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The Oaks Secondary School

Latest News From the School Blog

School Photographer

The school photographer will be in school on Thursday 14th September.  Please ensure your young person is wearing uniform as normal.

After School Clubs

We hope you have all had a good summer.
Please see attached letter which we need back if you would like your young person to be considered for an after school club.  I have also attached a letter sent in July just explaining a little more about the club happening for parents with their child on a Tuesday.
Please reply by Friday this week if you would like a place.

Duke of Edinburgh Award Round Up 2023

This year has seen us successfully run Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards across Year 10, Year 11 and Sixth Form. We had a total of  54 students enrolled at various levels and we ran a total of 8 expeditions this year!

The students dedicated a total of 754 hours during their respective volunteering section of the Award. These hours were made up by the students taking on numerous environmental tasks and performing a Coastal Beach Clean project. These activities were undertaken during the coldest months of the year and required resilience, determination and lot of physical effort!

The skills section of the award saw our students complete a basic outdoor first aid course and learn important outdoor skills such as navigation, map reading, nutrition and menu planning, cooking outdoors, rucksack packing and erecting tents in preparation for their expedition.

For the physical section our Bronze students undertook weekly gym sessions, whilst our Silver and Gold students embarked on weekly walks in the local area after planning their own routes.

We must not forget to mention once again our amazing trip to Buckingham Palace to celebrate our Gold Award holder Aaron!

We are extremely proud of the effort the groups have put into their Awards this year and hope you enjoy looking at a selection of pictures from their expeditions this year.

WELL DONE ALL !!!!

                           

                           

           

                    

  

 

                            

 

 

 

 

 

9H – Hall Hill Farm

9H continued working towards our AQA qualification – Wildlife Photography. For this, we took a trip to Hall Hill Farm in Lanchester. We had an absolutely fantastic time; we fed lambs, cows, goats and sheep; we held chicks,
rabbits and Guinea pigs. We had lunch al fresco, and burnt off some energy in the park. A quick stop in the cafe for an ice cream and drink, then back to school. rabbits and Guinea pigs. We had lunch al fresco, and burnt off some energy in the park. A quick stop in the cafe for an ice cream and drink, then back to school.

9H – Wynyard Trip

This afternoon 9H ventured over to Wynyard Woodland Walk, to continue our AQA qualification exploring nature through photography. We explored various sites, took many photos, and then had a good burn off of energy on the climbing apparatus.

 

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Masonic Fishing Charity Experience Day

On Saturday 8th July Mr Frew and Mrs Gilbert took 8 of our students to Aldin Grange Fisheries near Bearpark in Durham.  This day was organised by the Masonic Fishing Charity, a charity set up to offer children with special needs or from low economic areas the opportunity to experince a days fishing and the benefits it can bring.  The days are completely free of charge with the venue, use of tackle, food, drink and prizes all included in the day.  The students were welcomed and paired up with a volunteer adult support person called a caster helper.  They then fished from 9:45am till 12 noon, some on the coarse fishing lake and some learning how to cast a fly an catch trout on one of the trout fishing lakes.  They rotated between the two on the day, so they all had the opportunity to experience both styles of fishing. After lunch they fished again from 1-3pm, when they then headed into one of the farms barns for the award and presentation ceremony.  Each student received a certificate, medal and fishing trophy awarded for something memorable each student had expereinced on the day.  These ranged from most fish, biggest fish, most improved, funniest laugh and all the way to the must trees caught!

A phrase the charity like to use is “to catch a smile” and here are some photos taken on the day to see those smiles… Many more will be added at a later date once they have all been vetted and processed.

 

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