Last week Crew Ali spent time really thinking about our conduct norms in Crew and dug down into what we expect from one another in Crew sessions; we asked, how do others see us and how might our conduct affect others?   This is particularly the case where jokes are concerned, as we don’t all share the same sense of humour!  Our discussions encompassed the HOWLs and tied in closely with what we see in lessons.

On Friday we really had to focus on our Crew conduct principles, playing a challenge game with blindfolds on, which required trust, clear communication and organisation.  Some challenges were harder than others, including getting into yoga poses, writing the answers to mathematical equations and drawing a route for a ship through shark infested waters – all with a blindfold on and only your Crew mates to guide and instruct you!

Earlier in the week, some Crew members had been courageous in sharing some personal experiences; in response, the Crew really rallied together and worked to see the situation through the eyes of their Crew mate.  They decided to support their Crew member by putting together a fundraising proposal for charities supporting a cause close to their heart.  Keep an eye out for more news in the future as to charity events we are planning.

I am also pleased to announce that Leoni and Taylor will be training to be Crew Bloggers tomorrow morning; we look forward to seeing their first published posts, viewing Crew through their eyes, in the coming weeks!

Crew Ali are halfway through their SLCs now; congratulations to Cerys, Charlie, Tom, Leoni and Marshall for completing theirs to such a high standard.  I feel privileged to be included in this process and have been really impressed at the attention to detail our students have put into preparing for what is a challenging, nerve-wracking but also empowering process.  Feedback from parents has been positive and the critique the students are giving one another in Crew and outside of sessions is absolutely crucial in improving their delivery.  Charlie said the ‘fishbowl’ activity he had done with Leoni and Kristian (Crew Parkinson) in Extended Study had provided him with “great feedback” to help him prepare for his SLC at the end of last week.

This week in Crew Ali, we have been preparing for our Student-Led Conferences by sending formal emails to our parents and planning which three pieces of work we will share with them: one to demonstrate mastery in our learning, one which we are proud of and one which needs improvement.

Mrs Townson quoted Kyle from last week’s Community Meeting, when he said we should “look beyond instead of backwards”.  Yes, our SLCs will involve a great deal of reflection on how we have been working since we began our XP East journey, but they also focus on the future beyond the SLC and how we will continue to improve.  We are definitely not looking backwards at the types of Parents’ Evenings we had in Primary School; we are looking forward to sharing with our parents how we can be accountable for our own learning and facilitate a formal event which illustrates the depth of our learning journey so far.

Last week, Crew Ali focussed on climbing their personal and academic mountains.  Some we had discussed at the beginning of the week, some were more unexpected.  We dealt with our emotions, physical and mental challenges and worked as a Crew to get through the week.

Ruby’s mountain was to “think about what I say before I say it”; being more mindful of her mountain really helped her to begin to achieve her aims.

Lacey said “my mountain was to stop cracking my fingers and I still do it a bit but not all the time”

Leoni chose to “try to use grammar correctly in class” and she feels she has improved in HUMAN this week in her poetry writing as a result of focussing on this mountain.

Charlie’s mountain was to “work hard in every lesson because I really enjoy HUMAN but I want to show my determination in other subjects too”; he’s getting there, but still has a way to go!

Cerys said she wanted to “put my hand up in HUMAN more often” and she is improving here.

Tom’s mountain was to “get the best poem possible in HUMAN”; he’s on his third draft this week and is feeling really positive about it.

Marshall’s mountain was “not to laugh in lessons unless it is appropriate” and his Crew have reported that he has worked really hard on this area.  He appreciated the Crew this morning for keeping him on track.

Well done Crew Ali!  Now to get further up the mountain or tackle the next!