How can we help young people to develop their literacy and numeracy skills throughout their Summer Arts College Experience?

The Art of Embedding Literacy and Numeracy into SAC: Top Tips for maximising learning during Summer Arts College (SAC) Facilitator: Sally Brown

• Look for opportunities to embed literacy and numeracy within all SAC activities:

–        Planning the celebration event – writing invitations, working out the timings for performances, allocating space for exhibits, writing press releases.

–        Working out credits and which books can be bought on MyChoice.

–        Reviewing the day – orally and sometimes in writing, using blogs and social networking sites.

–        Have the newspaper available to read/talk about over lunch/during breaks.

–        Planning trips and visits – phoning venues, giving directions, working out how to get there and back, travel costs, finding out about venues on the web.

• Utilise the existing structure/ requirements of the Arts Award (AA), which has been purposefully developed to encourage learning:

–        Young people have to record what they have learnt (this is an AA requirement for Bronze and Silver): encourage them to write reflections; magazine articles about their hero/heroine; explain the dimensions/ ideas behind their artwork.

–        Encourage young people to label their photos/ art pieces (this will help the AA assessor and moderator read and understand a portfolio more clearly).

• Use I.T: internet searches, using rhyming dictionaries either on the computer (e.g.  http://www.rhymezone.com/ ) or download the rhymezone app.
• Use lots of flipcharts to mind map and write down key words and phrases.  Revisit these to reinforce learning.
• Develop awareness of different sorts of language – e.g. text speak versus standard English spelling.

How can we help young people to develop their literacy and numeracy skills throughout their Summer Arts College Experience?

The Art of Embedding Literacy and Numeracy into SAC: Top Tips for maximising learning during Summer Arts College (SAC) Facilitator: Sally Brown

Look for natural links between the art form and literacy/numeracy:

–        Music and lyric writing (see TuneIn and Digital Music on the Enrichment College).

–        Rap as a starting point to explore lyrics and poetry.

–        Work out costs of materials, i.e. to make a sculpture.

–        Work out cost of hiring versus buying equipment for a music event.

–        Use words, letters and numbers to create dance pieces (see Now Move on the Enrichment College).

–        Explore use of letters and words in Islamic art (see Alphabet Words and Letters on the Enrichment College).

–        Demonstrate ideas for animating words (see’ Give me a Word’ in Poetry in Motion).

–        Storyboarding – with timings of shot, indication of what characters will do and say.