Take pride!
We were, as ever, very proud of our pupils who acted as guides at Saturday’s Open Morning – and I am grateful to those parents who supported this. Our pupils are indeed my greatest pride and joy as a head, as I see them growing into fulfilled and generous human beings. And their own pride is conspicuous as they talk to prospective parents and pupils with such enthusiasm about belonging to their school community.
We teach our children to be proud of their efforts when they have given of their best in their work, as they can often be their own worst critics. We advise them to take more pride when we know they have rushed something and the outcome is therefore disappointing. We praise them and tell them they can be very proud when they have played to the best of their ability as a team, whether A or D, and regardless of whether they always emerge triumphant! In such ways, as teachers and parents, we build their self-esteem and their confidence. We want them to be proud to be themselves in the knowledge that they are making the most of their talents and opportunities and are contributing to the happiness of others. In this vein, annual Pride month is about equality, celebration and acceptance of people for who they are.
The pride we won’t accept is the arrogance, conceit or self-importance which leads to the conclusion that we are somehow superior to others. We have no truck for that in our school community, and we know that such pride often comes before a fall! So, we hope our children emerge from LGS as naturally self-confident but humble human beings, ready to make a powerful difference in life alongside others.
As parents, we obviously want to be proud of our children. Sometimes they will annoy or even upset us – but they don’t like to disappoint us and know that our love for them wills them to be their best through the example we set and the values we cherish and impart. There is nothing more special than those moments of pride which we feel as our children grow up, whether it’s their debut as a donkey in the nativity play or whether hard work has helped them to get the grades they need for university. I still recall the spine-tingling moment when my ten-year-old son sang a solo at his school carol service, and I was enormously proud as a father to give my daughter away in marriage this summer. I hope that you too will have many reasons to be proud of your children this year, for their understanding of that will also make them proud to please you.
Best wishes,
John Watson
Headmaster and Principal