The Duchy School
Acland Autumn 2021
Our Class Name
This week, we were very excited to find some envelopes had been delivered to our classroom. Each envelope contained different information about the Acland family. Armed with these facts, an Ipad and some paper to record ideas (as well as their own knowledge about Killerton), the children set about researching the Acland family. The children then presented their research in groups to the rest of the class.
Our favourite facts were that the Acland family once owned a pet bear named Tom, who came all the way from Canada!
We also found it really interesting that Killerton House was used as a Halls of Residents for Trainee Teachers, and Sir Richard and Lady Anne often joined in with the merriment on the many social occasions they had there!
We were very lucky to have a visitor in school who knew the Acland family and we were able to ask him lots of questions! We also found out that Mrs Dunning was taught by Mrs Acland when she was a pupil here at The Duchy School.
The children have been challenged to research even more about the Acland family over the course of Year 4 – we cannot wait to see what else they find out!
Black History Month
In Acland Class, we decided to celebrate this year’s Black History Month by finding out about Esther Mahlangu, a famous South African artist. We learnt about the Ndebele culture and had a go at creating our own Esther Mahlangu inspired art! We used her ideas to create our own geometric designs. Esther Mahlangu is famous for her bold, colourful artworks inspired by the traditional art of the Ndebele people. She began painting when she was just ten years old, and she is now the director of a school which teaches girls the Ndebele style of painting and beadwork.
See some of her artwork here and ours below.
Acland visit Wildwood Escot!
On Tuesday 30th November, Acland class braved the wintery weather and went to Wildwood Escot to enhance our science learning. On arrival we met our guide who took us on an animal tour of the park. We were lucky enough to see a Red squirrels, a wild cat, lynx, four wild boar, a fearsome pack of wolves, an Arctic Fox and an inquisitive group of three otters! We learnt a lot from our guide who explained where each animal originated from, their diet, special features and adaptations and many other interesting facts.
After lunch, we went on a bug hunt and did some pond dipping. We were surprised by how many interesting creatures we found – including fresh water clams and various types of larvae. It was a fantastic day, if muddy day!
Here are some pictures to give you a flavour of the experience!
Ancient Egyptians Exhibition
