Teach-Primary-Issue-19.7

www.teachwire.net | 37 works of a wide range of artists and designers. Every child at Cragside now keeps a personal sketchbook that accompanies them throughout their school journey, creating a lasting record of the child’s evolving skills, techniques, and creative ideas over time (full sketchbooks aren’t thrown away, but are kept as records of the artistic process). These sketchbooks are not treated as pristine or untouchable; instead, children are encouraged to use them as working tools – authentic spaces for experimentation, practice, and artistic growth. Experiences are not limited to the creative subjects, either. Year 1 pupils have collaborated with architecture students from Newcastle University to explore the science of materials, while Year 6 used video production to capture their learning about the circulatory system. Every child experiences live theatre at least once a year, too, with Year 6 joining other local pupils on the stage to perform Shakespeare at an annual festival, and the school has a thriving music provision. The curriculum was designed to offer children a comprehensive understanding of various art mediums and styles – including textiles, sculpture, and printing – and studying the We’ve found that the creative arts not only open doors for pupils in subjects like music, but that they enhance academic success, too; our summer 2024 Key Stage 2 SATs were significantly above the national average in maths, reading, writing, and SPaG. Our approach has also improved student voice at Cragside. We actively gather feedback through discussions and initiatives led by our Art Ambassadors (a group of eight children from Years 3 to 6) and Creativity Champions (a group of 14 children from Reception to Year 6), ensuring that student perspectives shape our arts provision. Art Ambassadors meet regularly with the Year 4 teacher and art lead, Julie Westwood, to discuss how to improve the art offer across the school. Their input led to a school exhibition at a local arts venue, as well as the introduction of our own annual show, where we open our doors for a couple of hours after school so that the community can see all of the great work that has been created during the year – a wonderful way to celebrate pupils’ hard work and creativity. “Equal access to the arts means removing barriers, so that every child can realise their potential” VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE LEARNING OUTCOMES SINGALONG The KS2 choir at Cragside is flourishing, with over 60 members now taking part. CULTURAL CAPITAL We are confident that our children leave Cragside having enjoyed rich and diverse creative arts experiences, as well as with a clear understanding of what it means to be a creative thinker. Becky Jackson is headteacher of Cragside Primary School in Newcastle. She is a Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching and a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts. @CragsideSchool cragsideprimary.co.uk YEAR 5 PUPIL “Singing with Scottish Opera was the best thing about this year. We sounded amazing!”” YEAR 2 PUPIL “Art at Cragside is the best!” YEAR 4 PUPIL “Being a creative thinker means all sorts of things. It means you have to be imaginative, collaborative, persistent and disciplined… but you don’t just do it by yourself; you have to be able to work collaboratively, too. It’s not easy but everyone can be creative if they work at it.” F EATURE S L E ARN I NG J OURNE Y