Fighting Words Partnership with Dublin City University
In September 2019 a partnership between Fighting Words and Dublin City University's Institute of Education was launched. This formalises a longstanding connection between Fighting Words and Dublin City University, with whom we have collaborated on a number of projects already, including Dublin in the Coming Times. Building on an Evaluation of the Fighting Words Model, carried out by researchers at the Institute of Education, this partnership has been established to explore ways to integrate the Fighting Words model at all levels of teacher eduction. Funded by the Department of Education and Skills, there is a full-time Fighting Words Fellow based on the campus, working with academic staff across a variety of disciplines.
Fighting Words partnered with Dr Una McCabe and her third year Drama and Early Education student teachers from the Institute of Education to facilitate a workshop for Junior Infants from Grace Park Educate Together National School. The Junior Infants children spent the first park of the workshop working with Fighting Words volunteers to create their own characters for a picture book, The Dragon and the Witch.
Second year students from Gaelcholáiste Reachrann joined members of Dublin City Council's North Central Area Age Friendly Alliance for a variety of intergenerational workshops on the All Hallow's Campus at DCU. A partnership between DCU's Institute of Education, Silverthread, Making Hay Reminiscence Theatre Company and Dublin City Council, intergenerational workshops in art, music and creative writing were held, with participants sharing their work at the end of the event.
As part of their Humanities and Health Module, a number of 2nd year nursing students at Dublin City University completed a series of creative writing workshops.
The students in the group wrote short stories, poems, comic strips and songs related to the course themes.
A reading and presentation of this work took place on Monday 15 April.
Fighting Words hosted a lunchtime reading as part of DCU's 2019 Anam Festival. The event took place on the All hallow's campus, and featured readings, performances and songs.
Work created through the Fighting Words Young Playwrights programme in partnership with the Abbey Theatre was featured, along with songs written as part of a collaboration between students from St Aidan's CBS with DCU's Age Friendly University initiative.
Visual Voices, an exhibition of photography and writing created as part of the DCU University of Sanctuary's MELLIE storytelling project, was launched this morning. Kicking off the Anam Festival, the work exhibited has resulted from a series of meetings between refugees and asylum seekers living in Direct Provision, DCU staff and students and Fighting Words volunteers.
Partnering with Science Educators at Dublin City University, Fighting Words ran workshop with 5th year students from Scoil Chaitríona that focused on imagining the future. Stories created included ideas about travel in the future, holiday destinations, the world of work and income, climate change and Fluffy the robot dog.
Fighting Words is delighted to be participating in DCU's Anam Festival. A 'Celebration of Arts, Ideas and Creativity in North Dublin,' Anam is curated and produced by South Wind Blows.
On Thursday 4 April, a lunchtime reading event highlights some of the fantastic work created at Fighting Words, including through our partnerships with DCU and with the Abbey Theatre. This takes place between a variety of other events and performances, from concerts to workshops, panel discussions and film screenings.
The Fighting Words event is free, but ticketed. Tickets are available here.
Fighting Words facilitated a workshop for staff in the School of Applied Languages and Intercultural Studies at DCU.
The staff are keen to explore ways in which the Fighting Words model might be used with language students in the university.
Fighting Words contributed to a cross border SCoTENS funded event for future primary school teachers from Dublin City University's Institute of Education and Ulster University's School of Education. The focus was on using literature in the primary school maths classroom.
In the first session, Dr Natthapoj Vincent Trakulphadetkrai of Reading University and principal investigator on the MathsThroughStories initiative explored various ways in which picture books can be used in the teaching of maths to primary school children.
