Year 7

Starting secondary can be both an exciting and daunting experience. Year 7 Strategy exists to ensure your transition to secondary school is as smooth as possible and helps prepare you to become resilient learners across the broad curriculum.

You will receive folders on your first day that will remain with you throughout your five years at The Dormston School. These folders are for you to file your Knowledge Organisers created by each subject for each unit of study. Knowledge is a key value in the Dormston School, there will opportunities in all subjects throughout the year to stretch your knowledge and learning with non-required work and activities.

Year 7 Strategy will help you take responsibility for your own learning, and right from the first few weeks in year 7 we will explore key study skills and habits needed to succeed in secondary education during your PSHE lessons. We work with the Careers department right from the outset in Year 7 to raise aspirations and see the value of education in order to reach our future plans.

We all have different starting points, and Year 7 Strategy is here to ensure you have the best possible help to progress in all subject areas. A successful Dormston student puts effort into all their studies, both in class and at home. Those needing support will access appropriate provision early into Year 7, as with those needing to be stretched and challenged. We ensure the correct intervention is given to help you all reach your potential.

PSHE sessions will look at all the key values above when exploring personal, social, health and economic development, in addition with the key value of respect. Students will explore how respecting themselves, others and the environment around them contribute to becoming a successful and well-rounded individual.

Year 7 Strategy encompasses the PSHE and Sex and Relationships programmes, study skills, careers and Life Skills.

Main Components of the Strategy

The Year 7 strategy covers 3 main areas: The Curriculum, Pupils and Parents.

The CURRICULUM – Our aim is to:

ensure that all subject teachers are preparing their pupils well for their future examinations through a clear mapped out overview of what they are teaching over the year.
ensure all pupils have access to subject Knowledge Organisers.
ensure pupils have the opportunity to extend their learning through the provision of Non-Required Work.

PUPILS – Our aim is to:

prepare our pupils for their future examinations and GCSE choices.
ensure pupils prepare and take responsibility of their own learning – study skills and time management.
ensure pupils see the value of education and how it can support their future career plans.
identify any pupils who may be struggling with any of the above and provide bespoke intervention to support them.

PARENTS – Our aim is to

keep parents informed of their child’s progress so they can support their progress
share key information with parents so that parents have a range of strategies which can be used to support their children throughout the year
support individual parents as required: Reports and key information is shared with parents through Go4Schools. In addition to this there are a series of Parent Information Evenings & a Parents’ Consultation Evening during the year.

Mr McLaughlin,

Year 7 Strategy Leader

Key Dates for Year 7

02/09/2020
Year 7 Induction Day 1

03/09/2020
Year 7 Induction Day 2

08/09/2020
Year 7 Welcome to the Dormston School (6pm start)

PSHE

Personal, Social, Health Education becomes statutory for all schools from September 2020 under the Children and Social Work Act 2017.

At Dormston, PSHE is a planned, developmental programme of learning through which children and young people acquire the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to manage their lives now and in the future. As part of a whole-school approach, PSHE develops the qualities and attributes pupils need to thrive as individuals, family members and members of society.

PSHE equips pupils to live healthy, safe, productive, capable, responsible and balanced lives. It encourages them to be enterprising and supports them in making effective transitions, positive learning and career choices and in achieving economic wellbeing. A critical component of PSHE is providing opportunities for children and young people to reflect on and clarify their own values and attitudes and explore the complex and sometimes conflicting range of values and attitudes they encounter now and in the future.

PSHE contributes to personal development by helping pupils to build their confidence, resilience and self-esteem, and to identify and manage risk, make informed choices and understand what influences their decisions. It enables them to recognise, accept and shape their identities, to understand and accommodate difference and change, to manage emotions and to communicate constructively in a variety of settings. Developing an understanding of themselves, empathy and the ability to work with others will help pupils to form and maintain good relationships, develop the essential skills for future employability and better enjoy and manage their lives.

Please see Learning Journey for specifics of what will be taught this year. Click here to view the PSHE learning journey.

Life Skills

Year 7 will have a fortnightly lesson on Life Skills delivered by their form tutor. The aim of these lesson is to best equip Dormston pupils, from the outset, with the interpersonal and social skills needed to thrive in secondary education. We begin by exploring our mindset, the growth mindset and how this way of thinking can help us succeed at meeting our goals. We then work through a series of lessons looking at Dormston’s Core Values of Knowledge, Effort, Respect, Resilience and Responsibility. This is tied in with our Values and Character Education programme, developing each students identity in order to thrive both inside and outside of school life.

It is in these lessons that students begin their Careers Education journey, and we work closely with the Careers department to tailor interesting and informative events to add value to their academic studies. We explore personal finance, and the best ways we can manage money. We also deliver a series of lessons on basic First Aid training in the summer term. These lessons are aimed at supporting and enhancing the PSHE curriculum, alongside SMSC, core British Values and careers education.

Year 7 Strategy Launch to Parents