We are really looking forward to welcoming our Year 8 parents into school this evening.

Being Human: What does it mean to be Human?

• Families should arrive between 5.20pm and 5.30pm.
• Please be mindful of residents if parking near to the school.
• We apologise but we are not able to offer refreshments. There will be a short break mid-way through the evening.
• Lift access is available to those that require it.
• We expect to be finished at around 7pm, at which point students will be able to leave with their families straight away.

We are sharing your child’s information snapshot with you this evening. This includes information about their attendance and their HoWLs (habits of work and learning).

This short video is a guide to help you to interpret this information.

Students are currently working on their pledges based on these snapshots. These will be shared next week. Following this you will be able to ask questions about their information.

In January students will present to you and their Crew Leader at their SLC (student-led conference) with:

• An updated information snapshot with further information about their academic progress
• Responses to your questions
• Evidence of how they have been working on their pledges

G28 students are out on fieldwork tomorrow. Those students attending Ryder Architecture that need a packed lunch have been contacted via email by Mr Said.

The forecast has changed for tomorrow now though, it is now expected to be wet throughout the day but thankfully not too heave.

Given that there is walking involved for both pieces of fieldwork. all students will need:

• School bag with regular kit, water and iPad
• A suitable coat and shoes/trainers for wet weather

Our expectations of students at XP Gateshead are very high, but very simple. We expect students to work hard, get smart and be kind – these are our Habits of Work and Learning (HoWLs).

We have a strong sense of community in our school, and as such our community does not tolerate bullying, unkindness or disruptive behaviour.

Positive peer influence is hugely important to our practice. In our schools, we give voice to our students to challenge each other to uphold our HoWLs and  character traits through Crew and our weekly Community Meetings.

Young people will make mistakes. When they do, the process at XP Gateshead is tough but supportive. When students do display poor behaviours, there are clear restorative sanctions and practices that are shared with and owned by the community. Peers and teachers hold students to account when apologies and pledges are made. What is most important is that when students make a mistake, they are given an opportunity to reflect and to put it right, with the support of their Crew and their Crew Leader.

More details can be found in our behaviour policy here.

From shopping basket to culinary heaven, what a fantastic set of photographs, and a great way top bring to an end our student photos from Staying Alive. The feedback from the families at Edberts House was overwhelmingly positive.

Don’t forget to tune in to Memory Lane radio tomorrow at 2pm for more from Do Your Bit.

Great work Archie!

As you will recall from the Presentation of Learning before the Easter break, we launched our ePlatform with students, giving them access to hundreds of books on their devices.. 

The next step with this is for us to launch our Accelerated Reader programme. Students have already completed a Star Reader test so that we were able to establish a reading level for every student. 

Reading is a key focus at XPG as it is not only the first building block to allowing students to access their learning but it also plays a significant role in their life chances and their wellbeing. Studies have shown that ‘those who read for pleasure have higher levels of self-esteem and a greater ability to cope with difficult situations. Reading for pleasure was also associated with better sleeping patterns’.

We are also looking to build habits for life as it has also been found that ‘adults who read for just 30 minutes a week are 20% more likely to report greater life satisfaction’.

Accelerated Reader is a nationally proven programme which encourages students to choose and read books at an appropriately challenging level and to take quizzes online to check their understanding and to develop their vocabulary. The feedback from each quiz is used to motivate students to make progress, to help students set personalised reading targets and to achieve their full literacy potential. 

At XPG, we expect students to be reading their accelerated reader book for 20-30 minutes a day. This is monitored weekly and students are held accountable for this by Crew Leaders.

We really need your support with this to ensure that your child is able to get the most out of this programme and allow them to fully access our enriching curriculum. To be good learners, students need to first be good readers. 

To support you, I have attached a link to a website which allows you to search for books by AR level. This allows you to either check the reading level of a book that your child may want or allow you to search by reading level if you wish to buy them a book that will support their AR progress. “The aim of the Accelerated Reader programme is to develop reading skills. They can also be used as part of wider reading for pleasure, and we would still encourage students to read for pleasure widely in addition to their AR book.”

AR Book Finder 

We are asking that you support us by monitoring your child’s reading, ensuring they are reading their accelerated reader book (which may be on ePlatform or a physical book they have borrowed from our in-school library) and reminding them to complete their daily reading. 

Once you have read this post, please fill out the form below where there is space for you to record any questions. 

Parental Voice 

We would argue that our students get more opportunities through our innovative curriculum. We create equity maps for each cohort of students to ensure that they experience a broad range of culturally rich activities such as working with universities, theatre and rich fieldwork.

We have space in the curriculum where students can attend to their own passions such as creative writing, robotics/coding etc.

Our scale means that we know our students very well and our staff crew are committed to providing to providing a broad range of extra-curricular activities at lunch and after school too. As we grow to Years 7-11 this offer will broaden.

We have updated our contact details on our homepage. Our phone lines are now operational. For enquiries about your son or daughter you should still contact their Crew Leader.

In the event of absence, or for more general enquiries please use the contact details below:

The chance to start a new school is a once in a lifetime opportunity and we are looking for great people to become part of our team. This is a unique opportunity for you to lead this extraordinary team as Principal.

Find out more here.