Kilbarchan pupils held a unique spelling bee to show support for a deaf classmate.
Avery attends Kilbarchan Primary School and has cochlear implants. Her classmates wanted to show support by learning British Sign Language (BSL).
The BSL spellathon involved the whole school. It was organised by the pupil-led fundraising committee.
Pupils also used BSL as part of their lessons for the day.
Families, pupils and school staff donated £187. This money has been donated to the National Deaf Children's Society.
Three teachers at the school have also been trained in BSL at Glasgow University.
British Sign Language is used by more than 150,000 people across the UK. Most deaf or hard of hearing children are born to hearing parents.
Head Teacher Fiona MacKenzie said:
We are delighted to celebrate the success of our pupil-led British Sign Language (BSL) Spellathon, which raised both funds and awareness of hearing impairment. This initiative began as a pupil idea and was further developed by our Pupil Fundraising Committee, demonstrating the impact of pupil voice in action.
Pupils led learning across the school, teaching their peers about BSL with support from our visiting Hearing Impairment teacher, Lauren Dixon. Their leadership, empathy and commitment have been truly inspiring.
I am incredibly proud of what our pupils have achieved. They have shown real compassion, initiative and a desire to make a difference, qualities that reflect the values of our school community.
We strongly believe in pupil agency and ensuring our curriculum reflects the interests and experiences of our learners. This project is a powerful example of how we listen and respond to our pupils. It also highlights the strength of partnership, when pupils, staff and specialists work together, we can achieve far more than we ever could alone.
Councillor Emma Rodden, Education Convener for Renfrewshire Council, praised the initiative. She said:
This is a lovely example of pupils coming together to support one of their classmates and learning something new at the same time.
Pupils have helped classmates learn how they can include people who are hard of hearing in everyday conversations. It’s great to see young people showing such kindness and wanting to make a difference for others.