I hope you’ve had a great week.
First, if you missed the Year 6 production this week, you truly missed a spectacular show! The singing, dancing, acting, stage presence, and teamwork were simply outstanding. As Dr. O’Connor put it, “One of the best Year 6 productions I have ever seen,” and he has seen a lot! A huge well done to our Year 6 team, music team, and drama team, with a special mention to our director, Mr. John Stringer, for bringing it all together so brilliantly.
As many of you know, I was away for the first part of the week attending our Regional Leadership Conference alongside Mr. Antcliffe, Mrs. Stringer, and Miss Brooks-Carter. We had the privilege of visiting our sister school in Abu Dhabi and spending two days engaged in professional development. The conference was a fantastic opportunity to attend workshops led by Nord Anglia Education (NAE) colleagues, hear presentations from our NAE Education Team, and discuss best practices with over 250 NAE leaders. Topics ranged from AI in Education and Metacognition to Positive Behaviour Strategies, Coaching Cultures, and Neurodiversity, all of which provided valuable insights. A special thank you to Mr. Antcliffe and Mrs. Stringer, who presented a workshop showcasing some of the fantastic work we do at BSKL.
Continuing with the theme of professional development, I want to highlight something we do exceptionally well in Primary: prioritising professional development time for our teachers. Our dedicated Teaching and Learning Communities (TLCs) provide a space for educators to collaborate, exchange ideas, and explore the latest educational research to enhance classroom provision.
This term, our teachers and assistant teachers have focused on multilingualism and effective teaching strategies that accelerate language acquisition for all children. Through collaborative sessions, our staff have refined their teaching methods to strengthen children's understanding of concepts in both English and their native languages, leading to more detailed and accurate written English. In Term 1, amongst other things, our teachers explored the benefits of retrieval practice, helping students reinforce their learning by consistently recalling information from prior lessons. They then designed new teaching resources to enhance the Humanities curriculum, ensuring students make meaningful connections across topics and themes.
Being part of Nord Anglia Education also gives our staff access to Nord Anglia University (NAU), an exclusive online learning platform that offers world-class professional development courses, research-based teaching strategies, and collaborations with experts from institutions such as MIT and Juilliard. Through NAU, our teachers stay up to date with the latest educational trends, refine their teaching practice, and engage in global best practices, ensuring that every student benefits from innovative and high-quality learning experiences.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.
