There is a fun event this Saturday 30th April, 2pm to 4pm at Marylebone library 
 
Beautiful Butterflies at Marylebone Library
 
Amaze your friend with butterflies that can balance on the point of a pencil, no strings attached!
 
This is a family learning event for 5 to 14 year olds where children and parents will be working together. Maximum of 2 children per adult. 
 
Booking essential. Please contact Marylebone Library to book your place either in person or by calling 020 7641 6200.

Also a reminder that there is a regular craft session every Saturday at the library which is highly recommended.
 
Saturday Morning Craft Session: Come along, meet new friends and make something new every week.  
 The session runs on Saturdays at 10.30am to midday and is Free - no need to book, just turn up.
 

The Asia House Bagri Foundation Literature Festival is coming up, and they are holding a family day on Saturday 7 May to celebrate all things the Jungle Book. 

From 11am – 1pm professional storyteller Astrid Hilne will entertain the children with mask making and re-enactments of famous scenes from the story. This will culminate in an animated retelling of the story. Suitable for children 4-9 but younger/older siblings are welcome! Family ticket - (admits maximum two adults and three children) - £10. More information: http://asiahouse.org/events/journey-jungle/
 
From 14.30 – 15.30 author Mary Hamer will discuss her research into the lives of Rudyard Kipling and his sister Trix, as bought to life in her novel Kipling & Trix. This will be an event for older children/teenagers. More information:  http://asiahouse.org/events/whos-real-rudyard-kipling/

The Asia House Bagri Foundation Literature Festival runs  4 – 18 May – a fortnight of talks, panels and performances featuring some of the best writers from Asia today. 

In the upper classes, at EIFA Senior School, the students are also very enthusiastic and motivated. They follow an IB inspired education where teachers encourage them to become critical thinkers through stimulating learning tasks. And they benefit from an incredible learning space in their newly inaugurated facilities at Duchess House, on 10 Duchess Street.

EIFA (L’Ecole Internationale Franco-Anglaise), the international bilingual school in London, is located in Marylebone. They teach children from rising 2 to 18 years old. I recently visited the school to find out more about the Nursery class that they are opening in September 2016 as well as to view the rest of the school. 

The Little Eifa nursery class for 2 to 3 year olds is being established from Autumn Term 2016. Providing sessions both in the morning until 2pm and afternoon until 6pm, they will be able to provide full days as well. They accept children who will turn 2 during the course of the first term of enrolment, i.e. 21 months old and above. Being a bilingual nursery means that they offer the Early Years Foundation Programme in both English and French.

I was able to view the space that the Little Eifa class will be located - it is a large bright basement space with a small outside play area which is great for the little ones. There is a separate quiet time/sleeping area which seemed peaceful. 

Children progress through the school automatically. As I visited the other classrooms, I was impressed by the large room sees and the small number of children in each class. The seamless integration of the languages was also apparent. 

The school's curriculum is based on the French National curriculum and classes are taught in French and in English. The children at the school come from a large range of international backgrounds. Throughout my visit I could hear both languages being spoken by teachers and children. Class sizes are small, and children were happily engaged in learning and activities when I visited, which was lovely to see. In the upper classes, at EIFA Senior School, the students are also very enthusiastic and motivated. They follow an IB inspired education where teachers encourage them to become critical thinkers through stimulating learning tasks. And they benefit from an incredible learning space in their newly inaugurated facilities at Duchess House, on 10 Duchess Street.


The school has a unique feel given its bilingual nature, with many different nationalities and backgrounds. If you are interested in bilingual education, I would definitely recommend getting in touch with the school and visiting. 
There is lots of information about Little Eifa, Junior school and the Senior school on the website ​http://www.ecole-ifa.com