Peasedown St John Primary School celebrates its centenary this year and commemorated its 100th birthday in style!
Mr Edgar Pound was the Headteacher when the school opened in 1913 and the pupils at Peasedown St John Primary have been busy finding out how the school has changed over the past 100 years. 2013 will be a special year for the school, but a week of special events were planned, starting last Monday, 24th June, to mark the school's historical milestone.
Becky Brooks and Leah Smith, from The Journal, were there with camera in hand to capture it all.
The children began the celebrations back in February by creating new designs for the school logo. Grace Gard, in Year 2, won the competition and her design is being used on the letterhead and website for the whole of the centenary year. The children then designed centenary tea towels with self-portraits of all 535 pupils and seventy members of staff. They also put their literacy skills to good use by writing to local businesses and members of the community, asking for donations to enable the school to provide a commemorative mug for all the pupils. The response was excellent and during the week, every child received their very own celebratory mug to remind them of this very special year.
Due to the generosity of local companies, the children have also been able to take part in visits to Radstock Museum and drama workshops at Writhlington School to help them gain an understanding of what school life would have been like for pupils 100 years ago. Ex-pupils were invited into school to be interviewed about their memories and the children were fascinated to hear about the old swimming pool, the upstairs hall, the separate entrances for boys and girls (which can still be seen today), getting inkpots filled from the cupboard under the stairs and the outside toilets. The children agreed the school is a nicer place to learn now than back in 1913!
The celebrations culminated last Monday with a Centenary Parade along Bath Road, with everyone dressed up in costumes from the past 100 years. The parade ended with a traditional picnic of bread and cheese on the school field – exactly like in 1913. The children have created a wonderful exhibition of their work about the centenary in the school hall, which members of the community and parents have viewed during open afternoons. Parent, Mrs Shepherd, provided a spectacular centenary cake which was cut by Chair of Governors, Linda Day, and Councillor Neil Butters, before being shared with visitors who were entertained with songs and poems performed by current pupils. Local artists, Frances Whittaker, Angela and Jasmine Nash, worked with every child to create beautiful mosaic pieces which depict the village and school through the last century. A fantastic design by Eloise Evans in Year 4 was used to create the artwork which is on display on the outside of the school building for all to see. The school's IT support team, eye-tech, donated 100 balloons with the centenary logo displayed which were released on the final day of celebrations by 100 pupils.
The grand finale of Peasedown St John Primary School's celebrations was a specially written production, 'The Magic Penny', whose script was written by talented parent, Petra Schofield, and equally talented music teacher, Myra Barretto. The rousing songs, which were especially written for the production, were performed with gusto by the school choir and the children acted their hearts out to tell the story and history of the school over the past 100 years. Current Headteachers, David Tilling and Julia Battersby, said: "It is a privilege to be part of such a special school as it celebrates its 100th birthday. The children have thoroughly enjoyed planning and being involved in a wide range of exciting events, which we hope they will remember for a very long time. There certainly has been a lot to learn about the past 100 years and we hope that the school continues to be an amazing place of learning into the future. Who knows what the celebrations will be like in 2113!"