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Global Citizenship Events in School Article 29 Children s education should develop each child s personality talents and abilities to the fullest It should encourage children to respect others human rights and their own and other cultures It should also help them learn to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Page 1
Recycling Week September 2017 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Eco Club took a Rights Respecting assembly for Northern Ireland Recycling week They shared the knowledge they had gained from Lisburn and Castlereagh Council training and explained the processes for recycling food and dry waste in school Thank you to everyone who took part Page 2
World s Largest Lesson September 2017 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other In September every pupil in the school participated in a lesson about the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development They then thought about ways in which we as a school could reduce the amount of energy that we use Page 3
School Council Elections October 2017 Article 12 Children have the right to their opinion adults should listen and take it seriously School Council began the new school year by holding Elections in September pupils had to put themselves forward to earn a place on the Council Following Election Campaigns pupils were able to vote for their favourite candidates Congratulations to all involved Page 4
Ulster Wildlife Grassroots Challenge September 2017 January 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people 10B participated in the 12 week Grassroots Challenge which involved making homes for wildlife creating birdfeeders growing plants and learning about local wildlife The practical sessions were great fun for everyone with the highlights being when a hedgehog owl and bat visited the classroom Page 5
WWF Wear it Wild October 2017 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people As part of their Citizenship studies Year 10 pupils completed a project on endangered animals After they did their research they made a variety of animal masks and sold these to the other pupils in the school We raised enough money to adopt our own Svalbard Polar Bear which we are able to track using the WWF website Page 6
All Different All Equal Anti Bullying Campaign Article 19 Children have the right to protection from violence in body and mind School Council oversaw our Anti Bullying Campaigns in October and November In October everyone came into school wearing odd socks to show that we are not afraid to be different In November we had a whole school Anti Bullying Campaign All Different All Equal Every pupil in the school made a pledge to make celebrate people s differences and not make anyone feel left out to sign the pledge a fingerprint display was put on the School Council noticeboard Page 7
UNICEF Outright Campaign November 2017 Article 12 Children have the right to their opinion adults should listen and take it seriously School Council members participated in workshops to find out about the issues and challenges unaccompanied refugee children face around the world After the workshops they wrote a letter to Gavin Robinson asking him to help reunify these children with family members who are living in the UK Page 8
Cash for Clobber November 2017 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Eco Club pupils oversaw the Cash for Clobber Project which generated valuable funds for our school and also raised awareness of global recycling and helped make a greener cleaner Northern Ireland The pupils did a fantastic job promoting the scheme collecting and sorting the clothing and getting it ready for collection Page 9
Moat Park Christmas Tree Light Switch On December 2017 Article 14 You have the right to practise your religion Our Head Boy Christopher Smallwood Head Girl Emily McKnight and Deputy Head Girl Kirsty Neil helped light up Moat Park by turning on the Christmas Tree Lights on Tuesday 5th December The community event had a lovely festive atmosphere with entertainment provided by Dundonald High School Choir Brooklands Primary School Choir and Symington Memorial Ban Page 10
RSPB Big School Bird Watch January 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Pupils participated in RSPB Big School Bird Watch Catherine from RSPB came into the school and led an interactive talk After which she visited the bird caf pupils had set up at the start of the month Pupils recorded the different types of birds they saw and input results onto the RSPB central database Page 11
Ecomantella Visit Eco Club February 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Pupils in Eco Club learnt about responsible pet ownership and had the opportunity to meet a variety of exotic animals such as lizards snake giant centipedes and hedgehog The pupils also learnt about the importance of looking after their community by not dropping litter Page 12
Chinese New Year February 2018 Article 30 Children have the right to practise their culture Year 8 pupils celebrated Chinese New Year by completing a variety of activities From cooking traditional meals to arts and crafts activities and using each one teach one in a whole school assembly to tell everyone in the school about Chinese New Year traditions Page 13
Fair Trade Fortnight February 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Mrs Plunkett incorporated Global Learning into her Year 10 Citizenship classes by teaching about Fair Trade and the pupils then set up a Fair Trade stall in the corridor during Fair Trade Fortnight Page 14
Year 10 World Wildlife Day March 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people As part of their Global Citizenship lessons Year 10 pupils celebrated World Wildlife Day The pupils learnt about the dangers which threaten the survival of some of the most wonderful animals on the earth The pupils also learnt about how they can help to protect these animals by making good choices such as buying eco friendly paper products being aware of wildlife trade and telling other people about what they have learnt Page 15
Year 10 International Women s Day Project March 2018 Article 2 No child should be treated unfairly on any basis Year 10 pupils had a workshop on the history of Women s Rights They then celebrated International Women s Day by pledging to take action to help women be treated equally in the future Page 16
School Council Towell House Intergenerational Project March 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people School Council members joined older adults from Towell House Residential Care Home to celebrate the opening of their new sensory garden Page 17
Eco Club Tree Planting March 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Eco Club members assisted by our new Caretaker Colin spent Friday afternoon improving our school grounds by planting some trees Well done to everyone involved Page 18
Diana Award Anti Bullying Training March 2018 Article 19 Children have the right to protection from violence in body and mind The School Council attended Diana Award Anti Bullying Ambassador training in Strangford College along with other local schools This training equipped our pupils with the skills needed to identify bullying and it taught them how to help children who are being bullied Following the training they created a noticeboard in the canteen reviewed the Child Friendly Anti Bullying Policy and took part in a show case day when an Anti Bullying Trainer visited our school to find out about how the Ambassadors were putting their training into practice Page 19
World Water Day Workshop March 2018 Article 24 Every child has the right to clean water nutritious food healthcare and a clean environment To celebrate World Water Day Ruth Vardy from Water Explorer visited EcoClub We learnt about how important it is to not waste water and calculated our water usage footprints Pupils have pledged to things such as shower instead of bath and turn the tap off when brushing teeth to try and conserve water in the future Page 20
PSNI E Safety Talk April 2018 Article 19 Children have the right to protection from violence in body and mind PSNI Community Team visited Longstone School to deliver a talk to KS3 and KS4 pupils on how to stay safe online They also outlined how the legal system deals with issues such as sexting and online bullying Page 21
Stormont Democracy Games April 2018 Article 12 You have the right to give your opinion and for adults to listen and take it seriously Ulster Wildlife invited our School Council to attend a day of Democracy Games in Stormont The pupils met other schools and were put into groups where they had to devise their own political party They had to create a name slogan and manifesto which looked at different areas such as Healthcare Education and the Environment Once they had made their decisions about the priorities of their party they had to communicate their manifesto to the other groups and then a very democratic vote took place which ended in one of our groups forming part of a coalition This was a fun and informative day for the pupils and they were fantastic representatives for Longstone at the event Page 22
Plastic Less Campaign April 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people The Eco Club are working with Lisburn and Castlereagh Council to become the first plastic less school in our area We know that single use plastic is a huge global issue which is having a massive effect on our environment as it doesn t rot or biodegrade Eco Club pupils surveyed every class in the school to find out how much single use plastic we are throwing away They then decided to try and reduce the number of straws plastic bags and plastic bottles we use in school We have also banned balloons altogether from school We hope to have achieved our goals by January 2019 Page 23
School Council Inter generational Project at Towell House June 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people School Council pupils visited Towell House as part of the inter generational project They spent time talking to the older adults about their experiences of school they had a chance to compare what school is like now to in the recent past Pupils and older adults worked together to make german biscuits This was a lovely day for all Page 24
Big Lottery People s Projects Celebration Day June 2018 Article 31 Pupils have the right to Rest and Play To celebrate the team effort of winning 41 380 to build a community garden in the school grounds we held a celebration day for pupils staff and the local community We had a range of activities for everyone to enjoy from a BBQ outdoor disco petting farm arts and crafts activities and giant outdoor games Unsurprisingly one of the most popular stations on the day was Sponge the Teacher Mr Skarmoutsos even got involved with his red poncho Page 25
UNICEF Soccer Aid June 2018 Article 24 Every child has the right to clean water nutritious food healthcare and a clean environment Mr Starrs assisted by the School Council ran a very successful Soccer Aid fundraiser for UNICEF The pupils had great fun playing 5 aside tournaments in the beautiful weather while spectators cheered The true message was not lost in the event we raised 170 for UNICEF UNICEF will use the money to provide lifesaving food vaccines clean water and protection from violence to millions of children around the world Page 26
Global Learning Baker Day Training Aug 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people Mrs Plunkett and Mrs Cowan cascaded training from the Global Learning Programme to all the staff working in Longstone School during the August Baker Days The training covered issues like What is global learning how can you incorporate global learning into your teaching and learning activities and how to make global learning fun Teachers have been given resources to use in their classrooms this term and this will form the focus for PRSD in KS3 KS4 this year Page 27
Eco Schools Adopt a Spot Sept June Article 29 Your Education Should Teach you how to Protect the Environment Pupils attending Eco Club participate in at least 4 clean ups a year of the area surrounding the school Page 28
Prefect Training Session One Sept 2018 Article 15 Children have the right to join groups Mrs Plunkett Mrs Cairnduff and Mrs Cunningham led a training session with our newly elected Prefects Prefects explored issues like what it means to be a Prefect what they need to do for their duties and they then signed their Prefect Contract We have a fantastic Student Leadership Team this year and expect great things from them Page 29
World s Largest Lesson Sept 2018 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to live peacefully protect the environment and respect other people On the week beginning 24th September Longstone pupils joined children around the world for the second time by taking part in the World s Largest lesson This project introduces children and young people to the Global Goals for Sustainable Development in a fun and interactive way The pupils spent one lesson learning about the Global Goals and then every pupil in the school pledged to make one change in their life to help make the Global Goals become reality The pupils individual pledges have been joined together to create a paperchain of chain reactions showing that by many people making small changes in their daily lives big goals can be achieved Page 30
Harvest Collection for Dundonald Food Bank Sept 2018 Article 24 Every child has the right to clean water nutritious food healthcare and a clean environment In the run up to Harvest week the whole school came together to collect food for Dundonald Foodbank The pupils also learnt about Article 24 from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child the importance of nutritious food Page 31
Personalising of our Charters Sept 2018 Article 42 Children Should Know Their Rights Throughout the month of September pupils and Form Teachers spent time talking about our Classroom Charters Teachers reminded pupils of the articles in the Charters and the pupils then came up with a theme relevant to them to personalise it in their classrooms The pupils and adults then showed their commitment to the Classroom Charter by signing and personalising them in different ways Page 32
UNICEF Shoe Share Nov Jan 2019 Article 28 Every Child has the Right to an Education From October November everyone in the school brought in their old shoes The School Council took these shoes to Clerks in Ards Shopping Centre The scheme raises money for children in developing countries Clerks give money to UNICEF who use the funding to help children around the world get an education Page 33
School Council Elections October 2018 Article 12 Children have the right to their opinion Adults should listen and take this seriously Pupils from across the school put themselves forward to be elected by their peers on the prestigious School Council The pupils gave speeches put up posters and canvassed throughout the week to try and encourage people to vote for them On the day of the Election pupils were brought into the voting hall to complete their ballot and put it in the box Well done to everyone who put themselves forward and congratulations to those who won their campaign The School Council plays a very important part in the running of our school Page 34
Anti Bullying Week Nov 2018 Article 19 Children have the right to protection from violence in body and mind Every year we have an Anti Bullying campaign in November which the School Council promote through a whole school assembly This year the theme was Kindness and Respect the pupils in the school had to complete a 12 day kindness and respect challenge which involved pupils carrying out good deeds throughout November Well done to everyone involved Outright Page 35
November 2018 Article 12 Children have the right to their opinion Adults should listen and take this seriously Every year our School Council get involved in the UNICEF Outright Project This project involves the pupils investigating a violation of children s rights Once they complete their research they write to high profile Politicians to make their voice heard They also create their own display and put it in our main school corridor so everyone visiting our school is aware of the issue This year the topic was Air Pollution and how it affects childrens right to good quality health Article 24 Page 36
NICCY Webinar November 2018 Article 13 Children have the right to find things out and share what they think Year 10 pupils were able to put Koulla Yiasouma the NI Commissioner for Children and Young People NICCY under the spotlight by asking her questions about UNCRC and children s rights in Northern Ireland They joined a range of Post Primary pupils in the online chat and asked her challenging questions such as is it against children s right to rest and play to set homework The pupils thoroughly enjoyed this experience it helped them learn more about how their lives are governed and what they can do to help themselves live better lives Page 37
Global Learning Connecting Classrooms November 2018 Article 30 Your education should help you learn to live peacefully and respect other people Mrs Plunkett and Mrs Cowan joined other Global Learning specialists from schools across Northern Ireland in a twilight training session about the Connecting Classrooms Global Learning Project This project will see our school partnered with two other schools in Sub Sahara Africa The focus will be on teachers learning from each other and pupils learning from each other This programme will help us achieve our International Schools Award as well as feed into our Rights Respecting School Action Plan Page 38
Bartek receives the Diana Award November 2018 Article 29 Your Education should help you develop your talents and abilities Bartek Wysokowski recently attended an award ceremony in Stormont to receive the prestigious Diana Award This award is given to outstanding young people who selflessly create and sustain positive social change in their communities Longstone School Council nominated Bartek for this award to recognise his hard work in contributing to our Rights Respecting School and Eco Schools journey Page 39
Human Rights Day Video December 2018 Article 42 Children should know their rights School Council pupils celebrated Human Rights Day on 7th December by making a video about the history of Human Rights They also pledged to stand for rights which they felt are particularly important to them We look forward to seeing this video on our school website Page 40
Shoe Box Appeal December 2018 Article 24 Every child has the right to clean water nutritious food healthcare and a clean environment Mrs Strain organised our annual campaign for Samaritan s Purse Christmas Shoe Box Appeal She encouraged everyone to bring items such as toys toothbrushes soaps and school equipment into school These items will be packed away into shoe boxes and sent around the world to children living in poverty fleeing from war and suffering from natural disasters Mrs Strain explained the journey of the shoe boxes and also showed us video clips of the children we helped last year in the same appeal Page 41
Carol Service December 2018 Article 14 You have the right to practise your own religion Pupils came together to pray and sing hymns for annual Carol Service Mr Fenn led an excellent assembly helped by a Minister from Christ Church Millar s Lane It was a fun an interactive experience for all reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas Page 42
Prefect Training Session Two Jan 2019 Article 15 Children have the right to join groups Prefects hit the ground running in the New Year by attending the second session of training This workshop involved the Prefects coming up with a mission statement and acrostic poem for the Prefect noticeboard The Prefects came up with this as their mission statement Enthusiastic Leaders who work as a team to bring positive change to Longstone Helping others through our honest friendly and caring approach Page 43
Playground and Canteen Charters Jan 2019 Article 12 Children have the right to their opinion Adults should listen and take this seriously School Council members are playing the role of teachers leading classes through the process of choosing articles ideas and themes for our new playground and canteen charters Mr Skarmoutsos observed Bartek and Philip delivering the lesson and graded them Outstanding well done to everyone involved Page 44
Get Up and Go Green Partnership Jan 2019 Article 29 Your Education Should Develop your Talents and Abilities Longstone School launched their Big Lottery funded Get Up and Go Green Partnership on 25th January by holding the first workshop in an exciting programme of events There was a great turn out with representatives from the Board of Governors our Parent Staff Association Towell House Residential Home Tor Bank School the PSNI Community Team and of course our pupils attending Lizzy and Lisa from Belfast Hills Partnership gave an introductory talk this was followed by arts and crafts where everyone worked together to come up with designs for a Rights Respecting mosaic to be displayed in the garden Another group worked in the greenhouse using a variety of tools and materials to make the contents for our bug hotel A big thank you to everyone who attended we really look forward to the next one on Friday 15th February Page 45
Steering Group Meeting Rights Respecting Lunch Jan 2019 Article 12 You have the right to give your opinion and for adults to listen and take it seriously Our Steering Group met in January to discuss the progress we have made in our Rights Respecting School journey so far this academic year The pupils had a chance to showcase the work being undertaken by the School Council to the adults in the Steering Group Some examples of the projects up for discussion were The Get Up and Go Green Community Project School Council suggestion boxes Playground and Canteen Charters UNICEF Shoe Share Appeal UNICEF Outright Campaign and our Eco Committee s plan to go Plastic Less A huge thank you to our BOG and Parent Rep Mr McCauley the PSNI Community Team and Belfast Hills Partnership for attending Page 46
Holocaust Memorial Day Jan 2019 Article 2 All Children have Rights Year 10 pupils learnt about the beginnings of human rights and commemorated the people who lost their lives during World War Two due to Nazi persecution The pupils learnt about the history of the holocaust watched informative video clips and then thought about how they can use their voice for good in the present day This lesson was thought provoking and will hopefully inspire the pupils to defend the rights of others if they see them being violated in the future Page 47
Get Up Go Green Arts Crafts Jan 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people For the second workshop of our Big Lottery funded project pupils parents and staff came together to design Rights Respecting mosaics for our community garden The mosaics are going to look great in the garden and it also gave everyone who attended time to reflect and build positive relationships with each other We also planted a few trees in our garden to try and encourage more birds to come and visit Page 48
Fair Trade Fortnight Practical Action Project Feb 2019 Article 12 You have the right to give your opinion and for adults to listen and take it seriously Year 10 pupils spent the first two weeks of February learning all about Fair Trade They put what they learnt into action when they set up a Fair Trade stall in our school reception area They asked staff members during breaktime to make a donation to the Fair Trade Foundation for the chance to win a basket of Fair Trade goodies Adults also pledged to make the switch to Fair Trade tea coffee chocolate sugar and wine Well done to all involved Page 49
Live Here Love Here Community Litter Pick February 2019 Article 29 Your Education should teach you how to protect the environment As part of their Global Learning and Employability studies this term Year 10 pupils participated in a series of community litter picks with community groups from Lisburn and Castlereagh Council and Live Here Love Now We were honoured to have the chance to meet Dr Janet Gray who attended one of the litter picks as a VIP guest We at Longstone care deeply about protecting the environment and local wildlife and the Year 10s were fantastic ambassadors for our school at these events Page 50
RRSA Achieving Gold Award Training Feb 2019 Article 29 Your education should develop your talents and abilities Mrs Plunkett and Mrs Cowan attended Rights Respecting School Achieving Gold Award training in Fortwilliam resource centre The training focused on the key elements needed for our school to achieve the Gold Award It gave us the opportunity to ask any questions about the requirements for gold as well as share good practice with other schools Following the training we are looking to book our accreditation visit for May 2019 Page 51
Diana Award Anti Bullying Training Feb 2019 Article 19 Protection from Violence in body and mind School Council and Mr Starrs and Mrs Cummings attended a full day training on how to be effective Anti Bullying Ambassadors alongside other schools in Regent House The pupils had a fantastic day and will be using their knowledge to try and make our school more Rights Aware and safe for everyone Page 52
World Wildlife Day March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment Eco Club celebrated World Wildlife Day by learning all about the challenges endangered animals such as big cats polar bears and sea life are facing This ties in with Global Goals for Sustainable Development Life on Land and Life Under Water Page 53
International Women s Day March 2019 Article 2 All children regardless of gender are entitled to their rights Our school celebrated International Women s Day Global Goal 5 Gender Equality in a number of ways It was mentioned in Monday morning assembly the staff Friendly Friday had guest speaker Gillian Cummings to talk about the achievements of women and the Year 10s completed two lessons about the history of International Women s Day The year 10s learnt about the history of International Women s Day the progress which has been made and the inequalities that still exist in the world globally Afterwards each child both boys and girls chose a strong female role model and completed a person profile about them Page 54
Towell House Inter generational Project March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you to respect other people School Council were invited to Towell House Care Home to participate in a St Patrick s themed inter generational day The pupils and residents worked together to complete St Patrick s Day crafts while listening to traditional music The pupils and adults thoroughly enjoyed the day and look forward to working with each other again in the future Page 55
Get Up Go Green Arts Crafts March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people Belfast Hills Partnership delivered another Get Up Go Green Workshop to our pupils parents and representatives from other schools We continued working on our Rights Respecting mosaics completed a nature trial and planted some beautiful daffodils in our Community Garden Page 56
Global Learning Programme Level One Success March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people In March 2019 we received the news that we have been awarded Level One in the Global Learning Programme In order to achieve this award we had to pilot practical action projects in our classrooms cascade whole staff training about Global Learning and embed this into PRSD objectives for the year Through the Global Learning Programme we have also made a global connection with International Partner schools in Kenya Page 57
Get Up and Go Green Community Workshop March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people In March we had another very successful Get Up and Go Green Workshop this time facilitated by Wildlife Rescuer Debbie Doolittle Pupils parents representatives from Tor Bank and residents from Towell House came along to learn about how to protect wildlife and of course meet a variety of different animals including a fox owl hedgehog and ferret Page 58
World Water Day Toilet Twinning March 2019 Article 24 Every child has the right to clean water nutritious food healthcare and a clean environment To celebrate World Water Day we held a whole school fundraiser for Tear Fund Tear Fund is a global charity their workers travel to developing countries to build toilets and educate communities about health and hygiene We are really proud to announce that we raised 240 which is enough to build 4 toilets Thank you to everyone who supported us in helping children and adults around the world access their right to a clean and safe environment Page 59
Get Up and Go Green Planting Day March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people On Friday 12th March every child in the school came out to plant a flower in our Community Garden Lizzy and Lisa from Belfast Hills Partnership helped each child pick their flower and decide where to plant it The garden is now awash with different colours and smells it looks wonderful and the pupils did a great job The garden is going to be a great resource where we can hold events workshops teach lessons and have chill out time in the years to come Well done to everyone involved Page 60
Get Up and Go Green Visit to Divis and Blackmountain March 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people One windy day in May pupils parents and staff participated in a nature walk led by Belfast Hills Partnership on Divis and Blackmountain We enjoyed looking at the beautiful Belfast Hills and learning all about the history and ecology of the area This was funded by the Big Lottery as part of our People s Projects Get Up Go Green programme Page 61
Mr O Connell s USA Visitors May 2019 Article 29 Your education should teach you how to protect the environment and respect other people East Carolina University USA educators Drs Debbie Metclaf and Melissa Hudson specialising in SEN were thrilled with the learning in KS3 and KS4 when visiting Longstone School Tuesday May 9th After meeting Mr Skarmoutsos where comparison were discussed regarding Longstone SEN and ECU SEN settings Drs Metclaf and Dr Hudson visited to Mrs Strain HE where pupils listened and responded to the HE practical demonstration Dr Husdon commented on the positive relationships between staff and pupils Dr Metclaf and Dr Hudson continued their tour with a visit to Dr O Connell TD where higher order questions were noted regarding the Year 9 Father s Day gift preparation project they were truly delighted with the challenging and probing questions Mrs McArthur welcomed Dr Metclaf and Dr Hudson to her year 8 class where RRSA was being discussed Dr Metclaf and Dr Hudson where absorbed in this lesson as this is not currently taught in USA Finally Dr Metclaf and Dr Hudson observed Mrs Plunkett KS4 with year 10 pupils who were writing letters to their pen pals in Kangundo School in Kenya Year 10 pupils have been telling pupils in Kangundo School all about their hobbies interests school work and special talents Year 10 pupils and Mrs Plunket discussed with Dr Metclaf and Dr Hudson what it is like to be in a Rights Respecting School Page 62
Get Up and Go Green Garden Opening May 2019 Article 31 Rest and Play On Friday 10th May the whole school came together in celebration of the opening of our new Community Garden Parents pupils and staff attended an opening ceremony where the Mayor of Lisburn and Castlereagh officially cut the ribbon to mark the opening of the garden VIP guests and adults then enjoyed a lovely coffee morning in the canteen organised by Longstone PSA The pupils then enjoyed a variety of fun activities such as an inflatable obstacle course BBQ bouncy castles disco and bug hunts A big thank you as always to Belfast Hills staff for their help with entertaining our pupils Page 63
St Mary s Trainers for the Trust May 2019 Article 31 You have the right to Rest and Play We hosted a Trainers for the Trust fundraiser as part of our annual KS3 KS4 Sports Day Junior School Teddy Bears Picnic Pupils and staff each brought in 1 and wore their trainers into school Overall we raised 140 this money helps young sportsmen and women living in Northern Ireland providing them with much needed financial assistance enabling them to realise their sporting dreams Thank you to everyone who donated to this worthy cause Page 64
Rights Respecting School Gold Award Accreditation Day May 2019 Article 42 You have the right to know your rights We are very pleased to announce that on the 22nd May 2019 we achieved our Rights Respecting Gold Award which is the highest award of the programme The day began with the UNICEF assessors AnneMarie Poynor and Niki McQuillan reviewing the evidence files which showcased the Rights Respecting School projects and events which have happened in our school over the past two years as outlined on our Gold Award Action Plan Our School Council then delivered an assembly about our Soccer Aid Playground Challenge explaining how this links in with children s right to play Article 31 After the assembly senior members of our School Council gave the assessors a tour of the school stopping off in different classrooms where they had an opportunity to see Rights Respecting lessons in action Our Year 12 pupils then had a discussion with Anne Marie and Niki about the Bangor Alternatives programme explaining how this project has helped them improve their grades attendance and engagement with school life The Steering Group were interviewed in the Principals Office where they had to answer questions about their knowledge on children s rights the activities they have been involved in with the School Council and their participation in the Global Learning programme To round up the busy day staff parents and BOG representatives had a working lunch to present the impact report which showed how beneficial the Rights Respecting School programme has been to Longstone School A huge thank you to all the pupils parents and staff who were involved in helping us achieve our Gold Award Page 65
Longstone School Formal May 2019 Article 31 You have the Right to Rest and Play The 30th May marked the most exciting calendar event for our KS4 pupils this year the school formal After months of preparation Year 11 and Year 12 pupils finally donned their glad rags and arrived at the Clandeboye Lodge in their chauffeur driven limousines and were greeted with a drinks reception non alcoholic of course Pupils had a chance to mingle enjoy their shloer in the beautiful surroundings while Mr Clulow took many many of photographs Pupils and staff enjoyed a beautiful three course meal after which Ben Tannock and Taylor Pietersen compered a special awards ceremony where every pupil was given a accolade which had been decided by their peers To round the evening off the pupils and staff hit the dancefloor and boogied the night away A big thank you to everyone who helped organise this amazing event Page 66
Diana Award Taylor Pietersen June 2019 Article 19 Protection from being mistreated We are delighted to announce that following a successful nomination by the School Council Taylor received a special award for services to the school by the Diana Award Team Taylor went to an awards ceremony in Stormont attended by awardees from all around Northern Ireland and their parents Over the past three years Taylor has been a member of our School Council Eco Committee greatly assisted us in our Rights Respecting School journey to Gold and in his final year was a fantastic Head Boy This award was well deserved well done Taylor Page 67
Eco Bus June 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment In June time Noel from Lisburn and Castlereagh Council visited Longstone School with his Eco Bus Lots of classes had the opportunity to participate in interactive lessons and activities which taught them about how to better protect the environment The pupils made badges created mini plant pots and learnt how to make 3d shapes out of scrap paper It was a great day enjoyed by all and we look forward to seeing Noel again next year Page 68
Get Up Go Green Slievenacloy June 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment and Respect other People In June pupils parents and staff donned their walking boots and took a lovely stroll around Slievenacloy nature reserve guided by Belfast Hills Partnership staff We visited landscape which was sacred during the Neolithic and Bronze ages stopping at a mysterious earth ring and the remains of an old farm house which dates back to 1833 Before heading back to the bus we stopped at a National Trust building and toasted some marshmallows on sticks Everyone had a great day on the final Get Up and Go Green Workshop of the year Page 69
Pensioners Tea Party June 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment and Respect other people For the final Eco Club session of the year our EcoCommittee invited residents from Towell House to our Community Garden for a tea party The visitors and pupils enjoyed the afternoon talking about their different experiences of school and family life Page 70
Bat Walk September 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment and Respect other people Pupils parents staff and members of the community came together on 13th September for a Bat Walk around Ligoniel Dam We had great fun looking out for and listening to bats in their natural setting We had an excellent guide in our leader Lizzie from the Belfast Hills Partnership Our pupils represented Longstone School beautifully and we are thankful to everyone who came along Well done to everyone involved Page 71
World s Largest Lesson September 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment and Respect other people In September the whole school came together one morning to learn all about the Global Goals for Sustainable Development This year s theme was GOAL KEEPERS for the Goals pupils thought about how they PERSONALLY could be responsible for their FAVOURITE GLOBAL GOAL Page 72
International Partnership Kenya Trip September 2019 Article 30 Respecting others Cultures This year pupils at Longstone have developed links with two schools one primary and one secondary in Nairobi Kenya It has been a rewarding opportunity for all of our pupils to engage with a new culture and develop their Global Awareness In September 2019 Mr McCune and Mrs Plunkett travelled to Nairobi to visit the International Partner Schools to meet the children and teachers and develop a sustainability project In 2020 two teachers from the International Schools will visit Longstone to continue the sustainability project and experience what school life in Northern Ireland is like Page 73
12B Beach Clean September 2019 Article 29 Protect the Environment and Respect other people 12B spent a productive morning in Helen s Bay litter picking with Mr Starrs this September 12B have been learning about the importance of us keeping our seas and oceans clean and free from plastic Great job 12B Page 74
Global Learning Training October 2019 Article 28 Right to an Education Staff from Longstone School have been undergoing training from the Global Learning Programme facilitator Anna Grindle on the themes of Pupil Action Projects Global Learning in Topic Based Learning and Sharing Good Practice in Global Learning The sessions have been very informative and have also gave the teachers involved an opportunity to reflect on their current teaching strategies This training will help us achieve our Global Learning Programme Level 2 Award Page 75
Numeracy Week Space October 2019 Article 28 Right to Education Numeracy Week was celebrated in Longstone School in October There was lots of fun practical activities planned based around the theme Maths on the Moon Pupils baked buns made and launched rockets went on educational trips to various Science museums and points of interest and listened to a variety of guest speakers from STEM organisations Well done to everyone involved Page 76
Sponsored Walk October 2019 Article 31 Rest Play The whole school participated in our annual Sponsored Walk which raises valuable and important funds for our school to buy educational resources and to pay for treats throughout the school year It was a great way to keep fit and stay active as well Page 77
Rights Respecting Vision and Mission Statement October 2019 Article 12 Right to an Opinion To develop confident young learners through encouraging and inspiring our children in a rights respecting nurturing environment Our pupils and staff came together to devise a new vision and mission statement for our school this year Staff members spent a twilight session thought showering examples and our School Council then voted for their favourites The Board of Governors also had a say in the process We are really pleased our new vision and mission statement reflect our Rights Respecting ethos Page 78
School Council Elections October 2019 Article 12 Right to an Opinion We held our annual School Council elections where pupils got to pick their representatives for the year Good luck to all who have been appointed We hope you have an exciting and productive year Page 79
UNCRC 30th Anniversary November 2019 Article 42 Right to Know your Rights Longstone School celebrated the 30th anniversary of the UNCRC by having a BLUE Being Loving and Understanding Everyone day Everyone came into school wearing blue to show their support for children s rights The School Council led an assembly about the importance of respecting and protecting each other s rights and also reflected on how they can be more loving at home and in school Page 80
Shoe Box Appeal November 2019 Article 29 Respect other People Longstone proudly supported The Samaritan s Purse Christmas appeal this year We are delighted to have filled 36 shoeboxes which will be distributed to children in Eastern European countries A huge thank you to all who contributed towards this great cause Page 81
Anti Bullying Week November 2019 Article 19 Right to be Safe Longstone s Anti Bullying Ambassadors led the NIABF Anti Bullying campaign Change Starts with Us for the whole school in November Pupils and parents were consulted about our current AntiBullying procedures and the Ambassadors revised our child friendly policy Everyone gave ideas about how to make a safer and happier Longstone and these tips were transformed into a poster which is now displayed in all classrooms Page 82
Lion King Play December 2019 Article 29 Develop Talents Abilities Hakuna Matata What a wonderful phrase This year Longstone School put on the play The Circle of Life Pupils from Year 1 through to Year 12 enjoyed taking a walk on the wild side as Simba and the whole cast of characters learnt some deep and light hearted truths about life The performance was well supported as always and thoroughly enjoyed by family friends local schools and members of the community Well done to all our pupils for putting on yet another fantastic show Page 83
Australia Bushfires January 2020 Article 29 Respect the Environment In response to the recent devastation caused by the fires in Australia Longstone organised a cookie sale which raised a super 220 This will go towards supporting the work of The Salvation Army Disasters and Emergency Fund in Australia who offer a range of services and assistance measures to help people impacted by disasters including food supplies financial assistance and emotional support The School Council also held a fundraiser to help animals affected by the bushfires in Australia The pupils made koala masks and keychains which they sold in school they raised 167 for WIRES which is a wildlife rescue organisation based in New South Wales The money will be used to rehabilitate and provide medical treatment to animals which have been hurt or displaced during the bushfire crisis Page 84
NICCY Webinair Children s Mental Health February 2020 Article 24 Right to Good Health Year 10 pupils participated in a Webinair facilitated by Koulla Yiasouma The NI Commissioner for Children and Young People In the Webinair our pupils asked questions about how best to protect their own mental health and also how to help others who are struggling with their mental health Our pupils have been learning that according to Article 24 of the UNCRC all children around the world have the right to good health care and this includes good mental health Our pupils really enjoyed the Webinair and got some good ideas for strategies they can use in school and at home to help them with their mental health Page 85
12B World Cancer Day Assembly February 2020 Article 24 Right to Good Health 12B from Longstone School held a special fundraiser on Wednesday 5th February for World Cancer Day They raised 300 for Cancer Research UK by doing sponsored pledges using the theme I am and I can They also gave an informative assembly to senior school pupils giving everyone tips about how to live a healthier lifestyle Well done to 12B for this fantastic project Page 86
Towell House Thank You Lunch February 2020 Article 29 Respect other People Towell House invited our School Council to a special thank you lunch to show appreciation for our support to their residents throughout the year Page 87
Book Week Pirates February 2020 Article 28 Right to an Education As part of their Employability qualification 12B had to plan and run an Enterprise Project They decided to put on a showing of Pirates of the Caribbean linking in with the Book Week theme as well as organising the day 12B provided refreshments for KS3 KS4 pupils Well done to 12B for running this successful event Page 88
Right of the Week Lessons March June 2020 Article 42 Know Your Rights Even though school had to suddenly close in March 2020 our learning still continued We also kept up with our Rights Respecting School Award work Every week Mrs Plunkett posted a Right of the Week presentation on Google Classroom with activities for us to complete Once we went through the voice recorded presentation and completed the activities we had to complete a fun Google Form Quiz on the right to check our understanding Page 89
Fake News Trustworthy Sources September 2020 Article 17 Access to the Media A long awaited return to school means we can finally resume our Rights Respecting Assemblies Our assemblies are slightly different now due to social distancing we stay in our classrooms to learn about our Right of the Week in our classes The first assembly of the year was about Article 17 the right to access information from the media and be protected from media which could be harmful to us As part of our assembly we had to come up with a welcome list for friendly aliens visiting planet earth Well done to everyone who participated Page 90
