Curious Minds

Curious Minds: the perfect partner for your Summer School programme

So you’ve decided to stage a Summer School... what next?

You’ve read all about the Department of Education’s Summer Schools programme and you’ve applied. However, simply meeting the basic ‘spec’ isn’t enough for you – you’re determined to do something distinctive, adventurous and rich in impact. For example:

• across a fortnight, young people create and perform their own play, capturing the history and daily life of the community around their new school
• young people write their own match commentaries, poems and terrace chants as part of a creative literacy and numeracy project inspired by football
• young people take on the role of investigators, exploring what sort of teachers and pupils inhabit their new school building... before creating art works and installations that will surprise and intrigue the rest of the school community when the new term starts

If this sounds like you and you would value the support of an experienced funded partner working alongside you, Curious Minds is available. Our track record in:

• transition-focused projects
• projects that explore how the learning potential in built and outdoor environments can be realised
• innovative and effective approaches that re-engage young people in their learning, boost attainment and grow capability
• creative documentation and evaluation

...make us a perfect partner.

More about us

Curious Minds is a charity and not-for-profit social enterprise that delivers high quality arts, cultural and creative learning programmes and services to schools and other partners concerned with transformative education, regeneration, community cohesion and the development of children and young people’s social and emotional well-being. We have established a strong reputation for the effective and efficient delivery of our bespoke programmes, placing the specific concerns and needs of children, young people and their school communities at the heart of everything we do. We work widely with others to ensure all children and young people have plentiful opportunities to participate actively in arts, cultural and creative learning experiences that lead to the development of knowledge, skills and attitudes that will enable them to contribute fully to society and lead positive and productive lives.

What value can we add to your Summer School?

Curious Minds offers a specialist service devoted to supporting pupils to make the transition to the next stage of their education with confidence. Our creative projects bring pupils from different backgrounds together to achieve a common goal, helping them deal with change, take ownership of their new environment and establish a shared identity and new friendships with peers. For more, visit: www.curiousminds.org.uk/transition

We have years of experience in designing bespoke creative projects that refresh young people’s enthusiasm for the curriculum and which have been independently proven to boost attainment. These have included projects around literacy, English and Maths. For more, visit: www.curiousminds.org.uk/curriculum-design

We have a significant track record in supporting pupils and schools to maximize the learning potential of school buildings and grounds. Our expertise extends to using dynamic spaces and environments beyond the school as a stimulus for learning - useful if the idea of including trips out into your local community as part of your Summer School inspires you. In Merseyside, we have a longstanding partnership with National Museums Liverpool and can integrate a day visit to one of their outstanding venues. National Museums Liverpool deliver high quality, positive and rewarding museum experiences that encourage young people to gain the knowledge and skills they need to develop their educational attainment, cultural awareness and life chances. Their objects and exhibitions are among the most important and varied in Europe, from Impressionist paintings and rare beetles to items from the Titanic. For more on the adventurous use of learning spaces: www.curiousminds.org.uk/outdoor-learning

As Arts Council England's Bridge Organisation for the North West we offer a range of support to organisations and individuals delivering Arts Award - the acclaimed national qualification that celebrates young people’s enthusiasm and engagement in arts and culture and recognises their research, communication and leadership skills. Arts Award has five levels, four of which (Explore, Bronze, Silver and Gold) are accredited on the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF). With advance planning, the Bronze award (Level 1 on the QCF) is achievable within a fortnight and for an additional charge we can build this accreditation in. For more information, please see: www.artsaward.org.uk/schools

Our projects are built in response to your specific needs and budget. As an illustration, however, we can design a bespoke Summer School for you; provide two quality assured and CRB-checked arts practitioners to work with up to 30 young people; and structure in Bronze Arts Award for as little as £7,500.

To discuss your ideas and aspirations further, please contact:

Chris Finn, Services for Schools Manager

Curious Minds

Lodge House,

Cow Lane

Burnley, BB11 1NN

T: 07766 801041

E: chris.finn@curiousminds.org.uk