Training Trainee Teachers

Last week I had the joy of working with year two and three pupils training to become primary and early years teachers at the University of the West of England in Bristol. The day started fresh and cold with a brief introduction by myself and the diverse projects I've been lucky to run; highlighting that in many ways I am in a very similar position to themselves with respect to learning the craft of working with primary aged pupils.

After initially gathering an understanding of their expectations of the session and what they understood the concept of Storywalks to be, we then journeyed into the wild woods of Bristol in both heart and mind, straddling the line between fact and fiction as Storywalks can do so very well.

I had prepped up two tales, one for the morning and another for the afternoon, each with different strengths and target audiences, but we started with The Forest Tree King and found ourselves comparing our favourite leaves on the woodland floor just five minutes from the UWE campus.

I insisted that we take it in turns to read the narrative and as they were all training to become teachers I knew there would be no shortage of competent readers. Usually the first chapter to this tale is read by myself or the leading teacher then the pupils take it in turns reading to their small group so all get a chance to read.

During the narrative I was also able to reflect on the language used inside the story, how one character could use mathematical words like symmetrical and balanced while and another could use translucent. There was much debate within the story on the winner of each round followed by an analysis of why this task was useful learning.

On return to the classroom on both morning and afternoon sessions we pulled the story apart in much the same way I do with KS1 and KS2 pupils, followed by a work shop developing new characters and story to sew into the storyline. There was also a discussion on how this could and should be integrated into current schemes of work rather than be a modular add on.

There was also a debate about outdoor learning really suiting specific learner profiles with anecdotal evidence of individual pupils who'd hardly uttered in class but once outside they really blossomed as if the physicality of the classroom environment was a learning inhibitor. I wonder if step changes were made to their education after this blossoming or did the classroom suppress them once again when back inside?

As educators I believe we must try to observe and quantify this if it's at all possible and it also questions what research has already  been garnered by Forest Schools or similar in this area.

The day was especially interesting to me and has really engaged a new depth of thought regarding the possible potential of Storywalks in education. I was honoured to be invited to the University and champion both Storywalks and my literacy practice, it was great to see how the pupils were itching to integrate these works somehow into their future practice and I really hope to facilitate this in the future.

Talking Storywalks at Taunton CICCIC

Last night I was asked by the Somerset Art Galleries Trust (SAGT) to do a talk about myself as an artist and current practice. The event was at Taunton's Creative Innovation Centre or CICCIC for short and is a welcome hive of creativity within our county town.

Initially I talked about Storywalks and talked far too quickly about something which is simple but does take time for people to ingest. I then moved on to the Coleridge Way projects covering two of the three elements and completely forgetting the third! So many projects, so much going on in my mind - which to share first?

One element which wasn't forgotten was the QR code poetry of which the final tiles were installed in late September this year. This project involved poetry written by local pupils which I turned into QR Codes then laser etched them onto slate and finally installed on finger posts along the trail. In the image above Martin Joiner is scanning a QR code with his mobile phone and revealing a single poem from one pupil.

More about these from The Coleridge Way blog here.

The final section of my talk was about the Poetry Pin Project, which again revolves around digitally placing text to be electronically revealed using the smart phone browser. It uses the same system as the Storywalk's engine to power it, responding to where you are located as to whether you can read the poetry or not. After a while of talking about this I was interrupted with the words 'So can we have a poem then please?'

Of course I said yes and promptly pulled out my pink file and read two of my Poetry Pin Poems.

This poem sums up the autonomy of the project and even though it's financed by EDF Energy, they have no say over the content.

The Firm

Cut the ribbon
Prime the reactor
Pull the rods with the Chinese contractors
All smiles and shine to the chain reaction
Atomic construction policy distraction
Ramp it up till it's critical
Balancing parameters with the theoretical
Systems run and systems set
Black marks in history are hard to forget

So who'll be the first to charge their phone
Switch on the light Hoover the home
Who'll be the first to suck on this dial
Drink from the elixir of Frankenstein's vial

Who'll be the one who clocks up the bill
Plugs in their heater when the night turns to chill
Who'll despair when the future arrives
Energy poverty - pounds in the eyes

16 billion to prime this machine
But the profits oh the profits are far from lean

And we need this, we need this
For the dying and the poor
For the little old lady with white wellies by the door
For the child born early in the plastic box
For the factories and museums and the charity shops

For the tired
For the cold
For the vulnerable
For the old
For the good
For the many
For the pious
(If there are any)
For the darkness
For the ride
For the slowly rising tide
For the frail
For the infirm
And for the directors of this firm

I feel that when I lead any project it's important to get stuck in with whatever task I am asking people to do, and for the Poetry Pin Project I realised early on that if I am going to ask people to walk the trail and post site specific poetry I should do it myself.

Just before the end of the evening I set a challenge to each of the audience in turn with my Teasing Tags, the challenge goes a little like this.

You are welcome to take a teasing tag, but only on one condition, thatif you do, then you can only read it when you have forgotten you ever had it!

All but one accepted the challenge and above is Jenni Dutton revealing hers, not because she had forgotten, but more because she was being mischievous! But then the whole thing is playful and bending the rules is certainly part of that.

I wrapped up the evening with a simple message from one of my teasing tags.

Halsway Manor and Tales from the Trees

Josh Wedderkopp (Lead Teacher) Clare Viner (Storyteller) and Rebekah West (Quantock Ranger)

Sometimes events roll past so fast that it's tricky to capture all the fabulous things which are going on. Mid October saw the culmination of part one of Stogumber and Crowcombe Primary Schools with Storyteller Clare Viner.

The event was the culmination of several walks on the Quantocks with Quantock ranger Rebekah West and Clare Viner. 

They walked several routes but each focused on a different tree and a different story in the Quantock hills. So a tale about Sir Gwain and the Green Knight was told beneath a Holly tree and The Elder Mother story beneath an Elder tree.

The pupils were only told the stories once but tasked with orally retelling them at Halsway manor for this special event. They had no script nor props beyond a simple token medallion from their mother trees which meant each pupil needed to learn the bones of their story off my heart. 

A big emphasis was put on embellishment of each tale with the pupils adding descriptions in their own voices, a brilliant process which generates personal ownership of their tale.

On the night Clare was also signing copies of her book also called 'The Emerald Dragon' with many of these stories being drawn from the Quantocks and local area. For the pupils not only did they have some great stories to tell, but they also had Josh, Clare (and a little of me) guiding and encouraging them to become storytellers in their own right.

On the evening all the children really rose to the task with plenty of parents and helpers cramming into the oak panelled rooms for the evening.

The event was also recored in audio for 10Radio with the pupils taking direct control of the interviews, it is due to be aired sometime in the new year. 

 

After Christmas I will be stepping up to the plate with Josh Wedderkopp who won the SHINE Trust award to pilot storywalks earlier this year. Our plan is to take these tales and task the pupils with tethering them to the Quantocks hills using the Storywalk Engine and in the process gather some great learning from geography to literacy along the way.

But in the mean time I think we should celebrate the success of all the pupils at the Halsway Storytelling event, they were superb.

The Crowcombe and Stogumber School blog which has more detail of the storywalks with their school can be read here.

http://www.crowcombeandstogumberprimaryschools.co.uk/look-what-we-did1/news/storywalks-quantocks/