As the Commonwealth Baton made its way across the world, heading for Birmingham, at Belgrave St Bartholomew’s Academy, we hosted our very own Commonwealth Games. We may not have the stadiums, or the venues, but we definitely have the community spirit, enthusiasm and Commonwealth values in abundance!
Our two week extravaganza kicked off with the Opening Ceremony. As the lights dimmed, the music played and the buzz in the room was phenomenal! The Key Stage 1 Dance Club performed for the first time to an audience and were amazing! Children watched previous footage of inspiring athletes in the Manchester Commonwealth Games, they heard from our very own King and Queen of Belgrave (Mr Barlow and Mrs Craig!) as they officially declared the Games open and there were even flag bearers! All of the children had been allocated to a team, named after 4 Commonwealth countries (chosen by Key Stage 2 children) and 8 Year 6 children were voted in as the Team Captains. Announced and accompanied by the national anthems, these children proudly marched up the red carpet, as flag bearers and excellent representatives of their teams. The children roared and the competition commenced…
Over the course of the two weeks, children were rewarded for showing the Commonwealth values (Humanity, Equality and Destiny) throughout all of their activities. Key Stage 2 children were selected to support the younger children and we spent a lot of time over at the Florence Sports and Social Club fields!
As the sun shone down, our EYFS children were excited to take part in their first ever Sports Day and even more excited that their grown ups from home could come along to watch them take part! With beaming smiles and lots of laughter, the children enjoyed a morning of sports and everyone joined in! Full gallery HERE.
Thursday saw the arrival of not one, not two, but four athletes who all compete for Great Britain. Long jumper Feron Sayers, 400m runner Clovis Asong, Heptathlete Katie Stainton and Paralympic Wheelchair Rugby Gold medal winner Ayaz Bhuta spent all day with our children. They inspired them with their stories of competitions, the hard work they have to put in consistently and they led hands on training sessions and activities. Children were so excited “This has been the best day ever” resounded around school that afternoon. Full gallery HERE.
Week 2 began with another explosive Sports morning! This time it was KS1 and KS2 over on the fields and what a morning it was! 12 different activities including archery, sprints, welly wanging, javelin, tug of war and a lot of water! Parents filled the centre of the field and rotated to watch their children compete for their teams. It was non-stop and all of the children were active for the entire time! Parent’s comments included “This is a brilliant way to hold sports day.” “Well done to everyone for such a great morning”. Full gallery HERE.
Not wanting to waste a chance to be active, we called on our partners Bee Active to work with us to arrange a fun filled activity day for the entire school. Children from Nursery up to Year 6 all spent time on the inflatable slides, bouncy castles, inflatable dodgeball and we even had sumo suits! Fun, laughter and joy resounded around the fields! Full gallery HERE.
Tired and worn out, but the Commonwealth Games were not over until the Medal Ceremony, which took place on the final Friday! It was difficult to choose, but there were 2 children from each class presented with a medal and the flag bearing team captains waited with baited breath to find out who had won the competition. It was very close… but the overall winner was Team Australia! The winner’s plaque was presented by Mrs Deaville as she made her closing speech about what was a fantastic two weeks of sporting activities it had been!
So, as we conclude this sporting event, what will be next? Keep visiting our Blog to find out…