Together Across Pages is a new course for upper-primary & lower-secondary (ELT) teachers who wish to learn how to support social inclusion in their classrooms through the use of picturebooks.
This course will focus on engaging intentionally with picturebooks about real life in order to explore the world and its people through picturebooks. The course will also draw on a recent keynote by Gruenbaum (2025) to connect to UNESCO’s World
Philosophy Day and discuss how philosophy in picturebooks can support critical thinking and open up conversations about love, inclusion, and courage in theclassroom.
Throughout the course, participants will discover a wide range of picturebooks, including wordless picturebooks, suitable for learners aged 10-14. Amongst other things, participants will learn about picture book selection, visual literacy and story- based pedagogy embedded in a children’s rights perspective, developed by Gail Ellis and Tatia Gruenbaum for the British Council Teaching English. The practical part at the end of the course will allow teachers to select a picturebook that connects to their interests.
To conclude, this course provides teachers with a unique opportunity to engage with picture books that extend beyond the conventional coursebook to promote GCED and inclusivity in the classroom.
Target audience
Upper-Primary (ELT) teachers and Lower-Secondary (ELT) teacher educators
Tuition
24 hours on site – Monday, Tuesday, 9:00/14:00 – Wednesday 9:00/13:00 –
Thursday: 9:00/12:00 /13:00/16:00- Friday 9:00/13:00
Objectives
The objectives are for participants to:
- Understand why intentional engagement with picturebooks about real life matters
- Explore social inclusion, diversity, and real-world issues through picturebooks
- Use picturebooks to support critical thinking in the classroom, inspired by UNESCO’s World Philosophy Day.
- Develop skills in picturebook selection aligned with learners’ needs, interests, and learning goals.
- Advance visual literacy skills to help learners read visual narratives
- Apply story-based pedagogy to enhance language learning and learner engagement.
- Design and implement practical classroom activities using a self-selected picturebook connected to their own interests and teaching context
Methodology
The course will be delivered in a collaborative teaching setting and involves practical, hands-on and interactive activities, which are developed around examples of resources. This includes an array of picturebooks on display for book browsing. The trainer aims to create a relaxed and safe learning environment which offers participants opportunities to share ideas and experiences. The first three days will focus on input and the last two days on practical application.
Content
This 5-day course (25 h) has been divided into two parts. The first three days will
focus on input and the last two days on practical application. Participants will select a
picturebok and develop their own lesson plan.
Participants
Minimum number: 8 – Max number: 20
Language
Language of instruction / materials is English
Dates and location
22–26 June 2026 Breda, Netherlands- AVANS UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES, Hogeschoollaan, 1 – 4818 CR – B
OID for the Erasmus Beneficiary Module: E10140779 -AVANS Hogeschool
Cost
450 €
Costs include tuition fees, materials, coffee & tea arrangements – Suggestions for accommodation will be given upon registration
Info and registration
For more info and registration link write to: infosmartedu4all@gmail.com
Link to apply: https://forms.gle/qojZKE8HZPUA896y6
Practical info here
Trainer: TATIA GRUENBAUM
Tatia Gruenbaum is a visiting researcher at the TU Braunschweig (Germany), based in the Netherlands. She holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics, and her doctorate focused on the use of picturebooks as a tool in pre-service primary teacher educa?on. In 2023, she co-authored a lesson series with Gail Ellis for the British Council, exploring the theme of economic disparity in picturebooks. Her current research focuses on introducing the Holocaust in English Language Teaching through picturebooks to support Global Citizenship Education. Tatia is one of the co-founders of Picturebooks in European Primary English Language Teaching (PEPELT), a finalist in the 2020 British Council ELTons awards.