History

Form 1 – Again the class have impressed with their engagement with the set tasks – this week we looked at Henry VIII’s many wives! The students were tasked with reading factsheets and then selecting information to use as the basis of diary entries in the voice of one of Henry VIII’s wives. The work produced was very good. In particular Luke Saint’s humorous approach to the diary entry of Anne Boleyn was an unexpected joy to read! Tibbie, Minkah, George, Frederick and Neo also showed great empathy with their chosen wife. Well done!

Form 3 has been looking at the dropping on the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and analysing whether there was any justification for bombing civilians in order to end WW2. They have also looked at why the United Nations was established in 1945 and have put together some excellent presentations on the different organisations within the UN.

Some Form 4 students returned to the classroom this week and have been looking at conflict between the American government and Plains Indians in the American West c.1835-1890. It has been really nice to be able teach in a classroom again!

The L6 History class has been looking at the Miner’s Strike of 1984 and how Thatcher passed legislation to weaken the trade union movement. The class has engaged well and produced some excellent work.

The IB History class has looked this week at how Mussolini changed the constitution in 1923 to consolidate his power and establish a single party state. 100% attendance!

Politics

The L6 Politics class has been looking at the key differences between the Democrat and Republican parties. The students have produced some excellent work on the different factions within the two parties.

English

Form 1 – Once again Tibbie  has been fantastic and has contributed so much to the lessons both online and for homework.  This week many others have worked very hard including Arthur, George, Luke and Berat, who have given some excellent contributions. Overall another excellent week for Form 1 who have all made a real effort.

Form 2 have been producing some excellent analysis of language used in Dickens’ novel, Great Expectations. I was particularly impressed with work completed by Dylan and Olivia who made some perceptive comments. Well done also to Beatrice, Jabir, Edward and Max for their efforts to use the PEE structure to explore complex language.

Form 3 – This week many of the Form 3 students were involved in giving their ideas about friendship. Some very interesting thoughts here about what it means, loyalty, trust and kindness were amongst the key concepts discussed. The most contributions were from Alex W, Thomasina and Ella.

Form 4 – This week provided one of the most lively discussions I’ve had so far online. This was about the Black Lives Matter protests. There were some excellent contributions especially from Charlie, Maggie,  Zidane and Steven who, when asked what would help improve the understanding of racial inequality, he replied (sic) ‘discussions like this!’

Face to Face Form 4 Lessons – On Monday I delivered a double lesson of English to five eager Form 4 students and even managed to broadcast the lesson live to those online. It was lovely to see the students after such a long break from regular schooling and they engaged very well with the work set.

Biology

The Upper 6 Biologists have finished and the Upper 6 Chemists had their last two lessons on Monday. All of us at Buckswood wish them all the very best for their ‘exam’ results, university entrance and future careers. It is always a sad, but hopeful, time to say farewell to them. Meanwhile the Lower 6 Chemists and Physicists continue to engage well with their lessons on Thermodynamics and Gas laws respectively, and the taster lessons for Form 5 continue with a variety of different snapshots of Lower 6 work. The Form 4 Triple Scientists have been working on plant hormones. Overall this has been another positive week in these difficult times.

Geography

Well here we are continuing to navigate our way through these very difficult times – using a very important geographical skill along the way. Even if it is metaphorical. Weathering storms … Maybe I should stop there.

This week all groups in Geography have been fantastic, as I have continued online teaching trying to fill Dr Turner’s shoes and push things forward.

Year 1 – have continued to explore the very challenging topic of GLACIAL EROSION and have looked into the processes behind the formation of corries, arêtes, pyramidal peaks, hanging valleys and ribbon lakes. Are the memories coming flooding back? If so, you will realise that this is a challenging topic because our school and many of our homes are in East Sussex, not the Lake District! The need for active imaginations and visits to the Internet are essential. Special mention to Fred for his diagrams despite technical challenges. Well done to him and everyone!

Year 2 – continue to look at CLIMATE CHANGE and GLOBAL WARMING. We were discussing the SOCIAL and ECONOMIC effects of such phenomena. It is very interesting to consider parallels with the current pandemic and the fact that certain situations bring both advantages and disadvantages. They have now started a mini project focussing on the effects of global warming, who suffers as a result and what lies in the future. I am really looking forward seeing their presentations!

Year 3  – are looking at CORAL REEFS – “THE RAINFORESTS OF THE SEA.” Good old David Attenborough helped briefly to describe how this rich and complex ecosystem operates. Year 3 are going on to design their own PowerPoints based around this subject with a focus on threats to these very delicate ecosystems. There have been some very interesting contributions from Alex, Olivia, Thomasina, Connor and Izzy. Well done everyone!

Year 4 – This week as we welcome some students “live” at Lions – and online – and we looked at Map Skills. Essential to Geography and definitely contained in all GCSE exams. To get up to speed the students were looking at a case study of the City of Leicester. Within this setting, we explored land use, migration and retail park location. Well done to all – a great group!

Year 5 – Sam and Flynn joined me for an “A” Level taster this week as we discussed the fact that as “A” Levels prepare students for University and independent study and research there was no time like the present! Early Monday morning when many teenagers really do feel like having a lie in they were set a series of unusual tasks researching facts but also being required to play detective and offer opinions on their findings. I must say I was impressed by the results!

Lower 6th Global Perspectives – As we prepare for a future examination we have been looking at the real price of a pair of trainers and questioning the ethics and behaviour of a leading manufacturer. This week we shifted our attention to the Coca Cola Company, and its influence and impact around the world. Very interesting, very controversial.

Lower 6th “A” Level – We have started to consider the amazing case study of the city of Curitiba in Brazil and how it deals with the issues it experiences as a rapidly growing urban area. More on this next week.

As in all subjects, parents can access assignments on all topics through Teams. Please feel free to do so and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Maths

Oliver and Indigo (form 4) both completed excellent on-line classwork on trigonometry this week.

ESOL

An excellent week for Aoi, who has worked really hard in the Lower 6th ESOL class. Some good PWP presentations from Andrew and Joshua in Form 4 PE and a valuable contribution from the class as a whole. Form 3 ESOL have been working hard, with Cristina, Kaan and Anderson having stand-out weeks. Charlotte has been working extremely hard in the PEN lessons. And Alvaro and Iago have been debating in English the greatest-ever football players and Euro goals.

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