In four days I have visited three schools in England and each one has blown me away in more ways than I could ever have imagined.
Today it was the turn of Surrey Square School in Holwarth to put up with me, and once again the welcoming I got was incredibly warm and touching.
First impressions can mean so much, so to Sue at the front desk, you are gold!
Sue took me around for a quick tour, but what struck me was that she knew just as much about what was happening in the rooms as did most of the other staff. They have a great approach to having everyone involved in the learning.
With Sue, who could not have looked after me any better at all.
I then spent time with a number of teachers discussing the way they operate with children who come from more than 30 nationalities, and from an area dominated by high rise housing estates.
The kids are treated with so much respect and were just beautiful to interact with.
With Clare Deen, the Deputy Head.
With the inspiring Principal, Liz Robinson.
Surrey Square does a lot of work with REAL Projects - this means that they are Rigorous, Engaging, Authentic and Learning. These projects allow the teachers to create lessons and activities around a single complex inquiry that leads to a high quality end product that is exhibited to an authentic audience.
They are planned to cover all aspects of the national curriculum while at the same time providing a rich, real life learning experience.
This school does so much to build community. It is in a rather depressed area and the surroundings are dominated by high rise council estates. This does not stop them however from doing all that they can to involve the parents and the community in the learning of the children. The benefits are not just for the children, but also for the parents who are now forming friendships and becoming active co-educators of the children.
The banners advertising the school values line the street outside the school, making the school an inviting and exciting place to be in the community.
Surrey square School
Just some of the estates surrounding the school.
I could go on and on about how great this visit was, but the best thing that I have taken away is that the children are the centre of everything.
They are lucky and the community is lucky to have a school that is doing everything to support it.
Visit the school at http://surreysquareprimary.co.uk
Until my next post,
Cheers!
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