Year 7s have been forging new friendships with students in America, as part of a global citizenship project.

The students have connected with the Williamsburg Academy, whose student body consists of students from across the 50 states in the US.

The six-week ‘Connect with the World’ project has been followed during Transitions lessons, and under the guidance of the Head of Year 7 Nelly Loi-Fong. The aim has been to create authentic lasting relationships and increased understanding of countries and cultures with students in foreign countries.

The Year 7s were all connected with a CWW friend through email. In their communications they have been learning about culture, heritage, and global perspectives and exploring differences in lifestyle and geographical location.

They have been thinking about how their understanding of global citizenship and their world perspective grows as a result of creating a friendship with a peer from another country.

Over the weeks, they have discovered that the similarities between 11-13 year olds across the world create authentic connections, regardless of social and physical boundaries.

The students enjoyed a virtual meeting with their new friends, to ‘meet each other’, discuss their experiences, and share lessons learned.

The project has contributed to their training to become ‘happy, confident, intelligent warriors’, which lies at the heart of the Transitions course.