Dear ALS Community,
Whilst this hasn’t been the half-term I think any of us would have planned for, I think that we have, as a whole school community, made the very best of the circumstances we have found ourselves in. A core tenent of our ethos is to help children to focus on the things in their power and to “control what they can control” and I think this translates well as a message for the adults in the school community, too. We can’t change that we’re in a lockdown, we can’t make it that the Prime Minister opens the school for all year groups on the 8th March (though we can certainly hope and dream!) and we can’t change the past few months. But, we can seize that which is in our control and make the very best of it. We can take the time to invest in our own wellbeing, to appreciate the time we have with family and to keep on going. Remember, eventually we’ll have that long awaited ALS BBQ with Mr Smart on the BBQ, a bouncy castle in the hall, Mr Owen on the karaoke (I mean, it would be a new addition to how we run the BBQ but he’s claimed to be the karaoke king) and Mr James behind the bar.
For this half-term, you’ll know that our Heads of House (Mr Dobson, Amicus; Mr Hawkins, Veritas; Mr Scott, Dedicas) had set a series of competitions for pupils to take part in. Looking through the entries with the Heads of Houses earlier this week, I was delighted not to see the level of talent on show (clearly, this is wonderful) but how much joy families seemed to have taken in working together. The STEM competition to build a structure using spaghetti and marshmallows shines as a particular family favourite. Of course, the level of talent on show was wonderful and selecting winners in different categories was a difficult task. Whilst it was a competition, winning really wasn’t the point when we set out the challenges. The enjoyment of preparing, planning and entering is really at the heart of what House Competitions are all about and receiving bonus house points for every entry comes in handy! Please find a letter from the Heads of Houses here that shares the winners and honourable mentions from the competition. Next week, we’ll be releasing some highlights on our social media so do look out for that. I’m going to give a shout out to Kasper, Year 4, for writing his own song about lockdown (which is very catchy) and Alfie, Year 8, who used a 3D printer to design and print out a piece of art. The effort and skill on show from both Kasper and Alfie is exceptional.
On Monday, Year 9 submitted their GCSE Options to school so that we could try and build their interests in to a bespoke curriculum for their GCSE studies. Having worked on it this week, I’m delighted that we have already built our GCSE Option blocks for next year. Today, Year 9 pupils (with parents CC’d in) have received a letter outlining the options for next year and to confirm their subjects for their GCSE courses. As the children, in many cases, have submitted their own forms and taken the initiative to speak with their teachers to find out about which subjects would suit them, I think it’s right that the school’s official response is written to the children in the first instance. I know that, for many, the process of selecting GCSE Options feels like the first “real” decision they have to make about their futures and keeping a sense of ownership in the process is important.
Mr Gear has released the next Senior Phase ExEn projects to start the week commencing Monday 22nd February. If you enjoyed the last ones here is a little teaser of the next ones. We look forward to seeing what you have been up to, whether its designing that new menu or learning first aid. If you have any questions about the projects, please speak to Mr Gear on [email protected].
Last week, our Junior school pupils received a pack of goodies to support mental health week. Not to leave out our Senior aged pupils, we sent home a care package of brownies to thank pupils in Year 7 to 13 for their hard work over this half-term. Though these are relatively small gestures, I hope that the children were delighted to receive a package from school and to remember that we are really very proud of them. If there are any brownies left in your home, Mr Owen says a quick microwave and then a bit of ice-cream makes the perfect pudding. I’ll leave you to experiment on the flavour!
I can’t quite believe that the youngest member of our school community (at least to the best of my knowledge) is 4 weeks old on Saturday. It continues to baffle me as to how someone that small can make that much noise! Mrs Preston wants me to thank the school community for your kindness once again as Henry continues to receive cards and gifts to celebrate his arrival. As a family, we feel really very grateful for the support we’ve received from the ALS community. I’m very much looking forward to Henry joining us for that long awaited ALS BBQ and you can all say hello in person.
Have a wonderful and restful half-term.
David Preston | Headteacher
February 12th 2021
