My name is Mrs Marshall and I am the Director of Progress and Achievement for Year 9. Since joining the Pastoral team at Wildern in April 2022, I have been blown away by the kindness many of our young people show others within our school community and wider afield. We understand that sometimes we do not know the bigger picture for a young person until we are made aware, so to see the resilience shown by many of our young people is inspiring.

Our Year 9 motto is ‘How do I want to be remembered and who do I want to become?’ which we feel challenges our students into considering the future that is ahead of them; this is particularly important during the year they have begun GCSE options.

Considering the future and whatever path might be taken is extremely exciting for myself, our ADOPA for Year 9 Mr Morrison and our fantastic Year 9 tutor team. In the coming months we have Careers Day which should give students the opportunity to be curious, ask questions and perhaps consider their lifes direction after Wildern.

I teach Design Technology, Art and Education for Life at Wildern. I love being creative, developing new ideas and problem solving – all things my subject area allows me to do! Growing up with grandparents as tailors and seamstresses has left me with incredible memories and allowed me to develop life-long skills both at home but also at school. I am enthusiastic about current affairs and politics so I really enjoy promoting the Education for Life curriculum we have on offer for our young people and I look forward to the day we might encourage our students to step foot in Parliament to not only see positive change but make it!

  In this issue...  

Dates for your diary,       Communications,       Reminders,        90 years of Wildern,

Spotlight ( Wellbeing - Kindness month ),       Keeping safe ( Safer Internet Day  )

Hot food menu,       Sports results & fixtures,       Extra-Curricular,       E-Safety

Between 1936 and 1952, Wildern School adopted a ship, the M.V.’Acavus’, which was a tanker. Students and staff sent letters to the crew and made visits to the ship. 

In 1950-51, students went on the first school trip to Paris for a week. The main points that the students remembered were the French cider, coffee and patisseries.

Oh how times have changed... with our school trips travelling further to places such as America and Iceland and definitely without the alcohol!!

February is Kindness month - Be kind to yourself!

We often forget that THE most important relationship is one we have with ourselves. Prioritising self-care and self-compassion has serious benefits for both physical and mental health. It is also contagious and will support those around you.

Your important role as a caregiver is challenging and ongoing.

So, how can you support your child in growing their sense of positive self?

1. Focus on feelings - normalise feelings big and small
2. Use loving self-talk - smile at yourself, offer yourself a compliment
3. Listen to your inner voice - self-trust is powerful
4. Nurture self-compassion - ask yourself how you might support a friend in this situation
5. Name and share strengths
6. Practice forgiveness
7. Create a music playlist
8. Commit to self-care - get enough sleep, take care of yourself
9. Name one thing you love about yourself each day
10. Celebrate trying new things
11. Practise a growth mindset
12. Be thankful
13. Find support when you need it

This week we would like students to focus on being kind to themselves. Afterall, how can you be kind to others, if you are not kind to yourself? The Anti Bullying Ambassadors will invite students to share….

♥️    A positive comment about yourself

😀 Something that makes you feel happy and calm

Here are the links to electronic copies of these useful resources which your child may wish to try this week.

Mindful Colouring

My Jar of Self Care

If your child needs support at any time please encourage them to click on the #ineedsupport link on the Wildern Wellbeing Hub, on the Wildern website, and complete the google form. 

Safer Internet Day - Tuesday 7 February 2023

Safer Internet Day 2023 is on Tuesday 7 February and will be celebrated in the UK with the theme ‘Want to talk about it? Making space for conversations about life online’. We are promoting this in IT lessons next week to students. Additionally, Hampshire Constabulary have produced 8 bite-size online safety videos for adults who live with or care for young people.

The inputs cover subjects that parents and schools have identified as the main area of concern for their children and young people whilst they are online.  The videos are between 1 to 8 minutes long and we advise watching them in order. The videos are on the Hampshire and IOW Constabulary Youtube Channel so can be watched on stand alone computer and mobile devices. 

 
1) Introduction
2) How do you keep your children safe online?
3) A balanced view
4) CEOP 6 Values
5) Apps, games and social media
6) Cyberbullying
7) Nude and sexting
8) Curious conversations

For further information and support, please find below a list of resources and videos mentioned in the inputs.

NSPCC - Report Remove | NSPCC
Childline - Sexting and sending nudes | Childline
How to have Conversations around Nudes

Safe4me - Safe4Me – Hampshire Police's free education resource programme for schools, colleges and
partners in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
Parental Controls - Parental Controls & Privacy Settings Guides - Internet Matters
Appropriate ages - Common Sense Media: Age-Based Media Reviews for Families
Information about online exploitation - CEOP Education (thinkuknow.co.uk)

Snapchat

We have seen a recent increase in the number of incidents we are dealing with which have included the of snapchat, either whilst not being thoughtful or intending to be unkind in the use of this social media platform.

Snapchat is a photo- and video-sharing app through which users can chat with friends via text or audio. Images and videos can be shared with specific friends, or as a ‘story’ (documenting the previous 24 hours) which is visible to a person’s entire friend list. Snapchat usage rose significantly during the lockdown periods, with many young people utilising it to stay connected with their peers. The app continues to develop features to engage an even larger audience and emulate current trends, rivaling platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. 

If your child uses Snapchat, please talk to them about how they are using it and steps they can take to ensure that they are being kind and thoughtful at all times.

Next week is South American Week!

Dan has designed a taste sensational tour of South America for students to try lots of new dishes, flavours and expand their horizons. 

Please remember, they can adapt the majority of meals to any dietary needs if they know in advance (your child can speak to them by visiting the kitchen before 8:30am that day). Main/grill vegetarian options are always available - just ask Dan and his team. 

KS3 Cooking Club - February workshop (American Pancakes for Valentines Day - 8/2/23 - 3pm-4pm) sign up is now open. Further details on the students' Food Google Classroom.

2 Top Tips for Building Cyber Resilience at Home

In the last couple of decades, the volume of online traffic has increased exponentially – but, by and large, people’s awareness of the accompanying risks hasn’t grown along with it. To illustrate the scale of the issue, consider this: a report by the Internet Crime Complaint Centre found that, in the US during 2020, there was a successful cyber-attack every second. Yes: every second. 

Criminals continue to find new and devious ways to attempt to hijack our online transactions and harvest our private information. To them, the smart devices that many of us now use as standard at home are simply a convenient back door into our lives – and our networks. Check out our guide for advice on beefing up your household’s cyber resilience. In the guide you'll find tips on a number of potential risks such as how to use a password manager, how to back up your data and how to check for breaches.