The blog this week is a slightly different one; I won’t be sharing any tips or tricks (sorry!). Just to highlight something that’s been on my mind.
This week we received the news that two of our local grammar schools have had their Ofsted ratings
downgraded from outstanding to good. It’s made us pause and consider the huge range prevalent in our local schools in terms of facilities, calibre of teaching, and pastoral care. Every school always aims to offer the highest possible standard of teaching, equipment and space, and general care and support. However, striking the balance between all three is hard, and harder than ever before since the start of the pandemic. They’ve had to deal with positive tests triggering staff and students to isolate and the pressure to be versatile, ready to adapt to classroom learning or home learning wherever it’s necessary.
We encourage parents and guardians to be supportive of both students and teachers, especially now. Students have, in recent years, demonstrated overwhelming durability in the face of serious fear and uncertainty and school staff have worked desperately hard to give children the support that they need to learn and be happy. This downgrade will be a real kick in the teeth for them after all of their hard work. Maybe give your child’s teacher an extra big smile this week or thank them. Perhaps also remind your child how proud everyone is of them for staying so focused on school during such a turbulent two years.
Lastly, from us here at 11PlusLeap to you, well done. It’s been a very challenging time for you too and you’re doing a sterling job.
The exercise attached is a bit of a lengthy one to test vocab knowledge—see how they get on!
