March Log ~ Zara's placement process

The Girls' at Hampstead School for the Maths competition

So the month of March has just flown by! The girls I accompanied to the Maths competition on International Women’s Day, did well coming half way up the rankings, 12^th out of 24 teams. It was definitely an experience, as it was not at all what I had imagined. Once the competition started, as the supervising teacher we had to be mixed up as to which school we were working with, you would be the ‘go to’ person for another school’s team during the rounds and mark that schools answers at the end of the round. It was only in between and at breaks that I really got to find out how my girls were doing. However I still enjoyed it, it was a nice day out with some excellent students, it was nice to see teams of girls enthusiastic about learning wrecking their brains to try and get the answers to these difficult questions way beyond their level, and actually succeeding. I had the proud privilege of presenting the participation certificates to the girls from our school in the Celebration Assembly the following week.

Year 5 and 6 Girls Team of HPS feeling triumphant at the Maths competition

Presenting the certificates to the Girls' in Celebration Assembly

Something I really do enjoy about the job is that although you have a routine that you follow each day is different from the last. Whether it’s what the children are learning, something new or a continuation, or when they have a fun day, you have a fun day too! To celebrate ‘World Book Day’, Harlesden primary had a Fairy-tale and Disney Day! All the children had to come dressed as fairy-tale characters and so did the staff! I came as Esmerelda for ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ and although I didn’t rip the runway in the final Assembly like the Children and some of the other staff did, I had a whale of a time as one of the judges of the competition.

This month the Year 5 class I’m working also started their work on Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’! We went to watch a performance of it at Salisbury school in Queen’s Park, where a couple of the schools involved with the Shakespeare Company competition watched also. Last year’s Year 5’s at Harlesden were winners with ‘Hamlet’ so we’ll have to see if this year’s Year 5’s can do the same. As a Literature student myself who has studied this play, time and again, I was very excited about the class starting Macbeth! My excitement seemed to rub off on the class although after watching it, although they enjoyed it, they couldn’t understand the level of enthusiasm I had for the play, although it seems to be growing. They had a workshop on the opening scenes at Harlesden Library the same week, and on the last week of term had an actor come in to do a workshop with them as well. So with most of their first interactions with ‘Macbeth’ being active lessons, it’s a great foundation and introduction to Shakespeare which by the current look of High school curriculum will benefit them in the future. I can’t wait to see what they get to produce this term. The class teacher encourage us as adults to get involved with the workshops the actor runs and that has been so much for me. I think part of the thrill is that I have a confidence in the knowledge I have about Shakespeare, drama and the actual play! So I feel happy to help them understand and educate them about an area of Literature I love studying myself!