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Guinness World Record Holder attends start of Recycling Week

Pupils and teachers at St Clement Danes School had a special guest visitor to their assembly on Monday 23rd September 2019 to launch the start of recycling week. 

Chris Bertish, a Guinness World Recorder holder for being the first person to cross the Atlantic on a paddle board, and also co-author of a new curriculum which has just been endorsed by United Nations surrounding the Sustainable Development Goals, visited our school to attend a presentation by HCL (Hertfordshire Catering Ltd). HCL were joined by their ecological cleaning product supplier, Delphis Eco, to initiate a discussion about how plastic is recycled in the UK.

Delphis Eco brought their giant inflatable Eco-Turtle blimp to the school field, which had its debut at the protests in London last week. They are the first company to have created bottles for cleaning products that are made from 100% recycled plastic and are 100% recyclable. Members of the Student Union Environment Group saw the blimp and got presented with the first 100% recycled reusable water bottles. They heard about the aim of Delphis, which is to encourage us to move from recycling 9% of plastic to 90%!

A hundred and twenty Year 8 students attending the special assembly heard Mark Jankovich, an environmental philanthropist from Delphis Eco say: “There is more microplastic in the ocean than stars believed to be in the galaxy! Eight million tons of plastic, which equates to a dump truck a minute, ends up in our oceans each year and has a material impact on climate change.”

The turtle was named the Tim the Turtle by our students, which he will be called at all future eco events at school!

 

 

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30th January

Teachers commended for transforming Design & Technology education

We were delighted to read that our Design and Technology teachers, Miss Yalley and Mr Hadley were featured in the Design and Technology publication.  The article discusses the transformation of the Design & Technology (D&T) department at St. Clement Danes School over the past five years. It discusses how Mr Hadley and Miss Yalley took ownership of the subject, implementing a new subject ethos based on trust, excellence, respect, and safety to foster student responsibility and independence. Key Initiatives & Changes Revamping Projects & Curriculum Introduced more challenging design projects at earlier years (Years 8 & 9). Shifted focus to design skills, problem-solving, and justifying choices over just practical outcomes. Prioritized quality over quantity in student projects. Notable projects: Year 7: Robot concepts Year 8: Articulated lamps Year 9: Branded dispensers & modular speakers Encouraging Inclusion & Diversity Created a girls-only club to boost female participation in GCSE Product Design. Sixth-form girls mentor younger students, building confidence and community. Design Ventura Competition Integrated mock coursework with the Design Ventura competition. Encouraged teamwork and prototyping to improve engagement. Use of AI & Technology Introduced cloud-based tools to make learning more accessible. Leveraged AI for idea development and communication. Professional Development & Industry Links Participating in the Teachers in Residence program to gain industry insights. Adopted industry models like the Double Diamond Design Process and Scrum-based project sprints to enhance student learning. Established workshops with industry professionals to inspire students, especially girls, to pursue design careers. Key Takeaways for Educators Adapt curriculum to student needs and school culture. Pilot new initiatives as clubs first to gauge student interest. Encourage student feedback to refine teaching methods. Be open to change and continuously evolve teaching strategies. The article ultimately encourages educators to embrace creativity, experimentation, and student collaboration in D&T education. We are very proud of our teachers for their continued hard work and dedication for each of their subject areas. Congratulations to Mr Hadley and Miss Yalley for their inspiring article and the incredible work they’ve done to transform Design & Technology at St. Clement Danes! Their dedication to fostering creativity, inclusion, and industry connections is truly commendable, and their impact on students will undoubtedly be long-lasting.