RAPS Young Children Explore Their Feelings
Understanding feelings and emotions as you grow is a big task for small children – at Ramsgate Arts Primary young girls and boys are already involved in a range of initiatives to help them find out more about what makes them tick.
It is an important focus for Year 1 children this term and they are already exploring a range of ideas to come to terms with the variety of ever-changing moods experienced by themselves and their classmates.
They are using a selection of story books to help teach and explore feelings. This includes The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas which helped
them to name different emotions. Then the pupils added all the different things that makes them feel emotions to ‘feelings jars’ graphics.
Here are some examples. Vidhi said: “I feel calm when I go to the beach',” while Eddie admitted: “I get scared of spiders and snakes,”, and Will simply said: “I love my dog.”
Year 1 teacher Jess Barnes said: “We explored different scenarios and how this makes us feel. We noticed that we can feel different to our friends and sometimes it can be hard to recognise how someone feels by just looking at them, so it's important to always be kind.
“We really enjoyed using the book called 'Have You Filled a Bucket Today?' by Carol McCloud which tells how we all have an invisible bucket and we need to help fill each other’s buckets by doing acts of kindness.
“We also explored how our bodies can feel different inside depending on our emotions. Learning about our worries and what we can do if we feel worried is important, and we used a book called Silly Billy by Anthony Browne to explore this – and the children made their our own worry dolls just like Billy in the story.”
Head of School Nick Budge believes this is crucial developmental work for RAPS younger children as part of the PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic education) curriculum. He said: “We set great store by a range of wellbeing initiatives for all our year groups. The work being explored by Year 1 at the moment ties right in with this.
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Our children feel safe and cared for throughout their time with us – helping them understand and identify the way they feel about themselves, their families and their friends, is a crucial part of how we support their growing up.”
Ramsgate Arts Primary School is part of the Viking Academy Trust with Upton Junior School and Chilton Primary School.
*For more information, contact Head of School Nick Budge on 01843 582847
Creating a mini Stonehenge from biscuits is a tasty way to build an ancient monument and discover more about its construction.
learning activities.
“Creating Stonehenge was fabulous inter-active start and our children were really engaged with the whole process of what the henge looked like and how it was laid out, particularly when they were cementing the biscuit building blocks into place using icing.
Ramsgate Arts Primary teachers Karen Vorst and Peter Campbell Saunders are inspiring their pupils who saw their works exhibited at Turner Contemporary in Margate.
goal.”
“After a further viewing of the artworks in the Turner, I've realised that my picture seems to be 'out of time'. Bygone eras are a typical theme in my art.
The true spirit of Christmas has been demonstrated in heart-warming fashion by children at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
continue buying classes gifts or whether the money might be better spent elsewhere.
Head of School Nick Budge said: “This is a brilliant initiative from Mrs Beech who came up with the Big Vote idea. It is heart-warming that our children are so generous and think of the needs of others more than themselves.
Learning through play activities is a cornerstone of early years education at Ramsgate Arts Primary School in Ramsgate.
Sophie Spurrier is Early Years Foundation Studies lead at RAPS. She said: “It was a real treat for our little ones. They have been learning about people that help us in the community through our topic ‘Our Heroes’.
Ramsgate Arts Primary School is part of the Viking Academy Trust with Upton Junior School at Broadstairs and Chilton Primary School, Ramsgate.
Little children have been exploring the great outdoors to create their own natural sculptures and artwork.
children to have a hands-on experience with natural materials and to explore their creative skills.
Here is what some of the Year 1 children thought about the experience.
RAPS Head of School Nick Budge is a firm believer of outdoor learning. He said: “Being immersed in nature creating artwork inspired by what surrounds them is really important for our children’s development and it shows them that learning is all around them, not just inside school.
A textile recycling charity has thanked children and families at Ramsgate Arts Primary School for their fantastic fund raising support.
Environmentally aware children at Ramsgate Arts Primary have asked their MP to help improve the planet.
“They have learnt that by taking a pro-active stance and contacting their MP their actions are being noticed and listened to in Government. We also teach our children about the importance of democracy and this shows them democracy in action.”
Music strikes an important chord when it comes to overall learning of children at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
Creative children at Ramsgate Arts Primary are being inspired by Broadstairs artist Ieuan Edwards.
“As well as industry, my other areas of interest are tradition (the stranger, the better), eccentricity, tribalism, exploration, folklore and palaeontology. Living on the Kent coast – with its heady mix of seaside towns, folk festivals, history and colourful characters – provides me with a plentiful supply of subject matter. “
While world leaders are planning the protection of the planet at the high profile UN COP26 climate change summit, a quieter eco revolution is under way at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
The range of educational initiatives during eco day included a sculpture competition for class groups with the winners receiving a weather station from Cummins Power Generation at Ramsgate; the arts team working with children and parents to draw a forest with eco tape on the main hall walls to illustrate how trees make a positive change to our lives; an initiative with the nationwide EcoKids Project to collect around 250 bags of quality unwanted clothing instead of it going to landfill in exchange for money for outdoor learning resources; and an information assembly with Thanet council about how to tackle litter problems locally.
recent years with the school’s eco strategy. It heralds the start of even greater efforts by children and staff at school, at home and in the community.
Another environment friendly idea is the national Walk on Wednesday scheme, where children are encouraged to walk to school or be dropped off and walk some of the way.