HWA Blog - 7.3.25
This week, we have carried out a partial lockdown drill with our children, young people, staff and visitors. Everybody had a role to play and they took the drill very seriously and listened to the instructions given. I was extremely proud of the school as this can be a very daunting experience but one that we must, unfortunately, practise.
A partial or full lockdown is a standard health and safety procedure, similar to a fire drill. We would use the lockdown procedure if there was ever a threat to the safety of our children, young people, staff and any visitors. We do this if we feel it is safer for everyone to remain in school rather than evacuate. The aim of this is to keep everyone safe by confining them to a secure place of safety within school. An example of a situation where the lockdown procedure may be used:
· A potentially dangerous person or an animal on the school grounds.
· A dangerous situation/disturbance in the local community that could then affect school.
· A chemical incident nearby or any other risk of air pollution.
· A terrorism related incident.
Next term, we will carry out a full lockdown as a school community.
On Thursday, we celebrated World Book Day. We invited our children, young people and staff to embrace the spirit of reading by dressing in their favourite pyjamas, creating a cosy and inviting atmosphere while sharing their cherished books with their friends.
World Book Day is not just a celebration, it’s a valuable opportunity to emphasise the importance of reading and the joy it brings to our lives. As a school, we are committed to fostering a love of reading among our students, and we do this by providing enriching reading environments. Our whole school library is a testament to this dedication, along with the carefully curated class corners that encourage daily reading habits.
Moreover, we aim to extend the joy of reading beyond our school gates. Through our Outdoor Education, we have organised visits to local libraries, allowing students to explore a wider variety of books and resources available in our community.
Additionally, we integrate reading within technology, making use of digital platforms to engage our students in innovative ways.
A huge thank you to everyone who participated in World Book Day, whether by wearing pyjamas, sharing a book, or simply encouraging conversations with family and friends.
World Book Day 2025
Let’s see what some of the classes have been doing starting with Miss Bailey’s class…
"We have had a busy week this week in Engage One! In our sensory story lessons, we have been exploring all things pancake day. We’ve listened to a story about a little girl making and cooking pancakes and we enjoyed investigating all the different props and ingredients used to make the pancake batter too. We had lots of fun mixing the batter with the whisk and flipping the pancakes in the air. After we had listened to the story each day, we completed different activities relating to the story. We had great fun getting messy with a pancake mix tray activity, pouring and mixing and making marks in the flour. Later in the week we used coloured syrup to ‘paint’ a design onto a pancake which we could then eat if we wanted to. We created some fabulous designs and certainly demonstrated the HWA value of being creative with these!
In our class we utilise a variety of different methods of Augmentative and Alternative Communication to share our wants and needs with others, including physical symbol exchange, an app called TD Snap, gesture and signalong to name a few. In our structured communication lessons this week we have been using TD Snap to make request to an adult to complete different activities. On Tuesday we celebrated pancake day by decorating pancakes, we used TD snap to ask for the toppings we wanted to add – sprinkles were a firm class favourite! The children are working hard to use TD snap throughout the school day to communicate with others and they are making great progress with this – we are so proud of them!
In our curiosity, cause and effect sessions each afternoon the children can explore and choose what they would like to engage and play with. We can choose from messy play activities, cause and effect play, sensory movement play (e.g. jumping on the trampoline or a yoga ball), mark making and communication games. Throughout these activities we work on our EHCP step targets. This week we have enjoyed a number of jungle themed activities, as our topic this half term is ‘Rumble in the Jungle’. We investigated the jungle animals in green cornflour gloop and had great fun splashing around in a jungle swamp.
On Thursday afternoon we joined with class JQN to make the most of the warmer weather and took our learning outside. It was wonderful to see the children in both classes playing alongside each other and sharing the resources so well. We had a fantastic afternoon and loved freely exploring the sand and water play and getting messy! The children also used chalk paint in spray bottles, spraying them on the ground and the various surfaces around the playground, developing their mark making skills throughout.
On Thursday we celebrated ‘World Book Day’ in school with a cosy pyjama day. We explored a variety of different books in our tuff tray activities throughout the morning including ‘Elmer’, ‘Dear Zoo’ and ‘What the Ladybird Heard’. We also had the opportunity to look at and read lots of other books throughout the day and enjoyed sharing these with the adults in class too.
We have had a brilliant first half to the academic year and we can’t wait to see what the rest of the year has in store for us!"
RBA - 7.3.25
Now to Mrs Duffy’s form…
"Wow! What a brilliant few weeks we’ve had in 9GDY! From an exciting AI competition, chess competition to baking delicious bread and getting stuck into cricket, our class has been learning lots and having a fantastic time along the way.
A huge well done to Liam, Logan, Yassin, and Akeem, who took part in an AI course and competition at Oldham College. They worked as a team to design an app and confidently presented their ideas in front of an audience. A big shout-out to Yassin, who stepped up to share their project with the college. Their hard work paid off, and they finished in second place. We are so proud of them for representing 9GDY and Hollinwood Academy. On their way back to school, the boys took the tram home and did a great job of keeping track of their stop – an important step toward independence!
The whole school has also been gripped by an exciting chess competition, organised by Mrs Needham. The chess competition has really been heating up and 9GDY has been right at the heart of it! Yassin, Liam and Logan have all taken part, showcasing their strategic thinking and determination. Chess has been a passion of theirs since Year 7, and they have loved playing during ‘Reward time Friday’s’ in form. It’s fantastic to see them competing at a whole-school level and continuing to develop their skills.
In PE, they have started a new cricket topic. The class has been working on perfecting their long and short barrier techniques to stop the ball, and they’ve also been improving their accuracy when throwing at the wickets. We can already see some great progress!
In music the class have been learning to play the guitar, with Mr.Challinor practising a cover song. It’s been great to see their confidence grow as they improve their musical skills. Alexis has shown a real interest, and we can’t wait to hear them all play together soon!
In Food Technology, we’ve been busy learning about the science of breadmaking. The students have made everything from pizza and bread rolls to baguettes – and, of course, the best part was getting to eat them! The class followed a detailed recipe, mixing warm milk, sugar, and yeast before carefully kneading the dough and shaping their rolls and baguettes. Liam and Nicholas enjoy the breadmaking and the results for the whole class were amazing.
Mrs. Duffy has been helping the class start their mornings on a positive note with calming music, soft lighting, and the soothing scent of lavender. Ivy absolutely loved the lavender and found it a great way to start the day feeling relaxed and ready to learn.
Jasmine has been a great addition joining 9GDY and she has settled in so well making some great friends, especially Ivy, Alexis, and Madeleine. It’s lovely to see her feeling part of the group!
9GDY had a fantastic trip to Daisy Nook park where the enjoyed a refreshing walk with Mr Heap, Mrs Brown and Miss Lennon finishing off with some well-earned snacks at the café. A big well done to Matthew, who confidently ordered his own food – great independence skills in action!
Logan has really discovered a love for reading and has read so many books since September. During a visit to Oldham Library, he just couldn’t put his book down! His passion for books has helped him to also improve his vocabulary and writing, and we’ve been so impressed with his progress.
Logan has also been working so hard on his handwriting, taking real pride in his work with the support of Mrs Datta. His dedication is paying off, and he has earned multiple certificates to celebrate his improvement. Keep it up, Logan – we’re really proud of you.
Nicholas has also taken an interest in reading and loved our trip to Oldham Library. He has also been showing off his fantastic Spanish speaking skills, impressing everyone with his confidence and pronunciation thanks to the support from Mrs Cowling.
Science lessons have been full of exciting experiments! Madeleine has been investigating how light is transmitted, carrying out practical tests to see how different materials affect the way light travels. The class has really enjoyed getting hands-on with science!
It’s been a fantastic few weeks in 9GDY! We’re so proud of our students for their enthusiasm, effort, and hard work. A massive thank you to the brilliant GDY team—Miss Lennon, Mrs. Brown, and Mrs. Lyon—who do so much to support our students every day. And of course, a big shout out to all the amazing staff at Hollinwood Academy for making each day special for the students in 9GDY!"
GDY - 7.3.25
Now to Mrs Bennett’s lessons…
"Mrs Bennett’s EYFS and KS1 classes have visited Chadderton Hall Park and followed instructions to develop their road safety skills whilst walking along the pavement and crossing the road with differentiated support. Once in the park they enjoyed a walk along the woodland path finding orienteering posts, recognising letters and thinking of words beginning with that sound. They walked over different terrain which felt and sounded different with every step. KS2 enjoyed exploring busier environments and walked around Ashton shopping centre, market and looking at Tameside college. Year 9 classes were split into small groups and given an orienteering map and followed instruction to navigate themselves around Chadderton Hall Park.
On Wednesday, Chris Lewis, Young People’s Services arranged a rewards trip for Tree Champions to attend Castleshaw for the day. They enjoyed learning how to map read, tie knots, shelter building, pond dipping and woodstove cooking. We would all like to thank Chris and Andrew for arranging this amazing day for us and also Mat from Castleshaw for hosting this wonderful day."
JBT - 7.3.25
Now to our amazing SUPER STARs and HWA We are Creative STARs...
Mrs Lerigo’s STAR of the week is Nico much improved work and engagement in phonics.
Mrs Lerigo’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Isla for independently completing her jungle spider that was as big as a dinner plate.
Mrs Sutcliffe’s STAR of the week is Louie for fabulous engagement in his learning this week.
Miss Sutcliffe’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Kian for his creative work designing his book front cover on World Book Day.
Miss Bailey’s STAR of the week is Jack for an all-round great week, fantastic engagement and working hard to communicate his wants and needs with others.
Miss Bailey’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Maja for fantastic engagement in class activities this week and creating some wonderful pancake art work!
Mrs Quinn’s STAR of the week is Ohud for making a smooth transition back to school after some time away this week.
Mrs Quinn’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Cody for having more enthusiasm this week during our one-on-one reading sessions.
Miss Pietraszewska’s STAR of the week is Teddy, for settling well into the group after the half-term break. Miss Pietraszewska’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Freddie, for having a great week with laughter, smiles, and engaging in activities.
Mr Corrigan’s STAR of the week is Simisola for a wonderful attitude on Outdoor Education this week.
Mr Corrigan’s HWA We are Creative star is Stanley for an outstanding day of independent work.
Mr Corrigan’s WOW moments go to Faiha. Well done!
Miss Hulme’s STAR of the week is Loki for putting his head under the water at swimming despite being worried about it.
Miss Hulme’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Shane for sharing some great ideas when completing our class story map.
Miss Tootill’s STAR of the week is Derry for making super choices all week.
Miss Tootill’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Jason for sharing his creative thoughts and ideas with peers.
Miss Gittins’ STAR of the week is Jared for being resilient and overcoming difficult emotions this week.
Miss Gittins’ HWA We are Creative STAR is Caitlin for sharing her toys and playing beautifully with friends.
Miss Matthew’s STAR of the week is Bobby for his resilience and for challenging himself in maths.
Miss Matthew’s HWA We are Creative STAR is Freya for her beautiful mapping in English
Scientists of the week is Nevaeh from Mrs Lerigo’s class.
STARS of the Week (7.3.25)
Next week, we have our year 8 Disney residential taking place and we have some extremely excited students (and staff). We will keep everybody posted throughout our adventures on social media. Year 8, I will see you in the early hours of Monday morning. Remember, please arrive no later than 3am for a 3.15am departure time ready for our 7am flight.
Have a lovely weekend.
Mrs Millard
