Pupils at Pembroke Primary School in Bulwark, will soon all be playing sweet music. Carys Thomas goes to find out about their music initiatives and their love for outdoors.

PEMBROKE Road Primary School is embracing music and offering the whole of Key Stage 2 children the opportunity to learn the violin this year thanks to an initiative by the school and Gwent Music.

Staff at the Bulwark, Chepstow, school are keen to get every child learning a musical instrument and will be supplying recorders to every class so that children can learn to read music. Last year the Year 4 class all had clarinet lessons.

Jade Wakley, deputy head teacher, said: “We want everyone to be involved and be able to have a go at an instrument. They all loved the clarinet sessions last year.

“We wanted all the children to have the opportunity to learn how to read music and have a go at playing an instrument.”

Pupils have been at the remodelled building on Fairfield Road since 2008. The grounds lend themselves to outdoor activities with a pond which is heavily used by the gardening club and the forest school.

The gardening club is made up of 12 pupils who have grown rainbow carrots, red lettuce, rocket lettuce, spinach and runner beans this year. They are currently growing spring onions.

Simon Giles, Year 5 teacher and leader of the gardening club and forest school, said: “The children love being out in the garden. They sell the produce as part of the tuck shop which is run by Year 5 and 6 pupils.

“We started the club a couple of years back and it’s really grown since then. We’ve put in a bed and the children have to maintain the garden.”

The pupils’ jobs include watering, harvesting, picking weeds and caterpillar picking. The club is all-year round including through the summer holidays.

India Lane, 10, Year 6 pupil and head girl, said: “I enjoy growing the different vegetables. My favourite thing is seeing the marrow grow from a small thing to this huge vegetable.”

All pupils take part in forest school and participate in activities such as identifying fruit on trees and building dens out of sticks. Each year, Mr Giles takes the Year 5 pupils to St Pierre’s Great Woods.

The primary school has achieved its third eco flag which it was awarded through completion of different projects such as no electricity day, litter picking, using fair trade produce and recycling paper.

Each class has its own allotment which they take care of as part of the eco community.

The school has an outdoor classroom which pupils use regularly throughout the year for lessons and for reading groups. The parent teacher association raised the funds for the outdoor classroom.

Jo Child, 42, acting head teacher, said: “The PTA is small but very effective here, it contributes a lot to the school. Its members are looking at funding further outdoor activities such as a scooter and cycle rack and more picnic benches.”

Mrs Wakley said: “Most of the children cycle or ride to school. With a bike rack their bikes will be secure and it might encourage more children and their parents to cycle to school.”

The school runs an initiative called physical literacy which involves pupils taking bags full of activities home for the weekend. The idea of physical literacy is to use cards and skipping ropes in order to play to learn.

Jade Wakley, deputy head teacher, said: “The idea of the physical literacy scheme is to get children moving about and for parents to work with the children.

“One of the things we are working on is getting parents more involved in the school. The feedback from the physical literacy scheme has been really positive. It’s nice to get families involved in helping out with homework.”

Pupils at Pembroke have a variety of clubs on offer including chess, IT film, cooking, football and tennis.

Pupils from Year 3 to 6 will be working with Chepstow artist Jan Sanger this term and next term to create sculptures and animations.

The school has a press gang made up of six members who created the school’s newspaper The Pembroke Times, which is sponsored by local companies and shopkeepers.

Mrs Wakley said: “The children themselves go around the shops and ask for sponsorships.

“They work out the costing of photocopying and take into account budgeting for things.”

The paper is handed out for free to parents and put in shop windows.

Mini Enterprise week takes place as part of ‘World of Work Week’ which is another initiative to get children using maths and honing their entrepreneur spirit.

The children have a budget and have to create a product to sell to parents, an event which usually takes place in May.

Last year pupils created bird boxes, tie-dye t-shirts and pencil toppers.

Ms Child said: “It’s all about profit and loss. And getting the children to use maths.”

The primary has an additional learning centre attached to the school and integrates the children into mainstream lessons.

Mrs Wakley said: “The children who would benefit from integrated lessons attend classes with the mainstream pupils.

“It’s purposeful integration, and we also have a buddy-up system with children from the ALC centre and Pembroke pupils playing together on the yard during lunch breaks. It is a very happy school.

“The children here are brilliant and happy to be a part of the school.

“We have very good links with Chepstow School and the cluster of primaries which we are in, such as Thornwell and St Mary’s, Shirenewton and The Dell.”

Jo Child, acting head teacher for the year, said: “It’s my second week. It’s a beautiful school with lots of activities to do here. The school has the right ethos and I’m looking forward to the year ahead.”

Fact File

Acting head teacher: Jo Child

Number of pupils: 280

Age range: 3 to 11

Largest class: 33, Year 6

Motto: Happy and secure, learning together

Head of governors: Bryan Roberts

Last Estyn report 2009

The school achieved six grade two's which is good features and no important shortcomings and one grade three which is good features outweigh shortcomings.

Throughout the school, pupils' personal, spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. They are well behaved and have good attitudes to their work.