At St Athan Primary School, we believe it is important for pupils to take ownership of their learning and have greater roles in school decision-making.

Our Criw Cymraeg is made up of representatives of pupils from Years 3 through to Year 6.  They meet weekly on a Tuesday to promote Welsh and develop the Siarter Iaith across the school. They decide which targets they are going to work on this week, give feedback on how last week’s targets are going and discuss how to celebrate any special days/events that may be coming up in our Welsh calendar.

What do we do?

As Criw Cymraeg, we have given ourselves the following job description…

• Promote a Welsh ethos in St Athan Primary School by encouraging learners to speak Welsh by giving out stickers and weekly awards;
• Implement Siarter Iaith Cymraeg Campus and gather evidence to achieve our school targets;
• Support Welsh games on the yard;
• Help run Welsh assemblies;
• Deliver the Patrwm yr Wythnos in assembly.

Welsh Assemblies

In our Welsh Assemblies, we choose some Welsh music for the children to listen to when they are entering and leaving the hall. We sing Welsh songs and update the school on what we have been doing for our Siarter Iaith targets. Other regular features of our assemblies include announcing the Patrwm yr Wythnos, giving out the Seren yr Wythnos certificates and mascots.

Language Charter Objective :

The simple objective of the Language Charter is to provide a clear framework, which can be used to promote and increase the use of Welsh by children in a whole school context. In a nutshell, the Charter’s main aim is to promote a strong Welsh ethos in our school and to provide a range of enriching activities that propel the children to enjoy learning Welsh.

The Language Charter exhorts participation from every member of the school community, and members of the school workforce and council, the pupils and their parents, school governors and the wider community are all encouraged to take full ownership of it. The Criw Cymraeg (Welsh Crew) are instrumental in leading and driving the Language Charter forward at St Athan Primary.

Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards :

To ensure that all efforts are rewarded, the Charter is based on the principle that every school follows challenging but attainable targets in connection with promoting the use of the Welsh language. The specific targets included in the Language Charter can form part of a school’s Welsh Development Plan. We are currently working towards our Silver award, after earning our Bronze award last year, with the goal of earning our Gold in the next 3 years.