I hope you've all enjoyed a lovely Easter with your families, with that glorious Easter sunshine! The staff have had a well-deserved rest and have arrived back at school ready for the new term, although we do still have some illness lingering.
The children too have bounced back into school and are clearly ready for their new challenges! We are now charged to rejoice in the Easter message and share Jesus' good news, with everyone we meet on a daily basis. We gathered on Tuesday to reflect on Holy Week and the immense sacrifice made for each one of us. We thought about how we could become the hands of Jesus every day and each one of us made a promise to change at least one thing to become ‘better versions of ourselves’. Now the hard work begins.
Our two new virtues of Eloquence and Truth will be woven into all our learning during this short half term:
My ability to speak competently my own language, and the languages of others, is fundamental to my growth and confidence as a social human being. This is eloquence. However, being able to speak well is not much use if what you speak is not worth saying. Eloquence must be used in a truthful way – to speak truth about myself and others, about relations between people, about the world, and about God. Education is the search for truth and the eloquent articulation of what we discover. As Jesus tells us, “The truth will set you free.” (John 8:32)
Almsgiving
As you know, throughout Lent, we have all taken our own journeys as we have walked against hunger, trying to raise as much money as we can for CAFOD. Final totals have fallen just short of our target. At the moment of writing this we have raised £964 from donations. We are so hoping that we may receive one or two more donations to help take us over the line to reach our £1000 target. If you didn’t manage to donate before Easter and are able to do so, please put it on ParentPay to add to our collection. Every penny is so appreciated.
Online Safety
Unfortunately, we have returned to school following the holidays having to support groups of children to navigate through their online experiences. This has taken a huge amount of time, to listen, to discuss and to problem-solve. On reflection, I feel that the pandemic has forced many of us, adults and children alike, to stay in contact with friends via social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and TikTok. These platforms have provided essential lifelines, making communication easier, providing a feeling of connectivity to others and reducing isolation.
However, we are finding that without guidance and left unchecked, children have created large chat groups within which the normal etiquette of every day face to face life has been lost. With only text to read, the normal nuances of reading body language and tone, through seeing reactions are difficult and comments made can often be misinterpreted or said with a flippancy which makes an individual feel uncomfortable and at times deeply hurt. It is no surprise to find when discussing online behaviour in classes that most children say that they have felt hurt, belittled or devalued at some point over the last year, and yet, have not always sought support from a trusted adult. Children also talk about an overwhelming pressure from themselves or their peers to be involved in group chats to avoid a feeling of not being part of something; having a fear of missing out and then feeling isolated.
When we compare these online issues with issues which arise in the playground, with face to face interactions we find the latter a far safer environment where children are far more in tune with how their actions impact on others. In person, in the classroom or the playground, they adjust their tone and language and proactively address injustice and seek a trusted adult’s support when they need advice or help with finding a solution. This process encourages children to take responsibility for their actions and to develop healthy relationships. Unfortunately, this process and behaviour is not always replicated online.
Whether we like it or not, online communication is here to stay. The question for us as adults is how can we support the children to be more courageous and not be swayed by peer pressure, to recognise when conversations are unhealthy and to understand that, just because we think a comment is funny, it doesn’t make it acceptable when it devalues someone else. There are no easy answers and this is something we are continuously grappling with in school. However, one thing is clear, children of primary age are not equipped to spend large amounts of time on social media groups without the guidance and support of a trusted adult. I would urge every parent to scroll through conversations on their child’s phone regularly and consider if they are happy with what they find. If nothing else, this would be a good place to commence an open conversation and provide the guidance needed, which in the long term could prevent children making ill-informed choices which could place themselves or others in unsafe situations which cause anxiety and hurt.
Office News
We’ve been asked to remind everyone please NOT to use their mobile phones whilst on school grounds. Several members of staff saw one or two mobile phones in use during the week. Challenges were not made on these occasions as no-one wanted to embarrass parents in front of others but we must reiterate that in future, if phones are spotted in use, we will have to ask people to put them away immediately. It is part of a policy which you have all signed up to as part of your licence to come on to school property and we have to take it very seriously as it is part of our safeguarding policy.
We’re just bringing this week's dinner registers up to date. We are asking those people whose children’s accounts are showing that they are in debt, please to bring them up to date on ParentPay this weekend. Dinners are still £2.35 per day.
On a more cheerful note, we’ve been visited this week by two lovely babies, accompanied by their Mums; we’ve seen Arlo and Miss Lane earlier this week and Amelie and Miss Edmondson today. We managed, as a staff, to have the briefest lunchtime baby shower for Mrs Gregan and we were all delighted to have a real life baby with us for a short while!
Attendance
Attendance has varied between classes due to illness, but we are very impressed with Year 4 who managed an attendance of 99.2% this week. We hope, as the days lengthen and the days get warmer, that everyone will feel fit and well so that all can enjoy the fabulous outdoor opportunities which this Summer term affords.
Induction for new Reception Parents 2022
We now have our list of new children for September 2022 and are greatly looking forward to welcoming parents on Thursday June 23rd at 6pm to our Induction Evening. This is an opportunity for parents to meet the staff and governors as they prepare for their children to commence their school journey. We are so pleased to be able to complete Induction in person this year as we know how difficult it has been during the pandemic for parents who were not able to see the inside of school properly or meet Staff before their children started. The trust you placed in us and continue to do is humbling, thank you.
Finally
Many of the children have been sharing their holiday experiences with me and clearly there were a lot of holy families over Easter! Not to mention plenty of chocolate enjoyed afterwards! I really do hope you’ve all managed to be uplifted and feel ready for another term. We have lots of things planned so please keep an eye on the school calendar.
In line with our Easter mission I leave you with our Easter prayer…
Jesus, fill me with your spirit of love and service.
Help me to see everyone as someone whom
you are inviting me to help in some way.
Make me generous enough to answer that invitation…
Amen.
God bless,
Miss Hornby