Year 9 Options and Parents' Evening

Part 1: Options Support

In Year 9, students have reached a very important stage in their education where they have to make decisions about which subjects they will continue to study in Years 10 and 11.

To aid with these decisions we ask that all parents and students read the ‘GCSE Options Booklet’ carefully, this has been sent home alongside academic reports in January. An electronic copy can be found on the Year 9 Options Information section of our website, this will go live on the week of the parents’ evening.

Important information to aid with options decision making is summarised below.

1. GCSE Options Talk – Wednesday 7th February 2024 at 4pm, repeated at 6pm: This will give you an opportunity to hear essential information on the ‘Options’ process followed by the opportunity to ask questions.

2. Subject specific information videos – Videos which will give you information about each of the options subjects can be found on the Year 9 Options Information section of our website. Remember – some of the subjects on offer will be new to students, therefore it is essential that they take ownership of educating themselves about their choices.

3. Completing your Options choices – After Parents’ Evening, all students will be able to submit their options choices online – all pupils will be given a link taking them to our online platform for this process. 4. Additional guidance – if you require any additional guidance, please do see the members of the Senior Team who are stationed in the canteen during Parents’ Evening or contact Dr Fishwick (l.fishwick@northamptonacademy.org) or Mr Smith (r.smith@northampton-academy.org). Please include the best contact details for yourself so that we can discuss.

Part 2: Parents’ Evening

In order to have a successful parents’ evening there are several steps that you can take –

What should I do prior to the night?

1. Re-read the last school report as this gives the best picture of how your child is progressing in school. If it has been misplaced don’t worry as we can provide one on the night or contact your child’s Form Tutor for a new one in advance
2. Talk to your child about each subject and find out what the particular areas for development or areas of concerns are. These questions and queries can be the start of the conversation with the teacher.

What questions should I ask the teacher?

1. If you have any questions or queries start with them as it is your opportunity to get your questions answered.
2. Behaviour for Learning – If this is 3 or lower on the report, this could provide a focus.
3. Homework – Ask how often you should expect it and what sort of tasks it may be.
4. Grades and progress – If there is a difference between expected and attained then ask why there is?
5. Effort – If this is a 3 or lower on the report you need to discuss ideas on how to improve attitudes to learning?
6. Is my child making enough progress to achieve their target grade?

We will be running an appointment system and this will be organised as follows:

Please book your appointment using the online booking system

The school has an easy-to-use online appointment booking system. This allows you to choose your own teacher appointment times and you will receive a confirmation email. All appointments will be for 5 minutes here at the Academy, and you will also be able to book your options talk so that you can plan your evening accordingly.

Please visit http://northamptonacademy.parentseveningsystem.co.uk to book your appointment. Alternatively, you can log in via our website by selecting the ‘parents’ section. Log in using the following information:

• Student’s first name e.g. John/Student’s surname e.g. Smith/Date of birth e.g. 15/04/2011

• Appointments can be made online and will close on Wednesday 7th February 2024 at 9.00am.