Building a personal desire to learn in our children is vital in helping them develop competence and confidence. Alison Melrose, Headmistress of Prince’s Gardens Preparatory School in Kensington, London, talks to us about the power of pupil agency, and how their inspiring spaces play an integral part.
A desire to learn, along with the ability to reflect and extend learning, is at the heart of ‘pupil agency’, which gives children a voice in their education. A personalised approach, it sees children learn through activities that are meaningful to them and driven by their own interests. ‘Giving children a choice in how they learn helps them build the confidence and competence to be lifelong learners’, says Mrs Melrose. ‘They also develop transferable skills they’ll need for the future: flexibility, tenacity, creativity, communication and collaboration.’
Pupil agency is an integral part of the education at Prince’s Gardens but recognising which schools do it well can be tricky. ‘It must be a whole school approach’ says Mrs Melrose. ‘Schools may have specific spaces to support personalised learning’ and at Prince’s Gardens these spaces take centre stage.
Forest school, which takes place in the School’s two-acre garden, allows the outdoors and natural spaces to be integrated into the children’s learning, helping build self-esteem and encourage knowledge-gathering.
The makerspace, a learning environment that contains tools and components, allows children to enter with an idea and leave with a complete project. The space gives children the opportunity to explore, create new things and collaborate on ideas. The emphasis is on hands-on discovery, allowing children to develop solutions to real-world problems and learn about failure and resilience in a safe space.
The science laboratory is designed to encourage all children to develop enquiring minds and to be curious about science and nature. The multi-purpose science lab accommodates a wide range of practical lessons across all science disciplines. Quick and easy access to science resources and equipment is central to improving and expanding children’s understanding of scientific principles and nurturing a love of the subject. Prince’s Gardens’ young scientists combine work in the science labs with visits to the local museums giving them first-hand experience of science being brought to life.
With world-class museums such as the Science Museum, the Natural History Museum and the Victoria and Albert just five minutes’ walk away, there are plenty of opportunities for immersive learning. Pupils are provided with huge amounts of inspiration and the chance to bring learning to life, using London as their classroom on a regular basis and throughout the curriculum.
Their exciting music provision places instrument learning and singing at the heart of the music-classroom journey. The youngest learners are gently introduced to chime bars and the ukulele. From there, pupils progress through a two-year violin curriculum, which additionally sets them up for future study on other string instruments, such as the cello or guitar, a two-year recorder curriculum, covering the fundamentals of playing wind instruments and then 2 years learning the saxophone and the trumpet, giving them a broad introduction to wind instruments.
Parents can encourage a love of learning in their children at home too, adds Mrs Melrose. ‘Ask open-ended questions about topics they’re interested in and ask them to ask you questions,’ she advises. ‘Have a range of easily accessible materials at home, such as paper, pens, empty pots or Lego, so that they can choose how they express themselves. After a day trip out, keep their interest in a subject alive: ask them to talk you through photos you took while out, ask them to draw the most interesting things they saw, or ask them to remind you of what interesting facts they learnt. You’ll be delighted with the results.’
Alison Melrose is Headmistress at Prince’s Gardens Preparatory School, a school for boys and girls aged 3-11 in the heart of Kensington, London. If you would like to learn more about Prince’s Gardens Preparatory School register to attend one of their upcoming January Open Mornings: 13 January 9 am and 27 January 9 am. Register here, call 020 7591 4620 or email us.
You can find more information on Prince’s Gardens Preparatory School by visiting their website. Contact admissions@princesgardensprep.co.uk or call them 020 7591 4620 for more information.
You can also read other related articles by Prince’s Gardens Preparatory School here.
