All Saints Junior School Fleet Hampshire
"Our link came about through the Hampshire Millennium Project. It started in the usual way with fund raising, but it was the first visit to the Gambia by one of our teachers that really began to develop the links and resulted in our Learning Through Friendship Project. Up to date seven teachers have visited the Gambia to work with both pupils and staff at the school and the head teacher from Soma has spent a week with us. The links have been developed through music and reading. One teacher who was able to visit for a month helped with the development of music which resulted in the Soma school's first concert. Our most recent visit involved looking at how the African reading scheme we had raised money for was being used and how we could help with ideas. We are thrilled with how the children at both schools have benefited from this project. "
Fiona Brierley Southend High School for Girls
"Our link has been in existence for about a year through LINK Community Development www.lcd.org.uk. To date 6 members of staff have visited our link school in the Western Cape of South Africa, the Tutor Ndamase Senior Secondary School. For 4 teachers to go this year a grant was obtained from the Specialist School Trust (TIPD grant) which funded the trip. On this most recent visit we were worked with teachers and pupils in the school, even went on a coastal geography fieldtrip with pupils, and with the local education department on English biology and geography. The latter are responsible for the syllabuses and examinations locally and are an essential target group to develop educational practice in an area. We are hoping to take a group of students out in summer 2006. Plus plans are afoot to fund raise in order to bring a teacher (or 2) over to Britain to see our education process in action. Whilst out there we were lucky enough to see Nelson Mandela speak (he has such charisma) and meet him in person - a charming and wonderful man and a really amazing/ emotional experience-. I would recommend twinning/ linking to any school, it is easy, the rewards for everyone are fantastic and make us all better international citizens."
Gareth Hughes, Ysgol y Borth, Anglesey
Our School established a link with the Hlotse LEC Primary School, Hlotse, Leribe, Lesotho through the good offices of Dolen Cymru, The Wales Lesotho Link in 1996. More recently the link has come to life following two reciprocal visits in the year 2000 and 2004. The initial visit by the Head teacher and the second visit by the Deputy Head teacher both proved to be invaluable. The visits provided first hand opportunities to get to know our twin school, its pupils, staff and community. The reciprocal visits by the Head teacher and teacher from Hlotse LEC completed the circle and shed a new light and direct understanding of global citizenship to our school and its community. The reciprocal group visits arranged by Dolen Cymru provided invaluable guidance and practical support for the visits. The cluster arrangements allowed teachers to share the preparatory tasks, the travelling and the follow up activities. The visits were mostly funded by the British Council and the NTCW. We hope to make further grant applications for curriculum development activities in the near future
Gareth Morgans, Ysgol Nantgaredig School, Carmarth
"A cluster of 4 schools worked together with the support of Dolen Cymru/Wales Lesotho Link on setting up partnerships with schools in the mountainous kingdom of Lesotho in Africa. Initially we corresponded with our partner schools. In October 2004, through financial support from the British Council and BT I visited my partner school, ST JAMES PRIMARY SCHOOL, Mokhotlong, Lesotho. I spent ten wonderful and life-changing days living with one of the teachers and spending my time teaching and learning about Lesotho. In January a teacher from Lesotho came to my school and this had a fantastic effect on my school- it was an enriching experience. Working, as a network of local schools was wonderful- it enabled us to share experiences and resources, travel together and help each other with all the paperwork! The Lea's Adviser's support has been invaluable."
Phil Hillson, King John School, Essex
"King John School has enjoyed a growing partnership with Atlantis High School, near Cape Town, South Africa since September 2003. We are now at a point where there are joint curriculum projects in Maths, Science and Geography. There are also pupil to pupil links in Citizenship and through the Reading Club. We have a sponsorship scheme in place, allowing our staff and pupils to sponsor individual Atlantis learners for the year. This provides the school with some financial independence and also generated dialogue between the two parties. Staff have visited Atlantis and spent a week teaching in the school, and we are now working towards bringing some of their staff to England for a study tour. The key element for us is the term 'partnership' itself. We both have so much that we can learn from each other, be it at staff or pupil level."
Ellie Wright, Wallingford
"Our school are linking with a School in Durban, South Africa. I was fortunate enough to visit last October and teach students from our link school. Our CSLA students are now jointly planning a sports festival with students there to be held at the same time on May 17th. We are also setting up curriculum links in ICT, Geography and the Arts. The head teacher from the South African school visited us this month and attended the sports college conference. It is proving a fantastic opportunity for all involved. My CSLA students are learning a lot about their culture, and corresponding with the leaders abroad."
Joss Atkin Glashieburn Primary School
We, Glashieburn Primary School already have a link with a school in rural Ghana - Juliet Johnson school in Tafo. Primary 7 pupils have written pen-pal letters, two staff have visited the school, we have sent out important resources for the school, we have learnt about a different culture. We now support the school each month by having a 10p a month appeal over the past two years we have raised over £5000 for the school and have seen the new toilets they have built. A fantastic project which has been very worthwhile for everyone involved. I would certainly recommend twinning to any school that is thinking about it. Good Luck
kirsty-selby
I too am a geography teacher. We are linked with a school on S Africa through link community development www.lcd.org.uk [See our Get Started page on this website ] I was a global teacher, see web site, in the school for 5 weeks and have returned to the area 5 times to work some more, visit the school and new friends and to take friends. We took some kids to see Mandela himself-in London, last week and are just planning a week in July to support global citizenship...
Iain Baird
We have had a link with a school in Kenya for five years, a link with a school in Japan for three years. You need to be prepared to be patient with school links, things do not always happen at the speed that you might expect. It is essential for teachers (and students, if possible) to visit each other's school, it really does give a huge boost to the link. We have found that building a cluster of local schools in each area will also help keep the link going.
Joan - Worcestershire
Hi! I teach in a small village school in Worcestershire and we have a link with a school in Zambia. I was lucky enough to visit our sister school in February last year and we hosted one of their members of staff last summer. The link has been of enormous benefit to both schools in sharing ideas, children corresponding and enriching the curriculum. We now hope to plan a project that will also include schools in our local cluster. Meanwhile, a pupil in my class will visit Zambia with her family in March. This will be an excellent opportunity for the children of both schools to actually meet! We very much look forward to hearing about her experiences!
Jane Kilpatrick, West Sussex
We are at the start of the process of developing a partnership with a school in Ghana - Aboaboso School. We found the school via the British Council Windows on the World website (http://www.wotw.org.uk/) which has a very useful database. It's still early days but we've received a grant from the British Council for a reciprocal visit of staff this summer to help us get it kick-started and embedded in the curriculum.
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