Broadening horizons in rural Cornwall
Why Get Set?
St Cleer Primary School (Cornwall, South West) wanted children to experience the excitement and creativity of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, take pride in Britain’s achievements and feel inspired.
Based in a Cornish rural village and with many children never having been out of the county, joining Get Set meant a chance to broaden horizons and increase understanding of and respect for different backgrounds and cultures.
Currently working on the delivery of a more creative, progressive skills based curriculum, St Cleer was able to start using London 2012 as a meaningful and real focus for cross-curricular provision aiming for Pupil Voice to be central.
The Journey So Far
St Cleer has been planning ways of incorporating the Games into the curriculum, with ideas ranging from looking at the history of the Games and countries being represented, to writing and performing their own musical and creating a dance featuring Olympic ideas. A series of assemblies have centred on the Values.
Keeping it real, children have already been inspired by a real Olympic hero. Olympic swimmer Cassie Patten lives locally and has visited assemblies inspiring everyone with her message of, ‘Keep on trying! Never give up!’
Exciting opportunities are being presented through involvement in a network of Get Real Schools in the South West, giving children the chance to:
- Correspond with and maybe even visit a partner school in East London
- Be engaged in creative, open-ended activities
- Work in partnership with some Olympic athletes.
School Council members have been involved from the outset helping plan initial ideas and will play key roles throughout.
Positive Values
St Cleer feels that commitment to Get Set and the Values has given a definite focus to the curriculum and to the ethos of the school. Assemblies and discussions about what is important in life already appear to be motivating children.
Children have felt inspired by Olympic and Paralympic athletes, seeing these sportsmen and women as heroes and positive role models. There was particular excitement about having met a real Olympian and heard her story.
And the highlights for children?
- “Cassie has inspired me to keep on trying.”
- “ We think it would be brilliant to get to know some children who live near the Olympic Park.”
- “Some of us want to be better sportsmen and women and we think what the Olympic and Paralympic athletes do is amazing.”
Towards 2012
By 2012 St Cleer is determined that all children will experience the excitement of the Games and feel inspired by this to live their own lives to the full, aspiring to do their very best.
Children taking part in more sporting activities would be one measure of success as would overall personal development of children, with St Cleer aiming for children to achieve the self-confidence and self-belief to take risks and to succeed in life by fulfilling their own potential.
