It does doesn’t it – we love a bit of sunshine. Even so, we have also been running ‘Hot Weather Rules’ this week but wanted to flag this to parents – especially new ones – so that it is clear for everyone.
We have systems in school that help to manage things well – keep good order, good standards and clear rules and routines. When the weather gets hotter it would be crazy for us to throw this all out of the window. No children benefit from regular changes and inconsistencies whether it be in school or at home. However, there needs to be some commonsense and some flexibility when the weather is hot.
When we go with ‘Hot Weather Rules’ we still ask the children to bring their blazers in – so that it retains the routine – however we do not direct the children to wear them. They can remain in bags, or lockers, although some children still want to wear them. Often, in the morning it is cooler, and so they are useful, but as the day heats up then they are not so needed.
We rely on children to get organised with topping up water bottles. We also need parents to be organised in getting their child a re-usable water bottle too and filling it before the start of the day.
We cannot have 1,250+ children walking out of lessons willy-nilly to get water every minute of each lesson. Consequently, like when you are on a car journey, a cinema, or a theatre, you need to get water at set points: in the school’s case before school, at the break times, and after school. Life is about self-managing and this is just an example of this. Children can access the water fountains at both breaks and in hot weather free water jugs are also laid on.
We deliver regular reminders about being aware of the sun, we allow caps and shades to be worn on the fields (though not in the school buildings), and we verbally remind children to be organised on the water front. The situation is like many in life – children learn as they go along – and sometimes form getting it wrong.
Matt Allman, Headteacher, added; “In prolonged heat waves we have opted to take more drastic steps, such as formal uniform switching to PE kit, but this week we are talking three days and it cools next week. They key is children getting organised as in so many aspects of life: going to the toilet at a service station; getting up in good time for a train; checking routes before you go somewhere new; and school life is just part of that wider process. We aim for common sense – both with the weather and with running a large school.”
