Norton Church of England Primary School in Gloucestershire is a small rural primary which prides itself on planning exciting learning opportunities where children can express themselves and develop their self-confidence.
Rosie Eaton, a reception teacher at the school, is leading the demonstration school initiative. The school was keen to work with LEAF after one of the parents, a local farmer, linked the school to LEAF Education.
Throughout the school year, the school provides several opportunities for the children to engage with their rural setting. Using the support and expertise of their local LEAF Regional Education Consultant, Liz Lake, the staff have benefitted from an INSET day that focussed on linking farm visits to the curriculum. Liz visited the summer fair with grains such as rape seed, wheat, oats and beans for the children to feel and grind the wheat to make flour.
The pupils welcomed a visit from the local farmer at harvest festival time, she brought several varieties of wheat for the children to see the link to their food. They have also been fortunate to explore two different tractors from the past and the present day in order to compare and contrast. The reception class was also given the opportunity to visit a farm where they witnessed the birth of a lamb and were able to collect eggs from the chickens.
Going forward Norton C of E Primary will now be working to their Silver award by sharing their good practice with their wider network.