Every morning I see parents smiling as they watch their child tumble out of the car sprouting school bags and skip off to play with their friends. For sure, that is an extremely nice scene, but it is more, much more than that.

There is something of a paradox, because families understandably want the best of both worlds for their children: happiness from the start is the fervent hope, but parents quite rightly want to see measurable  progress – academically, physically, in terms of character formation and the gradual learning of life skills. Here, our children are not simply clever, they are clever because they are happy.

Not all schools can deliver that balance.

We can and we do.

Here’s how.

We believe that the most effective way to educate a child is to allow them to make mistakes. The most important word here is very short – ‘do’

Why?

Because, as the saying goes, ‘ What I hear I forget, what I see, I may remember, but what I do, I know’ 

When our children are ‘doing’, they will make mistakes, they will sometimes try and not succeed. No matter, because here we will quietly encourage them to try again. Importantly, there is no stigma attached to failing – we are a place with informality in its soul and kindness in its heart – and anyway, failing is how we learn to succeed. This attitude towards teaching and learning is central to our philosophy, and it does double duty: first it helps the child become intrinsically motivated – this means coaching for independence, where the child  begins to understand that they should try, at least at first, to sort things out for themselves.

Secondly it  means that our values of kindness, respect and courage can be mirrored daily in actions and are not merely words on a wall. 

We also know that  children  learn so much when they are not being ‘taught’, so all aspects of life here, from our many Golden Eagle expeditions (come and ask some of our children about these) to our stage plays (about these too) to classroom lessons are learning opportunities.

Golden Eagle Expeditions

As children start to grow  into the world, they are encouraged daily, gently, to leave their comfort zone, to ‘ give it a go’. This is a place where there is always room to make mistakes and space to put them right.

We have superb indoor and outdoor facilities and of course we are blessed by being able to make good use of some of the finest school facilities in the land at Wellington College next door – for example for sports, drama, music, dance. Many of our children do indeed go on to The College and it is beneficial for those who do, to already know their way around, as well as having many friends from day one.

Sports and music

The secret though is not the facilities themselves, but that we can constantly create chances for each child to take part in an activity, whatever that might be. The growth in confidence for a child in stepping up to a challenge, however small, is truly wonderful to see. It happens here every day, in our morning assemblies, on our many sports pitches and in our teams – teamwork is constantly emphasised here - in our clubs and in our classrooms.

Extra-curricular activities

From Nursery to Year 8 this school is a journey towards self-confidence.  The growth in self- confidence builds self-esteem and self- motivation, which means our children are hungry to try and hungry to learn. Our parents are left speechless by the readiness of their child to speak in public. They suddenly see their child as someone who is not going to be a looker-on in life, but a partaker-in.

In this way we not only prepare our children for their next step to senior school, wherever that might be, but we also sow the seeds that will have a profound effect on their future.

Destination schools

Yes we are a busy school, as we should be because education is an encounter – active never passive. That does not just apply to all our activities – the days here are long -  but also to our classroom lessons . We encourage academic fearlessness which makes learning exciting. Everything we do exists so that each and every child can find a place to pour their enthusiasm.

Subject curriculum

It does not matter where that enthusiasm is placed, because once a child becomes good at one thing, it is so much easier to become good at something else – scoring a goal can help a good score in a Maths test. Applause for a harp solo can help an English essay. By the time a child moves on to senior school, becoming good will be a transferable skill.

This is how we can ignite the spark that will shape the life.

This is what we are here to do.

It is not magic,  but that is how many parents describe it.

You may not believe it.

Come to see us. Then you will.

Ed Venables