‘Week of Languages’ helps pupils discover the joy of learning

From Tuesday 26 September to Friday 29 September, the Modern Languages Department at the Senior School ran a week-long celebration of Languages, to mark the ‘Day of European Languages’ held on Tuesday 26 September. 

Read on to find out exactly what went on... 

On Tuesday, the School welcomed guest speaker and HSOG Governor, Mr Guy Worthington, to Assembly to talk about his experiences of learning a foreign language. Across lunchtime and in the afternoon, various classes had the opportunity to participate in diverse Foreign Language activities such as Chinese Water Calligraphy, constructing Eiffel Towers from marshmallows and spaghetti, and analysing Picasso's Guernica painting, among others. 

On Wednesday, visitors from Glasgow Confucius Centre at the University of Glasgow ran workshops for painting Chinese lanterns and paint-blowing art. Pupils were also given the opportunity to dress in traditional Chinese costumes. These activities were the perfect way for pupils to celebrate the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. 

Thursday saw the arrival of the keenly-anticipated ‘Modern Languages' Bake Off’ with competitors fighting it out to produce the tastiest Dulce de Leche cake following a Spanish recipe. The overall winner was Tanisha (S3), Alessia (S1) came in second place and Juliette (S1) was third, leaving the teachers scrambling to avoid the dreaded wooden spoon! During Assembly, various teachers introduced the lyrics for a rousing whole Senior School rendition of 'Frère Jacques' in multiple languages. The resulting canon was memorable! 

The week built to a crescendo with the ‘Eurovision Song Contest 2023 (Anniesland version)’ taking place in the Assembly Hall at lunchtime on Friday. Over the last couple of weeks, brave souls submitted videos of themselves singing along to songs in a language other than English, with audience members called upon to decide who was to be crowned the overall champion! Huge congratulations go to Viktoria (S2) who took the crown with a fantastic performance of the Polish song, ‘Miłość w Zakopanem’. 

The ‘Week of Languages’ organised by the Modern Languages Department was a resounding success and was much-loved by pupils and teachers alike, helping to spread the joy of learning foreign languages to all!