We delight in seeing children shine both inside and outside of the classroom. Please scroll below to read stories of community, courage and compassion.

• Down on the farm

  Thu 27 Feb 2020
  All the children took advantage of the beautiful weather this morning to walk up to Bank Head Farm.  The views were spectacular and we're really grateful to Jade's Dad for coming out at short notice to show us his lambs and calves.  Isn't Eden Valley the most beautiful place in the world?

  

• RSPB Big School Birdwatch

  Fri 14 Feb 2020

  On Friday 14th February, the children showed their love of nature by taking part in the RSPB big school birdwatch.  The week before, birdfeeders were made by the children and food was hung up.  On the day, the younger children made birdseed pictures and put them out to be eaten.  The birds were watched and identified in groups as the RSPB survey form was used to record the data.  A number of species were spotted, including some more unusual ones.  Finally, the findings were submitted on the RSPB website.

   

  

• Class 1 trip to Lakes Animal Park

  Wed 05 Feb 2020
  Class 1 and Nursery visited the Lakes Animal Park as part of our topic on animals. We did a workshop on animal categories where we had to sort the animals by their characteristics. We found out about meerkats. We got to touch lots of animals including guinea pigs, a snake, a tortoise and a lizard. We found out about some different owls and they swooped low over our heads! We also got to have a good look round the park and found out which countries different animals came from, what they ate and and what their natural habitat was 

  

• Spanish support from Silvia at Crosby Ravensworth

  Mon 03 Feb 2020

  Children in both classes at Crosby Ravensworth had the excitement of welcoming a visitor from Spain before Christmas.  Silvia Carchano contacted the school looking for experience of teaching in an English school.

   

  Everyone had such fun with Silvia.  She's written a piece about her experience on her school's website and we were very taken with her words: At Crosby Ravensworth,  everything is done with love (even the cooking ;-).

   

  Click below to read the article by Sylvia

  Click here to read the article on Sylvia's school's website

   

   

  Hello, my name’s Silvia Carchano and I teach English to infant, primary and secondary school teachers here in Spain.

  Last November, I earned a national scholarship awarded by the Ministry of Education and had the wonderful opportunity to visit Crosby Ravensworth CE Primary School in Cumbria, one of the most enriching experiences of my personal and professional life.

   

  At Crosby Ravensworth, teaching everything is done with love (even the cooking ;-).

   

  During my stay there, I could see how teachers worry and care for their students and foster their independence, creativity, imagination and collaborative spirit. For practical reasons, I mostly concentrated on pre-school and Class 1 and, by observing Mrs Ball, Mrs Corrie, Mrs Pattinson and Mrs Nye, I learnt a great deal about how to build children’s self-esteem, engage them in motivating, meaningful learning activities and resolve any issues which might arise in a caring, respectful way.

   

  Small children usually have a short attention span; this is why I liked the fact that lessons were structured around brief activities that balanced all subjects.

  Moreover, they have a lot of fun while learning, which I think is quite important but, apart from academic contents, what I could notice is that respect and cooperation are the key words here. Sharing the same physical space is crucial, as children learn how to interact with each other and share not only spaces, toys, books, computers, ipads or bee bots, but also –and more importantly– knowledge and ideas.

   

  As children of different ages work and play together, they learn two important things: that “learning” doesn’t come only from the teacher, but also from other children (their age, older ones and younger ones), and how to interact in a diverse context while acquiring vital social interpersonal skills that will stand them in good stead for the future.

  The world out there is plural, heterogeneous and varied so, for me, multi-age classes are invaluable educational assets nowadays. Of course, low numbers are an advantage, as children here can be given the personalised attention that bigger schools cannot provide.

   

  Finally, one of the things that appealed to me most about this school, apart from its colourfulness and brightness, was the large number of displays created by pupils. My favourite one, which I think best represents what the spirit of any school (or institution or country) should be is this:

   

   

   

  “We may be different, but at this school we all swim together”

   

  So easy to say and so difficult to accomplish… but I truly believe that, at Crosby Ravensworth CE School, this is true.

  

• London to Paris for diabetes in Asia

  Sat 01 Feb 2020

  Kate's cycling challenge to help children in Asia

  
  AN Eden teaching assistant is hoping to raise funds to help those living with type 1 diabetes in another part of the world by cycling from London to Paris. Kate Nye, who works at Crosby Ravensworth Primary School, will be cycling from England's capital to Paris in just three days, setting off on 10th September.

   

  For the past two years, she has been helping two students manage their type 1 diabetes.  "Each, in their own way has dealt with this challenge head on, never allowing the condition to set them  apart or limit them in any way. In fact it is quite the opposite, as they both take on amazing challenges in sports and life," said Kate, whose chosen charity for the event is Action 4 Diabetics (A4D). "This is  a wonderful organisation that will support children in South East Asia with diabetes," she said while adding that she had never done anything like this before. "I'm what I would describe as a fair weather cyclist who enjoys the occasional aunt around the beautiful countryside near Penrith. So I have lots of training ahead of me this year to be in a position to do justice to this ride," she added.  The event, organised by Dream Challenges, might still be eight months away, but Kate needs to achieve a minimum fundraising amount of nearly $2,000 by the beginning of July. "My ambition is, of course, to raise much more," she said. Her JustGiving page can be found at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Catherine-Nye