Staff Story

Teaching is something I always wanted to do from a very young age. I love working with primary school age students because every day is different, and I’m always engaged with what I’m doing. Time flies in the primary school classroom.

I’m originally from England. I started teaching at 22, at a school in Manchester, and that’s where I earned my stripes. I then worked in an international school in Cyprus before I moved to Sydney with my now wife, and Aussie who is also a teacher. Once we made the move to Melbourne, I was lucky enough to take up a role at Grimwade House and begin teaching at what I think is one of the best schools in Australia.

Having lived and worked across a number of cultures, I’ve come to appreciate how important it is for teachers to vary their classroom activities and content to meet their students’ needs. As Year 5 Co-ordinator, I see the fact that we don’t necessarily repeat content year-to-year as a real strength of our teaching. We change what we do in the classroom because our students are never the same. As they learn and grow, we need to make sure what we’re teaching responds to that growth. Alongside teaching the fundamentals, we need to adapt to the needs of the students we’re working with that week, and that day.  

Newer teachers come in with really interesting ideas, and it’s wonderful that here at Grimwade, we have the time and resources to collaborate with each other, decide what might work, and try new things.

Grimwade’s emphasis on inquiry-based learning is one of the things I enjoy most about teaching here. The students have a lot more agency than they might have at other schools. When we look at sustainability, for example, students come up with some truly extraordinary ideas for their individual projects, and I can support them to develop these. One student organised a school-wide clothes swap to highlight issues around fast fashion, which was a great success. It’s wonderful to see them become so animated and interested in what they’re doing. Of course, this requires an additional commitment from us as teachers, but it’s so beneficial to them, and so it’s worth the extra time and effort.  

At the end of the day, I want my students to head home feeling excited about what they’ve learned. When people walk into my classroom, I hope what they see is a group of students passionately engaged with what they’re doing. I think it’s really important to laugh, and to have fun with students as well. My classroom might not be the quietest place in the School, but the noise we’re making is a positive noise!

Tom Finney holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching, both from the University of Nottingham. He has taught at schools in the UK, Europe, and Sydney before beginning teaching at Grimwade House in 2017, and is now Year 5 Co-ordinator.