South East

The Oxford German Olympiad is a new national contest run by the Oxford German Network and is open to all learners of German from year 7-13 inclusive.

The fairy tales compiled and published by the Brothers Grimm are some of the best known and widely read stories in the word. 2012 see the two hundredth anniversary of their publication and the Oxford German Network is celebrating this jubilee with a Grimm-themed competition.

We invite buddying storytellers, writers and film-makers to seek inspiration in the Grimms' tales. From comic strips to short films, newspaper articles to contemporary re-tellings, there is a range of competition tasks, with full information on the Network's website: www.oxford-german-network.ox.ac.uk/olympiad.

Entries are by email (postal entries will not be accepted) and will be accepted until noon on Friday 22nd March, 2013. Entry forms can be downloaded here. All entrants will receive a certificate and winners will be invited to an awards ceremony at the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, in 2013.

Students should choose from one of four Grimm tales: ‘Hänsel und Gretel’, ‘Schneewittchen’, ‘Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten’ and ‘Das tapfere Schneiderlein’. Students may enter in one of the following categories, either individually or in groups of two to four:

Years 7-9

Re-write the tale as a comic strip, with German speech bubbles (1 side of A4)

Represent the tale visually (a drawing or painting including some German text - any format, but must be sent electronically)

Make a short film of the tale (in German, up to 3 minutes)

Years 10-11

Re-tell the tale from one character's perspective (in German, word limit of 200-300 words)

Tell the story or one episode from it in the form of a newspaper report (in German, word limit of 200-300 words)

Make a short film of the tale (in German, up to 5 minutes)

Years 12-13

Write a contemporary version of the tale (in German, word limit 300-400 words)

Re-write the ending of the tale (in German, word limit 200-300 words)

Make a short film of the tale (in German, up to 5 minutes)

Go Global Portsmouth is a Festival of Languages which incorporates all performing arts with an international twist. Subjects involved in this project are Dance, Music and Foreign Languages. The aim is to promote culture and language through the arts. giving Year 6 and 7 students the opportunity to participate in a celebration of multiculturalism across the city.

We are planning a day of workshops for the students (in the morning), a final rehearsal of the acts in the afternoon and two final performances in the evening for families, local media and Portsmouth VIPs including the Mayor of Portsmouth.

Entry requirements: a minimum of one act to a maximum of two acts (acts can be solos, duos, trios, bands, groups, choirs, dance groups etc e.g. 4 students performing La Bamba live, 10 students dancing a Sirtaki). Groups cannot be bigger than 12 and only students from Portsmouth schools can enter.

You can register for this event via the link below and can also email goglobalportsmouth@yahoo.co.uk if you have any queries.

A carousel-style morning of practical activities for a class of visiting Key Stage 2 pupils from a local school. The focus will be on the Intercultural Understanding strand of the KS2 Framework for Languages with second year Primary teaching undergraduate students leading the sessions for the pupils.

The Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages at Oxford University is looking for budding film enthusiasts in Years 10-11 and 12-13 to show their imaginative engagement with the world of French cinema. To enter the competition, students in each age group are asked to re-write the ending of a film in no more than 1500 words (in English). The films for 2013 are:

Years 10-11: Comme une image, dir. Agnès Jaoui (2004)
Years 12-13: Un air de famille, dir. Cédric Klapisch (1996)

A first prize of £100 will be awarded to the winning student in each age group, with runner-up prizes of £25. The teacher of each winning student will be offered free attendance at the Sir Robert Taylor Society Conference (see http://sirroberttaylor.wordpress.com). For full details about entering the competition, see http://www.mod-langs.ox.ac.uk/film_comp. The French film competition is very grateful for the generosity of the French Embassy in London, Routes into Languages South and the Sir Robert Taylor Society.

Entrants should register using the link below. Queries should be sent to the following address: french.essay@mod-langs.ox.ac.uk

This is an opportunity for Portsmouth school students in years 7 and 8 to visit the University of Portsmouth and find out more about different languages and cultures. Current university language students will be on hand to talk about what language learning at uni is like and they will also discuss the different opportunities language learning has offered them. There will also be a chance to meet International students based at the university and to discover more about their culture and the history of their home country.

This is currently an invitation-only event.

An event for Year 9 students to emphasise the importance of languages in the global economy. There will be workshops led by employers (including the Goethe Institut, European Commission and BBC Monitoring) to highlight the varied use of languages and the skills that learning a language has given them. Lunch with student ambassadors will be offered, along with a chance to hear about undergraduates' experiences during their work placements abroad as part of their courses. Also included will be a taster session in commonly taught language.

Please note that places are limited to 10 per school and a booking form will need to be completed.

The event is aimed at Year 10 and 11 students of Spanish.  It will examine how Mexicans celebrate the Day of the Dead, focusing on traditions, gastronomy and music.  It will involve hands-on activities such as paper cutting and the setting up of an altar celebrating the dead.  The sessions will be in Spanish and lead by Karen Kruse, Subject Co-ordinator for Spanish. The aim of the day is to encourage students to study Modern Languages at school and university.

Our national Foreign Languages Spelling Bee returns this year to help get year 7 students buzzing about languages! The compeition will launch officially on 26th September to coincide with the European Day of Languages. Deadlines for each stage of the competition are listed below:

Class stage (held in school) - results to be submitted by 21st December 2012;

School stage (held in school) - results to be submitted by 15th February 2013;

Regional final (will be held at the University of Brighton) - date to be confirmed;

National final (will be held at Anglia Ruskin University) - Friday 5th July 2013.

We also have a dedicated Spelling Bee website at www.flspellingbee.co.uk where you can register to take part and find out all the information you need, including this year's teachers' pack (available shortly). You can also find details about our new Spelling Bee apps as well as answers to frequently asked questions.

Any technical questions (e.g. problems registering or using the website) should be sent to info@flspellingbee.co.uk. All other questions and comments can be sent to c.l.forder@brighton.ac.uk.

Happy spelling!

A day of talks, activities and language taster sessions for pupils from Year 8/9 to encourage continued language learning at GCSE level by showing the importance of languages in the workplace.

An after school session (4-6pm) for Year 11/12 to give an insight into the study of a language at University by means of a short lecture. To be followed by a taster language session in a more unusual language (eg Chinese, Japanese) and the opportunity to talk with staff about studying a language at University.