Headteacher's Welcome
Hello and welcome to Oakfield, a truly unique and exciting place to be!
We're not your 'typical school' and we would love to show you what makes our academy so special... there's so much to say ... but if you're short of time ... in a nutshell:
💛 we're a school with a huge heart,
🥇 that has high expectations
⭐️ and are on a mission to ensure we develop children of good character who achieve excellence.
Sound good? Read on and we'll show you that it's more than words.
The things we're often remembered for...
💛 Culture - Our culture, ethos and community focus is what we're known for. We believe that schools should be welcoming places and a hub for the community | Large enough to cope, but small enough to care we know that children don't always remember everything we do, but they remember how we make them feel, and we want that to remain with them forever.
🌲Forest School - You may have heard about our amazing Forest School curriculum, something that sets us apart from other schools. As we're in the New Forest and our children are so passionate about the environment, it's important they learn how to use and take care of their natural resources.
⛺️ Enrichment - Our enrichment experiences which form part of our curriculum journey detail the exciting and valuable visits and visitors that enhance our offer. We might be a smaller school but we never want that to limit our offer.
📞 Communication - Communication with families and the community is so important, we have a distinct Tone of Voice that helps to ensure we communicate consistently and in plain English as much as we can. We use technology to share information and try to do without unnecessary paper.
🚌 Academy Status - We are an academy ... part of a group of schools who share values, resources and procedures that support each organisation to focus on giving the children and communities the best possible experiences. You can read more here.
Our Six Consistencies
Residential Visit to The Isle of Wight (2022)
Our Purpose
At Oakfield we set out to ensure we develop children ...
of good character
who achieve excellence
So that ...
they are prepared for their future
they make a positive contribution to their communities.
We strive to ensure ...
all are included and work hard to fulfil their potential regardless of background or starting point.
pupil choices are not limited by postcode, self-belief, opportunity, or circumstance.
The Totton Carnival (2022)
Our Values
Live
Preparing children for life.
Love
Love ourselves, learning, our community, and each other
Laugh
At ourselves and with each other
Learn
More than you ever thought was possible
The Choir at The O2 Arena, London (2022)
Our Learning
Creativity
Self-Management
Empathy
Collaboration
Resilience
Reflection
Curiosity
Year R Learning (Autumn 2022)
Our Pedagogy
Engage
Using interests and experiences to provoke thought, interest & curiosity.
Develop
Teaching knowledge & skills required to progress in a number of areas
Innovate
Applying learning & developing enterprise, independent thinking & creativity
Express
Reflecting, analysing & celebrating learning so that next steps are clear
The Chair of The Trust Leading Singing Games (2022)
Our Principles
Learning is a change to long term memory
Academic learning is difficult
We have limited working memory
Novices think differently than experts
Processing helps us to remember
Cognitive load can be reduced
Feedback should be useful
Assessment should relate to curriculum intent
Assessment should be manageable
Adaptations should be manageable
Subjects need specific methods
Our OWL Leader, Mrs Isaac (2020)
Our Behaviours
Relationships
Positive relationships with pupils, staff and families
Routines
Provide structure and organisation
Rules
Be Safe
Be Ready
Be Your Best
Be Respectful
Be Here
Our Values Explained...
Live - Preparing children for life.
We believe in preparing children for life, helping them to find their place in the world.
We do this by ensuring the things we do have a purpose beyond our school boundaries and ensure we keep things relevant.
Love - Love ourselves, learning, our community, and each other
We want children to love themselves, being confident, proud and happy individuals.
We want children to love learning, finding something that they have passion for and excites them.
We want children to love where they live, taking care of their environment and people around them.
Laugh - At themselves and with each other
We want to develop children who have a sense of humour, can be confident to laugh at themselves, the staff and with others.
We want learning to be fun - hands-on and inspiring.
Sometimes we even do things just for fun, to make lasting positive memories.
Learn - More than you ever thought was possible
We want learning that focuses on developing children who are confident readers, writers and mathematicians.
We want learning that extends beyond the academic and truly values a wide range of subjects.
We want children to learn HOW to think, not WHAT to think.