THEY may first appear to be as different as chalk and cheese, but already a group of Nicolson Institute pupils are finding connections between Scottish Gaelic culture and that of China.

Preparing to raise funds for a school trip to Hefei 168 Middle School in Anhui, China, a group of pupils have joined forces with Gaelic arts agency Proiseact nan Ealan (PnE) in an exciting pilot project aiming to learn more about the relationship island teenagers presently have with Gaelic. Kirstie Anderson from explains: “As part of our Audience Development strand of our work we are keen to engage different groups with Gaelic arts initiatives and one of the target groups is teenagers. “We would like to learn more about how they engage with and use the language, as well as how we can better communicate with them and how to design Gaelic arts initiatives that appeal to them.” Working with the Nicolson pupils to design their own Gaelic arts projects which will help raise funds for the China trip, due to take place in September this year, Kirstie continues: “We hope to encourage the young people to think outside the box, to understand what Gaelic and the arts mean to them, and to learn more about creating their own projects, gaining experience in project planning and marketing. “We want to empower them to take ownership of the language!” And the school group agree that they are all learning new skills as they set about organising a fundraising Ceilidh to take place on April 23. Seumas Cunningham of the group says: “We've been getting in touch with bands and booked a venue for the ceilidh and we're going to be working on marketing and advertising soon. “We didn't know where to start when organising something like this, there's a lot to do, and I think we're really learning things that we can take on and use again once we've left school.” The planned Ceilidh is going to be a traditional Scottish event with a difference – being organised with a Chinese twist! The group intend to offer an evening of fun with Chinese inspired stalls, including face painting, lantern making and fortune cookies; and the highlight of the Ceilidh will be the unleashing of a Chinese dragon! And the school group have been finding out that their culture has more in common with China than they realised have found ties between old Chinese proverbs and 'seann fhacail' – the Gaelic equivalent. But although still a number of months away, the group know that no matter how much they explore the Chinese culture, they will still be in for culture shocks during their 10 day autumn visit, as pupil Eileen MacLennan comments: “I think we'll both notice huge differences in each others cultures. “I think of the pupils my age in China – they stay in a boarding school – as always being school pupils, and I'm finding it hard to imagine them outside of school, what they do with their freedom. “There's also amazing differences in the language. The word 'Ma' can be said in five different ways depending on how you pronounce it – and they all mean different things!” she adds. And perhaps the pupils of Hefei 168 Middle School will find Gaelic just as hard to master! The Nicolson group will be seeking help during the Easter Holidays in preparation for the Ceilidh – making dragons and lanterns – and any local children wishing to get involved should contact Marina on 01851 704493 or email marina@gaelic-arts.com