Getting in the picture to promote writing
Stories from the silver screen are inspiring children to write, thanks to a school's film club.
Pupils at Lyndhurst Junior School in Portsmouth have been improving their literacy by writing reviews of the movies they've been watching through a scheme called Film Club.
The initiative gives a network of after-school clubs free weekly access to thousands of classic and popular films.
Funded by the government and the UK Film Council, pupils are able to choose from up to 60,000 titles courtesy of LoveFilm.
Of those titles, 1,500 are currently arranged in special seasons appealing directly to young people such as the Marx Brothers' slapstick Duck Soup (1933) and the musical Bugsy Malone (1976).
Lyndhurst Junior is one of the first schools in the country to benefit from the scheme, which is not only enjoyable but expands the children's horizons and helps improve their writing.
Teacher Clare MacDonald said: 'I run the club with Years 5 and 6. Between 12 and 20 children attend every week and they really enjoy it – they particularly enjoyed the films with an animal theme and were enthralled by March Of The Penguins.
'One aspect of Film Club the children like most is writing reviews and posting them on the website. Up until now I've chosen the films and in 2009 I aim to give the children the chance to choose themselves by reading other people's reviews on the website.'
Film Club was founded in 2006 by Bridget Jones's Diary 2 director Beeban Kidron and educationalist Lindsay Mackie.
Over the next three years it will be made available to hundreds more schools.
Film Club members post their own film reviews, enter competitions and find out more about the industry through interviews and live webchats with film practitioners on the Film Club website.
As well as screenings in schools, FilmClub will also arrange visits by world-famous actors, directors, set designers and other industry professionals while encouraging cinema going through organised trips and partnerships with cinemas.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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