Primary Maths and English Tuitionin Surrey and South West LondonThe Surrey Tutor Group, based in Cobham, offers individualisedprivate tuition to children aged 3-11 in Maths, English, Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning throughout Surrey and South West London.For more information on the services we offer, including home schooling,please visit our website: www.thesurreytutorgroup.co.ukor email us at info@thesurreytutorgroup.co.uk.Nursery | Prep | SeniorOpen MorningWednesday 13 March 2024www.manorhouseschool.org | 01372 457077 | admissions@manorhouseschool.orgpriceless-magazines.com64
The Priceless Education Supplementistockphoto.com/ olnik_yTry toreworkthisHow to FailprogressGreatfromtimelastyoushouldbeproud ofthis!→point!GoodMore ofthis!❤youCANdobetterimproving!⁄One of the most beguiling images of sciencefiction comes in The Matrix – Keanu Reeves’character can have a whole library of skillsuploaded at the touch of a button. Withtrademark eloquence, he declares ‘I knowkung fu’. What a super power that would be,to click one’s fingers andall at once be a master ofmartial arts – or crochet,trombone or calligraphyfor that matter.Longacre School’s headteacher, Matthew Bryan,gives insight into developing resilience“Let childrensee us fail,or not knowthings”One of the mostcommon questions I amasked as a headteachergoes along the lines of‘How can you give mychild more confidence?’Confidence is a feelingof security, of faith in oneself and one’sabilities, or indeed in others. That confidencewhich parents seek for their children appearsin two forms: firstly, an innate happiness andspark, a sense that things are likely to workout well. Secondly, and crucially, it is the secretingredient in making sure that we don’t giveup – or see the learning opportunities – whenthings go wrong. Michael Jordan, the greatbasketball player, is a trove of inspirationalquotations and Instagram memes on thesubject of failure and its integral role insuccess. But to keep failing, to learn to hitobstacles head on: that requires resilience,and lots of it.Would instant mastery of complex skills andhobbies really be such a good thing? Withoutthe pride that comes with overcomingadversity, knowing the hours invested and howwe grow in character through that process,would our favourite pastimes actually be somuch fun? In education, it’s so often theprocess which teaches us the valuable skill,rather than the outcome itself. How else canwe explain the need to learn the quadraticformula?! At my school we try actively touse language of failure, that we want to seethe ‘purple pens of progress’ correcting or65improving our own work – not a simple pageof ticks. FAIL itself should stand for ‘firstattempt in learning’. We have some 85 clubsand activities at the time of writing, becausewe want children to try things out, lean intowhat they are good at and find ways to stretchthemselves further, havea go at activities whichmight seem unpromisingat first, but could light anunexpected fire. In myexperience, the majorityof children are inherentlyconservative and risk-averse.They like praise and thefeeling of doing things well.To do best by children,to help them explore andrealise their potential, wehave to find ways of encouraging them to stepout of their comfort zones.At home and at school, whether we likebasketball or not, we can all take much fromthe words of the great Michael Jordan: “I’vemissed more than 9,000 shots in my career.I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve beentrusted to take the game winning shot andmissed. I’ve failed over and over and over againin my life. And that is why I succeed.”Role modelling is hugely powerful, whetherfor good or bad. Parents can help children todevelop resilience just as much as teachers.Let children see us fail, or not know things.They won’t lose respect for us, but they mightgive themselves an easier time to see that anytime we are less than perfect gives us scope toimprove. Let’s prepare children for the road,not flatten out the road for the children. Let’snot steal the struggle from them, the strugglewhich they need to develop inner confidenceand grit. And let’s give them a kind, forgivingand generous environment in which toexperiment, a sandbox where mistakes can beerased, but the learning remains.longacre.surrey.sch.ukHow can weimprove?Brilliantstart!beliveyourselfin{⁄—stepTryouttocomfortof yourzoneKeepgoing!ThispotentialshowsagainTryStrongfirstattempt—priceless-magazines.com