Week 9

This week has been just as busy as the previous weeks in the language centres, with plenty of laughter and learning filling every day. The children immersed themselves in new stories, colourful characters and engaging language activities, continuing to learn new language patterns while enjoying every moment of the experience.

The children had the opportunity to meet two new characters from Aberwla: Lara Lewis – a highly competitive girl who loves racing everyone – and Barry Bale – a strong but rather silly boy who somehow manages to lose every ball at the Leisure Centre... every single time!

One of the highlights of the week was reading the entertaining story Estrys Anti Nel a Lara ar Wib. The children listened carefully and responded to the humorous events in the story while practising their listening and speaking skills and using new language patterns. Everyone enjoyed predicting what might happen next before taking part in a range of fun games and activities that reinforced the story and gave the children opportunities to use their Welsh in practical and creative ways.

The children also designed bright and eye-catching posters to advertise the Ras Fawr Aberwla. Their colourful designs and imaginative ideas resulted in fantastic posters that showcased their creativity.

Preparing delicious fruit kebabs, making cups of tea and creating a tornado in a jar were just some of the activities that helped the children learn and practise instructional language. The class also visited the local supermarket, where they used Welsh language patterns to ask for items and name different fruits.

Learners from Canolfan Iaith Porthmadog followed directions to walk to the local ice cream shop, practising instructional language along the way. After arriving, the children confidently used their Welsh to order an ice cream and respond to simple questions while being served. This provided a fantastic opportunity to use Welsh in a real-life situation and build confidence in communicating.

The VR sessions in the primary/secondary transition centres gave the children the opportunity to visit the Leisure Centre virtually, revisiting sports vocabulary and language patterns for expressing opinions. The experience provided a meaningful context for using Welsh while developing confidence in talking about sports and physical activities.

Some groups also explored the virtual museum, where they completed a series of challenges set by Black Bart, Saint Dwynwen and Owain Glyndŵr. As they worked through the tasks, the children developed their problem-solving and teamwork skills while using Welsh in a fun and purposeful way.

Some of the centres also took part in the local schools' Sports Day. This was a wonderful opportunity for the children to reconnect with their school community, make new friends and use their Welsh in natural situations outside the classroom. They enthusiastically joined in with the different activities, encouraging and supporting one another throughout the day, making it a valuable and enjoyable experience for everyone.

The learners also enjoyed a performance by the Music Service Band. It was a memorable experience to listen to a variety of musical pieces and watch the instruments being played live, adding another fun and inspiring element to the week.

The children have enjoyed another week full of adventure, creativity and learning Welsh in engaging and meaningful ways. We are incredibly proud of every one of them and are looking forward to making the most of our penultimate week before finishing the term with even more exciting activities and opportunities to use Welsh.

Here's a glimpse of what we've been up to this week.

This week's new language included:

• Hobbies and interests (I enjoy... / I don't enjoy...)
• Favourite things
• New vocabulary from the story
• Instructional language
• Food and drink vocabulary
• Sports vocabulary
• Mathematics – 2D and 3D shapes

Home Learning Opportunities

• Practise identifying 2D and 3D shapes in the world around you.
• Go for a walk and spot different shapes in the environment.
• Prepare a healthy snack or fruit kebabs using Welsh instructions.
• Help make a cup of tea or another hot drink with adult supervision while practising instructional language.
• Watch Welsh-language television programmes.
• Listen to Welsh music.