Next week, as is tradition here, I shall write all parents an end of term letter in lieu of the Bulletin. I have nonetheless been reflecting on this academic year, as we have been preparing to publish our final edition of ROAR! magazine and as we prepare for our Prize Giving event in the Hammond Theatre at Hampton next Thursday evening.
It’s hard for me at times to pick out what makes our school special. Perhaps I suffer a bit from ‘can’t see the wood for the trees-itis’ on this, but I have been forcing myself over recent days to delineate what the distinctive yet inter-related component parts of the culture and ethos at our school are. My current working versions are these:
Everyone works hard here, and knows the value of doing so. I am astonished by the effort the pupils put into their lessons at various points throughout the year and stand in awe at the time and effort my colleagues put into making those lessons so engaging, enjoyable and meaningful.
The pupils possess, for their ages and stages, an abundance of progressive attitudes. This means they are not negatively prejudiced about where people come from, what they look like, how they speak or what their family background or set up might be. I am always greatly humbled by seeing how supportive and inclusive the pupils are at school with one another and how supportive the adults here are in this respect also.
Finally, I believe there is an abiding but critically important sense of curiosity and wonder in the hearts and minds of everyone here, which means the pupils actively seek answers to fascinating questions and the adults are always anxious to consider how they might be best able to teach. It’s a very enlivening atmosphere to walk into every day. I drink it in and as a consequence, it lifts me!
More on this from me next week in my letter, but thank you now for your kind and generous support for the work we seek to undertake with your lovely children. We are so fond of them all, and your support means a great deal to all of us.
