Memorandum submitted by Calthorp School Sports College, Birmingham

 

 

Calthorpe School is a Special School for pupils aged 2-19 with severe, profound and multiple learning difficulties. Calthorpe's educational vision includes an innovative approach to education, where creativity is embedded in the curriculum, aiming to ensure learning is progressive, developing students thinking and understanding skills. Our ethos is to provide inclusive, enjoyable environments that promote confidence and commitment, thus fulfilling the 'every child matters' agenda.

 

Our Creative Partnership involvement has provided Calthorpe students with the opportunity to access the arts not only in 'naturally' creative subjects but also in subjects such as maths and humanities. Subsequently increased cross curricular activities have had a greater impact on teaching and learning within the school. The Creative Partnership projects assist in teachers and artists also becoming co-learners with students.

 

Students have had the opportunity to work alongside professional artists in prestigious venues such as 'Millennium Point', Birmingham. To perform at such a venue was a new experience and great achievement for many of our pupils. As a consequence of such impressive and high-status projects has included increased parental support and involvement in activities.

 

Particularly successful projects with creative partnerships have included the 'Our Futures' dance project, a project partnership between Creative Partnership and the Highgate Cluster of Birmingham Schools. The 12 month project between the 5 schools embraced the philosophy that dance is for everyone and tested how it enables learning across many subjects, through processes of creating, performing and appreciating.

 

 

The second project ('Nature and the Environment' numeracy project) aimed to develop creative approaches to teaching and learning, specifically for pupils with SLD and PMLD. The major objective was to improve numeracy skills through interactive, non written, multi-sensory image/visual arts based activity. Pupils developed their fine motor skills through art work. The outcome of the project was a power-point numeracy resource that could be shared throughout school and beyond. Pupils enjoyed having ownership over their own project. Furthermore, the

project supported teacher development, giving insight to what engages pupils and motivates them for numeracy, using the arts as a vehicle.

 

Throughout these projects students were encouraged to make independent choices and express their individual ideas. Pupils experienced new environments outside school but within their local community. They worked co-operatively alongside peers and artists and as a result of such a project pupils demonstrated increased confidence and enthusiasm within sessions.

 

Overall, Creative Partnerships has had enormous impact on the structure of the curriculum and Learning and Teaching across school. More importantly it has widened the opportunities for pupils within school and encouraged their continued participation in the arts.

 

July 2007