Information for Year 8 Parents

Year Leader:

Mrs S Crossley

Assistant Year Leader:

Mrs R Branston-Jones

Assembly Day:
Tuesday
Tutors:

Miss H Bain – 8HPB

Miss L Barlow – 8LMB

Mr C Briggs – 8CJB

Miss H Burley – 8HLB

Miss J Castle – 8JCC

Mrs K Everett – 8KLE

Mrs S Frape – 8SF

Miss S Chilcott – 8KLK

Important Dates

20th September 2023 Headteacher Drop-in Session 1 (Booking required)
28th September 2023 Early Finish for students
Open Evening
3rd October 2023 Open Morning
5th October 2023 Open Morning
9th October 2023 Year 7/8/9 Flu Nasal Spray Immunisation
w/c 16th October All Years Maths Assessments
23rd October – 27th October inclusive Autumn Half Term
9th November 2023 INSET Day 2
w/c 20th November 2023 All Years Autumn Progress Reviews published this week
23rd November 2023 1230 finish in preparation for
1300-1800 Y8-11 Meet the Tutor
1st December 2023 Christmas Fair
w/c 4th December 2023 All Years Maths Assessments
8th December 2023 INSET Day 3
13th December 2023 1800-1900 Winter Concert
15th December 1230 End of Autumn Term
18th December 2023 – 1st January 2024 inclusive Christmas Holiday
2024
2nd January 2024 Spring Term begins
w/c 5th February 2024 Y7-10 Maths Assessments
12th – 16th February 2024 (inclusive) Spring Half-Term
28th February 2024 INSET Day 4
w/c 11th March 2024 Y7-10 Spring Progress Reviews home this week
21st March 2024 Y8 Curriculum Evening (Virtual)
Y8 Virtual Parents & Carers Consultation Evening
w/c 25th March 2024 All Years Maths Assessments
27th March 2024 Musical Public Show 1
28th March 2024 1500 End of Spring Term.
Musical Public Show 2
29th March – 12th April 2024 inclusive Easter Holiday
15th April 2024 Summer Term begins
6th May 2024 Bank Holiday
w/c 20th May 2024 Y7-10 Maths Assessments this week
27th May – 31st May 2024 Summer Half Term
w/c 17th June 2024 Y7-10 End of Year exams (week 1)
20th June 2024 PE Presentation Evening
w/c 24th June 2024 Y7-10 Progress Reviews published this week.
Y7-10 End of Year exams (week 2)
4th July 2024 Y7/8 Presentation Evening (by invitation)
5th July 2024 Y7/8/9 Sponsored Walk
8th July 2024 INSET Day 5
12th July 2024 Sports Day
23rd July 2024 1230 End of Summer Term

An up to date list of calendared events can be found here.

Extra-Curricular Clubs

Suggested Reading

At Harrow Way, we acknowledge the large body of research which indicates a correlation between reading and academic success and between reading and well-being and we encourage all our students to be readers. To this end, our Learning Resource Centre operates a library facility with thousands of fiction and non-fiction books supporting reading for pleasure and reading for purpose. Some audio fiction titles are available. There are also a wide variety of magazines.

We operate an E-book platform though Hampshire County Council and this now includes audio books too. Our Reading Cloud platform allows students to access the library catalogue, read and write book reviews, find out what new titles are available and more. Both can be accessed via the VLE. All of these are free to use. However, lost items will need to be replaced by the borrower. In addition, we run a student book group called NatterReads who meet informally most weeks over lunch to share what they are reading.

Our Learning Resource Centre Manager is able to provide recommended reading book lists for students who are reluctant or struggling readers as well as recommended book review and search websites.

Some Year 8 readers will be given the opportunity to participate in the annual Hampshire Book Awards, which involves reading six shortlisted fiction titles in 10 to 12 weeks, meeting weekly to discuss them and then attending a Hampshire wide voting day in June/July. They then meet the winning author in the Autumn at a presentation event.

Suggested Reading:

  • Jonathan Stroud
  • Helen Dennis – River of Ink series (Hampshire Book Award winner 2017)
  • Tamsyn Murray – Instructions for a Second Heart (Hampshire Book Award 2018)
  • Sharon Gosling – Fir (spooky thriller)
  • Jane Prowse – Hattori Hachi trilogy (ninja adventure)
  • Joffre White
  • JRR Tolkien – The Hobbit (fantasy adventure)
  • Cathy Cassidy
  • Cathy Hopkins
  • Sophie McKenzie – Girl Missing series
  • Anthony Horowitz
  • Joseph Delaney – Spooks series (fantasy adventure)
  • Derek Landy – Skulduggery Pleasant (fantasy adventure)
  • Sarah Crossan – One (conjoined twins)
  • Jon Walter – My Name’s Not Friday ( child slavery during American Civil War)
  • Renee Watson – Piecing me Together (a coming of age story set in Black America)
  • Susan Nielsen – We are all Made of Molecules (family dynamics)
  • Kim Slater – Seven Letter Word (scrabble, stammer)
  • Chris Priestley
  • Emma Moss – Girls Can Vlog series