XP East

Confirmed positive Covid19 case – Y7 XP East students to self isolate for 14 days

By Jamie Portman3rd November 2020

Dear Parents / carers of Y7 students at XP East,

We have been advised by Public Health England that there has been a confirmed case of COVID-19 within the Y7 Year bubble.

We have followed the national guidance and have identified that your child has potentially been in close contact with the affected student as they are a member of the Y7 XP East year bubble. In line with the national guidance your child should now stay at home and self-isolate for 14 days.

We are asking you to do this to reduce the further spread of COVID 19 to others in the community.

If your child is well and does not have any Covid-19 related symptoms at the end of the 14 day period of self-isolation they can return to usual activities on Tuesday 17th November.

Other members of your household can continue normal activities provided your child does not develop symptoms within the 14 day self-isolation period.

We will now move to an online educational provision and details of this will be available on our school website shortly.

All other year groups at XP East will remain open.

After speaking with the family of the student in question today, I understand that they are doing well and we look forward to having everyone back where they belong on the 17th November.

Best wishes everyone.

Jamie Portman

C25: Out here in the fields

By Katie Haughey1st November 2020

Our year 9 students were lucky enough to get out on fieldwork on the final week of term to complete work relating to their ‘Welcome to the machine’ expedition. Over the next seven weeks of the winter term, they will be working on their answer to the guiding question:

‘Do the benefits of industrialisation outweigh the costs?’

For their first STEAM case studies, students have been looking at conservation data, learning about how data can be collected and displayed using multiple representations. They have also been learning about specialisation and ecosystem management.

They visited The Hatfield Moors, our local nature reserve, to examine the extent of the fire damage from earlier this year. Students have been learning about the protected species that can be found at the site, particularly the adder, and how Natural England and the fire service prioritised safeguarding these species during the clear up operation.

While at the site, students conducted a series of sampling techniques, as well as collecting data on the wildlife. Sadly, due to slight delays in being able to visit the site, we weren’t able to spot any adders as they have likely gone into hibernation for the winter, however, students were still able to find other species key to maintaining and supporting the ecosystem at the wetland.

Students also conducted a number of tests on the site, in accordance with their two daily learning targets for the day:

1. I can estimate the population density of a species using random sampling techniques.

Students engaged in data collection of various parts of the site, using quadrats to provide increasingly accurate estimations of species numbers in the areas we sampled. We created a set of axes, used a random number generator to find coordinates to sample, and collected the data from those coordinates.

After collecting data in teams of three, we used all the data collected to calculate the predicted species number, based on scaling up the measurements to accommodate the size of the field. In debrief, due to a large range in answers, we went on to calculate the mean for those estimations, to create a more accurate estimation. We also discussed why using the random number generator was fundamental in keeping our research free from bias.

2. I can investigate the effects of abiotic factors using systematic sampling techniques.

Students then went on to conduct a series of pH tests on the wetlands, again using their quadrats placed along a transect, to link changes in species to abiotic factors of the wetlands. In debrief, we examined the data, looking for patterns relating to the abundance of the plant species and the abiotic factor recorded.

I’d also like to thank our very own Marshall Jones, for taking his time on the day and spare time to create this amazing vlog documenting the day:

I feel incredibly fortunate that we were able to make it out to the site given the current circumstances, and I really look forward to hear how the work the students have done on this series of case studies will inform their guiding question answers over the coming weeks.

Clickview: Free access to educational movies, TV and documentaries

By Martin Said16th October 2020

As we are about to start our two-week break, I thought I would it be timely to remind you that all of our students have access to Clickview.

Clickview is on online library of thousands of education videos, movies, TV and documentaries – all for FREE.

Here is a link to a parents guide which gives a brief overview of this fantastic resource.

Students can access Clickview by logging into the school website and then hitting this button:

There is also an app available from the app store and play store.

Face masks and coverings in our schools

14th October 2020Jamie Portman

* Update: In order to find out the lockdown rules for the area of Doncaster please click onto this BBC website and enter our postcode of DN45NG.

I would like to begin by thanking parents and carers for the support that you have continually provided us since we reopened after the Lockdown period. The last 8 weeks have been fraught with many different challenges, questions and anxieties but we couldn’t have made it this far without your trust and support – so thank you!

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic we have carefully followed guidance from Public Health Doncaster and the Department for Education. As we have a ‘system of controls’ in place, these organisations have stated that face masks or coverings have not been necessary. However, the recent Government announcement regarding the introduction of the 3 tier alert system has confirmed that Doncaster will be categorised as tier 2 (edit: Doncaster has since been put into Tier 3 since this post was originally published).

As a result of this, students and staff will now be required to wear a face mask or covering in our schools. They will not be expected to wear masks or coverings in classrooms, but can do if they so wish.

When will staff and students have to wear face masks or face coverings?

We will be implementing the change via a phased approach as highlighted below. From tomorrow and Friday, staff and students will be encouraged to wear a face mask or covering if they have one – but this will become compulsory after the school holiday:

Thursday 15th October: encouraged to wear a face mask / covering if they have one
Friday 16th October: encouraged to wear one if you have a mask
Monday 2nd November – compulsory for everyone

Where will staff and students have to wear face masks or coverings?

When they enter the building
On corridors including movement between lessons
Lining up at lunchtime and movement around the canteen areas (not when sat down in preparation to eat lunch)
Whenever they leave the classroom (toilet, fire evacuation etc)

I am aware that some students will be exempt from wearing a face mask or covering, and this will be handled sensitively. Information around exemptions is available here.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Crew Leaders in the first instance, myself or our Phase Leads to answer any questions that you may have.

Best wishes,

Jamie Portman (Principal of XP and XP East)

XP East
[email protected] Principal
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y7 at XP & XP East:
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y8 & Y9
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y10
[email protected] XP16 Lead

XP School
[email protected] Principal
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y7 at XP & XP East:
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y8 & Y9 at XP:
[email protected] Assistant Principal for Y10 & Y11 at XP:
[email protected] XP16 Lead

Confirmed positive Covid19 case – Y8 XP East

11th October 2020Jamie Portman

This morning I had a conversation with a parent due to a confirmed positive case of Covid19 in Y8 at XP East. The specific details concerning the case are as followed:

The student was not in school last week, and was last in school on Friday 2nd October.
The student showed symptoms at home on Tuesday 6th October, the test was taken on Wednesday 7th October, and the positive result came through on Saturday 10th October.

I spoke to the Department for Education helpline this morning and their instruction to me was:

‘No further action is required because the student was not in school during the considered infectious period of 2 days before the onset of symptoms.’
Therefore, the year bubble does not have to close.

I can assure parents that I ran through the scenario concerning the timeline above with the Department for Education on several occasions. They were clear that because the onset of symptoms started 4 days after the student was last in school, this was outside of the 2 day infectious period – as a result ‘no further action is required’.

As this is our first confirmed case of Covid19 in a student, I understand that some parents may have specific concerns or worries. Therefore, please don’t hesitate to email myself or the specific Assistant Principal of your child’s phase regarding any questions or issues you wish to discuss.

The student is doing well and I am in touch with the family. We look forward to their return to school after the isolation period has ended.

Jamie Portman (Principal)

Checking in with ourselves

By A Parker11th October 2020

We’ve spent the past few Wise Wednesday Crew sessions looking at how sleep (or lack of!) affects our concentration and productivity at school. A lot of the discussions have been around what we can change to ensure we are getting a good night’s sleep, like making sure we go to bed at a decent time every night and making sure we start winding down as we prepare for bed for example, by switching off devices! Over the past week, we’ve done a daily sleep check-in and I’m pleased to say that most Crew members, including myself, have noticed an improvement in the quality of our sleep just by making small changes.

This week, we started to explore what other lifestyle factors impact upon our health and wellbeing by reflecting on some of the ‘bad’ habits we may’ve gotten into. We used the following video as a discussion point – a tongue-in-cheek instruction guide on how to be miserable. I think at some point most – if not all – of us recognised ourselves in this! It’s definitely worth sharing here for you to watch, too:

Watching the video and having our discussions made us realise that:

It is only by understanding bad habits that we can carve out good ones.

Mr Wilmot revisited this message during Friday’s Crew session, leading a session around being aware of what we do that we know is bad for our mental and physical health – and what we can do to start making positive changes.

Crew showed courage by sharing some of the bad habits they’re aware of, mostly around comparing themselves to who they see online, over-thinking, self-sabotage and imposter syndrome.

We looked at what we do when we do feel in a low mood: stay in our rooms, withdraw from those around us, no physical activity, we might eat too much junk food – all with the aim of making us feel better – which it may do for a little while – but these behaviours actually make us feel worse in the long run!

With that in mind, Mr Wilmot encouraged us all to take some time out this weekend and do something solely for ourselves, ideally away from the online world… something we know we will enjoy, to help us to reset our minds and make us feel better about ourselves. Hopefully, by developing the good habit of checking in with ourselves and doing more of what makes us happy, we’ll be able to cope better with the daily stresses around us. In a world that glorifies ‘busy’, this has never been as important. It’s also a very timely challenge with Saturday being World Mental Health Day.

I pledged to go out for a run and be really mindful of my surroundings rather than keeping my head down and focussing on the ground (pleased to say that I achieved that this morning – noticing the gorgeous autumnal changes on my regular route has definitely made me feel happier!) I’ll be checking in with Mr Wilmot next week to see if he’s read the last 100 pages of that book he hasn’t got round to finishing and also see if Crew have stuck to their own pledges to spend some time checking in with themselves over the weekend.

Crew Churchill are on it!

By K Poncia8th October 2020

It was great to see Crew Churchill working hard and getting smart during their recent ‘Wise Wednesday’ crew session.

They spent time working in groups to look at what the cascading consequences might be if they practise procrastination rather than preparation during their time leading up to GCSEs.

Consequences raised included:

not achieving the needed grades to succeed in life
not working hard, getting smart and being kind, in addition to not showing XP’s character values
developing a weak mindset
falling into bad habits
falling behind in sessions which will cause a lack of knowledge and understanding later on in exams.

All crew were involved – there no passengers at all!

Crew Young – Thoughtful Thursday check-in

By D Pearson6th October 2020

E24/Y10 Students in Crew Young were asked recently to select a piece of work of which they are proud, to share this with the others, provide a context for learning, reasons for their choice of work, and outline the next steps. This reflection on their learning and articulation of the process formed part of a weekly academic crew check-in that is known as “Thoughtful Thursday”. Below the photos are the students’ own, unscripted comments on their selection of work:

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E24 / Year 10 GCSE Spanish students’ running text protocol

By D Pearson5th October 2020

I am very pleased with our E24 / Y10 GCSE Spanish students’ response to the increasing demands of their foreign language course. Nearly all the tasks that they complete in sessions are taken from higher tier material, and to complement the work covered in Academic Crew on Thoughtful Thursdays, we’re exploring ways to develop retention and recall of key vocabulary and structures in extended text.

Here, our E24 linguists are following the running text protocol, sending a student in their group to memorise a section of Spanish text, who then reports back to the others to recreate the original, before the two versions are compared for accuracy and then exploited further in sessions. Despite the selection of more challenging subject matter, some groups’ recall of this extended text was word-perfect!

Y5/Y6 ‘Open Evening’ – Online now

5th October 2020Jamie Portman

Due to Covid-19 we are unable to offer in-school visits this year. Instead, we have created an online experience that will help parents and carers with the schools admissions process.

Our website contains lots of videos and other resources that will help you to understand more about XP and XP East: our curriculum, crew, myth busting, ‘How we XP’, supporting SEND students, school behaviour policies, FAQs and our admission policies etc.

If parents are interested in choosing XP or XP East, we actively encourage you to select either schools for preference 1 and 2.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us should you have any further questions.

Jamie Portman (Principal of XP and XP East)