Unbelievably, we are now three weeks into term and Christmas and the new year seem a distant memory. This is especially the case for those children who have been involved with exams during January. Although there are still some assessments to go, the written exams are nearly all over. Well done to all our Year 6s for the wonderful way they have conducted themselves throughout the process; their hard work and team spirit are a credit to the school.
On Friday, some children took part in a chess tournament against Darell Primary School. All those who competed demonstrated focus and concentration throughout, in the hard-fought matches. It is a wonderful activity and remains a popular school club. Other recent activities have included hockey matches in the juniors and several children spent the afternoon at St John’s Leatherhead for a musical recital afternoon.
As part of our mufti Australia Day today, I will be attempting to create some sort of noise on the didgeridoo during the tea time concert! Please do support this day; it will be fun, but it is of course supporting an unprecedented set of events in Australia. We have a number of families with Australian connections and I hope we can do a small bit to support the country. All donations will go to the Australian Red Cross.
There are a number of good articles in the Spring 2020 edition of Attain Magazine, including an interesting column about managing transitions, not just between schools but also from year to year. It emphasises the importance of positive communication between parents and school, and sharing information that is essential for everyone to know if the child is going to have the most appropriate support through a change in their routine. It is also heart-warming to read another article that emphasises the importance of creativity, written by a teacher at a senior school. Here at Unicorn, right from the school’s foundation, we have recognised the importance of creativity and ensure we have a curriculum and a culture that celebrates the arts and recognises how key music, art and drama are; not just as rewarding skills and offering breadth to education, but also in terms of wellbeing through relaxation, enjoyment and comradery.
This term we have had school assemblies on the significance of working together, how every individual is important and how we should celebrate the individual character and personalities of our friends and colleagues, and we had our first Celebration Assembly of the term this morning. I have been struck by the wonderful community spirit in evidence at Unicorn at the moment. So often in the playground and around the school I see older children helping or playing with younger children, and boys mixing with girls. This was commented to me by a prospective parent recently after a tour of the school – how happy the children seemed and all joining in together. This working together is also very true of the staff at Unicorn.
Finally, well done to our Nursery Class. As I visited the swimming pool last Friday, it was wonderful to see them in the pool. All of them following the instructions of the teachers and helpers. It was only their second week in the pool together and yet their teacher and others commented what a wonderful group they are. Thank you to their parents for your support. Helping out on a Friday morning is not convenient for everyone, but it still remains one of the more unique elements of the education Unicorn provides.