Mrs Deverson has been part of the LEH Junior School family for almost twenty years. Here we find out what sparked her passion for English, how she approaches her teaching, and why she loves stories with strong characters. 

How long have you been teaching at LEH Junior School and what led you here? 

It’s hard to believe that I joined nearly twenty years ago. I love the arts and that’s what my degree was in; teaching with a specialism in music, drama, dance and English. I worked at schools in London and Cardiff, and my first teaching job was at a local state school not far from here, Hampton Hill Juniors. Not many people will know this, but it’s all thanks to Mrs Bass that I ever came to LEH Junior School. Mrs Bass is a long-term friend – I’ve known her forever, and we even used to be housemates many years ago! She was already working at LEH Juniors, and she said: ‘you need to come and work at this school. It’s got great girls and wonderful resources and brilliant colleagues’. It sounded wonderful, so when an opening came up, I jumped at the chance. Everything Mrs Bass had told me about the school was spot on. That was in 2004 and I’ve never ever looked back. 

Tell us more about your role 

I was originally the Art Co-ordinator when I joined and after a few years, I became Head of English. Today, alongside this, I’m also an Upper 2 (Year 6) Form Teacher and I also currently teach book study to Form 1 (Year 3) and Upper 1 (Year 4) once a week. I enjoy all my classes and book study is a great opportunity to read with the girls and to engrain a love of reading lower down the school. It’s also great to get to know them as they come through the year groups.  

What changes have you seen during your time at LEH Juniors? 

I’d say the biggest change to our teaching and learning has been technology. Not just what we use but in the way that children interact and communicate thanks to technology. They engage with digital at a much younger age and it’s easy for them, it comes very naturally. The key is striking the right balance because if you get the use of tech in the classroom right, it works really well.  

What do you enjoy most about being a teacher? 

I love that we have such enthusiastic girls here who really love a challenge. I really enjoy taking them outside of their comfort zones. I’m part of LEH’s Teaching and Learning Community (TLC), which is a whole school initiative where we are in groups mixed with teachers from both the Junior and Senior Schools. It’s been great to think about intellectual curiosity and how we can help the girls develop the skills to think differently. And this works at every level: when you’re connecting with a pupil who is finding the work more challenging, as well as when you’re working with those who are at the top end of their learning.  

Risk taking and failure and being comfortable to have a go are all so important and this is true more than ever now when we think about mental health. Helping pupils to develop resilience and the ability to keep trying, to not give up, and to keep talking and communicating. Teaching really isn’t just about teaching whatever bit of the curriculum you are focusing on; it’s much more progressive and is about expanding and exploring horizons. In our TLC discussions we talk about ‘finding the hinterland’, which means going beyond what is near and within reach. That’s what I like to do with my classes: I always like to ask: ‘Is there another idea? Can we go deeper here with that exploration?’.   

How do you approach your teaching? 

In our first TLC we talked about what makes a good teacher. It’s sharing – ideas, lessons, enthusiasm – and trying to make our work better. We care about our students first and foremost and we want them to do well. It all comes from a sense of community. We also carry out ‘learning walks’, where teachers can pop into your lesson in an informal way, and you can watch others. You never stop learning and you can’t ever think you’ve got the perfect lesson, even after decades – it’s a holy grail. There’s aways a question about how you could do things a different way. We aren’t restricted by a set curriculum, and we can go beyond. I have autonomy and can follow my instinct. Having the confidence to do this comes with experience.  I like that I’m free to think: ‘this is what this group of children needs, and this is how I can take the lesson in this other direction’. And most of all, I love the ability to have fun and be creative in what we’re doing. 

I love talking about teaching and I realise I probably bore people! Both my parents were teachers, so it was everyday conversation around the dinner table. My dad was a senior school teacher, and my mum went on to become an educational psychologist. It was a very stimulating home environment and good preparation for my future life. I now see myself going on about teaching just like my dad used to! I love my job and the girls. I went into the profession to make a positive difference and that feels more important than ever. Books and reading help us in terms of our wellbeing and emotional literacy – a picture book with a young child can really get to the meaning of issues or things that are important to that child. There’s so much more to teaching than just your subject and I like that about what we do. 

What were you like when you were at school? 

I was a good girl at school. I definitely preferred to stay in my comfort zone but as an adult I’ve learned that’s not the best thing to do. Knowing your own mind and having the grit and determination to follow your own dream is a better path, I think. Maths was never my strength, but I had a maths teacher who was really fun and engaging – Mr Clee. He really cared and wanted me to do well. And that really helped me. Miss Symon was one of my English teachers and she was passionate about text and literature and knew her books inside out. Her knowledge, especially of Shakespeare, was brilliant and really rubbed off on all of us. She introduced us to characters who were exciting. I remember loving Romeo and Juliet and the Merchant of Venice because of how she brought them to life.  

What do you do to bring books to life’? 

I use drama as a way of putting the pupils into the shoes of the character. That’s what the skill of reading is all about – the ability to infer what other people might be feeling. It’s very powerful to write something in the perspective of a character. We might start in a very collaborative way and brainstorm ideas together for what a character could be feeling and to predict how they will behave next. We sometimes use ‘hot seating’ so someone is in the chair and has to say what they are feeling and then you can ask ‘why?’ and go deeper. The girls also respond well to things like amination so we might visualise a character doing something using tech and that instantly engages them. All these approaches can encourage some amazing writing. 

What are your favourite books? 

Something quite recent that I read was Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. There is mystery and it’s beautifully written with lots of descriptive and figurative language. The main character is persuaded to write a book and it’s a lovely setting with a girl who really wants to better her life. It’s a book that's got everything for me, including strong characters. It captures the imagination right from the start. The books I love to teach in class are those that really help us to have fun together – I love hearing the girls giggle and laugh. Last year we read Hotel Flamingo by Alex Milway and it’s a hilarious book, again with strong characters and a lovely plot with different animals all collaborating. It touches on themes of sustainability and inclusion – it’s a brilliant read! 

I love reading fiction, and I also adore reading non-fiction. A recent absolute favourite has been Steve Jobs by Walter Jacobson. His childhood, relationships and spiritual side were surprising and fascinating to me. Jobs' desire to make nicely designed Apple products was endless, and his ability to stay curious and learn from mistakes to produce a better product is a great example of resilience. His passion has ultimately shaped the future of our world and the technologies in it. I would highly recommend a read!  

What makes LEH Juniors a special place to teach? 

Where do I start? The pupils have such enthusiasm, and they really love their learning. They love coming to school and they take on challenges so willingly. We also have such wonderful resources; different teaching spaces – the tepee is brilliant outside, and our facilities and tech resources are great. There is also a wealth of books. We always give the pupils a gift of a book to read over the summer holidays, which is lovely. I also think pupils and staff take so much from our trips. They are character building and encourage our girls to build confidence and take a leap of faith. You could see how much the pupils enjoyed a beach visit on our trip to the Isle of Wight recently – there’s a sense of freedom that’s wonderful to experience. You also see different sides of everyone and it’s so rewarding to see pupils taking on a challenging thinking ‘I can do this!’. 

By Mrs Day - Director of Development and Communications