Throughout the Spring Term, KS3 have been exploring the wonderful world of Greek gods, mortal heroes and mythical beasts.  Students have become familiar with some of the most well-known tales from Ancient Greece, including Heracles, Pandora’s box, Perseus and Medusa.

Students have enjoyed retelling these famous tales and have showcased their talent when performing and becoming mythical creatures themselves.

Throughout the module, students developed their reading comprehension skills through a range of engaging activities, including making predictions, writing summaries, comparing and contrasting two similar myths, exploring characters in role, and using the text to justify their answers and opinions.

We then learnt about Ancient Greece and how Greeks used pots in their everyday life. We researched the work of archaeologists and their findings on pots that have been recovered over time. Students then used their creative skills and designed and then made their very own clay Greek Pots. Students then carefully painted their creations and are very proud of their finished products!

This term KS3 pupils in computing have been understanding instructions in sequences and using logical reasoning to predict outcomes. They have developed their understanding of directional programming and block programming to create basic games.

They have been supported in accessing Microsoft Makecode Arcade to make games then tinker with the script to change variables and sprites. The favourite part for pupils was, once their games were complete they were able to download them onto handheld consoles and play them together to try and beat each other’s scores.

Sho was able to extend her learning by adding her own sounds and develop extra parts to the game. Bryce changes the sprites to make the game funny and makes the game harder by making it faster with more enemies.

This year saw the return of OmniMusic to Melland High School with LG5 the lucky beneficiaries of their expertise. With two new creative practitioners there is no shortage of musical talents. Ellis is a fantastic guitarist with a natural rapport with the students, while Gareth is a whizz on all things technological plus accessible music equipment giving our students the chance to play along.  The sessions show how music can help to develop many personal skills such as listening to others, taking turns, and confidence building. Students play interactive games using switches and the Sound Beam to activate sounds and visuals making the lessons accessible to all. In collaboration with the two practitioners, we have decided on a theme of ‘Manchester’ on which to base the project for the rest of the year, using a mixture of ‘found’ sounds which we shall record in the city centre, along with samples extracted from well-known Manchester pop songs and improvisational musical input from the students to create a sound collage of our diverse city. There are plans for a ‘work in progress’ performance around Easter, before the completed piece is revealed towards the end of the year.

https://omnimusic.org.uk/

Students in key stage 5 had the exciting opportunity to be part of history in the making. Manchester is a candidate to be a Unicef Child Friendly City and Melland High School were invited to present at a Manchester City Council Full Council Meeting. Full Council is a meeting chaired by the Lord Mayor of Manchester and attended by all 96 elected members to discuss the important issues that are taking place across Manchester.  We were asked to present on the priority badge ‘Equal & Included’ To ensure that all children and young people, regardless of their background, culture, ability etc feel welcome in the city, are protected from discrimination and have the same opportunities to grow, learn, explore and have fun. The whole school stepped up to the challenge and helped to create a video for the presentation that ensured as many voices and opinions from across the school were heard as possible. A group of 12 students from key stage 5 attended the meeting to experience what it is like to visit the Town Hall and the Council Chambers with 4 students presenting to the council members. The students demonstrated excellent self-belief and communication and confidently addressed the room to introduce the video. Students also gained an insight into what it is like to work in the public sector and Manchester City Council. We are incredibly proud of the students’ exemplary behaviour and received many kind comments about our contribution.

A huge thanks goes to Paul Morgan for creating the video in such a short time, Debbie Mellows for coordinating the students and organising the visit and Jo Aungier and David Naraynsingh from Manchester City Council for inviting us to take part in the event.

A group from our Factory Schools project had a VIP experience at Aviva studios on Friday 3^rd November. The group consists of a mix of A1 and A2 students from our semi-formal pathway along with three of our formal learners. They were welcomed by our hosts with a few interactive introduction  games in the Social Area. They were then brought up to the warehouse where they experienced a giant walkway, shrouded in silk, with funnelled ends, and a huge screen overhead to project Luke Halls’s many-imaged videos that were not used in the Free Your Mind experience. This was a fully immersive experience for our students where they had the comfort of huge beanbags to relax and take in the experience.

We were then offered the opportunity to take a look back stage to see where all the magic happens. They were taken along the route of the ‘Mega Wall’ that would open up to make the warehouse twice as big. This corridor lead into the 1,600 seat theatre where the Free Your Mind performance took place.

All pupils had a brilliant experience and would like to thank Factory Schools for the continued experiences they are providing for our school.

Diwali is the Festival of Lights, celebrated by millions of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world. The story of Diwali  has one common theme no matter where people celebrate and that is  the victory of good over evil. Doorstep designs are made for good luck with coloured powders called Rangolis.

The students in the A2 class designed and created Diya Lamps. They made small pots from clay which could be described as ‘thumb pots’ as they are made by pressing the thumb into a ball of clay and shaping it. Once the clay was dry the students decorated the Diya Lamps using bright coloured paints and glitter. Students then put a tealight into the Diya Lamp.

Students in key stage 3 and 4 had a busy morning taking part in the What’s My Job? Activity run by the North Manchester Business Network.

Employers from City Events and Productions, Abuka, D4 Care, CRUK Construction, Manchester City Council, Crystal Hive, YES Manchester CIC, Equans, Manchester NHS Foundation Trust and SharpFutures gave up their morning to come into school and be quizzed by the students. The students asked the volunteers a series of questions about their jobs to try and determine what their career is and the sector they worked in.

Students gained insight into a variety of different work sectors and gained valuable knowledge about different careers and the pathways into employment. Students demonstrated excellent Skills for Life and utilised their communication skills by asking lots of questions related to employability. They also showed excellent problem-solving skills by guessing what the jobs were from the props they were shown and the answers to their questions. Students successfully guessed what most of the jobs were even though some were quite difficult!

A massive thanks goes to Teun form the North Manchester Business Network for organising the activity and coordinating the business volunteers, and of course thanks to the volunteers themselves for giving up their time to be here. Thanks to all the staff who supported the morning in running smoothly, in particular Debbie Mellows for looking after the volunteers on the day and Paul Morgan and the Media Crew for taking photos, filming the encounters and interviewing the employers.

Demelza one of our new teachers has joined Melland with energy and passion for the Pre-Formal curriculum. She has already made a great impact in her role as Pre-Formal curriculum coordinator, supporting students with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD) learn and achieve. Students in Demelza’s class learn through sensory integration and access a range of specialist and bespoke sensory learning opportunities.

Even before joining Melland, Demelza wanted to make an impact and spent her summer tackling the Tour Du Mont Blanc Challenge: spending 10 days walking 174km through 3 countries carrying a tent, clothes, food, sleep and cook systems. To add to the challenge Demelza averaged a daily climb of 1100m almost equal to Ben Nevis (1300m) and the cumulative total gain 10,000m!Demelza raised an incredible £440 to put towards sensory stories resources for her class. An exceptional achievement and a fantastic contribution to the specialist learning of her class and team at Melland High School.

Students from KS4 and Sixth Form had an amazing session with Gabriel and Janique from the Springboard Programme at The Black Curriculum. They came into school and made the group come alive with a session on Protest poetry, igniting the learners’ passion and giving them the confidence to speak up proudly and confidently. The session was really well adapted, and the content inspiring and relevant to students who are keen to develop the skills to critically view society and change the world positively. They have been so proud to share their words and artwork with the whole school.

“It was a privilege to be a part of the activity. The poet was inspirational, and the students were incredibly engaged. The whole school would benefit from the experience”. (Teacher)

“Everyone should be involved – it would be a great opportunity for all the students. They all got involved and had a great lesson, speaking up and working with each other to find their voice”. (Teaching Assistant)

As the sun illuminated the town with its warm embrace, we embarked on a leisurely stroll through the centre of Manchester, looking forward to a morning of music and community spirit. Upon reaching our destination, the Bridgewater Hall, we were greeted at the door by friendly faces who welcomed us to the venue. We made our way into the auditorium, each of us finding our seats independently, creating a sense of anticipation for the concert ahead.

As the curtain rose and the musicians took their positions, the audience settled in their seats, ready for the musical journey that lay ahead. It didn’t take long for the event to take an interactive turn. Our eager pupils stepped up to the front of the stage, infusing the performance with their enthusiasm as they added playful actions to the songs. Soon, the entire audience was drawn into the magic of the moment, with everyone joining in, singing along, and mimicking the lively actions. Laughter and joy filled the air as the music created a memorable experience that left us all with a great sense of connection and a shared love for music.