Levens School

Multi-Faith Week

 in RE / Whole School by

We are currently enjoying learning more about some of the many faiths followed by people across our community and the wider world.  At our School, we spend a lot of time learning about Christianity, but this week we have immersed ourselves  in the faiths of Judaism, Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism through the theme of prayer.

Each day, we have started with a whole school assembly led by each of our four classteachers. This morning, Mr Dean led the whole school in Buddhist meditation!  Each class has then enjoyed a session in the their classroom with each of our four teachers learning about every faith in greater detail through a variety of ways including role play, artefacts, photographs, art and film.

Kendal Mountain Rescue visit Class One

 in Class One / SCARF by

 

Nursery and Reception were lucky enough to receive a visit on Monday from Tony who is part of the team at Kendal Mountain Rescue. They found out all about the types of work Mountain Rescue do and when they might be called to help someone out. They explored lots of Tony’s kit and equipment, finding out about the importance of each item. The highlight of the visit was a trip outdoors to have a seat in one of the vehicles. Thank you Tony for a super afternoon!

South Lakes District Cross Country Trials

 in Class Four / Class Three / PE / Sport / Whole School by

What a terrific and successful afternoon was had at the district trails this week and what a muddy delight to be there!

It was ‘touch and go’ for this event to even take place on Wednesday, following torrential rain for several days in the lead up. The ‘go ahead’ was finally given on the morning and our team of 9, excited and full of confidence travelled to the challenging and muddy course at Casterton to compete.

What effort, what support, and what an achievement by everyone, who excelled to run their best, in races against at least 80 of the best district runners.

I am delighted to report that everyone finished in the top 50%, and that 6 pupils qualified for the Cumbria finals on Tuesday 17th January.

We are so very proud!

The fun that is Running Club continues each Friday until the end of March when all runners will compete at the season finale at Elleray, what a team they all are!

Painting in Class 2

 in Art / Class Two / Music by

Class 2 have enjoyed developing their mark making skills using the media paint. They have learned about primary and secondary colours by producing a colour wheel and explored other artistic concepts such as  shape and line. They have looked at work by the artist Wassily Kandinsky, and like the Russian painter, they have used music as a stimulus for their own artistic creations. Check out their exploration of colour, shape and pattern as well as how different genres of music have influenced the marks they made on the page.

 

Cave Painting in Class 3

 in Art / Class Three / History / Whole School by

Class 3 have been finding out what it would have been like to be one of the world’s first artists, painting on the walls of caves with natural materials and only their hands to create images.

Inspired by the work of our ancient ancestors, we travelled back in time to our cave – the school hall – where we worked collaboratively to create images of hands, animals and people.

It was very different to our usual experiences in art lessons.  The large pieces of paper had been crinkled and squashed to replicate the uneven surface of a cave wall; they had been positioned vertically so that we could feel what it would have been like to try to paint on walls; and the hall was dimly lit to imitate the dim light in a cave.

Unlike our ancient predecessors, we were able to use graphite sticks, acrylic paints and pastels.

Battle of the Beaks!

 in Whole School by

Class 4 have started their unit on adaptation and evolution this term. We’re looking in detail about how animals are adapted to suit their environments and why animals change over time through the process of evolution.

Today, we’ve been pretending to be a flock of birds. Groups of us had different types of beak and we examined who would be most likely to survive if we lived on an island with only one type of food. We found that some beaks were better than others at eating certain types of food. If this happened in the wild, those of us with that type of beak would be much more likely to survive!

Making Cushions in Class 3

 in Class Three / Design and Technology / Whole School by

Class Three have had a wonderful time learning all about applique and cross stitch while making cushions for our D and T topic. The class showed resilience and great team work, helping each other when needed. We used running stitch, cross stitch and over sewing, along with applique for the decorations. I think you will agree they look fantastic!

Winter Woodwork by Reception

 in Class One / Design and Technology / Whole School by

Reception have enjoyed a festive introduction to their new woodwork bench. They investigated the use of different tools and equipment such as hand drills, clamps and sandpaper to create their own festive decorations. We are looking forward to more woodwork projects in the new year. Stay posted to see what we get up to!

 

Running Club take on the Dallam Cross Country

 in PE / Sport by

A wonderfully bright, sunny and extremely cold afternoon this week was our reward for weeks of running club training, as our children took on the challenge of the Dallam cross country course at Heversham alongside many other local schools.

Our runners remembered to perfection everything we had trained for, with stamina and determination shining through as everyone thoroughly excelled, giving their all and bursting through all expectations! It was an event that could not have been more enjoyable for everyone there, including so many family supporters (thank you for that!)

Whilst a third of our children made the podium, the best thrill for us all was that every single runner performed to their full potential, and all were as totally delighted with their success as their proud adult training companions were!

We cannot wait for our next competitive challenge in the new year whilst enjoying our weekly Friday running sessions in the meantime, no better way to end the week!

The Lord’s Prayer

 in Class Four / Class Two / RE by

The Lord’s Prayer is common to many Christian’s across the globe so we have been thinking more about it including where it came from and what it means.

Class 2 thought praying was talking to God and that people who believed in God might do it. They explained a few varied ways people stand, sit or kneel to pray. We ordered the Lord’s Prayer and discussed what some unusual words like hallowed  and daily bread mean. Here we are drawing pictures around the phrases so show what we understood by them.

Class 4 explored the Lord’s Prayer differently – finding where it comes from and comparing references to the prayer in the Good News Bible in the books of Matthew and Luke. We looked at the 4 types of prayer that Christians might use – Praising, Asking, Saying Sorry and Thanking.

We then considered some deeper questions linked to phrases in the prayer with many thoughtful and honest responses that are recorded in the class reflection book.