Ellie Hunter, a final year Primary Education student at Stranmillis College, Belfast, joined us for a two-week placement at the start of the year. She spent time working with the Education and Engagement Team, meeting schools in our Resilient Child programme and even created some content for our social media channels.
Here’s the blog she wrote about her time with us!
“In our final year of the degree, amongst the busyness, we complete an insight placement for two weeks as part of the course module Professional Studies and Placement. This placement offers student teachers the opportunity to demonstrate how well they can adapt to the demands of different educational settings, outside of the traditional classroom environment.
For my insight placement, I chose to apply to a children’s arts company based in Belfast city centre – Young at Art. We were freely given the choice of where to apply; however, after carrying out some research, I knew this was a placement I would love to experience. I have a background in the creative arts, having grown up as a dancer from the age of three, completing dance examinations and competing at festivals. I also have a strong love for art – while I may not be the best artist, I truly value the creativity it brings. I especially enjoy the drama side of the arts, delving into theatre shows, with my personal favourite being The Lion King. Throughout my teaching placements in primary schools, I have always been enthusiastic about involving children in arts experiences, from fun and engaging art lessons to becoming mini-performers and producing their own shows. This ethos aligns perfectly with Young at Art, as the company believes that arts provision should be for children and young people, as well as by children and young people.
Throughout my two weeks at Young at Art, I experienced far more than I initially expected. I was welcomed so warmly by Becca, the Education and Engagement Co-ordinator, and the rest of the team, who were a fantastic group of people to work with. At the beginning of my placement, I was introduced to the team, gained an understanding of the company’s work and learned about upcoming plans. The team were extremely busy planning their biggest event of the year, The Belfast Children’s Festival 2026 (BCF 26), and I felt very privileged to be involved in this process. I was tasked with creating resource packs for schools attending festival shows. This involved writing background information about Young at Art, providing details about the performances, and creating pre- and post-performance lesson activities.
I was also given the opportunity to attend education workshops held in primary schools across the Belfast area. These workshops involved artists working with children across three years of their primary education, delivering visual art and drama sessions. The drama sessions were especially enjoyable, and I was lucky enough to experience ‘Evil Jasmine’! The art sessions were right up my street, with children exploring themes such as resilience, emotional understanding, empathy and hope through creative activities. I was amazed by both the quality of the planned activities and the children’s responses to them. As a student teacher, it was particularly lovely to observe the encouragement and warmth shown throughout the sessions, with children supporting and boosting one another. This helped foster confidence, a sense of belonging and friendship. I will most definitely take this approach forward into my future teaching practice, wherever my career may lead.
Another aspect of the company that I did not expect was the level of organisation and marketing involved. With BCF 26 approaching, I took part in team meetings that focused on planning schedules, event details and logistics. The amount of work that goes into organising the festival is immense, and it was both motivating and inspiring to be part of a team so dedicated to creating the best possible experience for children and their families. Working alongside the marketing team was also extremely enjoyable, particularly when producing engaging content and TikTok videos for the festival launch!
This experience has had such a positive impact on me that I could not miss out on the festival itself! I have since volunteered to help out at BCF 26 and am really looking forward to seeing everyone again and watching all the planning and hard work come together. A massive thank you to everyone at Young at Art for introducing me to new, fun and meaningful ideas for art and drama that I will take with me into the classroom and throughout my future teaching career!”
