Equality and Diversity at Wallace Fields Junior School

At Wallace Fields Junior School, we strive to promote equality, understanding and celebrate multi-culturalism in all its forms through our PSHE sessions, assemblies, choice of literature, international links to schools and our multi-cultural days. We feel it is important to reflect upon the injustices and inequalities that are present across the world and help create an anti-racist society by providing an education for our children.  

 At Wallace Fields Junior School, we feel it is important to celebrate different heritages, cultures, faiths, abilities and genders throughout the year by using a variety of literature, assemblies, PSHE, geography, music, art, geography, history, and Faith and Philosophy discussions to develop the children’s knowledge and understanding of the world around them.  

Here is our Equality policy. 

Wallace Fields Junior School prides itself in its strong inclusive values and ethos. Click here to go to our Inclusion/SEND page.  Click here for our values page. 

 

International Schools Award - the American debate

As part of our accreditation for the International Schools award the children have been taking part in a number of internationally linked events. One of these was a ten week programme called the Young Historians and the children in Year 4 learned all about American history, in addition to his they did research and prepared arguments against the legitimacy of the American War of Independence (or American revolution). the whole class were linked to judges, adjudicator and classrooms in New York to battle it out and I was stunned with the quality and the enthusiasm (E = Enthusiasm) the children argued with. It was a passionate debate and one professor found the Wallace fields Juniors the winners and the other professor scored the American school higher. Considering the level of the arguments and the excellent counter arguments it was a delight to watch and I was extremely proud of the children who represented the school online. For more details in the news article click here.

Diversity Day

On Friday 21st June 2024 it was lovely to see so many children celebrating Diversity Day and wearing clothing to reflects their culture and heritage including Mrs Kidwai, Mrs Salam and all the children.

Diversity Day was a truly memorable event filled with beautiful cultural clothing, showcasing the rich tapestry of traditions and heritage. The children were truly fabulous in their vibrant outfits, representing their unique backgrounds with pride and joy. The lovely spirit of unity and celebration filled the air, as everyone came together to appreciate the beauty of diversity. It was heart-warming to see children mingling and sharing stories, playing games, creating artwork, exploring books, creating an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusion. Overall, Diversity Day was a wonderful reminder of the beauty in our differences and how we can come together as a community. THANK YOU to everyone for  making the day special as we celebrated our individuality while embracing our similarities. Below are some photographs from the day. Mrs. Kidwai

Diversity Day 2024

Black History Month

October is Black History Month in the UK, an event that has been celebrated nationwide for more than 30 years. Throughout the year, we believe it is important to acknowledge the historical context of Black History and celebrate the contributions that black people have made over many generations.

Black History month is an important time to remember and celebrate the contributions of the black community for UK and the world. WFJS children have been learning about the culture, history and traditions of black people across the world. 

Here is what we did in our year groups in 2023:

In Year 4, we learned about the life and work of Nelson Mandela and his remarkable legacy. Children studied about his contribution to South Africa and the world. We discussed some of his life quotes (It only takes one person to change the world) and explained what they meant for us. We also created artwork to celebrate the Rainbow Nation using impressionistic techniques and shirt designs to create something Madiba would have liked. Mrs. Curran shared various personal stories with the children about her experiences of growing up in South Africa and when she met Mandela. Finally, we created goals for ourselves and thought about which character traits we may need to achieve these whilst taking inspiration from Madiba - his kind and brave soul. 

In Year 3, we have been celebrating Black History Month by learning about some inspirational people throughout history. This includes George Washington Carter, Barak Obama and Mae Jemison. We have been reflecting on their contributions to society and their achievements. In the new term, we will be creating poems about a famous sportsman or sportswomen through black history. 

In Year 5, we have been looking at inspirational figures within STEM from the Black community. These included: Mae Jemison, Frank Chinegwundoh and Alice Ball. After researching and collating information about their successes and influential discoveries in the world of science and maths, we produced fact files and Google Slides to present to the rest of Year 5 on one significant figure. We have considered how these figures have impacted science and maths today through thoughtful reflections.

In Year 6, we have been considering inspirational black women from Britain, their impact on both the country in which they lived and on the wider society around them. We talked and learned about incredible women such as Mary Prince, Lashana Lynch, Lilian Bader, Nicola Adams- amongst others! The children chose their most inspirational woman, researched key information about their lives and created a biographical blog post about them. They also had to consider what our country or society would have been like without these inspirational women - and they were brilliant in their research, writing and considerations!