Headteacher's Weekly Update

We have enjoyed hosting students and staff from schools in Shanghai, China, this week. These students have been staying in Suffolk and joined us to experience lessons in an English school but the cultural exchange has been both ways. Year 7 students have been taught some basic Mandarin phrases, how to count to ten on one hand and to write some basic characters using traditional calligraphy. Our Year 10 Mathematicians worked alongside the students from China to deliver some Maths Mastery lessons to students in Year 7 and also to students at Claydon Primary School. Thanks to Miss Taverner, Mrs Lovell-Brown and Ms Bexley for all of their work making this exciting visit happen. We are looking to explore a future fuller exchange visit with some of the people we have met. In the meanwhile we look forward to hosting students from the Instituto de Enseñanza Secundaria Alixar, a school on the outskirts of Seville, Spain, on the return leg of that exchange.

Elsewhere in the school, Ms Jenkins and Ms Zagni will soon lead auditions for this year’s production “We Will Rock You” and our Duke of Edinburgh students are busy planning to undertake their expeditions, doing a practice run first a bit closer to home. Mr Davenport is leading a wider range of staff in delivering DoE including Miss Taverner, Mr Voller, Mr Bradley, Mrs Chittock, Mrs Simpson, Mr Stearn, Ms Bexley, Mr Harris and Mr Goldberg. We also hosted the Rotary “Youth Speaks” competition which was won by the Royal Hospital School although the Claydon team performed very strongly.

All of these exciting opportunities cannot take place without a team of staff volunteering to give up their time in order to enrich the school experience for our students. This is in addition to their day jobs of planning lessons and marking work and I am very grateful for all that they offer.

Some of our student leadership team experienced a day of training to be peer mentors for our younger students and this shows how many of our students wish to offer their time and energies back to benefit the wider community. Staff delivering the training commented upon their skills and enthusiasm and we know they will provide powerful role models for our younger students.

Another buzz came from the Elmer design competition in which many entries from students in all years showed creativity in their ideas for our very own Claydon Elmer. This is part of a local fundraising campaign for St Elizabeth Hospice who we are proud to be supporting. Look out for details of our winning design.