Jan Lewandowski

Pam Banks, Luton’s PML co-ordinator, had already asked me to present some of the activities that I had done at CILT Central London RSG at Luton’s first RSG back in November, so this was a return visit for me to the Bedfordshire RSG.

There was a very large turn-out for this session on ‘Big Books and Stories’. I showed them some electronic ‘big book’ resources including ‘Eric a Faim’ from Bolton LA, a variation on ‘the Very Hungry Caterpillar’ (La Chenille qui fait des Trous’).

I read a story or two including ‘Va t’en Grand Monstre Vert’ by Ed Emberley and domoed some extension activities that can be done with this very popular book. We talked about choosing and using books and I took along about 60 books (not my whole collection!) for people to peruse and assess for suitability.

See the synopsis here:

“We had a full room of thirty-four people for this workshop. Before Jan began her presentation, Jenny Dempsey from the Luton Chamber of Commerce gave us some very useful information about free European Union materials she can supply to local schools. Jan Lewandowski had brought an enormous number of books in French for us to look at, and everyone enjoyed hearing some of the stories and thinking about how they could be used in class. There were some old favourites as well as some unfamiliar titles, and Jan sent us away with a comprehensive list of suppliers and websites as well as notes about the session. “Pam Banks

There have been times in my teaching career when I’ve wished I could play a musical instrument or could at least be certain I was singing in tune, nevertheless I’ve always been an enthusiast for using songs in my classroom even if I’ve had to rely on cassettes or CDs for backup. There are a lot more really good song packages out there now that primary languages are taking off but I can still remember all the words from ‘Un kilo de Chansons’ by Jasper Kay and if I can remember the words I know my pupils also retained them. Sometimes I bump into former pupils and they remind me of the ’sing songs’, including the actual lyrics, we used to have in class or maybe in the coach on a trip to France. Such is the power of song. It’s just a pity that ‘Un kilo de Chansons’ has never been reproduced on CD instead of cassette and that the cassette is so expensive. I think I’ll contact Mary Glasgow and see if they have any plans to reissue.

‘Singing French‘ by A.C. Black has many catchy numbers and is almost the modern equivalent to ‘Un kilo de Chansons’; I like it very much (but watch out, there are a couple of mistakes in the French which I’ve informed the publishers about).

Having said all that about CDs and cassettes, at Essex West RSG I landed up by relying on my own voice for inroducing them to some Songs and Rhymes and Stories. They were a very small group but very enthusiastic and I really enjoyed working with them.

Here is what Chantal Darke Comenius East Regional Manager had to say about the session:

“This session was a real treat for the participants - everything Jan demonstrated was amply supported by resources, books, puppets, animations, models and music. Using what seemed a veritable magician’s workshop of accessories. Jan taught us some classical French childrens’ rhymes and games, finger rhymes and songs, and showed some German and Spanish resources too. Perhaps one of the most unusual features of Jan’s session was that particpants went away armed with website addresses of where to obtain - at little or no cost - the kind of support items which make all the difference to the teaching of these stories songs and rhymes. Particularly memorable were the acccesories for “Le grand monstre vert”. Another addition to the session was that a couple of participants had brought along their Yr 5/6 children - so we even had proper “pupils” present to see how various aspects of the activities might appeal. This was a very successful session and we left determined to invite Jan back at a future occasion.”

Chantal Darke