We place a strong importance on the role of learning beyond the classroom. Children grow and develop through exploration and discovery of their strengths, so we strive to provide a wide range of opportunities for them to try new things to discover where they can flourish. Each week children have opportunities to enjoy lessons with specialist teachers in Spanish and PE, and we also have a music teacher who comes in to take ukulele lessons with each class once a week.
The wide and exciting variety of extra-curricular opportunities we offer are testament to the talents within our staff. We have cookery classes, health and well-being activities, dance, athletics, gymnastics, badminton, rugby, cricket, football, cross-country, swimming, gardening, choir, Spanish and French. Guitar, drums, Judo and Play ball are also run on site by specialist tutors and outside agencies. With such an extensive choice there is something to suit every child and we do encourage all pupils to participate and benefit from the extensive choice of options available.
Many of the Academy’s superb amenities are also enjoyed by Ben Madigan pupils, including the exceptional on-site playing fields, the indoor swimming pool at the main school site and the sports pitches at Roughfort playing fields.
We also boast an extensive and newly refurbished Library, an Activity Based Learning room and a specialist ICT suite. Pupils can enjoy a choice of three playgrounds, each providing different opportunities for the children to play with a wide range of equipment, socialise with each other and interact with staff in a less formal setting.
We organise school trips to a wide variety of locations including HMS Caroline, W5, Ulster Museum, Breckenhill, Balmoral Show, Belfast Zoo and further afield to York. These serve to not only enhance the experiences for the pupils but to embed their learning in a wide range of external settings. We are also proud of our Ski trips which have created wonderful memories for parents and pupils alike over the years.