This week I have seen some written work from some of my younger pupils that has made me feel reassured, heartened. I was shown work from this week to be compared to some work from 4 weeks and 6 weeks ago. The progress was remarkable. About 6 weeks ago when I sat with one of the school’s external partners and looked at the school’s internal data, concern was voiced that our younger children were behind- that’s behind where they would have been (obviously) but also behind where other schools were. My response to this was a sanguine shrug of the shoulders. If we have spent a bit more time re-acclimatising our children emotionally and socially, then of course their ‘data’ might not be as presentable but their wellbeing and, by the by, following on from that- their academic progress -would ultimately benefit. Now I am not suggesting miracles here- we still have a way to go but I am certainly not concerned: young children’s brains have a great deal more neuroplasticity than our brains; my staff are committed and know what they’re doing. The pattern here is country-wide: children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 have been academically affected the most. As I stated last week- the further you go back in a child’s education, the more formative and critical the time and the learning become so this pattern is not surprising. However, they are well able to recover, especially so if we prioritise tending to their personal, social and emotional needs properly and appropriately. Just because reading, writing and maths are easier to measure- this should not be an excuse for those of us in education to ignore the rest of the child.