Middle School
At this stage, the curriculum broadens to facilitate the growth of understanding and the shaping of Christ-centred thinking:
- Character and team-building weeks at adventure centres.
- Fieldtrips, educational visits and cultural exchanges.
- Learning about how to learn and develop particular strengths.
- Systematic courses in Music, Art, Crafts, Technology based on biblical principles of design, stewardship and serving others.
- Exploring the themes of design, order, inter-relationship and purposes in studies such as Geography and Sciences.
- People and places: their histories, beliefs and issues of environmental responsibilities, community, communication and culture.
- French as a modern foreign language.
- A special study of UK history and the Christian role models and heritage.
Middle School Curriculum Picture Gallery
Min y Don Residential Trip
In September, years 6, 7 & 8 stay at Min y Don, a residential Christian outdoor pursuits centre in Wales. This is a very key time in their journey through Middle School, and is a very enriching experience for a number of reasons. Young people get to know each other and their teachers better, get to push their own physical and mental boundaries by participating in a wide range of exciting activities, get to enjoy the rich beauty of God's creation in the Snowdonia National Park and the Mawddach Estuary and get to hear testimonies and spiritual encouragements from the staff who work at the centre. Not forgetting all the fun that is had!
Here is a selection of photos from our times at Min y Don...
Donkey Day in Middle School
Legend the Donkey came to visit last week and what a treat it was for everyone (including Legend!). Year 4 each had a ride on the donkey while the rest of middle school took turns in leading Legend around the school field.
Easter Celebrations in Middle School
To celebrate Easter, year 4-6 children enjoyed a scavenger hunt across the school field, collecting items to represent the events of Easter. Once all the items had been collected up, each class talked about their significance and how they represented events of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.
We ended the day with a performance about refugees by year 6, which had been prepared during their Communication Skills lessons, thinking about how Jesus himself was a refugee as a young child.
Then Easter eggs were enjoyed by all!
Science
Mammals, Chester Zoo Trip and Bat Projects
The topic of Mammals is one of many areas studied in Middle School science, with a special focus on the significance of Bats to our world’s ecosystems. After key learning about God's creation and the classification of species, children then focus on the design features of mammals, with a trip to Chester Zoo to bring learning to life. Each child then conducts independent research and draws on a range of material to create and present their own project on Bats. Here are some Middle School children enjoying Chester Zoo and showing their completed Bat projects.
The Fathers of Modern Science
To develop a deeper understanding of how faith, truth and science go hand in hand, pupils study the lives and scientific discoveries the 'Fathers of Modern Science', many of whom were men and women of faith. Pupils gather information and create a powerpoint presentation for their class, sharing their independent learning with others. Click on the links below to see presentations created by our pupils:
Wetlands and Wildfowl Topic
In science, pupils learn about the properties of water and the important role that wetlands play in the world's ecosystems. They learn about how we can help to conserve water and how we can be good stewards of our wetlands to protect them for future generations. To apply this learning, the class did litter picking around the school grounds, filling 6 plastic bin bags in one go. The pupils found a drain in the school field, and were excited to recognise that what they were doing was actively stopping plastic pollution from entering our sewage systems and waterways. They had a lot of fun and it was a really good hands-on learning experience.
Technology
Technology projects vary year to year, but one notable project currently on display in the foyer is a scaled model of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. The class learned about scale, studying scaled plans of the Temple and Temple Mount, then built their own replicas out of lego as a preparatory task. Next, they went on a visit to the University of Liverpool Architecture Department, where they were given a tour and some teaching on how buildings are planned and constructed.
Then came the hands on building stage, making use of a variety of tools and methods to create the Temple and a large topographic model of the hills surrounding Jerusalem. The final stage ended with the construction and painting of the model, including use of gold leaf for the inner sanctuary. Quite an achievement - well done year 6, and thank you to parent Ben Huthwaite who led this project.
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Toad of Toad Hall character puppets - sewing
Having enjoyed reading and studying the play 'Toad of Toad Hall' by A.A. Milne, pupils spent half a term each creating their own hand-sewn character puppets of a chosen character from the play.
Music
Rhythm Project Middle School
Middle School pupils took part in a 3 week rhythm project exploring musical canon and polyrhythms culminating in a group composition workshop. As you can see they had a lot of fun!
Celebrating Pupils' Musical Skills
Children's musical skills and giftings were celebrated during a special assembly, with a range of performances on piano, guitar and with song. A significant proportion of Middle School pupils have regular peripatetic music lessons during the school day, which enriches the Music curriculum. All children learn the recorder, and enjoy a varied music curriculum delivered by a specialist teacher. Musical topics are designed to help children appreciate God's gift of music, and to develop an understanding of various important themes and truths through the study of music, as part of our Christ-centred curriculum.
History
The History of Liverpool
Following a study of Liverpool through the centuries, starting with the Celts and ending in modern times, classes pay a visit to the Liverpool Museum and the Maritime Museum, participating in two education sessions. This is always an enjoyable day. In recent years, classes have been able to visit the underground excavation site of the original dock, which was built with stones from Liverpool Castle.
English
In English, Middle School children read a wide range of carefully chosen class texts. Through reading, discussion and written work, important themes within the texts are explored, in order to develop the children's understanding both of language and also of God's world, with the diversity of cultures in it. There is a strong emphasis on developing each child's confidence in reading, so that the wider school curriculum can be accessed and enjoyed by all the children, and moreover because God wrote a book so we want to enable children to read and understand it themselves.
World Book Day
... has become a highlight for many children, and provides a chance to celebrate each year the privilege of being able read.
Christian Heritage Biography Project
As part of the KS3 English curriculum, students consider what it mean to be a hero, focusing on the lives of men and women who achieved significant things through their courage and faith.
The students then choose a character whom they find inspiring, and research their lives in greater detail in order to each produce a written biography. These biographies are compiled together to create a class book to be passed on and read by other year groups in Middle School, sharing learning about the richness and diversity of our Christian heritage.
Geography
Land Use
Land Use is one topic studied in Geography lessons, including an exploration of a local park. Children enjoy constructing their own buildings to create a model town...
South America
After learning together in class about the continent of South America, pupils conduct research into a country of their choice and produce an informative poster to show others.
Volcanoes and Earthquakes
In this topic, pupils learn how volcanoes are formed, study a range of volcanoes around the world and learn skills for writing and setting out a newspaper article. Each child choses a volcano and writes a report on it as if they were an eyewitness to its eruption, along with accompanying images.
