Children & Education

Schoolreaders Needed!

Children’s literacy charity Schoolreaders is looking for more volunteers who can help spread the joy of reading to children in Derbyshire primary schools – especially around Belper.

A recent survey of young people by the National Literacy Trust (NLT) revealed that reading enjoyment had reached a 15-year low, rallying slightly in the pandemic before declining again by 2022, especially amongst those from disadvantaged backgrounds and amongst boys. Furthermore, the Annual Literacy survey found that fewer than 1 in 2 children aged 8 to 18 enjoyed reading with only 28% reading daily.

Schoolreaders is looking for volunteers of all ages – from students to retirees – who can listen to children read in a local primary school, especially at those schools where children require support the most. Volunteers are asked to listen to children read once a week during term time.

Worryingly, 1 in 4 children leave primary school every summer unable to read to the expected standard and the Schoolreaders scheme is now more in demand than ever, particularly to help those children most disadvantaged following the education disruption caused by Covid lockdowns. Schoolreaders volunteers act as trusted role models alongside the class teachers, not only helping children improve their reading but also by being a positive influence.

Jane Whitbread, founder of Schoolreaders, adds, “Children who leave primary school unable to read well can’t access their secondary schooling fully which will disadvantage them for life. One in seven adults have poor literacy and cannot read instructions on a medicine label or a bus timetable or fill in a job application form. Working together we can change this.

“There is no substitute for face-to-face interaction and support when it comes to reading. Our volunteers provide a crucial supplement to classroom teaching and are welcomed by schools – and the children. 95% of children in our scheme improved their reading performance and over 90% increased their reading enjoyment after time with a Schoolreaders volunteer which is so valuable. If more children gain pleasure from reading from an early age and their reading fluency and confidence improves too, communities and society will reap the benefits.”

To find out more or to volunteer, visit

Schoolreaders.org

School Information

Ambergate Primary School Anthony Gell School 01773 852204 01629 825577

Belper Long Row Primary

01773 823319 Belper School 01773 825281 Breadsall CofE VE Primary School 01332 831328 Codnor Community Primary School 01773 742537 C of E Controlled Denby Free C of E Primary 01332 880416 Ecclesbourne School 01332 840645 Fritchley CE (Aided) Primary 01773 852216 Heage Primary School 01773 852188 Heanor Gate Science College 01773 716396 Herbert Strutt Primary 01773 822771 Holbrook C of E Primary 01332 880277 Horsley C of E Primary 01332 880782 Horsley Woodhouse Primary 01332 880403 John Flamsteed Community School 01332 880260 Kilburn Infant & Nursery School 01332 880449 Kilburn Junior 01332 880540 Langley Mill (CE) Controlled Infant School & Nursery 01773 713429 Little Eaton Primary 01332 831471 Mapperley CofE Primary School 0115 9325386 Meadows Primary 01332 840305 Milford Primary 01332 841316 Morley Primary 01332 831295 Pottery Primary 01773 823383 Richardson Endowed Primary School 01332 880317 Ripley Junior School 01773 742281 St Andrew’s C of E Primary School 0115 9324252 St Benedict 01332 557032 St Elizabeth’s Catholic Primary 01773 822278 St John’s CE Primary, Belper 01773 822995 Stanley Common Primary School 0115 9322437 Street Lane Primary 01773 742717 Swanwick Hall School 01773 602106 Turnditch CE VA Primary 01773 550304 William Gilbert Primary 01332 840395

School Terms 2023

All dates taken from www.derbyshire.gov.uk Term 3: Monday 9 January 2023 to Friday 17 February 2023 Term 4: Monday 27 February 2023 to Friday 31 March 2023 Term 5: Monday 17 April 2023 to Friday 26 May 2023 Term 6: Monday 5 June 2023 to Friday 21 July 2023 Term 1: Monday 4 September 2023 to Friday 27 October 2023 Term 2: Monday 6 November 2023 to Friday 22 December 2023

Belper School

We have many privileges here in the UK that we take for granted on a daily basis. One big one of those is the freedom and right to an education. Sometimes we think our biggest problems involve getting out of a warm bed in a morning because our alarms are sounding and we’re already late, other problems might be forgetting lunch money or spilling something on new outfits. Whilst they can certainly be a hindrance, they are things that we take for granted in our ever-changing world.

At Belper School, we have welcomed students from overseas over the last year, including Ukraine, Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. They have settled into the school incredibly well and are working super hard. As you can imagine, things are very different for them now, and, like I’m sure you would agree, starting life in a new place can be a very daunting process. We interviewed some of these students to see how they are getting on at school and we asked about the differences between their previous education and UK education.

Elisabeth and Dalaa were first asked about what they liked and disliked about UK education, the main likes included “the food” and “the people and their traditions are friendly and nice”, however they agreed that weather is a definite dislike, particularly in the winter. The -7 degrees we had in December was a particular loath – something we can all agree on! In Ukraine, Lebanon, Egypt and Syria, schools have a much longer break than the UK, ranging from “3-5 months off”. It’s clear why the students said they are not happy with our measly 6-week summer holiday, with both of them saying “we would love a longer holiday!”

A subject both students said they enjoyed the most was maths “because there is no language barrier and it’s the same as what we know”. Dalaa explained how she’s found learning history and geography difficult because “I learnt the history and geography of Lebanon and Egypt and now England too, it can be confusing.” Dalaa now has knowledge of 3 countries’ history and geography and, whilst that can be enriching, we can definitely sympathise with the amount of information and knowledge that is required to retain and understand. Elisabeth spoke about how, in Ukraine, “everyone learns English” and so, whilst it has been a shock to have to learn so much of the English language so quickly, it’s not felt as daunting because “English is a more popular language than Ukrainian.”

Special thanks to Elisabeth and Dalaa for sharing their experiences with us and the readers of All Things Local. They are both a fantastic addition to our school and community.

Here’s a part of a poem called The Émigrée by Carol Rumens. It explores a narrative from a child’s perspective about leaving their home country because it has become war-torn or unsafe.

There once was a country… I left it as a child but my memory of it is sunlight-clear for it seems I never saw it in that November which, I am told, comes to the mildest city. The worst news I receive of it cannot break my original view, the bright, filled paperweight. It may be at war, it may be sick with tyrants, but I am branded by an impression of sunlight.

The white streets of that city, the graceful slopes glow even clearer as time rolls its tanks and the frontiers rise between us, close like waves. That child’s vocabulary I carried here like a hollow doll, opens and spills a grammar. Soon I shall have every coloured molecule of it. It may by now be a lie, banned by the state but I can’t get it off my tongue. It tastes of sunlight.

By Staff and students at Belper School

The Diary of a Local Mum

That Don’t Impress Me Much

Is it just me, or is everything nowadays bigger and supposedly ‘better’ than it used to be? Is everyone doing more, and more, and more? We’re constantly watching other people taking even the most mundane things to the extreme … from cleaning their homes and organising their cupboards to cooking and fitness and everything else in between.

This relentless observation of other people’s lives inevitably leads you to draw comparisons with your own. You may be on holiday with your family having a lovely time, perfectly content playing board games in a caravan in wet and windy Wales, but a quick scroll online reveals that your friends are sunning themselves in the Bahamas. Hmmph. Suddenly your little break by the sea feels a little sub-par. Should you be doing life ‘better’, somehow?

This phenomenon first struck me on pancake day last year. I’ve always made pancakes for the kids and, over the years, I’ve become a pretty accomplished flipper, if I do say so myself. They had always been quite happy with a flip. Sometimes, we’d manage a double flip … or a flip out of the pan onto the plate. Now, that was a real wow! However, nowadays, that just doesn’t cut it. Don’t try what I’m about to suggest if you’re easily disillusioned but, if you feel you can stand it, just search ‘pancakes’ on TikTok or Instagram or whatever social platform the kids are into nowadays. If you do, you’ll soon see why they were suddenly entirely underwhelmed with the ‘bog standard’ pancakes that had previously kept them happy. All over the internet there are people doing pancake art in pancake stacks presented on hand-designed personalised pancake plates!

And this isn’t just limited to pancakes. Whatever it is you’re doing in life there’s always someone who takes it to another level and then shares it on the internet (presumably just to make the rest of us mere mortals feel inadequate). This constant comparison of everything we do puts unnecessary pressure on everyone – parents and kids alike – and breeds dissatisfaction. We were all quite happy with our little Pancake Day ritual until we saw what other people were doing, now we’re watching ‘easy pancake art’ tutorials on YouTube. Yes, you could argue that we’re learning a new skill but is it one we really want to learn? Will a pancake taste better if it looks like a minion? I sincerely doubt it. It’ll just take longer and add extra stress to the process.

We’re much happier if we just focus on our own lives and try not to be influenced by these ‘influencers’ but that’s easier said than done when we’re being constantly bombarded! You can try your hardest to not care, but it’s difficult not to be slightly affected. We’re not always striving to be the best at everything, far from it, but it can be a bit deflating when you’ve had a good time, done a good job, then someone comes along and rains on your parade. We’ve somehow created a crazy and very competitive world where we’re all judging ourselves against each other and it worries me that this is the future our kids will grow up in.

The key is to realise that yes, there will always be people doing bigger, better, more impressive things than you, but they’re not you. Celebrate and enjoy what you’re doing or what you’ve achieved. You’ve just climbed Mam Tor – that’s amazing! Yes, a friend may have climbed Snowdon and elsewhere in the world someone’s reached the summit of Everest, that’s great, but it doesn’t take away from what you’ve accomplished. From flipping pancakes to making cakes, swimming in the sea or growing huge sunflowers – just enjoy what you’re doing here and now. Smile and be gracious towards other people’s extraordinary efforts. Good for them. But good for you, too.

By Helen Young