Pathways Out

 'Be Smart Be Safe' 

On Friday 1^st December, Year 9 students took part in 'Be Smart Be Safe' day. They had the opportunity to participate in 6 different sessions. led by industry experts, to help them safe choices and understand their pathways out. The sessions included:

• 'Online safety' with Sharon Girling OBE
• RSHE with Rabbits
• 'Stop & Search' with Growing Against Violence
• 'Drug awareness' with Stand Against Violence
• Gambling awareness within gaming with GamCare
• Alcohol awareness with our specialist science team. 

The students were a credit to the school and engaged by participating in the interactive activities and asking insightful and thoughtful questions. A huge thank you to the companies who came to deliver. One facilitator commented that they 'love visiting Winston students and cannot wait to come back'. 

Our students also loved the day:

"Today was a good day I learned many new things about how I can stay safe from stuff and to not make the wrong mistakes"

"I think safety day was a great chance for us to learn about problems we may come across in the future and how to handle them responsibly. I think the Stop & search session was the most helpful because young people can be involved in the situation and it’s helpful knowing how to deal with them, because if we say something wrong, it could be held again us. All of the instructors were really really nice. I enjoyed the day so much"

"Young people often start having sex without the knowledge, skills or access to youth friendly services they need. This, together with harmful cultural norms, gender inequity, gender-based violence, early marriage and stigma contributes to the fact that young people experience high rates of STIs - including HIV, which can have lasting effects on their lives and their sexual and reproductive health in future. I am also aware that for some parents, it is a taboo to discuss sexual issues with their children, so I am grateful for this intervention from school to raise awareness and educate us."

"The entire day was very helpful and informative."

"The event was insightful and full of knowledge. Some very important information that will benefit us in the future was shared here in the event; it was vital!"

Please remember that we have our 'Pathways Out' button on FROG to enable our students to understand their choices in difficult situations. 

The Winston Experience!

Cooking with Bacon!

" Lunchtime today , 9CN had the pleasure to enjoy Mr Bacon`s Breakfast. The students watched on while Mr Bacon showed some amazing cooking skills as he introduced the class to chemical reactions. " 

Year 7 Working Together

The success of outdoor adventure activities is dependent on ingenuity, collaboration, and communication. Year 7 were given the challenge to work as a team and move along the 3G AstroTurf using the wooden planks. 

The students had to come up with 2 different methods of moving on the wooden planks, so that they could compete in a race against the other team! There was giggles, failures, screams and fabulous collaboration! 

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs Smith

Head of Year 7

Celebrating Dr Who

On Thursday 23^rd November, it was the 60^th anniversary of Doctor Who, the popular sci-fi TV series that has captivated the nation since 1963! To celebrate, we held a Doctor Who event in the Library after school. Students had the opportunity to go into the planetarium with Mr Spain, chat all things Doctor Who with Mr Coll (who's a Doctor Who superfan!), read some of the books we have on offer in the Library and even make their own mini Tardis!

Mr Spain showed 'We are Aliens' in the planetarium, narrated by Rupert Grint, which explores the possibilities of extra-terrestrial life. Also showing downstairs in the Library was The Science of Doctor Who with Professor Brian Cox. Students were fascinated to see how some of the events in Doctor Who might possibly be explained with science. We also watched some montage clips from flashback episodes that included Peter Davidson (who opened the planetarium at Winston!!) in preparation for the anniversary episodes that are being released over the next couple of weeks!

One of the most popular activities was definitely for students to make their own mini Tardis! It was very fiddly but the students loved it and the finished products look great! 

Thank you to students and staff who came along to join in the fun, and keep your eyes peeled for the next themed event after Christmas!

Our Doctor Who display in the Library will be up for the next few days so if you would still like to make a model Tardis, or have a go at any other Doctor Who puzzle, please come and take a look!

Mrs M Jones

Discovery Space Manager

The Music Never Stops!

 Band Night 

On Thursday 30^th November the Music Department held 'Band Night' in the Performance Space. A sell-out audience of 150 were treated to a fantastic evening of music which was opened by Junior Session Band. There were then performances from student bands ADASTO and The Manhattan Project, from Guitar Ensemble and Rock N Pop Club, from a Y7 Band (made up of over 30 students), from Senior Session Band and even from our new Staff Band. The evening culminated in a performance from our Big Band who performed Canned Heat and Everybody Talks. With over 100 students taking part (and over 60 students in our Big Band) this was a real showcase of the musical talent that we have at Winston.

The Music Department will be holding two further concerts in the next two weeks with Young Singer of the Year taking place in the Performance Space on 07.12.23 and our Christmas Concert taking place in the main hall on 14.12.23. Tickets for both events are selling fast, with just a handful left for the Christmas Concert which will feature performances from groups such as our Orchestra, Big Band, Choir, Brass & Sax Ensemble and Woodwind Ensemble.

Advent Calendar Day 1

Below are two images of the Year 11 band ADASTO, performing for day 1 of our living advent calendar. They performed throughout break and received a fantastic round of applause from the rest of the students who really enjoyed the songs they played.

Colour and Texture

 Year 7 Art Lesson

Some students in year 7 learnt how to shade and blend colours with colouring pencils whilst learning about colour theory this week in Mrs Pinions class. In the next lesson,  they will be developing their skills further by learning how to mix a range of colours using paint.

Healthy Chinese Cuisine Workshop with Year 10 Food Preparation and Nutrition Class.

Today we were lucky enough to have three Ambassadors come to the class and teach the pupils to make Kung Pao Chicken. The pupils were taught about the 5 steps of Chinese cooking as well as gaining knowledge on the Chinese Culture.  They were  taught skills on how to de-bone chicken thighs, how to remove the "strings" quickly and easily from the celery as well as a top tip on how to know when your Wok is hot enough. All the pupils were proud and excited to have prepped and cooked their own Kung Po Chicken and were eager to eat it.