Year 2 of the SDLL project is now in full swing, and we are delighted to welcome nine new schools to our growing SDLL community. Joining the project this year are Rowantree Primary School (Dundee), St Cyrus Primary School (Aberdeenshire), St Patrick’s Primary School (North Lanarkshire), Bridge of Allan Primary School (Stirling), Leith Walk Primary School (City of Edinburgh Council), Rosewell Primary School (Midlothian), Cullivoe Primary School (Shetland), Moffat Primary School (Dumfries and Galloway), and Kilchuimen Primary School (Highland). With the addition of these schools, the SDLL network continues to expand, creating even more opportunities to explore and celebrate languages and multilingualism across Scotland!
In September, we held our first professional learning workshop for all schools involved in the project. The workshop was titled Growing Multilingual Classrooms and focused on developing an understanding of multilingualism and the many benefits it can bring to learners, schools, and communities. We were privileged to welcome Professor Antonella Sorace from the University of Edinburgh, founder of Bilingualism Matters, who shared insights from her extensive research in the field. Her presentation provided a valuable theoretical foundation, highlighting the cognitive, educational, and social advantages associated with multilingualism.
However, understanding the theory is only one part of the journey. A key focus of the workshop was exploring how multilingualism can be recognised and celebrated in everyday classroom practice. Teachers were introduced to the concept of language portraits as a powerful tool for encouraging learners to reflect on and share their linguistic identities. The session also provided an opportunity for teachers to create their own language portraits, prompting reflection on their personal language experiences and identities. It was wonderful to see colleagues enthusiastically engage with the activity, with several teachers choosing to share their portraits and stories with the wider group.
We are excited to continue working with all our 12 schools and are in the process of planning visits to each of our new schools after the October break. We are also planning for second workshop on multilingualism, due to take place at the end of October, and this session will focus on the use of arts-based methods as a vehicle to explore multilingualism. Lots of exciting things coming up so keep up to date with all the SDLL news on our Instagram.