All posts by More Than English team

Day 17 – Saturday, 27 July 2019

With Saturday came a change in the weather. Last couple of days were very hot, so students didn’t mind the refreshing lower temperatures.

Enjoying lunch

Lunch isn’t just about getting your energy back up. We want students to enjoy their food and maybe try something new.
There are always multiple options available, including those for special dietary requirements. 
So, did we manage to make lunch something students look forward to? No better way to find out than to ask them. Watch the video to see what they said.

Speak up

Communication is a very important skill for young people to develop. Not only does it help their self-esteem, but it’s also useful when making small talk, meeting new people and, one day, having a successful job interview.
Students in the speech making Get Ahead class are working hard to better their speaking competence.
Before they can start inspiring others, it’s important for them to learn from the best. They listened to some of Barack Obama’s best speeches and analysed a great piece from Dr. West, a famous social critic.

I am deeply suspicious of smartness. Let the phones be smart, let us be wise.

Dr. Cornell West
Watching and learning

Go pro with Get Ahead sport

Being excellent at sports isn’t something that you’re born with. Good, maybe. But not excellent.
It takes practice, and most importantly, expert coaching to really be the best. Today, our golf students worked on their swing technique under the careful eye of PGA coach Dan.

It’ll be a long walk to get that ball back… Good job, Moritz!

A student favourite

There’s nothing more fun than bouncing around on the ground and running into your friends without anyone getting hurt. That’s exactly what bubble football is for.
Take a look at some highlights in the video below.

(Music: bensound.com)

Day 16 – Friday, 26 July 2019

Yesterday, lots of students arrived at our school. After having a nice rest, they’re all excited to join the others – in learning, making new friends, and of course, having fun!

Food for thought

Learning English actively is always challenging, so students were very hungry by lunchtime. They were happy to enjoy the most British meal there is – fish and chips!

When eating lunch, students are mixed up by nationatilites. Not only does it encourage them to meet new people from all around the world, but it also means they’ll be speaking English all day long.

In fact, they were getting along so well that it made the dining room a rather noisy place, but we certainly didn’t mind!

Lunch = time to talk

New week, new Get Aheads

Third week started off with three fresh Get Ahead options – Shakespeare, Speech making, and Drama and Theatre.
Students could also pick some of the previously available options, such as Tennis, Football, and Golf.

Students studying in Shakespeare class
Shakespeare students starting their exciting journey into the world of Macbeth

Drama and theatre is all about practice and learning from your mistakes so our students got into action from day one.

Students practicing acting
Our expert drama teacher, Laura, is helping students learn the ropes of acting

Let’s relax for a bit

In the evening, students got a choice on what they wanted to do. If they felt sporty, they could play cricket or benchball. On the other hand, crafts are great if you just want to unwind with your friends and make something nice.

Students playing cricket
Taking a break from technology and learning a new sport
Arts and crafts at More Than English summer school
You can make a DIY bracelet in five minutes.

A short trip

Finally, it was time to go to the cinema. Last week, we watched Johnny English. We liked his humour, but when it’s really important you won’t talk to him – you’ll go to the new Men in Black film. So we did!

Off campus at the cinema

Day 15 – Thursday, 25 July 2019

Thursdays bring new blood life to More Than English summer school, but at the same time we have to say goodbye to departing students who have completed their journey.

This is how we say goodbye

Departures

A big group leaves today, after spending the last two weeks at summer school. We wish them the best and hope to see them again. Also, we would love to keep hearing from them.

Time to go.
Robert, Richard, Julian and Maximilian (aka Max) heading back home, in Germany.

Summer school is a great way to make new friends. Plus, it’s so easy for teenagers to stay in touch afterwards thanks to technology. These connections might not be active at all times, but they are not dormant either. They are on stand-by and who knows what they can enable these friends to do in the future. Belonging to a worldwide network of connected friends definitely sounds very empowering in our age.

Friends saying goodbye before departing from More Than English summer school.
Saying goodbye to a friend is never easy.

Arrivals

Lots of teenagers from nine countries joined us today. We welcome them all and wish them to make the most out of their experience at More Than English summer school.

Corina – a newcomer – meets Tudor. They are both from Romania.
Welcome to your new home for the next few weeks.

An exciting week lies ahead, with new Get Ahead options, clubs, activities, trips and excursions. Are you ready for week 3?

Day 14 – Wednesday, 24 July 2019 – Bath & Liverpool

Another Wednesday with two full-day excursions that help More Than English students get immersed in the English history, culture and language, as well as broaden their horizons.

Bath

Travelling is an amazing experience. Travelling with peers from other countries to Bath, a place with such a long history, going back more than two thousand years is a truly magical experience – a journey in time. The main attraction in Bath is the Roman Baths.

Don’t come for a bath here…

Incredible architecture that leaves you wondering how the Romans managed to build all this. Of course, there is some information about this inside the museum…

Outside the Roman Baths, back from our journey in time.

Liverpool

The other group visited the lively, modern, beautiful city of Liverpool. One of the most interesting places to visit is the Merseyside Maritime Museum, with an exhibition about the Titanic.

If you go to Liverpool you should definitely pay a visit to the Beatles Story.

Can you spot the John Lennon look-alike?

After an incredible day, it’s time to get back to base, because tomorrow is a big day, with departures and arrivals. Can’t wait!

Day 9 – Friday, 19 July 2019

The new week starts on Friday at More Than English summer school. do you find it weird? Well, perspective is everything, as Rory Sutherland says in his TED Talk. And besides, it doesn’t matter what day it is when you’re having so much fun every single day, right?

New Get Ahead options

Dance Choreography is now in session, allowing teenagers to move more and impress us a lot with their amazing dance moves.

Shakira beware.

Ceramics kicked off today and it couldn’t be more hands-on! The students started their journey in arts and crafts by making clay birds. Aren’t they lovely?

No birds were harmed in the making of this picture.

For big fans of tennis and golf, these options are still being offered during the second week as well. How could we stop a teenager from mastering the perfect golf shot anyway?

Bowling night

The night the pins met their doom…

This was an absolutely epic night for our students. Some of them had gone bowling before and some hadn’t. But even for the ones who had, this was the first time they went bowling together with other teenagers from 18 different countries. How cool is that?

More Than English strikes back.

Day 7 – Wednesday, 17 July 2019

Wednesday was excursion day. One group set out to London and another one to Manchester. That’s two excursions in parallel. Think of the logistics…

London

This is the biggest excursion of our summer school. Breakfast and lunch was already packed and we set off early for the big city.

A smaller group got dropped off at the British Museum. They really enjoyed it, especially the Egyptian mummies.

Hey, we’re at the British Museum!

The second and larger group went on a boat cruise on the river Thames. That was so much fun.

When you smile, the world smiles back at you.
Look, it’s St Paul’s Cathedral!

We jumped on the boat at Tower Bridge and got off at Westminster, next to the Parliament and Big Ben, which – unfortunately – is covered up for repairs. Oh well…

Tower Bridge is always a great photo opportunity.

We continued on foot, heading towards Piccadilly Circus, passing by 10 Downing str. No moving vans yet.

They did neither.

Eating out and doing shopping is always on the to-do list.

Product placement.

We walked for more than 7.5 miles. A healthy mind needs a healthy body, as the ancient Greeks said, right?

At Trafalgar Square – photobombed by a giant lion.

The flag on top of Buckingham Palace was up, which means that the Queen was in, but she was too busy to come and meet us. We waved anyway.

Royal waving.

Manchester

The group that went to Manchester enjoyed a more relaxed itinerary. Even though they probably got to walk less, they practised their penalty kicks at the Football Museum.

We are the champions!
A football fan’s dream.

There are other things one can see at Manchester though. It’s such a lovely city!

Outside the Manchester Cathedral.

You are now safe back at school and you can unfasten your seatbelt. There are more journeys up ahead, so get ready to do more.

Day 8 – Thursday, 18 July 2019

Trip to Ludlow

Our campus is near Ludlow, so why not pay it a visit? It’s such a beautiful town and it dates back to the 12th century. So much history! The weather was lovely and made our photos look even more amazing.

View from the Ludlow Castle tower

The view from the top of the Ludlow Castle tower is stunning!

See for yourself:

That’s a 360-degree photograph. You can move around, just like in Street View. By the way, we did not break that flag pole.

Ludlow is a lovely town, with many things to do, like visit the museum, eat locally produced meat, explore the open street market or go shopping in one of the local shops.

You can buy hats…

Flowers…

Cheese…

Mugs…

And, of course, you can buy ice-cream.

Getting back to school involved walking through the fields (we love green) while exercising one of our most fundamental freedoms.

The right to roam

If you see the yellow arrow, keep going. You have a right to do so.

Sailing

It’s a tough job, but someone has got to do it. When Dr Evil tried to destroy the world from his Base on the water, there were only four boys that could save the world: Sammy (Spain), Moritz (Germany), Tudor (Romania) and Volodomyr (Ukraine). The world needs more heroes like our More Than English boys.

New arrivals

We welcomed 12 teenagers from Czechia, France, Germany, Poland and Spain.

Parting students

We waved goodbye to Agnes and Emilian. We miss you!

Agnes in the middle, with Nele and Toscane.

We hope to see you again soon. But until then, enjoy the journey.

Day 4 – Sunday, 14 July 2019

Some great classroom activities happened today. Passionate teachers and engaged students is a very good mix.

Kinesthetic, active learning
Exceptional food is of course always an excellent catalyst for learning.

Today’s afternoon activity was special: A trip to Hereford, with its gorgeous cathedral and a very old world map (mapa mundi), dating from the 1290s!

Outside the Hereford Cathedral

And who doesn’t love roasting marshmallows by the campfire?

Hmmmm marshmallows…

Goodnight everyone!

Day 3 – Saturday, 13 July 2019

Saturday is just as jam-packed as any weekday at More Than English.

After breakfast and the daily classes, our students engaged in a variety of activities, in and out of the classroom, that train both the mind and the body.

Both of which need energy in order to work, so good food is always a priority.

Today, we made our first trip off-campus to go to the cinema and watch the Apollo 11 documentary. On July 20 we celebrate 50 years since this incredible human achievement – the first time a human walked on the Moon. We celebrate the people who made this dream come true through ingenuity, perseverance and collaboration and we are certain that our students were inspired and have set their own great goals in life. At More Than English, we are dedicated to helping them dream big and achieve their goals in life – no matter how big.