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I am delighted with the start to the year which was made that much better by our best ever results in August. Using the same rules as last year, we achieved 61% 5A*-C including English and Maths, an improvement on 5% on the previous year.
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Do you want to become a Parent/Governor? Click on the link on Page 5 to apply
Follow us on Twitter @LangleyAcademy
OPEN DAY Saturday 6 December 10:00 – 12:00 See Pages 6 & 7 for more details
NEWSLETTER
ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2014
See how Students celebrated Internationalism Week. More details in House News
Would you like to volunteer at TLA? Go to Page 9 to register
Dear Parents/Carers
I am delighted with the start to the year which was made that much better by our best ever results in
August. Using the same rules as last year, we achieved 61% 5A*-C including English and Maths, an
improvement on 5% on the previous year.
Our AS and A2 results also improved at each indicator putting us in the top 11-25% of similar schools in
the country. In particular our A2 results were extremely impressive with 71 students going on to their
first choice universities, including many Russell Universities. Students, their parents and carers and the
Academy staff should be very proud of these achievements. In particular it is so great because of the
many doors that have been opened for the futures of our young people, many going on to University,
some going on to Further Education Colleges or apprenticeships; some moving directly into
employment and some taking a gap year. We have been impressed with the quality of their future
destinations and by their commitment to be the best they can be.
The summer also saw our first World Challenge Trip to Swaziland. Students gave a presentation on their
experience to staff on the INSET day. Clearly it was memorable and a real learning experience that they
will remember for the rest of their lives, very much part of our vision here at the Academy.
The results have led the way for many other engaging activities at the Academy in this first half-term
including our Internationalism Week, the Year 7 Choir, a host of PE fixtures against local schools and
those across the country and several Museum Learning activities resulting in different and new
experiences for students. You will be able to read about these events and many, many more in this
newsletter.
The first 7 weeks of the year are said to be amongst the hardest for staff as various processes begin
including report writing, finalising improvement and quality assurance plans and completing
performance management and so I would like to take this opportunity in thanking staff for going the
extra mile in fulfilling their ambitions in making a difference to the lives of the students in their care.
It has also been a very difficult period of time because of the speed and nature of changes that the
Government are making, in particular with regard to examinations and curriculum changes in the 6th
Form.
Finally, I wish you a great half-term and I wish all of those students taking exams in the first week back
the very best of luck and I hope that they take advantage of the superb revision timetable that the
English faculty has arranged.
Rhodri Bryant, Executive Principal
Message from the Principal
We have had a very positive and busy start to the new academic year. The newly constituted Langley
Academy Trust met for the first time in early September to agree the vision for the Trust and the
priorities and targets for the next 3 years. The headline target for The Langley Academy for this year is
to move from good to outstanding in every Ofsted judgement category. We have also identified the
specific areas that need addressing and have put in place robust plans to support them. The Academy is
a vibrant place to learn where students are engaged in their learning and staff and students are
ambitious for themselves and the whole academy community. We use our strap line 'Curiosity,
Exploration, Discovery' to ensure our students have enriching experiences which contribute to their
development as successful, considerate, resilient adults who succeed in their studies. The Academy has
changed dramatically over its 6 years since opening and each year brings new positive developments.
Our ambition for this year is to ensure that every aspect of what we do at the Academy is outstanding
because our students deserve no less.
Parlaunt Park Primary Academy: On 1 September The Langley Academy Trust was constituted and
Parlaunt Park Primary joined our Multi Academy Trust under the sponsorship of The Arbib Foundation.
This is a very exciting time for us all as we move into the primary sector. In a year where The Langley
Academy students have celebrated some of our best results ever we are delighted to be able to extend
our work to primary schools to ensure that more children in Langley receive a high quality education
and more notably have access to the outstanding opportunities currently enjoyed by students at The
Langley Academy, whether within the classroom or outside.
The academic year started with a joint meeting of Langley Academy and Parlaunt Park staff followed by
a lunch where colleagues from both schools happily mixed with each other and with Trustees to discuss
our shared aims. This was just that start of a long and happy working relationship.
New Clerk to the Trust: The growth of the Trust means that we need a full time Clerk to look after the
interests of the Trust. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Barbara Davies, our former Clerk to
Governors, who is now able to focus on her other roles as PA to the Executive Principal and HR Manager
at the Academy. We welcome Maggi Howlett to the role of Clerk to the Trust. If you need to make
contact with any of the Trustees or Governors then please direct your enquiries in the first place to
Maggi by email: [email protected].
The Langley Academy Primary: Our plans for The Langley Academy Primary are progressing well. Tracey
Bowen, Headteacher Designate, started on 1 September and has been working hard on all aspects of
setting up the new primary to ensure that everything is ready for opening next September. We are
delighted to have been able to appoint our building contractors and architects last week so we are now
going to be working hard on the design of the new school. Tracey has planned a fabulous Open Day for
prospective parents to the new Primary on Saturday 6 December from 10-12pm. This will be an
informative meeting, run in partnership with The River and Rowing Museum, to be able to demonstrate
the experience children in the new primary will expect to experience when they join us next September.
If you have a child who is due to start Reception in September 2015, we would be delighted to see you
at our Open Day. More information can be found later in this newsletter.
Parent Governor Elections: Under the new Trust structure we have set up a new Local Governing Body
(LGB) in each of the 2 academies in the Trust. Since all of the statutory responsibilities of Governance
Message from the Sponsor
regarding health and safety,, safeguarding, financial compliance, etc are held by the Trustees, the LGBs
will be able to focus solely on the students. The remit of the LGB will be to challenge and support
leadership regarding student progress, achievement, the quality of teaching and learning, curriculum,
results, etc.
The role of governor is challenging but extremely rewarding for anyone who is interested in contributing
to continually raising standards by asking probing questions. Governors do need to be able to read and
understand data but no prior experience in schools is needed. We will arrange training as necessary and
have a thorough induction programme in place.
In each academy we are inviting parents to enter nominations for candidates to go forward to an
election to be held after half term to appoint 2 parent governors. Later in this newsletter you will find a
letter from me explaining the process and containing nomination forms for completion. I look forward
to receiving these in due course.
This is a time for development and growth of the Trust and I look forward to sharing our future success
with you over the course of the year.
Annabel Nicoll - Chair, The Langley Academy Trust
OCTOBER
Wednesday 22 Year 11 Academic Afternoon 14:00 – 16:00
Friday 24 End of Summer Half Term 2 13:20
NOVEMBER
Monday 3 Start of Autumn Half Term 1 08:20
Thursday 13 Year 8 Parent/Carer Evening 16:30 – 19:00
DECEMBER
Thursday 4 Year 10 Parent/Carer Evening 16:30 – 19:00
Wednesday 10 Parent Forum 19:00 – 21:00
Wednesday 17 Year 9 Academic Afternoon 14:00 – 16:00
Thursday 18 Certificate Evening 17:00 – 19:00
Friday 19 End of Autumn Half Term 2 12:00
JANUARY
Monday 5 INSET – No students at Academy
Tuesday 6 Start of Spring Half Term 1 08:20
Dates for your Diary
24 October 2014
Dear Parents/Carers
Local Governing Body – 2 Parent Governor Vacancies
I am writing to you as Chair of the Board of Trustees to inform you that we need to appoint 2 new Parent
Governors to sit on the Academy’s newly formed Local Governing Body.
Since the formation of The Langley Academy Trust on 1 September, the structure of governance has changed to
allow us to become a Multi Academy Trust. The statutory duties of governance no longer reside with The Langley
Academy Local Governing Body. Instead, the Board of The Langley Academy Trust has assumed all legal
responsibility for the Academy and its stakeholders. The purpose of the new Local Governing Body is to focus
solely on the students: their achievement, progress, curriculum, the quality of teaching and learning, etc.
This is an exciting role, which I hope will interest many parents. You will have the opportunity to learn much more
about how the Academy operates and work closely with members of staff. You will be expected to be a ‘critical’
friend so that you are both supportive and also challenging. The focus of the governing body is on student
progress and achievement, so we are looking for new governors who are confident enough to interpret and
understand data and to ask challenging questions in order to improve the experience of our students. You do
not need any prior experience in education and training will be provided to support you in understanding the
data and how to be an effective member of the governing body.
As a Governor you would be expected to attend the six Local Governing Body meetings per year, each of which
last about two hours, during Academy hours.
Governors are also asked to be a Link Governor, which entails developing a relationship with a Head of Faculty,
normally in a subject that you may have an interest in, so that you can assist them in raising standards of
achievement at the Academy. You would meet with the Head of Faculty each term (3 times per year).
The role is very rewarding and I hope that many of you will respond to this letter by completing the nomination
form and skills audit attached to [email protected] by Friday 7 November.
Please click here to apply.
Yours sincerely
Annabel Nicoll Chair of Trustees, The Langley Academy Trust
I am delighted and honoured to be leading Arbib House into this new academic year and incredibly
proud of our Arbib students as they have made a great start after the summer holidays. Ever since I
joined the Academy, 5 years ago, I have worked in Arbib House. Therefore now having the opportunity
to lead this House, bring in new ideas and work with our outstanding students as we look to make Arbib
the best House in the Academy is a real privilege.
I would like to welcome some new House Tutors into Arbib House as well as welcoming back Tutors
from last year. Ms Smith, Ms Hussain, Mr Huggett and Mr Martin are all joining us this year and I am
delighted to say that Ms Warr will be taking up her new role as Assistant Head of Arbib House. Ms
Hegarty will be staying with Arbib 3 and we look forward to welcoming back Ms Malama from maternity
leave before the end of the year.
It has been an exciting start to the new academic year as we say a warm welcome to our new Year 7
students. Many of them have already represented the House in various activities including netball,
football, open evenings and Academy Councils.
In keeping with tradition it was Globe House’s “Internationalism” Focus that kicked off the year. Arbib
House students were fully immersed in their internationalism projects this term as each House Tutor
Group looked into a different part of the Caribbean and the clothing and fashion that hailed from that
area. Letting their creative juices flow, Arbib students developed some inspiring costumes, posters and
displays on their respective regions. All 6 Tutor Groups combined to create an amazing gazebo that
stood proudly in the Atrium.
One of my aims as the new Head of House is to ensure that those students that work hard and go above
and beyond are rewarded for it. One of the ways I intend on doing this is by having a rewards brunch
every term. Selected deserving students will be treated to a special brunch with Ms Humber and me.
The first students to attend the rewards brunch were (pictured below): Josh Cook, Harjasmine Virdee,
Kashan Chaudry, Gavina Malhi, Lauren Callero as well as our House Captains Erin Simmonds, Robbie
Ensby, Ibrahim Noor and Cara Burton. Congratulations to those students and I look forward to treating
more students soon.
ARBIB HOUSE
The Langley Academy Open Evening was a great success and I was so proud of all of our Arbib students
that stayed late to help. Erin and Tatyana looked after the Arbib stand whilst Abbi showed the
prospective Academy students how to row. So many Arbib students were involved and thank you to all
that helped.
I would like to say a thank you to our Year 7 Parents and Carers who attended the recent Parent/Carer
Tea. It was great to meet you all and your support is not only appreciated but I believe vital to the
success of our students.
I am delighted to announce that Arbib House is now on Twitter. Please follow us @ArbibHouseTLA as it
is a great way for me to communicate key date reminders, important information and student successes
to anyone Arbib!
Arbib students continue to aim for the top in attendance, punctuality and attainment and I am sure we
can keep up the outstanding efforts moving on into next term! It is no coincidence that the students
with the highest attendance are also the highest achievers!
Well done Arbib and keep up the good work.
Mr Sullivan
Pictured above: Erin Simmonds and Tatyana Domville-Dailey at the Arbib
stand while Abbi Griffin (right) shows off her rowing skills
Darwin students in Year 7 and Year 8 are currently being mentored by more senior students within our
House. Year 7s have regular meetings with Karina Kakar and Ololade Idowa and Year 8s with Georgia
Blackman and Dilip Hundal.
Academic and Year group issues are voiced and discussed: senior students make sure that the
appropriate outcome is forthcoming and junior students learn from the experiences and wisdom of
their Seniors.
Georgia sent a selection of quotations from the students:
“It’s helped me by making me feel more confident on my options” - Megan Barton
“It’s good to talk to people who are going through GCSE, about GCSE” - Endi Danjolli
“This has given me more knowledge of GCSE and it’s been really useful” - James Whelan
“I think it’s a good idea because people that we didn’t really talk to we now do, simply because
we have got together as a Year group” - Tyler Austin
DARWIN HOUSE
Darwin House Captains and Mentors: Karina Kakar, Delza Brown, Dilip Hundal, Georgia Blackman, Ololade Idowa, Paras Sharma, Fazile Zogjani,
Samuel Adenmosun and Zahira Batool
The initiative has grown from a suggestion by our wonderful Year 11s, who wanted to have a greater
impact on learning. It also fits very nicely within the ethos of the House, where the family values of
discussion, understanding and support are held in high regard as means for healthy group cohesion and
rapid individual academic and personal growth.
Our House captains have also set in place initiatives to enable the younger members of our House to
learn from their elders: Samuel Adenmosun, Fazile Zogjani, Paras Sharma and Zahira Batool have set
up a House suggestion box, a Homework club and sessions where each visits the individual Houses Tutor
Groups to discuss HTG issues. Once again, the initiatives have come from the students, once again
demonstrating Darwin House students’ disposition for Leadership from within.
This term has seen Darwin House compete in the House Sport Indoor Football competition. We have
done very well and we are currently top of the table in two Year groups.
Our Year 8 and 10/11 team are topping the tables with some exceptional performances!
Darwinners, doing what comes naturally!
Mr Bott
Last Term
CAS Week saw the House and the Academy participate in a variety of different activities ranging
from Thorpe Park trips, the 7k Charity Walk, the TLA Fair and Sports Day. The students were amazing
and their performances at Sports Day were simply sensational! We finished in 3rd place and that was
credit to everyone who was involved with the House from the House Tutors through to the students
– well done. There were many outstanding contributions throughout the day but a few that were
notable were Frank Francis and the rest of the Year 10 boys’ relay team handing the baton to Frank
in 3rd position and Frank simply did the rest by steaming past the other Houses who were in front of
him to bring the baton home in 1st place. A second came from the Year 9 girl’s relay team coming
across the line in first place after being anchored by Lea Foster – another example of determination
and skilfully executed relay running – well done girls.
GAIA HOUSE
Gaia House enjoying their day at The Thames Valley Athletics
Track during the Academy’s Sports Day last term
Lea Foster (Gaia 6) with Anisah Chaudry looking on, bringing the
baton home for our girls in the Year 9 relay
Our winning Year 10 Boys relay team: Liam Staples (Gaia 6), Krishan Sharda (Gaia 3), Frank Francis (Gaia 4) and Munashe Ganje (Gaia 2)
This term has seen an Internationalism Focus. Gaia House has been working hard on their
given project idea. The area we were allocated was African Technology. We were asked to
look at how African technology had changed due to international influence. The African countries
were South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. Students worked exceptionally hard
on researching and developing materials for display.
Year 9 Gaia House students taking part in the balloon release
The Gaia House “Africa” gazebo Gaia students Supriti Shukla, Nico Powar and Illiev Domingos
preparing material for the gazebo
Gaia House Captains
All six students that put themselves forward to be House
Captains were successful in their application. The standard
was so high that we were unable to choose just two. We
believe the different skills and experiences each can bring to
the role will be a huge benefit to Gaia House. They have
already shown excellent attitude and aptitude to all that has
been asked of them. Below is a selection of articles they have
written for the newsletter. Our House Captains are Jaya
Ralhan, Krishan Sharda, Kazia Edwards, Baghel Sandhu,
Emily Llewelyn, and Katie Long.
“Internationalism” by House Captain Kazia Edwards (Gaia
2): The Year 11 this year did a dance workshop for
Internationalism Week. There was a range of different dances we could have done but Gaia House
did Caribbean and most of us took part in the activity. The experience overall was interesting and
helped us to see how other cultures expressed dance. Two amazing dancers Connor Stichbury and
Matthew Wadeson did extremely well and put loads of effort in to their piece. All year 11’s enjoyed
the experience as it was a lot of fun.
A Student Focus by House Captain Katie Long (Gaia 5): Jasmine Jenkins, Year 7 went on an
orienteering trip to Black Park on Monday 13 October 2014. On this trip they went on a hunt around
Black Park to find letters, eventually creating words out of them. This trip was designed to improve
their literacy skill, and to teach them how to make their way around the park using maps and their
sight. Jasmine said “The trip was very exciting and fun as I didn’t know quite how to use a map at
first, once I got used to the environment and the surroundings I found it quite easy.” These well
designed trips are for Year 7’s to help them create new friendship groups and skills that they didn’t
have before. Well done to Jasmine for completing the tasks on the trip, you have done Gaia House
proud for your excellent conduct and behaviour around the site of Black Park.
Being a House Captain by Krishan Sharda (Gaia 3): Being a House Captain for me is a great
opportunity and experience as it brings new responsibilities. Since becoming one I have been able to
reach out and have new opportunities not supplied to me before, from helping with simple tasks
inside Gaia House, to writing articles for the TLA newsletter. Baghel, Jaya, Katie, Kazia, Emily (fellow
House Captains) and I find it a great experience to work together and support our House. Behaviour
mentoring Year 8s is a great opportunity as it helps to see perspectives of the Academy from
younger years and it is always good to advise someone who was once in a similar position to me.
Overall being a House Captain is a productive and worthwhile experience and brings a new
perspective to my school life.
“Gazebos” by Jaya Ralhan (Gaia 6): Gaia House's focus during Internationalism Week was Africa.
Our House had our gazebo located in the south side of the atrium. The gazebo was decorated with
models made by Gaia 3- which was a banana tree to represent how bananas in South Africa are
harvested. During House Tutor Time, students in Gaia House had key roles to find out information
about Africa. This proved to be a great expanding knowledge task as many kids were interested in
facts they found out about Africa that they did not know before. Posters were spread around to
occupy people when they visited the gazebo. The aim was to provide information and expand their
knowledge about Africa. Our aim seemed to have been achieved as the audience of our gazebo
increased. Thanks to the students and teachers that helped pull
off a great presentation of our gazebo, it resulted in successfully
having something going on in every corner. A week of our gazebo
proudly standing in the atrium truly showed how well the
students and teachers worked together and pulled off a great
team effort, showing how strongly Gaia House pull together.
Gaia House gets a Twitter Account
In keeping with the Academy’s new Twitter account, Gaia House
have started their own. The account keeps students up to date
with what is going on in Gaia and celebrates achievements of the
House. Join us at @GaiaHouseTLA
Mr Spilsbury
19
Globe House is now on Twitter. Follow @GlobeHouseTLA for
weekly updates from each Tutor Group, student celebrations,
weekly facts and jokes and pictures and posts from Globe House
endeavours! Students and parents alike are invited to follow the page.
GLOBE HOUSE INTERNATIONALISM
This term the students at The Langley Academy celebrated the key focus for this term: INTERNATIONALISM.
The theme of our celebrations was Migration and Journeys. Students were given the opportunity to build their
own museum displays with personal objects they acquired on journeys they have experienced and were able
to tell their own stories of Migration.
The LA Museum also celebrated with an installation that was loaned to us by the Migration Museum in
London. This comprised of photographs and Migration stories as well.
Year 7 to 11 all participated in a variety of activities during Internationalism Week, 6 - 10 October- these
included, dance, migration and music workshops. Our Year 9 students were involved in the “Release of
Balloons” activity in Friday 10 October. So far, 6 balloons have been returned to us.
GLOBE HOUSE
Globe House students with their House colour balloons
20
Successful Return of the Balloons - Ethan Burford, Hafsa Bedwi, Nathan Dhadrall and Aaron Foster (pictured
below) were treated to a lovely surprise as the balloons that they released on Friday 10 October were returned
to them. These balloons travelled all the way to Suffolk!
House Football
Globe House have made a fantastic start to the House football tournament and have been fantastically
represented across all the age groups. A special mention must go to Josh Kirby in Globe 2 who scored the
winner from over the half way line!!
Year 9 students with “Man of the Match” Joshua Kirby-Jalo’
21
Globe 2
Bilal Pervaiz Year 9 has recently won a Fifa 15 online
tournament against other players from a range of different
countries. He was successful with him Ultimate team containing
players such as Menez, Januzaj and Luke Shaw. This resulted in
Bilal receiving 2k and 1 gold pack. He is so confident in his ability
he is willing to challenge anyone in the Academy providing they
have an Xbox.
George Awuah Year 11 has successfully scored 2 hat tricks for his team Taplow United. His team successfully
defeated Wycombe Saints FC 19-0.
Eyaad Ali is currently sporting a smile like the Cheshire cat because he has recently been selected by Mr
Jeyaratnam to be the captain of the Year 7 football team. He is over the moon at the opportunity to lead his
team into battle.
Globe 3
By Shree Fatania, Year 10
The words "Aik Saath" mean "Together as One" in Hindi, Punjabi and
Urdu. The name embodies the very ethos of the charity which is a
volunteer group that is also part of Youth Engagement Slough (YES). Aik
Saath believes in working together for positive social change with people
from all communities, faiths and backgrounds. Their aim is to promote and
encourage conflict resolution and community cohesion through training,
campaigns and projects.
I have met so many people being part of Aik Saath and have recently
volunteered in projects such as working with a women’s shelter called
Domestic Abuse Stops Here (DASH). As well as this, I have been part of the
youth café in Langley, the YES shop in Slough High Street and Airwave.
Airwave is a business that seeks to bring your ideas to life!
During my time at Aik Saath, I have learnt many things helping me to
become someone I never thought I could be. Being with a youth group
that inspires me to do well is amazing. Even cares about everyone – even
if you’ve met for the first time! Aik Saath is now my second home.
If you would like to find out more, get involved and support their cause please visit their website:
www.aiksaath.com
22
Globe 5
For Internationalism Week Globe 5 chose to look at flavours of the
world and hide them in chocolate to provide a taste testing activity in
Globe's Gazebo. Flavours included vanilla from Madagascar, popcorn
originating from Mexico, salt and pepper as a French seasoning and
chilli from the Asian influences. Kyle Patel-Keena, Amy Dent, Vidhant
Mehta and Harry Chahal from Globe 5 melted and flavoured the
chocolate themselves and manned the stall at break time to allow
students to have a go at tasting the flavours, some they enjoyed, some
they definitely didn't!
Globe Gazebo
With Internationalism Week in full swing it was terrific to see all the gazebos being assembled by all 6 Houses.
The gazebos are all very interesting and once again demonstrate the diverse cultures that make the Academy a
unique place to be. The Globe House gazebo pictured below demonstrates the theme of Internationalism
week very well.
Ms Pereira
23
Incredibly, we are already at the end of our first term of 2014/2015 at the Academy, but this is the first chance
that I have had to congratulate Grace House on their stunning win on Sports Day, back on Wednesday 16 July
2014. We had a fantastic turn out of students and we managed to fill every event. We won the Key Stage 3
trophy, the KS4 trophy and the overall winners shield. It was the most amazing day and one the students and I
will never forget. It is right up there with my most memorable moments in my teaching career. I am always so
very proud of Grace House, but I was fit to bust with pride on Sports Day and I am still floating on cloud nine
whenever I think of it. Well Done, Grace House!
Year 7 students have made a fantastic start to Year 7! They have settled in extremely well. They have enjoyed
a trip to Hillingdon Outdoor Adventure Centre and we had a very successful and enjoyable Parents’ Tea.
Most of our Year 7’s handed in very pleasing transition folders, with the hard work they put in being evident.
They have been presented with certificates for their efforts in Grace House Assembly.
Last term we appointed our two new House Captains.
They are Armeen Butt and Ravi Sharda (pictured left).
They have already ably represented Grace House and I
look forward to working with them this year.
Our two Deputy House Captains are Sehanna Dev and
Aman Basra.
Grace House students worked very hard on the sport
linked project for Internationalism week. The Gazebo
looked most impressive showing all the students’ hard
work. I would also like to thank the Grace House Tutor
Team for the efforts they made with setting up the
display.
Finally, Grace House has started the Rowing Competition very well with some very strong teams pulling out
some strong performances and great times. We have the second round out of six coming after the mid-term
break and if we all attend and pull together as we did for Sports Day, we are hoping for some great results! Go
Grace! GRACE is ACE! (I have always said so!).
Ms Decosemo
GRACE HOUSE
24
This term, students in Henley House have achieved many things both within and outside of the Academy. A
great example of this achievement is Henley 4 having the highest attendance in the Academy for two weeks
this half term. This is a brilliant way to start the year and we hope that it continues. It was confirmed Henley 4
have the most days of 100% attendance this term. A huge congratulations to them.
Recently, our Henley House Captains Manraj Tack from Henley 4 and Maarukh Nasir from Henley 2 led
opposing sides in The Great Debate on Scottish independence. This was an important debate as it dealt with
something that could’ve impacted us all and we could not be more proud that it was led by Henley students!
As well as The Great Debate, Manraj and Marukh have both taken part in debating events outside of the
Academy which have contributed greatly to the growth of their public speaking skills.
Henley House members were active in contributing to events and activities that were held throughout
Internationalism Week. We were impressed with the amount of effort put into the House stall by all Tutor
Groups and would like to thank everyone who took the time to help set it up.
Congratulations to Milo Quinton from Henley 6 for getting a solo in this year’s Night at the Musicals and to all
other Henley House members that are involved in groups or the chorus. We hope that rehearsals go well and
look forward to seeing you perform soon!
Written by Emily Jacobs
Mr Goodchild
HENLEY HOUSE
Ms Young with her Tutor Group Henley 4
25
Watching a dramatic presentation of drama set texts is an invaluable experience. This year, neither Macbeth
nor Othello were being staged locally, so we decided to send our Year 12 students to the Opera. Here is an
account of their experiences by Chloe Jacobs:
Last week, a group of Year 12 English students went into London to watch the English National Opera’s
production of Verdi’s ‘Otello’, based on the Shakespeare play, ‘Othello’. After successfully navigating the tube,
we made it to the theatre in time to have a quick Frappuccino at Starbucks, before finally finding our seats. The
theatre was huge and opulent, with cherubs painted on the ceiling and everything edged with gold paint. Of
course, we were up in the nosebleeds – the highest seats in the house – where I’m sure some of us were
actually suffering from altitude sickness. The opera itself was very impressive musically; the singers had no
microphones, yet their voices resonated to the very back of the theatre – and possibly a few roads beyond it.
After a powerful first act, we spent the interval eating our body weight in Skittles and marshmallows and, no
doubt, irritating the regular opera-goers with our banter. The second act was less powerful, however, with a
dead woman continuing to sing even after being strangled. Said dead woman, Desdemona, also managed to
commando roll down stage at the very climax of the last scene. It was bizarre, to say the least. We also
survived the train journey home (somehow), but the artistic choice that led the actress playing Desdemona to
merge gymnastics and opera still leaves us all puzzled.
The students will be comparing this production to their interpretation of the play as part of their AS
coursework.
Maths has started back in full swing in the first half term. The Year 7s students who came in for summer
school got to see how maths related to life as a pirate via activities about bearings, coding and treasure
hunting. This was a great way for many of our new students to start their Maths studies here at the Academy.
As the rest of the Year 7s joined they have begun their KS3 curriculum and completed projects on tessellation
and constructing Islamic Art.
English
Maths
26
Well done to last to the Year 11 students who sat their GCSE Maths in Year 10. All students made expected or rapid progress with four students achieving an A*. Maths G&T KS4 students have been invited to take part in a maths trip to Disneyland Paris in February and preparation is well under way led by our Maths G&T co-ordinator Ms Young. Maths students have regularly been set homework of a minimum of one www.mymath.co.uk assignment a week. Parents/carers are asked to help support by regularly checking on their child’s progress. The Maths faculty has lessons after school and during enrichment to support homework, the KS3, KS4, and 6th Form curriculum.
Science has had an exciting start this year. We were very sorry to say goodbye to Mr Morgan last year but the
great work of the Science faculty is continuing. We have some great staff working on expanding Science
Specialism by expanding links with Primary schools and by having regular updates and activities relating
science to a wider context.
Years 7 and 8 are starting a course which covers the new National Curriculum. They should all have their own
personalised login through which they can access homework and use the text book to support them at
home. The login and user name is initial surname (no space) and the institution code is ri1.
We have had our first ISSP Science activity which was led by a new member of the Science team Mr Madej.
Students from local schools were invited to take part in an experiment about electricity and sound which
involved making speakers. It was a lot of fun for the students that took part and a great learning experience.
Next half term Year 10 and 11 students will be doing controlled assessments so it is important that they are
focused!!
Science
27
Geography Map Skills Throughout the week beginning 13 October, all Year
7 students attended Black Park Country Park to
partake in an Orienteering course. The aim was to
increase map reading skills which both students and
staff successfully achieved. Despite the wet weather
Year 7 were great map readers and managed to find
most of the points marked on the maps. The winning
time throughout was by the Darwin girls in 1 hour 17
minutes! Well done to everyone involved.
This month the ICT Faculty have delivered a number of assemblies and lessons on the theme of e-safety. We
all need to be aware of issues of the children’s e-safety, that is their safety on the internet, on social messaging
sites and when texting using mobile phones. In order to help you to back up this work at home I have copied
below some recommended sites for you to visit as parents, and/or with your children, to give you more
information and support in dealing with issues around e-safety.
I hope you find these useful. You can also access the links on our Academy website: www.langleyacademy.org
Please also feel free to contact me anytime if you have any queries on the subject of e-safety.
Ms Naylor - Head of Faculty
Secondary E-Safety Resources
ThinkUKnow
http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/
Thinkuknow is a site in which the information is brought to you by the team at the Child Exploitation and
Online Protection (CEOP) Centre. On the site visitors can find the latest information on the sites young people
like to visit, mobiles and new technology. Find out what’s good, what’s not and what you can do about it.
There are resources for parents and teachers and, most importantly, a place which anyone can use to report if
they feel uncomfortable or worried about someone they are chatting to online.
Humanities
ICT
Ms Warr with Year 7 students at Black Park
Geography KS3 Support Club runs every Thursday lunch time
in W2.21 with Ms Warr
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CBBC - Stay Safe (Year 7)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/articles/staysafe-facts
CBBC's Stay Safe website invites children to join Dongle the rabbit in learning how to stay safe on the web. The
site features a cartoon and quiz, along with a screensaver and wallpaper giving tips on safe surfing. Visitors to
the site can also print out Dongle's factsheet reinforcing the SMART rules. The site links to the BBC
ChatGuide website and to several of the organisations providing advice and support to young people, such as
Think U Know, Kidsmart and NCH.
Cybersmart
http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/ This site has been created by ACMA - the Australian
Communications and Media Authority. Cybersmart Kids Online provides information on 'smart net surfing for
kids and their grownups'. The site gives general tips on staying safe online, using chat and mobile phones, and
a quiz. Content in the main information sections is split into three user types – 0-7, 8-12, 13-17, so pupils can
be directed to relevant information depending on their age and/or level of understanding.
iKeepSafe.org
www.ikeepsafe.org
iKeepSafe.org teaches the basic rules of e-safety to children and parents. The website uses an animated
mascot, Faux Paw the Techno Cat, to teach children the importance of protecting personal information and
avoiding unsuitable material on the internet. Children can learn how to safely navigate the internet through a
virtual playground, Faux Paw's adventures in story books, an animated video download and educational
games. Educational materials, including worksheets and tests, are also available for parents and teachers.
Reporting
It is imperative that any illegal or suspicious contact with a child on the Internet is reported to the police
immediately. You will find help and advice at the child exploitation and online protection centre:
www.thinkuknow.co.uk
It has been a very busy start of term, with EXCELLENT work produced by many students, across all year groups,
in lessons, at lunchtimes and after school.
Some of you will have seen that we have launched our Twitter account;
SO….DT@DT_TLA. Why not follow @DT_TLA to see some of the great work
going on within the faculty and keep up to date with news and challenges.
Remember if you see your work on twitter let Ms Stacey know and you can get a
DT plus point, your entry to the termly DT raffle.
Key Stage 3
Year 7 and 8 started the year with a short design and make task, there were some fantastic examples, and we
look forward to the work that has been complete over the course of the year. There are great things to come!
Year 7 and 8 DT groups have been named after famous designers and chefs. Students have done some
research on their designer and we look forward to seeing posters going up soon!
Design Technology
29
The overall winners of this terms marble challenge were team ‘chicken’
from Year 8 Zaha Hadid. Well done to Tyler Austin, Conor Lawless, Abdul
Nasir Nuhu and Kacey Wootton-Jones.
A touch of Internationalism
Year 10 prepared an amazing array of gourmet
burgers. The talent displayed by some of the
young chefs was astounding. The American
inspired burger was particularly eye catching
and smelt rather tasty too.
Students and staff worked tirelessly to produce
a delicious spread for the International buffet,
which proved so popular that sadly all the food
was gone by the time Ms Stacey appeared with her camera (and fork).
Year 9 Product Design
Inspired by Pop Art this striking calendar was one of the first finished in Mr Bott’s
Product Design class. Well done for super effort and attention to detail. It is a
great piece of work.
Ms Stacey is very excited about seeing the USB sticks of the Memphis and
Blobjects groups soon after half term.
30
VEX
The Vex club is under way, with a dedicated group of students working on
systems and mechanisms for their robots, in preparation for the national Vex
Skyrise competition.
Tech stars
This terms Tech stars are: Harpreet Dhillon, Tyler Austin, Jakub Mlodzinski, Catherine St Ledger, Harry
Mewett, Danielle Byrne, and Mariam Bhatti. Thank you for your tremendous help and effort throughout open
evening, you were brilliant.
DT Half term twitter challenge:-
Tweet (@DT_TLA) or email ([email protected]) your DT Halloween creations……….be they
food, textiles or product design. (Make it, photograph it, and share it with us)
Remember: If you see your design on Twitter you’ll gain a DT plus point. And of course there will be a little
treat for the best one.
Welcome back to all CAPA staff and students. We hope you had a fun and restful summer holiday. Hopefully
some of you had the opportunity to see a film, visit a local museum, gallery or stately home, or attend a
cultural/family celebration. I am sure many of you will have travelled abroad to explore the wonders of the
universe.
The academic year started in August with students and staff celebrating our successes on results days for GCSE
and A-Level. A2 Media and Art students achieved significantly above national average and more GCSE students
were awarded A and B grades than ever before across the faculty. We were especially delighted that seven
Year 13 students have gone on to study Art, Media or Drama-related courses at university. We look forward to
celebrating the successes of our current Year 11, 12 and 13 classes next year.
As a faculty we are pleased to Welcome Ms Shaw who joins us this year as a full-time teacher of Drama and
Media Studies. In addition Ms Shaw is currently working with the IT department on a Museum Champion
project for our Year 8 Drama Students. We look forward to her bringing inspirational ideas to the faculty and
wish her every success as a valued member of the CAPA team!
It has already been a busy term for CAPA with students exhibiting work at the Hilton Hotel in Heathrow,
visiting the National Portrait Gallery, Big Draw for WW2, auditions for the Night at the Musicals, Year 7 Choir,
the Museum Champions project and a number of 6th Form Theatre Trips.
CAPA
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Art
The Art department had a fantastic time
contributing to the Summer School this
year; an initiative to support Year 7 students
through the transition from primary to
secondary school. Led by Mr Samouel
students produced some great artwork
around the theme of Pirates and Island Life.
Their work was exhibited in the atrium at
the beginning of the year. Well done to all
those who took part and we look forward to
seeing more fantastic Artwork from you
soon.
Mr Rider and Mr Samouel visited the Hilton Hotel on Saturday 11 October. We would like to give a special
thanks to Mr Bevan, the General Manager, for allowing the TLA Art dept. to have two Art exhibitions on show
at the Hotel. The first exhibition contains a series of dress designs by ex-TLA student Von Ruzive who left Year
13 last year. The second exhibition contains a series of poems and art work created by our current Year 11 Art
students. The work will be on display until later this year.
Mr Samuel’s Year 7 class have been producing large pieces of work
inspired by the art and photography produced during the world wars. As
part of their introduction to Art students have been exploring different
materials, media and techniques to produce these large scale pieces of
work. Many people have commented and praised the students involved.
This work will be displayed in the Atrium next term.
Year 12 Art students attended the National Portrait Gallery, London at the
start of the term as research for their current project on Portraits. As well
as developing their contextual understanding of portraits produced by
Traditional and Contemporary Artists, students looked at how the work
was displayed and curated. Favourite pieces of art included ‘Jean
Simmons’ by Sir Mathew Smith and ‘A Conversation Piece at The Royal
Lodge, Windsor’ by Sir James Gunn. We look forward to seeing their
work which will be exhibited at the annual Portrait Exhibition at the
Academy later this year.
Art enrichment continues to flourish with over 50 students from all
years attending every Wednesday afternoon. Students are given the
opportunity to produce their own artwork on a theme of their choice
using the wealth of materials and equipment available. In the past
students have also entered competitions and taken part in other art
initiatives during enrichment. We look forward to them taking part in
such events this year. Congratulations to all involved particularly the
staff team who volunteer and support Mr Samouel in the running of this extra-curricular activity.
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The Art department continues to run an after school art club for students from all years. Priority is given to
students in exam classes. It is really important for these students to attend if they are to succeed in achieving
their full potential. The club runs on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday after school until 16:30.
Drama
This term in Year 8 Drama students are working on a cross-curricular
project with ICT and the Amersham Museum. Students will be looking into
the story of the Amersham Martyrs, a group who fought to have the
Catholic Bible translated into English, with some devastating consequences.
Looking at promenade performance, students will have the opportunity to
create a living museum exhibition of the story with tour guides leading the
audience around the dramatic production.
Students who audition will have the opportunity to perform their piece on
location at the Amersham Museum, which will be recorded and put into a
student designed app which will be used by the Museum for visitors to
watch students’ performances any time throughout the year. This is a very exciting opportunity for Year 8
drama and ICT students to experiment with new kinds of theatre, new ways of working with museums and
new settings!
Year 8 Football v Dedworth
The Year 8 football team began the season with an impressive 4-1 victory over Dedworth. Goals from Conor
Lawless (2), Aaron Amponsah and Bradley Farren secured the victory. The man of the match award was given
to Kyle Dobbyn for his battling display in central midfield.
Year 8 Football v Westgate
The Year 8 team made it two wins out of two with a great 5-0 victory over Westgate. Goals from Conor
Lawless (2), Aaron Amponsah (2) and Bradley Farren secured the victory. The man of the match award was
given to Kai Cassidy for his composed performance in goal.
Year 8 Football v Wexham
The Year 8 football team won their third league game in a row with an outstanding performance to beat
Wexham 8-2. Goals from Bradley Farren (3) Conor Lawless, Aaron Amponsah, Zak Koundi, Bradley Foster and
Ben Greenidge secured the victory for the team. The man of the match award was given to Bradley Farren for
his dynamic performance in midfield.
PE
33
Year 9 Football
The Year 9 team have had a positive start to the current season with a huge amount of students turning out
each week for training. The season has only seen us complete one fixture so far against Langley Grammar
School where we were unfortunate not to come away from the game with at least a draw after a promising
performance. The game saw us start well and keep possession of the ball really well against an organised
Langley Grammar side. After going a goal down, the boys worked hard to get back into it and Cavan Gruber
converted at the back post after excellent work from George Hunt. The game saw Jay King make his debut for
the team with a solid performance at right back. As the match ran towards a close, Cavan picked the ball up
just outside the Langley Grammar penalty area. His first touch turned him away from goal and in the same
motion saw him strike the ball towards the far post. As it looped over the keeper it looked destined for the far
corner, but unfortunately it struck the post and then rebounded into the thankful Langley Grammar keeper's
arms. As a result, we then conceded late on that saw us lose 2-1, but the result was not a fair reflection of the
game after another hard working performance from the boys.
Under 14 Berkshire County Football
Congratulations to George Hunt and Ethan Long in Year 9 who have been selected for the Under 14 Berkshire
County Football team. The two boys were involved in a two week trial and were selected for a friendly fixture
against Hertfordshire on Saturday 4 October. The team lost 6-0 on the day however George captained the side
in the 2nd half and Ethan played during the 1st half. Both students were impressive and represented the
Academy impeccably.
Under 15 Slough District Football
Congratulations to Bailey West and Connor Dobbyn in Year 10 who have been selected to represent the
Under 15 Slough District Football team after attending a trial at Burnham Grammar School. They will be in the
squad for the team’s first game on Saturday 18 October. Good luck to both boys!
Under 15 Berkshire County Football
Congratulations to Olusola Sola-Ogunniyi in Year 10 who represented the Under 15 Berkshire County Football
team against Hertfordshire on Saturday 4 October. Shola produced an excellent display and scored twice in the
5-4 defeat.
Under 16 Berkshire County Football
Congratulations to Frank Francis in Year 11 who represented the Under 16 Berkshire County Football team
against Hertfordshire on Saturday 4 October. Frank performed well in the 4-0 defeat.
Year 10 Football
The Year 10 football team have started the season in style, with a new coaching set up it was always going to
take time to adapt. The first game was away to Beechwood which in the past have produced some exciting
games. The game started at a furious pace with the Academy taking the upper hand in the early exchanges.
With the sustained amount of pressure mounted on the Beechwood defence it would be a matter of minutes
34
until the Academy were to score, and score they did Shola releasing the ever present Bailey west to calmly slot
the ball past the keeper with relative ease. These seemed to have a real impact on the boy’s confidence and
were now able to pass the ball with more control and flow, which led to the second goal which was extremely
well finished by the Man of the Match Harrison Farren. The second half was a lot tighter, Beechwood
managed to score a further 2 goals in quick succession which meant the pressure was mounted on the
Academy. Luckily Harrison Farren was there again to produce the goods with a powerful shot which rifled past
the keeper; however it wasn’t all going to plan. The Beechwood striker pounced onto a missed header from
the TLA defence which put them level. Luckily Shola managed to produce a moment of magic from the restart
and managed to dribble it through the oncoming defenders and thread a lovely ball into the welcoming feet of
Harrison Farren who managed to successfully convert his third goal and seal a dramatic victory for the Langley
Academy.
Rugby Coaching @ TLA
The PE staff have managed to secure a fantastic opportunity for Year 7, 8 and 9 students to receive some free
coaching courtesy of the RFU All Schools Programme. We have selected 20 Gifted and Talented students from
each year group. The coach is from Slough Rugby Club and has been impressed with the quality produced from
the students across the Academy. The sessions will be running up until the Christmas break and we hope to be
competitive when we play other local schools involved in the programme.
Year 11 Football
It has been a fantastic start to the season for the Year 11 boy’s football team. Last season the team managed
to go through every league game unbeaten and they have picked up right where they left off beating
Churchmead 6-1 at home. Goals from George Awuah, Bailey West, Olusola Sola-Ogunniyi and Harrison
Farren ensured the team brushed a-side our local rivals. A week later we were drawn against Wexham in
round 1 of the Slough Cup, a team that always pop up in the last few seconds to salvage a draw against us. We
went 2-0 down in the first half but an inspired second half saw us bring the game back to 2-2. The Year 11 boys
dominated extra time but, as with tradition, in the last 2 minutes Wexham countered and scored to win 3-2.
There were superb performances in this match from Robbie Ensby, Bradley Eastmond and Kyran Power. The
team can now be fully focused on the league as we look to bring home the trophy in their last year together.
A call to all of the PE GCSE students in Years 9-11. Mr Sullivan runs a revision session in the Library at 15:40 on
Thursdays just for you. Stay as long as you like and get the help on the topics you need help with!
6th Formers, who have been there and done that, will also be there to assist. It could be the difference in a
grade or two!
Year 7 Netball
On 25 September the Year 7’s had their first netball game representing the Academy. The girls were very
excited about the prospect of being selected and hopes were high. The game started well with some superb
centres from Jamie-Leigh White who looked for her team mates to get into space before passing. This was
then followed by some excellent passing down the court to Wasila Ahmed who scored some fantastic goals.
Some of the girls who have only played netball for short time showed what they have learnt by landing well
and then pivoting to look for a good pass. The defence was good from Julita Gralicka who intercepted plenty
of passes and was able to stop St Josephs from shooting. Malaika Khan was an asset to the team holding
strong. In the centre third where she found space and was able to move the ball down the court well. The
35
team consisted of: Wasila Ahmed, Malaika Khan, Julita Gralicka, Jessica Woodford, Jamie Leigh White,
Elizabeth Monds, Melissa Toubal, Roma Bains and Cana Williams. Well done girls.
Year 8 Netball
The Year 8s had a fantastic start to the season with their match against St Joseph’s. The team consisting of
Mahnoor Khan, Sophie Ward, Esha Bhalla, Alexis Hansell, Asees Gill, Aiofe Brennan, Amy Dent, Charlotte
Bedford and Annabeth Gyamfi showed some fantastic team work skills moving the ball up the court using
some strong tactical play. The girls in the centre of the court showed good attacking skills to move the ball up
to the goal circle where Annabeth, Amy and Aoife demonstrated some successful shooting skills. Their
outstanding performance was noted by the teacher from St Joseph’s particularly the performance of Esha and
Sophie helping them to achieve a win of 8-2. This was a great start to the season and starting as they mean to
go on.
Girls Get Active
On Tuesday 7 October Ms O’Brien took girls from Years 7-10 to Slough and Eton
School to take part in Girls Get Active. This was set up by a former 6th Form student
and has continued to run by the current Year 12 & 13 students of Slough and Eton.
The aim of the day was to get girl’s more involved in sport and realise there are a
variety of sports to get involved in and what a fantastic opportunity it is to meet
new people and improve confidence.
The girls took part in: seated volleyball, wheelchair basketball, curling, bench ball
and handball. The girls also had the opportunity to listen to Manisha Taylor who is
36
an inspirational speaker based on involving girls in sport. She spoke to the girls for about half an hour about
her life and how she became involved in football and what barriers she has met on the way. The girls were
impressed with Manisha and came out discussing her life and aspirations.
At the end of the afternoon students were voted by the 6th Formers as to who the ‘Girl of the day’ was for each
year group.
For Year 7 Inza Iqbal won. She
had a fantastic day trying
every sport with a huge smile
on her face and was making
new friends left, right and
centre the whole group were
extremely proud of her. The
girls who attended were: Year
7 –Inza Iqbal, Emily Tuitt and
Sukanya Shourie. Year 8 –
Harlin Dhillon, Leena Toora
and Agnesa Haziri. Year 9 –
Ella Serafinski, Year 10: Lucy
Mwangi, Jessica Swan
Gonzalez and Ieasha Khan.
Year 7 Rounders
The Year 7 rounders’ team consisting of Mahnoor Khan, Esha Bhalla, Sophie Ward, Supriti Shukla, Alexis
Hansell, Jade McGuinness, Nikola Wedolowska, Lauren Bradburn, Annabeth Gyamfi, Harpreet Dhillon and
Aoife Brennan took part in the final event of the summer season; the Year 7 Slough Borough Tournament. We
went to the tournament with high expectations after a very successful season. The first game we were unlucky
as we were drawn against Langley Grammar who unfortunately just beat us. However we moved through the
group stages into the semi-final where we played against Hershel Grammar and we closely beat them. We
then moved onto the final, where we came up against St Bernard’s. We knew we could beat them as they
were someone we had beaten within the season and the girls played fantastically under such pressure and
excitement with them wanting to win so much and knowing that winning was well within their reach. The year
7s demonstrated extremely solid fielding particularly from Mahnoor Khan, Sophie Ward and Supriti Shukla and
outstanding batting from Jade McGuiness and Nikola Wedolowska.
The Year 7s came away winning the tournament, leaving a fantastic end to the year and completing The
Langley Academy’s successful year.
37
Year 11 Netball
The Year 11 girls’ netball
team took part in the Slough
Borough tournament in the
last week of September. The
team lead by Erin
Simmonds consisting of
Katie, Ellie and Kerrie Long,
Stevie Swann, Lola Idowu,
Praise Okoro and Leah
Lewis had a lot of pressure
upon them from themselves
and their rival teams as they
had been undefeated within
the previous season and had
won the tournament the
previous year. The girls
played fantastically as per
usual with their
performance moving from strength to strength and their great team play and tactical awareness evident
beyond all of the other teams. The girls won all their games achieving some great results winning 5-2, 7-4, 10-
0, 8-3, 8-1, 6-2 and 9-2 meaning they were overall tournament winners for the second year so they remain
undefeated within the Slough Borough for two years running.
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“Girls on Tour” - Netball Sports Tour
On 19 September Ms O’Brien and Ms Bellis bravely got on a coach with 17 Year 10 & 11 students to Condover
Hall, Shropshire – Girls on Tour had begun. A stress free journey entailed with some people having a few naps
on the way (Erin ‘Granny’ Simmonds and Stevie Swann) and we arrived at Condover Hall to be met by our
leader JD who took the girls on a tour and we all went for dinner. That evening the girls could choose what
activities they wanted to do, most went to the campfire where they were able to sing to their hearts content
while others had a go at tunnelling.
The Saturday consisted of climbing, abseiling and laser quest where Ms O’Brien and Ms Bellis dominated. The
afternoon the netball started; it was a tough start as we didn’t know what to expect from the teams. Year 10 &
11 had a mixed bag of games with some wins and losses. A great day was had by all. Saturday evening the
silent disco and loud disco occupied the students with some great dance moves from Lola Idowu. On Sunday
the netball continued with Year 10 and 11 playing for the plate. The Year 10’s unfortunately did not win their
group however the Year 11’s did with some great centre passes and shooting from Kerrie Long and Erin ‘the
snail’ Simmonds. The weekend was a great success and Ms O’Brien and Ms Bellis would like to thank all the
girls for a fantastic weekend and they were a credit to the Academy.
Year 10 girls Mattu Simbo, Ela Metalia, Annabel Okoro, Felicia Tang, Ellie Smith, Hana El Amri, Molly Frewin, Liliana Carri and Danielle Deadman. Year 11 girls: Praise Okoro, Stevie Swann, Erin Simmonds, Kerrie Long, Ellie Long, Katie Long, Ololade Idowu and Leah Lewis
39
Year 10 & 11 Netball #GirlsOnTour
The weekend started with a 3 hour coach drive to Condover Hall, Shropshire, where we were to be playing for
the next few days. When we arrived we were greeted by a member of staff who took us on a tour around the
site. It was bigger and better than we imagined, from climbing walls to camp fires, tunnelling to laser maze and
much more. After dinner we parted from the teachers and headed to the camp fire where it was safe to say
that we won the sing off. With that our night ended and it was an early start in the morning after a rough night
sleep. With breakfast came excitement as we spent the morning doing abseiling, rock climbing, high ropes, low
ropes and laser tag. During laser tag, some people were a little too excited about the idea of shooting students
but everyone had a great time. After two games of laser tag and lots of squeals the Year 11s, accompanied by
Ms O’Brien, beat the Year 10s twice by a clear margin. Unlucky!
Finally the reason for
going began with our
netball matches in the
afternoon. The Year 10s
had a good start,
winning their first game,
showing the Year 11s
how to do it. The Year
11s upped their game to
play their hardest
competition yet but
unfortunately only
winning a few games.
There were large amounts of time between games so Ms Bellis along with a few students decided to go
abseiling. This turned out to be a very entertaining experience for all of us as we watched the struggle that was
Praise attempting to get onto the platform of the trapeze. That evening the students and staff enjoyed various
activities including a disco and a silent disco. The following day brought more energy and enthusiasm with
both the Year 10s and 11s competing in the plate competition. Unfortunately the Year 10s were not able to
win their plate however the Year 11s fought hard as a team to win their competition, much to their surprise.
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I suppose a small thank you is required for the teachers Ms O’Brien and Ms Bellis. Whilst they seemed to enjoy
the weekend more than the students they did have to put up with us moaning and complaining. On a seriousl
note, a massive thank you to Ms O’Brien and Ms Bellis from all of the girls on tour. #GirlsOnTour.
By Erin Simmonds
You can get up to date news and information regarding PE and sport at the Academy by following
us on Twitter @TLA_Sport
‘Do you remember the rats; and the stench of
corpses rotting in front of the front-line trench’
(Siegfried Sassoon)
110 students from across the Academy have worked
on a WWI sound piece that will be played to all
students during assemblies in Museum Learning
Week. The students were recorded doing WWI
inspired Drama lessons, during Arbib House Tutor
Time, in Museum Council and Club and doing WWI
object handling in History lessons to capture letters,
diaries and facts about the war. The sound piece will
be available on our website soon so keep a look out!
Internationalism Week
We are pleased to have the Migration Museum’s “100
Faces of Migration” exhibition on display in the Atrium
for Internationalism Week. The exhibition has been
popular with both students and staff. During
Internationalism Week we welcome Emily Miller and
Harriet Ward from the Migration Museum. Emily and
Harriet worked with Year 8 and Year 10 students to
learn more about migration and to think more deeply
about the exhibition. The students worked hard to
understand more about each image and to question
what was happening.
Museum Learning
41
All students have been asked to bring in an object relating to their
own migration journey or family story. Along with the objects, each
student has written a label explaining more about the importance of
that object. These objects are currently on display in the Atrium and
are a really fascinating exhibit.
Our Academy Attendance target for the year is 95.5%. Students have made a good start to the year and we
had 389 students who have been here every day on time since September. Well done to them all.
HOUSE
Number of students with 100% attendance
and punctuality
ARBIB 60
DARWIN 62
GAIA 62
GLOBE 75
GRACE 58
HENLEY 72
TOTAL 389
All 389 students were put into a raffle by House to win a voucher (1st Place £20, 2nd Place £15 & 3rd Place £10)
and the three winners in each House were announced during their House Awards Assemblies this week. This
terms winners are:
Arbib 1st Place – Asees Gill – Year 8 2nd Place – Maya Dhaliwal – Year 8 3rd Place – Adam Warner – Year 11 Darwin 1st Place – Victoria Evans – Year 10 2nd Place – Megan Maynard – Year 11 3rd Place – Stefan Fowke – Year 7
Attendance & Punctuality
42
Gaia 1st Place – Jordan King – Year 8 2nd Place – Joseph Balleza – Year 7 3rd Place – Agnesa Haziri – Year 8 Globe 1st Place – Adam Jones – Year 8 2nd Place – Tyreece Glewis – Year 9 3rd Place – Amani Ahmed – Year 11 Grace 1st Place – Thomas Pellow – Year 9 2nd Place – Jordan Nicholls – Year 8 3rd Place – Vijai Patel – Year 10 Henley 1st Place – Khadeejah Usmani – Year 11 2nd Place – Hunain Jaffrey – Year 7 3rd Place – Sam Harris – Year 7
Each term the House Tutor Group with the most days
of 100% attendance gets rewarded £100 to be spent
as they choose for example a House Tutor Group
party, bowling, pizza in the restaurant, or the money
to be split between each student and added to their
lunch cards to use in the restaurant. This terms
winners are Henley 4 who had a total of 25 days of
100% attendance!! Henley 4 students have chosen
to spend their £100 on a pizza feast during house
tutor time and donate £50 towards their House charity. Congratulations Henley 4!!!!
Each term the House Tutor Group with the most days of above
95.5% attendance and the House Tutor Group with the most days of
100% punctuality get rewarded with pizza in the restaurant during
House Tutor Time on the last Friday of term.
This term’s winner for the most days of attendance above 95.5% was Gaia 5 who had a total of 30 days.
This term’s winner for most days of 100% punctuality is Gaia 5 who had a total of 28 days of every student
being on time to the Academy.
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The SRB welcomed three new students into Year 7 and have recently welcomed back Dewlyn Rose into the 6th
Form! Good to see you Delwyn. All four of these students are enjoying a newly introduced radio aid system
called Roger! Speech in noise testing has shown improved scores using these new systems and so the students
have better access to their lessons throughout the Academy. We look forward to a successful year.
TLA Charities Council needs you!
• Do you enjoy raising money for Charity and helping others?
• Are you looking for something extra-curricular for your CV?
• Do you want to represent the Academy?
• Do you want to help others and make a difference?
• Are you willing to attend weekly meetings?
• Are you willing to give up your own time after school to help?
• If you answered yes to any of these questions then you could be a Charities Council Rep. Ask your
House Tutor to send Ms Brock or Ms Decosemo an email with your name. Meetings will commence in
November.
Academy House Council Reps 2014/15
Tutor Group KS3 KS4
Arbib Sulaiman Mohammad Cara Burton
Darwin Tyler Austin Karina Kakar
Gaia Sumaiya Malik / Sunil Doshi Munashe Ganje / Anisah Chaudry
Globe Gracjan Bowkowski Ramsha Syeda
Grace Sophie Bassett Praise Okoro
Henley Jahmoy Stewart-Sinclair Milo Quinton /Emily Jacobs
Student Leaders – Student Councils
There are numerous ways in which the students at the Academy can develop and cultivate their skills and
attributes via involving themselves in leadership roles within Academy life. The below Councils outline some of
their areas of involvement and success over the first term.
Sensory Resource Base (SRB)
Charities Council
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Charities Council
TLA’s 5th Annual Summer Fair Breaks Fund Raising Records!!!
I would like to start by thanking everyone who
helped organise and run a stall and to those who
attended the Academies 5th TLA Fair. It was an
amazing event which resulted in us raising a
Fantastic £2,567 for our House Charities. We
completely SMASHED last year’s total!!
All the money raised will be shared equally
between the 6 House Charities.
Well done and thank you to all the staff that ran a
stall, supervised and helped run such a fantastic
and enjoyable event. I would also like to thank
Mr O’Neal and the Leadership team for overseeing the event. Thank you again to Kuehne and Nagel, The
Global Logistics Network who kindly sponsored the event and gave us a cheque for £1,000 to cover the stall
materials costs.
I look forward to next year’s event.
Ms Brock
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Museum Council
It’s been a great start to the year and the council are looking forward to new and exciting projects. We are
pleased to welcome many new members to the Council; Nicole, Catherine, Paramveer, Hamza, Maisie and
Shahin. They have already contributed greatly and we are very glad to have them.
The Story Museum: This year the Museum Council will be working with the English Faculty on a Year 7 Literacy
project. Research for this project began with a trip to The Story Museum in Oxford. The Story Museum is
brand new museum and the Council enjoyed a fun afternoon working with the Education Officer, Kate. Kate
was really pleased to work with the Council as it gave her a good chance to get some feedback about the
museum and for the Council to share future plans for the museum.
The Council really enjoyed the visit and commented ‘I love it’ (Kazia, Year 11), ‘I loved the Story Museum! It
was really fun looking around and I also loved the activities in each room’ (Amrit, Year 8).
Arbib Noticebaord: Museum Council helped Miss Warr to display a new noticeboard for Arbib. The theme
was unusual and funky museums across the world. Museum Council came up with some great suggestions
including the Gnome Museum, the Pencil Museum and the Chocolate Museum.
Migration Museum: Over the past few weeks we have had the Migration Museum exhibition in
the Atrium. The exhibition has been very popular and memorable. Museum Council worked
with Emily, the Education Officer from the Migration Museum, to offer their feedback about
the exhibition and also suggest ideas for the Museum.
Ms Barker
Eco-Council
Last year in the Eco Council we welcomed many new members into our student body; this was a delight to see
as we always want fresh faces and ideas being put forward. This year we are hoping to receive some of our
new Year 7’s keen in either joining us or helping our cause, however, we are always welcoming to anyone from
any other years joining too. For all of the Year 7’s that do not know, Eco Council is a student based council with
Ms Decosemo as our staff leader. Our aims in Eco Council are to make the Academy as sustainable as possible
and to achieve recognition from doing so by achieving awards such as the Green Flag Award.
At this moment in time and last year we have mainly been focusing on achieving the Green Flag Award. The
Green Flag Award Scheme recognises and rewards the best green spaces in the country. To achieve this award
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we need all of the Academy to carry on being eco-friendly, just by every form empting their paper rubbish in
the recycling bin every week is helping the environment a lot.
Last year we were also successful in presenting all of our assemblies to all of the Houses, we did this to
hopefully raise awareness and knowledge of what we actually do in the Academy and how you as students can
contribute. We felt this went very well as we received a lot of positive feedback and each House helped us into
getting you opinions on how we can be more eco-friendly too. Over the next year we are hoping to have made
the Academy a lot more eco- friendly by making a couple of changes and achieve the Green Flag Award.
Did You Know?
Over 75% of waste is recyclable, but we only recycle about 30% of it.
We generate 21.5 million tons of food waste each year. If we composted that food, it would reduce
the same amount of greenhouse gas as taking 2 million cars off the road.
Recycling one aluminium can saves enough energy to listen to a full album on your iPod. Recycling 100
cans could light your bedroom for two whole weeks
Leah Lewis, Year 11
Sports Council
The Sports Council have already met twice this term and have been working together to recruit new Sports
Council members after Matthew Ensby and Bradley Powell left year 13 and Brandon Calder and Abigal Cobley
joined the 6th Form.
We have already recruited Toheed Iqbal in Year 9 who was very keen to get involved. He has a real passion for
sport and is keen to change the PE curriculum for students at the Academy. The students have also been
interacting with the new Year 7’s to see if we should run a year 7 dodgeball league. The feedback so far has
been positive.
Agha Yousef and Aaron Wickens have now also been recruited to the Sports Council to replace Matthew and
Bradley and the Year 7 dodgeball league will now start in term 2.
Mr Elliott
House and Academy Council
This term has seen the House Council election which has led to the election of some new faces…but also a few
old ones. The House Councils meet twice a term and is overseen by their Head of House and the students
input has contributed greatly to the Academy’s development and progression.
The process has been very successful and we now also have this year’s representatives for the Academy
Council from the nominated house students. Good luck to all who are standing and let’s hope we can build on
all the positives of last year’s success.
Mr O’Neill
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Bullying Intervention Group (BIG)
Breaking news…BIG is going to be replaced with Princess Diana Anti-bullying Ambassadors.
BIG has been very successful over the last 4 years and the effectiveness of how the programme has been
operated meant the Academy achieved a kite mark for its outstanding work and in the process it helped
reduced the already small amount of bullying incidents by 50% last year. However, as we are always looking to
build on our successes, we are now looking at starting a new campaign with the Princess Diana Award Anti-
Ambassador Programme. This will consist of 4 students from each year group, from 8 to 11, who will be
trained by Princess Diana Award specialists and then they will act as peer mentors for the year group below.
Their presence within the Academy will be heightened by the use of identification badges. However, the
website will still function with the use of the Anti-bullying form, but highlighted more to students. We will
have monthly group meetings to discuss ways forward.
Three of the former BIG students, now in the 6th Form, who received the Princess Diana Award last year, will
be helping to set up this important intervention and chairing the meetings as part of their community service.
A poster was released in mid-October informing students how they can apply.
We aim to have Princess Diana Award winners every year now by running this programme which gives them
access to an array of opportunities including the WE! Day at Wembley Stadium.
Ms Wingrove
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All TLA students win rowing medals at the Berkshire Games
At the end of the summer term, The Langley Academy was asked to represent Slough Borough in 3 of the 4
rowing events at the Berkshire Level 3 Games at Wellington College.
The Year 7/8 girls’ team of Lea Foster, Abbi Griffin, Anike Abegunde and Lauren Bradburn finished as silver
medallists.
The Year 7/8 boys’ team of Jay King, Mikolaj Chibner, Donald Simbo and Aryan Suny dominated their event,
and had already won the title of Berkshire Champions before the last relay, which they duly won as well.
Rowing
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The Year 9/10 girls’ team of Catherine St Ledger, Annabel Okoro, Jieying Zhang and Mattu Simbo had
completely outclassed their Slough opposition at the Slough Indoor Championships in February to earn their
right to represent the borough, but came up against a group of rowers from Maidenhead and Marlow Rowing
clubs, representing Ascot & Maidenhead, to produce a very close fought battle, especially in the two relays
(2012 metres, and 2 minutes 12 seconds), where the Langley Academy team led until the very last. They took
the silver medals.
So, all 12 students from The Langley Academy won either gold or silver at the Berkshire Level 3 Games. The
Langley Academy will host the Slough Schools Indoor Rowing Championships again in February 2015, where
the best two indoor rowing students from each year (yrs7-10) will be invited to represent the Academy.
Mr Weare - Director of Rowing
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Seniores Evening – Year 11 students Aqsa Hussain, Prathna Kumar, Nasra Bedwi, Fazile Zogjani , Catherine
St Ledger , Zuzanna Kiciewicz and Zahira Batool attended a Seniores Evening at Slough & Eton School.
The speaker for the evening was the Labour Councilor Rob Anderson, Leader of Slough Borough Council and
Commissioner of Finance and Strategy. His ward is Britwell and Northborough.
Councilor Anderson started the
evening telling the group about
why he had got into politics
which was to be involved in
discussion and implementation
to improve Slough. He also talked
about his pride of being involved
in Slough schools’ improvement,
as they are now in the top 7% of
all schools in the country.
The evening concluded with
students having the opportunity
to ask Councilor Anderson
questions.
The students were articulate and
ask some hard hitting questions
especially regarding new free
schools impact on the excellent
cultural cohesion in Slough and
the possible loss of this due to
single sex and faith schools
starting to emerge across the
borough.
Other questions related to the
loss of school playing fields due
to development as well as his opinion on 16 and 17 year old voting, as they did in the Scottish referendum.
Seniores hold events termly and are always looking for inspirational, motivating speakers. If you have a story
to tell or have/had a job that you think would inspire Slough students please contact Linda Blackmore by email
ISSP (Independent State School Partnership)
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It is with sadness that we bid farewell to our long standing library prefects who are stepping down to
concentrate on their GCSE studies. However, we are pleased to announce that a new cohort of Year 7 student
librarians have volunteered to replace them!
A thoroughly enjoyable day was had when all the new Year 7 students had their library induction lessons. The
students were fantastic
Library News
Pictured top row L-R, library prefects ‘retiring’: Jessica Swan Gonzalez, Akhila Joseph, Madihah Rashid, Byada Hamed, Jade Leonard and Karis Boycott Pictured seating L-R, new student librarians: Elizabeth Monds, Rebecca Davis, Georgina Utley, Jessica Woodford, Elizabet Boyadzhieva and Megan Kelly
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The university
prospectuses will
now be kept at the
6th Form Centre and
not in the library.
FlipSide general interest magazine, which is the most popular read in the library,
is unfortunately no longer being published. The Academy has however
subscribed to some additional titles this year which should cater to all interests
and age groups.
They include: National Geographic for kids, Top Gear, You magazine, Hello
magazine, The Cricket paper, Discovery Science magazine and How it Works
magazine.
Rohan Perera our Head Chef at the Academy has been shortlisted for the
Education Award at the FSM awards 2014 to be held at the luxurious Lancaster
Hotel.
We wish him the best of luck on Tuesday 11 November.
FSM Awards 2014
The acclaimed Accelerated
Reader Programme will slowly
be introduced into the library.
More details will follow
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Another year of DofE is up and running, but this year sees the introduction of the Silver award for students in
Year 12, added to the success of Bronze award in Year 10. Last year’s Bronze group are in their final stages of
completion for the 60 participants, whereas this year has seen 123 applicants in year 10 (for the 60 available
places) to begin in their efforts for the completion of their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award. The students
involved needed to complete four sections to a high standard, which comprised of:
Volunteering: undertaking service to individuals or the community Physical: improving in an area of sport, dance or fitness activities Skills: developing practical and social skills and personal interests Expedition: planning, training for and completion of an adventurous journey in the UK
In addition to this, the students involved experienced levels heightened self-confidence, increased levels of
independence of thought and action, developed an increased sense of responsibility, cultivated new talents
and abilities, cemented new relationships and developed their ability to lead and work as part of a team. What
made the evening even more special, was the fact that 100% of the students who started the award,
completed it for the second year in succession, compared to a national average of below 50%.
A huge congratulations to all students involved and let’s hope that the current groups of students will achieve
the same level of success.
Mr O’Neill
Mr Blewett took some Year 12 students to the Dorney Retreat which is owned by Eton College to encourage
reflection and understanding of different faiths and religons. The topic for discussion involved sexuality and
the body. Their observations are recorded below:-
“My trip to Eton Dorney house to discuss the body’s relation to religion and how it differs between men and
women in Islam, Sikhism and Christianity was enlightening. It helped me, as an atheist, to understand how
different people see and treat their body in comparison to me for example. I believe that my body is mine to do
as I see fit with however as a woman or man of Sikhism you are strongly discouraged to cut your hair and to
see your body as a temple to be respected.
It was a great experience in which I met people from other schools and saw their points on religion. I feel this
has broadened my understanding, knowledge and increased my respect further toward people who practise
religion on a daily basis”.
By Harry Dewing
Dorney Retreat
Duke of Edinburgh 2014/15
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“The Eton College cultural learning trip has been great, proving to be very fascinating especially in
acknowledging the extreme diversity and variance in human cultures and religions across the globe.
Throughout our time there, we were constantly provided with a wide range of interesting and entertaining
activities, and there never really was a single moment of boredom to punctuate our trip. We have been, so to
speak, illuminated with new knowledge, whilst in turn illuminating others with our own knowledge, and I
believe this experience alone would interest many, at least those who are inclined to such matters. For those
who are not, the trip is still a memorable and worthwhile event, with ample leisure time and amusing, albeit
sometimes embarrassing, activities which build friendship, trust, and knowledge”.
By Yasen Mohammed
“The trip to Eton allowed us to seek the views of the body image from different religious perspectives and find
truth in the purpose of the body and soul in certain religions. This truly enlightening experience was full of
knowledge and wisdom which it allowed me to understand the world better and become a more rounded
person. Even though the day only lasted around 4 hours, it has slightly changed my outlook on religion and
life”.
By Brandon Calder
Year 7 have had a busy start to the Academy - their thoughts on Summer School, Day 1, Team building at
Hillingdon and what it means to them to be a member of The Langley Academy are detailed below
Summer School
In Summer School the theme was based on pirates. As a result of this, we did lots of activities, such as using a
map to find our way around the Academy, building our own island, designing our own treasure map and many
more. The most exciting bit about Summer School was dressing up as a pirate. I liked Summer School because
it helped me get used to the school and where everything is.
Summer School
Before I started going to The Langley Academy I went to Summer School during the holidays. It was truly
amazing and fun because there were lots of activities such as cooking, fun maths games and sports.
Summer School
Summer School was fun because it was only Year 7’s and I made friends with people I didn’t know and then we
had to be competitive against each other so we tried really hard to beat one another but in the end we won.
New Year 7 students
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Day 1
On my first day at The Langley Academy, it was all overwhelming having come from Parlaunt Park. I was really
excited but nervous at the same time.
Day 1
As soon as I walked into The Langley Academy I felt little again being in the smallest year, Year 7, I was worried
if I’d get lost. As the weeks went on I was starting to fit in at The Langley Academy. I felt proud to be at The
Langley Academy.
Day 1
I was very excited and nervous on my first day at The Langley Academy. The teachers made me feel very
welcome and I made a few new friends.
Day 1
Day 1 was very hectic; as soon as I entered the Academy all I could see was tall people looking at us. Then I
felt relieved when I saw some teachers I knew from Summer School.
Day 1
I was very nervous on day 1 when the whole school was going to be here but as soon as I saw all the lovely
people all my nervousness vanished and I settled in really well.
Team Building
Hillingdon was amazing. We did a lot of team building and we had a lot of fun there.
Team Building
Hillingdon was amazing. Our last activity we were able to build a raft and 4 people got to go on it. I was one of
them, I fell in at the end and was very cold but I enjoyed myself and had fun.
Team Building
Hillingdon was really fun because we got to make our own boat. Unfortunately my group was having a bit of
trouble getting in the boat, but we soon managed to get in and start rowing.
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Team Building
It was a fun and unique experience because together we had to work as a team to succeed. We got to engage
and interact with others and make new friends.
Team Building
The team building at Hillingdon was great! We did so many fun and exciting activities and from that I made
lots of new friends and got very wet. I felt this was a chance for me to know more people whilst having fun.
What The Langley Academy means to me
The Langley Academy means a lot to me because I care about my education. Even though I have just started
at The Langley Academy, I have realised that education means a lot and so does The Langley Academy.
What The Langley Academy means to me
To me The Langley Academy is a very special place where I can learn and make new friends. It is a very unique
building and from the top shaped like a tooth.
What The Langley Academy means to me
I love The Langley Academy because of the lessons and how great the teachers teach you.
What The Langley Academy means to me
The Langley Academy is my strength. It is my strength because it’s what inspires me to do things that I haven’t
done or tried before.