Reflecting on our core: CREST, Project and PSHEE

As part of our summer reports, we provided the students with the opportunity to include their voice on their reports. We did this through the students writing a reflection on their learning in three of our ungraded subjects: CREST, Project and PSHEE. The three subjects really develop a core of learning at Landmark, giving the students the opportunity to develop their creativity and their approaches to learning. In this blog we have included reflections from two of our year 9 students Alicia and Sara.

Alicia’s Reflection

CREST. 

This year, I enjoyed the variety of projects available. Both projects were challenging but also fun to do. Learning new things like how to do scale drawing and building prototypes was a great experience. I was able to improve and learn skills whilst working on these projects. The first project was one where we had to create a piece of art of any kind to be placed in our community in school. It involved using a range of skills and tasks, some which were completely new to me. Our creation involved calculating and drawing our structure to scale. It encouraged us to think outside of the box and challenged our creativity. For the second project, I had chosen the project of creating a game controller. This task too challenged our creativity as we needed to create a controller that does not exist. For both projects, I worked in a group which enhanced my communication skills as well as patience and making sure that everyone’s ideas were incorporated into the design and outcome. We had to think and put ourselves in other gamers shoes to be able to understand what they might change about game controllers. Usually, I would just think about how I would improve things so having to think from another's perspective was quite new. 

An area I can develop in CREST might be to design something that has never existed before. For both projects, my team and I decided to create designs based on structures which already existed. It would be more challenging if I had to create something completely new and different. 

Project. 

I liked how the projects we did in school this year benefited the community around us. As well as helping us improve our skills, they were useful to the school and the environment. The first project was helping to clean up the school. I enjoyed cleaning up and organizing different parts of the school as it felt rewarding to be able to help out the school. The second project I did was creating a birdhouse. I enjoyed this project too as it benefited the environment. I liked having to think creatively about how I would build one using only recycled materials. It was exciting getting to build something functional as for the projects in CREST, we only built prototypes. In project, I learnt how to build supports that would be strong enough to hold up the main part of the structure. Also, how to manage my time spent on each task to ensure I could complete my project. 

An area I can develop in may be to do a project that benefits more than just the community or environment around me. Maybe to create a device which can be used to help people around the world or come up with solutions and ideas that may help with world problems. 

PSHEE

I enjoyed learning about First Aid. This is because I am interested in going into medicine when I am older, so this was useful in strengthening my knowledge about first aid. In PSHEE, I have learnt about the dangers of drugs, self-care and FIrst Aid. In learning about drugs, I learnt about the different classes and their effects on the human body. In First Aid, I learnt how to put a bandage on properly and the right procedures to take or treatment for certain accidents like choking or burns. 

An area I can develop in PSHEE might be to do more discussions with people different to my close friends or seatmates. This would broaden my knowledge and allow me to consider different ideas. Also, it would help me grow my friendships with other people in my class.

Sara’s Reflection

CREST

I really enjoyed building the water dispensers in CREST, as we had to think creatively about building a dispenser that would work well even in very hot conditions. We also had to produce something that could teach children why it is important to wash their hands, me and Ania made a short clip demonstrating how you can get very ill if you do not wash your hands, and we also made a small children’s book which was a story told by a survivor of a serious disease caused by not washing her hands.

When doing this project I did research on diseases caused and spread by hand germs. I found out that even some diseases which one would not expect to be spread so easily, are indeed commonly contracted by even just touching.

I think I need to improve on incorporating more science and art together.

Project

This year in Project, I really enjoyed the project me and Ania did, where we ran our own art club. It was really fun to compose our own pieces of art as examples, and I really liked taking the responsibility of running a lunchtime club. It was really fun to attend and supervise the club, as it gave us the responsibility of cleaning the art room after the club, and the responsibility of making sure that everything went smoothly.

I leant that a lot of effort goes into organising a club beforehand, making the art examples, making sure people attend and enjoy the club. You also need to organise the club in such a way that after it has finished, people continue to attend and then make sure that the area is clean and tidy.

I need to improve on time management as I have not been adding my stories to the powerpoint this term.

PSHEE

One activity I really enjoyed this year was when we did the Island Activity in our groups (orange and blue). It was an activity where we each individually picked 5 objects which  we would bring with us if we were going to be stranded on an island. Then we got into groups and allocated positions to each other. Eg. cook, builder, fisherman/woman, etc. After that, we drew our island, and we drew the place where we would settle, and the other important buildings and points which we would build and allocate.

During the first aid unit we studied, I learned a lot of interesting things about healthcare and what to do in an emergency, such as how to do chest compressions, how to take care of someone if they have fainted, how to deal with a heart attack and how to stop someone bleeding.

I think I need to develop my note-taking skills overall, but it applies to PSHEE as we had to take notes on certain topics whilst in class.