Welcome to this week’s Wildern Weekly. 

 

I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself and share a little bit about my role here at Wildern. My name is Mrs Dixon and I am Head of Humanities, Subject Leader for Geography and acting Subject-Lead for Religious Education.

 

Humanities is a wonderfully varied and exciting area, encompassing subjects that help shape our students into well-rounded, thoughtful, empathetic and globally-aware citizens. I have worked at Wildern for over seven years and I am very proud to be part of the Wildern Community.

 

I have the privilege of leading the entire Humanities faculty and my fabulous teachers take pride in teaching outstanding lessons, maintaining high expectations to ensure our students receive a rich and cohesive educational experience. We run multiple extra curricular trips and activities which we hope sparks further curiosity in our subjects these include guest speakers, day trips and international trips too. 

Whole School

Monday 24 November - Week B

Thursday 27 November - Music Soundbites Concert

Friday 28 November - CPD Day - School closed for Students

Monday 1 December - Week A

Tuesday 2 & Wednesday 3 December - Flu Vacinations 

Thursday 4 December - Christmas Concert

Monday 8 December - Week B

Monday 8 December - Christmas Celebration of Dance

Friday 12 December - Christmas Jumper Day 

Monday 15 December - Week A

Friday 19 December - Last day of term - School finishes at 12.30pm for students

Year 7 

Wednesday 10 December - Christmas Shop

Thursday 11 December - Christmas Disco

Year 8

            Monday 24 November - Geography Ordnance Survey Trip

Year 9 

            Thursday 11 December - Dance Workshops

Year 10 

            Tuesday 25 November - Oxford University Trip

Year 11

No Key Dates or Reminders

We have relaunched our 100% Attendance Raffle this term. Every Monday during tutor time, we celebrate students who achieved 100% attendance the previous week. All qualifying students are automatically entered, and 10 lucky winners receive a Skip the Queue Pass for the canteen, which they can use once during the following week - with a friend!

 

Good attendance helps students feel confident and stay on track, and in the spirit of our school motto, “Every Student Matters, Every Moment Counts,” we want every child to know that each new week is a fresh start and a new chance to reach 100%.

 

This week’s posted names recognise the students who enjoyed using their canteen passes. We’re proud of them, and we hope their success inspires everyone to aim for 100% next week!

 

Christmas Celebration:

Thursday 4 December 2025

 

You can purchase tickets for the concert online here. Please note there are very limited tickets available.

No letter or reminders

Year 9 - English

During the first two weeks of December, all Year 9 students will be presenting a short prepared speech as part of their GCSE Spoken Language Endorsement. Students have been thoroughly prepared in class and support is being given to all students to make this run smoothly. This qualification does not form part of their final grade in English Language but instead is a separate grade awarded as a Pass, Merit or Distinction. Year 9s have been learning the skills of persuasive and speech writing this term, so they are well placed to do very well in this task. These are formal and recorded assessments. Parents can support their children at home by encouraging them to practice giving their speeches to them. This will build confidence and fluency.

No letter or reminders

We were honoured to have the President of the Jewish Congregation and his colleague visit Year 7 on Wednesday this week to talk about the Jewish Faith, a sense of belonging all faiths can bring and to talk through some of the Jewish traditions. Then students had a chance to ask questions that they created.

 

These really blew us and the visitors away they included 'what is the one thing you wish you could that your faith doesn't allow?' as well as 'why is religion important to you?'.

 

Year 7 were really well behaved and should be really proud of themselves. This talk ties in with their current learning in Year 7 of Judaism

We are thrilled to share the incredible experience our students recently had, getting up close and personal with genuine samples of the Moon and meteorites!

 

Students across both our primary and secondary schools had the unique opportunity to handle and investigate these precious, extraterrestrial materials. This wasn't just a science lesson; it was a chance for students to hold a piece of history and space exploration in their own hands. As part of the lesson, students were able to observe;

 

Lunar Samples: These rocks were collected during the Apollo missions and are billions of years old. Students used magnifying equipment to examine the textures, colours, and minerals that make up the Moon's surface.

 

Meteorites: Samples of space rock that have landed on Earth offered a direct comparison to the lunar materials, helping students understand the different processes that form planetary bodies.

 

Reading is a vital skill, and parents play a key role in helping their children build it, whatever their current reading level. Older children can be harder to motivate, but they often respond well to high-interest formats like graphic novels, comics, audiobooks, and non-fiction linked to their hobbies. Young Adult (YA) books are especially useful for teenagers because they speak directly to their experiences, helping them reconnect with reading while still offering a good level of challenge.

There has been a worrying drop in the number of children reading for pleasure in recent years. A 2025 report from the National Literacy Trust found that only one in three children and young people aged 8 to 18 enjoyed reading in their free time, and one in four said they didn’t enjoy reading at all.

 

This matters because reading for pleasure isn’t just about liking books. It has a clear impact on academic progress, mental well-being, and long-term opportunities. Children who read regularly tend to perform better in every subject, not just English, because reading strengthens vocabulary, focus, and critical thinking. It also offers a valuable way to relax and gives space for imagination and empathy to develop.

 

At Wildern, we care deeply about getting your children reading. The library team and the wider school are committed to supporting that journey. Our students are always welcome to visit the LRC and explore what we have on offer. Look out for our Parent and Student reading Events: Turning the Pages Together. 

It is hard to keep up with our young people in the current climate, new words, different languages and of course trends that leave us as quickly as they creep up on us. It is the same with Apps and chat services.

 

I am sure you are aware of the main platforms used, such as Snapchat, however there are others that we need to be equally aware of. One of these is the App Telegram. It offers chat groups and online messaging and is an effective social media platform, however it does also allow for break out groups and links that can be dangerous if not monitored.

 

Please click on the image for more information.

We will be talking with all students in the near future about the monitoring and filtering systems we use in school. We will be informing them that in order to keep them safe and ensure that they are not at risk on line, whenever and wherever they are logged in to their school account, the school filtering and monitoring system is active. This means inside and outside of school.

This week Year 8, 9 and 11 students have been learning about Men's Mental Health Month during Tutor Time. Year 10 students will be completing the session next week & Year 7 will do this during assembly. We asked students what they thought about the session so far ...

Work Experience Deadline - 30 November 2025

 

This deadline is for students to add their chosen placement to Unifrog. At this stage, only the initial student form needs to be completed on Unifrog in order to meet the deadline. The employer form can then be completed by the employer afterwards, in their own time.

 

Please note that all placements must be entered on Unifrog in order to be sanctioned and authorised. If it is not added, the relevant health, safety, and safeguarding checks cannot be carried out, and therefore the placement will not be approved.

Additionally, placements cannot be officially signed off until the employer form has been submitted,  a young person’s risk assessment has been received, and a valid Employer’s Liability Insurance certificate covering the placement dates has been provided. In some cases, an employer’s insurance may be due to renew shortly before the placement begins, which means final approval cannot be given until the updated certificate is available.

See the huge variety of clubs that are on offer this half term! Sign up for these using the Clubs tab on Edulink.

Tuesday 18 November - Skipping Festival

Tuesday 18 November - Senior Boys Basketball V Westgate School

Thursday 20 November - Junior Basketball V Weston School

Thursday 20 November - Year 7 Girls 'B' Football V Deer Park School

 

U13 Girls Football 2 Vs 0 Horndean Technology College

Yr 11 Boys Football 3 Vs 3 Ringwood School

 

Please see the menu for our hot food options for next week.

 

The main school meal deals are £3.40 which is in line with all Hampshire schools. In a meal deal, students can get one of the meal choices below with a bottle of plain water and a cookie or piece of fruit.

• Either of the hot meal options,
• A jacket potato,
• A pasta pot,
• A chicken or beef burger,
• A salad pot (from the salad bar)

We encourage all families to use the free school meals eligibility checker, which can be found here, to determine if they qualify for this entitlement. 

 

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

 

* correct at time of sending, but may be subject to change

This will be served as part of our Christmas Festival, taking place for all year groups in the last week of term.

What Parents & Educators Need to Know about Hidden Photo Apps

 

A popular digital trend among children and young people are apps on their phone or tablet that look like one thing but are secretly hiding another purpose. These apps first became particularly popular around 2016. However, since then children have becoming more and more familiar with ‘secret’ photo hiding apps, where an app which appears relatively ordinary is actually a hidden gateway to private photos and videos. This allows users to hide images, videos and notes within the app, which is also passcode protected. One of the most commonly used types of hidden app is a ‘fake calculator’, however many other variants are also available.

 

In the guide, you'll find tips on a number of potential risks such as sexting, privacy threats and impulsive behaviour.

Every Student Matters, Every Moment Counts

 

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Wildern School

Wildern Lane

Hedge End

Southampton

Hampshire

SO30 4EJ

 

01489 783473

 

#WeAreWildern