Frontiers Enablement Model

3. Family - Part one

By 'family', we mean safe, nurturing, supportive, unconditionally loving, with clear and appropriate boundaries. We do not try to emulate the child's family nor a typical idea of the nuclear family; instead we aim to be consistent, honest and challenging to encourage growth.

There are two key aspects to recreating a supportive, family environment:

ONE: Creating a positive learning environment

A positive learning environment is one that is nurturing, dynamic and purposeful.

A nurturing environment is one in which a student feels safe and secure. For example, space to move around, with opportunities to share difficulties and issues outside the academic areas. We adopt a learner-centric focus, where students have opportunities to express their views. We also promote physical acknowledgement and support whilst remaining vigilant around child protection - you can view our policy here.

A dynamic environment is one punctuated by activity, rather than continual static learning. We alternate 'soft' and 'hard' teaching, keeping a sense of movement through the activity. We encourage physical movement through the space, rather than sitting in one position all the time.

A purposeful environment - we keep a scheme of work up on the board, with photographs, pictures etc, which show the progression of learning. We might say, for example, "if you want to go on an expedition, you need to get these skills first." A visible scheme of work means that students can see the relationship between what they are learning and what it leads to - then they are working for themselves, rather than for a teacher.

Have a look around your classroom or teaching space and sit in the seats of the most disruptive students. Is there anything that needs changing to make your classroom nurturing, dynamic and purposeful?

You can download an information sheet with more details about establishing a positive environment here.

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