With Stylus, Brush, or Quill

Photo: Karsten Helmholz

What does writing look like across cultures? Which writing tools did people use to write in the past? And what role did and do manuscripts play in people’s everyday lives? Our programme for primary schools introduces children to the cultural diversity of writing in a playful way.

Many research topics in the EXC 'Understanding Written Artefacts' are directly relevant to writing learning processes, especially in highly diverse student groups. These topics include manuscript cultures and writing traditions in Turkey, Ethiopia, China, India, Japan, the Arab world, the Jewish tradition, and many more. The project is one of the practical offers of the Cluster UWA on the topic of writing from different writing cultures, which supports learning processes in an informative and playful way. The children learn about different writing materials, writing instruments, and writing directions, and gain insights into the history and everyday life of learning to write in various regions of the world. Against the background of the existing linguistic diversity in school classes, our teaching units also contribute to the promotion of intercultural competence and strengthen the understanding of writing as a cultural practice.

In each session, experts from the Cluster visit a class, for example in art or science lessons. After a short introduction on the respective writing culture, practical exercises are carried out with the children in a playful way.