Photo by Mauro Mora on Unsplash
It is the start of the year, and there’s a lot of new initiatives, new visions, new ways of doing things; not to mention new leaked government documents on new approaches to behaviour practice in schools
A friend of mine who had been teaching for 11years in leadership positions unfortunately left education last year; one of so many. I asked her, if you could hear one thing at the start of the academic year that would make a difference, what would it have been? She didn’t pause:
“I wish someone would have told me that I don’t have to achieve everything in the first week.”
In this blog I give you a big permission slip: take your time to learn, build important new relationships and get to know your pupils, so that you can create long-lasting impact on our young people, their learning and our society.
At the start of your year you have most likely been in meetings, had notices, emails, staff briefings – about the new marking policy/ofsted-friendly data system/behaviour policy/uniform that all link to the school improvement plan. These are, of course, important for developing your school in a positive direction for your current cohort.
However, if we’re not careful these well-meaning changes can put unnecessary pressure on our staff to get everything done immediately, and as my Nana used to say:
“it can’t all happen yesterday”
We can take the time to learn those 323 new names (if you’re an Art teacher in a large mainstream secondary).
Displays: Just put the backing up.
One year, I did this using some old sari material and left the rest plain. As each class entered, I showed them their board. It was where their best work was going to be proudly displayed – I was giving them ownership of the learning environment. For more ideas on this see my blog Open the Window.
Relationships with pupils: These, like any relationships, take time – and that’s how it should be. The overfamiliar teacher, or generalised assumptions of pupils based on their PP/EAL/SEND/SEMH/HA labels, (or worse, something you heard from another teacher in the staffroom about a pupil) can easily undo the tender process of building genuine relationships. This is especially key with our students with behaviour challenges or Social Emotional and Mental Health Issues. For more on this take a look at my vloggy-blog First Encounters.
Leadership: You will not be the leader today that you will be by the end of the year/next year/in 5 years. We grow into those roles and trying to fore-feed this process (much like force-grown vegetables) is not healthy. We can ask for support and mentorship. Those who put the self-expectation pressure on to know everything as a leader, will fall short and distance themselves from staff (Brene Brown’s Daring to be Vulnerable is an inspirational read on this topic).
So here’s the permission slip:
Enjoy each day, each up and down as it unfolds.
You’re allowed to.
Engage with challenging behaviour in your school and support staff effectively;
For Teaching Staff
Free Video Series: How to manage challenging behaviour in the classroom.
When you request these videos you’ll also receive emails and offers from Adele.
For Leaders & Policy Makers
Free Video Series: How to support teachers to manage challenging behaviour.
When you request these videos you’ll also receive emails and offers from Adele.
Other blog posts that might be of interest
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On 6 March, we’re proud to attend and support our charity partner, Flourish Mentors as they host their first annual fundraiser, A Night to Flourish. Every ticket and donation moves them closer to their £10,000 goal.
Let’s Talk About Mental Health
Did you know that according to NHS 2024 data, more than one in three young women aged 16–24 live with a mental health condition—36.1%—twice the rate of their male peers? Flourish Mentors exists to respond to this urgent and often unmet need.
Embracing Differences
Guest Blogger Sue Bayley is a practitioner with a wealth of both professional and personal experience in the areas she supports; Autism Family Dynamics.