Welcome to all students starting Year 7 at Haybridge. We are looking forward to your joining the school in September!
My name is Mrs Byford. I am Assistant Headteacher and one of my roles is to organise the transition and transfer of students from primary schools to Haybridge. You will see a lot of me over the coming months and I will be meeting your teachers to chat about you so that we can support you as you get ready to come to Haybridge.
By now your parents will have received a letter welcoming you to the school and inviting you to some events later in the Summer. We try hard to help you to settle in to the school as easily as possible, and we are sure you will love it here!
In June you will come to what we call our 'New Intake Evening' with your parents and you will find out lots of information to help you to plan for September. We hope that lots of your questions will be answered on that evening and that by the time you go home you will feel less nervous!
Later in June you come to spend the day with us were You meet your tutor and get to know lots of new friends. Remember that some children will not know anyone on this first day, so we will be expecting those of you who do have lots of friends already to make them feel part of things right from the start!
Visits to Pyramid Schools
During the Summer Term I will visit all the primary schools in our pyramid of schools, and will talk to you, the students. I will try to answer all your questions, but will also be bringing with me some current Year 7 students who used to attend your school, so there will be a familiar face for everyone, and you can ask them questions too. They will become your ebuddies over the coming weeks,
E-buddies
At the visit, we will give you a poster with the email addresses of your ebuddies. If you remember a question you would have liked to ask, or if you were too shy to ask something during the visit, then you can email your ebuddy, and they will do their best to answer your question. Only sensible questions please – the ebuddies will treat all sensible questions confidentially, but if you are inappropriate they will have to ask advice from me!
What happens in September?
Well, the first thing to tell you is that for the first day of term on Friday 3rd September there will be only Year 7 (that will be you!) and the Sixth Form in school, so there is no need to worry about the bigger students or busy corridors. You will get plenty of chance to learn your way around the school before the rest of the students arrive!
During that day you will have an induction programme instead of ordinary lessons. You will spend time with your tutor, play 'getting to know you' games, learn how to find your way about the school and how to access your cloakroom, tuck and lunch.
You will have sessions in the ICT rooms and improve your research skills. You will get your timetable and homework timetable and be given lots of advice about how to cope with the first few weeks of school. So there is no need to panic!
There will be some Sixth Form students and Year 8 students there to help you. Make sure you ask them if you want to know something - we are all here to help you.
Blackwell Court!
You have probably seen the letter telling your parents all about Blackwell Court. If you know people in the current Year 7, I expect you will have heard about it from them too.
Blackwell Court is the best bit of the induction to Haybridge. Last year everyone came on the trip and if you talk to the students they will tell you how much it helped them to feel part of the new school. You will spend a day there, and your form tutor will be there at the same time so you have plenty of opportunities to get to know each other.
Lots of other teachers will be there too, as well as Teaching Assistants and support staff - we want everyone to get to know you! Mrs Byford will be there for both days and she will be trying to face her fears on the new zip wire – apparently it is even better than the old one!
Last year the activities were great fun and helped everyone to work together in teams. I expect you have seen some of the things the students said about the trip on your parents' letter. Here are some more photos of the trip. When you come to the New Intake Evening in June you will be able to see the DVD!
At the start of Year 7 we went to Blackwell Court which is a very good idea because it gives you chance to make new friends. At Blackwell Court we had a lot of things to do like zip wire, archery and grass sledging. I'm sure when you go you will have fun. Jade
'Blackwell Court is a trip where you make new friends' Clarke
'When I started at Haybridge I didn't know anyone and it was a good way to make friends' Sam
'It was great and I'd like to go again!' Christian
Some practical issues which sometimes worry people:
Uniform
Yellow and brown! Not everybody's fashion choice, but we are proud of our uniform and we expect everyone to wear it with pride. That means keeping your top button fastened, your tie the right length and your shirt tucked in smartly at all times. Not too difficult!
Girls - when you go shopping to buy your uniform please remind your parents to measure the heels of your shoes. Shoe heels must be no higher than 5cm, measured at the outer edge of the shoe. The heels should be square and sensible too - not slim ones which can slip easily when you are getting up and down from the floor in drama, or hurrying along to school on a snowy day.
Sensible school shoes, which are comfy and easy to walk in are what you need - save the fashion items for evenings and weekends! I'm sure I don't need to tell you that makeup and jewellery are also a no-no!
See School Uniform for more information on what to wear.
The two week timetable
At Haybridge we have a two - week timetable. This means that learning to follow your timetable can be a little complicated at first, but don't worry - you will soon get used to it. In September you will be given your own copy of your timetable to stick into your planner, and your tutor will help you in the first weeks by reminding you each morning if it is a 'Week One' or a 'Week Two'. There are also plasma screens around the school which tell you this, as well as lots of other (more exciting) school news!
Homework
Everyone does homework, and you will be given your homework timetable early in the term. In Year 7 you will have about 5 or 6 hours of homework a week and you will need to plan your time carefully so that it doesn't all build up!
Try to get into a routine so that you have somewhere quiet to work and aim to do some homework in the early part of each evening so that when it is done you can relax and feel pleased with yourself! Don't get into bad habits which will be hard to break later (such as doing homework in front of the telly or whist chatting on MSN!).