AVS Newsletter June 24 2016

Fortnightly News June 24th 2016 MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD TEACHER Dear Parents and Carers Whatever your personal opinion on the result of the EU Referendum there is no denying that today is a momentous day on which our country sets out on a different trajectory from the one it has travelled for the last 43 years. There is change ahead and with change comes uncertainty. One of the many roles of a school is to provide stability for young people and so, over the weeks and months ahead, we will be working hard to ensure that we continue to provide a stable and inclusive environment where all our students can flourish. Within school we have also had a memorable morning as 150 of our students have taken part in a Guinness World Record attempt on the largest group reading lesson. The Mayor arrived promptly and formally opened the event at 9am. Security was high with an external steward for every 50 of the students involved, photo evidence and a video recording all required to prove that we have maintained the stringent conditions required for a world record attempt. It was most exciting to have our students taking part in the event and to see everyone silently reading alongside JK Rowlings video presentation. Literacy skills are vital to high standards of academic achievement and I am pleased to announce that next year we will be launching two new literacy initiatives focusing on reading and writing, thereby ensuring that all of our students have the best opportunity to develop theses skills effectively. Today is of course the final day of year 11 for all but a handful of students who have one more exam on Monday. For a significant part of the group the end of formal 11-16 education took place this morning with the completion Science paper 3. The finale of their time with us comes tonight at the much anticipated Prom where I look forward to welcoming the students to Avon Valley for one last time as members of the school. Alison Davies Head Teacher CARNEGIE MEDAL BOOK AWARD 2016 The following students represented AVS by taking part in the Carnegie Medal Book Award 2016, a prestigious annual Award for the best outstanding new book for young adults for the year. Jasmine Cosgrove Sophie Hardy Oliwia Dragon Dilan Goodwin Rebecca Prestidge Theresa Asante Chloe Cartwright Vicky Chaplin Theodora Enache Jess Finch Chloe Hunt 7CPI 7CPI 8JPA 8JPA 8JPA 9KWA 9LWE 9JSM 9ZOC 9GMA 9KWA Their challenge was to read the eight books shortlisted to win the Award, discuss and review them and vote for their favourite. As a reward for their hard work and dedication a celebration was held in the school library to watch the live ceremony in which the winner of the Award was announced. The winner, One by Sarah Crossan was also voted the favourite by the students. Don’t forget to follow @AvonValleySch on Twitter and AvonValleySchool on Facebook for up-to-date information and news