Speak it! Write it!
Speak it! Write it! took place in 2009/10 at Gooseacre Primary School through the Creative Partnerships Sheffield Change programme.
Three creative practitioners worked with three class teachers to co-develop and co-deliver the school’s theme based curriculum.
The school identified that last year’s activities had impacted significantly on pupils’ speaking and listening skills. This year’s project aimed to explore the relationship between discussing ideas verbally and encouraging pupils to carry this thinking into their written work.
Creative partners were encouraged to apply their creative discipline. Alongside pupils and teachers they have explored how their creative medium can be used in the classroom.
A photographer used images to inspire pupils to link visual ideas to their writing. The Year 6 pupils developed their own characters, dressed up and took pictures (like the ones above).
Project objectives
How can we work together using creative techniques to inspire pupils to link the spoken word to their writing?
Who was involved?
Years 5 and 6.
Impact
“We dressed up, we wrote to everybody in the pictures... You can imagine better, it felt like you were there. I wrote to my brother, not my real brother but my brother in the picture, which was me.” (Year 6 pupil)
Pupils are continually given opportunities to lead their own learning and inform the direction of the lessons. All pictures are taken and edited by pupils working in pairs. Pupils are allowed to link things together and make their own choices.
Results
Comments
"If I feel like I need to let the children take things in a different way I am happy to do this now" (Teacher)
"It is interesting how children are starting to connect things together in a practical way, how the visual work is linking to and informing pupils attitude towards their literacy practices" (Researcher at Gooseacre)
"The creative work translated positively into formal written work"
Key Outcomes
- Teachers are more confident to use ICT creatively in the classroom;
- The importance of allowing pupils to connect areas of learning became apparent;
- Focus on co-construction, pupil voice and reflection, helped empower pupils to take more ownership of their written work. This project has developed the way teachers now approach planning, encouraging a more pupil-led method to learning and development.
