Phoenix Primary and Secondary School

If we understand more about how autistic people experience the world, we can build a better world for all autistic people and their families.
This film was created with autistic people and family members, it was narrated by Jules Robertson.

Click on the image to watch the short film.

To celebrate the end of the Arts Festival we welcomed backed theatre group Bamboozle as they performed their new show ‘Pulse’ this performance wowed and excited. They even made it rain indoors! ​

Please click on the image of the BBC to see a very special video. 

Guests speakers include The National Autistic Society's Rachel Babbidge, a Transitions Support Service Coordinator and Robyn Steward who is a well-known trainer who has been featured in an array of media including: Channel 4 news, BBC, Sunday Times and many more. This will be held on Tuesday 17th April from 12:30pm - 3:30pm at The Idea Store in Whitechapel Lab 1a.

For World Book Day we opened up our own special Phoenix Book Shop. Children were invited to the book shop to choose their own book from the shelves to take home. Some of our students wrote letters to the literacy coordinator asking for certain books. Whilst inside the book shop students exchanged their World Book Day tokens for a book, sang a song and sat in the reading corner to enjoy their stories. Children will be bringing these books home to share with parents. We hope you enjoy them!​

Parents you are welcome to join us to discuss the expansion of the school, on Wednesday the 14th of March.  

Please have a look at some of the pictures from the English class get together. All the parents had a wonderful  time with their new teacherParents you are welcome to join us to discuss the expansion of the school, on Wednesday the 14th of March.  

On Thursday 1^st March 2018 Phoenix School will be celebrating World Book Day! World Book Day will mark the beginning of our two week Arts Festival extravaganza where students will be exploring stories in all their lessons in fun and exciting ways. We will be marking the start of World Book Day with a special Fancy Dress Fashion Parade in assembly. All students are invited to come to school on World Book Day dressed as their favourite book character. To help make World Book Day even more special all students will be invited to the Phoenix Book Shop to choose their own book to take home as a gift. It would be fantastic to have as many of our students as possible dressed up to celebrate this special day

Secondary pupils have been busy in the kitchen this term making lots of delicious dishes.

Parents Evening parents workshops.

Tuesday 6/02/17

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

See you all back on the 2/01/2018

Each autumn nearly 30,000 young people from primary, secondary and special schools across the country unite in the world’s largest youth drama festival. Months of preparation culminate in exhilarating performance evenings; young people playing Shakespeare in professional theatres, raising aspirations and unlocking the potential of students and teachers alike.

Please have a look at the pictures taken from Phoenix pupil's performance of The Tempest.

The performance took place at Stratford Circus Theatre.

Last week KS2 pupils set off to Sibford in Oxfordshire. Pupils spent three nights away from home with Phoenix and Sibford staff. They took part in a range of fun activities, such as visiting the local Zoo, where they got to help feed the animals and swimming in the big heated pool on the school grounds.

A big thanks goes out to all the staff that helped and a big “well done” to all the pupils, for being so good away from home!

We are looking forward to next year already.

On Monday the 17^th and Tuesday the 18^th of July Phoenix had their sports days.

All pupils we able to take part in lots of different events in school as well as Victoria Park.

All the classes took on different countries and had a special parade.

Pupils took part in a range of different games and races, such as the sack race, sprints, bean bag throwing and a penalty shootout, just  to name a few!

The weather held out and we all had a great time.

Well done to all the winners!

In the Summer Term pupils from 6P participated in the Open City Architecture in Primary Schools programme. This is a comprehensive programme for pupils in years 4-6 where they have the opportunity to explore a London building and work with an architect to create a three dimensional model. More than 800 pupils took part from 19 schools across London.

The theme this year was to 'Design your ideal Open City' and with the architect Nicolas Laurent and the art department at Phoenix 6P made a treehouse city where organic shaped pods were placed at different levels. . Their work won the Year 6  Most Imaginative Design Award and was exhibited in Canary Wharf at the awards ceremony. 

Pupils from 3B and 3W attended a Arundel in this term. They stayed at Lodge Hill in lovely cabins! They went to the seaside, had walks in the forest, made smores on the camp fire and yes...played quite a bit of cricket!!

As part of their science learning about plants and nature, pupils from Key Stage 3 got to visit Greenwich Park.

They explored the garden at the Royal Museum before walking up the hill to see the rose garden.

They even got to see the famous Cutty Sark as they walked through Greenwich Village.

Well done KS3 for such a great day out.

World’s largest collection of Super Heroes-inspired LEGO artwork, ever!

Through a series of immersive galleries, The Art of the Brick: Super Heroes showcases Sawaya’s interpretations on characters, vehicles, environments and themes found throughout the DC Super Heroes mythology including transformation and reinvention, strength and weakness, as well as good vs. evil. Get ready to inspire your inner Super Hero.

These autism-friendly sessions are on the last Sunday of June (25th) July (30th) and August (27th) at 9am. The early sessions will allow those with autism and their families to experience and enjoy the exhibit in a relaxed environment.

Click on the picture for more details.

Wishing worshipers a happy Eid Mubarak

Please don't forget school will be closed on Monday the 26th of June. 

On Friday, we will show support for Grenfell Tower by paying £1 to wear green, With all donations going to the fund #GreenforGrenfell.

Our thoughts continue to be with all those affected. 

Throughout the summer term Spitalfields Music have been working with pupils in KS4&5 to help them create their own original compositions. Pupils performed their songs at Secondary assembly and later this week they will be recording them at a local professional recording studio. 

On Monday 12^th and 13^th June we welcomed Bamboozle Theatre Company to Phoenix where they performed their production Storm.

This immersive theatre had playful magic tricks, a very loud but exciting storm, interactive fishing song and relaxing live music throughout. It was fantastic to watch such an exciting piece of theatre. All the students loved it!

"At Tower Hamlets, we aim to meet the needs of disabled children through universal and

inclusive settings. However the need or disability may also require targeted provision."

For the last week of the Easter term we decided to make our own lunches. Each day a pair of pupils worked together to prepare and serve lunch for the rest of their classmates and one other class. The sandwiches were delicious!

One day 6P turned up to school to find out a terrible crime had been committed...the iPads had been stolen! The class worked together and solved the case to find the iPads. Afterwards they all wrote some wonderful news articles about the incident.

We are all looking forward to another busy term. Please take some time to read our Summer Newsletter.

Just click on the PDF.

We are all looking forward to another busy term. Please take some time to read our Summer Newsletter.

Just click on the PDF.

We have had another very successful Arts Festival, Thanks to the student’s hard work and creativity.

This year’s Arts Festival theme was Journeys.

Across the school, pupils had opportunities to take part in one off workshops, Installations, theatre and music lessons. 

All pupils were involved with lots of creative learning, sensory exploring and performing across a very busy two week programme.

Phoenix have been working closely with Apasen to build links with schools in Bangladesh to share practice and deliver training.Training was  run by Veronica, Shelina and Jubeda with the support of Zakir.

"We are very excited about this growing partnership with Apasen International. This is our second visit to Bangladesh as a school and my first personally. We have been inspired by the commitment of the teachers who operate with so few resources and charmed completely by the children who face incredible challenges coping with disability, exclusion and poverty. We are even more determined to support these schools and raise funds for a substantial project where we can really make a difference in the long term." said Veronica.

Dear Parents,

An exciting theatre company called Punch-drunk have recently installed the Lost Lending Library at Phoenix school. Your child has been taking part in this project as part of our arts festival. Petra and Peabody, librarians who work for the library, would like to invite you in to visit the library on Tuesday, 14th March 2017 at these times:

3.30pm, 4.00pm, 4.30pm

Please sign up for a session at the school office, who will confirm your time slot. There are limited spaces available.

Best wishes

Rick Nunn - Expressive Arts Coordinator

A PROMISING MODEL FOR EDUCATING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE ON THEAUTISM SPECTRUM.

We have just started some after school disability swimming lessons at the new Poplar Baths

The main aim of the lessons is to teach more children to swim and to ensure we have a team for the London Youth Games Para Swim team, for which Tower Hamlets is reigning champions for the past 2 years.

This week secondary celebrated Chinese New Year 2017.

The students listened to traditional music before they had a chance to dress up and dance as a dragon.  

This year’s zodiac sign is the Rooster. The Rooster means Independent, honest and punctual. Roosters are confident and competent.

International work exposes educators to new practices and perspectives, Aiding their professional development and as such raising teaching standards. For young people it is a window into different cultures and countries, preparing them for life in a global society.

The Senior Deputy and two teachers will be out of school from January 29^th until 10^th February.

They will be visiting Bangladesh to work alongside APASEN and 4 schools in Sylhet and with the Ministry of Education in Dhaka.

This is a joint funded project that is supporting teachers working with children and young people with autism with the hope of setting up a new school based on Phoenix structures and systems.

It will also enable Phoenix staff to work more effectively with children and families from other cultures and to understand the culture and background that many of our families at Phoenix come from.

On December the 13^th Phoenix school celebrated Christmas with two big musical concerts.

Each class performed a song in front of an excited audience.  We had a live band lead by our music teacher Rick. Classes acted, danced and sang throughout their performance.   

Click on the video to see some of the photos taken throughout the day.

Thank you as well to the parents that were able to join us. See you again soon.

3A and 3P helped raise money for Children In Need last week. The pupils have been learning about helping others. They walked from Mile End to Limehouse along Regents Canal.

6P have been learning all about the Second World War. Have a look at the video to see some of their learning.

We have recently purchased Collins Big Cat E-books for parents to read with their children at home. These can be used on any internet device. Children can read the books themselves or can have the device read the book to them. There are animated pages, sound effects and comprehension games at the end. Please keep an eye on your child's Home School Book for your user guide which contains the log in details and instructions for using the E-Books. We hope our parents enjoy using this exciting new resource. Let us know how you get on.

Some pupils from Key Stage 2 went on a residential trip to Sibford school in Oxfordshire. The pupils had a brilliant time participating in all of the activities including swimming and a trip to the zoo. We have captured some of our memories on film for everyone to enjoy.

As part of our Science and PSHE work, 3P and 3A have been exploring the four Diwali or Deepaboli is the Hindu festival of lights celebrated every year.Diwali night, people clean, renovate, and decorate their homes.

Today we celebrate Dewali in Bengali club with our Phoenix children. We lights up diyas and had some snacks and sweets. Few of ours teachers were with us. Children had a good time in the club. Everyone enjoyed our little celebrations.

As part of our Science and PSHE work, 3P and 3A have been exploring the four seasons.  To celebrate autumn we visited Kew Gardens. We looked at the autumn colours, we walked in the tree tops and we visisted the Victorian green houses.

We all had a great day.

Everyone at Phoenix had a fantastic time at the Harvest festival Assembly. Have a look at some of the wonderful work students made using pumpkins!

This year is a significant one as it is the 10^thanniversary of the conference. We have had some amazing, thought provoking and influential speakers over the years and the value of bringing the latest practice and experience into the school has been immense. Thanks to all those who have attended and supported this initiative over the years and particularly thanks to Veronica and Jill who put in so much energy to make sure it runs smoothly. Check the school training bookings to see if there are still spaces if you would like to attend..

The Phoenix youth club had another fantastic evening out. We went to the Red Dragon restaurant, all of our young adults, parents and carers had a great time. We are looking forward to planning our next visit out. If you have any questions regarding the Phoenix Youth Club please contact either Dylan or Alfie.

This week secondary students reflected on their busy and successful year at Phoenix School.

Certificates and medals for attendance, horticulture, academia, RRSA, PE, art, music and drama were presented by our head Governors during the Achievement Assembly.

We are all extremely proud of the students and all that they have achieved this year.

The winner of the Summer Enterprise Market packaging competition was 2L with their beautiful and carefully made wild seed packets. The packets were decorated with collected plants, flowers and organic material as well as tiny lady birds. The packets showed the process that had been used and the students had had such a creative input into their production. The standard was very high this year with some classic, stylish and imaginative uses of ribbons, glitter, crayon, stencils buttons and bows. There was a huge range of produce too from fruit bushes to coasters popcorn, scented soap, brilliant picture frames and individualised sandwich bags. The event was in new surroundings this year along the bike track which proved a lovely venue, in the shade of the magnificent plane tree. Thanks to all involved what a fantastically creative and industrious bunch you all are. With particular thanks to Carolyn for organising it. Well done!

Students from Bow Satellite have been working with students from Bow School and the Expressive Arts team in a really exciting project. click on the image on the right to find out more.

In June we took a group of pupils sailing, We all took a train from Waterloo and met the Captain and Ships mate on the Tall Ships Cat in Portsmouth.  We sailed from Portsmouth to Cowes on the Isle of White where we stayed for the night. Every evening we stopped somewhere different and had a look around before going back to the ship to cook our dinner. We slept on the ship where we were rocked to sleep by the waves.  We stopped at the Isle of White, Poole and Beaulieu then back to Portsmouth.  Sailing the Ship was great fun as well as hard work and a good way of learning more about the country as well as learning to sail.

Thank you to everyone who made it to the Summer Fate.  

You all made it a special evening for us all.

Please have a look at some of the photos in the video below.

Students were asked by Oxfam to paint a large scale panel which will be on display at the Glastonbury Festival this summer. Well done to Hussain, Abeeda, Nazifa and Yunus 3B, Fahmida and Sanjida 4S and Dami, Denzel and Jordan 5C for all their hard work.  

IT'S SUMMER FETE TIME AGAIN

18:00 - 20:30

FOOD, DRINKS, MUSIC, GAMES, BOUNCY CASTLES, BINGO, RAFFLE,

PRIZES, TOYS, BOOKS AND A FEW SURPRISES ALONG THE WAY! 

LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL SOON.

5L have made a fitness DVD during our ICT lessons, we learnt lots of new exercises and learnt how to record using the iPad and edit on Windows Media Player, take a look and see if you can keep up with us!

It is just around the corner, so what's on in London?

Michael Rosen’s 26-year-old picture-book classic in which a family goes looking for a bear through a forest forms the basis for this immersive exhibition for babies to 11-year-olds – kids can feel the swishy-swashy grass, crouch down to inspect tiny ursine model scenes in floor-level glass boxes, and crawl through a tot-sized tunnel to the ‘narrow gloomy cave’ filled with a furry family of lolling bears. It’s a wonderfully atmospheric way to bring the rhythmic story to life. 

The exhibition works brilliantly as a jumping-off point to inspire young minds to engage with the written word. Though child-sized, it’s packed with just enough to keep those with wandering attention spans rapt. Let the kids loose in Discover’s ace story garden when it’s time for their imaginations to get whirring in the fresh air.

Address: 
383-387 Stratford High St , London, E15 4QZ 
Opening hours:
11am-5pm  (Open daily in school hols)
Transport:
Tube: Stratford
Price:
£5 (£4.50 Newham residents)

Get the kids stuck into a variety of play-doh based activities led by illustrator Amy Brown and artist Helen Rousseau during half term. Sessions explore bringing drawings to life through model-making and animation, photography of colourful 3D creations and demos showing how to turn the contents of your kitchen cupboards into excellent modelling materials. Workshops cost £5 per child with a parent or carer and are suitable for 5-12 year olds. Visit the Museum of Childhood website to book places in advance. http://www.vam.ac.uk/moc/events/february-half-term-activities/

KS3 headed off to the Barbican centre to visit the conservatory last week! As part of Humanities they have been exploring the rainforests. The conservatory is home to exotic fish and over 2,000 species of tropical plants and trees. It was the perfect way to see some amazing plants in their natural habitat.

Phoenix coffee mugs can be purchased for £3.00 – every time you use this for your coffee the cost of a drink is then £1.00 (£1.20 otherwise).

Tuesday February 9th
6:00 - 8:00 

Tuesday 8th of March

Download information and materials regarding reluctant eaters.

Developmental food continuum

Food testing steps

Steps to eating

Click here to download the latest CRAE newsletter - The Centre of Research in Autism and Education.

Congratulations to all staff and pupils at Phoenix School. We have officially been awarded our level two of Rights Respecting School.

Exciting news for Tower Hamlets!

On the 24th November at 4.00 - 5.30pm, Tower Hamlets will be introducing an all inclusive Football group being held at Spotlight. Click here for more information.

Have a look at the video of our International Week assembly. Each class had to make items that represented a certain place in the world. They then shared these items during a whole school assembly..

Click here to view our latest newsletter.

Click here to view our latest training flyer for parents.

Have a look at the video from 5H, where they are demonstrating their independent skills by taking part in numerous functional activities.

Athina, one of our Outreach Teachers, has completed her PHD in music and dance for children with autism. You can view a snippet of the programme, and find out more about her studies by clicking here.

Have a look at the video from our Harvest festival.

Inclusive clubs and activities for children and young people in Tower Hamlets:

Inclusive Saturday Judo Club

October Half Term BMX Sessions

Tower Hamlets Inclusion Service: Accessible Inclusive Activities

The Phoenix annual conference takes place this Friday. There are 4 guest speakers, who will be focusing on "Mind, Body & Autism".

This term Curtis has been participating in reading sessions with some of our pupils.  Reading alongside a dog enables our pupils to practice their reading skills in a relaxed environment.  Curtis acts a non-judgemental and attentive listening partner enabling the pupils to relax and enjoy the reading experience.  As a result, we hope that they will build self-esteem, improve reading skills and associate reading with something pleasant.