Willow Class had the best day on their trip. It started at the Hindu Temple, where we were welcomed by Nalin who gave an informative talk about Hindu beliefs and practices. He told us about the festivals and deities as well as how the Temple works for the local community.
Next, we arrived at the Bristol harbourside and had a lovely walk along the docks to the historical cranes. This allowed us to make historical links with our Geography unit on Trade.
Arriving at MShed, we took part in an Anglo-Saxon workshop, building on our last History unit. Here, we considered who the Anglo-Saxons were and where they came from. In this immersive workshop, the children learnt about Bristol’s Saxon roots as a market settlement known as Brycg Stowe (Brigstowe) and examined evidence about everyday life. They were able to handle artifacts, solve puzzles to discover the Kingdom of Anglo-Saxon England and listen to a tale of warrior battles with mythical beasts.
After lunch, we had just enough time to explore the exhibits that revealed the fascinating story of the city of Bristol, before walking back along the harbourside in the glorious sunshine.
A great day was had by all!
Chestnut Class at Chew Valley Animal Park
On Thursday 20th October, Chestnut Class went on a trip to Chew Valley Animal Park. What a brilliant day we had! Luckily, the heavy rain from the early hours didn’t stop the excellent experiences we had.
The trip enhanced our curricular learning of animals, environments and adaptations. During talks with the keepers we learnt about how tortoises, skunks and other animals are adapted for their environments. We even helped to give Max the tortoise a bath.
We had lots of treats during the day, including handling some mini-creatures like mice, rabbits and guinea pigs to feeding some very large camels! However, we all agreed that the best part of the day was feeding and holding the goats and kids!
A big thank you to Chew Valley Animal Park for being so accommodating to our learning that day- we can’t wait to return at another time!
Maple Class had a fantastic time visiting Cheddar Gorge on Tuesday 26th April for our ‘Stone Age Activity Day’. Our first activity was a talk about how caves were used for shelter during the Stone Age, and we learned about the discovery of the skeleton of ‘Cheddar Man’. The class were fascinated by the skeleton, and showed a good understanding of how fossils are formed! After that, we had the opportunity to explore Gough’s Cave, which the children loved. They were particularly interested to see the many stalactites and stalagmites, after having learned about them in school last term.
After lunch, we had a demonstration of Stone Age survival skills, including how they made fires, created tools and used natural resources to make clothing. The children even had the chance to dress up! We ended our visit with a tour of Cox’s Cave, which was quite dark and narrow but we all (including the adults) made it through safely.
Here is what the children had to say:
“The trip to Cheddar Gorge was amazing!”
“My favourite part of the trip was Cox’s Cave and Gough’s Cave and the museum, and I liked the cave person and his tools!”
“I loved our trip because I got to go in a cave for the first time, I learned things I never knew before, and I saw awesome stalactites and stalagmites!”
“I liked it when we learned about the things that cavemen needed to survive, looking at a model of the skeleton of Cheddar Man and getting to dress up as a caveman.”
“This was the best trip ever!”
I think it is fair to say that this trip was a great success, and it was lovely to see the children enjoying themselves and showing off their knowledge about the Stone Age. Many thanks to the parent and grandparent helpers who so kindly gave up their time to join us on the trip - we could not have done it without you!
As part of our curriculum offer to build cultural capital and to complement our vision to promote outward - looking citizens, we strive to take our children out and about frequently. Our trips are carefully planned to offer context for the learning that takes place inside school. It could be simple and within walking distance such as exploring Silver Street Nature Reserve or visiting Midsomer Norton Library (visited on a rolling programme almost weekly). Alternatively, it can be further afield, either for a day trip or, from Year 3 upwards, residential. Additionally, a variety of visitors also broaden experiences.
Here is a taste of experiences so far this academic year (2021-22) as at March, despite the challenges of Covid, and several cancellations and postponements:
September
Bath University STEM Project
Sycamore Class
October
Green Ginger STEM Dome
KS2
November
Wassail Theatre – outdoor production
Whole school
African Drumming Workshop (Black History Month link)
SUSANN the Robot (Black History Month link)
British Legion visitor- Remembrance
Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm
Oak Class
January
Life Skills
Theatre Royal
Egg Theatre
Holly Class
February
Roman Baths
Cherry Class
March
Natural Theatre Company
SS Great Britain
Chestnut Class
Readathon Sleepover
Willow Class and Sycamore Class
Terms 5 and 6 are set to bring many more adventures including residentials for every class in Key Stage 2!
Chestnut’s trip to the S.S. Great Britain
On Friday 4th March Chestnut Class had the opportunity to explore Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s S.S. Great Britain. As most of the class had not been before, we were very excited. The weather was on our side as we arrived in Bristol and had a tour of the upper deck of the ship. We loved seeing the animals on the top deck and took turns in turning the wheel that directs the rudder. Alan, our fantastic guide, then took us through the Steerage Class and First Class decks of the ship. It was interesting to learn how in Steerage, the people had tiny bunks (barely big enough for Eloise) and how the First Class suites cost the equivalent of £10,000 for a ticket to Australia.
After lunch we explored underneath the ship- we literally went under water, it was amazing! We saw the propeller and rudder and they were huge. We found out that the ship travelled at around 11 knots, which is 13 mph- which was very fast at the time for the size of the ship. Next we explored the museum and the Brunel experience, we had the opportunity to dress up in Victorian style clothes and then learn more about Brunel’s legacy that he left us with. We had such a busy and enjoyable day learning so much about the famous engineer that many of us fell asleep, totally exhausted on the way home.
Pupils at Longvernal Primary School have been working closely with The University of Bath to produce a STEM project. The project is based on introducing more primary aged children to STEM aspects; in particular biomechanics. Year 6 pupils from Longvernal acted as ‘critical developers’ of the project and went to The University of Bath to review their Rat Lab, which teaches pupils about the biomechanics of bones and bodies. When reviewed, the project was then taken to several primary schools including Longvernal. All of the Key Stage Two pupils at Longvernal got involved with the Rat Lab and it was a resounding success. The pupils were able to discuss their learning and understanding of the science and ‘engineering’ of the human body and loved the university’s medium of rats and puppetry to relay the information. Pupils said; “I have learnt that adults have less bones than children”, “...the puppets were so cool and made by an engineer” and “joints and bones are also mechanical, not just machines”. Chrissie Richards, Science Lead at Longvernal commented: “It has been such a pleasure to witness the children getting involved in the STEM aspects of the curriculum. When visiting the university, it was clear that the children rose to the responsibility of reviewing the project and having the chance to go to the University of Bath’s campus was aspirational for our pupils. Some pupils took the opportunity to question the engineers about their jobs and roles which was a real interest to them, with many saying they now want to pursue a career in STEM.