Dear Parents and Carers,

新

Xīn

年

nián

快

kuài

乐

lè!

Happy Chinese New Year to you all! 2021 is the Year of the Ox!

The Ox is the second of all zodiac animals. According to one myth, the Jade Emperor said the order of the zodiac would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived to a party he was holding. Ox should have been the first to arrive, but Rat tricked Ox into giving him a ride. Then, just as they arrived, Rat jumped down and landed ahead of Ox. Thus, Ox became the second animal.

People born in the Year of the Ox (1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997 or 2009) may display some of the personality traits of the Ox: working hard in the background, honest and earnest and never looking for praise.

Return to School after Lockdown

We have been informed that the expected date for the return to school for all students will be 8^th March. The Government will review this nearer the time and I will keep you informed as soon as I have further information. We are unsure about how asymptomatic testing of students will continue and the guidance around this has not been updated in light of the proposed return to school, therefore we understand that all students whose parent/carers have given consent, will have two tests, 3-5 days apart and no further testing.

As we head into half term, please do let us know if your child has been in school this week and subsequently develops Covid symptoms. We will be checking emails on a daily basis, throughout the whole of next week:  covid@altrinchamcollege.com.

 

Student Emails to Staff

I would be most grateful if you would ask your child(ren)/ward(s) not to email staff in unsociable hours. We have had a number of students doing this, with some expecting a response at 11.30pm!

I know that many young people have become ‘nocturnal’ during the pandemic and this is understandable given the year that we have had, with many routines being lost; however, young people also need to ‘switch off’ from school work and screen use. Our staff certainly do too.

Staff will respond to student emails within the working day as far as possible; however, there will be some days when a teacher is online all day and may not look at their emails until the next day or even the day after if they are part-time. I would like to request that students please bear this in mind – they will get the help they need but it will not always be immediate.

Thank you for your support in this matter.
 

Lockdown Photography Competition

The entries were wonderful! The competition aimed to boost mental wellbeing and to promote mindfulness. All the photographs submitted achieved this in our opinion, so it was extremely difficult to choose any winners but we eventually managed to whittle it down! The winning entries can be seen here: /latestnews/competition-winners-bulletin.

Please take a look at their amazing work! Well done to everyone involved!
 

Remote Learning equipment

If your child does not have access to the internet/you do not have broadband in your home, or if you urgently need access to a device, please contact us immediately and we will allocate your child a place in school (subject to adequate staffing). School telephones will be answered throughout the school day (8am-4pm), please call us or  email into school.

 

 

Student Star of the Week this week goes to Abdullah in 10.1 nominated by Mrs Peinado his Spanish teacher, for hard work, engagement in lessons and his excellent attitude. Congratulations Abdullah, this is well deserved! You are a star!

Staff Star of the Week goes to Ms Mitchelmore our Science Teacher and Careers Co-ordinator, for her energy, enthusiasm and sheer hard work in maintaining outstanding Careers Information, Advice and Guidance this week especially but also throughout the whole of the year! Ms Mitchelmore, you are incredible and we know that our students receive the absolute best support from you and your team!  Congratulations from all your colleagues!

And talking of Staff Stars, Mr Thorpe, our Admin apprentice, won Apprentice of the Year for Administration in the Trafford College Group Apprenticeship Awards last night. He has also been nominated for “Trafford Apprentice of the Year” in the Chamber Awards. He is down to the last three and winners will be announced next month. Mr Thorpe, we are extremely proud of you (especially as you are an ex-pupil!) and we are keeping everything crossed that you win!

Thank you very much for all your support for our school this half term. I hope you have a fun but also relaxing time with your families next week. I look forward to ‘seeing’ everyone again on Monday 22 February 2021.

Stop the Spread! Stay safe!

Kind regards

Ms. Earle
Headteacher