Report for the Junior School 2007 - 2008

Click here is you wish to see the Report for the Senior School

This speech was delivered by the Head of the Junior School, Andrew Holmes, at Friends and Families Day 10th May 2008

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, Old Scholars, students, pupils, parents, visitors, guests and Friends. On behalf of the Junior School, welcome to Friends and Families Day.

William Fraser in Quaker Faith and Practice wrote:

“Of course we do not succeed all the time. But failure is also what we have to educate ourselves for - the humiliating, stimulating experiences of failure that we and our students must learn to use as stepping-stones rather than to deplore as obstacles.”

A good Education should be about challenging ourselves and challenging our pupils - and when we do this we failure becomes a possibility – but we should always remember - The man who never made a mistake - never made anything.

Friends’ Junior School has continued to flourish and develop over the last year precisely because we are continually challenging ourselves and our children to have a go, to take a chance, to be think and act independently and not be afraid of making mistakes – it is after all- how we grow as a school and how we develop as individuals. Many improvements have been put in place to improve and re-evaluate the education we provide and this has been given an extra focus by the ISI inspection.

This inspection has been a big challenge. A great deal of hard work and preparation has occurred over the past year.

As a school we have looked honestly at our practice and evaluated things we do well and areas where improvement can be made. This involved a detailed look at progress since our last inspection, revisiting of the aims of the school and testing our own expectations and assumptions.

Just when we thought the inspection season was over, only last Tuesday returning after the Bank Holiday weekend we were greeted by the smiling face (yes they can smile) of an OFSTED Early Years inspector who spent day with us. Two inspections inside 6 weeks – another unexpected challenge
But more of Inspections later

So what has changed during past year?

Tiffany Johnson has begun impressively in her role as Nursery Coordinator bringing subtle but positive changes and improvements to the way in which the Nursery works. We have also appointed Sue Powell to teach French in Reception and Key Stage 1, Angie Lesslie to teach Nursery music as well as running Mini-Maestros and an Infant singing practice.

Max Ford, Gisèle Searle-Barnes and Peter Fasching have been teaching modern Languages in Key Stage 2 this year and have produced a Modern Language policy, which integrates with French in Reception and Key Stage One.

The new computer suite has been installed along with 2 more interactive whiteboards and all are proving very successful. This will be extended still further as we move towards embedding ICT across the Junior school. The ICT policy and schemes of work have been updated – as has mathematics - in the light of the new revised Numeracy strategy.

The new Gifted and Talented register has been drawn up and Debbie Ballingall has begun to take the lead in this area and a new Inclusion and Additional Needs Policy has been written by Janet Bethune.

We have continued to recognise the importance of professional development and we have encouraged all staff to attend relevant courses. As a result of this - and the hard work of teachers, teaching assistants and pupils, our National Curriculum Results have again been impressive. Another challenge.

Key Stage One
English
Speaking and Listening 100% level 2 or above,
31% at level 3
Reading 100% level 2 or above, 15% at level 3
Writing 100% level 2 or above, 15% level 3 or above
Mathematics - 100% level 2 or above
Science - 100% at level 2 or above 31% at level 3

Key Stage Two

English - 92% level 4 or above 46% at level 5
Mathematics - 81% level 4 or above 35% at level 5
Science - 100% level 4 or above 53% at level 5

All these results are well above the national average - but tests, statistics and league tables only tell a part of the story – You don’t fatten a pig by weighing it and you do not educate children by testing them.

Outside the classroom, we offer a wide range of clubs, trips, activities and visitors to widen children’s experience. Residential trips have once again been a core part of school life in Years 5 and 6. Year 5 visited North Norfolk and Year 6 spent a very successful week in North Wales looking at glaciation, organic farming and climbing to the top of Snowden. The weather this year was perfect –like today.

The school continues to enhance its reputation in the quality of its music and drama. Reception and Years 1 and 2 put on a sparkling Christmas entertainment, which this year is entitled “The Snow Child” which was so impressive that Anglia television used it for a feature on Christmas in schools across the region.

In the spring term Years 3 and 4 produced a stunning version of “Goldilocks”, that was a credit to all concerned.

We are again taking the Orchestra on tour to visit and play at the two Quaker schools in York in May. We are also looking forward to the Year 6 play “The Key Master”, the Orchestra playing on the Saffron Walden bandstand and of course the Junior School Concert on the final Wednesday of term.

A big thank you to all our peripatetic music teachers and a particular thanks to Martin Wilson for his hardwork, enthusiasm and inspiration. Later on today everyone (and I mean everyone) in the Junior school will be involved in “The Big Song and Dance”

We have raised a significant amount of money for charities this year with £100 raised for “Water Aid” through a cake stall. At our Harvest Celebration, we raised a further £332 for George Mills and his charity.

At the end of the Autumn term the Junior School Christmas Fayre raised an astonishing £950 half of which went to “Homestart”. One of our most impressive fundraising activities was getting the whole of the school (Yes - reception as well!) to run the Sport Relief Mile – an impressive feat! I fact 300 little feet.

Only a couple of weeks ago three pupils come to me an idea for raising money for the RSPCA. They agreed to lead an assembly to explain why they thought this was important and we have collected a further £145 through a non-uniform day. A wonderful show of initiative, confidence and independence.

All of our pupils have been offered places at the Senior school as a result of the entrance examination earlier this year. Jessie Harris won an academic scholarship, as did Harry Stanley. Four of the top three academic places were from the Junior school and Yasmin Malik was awarded the Art scholarship.
The annual Rotary Club Book Award was presented to Oliver Leyshon for his positive, helpful and responsible approach to school life.

The sporting side of the Junior school continues to flourish. The Junior school Cricket team finished off another splendid season last year by coming third in the Saffron Walden Primary schools competition. The mixed Rounders team won the local tournament at SWCHS for the first time beating 33 other local schools. The A and B football teams at under 9 and under 11 level have continued to perform well and have enjoyed a very successful season reaching the semi finals of the Laxton 6 a side competition. The netball team has continued to improve and been much more consistent this year and the Under 9’s team has become firmly established. The hockey team have acquitted themselves well in the local Primary schools league.

Running continues to thrive. In the Spring term we took a team to take part in the East Anglian Prep school competition -Jack Folland and Hannah Irwin came 5th and Tom Cropper came 3rd. in their respective year groups. Later in the term we visited Langley School and won the Under 11 shield for girls and the Under 11 shield for boys.

We hosted the 6th Friends Junior school cross-country event and retained the overall shield and credit for this should be go to Sue Westgarth for continuing to enthuse our children.

Penn won the Inter House Swimming this year in the usual frenzy of 82 races admirably organised by Ray Mordini.

Finally, the Chess team spent the last day of the Spring term taking part in the local Primary schools competition. We came a very impressive third with Josh Hughes winning a runners-up trophy. Again thanks to Jane and Patrick Manley for their hard work and enthusiasm.

The Junior School is also very proud to be holders of the Eco-schools Silver Award. There have been several developments in this area. The worms in the composter have survived the winter and we have purchased another three (composters not worms) to spread around the school to help recycle the organic waste. Shoe Friends, who work with Uttlesford DC, are continuing to visit the school to lead workshops using recycled materials. Later this term we will be organising another Green Transport Day and will be applying for Green Flag Status. Pupils, parents, and staff have put in a great deal of work in order to tackle these Green issues.

I would like to leave you with some thoughts from our inspection. I said earlier that this was a considerable challenge and challenges are no good unless you rise to them.

So how did we do?
It has only just been published and here are some quotes to give you a just a flavour:

The curriculum is effectively planned, providing equality of access and challenge to all pupils. Subjects are well managed and co-ordinated

Pupils show a good grounding in the essential knowledge and skills of their academic subjects and broad general knowledge and understanding of the world in which they live.
An understanding of other pupils’ difficulties and the importance of helping others is a valuable part of many pupils’ experience.
Support for pupils with additional needs is of a particularly high quality.
Able pupils benefit from the scheme for gifted and talented children.

Throughout the junior school, pupils work hard and enthusiastically.
They are attentive to their teachers and to each other.
They work quietly by themselves and are able to work productively with other pupils.
Much of the life of the school involves teamwork and the pupils show in their own conduct the benefit of this approach.
Pupils in the Junior school develop a strong sense of their personal identity and worth because of the care, sympathy and attention they receive from their teachers.
Through the example and guidance of teachers, the children learn to become increasingly aware of and responsive to the feelings and needs of others.

Teachers and class assistants enable pupils to make good progress according to their ability, to increase their knowledge and acquire new skills.

Friends’ school provides a good range of educational opportunities to suit the interests, aptitudes and needs of all the pupils, consistent with the school’s aims and philosophy.

And a particular favourite of mine:
Pupils from one class, asked which of their lessons they liked best, said - They liked them all.

I have written the cheque!

I began this speech by talking about rising to challenges and I hope that the sense that you have from this brief synopsis of the year and the remarks of the Inspectorate is one of a School unafraid to widen horizons, unafraid to try things out, unafraid of doing what we believe in, unafraid even of two lots of Inspectors. A positive and energetic school continually striving to do better, and allowing children to learn and grow as rounded human beings.
We remain a family school, without pretension, with a strong sense of community - where children learn to learn, learn to care for others and to respect differences.

I would like to thank Sally Meyrick, Sally Manser, and all of the teachers, teaching assistants, secretaries, support staff and of course the children that are all part of a very supportive and dedicated team in the Junior school. I am enormously proud of what we have achieved this year and they should be warmly congratulated.

If you visit the Junior school classrooms from 1.30, you will see a wide range of activities going on and I hope to see you all down at the Junior school for the Big Song and Dance at 2.45. You will see us flying in the face of the possible and laughing in the face of disaster!

So to finish and taking some lines from a poem by Robert Hastings which speaks of the need to live each moment as it comes, to continually challenge ourselves without fear of failure – as Friends Junior school has done and will continue to do.

Stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles – instead
Swim more rivers
Climb more mountains,
Eat more ice cream, (particularly good advice today)
Go barefoot,
Count more stars
Ride more merry-go-rounds
Watch more sunsets,
Laugh more and cry less.

And I could add – listen to fewer speeches!
Thank you for your tolerance and patience, Thank you for listening. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Andrew Holmes
10th May 2008