100 Words workshops start in UK schools

Following highly successful workshops in Guangzhou in September the creative language learning strand of 100 Words is developing fast.  On Wednesday we held our first workshop for a group of teachers from Caister High, Middle and First Schools. The schools already have active links with No 3 Middle School and Dong Er Primary School in Xuhui District, Shanghai, part of a dynamic programme faciliated by Norfolk County Council with support from British Council World Links. With Creative Partnerships Great Yarmouth (run by Norfolk & Norwich Festival), we are planning a six week collaborative project that will take place in January and February 2008 involving both the Caister schools and their counterparts in Shanghai. Last week’s workshop led by Natasha Betteridge, Lynn Whitehead and Jennifer Lim, was an introduction to the 100 Words model and also to Mandarin, which is not taught in any of the Caister schools. Teachers looked at scripts, wrote and performed 10 word plays, and learnt to sing ’Three Blind Mice’ in Mandarin.  There was a lot of positive feedback from all involved – ‘Wednesday was a great sucess’ commented Valerie Miller, Deputy Headteacher at Caister High. The next step will involve some of the Caister teachers visiting Shanghai in November to meet and plan with their Chinese colleagues.

Next week sees Natasha, Oliver Williams and Rob Raskovsky running a 100 Words workshop with students at Moseley School in Birmingham as part of its Festival of Diversity. Moseley School is linked with Guangzhou Overseas Chinese Foreign Language School, and our work will lay the foundations for future collaboration around creative language learning between the two schools.