We can all be thrilled about the recent School Inspection Service (SIS) report which rated our school’s Early Year’s Foundation Stage (EYFS), as outstanding, as well as the majority of our school’s teaching as a whole.
The SIS is the equivalent of OFSTED for independent schools.
The report also acknowledged that our school recognises a child’s academic, emotional and spiritual needs, and engenders a love of learning principally by helping them to be inquisitive and posing their own questions about the world around them.
Elizabeth Elsholtz says the report was a testament to the dedication of our school’s teachers, and that the school management team was extremely proud of them, as well as the children who spend many hours every day within our school's walls.
We can be especially delighted with the acknowledgement that the ‘ethos of the school successfully fosters a strong sense of self-worth alongside understanding and sensitivity for the natural world and humankind.’
It is also gratifying to see that the inspectors recognised the strong emphasis given to the development of skills in science, and that ‘science is often taught innovatively'.
“There is sometimes a misconception that Steiner education emphasizes the Arts to the detriment of Maths and the Sciences. This is not true, and great to see independent confirmation of this.”
Our school’s unusual facilities were also mentioned in the report, including the wood work area, blacksmith’s forge, lime kiln, pottery facilities, charcoal burner, the playing field and ‘a most magnificent horticultural area with cultivated fruit, vegetables and flowers where pupils learn to tend the land’.
COMMENTS ABOUT THE CHILDREN
While they were at the school, the inspectors witnessed various drama activities and they reported that our children showed great confidence and literacy skills, and that such ensemble work promotes their social skills which are evident in many other areas of work.
They found our children's spiritual and moral development to be outstanding and good respectively, and it was clear that our children feel valued as individuals within the school community.
“And, parents, you will be pleased to know that, according to the inspectors, your children behave sensibly and show good awareness of potential risks during lessons which require the use of tools and other equipment!” says Elizabeth !
Other highlights of the report included:
“Of course, no school is perfect but we are always looking to improve and have listened with keen ears to the advice we were given,” says Jonathan Hobbs. “This included developing our assessment approach through all classes, furthering our personal, social, health and economic curriculum and sharing our recent administrative and management re-organisation with parents. We are already discussing these issues and are excited to see how we can address them in our daily art of teaching”, he says.
Anyone interested in reading the full report can do so here.
The SIS is the equivalent of OFSTED for independent schools.
The report also acknowledged that our school recognises a child’s academic, emotional and spiritual needs, and engenders a love of learning principally by helping them to be inquisitive and posing their own questions about the world around them.
Elizabeth Elsholtz says the report was a testament to the dedication of our school’s teachers, and that the school management team was extremely proud of them, as well as the children who spend many hours every day within our school's walls.
We can be especially delighted with the acknowledgement that the ‘ethos of the school successfully fosters a strong sense of self-worth alongside understanding and sensitivity for the natural world and humankind.’
It is also gratifying to see that the inspectors recognised the strong emphasis given to the development of skills in science, and that ‘science is often taught innovatively'.
“There is sometimes a misconception that Steiner education emphasizes the Arts to the detriment of Maths and the Sciences. This is not true, and great to see independent confirmation of this.”
Our school’s unusual facilities were also mentioned in the report, including the wood work area, blacksmith’s forge, lime kiln, pottery facilities, charcoal burner, the playing field and ‘a most magnificent horticultural area with cultivated fruit, vegetables and flowers where pupils learn to tend the land’.
COMMENTS ABOUT THE CHILDREN
While they were at the school, the inspectors witnessed various drama activities and they reported that our children showed great confidence and literacy skills, and that such ensemble work promotes their social skills which are evident in many other areas of work.
They found our children's spiritual and moral development to be outstanding and good respectively, and it was clear that our children feel valued as individuals within the school community.
“And, parents, you will be pleased to know that, according to the inspectors, your children behave sensibly and show good awareness of potential risks during lessons which require the use of tools and other equipment!” says Elizabeth !
Other highlights of the report included:
- Aesthetic development is strongly supported by excellent work in music, art, drama and horticulture where pupils’ knowledge, skills and appreciation are of a high quality.
- In the main lessons (which take place every day according to a theme), pupils’ attention, participation and sense of being part of a community is developed and fostered through recitation, singing, rhythmic movement and moments of reflection.
- Pupils’ social development is good.
- The school makes good use of its premises and grounds to meet the needs of the pupils and their education. It works hard to maintain the assortment of buildings and the use of the nearly seven acres of grounds is extremely effective. Their development and careful tending add considerably to the pupils’ experiences and make a major contribution to the delivery of the Steiner curriculum.
- The extensive grounds provide well-organised areas for games and play as well as for horticulture and aspects of farming. A wide range of vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers are grown bio-dynamically.
“Of course, no school is perfect but we are always looking to improve and have listened with keen ears to the advice we were given,” says Jonathan Hobbs. “This included developing our assessment approach through all classes, furthering our personal, social, health and economic curriculum and sharing our recent administrative and management re-organisation with parents. We are already discussing these issues and are excited to see how we can address them in our daily art of teaching”, he says.
Anyone interested in reading the full report can do so here.
Kindergarten was voted as outstanding! Come for a visit and see why!
