email: contactus@rooksheath.harrow.sch.

uk
Monthly
Issue 63
16th July 2010

A Night on the River

Page 2

Head Teacher’s Comment

www.rooksheath.harrow.sch.uk

t is hard to believe that this is the last ‘Voices’ of the year. At the end of this term I will

I have been Headteacher at Rooks Heath for 10 YEARS!! Doesn’t time fly when you are
enjoying yourself? The college has had a really good year and in the past two weeks
there have been many events celebrating our success.

The summer, however, is still a busy time for the college. The height of this is the publication
of examination results for Years 11, 12 and 13. I am really hopeful that this will be the most
successful year ever for our students.

The new term will also bring exciting times. We have a brand new curriculum in place and we
are welcoming for the first time TWO year groups, Year 7 and Year 8.

It only remains for me to wish you a really happy holiday period and I look forward to seeing
you all in September as I enter my second decade as Headteacher.
. John Reavley
Sixth Form News
This has been a busy few weeks for the Sixth Form. They have now finished their examinations; Year 13 students have
been on their final outing and Year 12 have returned to lessons and are now filling out their university application forms.
Ooh…. what a night!

L ast Friday evening, 50 Year 13 students and a number of staff, set off on the coach to catch the boat at Westminster
Pier at 7pm. Once again this year, we had a bit of a panic, as the coach got stuck in traffic near the Houses of Par-
liament and we had to abandon the coach and walk, high heels and all!
It was a superb summer’s evening and as we sailed down the Thames, we all marvelled at the sights and were thankful that
we lived in such a fabulous city. The students and staff alike enjoyed the evening, relaxing and chatting about the “old”
days in year 8, 9, 10 and 11!
We would like to wish the students every success in their life post Rooks Heath. They all agreed that they have had a won-
derful time in the Sixth Form and we hope that they get the results they need to move on to their chosen pathways.

Year 12 Enrichment:
Teaching Enterprise at Earlsmead First and Middle School.

A
fter the great success last year, we decided to
send 40 students to Earlsmead to spend a whole
day teaching Enterprise to students from Years
3 to 6 on Wednesday 30th June. The students
worked in small groups and were assigned a class to
work with. The students were trained by Gosbert Cha-
gula from Young Enterprise and had to spend time pre-
paring for their lessons.
On the actual day, the students arrived at Earlsmead at
8am and worked brilliantly with the young children in
their charge. The teachers there were very complimen-
tary about their teaching ability and commitment and
felt that we had a few budding teachers in the group!
The students gained a great deal from the experience
despite feeling completely worn out by the end of the
day! They now realise just how tiring teaching is.
My experience at Earlsmead School was one of a kind. Teaching the children about our world and global

“
trade was very fulfilling. My team worked well with each other and we got through the tasks swiftly. The

”
most satisfying thing was when the children asked if we were coming back the
following day.
Shyam Mashru, 12 Blue

Trip to Open Day at Keble University Oxford

O
st
n Thursday July 1 , 9 students joined Mrs
Arnold and me on a trip to Oxford to speak to
lecturers and to find out about life at one of
the world’s very best universities. It was a very inter-
esting day and we learnt more about the
importance of personal statements and gaining the best
results possible.
The whole of Year 13 will be going on a coach to the
Open Day at the University of Southampton in early
September.
So, we are coming to the end of yet another busy but
hopefully successful year for Rooks Heath Sixth
Form. We are expecting 75 students to join us next
September and I am confident that they will quickly
feel at ease and happy to have made the all important
decision to stay with us for another two years.

Veronica Lane Head of Sixth Form

Year 11 Prom
n Wednesday, 30th June the Year 11 said their final farewell to Rooks Heath – at the Prom. It was a

O gloriously sunny evening and everyone turned out in their finery at Venue 5 in Eastcote. They turned up
in stretched limos, open-topped sports cars and even a motor tricycle! Pink seemed to be the colour of
the day for both girls and boys. All the students looked very elegant in suits or smart dresses; it’s amazing how
sophisticated they looked. They seemed to have become grown-ups overnight!
The food was excellent and the DJ was brilliant, encouraging everyone on to the dance floor. The behaviour of
the students was impeccable and everyone had a fantastic time dancing the night away. Prom King (Lenny
Lavers), Prom Queen (Sophie Darby), Prom Prince (Jonel Savory) and Prom Princess (Karolina Boguszewska)
were elected on the night to huge cheers from all. It was a night that made me very proud of this group of young
people whom I have had in my care for four years.
Goodbye, Year 11, and all good wishes for the future!
Turn to page 5 for pictures...
Katrina Pearn Head of Year 11

Chocolate Cross Curricular Project for Yr.8 students

I t melts in your mouth, is exquisite and makes you fat, but we all adore it – chocolate!
On 29th June Yr. 8 students were involved in a cross curricular ‘chocolate day’ where seven departments
got ‘stuck in’ looking at many aspects of the chocolate industry. Each department focussed on a different
aspect of chocolate. The aim of the day was to develop skills such as risk-taking, team work, creativity, decision
making and problem solving in our young people.
English produced some descriptive writing about how ingredients affect the taste of chocolate, Maths looked at
different methods of buying chocolate and how prices vary. Science looked at how much air is in an Aero bar,
how much chocolate is in it and how much we pay for the bar. Geography investigated the production process
from bean to bar and the life of the cocoa farmer. This also included how Fair Trade can help farmers growing
cocoa beans. Drama/ RS worked together on Fair Trade and the ethical issues surrounding child labour. Art/
Photography produced a large scale painting of a chocolate, based on Andy Warhol & Claus Oldenburg works.
The children worked in teams and fed back their findings to Staff and the whole year group at the end of the day.
They were rewarded with some chocolate products kindly donated by Mars Ltd.

“
‘I thought the chocolate day would be boring, but I was wrong. It was an excellent day.’
Fatima 8R

‘I learnt that we pay for air in the chocolate Aero bar. Actually air is free, but for the taste we have to
pay.’ Sahana 8R

‘It was great fun in all my lessons and I really enjoyed the hall when we all had to do presentations.’
Rahul 8R

”
‘I think it was a fabulous day because we had to work on many different activities such as experiments in
science, descriptive writing in English and working out costing in maths.’
Delane 8R
Information for Parents and Carers
My Child at School (MCAS)

R
ooks Heath College is pleased to announce that student information will be available electronically with
effect from September 2010. Parents and Carers will be able to see their child’s timetable, attendance
and assessment reports by logging on to ‘My Child At School’.
This is a new system, which is extremely user friendly and we hope that parents and carers will find it useful and
informative. We hope to expand the information available to include important announcements, copies of letters
home and details on behaviour, both positive and negative, as we progress through the year. Parents and carers
will be able to use their unique login and password to access live data that will enable them to track their child’s
attendance and time keeping.
Parents and Carers can monitor their child’s attendance in each lesson, or look back over an entire college year.
All college reports will now be available on MCAS. Paper reports will also be sent home for the immediate fu-
ture.
We hope that this system will help to enhance communication between home and college. The system will also
remind Parents and Carers to ensure that they update their personal contact details to help to keep the information
held by the college completely up to date.
We hope that you will find the system is a useful tool for keeping in touch with the college and we would wel-
come any feedback or suggestions you may have.

To be or not to be a Chemist?

D
r Robert Bowles, a ChemNet Executive from the Royal Society of Chemistry, enthused ‘A’ Level Chem-
ists on careers involving Chemistry on 23rd November, 2009. Students were made aware that medicine
is not the only option; Chemistry offers a large number of career opportunities. There is something for
all from clinical biochemists to pharmaceutical chemists working for internationally renowned drugs companies,
patenting law, working for the Ministry of Defence, museums & zoos, ophthalmology, optometry, dentistry, vet-
erinary sciences, research and development, teaching, beauty (cosmetics), engineering or even working in the
City – students were made aware of the benefits of the professional skills developed when undertaking ‘A’ Level
Chemistry.

Visiting Coryton

C hemistry has forever been a vital

science that has evolved with
advances in the field and gives
opportunities to pursue topics which link
with other fields. While the areas of re-
search are increasing in breadth and
complexity, the molecular approach to
problems has remained unique to Chem-
istry itself. Through our visit to the
Coryton Oil Refinery, we were given an
incredible idea about how Science works
outside of the classroom through a valu-
able lecture. This will prepare us to
value and respect Chemistry throughout
the course and in the future.
Mr Rob Farr took us on a tour of the oil
refinery and we were shown different
parts of the processes that we study
which was a rare opportunity due to on-
goingsecurity concerns. We must therefore thank Dr. Rathod for arranging this incredible visit.
Mohamed Ali Al-Badri
Maths At Rooks Heath College
UK Maths Challenges

T he Maths Challenges take place annually. They provide opportunities for talented mathematicians to pit
their wits against problems and puzzles and to display skills that lie outside the normal examination cur-
riculum.
This year, 60 students from Year 8 took part in the Junior Challenge and 90 from Years 9-11 took part in the In-
termediate Challenge. All the students did well, and many actually achieved Bronze, Silver and Gold Certifi-
cates.
In the Intermediate Challenge, Bronze Certificates go to: Kushboo Govind, Sophini Logeswaran, Laura Gardner,
Wingyee Hau, Benjamin Nithyandaraj, Sinduran Sivarajan, Sulax Balachanthiran, Wingchun Hau, Kiran McE-
wan, Ahsanul Choudhury and Aslam Sookia. Silver Certificates
go to: Rachana Khamar, Saajan Shah, Bhavik Shah and Saghar
Abdibayat.
There were even two winners of Gold Certificates: Bobby
Pringle and Sathana Jeyasingam.
In the Junior Challenge, Bronze Certificates go to: Rickesh
Choudhry, Shujana Luxmanan, Ava Patel, Ehsan Totakhil, Aye-
sha Kashem and Angusan Thavarajah. Silver Certificates go to
Thenuka Baby, Husayna Hassan, Daniaal Hussain, Kimberley
Grant, Dhruv Mohan and Ajharul Choudhury.
Mathematics Masterclass Day
The Masterclass day was held at the Royal Institute in London. Two students, Sathana Jeyasingam and Apekcha
Rai from Rooksheath attended this event. There were seminars and discussions ranging from forces and gravity
to mathematical patterns and proof. It was very enjoyable and the girls were introduced to many new concepts in
mathematics.

Some useful websites

www.sumdog.com Games with different levels for useful skill and drill in basic numeracy. Excellent for
speeding up your maths skills.
http://nrich.maths.org/forstudents Organised by Cambridge University, this site provides a wealth of games, in-
vestigations, activities and puzzles for students at all stages of the national curriculum.
www.ukmt.org.uk This is the UK Maths Challenge website and it has puzzles and games from past challenges.
http://www.fi.uu.nl/rekenweb/en/ A wide variety of mathematical games produced by educators from the
Netherlands
Mr Outen

Carnival Time

T he Ha2 Cando Carnival theme this year was musical instruments. The BTEC
students made stringed instruments from willow and tissue paper before
painting them and adding neon highlights. Gabija, Leanne, Christina, Archel
and Aiyesha from Year 10 were responsible for designing and making all the hats
and accessories and Gabija also did some of the sewing. They worked really hard
and contributed some great ideas.
The day was really ‘Hot Hot Hot,’ and everyone turned out in full. Despite the initial
lack of a truck, the day went really well with eight schools taking part.
Rooks Heath students looked really beautiful and they created a dance for the
performance at the Roxeth Show en route. Check the website for more pictures.
Isabella Hargrave
Thank You Ms Girvan

R
ocks Heath would like to say a BIG THANK
YOU to Ms Girvan for all she has done for us
regarding the BlastBeat program!! We would
also like to formally congratulate her for winning the
BlastBeat Teacher's Award for the amazing work she
has done!

Miraj Pankhania
Public Relations

HARROW CRICKET FACTORY

M o n d a y s & F r i d a y s

Mondays Fridays
Harrow Rec. Ground, St Marys Cricket Club,
Roxborough Road Headstone Lane
26th July to30th Aug 30th July to 27th Aug

Times: 10am-12pm 9-14 year olds. 2pm-4pm 15-18 year olds.

To book your FREE place, please email: greenhill.snt@met.police.uk

Summer Coaching Courses

For Boys and Girls aged 6-16
Course 1: 19th to 22nd July — Course 2: 26th to 29th July
Harrow Cricket Course 3: 2nd to 5th August — Course 4: 9th to 12th August
Course 5: 16th to 19th August — Course 6: 23rd to 26th August

For more information please visit: www.hca-london.com

Diary dates
FRIDAY 16th JULY LAST DAY FOR STUDENTS

Thursday 2nd Sept Year 12 Induction and interviews

Friday 3rd Sept Year 7 & 8 induction morning only
Monday 6th Sept Years 7 -11 Start
Tuesday 7th Sept Years 12 & 13 start