Posted May 3 - 2024Headteacher's Newsletter
what's happening at Chesham Grammar
Posted on: March 27th 2020
Head's Blog
Dear Parent,
What a strange week it has been! This time last week, the Prime Minister shut pubs and restaurants and then on Monday told us all only to leave home if absolute necessary. These restrictions would have been unthinkable a few short weeks ago and it is testament to our natural resilience that we have adapted to a new normal. The same is true of our students, parents and staff who are slowly getting to grips with the implications of the closure of schools and of learning at home. As I said in my email earlier in the week, we are all novices here and we are feeling our way and will be adapting what we do as we go. I am seeking your feedback on how the first few days have gone and would be grateful if you could complete a short survey https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/YW2FFMW. I will also be asking the students for their feedback. We will seek your views at regular intervals and it may well be that the questions we need to ask will change over time too. If you have any suggestions on how we can do things more effectively, please include them. Thank you.
It looks like we will be out of school for some time to come. I wrote to all year groups in the school earlier in the week and I hope your child has read this letter. As I said last week, I am seeing the two weeks up until the Easter holiday as phase 1, a chance for us all to try to get into some sort of routine and for us to get used to setting work and the students to completing it. There will be things we do not get right first time and will need to tweak. As we move towards phase 2, at the start of next term, we are looking to make greater use of the technology available so that at the very least there is greater variety for the students as well as some interaction with others which is so important. I am also putting together a range of additional activities which the students can undertake; as we all know, learning is not just confined to the work set by teachers and this is an opportunity for students to have time to engage in other types of learning. More information will follow.
Please do encourage your child to do the work s/he is set but to reiterate what I said last week, we do not expect you to take on the role of your child's teachers. Our students can communicate with their teachers if they get stuck and developing good, independent study habits will stand them in good stead in future. We are all spending more time with our families than we usually do. It is important for us to try to be in good habits but I am under no illusions about the stress and strain this may put on some parents. Many of you will be trying to work from home and/or have other children you need to deal with so please do not try to do too much! I have seen some funny things this week on Twitter with one parent posting a notice outside their home on Tuesday saying 'Notice: this school is already in Special Measures' and another which said 'two pupils permanently excluded and teacher under investigation'. While these made me laugh, the underlying sentiment was not lost on me: it is really hard to try to be a teacher and a parent. My plea is that you encourage your child to do the work but if you are having huge battles in this, please let us know. We do not have a magic wand but talking it through with one of us may help.
Above all else at this time, please look after yourselves and your children. Our own health, physical and mental, is the most important thing and we must not lose sight of this. There will undoubtedly be frustrations over the weeks ahead and you and your child may worry about what is being missed at school. Our children enjoy learning and are motivated and the values of both home and school mean that they are in a relatively advantaged position at this time. Remember that no child in the land is in school at the moment and that there are millions of parents who are finding it hard. It is important for us all to maintain a sense of perspective and to make sure that we don't forget to focus on our wellbeing.
I thought I would mention that one of our parents, Ellie Dix, designs board games and has written a book 'The Board Game Family'. Ellie has been posting lots on her Twitter and Facebook pages this week with suggestions which may well be helpful to us all; I am sure there are lots of families getting into or back into board games at the moment. Ellie can be found on Twitter: @EllieDixTweets. While I am on the subject of Twitter, please follow the main school account @cgsbucks if you don't already. I am trying to post lots of useful information for parents and am retweeting suggestions from other CGS accounts. For example, Mr Miles has added things to the PE Department Twitter account about ways in which students can keep active. I am sure that many families are taking part in the daily workout run by Joe Wicks @TheBodyCoach at 9am each morning but there are other things Mr Miles has suggested too.
I would like to congratulate Jonathan in Year 13 who passed his grade 8 clarinet exam recently. I would also like to say well done to Erin in Year 7 who wrote a poem inspired by the current situation which I think sums up how we are all feeling very eloquently. I leave the last word to her:
Thank you to the people by Erin
Thank you to the people,
Who love, protect and care.
You I will never forget,
And the kindness that you share.
Thank you to the people,
Working at the NHS.
You really are our heroes,
To have you we are blessed,
Thank you to the people,
Who are making all the choices.
We know it must be testing,
But we’re grateful you hear our voices.
Thank you to the people,
Who became teachers overnight.
Each one of you is a bright star,
In the darkest night.
Thank you to the people,
Who are choosing to stay at home.
We give you our prayers,
Just know you’re not alone.
Thank you to the people,
Who live in the UK.
You all play a crucial role,
In saving our today.
Annmarie McNaney
Headteacher
