INSET Day
Mr. Thompson opened the meeting by welcoming all the new staff to Bishopston School. I really liked his style – he was obviously nervous but managed to make a few jokes in an easy manner which seemed to put everyone at ease.
On the way into the hall, we were all issued with new school handbooks. Mr. Thompson congratulated the whole teaching staff on another year of excellent GCSE results for Bishopston and mentioned that these would be discussed in greater detail at the next INSET day. He then brought our attention to the new child protection policies, new staffing structure, learning and teaching rewards policy, emphasis on key skills and then handed over to Carol Burgess and the SENCO for an update on the needs of the new Year 7 intake.
This was an eye-opener for me, it seems that in every class there were 4 or 5 pupils with some kind of difficulty, whether it was behavioural or physical. For example, my Year 7 science class has a boy who is obsessed with birds (feathered variety), a girl with cerebral palsy, a boy with particularly low ability and a girl with serious domestic problems. It was very good that these problems are highlighted to all teachers so that they have the best chance of looking after these kids with particular challenges.
Year Team Meeting:-
We then split up into our year groups to discuss the strategies concerning the management of Year 9 forms this year.
Dennis Rees led this meeting and had a particularly laid-back style. What also struck me was how many female members of staff there were compared to male. I looked at the photo-board in the entrance hall later and this seems to be the trend across the whole school.
We covered topics such as year assembly, the new collective worship documents, how to encourage the use of planners, the school fund and we decided to set Friday’s form period for silent reading.
Curriculum Area Meeting – Science:-
Mel Evans hosted this meeting in his usual pleasant and up-beat style. We discussed the excellent results achieved by Year 11 in the GCSEs last year and he congratulated the whole team on a job well done. I really felt I was joining a winning team.
Mel then distributed workbooks for each class group, test booklets and Key Stage 3 assessment booklets – most teachers left with about a 15” high pile of paper, some needed help to carry them!
It seems like a huge amount of paperwork to me, but I am hanging on to the idea that there must be a huge effort at the start of the year, which then levels out as the year progresses.
Curriculum Area Meeting – Chemistry:-
Sian Forwood held this meeting in her lab with Hilary Jones, Mary David and myself. It feels like a warm and friendly team to become part of. Sian described the work schedule for the coming year and how the booklets were going to be used over the next 3 terms. I like the idea of a summary of the syllabus requirements on the inside front cover, a two-page summary of the topic contents and a useful glossary at the back of the workbook. These seemed well thought out, varied and interesting.
On the way into the hall, we were all issued with new school handbooks. Mr. Thompson congratulated the whole teaching staff on another year of excellent GCSE results for Bishopston and mentioned that these would be discussed in greater detail at the next INSET day. He then brought our attention to the new child protection policies, new staffing structure, learning and teaching rewards policy, emphasis on key skills and then handed over to Carol Burgess and the SENCO for an update on the needs of the new Year 7 intake.
This was an eye-opener for me, it seems that in every class there were 4 or 5 pupils with some kind of difficulty, whether it was behavioural or physical. For example, my Year 7 science class has a boy who is obsessed with birds (feathered variety), a girl with cerebral palsy, a boy with particularly low ability and a girl with serious domestic problems. It was very good that these problems are highlighted to all teachers so that they have the best chance of looking after these kids with particular challenges.
Year Team Meeting:-
We then split up into our year groups to discuss the strategies concerning the management of Year 9 forms this year.
Dennis Rees led this meeting and had a particularly laid-back style. What also struck me was how many female members of staff there were compared to male. I looked at the photo-board in the entrance hall later and this seems to be the trend across the whole school.
We covered topics such as year assembly, the new collective worship documents, how to encourage the use of planners, the school fund and we decided to set Friday’s form period for silent reading.
Curriculum Area Meeting – Science:-
Mel Evans hosted this meeting in his usual pleasant and up-beat style. We discussed the excellent results achieved by Year 11 in the GCSEs last year and he congratulated the whole team on a job well done. I really felt I was joining a winning team.
Mel then distributed workbooks for each class group, test booklets and Key Stage 3 assessment booklets – most teachers left with about a 15” high pile of paper, some needed help to carry them!
It seems like a huge amount of paperwork to me, but I am hanging on to the idea that there must be a huge effort at the start of the year, which then levels out as the year progresses.
Curriculum Area Meeting – Chemistry:-
Sian Forwood held this meeting in her lab with Hilary Jones, Mary David and myself. It feels like a warm and friendly team to become part of. Sian described the work schedule for the coming year and how the booklets were going to be used over the next 3 terms. I like the idea of a summary of the syllabus requirements on the inside front cover, a two-page summary of the topic contents and a useful glossary at the back of the workbook. These seemed well thought out, varied and interesting.
posted by chris at 10:11 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home