Dear Families
I hope this email finds you and those closest to you in the best of health. We have had another busy week at the academy with our first Drop Down Day of the year and our Post 16 Open Evening both taking place this week.
Year 7 Settling in Evening
Our settling in evening for Year 7 families takes place on the 8th November. The platform for booking appointments will close on 27th October so please ensure that you have booked your slot by then. This evening will not only provide an opportunity to talk to your child’s form tutor but you can also hear from heads of the English, Maths and Science faculties who will talk about the KS3 curriculum with a particular focus on the Year 7 scheme of work. In addition, families will also be able to learn how to use Class Charts, our learning platform to support your child’s education.
Post 16 Open Evening
Our Post 16 Open Evening took place on Wednesday night current Year 11 students and visitors from other schools taking up the opportunity to meet our specialist teaching staff and gain an insight into Post 16 study at Derby Moor. I would like to say thank you to our staff for making the event happen but also to our student ambassadors who really showcased the depth of talent we have in our sixth form. I am always impressed with their confidence in these situations and their willingness to help out and share their experiences with visitors.
Drop Down Day
Our students took part in the first Drop Down Day of the year on Thursday 19th October. They had the opportunity to learn from a variety of experts about statutory PSHCE topics throughout the day as well as developing essential employability skills. Highlights included an opportunity to explore under sea life through Virtual Reality goggles, a trip to Dudley Castle and Zoo, exploring breathing, music, rhythm and poetry as coping strategies for anger and stress and a Dragon’s Den Panel of employers looking at ethical technological innovations.
Year 11 Mock Examinations
A reminder to families that the first round of Year 11 mocks will start immediately after the half term break. The Year Group have made a really focused start to the year and we are hoping they will be rewarded with a pleasing set of results on this first window of assessments.
Parking
Please can we remind parents/carers to be considerate to the neighbours of our school when parking to drop off and pick up their children. The school does have a turning circle to support the picking up and dropping off of children and we would advise you to use this where possible. Parking on Moorway Lane and the adjacent streets is inconsiderate and increases the danger to our children who walk. Thank you for your support in this matter.
Link to Hope Shoebox Appeal
Tutor groups have been busy collecting gift items to fill a shoebox for our appeal. The final deadline for getting the completed Shoeboxes to Mr Scott’s office is next Friday 27th October.
Charity Event to Raise Money for Save the Children – Israel/Gaza Crisis
On Thursday 26th October at lunchtime, there will be a range of activities for students to participate in and to show their support. All money raised will go to the Save the Children Charity to help their Israel/Gaza crisis appeal. Students have come up with a huge range of activities to help raise funds including Small Henna Designs, Team Quiz, Watching Programme, Playing Retro games, Lunchtime Music DJ, Save the Children Mural Board, Save the children Pin Badge, Guess the Number of Sweets in the Jar and the Steady Hand game. Students wanting to contribute will need to bring cash in on the day.
Principal’s Coffee Morning
The next Principal’s coffee morning is on Wednesday 22 November, 9.40 am to 10.40 am. Families should sign in at reception and will be collected at the start of the event.
Upcoming Events in November
- Remembrance Day (Poppies are on sale now) w/c Monday 6 November.
- We will celebrate Diwali with our students on Friday 10 November. Student Leadership will be running a Diwali fair with a range of activities for students to engage with.
- Anti-Bullying week – w/c Monday 13 November. Odd Socks day on Monday 13 November 2023.
Lost Property
We would like to remind parents to ensure items of clothing are clearly labelled with their child’s name and form group, you would be surprised by the amount of lost property we acquire at school which we are unable to return because it isn’t labelled. We appreciate how expensive it is to replace missing school uniform, bags, coats and equipment so please do label items and ask your child to check lost property to reclaim them.
Inktober Drawing Competition Launch
A reminder for students and staff to submit their entries for the Inktober Drawing competition. Students in all years can take part, picking one word from the official prompt list and producing a drawing based upon it. They must use pen on paper only. The deadline is 6th November and entries can be submitted into the Inktober Post Box.
Computing Update
This week’s update from our computing team is about talking to your child about potentially distressing current affairs and helping them make sense of matters.
Sports Update
Year 8 Star Student of the Month: Year 8 student, AT, was asked to help Mrs Shaw with the coaching side of netball on Monday. She led a warm up and a shooting drill to 24 Year 7-11 students and she was outstanding. Her performance has helped her be named PE’s Star Student on the month. Well done!
DCCT: The Derby Moor representatives for Derby County Community Trust played in their ‘very’ local derby in their most recent fixture, coming up against another Derby County team in the league. The team prepared well in the warm up and were motivated to get a positive result. They did not disappoint. The Derby Moor based team got their first win of the campaign on the board with a fantastic 4-2 win and scoring some very well worked goals! The pick of the bunch coming from one of the central midfielders with a long range strike that looped over the goalkeeper! The team look forward to their next fixture in a couple of weeks time against West Brom who are placed top of the league.
Year 11 Football: Derby Moor 3-1 Ecclesbourne. Following defeat last time out, the Year 11 boys put in an excellent display to see off a very strong and talented Ecclesbourne side. Ecclesbourne started the brighter team and played some lovely one touch football creating a number of chances in the first 10 minutes. This pressure paid off with an opening goal from a close range effort. Derby Moor came back in to the game strongly and scored 2 goals in quick succession with a tap in from SL and a composed finish from JB to go in at half time 2-1 up. The second half saw some great goalkeeping from both keepers with a particular outstanding save from FT catching the eye, tipping the ball on to the bar and then saving the second attempt from the rebound. Derby Moor confirmed the victory with a lovely move down the right with JB crossing for LP to finish in to an empty net. Player of the match was LP, a great outlet all game and sealing the victory with a goal.
Cross Country Relays: Mr Budd and Mrs Ezis were so proud of the young people who put on sterling performances in spite of the wet and very muddy conditions at the inter-school relay championships at West Park School on Friday. Particular praise must go to JG of Yr8 and KO of Year 9 who ran an extra leg of the relay to complete the teams. Well done to all participants.
Careers Update
This week’s job of the week is a ‘Building Surveyor’.
Derby Moor Dispatch: The Derby Moor Dispatch goes out every Monday to all students in Year 11, 12 and 13. The Dispatch contains a wide range of opportunities for work experience, summer schools, careers related webinars and so on. Please do have a look at the latest edition. The Dispatch is emailed to the students’ school email address so it is important that they check this regularly on a Monday. You can also view the Dispatch via the Careers page of the Derby Moor website. Please take a look at the website as there is a wealth of useful information including a specific page for parents.
JCB Visit: On Friday 20 October, JCB visited school to run a session on their current apprenticeship programmes and to explain to students how they can apply. These will be real apprenticeships that will start from September 2024 and range from Level 2 & 3 apprenticeships, particularly suitable for students finishing Year 11 and Level 4 and 6 apprenticeships aimed at students finishing the Sixth Form. Applications have gone live and we would encourage students to apply or ask for help if they need any support with their applications. You can view the range of apprenticeships on offer via this link.
Luminate Careers: Kat Garland, Flavia Ojok and Jessica Townsend from Luminate Careers continue to be in school regularly throughout the week. As well as seeing students for 1:1 sessions or part of a group workshop, they are also available to support with completing application forms and checking CVs etc. Any student who wants some help simply need to ask their tutor to make them an appointment or drop in and see one of the Luminate team in the careers room. Luminate also have an excellent website with a wealth of useful information and a newsletter for students in Years 11-13.
Final Notes
We’ve had an interesting week at the academy this week with a huge number of visitors on site, trips away from school and some extraordinary weather conditions. It was great to connect with some families on Tuesday and show them around the academy during the school day. This is something I’ve been looking to organize for some time, so it is great to get this off the ground. I will be showing more families around this Tuesday and have visitors from across our Trust on site on Wednesday taking in a sample of how things work at the Academy. You will also note a number of fundraising activities taking place next week and our first round of mocks on the horizon after the upcoming half term break.
Wishing you a peaceful weekend.
Best wishes,
Scott Doyle
Principal