A am affa grateful tae Mrs Scott fir sharin this wi us aw:
St Michael’s Primary school is based in the Southern Scottish town of Dumfries, only a few steps away from the resting place of Rabbie Burns himself! Our straight set school consists of a small management team of 2, 7 class teachers and 180 pupils. We are lucky enough be assisted by a wonderful team of support staff who help with everything from Bilingual baking classes to photography.
Over the past two years we have been working hard to promote language learning in both our school and wider community. As with many schools, traditionally we taught French in P6 and P7, however it became increasingly apparent that more and more young children were eager to ‘have a go.’ Around a year ago I was approached by a gaggle of enthusiastic P4 children who were desperate to have an activity club created which focused on language learning- they had even gone to the trouble of creating a mind-map, in case I forgot any of their ideas! Who was I to refuse? Henceforth the Bilingual Bonanza began. I have focused on one specific event which really brought to life Scots Language Learning in our school- The Auld Alliance Day.
This is our most recent celebration of language learning. It helped us to highlight the historical links between Scotland- France. In collaboration with pupils, the staff organised a vast selection of activities which celebrated our fantastic historical tongue and mapped out links between the two languages. The children took part in various activities which included bilingual storytelling, French-ish (a blend of French and Scots) food tasting, art classes and singing. Such was the success of this day that after an evaluation, we have decided to make this a biannual event where-by we will introduce comparative studies between our culture and language and that of other countries. This event not only supported our work within the 1+2 policy, it also provided a platform for us to raise the status of Scots Language within our school community.
Our school badge bears the motto, ‘Mak Siccar.’ As a school and community we continually try our best to ‘Make Sure’ our pupils have the most engaging opportunities to become forward thinking, global citizens. We are always happy to share ideas and experiences with others; this example of work is ‘but a drop in the ocean’ compared to the other extensive opportunities that we create to enhance language learning in our school community.
If you’d like more information please contact Ciara Scott at gw09crillyciara2@ea.dumgal.sch.uk
Ciara Scott
Class Teacher and Educational Researcher (seconded)
St Michael’s School
Dumfries and Galloway.