Each year S2 pupils at Dyce Academy take part in a cross-curricular project during which they put together a marketing campaign for a book. The main departments involved are English, Enterprise & ICT and the Library. In the past Design & Technology and Art have also been involved and this year Drama will be joining the project.
Working in groups pupils select a genre and target audience. Everyone writes a first chapter and the best one is chosen by their group. They then have to devise an appropriate & costed marketing strategy which is presented to their class. The winners from each class then go on to showcase their marketing strategy in the final in front of an audience of staff and S2 pupils.
As a result of participating in the project pupils are able to develop their skills in the following areas:
- Budgeting
- Communication
- Creative Writing
- Independent Learning
- Literacy
- Marketing
- Peer Evaluation
- Presentation Skills
- Project Planning
- Teamwork
- Use of IT
- Video Production
The link between the project and the real world of publishing is most effectively emphasised when the project is launched with an author visit. The author talks about their writing and about how their books, and books in general, are marketed.
The benefits of hearing a published, popular and successful author are invaluable. The learners gain an important insight into the creative process. This has an impact on future creative work. The experience of real life marketing in the context of literature encourages, even quite reluctant readers, to engage in a variety of literacy activities. This helps develop competence in cooperative learning and communication.
In the past the school has managed to secure some external funding for the project to ensure that the author visit can go ahead and also to cover the cost of materials and prizes. Last year pupils also benefitted from a marketing talk by Paul Smith (then of Citrus Mix) and the previous year Stork very kindly provided both financial support and talks to pupils by marketing staff. These external speakers then also participated in the judging panel.
As yet no external funding has been secured to support this year’s project. The cost of running the project is approximately £750, and any help towards these costs is always much appreciated, as is marketing expertise. If you feel that you would like to support the school in this, please contact Karen Yeoman, Librarian - kyeoman@aberdeencity.gov.uk or on 01224 725118.