28th January 2022
HEADLINES
By James Saunders
Wow. What a week it has been. I have never been one to shy away from sharing the heart of the school. This week we have all had to rally together to put our heart and soul into it. I want to thank you for the many messages of support this week as we have had to tackle not only our most difficult time in the pandemic but one where it feels that we have been very much abandoned by the powers that be. Guidance and support is most definitely lacking at the moment. I think you know how we feel - we all feel the frustrations. Many parents have appreciated the often subtle undercurrents I place in Headlines. Somehow I found comfort in this little quote this week do with it what you will. “When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king. The palace becomes a circus”. - Turkish proverb So let’s go into the weekend maintaining our sense of sensibility and rise above any clown-like joviality. We will be entering next week just like this one - cautiously and carefully. We will not be abandoning face masks just yet. ENRICHMENT Right, back to business as usual. Enrichment. I was so pleased that we managed to get a group of C9 learners to Colchester Zoo. It was not all monkeying (or even clowning) around as they were there to learn about marketing from the experts. The feedback from learners, the zoo staff and parents was really positive. Mr Flanders has already decided that this trip will be an annual event. Keeping with the theme of C9 Enrichment we have had a terrific week of sporting success. First up was our boys Futsal team who took the game to Notley School in the semi final and Ramsey School in the final. An excellent performance by the C9 champs. Next it was the girls’ turn to do battle. This time on the netball court, to fight for the county plate. After a tightly contested game with Shoeburyness High School the girls secured a well deserved win. Finally, I want to let you know that I have met with Mrs Frogley this week to discuss our enrichment plans for the
coming year which we will be sharing with you soon. I am excited about the end of year residentials to Norfolk and Devon as well as the upcoming trip to the Globe and Tate gallery. I am even planning to take my own class to the museum of computing history later this term. And our Monopoly Challenge day is even making a comeback. Keep an eye out for further exciting enrichment opportunities designed to help learners catch up on the cultural experiences that we have missed so much over the last two years. TEACHING AWARDS The 2022 Pearson National Teaching Awards are open to every school across the UK. The awards were established by Lord Puttnam CBE in 1998 and are managed by the Teaching Awards Trust, an independent charity. The vision of the charity is to recognise and celebrate the work and impact of schools, teachers and colleges across the UK. If ever there is a time to recognise the hard work of our school staff, now is the time. Click here for a short video highlighting the BBC One Show coverage of the awards For Schools who take part , entering the awards has a really positive impact on the wider staff and school community, far beyond the individual nominated. Please do take this opportunity to thank our staff. You can nominate them here: https://www.teachingawards.com/2022awards There are 15 award categories to choose from with award categories recognising individual, team and whole school achievement. The entry process has been simplified this year to make it even easier to enter. Now let’s all breathe and switch off for the weekend. I wish you all a safe and happy weekend. James Saunders