A familiar face!

By A Parker3rd July 2020

I do spend time catching up with Crew at least once a week, either via hangouts or by telephone, but nothing quite beats the feeling of seeing them face-to-face!

As children of key workers, both Bryn and Aden have been accessing our in-school provision and today I got to see Aden for the first time in 15 weeks.  I think I was more excited than him, though!

(Note: the only picture I’ve got is of Bryn is of him doing star jumps for our Crew PE Challenge, so I don’t think he’d appreciate me publishing that!)

Crew’s experience of lockdown has varied but as restrictions are eased, actually being able to see and talk to other people “in real life” outside of our households has been a major mood booster for us all.

In this week’s Crew session, I really enjoyed hearing about Crew’s visits with Grandparents, bike rides with friends, family trips out to the seaside and Brodsworth Hall, and even a shopping trip to Meadowhall to spend birthday money!  We’re all enjoying being able to do ‘normal’ things, albeit at a safe 2m distance apart!

An all of a sudden, the world is not as frightening as it was back in March.

As we make plans for the return to school, one thing I’ll remember from our time apart is that we still remained Crew.

A different type of Crew, maybe, but still Crew.

I’m absolutely positive that we’re now an even stronger one.

Stay safe – even more so now!

Mrs P x

We’re Rowling, Rowling, Rowling through the workload!

By Natalie Johnson28th June 2020

After a few weeks off blogging, i couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to express how proud I am of Crew Rowling for their attitude, hard work and dedication to getting stuff done!

We decided to set up a new deadlines doc for this term, one whereby the students could project manage their own workload and track their progress. And WOW. I’ve been blown away… i can’t even count how many people i’ve bragged to already, and now i’m here to brag even more! Just look at all the completed tasks on here:

I mean LOOK AT IT!

A Crew average of 98% completion rate!!!

We’re working our socks off!!

 

So I know you want to know, how do we do it?!

Every Monday i sign on to my laptop with messages, which will usually have already been replied to:

Crew are keen to use Google Chat to check when hangouts are and send regular reminders which means no one can forget:

Sometimes we struggle and we need a helping hand, we know we can ask teachers but in our crew we have our own experts:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If we can’t resolve it over a chat, we take to a hangout:

I so wish i’d have recorded this so you could hear how well Harvey explained these tasks!

If we can’t solve the problem over a chat or a hangout, we leave it to the experts:

We continue to hold each other to account (they even catch me out!):

 

 

 

 

But most importantly, we recognise how hard people are working:

So as you can see, our fantastic outcomes are as a result of Crew continuing to maintain their fantastic HOWLS throughout lockdown, sticking together, supporting each other, holding one another to account and knowing there is no ‘i’ in team. It’s no good one of us being at the top of the mountain after all!

I couldn’t be any prouder as a Crew Leader.

To me this proves, ‘if we get crew right, we get everything right’. 

It doesn’t get much better than being blessed by these smiling faces twice a week (yes, we even get 100% attendance on those!) Keep going, we’re nearly there. I’m so proud of everything you have all achieved so far.

Thank you Crew Rowling, and your parents for all their support!

Black Lives Matter, Gardening, and Drawful challenge!

By Katie Haughey25th June 2020

Over the past fortnight, I have been meeting on hangouts with my crew to discuss their academic progress, their take on what’s going on in the news, and to check in with what they’ve been up to!

Black lives matter

Last week, I spoke with Alice, Dylan and Lewis about the protests that had been taking place and their purpose. We spoke about the blackout Tuesday on social media, and whether or not posting a black square to social media was an effective way of campaigning for equality or whether there were more impactful ways of doing so. It was lovely to hear how thoughtfully they considered the issue and it was nice to gain their insights on the matter.

Working hard in lockdown

I’m immensely proud of the work record that members of my crew have maintained over these first 3 weeks back after the break. Reece, Lewis, Dylan Mollie and Abi have managed to keep their hand in rate above 90%, which is really impressive!

Another highlight worth mentioning, is the graft that Torran, Callum and Lexi have put in this week with academic crew check-ins. I’ve loved discussing electron configuration and getting my head around ions and atoms.

Green thumb

I’ve also loved seeing the work Torran has been putting into their allotment while we’ve been in lockdown, many members of my crew have been helping out in their gardens (including myself!) He’s been enjoying getting to train with his football team again, similarly Lexi was able to do a gymnastics training in an empty car park!

Last week, we also had a fun crew session where crew members had to draw a Pixar movie that we had to each guess, here’s Charlotte’s example of ‘Inside out’. Congrats to Dylan who won the game. I have wished my crew a nice long weekend (due to staff days) and told them to go and get some sun this weekend!

 

 

What makes us XP? Crew Young’s advice to new staff and students

By D Pearson22nd June 2020

It’s great to have regular contact with Crew Young and hear how they’re doing during lockdown. Recently I asked them to share advice for new staff and students, with the benefit of their (nearly) three years of experience at the school, about “what makes us XP?”:

“For teachers to join next year i would say take each day as it is and try and relate with students more then ever before if you actually want to know them as many fail to do so in many scenarios in the education system“.

“For new teachers I would give the advice of not being afraid to teach differently to others because if you teach differently it could help the student retain information easier. For new students, I would possibly say it’s okay if you’re shy but if you know the answer to something, maybe try putting yourself out there and put your hand up“.

“My advice would be to just follow what the current teachers are doing right now with feedback on work and fieldwork building onto expeditions“.

“The advice I would give to any new student at XP/XP East is that they shouldn’t worry about making friends and should just be themselves. This is because, as a recent new student, I was very nervous that people wouldn’t like me or wouldn’t want to be my friend because of the way I act. However, XP East was extremely welcoming and everybody accepts who you are without hesitation. Therefore, any new student shouldn’t make the same mistake I did by doubting themselves and should instead put themselves out there, because there will always be someone willing to talk to you or be your friend”

In our next Crew blog we’ll report back on which distance learning measures Crew Young feel have been the most effective as they head towards the demands of GCSE study in Y10…..

 

 

Crew Parkinson Working Hard and Getting Smart

By H Hickson22nd June 2020

Overall, I’m delighted with the amount and quality of work completed in all subjects by Crew since the lockdown and school closure began in March. It’s been wonderful receiving emails from other teachers praising my Crew members’ work, and as their Hums teacher, seeing the fantastic work they’ve been doing in this subject too.

I know working from home can be tough without the structure of school, teachers, classmates and the resources available but I’m thrilled with how Crew have not let this phase them and are trying their best at home.

Last week really blew me away in Hums. Our current expedition ‘Wave After Wave’ focuses on Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ for the English aspect of the expedition. Students have been learning about the plot, characters and techniques Shakespeare uses in his play. One of the tasks for online learning this week was to write a descriptive piece of writing depicting Act 1 Scene 1 of The Tempest – students could decide on which format they wrote their descriptive writing in. We highlighted the need for powerful and interesting adjectives, verbs and adverbs as well as varied sentence structures and figurative language. Here’s some of Crew’s entries:

Ava:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aaron:

Marcus:

I also loved the answer Marcus wrote to the question about why Shakespeare would use a storm to open the play and what is significant about this. Here’s his response:

Florence:

Lacey:

I think it’s clear to see that although Crew are now working at home, they are still working hard and getting smart. It’s been fantastic to see the effort that they have put into their work. I know that by taking responsibility for their own learning and always trying their best to complete the work to a high standard at home, they will definitely hit the ground running when they return to school. KEEP UP THE BRILLIANT WORK!

 

Top advice from Crew: “just keep smiling!”

By A Parker19th June 2020

I’ve spent most of the last 3 weeks on Google Hangouts with Y6 students who are coming to join us at the end of August.  These meetings usually happen in person at their primary school, but our transition process is yet another thing that we’ve had to take online!

I’ve met some very excited children who can’t wait to start school.  I’ve also met some very anxious children (and parents, too!)

I asked Crew if they could remember their own Y6/7 transition visits… Most could, and could even remember which member of staff visited them, which I guess shows the impact of these visits.

We had a lovely discussion about what their Y6 selves were worried about as they moved up to our school: most were worried about not knowing anyone, not making new friends and that the work would be too hard.

And these were more or less the same worries that the current Y6’s spoke to me about, 4 years on!

So, what advice would my Crew give to Y6 students today?

  • You will definitely make friends on your first day, and even if you struggle, your Crew will always look out for you.
  • Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
  • Don’t let your worries stop you from enjoying all the experiences XP East will be offering you.
  • Everyone probably feels as nervous as you, so just keep smiling and someone will smile back! (love that one!)

Wise words from the founding year of XP East!

This Crew session gave me a good excuse to look through old photos and get a bit teary eyed at the first ones we had taken together at Malham Cove in 2017.

My, haven’t they grown? Not just in height and appearance, but also in character (especially over the last 3 months!)

I’m a little bit envious of my colleagues who are about to start their own unique journey with their new Crews… I hope their journey is as eventful, exciting and enriching as my own with Crew Finch.

In other news…

Well Done to Noah for winning the monthly Crew Quiz during Thursday’s hangout!  Well done also to Thomas H for showcasing his excellent knowledge of ‘Animal Farm’, even with the cheeky bonus point questions (one which unintentionally gave a major spoiler – sorry about that, guys!)

 

DofE Bronze Award Update

19th June 2020A Parker

In April we told you about changes to our DofE delivery in this blog post.

We now know that students won’t be able to complete the Outdoor Expedition within the original timescales set.

Unfortunately, this means that our Y9 students won’t be awarded the full Bronze Award this academic year.

However, DofE still want to recognise and celebrate participants’ achievements so far – and rightly so! – and will be awarding a Certificate of Achievement to all those who complete the Volunteering, Physical and Skills sections before the end of the year (31/12/20 is the official date but we will be setting our own school deadline, which is likely to be much earlier!)

Students will receive the full Bronze Award once they have completed the Outdoor Expedition, and we already have plans in place to get this done as soon as we can!

It is important to note that students will NOT receive the full Bronze Award if they don’t have the 2020 Certificate of Achievement before the end of the year.

We really hope you continue to support and encourage your child through their DofE journey.

Here’s the WHY:

Outdoor Education is a huge part of the XPE experience; it starts with Outward Bound and carries on through fieldwork and the DofE Awards we offer from Y9.

DofE in particular helps students build key life skills – not least compassion, resilience, and teamwork – reinforcing what our CHARACTER TRAITS, HOWLS and CREW.  We want our students to be the best versions of themselves, and truly believe that DofE helps them to achieve this.

So, here’s a quick summary of where we’re at at XPE:

 

 

 

 

 

Students have completed the Volunteering section.  This was done in school with Y9 students becoming Volunteer Reading Mentors for Y7.

 

We have asked all Y9 students to complete the St John Ambulance First Aid Course. Details have been uploaded onto the DofE Google Classroom.

I’d like to give a massive appreciation to the the following students who have been working through the weekly First Aid tasks that are being set for them:

Thomas H, Ben, Aran K, Rhys, Summer, Maclaren, Kaiden, Keisha, Theone, Eleanore and Chloe

Thank you all so much – I’m really impressed with what you’ve all done so far and would definitely feel safe being out on expedition with you guys!   

There are still quite a few of students who need to join the classroom, or who have joined but have yet to start – it is really important that they make a start as soon as possible and get these tasks done!


Many students were using out of school activities as evidence for this section.  However, once we went into lockdown, these activities were stopped and some students haven’t been able to collect enough evidence to complete this section.

However, students still need to continue with evidencing some form of physical activity and we have made some suggestions of what they could easily be getting on with: walking, running, gardening, Joe Wicks’ daily PE lesson on YouTube to name a few.

These sessions can be added to any which were previously recoded before lockdown (so you don’t have to start the 12 hours again!) but you MUST agree this with your Crew Leader. New evidence sheets are on the DofE Classroom.  

Submitting Evidence

All evidence will be submitted via the eDofE mobile app.  It’s really easy to use and I’ll be in touch with each Crew to talk them through the process.

Thank you. 

This Weeks Beautiful Work…

By Brandon Burke12th June 2020

There has been some brilliant work this week coming out of Crew Anne-Frank. Let’s take a look at what they have been up to…

ART Work:

As part of E26’s Artwork, students have designed visual diaries for photos, observational drawings, reflections, and experiences during the lockdown, with different weeks focusing on different topics. Amelia, however, has been focusing her week on the Nature around us. Although the weather hasn’t been the best this week, Amelia and others have created some beautiful drawings and paintings of what nature is in their garden and around them. Beautiful drawings Amelia! Great Stuff!

HUMS work:

Undergoing new expedition ”Above all, Compassion” looking more in-depth into the Amazon Rainforest, Olivia has produced a detailed explanation of all the positive and negative things about building a farm in the Amazon. Brill detail and use of words to highlight such great points in your work Olivia, well done!

Beautiful Crew and Beautiful Butterflies!

By K Poncia9th June 2020

As time is ticking on, we are all finding our weeks busy, filled with new expeditions and immersing ourselves in new learning, working hard on the tasks we have been set whether it’s Hegarty maths or finding out about Fair Trade in Spanish or even reading ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell in HUMAN.

Taking part in Google Hangouts has become the norm and has greatly helped in allowing us to access our learning even more. A face-to-face chat with our teachers and learning coaches can soon set us on the right track.

Within all of this ‘busyness’ going on, I have to say that my favourite part of the week is our Crew Churchill hangout.  It is just wonderful to touch base with my crew members, hear what they have been up to, what’s been working well for them and it gives a chance to discuss if any help is needed.

It has also made me realise how much I miss you all and how much I look forward to when we can be reunited as our crew!

Here’s a flavour of just how great you all are!

 

 

Return to work for Crew Young

5th June 2020D Pearson

After a two week break we return (metaphorically) to school in what is incredibly the fifth and final term of this academic year, and the end of another Key Stage for Crew Young. As we move inexorably towards GCSE in Year 10 it’s clear that some of us are finding time to research common mission options and subjects; Maclaren is keen on computer science, Summer is interested in media and geography for a possible career in journalism, Eleanor favours business studies and Keisha prefers psychology, but Louie is still undecided.

It’s also great to receive praise shared by colleagues for the hard work that is going on at home by students that are engaging with assignments being set. This week Mrs Sprakes was full of praise for Eleanor and her progress in Spanish+, whilst Miss Batty really appreciated the effort that Louie is putting into his Empire task and the Indian Wars of Independence. Well done everybody!

There’s still lots more for us to get through:
– This term we begin a new STEM expedition entitled “here comes the sun”.
– We are now aiming to complete TWO DofE First Aid course sessions per week (Chest Pains and Low Blood Sugar both this week) to ensure full completion of the course.
– We’ve also been invited to Go Wild for 30 days (and beyond!) by Mr Said here:   https://action.wildlifetrusts.org/page/57739/petition/1