“From Newlyn town we used to sail,

Through rain and mist, and lashing gale,

The mackerel shoals we’d hope to find,

And soon we’d left Land’s End behind.”

Roger Bryant, a Cornish folk singer and lyricist of ‘Cornish Lads Are Fishermen’.

The Year 6 team are very excited to launch a topic on Cornish fishing, with the essential question- ‘What Lies Beneath?'

This fabulous topic for Year 6 will incorporate lots of fishy tales with sea creatures, sailors and all that lurks beneath….

We will endeavour to cover our curriculum in a fun and immersive way, with our legacy culminating in an interactive gallery experience. Parents, friends and carers will be invited to our display of literature, art, sculpture and workshops, where our children will pass on their skills and expertise. Work will include 3D clay and paper sculptures, both real and imagined, pencil, charcoal, pastel and oil sea creatures and mechanical, cam-driven 3D automata toys.

Some curriculum highlights will include:

• A trip to the National Marine Aquarium
• The Isles of Scilly residential/Activities week, which will both feature maritime learning
• Creating drawings, 3D clay and paper sculptures of sea creatures
• Writing linked to the legend of the ‘Mermaid of Zennor’
• Experimenting with materials and their properties and linking this to Cornish fishermen and the ever-changing Cornish weather
• Learning about Darwin and his theory of evolution
• Designing and building cam-driven toys, based on a sea theme
• Music linked to the use of Garage Band and the Arctic
• ICT linked to creating and editing videos to advertise our legacy
• Conducting geographical field work

As a ‘Gold’ Rights Respecting school, our children know the importance of their rights and having them upheld and will apply this to their learning on fishing. The struggles of the fishing industry in Cornwall, has led to a negative impact on some people’s lives. Fishing has changed a lot in the last century, and this has meant some have had to find new livelihoods away from their fishing boats. Fishing is an important part of historic and modern-day Cornwall, and our fishermen not only provide food for locals, but tourists as well. The seasonal aspect of Cornwall can massively affect revenue for people living in the duchy, and the children will apply their knowledge of human rights to understand this. The children will focus on the following rights from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child:

·      Article 24 (Health, Water, Food and Environment)- Every child has the right to healthy food and a safe environment: the children will explore the role our rivers, seas and fisherman have played in providing a healthy diet for Cornwall.

·      Article 26 (Social and Economic Help) - Every child has the right to money and help from the government if they are in need: Cornwall’s beautiful coastline attracts millions of visitors each year, but this often leads to seasonal jobs and a lack of revenue during winter. How does this affect local families and children?

For their final legacy project, the children will be organising and hosting an interactive gallery, exhibiting the learning they have completed this term. The children will invite their own family and friends, as well as members of the local community, to come and see an array of their artwork, literature, CAMS models and science, focused on the sea and fishing. The children will host the event by showing guests around, offering them refreshments and explaining all about their fascinating learning.  

This will be a thought-provoking and captivating topic, that will give each child an eye-opening experience into the history of Cornish fishing and its importance today too. They will develop their scientific skills, by looking at the evolution of creatures and how they have changed over time and why. They will also develop their own understanding of the difficulties faced by fishermen on the ocean. If you have any resources, artefacts or expertise linked to this topic that you wish to share, please feel free to contact a member of the team.