Rhiwbina Living Issue 55

Extending horizons
at Llanishen Fach
Primary School
The retired teachers amongst the
readership may well remember the
introduction of 'Baker days', now
more correctly termed in-service
training or 'INSET' days. While
such days are a well-established
part of school life and a valuable
tool for school management, they
are sometimes misunderstood by
some, being seen as an unwelcome
interruption to the school term.
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Here at Llanishen Fach Primary
School, INSET days are far from
a disruption, providing valuable
time for our teachers and teaching
assistants to continue to improve
and develop our practice and stay
abreast of recent thinking and
developments in primary education.
Such training opportunities have
never been more valued as now,
as we emerge from a difficult time
for schools and look to the future,
certain in the knowledge that our
professionalism is more than ever
vital to the lives and prospects of
our pupils.
Outdoor learning
For many years now, outdoor
learning has been a mainstay
of our curriculum, with pupils
spending one day a fortnight
totally immersed in the outdoor
environment, come rain or shine.
So, when March saw schools across
Wales celebrate the potential and
benefits of taking learning outdoors,
we were eager to get involved. We
decided to mark ‘Wales Outdoor
Learning Week’ by setting aside a
sizable part of our spring’s two day
INSET programme to exploring
teaching and learning opportunities
for our school community.
Taking the lead from the many and
varied outdoor resources we have
access to, staff considered how to
extend their teaching using these
resources as a focus:
“Lamby Way” – our investigation
and exploration area
• chicken coop
• ancient varieties apple orchard
• raised planting beds