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?
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.
Come on – follow me: let’s go on a tour of the classrooms and see what is going on.
Collaborative learning
Debate on the Olympics
Who wants to listen to a teacher all day? Who wants to listen to any one person all day? No one. We like to put students at the centre of learning. Part of this involves students learning to take responsibility for their own learning by learning to reflect on their own learning and provide feedback to each other. In this lesson, C1 level Ilias chairs a debate on the Olympics and provides incredibly useful feedback to his classmates: winning an argument depends not only on the quality of your argument, but also on… well Ilias explains it best:
Student centred learning
Transforming texts
Sophisticated word choices
Another B2 class read a story analysed the themes and then transformed it into a radio play. Transforming text from one genre into another involves subtle and sophisticated language choices: a great challenge for our ambitious young B2 students.
Mobile phones aren’t always bad
Mobile phones ‘get a bad press’ and no one would deny that addiction to smartphones is a problem for all of us. On the other hand, we can argue that the problem is not the technology, but how we use the technology. A big plus of mobile phones is that they allow instant access to a wealth of information. Research is a key 21st century skill that students need to master. At More Than English we know that traditional T/F or gap-fill reading exercises can be useful when it comes to measuring basic comprehension. However, we prefer to place more emphasis on students reading to research information which they then synthesise to back up their arguments in debates, presentations, reports and essays.
Shakespeare taster
B1 students face the challenge of Shakespeare head on
Can B1 students engage with Shakespeare? They can we our teacher Zoi. This class have been exploring the story, themes and characters in a simplified version of The Merchant of Venice.
Marrying the academic and the activities programmes
Silvana, 13, all the way from Mexico – artist and diarist
You know what they say: ‘practice makes perfect’. This idiom is never truer than in the case of language learning.
Here an A2 class are writing diaries. They learn vocabulary about an activity such as, in this case, tennis. They play tennis for real and so meet the vocabulary again. Finally, they do their diary and so meet the same language again. We know that meaningful repetition is at the heart of assimilating new language including vocabulary: summer school provides the perfect context for marrying learning in the classroom, with real world experience followed by further consolidation back in the classroom.
A picture paints a thousand words:
Such a busy morning of learning. But there was also Get Ahead in the afternoon including the Leadership final Model United Nations debate plus something called… Lip-sync in the evening. Want to know how our lovely students welcomed a small Italian boy wanting to join the show when he visited with his mum? You’ll just have to click the video to find out:
A day in the life of summer school: Tuesday 16th July, 2019
How proud we were today of our wonderful teenage guests from around the world. The school inspector checked all the welfare, safety and booking systems scrutinising also the teaching of a wide range of subjects from Art to Film Making to English. It’s true that he made lots of nice comments, but there’s one that really made us smile. He watched the interaction of the children together and simply could not believe how comfortable and relaxed the children were with each other after only 4 days. He was amazed at how well they were collaborating together and working as a team. That ladies and gentlemen, is a little summer school magic right before your eyes.
Here are a few highlights from the classrooms on inspection day:
Art
Our art students told the art teachers Shirley and Garry that they couldn’t draw. However, the lesson from the lesson with Shirley and Garry is that with the right training EVERYONE can do art.
Isn’t this work amazing?
Coming soon on the blog: Art Exhibtion
Film Making
So, what happens when the school inspector accidentally walks into the Film Making class? Well, no prizes for guessing that suddenly s/he finds himself/herself with a cameo role in the film… Here’s what happened:
The school inspector has not been the only person assessing More Than English summer school. Last night the students gave their opinions too in an online mini-review and here are the average ***star ratings*** out of 5 for each area:
Food ****
Staff ****
Bedroom ****
Core English ****
Get Ahead study options ****
Club Time activities ****
Evening Activities ****
Nationality Mix ****
In short, the average mark given by the students for every area was 4/5. Not bad: but still room for improvement.
Let’s look at some comments:
We asked: “How can we improve summer school”. The students said:
Evil summer school co-Director, David Meddows, responds to student feedback
More free-time
“I want some time to rest after sports”
“Another thing, in the evening we are really tired, the evening activities are too much tiring, doing sport after dinner it’s too much for us!”
“We don’t have free time , we always have to rush like during the day and at the night. Never more than 25 mins…”
“A Little Bit more freetime”
“Decrease the activities after dinner because we’ll be more tired and we won’t have enough energy to make the activities”
More Than English response >> you spoke, we listened:
David (co-Director) “It’s very important to have a lots of activities on summer school. We do not want students to be bored. However, if students are tooooo tired to do the activities, it not fun for them at all. So, we will cancel some (SOME) activity slots, sometimes (SOMETIMES) and use this time for “chilling and chatting and listening to music and maybe kicking a football or two” in the beautiful Moor Park garden. Thank you for the useful feedback!!”
The film at the cinema
“Apollo 11 was really boring… we would like to watch something more funny next time!”
“Don’t choose a documentary for go to cinema please.”
“I enjoyed the film Apollo 11”
More Than English response >> you spoke, we listened:
David (Director) “We chose this film because it marks a very important historical moment. Moreover, when mankind stepping onto the moon, mankind achieved the impossible. On summer school, we want to inspire students to believe that they can do more. Why? Because with motivation, effort, and working hard as a team they can achieve anything. I was delighted at breakfast the morning after the film to hear Finn from Germany and Tudor from Romania having a debate about whether the moon landing was real or not and marvelling at how scientists in the 1960s achieved so much with so little technology. Clearly, some students were inspired by and LOVED the film. At the same time, on summer school, we need to balance the fun side and the learning side (and combine the two together as much as possible). So, we have decided to show as soon as possible, a very English and a very funny film. Johnny English 2.
Wi-Fi
“Improve the WI-FI”
Week 1 student
David (Director) “Technology is a blessing, but it is also a
curse” (technology has advantages and disadvantages). One problem with
technology is that young and not so young people including me and including
parents are becoming addicted to social media. On summer school, we want
students to use their technology more wisely, for example, for research, and
instead to focus on face-to-face communication and development of social skills
and the development of ‘the art of conversation’ especially at mealtimes. For
this reason, we have limited and restricted students’ access to technology to
certain hotspots and to certain times of the day. Let’s do a digital detox
together and enjoy each other’s company more.
Speaking in English
“Some Spanish and Italian students speak only on their language”
Week 1 student
“Make sure that you separate the people from the same country to make sure that everybody is talking English. Thanks!”
Week 1 student
“Too many students of one country (7 people from Germany)”
Week 1 student
David (Director) “Interesting comments! In fact we have a super
strict policy limiting the number of bookings not only in terms of nationality
but also in terms of the number of speakers of each language (for example
Spanish is spoken in both Mexico and Spain). We do not accept more than 20% of
any language/nationality. This week we have a fewer Spanish speakers than usual
(only 9). For Italians we have 11, which is exactly 20%. This week we have 14
nationalities: Mexico, Canada, Greece, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic,
Germany, France, Italy, the Ukraine, Lebanon and Spain.
However, an English immersion environment is not only about
nationality mix. It’s about more than that. It’s about organisation and it’s
about how much responsibility students take for their own learning:
Organisation: we have also created House Teams
to mix the nationalities even more. We also consider nationality when we are
create class lists and when we allocate students to bedrooms.
Behaviour: we have done a lot of ‘tricks’ to make
sure that everyone speaks English. But we also need your help students. Students:
you need to make a decision yourself to make an
extra effort to spend more time with friends from other countries and to always
speak with people from country in English too.
Today, we spoke with some (not all) of the Spanish
and Italians and already they have started to make more effort to avoid
slipping into their own language. One boy wants to change his excursion from
Manchester to London and he knows that this will only be possible if he stops ‘slipping
into’ Spanish.
Moreover, Margarita (mum of 2, 41 years old) who is one of
our SUPER-HERO House Parents, has made a new system: not for every meal, but
for some meals. She has made a mixed nationality dining room seating plan.
Finally, HOUSE POINTS! If YOU students speak in your own language, you will make your team lose House Points. So, students! It’s your job: make sure your teammates do not speak in their own language because your team will lose points.
How do the Directors and Managers at More Than English feel about their new plan to take House Parents away from students who are not making enough effort to speak in English?
Here’s the moment the Management Team decided on this evil plan in the More The English management control centre. Can you recognise Claire and David?
Food
“There is too much meat at the menu. I know that there are meals for vegetarians, but it’s about the animals ?.
Week 1 student
David (Director): First of all, we’re really glad that the students appreciate the amazing food at More Than English. It’s something we’ve really worked hard on to get right. Secondly, we agree! It’s very important for the future of the planet that everyone reduces meat consumption. For that reason, we are edging slowly (moving slowly) to a more flexitarian menu. This means fewer meat focused meals. It also means that on some days, for some meals, everyone will eat a vegetarian meal. Well done for being concerned about the animals. Anyone who loves a pet such as a dog or a cat knows that animals are a lot like us: they want to be safe, they want to be loved, they all have different personalities and we all need to respect them and look after them.
Things you LOVE ?.
Finally, here are some of the things you said you LOVE ? about summer school:
“The garden”
Week 1 student
“Everything! It’s great here. The people are great, the activities and the lessons are great! Thank you for this wonderful summer school!”
Week 1 student
“Everything”
Week 1 student
“I like the Get Ahead activity (the one we do everyday)”
Week 1 student
“I love that all the staff are so nice and so kind I just love the that it fels like home, that we learn so much English that we do sports just everything and that all the kids come from other countries it’s just amazing I love it”
Week 1 student
“David and Claire are great people, and so is everyone in the staff!! :)”
Week 1 student
“All, it’s veeery good school”
Week 1 student
“Margarita”
Week 1 student
“Activities and nationality mix”
Week 1 student
“Margarita”
Week 1 student
“Afternoon activities and morning lessons.”
Week 1 student
“The Core English and Get Head options are great”
Week 1 student
“I really like the English lessons because the teachers are really nice and the classes are small.”
Week 1 student
“Everyone of More than English is really kind. It’s nice!”
Week 1 student
“You can meet a lot of people from other countries”
Week 1 student
“That I can improve my English through speaking with others; sport activities.”
Week 1 student
“Nearly everything”
Week 1 student
“The evening activities”
Week 1 student
“The people”
Week 1 student
“That you meet people of different places”
Week 1 student
Thank you for all your positive energy students! Let’s continue TOGETHER making the best summer school experience ever. Staff and students! When you think about, we the staff and you the students are one team. This is our summer school and we all want to make it the best. Let’s do it!
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.
At the start of every week students start their new 9 hour afternoon ‘Get Ahead’ study options. 9 hours might not sound like a lot of time. However, time limits make us more focused in our work. It’s incredible what we can achieve with focused minds and a looming deadline!Some examples of new study options starting today:
Get Ahead Art
Get Ahead Art started today. Our teacher Shirley, who has 40 years’ experience teaching art to high school students, has a fantastic technique that involves slowly building up works of art stage by stage in small steps. Keep reading future blogs… you will be AMAZED by the fantastic art work that your children will produce.
Also starting today:
Get Ahead Film Making
This project involves students working together to storyboard, shoot and edit a film. Next week we’ll be screening the final film in the cinema.
Club Time
After their study options students have time to relax doing a range of activities during Club Time (between 1630 and 1800)
Of course, in the middle of summer, it’s good to cool down in the pool:
Evening events
Now for a very different kind of ball game…After all that activity, it’s time to eat with your new friends:Day two is now over… time to relax, spend some time with House Parents choosing tomorrow’s activities and go to bed!
Anxious parents. Nervous students. Today started very early for young teenagers around the world from Mexico, Canada, Greece, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, France, Italy, the Ukraine, Lebanon and Spain.
As if by magic, suddenly these young people from different cultures and different places found themselves together in a strange new world.
What better way to break the ice than with balloons?
Some nice food can help you relax also and Niko from Greece especially liked Summer Pudding. Thank you chef Tom for cooking roast dinner to make everyone feel a little more at home.
Summer pudding: berry heaven
Well there’s not much point in traveling half way across the world to speak with people from your country, so students divided themselves into three mixed nationality teams: Harry Potter, Robin Hood and Sherlock Holmes.
Robin Hood, taking aim
With the ice broken the students were ready for some bad news. Tomorrow they have to wake up at:
Wakey wakey ?
Well they say that challenges bring people together. The journey on the plane was great. But the journey of friendship across borders is going to be the real source of memories that will last a life time. Welcome dear students to More Than English summer school at Moor Park, Ludlow. Your journey has just begun.
Buckle up for an adventure
International Summer School
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Kinesthetic, active learning
After all that activity, it’s time to eat with your new friends:
Day two is now over… time to relax, spend some time with House Parents choosing tomorrow’s activities and go to bed!
