Fantastic news from St George’s special school in Newport about the Dragon project. Ed
St George’s School runs a very successful creative arts project known as ‘Dragon’ in collaboration with artists from Eccleston George.
Supported by many local businesses and individuals from across the Island, the idea behind the Dragon project is to provide the students at St George’s with the opportunity to experience running a business within a safe environment.
Six learning zones have been created within the school grounds (life-sized dinosaur dig can be seen in the photograph) that pupils and students from other educational establishments can access.
St George’s students organise and run the workshops alongside staff giving them many opportunities to practise vital work skills and life skills.
Dragon goes European
The Dragon project came to the attention of Natalie Long, a Senior Lecturer at Portsmouth University, who is a member of the ‘Embedding a Culture of Creativity and Enterprise in the Curriculum’ (ECCEC) set up by the EU Community Lifelong Learning Programme.
Natalie was extremely impressed with the Dragon project and when she visited she described ‘a sense of excitement’ as she walked around the school; she invited other members of the European partnership to view the project and the school has recently hosted visitors from Sweden, Italy and Estonia who were equally impressed – the Italian representative described the project as ‘amazing’.
As a result, St George’s School has been chosen as a Case Study for best practice in Creative Education across Europe.
Sharing knowledge across Europe
Students and staff at the school will be partnering with students and staff in Europe in order to share knowledge and experiences. School staff have also been invited to run best practice workshops focusing on creativity across the curriculum in Prague in 2011 and Milan in 2012.
Sue Holman, head teacher at St. George’s said “We are very pleased that the reputation of Dragon has reached European standards. This is a very exciting project which we are immensely proud of. It has given our students a context in which to practise real skills for life whilst being an excellent outlet for their creativity”.
The Dragon Project is always looking for support within the community and anyone wanting further information can contact the school or visit our website.
The staff and students at St George’s School would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have helped, and continue to help, make the Dragon project a reality:
Aim Higher | Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Support and Funding | Arreton Barns | BAE Systems Employees Charity | Bardon Vectis | Brian Greening | Chris Packham | Cowes and Fawley Powerstation Employees Charity | Creative Partnerships | Eccleston George | GKN Employees Charity | Island 2000 | Isle of Wight Zoo | National Lottery Awards for All | Newport Golf Club | Newport Parish Council | Ryde Lions | The Bargeman’s Rest | Ventnor Botanic Garden | Wight Strollers | Wooden Tiger
Photo: Members of the ‘Embedding a Culture of Creativity and Enterprise in the Curriculum’ (ECCEC) working party visiting St George’s School Dragon Project along with staff from the school
and artists from Eccleston George.
