The Lister Weekly Update #28

Our Year 9 students recently visited University College London (UCL) in Euston, giving them a glimpse into the world of higher education. The visit included an engaging session on how to access higher education, providing invaluable insights into the opportunities and pathways available to them in the future.

The students enjoyed an interesting tour of the UCL campus, experiencing firsthand the vibrant academic environment. A particularly exciting part of the day was attending a lecture on the latest developments in artificial intelligence, where they learned about cutting-edge research and technological advancements.

One of the highlights of the visit was discovering the history of Jeremy Bentham, the founder of UCL. The students were fascinated to learn that Bentham’s preserved body, dressed in his own clothes, has been kept at the university since 1832. This unique piece of history left a lasting impression on everyone.

Overall, the trip to UCL was a fantastic experience that broadened our students' horizons and inspired them to consider their future educational journeys.

Schools up and down our country have a continuous challenge as to where to draw the line with mobile phones. Many schools place a ban on students bringing mobile phones into school . We have a clear policy at Lister that phones should stay out of sight - meaning that they are switched off and kept in a bag. As parents, we know that you want your children to be safe coming to school and on the way home and part of that wish for safety is providing your children with a phone so that they can call you in the case of an emergency.

However, phones have no place in school. Students are attached to their phones and if they feel that it is ok to have a phone in a pocket, inevitably they are going to reach into that pocket to check notifications, or look at the time, or check to see how their football team is getting on, or...

The list is endless and is the reason that we have a ban on phones. We aim for excellence in education and phones in pockets are a complete distraction from that. If brought to school they need to be switched off and kept in a bag. If phones are seen in pockets they will be confiscated and we encourage parents to reinforce this message at home.

For the moment, our policy is that if phones are confiscated then they will not be returned until the end of school on a Friday. We intend to revisit this sanction soon and make it more stringent in order to support your child's education.

Next week will be WOW (World of Work) Week for year 10. This is part of Lister's commitment to providing a broad and balanced careers' education for our students. At the Lister news' desk, we are always thrilled to hear about opportunities for our Lister students to fulfil their potential. Next week Year 10 will be taking part in a week dedicated to educating them on the World of Work. At the start of the week, Year 10 will all be in workshops all day on Monday 1st July. They will move from workshop to workshop across the day in their linear groups. Your children will hear from a range of speakers who are from the world of work outside of teaching. Perhaps your child will be inspired to find out more about a future career that they had never considered before.

Teachers who would normally teach Y10 on that day will be supervising workshops during the time, however, the real insight and education will come from the visitors to our school who will be leading the sessions. Students should dress appropriately - in professional clothing that would be suitable for a day at work (students can also wear school uniform if they do not have appropriate professional attire) . It would also be great to know that you are going to have conversations with them about the activities from the day and perhaps even share your insight into the world of work.

In the week following, Year 10 students will have the opportunity to attend various trips and take part in activities that will prepare them for life after Lister.

On Tuesday 11th June, sports students were selected to watch Great Britain's men and women’s hockey team play before the Paris Olympics! Students travelled to Lea Valley hockey and tennis centre to see Great Britain men’s win 2-1 against Spain! The women drew with China 3-3, however, won the game on penalties. After the games, students had the opportunity to meet the Great Britain players; being able to get their autographs and pictures. Students also had the opportunity to take part in mini games throughout the day and experience playing hockey first hand.

Each week we want to celebrate particular students who have won the most praises in their house and in their year group. Keep and eye out for you child aiming for excellence and having their name highlighted here!

The Thought for the Week this week is focused on immigration. Please discuss the thought with your child who will be looking at the thought in assembly and discussing the idea with peers and the house team.