Hothfield and Barkerend
Two primary schools – one urban, one
rural, one with a population of mainly Pakistani heritage Muslim
children and one with a majority of white British children. These
schools are15 miles apart and have a fascinating connection through
history and geography. The urban school is situated in the centre
of the city where the wool industry thrived over a hundred years
ago. The rural school is surrounded by sheep farms and is near the
canal which goes into the centre of the city and was used to move
the wool from the farms to the mills.
The Year 4 teachers planned across the
curriculum for a school term, using their link as a stimulus. They
started with PSHCE, developing self-esteem and self-awareness. This
moved into communication skills – oral, written and using
email.
They then did investigative work about their
own immediate environment and shared what they learned with each
other. They came together and explored their surroundings, acting
as guides for each other and producing artistic and poetic
representations of their lives, both separate and collective.
By bringing in artists to work with the
children at different points their understanding grew and matured.
This was also inclusive – every child found a way to participate
and be seen or heard. They learned new skills such as print-making
and developed a sense of pride in their district as well as an
increased understanding of where they had all come from and began
to consider where they might like to go from here……
Discovering what children’s lives were like in
Victorian times in the mills was a real eye-opener and led to
discussions about child labour and human rights both historically
and in the present. Overall the children discovered that they had
connections with a different part of the district where many of
them had never been before. It opened their eyes to new
possibilities and to friendships beyond their immediate peers.