The life of a headteacher is, I am fast learning, extremely varied. Just this week I have not only undertaken the things I had planned, such as leading assembly, teaching my timetabled lessons and welcoming parents to our information evenings, but I have also located and restarted the hall clock, blown up a giant red balloon and been intensively quizzed by Reception class on exactly why I was walking across the playground towards the end of break time!
If you spoke to any of my colleagues, they would have a similarly varied patchwork of stories to tell about their day or their week. There is a real magic in some of the unexpected moments, especially in our interactions with the girls, and it is one of the things that makes teaching such a rewarding profession. We spoke at our INSET day last week about adaptive teaching, and strategies for ensuring that every child makes excellent progress and reaches new levels of achievement. We have an amazing staff team at Dovercourt, and we pride ourselves on knowing each child as an individual, meaning that staff can adeptly respond in the moment to make the most of every learning opportunity, whether in the classroom, outside in the grounds or out and about on fixtures and trips. As well as welcoming back familiar faces from last year from the MFL, DT, Computing and PE departments, it has been excellent this term to also welcome additional colleagues from the senior school to add their specialist contributions to our prep team, namely Miss Massey, teaching outdoor learning, Mrs Pendleton, teaching maths and Mrs Peters, joining our French team.
We are all very excited about the year ahead, both what we have planned, and the unexpected surprises that we know will be waiting around the corner!
Mrs Ruth Irvine-Capel
Prep School Head