Brize Norton Primary School
Global School

GLOBAL PARTNERS

Brize Norton Primary School recognises the importance of equipping our pupils to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. A programme of global learning is essential because the lives of our children are being constantly informed and shaped by events around the world. We have a responsibility to develop in our pupils the knowledge, skills and values they need to be able to understand and participate in the world around them. A global learning programme helps pupils think critically and creatively, develop self-awareness and a positive attitude to difference, allowing them to become responsible citizens.

Through the creative curriculum at our school, we make opportunities for all children to learn about different countries and cultures. We aim for them to develop a full sense of identity, understanding the wider groups that we belong to.

POLAND TRIP

JUNE 2010

In June 2010, Miss Perkins and Miss Grant went to visit our partner school in Klodzko, Poland. During the trip Miss Perkins and Miss Grant met with the coordinators from all of the partner schools to review the first year of our project. Sharing outdoor experiences in our way to become a European citizen, and to plan all the exciting activities to take place next year. They also got to observe teaching and learning in the school, talk to children, watch concerts and even appeared on Polish television! See more pictures here.

COMENIUS PROJECT PUPIL VISIT

Our Comenius project ''Sharing outdoor experiences on our way to becoming a European citizen' is well underway. The children are currently busy preparing to welcome children from each of the schools in May. Four children from each country will be staying with host families. During the week all of our children will be involved in a partnership games festival, Comenius theme day and some children will spend a day at the Cotswold Wildlife Park with our visitors. The children have been busy deciding on a playground game to teach the children in our partner schools. We decided on 40/40 in. The children in all classes have prepared instructions that Miss Perkins took to Spain with her. We have received instructions from each of our partner schools and look forward to interpreting and learning their games before our games festival.  See more pictures here

COMENIUS PUPIL VISIT

17TH - 21ST MAY 2010

Our Comenius week was a great success and enjoyed by all. On Monday 17th May partners from Spain, Poland and France arrived in Brize Norton to enjoy a week of activities planned around our partnership theme, ''Sharing outdoor experiences on our way to becoming a European citizen'. On the Tuesday morning we welcomed our visitors with greetings and songs in each of the languages. We then enjoyed a fantastic games festival involving games from each of the partner countries. The children and staff loved this and especially liked the English cream tea! On Wednesday our oldest children and host children enjoyed a day out at the Cotswold Wildlife Park with our visitors followed by tea and a Party in the Park. Our week ended with an activity day on Thursday with all children involved in a range of activities inside and out including Spanish dance, French cooking, orienteering and Polish art. It was very sad to say farewell to our new friends on Friday. We will all remember this trip for a long time especially those children who had visitors stay with them. Here are a few comments about the week:

• This was the best week ever' (Reception child)

• Everything we did will be my favourite memories' (Year 4 child)

• I wish the week was longer' (Year 3 child)

• A thoroughly engaging week for all of the children' (Parent)

• An exposure to different cultures and languages like this is invaluable' (Parent)

See more photos here.

 

COMENIUS TRIP TO SPAIN

FEBRUARY 2010

Mrs Byng and I had the most fantastic time in Spain last week! Visiting the Princess Sofia School was so interesting. There are around 600 pupils, and 39 teachers. The children are 3 when they start school; all children do a full day from 9 until 2, stopping for half an hour at 11.30 for a snack and a play outside. The children carry all of their books in rucksacks, like our children do when they go to secondary school, but the rucksacks have wheels and they trolley them home! Apart from the very young children, all are taught quite formally, even 6 year olds were sat in rows working from text books for most of the day.  Read the full report here. See more photos here.

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL AWARD

JULY 2009

In July of 2009 we were awarded the International School Award in recognition of our work in promoting the global dimension across the school. This is a fantastic achievement which we hope to build upon over the coming year by strengthening our Uganda partnership and through the Comenius Project with schools in France, Germany, Spain and Poland

COMENIUS PROJECT 2009-2001 TRIP TO BORDEAUX

Before half term Mr Smith and Miss Perkins went to visit one of two of our partner schools in Gradignan, a suburb of Bordeaux. Ecole Elementaire Malartic is a primary school with 137 pupils and Ecole Maternelle Malartic is a pre-school with 79 pupils ranging from 3 to 5 years of age. During the week Mr Smith and Miss Perkins met with the teachers from the Polish, Spanish, French and German schools to plan our project,  'Sharing outdoor experiences on our way to becoming a European citizen'. Before they went we made shoe boxes filled with work and gifts that we felt represented our school. In return we have received a box back from each school, to help us learn more about school life in each country. See more photos here.

INTERNATIONAL WEEK

15TH-19TH JUNE 2009

From the 15th to 19th June we held our International Week. During the week we got an insight in to what it would be like to live in another country. We also looked at how our community is similar and different to others in the UK. This developed our understanding of Britain as a multi-cultural society.

To start the week Mr Smith held workshops with all classes in the hall. We worked in groups on six activities. These included thinking about what we would see in a country in Africa, why people in the world are hungry, as well as sorting holiday photographs into those we thought were taken in the UK and in India. We got some surprises here!

On Wednesday we had visit from an artist from Ghana. He told us a story about how the first drum was made. We then all made a tie dye cloth. These are going to be hung in the hall. It was great fun and we did not make too much mess!

On Thursday and Friday, Tammy kindly cooked us an African and European meal. These were very tasty. During the week all classes cooked meals from the countries they were studying. The smell throughout the school was delicious!

On Friday we were visited by an African drumming group, Tribal Vibes. Each class took part in a drumming workshop. It was amazing! At the end of the day we held a performance outside for the whole school and parents. We got to dance and sing.

Janet Payne also visited from the Energy Team. She held workshops in each class looking at the effects of climate change. Some children commented this was the best week ever! See more photos here.

OUR PARTNER SCHOOL IN UGANDA

Kibanga Primary School in Kalangala, Uganda.

In May 2008 we formed a partnership with Kibanga Primary School after the headteacher visited Brize Norton. Kalangala is one of the Sese Islands on Lake Victoria.

GROWING TOGETHER

A partnership between Brize Norton Primary School, UK

and

Kibanga Primary School, Uganda

OUR VISIT

Miss Gerrard and I visited our partner school, Kibanga Primary School from 15^th to 22^nd February 2009 to develop our partnership and agree on a curriculum project that we could work on together.

BACKGROUND

Kibanga Primary School is situated on the Ssese Islands of Lake Victoria, a 3 hour ferry journey from the mainland port in Entebbe. It is a school with 550 children in seven classes. In July, David the headteacher visited Brize Norton and shared our enthusiasm for developing a school partnership.

OUR STAY

As we approached the school by car at 6.30pm on the first evening, we were met by the sound of singing and cheering as the entire community had lined the streets to greet us.

On our first full day we had the opportunity to meet all the staff and children at the school. Ugandan children can start school at the age of 6, although many do not start until much later. The classes are organised in primary schools from P1 – 7, with the main difference being that children do not transfer to secondary school until they have passed their national exams. For some this could be at the age of 16!

AIMS OF THE VISIT

Through visiting our partner school we aimed to:

·          Gain a deeper appreciation of what it is like to be an adult or child in Uganda and in particular to live on the Ssese Islands.

·          Identify similarities and differences between the lives of men, women and children in both countries to better inform our work in school.

·          Meet with teachers in our partner school to secure a successful partnership with agreed goals.

·          Plan a curriculum project that could involve all children in both schools.

On our second day we had the opportunity to teach in 4 classes using resources that we had prepared before we left England. It was fascinating how the children learn. With class sizes of 60 plus and few practical resources, most learning is done through ‘chalk and talk’. Most questions simply have a yes or no answer! During our time in the school we tried to develop elements of partner talk, something which the children and teachers were not familiar with as a teaching strategy. Most learning from the age of 7 is taught in English, although the children are also taught in their regional language, Lugandan.

Over the course of the week we had the opportunity to visit 6 schools, meet the local vicar and the Education Officer to share our proposed partnership.

WHAT NEXT?

This week we have been sharing our experiences with all the children in assemblies. I know that many parents have been told all about it by their children.

Over the coming year we plan to develop a joint project in both schools. This has already begun in Year 5 and 6 with the sending of letters, maps, leaflets about our village and the giving of a friendship banner to our partner school. We now plan to promote the link through all school topics to allow the children to identify the similarities and differences in the lives of children in the two schools. We also plan to develop a partnership garden where we can grow each other’s seeds to compare which soils and climates different foods grow best in.

GROWING TOGETHER PLANTING PROJECT

20TH APRIL 2009

On the 20th April we started our planting project with Kibanga Primary School. It was so exciting! We started the day with a whole school assembly. Mr Smith asked us to guess lots of mystery seeds, some English and some from Uganda. We looked at some of the differences and similarities in the climate and weather in both countries and made predictions about what would grow best where. What was really amazing was that we telephoned Kibanga Primary School. It was great, the children played their drums to us over the phone, the headteacher talked to us and the children explained what they were doing in Lugandan and in English. We even got to ask them some questions we had.

On 20th April, following assemblies in both schools, all of the children were involved in planting the seeds. Both countries have planted the same varieties of Radish, Onion, Carrots, Courgette, Squash, Cabbage, Maize, Groundnuts and Beans. We will be photographing the seed growth every fortnight and then sending our information to each other. We will then look at why some things grow better in one country compared with another.

See more photographs here. Read our assembly Powerpoint here. Read information about Uganda here. Compare a Uganda city and a UK city here.

DEVELOPING EUROPEAN PARTNERS

In 2008 we have applied to join the Comenius Project in Oxfordshire. This helps form joint projects with other schools in Europe.

We have formed a partnership with schools in Spain, Germany, The Netherland and Poland. Hopefully teachers from the schools will visit us in January 2009 to start planning our project.

Class 3 are beginning to develop an email partnership with a rural school in the Paris    region of France. This we hope will help them apply what they have been learning in French each week!