Headlines - 10 May 2024

HEADLINES 10th May 2024

By

James Saunders

THANK YOU TEACHERS

Well it is finally starting to feel like the summer term. The sun is out and it has been another lovely week at Honywood. I am very privileged in my job in that I get opportunities that many teachers don’t have - I get to visit loads of lessons to see our learners in action in multiple subjects. This week I have been into many lessons and have loved every minute. I am ending the week feeling very proud to work alongside a great bunch of colleagues who have our learners at their very core.

It often feels like behaviour is the all consuming part of being a teacher. It doesn’t help that this is a backdrop that is mirrored nationally. One can be forgiven for allowing these things to permeate all of our thoughts. The danger is that we place our attention on systems and structures rather than the environment they lead to. I am pleased to say that the behaviour I have seen this week has been excellent and the conditions in place in every classroom have been conducive to learning. So let’s forget about behaviour for the moment and talk about the thing that we love to do at Honywoodteach. I am proud to call myself a teacher. When I am in the classroom I am a teacher first and a head second. That love of teaching is shared across the school.

During my visits to lessons I have been able to observe the rich and varied diet that our learners receive across the school day and see the wonderful work that goes into creating a learning journey for each individual.

As it is teacher appreciation week I thought I would share some of the highlights I have seen this week:

• Deepening Thinking through ethical debates about euthanasia in C10 PRC - thank you Mr Tolhurst and Miss Ward.

• Structured reflection time in C8 Drama that enabled learners to develop their own EBis and WWWs and then redraft their work as a resultthank you Miss Sadler.

• Learner led creating knowledge structures through detailed modelling and questioning in C11 History - thank you Mr Williams

• Well structured peer support in C9 Science practicals that enabled all learners to engage with the topic - thank you Miss Day.

• A fantastic C9 cover lesson in English where the learners were developing their oracy skills and modelling for each other - thank you Mrs Harris.

• Learner led modelling in C9 English to ensure a thorough understanding of how to construct answers - thank you Mrs Sparrow.

• Breaking down abstract concepts using visual models in C7 Maths to support learners to understand fractions - thank you Mrs Wheatcroft.

• Excellent use of classroom support in C7 Art to ensure learners could demonstrate their creative print skills - thank you Mrs Dixon.

• Focused and purposeful learner led exam prep in C11 Science. They all were relaxed and feeling positive about today’s first GCSE exam - Biology - thank you Mr Dyer.

There is a strong theme that connects each of these lessons - learner agency and independence. There are two parts to teaching and learning. It’s easy for us to focus on the part of the teacher but learning needs to come from the individual. Only through careful facilitation and teaching can learners achieve the agency and independence needed to own and lead their learning. If the teacher is doing all the work, is learning happening?. It was great to see staff creating the conditions for learning to flourish - that only comes from good teaching.

As a result our learners have been making excellent progress at Honywood.

Have a great weekend.

James Saunders

Congratulations to Amy Garner C11 and Scarlett Evans C10 who were presented with League and Cup winners trophies for their first year in senior netball. Olivia Walby C10 couldn’t be there to collect her trophies but was a valuable part of their team too. Well done girls!

On Tuesday, our C11 boys football team played Helena Romanes School in the District Cup final at Coggeshall Town Football Club. They won! Well done to all of the team, winning 2-0. What a way to finish their last game together at Honywood.

Well done to everyone who took part in our Readathon this year. We raised £215! This money will go towards buying books for children in hospitals as well as other literacy outreach work.

Dates for the Diary