Aloha College Marbella students were delighted to participate in a cross-curricular and international book illustration project, promoting educational and social inclusivity across diverse student communities.

The project was initiated by Aloha´s own Amani Husaini, a year 11 student, and her involvement with the Manzil Centre, a special educational needs school in the UAE. The Manzil Centre, in collaboration with various international schools, have published a number of children´s books which have been designed and illustrated by students, and feature Amani´s own fictional creation, Inama the duckling. The books themselves have received the support and input of Lucy Hawking, renowned author and daughter of scientist Stephen Hawking.

Students here at Aloha College had the opportunity to partake in this fantastic collaboration, and Wednesday 15th June saw a group of 8 students across key stages 3 and 4 work together to illustrate a plot created by the students at the Manzil Centre. The day began with a live online meeting between the students from each school; it was wonderful to see how engaging and collaborative the entire process was. The rest of the day saw the students co-designing characters, planning, drawing and painting their illustrations. These fantastic artworks not only demonstrate these students´ amazing talent, but also reflect the sentiment of true student collaboration.