Dear Parents, Guardians and Friends
And just like the northern lights, although somewhat more predictably and longer lasting, the public exam season is suddenly with us. Year 11 have started their GCSE exams, and Year 13 their A levels. Year 10 have also got in on the act by sitting their PoR GCSE. We are very proud of the way they have all prepared themselves for this undertaking.
Last week saw us bid fond farewells to those students going on study leave. On Wednesday, Year 11 enjoyed an emotional and uplifting leavers’ assembly led by the inspirational Mrs Izod who reminded us all that success is often just beyond the edge of our comfort zone. Memories were shared and made before the students headed to the field for an ice cream and a final adieu.
A lovely Holt tradition saw the girls personalise their shirts. A huge amount of high-quality creative design was on display as modelled by 11G below.
Similar creativity was also seen in the Year 13 leavers’ assembly in which the Sixth Form team enjoyed a special afternoon with a range of characters. Mrs Salamut-Ward spent the day dressed as a judge for reasons best known to herself…
We wish all students sitting exams the very best of luck and look forward to hearing how they have got on.
You may have noticed that the early part of this term has been rather wet. Mrs Barker was delighted that the sun shone last Thursday for the second Year 7 churches walking tour for L, S, T & W. This had been postponed following downpours on the original date in March. These visits help our students to understand the different Christian traditions that exist within Wokingham. We are very grateful to the King’s Church, All Saints, Wokingham Baptist Church, and St Paul’s who welcomed our students, and to Soulscape for helping to organise the event.
Year 7 have also been paying visits to Rushall Farm as part of the geography curriculum. Two tutor groups each day have been enriching their understanding of the UK food system and learning field skills around measuring rivers. Ms Herron, who accompanied Tuesday’s trip, was happy to report that the students were respectful and polite, and enjoyed their learning.
Mrs Bolton has provided an update on recent athletics events.
Our U16 athletics team has performed exceptionally over the last few weeks in the Reading and District Athletics League. From a field of over 30 teams, they reached the A final and were narrowly beaten to the top spot by Queen Anne’s by a mere 1.5 points. Well done to all the girls who represent the school and special mention to Mina in Year 10 who received an award for best performer in the 100m.
The exciting ESAA Track and Field Cup Round 1 took place at Palmer Park last Wednesday. Our athletes all took part in one track event and one field event. The U14 team came 3rd and should be through to the next round. Well done to Annabelle in Year 8 who broke the school record with a huge 4.22m long jump.
A number of students took part in our Athletes Forward workshop, which was led by a professional coach working on throwing techniques. We are really grateful for opportunities like this, and it was pleasing to see how much progress took place in just one afternoon. Well done to all involved.
In the half term break, my family and I are planning to visit Mallorca for a holiday. In preparation for this, I have been learning a bit of Mallorqui (a dialect of Catalan). If I sought to blow my own trumpet about this, an unimpressed Mallorcan might cut me down by saying, “Ja tenim la Seu plena d’ous” (we already have the cathedral full of eggs). Those phrases are idioms – they have a meaning that can’t be worked out just by looking at the words.
Mr Darby, our Head of Modern Foreign Languages, has been leading assemblies this week exploring the use of idioms in different European languages including Romanian, Italian and Portuguese. In our ‘Thought for the Week’ slot, our students have been considering some English idioms as well as others from across the world. Do encourage your child to enjoy the playful creativity of language.
Whatever your plans for the rest of the summer, I hope you have a whale of a time!
Ben Adams
Assistant Headteacher