margaretkendall community writing, intergenerational, memories

Back to school

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It wasn’t difficult to turn back the clock to our schooldays!  

We started by sharing a word or two each about our memories and/or the emotions they stirred. This resulted in a list which illustrates the variety of our responses, both positive and negative: unpredictability, learning, discovery, stickers, administration, teachers in my family, nightmare, corporal punishment, humiliation, envy, inequality, lost friends, solidarity, structure, judgement, uniforms, crowded trains and buses, a particular teacher, a flood of memories.

 Joe Sykes then guided us skilfully in a time of individual reflection, using the prompts:

  • What experiences at school have shaped you?
  • What educational experiences did you have outside of school? (e.g. school trips, residentials etc.)
  • What happened at break time and lunch time?  (e.g. sports, arts, music, drama, involvement with the local community)

He followed this by sharing his own story, illustrated by an amazing collection of photographs, scrapbooks and memorabilia from both his primary and secondary education.  How wonderful to take part in the school production of the musical, Grease!

Image: The programme for Grease. The text reads By arrangement with Samuel French Ltd, Colne Valley High School presents Grease, March 13th, 14th and 15th 2001. Book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. There is a black line drawing of a rear view of the heads of a couple in a car, with the letter G of Grease forming the swirling hairstyle of the young man.

Then the room filled with noise as we discussed our responses in small groups. There was such a lot to say, no matter when we’d left school.  It was fascinating to get back together at the end and hear more about one another’s experiences.  Some of us tell our stories in the blog post which follows.  We hope they’ll prompt memories of your own.

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jolenesheehan community writing

Signed Stories. A Guest Post by Tina Kirwin-McGinley

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The group felt really lucky to be joined recently by our local councillor, the brilliant Tina, who shared her story of working in Deaf education for over 45 years. It all started in a café in North Manchester, where she first saw a Deaf family signing to each other across the counter. Something about that moment lit a spark that’s stayed with her ever since.

Tina’s session was warm, lively and full of connection. She got us all involved, including a brilliant activity where we had to silently organise ourselves by birth order using only intuitive sign language. Somehow, we managed it in record time… probably faster than if we’d been speaking!

She also taught us the BSL alphabet and numbers, and signed the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears – which was completely captivating.

The whole session really got us thinking about how we connect with each other, how much we can communicate without words, and who gets included when we do things differently.

Tina’s written more about her journey in the guest post below. Read on and you’ll likely agree that it’s thoughtful, passionate, and full of heart. We’re so glad to be able to share it here.

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