
All students have taken part in Safer Internet Day. Each year there is a theme for the day and this year’s theme was ‘protecting yourself and others from scams online’.
The students have had assemblies delivered to them to make them aware of how to spot signs of scams and the different kinds of scams that can happen both online and over the phone. The students have been told ways about how they can protect themselves and their families. These include using a strong and separate password for each online account, using 2-step verification and making sure that they are careful when making purchases online and that they can trust the websites they are using.
We feel it is important that the students actively have conversations and be open about what they are doing and seeing online.
Key Stage 3 Computing
In Year 7, the students have been learning all about spreadsheets and will be in the process of creating a spreadsheet for a specific scenario that needs to include a range of formulas and charts. The students will complete this independently and will be using the skills taught in the previous lessons to do this. They will be moving onto exploring a different way of programming using BBC Micro:Bits. This unit has seen them complete a range of challenges and games using the Micro:Bit website.
Year 8 are exploring the history of computing and how technology has developed over the years. They are also investigating what the future of technology may look like. The students have learnt about the use of AI in products and how this will be moving forward into the future. The students will be designing a new product for the future and explaining the different features that they use. They will be moving on to designing their own music festival and have planned a website to promote this. The students will be incorporating a variety of features into their websites, including scrolling text. We will be investigating the programing language, HTML, that sits behind the websites and looking at challenging the girls to write some HTML code to help produce their websites.
Year 9 have been learning about cyber security and how humans can pose risks for their data and information. They are learning about how different attacks can affect the computer systems and the consequences of hacking. They are also learning about the common malware threats to computer systems and the most effective methods of preventing the cyberattacks. The students will be moving onto App design and creating their own App.
GCSE Computer Science
Year 11 have completed their final mock exams. This has helped them prepare for their GCSE exams in May. The students have been spending the time learning about the practical paper and how to answer some of the challenging questions. All students are working hard. Let’s keep this going over the next few weeks!
Mrs Bennett
Curriculum Leader for the C.A.T. Faculty