NSI and UK-German Connection Partner for a Workshop in Wales

In collaboration with the UK German connection, students aged 12-14 from Wales and Germany came together for a weekend of learning and fun! A series of workshops on the impact of conflict on communities were held to develop strong international bonds and create a deeper cultural understanding of people their age from other countries. The weekend was held in Llandudno, Wales and welcomed 13 students from Wales and 21 students from Germany.

The first time all of the students met, there was a clear division- German and Welsh, as would happen with any group! We went over goals for the weekend, but little did they know that Katie would be changing that dynamic very quickly! Before we invited them to dinner in the wonderful hostel we were staying in, she offered them a challenge: sit by someone who didn't speak their language and wasn't from their country. A look of fear flashed across their faces as they realised their comfort zone was about to be shaken, but, you should have heard the roar of sound as the kids chatted and got to know each other!

The next day, we started the workshops by letting the kids tell us what they wanted to “Learn, See and Do” over the weekend - by the end we accomplished most of these goals!  The first workshop looked at what the words “Conflict” and “Community” meant . The groups met within their countries and the children shared their definitions out loud.They found that they both had the same ideas and they weren’t as different as they may have initially thought. To further their cultural understanding, we created a poster where the kids could write a word they wanted to learn in the other language - trilingual learning at its best!

As a fun excursion for the young people, we went to Conwy Castle and they learned about the history of the castle from one of the Welsh teachers. The Welsh students were so excited to share their country and took the German students to a local fish and chips shop!

Hannah sharing about the history of conwy castle

Young people at the top of a tower in conwy Castle

Train ride up to the Great Orme

The next session was led by Max Dutton, a historian from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. He shared the very important work that his organisation does to commemorate service members who died during the First and Second World Wars. To further illustrate the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, we took a trip up the Great Orme  Tramway to visit a cemetery that had graves maintained by the Commission. Max showed the young people what made the headstones of the service members special and told stories about the people who were laid to rest there. When asked to reflect on what was shared, the students were able to tell the stories through poems and artwork, yet again remembering those who had fallen.

Bethzienna practicing a song with the kids

The final day culminated in a songwriting workshop with  NSI practitioner, Bethzienna Williams. The children created an amazing tri-lingual song that they performed at the end of the day. The German students worked on a verse in German, the Welsh students worked on a verse in Welsh, and together they created the chorus in the shared language of English. Hearing them sing together was a beautiful moment that showed that international cooperation is possible, even when culture and language are different.

Since returning to their schools, the young people have kept in touch with each other and have even exchanged gift boxes at Christmas. We look forward to having another event of this type where young people can have a deeper understanding of other cultures and other people.