Achievement | Diversity | Respect
16 June 2023
Parent and Carer Weekly Mailing
Keep us posted - It would be great if parents/carers could let the school know of any student achievements outside of school. We would like to find out what students are doing in their own time and celebrate their achievements. Email us: weeklymailing@cotham.bristol.sch.uk
Week commencing Monday 19 June 2023 is Week A
Standing Items are now located at the bottom of the mailing.
Headteacher's Welcome
Dear Parents and Carers
Please also find this week’s mailing with important information for parents/carers and students as well as updates on school events, activities and opportunities for your reference below.
I wish you all a restful weekend.
Kindest regards,
Ms Jo Butler, Headteacher
Positive feedback of the week 👍
Well Done
Well done to two of our Year 9 students who have left for Barcelona to represent their basketball club Bristol Lions in an international basketball tournament. Bristol Lions prides itself on being an inclusive club that offers great opportunities to young men and women within the Basketball community. The sport provider focuses on the life skills that are transferable within the sport into everyday life including, teamwork, problem solving, leadership and emotional control and resiliency.
Our students have been selected to represent their club, as well as the City of Bristol in the Euro Basketball Cup Tournament where they will have the opportunity to compete at a high level against international competition. Not only will they have the on-court experiences of playing at this competitive level, they will also absorb the cultural differences in which many other countries approach the sport and spend time networking with other coaches and players at the tournament. It is also an amazing opportunity for the players to get to build teamwork and comradery with their fellow players.
We wish you Good Luck!
Thank you
Do you know our three school values?
Word of the Week
KS3
Modify: ‘Mo-duh-fai’
KS4
Inhibit: ‘in-hib-it’
New Announcements
IMPORTANT
Talking to Children about Youth Violence and Knife Crime
After the tragic killing of a 16-year old Bristol boy in Bath last weekend, and the subsequent letter from the police that all schools in Bristol and Bath sent out to parents and carers on Thursday, we feel this is a good time to share some resources with our parents and carers should you wish to talk about this issue further with your child.
We will also do some work with our students over the next two weeks on this issue and how to ensure that they are keeping themselves safe at all times through the tutor programme.
A really useful website for parents and carers is this one from Avon and Somerset Police containing many resources that you can use with your children and/or for yourself. Key highlights are:
for parents and carers: a short documentary made by young people called 'Knife Crime: A new way forward' explaining what they think is driving youth violence and exploring potential solutions
for students: short videos produced by students at three Bristol schools:
Lifeb4Likes – Merchants Academy – the dangerous world of putting social media popularity before another human’s life.
Eye for an Eye – Taunton Academy – how bullying can make a victim want to get revenge. However, the philosophy of an eye for an eye only makes the world blind.
Speak Up – Broadoak Academy – the guilt suffered by a friend who wanted to tell someone about his friend carrying a knife, but didn’t.
In addition, here is a useful guide for parents and carers to help you feel more confident to talk to your child about this issue.
Furthermore, The Ben Kinsella Trust are running free online workshops on Tuesday 20 June & Tuesday 27 June specifically for parents and carers on 'Exploitation, Gangs and Knife Crime Awareness'. You will learn more about what is regular teenager behaviour or what might be signs that a young person in your care is being groomed or exploited. You can find out more and sign up for one of these workshops here.
VOI Scooters
Please be aware that we are having reports of students using the VOI Electric scooters around the community.
These scooters are intended for the use of those over 18 and possessing a driving license.
This is due to the obvious dangers of inexperienced road users trying to negotiate traffic and the serious consequences that this could entail.
Please speak to your children and ask them to make sure they are keeping themselves safe by not using the VOI scooters around the city.
More information can be found on the VOI Website here
Year 7 Book Club
The Year 7s will be reading and discussing The Girl of Ink and Stars by Kiran Millwood Hargrave every Wednesday after school, upstairs in the library from 2.45 until 3.30.
More information here.
Oracy Workshop - Year 7
This week a group of our Year 7s took part in an Oracy Workshop run by a combination of Year 9 Cotham and Clifton College students. Our Year 9s Waad, Grey and Bonita did a fantastic job of designing and delivering the workshop, encouraging the Year 7 students to think about how they present themselves and express their ideas to an audience. The Year 7 students who attended were fantastic - full of ideas and opinions. We all had a great time and are looking forward to rolling out the Oracy workshops to more students in the future.
Year 8
Year 8s are currently taking part in painting and designing the unicorn for UnicornFest. We have also had some great contributions to finish off our 'Who Inspires You?' board, where students wrote a short paragraph of who inspires them.
Additionally we have begun sign ups for the 3x3 Basketball tournament following the success of the 5-a-Side football tournament.
The Year 8 Chess Tournament is still ongoing with great engagement.
WildEd Group - Year 9
The WildEd Group in Year 9 took a trip to the largest group-led restoration project of its kind in the heart of the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park in Wales. As part of The Penpont Project, students learnt about the work being done with farmers, conservationists and landowners to restore habitats and ecosystems and explore farming and forestry approaches. They were also given the chance to work on the site to build habitats and farm new plants.
IMG_0023.jpegIMG_0035.jpegIMG_0010.jpegYear 9 - Bristol Bears
On Monday 12 June, Year 9 welcomed from Bear Country, Bristol Bears player Holly Phillips. Holly spoke about her journey and the obstacles she had to overcome to become a premiership rugby player for Bristol Bears and her aspirations for the future.
We ended the session with a short video highlighting Holly's training and playing at Bears and did a "would you rather" question round.
The students were amazing and were incredibly inspired by her visit. Holly commented on how impressed she was with the Year 9 students and signed some autographs for the Bristol Bears fans.
Thank you Holly for taking the time to visit Year 9 and inspiring our students.
Many thanks to Mrs Arnold for making Holly's visit possible!
IMG_4139.JPGIMG_4145.JPGHolly Phillips - Return - For Stevo.movYear 10 Ceramics
This week, year 10 have been looking at the work of ceramic artist Kate Malone. Working with clay they have made pumpkins using the coiling technique then moulding them into a pumpkin shape. Once dried they'll be glazed ready for the kiln.
WOTW Y10 CLAY PUMPKINS.pdfYear 10 - Track For The Future
This week, a group of year 10's completed the second part of the ‘Track for the Future’ programme at Network Rail. This is an amazing opportunity for our students to explore the many careers linked with working within Network Rail.
Year 10 - Celebration Event
On Wednesday we had a showcase and celebration event where our students had the opportunity to thank their teachers for all their hard work in the classroom this year and it
was also a chance for colleagues to share snippets of best practice with each other. Our teachers are passionate about what they do and go the extra mile for their students. This was a wonderful afternoon of gratitude and celebration of the excellent teaching and learning that we have here at Cotham.
On Wednesday we had a showcase and celebration event where our students had the opportunity to thank their teachers for all their hard work in the classroom this year and it
was also a chance for colleagues to share snippets of best practice with each other. Our teachers are passionate about what they do and go the extra mile for their students. This was a wonderful afternoon of gratitude and celebration of the excellent teaching and learning that we have here at Cotham.
Year 11 - Well Done
Well done to all of the Year 11 students. You have all really stepped up and been very mature about taking these exams and we are all so proud of you! For some of you, they are over! For some you only have a few left! I look forward to seeing you at the Leavers Assembly.
Performing Arts Summer Sharing
An evening hosted by the Performing Arts Department on Thursday 29 June in the Main Hall at 6.30pm featuring drama, dance and music performances . Tickets are available on Wisepay at £3 Adult, £1 Open concession and £5 pay it forward.
Steel Pans
Our Summer Steel Pans Concert will be held in the outdoor amphitheatre featuring groups from Years 7-10. Tickets are available on Wisepay at £3 Adult, £1 Open concession and £5 pay it forward. Concert starts at 6.30pm.
Poster.jpgSteel Pans Feb 2023.jpgUnicornfest
Unicornfest is a 9-week public art sculpture trail, which will see a giant herd of ‘life-size’ unicorn sculptures displayed across Bristol and the surrounding region from Saturday 1 July to Sunday 3 September 2023.
As a commitment to the scheme each school agrees to fundraise for Leukaemia support. Leukaemia affects around 10,000 people per year and is the most common cancer in children - but Leukaemia is more common in adults aged 65 and above.
In support of the fundraising effort a number of fundraising activities will continue to take place until we reach our target of £700. Students will be informed of these in tutor sessions.
Our Foal has now gone to join the rest of the Herd to prepare to be exhibited at Bristol M Shed. Here you can see photos of the decoration of the foal with our theme of Food, linking our past of the flavours and spices which make Bristol so vibrant and the present the range of dishes prepared by students at home and in school. The Future aspect of our Foal focuses on the need to have more locally produced food. Our Year team have worked incredibly hard with the theme and preparing sketches at home ahead of decoration, we would like to thank Phoebe, Eda, Nikisha, Sunny, Clementine, Mollie, Amiyah, Niyati, Emma, Angell and Rama.
Parents and carers are also invited to contribute towards fundraising by adding a donation of their choice to WISEPAY- Fundraising Events / Unicorn Fest - Leukaemia Care. Please see the past video posted here
The Great Big Live Assembly
This year, in honour of World Refugee Day, our Year 7 students will be taking part in the Great Big Live Assembly. This is a 20 minute virtual assembly that will connect together around 500 schools representing 200,000 children at 9.05am on Tuesday 20 June.
The Great Big Live Assembly will celebrate the ways that schools up and down the UK have welcomed new arrivals from war-torn countries around the world into their classrooms and communities.
The Great Big Live Assembly has been organised by refugee charity Sanctuary Foundation. Dr Krish, who leads the charity will be hosting the assembly, has been working with refugees and children for over 25 years. He is an inspirational communicator, children’s author and diversity trainer. He is also an experienced foster carer who has received trauma training and will ensure the event is led in an engaging and sensitive way.
The Great Big live Assembly will include a live link to a World Vision child-friendly space in a refugee camp in Jordan. The children there will be answering questions about life for them.
We recognise that this event may prompt questions about some of the injustices in our world, and we have prepared some of our teachers to handle these sensitively.
If you would like to know more about the event, please click here.
If you would like your child to participate in the fundraising activities for the camp in Jordan, there will be a cake sale on Thursday 29 June at school. Your child could bring 50p or £1 to purchase some and the money will go to the charity World Vision.
History Department's recent Hampton Court Trip for Year12
The History department's recent expedition to Hampton Court in early June surpassed all expectations, and was a roaring success. The trip provided an unparalleled opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the captivating displays of power wielded by Henry VIII within the grandeur of Hampton Court. Additionally, it allowed them to delve into the complex motivations behind the Reformation, fortifying their understanding for their upcoming Tudor exam Paper in 2024.
The students' enthusiasm exemplified their unwavering dedication to their History A-level studies, significantly contributing to the resounding success of the excursion. Teachers were really impressed with their conduct.
Many thanks to Ms. Brice and Mr. Lloyd for their leadership on the trip.
Geography Department's recent Trip to Burnham-On-Sea for Year 10
The Geography department's excursion to Burnham-on-Sea at the end of May this year proved to be an outstanding achievement. The trip offered a remarkable opportunity for students to witness first-hand the dynamic interplay between physical and human processes—a vital experience that will greatly benefit them in their upcoming 2024 Paper 3 GCSE Geography examination.
The students' exemplary conduct and unwavering enthusiasm reflected their dedication to their Geography GCSE, contributing significantly to the resounding success of the trip. Members of the public expressed their admiration to Cotham staff for the students' exemplary behaviour during the independent research phase of the trip.
Thank you to Mr. Worster for his exceptional leadership, as well as to Mr. Madhar, Ms. Hodges, and Ms. Meek for their invaluable support in guiding their respective classes.
Bristol School of Acting - Open Evening
Bristol School of Acting are holding an Open Evening on Tuesday 20 June at 5pm at :
Bristol School of Acting,
Silver Street,
Bristol,
BS1 2AG.
These are for the Level 3 Extended Diploma courses in Dance and Professional Acting. Any Year10/11 students who are interested in Dance and/or Acting: Young people can sign up via our website by following the link
Family Lives Newsletter
Please follow the link to the June edition of Family Lives Newsletter - building better family lives together.
Digital Platforms Awards (Term 5)
Every term we like to acknowledge the great work that our teachers and students do on our digital learning platforms.
We mainly focus on GCSEPod and Seneca Learning at the moment, but are currently looking into using other platforms to help out students with their independent learning.
These are the main categories we give awards too:
Seneca
Teacher - Most Assignments Set
Faculty - Highest Avg Completion Rate
Student - Most Sessions Complete
Tutor Group - Most Sessions Complete
Year Group - Most Sessions Complete
GCSE Pod
Teacher - Most Assignments Set
Faculty - Highest Number of Assignment Set
Student - Highest Individual Use
Tutor Group - Most Pods Watched
Year Group - Highest Total Usage
Congratulations to all the Term 5 winners! 🥳🥳🥳
Post 16
Futures conference
We are busy preparing for our annual Futures events that are taking place in July with different activities on 5, 6 and 14 July. Students will be off timetable to allow them to take part in these activities. A more detailed breakdown of these events will be sent out shortly.
Pride Month
As part of celebrating Pride Month at Cotham, we have an external speaker coming to run a workshop around queer history. The workshop will be on Thursday 29 June, period 5. There are 25 spaces in total. To sign up, students must complete this Google Form.
Exams
Please see our NBP16 Summer exams FAQ page which should answer any questions you may have.
Futures conference
We are busy preparing for our annual Futures events that are taking place in July with different activities on Wednesday 5, Tuesday 6 and Wednesday14 July. Students will be off timetable to allow them to take part in these activities. A more detailed breakdown of these events will be sent out shortly.
Welcome to this week's edition of the Post 16 Futures Bulletin. There are lots of opportunities to build your portfolio of webinars attended by universities to find out more about subjects offered, paid opportunities and much more; take a look.
PUNC Week
Next week is Punc(tuality) Week. If students are late to a lesson, their teacher will send them to see a member of the Post 16 team. They will have to collect a late slip; repeated late comers will be placed on Stage One contract in line with the NBP16C intervention structure.
Coming Up Soon...
Matilda
Wednesday 12 July - Friday 14 July 2023
Tickets for Cotham’s Production of Matilda are now on sale via wisepay. We’d like everyone who wants to see Matilda to be able to. To help with this, we are pricing the school show slightly differently this year by introducing a flexible Pay What You Choose pricing for the event.
How does it work?
On Pay What You Choose events, when you checkout, you’ll be given a choice of 3 different prices:
£5 - Open Concession – If this is what you can afford; book this rate and let us welcome you with open arms.
£8 - Standard – If you can afford to, please book this rate; the extra money you give will support the continued existence of the variety of extra-curricular performances put on at Cotham School.
£15 - Pay It Forward – If you’re feeling generous and you have the means, please consider choosing this rate. Each Pay It Forward ticket subsidises two concession tickets, and helps more people experience the delight of watching live theatre.
All you have to do is select the price bracket that best suits your budget and continue to checkout.
Army DROP in days
The British Army are offering a Drop In Day and a presentation to meet soldiers from the ARMY’s Parachute Regiment (PARA) and Royal Engineers (RE) This team specialises in the following roles and careers within the British Army:
• Infantry / Combat Parachuting
• Civil Engineering / Mechanical Engineering
Tuesday 11 July (12:00-17:00)
Army Careers Centre
4 Colston Avenue
Bristol
BS1 4TY
And don't forget from last time....
End of Term 6 Arrangements for Students
All students, including Post 16 students will finish school for the summer on Thursday 20 July at 12pm. This will also be a non-uniform day.
Lost Property
Please ensure that if your child has lost any uniform or any items to ensure they check the Lost Property cupboard. Any items not claimed by Friday 14 July will be donated to charity. Please ensure that you label all uniform to ensure that it can be returned easily.
Digital Literacy Corner
Latest Parent Online Safety Cheat Sheet
What Parents and Carers Need to Know About
Discord
Cyberbullying
Difficult to Moderate
Inappropriate Content
Accessible to Predators
Criminal Activity
Parents - Discord.pdfOur latest GCSE Pod Usage
Welcome! GCSEPod is the perfect resource to help your child learn, retain and recall all the information they need to achieve their GCSE goals.
Pods watched this academic year
6,574
Number of Pods watched so far in Term 5
125
Most watched subject this week
Geography
Our latest Seneca Learning Usage
Seneca offers high-quality free online learning courses for students to study from a computer, tablet or phone. The courses are suitable for students aged 13 and above and cover KS3, KS4 GCSE and KS5 A Level subjects.
We are Premium subscribers to this service which unlocks further features of the platform.
Seneca Learning sessions completed this academic year
268,239
Total Seneca Learning study time for Term 5
954 hours
Total Seneca Learning study time for this academic year
30,099 hours
Staff Vacancies
Cotham School are currently recruiting for the following positions:
Foreign Language Assistant
Teacher of ICT and Computer Science
HR Manager
For more information and to apply please click here
