Gallery partnership promotes art with heart

There was art with heart, when pupils from English Martyrs’ Catholic Primary in Fenham enjoyed a series of workshops designed to help them explore their emotions through creativity.

The school linked with Shipley Art Gallery for the Cultural Match Programme initiative, which has seen children from Reception through to Year 6 enjoy a range of age-appropriate, art-based activities over the past months.

“All of the children in school have taken part in workshops with the Shipley Art Gallery,” said Year 2 Teacher Georgia Dennison, who organised the events alongside Deputy Head Kate Stephenson, with the support of the North East Museums Regional Learning Team.

“The children explored the gallery in small groups, made their own observational drawings, took part in a scavenger hunt, and handled art made of various materials.

“Each class took part in an hour-long workshop led by specialists at the gallery. Our focus was to explore feelings and emotions through art.”

Activities included felt making for the Year 6 pupils; while Years 4 and 5 worked with oil and chalk pastel; Year 3 children painted; and Reception, Year 1, and Year 2 created collages using a variety of different textiles.

The children also visited Gateshead Central Library as part of the project, where the Key Stage 2 pupils learned how to find different books and had some reading time, and the Reception and Key Stage 1 classes listened to stories read by the librarian, enjoyed a selection of different books, and completed their own book reviews.

“As the focus of the trips were emotions and wellbeing through artwork, this linked to our PSHE [Personal, Social, Health, and Economic Education] curriculum,” continued Miss Dennison.

“Each class has been learning about mental health, and the importance of understanding our emotions and recognising feelings. As a school, we are also aiming to improve children’s wellbeing, so exploring emotions this way has been very positive.

“The visit to the gallery also had wider curriculum links. For example, Year 1 and 2 have been learning about sculptures and free-standing structures, so they enjoyed seeing the wide range of sculptures in the gallery, including the Angel of the North.”

“Going forward, we hope that we can continue to organise trips and projects at this scale,” she added.

“Trips like this are very important, because they give the children cultural experiences, expanding on their historical and artistic knowledge. They allow children to experience environments that may be unfamiliar to them, building their confidence, and opening them up to the opportunities of the wider world.”