See how a Insights Discovery team-building session helped bring our two teams together —Academic Summer and Living Learning English, building trust, understanding and a shared culture.
At Academic Summer, we believe that education is not only about what you learn, but how you grow. During our annual staff day and Christmas party, that philosophy came to life in a very real way with a dynamic team-building session with our sister company.
The colours of collaboration
Led by Simon Casebourne from The Ethical Leader, our session introduced the Insights Discovery model, a powerful tool for understanding work styles and building better teams. Using the familiar four-colour framework: Fiery Red, Sunshine Yellow, Earth Green and Cool Blue, each team member received a personalised profile revealing how they communicate, collaborate and thrive at work.
“It helped us to stop and reflect,” said Helen Lami, CEO of Academic Summer. “A great reminder of how important it is to support each other and really understand the people we work with.”
Why this matters for students, parents and partners
It’s easy to think of team-building as something that only matters behind the scenes. But here’s the connection: the more we understand ourselves and each other, the better we serve our students, their families and our academic partners.
As Simon explained, “Self-awareness is the foundation of leadership. When we’re more aware of our own preferences, strengths and communication styles, we can connect more effectively with others. That’s how high-performing teams are built.”
This matters even more in an international setting. Our team represents multiple cultures, languages and perspectives, just like the students who join our summer schools in the UK and Canada. Learning to adapt, listen and collaborate isn’t just good business, it’s the heart of our educational mission.
Shared values, shared success
With Academic Summer and Living Learning English coming together, it’s vital that we create a shared culture grounded in trust, flexibility and respect. This session reinforced that our diversity is our strength and when we communicate with openness and curiosity, great things happen.
One participant summed it up perfectly: “I finally understand why our team works so well. We’re different, but our differences are our strengths.”
A model that mirrors our teaching
The Insights Discovery model reflects much of what we aim to teach through our programmes: self-awareness, emotional intelligence, resilience and leadership. Whether it’s through our Be a Leader initiative, our cross-curricular CLIL-based lessons, or our hands-on Pathway to Medicine streams, we’re always encouraging students to understand themselves and others better.
This session reminded us that we’re not just facilitators of learning, we are learners too.
Looking ahead
As Helen put it: “There are always challenges, but there are also always opportunities. What we need to do as a team is work together, support each other and keep moving forward.”
That’s exactly what this day gave us. More than a set of profiles or colour-coded cards, we left with a deeper sense of connection and a renewed energy for the exciting road ahead. And that, like every good lesson, is something we’ll carry with us, long after the flipcharts have been packed away.
The Clever Fox Journal is the online news section of Academic Summer Camps, inspired by our logo – a wise fox wearing a graduation cap. Just like our summer programmes, The Clever Fox Journal is a place of curiosity, learning and discovery, bringing you the latest updates, insights and stories from our academic camps in the UK and Canada. Stay informed, stay inspired – and think like a clever fox!
