This week marked the third-ever Junior School Arts Week. Throughout the week, we celebrated creativity, imagination and expression while deepening our understanding of the Rights of the Child. Through art, literature, discussion and play, pupils explored how creativity can help us understand, celebrate and advocate for the rights that help every child thrive. The week provided opportunities for the girls to develop their artistic skills while reflecting on the importance of having their voices heard, expressing their identities and ensuring that all children are able to flourish.
We began with a whole-school assembly in which the girls demonstrated their impressive understanding of children’s rights. They confidently shared rights that they felt were particularly important, including the right to education, the right to be safe, the right to health, the right to play and relax, the right to family care and support, and the right to have their voices heard.
As part of our learning, we explored the beautiful picture book Every Child a Song, written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Marc Martin. This poetic and magical text inspired pupils in Literacy to create their own poems and songs, reflecting on the unique gifts, identities and rights of every child.
We were especially moved by the Year 5 pupils’ powerful retelling of Every Child a Song, which they brought to life through a captivating live shadow theatre performance. Their use of silhouette, movement and music created a truly atmospheric interpretation of the text, allowing the story’s message of identity, belonging and voice to resonate deeply with the audience.
The School Council also shared their experiences of being pupil representatives. Highlights included weekly meetings with Miss Pendleton (and her famous biscuit jar!), organising competitions and designing their own post-boxes. The girls explained how they gather and represent the views of their classmates and how empowered they feel in these leadership roles. Their work perfectly illustrates Article 12, which states that children have the right to express their views on matters that affect them and to have those views listened to and taken seriously. Through sharing the opinions and ideas of their peers, the girls help to ensure that every voice is heard within our school community.
We finished the assembly by celebrating Article 31 — the right to rest, play and leisure — with a whole-school game of Rock, Paper, Scissors Train. There was an abundance of enthusiasm, laughter and friendly competition as pupils and staff alike embraced the joy of learning through play.
Throughout the week, Mrs Bird led a series of creative workshops for Reception and Key Stage 2 pupils. Reception children created a collaborative mixed-media artwork on fabric inspired by Articles 24 and 27, exploring the right to healthy food and wellbeing. The girls drew and painted a variety of foods, enjoyed printing with pasta and added imaginative details of their own, including a mermaid to represent the right to play. They were supported by some fantastic Year 6 pupils who documented the event through photography and mini-interviews. The only challenge was resisting the temptation to eat the party rings!
Monday afternoon provided a calming creative experience for Year 2 as they explored bilateral drawing. This technique involves drawing with both hands simultaneously, mirroring the actions of each hand. Working on a large scale with soft chalks, pupils created expressive artworks while enjoying the many benefits of the activity. Bilateral drawing promotes relaxation, concentration, hand control, coordination and confidence, while encouraging both sides of the brain to work together. It was a wonderful example of Article 31 in action. Year 2 were supported by a team of excellent pupil helpers who explained the task and shared techniques throughout the session. It was inspiring to see older pupils confidently sharing their knowledge and younger pupils encouraging one another.
As part of the Arts Week celebrations, Year 2 also delighted audiences with a joyful and energetic song about Paddington during the Friday Arts Showcase. Their performance captured the warmth, kindness and curiosity of the character and reflected the spirit of inclusion that ran throughout the week.
On Tuesday, Year 1 explored Article 8 — the right to a name, nationality and family relationships, and the right to preserve and develop one’s identity. Inspired by the work of artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, the girls created vibrant mixed-media self-portraits that celebrated their individuality. The energy, enthusiasm and creativity on display made the session a truly joyful experience. Through their artwork, pupils reflected on the unique qualities, experiences and relationships that make each of us who we are.
Wednesday saw pupils invited to participate in a Plinth Project in each playground. Inspired by the Victorian tradition of the soapbox and Antony Gormley’s One & Other project, the initiative gave pupils a literal platform from which to share their opinions, talents, ideas and skills. The project celebrated one of the most important rights of the child: freedom of expression. Some pupils spoke passionately about issues that mattered to them, including the right to education and women’s rights. Others expressed themselves through song, dance and performance. Year 3 in particular contributed a series of lively and imaginative drama sketches, which delighted audiences and showcased their confidence as performers. What made the project so special was the variety of ways pupils chose to communicate their thoughts, ideas and abilities. It reminded us that freedom of expression is not only about speaking — it is also about creating, performing, questioning, sharing and being heard.
On Thursday afternoon, we returned to the theme of rest and play. KS1 and KS2 pupils were offered a range of activities to choose from, including skipping, Lego, yoga and soundscape creation. The afternoon provided valuable opportunities for relaxation, creativity and connection, further celebrating Article 31 and the importance of wellbeing. Pupils embraced the chance to slow down, collaborate and enjoy the simple pleasure of creative play. There was even the occasional sighting of Mr Johnston dancing and handstands.
We concluded the week with our Friday Arts Showcase, celebrating the incredible creativity and confidence demonstrated throughout Arts Week. Culture Club shared some of the exciting projects they have been developing this year, while Year 3 confidently took to the catwalk wearing their wearable sculptures. As part of the showcase performances, Year 2 delighted the audience with their joyful Paddington song, Year 3 presented a series of engaging drama sketches, and Year 5 brought Every Child a Song to life through a beautifully crafted live shadow theatre performance. Together, these performances created a rich and varied celebration of storytelling, music and drama.
Year 4 artists celebrated their textile project exploring Article 31 – the Right to Rest and Play. Pupils created textile panels for a skirt using recycled materials, including children’s duvet covers, chosen for their connections to comfort, home and wellbeing. Inspired by the work of Joan Mitchell, pupils used expressive colours, shapes and marks to capture the energy and imagination of play. They also explored the work of Frank Bowling, designing stencils and incorporating found objects and old toys into their artwork. Finally, inspired by textile artist Alice Kettle, they used stitching to add texture, detail and meaning to their designs. The finished pieces beautifully celebrated creativity, relaxation, imagination and every child’s right to rest and play.
Year 6 showcased the outcomes of their Protest Project. Throughout the term, pupils explored how art can be used not only for enjoyment but also as a tool for communication, activism and change. Inspired by the work of Shepard Fairey and Kate DeCiccio, they investigated how colours, symbols, images and concise, powerful language can be used to communicate important messages. Using collage, stencilling and graphic design techniques, pupils created wearable protest artworks promoting different rights of the child. Their final pieces included sandwich boards, wings, dresses and sculptural garments that clearly communicated the rights they had chosen to champion. The project demonstrated how art can amplify voices, raise awareness and inspire change while helping pupils develop confidence in forging their own artistic identities.
Throughout the week, pupils also contributed to our collaborative Obliteration Room installation, inspired by the work of Yayoi Kusama. The space gradually transformed as pupils added colourful dots, each representing a child. Alone, a dot may seem small, but together the dots create a powerful and vibrant whole. The project explored Article 2 — Non-Discrimination — reminding us that every child matters and deserves to be valued, included and heard. As the room filled with colour, so too did our message: every dot counts, every child counts.
Meanwhile, an exciting large-scale installation is continuing to take shape in the Junior School courtyard, inspired by the work of Chiharu Shiota. Known for her immersive webs of thread, Shiota uses strands to represent connections between people, memories, experiences and the journeys we take through life. Often, she incorporates everyday objects into her installations to tell stories about identity, belonging and human experience.
Throughout Arts Week, pupils have responded to the theme of children’s rights on individual Post-it notes. These reflections are now being collected and will soon be suspended within the installation, creating a powerful visual reminder that every child’s voice contributes to something larger than themselves. As the thousands of strands and messages come together, the artwork will celebrate not only our creativity but also our shared commitment to ensuring that every child is seen, heard and valued.
Arts Week once again provided a wonderful opportunity for our pupils to combine creativity with meaningful learning. Whether speaking up through School Council, celebrating their identities through portraiture, expressing opinions from a plinth, performing joyful music and drama in the showcase, advocating for children’s rights through wearable art or contributing to collaborative installations, the girls demonstrated not only their artistic talents but also their growing understanding of the rights that help every child flourish.
We are incredibly proud of their imagination, confidence and willingness to use their voices to make a difference.
Mrs Claire Bird
Junior School Teacher of Art
