Senior Leadership Team Update
It was wonderful to be able to give out 158 awards to students on Wednesday during our end of term awards assembly. These were awards for a range of things including, being perfect, attitude to learning, most improved attendance, 100% attendance, subject awards, resilience, maths challenge awards and homework. All students recognised were given certificates, stars and a lot of Easter eggs! Well done to all our students for their hard work over this term. We wish all our families a lovely Easter break and look forward to seeing our CRA students back in school on 15th April.
Year 11
To celebrate the end of the GCSE examinations, we will be holding the year 11 Prom on the evening of the 28th June 2024. We hope that all year 11 students will come and enjoy themselves. Further information and ticket sales will follow soon.
In addition to Prom, we will be inviting students to purchase leavers hoodies and we will shortly be asking students for their order details and payments will only be accepted via MCAS. We will advise in due course when the payment amount has been agreed and set up for parents to view.
Year 11 Focus
Students have this week received their results from the mock exam window they recently took part in. This came in the form of students being given their results in an envelope for them to open, mirroring the process students will experience in the Summer when they collect their formal GCSE results. It was a brilliant atmosphere to see in pupils offering their peers praise, encouragement and support throughout them opening their results.
Pupils were spoken to prior about the power of reacting positively. For subjects that students are making good progress in, having the mindset to consolidate that grade and strive to build upon it. For subjects that students are not yet making expected progress in, understanding that there is time left in Y11 to make those jumps in progress if the hard work is put in - providing that starts from today. Teachers will begin to be sharing exam papers with students in lessons for them to see specific topics/question styles they need to focus on as a priority. Now that have results have been given out, it is key that students now reflect on the revision and preparation that went into the exam window, understanding what worked well for them, and what changes need to be made for next time.
To support with this, each Head of Department has broken down revision for their subject into a weekly focus/task to direct students to the topic areas they should look to prioritise, and ensure their revision covers the full breadth of content for each subject. A MCAS has been sent out linking you to this revision schedule. Please contact Mr Cronin if you have any questions about it, or revision in general.
Why We Do What We Do
Over the next 6 weeks we will be sharing different aspects of our Houseopoly boards which feature in all our tutor rooms.
Week 6
You can see on the inside of the Houseopoly boards attendance certificates. These are for 100% attendance for a particular term. These are awarded to students at the end of each large term
CRA Character
In rewards assembly on Wednesday, Harvey in year 10 was the Term 4 recipient of the Executive Principal's Resilience Award. Lots of students were nominated for showing one or more of the 7 C's of Resilience, but Harvey was chosen for demonstrating 'Choice Not Chance' over the past term and changing his attitude to his studies and to school. His attendance and behaviour have improved dramatically since Year 9 and his progress in all his subjects can be seen by his jumps in KPI scores. Well done Harvey, we are all so proud of you!
Times Tables
At the end of all lessons students stand behind their chairs in silence to prepare for themselves for the next lesson. From September, on a weekly rota, Years 7 and 8 will be reciting their timetables to help embed them in their long term memory.
Week commencing 15th April 2024 - 7
Accelerated Reading
Week commencing 15th April 2024 - Period 3
Teen Support..
Teenagers and Supporting with Eating problems
The teenage years can be difficult to handle for both teenagers and their parents and one issue that can be common is young people worrying about body image, which can lead to them having issues around food.
Mind have put together various resources, and tips for giving someone practical and emotional support, and taking care of yourself.
View this video as well as the website for further information.
Table Talk
It is always interesting to hear your children’s perspective on things. For the next three weeks we have some thought provoking questions that you might want to talk about over the dinner table.
What are some thought-provoking questions to ask your teen at dinner?
- What book do you think every teenager should read?
- What’s your favourite thing about our family?
- Tell us about your dream family vacation.
- If we could move anywhere in the world, where would it be?
Attendance...
Attendance – Term 4, Week 5
Year 8 have achieved 1st place with a top attendance score beating all the other year groups, well done Year 8, great effort. Year 9 are in 5th place as the lowest attending year group.
The girls have had another great week beating the boys to 1st place by a fantastic 4%.
Terra have finished first with the highest overall attendance again this week, beating Caeli and Aqua by 2%, well-done Terra! Special mention for Terra 7 who have achieved 100%.
Thursday has seen our highest percentage of absence this week. Missing just one day can have an impact on students learning experiences and outcomes.
Well done to the following students how have shown great resilience with their attendance:
If your child is absent from school, please ensure you contact school daily either by email/MCAS or by telephoning the attendance line 01476 550333 ext 502. It is vital we are notified everyday of any absence for safeguarding reasons, unless previously authorised. A reason for illness will always be requested, this is to observe attendance patterns and outbreaks of illness amongst students.
Please do not hesitate to contact myself kcoleman@charlesreadacademy.co.uk on 01476 550333 ext 515 or tsandison@charlesreadacademy.co.uk ext 502 to discuss ways to support your child's attendance.
CRA - Lets work together to make every day count!
Mrs Coleman - Attendance Manager
House News
House Table Tennis Results
Aqua prevail as 2024 House Table Tennis champions following two 4-2 victories over both Caeli and Terra on the final day. There was nothing to split the houses in the KS4 and scholar round of matches with each of the games finishing 3-3. The final round of matches were also all extremely close matches but it was Aqua who just came out on top to win 125 house points. Terra finished in 2nd place with a 4-2 victory over Caeli on the final day to pick up 75 points and Caeli finished runner up with 50 points.
Aqua triumph in House Bullseye Quiz
Bullseye returned to CRA this week as house teams took on the hit tv gameshow in the main stage. A similar format to the TV quiz show saw house teams test their general and subject specific knowledge across four rounds. Each correct question earned respective house teams with a throw on the inflatable dart board with each number on the board representing house points. House points were banked throughout each round and added to the overall house totaliser. After a series of challenging questions it was Aqua who accumulated the most darts, leading to securing the most house points on the day. Aqua came away with 174 house points followed by Terra with 138 points and Caeli with 74 points.
Terra Top House Championship
Despite strong terms of Aqua and Caeli it is still Terra who top the overall house championship heading into the Easter Holidays. The gap however has been closed to just 200 points with the final two terms approaching. Can Terra hang on to their lead or will Aqua or Caeli make up the ground to be crowned 2024 House champions.
Term 5 Competitions
We are extremely excited for the Summer term as we officially launch a brand new series of house competitions, the CRA House Summer Games. As we build up to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris students will have the opportunity to try their hand at a wide range of Olympic and Paralympic sports in return for house points. Keep an eye out for more details!
In addition to the Summer Games we also have Bottle Rockets, Now Music Quiz, rescheduled Wii Sports and a throwback to one of our lockdown competition favourites; Recreating a famous painting! All of which offering a further 2,000+ house points.
The Sporting Post
Table Tennis News
Last weekend it was the Table Tennis England and Table Tennis Wales National Championships.
Isaac and Ella were competing in the English Nationals and Lowri was competing in the Welsh Nationals.
All players performed exceptionally well, a reward for all the hard work they have been putting in.
Lowri was crowned U19 and U21 Welsh National Champion and Ella won a silver medal in the U21 event and a bronze medal in the women's doubles. Ella was also recognised as the player of the day for her performances and attitude by the event sponsor.
Please can all students be collected from the BACK of the school when being picked up from after school clubs and fixtures.
Sports Kit
Please can any borrowed sports kit be returned as soon as possible. We have trainers, hoodies, netball dresses and football kit (shirts, shorts and socks) that have not been returned. This means that students are unable to also borrow these items for fixtures and limits teams when wanting to wear a full, matching kit.
Term Dates
Please see the latest term dates for 2022-23.
A list of diary events can also be found on the CRA Website by clicking here