The last year has seen the arts and sports spaces working collaboratively on a range of projects, whilst embracing input from feeder secondary and neighbouring primary schools.

 

Through the Lens was a digital arts project funded by the Leicester City Council’s Extended Services In and Around Schools and was a partnership project for children from Mellor Community Primary School and children from Belgrave St Peter’s Church of England Primary School.  The project was led by Monica Fernandez from Mo-Arts and took place at Cross Corners Arts Centre and explored the role of women in society today.  Children used a variety of digital media art forms and new technology to create images, oral and visual narratives to illustrate their thoughts and feelings about the subject.  The project culminated in an exhibition at the Leicester City Gallery and was extremely well attended by parents, Governors and teachers.  Many guests traveled to the exhibition in coaches and poured through the doors of the gallery to soak up the vibrant array of images created by the children from both schools.

 

 

Get Lifted was an exciting programme of work that engaged participants in a range of physical activities and new experiences.  The aim of the project was to raise the profile of dance teaching in the National Curriculum for children at Key Stage 1 and 2.  Staff and children from Eyres Monsell Primary School, Sparkenhoe Community Primary School and Northfield House Primary School benefited from a series of master class dance workshops with Pete Shenton from New Art Club IIP.  Staff and children were encouraged to work together to explore new and exciting approaches and establish accessible and meaningful routes into dance that could be built into the PE curriculum.

 

The project also provided after school sessions for boys and girls attending Eyres Monsell Primary School, Barley Croft Primary School and Sparkenhoe Community Primary School to engage in sports and dance related activities.  These workshops were led by dance practitioner Claire Broady, Football Coach Sarah Fletcher and Capoeria led by Anjo from the Senzala Capoeria Group based in Leicester.  The sessions aimed to acknowledge the movement based links between Capoeria, football training and dancer whilst offering opportunities for children to learn and develop new skills in physical activity.

 

Get Lifted also aimed to encourage children to see the benefit of music to movement and during the Summer break children from Sparkenhoe Community Primary School took part in music workshops led by Soft Touch.  The sessions were a great success.

 

Moving Science was an innovative collaboration between the Space for Sports and Arts, the National Space Centre and extended services in and around Leicester. Artists and schools explored the concept of gravity and its significance to living things, falling, night and day and the solar system. These themes are significant to the science curriculum at Key Stage 1, 2 and 3 and were explored through the mediums of dance and digital arts.  The project brought together children from 6 Leicester schools: Moat Community College Specialising in Science, Beaumont Leys Specialist Science School and Braunstone Frith Junior School, Eyres Monsell Primary School, Northfield House Primary School and Sparkenhoe Community Primary School.  One of the successful outcomes of the project was the unique collaboration between local digital arts organisations, Cuttlefish and Mo-Arts as well as dance companies Locostando, New Art Club with composer David Keye.  After an intense phase of workshops and project development the project culminated in 4 performances for parents, siblings and other invited guests. This is was an opportunity for parents\carers to visit the National Space Centre and join other invited guests to experience this exciting new approach to creativity and the National Curriculum.  Moving Science met its aim to link the threads of commonality between the performing arts digital media arts with science as a means of raising levels of attainment and achievement at Key Stages 1, 2 and 3.

 

The former Space for Sports and Arts Development Officer, Samantha Heselton, said: “Science is a unique example of how creativity across then National Curriculum can reach all children through enjoyable and accessible routes to learning.  Surely this is how we drive forward children’s desire to achieve at all levels?”