Hello there, my name is Paul Williams and I am very pleased to say that I am the New Arrivals Support Teacher for Lansdowne Primary.

At our school, we pride ourselves on the provision provided for children that are both new to the country and speak English as an additional language. Like all children at Lansdowne Primary, these children are an asset to our school and both their culture and language help to enrich an already thriving and engaging learning environment. Along with myself, we have Mrs Charles, our school's Language Support Teacher and 4 additional Bilingual Teaching Assistants that complete a comprehensive, experienced and effective support team.

The role of the EAL team includes: pre-teaching topics; providing translated resources both auditory and visual designed to help 'bridge the gap' between the curriculum and each child's level of understanding of English; after schools club; staff training; cultural assemblies; friendship groups; tracking and assessment and focused 1-1 reading/comprehension support. 

With the right support, positive learning environment and encouragement, children are able to thrive whilst learning through the medium of another language:

‘Young children are natural language acquirers; they are self-motivated to pick up language without conscious learning, unlike adolescents and adults. They have the ability to imitate pronunciation and work out the rules for themselves. Any idea that learning to talk in English is difficult does not occur to them unless it’s suggested by adults, who themselves probably learned English academically at a later age through grammar-based text books’.                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                            British Council

Languagenut is the perfect language solution for children aged 5-14. It is fun, engaging and has plenty of games to help your child learn a new language.

It covers the 4 key skills of language learning: listening, speaking, reading and writing and can be accessed on many devices including computers, tablets and phones. 

If your child is currently on roll at Lansdowne Primary, then he or she will have been given login details in order to access Languagenut at home as well as in school.

* If your child requires another copy of their login details, then their teacher will be more than pleased to offer these upon request.

If you as a parent, or a relative would like to access this excellent online learning resource, then please click the link below:

http://www.languagenut.com/uk/language-resources-for-children/

You can also download the app here:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.languagenut.android.britsh.english&hl=en_UK

Helping your child at home develop their knowledge and understanding of the English language WILL greatly improve both their attainment and self-esteem whilst attending school. With this in mind, please click on the links below to access some fantastic websites that support both families and children learning English as an additional language:

For children

https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/zgkw2hv

For parents

https://eal.britishcouncil.org/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/course/lower-intermediate/unit-1/session-1

http://www.kidsworldfun.com/learn-english/

If you require any advice or assistance with your child's English development then

please feel free to pop into school and we'll be happy to help.

Paul Williams

New Arrivals and Language Support Teacher