A group of students from years 8 and 9 recently attended the inaugural Isle of Wight meeting of the Equality and Rights Advocates (EARA) group at Christ the King College. EARA was created by a school on the mainland to “Challenge the way both students and teachers think and view our world and our fellow inhabitants and aspire to reduce the discrimination that students of different groups face at school, whether it be down to their race, sexuality, appearance or lifestyle”.

The EARA group addresses many of the nine characteristics protected under the Equalities Act of 2010. They consider how prejudicial attitudes and behaviours towards those who share those characteristics impact on their school community. The group decides which aspects to focus on and discuss ways in which to advocate within their school.

The EARA Group’s aims are to:
Promote the Equality Act
Enhance pupil voice
Challenge discrimination and prejudice
Advocate for the rights of the child (UNCRC)
Encourage positive attitudes towards difference
Develop pupil confidence and life skills
Support vulnerable students
Increase participation and engagement

Our students were fantastic ambassadors for the school during their visit to Christ the King College. The group found the meeting very insightful and they told us that “The EARA group is a group that stands for children’s and young people’s rights, and for a safe environment in school, free of discrimination”.

Keep a lookout for updates about our group’s project!

Over the summer, the Library ran a Summer Reading Challenge. The challenge was designed to get students reading a wide variety of materials in a variety of places and to try something new.

Students read poems from John McCrae, Simon Armitage and Christian Rivera; books from authors such as Alice Oseman, JK Rowling, Daren Shan, Susan Collins and James Dashner to name a few. They also enjoyed reading non-fiction books on nature, conservation and animals to artificial intelligence and true crime.

PRIZES AND REWARDS

There were over one hundred entries into the draw for an Amazon Fire Tablet. The lucky winner was Phoebe from Year 8. Congratulations to you Phoebe!

All participants received a certificate, achievement points and a book. Well done to everyone that took part!

Keep reading, Ms Ryan and Mrs O’Callaghan.

Students at Carisbrooke enjoyed a fantastic morning at our Brass ‘taster session’ workshop on Monday with Martyn Stroud (Brass teacher from Wight Music Tuition). The students had an opportunity to learn about the Brass family and play some of the Trumpets, French Horns and Trombones that Mr Stroud had brought with him, even putting together a short performance at the end.

If your child would like to sign up for Brass lessons, Mr Stroud is offering group lessons (in pairs) for £80 a term; as we are already halfway through this term, this means there would be £40 to pay for November to December. There is also the option of paying in monthly instalments, if this is something you would prefer, to help spread the cost of the lessons. Lessons will take place during school hours.

If you would like to sign up for these lessons please email beth.peckham@iwef.org.uk to register your interest, you will also need to complete an application form on the Wight Music Tuition website https://iwmt.org.uk/apply-online/, indicating which instrument and selecting ’20 minute in-person group lessons’. You do not need to select ‘yes’ for hiring an instrument as Mr Stroud can arrange this for you once lessons have started.

An important part of our Literacy Strategy is to ensure that Key Stage 3 students are equipped with the key literacy skills required and the belief that they can succeed at GCSE level. In order to achieve this we aim to remove as many taboos about Literacy as early as possible and make it seem less daunting to year 7 students as well as building their confidence with regards to school and their own abilities.

Last week we took a small group of year 7 students and immersed them into the Shakespeare text, The Tempest. Initially, students were worried about not being able to understand the words and the writing but by approaching the text through The Arts, the students soon became comfortable with the ideas and themes within the plot.

These year 7 students worked with local artist Glenn Martin, and English teacher, Mrs Smith to access this tricky text. Through drama, music and art the students were plunged into the Elizabethan text and encouraged to think about the characters and how they felt.

By visiting the beach the students were able to experience the atmosphere of the sea and understand and appreciate its power. They were able to imagine that they too were castaways washed up on the sand and how frightening that might have been. The beach also allowed the students to create some fantastic art works and to act out sections of the text. When visiting the forest they were able to feel nature and talked about the language that could be used to describe the environment. They depicted key scenes from the text by creating boxes inspired by Joseph Cornell. The created and coloured maps of Shakespeare’s unnamed island marking out places that key scenes were set.

Back at school, students used their beach experience to compose a musical response with Mrs Peckham and performed Act 1 Scene 1 with Mr Lyle to gain further appreciation of the text.

This project allowed students to break down any preconceived notions they may have had relating to Shakespeare. Students ended the week by producing an exhibition for parents on Friday afternoon.

Thanks to Miss Begley for driving the minibus and Ms Ryan for supporting throughout the week. A big thank you to the Creative Arts Faculty for their assistance and unending positivity. 

A group of KS3 students from both Carisbrooke and Medina Colleges had the privilege of attending Shakespeare’s Globe in London last week to watch a production of The Tempest which forms part of their English Literature studies.

The in-house Globe Ensemble of actors created an amusing, visually inventive, and fun take on Shakespeare’s final play. Students were entertained by the costuming of characters who were dressed in modern garb rather than more traditional attire. Students were amused by Caliban’s call and response routine at the end of the first half; Prospero’s scheming brother Antonio and his inner-circle’s “feast that wasn’t”; the Stephano, Trinculo and Caliban “washing-line” scene (the “washing line” having been turned into washed ashore lost Amazon packages) to name a few.

Visiting Shakespeare’s Globe adds to the impact of the play and allows students to truly feel immersed in the theatre environment.

Attending as Groundlings (an audience who stands in front of the stage) for the production also helped students further understand the context of Shakespeare’s time and experience the play as he intended. Watching a Shakespeare play on stage allows the students to gain a better understanding of the themes and character development within the text and this helps them to develop their comprehension of the play.

Despite some transport difficulties, it was a lovely, sunny day and was enjoyed by all!

The school is now working towards the SILVER award – more details to follow.

This week we received news that one of our former students, Marcellino Mamo, took part in The Queen’s State Funeral procession. Marcellino, who is now 20 years old, is a Mine Warfare Specialist in the Royal Navy.

The Royal Navy played a crucial role in the procession that followed the State Funeral service. More than 130 of their sailors had the honour of pulling the State Ceremonial Gun Carriage bearing the Queen’s coffin for 2 miles through London. The Royal Navy confirmed, on their official website, that 98 sailors would haul the two-and-a-half-ton ceremonial carriage, while a further 40 sailors would march behind the vehicle acting as brakes.

The role that the Royal Navy carry out during State Funeral processions has been a tradition since 1901 when they stepped in to pull the State Ceremonial Gun Carriage which was bearing Queen Victoria’s coffin at the time.

We are extremely proud of everything that Marcellino has achieved since leaving our school and wish him all the best for the future.

Marcellino Mamo – Second from back 

Marcellino Mamo – Third from back in the very left line of Royal Navy Personnel

Photos courtesy of Rachel Pascoe