eLanguages newsletter December 2009
January – Workshops
The year got off to a good start with an eLanguages workshop in Cornwall. More followed during the year in Kent, Leeds, Leicester and Wales. These events helped enthuse teachers & gave them practical ideas for starting and sustaining school links on eLanguages. “I have gained a great insight into eLanguages and am very keen to return to school to share my experience with the staff. Watch this space!!!!!” Workshops were also held in Saudi Arabia, India, Bangladesh, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Keep an eye on our news page for details of workshops near you in 2010.
February – “Our virtual space”
St Ives Junior School encouraged each and every class to showcase their work to an international audience using eLanguages. Working with a partner in India they did just that with great enthusiasm, imagination and creativity. Read more>>
March – Comenius: “European Jobs of the Past”
If you are in a Comenius partnership you can use eLanguages as a platform to share your project work and communicate. Carclaze Community Junior School in Cornwall worked with their four European partners to produce a vibrant body of work together. Take a look here>>
April – “My School in Easter”
An annual event or festival can be a great way to begin working with a new partner school. In April, teachers from the UK, Croatia, Poland and Bulgaria used eLanguages to share Easter traditions in their respective countries. Using photos, PowerPoints, videos and stories they described their celebrations and brought it all together in an imaginative online brochure. Have a look here>>
May – “Our Differences & Similarities”
There are lots of projects on eLanguages covering themes relevant to schools in many countries. Lesia Korzhos together with her students in the Ukraine started a project exploring Environmental Problems. They have been able to share their class findings on this subject with partners from India, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and the UK. Have a look here>>
June – Develop your partnership
Gartree Community School in the UK worked on a Global School Partnership with Him Academy Public School in India using eLanguages to create a broad portfolio of work. Their partnership was funded by the UK Department for International Development. Gartree has been awarded the DCSF International School Award in recognition of its commitment to developing the international dimension. Step by step, and week by week the partners created a fantastic summary of their work. For insight into their achievement (as well as some great ideas about how to use the potential of an eLanguages page)... ...take a look here>>
July – New tools you can use
Over the summer we worked on updating the eLanguages platform ready for the new UK school year. The response to these improvements was hugely encouraging. The increase in the creative work on the platform - from really attractive photo galleries, to imaginative use of video, podcast, Vokis, maps, drawings, and online story books - reflects this.
August – International Inspirations
eLanguages has provided a platform for partnerships between schools in the UK, Bangladesh & South Africa involved in International Inspiration, an initiative that aims to reach 12 million children and young people. The partnerships celebrate an inclusive approach to high quality physical education, sport and play. Have a look here>>
September – Chatterbooks
eLanguages has also been chosen as the platform for school partnerships involved in the Chatterbooks project. Chatterbooks encourages children aged between four and twelve to visit libraries with their families, read adventurously, and become confident talking about books. You can follow their progress on eLanguages here. Read more>>
October – International Book Club
This project provided a nice example of how you can use podcasts in the classroom, then upload and share them on an eLanguages page. The project was developed as a means for students to share their favorite books with peers around the world. Have a look here>>
November – “From Our Window”
This is just one of a number of project templates which we made available this year. It used the simple idea of asking “what can we see from our classroom window?” to inspire pieces of creative work. You can see some of the photography and poetry on this topic here Read more>>
December - World Cup 2010 project
In anticipation of the FIFA World Cup next June, a project was started in the Autumn by a school in Yeovil. It attracted members from over 30 countries, and on 4th December many of the schools took part in their own World Cup draw. The idea behind this was that each class would “adopt a World Cup country” and study it in the run up to the tournament in June. The pictures and excitement of the live draws were captured on the project page: Click here to view>>
