UK winners of this year’s European Award for Languages have shown that language teachers are increasingly looking outside of the language department for ways to motivate young learners. Winning projects made innovative cross-curricular links with departments including Drama, geography, history and citizenship to show students the relevance of languages to all aspects of life.

Winners of the prestigious Europe-wide award – which was presented yesterday in Bristol by languages advocate Baroness Coussins and Colourful Radio broadcaster Henry Bonsu – come from all educational sectors across England and Scotland.

One Scottish primary school combined languages with literacy by teaming up with a partner school in France to write an adventure story in French and English, while an innovative project from the International Learning and Research Centre used links with drama and literacy to get children exploring the similarities and difference between languages.

Meanwhile, projects in Secondary schools included joining up with the drama and geography departments to recreate the journey of the Orient Express in French; working with partner schools in Russia and Germany to explore aspects of history and citizenship; linking with businesses and HE to create a simulated trade fair in French and German; and getting the whole of Year 7 singing their hearts out in a Spanish song contest!