Blog
Inner Thoughts
Last week was CREATE week, in which we focused our attentions on noticing how we use our core school values in our daily lives. Just paying attention to what we already do, to see what we'd learn.
Ms Lowe promoted the theme 'Excellence' - you maybe even read her blog post last week, which kick-started the process - but we didn't limit ourselves to this, and I found the act of noticing to be insightful & rewarding.
We *intentionally noticed* by asking colleagues to nominate students for CREATE Awards across all six areas; as teachers and support staff we overtly spoke about instances of Community mindedness, Respect for others, Excellence in what we do, Aspiration in our approach, Tenacity in how we overcome challenges and Enthusiasm for what we do.
We all reminded ourselves throughout the week about what CREATE means to us. Of course, even the word CREATE alone is very apt for us, given our passion and Enthusiasm for the Arts.
Now I'm reflecting on the week that's gone, what are my three key learning points (in no particular order)?
- It took no time at all for a really significant number of awards to be conferred - they built up far more quickly than I would ever have imagined, and I'm so proud to have seen this; how lucky I am to be Headteacher within such a community!
- As can often happen in a school if you let it, our students showed the power of creativity in thinking outside the box - I found myself being asked whether students could nominate their teachers and other key figures in their lives for CREATE awards. Of course! Why didn't I think of that?
- Finally, and I think this is a learning point for us all, I heard less about Aspiration than I did its five counterparts. That really got me thinking... Are we lacking in Aspiration? Or do we feel awkward in disclosing our inner thoughts?
I don't know the answer, but I shall be genuinely interested to find out. I should be very surprised if I found that we lack Aspiration, because I see it, hear it and infer it from my daily experiences in school; I can sense it from afar whilst we operate Virtual Valley Park. But, I wonder, do we have a reluctance to 'think big' and are we reluctant to speak our minds for fear of being seen as 'silly' or 'full of ourselves'?
I aspire to find out...
And, in the meantime, I'm doing my bit to promote Aspiration - the quietest of our six core school values.
