E30 are jumping head first into all things GCSE and Dickens. This year as we are completing our initial read of A Christmas Carol we are challenging the students to record their own revision notes on their own copy of the text. So far they have more than risen to this challenge.
They are adding their own analysis to the parts that they feel they need support to explain or key quotations. It is impressive to see how diligent they are all being with this.
What a fantastic first week back for Crew Brunel! We have packed a lot into our first week, with opportunities to build our crew community, develop new skills, explore Doncaster and prepare for the challenges of KS4.
DAY 1
We kicked off the week by rebooting crew, reconnecting with each other and establishing our KS4 norms and expectations. We also launched our exciting Micro Adventure, where students would explore Doncaster through an A–Z challenge.
We also took part in inter-crew activities, competing in a range of fun and slightly unusual challenges, including balancing a ping-pong ball on a spoon in our mouths and throwing and catching a potato using a fork! These activities gave students the chance to have fun, work together and build relationships with students from their crew.
We then finished the day by beginning our preparation for our job interviews, with students exploring six different job roles and selecting the one they were most interested in applying for. They began considering the skills, qualities and experience they could bring to their chosen role, ready for their interviews later in the week.
DAY 2
On Tuesday, we headed into Doncaster town centre for our Micro Adventure, completing a range of fun and challenging activities. These included performing the can-can outside somewhere beginning with C, hugging a tree, handing out thank-you postcards to local services, and spreading some positivity by giving flowers to members of the public. It was a great opportunity to explore our local community, step outside our comfort zones and bring a little joy to the people of Doncaster.
Back at school, we continued our interview preparation by creating CVs and cover letters for our chosen job roles. Students had to think carefully about their skills, strengths, interests and experiences, and consider how these could be presented to a potential employer. This helped students build their confidence and independence, while giving them a better understanding of what employers look for when applying for a job.
DAY 3
Wednesday was a creative and exciting day! We launched our Future Fashion project, challenging students to think about sustainability and how recycled materials could be transformed into innovative and practical workwear. Students worked collaboratively to design and create their outfits, using their creativity to turn everyday recyclable materials into something completely new.
Students also took part in interviews with external staff, giving them the opportunity to put their communication, confidence and interview skills into practice in a realistic setting. It was fantastic to see students stepping outside of their comfort zones and showcasing what they could do.
We ended the day with our fashion show, where students proudly took to the runway to showcase their incredible creations and celebrate all of their hard work!
DAY 4
Thursday focused on preparation, reflection and learning. Students began preparing for the POL community meeting on Friday by creating a short script about everything they had done during their first week back. This gave them the opportunity to reflect on the different experiences they had taken part in and decide what they wanted to share with the wider school community.
We then explored a range of different revision techniques, looking at how everyone learns differently and how students can find strategies that work best for them when remembering important information for their GCSEs. Students had the chance to try out different approaches and consider which ones they could use in their own revision.
We finished the day with our Science immersion, where we began getting an insight into what we will be learning next week. This helped students to start thinking about the new topics they will be exploring and prepare themselves for the learning ahead.
DAY 5
We finished the week with a Presentation of Learning (POL) community meeting, where crews from each year group came together to share what they had been doing during their first week back at school. It was a great way to celebrate the start of the new school year and hear about what other crews had been getting up to.
We then moved into our History immersion, where we began exploring the history of Doncaster Plant Works. Students started to learn about the importance of the Plant Works to Doncaster and began completing the first section of their work booklets, building their knowledge and understanding of the site.
We ended the week on a high with our English immersion, where we watched A Christmas Carol. While watching, students made notes on important plot points, characters and key events, helping them to begin developing their understanding of the story and preparing for the learning we will continue next week in English.
It has been a busy but brilliant first week for Crew Brunel. From exploring Doncaster and preparing for the world of work to designing sustainable fashion and developing our academic skills, students have already shown creativity, confidence, teamwork and a real readiness for KS4. I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year brings!
From learning how to stay safe over the summer and understanding the importance of water safety, to exploring democracy, employment, finance and the world of work, students across XP Doncaster have continued to engage in thoughtful and meaningful learning through Wise Wednesdays in Crews this term. This newsletter celebrates some of the beautiful work taking place in Crews, reflects on the final term of the academic year and provides a preview of the exciting topics students will be exploring when they return in August…
A huge thank you to our Crew Leaders for creating safe spaces where students can discuss challenging topics, share different viewpoints and learn from one another!
From discussions about health, wellbeing and personal safety to debates around democracy, British Values and life beyond school, students across XP Doncaster have engaged in thoughtful and meaningful learning through Wise Wednesdays this term. This newsletter celebrates some of the beautiful work taking place in Crews and provides a preview of the important topics students will be exploring next term.
X32 have had an excellent first week back, throwing themselves into immersion with curiosity and purpose. Students worked hard to uncover what their new expedition will be about, following clues, asking questions, and heading out on fieldwork to support their enquiry.
This expedition focuses on World War One. From that point on, learning quickly moved from discovery to action!!
Students began crafting formal letters to the government, taking on the role of active citizens by lobbying MPs to support a project creating boards of commemoration for Hyde Park Cemetery. These boards aim to honour and remember those connected to the cemetery and ensure their stories are not forgotten.
In just one week, X32 have shown focus, maturity, and a strong sense of responsibility. A brilliant start to an expedition that is already shaping up to be meaningful and impactful. We are now starting our first case study: A Call to Arms! Take a look at the awesome work so far this term…
What a brilliant week it’s been for Crew Brunel! Even though the week started a little differently, we certainly made the most of every moment.
Because Monday was a staff day, students enjoyed a longer weekend — and we kicked off Tuesday by checking in and sharing what we all got up to during the extra time off. From family days out to chilled time at home, it was a lovely way to reconnect and ease back into the school routine.
We then continued our important Passage work, focusing on how our character has grown through Years 7 and 8. Students took time to look inward, thinking about how they’ve changed, matured, and what they’ve overcome. These reflections are shaping their Passage presentations beautifully and helping them recognise their own development.
This week marked the start of our Wise Wednesday presentations, with our first two groups stepping up to deliver their topics. The rest of Crew Brunel listened carefully, shared thoughtful feedback, and offered WWWs (What Went Well) and EBIs (Even Better If) to help each other improve. We’re already excited to see the next two groups take their turn!
Later in the week, we reviewed our praises and conducts, then dug into our HoWLs (Habits of Work and Learning) assessments from Years 8 and 9. This helped students reflect on their consistency, their growth, and where they want to push themselves next. We also weaved these insights into their Passage presentations.
In Friday’s community meeting, we celebrated students who topped the praise leaderboard — a special shout-out goes to Rowena, who placed top of the leaderboard for Year 9! A fantastic achievement and well-deserved recognition of her dedication, hard work, and consistent positive attitude both in and out of sessions.
This Week’s Highlight
Without a doubt, the standout moment of the week was Thursday Night Live. Four members of Crew Brunel – Lily, Pippa, Brooke and Chloe – took to the stage as part of a band and performed in front of a live audience. With singing, guitar and drums, they absolutely smashed it. Their confidence, talent and teamwork shone through — true rockstars in the making. Well done, girls!
Today, our Y8 students at XP School explored this guiding question in the most powerful, creative and authentic way — alongside the incredible Michelle Clarke-Stables.
Working shoulder-to-shoulder with Michelle, students created a legacy artwork that will live on in our school: a large-scale micrography portrait of Frida Kahlo, built entirely from handwritten words, reflections and quotes that answer our guiding question.
Every mark is a voice.
Every layer is a story.
Every word speaks to the messy, beautiful, painful and resilient nature of being human.
Frida Kahlo feels like the perfect muse for this work. Her life was shaped by courage, compassion and fierce tenacity — choosing colour in the face of pain, truth in the face of silence, and creativity in the face of adversity. She epitomises what we hope our students discover: that being human is about resilience, tenderness, and the bravery to tell your story.
Watching students collaborate, debate, write, paint and truly see one another was extraordinary. Michelle brought out the best of them — their empathy, their curiosity, their willingness to be bold with ideas and generous with meaning.
This is what authentic Art education looks like.
This is legacy work.
This is XP. 💙
Thank you, Michelle, for inspiring our students to make something deeply human, and deeply unforgettable.
X28 Ethics have been keeping their Friday 5 sessions filled with energy and motivation! This new routine is already becoming a highlight of the week.
Each session, they tackle a 15-mark exam question together, planning, debating, and refining their responses as a team. Students earn points for hitting exam criteria, building strong arguments, and challenging powerful ideas, all while learning from each other and preparing to write their answers in full.
It’s been brilliant to see their confidence, critical thinking, and exam readiness grow week by week!
Our Year 7 students have been working incredibly hard on crafting their historical narratives this week, and the creativity on display has been fantastic!
Students have been critiquing each other’s work, offering fab feedback, and sharing ideas to help one another improve. The atmosphere in sessions has been buzzing with collaboration and imagination as everyone pushes themselves (and each other!) to make their writing as powerful as possible.
We were also joined in Session 5 today by some of our Year 11 experts; Leo, Joseph, and Alfie, who spent time coaching the younger students, offering guidance, and providing expert critique. Their advice and encouragement really inspired Year 7 to keep raising the bar.
With so much talent, hard work, and support flying around, it’s safe to say we’ve got some future published authors in the making. Watch this space…
Beautiful work and amazing products are an integral part of our story at XP but equally important are the ways that we achieve that work and those products.
Our students are encouraged to draft and redraft, to refine their ideas, to not accept work that isn’t excellent. In the Arts team this year we’ve seen exactly that with students starting new courses and new expeditions and being given new opportunities to excel.
None of the pictures above show finished products, instead we can see the beauty of the creative process. For some that means painstakingly drafting and redrafting photoreal images using only pencils. For others it may be that a session sharing ideas on the whiteboard is the best way to make progress. Creating models and maquettes in a range of materials can be the catalyst that a student needs to make their creative vision into a beautiful final product. What looks at first glance to be a random collection of scraps can be actually a carefully curated abstract vision. A messy workbench will finally reveal a beautiful relief sculpture.
We celebrate our students creative work not only for the final curation but for the whole process of exploration, experimentation, and growth that leads them there — the ideas tried, the risks taken, and the skills developed along the way.
