Porthcothan Beach School Launches New Workshops

For the past three years Porthcothan Beach School has developed and trialled resources for teachers and children to support the themes arising from The Wrecking Season, a film about everything that washes up on Cornish beaches, Cornwall’s place in the Atlantic community and issues of global pollution and conservation. 

In the summer of 2013 Porthcothan Beach School are offering beach resources to support coastline projects. These will include a DVD of the film The Wrecking Season, a loan box of strandline booty and a booklet of cross curricular resources linked to the film, including worksheets, investigations and creative ideas.

Also included in the resource will be the opportunity to visit Jane Darke’s house on Porthcothan beach to learn more about the extraordinary collection of artefacts gathered over twenty years of wrecking and to take part in a range of beach workshops run by the artist Andrew Tebbs.  

The learning resources have been designed by Jane Darke, an artist and filmmaker, and teacher Rachel Berrington, who is passionate about using the beach as an outside classroom.

For bookings and more information contact janesdarke@gmail.com

To find out more about The Wrecking Season visit  www.janedarke.net

‘This story is about what’s cast up on the shore, who picks it up, what they learn from it and the uses they put it to. It’s a story of extraordinary journeys which have their beginnings from the frozen North all the way down to the Eastern seaboard of the America’s to the deep jungle of the Amazon.’  

Nick Darke, The Wrecking Season

Nick Darke was a Cornish playwright and beachcomber who wrote extensively about Cornwall and environmental issues. www.nickdarke.net

Thanks to the Gulf Stream the North coast of Cornwall is one of the best places in the world for receiving ocean flotsam. 

 

ShelterBox Illustration Competition

Did you see pictures of the Japanese tsunami in the newspapers? Did you watch it on television? Did your pupils?

Last year the tsunami in Japan had devastating effects. With help from generous communities, schools and individuals ShelterBox was able to provide the shelter and basic equipment that survivors needed. 

The tsunami touched the lives of people around the world and for many children the television footage will have made a significant impression. 

At ShelterBox we are keen to help children understand how disasters occur and explore their feelings about it. These may include sadness, concern for others, the impulse to help and fears for their own safety.

Can you help? Can your pupils draw a picture to tell a story?

We have written a story designed to encourage reflection and understanding, now all it needs is pictures.

We want children across the nation to have the opportunity to explore this global theme and through their pictures help others think about it too. Winning pictures will be selected by Michael Foreman and published in a book later in the year.

Winners will be invited to an exciting London book launch, where they will be awarded certificates and prizes, as well as take part in a workshop with Michael.

Disaster relief charity ShelterBox and acclaimed children’s author and illustrator Michael Foreman, are challenging UK primary school pupils once again, to bring a special disaster story to life with their pictures.

The Story

The Day The Sea Changed

 

One day the sea changed.

It slipped away from the rocks and crabs crawled for cover.

It crept away from the seashore and starfish struggled in the warm air.

It shrank away from the land and fish flapped on the dry seabed…

…to read the rest of the story and find out more about taking part, please visit www.youngshelterbox.org/teacher.php or email emman@shelterbox.org for a competition pack.

This competition is brought to you in collaboration with The Reading Agency and Chatterbooks

www.readinggroups.org/chatterbooks

FarmSafe for Schools

Cornish Mutual have launched an online resource providing free farm and countryside safety teaching materials for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers.

Visit the Teaching Resources page to browse and download exciting new lesson plans to help you deliver farm and countryside safety lessons to your pupils. You can find information on the following topics:

• Farm Safety 1
• Farm Safety 2
• Hygiene
• Road and rail safety
• Safety Around Animals
• Safety Around Electricity
• The Countryside Code

Each lesson plan consists of detailed teacher notes, pupil worksheets and PowerPoint presentations to help your pupils understand some of the dangers they might encounter in the countryside and know how to deal with them safely.