Amery Hill School

Newsletter
September 2017

Time to celebrate...
Students, parents and staff at Amery Hill School are
again celebrating excellent GCSE results, with
students exceeding the national prediction for
achieving the new top grade 9 in English and
Mathematics.
This year’s results saw some outstanding personal
success with 23 students achieving the equivalent of 7 or
more A*- A grades. Many individuals surpassed their
own personal targets which is the result of the hard work,
commitment and support shown by our students, staff
and parents.
Headteacher Mrs Elizabeth Wylie said: “We are
particularly proud of how well our students have done in
the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science –
89% of our students achieved a good pass in English
(both Language and Literature), 83% in Mathematics, and
79% achieved at least two good passes in Science.
Overall, our results have seen 77% of students achieve at
least five good passes including English and
Mathematics, which is an impressive outcome and an
improvement on last year’s excellent results. Students
have performed particularly well in English and
Mathematics, with 5% awarded the new top grade 9 in
English, 8% in Mathematics and 5% gaining both overall.
Nationally, only 2.9% of candidates have achieved this
new top grade, equivalent to an A** so Amery Hill
students have done incredibly well.”
In particular our A*-A grade pass rates have been
outstanding in Biology (39%), Chemistry (50%), Dance
(50%), DT Systems Control (46%), Geography (34%),
Media Studies (47%), Music (41%) and Physics (42%).

...and welcome
our new Year 7 students
A welcome from our Headteacher
Mrs Wylie
It is always a joy to begin the new Autumn term and
welcome our new students. It is undoubtedly a special
time for the Year 7 students, their families, our staff and
our school. Beginning at secondary school is a great
milestone in any young person’s life - a time for
development, excitement and opportunity for all.
at STEM activities, in a Science lab, on a Geography field
trip, on the History trip to Berlin, speaking a different
language fluently, completing the Duke of Edinburgh
award, or establishing new friendships. These are some
of the many opportunities for success which make the
ethos of our school unique.

We are particularly pleased that so many students and

their parents have chosen our school this year. Amery
Hill School continues to flourish and this year we see an
increased number of parents and students choose Amery
Hill School from outside our traditional catchment area,
ensuring that their children have the best start in life
possible. We will always see each student as an
individual, meeting their needs and creating the learning
environment that will enable them to be successful.

Success can take a huge variety of forms. We do have

students attaining exceptional results who are in the top
nationally for academic achievement. This applies to
those gaining the highest grades, but success is also Activities Week in July was enjoyed by all students in Years 7-9.
evident with students make outstanding progress at all The Great Amery Hill Bake-off was a huge success; students are
levels. We celebrate all who achieve their best. Success
seen here with special guest Debbie Spencer-Jones, who hosted
can also be seen on the sports field, in the music clubs,
a master class for the students

Key dates for prospective School Transport Service

students Do you have a child starting secondary school
in September 2018? Our school transport
Application form service now collects/drops-off students at a
31st Oct, 2017 number of locations including:
submission deadline
June 19th, 20th,  Bentley
Taster Days for current Y5
26th, 2018
 Binsted
Open Evening for Years 4  Bramley
July 3rd, 2018
and 5  Chineham
Transition Day for current  Crondall Primary School
July 6th, 2018  Hook
Year 6
 Popley Lane
Year 6 Parents’ Information  North Warnborough
July 9th, 2018
Evening  Sherfield-on-Loddon
24th to 27th July Summer School for
2018 incoming Year 7 For more information please contact the Amery Hill
School Office on 01420 84545.

Outstanding results continued
Students studying Biology, BTEC Media, Dance and ICT
CiDA subjects achieved a 100% pass rate, while
Chemistry students achieved 99%, Physics 97%, Spanish
89%, Media Studies 88%, DT Systems Control 86%,
Music (82%) and Geography 81%.
Talking about this year’s exam success Mrs Elizabeth
Wylie, Headteacher, commented “I would like to
congratulate all of our students on their success. Many
individuals surpassed their own personal targets which is
the result of the hard work, commitment and support
shown by our students, staff and parents. I wish them all
good luck in their future endeavours.”
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Our top performing students included: Joe Gasson,
Louise Twining and Ciara Watters (Anstey Juniors), Kyle
Barber, Esm ae Belm onte, Joanne Carter,
Annie Freeman, Rebecca Gordon, and Emily West
(Butts Primary School), Ben Chilton, Giles Hartley and
Isobelle Miles (Chawton Primary School), Lucy Bayliss
(Four Marks Primary School), Emily Coates,
Rebecca Male and Siriol Whomsley (Medstead Primary
School) and Molly Bennett, Dylan Brown, Alf Hamer,
Monty Moran, Phoebe Neville, Ethan Read and
Francesco Tesolin (St Lawrence Primary School). Our
congratulations to all of our students.
Our new Year 7 students get off to a great start
“It's very exciting and different, in a very
good way, to primary school. There is no need
to worry about getting lost as your peer
mentors help you and everybody is friendly.
It's great to bond with people from different
primary schools too.” Benjamin, previously at
The Butts Primary School

“Everyone is very welcoming and I enjoy all

my lessons. It's a brilliant atmosphere and all
teachers are helpful. The food is tasty and the
grounds are amazing.” Eric, previously at
Selborne Primary School

“I was scared to begin with but it has been easy to get
used to the school as everyone here is so nice. My
favourite lesson is Maths because I really like the class.”
Carenza, previously at Chawton Primary School
“The teachers have made me feel welcome by
telling me important things and being patient
when I need help. I love moving from class to
class rather than staying in one room all day
like in primary,” Brandon, previously at
Wootey Junior School

“I was really scared before induction day

however by the end of the day I was really
excited to start. Amery Hill feels like a home
now because everyone is kind and willing to
help.” Alice previously at Crondall Primary
School

“I feel really safe here because all the teachers look after me.
“The peer mentors
were very helpful Induction day made me feel like Amery Hill is the right place for
and reassuring. It's me, I think I will do well here and enjoy it.” Scarlet, previously at
great to have our Four Marks Primary School
own quad, it makes
us feel special. All “By day two, I
the teachers are roughly knew
welcoming.” Joy, w h e r e
previously at everything was
Medstead Primary and I haven't
School been lost yet.
The lessons
“At first I was nervous, however now I have been
am really confident because the teachers really fun and
are really nice and they help us settle I like having
in.” Mia, previously at Anstey Junior independence,
School for example
going to the
canteen at lunch with my friends. Transition day was scary at
“If you get lost you can ask anybody for first but then I really enjoyed it.” Charlie, previously at
directions. It’s quite easy to learn your Bentworth Primary School
way round. Break and lunch is quite fun
once you are used to the amount of “When you first join it can be scary but you make friends really
students around.” Wyatt, previously at quickly. It’s understanding if you get lost but you can always
Andrews’ Endowed Primary School ask someone.” Sylvia, previously at St Lawrence Primary
School

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Our transition programme
Taster days and transition day
In Year 5 students join us for one of a series of taster
days during which they are able to experience life and
lessons in secondary school. Students from smaller
feeder schools can contact us to request this
experience. In Year 6, students joining Amery Hill join
us for our transition day in July. These days allow
students to familiarise themselves with our school
environment and our staff and to get a taste of the
fantastic curriculum facilities and teaching and
learning we provide within our school.

Extensive primary school liaison

We undertake a variety of outreach work in our
primary feeder schools including collaborative work
in English, Maths, Science, Music, Languages, PE
and Computing. We are passionate about working
with pupils within our primary feeder schools to help
them get to know existing students and teachers at
Amery Hill. We have also undertaken extensive work
to ensure our Year 7 curriculum is academically
challenging for students of all abilities.

Ethos
Students joining us in Year 7 are given time for both
academic and personal development. Students can
show self-expression and develop a sense of identity
through opportunities such as our Year 7 Art project.
We work hard to foster a
sense of community and
team building through
lesson and out-of-lesson
learning. Our broad range
of extra-curricular activities
provide a chance for every
individual to develop their
interests and talents.
Primary school visits
Progress Leaders and Senior Leaders visit each of
our primary feeder schools to work with students
during their transition to
Amery Hill. We also liaise
closely with Year 6
teachers to ensure that we
understand the learning
styles, talents and needs
of each student making
the transition to our school
community. For students
in our smaller feeder
schools, we provide an
extra transition session at
school to meet students
prior to transition day.
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Summer transition activities week
This summer we were able to offer our incoming
students some fantastic opportunities at our
Transition Activities Week. All the activities were
free for students joining the school. This year
students enjoyed activity days in IT, PE, Art, Music
and Maths. It gave students the chance to develop
new friendships, get to know members of staff and
get to know their way around the school.

Parental engagement
To start our partnership in working together we ask
parents to be a part of our transition process by joining
us for our transition information evening in July, as well
as inviting parents into school in October to meet their
child’s tutor. Our year teams are always on hand to
resolve any issues throughout the transition and strong
communication with parents is our top priority.

Supported transition
We provide an excellent, supported transition
programme through our Student Hub for students
who may be feeling anxious about the transition to
secondary school. This enables students to come to
our school several times throughout the summer
term and get used to our school environment.
Equally when students join us, if they are struggling
to settle into secondary school life, we have an
outstanding pastoral care system to guide students
in building confidence in our school.

Student voice
This is an important aspect of our transition process.
Students are given the opportunity to share their
excitement and anxieties about coming to
secondary school through our outreach work.
Information provided by pupils helps us to allocate
tutor groups.
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GCSE History students reflect on Berlin visit
A moving experience Art tells history
By Freya Kedge By Holden Williamson
Going to Berlin was an amazing experience for me. Not My favourite part of the trip was a tie between the Jewish
only did I have a lot of fun, I learnt a lot too. Each day we Museum in Berlin and the East Side Gallery. I enjoyed the
visited around three sites. Each of these sites gave me Jewish Museum because of all the history I learned and the
more knowledge about what happened in the past. We exhibitions that they had. I found the East Side Gallery so
visited a concentration camp and museums. Walking into interesting because of all the different concepts of art and
the concentration camp brought a tear to my eye. By how it relates to what happened in Berlin.
having great teachers with us and an amazing group of
pupils this has been one of the best trips I’ve been on. It One part of the trip that I think everyone liked was the visit
may be the last for me at Amery but I will never forget it. to the Fassbender and Rausch luxury chocolate store. It’s
safe to safe that we all indulged in the world-renowned
sweets! This fun-filled extended weekend trip to Berlin will
Breathtaking architecture help me so much with my exams at the end of Year 11.
By Hollie Lines Going to Berlin was an amazing
On our trip to Berlin we visited the Brandenburg Gate, experience that I would
Reichstag Building, Soviet Memorial, Bernauer Strasse and recommend it to anyone.
the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The
magnificent size and
architecture of all of
these was truly
breathtaking, in
particular, the
Memorial to the
Murdered Jews of East Side Gallery
Europe. It is
composed of 2711
rectangular blocks
with straight narrow
alleys between them,
with an undulating
ground. Visiting this
exceptional memorial
was touching and
definitely one of the
highlights of the trip
The Jewish Museum for me. Saschenhausen Concentration Camp

School Calendar
Monday 18th September KS3 Assessment Information Evening

Thursday 21st September Year 10 Curriculum and Data Information Evening

Friday 6th October Year 7 PGL Liddington Residential Trip

Monday 9th October Year 7 Art Week

Thursday 12th October Year 7 Pastoral Evening

Monday 16th October Bugsy Malone Dress Rehearsal and Performance Week

Friday 20th October Last Day before Half Term

Monday 30th October First Day back after Half Term

For more information, please refer to the calendar on the

website which is updated regularly
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Extra-curricular Activities
Autumn Term 2017
All activities are from 3:00pm to 4:00pm unless specified.
Homework Club takes place daily from 3:00pm to 4:00pm in ICT2.
Teaching Assistants are on hand to help.

Monday
Music: Lunchtime - Double Trouble
Orchestra in MU1 and MU2
GCSE Surgery in MU2
PE: Boys Football - Yr7
Girls Football - Yrs 7, 8
Boys Basketball - All years
RS: RS Ambassadors - Lunchtime (RS2)
MFL: German Club, KS4 support group
Media: Amery Hill News Reporters Club
Library: Muggles Book Club (by invitation) & Yr7 Harry Potter Story Club
Drama: Rehearsals for Bugsy Malone

Tuesday
Student Hub 8:15a.m - Spelling Group - Yrs 9, 10 & 11 in SH1
Music: Lunchtime - Choir - in MU1
Percussion Ensemble in MU1 & MU2
PE: Boys Football - Yr8, 9 & 10
Girls Football - Yr9, 10 & 11
Netball - Yrs 7, 8
Drama: Rehearsals for Bugsy Malone
RS: “Thunks” Philosophy Club - Yrs 7 & 8 (RS1); Yrs 9, 10 & 11 (RS2)
Maths: Year 10 Maths Drop-in
MFL: Year 9 Spanish Club

Wednesday
Student Hub 8:15a.m - Spelling Group -Yr 7 in SH1
Music: Lunchtime - Wacky Wind (by invitation)
Wind Symphonia Grade 4 upwards in MU2
4-5pm - Music Theory Group in MU2
PE: Yr 11 revision
Library: Reading Group - Open to all (lunchtime)
Drama: Drama Club

Thursday
Student Hub 8:15a.m - Spelling Group - Yr 8
Drop in session - Student Hub
Afterschool drop in support session - open to all
Spelling Group, 3-3.45pm - All years
Music: Guitar Ensemble - 8am
Jazz Band Grade 4 upwards in MU2
Concert Band Grades 1-3
Lunchtime - Liquorice Sticks All clarinets Grade 2 and above
PE: Boys Football - Yr11
Netball - Yrs 9, 10 & 11
DofE: Year 10 Award Group Meeting - SCI 7
Art & Science: New club (Yr 7, 8) - SCI3

Friday
Student Hub 8:15a.m - Drop in session - Student Hub
Music: Lunchtime - Choir in MU1 - all welcome
String Ensemble in MU1
GCSE Aid in MU2/Office
PE: Cross Fitness - All Yrs
Rock Challenge - All Yrs
Girls Rugby - All years
Boys Rugby - All years

“The Angry Society” (Debating Society) - Meets monthly - dates to be advised

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