Langdale Primary School is an example of a small village school, of which there are several in the Lake District and Cumbria. It is, however, one of the smallest. It is situated in Langdale,a valley in the centre of the Lake District.
Langdale is a valley about six miles long. It is made up of three small villages, Chapel Stile, Elterwater and Little Langdale. Although Langdale spreads over a wide area everything is spaced out and there are only about 200 people living there. There is only one shop there.
There are 46 children who go to the school who come from within a 5-mile radius. They are divided into two classes, 4-7 year olds and 7-11 year olds.
In the building there are two classrooms, a dining room, two cloakrooms and an office. The building is built of slate, which is quarried in the area, and was built about 130 years ago. It is in the centre of its grounds that are fairly large compared to the size of the school. In the grounds there are two woodland areas, two conservation areas, a pond and a tarmac playground.The grounds are used for outdoor activities in the summer.
I went to Langdale school for five years starting when I was six when my dad got a job as the headteacher there. When I went to the school I found it very strange as it was very small compared to the size of my first school which was in a city. In the whole school there were only a few more people than there had been in each class at my other school. When I first went to the school there were only about 30 pupils who went to the school.
Although it is an advantage of going to a small school because you get more attention when you are learning things, because there are a small number of children, you can't choose who to be friends with, you have to be friends with everybody! You also have the same teacher for every lesson for 3 or 4 years. When I first went to Langdale Primary I found it strange compared to my old school but I got used to it eventually.
by Katharine Tansley
Have a look also at Lakeland Cam A web site created by Troutbeck Bridge postman Tony Richards. Each day as he sets off on his round from Troutbeck Bridge up to the Langdale valley he takes his digital camera with him and grabs a picture as the mood takes him. The picture is usually put up on the internet the same day.
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