I am spending a couple of days down here in Ivybridge, Devon with the Ivybridge Primary Music Specialist Cluster. This group of schools is one of the first to take part in a pilot project introducing the concept of “Specialist schools” into the primary sector.

The schools include Ugborough Primary school, Stowford Primary school, Holbeton Primary, Woodlands Park, Ermington Primary, and The Manor Primary, Ivybridge. I am looking forward to tomorrow, this time hosted by Ivybridge Community College, where I will be working with some year 5 and 6 children throughout the day.

The project is to be closely supported by Dave Broadfield and staff from The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT)

Their Specialsm is Music through the Arts and the aim is to see whether specialsing in this area has an impact on standards across the curriculum, in particular Maths and English. This is an area I Love exploring with classes, or on training days.

Ministers from the DCFS hope that the scheme, which is being piloted in 34 schools across the country, will replicate the success of specialist secondary schools, where GCSE scores have risen by at least one grade across the board. Specialist schools get extra funding to spend on staff, training and equipment in their specialist area and must develop a strategy for raising standards in that particular field.

Experience has shown that this usually has the knock-on effect of raising standards in other curriculum areas, as teachers in other subjects copy the successful strategies used by colleagues teaching specialist subjects.

A spokeswoman said that the Government wants to see if the same effect can be reproduced at primary level.

I was honoured to be invited down to Ivybridge and enjoyed a day spent exploring the potential of some of our visual literacy ideas.

Thankyou to Sue Whiteman, Helen Tipping and their colleagues across the cluster for a really fun day.

I look forward to keeping in touch and hearing how the project develops.

I was honoured to be invited down to Ivybridge and enjoyed a day spent exploring the potential of some of our visual literacy ideas.

Thankyou to Sue Whiteman, Helen Tipping and their colleagues across the cluster for a really fun day.

I look forward to keeping in touch and hearing how the project develops.

Found this film that sums up our journey through life
Click above and it will take you to another page on this blog. It messed up me layout before so this is the only way to do it.

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