Another term ended. The children all left the school with weary but smiling faces today - the last few weeks have been very hard for everyone. The staff similarly all left the building with huge smiles but all had the air of someone in need of a good rest. Teaching is a very hard profession and requires endless patience, resilience and energy - all of these tend to be running out towards the end of term! Good will to all men can be a little difficult when some of the folks involved are not very positive in the ways in which they approach you - but we have managed to get to the end of the Autumn term without too many traumas.
Tonight is the end of term staff party. I think I might run a book on who will be the first to fall asleep and the first to leave. We are holding the event in a popular local night spot so it should be an opportunity for those of us with hair to let it down a little and have a relaxing evening. No one has to get up tomorrow - well not too early anyway.
If anyone actually reads this blog I would like to wish you a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Next term will soon be upon us and all of the fun that comes in the Spring will start before we know it!!
Wednesday, 19 December 2007
Monday, 17 December 2007
End of Term
The last week of the school term and Christmas is very nearly upon us. Today we are giving the children in the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 a "treat" lunch. Pizza for all! Tomorrow we are going to repeat the exercise with the rest of the school - chaos will no doubt ensue at some point! We are also holding Christmas parties this week which are always an experience in themselves - children dressing up in their best party clothes and eating lots of party food which is always far too much so they go home feeling full and fit to burst. It is lovely to see all of the smiling faces around school and all of the hassle is worth it when you see the positive responses the children give.
If you look at the other blog on the school website you will find a very funny link - how we all managed to learn to dance and act in such a manner I will never know. Actually I can't look at Mr Duff in quite the same way at the moment - his shimmy has me a little disconcerted.
Our parents and friends have been very generous in support of our chosen charity this year. We support the "Starfish Appeal" at Kings College Hospital as one of our pupil's Nayeem has been a patient there for the last few years. He is now beginning to regain his health and has started to attend school again - which is excellent news for a young man who has been on the receiving end of two liver transplants. Giving something back to the excellent facility that has helped Nayeem is the least we can do - we hope our donations will make a little difference to the children in hospital over the Christmas period.
If you look at the other blog on the school website you will find a very funny link - how we all managed to learn to dance and act in such a manner I will never know. Actually I can't look at Mr Duff in quite the same way at the moment - his shimmy has me a little disconcerted.
Our parents and friends have been very generous in support of our chosen charity this year. We support the "Starfish Appeal" at Kings College Hospital as one of our pupil's Nayeem has been a patient there for the last few years. He is now beginning to regain his health and has started to attend school again - which is excellent news for a young man who has been on the receiving end of two liver transplants. Giving something back to the excellent facility that has helped Nayeem is the least we can do - we hope our donations will make a little difference to the children in hospital over the Christmas period.
Thursday, 6 December 2007
Christmas Time
Christmas is really a mad time in school. The children become very excited and their ability to learn seems to diminish as the days count down!
Everyone is very busy learning new songs, practising dances, learning words and remembering when to stand and sit. The Christmas performance is nearly upon us - most of the school are performing our version of "Cinderella" and the Foundation children are recreating the nativity. The pantomime promises to be great fun and the children seem to be really enjoying learning their words and songs. As usual there will be boys dressed as girls and vice versa, lots of silly songs and hopefully a show that resembles the traditional tale but has a special "Darlinghurst" twist to it. The Nativity will be very sweet - the nursery classes and the reception classes are working together very well and their performances will definitely bring a tear to the eye.
Meanwhile we are still expecting the children to work really hard in their normal lessons. This keeps them focused and ensures that they don't get too carried away. There has been some special events this week - a visit from a "Victorian" drama group being the main one. This group worked with Year 5 and gave them a thoroughly informative and enjoyable experience of school life in the 19th Century. Despite one or two of the children being killed in industrial accidents and others dealt a blow with the cane they said that they had a great time and learned an awful lot. From the teacher's point of view the experience was excellent - full of real learning activities.
This evening we have the Headteacher's night from hell! 2 discos - one after the other. The children get all excited and run round like mad things while the teachers try and hide somewhere quiet!
Everyone is very busy learning new songs, practising dances, learning words and remembering when to stand and sit. The Christmas performance is nearly upon us - most of the school are performing our version of "Cinderella" and the Foundation children are recreating the nativity. The pantomime promises to be great fun and the children seem to be really enjoying learning their words and songs. As usual there will be boys dressed as girls and vice versa, lots of silly songs and hopefully a show that resembles the traditional tale but has a special "Darlinghurst" twist to it. The Nativity will be very sweet - the nursery classes and the reception classes are working together very well and their performances will definitely bring a tear to the eye.
Meanwhile we are still expecting the children to work really hard in their normal lessons. This keeps them focused and ensures that they don't get too carried away. There has been some special events this week - a visit from a "Victorian" drama group being the main one. This group worked with Year 5 and gave them a thoroughly informative and enjoyable experience of school life in the 19th Century. Despite one or two of the children being killed in industrial accidents and others dealt a blow with the cane they said that they had a great time and learned an awful lot. From the teacher's point of view the experience was excellent - full of real learning activities.
This evening we have the Headteacher's night from hell! 2 discos - one after the other. The children get all excited and run round like mad things while the teachers try and hide somewhere quiet!
Monday, 26 November 2007
Monday morning
We are rushing towards Christmas like a juggernaut full of baubles heading down a hill with failed brakes! Personally I don't like Christmas to begin until November is finished but now that everyone starts their shopping in October it is inevitable that the bug will get to everyone at some point! We must organise our tree this week - our office manager has been off for a week so we are a little behind.
On Friday we had a very nasty accident in the playground. One of our youngest children was involved in a collision with one of our eldest children and the end result was a very damaged little boy. He received excellent care from our first aider and we felt that we had treated him well. Sadly he had to go to hospital for further treatment but today he is back at school and seems OK. The trouble is this kind of accident always raises concerns about play arrangements. I am reluctant to separate the older children from the younger as they often play together very well and form good relationships with each other. Segregation, particularly at lunchtime, is very difficult to manage and actually limits the play options for many children. To an extent we cannot win - if we change to separate playgrounds the children will be unhappy but the parents of most younger children happier. We will have to do some serious thinking about the issue over the next few weeks.
On Friday we had a very nasty accident in the playground. One of our youngest children was involved in a collision with one of our eldest children and the end result was a very damaged little boy. He received excellent care from our first aider and we felt that we had treated him well. Sadly he had to go to hospital for further treatment but today he is back at school and seems OK. The trouble is this kind of accident always raises concerns about play arrangements. I am reluctant to separate the older children from the younger as they often play together very well and form good relationships with each other. Segregation, particularly at lunchtime, is very difficult to manage and actually limits the play options for many children. To an extent we cannot win - if we change to separate playgrounds the children will be unhappy but the parents of most younger children happier. We will have to do some serious thinking about the issue over the next few weeks.
Thursday, 22 November 2007
Rain and yet more rain!
I hate this time of year sometimes. As some of you will know I have two dogs - both of whom require exercise on a daily basis. Shirley, the little one, is allergic to the rain and does not like to go out if it is too cold or wet. Pepsi on the other hand is desperately keen to have a walk regardless of the weather of time of day. As a result my daily routine starts with a walk every morning from around 5.45am. Today it was a bit wet - actually it was absolutely tipping it down and I don't think I have ever been so wet with my clothes on. Pepsi loved it - she splashed through puddles, leapt into the river and had a thoroughly lovely time. When we eventually got home there was the problem of getting dry again - both me and the dog. This is the route of my dislike for rain - it makes so much mess!
Before everyone thinks I am just rambling there is a point to the above. The rain has a similar effect upon life at school - until you have sat in a room with 25 damp children you have not experienced "surround aroma". It never ceases to amaze me that some children arrive at school without coats even when it is pouring with rain. They then spend the day is a constant state of damp!
Lots of other problems also arise when it is wet. Playtimes are often cancelled and children do not get outside to re-energise by running around in the fresh air. They become fractious and fall out with each other which then has an impact on learning in lessons. Lunchtimes on wet days can be a logistical nightmare - the midday staff are run ragged trying to keep everyone happy and entertained. Again the children fall out with each other and the afternoons then become difficult again. If the children manage to get outside there is always the risk of them jumping in puddles and getting even wetter! Then there is the problem of the magnetic attraction between mud and small boys - when it rains there always seems to be at least one child who is prepared to get coated in mud from head to toe!
I don't like the rain!
Before everyone thinks I am just rambling there is a point to the above. The rain has a similar effect upon life at school - until you have sat in a room with 25 damp children you have not experienced "surround aroma". It never ceases to amaze me that some children arrive at school without coats even when it is pouring with rain. They then spend the day is a constant state of damp!
Lots of other problems also arise when it is wet. Playtimes are often cancelled and children do not get outside to re-energise by running around in the fresh air. They become fractious and fall out with each other which then has an impact on learning in lessons. Lunchtimes on wet days can be a logistical nightmare - the midday staff are run ragged trying to keep everyone happy and entertained. Again the children fall out with each other and the afternoons then become difficult again. If the children manage to get outside there is always the risk of them jumping in puddles and getting even wetter! Then there is the problem of the magnetic attraction between mud and small boys - when it rains there always seems to be at least one child who is prepared to get coated in mud from head to toe!
I don't like the rain!
Monday, 19 November 2007
Anti-Bullying Week
One of the most frequent issues in any school is the matter of bullying. No matter where the school is in the country there will always be issues around this most sensitive of areas. As Headteacher I like to think that the children in my care are not bullies and if they come across bullying behaviour they know how to deal with it. I rather hope that most of the children will discourage bullying whenever they see it too.
As a realist I know that there are both bullies and victims in my school. During this week we are going to focus upon the issue an ensure that our "anti-bullying" policy is being applied as thoroughly and effectively possible. Sadly my day has started with two complaints of bullying - one of older girls picking on younger ones and another of physical assaults against a former classmate. The first issue is relatively simple to deal with and will have been resolved before the end of the morning. The second case is not so simple and has been going on for far too long. The boys concerned are often to be found playing happily together but sadly one has violent tendencies and attacks the other without thought if things don't go as he would like. My staff are vigilant in supervising what happens but as the violence erupts so suddenly we are helpless to prevent it. I will spend quite some time on this issue today.
As a realist I know that there are both bullies and victims in my school. During this week we are going to focus upon the issue an ensure that our "anti-bullying" policy is being applied as thoroughly and effectively possible. Sadly my day has started with two complaints of bullying - one of older girls picking on younger ones and another of physical assaults against a former classmate. The first issue is relatively simple to deal with and will have been resolved before the end of the morning. The second case is not so simple and has been going on for far too long. The boys concerned are often to be found playing happily together but sadly one has violent tendencies and attacks the other without thought if things don't go as he would like. My staff are vigilant in supervising what happens but as the violence erupts so suddenly we are helpless to prevent it. I will spend quite some time on this issue today.
Children in Need
What a lot of spotty people in school today! When the children began to arrive at breakfast club I knew that there was something wrong - so many of them had terrible outbreaks of spots all over their faces, their clothes and in some cases the rest of their clothing. Even the staff were afflicted and although they didn't seem to be suffering too much some appeared to be very ill indeed.
Fortunately this was all an attempt to support the children in need appeal. Our theme for the day was non-uniform with the added attraction of "spots" if they were able to be added. Many of the children adopted the spots with gusto and the overall vision at the start of assembly was similar to a multi-coloured measles ward. Very scary. At the end of the day we also held a cake sale to raise funds by ensuring that the weekend commenced with lots of sugar intake for many of the children. We managed to raise nearly £160 from the non-uniform collection and a further £48 from the cake sale. A good effort by all concerned.
Fortunately this was all an attempt to support the children in need appeal. Our theme for the day was non-uniform with the added attraction of "spots" if they were able to be added. Many of the children adopted the spots with gusto and the overall vision at the start of assembly was similar to a multi-coloured measles ward. Very scary. At the end of the day we also held a cake sale to raise funds by ensuring that the weekend commenced with lots of sugar intake for many of the children. We managed to raise nearly £160 from the non-uniform collection and a further £48 from the cake sale. A good effort by all concerned.
Thursday, 15 November 2007
What a good turn out for our curriculum evening! There was lots of parents and children who came to the hall on a very chilly evening to find out about the teaching of science throughout the school. The session started with a short chat from Mrs Chatterton and Mrs Dutton about the approach that the school adopts and this was then followed by practical work taking place all around the school.
Everywhere was alive with children and teachers working together to demonstrate how exciting activities are used to stimulate and develop scientific activity. In the IT suite there were demonstrations of the types of resources that are available on the internet and many parents were fascinated by the content of our school website. Mrs Barrington and her class were making "bouncy" balls using a process of change from one state to another. Mrs Peacher and Miss Slann were using puppets to stimulate their children's science work and they held a large group of parents spellbound for quite some time. A representative from the science department of Westcliff High School for Girls was working in Mrs Dutton's room and an awful lot of rich tea biscuits were consumed!
This was a highly successful evening. I would like to thank all of the staff and children who stayed for the evening and in particular Mrs Chatterton and Mrs Dutton who put the whole thing together.
Everywhere was alive with children and teachers working together to demonstrate how exciting activities are used to stimulate and develop scientific activity. In the IT suite there were demonstrations of the types of resources that are available on the internet and many parents were fascinated by the content of our school website. Mrs Barrington and her class were making "bouncy" balls using a process of change from one state to another. Mrs Peacher and Miss Slann were using puppets to stimulate their children's science work and they held a large group of parents spellbound for quite some time. A representative from the science department of Westcliff High School for Girls was working in Mrs Dutton's room and an awful lot of rich tea biscuits were consumed!
This was a highly successful evening. I would like to thank all of the staff and children who stayed for the evening and in particular Mrs Chatterton and Mrs Dutton who put the whole thing together.
Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Monday 12th
Well what an experience! Several days in Paris and travelling on Eurostar. If only it was possible for all members of the school staff to have such an experience - I think some may be quite surprised by the conditions that the French children have to deal with every day and the approach that French teachers have to school. Lots of the French delegates were not at the seminar on Saturday as they had to go into their schools to teach until lunchtime. That wouldn't go down too well in the UK.
Back at school everything was as normal - but the amount of illness that is around is quite shocking. There seems to be a persistent "lurgi" hanging around that is knocking everyone off their feet and is taking forever to recover from. One normally ever present member of staff has been off for a week and is off again this week as the "lurgi" has struck her down and caused a major chest infection. In addition to this nasty thing we also have doses of measles and chicken pox doing the rounds amongst the youngest children - quite a worrying time for some I would think.
Our school bungalow is now completed and is a beautiful place probably for the first time since it was built in the 1960s. Clive Meech and his intrepid team have done a wonderful job, finishing everything to a very high standard. This development has given us an additional space to use for a variety of purposes ranging from meetings room to party venue (this won't be the favoured option!). I'm looking forward to seeing how we can make good use of this space - we have had interest from a "virtual" children's centre which will be an interesting concept in itself.
Back at school everything was as normal - but the amount of illness that is around is quite shocking. There seems to be a persistent "lurgi" hanging around that is knocking everyone off their feet and is taking forever to recover from. One normally ever present member of staff has been off for a week and is off again this week as the "lurgi" has struck her down and caused a major chest infection. In addition to this nasty thing we also have doses of measles and chicken pox doing the rounds amongst the youngest children - quite a worrying time for some I would think.
Our school bungalow is now completed and is a beautiful place probably for the first time since it was built in the 1960s. Clive Meech and his intrepid team have done a wonderful job, finishing everything to a very high standard. This development has given us an additional space to use for a variety of purposes ranging from meetings room to party venue (this won't be the favoured option!). I'm looking forward to seeing how we can make good use of this space - we have had interest from a "virtual" children's centre which will be an interesting concept in itself.
Saturday, 10 November 2007
Friday in Paris
Another early morning. The day started with a thorough briefing regarding the expectations for the day. In a nutshell we were to produce an action plan for our partnership before lunchtime. My partner, Monsieur Thierry Asselin from the village of Luzarches in the Oise region of France. He is the Director (Headteacher) of a small school - Ecole Louis Jouvet - and his English was as limited as my French.
We spent the first hour looking at our school website and discussing the similarities and differences between our schools. After much faltering discussion we managed to put a project plan together and agree that the school would be the partner for Mr Duff and his Year 5 class. The link will start as soon as possible with the exchange of introductory letters and an identity card.
Following the work we left to visit some of the sites in Paris. I opted to go to see the Eiffel Tower and join the queue with the rest of the group to get to the top. After being in line for over an hour we were able to join another queue to get to the lifts. The wind blowing around the area meant that temperatures were very low and everyone in the group was very cold. The view at he top was worth the wait and the plummeting temperatures. We were lucky enough to see the view in daylight and also to see the sunset - a truly lovely experience.
Later in the evening the group completed the touristic experience by taking a cruise on the River Seine in a Bateau Mouche. Again it was freezing but well worth it to see all of the fabulous sights lit up for the night.
We spent the first hour looking at our school website and discussing the similarities and differences between our schools. After much faltering discussion we managed to put a project plan together and agree that the school would be the partner for Mr Duff and his Year 5 class. The link will start as soon as possible with the exchange of introductory letters and an identity card.
Following the work we left to visit some of the sites in Paris. I opted to go to see the Eiffel Tower and join the queue with the rest of the group to get to the top. After being in line for over an hour we were able to join another queue to get to the lifts. The wind blowing around the area meant that temperatures were very low and everyone in the group was very cold. The view at he top was worth the wait and the plummeting temperatures. We were lucky enough to see the view in daylight and also to see the sunset - a truly lovely experience.
Later in the evening the group completed the touristic experience by taking a cruise on the River Seine in a Bateau Mouche. Again it was freezing but well worth it to see all of the fabulous sights lit up for the night.
Thursday, 8 November 2007
Thursday 8th November
A full day in Paris. This morning I went to visit Ecole Gambetta just down the road in the suburb of Sevres. The directress (Headteacher) did not speak to us and simply handed us over to one of her teachers. We went up three flights of stairs and went into a classroom with 23 children and the class teacher. The first lesson was geography and the children were amazingly well behaved. There was very little in the way of discussion and the children spent most of the lesson passively sitting or cutting out and sticking. They answered a few questions and copied some writing that the teacher put on the blackboard. There was no ICT and the children were responsible for all of their own equipment; paper, pens, pencils, whiteboards and everything else. A short rendition of "Heads, shoulders, knees and toes" raised more interest and excitement than anything that went before.
Break time, twenty minutes in the play area, was followed by an English lesson. There was a different teacher for this lesson and she had a very specific script for what had to happen. The children joined in when told to do so but the learning was very limited. The behaviour and commitment of the pupils was first rate - the teaching was very poor and did not engage or encourage the children. There was little praise and the children all did the same thing and then were set the same activity for homework. The morning ended at 11.30am - the English group led a version of "heads etc" before the children went outside.
The children went out to play before going in to school for lunch. The meal provided was quite substantial, four courses, with all ingredients being freshly prepared and served. The dining room was a dedicated space used for nothing else.
This school was blessed with space - they had a gymnasium, a covered play area and two other very large open spaces in addition to all of the classrooms. There was an ICT suite and a library - but neither was being used during our visit.
The afternoon was spent finding a partner school. We presented our own schools and the French schools made a similar presentation later. It was a type of speed dating for schools - tomorrow we will find out whether or not we have been "chosen". The evening dinner was a well needed reak and brought the day to a conclusion.
An exhausting but very enjoyable day!
Break time, twenty minutes in the play area, was followed by an English lesson. There was a different teacher for this lesson and she had a very specific script for what had to happen. The children joined in when told to do so but the learning was very limited. The behaviour and commitment of the pupils was first rate - the teaching was very poor and did not engage or encourage the children. There was little praise and the children all did the same thing and then were set the same activity for homework. The morning ended at 11.30am - the English group led a version of "heads etc" before the children went outside.
The children went out to play before going in to school for lunch. The meal provided was quite substantial, four courses, with all ingredients being freshly prepared and served. The dining room was a dedicated space used for nothing else.
This school was blessed with space - they had a gymnasium, a covered play area and two other very large open spaces in addition to all of the classrooms. There was an ICT suite and a library - but neither was being used during our visit.
The afternoon was spent finding a partner school. We presented our own schools and the French schools made a similar presentation later. It was a type of speed dating for schools - tomorrow we will find out whether or not we have been "chosen". The evening dinner was a well needed reak and brought the day to a conclusion.
An exhausting but very enjoyable day!
Wednesday, 7 November 2007
Day 2
Sometimes Headteachers are very lucky people. Today is one of those times because instead of going into school and taking 11+ club and meeting with all of the teachers I am making a visit to Paris. It is a tough job but somebody has to do it or the funding will be wasted. The purpose of the trip is to form educational links with two schools from different regions of France so that we can further enhance our partnership working in Europe.
The day started early as I had to make my way to Waterloo Station form near to my home. A train journey and two changes on the tube later I arrived at the Eurostar terminal ready to meet the British Council group that I would be joining. The representative was late but she did arrive in time to give out tickets and explain instructions for the rest of the day.
The British Council are great. This large organisation exists to promote educational opportunities across the world and receives millions of pounds in funding each year to share with deserving causes. We have received some funding to do a variety of things and my visit over the next few days is to plan some of the activities for the next year.
Eurostar is a great experience and is cerainly the way to get to France. 3 and a bit hours door to door - can't e better. The coach journey from Gare de Nord to our accommodation was quite an experience -lots of traffic, driver who thought he was in a race and lots of sites to see including the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. So far so good - the plans for tomorrow include looking at a French school and meeting various people from the French education system.
The day started early as I had to make my way to Waterloo Station form near to my home. A train journey and two changes on the tube later I arrived at the Eurostar terminal ready to meet the British Council group that I would be joining. The representative was late but she did arrive in time to give out tickets and explain instructions for the rest of the day.
The British Council are great. This large organisation exists to promote educational opportunities across the world and receives millions of pounds in funding each year to share with deserving causes. We have received some funding to do a variety of things and my visit over the next few days is to plan some of the activities for the next year.
Eurostar is a great experience and is cerainly the way to get to France. 3 and a bit hours door to door - can't e better. The coach journey from Gare de Nord to our accommodation was quite an experience -lots of traffic, driver who thought he was in a race and lots of sites to see including the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. So far so good - the plans for tomorrow include looking at a French school and meeting various people from the French education system.
Tuesday, 6 November 2007
End of day 1
Today has been a very busy day. Writing the first page of the blog and not remembering to check for spelling mistakes was not the best of starts!
Every Tuesday we hold our staff meetings that are attended by all of the teaching team. Today we discussed a few items but the main topic was the Christmas Performance. We have chosen "Cinderella" to be the show this year and the acts will be performed by year groups working together. The will also be a live musician or two and a choir singing throughout the performance. As usual Miss Slann had a lot to say about the performance and Miss Bernard wanted to get started straight away! We should have a lot of fun this year - the theme is quite exciting.
The drains are now cleared! They have been blocked for the last few days and in parts of the school the smell has been terrible. Mr Rice has also rescued the manhole cover that he dropped into the drains!
One of our midday assistants, Zell, is a brilliant cake maker. Today she brought in some banana cake that was absolutely delicious. I'd better not eat too much - don't want to get the taste and put on weight.
Every Tuesday we hold our staff meetings that are attended by all of the teaching team. Today we discussed a few items but the main topic was the Christmas Performance. We have chosen "Cinderella" to be the show this year and the acts will be performed by year groups working together. The will also be a live musician or two and a choir singing throughout the performance. As usual Miss Slann had a lot to say about the performance and Miss Bernard wanted to get started straight away! We should have a lot of fun this year - the theme is quite exciting.
The drains are now cleared! They have been blocked for the last few days and in parts of the school the smell has been terrible. Mr Rice has also rescued the manhole cover that he dropped into the drains!
One of our midday assistants, Zell, is a brilliant cake maker. Today she brought in some banana cake that was absolutely delicious. I'd better not eat too much - don't want to get the taste and put on weight.
Headteacher blog day 1
Good morning everyone! The day has started well so far - only four members of staff off sick and not too many walking wonded in the staffroom. Breaksfast club has been attended by well over 60 children this morning and Mr Duff has managed to consume 12 slices of toast with butter and jam!
A quite busy morning today. We have lots of visitors and many of them require some time to find out information. One of the most important visitors is the attendance officer. We must try to address the poor attendance of a small number of children - they seem to be off school for a range of trivial reasons and this is having a bad effect upon their learning and the attendance figures. We maybe need a new approach - all idea welcom.
We have received a couple of offers of help with music for the Christmas Performance. Not having our own music teacher is quite annoying and means that at this time of year in particular we have to scrabble around to fulfill our basic needs. This has to be a pririty for the next recruitment round.
A quite busy morning today. We have lots of visitors and many of them require some time to find out information. One of the most important visitors is the attendance officer. We must try to address the poor attendance of a small number of children - they seem to be off school for a range of trivial reasons and this is having a bad effect upon their learning and the attendance figures. We maybe need a new approach - all idea welcom.
We have received a couple of offers of help with music for the Christmas Performance. Not having our own music teacher is quite annoying and means that at this time of year in particular we have to scrabble around to fulfill our basic needs. This has to be a pririty for the next recruitment round.
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