Year 6 – artist workshop

By Sophie Porteous5th March 2023

Year 6 recently had the fortune of working with local artist, Charlotte Eldred.

We began our session by looking at some of Charlotte’s work and learning about her style and doodling. Charlotte spoke to us about what it was like being an artist and what inspired her to do it.

We began the session by exploring pattern, concentrating on putting our pens to paper and thinking of as many different patterns as we could. We also took inspiration from the world around us – just like artists do. We noticed our display boards had wavy borders and we had a bricked effect on some of them – this inspired us to explore these patterns on our paper. After a few minutes, we had full pages of different patter line drawings. We then used these in the next part of the workshop.

Charlotte then spoke to us about the famous artist, Banksy. We have been studying Banksy and his style of graffiti artwork in our art lessons this term.

We looked at 2 of Banksy’s pieces: The Girl with the Balloon and the Wildstyle Cow. We didn’t know that Banksy had (controversially) graffitied on real cows too!

We discussed the different interpretations of the pieces of art. Some of us thought that the girl with the balloon represented something that was just out of reach and feelings of frustration. Some of us felt that it represented loss and sadness in letting go of something or someone you love. Some of us thought it represented hope and showed that your dreams are always within reach, you just need to push yourself to achieve them. We had some great discussions both within and after the lesson. The beauty of art is that there are no right or wrong answers!

Charlotte then spoke to us about how artists can take inspiration from other artists. She showed us how we could be inspired by and draw on Banksy’s artwork, and her style of art, to create our own versions.

Charlotte helped us to think about how we could begin our drawings but we discussed how everyone’s interpretations of art are different. We spoke about how art is a medium for expression and how we can express feelings/emotions through our creativity. We thought carefully about which of the patterns we had explored earlier in the lesson could represent the feelings we wanted to get across. Linear stripes could suggest that our thoughts were clear and calm whereas spirals and scribbles could suggest that we were confused or had a lot going on in our lives. We tried to express ourselves in our artwork: some of us gave our cows more pointed angles whereas some of use used softer curved lines; some of us drew heart-shaped balloons and filled them with patterns that represented hope and love; some of us drew more pointed balloons filled with patterns that represented more negative feelings of loss or anger. We also thought carefully about the facial expressions on our cows and of the girl/boy with the balloon.

Overall, we all had a fantastic workshop and learned a lot!

Thank you Charlotte!

Year 5 RE- What is lent?

By Mr J SUTTON3rd March 2023

In year 5 we have been researching and finding out all about Lent, Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday. The children have been focusing on the symbols that are used and how the Christian faith celebrates this religious event. They also looked at other activities that took part on this festive day such as the Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide Football match that takes place in Derbyshire.

Netball Club

By Mrs H HEBDEN27th February 2023

This years Netball Club have enjoyed training together tonight.  Here are some fab shots from tonight’s mini games!

Year 5 Science – Materials, magnetic investigaton

By Mr J SUTTON27th February 2023

In science today, year 5 looked at investigating different materials and seeing if they had magnetic qualities. They made sure that they conducted a fair test through keeping the magnet and variable at the same starting distance each time and they kept the magnet the same size and direction. The children were able to predict and show their results on a table.

 

Researching musicians for arts award

By Mr J SUTTON27th February 2023

To build on our arts award mark 2023. Year 5 have been appraising and researching the following artists: John Williams, Evelynn Glennie, Nicola Bendetti, Stevie Wonder and the classical Beethoven. The children were finding out some amazing facts about these awesome artists!

PE Year 5 Tennis

By Mr J SUTTON23rd February 2023

Year 5 have really enjoyed the start of their new unit in PE. They have really focused on developing their forehand and enjoyed a competitive game situation using the skills improved in their lesson.

Year 5 Materials- soluble and insoluble solutions

By Mr J SUTTON22nd February 2023

In year 5 this week we have been investigating and observing which materials are soluble and insoluble in water. We then took the experiment further after discovering that sugar was an excellent soluble in water and then investigated if it would create a soluble solution when added into oil, cordial and washing up liquid.

Mental Health Week Y6

By Mrs D WILKINSON11th February 2023

 

Every year , Children’s Mental Health Week takes place during February.  This year the theme is,

‘ Let’s connect’.

Connecting with others helps us to share experiences with people we trust and care about. Positive relationships give us opportunities to share our feelings and get someone else’s views on what we are experiencing. Positive relationships give us a sense of feeling and belonging.

The BIG QUESTIONS:

What is mental health?

How can we look after our own mental health?

How can we look after the mental health

of others ?

What can we do to keep our minds healthy?

After lengthy discussions the children were asked to come up with a Mental Health Action Plan…

And when all the hard work is done – chill time – with a purpose!

Colouring is a healthy way to relieve stress. It calms the brain and helps your body relax. This can improve sleep and fatigue while decreasing body aches, heart rate, respiration, and feelings of depression and anxiety.

A perfect way to end the day.