Dear Parents and Carers
 
Please find below this week’s important information for Parents/Carers and students as well as updates on School events, activities and opportunities for your reference. I wish you a very relaxing weekend. 
 
Ms Jo Butler
Headteacher

 

Good News

 

 

Keep us posted

It would be great if parents/carers could let the school know of any student achievements outside of school. It is sometimes only at parents’ evenings that we find out what students are doing in their own time. Email us: weeklymailing@cotham.bristol.sch.uk

 

Important Information for Parents/Carers

 

 

Design the School Christmas Card Competition

Every year we run this competition and are always impressed with the standard of entries.  The competition is open to all year groups. Further information on the poster attached here.
 

Library Updates 

The autumnal weather has been affecting the condition of the library books, for more information on how to best protect books please click here. 
 
It is now possible for students to access their library account using their phones, please see here for further information. 
 

Word of the week 

Each week at Cotham we promote a Word of the Week. This is to help students expand the range of vocabulary they use. Please find the word for the week ahead by clicking here.
 

Cyberbullying Guide 

An online organisation called HomeGuides has developed guidance to help children, parents and teachers to understand what cyberbullying is and what can be done about it. Download the guide here. 
 

Online Safety Newsletter

Please click here to view this month’s online safety newsletter. 
Please click here to view an online Safety booklet which includes an overview of key parental controls. 

 

Subject Area News

 

 

Science- Year 11 Students

Some parents have been sent a letter this week with guidance on how to support students to achieve their target grades. This letter contained the following useful information for all parents to ensure all students stay on track :

1. Buy the revision guides and workbooks from Wisepay if you haven’t already, collect these from the science prep room. Use these to revise for assessments throughout the year.
2. Support homework every week. The science homework revisits all of the course so completing it means students will have been through all of the content at least twice before they even start their own revision. This will make a huge difference.
3. In any spare time, encourage the use of the Seneca website, this is an excellent resource to go over and over content. It also works on mobile phones so is a great use of time on the bus / train etc.

The science assessments throughout Year 11 are as follows:

• Week beginning 11 November- Physics paper 1 and Chemistry paper 1
• Week beginning 20 January- Biology paper 1 and Physics paper 2
• Week beginning 30 March- Chemistry paper 2 and Biology paper 2

 
Each assessment is followed by a report home so you will see the results. Decisions about tiers and predicted grades for post 16 study will be made based on these assessments so it is vital that students revise thoroughly for them as they would for the final exams.
 

Physical Education (PE)

Extra-Curricular Clubs
Please click here for a list of all of the PE/Sports Extra-Curricular activities available to students in Term 1.
 
Fixtures week commencing 7 October 
 
Wednesday 9 October - Year 11 Netball Festival @ Clifton College Sports Centre 230pm-5pm (return to school by 5.30pm)
 
Please click here to view an updated fixture list for all upcoming fixtures for Terms 1 & 2.
 
Follow @CothamPE on Twitter for all the latest news and updates from the Cotham School PE department
 
Parental Consent for Sports Fixtures 2019- 2020
Please complete the parental consent form which can be found here and return to school as soon as possible if your child is taking part in school fixtures this year. Once on file we can then select your child for these fixtures and we will confirm by email or text the details nearer the date that these are taking place.

 

Key Stage 4 News

 

 

Year 11 Parents Evening on Thursday 10 October 4.00pm - 6.30pm

Booking is now open for the Year 11 parents evening on Thursday 10 October. Please access the booking system either through our school website or by using this link to make appointments.

 

Post 16 News

 

Money week: Monday 7 - Friday 11 October 2019  
 
We will be holding many activities and providing opportunities for your son/daughter to find out about all things money from student finance to how to budget. Please encourage them to check their emails for information. There will be pop up stalls in the canteen along with useful tutor sessions and resources.
 
 
Year 12 

Work Experience
Work Experience was launched last week in assembly - please see the Careers bulletin for more information.

Subject changes 
Please ensure that your child has picked up their new timetable from Charnwood reception if they have requested a course change.

Lanyards
A reminder that lanyards must be worn by all Post 16 students at all times - you will be notified if your son/daughter is regularly without their lanyard

Year 13

OXBRIDGE/Medics Deadline - The internal deadline is Wednesday 9 October. 
Please ensure that your son/daughter has uploaded their personal statement and paid and sent by this date so that Mrs Kempt can check their application, upload their reference and add their predicted grades.
Students must ensure that they have contacted their form tutor to make an appointment for their 1:1 meeting.  They should be emailing drafts of their personal statement to their form tutor in the first instance.
Students are encouraged to meet with Ms Paice our school careers adviser on a Wednesday - she can be emailed directly to make an appointment paices@cotham.bristol.sch.uk and is available every Wednesday registration in the canteen.

Lanyards
A reminder that lanyards must be worn by all Post 16 students at all times - you will be notified if your son/daughter is regularly without their lanyard
 
Student Wellbeing

We take your child's wellbeing very seriously, we have many avenues of support available.  A reminder that there is a school counsellor, a Post 16 Reflection room which is available for all students and many places that your son/daughter can study alone should they wish to. Please see Mrs Kempt for more information.  There is a also a mindfulness drop in session on a Thursday lunchtime.

Off the Record (OTR) 

OTR are offering weekly Resilience Lab drop in sessions on Perry Road there is no waiting list and all students are very welcome. More information can be found here. 
 
Careers and guidance
 
Here is the link to our Careers Bulletin which is updated weekly. 

 

House News

 

Inter-House Update

 
Cotham Coin Trail
 
A huge congratulations to all who took part and contributed towards the Cotham Coin Trail. The prefects came together in their respective houses to create the trails in a snake like fashion and Gamma house were crowned worthy winners for having the longest coin trail. In our first initial fundraiser of the year we raised £248.97 for the respective house charities with Delta House making the most significant contribution. Great job Delta!
 
Cotham 'CAN' Collection
 
In our quest to do more for our local community we are now collecting canned food for the East Bristol Food Bank. Prefects will be visiting tutor groups with tubs to collect the cans so that people in our local area can benefit from the kindness, warmth and generosity of our students. Donations will be gratefully accepted until Friday 8 November. Please see here for the poster, which outlines the items the food bank are in most need of. 
 
House Meeting #1
 
Newly elected House reps assumed their positions in their first meeting of the year after school on Wednesday 2 October. Students were presented with their swish House Representative badges then got straight down to business, coming up with suggestions around the house foci (Delta; Behaviour and Rewards, Gamma; Teaching and Learning, Omega; Community and Sigma; Environment). They also were tasked with coming up with fundraising initiatives with some already in the pipeline coming soon so watch this space! 

 

Student Careers News

 

Apprenticeships
 
City of Bristol College Apprenticeship Bulletin and South West Apprenticeship Company have apprenticeship vacancies here and here. 
 
Other apprenticeships can be found through the Gov website here, Target Careers, Success at School , Get My First Job and Not Going to Uni. 
 
 
Saturday jobs
Students looking for Saturday jobs can find good advice through this website 
 
Please keep your eyes on the Careers section of the website for updates.

 

Staff Vacancies

 

Cotham School are currently recruiting new members of staff to work with us at the school. We are currently looking to hire Exam Invigilators, a Cover Supervisor and Tutor/ Link Tutor and a Drama Teacher/ Form Tutor.
 
For more information about school roles please click here. 

 

Community News

 

HappyMaps Website- Providing resources for Parents and Carers around Children's mental health

HappyMaps is a website providing a one stop shop of resources around children's mental health from babies to young adults and includes websites, videos, books, Apps and links to ways to find counselling and other support. The website was funded by NHS England with input from specialist services (CAMHS) and local charities and is supported by Bristol Mind. Please click here to view the website. 
 

High Kingsdown Brunch

High Kingsdown Community Association warmly invites students and parents to their Brunch to welcome new students and residents on Saturday 12 October between 11.30am – 2.30pm, further information can be found here. 
 

Bristol Festival of Ideas, Wednesday 16 – Friday 18 October 2019

Lots of inspiring talks, some free, others not, at venues around the city – including Michael Rosen on Why Play Matters; Marcus du Sautoy on Creativity; Paul Mason on Radical Cities and Nadiya Hussain on Finding My Voice; plus 30 Years of Wallace & Grommit. Something for everyone. More details at www.futurecityfestival.co.uk @FestivalofIdeas
 

Parent Wellbeing Partnership Talk: How to Grow a Grown Up, Friday 18 October, 19:00 – 20:00, 1532 Theatre, Elton Road, BS8 1SJ

Are you a parent or guardian of an 11-25 year old?  Parents and teachers at partner schools are invited to the launch of a new book by Dr Dominique Thompson and Fabienne Vailes. Hear the authors talk about how to deal with the challenges of raising a young adult to be independent and resilient in the 21st century. Dr Dominique Thompson has worked for over seventeen years as a specialist student health GP and is now a student wellness consultant and national student health expert. Fabienne Vailes is a UK expert on emotional and mental well-being within the education sector. Copies of How to Grow a Grown Up will be available for purchase on the night. Refreshments will be provided. To book a ticket email 1532@bgs.bristol.sch.uk  
 

Do you know someone from a non-UK EU country? 

Bristol has 21,000 non-UK EU citizens living, working and studying in the city. The Government has advised that all non-UK EU citizens must apply for the EU Settlement Scheme to ensure their rights are protected post-Brexit. Bristol City Council wants everyone that lives here to have their rights protected, and is offering help with applications. If you have colleagues, friends, family or neighbours from the EU, please make sure they find out more here.