Once again Ridgeway said “Välkommen” to Scandinavian colleagues as we renewed our partnership with Chester University and the Linköping University of Sweden as part of the Swedish Youth Literature Programme.
Eight student teachers spent three days in school with us. They are studying to teach English in Sweden. Part of the programme is about promoting cultural links.
The teachers attended lots of classes around the school and ran activities in some English lessons. They also met with students and teachers, discussing similarities and differences between the education experience in Sweden and here in the UK.
Ridgeway students were most surprised that Swedish schools do not have either school uniforms or detentions. This led to an interesting discussion about the benefits and drawbacks of each. There was also a lot of talk of travel, speaking multiple languages and traditional Swedish celebrations.
Literacy is another key element of the programme. A group of 23 year 7 students attended a Norse Mythology, Heritage and Culture event at Chester Storyhouse, which involved the Swedish students retelling stories from Norse mythology.
Each story had a moral, which the year 7s were asked to identify. They were also given time to explore the library at the Storyhouse: some played a game of giant checkers, some interacted with the electronic screens and some took advantage of the peaceful surroundings to immerse themselves in a book.
