Excelling through Extra Curricular

Firstly, thank you to everyone who came to the Year 9 Options and Parents evening last night. Great to see so many students, parents and carers hearing feedback from core subject teachers, and of course speaking to the teachers of every other subject to help with options choices for next year. Thanks also to all my colleagues for making the event a success.

Turn up and read. That’s the phrase/message that I have been sharing a lot this year – in assemblies, in lessons, on this blog. Good rates of attendance and good habits with reading (especially fiction) are the two surest signs that a child will do well in school. Turn up and read, turn up and read, turn up and read.

However I’d like to add to this core message, thanks to an assembly delivered by Mr Osgood and Miss Ditchfield this week. Mr Osgood, along with Miss Ditchfield and Miss Griffies, are currently leading on the development and promotion of our whole school extra curricular offer. As Mr Osgood eloquently said in assembly, turning up and reading are absolutely key to a student doing well in school. But, taking part in some form of extra curricular activity as well really helps a child to excel. Taking part in extra curricular activities helps to build resilience, teamwork, determination and communication skills. It can help a person develop new skills and confidence, boost their sense of wellbeing and make them feel more connected to school and the school community. Basically, extra curricular is great!

At MHS we have over 40 opportunities every fortnight for students to take part in some form of extra curricular club. More than that, we’re developing an exciting online provision called Digital Discoveries. This a new extra-curricular themed challenge that students can undertake at home with minimal equipment, available via the student hub on the school website. There’s something on there already so check it out. Finally, and perhaps most excitingly, Mr Osgood outlined plans for a new set of societies – student led extra curricular groups – that have the potential to expand our offer significantly, as well as give students valuable leadership opportunities. I’m looking forward to seeing who steps up and what societies are formed.

Speaking of turning up…a big ‘well done’ to our Year 11 cohort who are currently engaged in their trial exams. Over 95% of the cohort are in and taking part which in the context of the current national attendance crisis is pretty remarkable. Alarmingly Year 11 cohorts on average this year nationwide are barely reaching 90% attendance, and so the way that our young people have responded to the challenge of the trial exams is a very positive sign indeed.

Best wishes,

Joe Barker

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