I think we have found a winning formula. First you invite along between 60 and 70 teachers of English (make sure they are good quality teachers, bursting with life and ideas: you can tell by their eyes), stir in a talk about methodology and then mix in some activities using literature that make them think and make them do and finally whisk in two writers with lots of experience of working with schools and with kids. Bubble away for about 7 hours and, voila, a wondrous thing is produced.
We started off with a live link to Osaka and Scott Thornbury talking about the way that methodology has changed - or, actually, not changed over 50 years or more. Fascinating use of technology, which worked very well indeed, while Scott was his usual entertaining and informative self. We then had a plenary in which the newish 'Coming Home' kit was explored before we broke into groups and teachers worked on two texts - 'Whose Face' by Melvin Burgess and 'Journey to Jo'burg' by Beverley Naidoo. Lots of hands on experience here, and Sinead Russell from our Lit Dept in London helped out with the second group. Back into plenary where we shared what we'd looked at and I gace an overview of what ws on offer. Then the two authors turned up and each presented in their own unique ways to the teachesr before a final Q&A session.
Very buzzy, a lot of fun an d everyone had a good, instructive and informative day. I mean everyone - especially me! I think I now how the model to suggest to the other Hay Festivals around the world. Hooray!
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Comments
In my opinion ( I am only a modest primary teacher in a bilingual school in Madrid, trying to do something different every year) the activities were fantastic.
I love literature and all that has to do with it, and nowdays it is quite difficult to teach this at school, we fight against TV, PSP, nintendos, mobile phones and so on... from school. We also ask our children to stydy many other important things, and we often forget the magic of a good book, and all they can get from reading or even writing.
The thing is that when they discover "the feeling", they do not want to follow the text book anymore. Why do we have to do so many boring activities?? That is not funny. When they discover they can invent their own song, dialogue, poem or story about them, changing the words as they wish, telling what they want about themselves, their lives... that is all they want to do. I do believe they can do marvellous things just with a bit of imagination. I have an example. My children are 8 / 9 years old. They were writing very short poems about numbers. I had to revise the numbers, to revise the time ( very important for the 4th grade exams they will have in May, of Madrid conserjería that now include a lot of grammar and writing). Then I decided to suggest them to write poems including numbers and this was the result : fifty- five I am alive, ninety nine there is a light...We will continue developing this idea.
I liked the pre-reading activities and personally I think that are really important to enjoy a book at school.They clearly motivate the children and through them you can reach all intelligences. The disadvantages are that we do not have enough time in our timetables for this. I would love to dedicate one week to this type of activities, but we must follow the curriculum, we must teach all the contents all the grammar, complete hundreds of worksheets, complete the activity books ... uf I am exhausted !!!
I would like to say that the idea of being a character of a story was good and usable. Beverly did really well.
Now my children can be "Little red riding hood " ( carrying a little basket) or "Town mouse"( wearing some ears made with paper on their heads...) and make them not read , and also speak and write in english, having fun.
Thanks a lot for doing this in this lovely town that is Segovia.
TE Team
Thanks, Esther, for your positive comments.
I quite agree that the technique that Beverley demonstrated was a very useful resource and one that can be adapted to a variety of situations. For the benefit of those who weren't there, Beverley Naidoo 'became' one of the characters in her novel, Journey to Jo'burg, and got the 'audience' to question her about various aspects of her conduct (in the story) and herself in general. It provided a great interaction and while was obviously conducted at a high level in terms of language and content is very adaptable, as Esther has pointed out.
Great stuff!