On Friday 11 June, six students from the Respect Council at Penwortham Girls’ High School and their teacher participated in a Snapchat Virtual Online Workshop.

The Penwortham school was one of only five in the world to be selected for the event.

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The girls were given the special opportunity to work alongside Snap Inc‘s creative team and a creator for Disney. They were introduced to augmented reality and created their own lens (filter).

The workshop focused on using a snapchat lens to promote empathy and the understanding others. The girls will also be sharing their expertise with the wider school council so that they can work collaboratively and use social media to promote the school’s core values, such as social responsibility and compassion.

The students, Mrs. Hall (Deputy Head) and Mrs. Bennett (Curriculum Leader and Lead Teacher of Computing and ICT), were invited to take part in the event as a result of the Respect Council’s participation in Empathy Week, which was held nationally during February this year.

As well as giving the girls technical skills, it is a fantastic opportunity and provides an insight into one of the largest companies in the world – the people behind Snap Inc.

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Mrs. Bennett said: “We were invited to take part in the Snapchat online workshop, and it was an opportunity not to be missed; to be one of five schools worldwide to be selected to be part of this workshop was incredible.

“The virtual online workshop was hosted by Snap Inc. based in Los Angeles. Students were shown how to create their very own Snapchat lens. The girls thoroughly enjoyed the experience and are looking forward to sharing their skills with others.

“To promote unity across the school, we are taking part in the UNITEE competition. Students across the school have been asked to design a T-Shirt to promote the importance of tolerance and understanding.

“They will be modelled by staff in a whole school fashion show. As part of the online workshop, the girls have decided that the Lens Studio software would be a great way to promote this and showcase the skills that they learned from Snap Inc.’s creative team.

“I am very excited to see what the girls create. We are also exploring other opportunities to incorporate this software into school and look at how it can be used to promote equality.”

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Ed Kirwan, the founder and CEO of Empathy week, had invited the girls to take part in the workshop which included schools from Mexico, the USA, and the UK.

On hearing about the involvement of the school in the UNITEE campaign, he said; “Well done to all those involved in this year’s UNITEE fashion show and for putting your time and effort into something greater than yourself.

“This is empathy in action – you have taken time to understand a charity and the people they help, so that you can have a greater impact.

“Empathy is so vital to building better relationships and not only to help other people but to also help yourself. It’s a skill and you must keep practicing it as you go through school and beyond. I can’t wait to see the final designs and I wish you all the best of luck.”