Hello and welcome to this week’s Year 9 Blog. 

I trust you all had a restful and enjoyable Easter Holiday and managed to make the most of the sporadic dry days. 

You may remember in my last Blog, I mentioned a Year 9 student who would be competing in the European Dancing Championship in Blackpool, and I am incredibly proud to say that Isabelle A (Y9) and Lily D (Y11) won Gold in the Ladies Latin Dancing category and Silver in the Ladies Ballroom category. This is an unbelievable achievement, and I am sure you will join me in wishing both girls huge congratulations. 

As we continue through April and towards Summer, I thought I would bring to your attention that every April is known as the Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month. The goal being to increase public understanding of and appreciation for mathematics and statistics. 

Mr Willson the Head of Mathematics at Hessle High School, very kindly agreed to write why he believes Maths is important. 

“Studying Maths is so much more than just doing some sums and getting the correct answers. Confidence in using Maths to analyse and interpret data and understand finances is crucial for everyone and the whole digital world we now live in is driven by maths and data. Currently the majority of new emerging careers in the fields of computer science, cyber security and coding are heavily reliant on mathematical skills. Maths not only gives you the skills to be able to solve numerical and abstract problems but develops your analytical, problem-solving and logic skills to be able to make informed decisions, understand how things work or predict how they will change over time. The career opportunities when studying Maths are endless – accounting, medicine, engineering, cyber security, finance, forensic pathology, aviation, games development, website creation, coding, design & construction to name but a few. To finish with an interesting fact about how valuable a maths qualification can be, research from the Russell Group universities has shown that “on average those with maths A-Level earn 11% more over their lifetime than those without”.  

I would like to add, although Maths is not always students preferred subject, there is no doubt that maths helps strengthen reasoning skills and critical thinking. It is a universal language that brings us together and impacts us every day. Making it one of the most important to learn.  

If you have any questions or queries, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Mr Julian

Head of Year 9

Mrs Green 

Assistant Head of Year 9