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17 November Conference Feedback
At the Birmingham Conference 6s & 7s tutors were given the opportunity to share their opinions of both the scheme as a whole and the day itself. Encouragingly, the following trends were identified:

•  92% of the attendees though the event was excellent or good in improving their knowledge of the scheme.
•  84% thought the relevance of the content was excellent or good.
•  88% rated "fulfilling your expectation" as either excellent or good.

Interesting and exciting ideas were shared widely throughout the day, including the following:

(1)  Extend the scheme to different year groups.
(2)  Continue to run 6s & 7s with the same passion.
(3)  To use resources and ideas from other schools.

These were received with great enthusiasm, and by the end of the day the tutors were determined to push on with these new ideas:

•  "I think it is so important to do this throughout the school – we are going to do a presentation to all the staff."
•  "Fresh ideas, newer resources, ideas from other tutors."
•  "We are looking at taking 6s & 7s, in adapted form, throughout the school."

Here is just a sample of the positive comments from participants on the day itself:

•  "The way the conference brings all aspects together, teamwork and how good it is to be part of the 6s & 7s team."
•  "All really useful – very happy with all aspects of the day, I found it extremely valuable – thank you."
•  "Positive impact of 6s & 7s on children’s wellbeing through independent assessment of the programme."

Please keep the feedback coming in, as we are always very interested in hearing your views.


17 November 2009, 6s & 7s Birmingham Conference
On 17 November, the 6s & 7s team proudly hosted an invitation conference at the Portland Hotel, Birmingham, to celebrate the impact of the scheme thus far and to explore the potential for future expansion.

Attended by both current and prospective 6s & 7s tutors, the event was vibrant and reflected the enthusiasm of all those involved in the programme.

Led by Angela Jackson (NET National Programme Manager), Bridgette Williams (NET Assistant National Programme Manager), and Gail Bedford (NET Associate Consultant and Trainer), good practices were shared as the participants exchanged wide-ranging ideas deriving from their own first-hand experiences. One of the most invaluable contributions was made by Ruth Gowell, a 6s & 7s tutor at Heron Primary School and member of the National Advisory Group, who delivered an inspiring presentation about her own experiences and professional journey, since training last year. Ruth's commitment to 6s & 7s is testimony to what can be achieved through the scheme: according to a recent independent evaluation by Dr Tony Eaude, 91% of children who participate in 6s & 7s benefit from the scheme. By the end of the conference it was clear that there exists a widespread eagerness to expand the scheme further to maximise its positive impact on children's self-esteem: many of the participants volunteered to pilot the scheme with other age groups.

All in all, a very positive day enjoyed by all!


2 March 2009
This article originally appeared in the Daily Mail
It's goodbye to shyness
Some children are desperate to have their opinions heard, while others are happiest when they shrink unnoticed into the background. But being a wallflower can create problems for youngsters at school, in and out of the classroom.
Click here to read an online copy of this article.

23 January 2009
Welcome to our schools in Sandwell who trained in 6s & 7s during autumn 2008. We are getting some fantastic results from the schools involved, just as we are across the country. 6s & 7s has also been run in one Sandwell school with a group of children from year 3, and the results have been positive in improving children's confidence.
Please don't forget to keep in touch and let us know if you run the programme with children other than those in years 1 and 2 and how you modified the materials, if indeed you did.
Well done, Sandwell.

Sandwell Tutors hard at work

Sandwell

15 January 2009
This article originally appeared in The Independent
Special report: Five years old and out of control Highly disruptive pupils are blighting primary schools – leaving teachers desperate for support and advice on how to handle the problem.
Levi, a Luton schoolboy, is struggling physically with special support staff as he is carried down a corridor to the school's "quiet room", an empty space with bare walls and no furniture to throw or climb on, where he can be kept from disrupting other children. Today, he has been in school for a total of two hours, and the support team have quietly been trying to coax him into class for most of that time.
Click here to read an online copy of this article.

24 November Assessment Tool Masters to copy and use or print Our new calendar is live for schools involved in the 6s & 7s Programme Login to see the details for both these items.

24 October
Pupils at 6s and 7s? Tutor them in teasing
Published in The TES on 24 October, 2008
Helen Ward
Click here to read an online copy of this article.

13 October
The Autumn Term has got off to a great start as we welcome schools from Gloucester, Sandwell, South Cambridge, and Epping. In all, 41 schools have taken part in the training since September.
Marc Rowland is NET's Business Manager and takes a keen interest in this, one of NET's major projects. Dr Tony Eaude is a NET Leading Thinker and he is leading the independent evaluation of the 6s&7s programme over the coming year.


2 September
"Ed Balls writes to primary heads, stating that he is looking to them to "promote wellbeing in the round by working with other schools and local services".

He also said "support staff are vital to schools success" and that "primary schools have a vital role in ensuring that all young people have the foundations on which to build success and aspirations for learning."

Read the full letter here


6 August 2008
Sean Daly visited Montgomery School, Birmingham, to meet the children and staff involved in the project.

Sean was particularly keen to see how 6s & 7s benefits children and what the children themselves feel about the sessions. The children told Sean about what they had learnt and showed him some of the games they enjoy.

Click here to read more about this article



Angela Jackson meets with Jamie McGachy, Learning Zone Centre Manager at West Ham United Football Club.
Angela and Jamie are developing a joint strategy for the introduction of 6s & 7s into local schools. The club has a strong commitment to working directly with children to ensure all children are fully included in all aspects of school life.
Jamie is keen to develop outreach work in the London Borough of Newham and looks forward to his staff training alongside teaching assistants from local schools. The training will take place at the Boleyn Ground.

Children in City of Gloucester to benefit from 6s & 7s.
At least 84 children in the City of Gloucester will be celebrating the fact that they will be the first children in the area to take part in the programme.
Teaching assistants from 14 schools will be trained to deliver the programme early in the autumn term and each of the schools will have run at least one set of six sessions by Christmas.

Epping Forest District Council Local Delivery Groups deliver the goods!
Teaching assistants from eight schools in Epping Forest South and Epping Forest Rural will be the first to run sessions of 6s & 7s in the national roll out of the programme.
Well done, Epping Forest – the first of many schools outside of Birmingham to help children in years 1 and 2 to enjoy, and fully participate in, the many activities and experiences that your schools offer.

South Cambridgeshire schools support one another in their bid to support children in their small village schools
Thanks to contributions from Sawston Village College and Linton Village College, seven small village primary or infant schools in South Cambridgeshire are able to have teaching assistants trained to deliver 6s & 7s in their schools. Training will start in October and it is expected that, by the end of the autumn term, at least 42 children will benefit from taking part in the programme.

More schools in Sandwell sign up for 6s & 7s in their bid to improve the learning experience for all children
Sandwell has once again demonstrated its strong commitment to supporting children and promoting inclusion. Some time ago, a group of schools in Sandwell took part in a pilot for 6s & 7s. Case studies were published and the work in schools evaluated. The results were so positive that now a group of 6 schools (7 if you count federated schools as 2) have signed up to have their teaching assistants trained in the autumn term. Welcome back, Sandwell!

Thank you to everyone who has contacted us and expressed interest in 6s & 7s, following the BBC article
It has been really useful, and very interesting, discussing the programme with so many people from so many different parts of the UK.

Angela Jackson, National Programme Manager, is happy to discuss the programme, its benefits and the impact on children, and to provide further information about where, when and how schools can participate.
Please contact Angela by email: angela@net6s7s.net or telephone 07852 168243.

23 July 2008
When pupils are too shy to learn
BBC News

No parent wants their child to be the one left out in the playground - waiting on the sidelines for an invite to join in.
But many may not realise that being very shy can also mean they miss out on learning too.

Click here to read an online copy of this article.