HWA Blog - 31.1.25
What a week, and I can’t believe we are nearly in February already.
As we returned in January, I wrote to all families informing them of the new leadership structure at Hollinwood and Heywood Academy. I would like to update you with further developments with regards to the leadership structure at Hollinwood Academy. We are now at the stage where we are recruiting a new Deputy Head of School for Safeguarding and Behaviour and a primary Assistant Head of School for Curriculum and Assessment. I have had an overwhelming response to these new posts already, with tours of the school booked in and we will be interviewing after February half term. I am really excited for what lies ahead and I am determined to recruit professionals who share our vision and ethos and ultimately continue to drive the school forward.
Further to this, I would like to formally congratulate Ms Bones on her appointment as Senior Assistant Head of School for Curriculum and Assessment, at secondary. Ms Bones has been a part of the senior leadership team for the past 2 years and she is really excited about her new role, and I know she will continue to support our students, staff and school to get the best educational offer. Exciting times ahead.
On Thursday, it was lovely to welcome our year 8 families into school for the Disney information session and it was a great turn out – thank you. I know we have some very excited students (and staff) but equally some very anxious students (and parents). This is OK and we are here to help all the students and families and ease any anxieties and worries you may have. Thank you to the families that have reached out and please continue to do so.
This is the first time that we are flying to Disney Land for the year 8 residential and a new experience for some of our students. After the residential, we will gain feedback from the students on the flying experience and we will consider this when making arrangements for the following year. To support our students, Mr Heap will be taking the students to the airport on their outdoor education lessons and we are working with Manchester airport to facilitate a tour. We are working hard to cover all bases and possible eventualities so that the residential is a memory that will last a lifetime for our students.
Let’s see what some of the classes have been doing starting with Mrs Davies’ class…
"I can’t believe we’re already at the end of January; the school year is passing so quickly. Everyone has settled back into school after the Christmas holidays and has been thoroughly enjoying our topic, “In the Garden.” This theme has prompted many creative activities that promote both learning and enjoyment among the children.
For the children to engage and learn effectively, it is vital that they are emotionally and sensory regulated. To support this, we participate in a structured sensory diet twice a day, providing the children with the opportunity to choose an alerting, organising, and relaxing activity. This approach allows for individual preferences while maintaining a group dynamic. Although this group session occurs twice a day, the students have access to their individual communication boards throughout the entire day. This accessibility empowers them to independently, or with gentle encouragement from staff, select a regulation technique whenever they feel dysregulated. Additionally, our timetable includes a whole-class Sherborne session every Wednesday and a whole-class Tac Pac session on Fridays, where the children engage in physical activities that promote body awareness and cooperative play.
During our sensory story sessions, we utilise a rich multi-sensory approach to learning that captivates the children's imagination. Our first story of the term was “The Cautious Caterpillar.” Some of our favourite activities connected to this story involved using cardboard, bubble wrap, and paint to create a textured honeycomb that stimulated tactile exploration. We also employed various shapes and styles of pasta to represent the lifecycle of a butterfly, enabling visual and kinaesthetic learning. The children enjoyed the final project of using tissue paper to make colourful butterflies, which fostered creativity and fine motor skills.
Following this, we transitioned to our second story of the term, inspired by “Isabella’s Garden.” The children enjoyed exploring an array of objects related to the story, which sparked curiosity and engagement before moving on to tuff tray tasks. In these activities, we creatively made rain using sieves, pipettes, funnels and water. We also created the sun with vibrant play dough, and practiced our scissor skills by cutting spaghetti grass. A particular highlight was the activity where we painted our hands to create trees, using our fingerprints as leaves, as well as making our bird feeders. These tasks not only strengthened fine motor skills but also reinforced concepts of nature and teamwork.
We have placed a strong emphasis on using three-part sentences during our communication sessions. We are exposing the children to a more varied range of vocabulary. We are actively exploring action words such as pass, give, open, and many others that enhance their communication. This vocabulary expansion is critical for their social interactions. Moreover, we are also trying to encourage the children to articulate when they have completed an activity, reinforcing their ability to express needs and boundaries. I am immensely proud of the progress the whole class has made during these sessions, which is evident in their increased participation in communication activities. Some of our favourites have included crafting garden sensory bags and baking spider biscuits, both of which sparked joy and engagement.
Our afternoons mainly consist of curiosity and cause-and-effect sessions designed to promote exploration and discovery among the children. During these sessions, we provide six activities for the children to investigate, which grants them ownership of their learning. They can choose which activities to engage with, fostering independence. While the children immerse themselves in their selected activities, staff members are committed to working on their individual EHCP targets, ensuring that each child receives personalised support. Our sessions always include a messy play activity, a cause-and-effect experience involving various materials, opportunities for social interactions, communication sessions focused on language development, a mark-making opportunity to strengthen writing skills, and a regulation activity designed to manage sensory needs. The communal play has also led to enjoyable moments, such as building sandcastles, creating a marble run, and creatively using TD Snap to arrange flower pictures with pasta, all fostering teamwork and communication.
This week, our focus shifted to the Lunar New Year, which has been filled with engaging, culturally enriched activities. Throughout our Attention Autism sessions, we decorated our names, and participated in a lively dragon dance, which supported physical coordination and group dynamics. During communication sessions, we utilised TD Snap to request specific objects needed to create colourful paper plate snakes in celebration of the Year of the Snake. This activity not only introduced elements of cultural awareness but also honed fine motor skills as they decorated their snakes. We also had fun making and decorating lanterns, further immersing ourselves in the festivities. Finally, during our curiosity and cause-and-effect sessions, we transformed our classroom into a noodle bar, explored a sensory dragon tray filled with various textures, created bubble snakes to observe their movement, and used TD Snap to request objects needed to simulate fireworks in a clear glass using colourful liquids. Each of these activities promoted exploration, creativity, and interactive learning.
We have observed significant progress among the children since September, and I couldn’t be prouder of their achievements, growth, and enthusiasm for learning. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. "
SDS - 31.1.25
Now to Mrs Mayer’s form…
"This week, our students took part in an African drumming workshop and staff were impressed by how much enthusiasm they showed towards the activity. Students also showed respect, kindness and manners to our guest teacher, who helped students perform some African drumming routines. The group showed a lot of patience and confidence during the activity and staff were impressed by all who took part.
In our science lessons this month we have been learning about light and reflection. Our students have enjoyed the practical aspect of the topic and we have seen them grow in confidence during some independent learning activities. More recently we have been studying sound and hearing. Now moved on to light and eclipses. The students are engaging with key vocabulary and are actively participating in a variety of practical lessons that make learning both enjoyable and memorable.
In history we have been learning about the Stuarts and Oliver Cromwell. This has sparked some lively discussions among the students!
We have been using new vector design software called Inkscape in our IT lessons to make and edit shapes and paths. We have learned about shape nodes and have made some unusual and interesting shapes. Inkscape has been a really popular tool for students this term. Next, we will be working on creating a logo and icons for Safer Internet Day.
We have been going to bootcamp with Miss Sharples and Mrs Kulczyski to keep active and to boost our mood.
In our form time we have discovered Reflect on our Teams classroom and we have completed some mindful colouring using our iPads. We also listen to sensory music and use our dark tent for quiet time.
As we approach half-term, staff recognise just how hard our form have been working, and look forward to seeing how pupils develop over the next few months."
HMA - 31.1.25
Now to Miss Rashid’s form…
"Vision hub students have settled back into school life after the Christmas break.
During employability lessons we have been looking at next steps and college courses on offer to our young people. We will be arranging visits soon so students can get a feel of what college will be like.
During RSE we have been looking at the justice system and what sorts of behaviour would be classed as a crime. We have also been looking at the dangers of extremism and the impact this can have.
We are continuing to study our anthology texts in English and are now focusing on how to formulate a response to question 4 in preparation for their GCSE exam. All students are becoming more confident in their ability.
During science students have engaged well with looking at the periodic table and different metals. Next week, students will be engaging with a practical lesson using the Bunsen burners and identifying how different metals burn.
Vectors have been introduced in maths and all students have now received their end of block assessment marks with Connor receiving full marks! Well done.
All students are engaging well with their personal interventions and are working towards meeting their EHCP step targets."
Now to our amazing SUPER STARs and HWA We are Innovative STARs...
Mrs Lerigo’s STAR of the week is Ariella for writing some brilliant sentences independently and being able to keep a hula hoop spinning around her in PE.
Mrs Lerigo’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is Benji for creating the most gorgeous t-rex in UTW and adding some of the features, like spikes, horns and frills.
Mrs Sutcliffe’s STAR of the week is Jack for putting his newly learned English skills into practice this week.
Miss Sutcliffe’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is Ethan for continuing with his independence and his growing confidence with imaginative play.
Miss Oakley’s STAR of the week is Kai for completing all his English work independently and remembering his finger spaces.
Miss Oakley’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is Lyla for trying hard all week in all her learning, thank you for being so amazing!
Mrs Quinn’s STAR of the week is Cody for demonstrating excellent focus during his English lesson to create a honeycomb craft.
Mrs Quinn’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is George responding exceptionally well to adult encouragement this week, engaging in both signing and verbal communication.
Miss Pietraszewska’s STAR of the week is Alfie, for improving his handwriting and spelling. Keep going!
Miss Pietraszewska’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is Diana, for encouraging others to join in her fun yoga and dance activity!
Mr Corrigan’s STAR of the week is Simisola for being very independent and kind at swimming this week.
Mr Corrigan’s HWA We are Innovative star is Kai for showing great independence at lunch times.
Mr Corrigan’s WOW moments go to George, Lewis and Matthew.
Miss Hulme’s STAR of the week is Thomas for excellent Science work.
Miss Hulme’s HWA We are Innovative STAR is Loki for contributing his fabulous ideas with the class during our English lessons.
Mrs Davies’ STAR of the week is Anna for requesting walks to self-regulate.
Miss Gittins’ STAR of the week is Caitlin for a fantastic week keeping herself safe at school.
Miss Gittins’ Super Speller is Hadley for getting 10/10. Well done!
Miss Matthew’s STARs of the week are Jason for having a mature attitude and making progress in his writing, Jacob for producing an amazing piece of creative writing in English and Logan for producing an amazing piece of creative writing in English!
STARS of the Week (31.1.25)
Scientists of the week is Anna from Mrs Davies’ class.
I hope you have a lovely weekend.
Mrs Millard
