Players Go Back To School

Foreign players join in with English Lesson

Pupils from Woden Primary School welcomed some new Premier League classmates, as foreign players from the Wolves squad joined in with lessons catering for those children who speak English as a second language.

The school has around 300 pupils aged 3-11 with over half of those pupils speaking English as an additional language with many of the Nursery children unable to speak any English at all.

In total, there are 39 different languages represented at the school.

Players Ronald Zubar, Adlene Guedioura, Geoffrey Mujangi Bia, Nenad Milijaš and Segundo Castillo, who between them speak Spanish, French, Serbian, and Arabic, know only too well how difficult it can be to learn English as well as relocating to a new country.

They joined in the football-themed classe to encourage the children in their studies by learning alongside them, and talking about what they’ve learned since making the move abroad, before joining in an after-school coaching session delivered by wolves Community Trust Coaching Staff.

Elaine Warren, who teaches English as a foreign language lead the lesson and said, “Being bilingual is a great asset. It is easier to communicate with people and a greater understanding of languages can lead to greater opportunities in life.

“Learning English can be a challenge for all but the visit of Wolves players who are also learning English really inspired and encouraged our children.”

The visit formed part of the Premier League’s ‘Places for Players’ initiative, part of Creating Chances, which is the umbrella brand for all the work the Premier League delivers throughout communities both in the UK and Worldwide.

Will Clowes, Wolves Community Trust Operations Manager said of the day, “Wolves Community Trust has been working closely with Woden Primary School for many years being involved in a variety of our schools programme initiatives.

“The player visit was part of the Premier League Places for Players initiative, highlighting the work done by Wolves Community Trust and our first team players.

“The day was in aid of supporting English language studies for pupils within the school, who have arrived to Wolverhampton from foreign countries.

“We hope the range of languages in our first team helped the children’s confidence both on the day and in the future.”