Headmaster’s Notes: The magic of reading

Many of you will share fond memories of your children hanging on to your every word of a bedtime story. If you are not there yet, you can also look forward to the time when your youngsters begin to read and devour fairy tales or adventure stories. I have witnessed children hiding under tables having been so absorbed by the wonderfully descriptive writing of an Enid Blyton Famous Five novel and it really is quite magical to witness.

In early childhood, children are enthusiastic about reading – it is a skill they want to develop because it puts them on the same level as siblings and friends. More broadly, we know that children who read for pleasure do better at school than peers who rarely read, and they make more progress in learning vocabulary, spelling, and even maths. However, unlike walking, reading is not a natural skill and has to be actively encouraged in our young people.

My thanks, therefore, go to Mrs Barraclough, our resident librarian, for her extraordinary work behind the scenes in advance of the launch of our fabulous new library this week. We want to ensure children are able to continue to explore their creativity through a variety of opportunities and this now includes this wonderful new resource.  Whatever book your child picks up in our new library, you will be witnessing the firing of their creative intelligence in the most amazing way and a reminder that creativity, books, and magic belong to us all.

I sense too that our bank holiday weekend forecast may be a special gift for readers!

Mr Peter Thacker