School of creativity events
The School of Creativity programme of projects and events is ongoing throughout the year. These high profile events and projects are planned and devised by the Creativity focus group in the school. This group involves the school's artists in residence, teachers and teaching assistants who have an expertise in the arts and creative learning.
All creativity events aim to link closely to the teaching and learning happening in school and will also support whole school initiatives such as the school international linking programme and our commitment to teaching social responsibility and global citizenship. The programme of activity also provides children and staff with the opportunity to engage in high quality arts and creative learning processes with skilled artists and teaching staff.
All creativity events aim to link closely to the teaching and learning happening in school and will also support whole school initiatives such as the school international linking programme and our commitment to teaching social responsibility and global citizenship. The programme of activity also provides children and staff with the opportunity to engage in high quality arts and creative learning processes with skilled artists and teaching staff.
Latest Creativity events and news...
Small Action Big Change - Protest Art Exhibition Opens
We are really proud of the children's work and all their deep thoughts and ideas brought together in the Protest Art exhibition which is presently on show at NUAST.
The exhibition shows work created by all classes in years 2 through to year 6 - and all of this is part of a much wider whole curriculum theme exploring Greed and Power. We are really excited by the interest and conversations this project has generated.
The project has been on-going for several months and there's been vast amounts of work taking place which has led up to the creation of some of the pieces in the exhibition. Miss Claire has worked with year 2 to year 4 and Mrs Wise has worked with year 5 and year 6.
The children have explored the issues around Protest Art from many angles and they have decided both what they wanted to protest about and what they wanted to create.
The exhibition is housed in a huge room at NUAST, which has recently opened on the old fire station site. It's a room which is also looks onto the Dunkirk School field and Discovery Garden. The staff at NUAST have been wonderful in welcoming us and helping with hosting and staging the exhibition. Its brilliant to be able to put all the work in such a new space - the room really feels like a gallery space and it means the children's work is given extra significance and sophistication through being placed in a space like this.
The exhibition contains many different pieces created by the children - and a chance for anyone visiting to leave comments on a protest tree or to use Speakers Corner! The children's work includes a series of protest badges, little books, an appliqued poem, guns created from paper money, a host of protest peg dolls, two stop-frame animation films, a film of children speaking their thoughts and much more. There is also a host of documentation showing the processes that took place during the project and giving the children's words and thoughts.
We feel the work is incredibly poignant and deeply thoughtful and shows the depth of enquiry which the children undertake as they explore their world.
“I think that instead of having money people should have happiness” y4
“I think people who make weapons want to destroy the world” y2
“It makes me feel sad because people throw litter” y2
“we need to show people what protest is” y3
“we could send our thoughts around the world so people will see them” y2
Miss Claire has also put some further images and information together on her blog on her website here.
You can click on each image below to see a larger version.
small action big change
protest art exhibition by Dunkirk Primary
How can we enable our voice to be heard?
What is protest?
How can we create positive change within our local and global communities?
These are just some of the Big Questions that children have been exploring whilst developing this unique exhibition. These explorations have also linked closely to our current curriculum theme of 'Greed and Power'. Inspired by examples of protest art across the world, pupils have worked with our artists-in-residence, Claire Simpson and Julie Wise, to create their own protest art pieces. This thought provoking exhibition invites you to explore what students at the school have to say about the world we live in, the global issues that matter to them and how they would like to shape and influence the future.
The exhibition is being kindly hosted by NUAST, Abbey Road, Dunkirk.
Many thanks to the staff at NUAST for supporting this exhibition.
The exhibition will be launched on Wednesday 18th March with a private viewing for all teaching staff, governors and NUAST staff. Each class will be able to visit and explore the exhibition during March and April. A special event will be held for parents to visit the exhibition, dates for this are yet to be confirmed...so watch this space!
What is protest?
How can we create positive change within our local and global communities?
These are just some of the Big Questions that children have been exploring whilst developing this unique exhibition. These explorations have also linked closely to our current curriculum theme of 'Greed and Power'. Inspired by examples of protest art across the world, pupils have worked with our artists-in-residence, Claire Simpson and Julie Wise, to create their own protest art pieces. This thought provoking exhibition invites you to explore what students at the school have to say about the world we live in, the global issues that matter to them and how they would like to shape and influence the future.
The exhibition is being kindly hosted by NUAST, Abbey Road, Dunkirk.
Many thanks to the staff at NUAST for supporting this exhibition.
The exhibition will be launched on Wednesday 18th March with a private viewing for all teaching staff, governors and NUAST staff. Each class will be able to visit and explore the exhibition during March and April. A special event will be held for parents to visit the exhibition, dates for this are yet to be confirmed...so watch this space!
Protest Art Project is brought together ready for exhibition
The work created by many of the classes at school (all classes in years 2 to 6) is being brought together ready for the project exhibition launch on March 18th at NUAST. The children have created so many different pieces as they've explored their ideas - their thoughts, statements, ideas and concerns are incredibly touching and powerful.
Protest Art project - animation, hand made paper and explorations in the snow...
The protest art project work is continuing with Oak and Modrono this term and the children have been creating some really in depth work exploring their concerns. This has included the creation of several stop frame animations which look at their wishes for the world, a host of hand made paper to use in creating anti-litter messages and many wonderful explorations of the world around them as they investigate the issues they want to protest about. News of the exhibition of this work to follow soon...
Protest Art project work continues
Miss Claire is working with Oak Class and Modrono Class this term (January and February 2015) to explore issues around protest art and to create work towards the project exhibition. The children have become incredibly enthusiastic about the issues being explore and their ideas, thoughts and energies are very special to work with. We've looked at many examples of protest art - in the widest sense (including films, sculptures, street art, posters, banners, badges, graphic design, logos and use of colour, giant puppets, costume, drama, song, poetry and so much more) and the children have been gathering ideas around issues they would like to protest about and how. The project has led to a lot of writing too - the children have been so fired up about their ideas and have been incredibly enthusiastic about getting their thoughts down on paper; we've made books, badges, posters, written poems and huge scrolls of text to communicate our thoughts.
Images and thoughts about this project are also on Claire Simpson's blog here: Stories Under Stones blog.
New Street signs designed by Dunkirk pupils
We are really pleased with the two new Dunkirk and Lenton street signs which have just gone up - one near each school campus - which were designed by the present year 6 children, working with Claire Simpson. This project is part of our on-going community work and part of our commitment to being a strong part of the Dunkirk and Lenton community. The children worked with Miss Claire to design lots of different ideas for the signs - they spent a lot of time out in the local area looking at the buildings, wildlife and features that are a key part of Dunkirk and Lenton. They did lots of drawings whilst outside and then back in class they added lots more ideas with paints, collage and using real leaves to gather textures. The children looked at lots of examples of street signs and created their own ideas for shapes and actual layout for the Dunkirk and Lenton signs. Miss Claire then scanned all the drawings and digitally collaged them together - so that the final sign designs had elements from many different children.
On the last day of term in December 2014 we celebrated the signs going into place together with Councillor Sarah Piper, who instigated the project with the school. There is one sign on University Boulevard and one on Lenton Boulevard. The project was in partnership with Nottingham City Council and NET. Huge thanks to everyone involved.
Key Stage 2 at Dunkirk Primary creates and performs an original interpretation of 'Scrooge'!!
Key Stage 2 classes from both campuses have been involved in creating and devising a very different version of 'Scrooge'. The production was a huge event with every class contributing a key scene to the story. Year 5 and 6 pupils auditioned to be part of a central cast of narrators, ghosts and Scrooge...and the best of Dunkirk's KS2 singing talent was brought together to create a special Scrooge choir!
Our version of Scrooge went deeper into the story, exploring why Scrooge had become the bitter and twisted man you meet at the beginning of the play. The mysterious ensemble of narrators and ghosts take him on an dark and ethereal dream journey through his past, present and future, during which he reflects upon what has happened during his life and the lessons he can learn from the past. The final section of the play placed Scrooge face to face with the future and his own grave, a bleak scene where no one mourns his passing away. As he sits by his own grave, the ghosts present Scrooge with a window to the world, revealing a series of images and movement which show what a world filled with kindness looks and feels like. By the end of his dream journey, Scrooge has opened up his mind and heart, promising to live a life full of kindness, trust and care.
The story was told through drama, physical theatre, dance, film, music, yoga inspired movement and singing. It certainly brought together the many talents of the children and staff! Amongst the madness of Christmas shopping, our version of Scrooge aimed to communicate the true meaning of Christmas...a time to celebrate kindness and the impact our caring actions can have upon the world around us.
Protest Art - exploring ideas around Power and Greed
How will Your Voice Be Heard?
2014 / 2015.
Many classes across the school are working with Claire Simpson and Julie Wise to create a series of artworks exploring notions around protest, looking at our whole-school theme of Power and Greed through visual arts and exploring ideas around pupil voice. Different classes have explored this in different ways - and are busy working towards exhibiting their work and ideas early next year. The children have been full of deep thoughts about notions of protest, ways to protest and how this feeds into their own interests, concerns, thoughts and aspirations.
We've looked at lots of examples of other artists, community actions and people across the world who have created all kinds of protests - and the notions of "gentle" protest have cropped up again and again, with the children really animated about the ideas of leaving messages, pictures and objects they have created in places where they will be found and listened to.
There is much more work still being carried out and so far children have created protest cup-cakes, little books, treasure chests, worry dolls, maps, film footage and lots more. More news will appear here in January 2015 about the project.
Dunkirk's latest Happening Day
The school becomes a 'safe space' for the 'lost people'
Happening days are 'surprise' creative learning days for the students, usually planned and delivered by the school's resident artists, working in collaboration with the teaching staff. Each happening day is very different but these carefully planned days aim to be thought provoking days that are full of unexpected events that challenge and stimulate the imagination, encourage in depth explorations and develop creative thinking skills.The school's latest Happening day was this term, inspired by the school's Acts of Kindness project....
Children arrived in school to be presented by an unusual and unexpected assembly. As they entered the hall, images of refugee situations were projected on a screen. As they watched this film, three characters entered into the hall, carrying their belongings with them in small suitcases or boxes. These characters watched the film silently too and once the film finished, these 'lost' characters presented a story which showed two girls and their mother being forced to leave their home because 'Something has happened....'
Pupils were asked to imagine that the school was to become a 'safe space' and a place of refuge for these characters. It was their responsibility to reflect upon the needs that these 'lost people' have and how the school community can work together to look after them. The whole day was devoted to children having time to act upon their thoughts and reflections about care and kindness, putting into action their ideas of how to show kindness to people in vulnerable refugee situations. Children's ideas included making welcome banners, designing blankets of kindness, writing positive poems and lullabies about care and compassion, creating mini safe spaces and exploring kindness through movement, trust exercises and drama.
If you want to learn more about the Acts of Kindness initiative in school, then please click on the link below.
Children arrived in school to be presented by an unusual and unexpected assembly. As they entered the hall, images of refugee situations were projected on a screen. As they watched this film, three characters entered into the hall, carrying their belongings with them in small suitcases or boxes. These characters watched the film silently too and once the film finished, these 'lost' characters presented a story which showed two girls and their mother being forced to leave their home because 'Something has happened....'
Pupils were asked to imagine that the school was to become a 'safe space' and a place of refuge for these characters. It was their responsibility to reflect upon the needs that these 'lost people' have and how the school community can work together to look after them. The whole day was devoted to children having time to act upon their thoughts and reflections about care and kindness, putting into action their ideas of how to show kindness to people in vulnerable refugee situations. Children's ideas included making welcome banners, designing blankets of kindness, writing positive poems and lullabies about care and compassion, creating mini safe spaces and exploring kindness through movement, trust exercises and drama.
If you want to learn more about the Acts of Kindness initiative in school, then please click on the link below.