This year, with Echo the Dolphin as our guide, we’re focusing on Communication as our central Learner Power, don’t worry the other Learner Powers will continue to be explored and developed throughout the year as our commitment to developing character. Communication is at the heart of so much of what children do, from building friendships and working together, to expressing ideas and learning from one another – so it is an area we are going to particularly focus on.
A particular strand we’ll be developing is oracy – the art of speaking and listening well. In practice, this means helping children to explain their thinking clearly, listen with attention, respond thoughtfully, and use their voices with confidence. It’s about the quality of everyday talk: the way we share stories, ask questions, reason things out, and build on each other’s ideas.
I very much enjoyed working with our Year 6 pupils this week on interview practise and technique, helping prepare for senior school entrance process, but also helping to refine their speaking and listening skills.
Throughout the year, you’ll see oracy woven into many aspects of school life, whether it’s through group projects, class discussions, presentations or even the conversations that happen in the playground. These moments all help children learn how to communicate with respect, clarity and confidence.
You can support this at home too. Conversations over dinner, sharing news from the day, asking children to tell you about their choices or explain their ideas – all of these moments help to strengthen their voice. Listening carefully, and encouraging them to listen in turn, also shows just how powerful good communication can be.
Like Echo the Dolphin, who uses a whole variety of sounds and signals to connect with others, our children will be discovering the many different ways they can express themselves. Together, at home and at school, we can help them grow into confident communicators who know how to use their voice and value the voices of others.
Have a wonderful weekend, with lots of interesting conversations!!
Mr C
