What is it like to be a child at Livingstone?
We think Livingstone Primary School is the best school in Barnet!
A great thing about our school is that you can make many life-long friends, build confidence; the list is end-less. For us, Livingstone is our second family, our home. My school teaches me respect and responsibility.
At my school we have the most amazing school trips! Every year group has had at least one life-changing trip that they will remember forever. In Y6 we have many fun trips throughout the whole year: PGL (Parents Get Lost :), Paris, Chessington etc. My favourite trip so far was PGL because it made me have more confidence and I spent a whole week with my friends (no parents!). I loved all the cool activities there! I am very excited for all the upcoming trips and can't wait to go on them!
Year 6 Child
I love my school because it has lots of facilities. There are so many extra - curricular activities like competitions, dancing/gymnastics yoga, sports etc. We are very lucky to have a library, a giant field, netball court, an all-weather pitch, KS1&2 and Reception playground and many more.
Year 6 Child
I like English and listening to stories. I love phonics, I like all the sounds. I like playing with my friends.
Year 1 Kingfisher child
I love being in class and I enjoy everything about Reception so far. My teachers are just awesome and I love learning phonics. I like seeing the bunnies, Coco and Toffee, they are really cuddly and soft which is why I like them.
Wednesdays are my favourite day because PE is my favourite lesson, as I like running. Playing outside during break is extremely enjoyable because the new castle is very fun to play with. I am having an amazing time at Livingstone and I have lovely friends.
Reception Child
Being a child at Livingstone is great because we get the freedom to talk freely and encouraged to participate in everything. All the teachers are really kind and guide us when we are stuck on something, they always make us smile. We go on fun educational trips about what we learn in school. The playgrounds we have are so spacious and lovely. We have a netball court and all weather pitch which are always fun to play in. There is a KS1 and KS2 playground that we all love. Every Wednesday, we either get to go to forest school in the pond area, have reading time in our library, do dance/gymnastics or do outdoor PE. We have Kingfisher for children that might need a bit more help than us, and they are amazing people to be with and talk to. We have a large field where we play on when it is sunny, we hold sporting events on it and there are some clubs on the field which is accessible for every year from year 1 to year 6.
Year 4 child
Being a child at Livingstone is awesome!!! We have kind teachers and TA's who help us with our work. If we are stuck on a subject, they are always there to help. What we love the most, is our big field to play on in the summer. On Wednesdays, we have PE lessons outside which are so fun!!! The school dinners are amazing, pasta, flan, pizza, pastries, fish fingers and more. We go outside on Fridays for goldentime for extra play time. Some of the subjects we do are Maths, English, Science, Guided reading and Art.
Year 2 child
Being a Livingstone child is a lot of fun; we get to see our friends every day and learn new things every day. The teachers here are very supportive and helpful; they help us with our work when we are stuck and are really nice!!! On Wednesdays we're very lucky to be able to do loads of fun activities with our friends and teachers: dance, PE (in general), forest school, art and many more. We have a range of different subjects every day: maths, English, science, RE, art, spelling and guided reading. My favourite subject is guided reading because I love reading. Every day, a different teacher comes out on the playground on duty to keep us safe. We have 3 different play grounds; we have 1 for nursery and reception, 1 for KS1 and 1 for KS2. Our playgrounds are very big and I love playing in them with my friends.
Year 4 child
What do our parents think?
My time as a parent at Livingstone is nearly over and I’ll be really sad to say goodbye at the end of the summer term. I’ve made friends for life in other parents, been involved in so many memorable activities as part of the PTA and watched both of my children flourish, grow in confidence, and get set up for their amazing futures with the guidance, commitment and support of everyone that works at the school.
When we first moved to Barnet, we wanted to be part of a community and really feel like this was ‘home’. It wasn’t until we moved up the road from Livingstone and heard everyone talking about the great local school that we decided to have a look around and see what made it so special.
From the moment we walked in, we loved the feel of it- the warm welcome when we arrived, all the outside space, the library as the focal point and the smiling faces and enthusiasm of the young people and adults we met. And 10 years later and every day since, that’s still what everyone experiences- an inclusive, pastoral culture with the children’s best interests at heart- as a parent you can’t ask for anything more.
I’ve loved being part of the Livingstone family, from camp nights to family yoga, helping with trips and running workshops, dancing and terrible face painting at fairs (sorry kids!) it’s been an absolute joy- so thank you to everyone at Livingstone for helping to make Barnet our home- you’ll always have a very special place in my family’s heart.
By Zoe Down (parent of two pupils)