Bringing ‘Joy’ back in a meaningful and exciting project
Following on from the success of last year, Fairfield High School is again taking part in an exciting community project, ‘Joy Trail’, in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE). Joy Trail was created to give children the opportunity to learn, through a ‘lens of joy’, about people, places and stories in their local community.
The six week project’s aim is to enhance knowledge and widen students’ experiences beyond the stereotypical and thereby empowering them to see themselves as ‘agents of change’. The following workshops formed the agenda: joyous literature (poetry), joyous nature (horticulture), joyous entertainment (Ujima radio station), joyous technology (robotics), joyous food (cookery) and joyous art (mapping).
Cashan Campbell, Assistant Vice Principal of Fairfield comments: “The Joy Trail has been hugely successful in educating and inspiring our students as they’ve delved deeper into their heritage. Myself and my colleagues have had the pleasure of watching their confidence grow week on week as they’ve experienced a wide variety of workshops. Having lived in Bristol all my life it’s also meant a lot to me personally, as cultural exposure of this nature is integral to helping move Bristol forward in an inclusive and reparative way. A big thank you to my Fairfield colleagues Mr Jaiyeoba and Miss Lavelle for their involvement and efforts in helping this to happen.”
To give a flavour of the content of one of the workshops – in this example joyous literature, Joy Trail writes the following:
At their first stop on the Joy Trail, students had a joyous and enriching time. The session began with poet Saili Katebe, who captivated the students by inviting them to create their own anaphora poems, inspired by Dean Atta. This activity encouraged self-expression and identity, and as students collectively read their poems, any initial pressure dissipated, replaced by a united voice that filled the room.
Next, students explored writing an epistolary poem. Before committing anything to paper, they paired up to practice their interview skills, using these interactions as inspiration for their writing. This exercise not only fostered creativity but also enhanced their interpersonal skills.
The final poetry activity focused on crafting a list poem, with joy as the central theme. This exercise allowed students to reflect on and articulate what joy means to them, deepening their engagement with the day’s theme.
After a playful interlude in the adventure playground, the session concluded with mapping artist Luci Gorell Barnes (known for her work illustrating “If Racism Vanished for a Day” and “Fog Monsters,”) engrossed the young people in mapping their morning experiences. Students were encouraged to represent their experiences in any form they chose, further cementing the day’s themes of creativity, expression, and joy.
X – see @_joytrail
