanks again for your continued support. Nigel Hill Deputy Headteacher

Teddington School PTA Update

To keep up with the latest PTA news and events follow us on Twitter @teddschPTA Teddington Trading Please follow the link below for this month’s Teddington Trading. https://fluencycontent-schoolwebsite.netdna-ssl.com/FileCluster/Teddington/Mainfolder/TT-MASTER-OCTOBER2015.pdf PTA Update Thank you to all of those people who have been involved with and supported the PTA this half term. The PTA is about raising money but also about having some fun and we have definitely managed both this half term. As well as having the covenant scheme we have now made it even easier to support our school financially. You can donate to the PTA at any time either via Virgin Money Giving http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/charity-web/charity/finalCharityHomepage.action?charityId=1004039 or by going to the Teddington School PTA Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TeddingtonSchoolPTA?fref=ts where you can click the "Donate to PTA" tab and donate via paypal. As we have said before all donations are appreciated and make a real difference to our students' experiences at Teddington School.

If you have questions of queries then contact us pta@teddingtonschool.org

Teddington School PTA

Teddington School Sports Result Summary

Friday 16 October - Thursday 22 October 2015

Open Sessions

We have just concluded a very successful period of open sessions for prospective parents. For both

the open evening and the open sessions, the conduct, friendliness and pride demonstrated by the

students involved, both as participants in the open evening and tour guides for the open

mornings, was clearly noted and highly praised. The pupils’ willingness and enthusiasm for supporting

the school on these occasions is a real feature of our school community and we thank all participants

for their contributions.

Nigel Hill

Deputy Headteacher

Football

Time/Date Team Venue Opponent Result Type Report

14:30 Tues 20 Oct 15

Boys Year 9 Away Harris City Academy Crystal Palace

Won : 5 - 2 County Cup Round 2

Goals: Roadnight 2, O’Brien 2, own goal

14:15 Tues 20 Oct 15

Girls Year 8 Away Waldegrave School for Girls

Lost : 2 - 3 League

Rugby Union

Time/Date Team Venue Opponent Result Type Report

16:30 Fri 16 Oct 15

Boys Year 10 Away Emanuel School

Lost : 12 - 43 National Plate Round 1

Tries: Blanchard, Parsons Cons: Harris MVP(s): Oscar Blanchard

16:00 Fri 16 Oct 15

Boys Year 9 Away Christ’s School

Lost : 0 - 33 League MVP(s): Toby Fletcher

15:40 Wed 21 Oct 15

Boys Year 9 Home Vyners School

Lost : 0 - 52 County Plate - Quarter Fi-nal

MVP(s): Euan Nicholl-Kayes

Important Dates for Autumn Term 2015