posted by Louise Kirby, YMI Coordinator, Schools & Learning

We hope all the children have enjoyed their summer holidays and are looking forward to going to primary 1(and its okay to feel a little nervous inside).  Louise (Jo) + Amy (Great Granny and Jasper)

Amy Hall Gibson + Louise Kirby delivered Little Rabbit to Grange, Ferryden, Seaview, Friockheim, Letham, Warddykes, Northmuir school nurseries and Rompers private nursery in May/June 2016.

“Very interactive and children were very engaged. The use of the puppets and some humour also kept their attention. It was an excellent way to start a discussion with the children about hat they think school will be like and allay any fears that they might have.  The use of props, particularly the large story book, enabled the children to follow the story in a simple way.  Thank you very much” Kathy Wiseman, Warddykes Nursery

“The Little Rabbit workshop was excellent; the children had a super experience learning about the feelings which can be associated with going to school. The performers had a lovely rapport with the group and lots of valuable learning took place.”

Some nurseries used the model of inviting other children from other settings and parents and children to experience the interactive performance together with all the pupils going to P1.

Little Rabbit is a charming theatre performance for pre-school children preparing to move into primary one. The performance is an engaging, interactive and enjoyable, experience that supports children’s exploration in the themes around transition. The use of creative techniques encourage pre-schoolers to voice their concerns about starting primary one in addition to supporting the Little Rabbit who is unsure about starting school.  The performance concludes with a hands on workshop using drama and art techniques to further explore transition from nursery to primary one.

If you would like to note interest in this workshop for next year please contact KirbyL@angus.gov.uk

posted by Pauline Stephen, Head of Schools and Learning

For the Attention of Headteachers, Faculty Heads and All Teachers:

We are aware that creativity is high on the agenda and is part of many School Improvement Plans for the upcoming academic year. For the first time creativity is embedded in HGIOS 4 quality indicators. We hope that this initiative is an easy way to progress creative learning in your school community with maximum impact, at the same time creating a positive and inclusive experience for pupils.

Invitation to All Schools:

We invite all schools in Scotland to be a part of our Dare to Dream campaign 2016. The campaign is an outreach initiative from this year’s Scottish International Storytelling Festival and will run from September to November. 

“Discover the stories of the past and dream the stories of the future. What are the stories of your local place? What stories would you tell to the world today, from the future of your dreams? Everything created must first be imagined: explore the possible and Dare to Dream!” 

By taking part, your school will be contributing to a Scotland-wide initiative inviting and creating space for children to imagine their personal and collective futures, which in turn will build confidence to begin to make these aspirations and ambitions a reality.

The principles of creative learning, active learning and inclusion are embedded in this project. Through dreaming, the liberating power of the imagination is open to everyone – neither language nor disability are barriers to participation. The campaign is relevant to the entire school and to every subject area. Activities will also help meet outcomes in both Literacy and Health and Wellbeing.

In an ever-changing world, we believe that it is vital that children are educated about their role and the value they have in shaping a vibrant and sustainable future. By setting learning in the context of your local school and focusing on issues relevant to your pupils, our #DareToDream campaign provides a great opportunity for you to encourage children to think about their right to participate, empowering and enabling them to become active citizens, both locally and globally. We provide the context for learning and suggest tasks and activities, but there is no limit on where this engaging topic could be taken in the classroom.

How to Take Part:

We have made it as simple as possible for teachers to take part, with the options for engaging in more depth should the individual teacher so wish. In a secondary school context, we have suggested a simple activity that could take place in registration class.

Our info for teachers can be found on our website under the tab ‘For Teachers.’ This includes a schools’ toolkit and information about how to book a storyteller if you wish.

We have also worked in partnership with heritage organisations, mental health organisations, artists and storytellers to create simple resources for you to use. All additional learning resources will be available on our website when we launch our campaign to the public, the week beginning *Monday 22nd Aug.* Resources will also be available on GLOW.

If you are interested, please register your name, contact, school and postcode by clicking the link below. We will send you an update with links to all resources and materials. 

Register your school here

Showcase your school online:

We will run a #DareToDream social media campaign for the duration of the main International Festival, from the 21st – 31st November. During this period we will make visible all contributions via our online platform. This is an opportunity to showcase your own school’s contribution with the wider community should you so wish in the form of a blog, video, photographs or otherwise.

As part of our social media campaign, we will have a special #DareToDream Day on Thursday 28th October. On this day, we will encourage every creative citizen in Scotland to share a dream for the future on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using the campaign hashtag. Our aim is to make visible Scotland’s collective imagination for all to see!

 www.daretodream.scot
 #DareToDream
#CuirBrighRiBruadar
#DaurTaeDream

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. We hope you’ll join us and Dare to Dream!

Mairi McFadyen
mairi@scottishstorytellingcentre.com
National Storytelling Co-ordinator | TRACS
Direct Dial: 0131 652 3272 Reception: 0131 556 9579
Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street, EH1 1SR

posted by Louise Kirby, YMI Coordinator, Schools & Learning

Angus Council Schools & Learning have received funding from Youth Music Initiative (YMI), part of Creative Scotland to fund a range of music projects across Angus schools in School Year 2016 – 2017.

A range of short and/or long term projects include –

• Kodaly with all P1-3s across Angus, including class teacher CPD (check CDP online)
• Pipe Drumming with D2 Percussion with P3/4 at Hayshead.
• Arbroath Pipe Band After School Group at Hayshead.
• Drake will be delivering to some of the ASN resources schools in primary and secondary.
• Nordorff Robbins will be delivering Experiential Music Making within ASN resources schools. They specialise in areas, including autistic spectrum disorder, children with complex need and social and emotional and behavioural development.
• Rock College at Arbroath Academy.
• Bass Guitar After School Group at Warddykes.
• Musical Futures at Ladyloan and St Thomas.
• Rock Fest on 13^th June 2017, a platform for young people to perform in give a safe and professional environment.
• Braebach at Brechin High, a 3 day project.
• Jam Time with P7s in selected schools working with P7s with the guitar.
• Music Technology, upskilling Arbroath Academy staff and pupils.

These projects link into the YMI outcomes –

• Young people have more opportunities to take part in enjoyable and quality music making opportunities
• Young people who would not normally have the chance to participate take part in music making opportunities
• Young people develop their music and music making skills
• Young people develop their skills for life, learning and work
• Young people increase their awareness of music and culture across Scotland, the UK and the world
• Young people influence or lead youth music opportunities, and have their voice heard in design and delivery
• People delivering youth music develop their skills and confidence
• Organisations in the music sector and beyond work together to strengthen the youth music sector for the benefit of young people

If you feel your school would benefit from a music project/CPD/support please contact KirbyL@angus.gov.uk with a proposal for consideration for our funding application for 2017 – 2018.

posted by Rodger Hill, Service Manager, Schools and Learning

Twig Assignments are now available to Glow users through TwigonGlow. This feature allows teachers to set Twig films as homework and track results while testing students on what they’ve learned.

Teachers can also track their students’ week-to-week progress and see exactly where each student would benefit from some more assistance.

The feature can be accessed through the MyTwig panel for both teachers and students:
https://www.twigonglow.com/my-twig/

TWIG have released a tutorial for assignments that can be found here:
https://www.twig-world.com/assignments/

TWIG also have a general system requirements information page for the whole site which can be found here:
https://www.twigonglow.com/support/system-requirements/

posted by Rodger Hill, Service Manager, Schools and Learning

I work in the Educational programmes Unit at East-Madrid Education office, one of the five educational district offices in the province and region of Madrid (Spain). One of my tasks is to help the schools in this area (infant – primary – secondary and vocational) look for internationalisation possibilities, contacts with schools in other countries and participation in programmes such as Erasmus+ (that’s to say learning and play not only outdoor but also abroad.  I help them get acquainted and start eTwinning virtual projects (https://www.etwinning.net/en/pub/index.htm), or look for good teacher training courses and job-shadowing positions and apply for Erasmus+ KA1 funding to attend them (https://www.erasmusplus.org.uk/ ) or help them search for partner schools to apply for KA2 funding for international partnerships around a common interest (such as  ICT use in the school context, skills development, teacher improvement, subject centered teaching, community learning, STEM or any other topic). I also advise some of them to find positions for vocational and upper vocational students to go abroad for internships, etc.

We cover a territory with 179 Primary schools, almost 100 Secondary, etc.  Besides, here we have a very strong specific bilingual programme which implies that many of the schools are bilingual, offering a third of the curriculum in English, so communication among the schools wouldn’t be a problem in principle.  There are interesting projects all over the place (here’s an example: http://www.educa2.madrid.org/web/tecnorurales ) and there are also teachers interested in sharing projects, participating in international partnerships, or in the possibility of sitting courses, experiencing job shadowing in schools in other countries, welcoming colleagues from other countries for short job shadowing visits or other possibilities…

if you consider there might be any collaboration possibilities please contact me at:

M Inmaculada Reguero MélidaUnidad de Programas Educativos – DAT-Madrid Este
C/ Jorge Guillén, s.n., Alcalá de Hres. 28806-Madrid
Tfno.: 918872114 / Fax: 918872138
Programas Internacionales<http://www.madrid.org/dat_este/supe/programas-internacionales/programas_internacionales.html>    –    Idiomas<http://www.madrid.org/dat_este/supe/lenguas-extranjeras/lenguas_extranjeras.html>

posted by Rodger Hill, Service Manager, Schools and Learning

I am very pleased to advise that we have launched an e-safety masterclass in Edinburgh on 7^th September. The aim of this masterclass is to provide a better understanding of e-Safety responsibilities; including up-to-the-minute advice on Prevent Duty compliance and practical guidance on how to be proactive, not reactive in the management and escalation of safeguarding incidents.

We would love for you to join us, completely free of charge, by registering here; http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/e-safety-masterclass-understanding-your-safeguarding-obligations-edinburgh-tickets-24834063352?aff=erelexpmlt

There are a limited number of places available so if you’re available and it sounds of interest, I would recommend registering at the first opportunity.

Sophie Bell
Regional Sales Manager
www.smoothwall.com
Office : +44 113-205-9756

smoothwall
Head Office : Avalon, 1 Savannah Way, Leeds, LS10 1AB, United Kingdom
Telephone: UK: +44 870-199-9500 US: +1 800-959-3760