Unearthing Britain’s History
The lives of the invaders and settlers who changed the face of Britain are being explored by children at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
The Year 5 ‘history detectives’ are delving deep into the past to discover what shaped the way the country developed through the centuries.
Within this term’s topic girls and boys will research the Roman invasion of our shores including how the Britons reacted and what happened after. They will also find out about the heritage and culture of the Anglo-Saxons, the Viking invaders, and Alfred the Great. 
As part of their learning pupils have already looked at a range of artefacts in class. These include a replica sword, a Roman-style mosaic and candlestick and a statue of a goddess, together with a cooking pot and a fibula which was used to pin clothing.
Head of Year 5 Hannah Dannell added: “The children 
have also created a Saxon-style brooch using an embossing technique. They embossed tin foil over cardboard and then coloured it using permanent markers to make it look like metal and jewels. The patterns they created were symmetrical to look at and as authentic in detail as possible.”
Head of School Nick Budge said: “Exploring the social history and development of our country is an important part of our pupils’ learning as they unravel our rich and interesting heritage.
“The invaders and settlers work enables our Year 5 pupils to dig deep into the past and find out how and why Britain developed in the way it did centuries ago – they will trace timelines to map the way our society progressed and dealt with huge changes along the way.
“As well as expanding their knowledge, it will develop our children’s critical thinking skills.”
For more information contact Head of School Nick Budge on 01843 582847
Everyone was a winner as Ramsgate Arts Primary children took to the stage for a special talent show.
“After watching the acts, the judges went off to deliberate and had a difficult time choosing their top three spots. Third was Sienna and Phoebe from Year 6 with their rendition of Fight Song; runner up singer Raph from Year5; and the winner was Eva from year 3 with her astounding magic tricks.
“Our talented girls and boys were of a high standard for their age ranges and they gave all of us in the audience a smashing treat.”
Jubilee fever gripped Ramsgate Arts Primary as children of all ages celebrated the Queen’s marvellous milestone.
The little ones also joined the rest of the school in a special assembly where they took part in a quiz and sang the national anthem while waving their flags.
Early Years Foundation Studies lead Sophie Spurrier said: “They little ones were excited and were really engaged with all the activities they took part in. It was a wonderful atmosphere and they certainly celebrated in style.”
The magic of life has been witnessed first-hand by little children at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
feathered friends.
“It gave us the chance to discuss life cycles, learn how to care for the chicks, discuss how animals change as they grow. One of the chicks sadly died but was very poorly from being born, and the children were great at dealing with this and understanding it as part of the life cycle.
Ramsgate Arts Primary School is part of the Viking Academy Trust with Upton Junior School at Broadstairs and Chilton Primary School, Ramsgate.
Enjoying the world of nature is an important part of their learning adventure for children in their first year at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
A big favourite was meeting some of the centre’s animals at the petting barn including baby goats, calves and rabbits where they found out how they are cared for and what they eat.
A mini adventure has led young explorers from Ramsgate Arts Primary to experience the amazing world of wildlife at first hand.
“They were keen to look out for what food they were eating and to know the name of the animal. The children also enjoyed reading the information signs for the different animals to learn more about them and expand their knowledge.
Wingham Wildlife Park covers an area of 26 acres and features hundreds of species covering fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and birds. Find out more online at www.winghamwildlifepark.co.uk.
A lively and creative week exploring the Arts with The Lion King as a main inspiration has been a roaring success at Ramsgate Arts Primary.
broadening existing ones.
And children aged seven to eleven years old then enjoyed the spectacular musical live on stage with a special trip to the Lyceum Theatre in London to witness the production that left them ’excited and overawed’. Younger classes also got the chance to see The Lion King film at a screening in school.
with keen young actors, while stop-motion animation and green screen workshops with Mike Brown were very popular. Specially-written lion-themed tales were enjoyed in storytelling sessions.
“It was important to be able to offer such a range of first class opportunities to our children to work with visiting performers and educators alongside our talented staff.
Children at Ramsgate Arts Primary packed their bags for an imaginary journey around the island of St Lucia.
activities. It was wonderful to see them so immersed in their learning and they were talking about this experience for days.”
The wonderful world of reading and storytelling is an important key to unlock a child’s imagination – and Ramsgate Arts Primary hold a series of reading for pleasure sessions throughout the year.
Teachers all dressed up as the Disney classic’s 101 Dalmatians with Mr Budge as their menacing nemesis Cruella de Ville.
sessions pre-recorded for RAPS by authors and illustrators were popular.
One of the most challenging tasks saw pupils tasked earlier with reading stories to their pets and reading in the most unusual places, with the evidence photographed. There were a selection of interesting and thoughtful entries, with pupils Millie and Annie judged the winners.
books and the amazing journeys that stories can take them on - we wanted to make sure our World Book Day was all about reading for pleasure to encourage our girls and boys to get lost in the magical world of reading.
Mr Budge added: “It was a spectacular day as magical as the characters and stories that captivate us all. Loving books and being excited to immerse yourself in a thrilling story is the right of every child, and we nurture it from the youngest of ages.”
A charter for safe internet use is to be drawn up at Ramsgate Arts Primary School. Children will play a large role in discussing and devising a simple and effective set of guidelines when using smartphones, tablets and computers to link into the world wide web.
She added: “We ask all parents and carers to reflect on the access their children have to social media and consider carefully monitoring the use of mobile phones, tablets and computers.”
It was all Greek to children at Ramsgate Arts Primary as they journeyed into the world of the ancient civilisation.
outfits and accessories on show as the day of fun learning unfolded.
In a drama session the children were transported to a Greek marketplace or ‘agora’ where they became buyers and sellers, haggling and discussing a variety of goods.
Greece.
The final experiences of the action-packed day was making wreaths and learning Greek writing.
on Junior School and Chilton Primary School.
Ramsgate Arts Primary went Maths Mad with special activities focussing on numeracy skills.
logic problems and magic squares, and took on ‘impossible Maths-related challenges’.
“It also offered them the chance to have fun with numbers and to work with peers in classes they would not normally work with.
Head of School Nick Budge was pleased with the enthusiastic response to the Maths activities. He said: “Although we celebrate the highly creative side of RAPS as the only arts specialist school in the area, we also enjoy and develop our core curriculum subjects such as Maths.