Comenius Project
Beacon Hill is linked with Ireland,Spain,Belgium and another North Eastern school in a Comenius project called “Growing together as Europeans.” The project plans to develop a sensory garden in each of the schools,sharing information of the development and involvement of the pupils. The schools are very diverse although they do all have some pupils with special educational needs.
Four members of staff visited Letterkenny in Ireland in November 2010. The chance to meet with colleagues from other countries and reflect on practice raised our awareness and enthusiasm for our work. The visit included a trip to a National Park education centre “Glenveagh” which colleagues shared with us ideas of environmental activities to take back to our own schools. We also had a tour of the school and they showcased the work they do. Pupils at Beacon Hill have been able to learn about the visit through assemblies,and work in the classes to further the project. An “etwinning project” has been developed with the schools adding information about themselves and the individual progress of their work. The teachers have also created a face book group to keep in touch with each other.
The second partner visit was to Evergreen school in Bishop Auckland. (March 2011) Some members of staff were new to the experience others had been part of the visit to Letterkenny,it was like meeting old friends especially as links had been maintained with email communication. The itinerary for this visit included a trip to Beamish Museum and the Botanical Gardens in Durham. During the visit to Evergreen school we were entertained by different classes in an assembly then spent time in the classes where the children showed off some of the work they were doing.
(Above) This is the sensory garden at Evergreen School
(Above)Comenius Partners in The Botanical Gardens
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