When he got there, the classroom was bare ...

It's about time I got back on track with this blog rather than just ranting about the "news".



Today, kids, I went into my own classroom for the first time. I had one of those "oh my god I'm a teacher" moments where I realised that all the years of side stepping the thought of a career, ultimately helped me find one that makes me happy!



I walked into a blank canvas ... sparkly clean floors and a host of things that will become the tools and media of my craft. Two hours later and you still can't imagine the finished picture but you can see the structure taking form.

No more painting by numbers. This is the real thing and I can't wait to get started!

Dear Mr. Cameron,

David Cameron shows the parents how it's done while the
children learn it all in school(!)

Dear wise, worthy and all powerful David Cameron, 

Please let's talk about "Sport in children's lives" rather than sport in school. Believe it or not, school is a piece of the puzzle when it comes to a child's life and not a miracle fix for all the things that are wrong or not working. Despite teachers and adults in schools doing their best for the whole child, an awful lot comes from parents' and caregivers' attitudes to sport and hobbies outside of school as well as what happens in school. 

We'll continue to do our bit as best we can (bearing in mind budget cuts and the fact we're not sports specialists) and hope that you will help us to do this instead of undermining our confidence. We'll also continue, as best we can, to fix all the rest of the things are going wrong in children's lives while politely rejecting the blame that comes our way when it doesn't work out.

At some point, we'll also try to "educate" and open young people's minds so that the people we're educating can think and learn for themselves while standing up for what is right and working to fix what is wrong.

However; having left the school that they have helped to shape through having their voices heard, should they find themselves stifled and put down and the world they hope to shape is not receptive to their ideas or holds little hope or opportunity for them to find a fulfilling way to contribute, don't be surprised if they fight to make their voices heard.

Give them a chance and you may be amazed what they can achieve. Just like our Olympians.

Many thanks,
Mr. Oaks

P.S. We apologise for the riots last year as they were probably our fault and commend the success of Team GB - which is undoubtedly down to you.

(this articles is written in response to the BBC article entitled "Olympics: Cameron urges school sport 'cultural change' ")

Girls put off sport? "DISLIKE"...

     We've all read the headlines today that tell us that PE lessons in schools are putting girls off sport for life and choosing to opt out of exercise. But the question is: is it just girls?

    I would argue that sport, by nature, is non-discriminatory and a selection of sports should be available to anybody irrelevant of their sex, race, sexual orientation or ability. So to suggest that girls are being "put off" sport because the options available are less feminine in their appeal, is a big statement to make and is maybe misguiding when it comes to the status of sport in school.

     I, for one, am one of the students who was never really very good at sport at school and was never really inspired to participate nor achieve. I wasn't a golden child who was a part of the sporting elite - representing the school in every sport and bringing back trophies to display to prospective parents. In fact, it got to the point where, if I turned up, that was something to be proud of as I had "taken part" - which, as we're all told, is more important than winning!

    It wasn't until year 11, when the options available became much more varied, that I realised sport and exercise were not about achieving, but about enjoyment, a sense of participation and developing a positive attitude to physical and mental health. This was also the time I realised how poor my PE teaching had been.

    The logistics of having a variety of sports and exercise programmes available for pupils may be problematic and expensive, but there IS something for everyone. Surely everybody should be able to access at least one thing that they can enjoy, take part in and something that makes them feel good about their physical and mental health.

    Whether it's "masculine" or "feminine" is neither here nor there. Sport is non-discriminatory. I, for one, would not want anybody to be put off sport in the way that I was through my education. And I'm a boy.

    So the question is: is it really just the girls?