Happy New Year! We’ve enjoyed welcoming students back into school this week and hearing about all of the great things that they’ve been up to over the Christmas break.
We started the week with Expectations Assemblies which also gave the opportunity for us to reflect on our school community successes of the Autumn Term. Students have quickly got back into routine and we thank you for your contribution to our smooth start to the Spring Term.
Our school values were certainly in evidence in Forest School this week where Mr. Woodward reports, ‘Sub-zero temperatures couldn’t stop the students today. We spent time identifying Silver Birch trees on the school site and harvested some bark as a natural tinder for our campfires. We collected fallen branches from various trees around the school before heading to the woods for a much needed warm-up game. We then used froes and billhooks to develop our log-splitting skills, followed by the use of sheath knives to point the end of sticks to be driven into the frozen ground to create a three-stick fire and pot stand to cook pasta / noodles on. Resilience was tested in each group as the freezing conditions made the whole process extremely difficult but everyone persevered…even the eventual collapse of one pot stand, causing the spillage of freshly cooked pasta onto the ground couldn’t dampen spirits!
In assemblies this week, Mrs. Godsell-Wright has been encouraging students to think of the year ahead, helping them to realise that a new year gives us an opportunity to make plans to build on success, being the best version of ourselves the ambition.
In Sporting news, Miss Robson reports, ‘School is back and so is netball club as well as some brand new post protectors purchased with the money won from Sports Directory. These protectors will benefit PE lessons, extra-curricular activities and competitive fixtures, ensuring safety for our students and also showing off our school colours with pride. Thank you to those who attended the club this week and assisted in fitting the protectors. Team work makes the dream work!’
The Children’s Commissioner, Rachel de Souza, has published a guide this week for school staff, parents and carers about supporting children’s safety on line. It’s underpinned by the understanding that we have to make difficult decisions about how to balance protecting children from online harm with enabling access to spaces that are now central to learning, socialising and play. This guide was written with the direct involvement of children in England. It is a reflection of their views. The Children’s Commissioner visited schools to speak to teenagers, and spoke to her Youth Ambassadors and Youth Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Panel to get their expertise on what works and what doesn’t work between parents or carers and children in the 21st Century. You can find the guide at https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/resource/what-i-wish-my-parents-or-carers-knew-a-guide-for-parents-and-carers-on-managing-childrens-digital-lives/
The time of year also poses a number of weather challenges. We’re sharing information with students about how to stay safe around ice, shown below.
Have a lovely weekend!