This is the third post in the series from David Maddison, Head Teacher. There is a theme emerging on the FED site that we are never too young – or too old – to lead, that whoever you are and wherever you are, FED can help you lead; see David’s earlier posts about young people leading the way forward…

David Maddison

I wrote earlier of how FED has helped us as teachers have different conversations with each other. FED is also helping us to open up discussions with children around leadership and therefore develop their early understanding of what it is to lead e.g. within the context of organizing a charitable event or an activity for a group of younger children.

As a school we don’t seek to have just a skills-based curriculum, a knowledge-based curriculum or a creative curriculum. Our ambition is to have a combination of all three. Moreover, we want the challenges we are offering our pupils, wherever possible, to engage and involve them in the learning in a way that they will enjoy, be positively affected by and remember. We call this the ‘Active Curriculum’. It is an exciting project which requires high energy and provides high challenge and high reward for both child and teacher. It also helps generate Spirit Energy throughout the school. In line with this we are moving from talking with pupils about what their learning objectives need to be to having a conversation with them about we are up to and asking them: ‘What are you up to?’ This in turn leads to more of a conversation about what we can be up to together, helping them for example to lead on a project.

We are also having more conversations with pupils about their futures, building on what they are up to now, and what we would like them to be up to, and how we can help them to explore what would they like to get up to (Up2) in their lives, in the future. We are linking what they are Up2 now in their lives, and how they are leading for things, with their lives beyond school. All of this is part of inspiring them and engaging them and having them go for (Go4) it. Yet on another longer term, personal development level they can be asked ‘What would you like to be up to?’ now, in the future, in life etc – what they are really going for. This also links very much to St. Peter’s stated core purpose of ‘profound personal development’ and its overall aim of taking children ‘beyond expectation’.

Up2, Go4 – it’s definitely got a chance! I am currently Up2 engaging the teachers who need to inspire the children with the idea and together we are going to Go4 it! We are about to experiment with giving children an ‘Up2 Book’ which will be personal to them (i.e. not marked by teachers) in which they can keep their own targets, ideas, personal thoughts, notes etc. All part of emphasizing the concept and importance of future-focused leading, goal-driven living and knowing the direction you are traveling in!

Leadership nudge: What are you Up2 and what are you Going4? How can you help others Go4 it? Who would you like to inspire and engage in what you are Up2? And who would you like to Go4 it with? If you haven’t already got a leadership journal how about getting your own Up2 Book?

By David Maddison, Head Teacher