Language Explorers in schools

Language Explorers is Mother Tongues’ award-winning programme, designed to bring language awareness to primary schools.

Language Explorers for schools

Language Explorers is Mother Tongues’ award-winning programme, designed for primary school children.

Our flagship programme provides a child-centred, interactive and engaging experience for all children – monolingual, bilingual and plurilingual – to engage in creative activities while exploring the different languages in the classroom.

Why the arts?

Studies show that children’s engagement in arts-based practices with their parents, caregivers and educators can strengthen the child’s language skills and perception of their family language. Engaging simultaneously with creative and linguistic processes can strengthen children’s innovation skills and empathy later in life. 

In 2022 Mother Tongues created a training programme that all our facilitators undergo. Through this programme, our artists are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to create inclusive and culturally responsive environments that cater to the needs of all children, regardless of their language or cultural background. As a result, children are able to not only develop their artistic and linguistic abilities, but also feel a sense of belonging and pride in their cultural heritage.

Outcomes of Language Explorers include:

Promote interest in family languages and overall language learning from a young age

Boost children’s confidence in speaking their language by doing so in a creative and fun environment outside the home

Raise awareness of the different languages spoken in our communities

Instill openness to difference by inspiring children and educators to embrace all languages and cultures

What people say

Éadaoin Kelly

Principal

Paradise Place, Dublin

We love the Language Explorers programme! It draws children's attention to languages in the environment and gives them the opportunity to explore language in a creative and fun way. For children who are bilingual or multilingual, it gives their home language a status in the classroom, it brings their language into everyday learning. The children further develop their sense of pride in their language and love to share it with others. For our staff, the workshops model good practice and help them to see that sharing home languages is positive, enriching and most importantly, very easy to do! ​
Aileen Lyons

Teacher

Stanhope Street Primary School, Dublin

Thank you so much for the really wonderful set of workshops you did for our school yesterday. The children thoroughly enjoyed their time with the ‘Language Explorers’ becoming aware of the variety of different languages spoken in our classrooms and being encouraged to embrace all languages positively! The teachers gave really great feedback and were very happy with the standard of the workshops and the level of involvement of the children. Everyone really enjoyed the day. Our school will definitely be in contact with you early in the new school year to discuss further ways we can collaborate with you all.

Bringing Language Explorers to your school

In spring 2025, we brought our language awareness programme to four schools in Dublin City. Over six weeks, Mother Tongues’ trained artists worked with Senior Infants and First Class pupils within the Language Explorers framework, exploring the children’s multilingual worlds through art, storytelling, music and games. The culmination of this series of workshops was a fantastic sharing event, titled “Here we live and play”. It brought together over 80 children, their teachers, families and Mother Tongues’ artists for a celebration of identity and community.

Read more about the project
Get in touch to bring Language Explorers to your school

Awards and Recognition

Language Explorers has been honoured with the European Language Label Award and recognised by HundrED for impactful innovations in education.​

selected for hundred parental engagement spotlight logo

Subscribe to our newsletter and download our starter pack!

Subscribe