Monday As part of the Healthy Schools initiative, we decide in a wild moment to have a health week. Our ultra-fit literacy co-ordinator leads us in an invigorating aerobics session. She does this nine times for all 270 infants. I shop for tomorrow’s prizes - 100 bananas. “Got a monkey at home?” the checkout assistant asks.
tuesday An in-house nutrition game, four corners of the hall to run to, inspired by a food item: if it’s bread, run to the carbohydrate corner, for instance. We then pass around a variety of foods blindfolded, and try to guess what they are; courgettes fool many and linguine (raw) proves crunchy. We play the game nine times. Then we eat the bananas.
Wednesday Students come from a local college to confirm the joys of the jump rope. Staff jump and turn along with the best of them; the science co-ordinator, in a straight skirt, smiles gamely. No bananas today.
Thursday I role-play with the head - packing a healthy picnic, and going off with friends. Imaginative meals, imaginative places. Perfect. Lunch is a “waste-free day”, which means the children inspect their lunchboxes and we recycle anything we can to build nine theatres. The design and technology co-ordinator works overtime and the children are very satisfied.
No bananas needed.
Friday Fruit salad day. The head and her daughter set up a delicious hamper of pomelos, guavas, papayas and, yes, bananas. We eat more than 270 fruit salads, prepared by sharp cutting parents, sing “Mama Paquita, buy your baby a papaya and a banana“I and collapse. It’s been quite a week. Soon it’ll be “arts week” with visiting artists, dancers and musicians. And then book week...
Carol Meakins is deputy head of St Andrew’s CE infants’ school, Eastbourne, East Sussex