IntroductionHi, I’m Josie and I’m in year seven at Launceston College at the moment. I remember last year when I was about to go to college we had transition days and guides and summer school to help us settle into college life. Because of lockdown, you might not be able to have all of those opportunities so we have been asked to put together these booklets to tell you all about college and help you to settle in. I was really nervous about coming to college, but trust me, in a few weeks I had forgotten my worries and really enjoyed everything (even though I did get lost a few times!!)

Tutor time

Your tutor is like your main teacher who will help you throughout your time at college. Mostly, tutors don’t change and you have the same one all the way through until the end of year eleven. Your tutor group is a big part of college – every morning you spend 20 minutes as a group as well as having IAG together during period five on a Thursday. You get registered in tutor time in the mornings with the rest of your tutor group, there are usually about 30 people in a tutor group. If you have concerns or worries then you should talk to your tutor about it. Your tutor will be in the same house as you.

At first your lessons will mostly all be in tutor groups, but as you get further through year seven then you will get set in some subjects such as PE, English and Maths.

Praise and rewards

If you do outstanding things in work or extra curricular activities teachers may award you praise points. These contribute to your house’s points that determine which house wins the house cup. You can also buy things with your praise zaps when you reach a certain amount. For example, you can buy a hairclip for just 2 praise points but for 80 praise points, you can buy a pencil case. Other things include pens, pasties and cookies.

Once you have bought the item via the econtact book then you can go up to the IT department office next to finance and collect your item.

Clubs

During the school week, there are loads of incredible clubs activities to go to and try out. These are ran by teachers or sometimes by House leaders, during break times or after school. They range from sports to coding to Make and Do. This is also a great way to meet and new pupils and teachers.

Timings of the Day

Tutor time: 8:50—9:10

1st Lesson: 9:10—10:10

2nd Lesson: 10:10—11:10

Break Time: 11:10—11:30

3rd Lesson: 11:30—12:30

4th Lesson: 12:30—1:30

Lunch: 1:30— 2:15

5th lesson: 2:15—3:15

Uniform

The college uniform is smart and comfortable and easy to wear. It is a white polo shirt or shirt and a Launceston College sweatshirt.It has this logo on it. You alsowear black trousers or a black skirt as well as black socks and black shoes.You are not allowed leisure or skate shoes or canvas shoes, they need to be black and polishable. The PE kit has blue shorts and a blue t-shirt with the college logo as well as a rugby shirt for the boys and an optional pale blue sweatshirt for the girls. You also need astro trainers and a pair of shin pads. I think that the uniform is practical and I like wearing it because it makes me proud of my school.

Being in a houseBeing in a house is one of the best things about being at Launceston College. You can represent your house in inter-house tournaments and events. Every term, one house wins the house cup, which is the house that has earned the most points from praise, to sport and events. Sports day is also done in houses. Everyone in your tutor group represents the same house and are proud of representing their house. You go on year 7 residential in houses and receive a house t-shirt in your colour. You can also receive house colours, and award that is given out by tutors each term and then at the end of the year. When you reach year 9 and 10 you can take on specific roles in the house such as sport leader and journalist. When you get to year 11 two people will become the house captains which is a big responsibility. In year 7 and 8 you can also help by becoming your tutor rep which means you go to meetings and help with the running of the house. Each house has a head of house and a deputy head of house who help the house captains to run the house and organise events.

Top tips on settling inHere are my top tips on settling in:• Don’t feel like it’s just you that is scared, most people will

be nervous• Take as many opportunities as you can, it will help you to

get to know people more• Enjoy the lessons• Try your best• Get to know your tutor group because they will be your

core group for the best part of 5 years• Don’t worry about your friends, sometimes it takes a

while to find who you really get on with• Try and get into a routine of your homework, it will help

you to hand it in on time• Meet lots of people and try new things• Push yourself out of your comfort zone, you may enjoy it

after all

Top 5 reasons you shouldn’t fear joining year 7

1. You will make loads of new friends to talk to you and support you if you are finding it hard to settle in. 2. The teachers at Launceston College are all willing to talk to you or help you with anything that you are worried or confused about. 3. There are lots of fun activities to do after school or in school hours that may help you to stay relaxed and happy. 4. Everyone here is kind and warm-hearted. 5. The building is very easy to get around once you have been here for about a week.

I really hope that this booklet makes your transition to Year Seven just a little bit easier. It

is normal to be nervous, so don’t worry and just have

fun!

The Launceston College GlossaryBy Abi Fraser

BreaktimesMorning break starts at 11:10 am and finishes at 11:30am. Lunchtime begins at 1:30 pm and ends at 2:15 pm, leaving 1 hour until the end of the day!CanteenThe canteen is where you get your breaktime or lunchtime food, you can pay for it with your thumbprint pay. “The canteen queue was really long today, so I used my queue pass,”DEAR TimeDEAR stands for Drop Everything And Read. This means that during a lesson every day, you will stop and read for half an hour. The times differ every day, e.g.: Monday, DEAR is Period 1, Tuesday, DEAR is Period 2. This means you need to bring a book to school every day! “I read my favourite book in DEAR Time today,”Econtact BookEcontact is the online version of the college, this is where all of your praise zaps, sanctions and homework assignments will be recorded. “On my Econtact Book, I have two homework assignments!”Head Of FacultySomeone who is Head Of Faculty is the person who is in charge of that block (subject). If you got into trouble (and got yourself a sanction 2) in English, the Head Of Facultyfor English will come and see you.HousesThere are 4 houses, and every single person at college is divided into one. They also have different colours: Causley(red), Trevithick (orange), Hepworth (green) and Rescorla (blue). You represent your house by earning praise zaps, taking part in sports day, and much more!

HOH & DHOHHOH stands for Head Of House, the member of staff who is in charge of your house; either Causley, Trevithick, Hepworth or Rescorla. And DHOH stands for Deputy Head Of House, and they are the deputy head of your house. Their role is to look after you if you have a problem and make sure you are happy and doing well in college.HumanitiesHumanities is a lesson that includes 3 subjects that you would have had separately at primary: geography, R.E. and history. “We learnt about Ancient Rome in humanities today,”IAGIAG is a lesson that lasts for an hour every week, (usually in 5th period) and in that hour is when you are in your tutor rooms and you talk about various subjects, do some small projects and get to have a good time getting to know your tutor! “Today in IAG we did some art,”PastoralPastoral is where you would go if you were hurt, upset, or needed to report something (e.g. bullying, something has been stolen, etc.) but you can also talk to your tutor about that kind of stuff too. “I went to pastoral because my bag went missing,”PeriodThe word period is used to describe the lesson you have that hour. This means that the first hour (your first lesson) is called Period 1. The same for your fifth hour (your fifth lesson) is called Period 5. “I’ll need my P.E. kit today because I have P.E. in Period 3,”

Praise zapsPraise zaps are things (almost like points) that you receive when you have done something good or have helped a teacher or have just been genuinely good at your work recently. They will be added to you online Econtact Book profile and you can use them to buy things: food, stationery and queue passes! These also contribute to the House cup –so praise zaps are important! “Today Emily got a praise zapfor carrying the teacher’s books,” SSCSSC stands for Student Support Centre; this is a room where pupils can go who find it difficult in classes.The ARB UnitThe ARB is a unit to help students with special educational needs.The QuadThe Quad is where KS3 (Year 7 and 8) have their break and lunch times. It is located outside the old hall. “I played football in The Quad at break,”Thumbprint Pay Thumbprint pay is what we use at college to pay for foods and other things at the canteens. This is a lot easier and safer than carrying money inside your bag. “I used my thumbprint pay to buy a pasty for lunch”

TutorYour tutor is a member of staff who you meet with in the morning for 20 minutes everyday (called tutortime), as well as the rest of your tutor group. A tutor group is like a class of 25-30 people, but they don’t all go to the same classes together. Your tutor teacher is the number one person at school who will be there for you, and they will be the ones talking to your parents at meetings.

Tutors groups are organised depending on what language you want to learn and what house you are in. There are 2 tutors in every year for that one house – for example: The Year 7 Hepworth Spanish side and the Year 7 Hepworth French side. Tutor time is also a great way of making new friends! “My new best friend at school is in the same tutor group as me!”