Ours Aims and Values

We believe Alexander First School should raise the aspirations of all the children and ensure that they are literate, numerate and articulate. In addition, our school should be a place where children are listened to, are treated fairly and with respect and where there are opportunities for new experiences in a supportive and organised environment.

The Alexander First School Way 

At Alexander First School we believe that everyone- pupils, staff and parents, should feel valued and has a unique contribution to make. Partnership is key to our success and we pride ourselves on the positive relationship we have with our parents/carers and community. 

Our Aims and Values:

Acquire knowledge  

Knowledge is not only the practical understanding of a subject or way of thinking; it is a hunger for learning that envelopes your mind, and pushes you on to new horizons. 

We believe the way to life-long success is through acquiring knowledge at every opportunity. Staff as well as pupils and parents are supported in sharing knowledge and we believe this is best when done through reading, small step learning and repetition. 

Prepare for the future  
We recognise that our emotions play a major part in our ability to access learning, especially for our Service (Army) families who are subject to frequent moves and changes. Praise and encouragement is integral to everything we do. Ours school rules: Be ready, Be respectful and Be safe, epitomise our aim to bring benefit to society and prepare for the future. 

Research in Action  

Our actions and efforts are directly linked to the needs of our pupil population through action research. Action Research creates knowledge by and for those taking the action. It helps our staff be more effective at what we care about most - teaching and developing our pupils. Seeing our pupils grow and develop is the greatest joy teachers we can experience. This commitment is evidenced in our Governing Body committee comprising of academic research fellows. 

Research areas covered at Alexander First School to date:

• STEM Education Research Group and Discovery Education: A multidisciplinary approach to STEM curriculum design
• Maths Mastery: Limitations and benefits of a mastery approach to teaching and learning for Service (Army) pupils
• Phonics Phacts: Systematic phonics learning to help pupil progress
• Nurture: Beyond the Boxall Profile

Research group membership:

• Service Children’s Progression Alliance
• Brunel University Maths Steering Association
• The National Centre for Excellence in Mathematics (NCETM) Maths Hub
• Aspire to STEM
• Nurture UK
• Army Families Federation 

Cultural Capital

At Alexander First School we believe that in order for our students to lead a happy and successful life they not only need strong academic results but also to have developed key ‘life skills’ that will help them get on in the workplace.

We define ‘life skills’ as confidence, articulacy, social skills and team work. The experiences that enable young people to develop these skills are the bread and butter of the private school system but are sorely lacking from many state schools. In order to address this imbalance and to ensure that our students can stand shoulder to shoulder with a student from a private school and compete on an equal footing we have designed a co-curricular programme.

Our co-curricular programme consists of 3 strands. These strands are:

     A.   The Alexander First School extended day – this is our after-school programme which provides additional sporting, STEM and creative experiences.

     B.   Themed days and weeks – these are days and weeks where students spend more time intensively studying a curriculum area or developing a particular life skill. This may include RE Week, Martin Luther King Day, Charles Dickens Day or Music Week. 

     C.   Acts of service - These are coordinated events and activities which seek to instil a sense of responsibility and action in our pupils. Our Broom Farm Friends (BFF) association is led by our School Councillors and works in collaboration with community leaders in a joint effort to care and nourish our local community.  

It is our ambition that these experiences are not just for the few but form part of the normal school experience for every single one of our students.