Class Four

LEGO League 2026!

20th April 2026 in Class Four / Computing / Design and Technology / Whole School by Levens School

A slightly late blog, but with a good excuse – we’ve been busy building another trophy for the collection!

Yes, we’ve been to the Cumbria LEGO League competition once again. What’s more, we’ve returned with a trophy for the third year in a row!

LEGO League is an exciting international STEM competition that challenges young people to think like engineers, programmers and innovators. Working in teams, the children designed, built and programmed a LEGO robot to complete a series of missions linked to the theme of “archaeology’. Alongside this, they researched a problem in the field of archaeology, developed an innovative solution and presented their ideas to judges.

And it’s the innovation project that won the trophy this time. Our idea was to use use the power of AI to scan and identify possible historical artefacts discovered by regular people. Metal-detectorists, mud-larkers, builders, people digging flower beds; all of these people often stumble across interesting artefacts without knowing anything about what they’ve discovered. With our app, simply taking a photograph could give a quick indication of whether what has been found is important and interesting, or just an old pot. With help, we even used AI to mock up a version of what we think the app could look like. The judges were very impressed!

Check out the photos of the day below. Maybe next year we’ll get through to the national finals!

The Children’s Reviews of Patterdale!

25th March 2026 in Class Four / English / Whole School by Levens School

Class Four pupils have been writing reviews about last week’s three-day trip to Ullswater! As you can tell from their writing, they thoroughly enjoyed every moment……

On Monday 16^th March, we set off to Patterdale Hall. When we arrived, we were told all about the place and the building and then we began lunch. We then opened our bags and packed for our first activity. Our favourite activity was ghyll scrambling, even though it was freezing! There were several optional jumps, tunnels and even a slide in the current. All of those fun activities took a lot of courage and help from friends to keep us going. We got out of the ghyll after scrambling up it, but we still felt as cold as before. We warmed up a bit after a small walk back to the changing rooms and began to take our fleeces and wetsuits off.

Another water activity was canoeing. After getting the paddles and canoes ready, we were allocated into small groups on each canoe. We set off in our two groups and began rowing towards some land. After about five or ten minutes, we were at our goal. We played some fun games there and then began making our way to a corner where the wind couldn’t catch us. We played some more fun games like: fruit smoothie: when your fruit was said, you had to spin around in a circle and shout “YOOOO!”; also a game where you were assigned an animal and when that animal was said, you had to swap places with another person across all the canoes and finally dunk a body part!

We also did some more land activities like bushcraft and rock-climbing. Rock-climbing tested our trust for each other and our instructors. Our instructors had to tie a very secure knot and our friends had to help pull the rope so that if we fell, we wouldn’t fall very much at all. When we reached the top – which would have been impossible without our friends – we had to lean back and de-scale slowly. We then would reach the bottom and swap turns with the other two people in our group. In bushcraft, we had to build a shelter (with a lot of team-work), make bread over a fire and light a mini cotton fire as well. All of these skills took a lot of determination but were really fun. We also got to try some vinegar leaves which were fabulous too.

All of the rooms were really good: the beds were comfy, the shelves were very handy and the rooms were quite spacious. The bathroom was wonderful and the shower worked perfectly fine (just like a home one). The bunk–beds felt very nice and gave us a cosy vibe.

The food was amazing and it is some of the best food we have ever had. The chicken–skewers and pizza were our favourite food and the pudding was delicious.

We really enjoyed Patterdale Hall and definitely recommend it to future years.

By Ashton & Grayson

Thank you to all the teachers who have given us an amazing experience. We really enjoyed ghyll -scrambling (where we jumped from the top of about a 7ft drop). We also enjoyed army crawling through tight spaces: like tunnels.

We also loved the climbing; it wasn’t just a climbing wall it was a proper rock-face. It was much harder to climb but much more of a pleasure to go up.

Next, we were given canoes and we started to advance towards our goal. When we got there we played fruit salad (were when the instructors shouted a fruit and if you were that fruit you had to swap with another person who was the same fruit as you). After that, we raced and of course our canoe won!

Bradley and Robin

We really enjoyed the experience at Patterdale Hall! On the first day we went canoeing, even though the weather was bad we had a fun time. We enjoyed the part where we did the fruit salad game and we all had to swap places. We also enjoyed when we had to get the ducks out of the water. We then went back and got dry and went down into the lounge to get lunch, after that we went upstairs to go and see our rooms and started to unpack. Our rooms were really wonderful and tidy, we also had room checks every morning and night.

On the second day, we woke up and got ready for the day, then we went downstairs for breakfast and it was amazing! We then went back up and got our day bags ready for rock climbing. When we got up the hill, we got harnesses on ready to climb. We had to step out of our comfort zone and try new things, as well as climbing we helped others by belaying and pulling the ropes. We then went back and went to have our lunch, after that we got ready to do bushcraft although we didn’t need as much things for it. When we got to the place for bushcraft, we started by putting all our stuff down and playing a game, we had some ducks and had to hide them one group at a time and we had a time limit. We then had to make a shelter for a rubber duck in case anything happened to a real duck. We started by grabbing loads of supplies such as: sticks, stones and leaves. Our instructor was great and encouraged us to do more things. We also went outside for some free time playing things like tig (which was really fun).

On the third day we woke up, got ready, then went to have our breakfast (which was really scrumptious!) Then after that we grabbed our day bags and headed off to the cloak room where we had to get on our wet suits and our fleeces, we then headed down and started walking where we were doing ghyll scrambling. Once we got there, we had a choice to get into the ghyll, we could either go through a tunnel or go in normally. Once we had got in, our instructors told us about which coloured rocks are slippery so we don’t hurt ourselves or trip over. We also had to go through a tunnel which made us a bit nervous but our instructors encouraged us and it turned out to be really fun.

LAYLA & ALICE

We did lots of fun activities ghyll-scrambling, canoeing, rock-climbing and bushcraft. All of us enjoyed our activities at Patterdale Hall. Ghyll scrambling was quite challenging: we were all pushed out of our comfort-zones, Our instructors were great and extremely trust-worthy. They helped us all when we were scared and encouraged us to things we weren’t comfortable with. We did a short jump of a rock and then a towering jump. It was really thrilling even though we were scared.

Rock-climbing was very fun as well. They were real rocks near the top of a hill (Arnison-Crag). We were in groups of three: one person was climbing; another was belaying and someone else was pulling out the leftover rope after the belayer. It looked quite small but when we were at the of the climb it was larger than it looked and u could see all Ullswater, which is a lake near Patterdale, and people on canoes.

By Mason and Harley

Recently we have been on a residential to Patterdale Hall where we had lots of fun and loads of challenges, we really put ourselves out of our comfort zone. Even if we were very anxious: for example when we went ghyll-scrambling We were really nervous at first because we didn’t know if we were good at it or not.

In the morning we had cereal; after that you can get a English breakfast including: bacon, sausage, egg, potato . Our experience was amazing, I couldn’t of asked for a better residential . Not just us, but all of Class 4 had a great time! We are so grateful for all the staff and all the entertainment.

On the way back from canoeing, the path was extremely slippery . One of us face-planted in the mud and I can tell you that I was not expecting that!

Lois and Skyla

We went to Patterdale Hall which was a life-lasting memory and a great experience. We were getting nerves, but now the trip has passed, it feels silly because we had such a great time!

We had a great adventure with bushcraft on the first day. We made fires and cooked dough on the fire. It tased delicious! We had so much fun. We enjoyed making animal houses and learning more about the outdoors.

That is not all the fun we had, next we did canoeing. It was so amazing! We played lots of games but our favourite game was when we had to dunk different body parts into the water. We got a brain-freeze, I’m still recovering!

After that great fun, we did climbing. We walked up the beautiful country side hills. It was an extraordinary view. It was really incredible! We learnt a lot of new skills.

Our favourite activity was ghyll-scrambling! We got into wet suits and set of to the ghyll. It was challenging at times, but with team work and determination, we all had a great time! We all had a go at the different jumps and some people had to go at going through the tunnels.

All of the instructors were amazing, they supported us when we needed it. They taught us amazing new skills.

By May and Isabel

Epic Adventures enjoyed by Class 4 in Patterdale

18th March 2026 in Class Four / Sport / Whole School by Levens School

Class 4 have just returned from Patterdale: the most exhilarating three-day experience out of the classroom and the usual school week! Thank you to all the children: they showed incredible courage, determination and enthusiasm for every challenge and were so supportive of each other’s achievements. Thanks also to all the adults accompanying the visit, who have done their utmost to ensure everyone felt safe, confident to step out of their comfort zones, and supported.

We have enjoyed every minute (well almost)!

Here’s just a few photographs from just one of our three cameras. There are more to follow:

Scrambling in the Gyhll……

Rock Climbing……

Crazy games on the canoes…..

Bushcraft and Baking…..

Levens X-Country Runners go for Gold!

11th March 2026 in Class Four / Class Three / Sport / Whole School by Levens School

What an afternoon of amazing resilience, determination and endless energy! The Levens’ running reputation lives on with today’s incredible athletes pushing themselves to the finish line. Not only did every runner complete their best ever run, they also cheered on the side lines supporting their team mates every step of the way. It was wonderful to have such great support from parents and wider family members too!

We have returned with four medals: a gold in the year 5 girls race; a silver in the year 4 boys; a bronze in the year 6 boys and the year 6 girls too!

We are yet to hear our overall placing as a team, but couldn’t be more overjoyed with such enthusiasm, effort and endurance from everyone!

Still-life studies from Class 4

18th February 2026 in Art / Class Four by Levens School

Class 4 have been studying the work of Paul Cezanne using different types of pastels.

Cezanne used texture, colour and tone to create two dimensional studies of objects. We were fascinated by how he used such expressive brush strokes and bold colours to bring life to his work.

Water Resistance in Class 4

4th February 2026 in Class Four / Science by Levens School

In science, our Year 5 and 6 pupils got hands-on (and a little wet!) in our investigation into water resistance. The classroom was transformed into a mini research lab as students explored how different shapes move through water and how streamlined designs can affect speed.

Before any clay touched the water, the children discussed the idea of a fair test. Together, they identified the variables that needed to stay the same throughout the experiment, such as:

The amount of modelling clay used (by weight)
The height from which the shape was dropped
The depth and temperature of the water
The type of container

The only variable they changed each time was the shape of the clay. This careful planning ensured that any difference in results was due to water resistance alone.

Each clay shape was dropped into a tall tank of water three times, and pupils recorded each time carefully using a stopwatch. By calculating the average time, they were able to produce more reliable results and spot inconsistencies.

As with all good science experiments, not everything went perfectly smoothly—some pieces of data stood out as obvious anomalies. Pupils discussed possible reasons for this: Was the shape released accidentally at an angle? Did an air bubble get trapped? Was the timer started a fraction too late? These conversations helped pupils think critically about how scientific data is collected and why accuracy matters.

One of the most interesting moments came from a shape everyone assumed would fall slowly: a large, flat clay design. Instead of drifting gently downward, it tipped onto its side and shot straight to the bottom of the tank. This surprising outcome sparked lots of discussion about the meaning behind the data we had gathered, and how we need to think critically about this.

Manchester Museum Mission

4th February 2026 in Class Four / History by Levens School

Year 5 and 6 pupils enjoyed an exciting and inspiring visit to Manchester Museum recently, where they took part in a fascinating workshop focused on Ancient Egypt.

Before we even stepped foot on the coach, the museum curator set the children an important mission: to find the most interesting artefact in the entire museum! This might be the most valuable, the most beautiful, the oldest, the one with the best story… the choice was ours.

To complete this challenge, pupils had the opportunity to handle a selection of real ancient Egyptian artefacts. They had to:

Look closely at each artefact, examining details and clues (did you know the average adult spends less than 10 seconds looking at an artefact in a museum?)
Make connections to their existing knowledge
Share their ideas and interpretations with the people around them
Wonder by asking thoughtful, curious questions that deepened their understanding

The children showed fantastic enthusiasm and imagination as they investigated everything from amulets and pottery to tools and statues. Their discussions were thoughtful, lively, and full of wonder—just as a museum mission should be!

To celebrate their hard work and curiosity, each pupil shared some information about their chosen artefact in celebration assembly. I was incredibly proud of the confidence and maturity shown by all the children. A huge thank you to all the parents who attended the assembly and supported the children.

Beautiful Bags

14th November 2025 in Class Four / Design and Technology by Levens School

Class 4 worked hard just before half term to turn the classroom into a bag-making factory!

We started by taking a few different types of bags apart to see how they were made. We learned that they are actually quite simple – the simplest form of tote bag was just a folded rectangle of fabric with two handles!

We figured that if they were that simple, we could definitely make our own and maybe even improve on some of the designs! We thought about the different functions that our bags could serve (including shopping, trick-or-treating, storing bike parts or just as a fashion accessory!) and designed our own. We had to consider the size, shape, material and additions to our bag which would help it suit the purpose.

Designs complete, we produced some paper pattern-pieces. We could use these to mark up our fabric and ensure all parts were the right size and shape before cutting. We also had to make sure to leave enough room for the seam allowance so that our bags remained strong and our stitching did not slip out.

We used a simple running stitch to create our bags, making sure to sew them inside out (to hide the seams when done) and to leave the top open! Once this was complete, handles could be attached – definitely the hardest part of the project – and decorative items could be attached.

A selection of our creations can be seen below – what do you think?

Screen Savvy Kids!

29th September 2025 in Class Four / Computing by Levens School

Class 4 have been lucky enough to take part in a Digital Wellbeing Workshop recently as part of the Screen Savvy Kids campaign in Cumbria!

Friend of Levens School Sophie Martin led the workshop and taught us all about the ABCDS of digital wellbeing. We created logos and slogans to help spread the word about what we learned – some of these will be made into a banner for us to display in school!

A is for Affection. This is another word for kindness. It’s important to make sure that we are always kind to others online as there is a real person on the other side of the screen.

B is for Balance. It’s all too easy to get sucked into a world of screens and before we know it they take up all of our time! We learned about some of the things we can do to help us balance our time on and off-line.

C is for Compare. It can be very tempting to compare ourselves to other people we see online and this can lead to negative consequences for our wellbeing. Don’t be afraid to be you!

D is for Delay. Now more than ever, young people have access to tablets, phones and screens. We all took a moment to consider whether a smartphone or similar is a need or a want, and to think about delaying smartphone use to later in life.

S is for Sharing. Always take a minute to consider what we share online. Once something is on the internet, it is very hard to remove it. Would we still be happy with our post in 10 years time?

Check out the photos below of us working, and keep an eye out for our logos and slogans! If you need any more information you can visit the website for Happy Healthy Together who are running the campaign.