World Language Day 21st February 2011

How is your school celebrating World Language Day?

What?

A day celebrated by schools across the world in recognition of International Mother Language Day.  This was first announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999 and has been observed every year since February 2000. Its observance was formally recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 2008 

Why?

To promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism

Who?

Everyone ideally.

We would like all classes from K1 to Year 6 to take part in a language quiz. This will be in the form of age appropriate PowerPoints comprising 10 multiple choice questions.

Additionally we have attached a list of possible activities based on a language theme. Class teachers/year groups and specialists can use as appropriate to the curriculum being taught that day.

Key Stage assemblies for w/b 21^st Feb. will be language themed

World Language Day Suggested Activities

Primary Language Group

·      Ask a child to teach the class to count in a different language – use throughout the day.

·      Story telling – invite children or parents from different classes/year groups etc to come in and share a book/story

·      Art – large canvases available – 1 per year group for a collaborative painting with a language theme e.g. one word/phrase in different languages.

·      Sign Language activities – learn and use number of signs for the day.

·      KS2/KS1  – use Y1/2 meeting room – for cartoons in different languages – Thai?

·      Prepare a chain of flags within a class, within a year group with different phrases on each flag in different languages 

·      Greetings– orally and in writing in different languages – find out as many as you can – make a display- laminate and use as a permanent display

·      Singing songs:  The children could  learn a tune and lyrics, especially if they can combine them with actions. You can also speak with the children about where the songs are from, research the country, listen to and discuss how the words are spoken, look at similarities (and differences!) to English. If you have a native speaker in the year group they can be invited to speak about the songs and to help the children with pronunciation.

           Useful website: http://www.mamalisa.com/?t=eh

·      Creating cards with multilingual sayings

·      Tongue twisters in different languages - International collection of Tongue twisters – will need to choose those that someone in the class can read but selection for most languages including 13 Thai tongue twisters with translations http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/#haw

·      Chinese language characters (calligraphy) – ask parent in for help
Greek alphabet for example or other, depending on languages in class to create name tags for the day

·      Adopt a language where there are just a few speakers left. Start to learn the language and support it

·      Class Language themed book – poems or phrases/words in different languages of the children in the class

·      Dual language spelling test

·      Learn how to say a phrase in the different languages of the class e.g. Have you finished? Can I go to the toilet? Use for the day/week.

·      Over break or for a set period in the day – no verbal communication allowed – reflect and discuss. Or remove a word every five minutes that no one in class can use – reflect and discuss

·      Make up a new language in groups/as a class

·      Data handling – language surveys to generate graphs

·      One World, One Village DVD on Link and Learn – useful to note data and generate discussion. Discussion and facts around the idea of the world’s population being represented in a village of 100 people

·      Give the children different scripts to identify

·      I went to the market and I heard someone say…Halo, Guten Tag etc

·      Looking at different dialects of Thai in Thai lessons

·      MFL teachers could swap groups – children become the teachers

·      PE – different game from a different culture and/or key instructions in a different language

·      Music – from around the world

·      Lunchtimes in KS1 and KS2 – cartoons in a language other than English

Music Department Plans

Year1 have already learnt a Japanese traditional singing game, as well as a greeting song in Chinese and a goodbye song in Arabic. Other languages we are looking at include Caribbean (pidgin English), French, Spanish, Korean, and African.
We have also discussed the idea of inviting parents/MFL teachers to teach us new singing games in different languages.
Most music lessons in the Primary include a listening focus. We will be playing world music for movement activities, leading into discussions of that particular country's musical culture/ instruments etc. Also planning to use singing stories from different cultures/languages.

Thai Department Plans

For the activities in Thai lessons, the Thai team will add names of fruits or food in different languages comparing with Central Thai and Thai dialects .

This list is a range of ideas big and small for class based activities to celebrate and recognize World Language Day.