Oh, the places you’ll go!
It is heart-warming to see that the children can now get out and about much more and we can at last book off-site educational trips. There are still some events that have not happened, or will be communicated by zoom, but just this week alone we have Red Class (Nursery) visiting the Wetland Centre, Yellow Class (Year 1) having a toys workshop and Blue Class (Year 3) visiting Kew Gardens; we also have the residential trips for the Juniors starting up. It is this part of their education that has been impossible to replicate over the past few terms and so we are encouraging the staff to find opportunities for school visits, whether very local or further away, to enhance the children’s school experience.
My optimism is guarded with a sense of realism that we are still living through COVID and situations around the world clearly show the importance of us continuing to act with caution. We still have social distancing and hygiene measures in place in school for pupils and staff, and, although it may appear things are relatively normal, we are still operating within certain restrictions. This is following guidance and is designed to minimise school disruption if any positive cases of COVID return.
Whole School Jigsaw Puzzle
Our wonderful ‘Whole-School Puzzle’ display in the school Hall has brought a renewed feeling of unity and community along with some positivity about being back. It is natural that some children, and adults, have been feeling slightly anxious about returning to school, or coping with the changes to routine as a result of the COVID crisis. This activity was designed to support the children to feel a sense of belonging and understand their place in the school. The idea behind it is that the school community is a jigsaw made up of different pieces (the pupils, staff, parents etc.). Each piece is unique and fits together to make a whole picture, in the same way that the different people in our school community fit together to make a whole.