Dear Parent/Carers

So here I am again, in our celebration assembly, talking to most of the children in our school –from a distance. We hold our Morning Worship every day at 10.30.  In normal times, we would gather in the hall, light a candle, sing some rousing songs and hear a Bible story or a story from another religion or culture that highlights our theme for the week.  But not anymore. COVID 19 stopped large gatherings in March last year and since then we’ve retreated to our screens in order to meet, connect, pray and hope. Now our gathering is virtual, each child a smiling face in a pixelated screen or initials on a side bar.  We call it distance learning.  It’s learning – but from a distance.

I came into teaching via a roundabout way.  As an actor and director, I was asked to teach at a local theatre at the weekends, which I did and enjoyed very much.  A few of us then set up a Summer School, targeting children with behavioural difficulties.  We were given extra money by the local Council to include ‘Children at risk of offending.’  It was one of the best Summers of my life, seeing the children flourish and take pride in their accomplishments.  This led to a stint working as a learning support assistant for children with ASD and then the fateful words of that lovely head, ‘I’d like you to train as a teacher and work in my school.’

What I learned in those early days and what I am still learning (now I am seasoned and rather grizzly old head) is that children learn best by being together, by playing, by falling out and making up and by following the example of those around them.  Sometimes when we start a virtual meeting, being a virtual head reduces me to just that at times – a big virtual head bobbing about on a computer screen.

But then comes the interaction.  Yes, it’s from a distance, but it’s there.  And seeing the children smile, wave to their friends, make comments in the chat or just offer a thumbs-up emoji, join in the Lord’s Prayer (with sign language) and then finish with our school prayer, is incredibly moving.  It shows the power of the human soul to reach out, connect and nurture, even from a distance.

When we see the heart-breaking pictures of children visiting their elderly relatives, waving from a distance or hands outstretched in greeting but separated by a pane of glass, we are constantly reminded of how much of our lives are now conducted ‘from a distance.’  These are painful times, but there is hope. The new vaccines promise a way out of this crisis. Children will be able to come back into school, to play, to sing, to learn, to live.  And we will see our loved ones, face to face and be able to hug them again.

Parents have done an incredible job, juggling home schooling with work commitments, rising to the challenge and keeping the children’s learning going.  All parents deserve a pat on the back.  These have been the worst of times but also the best of times, as we see how resilient and resolute the British Spirit can be.  And the sorrows of this time will not be forgotten but they will be endured and remembered. From a distance.

Have a wonderful break. Get out, breathe safely in that fresh air and God bless you all.

Yours in partnership

Mr S Draper Headteacher