Manners matter: Blog post by Junior School Headteacher, Mrs Brown

In education, there is a lot to be said for getting the basics right, and that includes teaching good manners, deportment and etiquette - something that may seem old-fashioned, but which we believe to be essential.

Only last term, we enjoyed a practical assembly where we coached pupils through ‘model’ dining hall behavior. This involved talking about table manners and the proper way to hold a knife and fork, for example. Of course, we expanded this to include different customs around the world and we had a robust discussion about what may be polite in one setting, could be quite rude in another. Eating with your fingers, for example, which you would expect to do in some countries, but not in the Redmaids’ High dining hall.

Manners matter too, and we have high expectations of our girls in this regard. They feature in our school’s ‘five golden rules’, which we regularly refer to and which set the basic standard for behaviour:

Be kind, thoughtful and caring towards others.

Always be polite and well-mannered.

Listen to your teachers and do as you are asked straight away.

Look after your belongings and those of others.

Look after the school environment.

We also want our girls to be able speak in public or to adults with poise and confidence. Simple things like holding your head up, standing up straight, looking people in the eye, and asking questions of others, are important life-skills which we expect our pupils to develop during their time with us.

We do this by encouraging all our pupils speak up, so they can develop the ability to express their thoughts in a concise, articulate way.

Open Mornings are another good opportunity for our girls to present themselves, so we remind them to come in with hair neatly tied back and shoes polished ready to represent their school. We take great pride in seeing them speak fluently and openly to visitors, giving an honest, unfiltered account of their experience here. They are without doubt our greatest ambassadors, and of course this all helps to prepare them for the interviews and presentations they will invariably face as they get older.

I warmly invite you to come and meet our girls so you can see for yourself the way they conduct themselves, and hear all about what a Redmaids' High Junior School education could do for your daughter.