Twitter @tcdskent

23/05/25

A big thank you to Rotary Club of Thanet for hosting our STEM Club leader, allowing him to present to the Club the ‘Disaster Relief Robot’ that pupils have designed, and programmed, in their after-school STEM Club. pic.twitter.com/Nxd7zvPh77

21/05/25

Bounce Forward, supported by the Harry Kane Foundation, are running a free online parent course focused on building resilience in young people and supporting parents in raising resilient young people https://t.co/yiV0EJTGQh pic.twitter.com/mlgkbl8OMV

20/05/25

A Big Shout Out, and thank you, to Dan Cooper Garden in Broadstairs, who has donated lots of items to our Gardening Club. Our green fingered gardeners were out in the sunshine last week planting and tidying the garden! pic.twitter.com/2a7mZhPi8u

15/05/25

As part of last week’s VE day celebrations, pupils created artwork to be a part of the exhibit organised by Broadstairs and St Peter’s Town Council, at Broadstairs Bandstand. We hope you had the chance to see some of the work there! Here’s a sample of our budding artists' work. pic.twitter.com/1CCpE8s7wa

15/05/25

Our last Cooking Life Skills session with Noi Silk had our budding chefs making Prawn Tom Yum (hot and sour) soup, using some of the biggest king prawns we have ever seen!#cdshospitality pic.twitter.com/EHPkRh92vM

14/05/25

Building community is really important in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people. Please see the poster for some helpful tips from the National College for parents. pic.twitter.com/8K2dufuXw3

13/05/25

We have 32 entries in the Thanet Schools Artists Festival 2025, presented by Margate Rotary Club. The exhibition of all entries across Thanet will be on display in Sainsbury’s at Westwood Cross between 12th and 18th May. The award ceremony will take place on 17th May at 12pm. pic.twitter.com/vBSJLc9SAr

13/05/25

Year 7 got fully involved in a an immersive lifesaving experience! The ‘ Community Lifesavers’ visited CDS, where they communicated the importance of turning ‘bystanders into lifesavers’. They demonstrated how to administer CPR and how to use the defibrillator/AED. pic.twitter.com/PKxlb3O3sy

13/05/25

The last lesson for many Hospitality & Catering pupils was one to remember. After a 3 year journey we thought we would treat them to a practical lesson they wouldn't forget - Chocolate Pizza! Good luck to all our Year 11s as they take their exams and complete their time with us. pic.twitter.com/rAcT86KPNK

01/05/25

Tuesday was International Dance Day and our Matilda Jr cast enjoyed dancing and performing during their rehearsal. Here’s a sneak peek into the cast rehearsing ‘The School Song’ and spelling the alphabet out with their bodies.#cdscapa pic.twitter.com/8IC28GWkWp

15/04/25

One of our uniform suppliers, Monkhouse, is currently holding a 60% sale on CDS uniform items when you shop online. Grab yourself a bargain, while the offer lasts. pic.twitter.com/ssQB12ZHhu

06/03/25

Y11 HSC & CD pupils enjoyed a trip to CCCU Health and Social Care Simulation Suite. They engaged in lots of activities linked to future careers in the NHS and Social Care, including correct handwashing and CPR! An inspiring glimpse into University life!#cdschsc pic.twitter.com/RatINMFH1F

04/03/25

KS4 Cooking Skills Club embraced the season by making pancakes to celebrate Pancake Day. Enhanced with lemon, chocolate, strawberries, syrup and banana, we are pretty sure not many made it home!#cdshospitality pic.twitter.com/jixKzHpz1d

03/03/25

Today marks the start of National Careers Week. The National Careers Week website has created a Virtual Careers Fayre where pupils get the opportunity to explore careers in a range of professions. The link to the website is below:https://t.co/URx6RoIyJP#cdscareers

14/02/25

Always ready to celebrate a day in the calendar, our ladies at Independent Catering, again, pulled out all the stops! Look at these wonderful cakes and biscuits, all made and iced with love for a special day – Happy Valentines everyone and have a great half term break! pic.twitter.com/udqs44vby4

14/02/25

Some lucky pupils across Years 8 to 10 had the pleasure of attending a performance of ‘Matilda’ at the Cambridge Theatre, in London. Pupils were far from “Revolting Children”, and were ecstatic in their praise for the production.#cdsdrama pic.twitter.com/TNLRfQflrf

13/02/25

For the final week of this term’s KS4 Cooking Club, pupils literally smashed it! Each made their own version of a smash burger, where the ground beef is smashed down in the pan as it cooks at a high heat to create a charred finish which is both tender and flavoursome.#cdsfood pic.twitter.com/9WZFBnXDi1

03/02/25

This week is Children’s Mental Health Week, organised by Place2Be. The theme is “Know yourself, grow yourself” and this week, we will be discussing ways that pupils can look after their wellbeing develop their understanding of their own personal journey through Character. pic.twitter.com/WWWPaBt7Aw

31/01/25

Say “hello” to our phone holder, wooden robots proudly created by our Year 7 and 8 pupils who are just coming to the end of their 3 term rotation in Design Technology. Aren’t they quirky! Very colourful, and you would never forget where you put your phone!#cdsDT pic.twitter.com/nWAYaUF77L

31/01/25

CDS has achieved the Association of Character Education quality mark, one of few schools in the country who have achieved this . The quality mark provides recognition for transformative character education which is delivered in an explicit, planned and reflective way. pic.twitter.com/bklt0tLuOa

30/01/25

Y10 pupils attended the second Broadstairs Youth Forum having the opportunity to talk with Cllr Joanne Bright and the Mayor of Broadstairs & St. Peter’s. Their contributions were insightful and mature, showing real engagement in community issues. pic.twitter.com/p8Fc1Zs0Uo

29/01/25

Kooth Talks are running a free parent/carer webinar about the role of Kooth and Qwell in the care for young people with an eating difficulty, Tuesday 25 February and Thursday 27 February at 6pm. Please use this link if you would like to sign up.https://t.co/llyz9bR3sl pic.twitter.com/KFrD91IrLb

29/01/25

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28/01/25

“Cooking for life” KS4 Hospitality Club focused on making loaded potato skins, a great way to use up whatever you have in the fridge and the cupboards to create a delicious and nutritious meal. They tasted amazing! We think you’ll agree they look very tempting.#cdshospitality pic.twitter.com/5cfQJK8hJM

27/01/25

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Enrichment Activities

Character Education

The Charles Dickens School offers a broad range of enrichment activities, designed to develop our pupils as a whole person, through the PSHEE curriculum, extra-curricular activities and Cultural Capital activities.

Character Education enables us to provide experiential learning opportunities to pupils.

Character Education helps pupils to develop their interests and abilities, provides valuable learning experiences outside their studies, and promotes independence and interpersonal links with pupils in other year groups.

The core aims of our Character Education programme are to:

  • Develop pupils’ resilience
  • Promote co-curricular opportunities to broaden pupils’ horizons
  • Develop independence, self-esteem and responsibility
  • Play an active role as members of a democratic society
  • Make the most of their own abilities and those of others
  • Behave in a socially and morally acceptable way including towards authority and each other
  • Encourage pupils to become involved in the life of their community, both inside and outside of school.
  • Value the achievements they make, and the achievements of others
  • Make informed choices about dealing with risks and meeting challenges now and in the future.
  • Decide on values by which they want to live their lives, helping pupils make informed, ethical choices.
  • Prepare pupils for the future, pathways and progression with pupils realising their potential.
  • Develop a sense of belonging that allows pupils to have a voice and to influence society.
  • Develop confident communicators.

 

The Charles Dickens School Core Values of Character

The school values of Compassion, Aspiration, Resilience and Enthusiasm are embedded into the planning and delivery of Character Education within the school.  Consistent promotion, delivery and reference to our core values to our pupils encourage them continue their development to become well-rounded and exceptional young people:

Compassion; empathy, kindness and an understanding of those around us.

Aspiration; challenge oneself to pursue our dreams and ambitions.

Resilience; manage the change in our lives and develop coping mechanisms to make the right choices and overcome obstacles.

Enthusiasm; to have the energy, equilibrium and happiness in life.

Recognising Character:

We know how important it is for pupils to be rewarded and recognised for doing the right thing. Pupils have the opportunity to earn over 50 badges that represent our “pupils of character”, ranging from Orator, College Bowl champions, Attendance, Intercollege Champion and pupil leadership roles and so many more.

We truly believe in the power of empowering pupils to tell their own story of personal development through these badges; proudly displaying the characteristics and values that they have achieved.

CARE values:

Throughout the academic year, pupils will be exposed to the CARE values consistently to embed the importance of these values as future life skills, alongside opportunities within the Personal Development curriculum to broaden pupils’ experience of extra-curricular opportunities to develop them as a whole.

Continued exposure to the school’s core values (CARE) will allow the consideration of these values to become routine, alongside the explicit highlighting of specific values through PSHE, assemblies and extra-curricular provisions.

Character Caught:

Pupils will develop the strength of their character through the regular reinforcement and empowerment of the school’s CARE values. Character will be caught through the ethos and the values of the school.

Character Taught:

Pupils are provided with structured teaching of character, through lessons, PSHE, assemblies and form time. Throughout the school year, the school CARE values, virtue and character are consistently taught.

Character Sought:

Pupils are provided with multiple opportunities to encourage them to actively seek to develop their own character, for example through (but not limited to) Duke of Edinburgh award, PIXL LORIC, Diana Anti-Bullying award and Debate club, alongside our extra-curricular offer. 

Pupils are given opportunities within school to experience:

  • Outside speakers into assemblies
  • One off workshops
  • Long term programmes
  • Drop in sessions
  • Vote in school-based elections
  • Pupil Voice (Sit on pupil council and various ‘drive teams’).
  • Attend clubs at lunchtime, and after-school
  • Go on school trips
  • Brilliant Club
  • Gifted & Talented club

Values

Documents

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Term 2 PE - After School Clubs Download
Extra curricular activities term 3 KS3 Download
Extra curricular activities term 3 KS4 Download