7th November 2025Fran Davison

The Year 4 class at NCEA Thomas Bewick C of E Primary School in Ashington, are celebrating national success after winning a category in the prestigious Spirited Arts competition, run annually by NATRE (National Association of Teachers of Religious Education).

Their winning entry, titled “Walking in the Footsteps of Guru Nanak”, explored the teachings and legacy of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, and was inspired by themes of sharing, kindness and community, the values at the heart of Guru Nanak’s message.

As part of the children’s learning about Sikhism, they were especially inspired by the story of Guru Nanak and the Boulder, so chose to use it as the basis for their artwork.

They revisited the characters and explored the emotions behind their actions. The children noticed that the man who pushed the boulder showed jealousy, greed and anger, while Guru Nanak and the villagers reflected qualities such as humility, kindness and forgiveness.

The children talked about the importance of the boulder in the story and what it symbolised – strength, protection from sadness, and Guru Nanak’s faith in overcoming negativity. This led them to place a clay boulder at the centre of the collaborative piece, carving meaningful words into it to reflect the story’s handprint.

The children designed a hand motif with colours to show emotions and the flowing water from the story. Flowers were added to symbolise fresh starts and forgiveness and the water flowing through the hands represents emotions moving freely. Every pupil contributed to the mosaic layout, tracing a hand shape with spread fingers to show strength. Together, they created a unified artwork that beautifully reflects the message of the story.

Headteacher, Jess Hodson added: “I am incredibly proud of all the children who entered the competition across the school. Every pupil showed remarkable creativity and commitment in developing their pieces, and the standard of work this year was exceptional. It is wonderful to see our Year 4 entry recognised with this success, and it reflects the talent and enthusiasm of our young learners.”