The Secondary student planner -M. Williams, Head of International Secondary School

“Set your intentions for the week ahead.  People who plan, achieve.” 

As you will no doubt have noticed, FIS Secondary students are now using a planner as part of their everyday equipment.  In an age when more and more people are organising their lives in a digital format, why did we choose this type of planner for our students? 

The main purpose is so that students have a tried and tested method for putting down all the important data for them not to miss key events.  The obvious one is the lesson timetable, (see page 3 and smaller versions on pages 190/1).  An improvement for next year will be to have two blank ones, so that Weeks A & B can be put in separately.  The Homework Timetable (Years 7-9) can be inserted on pages 184/5, and can also be found on the school website. 

Teachers will be focusing over the next few weeks on reminding the students to write their homework in the planner.  We all have our own ways of recording information, but I would encourage each child to write down full details of the homework set on the day it is given and make a note of when it is due.  When completed they should then put a tick in the penultimate column (done) to show that they do not need to worry about it anymore. Parents – it would be a good idea to check from week to week to see if this is being done. 

There are other key bits of information that set this planner apart from the ones you can buy as an app or in the bookshops. It is made for learners in mind: 

• In section 1, keep checking the FIS IPROMISE charter on page 1 and strive to become better in all the characteristics that make it such a powerful tool for self-improvement,
• Use page 2 to help contact your teacher or tutor when in need of advice, 
• Refer to the FIS do’s and don’ts on pages 4&5 if you are not sure of expectations.  More questions are answered on the recently added FAQs document on the school website. 
• ​The second section of the planner is being used in our PSHE lessons, and will help all students to reflect on and learn many skills that underpin successful learning – communication, social, self-management, research and thinking skills all have a number of different pages offering helpful advice.  I would encourage all students and parents to dip into these areas from time to time.  One that I look at regularly is the physical and mental health on pages 174/5 – to remind myself to get more sleep and avoid excess coffee!! 

Each section has a mindfulness activity.  Doing these together as parent and child can lead to some interesting discussions.  Are we always positive when speaking to each other amongst our close family members?  The mindfulness activity on page 118 will help us to find out whether or not we see things in a positive or negative light. 

Finally, the end section of the book has an excellent forward planner, where students can note down key events that they need to remember through the school year.  These come up frequently, as opportunities to do extra things occur naturally during the year. 

The busier life gets, the more there is a need to keep all your plans in one place.  School life is busy – the planner makes it more manageable!  So, if you do not already have one you need to get down to the bookstore and get one now!