This week we will be creating a mural for our school that will share lots of ideas about how Manor Park can be a happy, healthy and safe school for all children to be.
We are excited about painting the mural together and showing it to our friends and teachers when it’s finished. We have also been thinking about what makes each of us a good Artworker.
“I’ll be a good Artworker because I’ll bring happiness”
“I’m respectful”
“I really enjoy painting and doing art”
The Imagining Manor Park Artworkers went on a walk to identify what we like and don’t like about our community and why. We thought about what things could be done more, or changed, to make the community more of a place where children are healthy, happy, safe and doing their best.
In our community we like:
The Hub as it sells healthy food and has the Youth Flat, the police who keep us safe, the lollipop lady, safely parked cars, places to exercise and play like the park, the newly upgraded, our families, and fun play equipment, lovely gardens and flowers, the field, shops because your mum can buy you treats, the beautiful air in the green spaces and the views.’
‘I can see my classroom from my bedroom window and it makes me feel happy.’
‘There is a lot of wildlife near the school. I like when the cars go silent and you can hear the birds singing and see them in the bushes. There’s always cats to pet.’
In our community we’d change:
People putting litter on the streets, dog poo, motorbike noise, drunk people, cars driving badly, too much construction going on, sometimes the area smells really bad, glass bottles lying about, swearing, smoking, cars parked on the pavement and the cloudy weather.
‘I’d add a skate park as then there would be more to do. I’d add a fireman’s pole to the park. There used to be one but they don’t have it in the new, upgraded park.’
‘I don’t like the shop because people can gamble there and waste their money.’
‘I’d move the Zebra Crossing near the Hub to a safer place as cars don’t slow down or stop and it makes us feel unsafe.’
Adults play an important role in supporting children to be healthy, happy, safe and do their best. Today the Imagining Manor Park group adults in their life and what behaviour they would like to see in an adult.
Some of the Imagining Manor Park team with Middlefield Locality Manager Kay.
Adults in our family are parents, older brothers and sisters, cousins, grandparents and carers. Adults at school include teachers, PSAs, dinner-ladies and janitors. Other adults that might help children in their community are doctors and nurses, police, security guards, street workers and youth workers. The group also spoke about adults they know through the internet like adults on Youtube and bloggers.
If an adult is really doing there best for children, what should they do?
Care for us by spending time with us, give us hugs, kisses and communicate with us. Adults can look after us by making sure children have lots of food and buying us clothes and toys (phones and consoles). They can keep children safe by helping them if they fall. They are responsible and should make sure the community is safe.
If an adult is really doing their best for children, what do they know?
Adults should have knowledge, know things about life and have experienced a lot of things. They know ‘how to be good or better than kids’. Adults might know what you like sometimes, if something is wrong or if you are lying. But also that sometimes adults don’t know some things and that children would like adults to know how they feel!
If an adult is really doing their best for children, how do they make children feel?
Emotions – happy, awesome, cool, loved, wanted, special and safe.
Children should feel like they can trust them and that these adults are responsible. Adults can trust children too and give them responsibilities. Adults have the power to make children feel upset or sad if they don’t let them do something or say no.
If an adult is really doing their best for children, what are they good at?
Good listeners, keep us safe, helping us – giving advice and talking to us. They respect children and love them. Teachers don’t shout at you, they help children learning. Adults also work jobs and pay bills to take care of children. Some adults are also good at inventing things.
If an adult is really doing their best for children, what do they say to
children?
Caution, motivate, encourage and ask how you feel/ how you are, calm you down. They say ‘stay safe’, ‘have lots of fun’, ‘you can do it’, ‘don’t worry be happy’, ‘try again’, ‘put your head down’, ‘call me when you get there’.
They don’t say ‘why didn’t you go to the toilet at break time?’ As it is hard to say ‘I’m sorry I can’t control my bladder’.
Every human being is important and special. We call this human dignity. When you learn what human dignity means to you, you are less likely to accept when other people hurt, discriminate or put someone down. Pupils at Manor Park school have been creating Dignometers. Here are their ideas:
What gives us human dignity:
Having pride in yourself, being complimented, keeping active, doing things you love like drawing, winning games, having friends, being included, playing games, being kind, being care for, going to the park, being loved, having family and pets, getting enough sleep, been given gifts, getting help when you need it, celebrating your birthday, people saying ‘you’ve done a great job’, having self-belief and learning new languages.
What can take away our human dignity:
Not having friends, missing out on education, being judged, being in trouble, losing a game, getting told on, people saying horrible things about you or the people you care about, racism, your belongings being destroyed, not getting enough food, drunken people being around you, being scared or alone, someone stealing from you, getting kicked or punched, swearing, family or pets dying, being abused or neglected, not being allowed to play outside and being bullied.
Children have a right to an education. School rules should be fair and all children should be treated with respect and dignity. Children’s education should help them develop their talents and help learn about their rights. All pupils at Manor Park school have been thinking about a school where this happens for every child. Here is their clocks drawings, showing how they imagine the future of Manor Park to look like.
The Imagining Manor Park Artworkers have been working with artists Yonnie and Joanna, thinking about community around Manor Park School.
In the cloud are raindrops. On each raindrop is something that the Artworkers would change. Here are some of their suggestions: better parks with more play equipment, more shops, loads of lollipop ladies/ men and safer drivers (they need to start respecting the zebra crossing!), not too many houses as there are loads getting built at the moment, people making bad choices and broken glass.
What makes the community around Manor Park great is that people are nice and happy. The community help people who are disabled. There is a good bus service. All our friends live here. We’ve added these ideas to the butterflies on the sun.
“We have been thinking about Manor Park school. People talked about bullying and how it isn’t good. When someone is angry, people should talk to them. Children think the PSAs make them feel safe. We made barometers and it has helped us think about how the school should be in the future. We’d choose to have more sports and shorter assemblies. All children would be friends as everyone is nice to each other ” said Abdullah.
Children need to be healthy to be able to do their best at school. The P3s have been considering how Manor Park could be healthier. Here are some of their ideas:
‘In the future my vision is that everyone gets along. Sometimes just now people don’t talk nicely to each other.’
‘My dream is for a swimming pool in the school. The P4s get to go swimming now but if we had a pool at Manor Park everyone could go and keep healthy.’
‘I’ve drawn a gigantic pile of fruit – gigantic bananas and gigantic pears. The dinner lady would give us some and they would be yummy.’
‘We should have more play stuff in the playground – like monkey bars! We only have the wobbly bridge at school. I like climbing stuff, it makes me happy.’
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