Mr Spanswick's Words Summer 4

I returned last weekend from a gruelling school inspection. It is a privilege to be allowed to enter another school and evaluate their systems and their own interpretation of a curriculum - it is also a wonderful feeling to come back and assess what we do with a different set of eyes. Throughout the summer term, my senior and middle management staff consistently analyse what we do and where improvements can be made - and improvements can always be made! Before half term I will share with you the new leadership structure to our Senior and Middle leadership teams for September 2017 which will hopefully give you an insight into how we intend to continue to provide the best possible learning environment and bespoke education for your son.

Commencing on Monday, Year 1 to Year 6 will take our summer assessments which allow us to understand every pupils’ skill sets, a pupil’s ability and their individual needs. Results as always will be shared with our parent body. Assessment week has changed a great deal since I was at school (albeit that was a very very long time ago!), where the two weeks before exams were sat you would be revising factual information and cramming as much information into your brain as you could.

Nowadays assessments look at evaluating our pupils underlying ability, where academic templates and conceptual understanding are the tools needed to apply yourself to new and challenging situations. And looking back on my days of revising when the sun was shining, I welcome this change for the boys! While there is a significant need for short and long term memory in our lives, it is our Working Memory which now takes centre stage. Once results have come out, you will have a chance to catch up with your son’s form tutor and subject teachers at our next parents evening to go through the outcomes.

But we cannot only gauge success in school by outcomes in the classroom - far from it. It is your sons’ happiness and fulfilment of his holistic potential that matters the most to us, whether this is measured in kindness, good manners, traditional values of respect and integrity…..as so many of you are aware in the industries you work in, people skills and emotional understanding have such a huge role to play.

This week we have seen sports matches a plenty with the weather being kind to us, and I was very lucky to catch the Under 11 A and B teams playing Davenies on Wednesday. These little boys have become men on the cricket field, and the professional way that they conducted themselves both on and off the pitch was wonderful to see. Well done boys. From my photo gallery you will also see our younger pupils taking pride in their excellent Maths work, their literacy, and their handwriting as well as Year 6 shelter building during after school activities, a pre- prep assembly with Nurse Webster and Year 2 at The Living Rain Forest.

I hope that those of you who are attending our Summer Ball tomorrow evening have a wonderful time. Unfortunately I will not be attending again, as I am accompanying my son and the rest of the Under 9 and Under 11 chess teams to Bristol for the South of England school championships. The best of luck to all the boys who are taking part.

Have a lovely weekend.

Justin Spanswick