Welcome to Sheldon School

SHELDON SCHOOL OPEN DAYS

Sheldon's Open Days for parents and their year 5 children are on Wednesday 25th and Thursday 26th June 2008. These events provide an opportunity to visit Sheldon and see the school on a normal working day. They are aimed at parents of children who will be applying for admission in September 2009. If you would like more information you can download a leaflet here.

Further admissions information here ...

SHELDON IS "OUTSTANDING" . . . (IN EVERY WAY)

Ofsted has published its latest inspection report on Sheldon and has judged the school to be "outstanding". In fact, Sheldon was judged "outstanding" in all 38 categories that make up the new Ofsted inspection framework.

This is an exceptional achievement. Perfect Ofsted reports are very rare - in the first two years of the new system 1,500 mixed comprehensive schools were inspected in England and only six were graded "1" for every judgement.

MEDIA COVERAGE OF SHELDON'S OUTSTANDING REPORT

Sheldon's Ofsted achievements were on the front page of the Wilsthire Gazette and Herald, where the school was described as the best in England. GWR radio ran news bulletins about Sheldon throughout the morning.

The Gazette and Herald Website - The best school in England
GWR Radio News Report 1 (item is after 1 min 37 secs)
GWR Radio News Report 2 (item is after 2 min 17 secs)
The Swindon Advertiser

SHELDON'S CITIZENSHIP SHINES

For the past 18 months, Sheldon has been involved in the Citizenship Manifesto Project run by the Citizenship Foundation in London. The project involves our pupils creating their own Citizenship Manifesto, in which we pledge our commitment to good Citizenship in the form of a statement, and make a number of promises for the future.

THE SQUID CARD IS COMING SOON

Sheldon's new cashless catering system will begin soon. All pupils will be issued with their personalised sQuid card during June. sQuid is a "tap-and-go" e-money card. Parents will be able to put money on the card online or through the finance office. Pupils will be able to use the card at all catering outlets before the summer break and we plan to be cashless from September.

Many parents responded to our online catering survey a couple of years ago saying that they would welcome an effective cashless system. We have spent the last year working with sQuidcard Limited to develop our new system. Sheldon will be first school in the country to use this new technology, which is similar to London Transport's Oyster card. Pupils will tap their card onto a small mat to pay for transactions - no swiping or PINs. Lost cards can be cancelled immediately and outstanding balances transferred to a newly-issued card. Parents will be sure that dinner money is spent at school and pupils won't have to worry about carrying cash.

The cards will be loaded automatically with credits for pupils who are eligible for free meals. All parents will receive detailed information about the cards in early May and we will have a link from this page for charging up the cards.

YEAR 11 GCSE EXAMINATIONS

Parents and pupils can check or download the GCSE examination timetable for year 11 here.

"I BEG YOUR PARDON ..."

Pupils have enjoyed seeing the old rose garden area between the maths and old blocks being transformed in recent weeks. The area is being developed into an attractive social space for pupils.

All the ideas for the new garden have come through the Year Councils and the School Council. They were very keen that the new space be environmentally friendly, so recycled products are being used wherever possible.

With the help of landscape gardeners, the design includes a variety of planting to support many species and provide all year round colour. Plenty of seating in this superb new space will allow pupils to sit and relax in their new surroundings.

We are grateful to the Borough Lands Charity which gave a substantial grant to support this project.

SHELNET RELAUNCHED

Sheldon's Intranet has been redesigned and relaunched. It is full of interesting resources for pupils. You can link to it here or from the icon on the right.

INFORMATION ON "GIFTED AND TALENTED" EDUCATION

Miss Merriman is Sheldon's new lead teacher for gifted and talented education. She has placed additional information about support for gifted and talented pupils here.

SIXTH FORM OPEN EVENING

Students entering Sheldon's Sixth Form in September 2008 will enjoy the wonderful new facilities currently under construction in a £2.7 million project.

The Sheldon Sixth Form Open Evening on Thursday 17th January 2008 attracted over 400 students and parents. It was a great chance to talk to subject teachers about individual courses, course content and entry requirements. If you missed the evening and want information, you can find out more about the sixth form here. Alternatively, you can contact Mr Seeley, the head of sixth form, who will be happy to give advice and to meet potential applicants.

Students currently in year 11 at schools other than Sheldon are very welcome to apply for places in the sixth form.

NEW CLUBS LIST

There are 67 separate clubs and activities available in the spring term. Many of them are new and funded through our Sports College second specialism.
Download the clubs list here ...

GIFTED AND TALENTED SPORTS DAY AT UNIVERSITY OF BATH

Twenty two year 9 pupils visited the University of Bath on 20 November for a gifted and talented sports day. The multi-skills activities included sessions on core stability, movement skills, co-ordination, and speed and agility training.

The pupils were selected for their talents in a variety of different sports including netball, hockey, soccer, rugby, cricket, kayaking, tennis, athletics and golf.

During the day the pupils met the Minister for Sport, Gerry Sutcliffe (right, with Sheldon pupils), who was visiting the university.

The event was funded through Sheldon's sports college second specialism initiative. Visit the Team Bath website to read more about the day.

PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS HEAR FROM TEAM BATH SPORTS PSYCHOLOGIST

The psychology department invited Morph Bowes into Sheldon on Tuesday 20th November to talk to A level students in psychology and PE about his role at the University of Bath. He told them about the ways in which Psychology can help improve sports performance.

Thirty students in year 12 and 13 listened to Morph talk about the “elastic band” technique. Some of the volleyball players that Morph coaches for England wear elastic during their games. Every time they have a negative thought about their performance they are encouraged to pull the elastic band on their wrist to remind them to think about a positive thought. Morph explained that to be excellent in sport it is 20% talent and technique and 80% mental attitude.

SHELDON PUPIL AND PARENTS SURVEY RESULTS

In June 2007, the Centre for Successful Schools at Keele University surveyed 400 Sheldon pupils and families to get their views on the school.

The results of the pupils' survey were very positive:

90% thought Sheldon was a good school (68% is the national average);
91% were happy at school (88%);
75% thought discipline was good (61%);
93% said their homework was set regularly (83%);
only 19% said the school buildings were dull (52%); and
95% said there were lots of activities to do at lunchtime or after school (71%).

It was interesting that pupils were tough on themselves: just 70% said their behaviour was mostly good, slightly below the national average.

There were fewer than 100 responses to the parents' survey, but as this is 1 in 10 of our families, the findings are still interesting:

99% thought the school had high educational standards (73% is the national average);
88% thought Sheldon better than most schools (47%);
94% said the school buildings were good (75%);
94% thought there child was happy at school (86%);
97% thought their child was well cared for at school (94%); and
100% knew who to contact to discuss a problem or progress (93%).

The full results of both surveys can be downloaded here.

THREE SHELDON STUDENTS ACHIEVE TOP NATIONAL GCSE RANKING

Three Sheldon pupils have received letters from the AQA examination board congratulating them on achieving places in the top five in the country in GCSE exams.

Chris Carter was in the top five of 138,059 entrants for GCSE mathematics.

Both Megan Tombling and Andrew Lawton were in the top five for GCSE physical education, from 16,061 entries. Megan has been shortlisted for a national student of the year award.

SHELDON'S THIRD KENYA EXPEDITION A GREAT SUCCESS

Eleven year 13 students and two teachers have returned from an unforgettable month-long expedition to Kenya.

The trip began with a two-day stay at Camp Makongeni. Here the group saw the work done by Sheldon's 2006 team in building accommodation for teachers at Makongeni Primary School.

Then the team had a safari at Mwaluganji Elephant Sanctuary in the Shimba Hills.

At Ngonzini Primary School the group helped with the school's first ever sports day. The community work focus included laying concrete floors at Muhaka Primary School - these will prevent jigger worms getting into children's feet.

Finally the team climbed Mount Kenya, which is 5,000m (or three miles) high.

Read all about the expedition here ...

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON NEW SIXTH FORM CENTRE

On Monday 10 September 2007, the first soil was dug to begin the construction of Sheldon's new sixth from centre.

The construction of the centre will be completed by June 2008 with development of a covered piazza and refurbishment of the existing facilities will follow in time for the opening in September 2008.

The total cost of the development is in excess of £2.5 million.

Parents passing the school on Hardenhuish Lane will notice that a new entrance (see right) has been built to the south of the school. This will separate site traffic from pupils. After the project is completed, it will become a cycle path.

RECORD EXAMINATION RESULTS AGAIN

The 2007 examination results at Sheldon again broke many school records and left the school at the top of local league tables.

GCSE results were the school's best ever, with 71% achieving five or more top GCSE grades. Key Stage 3 results in English were outsanding, with a third of pupils achieving level 7.

At A level, Sheldon once again tops the Wiltshire tables and is the top 75 comprehensive schools in England.

Congratulations to all those pupils and students whose hard work is represented by these results.

MUSICAL MAGIC - DESPITE THE RAIN

On 3 July 2007, the Music Department’s termly concert took place, and although it was the Summer Concert the weather was anything but summery! There was still a large audience of people brave enough to face the elements though, and despite the chilly weather they all left feeling warm inside thanks to the fantastic music created by the over 50 pupils who performed.

The evening was a wonderful mix of solos and small-group ensembles, as well as performances by the flute and sax groups, Sheldon Voices and the Sheldon Orchestra. Pieces included Take That’s Patience by Sheldon Voices and Pirates of the Caribbean by the Orchestra, Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring by a flute trio of Chris Adams, Ruth Knight and Lucy Foster, Hawaii 5-O by a GCSE quartet, Misty by the sax group and a good number of vocal solos and duets.

There was also a presentation of the annual Progress Awards to the instrumental students whose teachers felt had made the most progress in their instruments over the past year. The evening was a fantastic celebration of the musical talent we have at Sheldon, and Mrs Dobson would like to thank all the students who worked so hard to make the evening possible and such a fantastic success.

SHARRON DAVIES STARTS SHELDON'S OLYMPIC FUN RUN

Sheldon's annual Olympic Fun Run took place on Friday 29 June 2007.

The run was started by Olympian swimmer Sharron Davies, who won a silver medal in Moscow in 1980 in the women's 400m individual medley. However, many people feel that Sharron had been cheated out of the gold medal, because the winner, Petra Schneider of East Germany, later admitted to using performance enhancing drugs.

Sharron Davies spoke to Sheldon's pupils about the training she had to do at their age to reach Olympic standards. She had swum for Britain at 11 and in the Montreal Olympics at 13.

The Fun Run was used to launch Sheldon's second specialism in Sport. Because the specialism will include a focus on performing arts, the run was preceded by drama and dance performances on an Olympic theme.

Sharron Davies brought her five month old son, Finley, to Sheldon to experience the event, which is apparently the biggest of its kind in the world. Over a thousand pupils and quite a few teachers took part in the mile and a half run. All the pupils received British Olympic t-shirts as a souvenir. The British Olympic Association marked the event with a major press release.

Pictures from the Fun Run will be published in the photo galleries soon.

YEAR 8 PUPILS EMBRACE THE ARTS

On June 13, Year 8 pupils had the opportunity to immerse themselves in music, art, dance or drama during the first Sheldon Year 8 Arts Day.

All pupils had three lessons in the arts subject of their choice, and did things like Arabic and samba drumming in music, street dance and ballet in dance, Indian collage in art, and mask work and stunts in drama.

The day was extremely successful, with pupils in dance and music enjoying the experience of working together to produce a performance piece. The stunt work in drama was very popular, and the pupils who did the art workshops produced some beautiful finished work. The only criticism from pupils was that the workshops were too short – they wanted a whole day so that they could learn more!

See Year 8 Arts Day pictures here ...

GET THE SHELDON STANDARD BY E-MAIL

It is now possible to get the Sheldon Standard by e-mail. This should help the many parents who spend too long searching in vain in the bottom of school bags. Find out more ...

Order the Standard by e-mail here.