At the end of last year, we asked students in C29 to reflect on the learning that took place outside the classroom and how this has helped them to build Crew.
Beautiful Curation: Carcroft School
Look at this collection of recent work which is now on display in the corridors of Carcroft School. Be sure to stop and admire students beautiful work from across phases and Expeditions!
The Staff Day in January saw the launch of our proposed teaching and learning model as part of our Festival of Learning. The event took place at XP Doncaster and was attended by staff from across all schools in the Trust. All staff had the opportunity to explore the model in more depth as well as attending other workshops on different parts of the model.
This is part of the Trust’s commitment to ensure that we expose more students to more impactful teaching more of the time.
Beautiful Curation: A Christmas Carol
There is now an awesome display at XP to celebrate the Christmas Carol Study Guide – the beautiful work of last year’s Year 11s. Be sure to go and admire their hard work on display!
On Friday, staff across our Trust gathered to launch the first phase of our exciting new Teaching and Learning model, with a focus on our culture of Crew, underpinning principles, deliberate & intentional teaching/learning behaviours at its heart…
Staff from our secondaries and primaries grappled with this exciting new model and took part in a wide range of workshops to develop teaching and learning at XP.
More on this next week…
Carcroft School: How Could We Help Our Planet Survive?
In Autumn 2023, Years 5 and 6 completed an expedition looking at the impact we are having on the planet and what we could do to make a difference now and for future generations. They held their presentation of learning last week!
Their final product for this expedition was a picture frame made from sustainably-sourced materials. Students then chose their favourite piece of writing from across the expedition to publish in the frame alongside (or behind) a simple piece of artwork reflecting elements of our learning. Beautiful work!
Another brick in the wall: Beautiful Work from XP Gateshead
In Autumn 2023, students in Year 9 studied a joint HUMAN and STEAM expedition called ‘Another Brick in the Wall’ where students had to answer the guiding question: ‘How are structures important in helping us to explain our world?’
For the final product, students used plaster to create sculptures in the brutalist aesthetic. The Presentation of Learning (PoL) was an unveiling of an installation to the community and dedicated to the people of Gateshead, who have suffered due to the Covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis; both examples of failings of societal structures. Experts, including architects from SOS-UK and Ryder Architecture, whom the students had worked alongside throughout the learning expedition, came along to speak at the PoL at the Farrell Centre, Newcastle University.
The work will be on display there for the foreseeable future!
We Are Artists at Plover
Mel from the XP Trust Comms Crew visited Plover as an Expert Artist – showing Year 5 how to draw trains and teach them about perspective and the vanishing point. The children enjoyed seeing her amazing drawings and made a great start on having a go at their own drawings.
Carcroft’s Fabulous Foyer!
Whilst making an impromptu visit to Carcroft Primary in December, we noticed this! We simply had to get the phone out and take some photos of the wonderful displays on show in the Carcroft foyer area. The array of work exhibited was interesting, engaging and of high quality; and was curated impeccably by the staff – beautiful work!
Lungs of the World: Beautiful Work from Norton Juniors
In Autumn 2023, Year 5 and 6 across the trust embarked on an expedition with the guiding question: Why should we help our planet survive?
As part of the Expedition, students created their own soft toys based on a chosen animal from the Amazon rainforest – learning about why it is endangered and what we can do to protect the species. The students used ‘The Great Kapok Tree’ as a model text. The pupils wrote their own version of the story through rainforest animals’ eyes for younger children in the form of a book and shared them with Year 2 pupils (along with the soft toys) with the purpose of teaching them about deforestation and its impact.
G30’s first POL at St Mary’s Church, Heworth
In the Autumn term of 2023 students at XP Gateshead studied an expedition called ‘From the ground up’ with the guiding question “What do the communities of the North-East of England owe to the miners?”. They presented their learning from this Expedition on Monday at St Mary’s church – sharing their story and performing the songs they have written to tell the stories of the mining community.
These songs will be recorded in New Year and a CD will be produced!
As part of the presentation, students unveiled a board full of their beautiful work – including narrative accounts, diary entries and artwork relating to the Felling Pit disaster.
The chosen venue for the presentation was also historically significant. Not only is St Mary’s the site of a memorial to the disaster and those who lost their lives, but it is also the final resting place of Thomas Hepburn – the famous miner, Trade Union leader and advocate of better working conditions for miners. The building that XP Gateshead is now based in was once named after him.
Sir Tim Brighouse
We were deeply saddened across the XP Trust to hear about the death of Sir Tim Brighouse on 15th December.
Sir Tim was considered to be one of the most important voices and thinkers in education, and a great champion of state schools.
We were very fortunate to be able to welcome him to XP on a couple of occasions and to hear him speak about our school with warmth and encouragement.
He has left a legacy of equity and advocacy for education for all and we are very proud that he is part of our story.
Our latest Trust publication ‘Rail City’ was launched at the amazing Doncaster Gallery, Library and museum – DGLaM.
The book, an updated and lavishly illustrated compendium of all the work created by students across the Trust, over the last five years, captures our city’s rail heritage – and future.
It is also timely as 2023 is the Flying Scotsman’s Centenary year, the iconic steam engine built here in Doncaster.
Our thanks go to the team at DGLaM and the city council who have facilitated the launch and supported our work across the Trust.
‘Rail City’ will be on sale in DGLaM, the TIC and Waterstones in the Frenchgate Centre. The perfect present for anyone who loves rail, trains and local history. (You can also purchase the book from our online shop!)
Welcome Back!
We continue to welcome delegates from all over the world. Last week our friends and partners from the Wood Foundation in Scotland joined us once again with 25 teachers from schools in the Aberdeen area.
Over two days they looked at Crew, expeditions and the bigger picture of what we do and how we do it.
They even enjoyed a tour of our students’ work in the heart of Doncaster.
Last but not least as you can see from the photograph with their Crew they also joined in with our charity Christmas Jumper day!
A day of music for XP Doncaster Year 7!
Dave Evans ran a series of awesome workshops for our Year 7 students with professional musicians! Our students improvised, created digital beats, sang and played the drums!
Green Top EYFS: Exploring our World – beautiful curated work in our community!
Activism at XP Gateshead
Love this idea @xpgateshead – we are getting to know our near neighbours by creating and delivering Christmas hampers to them 🎅…we will be putting in some Christmas chocolates 🍫 too 🙂 pic.twitter.com/F86ENdvQ3A
This very special event has brought together nominees from across Green Top’s local community who have been recognised for their invaluable work both with and for the people of Thorne. From food banks to emergency services to care homes – all were presented awards by KS1 children at Green Top, as part of their Expedition ‘Not all superheroes wear capes’. The list and variety of work celebrated this evening was incredible and each and every award was so well deserved. Congratulations to all of you from Green Top!
Norton Infants march for Askern CRY Foodbank
Carcroft celebrate and share their awesome ‘Chronica Carcroft’ Roman Newspaper!
From Market Town to Railway City – The Railway Journey that Helped to Shape Doncaster.
This is an updated collection of all the beautiful work created over the last few years by students across the XP Trust schools, inspired by the centenary of the Flying Scotsman and the railway heritage of Doncaster.
This book has given us an opportunity to update the original content of the many rail expeditions, with quotes from experts and our community about the importance of railways, the steam engines built here and the ongoing rail-related business here that will help shape the future of rail.
Published to coincide with a centenary celebration visit from the Flying Scotsman, we humbly hope that this book, created by our students and a new generation of rail enthusiasts, will become part of our railway story.
Students from XP Doncaster were very lucky to be able to welcome Flying Scotsman home today as guests of Doncaster Council. They had the opportunity to see this iconic engine up close and meet so many people who have made this special visit happen.
They were also able to hand copies of the newly published book ‘Rail CIty’ to those who had so kindly contributed to it … but more on that next week!
Final Product Preview: Beautiful Sewing at Norton Juniors!
XP Gateshead: Unheard voices of WWI
Last year, Y8 at XPG recorded a radio broadcast of unheard voices from WWI. They did this to honour the sacrifices of those who are sometimes forgotten when we remember the victims of WWI.
We are proud to share that this broadcast will be played on Memory Lane Radio on Saturday 11th November at 11am (their Armistice day slot!) Reuben visited the studio with Mrs Downes and was interviewed about the project. We will share a link to this interview in the coming days.
Be sure to tune in tomorrow to hear this beautiful work on the radio!
