NATIONAL TALKING WEEK IN OLDHAM

There was definitely a spotty theme going on in Helen O'Grady classes in Oldham last week! Principal, Wendy Orrell, and her team made a huge effort to raise lots of money during National Talking Week!

There was a lot of baking going on and parents paid - sometimes well over the odds! - for her very delicious cakes.

Everyone was encouraged to wear spots.

And parents were more than happy to join in with the talking.

It was all very exciting!

As well as the cakes and the talking, there was also a competition to guess the number of sweeties in the jar.

Everyone shared in the spirit of Pudsey!

As always, parents in the area were very generous with their cash, as Wendy and her staff were with their time and effort. They hope to raise close to £2,000 towards the final total.

Congratulations to them all!

CHILDREN IN NEED IN BRISTOL CLASSES

In Bristol, parents were invited to attend classes during National Talking Week! They joined in with the lessons, they listened to their children talk and they donated a lot of money!

Proud parents bought special edition T-shirts for their children. All proceeds donated to the charity.

Teacher, Kathryn Gregory, puts both children and parents through their paces!

Children found lots to talk about!

Executive Principal, Alison Mazanec said: "We were very proud of all of students for taking part. The atmosphere in class was very exciting and some of the talks were very moving."

The Bristol branch of the Helen O'Grady Drama Academy raised almost £2,000 towards the final total. Congratulations to them all!

NATIONAL TALKING DAY IN KINDY CLASS

Today was National Talking Day at East Harptree Kindy class in Somerset. After their usual lesson, which, appropriately, was on the Teddy Bear Theme, twenty eight pre-school children sat down with a teddy each and talked about an adventure they would like to go on.

Of course, mouths and voices had to be warmed up first!

And the bears had to make themselves comfortable.

Sometimes it was hard to find things to say........

........but then the bear joined in and everything was OK.

There were all sorts of adventures!

It got very noisy with everyone talking at the same time ......

....... but everyone managed to speak for two minutes and everyone received Pudsey certificates.

Sponsor money will be collected in the next few days and added to the grand total to be presented to BBC Children In Need. We are very proud of the pre-school children for taking part and we thank their parents and teachers for all their support.

NATIONAL TALKING WEEK!

Principals, students, teachers and parents in drama classes around the country are in the middle of NATIONAL TALKING WEEK! aiming to raise tens of thousands of pounds for BBC Children In Need. Special edition T-shirts have been on sale, with all proceeds going to the charity.

In many classes, parents have thrown themselves into the fundraising too. York Principal, Lindsay Goakes, sent us this picture (below) of the cake Mattew's dad made to share with the class in Selby.

Fundraising activities will continue throughout November. This Friday, 18th November, a team from Head Office, led by, Training Supervisor, Becky Goodfield, will be in the audience at BBC Television Centre with a very big cheque!

Thank you to everyone who has taken part. Visit our website www.helenogrady.co.uk for full details.

BBC CHILDREN IN NEED 2011

Once again, this year, the Helen O'Grady Drama Academy is fundraising for BBC Children In Need. Wednesday 9th November sees the start of NATIONAL TALKING WEEK! across the UK, when students will be talking, in their classes, on a given topic, for an allocated amount of time.

Last year, through the sponsored talking, we raised more than £30,000 for the charity and were lucky enough to present a cheque, live on air, to Sir Terry Wogan.

Schools are getting involved too, with drama teachers running special classes to hear the children talk. The Academy's aim is to develop children's confidence and skill in verbal communication so what better way than talking to raise money for other children less fortunate than themselves?

For full information download a leaflet here and print a sponsor form to start raising money now. Full details are on the literature, with instructions of what to do with the money when you have raised it.

Thank you - on behalf of the Academy - for your help and an even bigger THANK YOU on behalf of BBC Children In need.

HUNTING IN GREAT YARMOUTH!

In Great Yarmouth, last week, children in Helen O'Grady classes were putting together a Mime to Music called 'The Hunt' and they looked pretty fearsome in their feathers and war paint!

Using specially written music, the children sharpened their spears, and packed their quivers with arrows, before setting off to find dinner! They were surprised to find another group in their path and looked pretty mean when they came face to face with them.

They pulled scary faces and looked threatening for a while before making friends and sharing their feast together.

Classes in Great Yarmouth are run by Norwich Principal, Gill Prins, and there are still places available for children between the ages of 5 and 11. Contact Gill on norwich@helenogrady.co.uk

NEW BRANCHES & NEW PRINCIPALS THIS TERM

September has seen the opening of several new Helen O'Grady branches, as well as a handful of new Principals taking over existing areas.

In Manila, in the Philippines, Monique and Vince Bunuan have had a great start introducing the unique Helen O'Grady programme to dozens of local children. Here they are above with the magnificent banner they are using to promote their classes. We are very proud of their opening classes and know they will spread the word very quickly.

New mum, Iesher Fitzmaurice Mendez (above), who gave birth to baby Zain at the beginning of August, took over the reins in the Staffordshire area. She has been teaching for the Academy for several years and jumped at the chance of becoming Principal. As well as making a great start with existing students, she has opened three new classes which have all started well.

In South West London, Melanie Moore has opened new studios as well as taking over some existing students. Although drama trained, Melanie was new to the programme and has taken the very structured lessons to heart. She is, as you can see below, very excited to be part of the network. In Northamptonshire, Gemma Knight has succeeded Sarah Moloney as Principal. Sarah was a hard act to follow but Gemma had worked with her for some time before the handover and the students remain in more than capable hands!

In the Herts-Cambs area, retiring Principal, Fiona Taylor, was more than happy to pass the business on to her former teacher, Lucinda Symonds, pictured below. Lucinda will continue to teach and work with her sister, Jessica, who will take most of the responsibility for administration and marketing the business. the Symonds sisters don't believe in doing things by halves! During the first weeks of term they were also planning a wedding. Lucinda married Tim Gray on 1st October. We wish them all the love luck and happiness they deserve.

Last new Principal to launch was Lisa Bennett in Southampton. Lisa, too, has taught for the Academy and is already building the numbers up in her own branch.

All the new Principals have started well and we wish them a long and successful association with the Academy.