Together we fly – World Friendship art project

Who is it for?

This project is for children and young people aged 5-18 years in Early Years settings, primary, middle and secondary schools, colleges, community schools and groups in the North East of England: Newcastle, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Gateshead, Durham and Sunderland.

Schools in other countries are also invited to be involved – both international partner schools of those in the North East, as well as other schools internationally.

When will it happen?

• Advance registration is open from November for this project
• Registered schools/groups will receive project resources from 6^th January to run the project in their schools and communities from January to March 2026
• The creations can be submitted any time from January, but should be received by 31st March 2026 at the latest, to be included in the public display in Newcastle

What is the activity?

The ‘Together we fly!’ world friendship art project invites children and young people to create colourful paper origami butterflies, with multilingual messages of friendship. These will be combined to create the ‘Together we fly’ art installation at Newcastle Civic Centre for all to see from April 2026 and a photobook will be created and shared.

We want to give young people a voice and enable them to express themselves and represent their own culture and feelings about friendship and share these with other children and young people from the North East of England and across the world.

The vision of the project:

• Friendships hold immense importance in our lives, impacting our mental and emotional well-being. Cultivating and nurturing positive friendships can bring immense joy, support, and a sense of belonging to our lives. Extending the hand of friendship across the region and the world, the World Friendship project and ‘Together we fly’ installation will demonstrate and celebrate the bonds of friendship, support and unity across continents.
• Butterflies are found in many cultures as symbols of change, growth, and new beginnings. Because they transform from caterpillars into creatures with wings, they remind us of the beauty that comes from change and imagination. In some traditions, butterflies are also seen as messengers of hope, joy, and friendship. By folding butterflies in many colors and languages, we celebrate the idea that even though we are all different, we can come together to create something bright and full of life.
• Origami is the art of folding paper into beautiful shapes without cutting or gluing. The word “origami” comes from “ori,” meaning “to fold,” and “kami,” meaning “paper.” For hundreds of years, people have created animals, flowers, and other designs by folding a single sheet of paper. By making butterflies together, we connect with this tradition of creativity and imagination, while also sharing friendship across languages and cultures.

In our World Friendship project, we ask participants to write their own personal message about friendship or to write the word friendship in English, their home language or in any other language, on their sheet of coloured paper before they begin creating their butterflies.

A teacher resource pack will be sent to all who register. It has information about the project and how creations will be part of the ‘Together we fly’ installation, as well as full details of how to create the origami paper butterflies (from very simple to more complicated versions for different age groups), with accompanying videos and suggested resources. It also includes suggested lesson plans and an appendix with translations in 70 languages with the words for love, friendship and kindness.

Schools and groups can post the weavings to us by 31st March for inclusion in the creation of our ‘Together we fly!’ public exhibition, which will be on show from April 2026 in Newcastle Civic Centre.

Schools with international connections can also do this activity with their partners and schools from abroad can send their creations to be part of the installation.

How do I get involved?

Register: In order to take part and access the teacher pack for the project, register by emailing info@expressyourselfne.com and include the following information:

• the name of the activity (Together we fly!)
• your school name and address
• your school lead contact and email address
• the number of pupils who will be participating in the school and what key stage or year group they are in

The teacher resource pack will be emailed to all who register.

Submit your school entries:

• Entries can be submitted from January onwards, but should be received for inclusion in the art installation by 31st March
• They should be delivered or posted to: Sarah Edgar, Education, (School Effectiveness), Floor 3, Newcastle Civic Centre, Newcastle NE1 8QH
• The installation showing children and young people’s work can be viewed in Newcastle Civic Centre from April.

Further information and links

This project has been developed specifically for Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages. There are other multilingual creative projects running from 6th January to 31st March which schools, community schools and groups can participate in:

• Festival Song – Love is the only River  (7-18 year-olds) We invite children and young people across the North East to sing, sign, play and perform ‘Love is the only river’ in the languages that children speak at home, in the community or are learning. Videos of performances will be combined to produce a regional multilingual version of the song.
• Mother Tongue Other Tongue (7-18 yrs) children’s writing activity, expressing themselves by reproducing a poem in their own language or writing a piece in a language they are learning. Certificates for entries, which will also be part of a digital anthology.
• Language Calligrams Celebration (7-9 and 9-11 year- olds) Create calligrams in any language (other than English) based on words children already know. School certificates for all and selected entries included in an ebook.
• World Recipe Book: exploring food and cultural heritage NE schools, youth and community groups: Share recipes in languages (other than English) and why these are important to different cultures. Digital recipe book will include selected entries.

Who is organising this?

This is one of the core projects of Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages. The activity has been developed and is being delivered in partnership with Newcastle City Council and International Newcastle.

This project and the coordination of the Festival in 2026 is funded by the North East Combined Authority East and we are grateful for this support.

• Contact: Declan Baharini, Festival Co-ordinator
• Email: info@expressyourselfne.com

This project is part-funded by the North East Combined Authority