International Links
Archibald First School encourages its children to be creative, unique, open-minded and independent individuals, respectful of themselves and of others in their school, local community and the wider world. The staff aim to nurture the children on their journey through life so they can grow into safe, caring, democratic, responsible and tolerant adults who make a positive difference to society and to the world. Archibald and its staff are ambitious and deeply committed to the creative and international curriculum it offers, including teaching Spanish to all pupils from reception to Year 4 and current International partnerships with schools in Europe (Spain) and Africa (Ghana).
Archibald First School has been committed to International work for many years, obtaining the Full International School Award in 2012. Our first partnership with Bulseschule began in 2011 through Schools on Line and as a first step an informal visit was made by our then MFL leader. Gifts and letters were then exchanged. At this time pupils in Archibald First School learnt German. Our partnership was further strengthened in 2014 when six teachers from Germany visited our school and the first in depth e-twinning project between the schools was planned. In September 2014 the school began to teach Spanish instead of German in response to the Framework for Languages at Key Stage 2. The school then found another partner school in Spain – La Xara in Denia. In 2016, three members of AFS visited Gelsenkirchen partly funded by the UK German connection. The time was used in Germany for both schools to communicate with AFS’s Spanish partner school. A year later, two German teachers returned to AFS through funding secured via Erasmus+ which provided the opportunity for closer collaboration. In March 2018 two Spanish teachers visited AFS and then went to Gelsenkirchen in the autumn. In 2019 our MFL teacher joined German colleagues in Spain. The partnership was very strong, based on friendship and shared values and the commitment and drive of one of the German Teachers who was an ambassador for e twinning in her region as well as the ICT co coordinator for Gelsenkirchen. Sadly, a very successful 8-year partnership with the schools in Germany and Spain has now waned due to changes to E-twinning following Brexit, staffing, working days, and the pandemic. However, we are delighted that our school is fostering new relationships with schools in and beyond Europe.
Language Ambassadors are chosen from year 3 and year 4to promote the importance of learning another language, read stories to younger children for World Book Day, organise class games such as juego de la oca, 21 and round the world.
Presenting our new Language Ambassadors! These children have been chosen to promote the benefits of learning another language across the school.#AFSSpanish #AFSMFL #AFSCaring pic.twitter.com/5PbNe8nU1d
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 24, 2023
Presenting our new Language Ambassadors! These children have been chosen to promote the benefits of language learning in our school. #afsmfl #Spanish pic.twitter.com/6MRZYGzBOz
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) January 20, 2023
The Language Ambassadors also ensure that the Language of the Week is celebrated by the children from reception to year 4 by getting them to say a greeting word in that language (which was taught in the previous Friday whole school Assembly).
This term we have started Language of the Week.. This week we have been learning how to say Hello in Arabic and are practising during registration. Here is one of our Arabic speaking students teaching one of our Language Ambassadors how to say it. pic.twitter.com/LFtLtdPVdM
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) January 15, 2024
Links to other Languages of the week
https://x.com/ArchibaldFirst/status/1793980675902886381 https://x.com/ArchibaldFirst/status/1788938320803762269 https://x.com/ArchibaldFirst/status/1770487665948791060 https://x.com/ArchibaldFirst/status/1755244166110470152 https://x.com/ArchibaldFirst/status/1752718391486382138
Archibald children celebrate European Day of Languages (EDL) and Spanish Day in September and take part in World Book Day activities in March. In 2023 and 2022 judges commended the Archibald entries to the annual EDL competition organised by the Association for Language Learning. In 2023 the children also received a certificate for their entries to North East Festival of Languages competition on the topic Where Language Can Take You.
Eek well done Key Stage 2! Learning Spanish since Nursery has resulted in some superb work. #AFSSpanish pic.twitter.com/WVX7SLBzpB
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 8, 2023
Just look at this commendation for the year 3 children's entries to this year's European Day of Languages competition! Well done and thank you to Senora Dunlop too. pic.twitter.com/344t4TlQwx
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 27, 2022
Class 9 and Class 10 took part in a poster competition for the North East Festival of Languages and received a highly commended certificate for their entries about ’where language can take you’ @InterNewcastle pic.twitter.com/SzpYQfC4Tb
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) April 21, 2023
Our friends in Spain and Africa:
We currently have strong partnerships with schools in Europe and in Africa. Our partner school in Europe is in the south of Spain, in beautiful sunny Seville, and is called CEIP Arias Montano andour partner school in Africa is located in the capital of Ghana, in Accra, and is called Ghana International School.
Seville school – CEIP stands for Colegio de Educación Infantil y Primaria. http://www.colegioariasmontano.com
Ghana school – https://gis.edu.gh
Spanish is taught at Archibald from Early Years to year 4 and our links with our partner school in Seville, Spain, enrich the children’s language learning journey. The Spanish Teacher used to live in Seville and is able to share her own experiences of living there with the children. The exchange with the Seville school began after the two lead contacts, Señora Dunlop and Señora Salgado, met on a week-long CLIL course in July 2023 and both wanted to enhance their children’s learning experience through a mutual meaningful cultural and language exchanges.
The children in year 4 exchanged letters and cards with the children the Seville school to learn about the similarities and differences in their daily lives, food, culture, festivals and languages. The year 4 children initially wrote in English about their home town, some North-East England’s landmarks and climate and a short paragraph in Spanish with their first name, age and where they live accompanied with a simple picture of themselves. The Spanish children wrote about themselves, their home town of Seville, famous landmarks in Andalusia and their different climates.
At Christmas the children exchanged cards and the year 4 children and Spanish children sung some traditional English carols and traditional Spanish Christmas songs such as Feliz Navidad. At Easter the children were shown pictures and videos taken by Señora Salgado in Seville so they could learn about local traditions during Semana Santa. To celebrate World Book Day the children jointly read a book and wrote letters describing what they like to do in their free-time in both Spanish and English.
The partnership with the school in Ghana started because we wanted to broaden our International links to outside Europe in order to further enrich our curriculum and raise awareness and appreciation of other environments and what is happening in the world. The partner school in Ghana, Africa, was chosen because an Archibald member of staff has close family ties with a staff member there, who visited the Archibald children in person for a special assembly in December 2023. The year 1 and 2 children have exchanged Christmas cards and letters with the children in the school in Ghana and learned their beautiful school song “Understanding of Each Other” and will sing it to the children in our partner school in Africa in June 2024.
Thank you to Mr Hall from @officialicsgh for coming in today to tell KS1 all about school life in Ghana. Thank you to all of your students for our beautiful Christmas cards. We hope you enjoy the ones we made for you. 🇬🇭🇬🇧@BritishCouncil #internationalschoolaward #AFSCurious pic.twitter.com/Vn6qkFsaRY
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) December 20, 2023
Spanish Culture and Language in the World:
The children at Archibald learn about the culture of Spain and other Spanish speaking countries during Spanish lessons.
The children learn about traditional food such as Tortilla Española and Churros, landmarks such as Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, music such as the Marcha Real, dance such as flamenco https://x.com/historyinmemes/status/1557718789814460417 – and traditional festivals like the Feria de Abril and the Semana Santa in Seville, Spain.
The children in year 4 also learn that there are around 550 million Spanish speakers around the world, most of whom live in Latin America (https://x.com/lewizrs/status/1551302317823217672 – and about some famous Spanish language speakers.
Children from year 1 to year 4 were given a flamenco lesson by a Specialist teacher who visited the school and were also able to taste some Spanish food on Spanish Day in September 2023.
A fabulous show on Spanish Day from our lunchtime lovelies! pic.twitter.com/aGhvLsLCbN
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) September 29, 2023
Class 10 are starting their Spanish Day with a spot of flamenco dancing! pic.twitter.com/RCFhmOQtib
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) September 29, 2023
Planet Protectors:
Children at Archibald First School are encouraged to have greater involvement in environmental issues. The curriculum has a range of topics organised under the theme of Planet Protectors and some children from each class are chosen to be Planet Protectors and take on additional responsibilities such as recycling monitoring. The Planet Protector topic broadly concerns ways we can protect our planet’s environment: the importance of bees in year 1, plastic pollution in the world’s oceans in year 2, air pollution across the world in year 3 and deforestation in year 4.
Well done Planet Protectors – you came up with some very important messages for our school community. Our local residents are looking forward to putting them up along the street. #AFSCaring #AFSResponsible pic.twitter.com/A2jB6OXevB
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) February 2, 2024
In addition, Archibald First School children and its local community also have taken part in a range of activities in recent years to support and raise awareness of environmental issues in their local area (for example volunteering in the upkeep of Gosforth Park and picking litter around Gosforth) and elsewhere in the world such as the JUST ONE Tree campaign.
Year 3 had a fabulous day helping out the ‘Friends of Gosforth Central Park’. We tidied up leaves, prepared the compost and planted daffodils! Thanks to the amazing volunteers and parent helpers! We’ve definitely made a difference to Gosforth! #afscaring #afsgeography pic.twitter.com/f6MBmV2dQH
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 6, 2023
Year 3 met up with the Friends of Gosforth Central Park today and we were amazed with how much they do for our community! We are going to try and help them make a difference to Gosforth. Does anyone you know volunteer here? We’re so proud of our community!#afsgeography pic.twitter.com/gjUoHZVB5B
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 9, 2023
JUST ONE Tree, an official partner in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, is an award-winning non-profit removing CO2 from the atmosphere and reversing biodiversity loss through global reforestation, particularly in Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique & Brazil. In doing so they have the greatest positive effect on limiting global warming whilst simultaneously alleviating extreme poverty within local communities through the provision of training, agricultural education and sustainable incomes. In Autumn Term 2023 the children did a range of Art and Literacy activities under the theme of JUST ONE Tree. For example, Early Years used broccoli and cotton buds to paint trees, year 3 learned about shading and tints while painting trees and year 4 also made beautiful cinquain poems about trees. The felling of Sycamore Tree in Northumberland (about an hour from our school) in October 2023 made headline news across the world. The importance of even just one tree to the local community was discussed in lessons and during a whole school Assembly. The children, staff and local community also raised money which will be used to plant over 600 trees in areas severely affected by deforestation. By raising money to plant trees, Archibald children understand the importance of being responsible global citizens and making our planet a much better place to be in the future.
Year 4 have used water colours to create images to celebrate One Tree Day. They have also written their own cinquain poems about trees. #onetreeday pic.twitter.com/8DTyv68JjQ
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 13, 2023
To celebrate One Tree Day, Early Years have explored printing with broccoli and cotton buds to paint our trees. We made a big tree using the leaves that had fallen from our tree in Triangle Zone. #onetreeday pic.twitter.com/gcRS18Ud9D
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 13, 2023
Year 1 have enjoyed celebrating #JustOneTreeDay by using adjectives to describe autumn leaves, using watercolours and our sketching skills in art and getting #AFSCreative at forest school by creating our own trees out of twigs and leaves 🌲🌳🪵🌿🍂🍁 pic.twitter.com/0qKYHhBs33
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 13, 2023
World of Art:
Art is formidable vehicle to learn about different cultures and ways to see the world. A number of International Artists are studied by the children during their time at Archibald, including Beatriz Milhazes from Brazil when studying Modernism, Rembrandt from the Netherlands to learn about the Baroque style, Canadian Inuk Artist Annie Pootoogook for folk art, French painters Seurat and Monet when studying Impressionism, Italian artist Giorgio Morandi to study Still Lifes, American animator Walt Disney and the sculptor Gaudi, from Spain.
After practising a series of art skills, Year 4 then applied all of these to create a final piece of art work in the style of Giorgio Morandi. #AFSart pic.twitter.com/RaMnTpFLqN
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 13, 2023
Year 4 are enjoying Art Week and have been inspired by the artist, Giorgio Morandi. We started our topic by reflecting on the artist himself and his work. #AFSart pic.twitter.com/yYjrVXgRA7
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 7, 2023
Reception have been exploring circles and triangles. We looked at our artist, Kandinsky to see how these shapes inspired his art. #AFSArt #AFSMaths pic.twitter.com/jySU5Vspf0
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 6, 2023
Look at our creative work in Year 3 learning about Picasso and creating our own inspirational art! Huge thanks to Mrs Howard for planning such great activities! #afsart pic.twitter.com/fTnWJeZlBB
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 9, 2023
Fabulous Fun in Year 4!
The school has Art Ambassadors selected for showing a passion for the subject to work with local artists, visit local art galleries and help with various school whole art and writing projects using a range of specially selected books as inspiration. In October 2023 the book chosen by the Art Ambassadors to inspire art projects across the school was “Door” by South Korean illustrator JiHyeon Lee. For instance, in Early Years the children focussed on keys and talking about what that they would open, then paint and design their own keys and in year 3 the children focussed on the birds’ point of view throughout the story, using fronted adverbials, describing a scene and painting birds’ feathers using different tints (adding white) and shades (adding black).
Thank you to our Art Ambassadors and Mrs Howard for choosing 'Door' as our #takeonepicture book. Check out our feed for each year group's 'take' on the book and watch out for our final displays which we will share on Friday… #AFSart pic.twitter.com/r4Xt7cQMXH
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 25, 2023
Class 8 have been using their knowledge of tints and shades to create their own birds from our take one picture book ‘Door’. Haven’t they been creative? #afstakeonepicture #afsart pic.twitter.com/CTE1jnW6ds
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 24, 2023
In addition, Archibald First School children and its local community also have taken part in a range of activities in recent years to support local initiatives through art, including designing “bricks” to make a community art wall and raise funds for the local community play park.
Year 3 loved spreading festive cheer today by singing at Gosforth Shopping centre! Thanks for inviting us. We were also so impressed by the number of bricks for our community wall! Keep buying… £1 a brick! #afscaring pic.twitter.com/agMR2SNcnA
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) December 5, 2023
Class 5 took inspiration from local artist @benhollandart to create our own Tyne Bridge artwork to introduce our new topic ‘Once Upon A Tyne’. We picked our own media for the backgrounds and added on our fabulous bridges #AFSArt🎨 pic.twitter.com/Pjpp7cvuOe
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) September 20, 2023
It’s a Musical World:
British-Norwegian composer Andy Smith wrote that “Music creates social cohesion, it speaks to all when words can fail, and wherever you go in the world, it is understood. Music is a universal gift and its power to connect people is without question. It is an art form with human interaction at its centre.”
Music is an incredibly powerful way to convey meaning and share common values such as being Caring, Curious, Creative and Courageous, which are the key qualities the Archibald children are encouraged to have. Our partner school in Ghana, Africa, has for its motto “Understanding of Each Other” and a song of the same name with beautiful and meaningful lyrics. The children in year 1 and 2 of Archibald have been learning the song and will sing it to the children in our partner school in Africa in a special video call in June 2024. In December 2023, traditional Christmas carols and songs, such as Feliz Navidad, were sung by Archibald children in year 4 and the children in our partner school in Seville, Spain.
The Music curriculum at Archibald also allows the children to learn about many international composers, artists and music from other cultures. The broad curriculum includes children learning about Indian composer A.R. Ramen in year 1, Aboriginal artist Ruby Hunter in year 2, reggae music and Bob Marley from Jamaica in year 3 and latin music and Cuban artist Celia Cruz in year 4.
Year 2 have been listening and learning about the composer Gustav Holst this half term. His music ‘The Planets’ inspired us to choose our own media to create our own wonderful planet artwork 🪐🎼#AFSArt #AFSMusic pic.twitter.com/m5St0i5GLs
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 21, 2023
Our Wonderful World:
Under the topic Our Wonderful World, children look at their local area in Early Years to answer the question “Where do I live?”
Reception made a Little Gosforth this week. We each made a house thinking about what it needed and learnt how to join and fold. We made a school to finish off our little town. We have been thinking about where we live this week. #AFSGeography. #AFSDT #AFSEYFS pic.twitter.com/mjnsHhgYu5
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 13, 2023
The UK in year 1 – “Where would Paddington like to live in the UK?”
Look who has arrived in Y1! Poor Paddington needs a new home & has asked the children to study the 4 countries of the UK to find the best place for him to live. Don't worry Paddington,we can help (some children even corrected his phonics mistakes too!)#AFSgeography #AFScurious 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/0hOwebKKNY
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) January 16, 2024
Y1 have been brilliant geographers today by comparing different maps of the UK. They made links between urban & rural places, spotted mountain ranges & noticed that the satellite images are brightest where cities are located. Are you really only 5 & 6 years old? #AFSgeography 🗺️ pic.twitter.com/2Qqnus9l3m
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) January 29, 2024
Coastal environments in year 2 and looking at the differences between Newcastle in the UK and Newcastle in Australia
Year 2 have loved making posters to explain which Newcastle they would prefer to live in and why. We have loved being geographers this half term 🌍🇦🇺🇬🇧🦘#AFSGeographers pic.twitter.com/yltobzd4Gd
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) May 24, 2024
Year 2 went around our school grounds to help us recap physical and human features. We then looked at maps and atlases to explore keys before we create our own maps later this week #AFSGeography 🗺 pic.twitter.com/qyBpvcw8Dl
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) September 26, 2023
Extreme Earth in year 3 – “Just how powerful is our world?” and Destination Europe in year 4 – “Why do people visit Europe?”.
Destination Europe allows children in year 4 to locate continents, countries and seas on a world map, using atlases, maps and globes.
Year 3 have really enjoyed their first topic lesson! We’ve learnt how to use OS maps and the key to find different features around our local area. #afsgeography pic.twitter.com/o9SOedBQFM
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) September 6, 2023
They also label a map of Europe, which is then used as a focal point for the topic. They use the four compass points and four figure grid reference to locate features such as mountains, rivers etc. They identify capital cities and countries’ flags. Children use a range of sources to research information about European countries and compare data based on their similarities and differences. They study the climate of countries, physical and human features and the economy. They use Google Earth to obtain panoramic views and look at the major city sights. They also learn about famous European landmarks and their impact upon tourism and the economy.
The children also learn about different cultures, including festivals and religious celebrations, across the world.
In preparation for Diwali, the school council have been making and decorating diva lamps. They will present each class with their own lamp in a special assembly on Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/O47TB61FA5
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 6, 2023
Mrs McGurk delivered a fantastic assembly today about Diwali! Each class has been making a diva lamp with the school council! Fantastic effort Team AFS! We hope everyone preparing for Diwali is excited… #afsdiwali #afsre pic.twitter.com/1QmZCiZYwk
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 8, 2023
Why do we encourage play in Y1+? Well these two superstars decided to research, design & build a place of worship today…The skills used were phenomenal; teamwork, perseverance, maths, measure, art, communication, design, observation… The list goes on! #AFScreative #AFScurious pic.twitter.com/CLuYdbDIqw
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) May 13, 2024
After learning about Judaism in Year 2, 2 boys decided to make their own Torah Scroll and Yad! How creative! #AFSRE pic.twitter.com/PSttoEC8Ys
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) April 29, 2024
Year 3 have thoroughly enjoyed a warm welcome at the Gurdwara today. Thank you for teaching us how to meditate, appreciate your music and enjoy seva in the langar hall! #AFSRE pic.twitter.com/nA9uRn3LkM
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) April 29, 2024
A huge thank you to C’s mum who came to share her lovely experiences of Chinese New Year with C5. We enjoyed making lanterns and receiving lucky envelopes 🧧 & fortune cookies 🥠 The children all had a fabulous morning! pic.twitter.com/jMl4Xnfw4a
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) March 2, 2024
Mrs Nisbet had a surprise visit into Reception and enjoyed joining in with their Diwali dancing! Well done Reception for learning in such a creative way. #afsre #afscreative pic.twitter.com/QhOhfzoLhF
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 9, 2023
Thanks to the volunteers in class 3 for sharing their experiences of the Holi celebration in our year 1 assembly today. It was extremely interesting for the children and grown ups, we learned lots! #AFSproud #HoliCelebration #havingfun pic.twitter.com/SH0gm6tTTw
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) March 21, 2024
Early Years have loved learning about the festival of Holi. We loved throwing the colourful powders to make a beautiful picture. The air was full of the sweet smell of flowers that the powders were made from. Happy Holi! #AFSRE pic.twitter.com/V7G0WwYx3H
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) March 25, 2024
Thank you to Mrs McGurk and all of our wonderful children who are celebrating Ramadan for sharing your experiences today in assembly ☪️ pic.twitter.com/YdS3V9KKbs
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) March 13, 2024
Today we had a special lunch to celebrate Chinese New Year! Thank you to our wonderful kitchen and lunchtime staff for making it so special! 🇨🇳 pic.twitter.com/gnoSibi1Mm
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) February 8, 2024
Y2 absolutely loved learning to lion dance as part of our Chinese New Year celebrations! Thank you Mrs McGurk for organising such a fantastic experience 🐲 pic.twitter.com/d3XaufOIK6
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) February 8, 2024
A huge thank you to Mrs Lim for coming in this morning to teach us all about Chinese New Year. We loved the story of Nian and finding out about your special family and community celebrations. 🇨🇳🧧🐲 #AFSCurious pic.twitter.com/S4qPuWQAvE
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) February 5, 2024
Thank you so much to A’s mum for coming to share about Chinese Lunar New Year with Reception and Nursery. We loved finding out all about it and can’t wait to celebrate next week. #AFSRE pic.twitter.com/bxeMazkcgK
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) February 2, 2024
Year 4 had a wonderful time at Hindu Temple Newcastle today. Everyone was very respectful and keen to learn! #AFSre pic.twitter.com/0xv3ECbEOc
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) November 30, 2023
Archibald has pledged our support for @SchsofSanctuary. Each year group explored poetry and texts linked to refuge, journeys, safety and shelter before creating their own work. #AFSCaring pic.twitter.com/0CrFh1ZlCW
— ArchibaldFirst (@ArchibaldFirst) October 20, 2023
Food Around the World:
Pupils look at where food comes from, using packing, research, maps and atlases. They explore what Fairtrade is and how world events can impact food production. As global citizens, they consider the impact of importing foods from different parts of the world and the concept of food miles.
Children also take into consideration the way food is produced in our own country and who benefits from selling locally produced products. Children explore a number of issues that farmers have and what we can do to help.
The children look at inequality in food production and look at trade links between countries and the distribution of natural resources. Location and place can also be significant markers for food growth and production. For instance, how do different climate zones effect this growth and production?
