New Benchmarks
There here! The new Experiences and Outcomes and Benchmarks for the Technologies curricular area were published last week. If you haven’t had a chance to look at them yet, links have been updated on the General Support & Reference page so you can find them quickly. These represent a significant change in the Technologies curriculum and I would urge you to take a look at them now. Re implementation, Education Scotland give the following advice:
- Practitioners should begin to familiarise themselves with the Benchmarks through using them to support assessment as appropriate in their local contexts, and taking account of current school improvement priorities.
- HM Inspectors will be interested in practitioners’ awareness of the Benchmarks and how they are starting to use them, but will not expect immediate implementation.
These are exciting times for Technologies, and the new Es&Os and Benchmarks will support us in equipping pupils with the skills to take them from technology consumers to technology creators.
Food for Thought
Food is a certainly an interdisciplinary topic – with one foot in Health and Wellbeing (diet & nutrition) and the other in Technologies (preparation & creativity). Education Scotland, as part of the improvements to their website, have recently updated their page on Food for Thought Support Resources and you’ll find a link to it on the Food page. Here you’ll find resources to support both H&WB and Technologies and there are some great visual resources you can use to support your lessons.
Activity Spotlight
Have you subscribed to updates from Barefoot yet? If not, I’d encourage you to do so. Each week they have a spotlight on a particular activity, which they email out to subscribers. It’s a great way to try out something new; and their activities are always extremely well planned and highly engaging for pupils.
Keyboarding
As teachers, we put great store in good handwriting. We know the benefits clear script brings to communication; and how much easier it will be for our pupils to pass exams in the future if they can write comfortably and clearly for extended periods of time. We plan regular handwriting activities from the moment pupils start school, and keep reinforcing posture, grip and formation throughout their education. But are we doing the same for keyboarding?
Keyboarding is to computers, what handwriting is to pen and paper. Like handwriting, keyboarding if a life skill. It needs to be taught and practised to gain fluency. Fortunately, the days of chanting ‘a s d f space’ while a class of S3s battered at their Olivettis (Google it!) are long gone. Now pupils can access structured and fun online activities to help develop their skills. This week I’ve added Typing.com to the Keyboarding page. Why not give it a go.
Microsoft Educator Community
This week I’ve discovered the Microsoft Educator Community (you’ll find a link on the General Resources and Support page). If you have access to Office 365, but perhaps aren’t using it to its full potential, then this is definitely worth taking a look at. You’ll find resources shared by other educators, as well as resources and training materials to help you develop your own digital skills. You can also sign up for the Microsoft Innovative Educator programmes and gain recognition of your skills.
Wishing everyone a great Spring break, and until next term,
Enjoy (not!) teaching technologies 🙂
Carol
