North East

Our fantastic Festival of International Culture returns to Durham once more!

The Festival will comprise of all sorts of different activities to raise awareness of the need for language learning in the UK. We will focus on the fun, active and practical side to learning new languages and cultures. This year, however, in a new development, the cultural element of the Festival will form part of the regional Mother Tongue, Other Tongue poetry competition, with workshops exploring multiculturalism and giving your pupils the chance to create a poem in a language other than English.

The event will last for the full school day and will take place between 9:30 and 15:00. It will be split between language taster sessions and interactive poetry workshops in which pupils will be encouraged to produce their own poems (either individually or as pairs/in small groups) to be entered into the regional competition.

The purposes of the day are as follows:

1) To introduce the idea of learning an entirely new language to school pupils

2) To show the students the benefits and opportunities that language learning can offer

3) To explore issues around multiculturalism and linguistic diversity within the UK

4) To encourage the creation of a piece of text or a poem in a language other than English

5) To give them an idea of what life in higher education is like through visiting a university campus

This year the Newcastle Strand of Routes into Languages are able to offer a limited number of Linguacast Day opportunities, inviting local schools in the North East of England on a free visit to Newcastle University campus. Pupils (accompanied by their teachers) will be given the chance to work with our staff and students from all over the world to improve their language skills and their confidence.

Activities will normally include:

• Taster sessions in new languages (Chinese, Portuguese, Turkish, or Dutch etc.) Teachers can request which languages they would like offered.
• Campus tours in the visiting pupils’ target language (French, German, Spanish etc.) tailored to recent topics covered in school.
• Q & A session with undergraduate students about university life and study.
• Info sessions on the doors of opportunity that are opened by studying languages to an advanced level.
• An introduction to the importance of professional Interpreting at the United Nations (and elsewhere on the world stage) plus interactive demonstration of simultaneous interpreting in our state-of-art digital interpreting suites.
• Full use of our new digital language labs.
• Engagement with ICT for video production, storyboard writing and recording in the target language.

Exact content can be tailored on request and in accordance with a teacher’s needs (for example, ensuring that topics and vocabulary recently covered at school are included within the various sessions).

The North East regional final of the Foreign Language Spellng Bee will take place on Wednesday 29th April 1-5pm at Newcastle University. We look forward to welcoming contestants, teachers and supporters from competing schools across the region!

Have you (or your pupils!) ever wondered about a career in translation? Are you curious about what being an interpreter might entail?

Routes into Languages North East are delighted to invite sixth-form, undergraduate and postgraduate students from across the region and beyond to Meet the Translators and Interpreters, a half-day programme comprising a keynote presentation from Director of the National Network for Interpreting Helen Campbell, followed by workshops and Q&A sessions with translators and interpreters from a diverse range of fields.

Students will have the opportunity to learn about the exciting opportunities within the fields of translation and interpreting – from studying to working – with the chance to speak to translators, interpreters, teaching staff and students currently studying Translation and Interpreting at university level.

Represented at the event will be:

* National Network for Interpreting *Newcastle University * Durham University * Northumbria University * The University of Sunderland * Ebiquity * Everyday Language Solutions * European Commission * GCHQ * and more!

Routes into Languages North East would like to thank the European Commission for their kind sponsorship of this event.

Here at Routes into Languages North East we recognise that it isn't just pupils who may need convincing about the many benefits of continued language study! We're on hand to support your school by delivering bespoke 'Why Study Languages?' presentations to parents, governors and school staff at Parents' Evenings, GCSE Options and Sixth Form Options Evenings throughout the school year.

What are the options?

- Parents’ Evening presentation for pupils and parents

- GCSE Option Evening presentation for pupils and parents

- Presentation to School SMT & Governors

We like to keep our presentations interactive, so for smaller groups we adopt a workshop-style with small group work and structured Q&A sessions. We are happy to fit into your department's strategy for motivating pupils and will do our best to fit your agenda.

Have we seen this presentation before?

We try to revamp our presentations every year, but yes, you may have heard some similar arguments before. However, our students are always enthused and convey their passion for languages with every word... and their personal experiences and reasons for learning languages are always very varied.

Does this cost a lot?

Due to our reduced funding we are now charging the small fee of £50 for a school visit. This covers the cost of two student ambassadors coming to your school for up to half a day. Should you require more than this then we will happily negotiate a price with you. We are sure you'll agree that this is excellent value for money.

We can tailor our visits to suit your school - no problem at all!

What are the options?

- Year Group assemblies

- Workshops for G&T pupils

- Classroom presentations

We like to keep our presentations interactive, so for smaller groups we adopt a workshop-style with small group work and structured Q&A sessions.

Which year group?

We think it helps most to work with pre-option groups (i.e. Year 8 in June, Year 9 before GCSE options, Year 11 before A1 choices, VI form before A2 choices and UCAS application). However, we are happy to fit into your department's strategy for motivating pupils and will do our best to fit your agenda.

We are particularly predisposed to attending schools who invite partner or feeder schools to the presentation.

Have we seen this presentation before?

We try to revamp our presentations every year, but yes, you may have heard some similar arguments before. However, our students are always enthused and convey their passion for languages with every word... and their personal experiences and reasons for learning languages are always very varied.

Does this cost a lot?

Due to our reduced funding we are now charging the small fee of £50 for a school visit. This covers the cost of two student ambassadors coming to your school for up to half a day. Should you require more than this then we will happily negotiate a price with you. We are sure you'll agree that this is excellent value for money.

Including screenings of some of the best world cinema releases and activities and discussions closely tied to the curriculum, in collaboration with the fantastic Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle our study days for students of Modern Foreign Languages are a brilliant way to bring language learning to life.  

Each event includes a full screening of a feature film, cinema based presentations and small group work supported by Routes into Languages student ambassadors. Teachers will also receive a comprehensive resource pack, full of activities to be used in the classroom.

The A Level Spanish event is centred around The Motorcycle Diaries and is a full-day event taking place from 10.00-15.00. Please visit https://www.tynesidecinema.co.uk/learn/14-19/mfl-study-days for full details. To register, please contact Anna Casey at anna.casey@tynesidecinema.co.uk.

You can also access a wide range of free resources from past MFL study days here.  

Including screenings of some of the best world cinema releases and activities and discussions closely tied to the curriculum, in collaboration with the fantastic Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle our study days for students of Modern Foreign Languages are a brilliant way to bring language learning to life.  

Each event includes a full screening of a feature film, cinema based presentations and small group work supported by Routes into Languages student ambassadors. Teachers will also receive a comprehensive resource pack, full of activities to be used in the classroom.

The A Level German event is centred around Goodbye Lenin and is a full-day event taking place from 10.00-15.00. Please visit https://www.tynesidecinema.co.uk/learn/14-19/mfl-study-days for full details. To register, please contact Anna Casey at anna.casey@tynesidecinema.co.uk.

You can also access a wide range of free resources from past MFL study days here.