We're for kids

Have you seen that advertisement for dog food - Pal dog food, I think it is. They use a really neat phrase - 'we're for dogs'. I love it - I stop and watch it every time. It leaves a nice warm feeling and makes you want to go out and get a dog.

A visitor to our school this week asked me 'Are all primary schools like this? The kids are so exuberant and happy.' We were standing watching 200+ children at play - all running, jumping, arms out wide, smiling and laughing and squealing just for the fun of it. One little girl burst past us leaping over garden beds and shouting for a friend. My visitor said 'oops, there's one that's going to end in tears...' and sure enough 10 seconds later she was flat on her back with tears pouring down her face. We both started forward at the same time but before we could get there she was surrounded by other children and a couple of staff, and a couple of minutes later she was up and running again, with a bunch of kids in tow.

Then, yesterday a new staff member commented in passing that he had either worked in or in the course of his work visited about twenty five schools over the last few months and that this was the first one in which, when you walk through the front door you just feel that it's about kids - he added 'not sucking up or anything, Gwen!'

And he's right, it is about kids, it's always been about kids since the day the first tree went down on the block of land that is now our school; and we are working hard together to ensure it's always about kids... because - we're for kids!