Speak English Week 2016
1st March 16
Every year Speak English Week at Abbey College Cambridge seems to get bigger and bigger, and this year’s programme certainly didn’t disappoint! Staff and students across the college celebrated the joy of speaking English with a range of inspirational and fun events and activities.
The week kicked off with our poetry competition, students recited some of the wonderful poems which they had written on the theme of ‘peace’. It proved to be fantastic evening.
On Wednesday, our Speak English Week assembly featured songs and games where our students pitted their wits against staff. The highlight was an Abbey version of the popular BBC quiz show ‘University Challenge’, with the student team eventually emerging triumphant. We were also greeted with an appearance from a very special guest, who presided over the assembly in a fittingly regal manner. She even stuck around afterwards for a few photos with our students and staff!
In the evening our staff and student bands came together for a big singalong. It proved to be a very popular and enjoyable evening that showcased the incredible range of musical talents possessed by our staff and students.
On Thursday we held our ‘Grill your teachers’ event. A selection of our teachers took turns providing their best answers to the most usual unusual and obscure questions that our students could come up with! The students voted as their champions Head of Physics Chris Ashford and Business Studies teacher Russell Bailey.
On Friday we hosted a fun ‘How to Act’ workshop with a professional drama coach. The games and exercises were designed to help improve confidence and acting skills and were a greatly enjoyed by all the students and staff who took part.
Over the weekend the action moved to our halls of residences and boarding houses, where activities included a competition to find the best Fifa game player, a student led fashion show, high tea in our Purbeck House common room, and a British Film, TV and comedy quiz.
Speak English Week is designed to help our students feel more confident when using the English language. Proficiency in English is key to our student’s success, both at Abbey College Cambridge and in their studies at university and their future careers.
