2014- 2015 A New Curriculum….something to look forward to.

Well I was only going to write about MFL (Modern Foreign Languages), but too many things have happened since the first day of September.

Last Friday I went for a pizza with my wife and her friends. Six 3 ½ year old girls and their mums! 

As you can imagine being the only man on the table, I was quite “challenged ” having to  engage in conversation with small children and trying to hold it all together after a long week where I had been with children all day.

In between children screaming, laughter and flying pieces of pizza, I was picking up the colouring pencils from the floor when I heard one of the mums talking about schools and education, OFSTED Reports, and the big expenses of private education.

This was my heaven sent opportunity to stop being the nanny and to be able to join in to the adult conversation for at least five minutes.

After a couple of glasses of wine the mums had started chatting about the eternal subject “which schools would they apply for in September”. I thought I would share their absolute shock when they heard that there was a new curriculum and that this meant essential changes were on there way. The table went quiet when I mentioned the inclusion of Modern Foreign Languages, which could be “ancient or modern” ones. They all went on to their mobiles and started searching when I mentioned the changes in Geography, History and COMPUTING!!!! The discussion went on and on and some of them texted later to ask where they could find more information about this and asked what schools were doing about it.

Anyway, what this shockingly festive moment confirmed to me was that generally parents have got all the best intentions of securing their children the best education they can. However there is little digestible and relevant information for them.

That motivated me to write this brief blog and reflect on what kind of media should we use as teachers to communicate between us effectively, certainly emails are good but going through 25 emails where we all agree on something, can take time from a teacher’s already busy day.

 I have always thought that a staff blog can be immediately accessible, for us to communicate, catch up and reflect on what has been going on. It is quite simple to use and can be also very quick.

For instance I wanted to share with you, how excited and enthusiastic the children have been about MFL this year, which for me has been a big incentive and has kept me very motivated to go through the inevitably tedious hours of planning and marking.

Have a look and enjoy.

Mr Santillan (Spanish Teacher)

Hi Midfield Super Stars!

As always, the autumn term is definitely a busy one!  Well done to all of you who have fallen into good routines already! I'm very impressed that so many of you are living-up to the expectations your teachers have when it comes to reading at home and homework.  For those who are not quite there yet - keep trying to read every day and remember that homework is due on Wednesdays in most classes.

I've also noticed that you are all looking extremely smart - particularly Year 6 in their fantastic ties and jumpers!

This week, all of our after-school clubs are starting, so it will be an extra exciting week for many of you!  We also have some musicians joining us on Thursday for a day of musical activities - how fabulous!

Keep up the hard work all of you and keep smiling (it's contagious don't you know)! :o)
Miss Findlay

Welcome back everyone! Hope you all had a lovely summer holiday. Just seems like it was over a bit too quick! I am delighted that all the building work carried out over the summer was completed in time for our first day back – it was touch and go. The staff have been brilliant at cleaning, sorting and organising the school to get it back into shape. We are almost back to normal….

Time certainly flies when you are having fun…coming to the end of week 3 already! I am pleased to update you that we have kick started the new term with great teaching and learning and it’s lovely to see better improved behaviour throughout the school.

May I thank you all for making a big effort to send your children in to school on time and in the correct uniform – we are looking super smart. Attendance is looking great so far too! Well done to all children who have the correct PE kit. Raising awareness of a healthy lifestyle is something we are determined to improve this year. Please support us!

Keep checking out our website as we are always updating with news and events. Wishing you all a successful year!

Best wishes

Mrs Sesli

Community

Well it’s a huge hello from me to you, as not only am I one of Midfield’s newest teachers, but  I have been given the privilege of writing for the new staff blog. With Mrs Sesli’s blog proving to be so popular we thought some readers might like to hear from teaching staff too.

Given that, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank everyone for being so welcoming since I joined as year 6 teacher in April. I’ve had a fabulous first half term getting to know the school, staff and children and cannot express enough how happy I am to be a part of this fantastic community.

In fact, in this blog ‘community’ is really my main focus because from the day I came in to for my first interview to right now, as I sit listening to the children rehearsing for their school production, it is the sense of community which comes across so strongly here.  Children looking after each other, taking responsibility for their learning and contributing to the running of their school, coupled with staff who work so hard to bring this all together, whilst maintaining a supportive and happy moral among themselves. Such a combination is difficult to create - yet here we have it in bundles!

On that note then it’s no wonder the year 6s are so sad at the prospect of leaving in July; but at least they will go safe in the knowledge that Midfield has provided them with the best start in their education they could possibly have had.

From the people who held their hands as they nervously took their first steps through the reception doors, to the ones who sat and listened to their troubles and fears when they felt down and the ones who sparked their ambition and fed their hunger for knowledge; at Midfield the feeling that we will get through this together is clear. And for those year 6s who are with me until they do leave; I can promise that we will make these last few weeks the best yet!  So Midfield – thanks for having me and here’s to the future of excellence and community! Best wishes from Mrs S Donnelly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome back everyone! It's been a really short week but we have had a great start. You may notice a few new faces around the school. I'm sure you will join us in welcoming them to our happy school. I would love to know what you all think about our new outdoor EYFS setting and our outdoor nature play area. The children have had a wonderful time learning through play. I am delighted that our attendance figures have drastically improved. An excellent end to the week with 96% attendance. Let's hope we can keep this going for the rest of the term. Have a great weekend. Hope the sun comes out :)

Mrs S

Happy new year!

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas holiday. It's great to be back to a routine and to stop eating chocolate!

The start of this term has been a positive one and myself and staff now feel that last month was a bit of a blur. Having Ofsted in the middle of Christmas rehearsals wasn't ideal, however we are all now relieved that it's over and we can build on the positive and develop even further. Ofsted have confirmed that we are heading in the right direction, so of course we are delighted and feel extremely proud of our achievements. It's important to mention here that the partnership we have with our families, is a key ingredient to this success. Thank you all very much :)

We have a few events coming up this term for parents who wish to find out about Read, Write, Inc and Maths Makes Sense. Look out for dates on our newsletters.

I would like to welcome Mrs Willmot who is now leading the Tree House. Some of you may be aware that the unit has not had a leader for almost a year, so well done to the team for providing quality provision for our Tree House pupils. The outstanding progress was acknowledged by Ofsted.

I haven't used my blog as frequently as I would like to. Not sure if parents are reading my postings. It would be lovely to have some comments posted in return. As always your views are very much taken into consideration.

Best wishes

Mrs S

Welcome back!

I hope you all had a great summer and enjoyed the many sunny days we have been fortunate enough to have. Really hoping it lasts longer, particularly as we are going to have swimming for another month. It will be great to have Coach Kenny again.

Hooray our central heating system was upgraded during the summer and builders managed to finish on time! At least we can now look forward to a warmer winter.  Shortly our new nursery building will be arriving and we will be able to closely watch it develop. Very exciting!

Please join me in welcoming our new members of staff to Midfield. I feel like I spent most of my first year interviewing for a range of posts, but I am delighted to have appointed such a highly experienced and skilled bunch. This will no doubt compliment the rest of the team, which are very much dedicated and committed in taking Midfield to an outstanding level. Onwards and upwards!

Bye for now. Look out for my future blogs J