Encouraging children in Kindergarten and primary to use English in free play, through stories, shared good practice and free resources, from the Ready Steady Play Erasmus+ project.

Plenary

The plenary will be given by the project coordinators Jo Jackson (Finland), Yvonne Scherphof (the Netherlands) and Fran Seftel (Portugal). Their schools have been involved in an Erasmus+ partnership for three years. They will show how their stories about four monsters have had an enormous impact on the way they are teaching English and the motivation for English language learning among the 4-7 year old pupils and their teachers.

Workshops

Workshops for kindergarten as well as primary school teachers will be given by Anita Demitroff (Spain) and Pedro Cunha (Portugal). Anita is an EFL teacher and trainer who has specialised in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) with young learners. She will present two sessions, one for Kindergarten teachers and one for primary teachers, about how to integrate English and other areas like science, art and knowledge of the world (CLIL).
Pedro Cunha (Portugal), is a music teacher at the Colégio do Ave and a teacher trainer. He will present a session for Kindergarten and primary teachers on how to integrate music, movement and English. His session will be repeated.

Anita Demitroff

1. English and Beyond for Early Years

A story, a game, a song and a craft: that's the format for many English classes in Pre-School. This workshop provides alternatives so that the English session echoes what is being done in the other parts of the curriculum: motor skills, exploration of our environment, art, music and even cross-curricular projects, from penguins to the Solar System. By connecting with the rest of their school programme, we can make the content in English more relevant and engaging. We can also start to build the competences learners will need for Primary and beyond.

2. Making Connections in the Primary English Classroom

Bringing in content from other subjects can be justified for so many reasons. We can reach all kinds of learners, from the musical to the analyical to the artisitic. We can reinforce competences, and not just in communication and language. Indeed, children adore the hands-on aspect of other subjects, as an alternative to textbooks and worksheets. And, by using the language in a functional way, it feels more real and accessible. We will try out a wide range of tried and tested activities to see if they may work for you.

Pedro Filipe Cunha

3. Body Orchestra. Sound and Movement Inside Me ( this workshop will be repeated)

How does our body sound? What sounds and music do we embrace in our stories? What silences do we choose for our body movements? We propose, through the body, an exploration of sounds and silences. Of tensions and relaxation. From the expected to the surprising. The Body Orchestra.

Practical ideas

Teachers will come away with lots of practical ideas to apply in their kindergarten and primary school classrooms and will have the opportunity to meet colleagues from Portugal and other countries.
For more information about the project, have a look at https://playingeverafterblog.wordpress.com/ and our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/readysteadyplay/