Monk s Walk News. Duke of Edinburgh. Diary Dates

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1 Monk s Walk News February 2017 Diary Dates German and History trip to Berlin Thurs 2nd Feb to Sat 4th Feb Year 13 (C) consultation evening Thurs 2nd Feb 5pm 7.30pm in the Sixth Form study centre House Music auditions Mon 6th Fri 10th Feb A2 Music Recital Weds 8th Feb 6.30pm in the Main Hall Year 9 (G) ski trip to Austria Fri 10th Sat 18th Feb Year 11 (E) New York trip Mon 13th Fri 17th Feb Spring half term Mon 13th Fri 17th Feb Inset Day - school closed Mon 20th Feb Duke of Edinburgh Congratulations to the fifty students from E year who received their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award in January. The students have worked very hard to achieve their award which involved volunteering in the local community, learning a new skill and undertaking a programme of physical activity. In addition, the students completed two expeditions where they were required to be self sufficient for two days. Thanks must go to all the staff and volunteers who help out with the Award and make it possible for so many students to take part.

2 Li-Fi Project being brought to Life by Year 12 s Year 12 students attended a two day workshop at the University of Hertfordshire developing their project on Li-Fi, (light fidelity) as part of the nationally organised Engineering Education Scheme (in association with the Engineering Development Trust). The purpose of the scheme is to encourage students, who are thinking about following engineering careers, to gain experience in running a real project over a seven month period, which will help them make informed choices about their futures. If the quality of the project is good enough, the students may achieve the prestigious gold CREST Award. Our students decided to explore the possibilities of Li-Fi. Li-Fi enables data transfer via the common household LED lightbulbs, similar to WiFi. The students have designed and are building a mini room, with associated electronics and software, to demonstrate the technology, and a stand to demonstrate a real Li-Fi LED bulb working with software especially sourced by their mentor from Deutsche Telekom, Phil Cornforth. He has supported the group throughout the project with his ideas and technical support. Here the students are hard at work in their workshop. They made massive progress over the 2 days, each playing to others strengths and learning a lot from one another along the way. A big thank you to Phil Cornforth, Mrs Hartley (in the Design and Technology department) and the students parents for helping with their endeavours. Their final presentation is on 28th April at a GSK location, along with many other similar groups from schools across Essex and Hertfordshire. I m looking forward to it, Year 12 s!

3 Why Not Langs Day On 16th January, ten students went to Downing College in the University of Cambridge for the WhyNotLangs Day To start the day, the language co-ordinator, Jocelyn Wyburd and some language ambassadors explained to us the importance of learning languages, particularly as 75% of the world cannot speak a word of English! We then expanded our vocabulary in a currently studied language either French, Spanish or German, before moving onto some new languages. We learnt two of the following languages: Portuguese (how to count to twenty starting with 1 which is pronounced um), Japanese (where we made origami penguins with our names written in Japanese, Russian (basic greetings) and Arabic (to say hello informally, you can say MarHaba or Ahlan). It was a great day and everyone enjoyed it greatly. India Thomas Y9 Year 9 group assessment All year 9 students will be involved in a year group assessment on 13th March This assessment will help to identify those students who might qualify for Access Arrangements in the forthcoming GCSE series. Access Arrangements are changes that can be made to public examinations to make the content more accessible to students who have specific learning difficulties. Please note that permission for Access Arrangements is determined by the awarding body and not the school. Some students will be asked to undertake further testing at a later date and for others the process will be complete after the initial assessment. If your child qualifies for any form of Access Arrangement you will be contacted directly. A Level Businss Trip to Ocado The year 12 business studies class had an exciting and enlightening afternoon at Europe's biggest automated on-line food retailer, Ocado. It was great to see the business in action and hear from senior members of the Ocado Management Team. Many thanks to Ocado.

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5 Mr Rainforth What subject do you teach? Geography How long have you been teaching? Since 2009 Why did you want to become a teacher? I enjoy the interaction with students and getting them engaged with learning. I like seeing them succeed. If you did not go into teaching, what job would you do? I honestly have no idea. I would probably have furthered my education and completed a masters and a PhD and gone into research. What was your favourite subject when you were at school? I really enjoyed Art Where was your favourite holiday destination? Amsterdam What is your favourite film? Lord of the Rings

6 Selected Year 9 students received Headteacher commendations in December for their beautifully produced pop-up books for younger children. L-R Caitlin Desmond, Charlotte Hawes, Sam Green and Lia Hayes L-R Sophie Cousins, Rosie Barker and Ella Eve Lexie Baynes, India Thomas and James Lounds received a Headteacher commendation. Their Spanish teacher Mr Goodwin said "They have made and delivered a presentation on a Spanish film worthy of a Head's commendation. L-R Ella Brogan, Lilli Cox and Natasha Evans Dan White and Nima Karshenas both received Headteacher commendations for excellent exam results. Mrs Rayment said In the recent mocks, Dan got 69/72 and Nima got 70/72 on their Mechanics paper, which is very impressive, bearing in mind they haven't yet started working through past papers. They are both very able mathematicians".

7 Football Results Weds 18th Jan 2017 Monk s Walk Y8 (B) v Ouse School Won 4-1 Weds 25th Jan 2017 Monk s Walk Y10 (B) v Sir Frederic Osborn School Won 2-1 Netball Results Weds 18th Jan 2017 Monk s Walk U13a v Bishop s Hatfield girls school Monk s Walk U12a v Bishop s Hatfield girls school Lost Won Thurs 19th Jan 2017 Monk s Walk U13a v Queenswood school Monk s Walk U13b v Queenswood school Lost Lost

8 Monk s Walk girls at the Table Tennis regional finals! Monk s Walk s under-16 girls table tennis team attended the Zone 7 regional finals tournament on Sunday 15th January 2017 at Morpeth School in Tower Hamlets, London. The girls played extremely well with some outstanding rallies, showcasing table tennis at its best, but unfortunately the girls in navy fell short of reaching the semi final. It was a great day out, and Monk s Walk couldn't be more proud. The team are still a year young for that category so watch this space for next year! Monk s Walk Rugby Team Success On Monday 16th January 2017, Monk s Walk s Year 7 rugby team played away at Watford Grammar School. With Watford Grammar School having three Year 7 teams, it meant Monk s Walk s single Year 7 team had to play three different matches in the same afternoon. In the first match Monk s Walk were quick to score and continued to pressure Watford Grammar School resulting in a final score of 0-4 to Monk s Walk. The second match was a more challenging game and despite Monk s Walk s best efforts the team took a 2-0 loss. Monk s Walk fought back in the third and final game scoring within the first minute! Watford Grammar School soon managed to equalise. The game was extremely tight with both sides playing tremendously well; however, Monk s Walk managed to squeeze in one last try in the seventh minute and held on to their advantage until the final whistle. Monk s Walk were the overall winners of the day; a fantastic result for a team that was only formed in September 2016! A big thank you to Mr Williams for driving the mini bus and to Mr Poole for coaching the team.