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Kirkhill Primary, Broxburn
Follow this link to read about an ongoing project at Kirkhill Primary, Broxburn. The aim is to encourage the use of Scots at all levels and across the curriculum.
www.ltscotland.org.uk/5to14/sp
more
Teaching English and Orcadian Scots in the primary classroom
The following link is to the Elphinstone Kist and an article containing the experiences of Margaret Flaws from Orkney.
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinst
A dialect speaker herself, she was aware that her own language changed from Orcadian Scots to Scottish Eng... more
Langholm Academy Project
In 2007 Liz Niven worked on an Arts Across the Curriculum project with pupils at Langholm Academy. The aim was to compile text based on the language of Langholm. Using the poetry of Langholm's Hugh MacDairmid, creative writing produced by pupils and discussion groups, they produced a body of text... more
ASLS
www.asls.org.uk
The Association of Scottish Literary Studies produce materials for schools, run conferences on Scots language issues and produce publications about Scottish writing. Most resources are available by subscription or to buy. An extensive and growing body of information includes
- A... more
Craigmillar baby books
The Craigmillar Books for Babies scheme has been going for 10 years. As well as work done in the community there are colourful illustrated rhyme cards which can be downloaded. These include several Scots rhymes: Ally Bally, Wee Willie Winkie, Rain on the green gress, Katie Beardie, Three Craws. w... more
LTScotland
www.LTScotland.org.uk/earlyyea is the official guidance to those involved in birth to 3 caring provision. There is information on projects and examples of best practice from across Scotland. This includes promoting language development through play. There are examples from Aberdeenshire on hel... more
Secondary level online resources
Secondary level online resources can be found on the following websites.
www.arts.gla.ac.uk/SESLL/STELL
A collection of material by Scots (some in Scots language). Plays, prose, poetry, language criticism, journalism. Suitable for secondary or tertiary level.
www.scotstext.org
Poet... more
Bookstart
www.bookstart.co.uk is UK wide literacy development charity with an identifiable Scottish presence. They produce a songsheet/mat of nursery rhymes for babies. This year it includes nursery rhymes in English, 1 in Scots (Ally Bally) and 1 in Gaelic. The charity gives out free packs to babies and ... more
Booktrust advice for baby books
Scottish Booktrust have a pamphlet on reading with young children, aimed at parents and carers. It is available in Scots: 'Stertin-up wi buiks'
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Scots language at university
Want to study Scots language at university? Here are courses available at Scottish universities.
Edinburgh University
Scots language has previously been offered to first year students within the English language department and presumably could be offered in future if student numbers justify thi... more
Resources for pre-3
The following are links or resources that would be suitable for teaching or using Scots with babies and toddlers.
www.scuilwab.org.uk
www.mamalisa.com/world/scotlan
www.ichy-coo.com
www.hanselcooperativepress.co.
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Scots language teaching packs
The following contain a variety of resources for use in the primary level classroom.
Turnstones S1. R Robertson, A Donovan, B Fitzpatrick, S Hughes, L Niven, J Allan
ISBN 9780340790366
Match 5-14 guidelines for English in Scotland. Resources for writing and language skills. Using modern Scot... more
University level resources
Resources for university level Scots study include the following.
http://dinamico2.unibg.it/angl
An online bibliography compiled by Caroline Macafee and maintained by Marina Dossena
www.arts.gla.ac.uk/SESLL/STELL
A collection of material by Scots (some in Sc... more
Scots language at St Ninians Primary School Stirling 2002/2003
In 2002/2003 St Ninians Primary School children embarked on a remarkable project involving a collection of Scots words. Assistant headteacher Elaine Wyllie used her previous experience of encouraging Scots use at Kippen and Dunblane Primaries with a task linking home and school. After debate in t... more
Scots language at St Ninians Primary School Stirling 2008
Since the collection of words started in 2002, it has continued to grow. With help from Scots Language Dictionaries the words have been gathered in a database. Class representatives will shortly meet Chris Robinson at Scots Language Dictionaries to decide what they want to do with this collection... more
Introduction
In this section there is information about learning the Scots language and information about how Scots is used in educational settings. Projects, research results and examples of good teaching practice are grouped together according to the age or level of those involved. Bibliographies and furthe... more
Scots language books for children
Children's Book Press (www.scottishbooks.com/kids/mai have a range of books written in Scots suitable for nursery and primary children. The publisher is also interested in hearing from teachers who wish to be involved in creating teacher notes or do proof-reading. The following are a selection ... more
Resource for Ulster Scots students
Ullans-L is a free online resource with information about Ulster-Scots. Run by Ian James Parsley it contains information about Ulster-Scots, for instance in a question and answer section there are topics such as where the language is spoken, its effect on the English language and place names. The... more
Scots Language teaching seminar
A seminar aimed at teachers wishing to use Scots language in the classroom will take place at the Scottish Learning Festival on 25th September 2008 at the SECC, Glasgow. This seminar is part of a conference and exhibition for educationalists.
The seminar will outline a range of initiatives avail... more
Graphic Novel
2008 has seen the publication of a graphic novel version of Stevenson's Jekyll and Hyde. The original novel was turned into something similar to a screenplay, the text of which was translated into Scots. The translation of this classic tale into Scots was done by James Spence, a Scots language w... more
Scots evening class
In September 2008 Edinburgh City Adult Education Department is running an evening class titled Storytelling in Scots. It will be held at Tynecastle High School, Edinburgh. The course is aiming to help people revive their spoken Scots language in a supportive environment and experience in storytel... more
A counting song
Wir class rules, ok
Wir class rules ok was written by Annette Gear and Rena Nisbet and is featured on Gear Box, the new CD available from Shetlend ForWirds. The CD is a collection of stories, rhymes and songs from Shetlend, many recited by Shetland children. Wir class rules ok is spoken by Jack ... more
Help with encouraging Scots use in the primary classroom.
In 2001 former teacher and lecturer Aileen McEwen wrote about the benefits of using Scots in the classroom, and the wider impact of having two languages. Her article was aimed at probationer teachers in Aberdeenshire who were perhaps unsure of their own Scots language knowledge. It contained some... more
Scots Language in the Secondary School
The following link to the Elphinstone Kist is to an article by David Johnston about the challenges of Scots use in secondary schools.
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinst
Noting the continuing 'lack of consonance' between home Scots use and what is expected in th... more
An online Scots grammar
The following link leads to a comprehensive Scots language grammar, complete with examples of usage from texts.
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~enl038/
This is a detailed document and demands a sophisticated level of understanding of English grammar with many comparisons made to standard and... more
Scots language research
Research papers about Scots language are available online via the following link.
www.arts.gla.ac.uk/ScotLit/ASL
Here ASLS have a series of weblinks to research papers about Scots Language from a wide range of sources such as the Elphinstone Kist, The Bottle Imp, Scotlit and Lav... more
Wigtown Primary Passport scheme
Wigtown Primary headteacher Stewart Anderson is a lifelong supporter of the Scots language, and has been instrumental in creating a reading incentive scheme which encourages the use of Scots language. Known as the Wigtown Passport, the scheme involves the children from Nursery to Primary 7 with t... more
Shetland resources
Maria Barclay Millar has produced a CD of Shetland songs all sung in the Shetland dialect, 'Evergreen, Dialect Sangs for Schools'. As a singing teacher, Maria felt there was a need for audio versions of Shetland songs. She was able to test this resource in the classroom and noted: ' The project h... more
ABC guide to resources
A guide to literature resources has been made available as a leaflet or pdf download. It contains contact details of organisations in Scotland involved with Scottish literature and other resources which may be of use to teachers.
more
Research into supporting teachers
The Scottish Literature Forum has commissioned study into how best to support teachers. The aim was to find out how member organisations can communicate with teachers and how they can support the teaching of Scottish literature. Among the research findings was the interest in Scots language and a... more
Childhood memories in poetry
Childhood for some poets is a rich source of ideas, particularly when using Scots language. For many of these writers, childhood was a time of uninhibited language use, a time when Scots voices were more frequently heard. They may find themselves using Scots when writing about people or scenes fr... more
Culture Studies of the Highlands and Islands
This exciting and innovative course gives you the unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the varied and fascinating cultural identity of the Highlands and Islands as you live and study among its peoples and communities.
BA (Hons) Culture Studies of the Highlands and Islands
http://www.orkney... more
Shetland dialect at Learning Festival
Dialect teaching resources from Shetland will be displayed during Scotland’s Festival of Learning at the SECC in Glasgow this week. (24th-25th September)
Da Ditty Box and Da Gaer Box are the products of a unique partnership between the Shetland Islands Council’s Schools Service and the di... more
Scots within the curriculum
Anyone with an interest will doubtless wish to scrutinise the Curriculum for Excellence website which contains an online version of the ‘Literacy and English document’ which also mentions the Scots language. There are a few references to Scots, or, at least, to Scottish texts, within the docu... more
Network for Multilingualism in Europe Established
The Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) has decided to set up a network to promote European multilingualism, with a particular focus on Europe’s regional and minority languages. Many European regions are bilingual or multilingual, and the network’s main aim is to make better use of... more
MSP Asks About the Use of Scots Language in Scottish Schools
Dr Bill Wilson, SNP MSP for the West of Scotland, has written to the education directors of all of Scotland’s cooncils to ask whether in-service days for teachers cover discrimination against Scots speakers, and/or the benefits of including the Scots language within the curriculum.
More info... more
Purves outlines the Way Forward for Scots
In the following article, veteran Scots campaigner, David Purves, outlines his views on the ways in which Scots could be encouarged and supported. The article first appeared in the Scots Independent. Thanks to the SI for allowing it to be reproduced here.
The Way Forward for Scots
By D... more
Scots Report from Holyrood
The following report appeared in Holyrood magazine. Thanks to Cera Murtagh and Holyrood for allowing us to reproduce it here.
For more information about Holyrood visit www.holyrood.com
The mither tongue
Cera Murtagh examines the changing role of Scotland’s minority languages in its ed... more
"Encourage children to speak Scots" says MSP
Rob Gibson MSP, convener of the Cross-Party Group on Scots, called on Scotland's schools to encourage children's use of Scots. Speaking in a debate on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, he said:
"we have to allow children to express their views in their own languages an... more
"Scots Education is a Human Right"
Dr Bill Wilson, SNP MSP for the West of Scotland, has lodged a motion stating that a recent pronouncement by the EU Parliament Civil Liberties Committee clearly implied that it was a human right for the children of Scots and Gaelic speakers to be educated in these languages.
He said, “The EU... more
Burns Birthday Conference
The Association for Scottish Literary Studies is to mark the 250 anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns with a one day conference entitled ‘Burns’ Language: Then and Now.’ The conference will be held at the University of Glasgow on 28 February 2009 and speakers will include Pauline Gray o... more
MSP Spreads Scots from Aberdeen to Argentina!
Dr Bill Wilson, SNP MSP for the West of Scotland, shared his love of the Scots language with primary school pupils aboard The Reading Bus on Friday 16th January.
Dr. Wilson read two Scots poems by Hugh Macdiarmid, “The Watergaw” and “The Sauchs in the Reuch Heuch Hauch”, and talked abo... more
Kay and Riddoch on Scots
This week (Saturday 14 February) Scots language activist, broadcaster and writer Billy Kay was speaking with Lesley Riddoch on her radio programme ‘Aftermath’. Billy began by speaking about discrimination against the Scots-speaking community, citing examples encountered by speakers at offici... more
Equal Opportunities Considers Audit
Last week, the Scottish Parliament's Equal Opportunities Committee considered the Scots Government's recent audit of Scots language provision. The committee agreed to refer the audit to the Education, Lifelong Learning and Culture Committee and to draw that committee's attention to three points: ... more
MSP asks for more resources for Scots education
Dr Bill Wilson, SNP MSP for the West of Scotland, has encouraged the Scottish Government to ensure the adequate resourcing of Scots language education.
In General Question Time on 5 March, Dr Wilson said that, despite the benefits of teaching Scots, anecdotal evidence suggested that the expan... more
Scottish Government Considering Research into Scots in Schools
Last Thursday, the Minister for Schools and Skills, Keith Brown MSP, revealed that the Government is thinking about comissioning research into Scots language provision in our schools. Responding to a question by Bill Wilson MSP, Mr Brown said that Scottish Government officials met on 18 March to ... more
New book on Cromarty Scots
Am Baile – the cultural and historical website of Highland Council – has produced a beautiful little book about the Scots dialect of the fishing community of Cromarty. The book is divided into several sections and contains a wealth of information relating to the history and features of the d... more
New Dialect Resources for Shetland Schools
Maria Barclay Millar has produced a CD of Shetland songs all sung in the Shetland dialect, 'Evergreen, Dialect Sangs for Schools'. As a singing teacher, Maria felt there was a need for audio versions of Shetland songs. She was able to test this resource in the classroom and noted: ' The project h... more
Scots Dictionaries on the move
Scottish Language Dictionaries have moved from the School of Celtic and Scottish Studies, the home of Scots language lexicography for a good half century. SLD are now in new premises at 25 Buccleuch Place, Edinburgh, EH8 9LN. Their phone and fax numbers remain the same and it is possible to conta... more
Wigtown Primary encouraging Scots language
Wigtown Primary headteacher Stewart Anderson is a lifelong supporter of the Scots language, and has been instrumental in creating a reading incentive scheme which encourages the use of Scots language. Known as the Wigtown Passport, the scheme involves the children from Nursery to Primary 7 with t... more
Plays in Scots for Schools
Roy McGregor and Liz Niven have edited a new book entitled 'Scottish Plays for Schools' through the Association for Scottish Literary Studies and published by Hodder Gibson. This work includes six short plays in Scots which may be read or performed and have been written by the following: 'Hierogl... more
"We like writing in Scots" say children
Children participating in a project run by Literature in Learning and Itchycoo have told of their enthusiasm for writing in Scots. A report about the project in now on the Literature in Learning web site. The young people's responses make heartening reading for anybody that would like to see more... more
Jined-up letters: a Scots metaphor
Ma wee lassie, wha's no lang tirnt five, has jist startit lairnin tae scrieve in jined-up letters at the scaill. "En attaché", they cry it here in Fraince.
"Dad," she sayz til iz the ither day, "gonnae show iz hou tae scrieve 'Daddy' en attaché?"
Whit a scunner! I had tae tell her that Da... more
Aboot the Ainu
Whit d'ye mak o this?
- http://www.iht.com/articles/20
Thir's ae braw line, juist at the end, that gar me lauch out loud: "It's not healthy to keep blaming discrimination or history, and not work and pay taxes..." more
ASLS Conference 2009
The Association for Scottish Literary Studies will be holding its annual conference for 2009 at the Iris Murdoch Building, University of Stirling. The theme this year is entitled "Scottish and international Modernism" and explores the work of writers of the 20th century Scottish Renaissance in c... more
