It is hard to believe we are only a week away from half term already. A lot of work has been done over the last 5 weeks though and I am sure that we are all looking forward to a break. Mid-week we had the simulated Ofsted visit I referred to on Friday and that was a very positive process which has some really useful learning points for us for the rest of the year. They were delighted to meet the children, quickly recognised our success in keeping our ethos going and genuinely could not tell the difference between long standing pupils and new joiners.
Assemblies
On Tuesday in Senior Reading Mrs Jarvis reminded us all that it was National Poetry Day on Thursday and furthermore this year’s theme is “Messages”. A variety of images with the audience trying to guess the theme was quickly solved by the pupils and poetry followed! Y3H did something very similar on Wednesday, with an explanation of the event and a few of the poems they have been reading in class. There were some lovely, clear voices and my favourite was Adrian Mitchell’s poem “Human beings” which 3H told us was the favourite to be sent into space in a poll for National Poetry Day in 2005.
HUMAN BEINGS
look at your hands
your beautiful useful hands
you’re not an ape
you’re not a parrot
you’re not a slow loris
or a smart missile
you’re human
not british
not american
not israeli
not palestinian
you’re human
not catholic
not protestant
not muslim
not hindu
you’re human
we all start human
we end up human
human first
human last
we’re human
or we’re nothing
nothing but bombs
and poison gas
nothing but guns
and torturers
nothing but slaves
of Greed and War
if we’re not human
look at your body
with its amazing systems
of nerve-wires and blood canals
think about your mind
which can think about itself
and the whole universe
look at your face
which can freeze into horror
or melt into love
look at all that life
all that beauty
you’re human
they are human
we are human
let’s try to be human
dance!
And in true Junior School fashion, the recital did finish with one well timed dance move! Well done 3H.
On Thursday U5V spoke about zoos, safari parks and wildlife conservation. A couple of them had been on the School’s visit to Kenya in the summer so we were treated to some of the safari photos they took when they weren’t working hard to build classrooms in the school they were volunteering at.
PHPA
Had their AGM last night and there was a good turnout. They have asked me to remind parents that tickets are still available for the PHPA Ball on the 26th of November. Although the tables can accommodate 8 or 10, individual tickets or pairs can be purchased. The Ball committee will put tables together based around children, or you can request who you would like to sit with, or you could book a whole table. The dress code is lounge suits, or black tie, but it is not a terribly formal event at all, so everyone will be able to relax, dress up a bit if they wish and have a good time.
The target for fund raising at the Ball is the Liddiard Theatre. We want to upgrade the lighting to a modern digital, LED based system and to finish refurbishing the seats. The fund raising target is £10,000. This will benefit all the children in the whole school, will enhance Junior and Senior productions, concerts and House plays.
Congratulations
To Ellie Bancroft who has had her photograph in the Northern Echo and The Advertiser after competing in “The Darlington festival for performing arts”. Ellie won her modern solo and then went on to win her song & dance solo. Millie Turley also participated in the same event and if you have a search on the Echo website you may be able to find a photo of Ellie and Millie together.
Sport and next week
It has been a busy week for me, but I was very pleased to combine fresh air between meetings with quick tours of the netball courts. I saw snippets of our matches with Carmel and the next day with Hurworth and was delighted to see our girls performing so well. On Wednesday in the distance I saw a good turnout for football training too, and I know Mr Wilkinson and Mr Galley have been busy with boys’ fixtures.
Next week on Tuesday Paralympic Gold medalist Laurence Whiteley is going to visit and I hope all the children who hear his presentation will be inspired by his story. Laurence was a pupil here a few years ago and after trying his hand at disabled swimming, he switched to rowing and he won Gold in the Paralympics in Rio. He popped in to see me on Thursday and it was fascinating talking to him about his experiences there. I look forward to seeing his medal next week!
Polam Hall School and Sixth Form 