Year 5’s Return To The Classroom
It has been quite a wonderful return of the Year 5’s this week. There was a little bit of nerves and worry, however it was quickly eclipsed by the excitement of seeing friends and teachers again.
Our first day back saw us going through our Covid-19 classroom rules and getting to listen to everyone share their experiences of Lockdown. Our online students then joined us and it was wonderful to see them all. We spent some time chatting and catching up.
Work continued full steam ahead and we got stuck into making Probability Spinners for our mathematics class. Both students, in class and online enthusiastically enjoyed this task.
Break times required a little creativity and fun social distancing games of “123 block”, handstand competitions, and even a little exercise.
We are exceptionally proud of our students, the ones returning and the ones online. Each of them have shown great tenacity and determination. It has not been easy to adjust and make changes to something they have known to be the normal, however their willingness to learn, stands stronger than any virus or pandemic state we may be facing.
To Quote Dr Seuss, “And I learned there are troubles of more than one kind, some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I’ve bought a big bat, I’m already you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!”
Nadia Mahomed
Year 5 Teacher
Coming Together
As BIS opens its doors for Term 3, I am certain that we are all excited, and perhaps a little nervous.
With the precautions we need to take to keep us all safe from Covid-19, I suspect that students, staff and parents alike are wondering what the school version of the “new normal” is going to be like. We are prepared for the technicalities of the term with masks, social distancing guidelines, hand sanitiser and a plan for hybrid teaching, but school has never just been about the technicalities of getting an education. One of the amazing strengths of our school is that it is a strong community, full of people who come together to learn, helping and supporting each other all the way. It is a community that emphasises the African Philosophy of Ubuntu meaning, “I am because we are.”
I see this sense of community everywhere – in the learners who asked me in my first Google Meet session if I could show them the classroom, in the teacher who turned off a projector so her diabetic colleague wouldn’t have to touch the button, in the students who are greeting each other so enthusiastically and so carefully, who are eager to share with their classmates after their holidays, in the parent who checked that I was keeping warm before asking me about the new term, in the teacher who told me her plan for how she is going to make sure that each child in her class feels welcome and loved as they begin to Term 3.
So, beyond our new regulations and systems, beyond our masks and hand sanitiser, my challenge to the students, staff and parents of BIS is this:
We are living in a time of uncertainty, of unfamiliar rules, and unintuitive distance from each other. Let’s make sure that these challenges bring us together instead of driving us apart. Let’s build the “new normal” out of little kindnesses and big hearts, and support each other as we do so.
Let’s do this, BIS!
Hannah Kirkaldy
Year 5 Teacher
Back To School – Foundation Stage
Monique Crawley
Reception Teacher
