West Cornforth Primary School

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Stone Age Day 2022

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On 21st November, we enjoyed a Stone Age day at West Cornforth Primary School. We all entered the Stone Age and became hunter-gatherers. Each class looked at where the Stone Age came on the history timeline.  We enjoyed dressing up and taking part in Stone Age activities.

Find out what each class got up to below:

Early Years

Can I retell simple past event?

In Early Years, they thought about the how the Stone Age people they lived. They became hunter gatherers and foraged for their own food and built their own shelters.

Class One

Can I ask questions about the past?

In Class One, they thought about the clothes Stone Age people would wear. They thought of some questions they could ask about their clothes:

•             Why did they have fur?

•             Where did they get the fur from?

•             Did boys and girls wear the same?

Year One then designed a Stone Age outfit.

Class Two

Can I develop an awareness of the past?

In Class Two, they thought about where the Stone Age was in history. They made a human timeline of significant historical events.

Class Three

Can I use photos and artefacts?

In Class Three, they thought about Stone Age pottery. Class Three used photos of Stone Age artefacts to then design and make their own Stone Age pot.

Class Four

Can I compare and contrast sources?

In Class Four, they used a variety of primary sources and interpretations to gather information about the Stone Age people. Our sources included an oil lamp, flint and needle. We then thought about which source was the most useful.

Class Five

Can I use some different sources of evidence to deduce information about the past?

In Class Five, we used a variety of primary sources and interpretations to gather information about the Stone Age people. Our sources included an oil lamp, flint and needle. We thought about the information we could deduce from them.

Class Six

Can I understand that no single source of evidence gives the full answer to questions about the past?

In Class Six, we used a variety of primary sources and interpretations to gather information about the Stone Age people. Our sources included an oil lamp, flint and needle. We thought whether the sources were reliable and useful.

Stone Age Shelters

Unfortunately, it was raining all day, so we made indoor Stone Age shelters. We worked as a team to make our own shelters out of things that we could find. We researched Stone Age dwellings and tried to recreate them.

Hamsterley Forest Visit

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Class 6 have been learning all about forests in geography. They recently went on a class trip to Hamsterley Forest. During a 4km walk, the children gathered and collected data, based on their pre-planned field study. Some children collected evidence relating to the reason people visit the forest, others looked at the tree species or wildlife. After a busy day collecting data, they finished it off with a picnic and played on the climbing frame.

See below for some of the children’s’ work from processing and presenting their geographical data.

Click on the link to watch GoPro footage from their visit.

Hamsterley Forest – YouTube

County Durham and Darlington Fire Service Visit

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County Durham and Darlington Fire Service visited Class 5 and 6 to remind them of the dangers of fireworks, in the run-up to Bonfire night. Fortunately, the fire service had time to let the students explore the fire engine as well as exploring how to use the hose.

NSPCC Visit

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Friday 7th October, NSPCC visited Class 6 to introduce their ‘Speak Out, Stay Safe’ campaign. Speak out Stay Safe is an online safeguarding programme for children aged 5- to 11-years-old.

The programme helps children understand:

  • Abuse in all its forms and how to recognise signs of abuse
  • That abuse is never a child’s fault and that they have the right to be safe
  • Where to get help and the sources of help available to them, including Childline Service

The assemblies, which feature Ant and Dec, support children to feel empowered – knowing how they can speak out and stay safe and include access to supporting classroom resources.

They are an effective way to support our school’s safeguarding duties and link directly to the curriculum as well as help reinforce key messages about abuse and neglect as part of our school’s teaching on relationships.

With the help of their mascot, Buddy the speech bubble, children will know they have the right to:

  • speak out and be heard
  • be safe
  • get help when they need it.

Want to know more about the programme? Take a look at the NSPCC website to find out more about what the service entails.

Outdoor Maths

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To begin the place value topic in Class 6, they’ve been enjoying lots of practical, outdoor maths lessons. Pupils made use of the outdoor areas, as well as the natural resources to support their understanding of numbers up to ten million.

Class 6 Science – Evolution and Inheritance

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Yesterday, Class 6 had a visit from Miss Denham’s pet dog (Alfie the Cavapoo). As a class, they discussed his inheritance coming from both his Poodle and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel parents. In small groups, Class 6 children then investigated Alfie, identifying the characteristics that he had and classifying these as either coming from his Poodle or Cavalier King Charles Spaniel ancestry. The children used various skills to determine these traits.

Virgin Money Make £5 Grow 

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Over the past few weeks, Class 6 have been very busy setting up their own businesses to make their money grow. The class split into 5 different businesses offering refreshments at break time to the rest of the school. From marketing to baking, Class 6 have truly taken charge of their businesses. During break time, they set their stalls up and were a hit with the rest of the school. The cake and biscuit stall sold out within minutes! This has been a great project for Class 6, they have learnt how to stick to a budget and make their money grow.

British History Timeline

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Class 6 have been developing their historical knowledge of how children had fun in the past, focusing on the vast changes in the theme of fun since the Romans left Britain. To start their topic, they have created a British history timeline video, we hope you enjoy.

Robinwood

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Class 5 and 6 visited Robinwood with Miss Denham, Miss Gregg, and Mr Gough. The 3-day trip was full of team-building and problem-solving activities, pupils came together to overcome fears and navigate their way through challenging tasks. Everyone had a great time.

Geography Fieldwork

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On Wednesday 16th March, Class 6 visited Newcastle City Centre for a self-led tour of the city. In their geography lessons, the class have been learning about the city Sao Paulo; located in Brazil. To end the topic, the children are going to compare Sao Paulo to their local city.  

Prior to the trip, the class had the opportunity to plan their study, whilst exploring Newcastle City Centre. Some research questions involved; How many human landmarks are there? What is the main primary purpose of visits? What shop types are located in the city? What is the vegetation like? Is there more human or physical landmarks? What is the traffic like? What is the most common type of transport?

The class planned their research question, then identified the resources they would need to take with them and what collection methods they were going to use to answer their research question. During the trip to the city centre, the class walked for approximately 5 miles around the centre, making some stops to collect and gather their data. During the afternoon, the class visited BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, the children were able to freely explore some of the art exhibitions but were also able to visit the viewing rooms. The viewing rooms are located on the top floor of the BALTIC building, providing a fantastic view, overlooking the city centre.

The class were able to take pictures to add to their findings of the city. The children also used the viewing rooms to try to locate and view some of the landmarks they visited. They also were able to speak to a staff member who kindly showed the class the Millennium Bridge closing – which on the way back to the bus, the children were fortunate to watch the bridge close in person. Whilst exploring Newcastle City Centre, one student wore a GoPro, the footage from this can be viewed below. Although the children were exhausted after their 5 mile walk, a great day was had by all.