Kent


<p>The modern world is changing fast &#8211; so to give lessons that will genuinely inspire and inform you have to keep adapting &#8211; and be imaginative. This is the approach taken by Emma Snow, Head of English, at <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Solefield School (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.solefieldschool.org" target="_blank">Solefield School</a>. </p>



<p>What&#8217;s more, while research suggests that boys can fall behind girls at this age when it comes to English &#8211; this school is definitely proving that boys can love, and excel in, this subject just as much. Here, 5 Senior Students from Solefield School share their story:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Charlie&nbsp;(Year 6)&nbsp;tells us about class activities:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://kent.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-74957" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-2-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>Mrs Snow, our English teacher, makes English so much fun and exciting by letting us do activities where we can imitate the real world. For example, when we were studying&nbsp;<em>Macbeth</em>, we did a BBC news report about the battle and the events that occurred&nbsp;at&nbsp;that time. It was great fun and I really got into being a news reporter. </p>



<p>Another time, we were practising creative writing using Goldilocks and the three bears as an example, but Goldilocks gets arrested. I put a&nbsp;blond&nbsp;wig on to pretend to be Goldilocks and I was interrogated by the rest of class as if they were police officers&nbsp;(as I was guilty of trespassing and damaging property).&nbsp;That was a great lesson on reported speech!&nbsp;</p>



<p>On another occasion, when we had just finished a piece of writing (we were doing a leaflet about our school), we decided to do&nbsp;peer evaluation in the form of&nbsp;&#8216;Year Six Has Got Talent&#8217;&nbsp;&#8211; in order for us to really focus on how to improve our persuasive writing. In our simulation, the paragraphs were the contestants and there were three judges: two friendly, positive ones&nbsp;(who gave lots of encouragement and some constructive criticism), and one who was Simon Cowell – who harshly criticised it – and this made us laugh out loud. All these examples are what make our lessons exciting and fun, whilst we learn and develop our skills. My personal favourite was being a BBC reporter and that activity was when I first started to really enjoy formal writing.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Jonathan&nbsp;(Year 7) speaks&nbsp;about&nbsp;writing for a&nbsp;wider audience:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1500" src="https://kent.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-74958" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-525x525.jpg 525w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-500x500.jpg 500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-4-1100x1100.jpg 1100w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>One thing that has motivated me is getting my writing published.&nbsp;When I first realised that my work was going to be published in a genuine magazine&nbsp;(<em>Mind’s Eye Prep</em>), I was really excited. We had been writing magazine articles to practise for our Common Entrance exams and I had decided to write one about my experience with Alopecia. </p>



<p>I expected, at most,&nbsp;just&nbsp;a couple of classmates to take interest in my work but now – knowing that hundreds, possibly thousands, of people will read my article – I am awestruck. I never thought I would be good at English, let alone have my writing read by loads of people. Once Mrs Snow had read my article, she recommended that I submit it to&nbsp;<em>BBC Young Reporters</em>. A couple of days later, my mother got an email explaining that I had been shortlisted for the competition. So, there is a chance that I will be turning my article into a BBC documentary.&nbsp;Pretty cool!&nbsp;</p>



<p>Up to Year 5, I really struggled with English. My handwriting was really&nbsp;terrible&nbsp;and I didn’t really know how to write a story. It was around that time that I discovered that I have dyslexia. However, since then I have found my confidence for writing. Last year,&nbsp;I entered a&nbsp;<em>Young Writer’s</em>&nbsp;competition&nbsp;entitled&nbsp;<em>‘Unsolved’</em>&nbsp;and I was happily surprised when I found out that I was one of the winners&nbsp;(see the photograph of me with my cheque and trophy).&nbsp;So,&nbsp;I might have dyslexia, but I think this proves that if you dedicate yourself to something, anything is possible.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Dara&nbsp;(Year 6)&nbsp;speaks about debating:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://kent.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-74961" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>The Debating Club here at Solefield is challenging, hardworking and extremely good fun. I have to admit, one of the most enjoyable parts in Debating Club is brainstorming wonderful ideas about the motion. As the opposing team states a strong point, I feel anxious but&nbsp;am&nbsp;loving the adrenalin. Nothing beats the feeling of strongly rebutting your opponent’s points and &#8211; in the corner of your eye – seeing their smugness disappear whilst your teammates punch the air.</p>



<p>We have so many young debaters here at Solefield School that the teachers had to start running a second club. I attend one of the clubs as a debater, and the other as a ‘mentor’ for the newcomers. Through my debating experience, I have learnt to use more sophisticated vocabulary and evaluative adverbs. </p>



<p>I have also learned to speak with conviction and confidence. One of the main reasons why I joined the Debating Club is because I wanted people to hear my arguments and opinions. However, in addition to this, I have massively improved my English. I have never felt more motivated to become knowledgeable and articulate, so that I can be the best debater that I can possibly be.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Nico&nbsp;(Year 8)&nbsp;speaks about&nbsp;writing for a real purpose:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://kent.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-74960" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>During Year 7, we were challenged to write a letter to the Headmistress of our school, trying to persuade her to do something that we believed in. I chose to write a persuasive letter about why ‘snow days’ should go ahead even though there is potential for lessons to continue virtually. </p>



<p>I used persuasive techniques and powerful points to try&nbsp;to&nbsp;earn our potential snow day. After reading my letter, she was so convinced that she allowed us to have a day of snow activities rather than virtual learning&nbsp;on the first day of a significant snowfall. It was exhilarating for me once that snow&nbsp;day&nbsp;actually happened.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I think all the boys at our school realised the power of persuasive letter writing that day, too!&nbsp;It has inspired me to do more persuasive writing as I feel I can actually achieve something with my writing. This year, when the current Year 7 boys were studying persuasive writing, I was shocked to find out that my piece was being used as WAGOLL (What A Good One Looks Like –&nbsp;a&nbsp;model piece). I felt extremely proud and accomplished.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Arthur (Year 8) speaks about being&nbsp;a&nbsp;mentor&nbsp;for&nbsp;younger students:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://kent.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-74959" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/kent/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/06/solefield-school-3-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>When I was&nbsp;in&nbsp;Year 5, I participated in my first debate and ever since then I have been completely committed to the Debating Club. I think the reason for this was how impressive the older students were: the way they spoke and the intelligence in their arguments made me want to improve my own skills. </p>



<p>By watching them in action, I learned how to speak articulately and with conviction.&nbsp;Their willingness to speak in front of everyone inspired me to pay more attention to them and&nbsp;to&nbsp;absorb as many skills as I could.&nbsp;Now I’m in Year 8 myself and I have taken their place.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I cannot be sure the younger boys are as inspired by me, but I hope so. I have been mentoring the Year 5s this year and I can tell that it is working; they are improving&nbsp;far&nbsp;more rapidly than I had expected. It seems to me that having a student role model is a very effective way to learn.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.solefieldschool.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="solefieldschool.org (opens in a new tab)"><em>solefieldschool.org</em></a></p>


How to make English exciting and relevant for pupils today!

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