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Brookmans Park School Newsletter
Issue number 10 - Spring 2001 (Sept 2000-Feb 2001) Text edited by Mandy English.
Headlines You have probably read in the press the difficulty that some schools have been experiencing in recruiting new staff. It is certainly true that in this area of the country there are several schools which have had problems. We have had success in our recruiting operations and I am very pleased that we have a full complement of permanent teaching staff. One aspect of the problem that has not been highlighted is finding supply teachers. In order that class teachers keep up to date they must attend courses. It is therefore necessary to engage a supply teacher to cover that class. Our school is fortunate in that we have a small, dedicated band of supply teachers who are willing to come in and take a class for a day. More difficult is covering a teacher's absence when they are ill. Phoning up in the morning trying to find someone to come in at short notice can be very time consuming and frustrating. Schools very often use supply agencies but recently we have contacted them only to be told that there is no one available. Ironically, schools are now being given funds to employ part time teachers to help with teaching small groups to raise standards, but this is only exacerbating the problem. This means there are fewer teachers available to come in on a full time basis if required.
We all realise that it is better to have one teacher to take a class but with the present situation, schools sometimes have no choice but to employ a series of teachers to take the class.
Supply teachers are very often overlooked but as they become scarcer they must surely become more appreciated.
I hope the number of teachers will increase but I think it is a problem that will not be solved quickly.
Almost five years online for Village School Brookmans Park Primary School has been publishing information on the web for almost five years thanks to the village website, The Brookmans Park Newsletter. Every note from the headmaster has appeared online in the “Dear Parent” section of the site. All newsletters are in the archive and each Village Day since 1998, complete with full photo galleries has been recorded forever on the village website. A parent and PTA committee member at the school set up the site in the summer of 1997; over the years, valuable information about the community has been added. The site is non profit-making and maintained by volunteers. It is based on the principle of content provided by the community for the community. Contributors include the North Mymms Local History Society, whose members have allowed ten history books, complete with old photographs, maps and etchings, along with a half-hour historical slide show. Reports about the local environment are documented by the Gobions Woodland Trust, including pictures of the local butterflies and fungi which can be found on the site. There are numerous features about life in North Mymms and more than a dozen photo galleries of the area in all seasons, along with regular village news items dating back almost five years and comments sent in by residents about local issues. The site has a speedy search facility that enables people looking for information or researching genealogy to look up any of the 15,000 local names on the site and search the archives. The information on the site is proving a valuable resource for local students, both primary and secondary. The word search facility is regularly used and it is clear from the statistics when the children have been given homework about a certain area of interest in the village - the word search figures rocket. Most of all it is a site for the community; www.brookmans.com is there for everyone to use and contribute to. You can have your comments published immediately by using the “Have Your Say” facility on the front page. The Christmas Performance - Elena Papamicheal (Year 6) Last year Brookmans Park School performed Jack and the Beanstalk, and with the help of many parents and teachers the play was successful. Mrs Christian perfected our costumes and throughout the rehearsals Mrs Rees stayed dedicatedly patient, whilst she supervised our songs, and, along with Ms. Childs, ran through the main characters' dialogue. Everyone seemed happy with his or her parts and I for one was delighted to get the role of Jack. When the performances were over I was very disappointed, but the memory remained. It was hard work in rehearsals but it was full of fun and definitely an exciting experience for Year 6. As you probably know, a hilarious Jersey cow, played by Thomas M and Nick C were a great hit in the show (and a laugh backstage). They have Jenny Colledge to thank for creating their victorious outfit along with all the other parents who brought brilliant costumes for the play. Our constable Dunstable Katherine Pither borrowed her outfit from local policeman Voja! To prepare the performance, Ms. Childs, Mrs Dace, the Year 6 backstage crew, many parents and helpers for whom we are grateful, made scenery and props to be used in the play. They made a whole house! Year 6 backstage also made the notorious Beanstalk and organised everything behind the curtains. The night of the show was full of atmosphere - bright lights, sound effects, and the great acting was tremendous as everyone's hard work was put to the test. Mrs Welch gave proper stage make-up to the Year 6 cast and Mrs. Lees gave personal make-up to this year's Dame, Matthew S, making the acting completely real. Add together the cast's enthusiasm, backstage' professionalism and the unique scenery - you get one great play. Building on Strong Foundations… We have had a particularly exciting few weeks in the Nursery Class! We have transformed our role-play area into the Antarctic! Children explore the area wearing their winter coats and sketching the animals (soft toy penguins!) that they observe. We introduced them to the story of Scott's failed expedition to the South Pole and they are now transporting their supplies by toboggan and camping out in a tent! Whilst the children believe they are merely 'playing' we know that they are learning in the most appropriate way for such young children. They are experimenting with new vocabulary and ideas and are learning how to co-operate and negotiate. As they use pencil and clipboard to record their observations they are gaining good pencil control. As they label their drawings with key words they are beginning the skills of reading and writing. This approach to learning, often called 'structured play' as opposed to more formal pencil and paper tasks, has been recognised by the government as appropriate for children in this vitally important Early Years phase. It is of course to be balanced with a variety of other teaching methods, including working with the whole class, groups and individuals. All those I have met who work with young children have warmly welcomed the establishment of this new Foundation Key Stage which now incorporates all learning from age three years to the end of Reception Class. Anna Hilson, who teaches Reception, Roz Willis and myself are meeting regularly to ensure progression of learning across the two year phase. There need be no fear that children will not start 'proper work' soon enough to achieve the necessary standards by the end of Key Stage 1. In fact all activities will be planned to suit the precise requirements of each child so that they are well prepared for more formal approaches to learning by Year 1. We firmly believe that the Government guidance respects the way that four and five year olds really do learn and we are embracing it with enormous enthusiasm! Julie Brown Nursery Teacher
The Times They are A-Changing This Spring Edition of the Brookmans Park School Newsletter is the first opportunity I have had of expressing publicly my thanks to Jeremy Silverstone and Michael Rogers for all their work on behalf of the School. They were, respectively, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors and their leadership was both enthusiastic and forward-looking. Thank you, Jeremy and Mike! The most important duty facing the Governors is to appoint a new Head Teacher to take over the School on the 1st January 2002, following Mr. Peter Evans' retirement on 31st December 2001. An advertisement for the post of Head Teacher was placed in “The Times Educational Supplement” on the 26th January and the 2nd February 2001, and the Governors hope to make the appointment by the end of the first week in May. We are looking for someone who will maintain, and build on, the high standards that have been attained by the youngsters under the leadership of Mr Evans and the Staff. In his letter to you at the beginning of this term, Mr Evans referred to the need to improve the library provision if the School is to meet the demands of learning, which is likely to be information and communication technology (I.C.T.) led, in the future. At their meeting on 22nd January, the Governors decided that we must investigate the costs of the development and then, when we have some fairly firm figures, apply for a minor works grant from the Local Education Authority for the building of a new library. I would like to thank the teachers for all their hard work, and you, the parents, for the support you give the School. Frank Maynard, Chair of Governors CHESS The school is taking part in a national chess tournament. Each contestant has to play seven games of chess with 3 points for a win. To get through to the next round, a player must have won a minimum of 17 points (with 21 being the maximum possible.) There is a special prize for anyone reaching the magical score of 21-the equivalent of 7 unbeaten matches. The next phase is to be entered into the South-East regional games. With Beginners Chess Club on a Wednesday (3.30pm) and the Chess Master class on a Thursday lunchtime, we may prove to have our own Anatoly Karpov!! BADMINTON - by David Boothby (Yr 6) You can play badminton in doubles and singles. I have been playing for two years. I started on a Friday night at Swifts Badminton Club, which is held at Hatfield Leisure Centre. They hold County Trials in September. Rachel Boothby, Chris Boothby, Rhian Blowers, James Southgate, Luke Donnely and I went in for County Trials. You play a lot of matches (they watch). Rachel, Chris, Rhian and I were all picked to play for Hertfordshire. Unfortunately, James and Luke just missed out. As we are in the County Squad we train on a Wednesday for 2 hours every week. We have all played a few matches. On the 25th January, we all represented our school in a Schools Badminton Tournament in Stevenage. Stuart Lees, Chris Boothby and I made up the boys team. Luke, James and Brian made up the second team. Rachel and Rhian made up the girls 1st. As they were short, a girl called Laura Gray (who attends a different school), stepped in. The school did very well and came third. The boy's second team and the girls team both got silver. Everyone played well and enjoyed themselves. NETBALL The Netball team are proving to be an almost unbeatable force with the A-Team remaining unbeaten for two years and the B-Team only losing twice! Hopefully the two tournaments at the end of march should show that both teams are faring well against all opposition. Mrs Leonard and Mrs Blowers (parents) are providing the foundations for future winners with their Tuesday evening Year 4 netball group. There is a Year 5 improvers group and the A and B training after school which is run by Mrs Christian and Mrs Hunt (parent). VOUCHER WATCH Tesco-Computers for Schools-we need a huge 24,000 vouchers for two computers. Please ask friends and relatives to save them from stores and petrol stations until 8th April and hand them in to the office or classroom. Walkers crisps, The Sun and News of the World have Free Books for Schools tokens to collect till the end of June-bring them in as soon as you get them! Jumble Sale Raises over £3,300 Congratulations to our new PTA with their first successful fundraising campaign! Held on Saturday 24th February, it was co-ordinated by Julie Cox, Nicola Johnson, Nicky Sherlock and Laura Vivian. They were assisted by Najia Maddock and Gwenda Pocock. Many, many thanks to all those who contributed in lots of different ways to help make this a success. Dates for Your Diary Wine Tasting Evening-Tickle your Taste Buds! Saturday 31 March. 7.30pm. Tickets £7. On sale after school Thursday 1st March. For reservations call Kay Dennis 655687-numbers limited.
Fashion Show-Repeat of last years exciting event! The Bard comes to Brookmans Park On a Wednesday, Dr Kerr (one of our Governors) comes into our class to talk to us about poetry, plays and books. We started off reading The Owl and The Pussycat and other poems by Edward Lear and now we are looking at Shakespeare's 'Midsummer Nights Dream'. It was hard at first because it is written in a way that we don't speak but it is very funny especially when Bottom gets turned into an ass. I like this bit because my Dad played Bottom when he was at drama school and I think he would have looked funny. We are going to have a poetry evening on the 28th March for all the parents so that we can raise money for an actors workshop to come and speak to us. Lewis Eaton (Year 6) Football Report This term has seen so much rain that water polo would have been more likely than a game of football. The training on Monday has been spent predominantly in the hall as the field has been so boggy. The A-team have managed to get a few games but many more have been postponed due to pitch conditions. The rained off Hatfield tournament that should have taken place in October will now take place in March, weather permitting!! Head Lice A recent television health programme in January stated that although manufacturers of head lice treatments claim 75% success, their trials rated 25%. From my experience the lower figure is more realistic - it is only by regular conditioning and nit combing that these bugs can be beaten. Also try a few drops of Tea Tree essential oil in the final rinse to act as a deterrent. Mandy English.
Another Head Issue Legionnaire style school hats (with a flap at the back) will also be available for the first time this year from the school office in the Summer Term-essential to keep a cool head!
Note from the Editors In the first Newsletter issue in Spring 1997, Viv Arey (then Chair of Governors) said, “This is not a PTA or Governor newsletter, nor one from the staff, but a total school newsletter. It still is!! |