READY TO LEARN

 

 Our behaviour system is designed to build positive habits amongst our students. We know that routines reduce cognitive load and support security, allowing students to focus solely on their learning.

 'You get what you repeat'
 James Clear : Atomic Habits

SCHOOL MOBILE USAGE

From September 2026, our school will operate as a phone‑free environment for students in Years 7–11 during the school day. This change is being introduced carefully, with the clear aim of supporting students’ learning, wellbeing and safety.

Students in Years 7–11 may still bring a mobile phone to school if they wish. However, on arrival each morning, all students will be required to place their phone into the school’s approved secure, lockable pouch during morning Ready to Learn checks. Once locked, the phone will remain inaccessible for the duration of the school day. At the end of the day, students will unlock their pouch at authorised release points and retrieve their phone before leaving the school site.

This expectation applies at all times while students are on site, including before school, at break and lunch, and during movement between lessons.

Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) students will follow a modified approach, reflecting their increased independence and preparation for post‑16 pathways. Rather than a full pouch system, Sixth Form students will be expected to use mobile phones responsibly within clearly defined boundaries.

 Phones may only be used in designated zones within the Sixth Form Centre, with some spaces operating as strict no‑phone zones to maintain a purposeful and focused study environment. Mobile device use is permitted only when it directly supports learning, for example accessing online resources, completing quizzes or engaging with independent study tasks. 

More information can be found here 

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READY TO LEARN CHECKS

Ready to Learn Morning Checks take place every morning within tutor rooms or in centralised groups, and is designed to help remove barriers, ensuring students are ready to learn by being:

• Dressed correctly in their full school uniform
• Fully equipped
• On time for the start of their day

Students start the day (except Wednesdays) in their Year Group with their Head of Learning leading the process.  They hear key messages, receive rewards and have their equipment checked, enabling us to ensure students arrive at their lesson ready to learn, maximising learning time in the classroom. 

On Wednesdays, as it is a later start time, all students (with the exception of Year 11) go straight to lesson one on arrival at school.  Year 11 have a Masterclass session starting at 8.25am.  

STANDARDS CARDS

We offer an exceptional education to all; high standards and expectations underpin this.  All students are taught the importance of being fully equipped, punctual and dressed correctly for school as preparation for life beyond Cleeve. To address any areas of concern surrounding this, we log these centrally.  Previously, we have written these on a physical ‘Standards Card’ which students carried.  As a direct result of community feedback, we have migrated this to our online Class Charts platform. This simplifies communication for all and ensures that we are all active participants in supporting our students.

How it works

If a student:

• arrives late to a lesson, the teacher will log this directly on Class Charts, this will appear as ‘Standards Mark – Late’
• is missing equipment, the teacher will log this directly on Class Charts, this will appear as ‘Standards Mark – Equipment’
• has an element of uniform that is incorrect, the teacher will log this directly on Class Charts, this will appear as ‘Standards Mark – Uniform’
• has five incidents logged on Class Charts in one half term, an automatic after school detention will be set for the next available date – this will appear as ‘5 x Standards Failures’.

We are incredibly proud of the positive impact the ‘Standards’ system has already had on the community of the school.  By having students arriving on time, being correctly attired and having the correct equipment, teachers are able to start teaching promptly.  This ensures that we are not wasting valuable learning time and that we are able to push forwards with our excellent curriculum delivery. It also supports all of our students to develop essential life skills to prepare them for independent and exciting futures.

We value and promote the ‘fresh start’ approach with students, allowing them to grow and develop in safety.  We reset all Standards marks at the start of each new half term. We also recognise and reward students who have had a ‘perfect score’ for that half term.  A significant percentage of our students are yet to have a single standards mark recorded.

“The focus on standards has really helped my child. They understand why being organised and on time is important – I just wish I had this system at home!” Parental survey feedback.

KNOWLEDGE GOAL BOOKLETS & EQUIPMENT FOR LEARNING

We equip all students with Knowledge Goal Booklets and Assessment for Learning (AFL) packs to ensure they can strive for excellence in every lesson and feel supported with their learning at home.  These items are an essential part of the school day and replacing them, or loaning out spare equipment can mean that effective strategies to engage all students, such as whiteboard retrieval activities, or consolidation tasks in a lesson, requiring the use of Knowledge Goal booklets, are not used due to the amount of lesson time it takes to find replacements.  

In addition to the more specialised equipment the school provides for each student, we had found that students might not have basic equipment with them, such as pens or pencils, meaning lesson time was lost resolving these issues. This can affect every student in the classroom, despite most being equipped and eager to learn.

We are committed to delivering the highly effective teaching and learning strategies we have developed as a school.  You can read more about our essential equipment list here.  

READING WITH A RULER

Reading with a ruler is a key approach for every student in every lesson, every day.  The payback from supporting our students with this habit will be felt in months, years and lifetimes to come when we have confident and competent readers entering exam halls and Further Education.  There are many benefits to this approach, including:

• It reduces eye strain and supports all students
• It forces the eyes to move from left to right (following the number line) and ensures the correct order for decoding words
• It supports posture and increases the intake of oxygen for maximal learning
• It allows us to track the progress of all our students in a class and support any who may have fallen behind

As with all habit-forming behaviours, routine and consistency are the key and by doing this individually in each lesson, we are supporting the community of the school to embed this skill for our students. 

PUNCTUALITY

We place great emphasis on the importance of being on time for school in the morning, and for each lesson throughout the day.  In support of this standard, we have recently introduced a five-minute transition time between every lesson. All staff allow students to leave on the bell to ensure they have adequate time to get to their next lesson. Year 7 students are released from lessons two minutes before the bell, meaning they have up to seven minutes to get to their next lesson.

We encourage students to visit their lockers before school, or during break and lunchtime, rather than between lessons, therefore making the most of their transition time to take a comfort break and arrive at their next lesson ready to learn. 

 YOUR VIEWS

Parent, student and staff feedback is always greatly appreciated, particularly during the infancy of a new system.  Please get in touch if you have any questions or feedback you would like to share.

Contact Us 

'Habits are like the atoms of our lives. 
Each one is a fundamental unit that contributes to your overall improvement.'
James Clear : Atomic Habits