St. Patrick’s N.S. says ‘Yes’ to Languages

Local school joins 50,000 Primary pupils as they take part in
Language Sampler Module for the second year

19 third to sixth class pupils from St. Patrick’s N.S. Ballymurphy are set to take part in the Primary Language Sampler module, ‘Say Yes to Languages’ again this year starting after Easter . The module, which is being made available for the second year following its extension by the Department of Education, was met with overwhelming enthusiasm last year and this interest looks set to continue with 700 schools having registered to take part in 2022/2023.

‘Say Yes To Languages’ offers an introduction into a variety of modern foreign languages and Irish Sign Language (ISL) while also looking to raise awareness among pupils of the diversity of languages being used by their peers in their schools and community.

Over 500 schools took part in the module last year, which saw French, Spanish, ISL, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, Romanian, Arabic, Lithuanian, Polish, Tamil and Portuguese being taught across the country. ]

This year, pupils will be saying Si to Spanish which will be delivered over an extended eight-week period during the normal school timetable.

“We are delighted to be taking part in ‘Say Yes to Languages’ again this year. The response last year was overwhelmingly positive right across the school community– from pupils and teachers to parents and tutors.

“It is a fun, interactive and engaging programme which really begins to set the foundations for an ongoing positive relationship with languages. This will be of great benefit to the pupils as they continue through their education, hopefully bringing with them a love of languages,”

Tutors of the module may be teachers or part of the wider school community including parents, native speakers or other staff members. Annetee Heydon will be delivering the module this year at and is excited to have the opportunity to share her passion for Spanish with the pupils.

In line with last year, the module is being rolled out over three terms, with the support of Languages Connect and PPLI (Post-Primary Languages Ireland), a unit of the Department of Education.

A suite of resources has been produced including lesson plans for teachers and tutors and ‘Language Passports’ for all participating pupils to show their family and friend. Packs have been sent to participating schools to help support both the teaching and learning, but also awareness raising objectives of the module. More information regarding the modules, tutor expression of interest and supports are available at www.languagesconnect.ie/primary