We venture to Short Wood Primary School for : Love Your School, where they have amazing grounds and a huge school pond.
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00:00Gail, what a fantastic school you have here at Shortwood Primary School. There's a lot
00:05on offer, but what do you first of all love the most?
00:09The thing I love the most about the school at Shortwood is the pupils that are here because
00:13they are absolutely amazing, they're inspiring every day.
00:17One big thing I've noticed at school coming around today that the kids mention a lot is
00:20kindness as well. That's one of the values you teach them a lot isn't it?
00:23It is, we have the group of children that we've got with us today are our kindness ambassadors
00:27so they promote that as well, but actually the children being kind to each other is great
00:31for their own emotional health and wellbeing and great for the ethos and atmosphere around
00:35school. So we have three core values if you like, so we talk about celebrating diversity,
00:42we talk about choosing respect and that is really important and kindness is a really
00:47important part of that. And then the final one is around embracing challenge so that
00:51our children are doing the very best that they can for themselves every day.
00:54Yeah, diversity is another thing that you're massive on as well aren't you and you're really a champion.
00:57Yeah absolutely, we have a beautifully diverse range of pupils that come from across our
01:04community and it is something that absolutely is there to be celebrated. Our children learn
01:08so much from each other each and every day, we as adults learn a lot from them as well.
01:13We celebrate as many different things as we can, we like a good celebration, but it's
01:18important for the children to see that representation as well in everything that we do whether it's
01:22around school or in our curriculum.
01:24Now the school, it's a newer school, it was built in 2009 around a pond and an oak tree.
01:29Tell us a story about that, I mean it's incredible isn't it?
01:31It is amazing and if somebody says to you, you're going to build a primary school around
01:34a pond, it is like hmm, who's idea was that? But actually it has the most amazing effect
01:39as water does, but it's a really calm environment, obviously we have all the risk assessments
01:45and safety considerations in place, but all of the children that are on the inside of
01:49the building have balconies so they can overlook the pool. The oak trees the children really
01:53adopted as something as a symbol of the school, it's become our emblem on the uniform, but
02:00also the children see it as a symbol of growth and development and it's really important
02:04to them.
02:05Yeah, one of the final things we've noticed as well is how the environment is really incorporated
02:08into learning and the curriculum, we've seen the forest school, it's great for the kids
02:12isn't it?
02:13It is, and again it comes back to the emotional health and wellbeing is really important,
02:16being outside is great, we started with a simple kind of forest school model but it's
02:20expanded, we do it right the way across the curriculum, every child is outdoors every
02:24week and they absolutely love it, there's piles of wellies everywhere, waterproofs,
02:29we've got everything that a child could need if they forget to bring it in, so everybody's
02:33included in everything that we do.
02:35It's good.
02:36It's definitely good.
02:37So guys, we're not at an adventure school, we're at your school in Telford, you've got
02:43a massive lake, a massive pool, how cool is that?
02:46What do you think of it?
02:47I really like the pool, because it's really big and it's just really beautiful, so in
02:56summers we get Canadian geese, and we also have frogs and ducks in it.
03:02Yeah, I heard the head teacher saying you sometimes get loads of frogs coming in don't
03:06you?
03:07And is there fish in there then?
03:08Yeah.
03:09Lots of marine life.
03:11Yeah, and you've got your net, do you do a bit of pond dipping?
03:14Yeah.
03:15So do you feel lucky to have this at your school?
03:18Yeah.
03:19It's pretty cool, isn't it?
03:20And what are your favourite lessons girls?
03:22Topic.
03:23Topic?
03:24Yeah.
03:25I really love reading.
03:26Reading, yeah?
03:27What sort of books?
03:28What type of books?
03:29Harry Potter-y books?
03:30So I'm reading this book called, I think it's Scarlet in Nowhere and it's a really good
03:37book.
03:38Okay, cool.
03:40So what's your favourite?
03:41I like reading as well.
03:42You like reading, yeah?
03:43What sort of books are you into?
03:44Have you got a favourite author?
03:45J.K. Rowling.
03:46Yeah?
03:47Not bad, not bad.
03:48And what about homework?
03:49What are you like with your homework guys?
03:50So we have these free homework books and we have to do them all on Monday and they're
03:51reading grammar and maths and it helps us, it's really good.
03:52Yeah.
03:53Yeah.
03:54Yeah.
03:55Yeah.
03:56Yeah.
03:57Yeah.
03:58Yeah.
03:59Yeah.
04:00Yeah.
04:01And which is your, if I said, pick a favourite bit of your building, is it this, the pond
04:17and the playgrounds or is it the Forest School?
04:20Which one?
04:21The Forest School.
04:22Yeah?
04:23The Forest School.
04:24Yeah, yeah.
04:25Everyone likes going over there and getting muddy I'm sure.
04:27Yeah.
04:28Well, thank you ladies.
04:29So who have we got here guys, what's your names?
04:31I am Ruben.
04:32And I am Henry.
04:34So I don't normally see this kind of thing in a school, little treats and we've got little
04:39five pence, ten pence.
04:41What's this called and what's it all about?
04:44This is the Penny of Kindness shop and when you're kind in school they will give you a
04:49penny of kindness and then at the end of the year you can use them to buy stuff.
04:53Ah, so you get like a little penny token sort of thing, wow cool.
04:58So have you managed, have you got enough tokens, have you had something out of here yet?
05:02Not yet.
05:03Have you, what have you had Henry?
05:06I think it was one of the slinky, the guys.
05:14Oh yeah the little slinky's, that's what we call them isn't it I think.
05:20So is this a good idea then, what does this do, does this help kind of promote kindness
05:24in the school, is that what it's all about?
05:25It encourages people to be kind to others and share.
05:30And are you boys kind?
05:31Yep.
05:32Good stuff, well you get an extra token, there you go, cheers guys.
05:35So how you doing guys, what's your names?
05:38My name's Anela.
05:39And?
05:40My name's Kisra.
05:41And what's this space we're in, it's crazy, we're in a school but I can see a timber frame
05:45barn structure, what's going on?
05:47This is called our barn room, it's currently being used for fasting club.
05:52Oh, we're a fasting club, cool, and it did used to be once upon a time an old barn didn't
05:58it, these were original old timbers.
06:00So what sort of stuff do you get up to in here Kisra, normally?
06:04We usually do colouring, or we read stories, or we just play with toys.
06:10Cool, cheers guys, thank you.
06:13I'm going to get you more energy because you can't go that fast.
06:19Hi!