Parent Newsletter 24 October

PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dear Parents,

I set the target of EFFORT for this week alongside our monthly goal of TO BE ADAPTABLE little knowing that we would need extra of both this week. 

Firstly of course effort from the children…magnificent! I have seen some tricky maths in  FS2 Reception where the children were comparing same and different numbers, super yoga in FS1 Nursery with Miss Ellen and yes, I did join in, but some of the moves were far too challenging for me! I’m also pleased to see that the number of children coming to my office to proudly show off their achievements is once again on the increase. Milana, Elija and Ethan (2FFO) have just left after sharing their creations. 

I hope that you found our Meet the Teacher meetings useful as the feedback I have received so far has been positive. Many have commented it’s good to actually see each other without the masks!

Rainy day collection, Year 1 to Year 3 
We always try to improve our practice and we feel that the dismissal of year 1 to 3 in the heavy rain yesterday could be improved. Therefore, on future wet days we ask you to assemble on the ramp keeping a social distance from each other. We shall bring the classes out one at a time to the top of the ramp and dismiss class by class. As it is extremely difficult to identify parents at a distance with masks and rainwear we ask that you clearly identify yourselves. We thank you in advance for your cooperation.

 

Team Year 6 Graduating class of 2020
Yesterday morning was such a special moment as we officially handed over the Team Year 6 Graduating class of 2020 to Mr Escobar in the Secondary School. It was so lovely to see how they have quickly adapted to life in Year 7.

As Sophie from 1MTI has just said to me “Have a lovely day” please keep safe and don’t forget that the clocks go backwards on Sunday 25 October.

Talk Homework – This week we shall be thinking about RESPECT. Who did you show respect to last and how?
Aloha Value – RESPECT
October’s Personal Learning Goal – TO BE ADAPTABLE

Yours sincerely

Kathryn Salmon
Headteacher, Primary
kathryn.salmon@aloha-college.com


SECONDARY SCHOOL

Dear Parents,

I have a friend who loves the share button on his mobile! Not a day goes by without me receiving something from him. There are days when I really enjoy reading what he sends but, on many occasions, I roll my eyes and ask myself: “Is my friend actually giving it a moment’s thought before he hits share?” The last thing he sent me was an article that I did not read as the headlines suggested that it was definitely fake news.

Before I continue, let me remind you about my introduction to last year’s yearbook. This is just an extract of what I wrote:

‘It is true that, after two months in lockdown, one becomes accustomed to the so-called ‘new normality’ and, in my opinion, this sudden change was much needed. Everything was happening too fast, our daily routine had become a ‘tick box’ exercise and we were left with no time to do what I strongly believe is one of the main pillars of education: thinking. We only have to look back at Ancient Greece 2,500 years ago. The society of the time was structured in such a way that allowed groups of people literally just to think. These people were philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.’

Nowadays, the majority of young people do not read papers or watch the news. Instead, they stumble across it on social media. In fact, an algorithm selects items just for them. We do not want them to believe that everyone lies but to think critically before accepting anything that comes their way as true.

Our students do develop critical thinking skills in many subjects, especially Theory of Knowledge, History, English and Spanish. However, it is very important that when we are considering any type of text we always ask questions such as: 

Who produced this information, and why? Where was it published? What does it really mean? Who is it aimed at? Is there evidence for it? Or is it just someone’s opinion? Is it verifiable elsewhere?’ 

Another interesting aspect connected to false information is the so-called Mandela effect. This happens when a large group of people believe an event occurred when it did not. This effect is also described as “collective false memories”. Some doctors actually say that the Mandela effect is a form of confabulation. 

Ms Churchman will send a quiz on the most common false memories in the world to all our students and staff next week. I cannot wait to see the results!

I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that we must put our clocks back this weekend. Please believe me, this is not fake news!

I hope you have a good weekend.

Francisco Escobar
Headteacher, Secondary

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