Happy New Year to All

From everyone at Greenfields School,
we wish you a Happy New Year!

Some important dates for the upcoming Spring Term:

• Tues 4th Jan - New Students Registration
• Wed 5th Jan - New Students and Boarders Return
• Thurs 6th Jan - Start of Spring Term
• Mon 10th Jan to Fri 14th Jan - A Level Exams
• Mon 17th Jan to Fri 21st Jan - A Level Exams
• Mon 24th to Fri 28th jan - A Level Exams
• Wed 23rd Feb - Open Day
• Sat 26th Feb - Boarders Leave
• Mon 28th Feb - Half Term Break Begins
• Sun 6th Mar - Half Term Break Ends / Boarders Return
• Thurs 31st Mar - Parents Evening
• Thurs 7th Apr - Last Day of Term
• Fri 8th Apr - Boarders Leave

http://www.greenfieldsschool.com/calendar.htm

Raising the Standard

Having “settled in” as the Head Teacher at Greenfields, I am now ready to raise the standard of what we deliver to your children -across every subject and throughout the school year.

I know that many of you have been content with what we produce; if you have ever attended Graduation during our end-of-year Gala Weekend, you will know that our graduates are normally outstanding and very thankful for having had the Greenfields Experience to launch their lives, and visiting parents are usually overjoyed with what their children and others have accomplished. I also receive many letters and words of thanks throughout the year for what we do.

But, in today’s world, I feel that it is both our job and our moral duty to do better for our students.

With this in mind, I am lauching a major new initiative in the school to raise our academic and social standards. This will involve several key elements, some drawn from the best practice of other independent schools, and some designed around our own Study Technology. We will aim, through this, to achieve a dramatic improvement in the standard of our products: better educated children.

There will be a concentration on the quantity and quality of what is being taught in every subject.

Our services will be more closely monitored and directed to ensure that students who really need help are getting it.

You will begin to hear more from class tutors, teachers, other staff, and me.

Raising our standards across all subjects and through every week of the school year will present a more challenging environment for students -but they will receive any assistance that they need and we have the wonderful Study Technology to help them too. Then there is really no limit to what they will be able to achieve, for themselves, for each other -and for the world.

That’s the new battle cry here at Greenfields: raise the standard!

You’re welcome to give me whatever feedback you wish!

Grant Hudson

Head Teacher

How to Really Help Your Child with Homework

A Greenfields School Article for Parents

Homework is an essential part of being at school. Not only is there not enough time in the school timetable to get everything done, but education should be taking place at home as well as at school if it is to be part of a child’s life rather than just “something we do when we are at school”.

But it’s not that easy. Some children are easily distracted from doing what they know they need to do; and some become experts at not exactly relaying an accurate picture to you when it comes to what needs to be done. Most parents are quite happy to let children get on with it, and in many cases that works just fine -but if there are difficulties, what precisely can parents do to help?

Here are five very practical “top tips” based on many years of experience in dealing with the subject of homework:

1. Create a Stable Learning Environment for Your Child

I did a quick and informal survey once years ago on a group of Senior students: I asked them whether or not they had a dedicated homework space at home. The answers were surprising -almost none of them had. Many did homework in kitchens, in living rooms, or even, in one case, on a collapsible desk on a boat which needed to be folded up whenever someone had to pass by! It was no surprise that not much homework was getting done by that class -which is why I asked the question in the first place!

If adults can be easily distracted by mess and a lack of order or by others doing things around them, then surely children can be. Ensuring that they have a desk or dedicated workspace which is tidy, with everything in its proper place, is a basic requirement. Having a well-lit space somewhere away from others so that concentration is possible is also essential.

2. Having a Regular Quiet Time for Homework

A quiet environment also helps a lot. If we had to do our work each day while also watching television or browsing the web or listening to music then we probably wouldn't get much done. Homework will progress a lot faster with the TV off and other distractions removed. If possible, have a set homework time which doesn’t vary much from day to day -a routine really helps to get through the work and gives a sense of achievement when it’s done.

Greenfields provides a free-of-charge supervised environment between 4:40 and 6:00 Monday to Thursday if this is impossible at home, but putting this much order into the home environment is part of stretching education beyond the school’s perimeter. A detailed homework assignment schedule was issued to you in the Autumn term -please contact the school if you missed out on that schedule or need to know more about homework at Greenfields.

Part of this is setting aside enough time to get the work done -GCSE students need two or three hours a night quite often. Other stages of schooling require less (detals of how much at each level of the Upper School is outlined in the schedule mentioned above) -but scheduling it nevertheless really helps.

3. Ensure Your Child has Everything They Need

Paper, correct stationery, the right text books -it’s all part of getting these basics in. There should be no need to stop half way through to find something. Maintain concentration and momentum for the daily assignments by running through a checklist right at the start of the school year and having a place for all these things.

In these technological days, a computer and a safe internet connection have become things most children will need at some point.

4. Discuss Homework in a Positive Way

Give your children a chance to talk about their homework if they wish to. And don’t be afraid to plunge in -even if you know nothing about a particular subject, you can still help just by talking and listening and helping them find their own answers. Sometimes, through explaining something to you, children really get it themselves.

Be encouraging and help your child take responsibility for organising and doing their homework and regularly praise them for their hard work or their improved concentration, handwriting or presentation. Showing your interest, commitment and respect for your child’s work indicates to them that it is something valuable and worth the effort. If you ignore or dismiss homework, a child can learn to take the same attitude, and the game can be lost.

5. Read Together

You are your child’s first teacher. Your approach to things like reading really matters. Especially with younger children, one really practical way to help is to read together, particularly when they first start school. But even as children get older they still love to be read to and to share stories. Reading together and letting your child see you and others read is a powerful way of setting your child on the right path towards a wonderful and successful education.

You will really notice a huge improvement in your child’s reading ability and confidence, and, as reading is a requirement for 90% of homework in whatever subject, you will be helping to lay enormously important groundwork for the future.

Greenfields is there to support you in accomplishing all of the above. A stable, routine, well-equipped, positive and literate approach to homework is the winning way for everyone.

And don’t forget to have fun! You can transform the word “homework” from something that some identify with difficulty and effort into a time for exploration, discovery and triumph.

Grant Hudson

Head Teacher

Greenfields Winter 2009 Update

If you’re reading this, I assume that you are a Friend of Greenfields. You’ll be very interested, then, in what’s happening with your school.

I know that you are probably bombarded with information these days containing various items of Good News, Very Good News and Extremely Good News and there may even be a temptation not to read this email fully because you’ve read so many like it -but bear with me, please, because I’m trying to tell you something that is genuinely important and actually really inspiring.

You might have noticed your school has had its ups and downs. Right now, it’s on the way up -and my plan is to take it Higher Up than it has ever been. We have an improved organisational structure in place; we have some extraordinary evolutions occurring; we are about to explode with new ideas in a way you’ve probably not imagined.

• We’re currently engaged in the biggest technological upgrade in the school’s history.
• We’re playing a bigger role in spreading knowledge of Study Technology throughout the UK.
• We’ll soon be offering a whole range of exciting new services and features.
• We’re thinking “outside the box” in an effort to service you and your children better and better.
• We’re preparing for changes in the UK education system in refreshing and imaginative ways.
• We’re about to release a new prospectus and other new and inspiring literature.
• We’re creating new visions of what is possible with education in this country.

As the new Head Teacher I’d very much like you to be part of all this. Come and meet me to see how you fit in and how you and your children could benefit from everything that’s going on.

And tell me you’re excited as soon as you can! Reply to this entry now!

I look forward to hearing from you!

Summer School 2009

From Summer School, we have rave results coming in from parents and children who took part.

"We changed the format this year," says Deputy Head Mark McQuade. "We opted for a set of activities and services located on-site with teachers creating interesting and engaging activities within the resources of the school, and it seems to have paid off. Teachers and pupils alike were beaming at the end and I'm getting very good feedback from everyone involved."

Enquire now about next year to avoid disappointment!

A LEVEL EXAM RESULTS!

The AS and A2 examination results came out in August and Greenfields did extraordinarily well!

Chloe Wicks (pictured) scored FULL MARKS for two out of three A Level English Literature modules and 87 out of 90 for the third, along with glowing As for Maths and Drama! In fact, Chloe has just completed her first term at Brasenose College, Oxford.

One Art student received As for her fantastic Art modules including one with FULL MARKS! She is going on to study at Brighton University, very pleased and thrilled! Another Art student received As for her two splendidly creative AS Art modules!

Another student scored A grades for his AS Maths modules!

All these A Level students are stars in their own right and shining examples of what is possible here at Greenfields!

The Computer Revolution Continues!

Parent Claire Loré recently instigated a fantastic weekend of fund-raising frolics featuring a Classic Film Evening with French cuisine provided -we watched the all-time great movie “Casablanca” starring the inimitable Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman- and this was followed the next day with a sponsored swim which was family-orientated fun for all concerned.

Together, these events raised close to £2,000 towards the school’s new plan to implement advanced computer technology step-by-step across the school.

“We’re now much closer to completing the first stage of the installation of computers in the school,” says popular ICT Teacher and Network Manager Mr. David Bailey.

Greenfields is undergoing a kind of revolution.

The school with the reputation for being friendly, caring and safe is becoming friendlier, more caring and even safer. As a matter of fact, it might just be the friendliest school in the world!

“So much has happened over the last month,” says new Head Teacher Mr. Hudson. “In these newsletters we can only give you a glimpse of the whole picture. I invite you to come and see for yourself the range and scope of these positive changes.”

STOP PRESS: Mr. Hudson in London!

Stay tuned for news of a planned speech by Mr. Hudson in London! We'll let you know as soon as the details are worked out!

Greenfields New Head: Mr. Hudson

The Big News (in case you didn’t already know) is that the school has a new Head Teacher, and he is Mr. Grant Hudson. Most of you will know him -he's been our Head of English for some twelve years and has run the Sixth Form for about nine years.

Veronica Tupholme, the previous well-respected and loved Head, has been promoted to Greenfields Educational Trust management, alongside Chief Executive Beverley Croft, where she will be able to oversee academic quality in the school and the Trust's other activities, such as the Effective Education Centre and Children's House Nursery in East Grinstead.

"It's an exciting time for the school," says Mr. Hudson. "There have been enormous positive changes recently -you will read about a tiny fraction of them in this newsletter- and I look forward to meeting with you soon. We'll have a Head's Tea in the next few weeks where I'll get the chance to do just that and to find out what you need from me. In the meantime, please feel free to write or call or even drop by and find out for yourselves what's going on here!"

Exciting new Clubs and Societies

At the end of the Spring half-term Greenfields launched a whole array of new clubs and societies across all age groups.

Lower School: Miss Lesha put up several notices which Lower School children then had to sign to express an interest in the following clubs: Way to Happiness Club, Gardening Club, Choir, Cooking Club, Recorder Club, Camping Club, Arts and Crafts Club and others. Lower School students signed up for each club by the dozen!

Senior School: Lunchtime and after-school clubs have been created in the Senior School based on the activities requested by the students themselves, including: Book Club, Writers’ Society, Drama Club, Games and Cards Club, Photography Club, Film School, Sports Club, Outdoors Club and a Choir.

More Clubs will be added this half term.

The computer revolution has begun!

Popular ICT Teacher and Network Manager David Bailey briefed parents and teachers of the school recently on the school’s new plan to implement advanced computer technology step-by-step across the school. Questions were answered and Director of Studies Jeff Smith and parent Clare Loré spoke to the group and many different fund-raising ideas were suggested. The implementation has been broken down into segments.

“The first step was to get an advanced interactive white board into the Lower School,” said Mr. Bailey. “That cost £3,500.”

Parents and teachers are engaged in fund-raising constantly, and welcome any help or contribution. For more details, please contact David or Jeff Smith directly at the school.

We look forward to a new era of computer technology at Greenfields!

From the Editor

Welcome to the first of our "new-look" blog entries! We hope to be able to provide you with fresh, up-to-date and exciting news as it happens on a regular basis through this medium. We hope that you'll find items of interest in each one. There's certainly enough material at this end!

"Items shown here by no means include everything that is going on at the moment," says newly-appointed Head Teacher Mr. Hudson. "The old Greenfields spirit is very much alive and well. Old friends are returning, thrilling new ideas are being implemented, education here is becoming more and more fun. The only way to be completely informed is to call in and see us! You'll be very welcome!"

Please also feel free to give us feedback on anything else to do with the school.

The ideal school...

The ideal school would be an activity where pupils came to achieve an education based on freedom and understanding and where they had confidence they would attain it.

It would have enough space in which to teach and administrate without crowding.

It would be located where the public could identify and find it.

It would be busy looking, with staff in motion not standing about and would be clean and attractive enough not to repel its public, who would be able to see who and what was where.

Teachers would be teaching and supervisors would be training students interestedly and sorting out all slows.

There would be a pool of people in training to take over new administrative and teaching posts.

The staff would be well paid because they were productive, while Reception would be buzzing with new people.

Pupils would be getting full results in every subject with the ability to apply attained for each. And they would be leaving with high praises, graduating all on fire to make their mark in the world.

The thousand or more actions that made it up would dovetail smoothly one with another.

Such an ideal school would be built by taking what one has and step by step building and smoothing, grooving in and handling each of its functions, with each of its divisions doing more and more of its full job better and better -the results on pupils is the single important line which makes it possible to build the rest.

The ideal school is the image one builds toward. It is the product of the causative actions of many. Anything which is short of an ideal school can be put right.

The end product is not just an ideal school but a revitalized culture already on its way.

With a fresh intake of students from all over the world, Greenfields is once more underway -but this time with a difference. There’s been a “sea change” in the school and the atmosphere has been refreshed and revitalized, with many new projects occurring all over the place.

• Our ICT (Information and Communications Technology) suite has been redesigned and refurbished to new specifications as part of the biggest technological upgrade in the school’s history.

• We’ve reached out into the local community and many ex-Greenfields students are returning to us along with many people who have only just learned what we do.

• The entire organization has been restructured for the 21st century.

• We’re about to release a new prospectus and other new and inspiring literature based on a new and workable approach to education. 

• All the school rules have been re-examined and placed in a new context.

I’ve been around the whole school and am deeply impressed by the quality of what our teachers do on a regular basis and by the way in which new students so rapidly have made friends -but we have only just begun! Over the next year I am going to be engaged on a programme to boost service and quality of delivery to all our children.

All our staff work constantly to improve the educational standards we deliver. Probably one hour of teaching here counts for five or ten hours elsewhere due to the level of care!