The listening school

Newlands Primary prides itself on listening to their children, who sometimes brings unintended consequences

Carl is a surprise that McCarthy can never go anywhere.

A short walk through what is probably the best place to play with the resources of the earth - no computers with pieces of wood, adventure, outdoor games and a laptop forest zone - the head of Newlands Primary School does not receive more than one step at a time before many children Mafia energetic and enthusiastic about it, demanding attention and peppering her with questions.

Each time he came, he listens, interacts with the proposed game or reply to a comment. Nobody shook. That means an age to get to the playground that we seek. But listen to what children have to say is, said McCarthy, a fundamental principle of the philosophy of the school.

"listening to teachers is not rocket science," he says with a quiet passion that comes, which, of itself be misunderstood at school.

"stop, look them in the eyes and the world stops for them. It may be relatively unimportant in the context of my day, but from their perspective, it is important. And it's exhausting, but ... "that the towers, laughs and leans a little girl who smiled when she asks you to guess which of the wrist is a long stone.

listening to children is one of the points of the Manifesto of the children's guardian for the children, adding to demand that teachers take action accordingly.

McCarthy said that in his three years as director here, has deliberately recruited and promoted to teachers who are willing to invest the time to listen to children.

"If we want to change something, we have counselors in every classroom and they will tell the school and it has changed," said Jade, 10.

• "With the marks on the playground, we wanted to play more, then I said and that is there now."

Ask children what they mean sometimes ending with a result not expected, McCarthy notes with a smile. "We needed to renew the school pond, so that the children came out to watch local ponds, some mothers are involved, and suddenly becomes a Japanese garden," he said.

"Now, maybe I had not thought enough of him to be a Japanese garden, but that's what his research has come that we do."

present "mainly white British" pupils of his school to the idea that not only must assume "that everyone is as it is here in Yateley" is also central to the way the school ethics and programs have been developed.
reflection of the Manifesto of children wish that schools should be "international", Newlands is now linked to schools in Kenya by the Council of classrooms British connection, so that students have the opportunity to learn alongside their African counterparts.

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