posted by Catherine Laird, Senior Clerical Officer, People Directorate, Early Years

Please see the link to an open day event.  OpenDay_FamilyNurtureSupport

posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning

Scottish Education Awards

Scottish Education Awards – now open for applications and nominations! Help us celebrate the achievements of your setting. Apply for the Learning for Sustainability or STEM categories before 14 February

Other news

• Raising attainment and improving outcomes through LfS and outdoor learning.
• Ready for emergencies? Promoting community resilience through social studies.
• Connecting Classrooms  – LfS professional learning courses starting 13, 19 and 27 January. Spaces still available.
• Policy briefings – background and impact of LfS and outdoor learning in Scotland.
• Handy links to key LfS resources and websites in Scotland.
• New Explorer’s Guide to the Lost Words nature book is now available.
• Date for your diary – John Muir’s 180th birthday celebrations, 14-22 April.
• See how LfS and outdoor learning feature in the new Suitability Guidance for the learning estate.
• Marine Renewable energy – free resources and posters available for your classroom.
• Download the Realising and Recognising Children’s Rights professional learning resource.
• 15,000 scientists issue warning to humanity and call for more outdoor learning and sustainability.

What are your planning to celebrate the Year of Young People 2018?

posted by Sylvia Cranston, Health and Wellbeing Staff Tutor

A teaching  resource called Super Movers has been developed jointly by  BBC and the Premier League.

This resource has been developed on the back of research that has proven physically activity helps improve  academic achievement, behaviour, concentration, self-esteem and readiness to learn.

Research has also proven that just five minutes of moderate exercise can significantly improve engagement in lessons.

More details:

• Gabby Logan is heading up the promotion
• bursts of physical activity within the school day in the classroom
• children move while developing  numeracy and literacy
• the resource is in  video form  for teachers to switch on at any time in the school day

Super Movers can also be used at home too; parents can join in by using the  ‘Just for Fun’ videos with their children at home.

Schools can register here and first 500 schools to sign up will receive a Super Movers Welcome Pack full of more information, Super Movers stickers and a poster on which to track your children’s progress.

Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning

News from the Commonwealth

New opportunities for a new year
Happy New Year to you and your students and a warm welcome to our first newsletter of 2018.

There are many ways for your school to take part in Commonwealth Class activity this year. Read on to find out about professional development webinars for teachers, a unique opportunity for students to get in touch with their country leaders, science resources and more.

Professional development and classroom resources

Join our first webinar for teachers
Each session is designed to provide teachers with the resources and skills to help young people understand global challenges and express their opinion. The first of our four webinars takes place on Wednesday 17 January and will focus on ‘protecting the environment’. Learn how to make the most out of our science-based classroom resources – join the session live or listen back in your own time. Find out more.

Protecting the environment
How would your students feel if their favourite animal’s habitat disappeared? Or what would they do if a big earthquake struck their hometown? Our dedicated page on ‘protecting the environment’ is packed with ideas to help you get students talking about the topic. Find out more.

How can we stay safe as sea levels rise?
Students can learn more about protecting the environment with our resource on the science behind rising sea levels, which includes a series of practical cross-curricular activities. They can also watch a video to learn about how communities on the Pacific island of Kiribati are learning to stay safe and take care of their surroundings. Download the resource.

Young Commonwealth Learners
More easy-to-understand resources for young students are available via the Commonwealth Secretariat’s dedicated website. You will find a wealth of information about the Commonwealth, plus downloadable posters, quizzes and more materials to use in the classroom. Take a look.

Commonwealth Class opportunities coming up

Get in touch with your country leader
Ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in April, we are collecting students’ thoughts and questions on the future of the Commonwealth. These will be shared on social media and with country leaders via the meeting organisers, and prizes will be awarded to the ten most inspired submissions. It’s easy to take part – find out how.

Dates for your diary
Keep an eye out for news about special activities and new resources to tie in with this year’s Commonwealth Day, which takes place on 12 March. The deadline for entries to the teachers’ short story writing competition is 12 February, so there’s still plenty of time to submit an entry.

posted by Christine Jackson, Schools and Learning Support Officer

Please find attached the syllabus for the 2018 Arbroath Music Festival.    festival syllabus 2018

posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning

We have Suicide Alertness For Everyone Training (safeTALK) scheduled for:

Wednesday 31 January 2018 (9.30am – 1.30pm) in Forfar
Friday 23 February 2018 (1pm – 5pm) in Forfar

This training is open to everyone (employees, employers and members of the public who live or work in Angus).  Please forward this email to anyone who would be interested in this training.

safeTALK is designed to be an introductory course for anyone interested in learning to be suicide aware.

Can you recognise the signs of someone at risk of suicide?  Would you know what to say to a colleague, student, family member or contact with thoughts of suicide?  Most persons with thoughts of suicide go unrecognised – even though most are, directly or indirectly, requesting help.  Without safeTALK training, these invitations to help are too rarely accepted, or even noticed.  In only a few hours, you will learn how to recognise these invitations and provide practical help to persons with thoughts of suicide.  Expect to leave safeTALK more willing and able to perform an important helping role for persons with thoughts of suicide.  safeTALK is a training session for everyone in the community – no prior knowledge is required.

Aim of Training:  To enable participants to recognise and engage people who might be having thoughts of suicide and to connect them with community resources trained in suicide intervention.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of this course participants will:

• Be aware that people at risk of suicide are often not given help due to cultural myths and misinformation
• Recognise when a person might be having thoughts of suicide
• Engage that person in direct and open talk about suicide
• Move quickly to connect them with someone trained in suicide intervention who can review the risk and develop a plan to reduce the risk of harm or death.

Please see attachment for further information about safeTALK.

Outline of safeTALK training
31.01.18 Registration Form
23.02.18 Registration Form

To book, please email suicideprevention@angus.gov.uk with one of the attached registration forms.  Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.  This session is free of charge to participants and will be funded by the Suicide Prevention Collaborative for Angus.