You may be working in one of the many schools that have already established successful links abroad. These schools are discovering the benefits of this type of partnership through:

- emails
- videoconferencing
- blogging
- VLEs

and through exchanging letters, shoeboxes, resources or even going on reciprocal visits.

Some schools have developed their partnerships to include joint curriculum projects where schools plan a unit of work together and children learn collaboratively with their peers abroad.

Not only do partnerships like these provide a real context for language learning but they also greatly enhance children’s understanding of life in other cultures. Importantly, they motivate children to build rewarding relationships outside their immediate circle of friend, both at home and abroad..

Questions

- How might a link to a school abroad enrich the language provision for your children?

- How might this link positively affect the wider school community?

- What memories do you have of international links from your own school experience?

Activity

With a colleague, make a list of at least 5 activities that you would like to try out with a partner school. Consider how the activities would help develop

a) language and
b) intercultural understanding.

• What would be the main challenges to setting up these activities?
• How would you overcome them?