Blog week ending 8th January
New Year, New Opportunities! As we step into a new year and a new term, there is a real sense of purpose and optimism across the school. January brings fresh beginnings, and it’s been fantastic to see students returning smart, well‑equipped, and ready to learn. Classrooms are already settling into strong routines, with students confidently using their mini whiteboards and ‘desk layouts’ to show they’re prepared for the year ahead.
For many, this term also marks an important stage in their academic journey, with mock exams and targeted intervention sessions now underway. Our Year 10 and Year 11 students benefit from an additional two hours of focused support each week, designed directly from the latest assessment information to help them strengthen the areas they need most. These sessions, led by members of our Senior Leadership Team including Mr Naylor and Mrs Tiddy, play a key role in preparing our older students for success in their upcoming exams.
Alongside this, our wide range of clubs and extra‑curricular activities continue to offer students the chance to try something new, develop skills, and enjoy the social buzz of getting involved.
I look forward to seeing our students embrace these opportunities and continue to grow with confidence and purpose as the term unfolds.
Our current club schedule can be seen below … all new clubs will be updated as they become available.
Ms Croucher’s Young Writers Club are working on a new creative project, the Winter Wonderland 2026 Poetry Competition. We welcome new members! Whatever your thoughts about wintertime, write a poem in any style and let us know! If budding poets are looking for inspiration here are some ideas:
❄️ Winter celebrations… Diwali, Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year
❄️ Capture the serene and peaceful atmosphere of a snowy night
❄️ What is your New Year’s resolution?
❄️ Reflect on the past year
❄️ Write about nature during this frosty time
❄️ Write a winter acrostic
❄️ Create a poem about magical creatures like elves, fairies, or talking animals
❄️ Explore winter sports like ice skating, sledding, or skiing in your poem
❄️ Write a poem inspired by the starlit sky. You could explore the symbolism of stars and how they guide travellers, representing hope and new beginnings.
Poems can be written or typed, and there is no line or word limit – let creativity and expression flow! Poems could be published in a special Winter Wonderland poetry book. Plus, our favourite poet will also win a prize!
I am pleased to see so many students already taking advantage of the club opportunities here at Stone Lodge and in the local area, including Genesis and Neave who are members of the Young Writers Club, Michelle, who is part of our Football Club, Jake and Clark our Drama Club and Riley who plays rugby with Dartford Valley! (pictured below) Please do encourage your child/children to explore what’s on offer and sign up for at least one new club!
Miss Bess’ form are pictured brilliantly demonstrating they are ready for the lesson ahead with their equipment prepared and displayed! Great work everyone! For any students who have misplaced their mini whiteboard that they were issued in September, from next week, parents/carers will be able to purchase replacement packs (which include the whiteboard, pen and eraser and wallet) on iPay at £2 per set. Once purchased, your child can collect them from Student Services during break or lunchtimes.
Our MFL Department offer a range of activities to enrich students’ cultural capital .. enjoying traditions and celebrating identity from around the world! Our Spanish Club launched with decorating wooden cut out skulls for Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead), followed by watching the film ‘The Book of Life’. A highlight was making our Pinata’s – the students had a great time and will be taking them home this week to enjoy at home when they choose! Below, photos from the club including their beautifully decorated Christmas tree with the hand made decorations and New Year wishes!
Mrs Burgess’ Year 11 students have been revising key quotations from An Inspector Calls by using them to create their own poetry communicating J.B. Priestley’s intent. Students have composed some incredibly evocative work including the ones featured.
Our Library is a fantastic whole-school resource with a vast number of Manga graphic books, novels, biographies (and much, much more!) – every one of which providing a window to another place and time. Our Librarian encourages students to take advantage of what’s available – every interest, genre and format is represented with lots of reviews and tips to discover your new favourite author or story. The library is open every break time and after school in addition to students’ dedicated library lessons and special literary events and activities. As you can see, our Library is a popular and welcoming hub of discovery! All students are automatic members of the library.
New Year, New Me: Celebrating Our Unique Strengths. This week, our Year 7 and 8 students are embracing the theme “New Year – New Me” in their library lessons with the focus on reflection, self-discovery, and celebrating what makes each of us unique. Through discussions, activities, and reading, students explored their strengths, qualities, interests and challenges they have overcome and then considering how these make us special.
In our library lessons, we’re also using Sparx Reader, a fantastic online program that lets students explore a wide range of books and develop their reading skills. As always, students will have time to read, change or extend their books, and share their thoughts and recommendations with classmates. It’s a great way to discover new authors, genres, and topics, and to connect with others who share similar interests. We are encouraging all students to be brave, try new things, and celebrate their achievements! Mrs Nguyen – Librarian
Message from our SL6 and Careers Departments – At Stone Lodge School, we are committed to providing our students with meaningful opportunities to engage with employers throughout their time with us. We believe it is vital that young people are encouraged to think about the world of work and life beyond education.
We are therefore seeking support from parents and carers who are willing to volunteer in one or more of the following ways:
- Assembly Talks – speaking to a year group about your job role or employment sector
- Careers Insight Mornings – visiting the school to discuss your job or sector with students in a classroom setting
- Work Experience Opportunities – offering work experience placements for Year 10 students in May
If you feel you could support the school in any of these ways, please contact sdunne@stonelodgeschool.co.uk in the first instance.
Thank you for your continued support, Mrs Tiddy, Mr Barron & Mrs Dunne
Skanska Talk with Year 13s. Jessica Power from Skanska visited our Year 13 students, accompanied by two apprentices, Harrison and Katie. They delivered an engaging and highly informative talk on Degree Level Apprenticeships, as well as discussing the Lower Thames Crossing project, career opportunities in construction, and the essential skills needed to succeed in the industry. The session was extremely valuable for our Year 13s, providing them with insight into future pathways and opportunities.
Year 13 Celebrations. On the final day of Term 2, we held our own end of year celebration for our Year 13 students. It was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the past few months, recognise the effort and resilience shown by our students, and look ahead to the next steps as they prepare for their upcoming mock examinations and the final stretch of Year 13. Most notable was one student being offered two Degree Apprenticeships – an amazing achievement and another student already receiving all of their UCAS offers.
Throughout the celebration, we acknowledged a range of achievements, including excellent attendance, outstanding performance in individual subjects, and the Head of Sixth Form Award, among others. The event was a fitting way to celebrate our students’ hard work and to encourage them as they continue their journey towards the end of the academic year.
Our latest House Points totals puts Hawking in the top spot with over 12,000 House Points earned!! With four Terms to go … there’s plenty of opportunities challenge their lead!
Forthcoming Dates;
Year 10 History Trip to National Portrait Gallery – 9 January
Careers Advisor Day – 12, 19 January & 2, 9 February
Year 13 Mocks start – 19 January
Sixth Form (SL6) Application Deadline – 23 January
Year 11 GCSE Poetry Live Trip – 29 January
Year 11 Mocks start 11 February
Year 7, 8 & 9 Grade Reports home – 11 February
Year 7 & Year 13 Parents’ Evening – 12 February 4-7pm
Last Day of Term 3 – Friday 13 February
First Day of Term 3 – Tuesday 24 February
Year 11 post 16 Careers Interviews with SLT – start 24 February
Best wishes,
Catherine Cusick
Headteacher
