Celebrating nature in this year’s Young Learners’ Art Competition
The annual Young Learners’ Art Competition hosted by the British Council inspires creativity among learners around the world. This year’s theme was nature and environment, with the winning artworks featured on promotional calendars for British Council teaching centres globally.
The British Council’s link to the arts
We pride ourselves on being an organisation committed to the arts. We believe that art can bring people together and build collaboration and trust between countries and communities. Our Young Learners’ Art Competition has been running since 1998, with around 20 countries taking part each year. In Southeast Asia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand are some of the participating countries. There are three age categories, inviting children up to the age of 15 to enter.
There is a connection between the arts and language, as both can be used to communicate emotions and ideas. Using one’s imagination is a key to learning as it builds confidence among our learners and presents them with the opportunity to have their artwork displayed internationally.
Young Learners’ Art Competition 2023
Local competitions are held at our teaching centres, with the winners taking part in the global Young Learners’ Art competition where 12 artworks were chosen and displayed in promotional materials relating to the British Council’s work in English and Exams. Apart from having their artwork featured on promotional materials, they also receive a certificate of congratulations from the Director of Teaching Centres and Examinations.
Angela Daniel, our Global Lead for this contest, selected ‘The Natural World’ as the theme for the learners’ artwork. To complement this, teachers were provided with materials for optional English lessons about the environment. For Early Learners, this included a vocabulary and a story about nature. The other age groups enjoyed a critical thinking-based lesson with questions relating to the theme.
This year’s winners from Singapore
'Thank you so much to all our learners here at The British Council Singapore for your fantastic entries. It has been amazing to see the abundance of artistic talent we have across our two teaching centres,' says Andrew Bullough, the Singapore coordinator for the Young Learners’ Art Competition. 'The entries displayed incredible creativity, and all linked back to the theme really nicely, with fantastic, bright colours bringing the artwork to life. Congratulations to our winners and everyone who participated, and I look forward to the competition next year!'
Around 60 learners entered the competition from Singapore. Congratulations to this year’s winners from our British Council teaching centres in Singapore:
Toa Payoh winners:
- Kalaivani Raja Raja Chozhan (under 8)
- Quek Jing Xuan (ages 9 to 11)
- Natalie Emma Antoni (ages 12 to 15)
Napier Road winners:
- Ang Rui Jia (under 8)
- Regina Sim Chwee Ann (ages 9 to 11)
- Avika Anand (ages 12 to 15)
The Young Learners’ Art Competition inspires creativity and connections around the world every year. The British Council looks forward to continuing to celebrate the arts with this tradition and applying learners’ creative skills in the classroom.
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