Category Archives: Early Learning

Creative Conversations in Edinburgh – Wednesday 26th November

As well as the ‘big’ Creative Conversations Edinburgh City Council are also planning a number of Creative Conversations that take as the stimulus for conversation, a piece of creative work. We first tried this in February with a drama performance by award winning children’s theatre company Catherine Wheels. Not just drama teachers but many people from different backgrounds attended. The animated conversation that followed was testimony to the potential for art to influence learning across all curriculum areas. The feedback was excellent.

Date for your diary:

The next of this type of Creative Conversation is on Wednesday 26th November starting with coffee at 4pm for 4.30 with wine and nibbles at around 5.30. The stimulus for discussion is The Heavenly View which is a dance piece first performed at the Edinburgh Fringe this year and based upon Mahler’s 4th Symphony. The choreography was inspired by the voices and ideas of children in Edinburgh primary schools: Canal View, Hillwood, Ratho and Gylemuir. The approach was unconventional in that the starting point was the learners’ ideas, from which the piece was choreographed. Responses to the work will be shared from the primary schools including poetry and visual art as well as the chance to explore the interdisciplinary and creative learning opportunities arising experiences from an arts stimulus.

The costume designs by Edinburgh College of Art 2014 graduates, Emily Beaney and Kate Hamilton, also took their inspiration from the pupils ideas. The dancers include current and alumni students from the MSc Dance Science and Education and the Advanced Training Programme at Morningside Dance Academy.

Please get back to carla.hay@edinburgh.gov.uk directly if you would like to attend and she’ll send full venue details and confirmation of your place.

Creative Conversations are for Edinburgh, Midlothian and East Lothian and we are happy for non-Edinburgh/Lothian folk to come if we have space.

An invitation – Expressive Arts Conversation Day, 12 December 2014

Expressive Arts Conversation Day 3 will take place on Friday 12 December 2014 at the Insight Institute, Strathclyde University, Glasgow.

https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/glowblogs/eslb/2014/11/19/an-invitation-expressive-arts-conversation-day/

Education Scotland and the Scottish Government are keen to take stock of where schools and nurseries and their Teacher Education Institute partners are with regard to developing practitioner confidence and capacity in relation to expressive arts.

The purpose of the day is to

  • explore the current national position with regard to developing practitioner confidence and capacity in relation to expressive arts
  • consider what challenges and opportunities are emerging and how these are being addressed
  • identify areas that require further support and what that support needs to look like.

If you would like to attend the event, please contact Ron Cowie, Senior Education Officer, Expressive Arts: ron.cowie@educationscotland.gov.uk

We expect around 40-50 colleagues from across education sectors and partnership bodies to participate on the day. A programme for the day will be sent out to participants along with confirmation of attendance.

Book Week Scotland 24-30 November 2014

During Book Week Scotland, a wide range of organisations including libraries, schools, museums and workplaces, will deliver a packed programme of free projects and events, bringing Scots of all ages and from all walks of life together to celebrate the pleasures of books and reading.

Find out more on the Scottish Book Trust website. The Education Scotland website has a list of resources available.

http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/book-week-scotland

http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/resources/b/bookweekscotland.asp

Book Week Scotland: Information for Schools and Families

Find out what’s happening from 24-30 November for Book Week Scotland.

During Book Week Scotland, a wide range of organisations including libraries, schools, museums and workplaces, will deliver a packed programme of free projects and events, bringing Scots of all ages and from all walks of life together to celebrate the pleasures of books and reading.

http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/resources/b/bookweekscotland.asp

RSNO CPD opportunities

Details of the remaining CPD sessions we have available across the country are listed below. Sessions cost £20 per person and all attendees will receive a resource pack and free ticket to an RSNO concert.

All CPD is run as morning/afternoon sessions, however, should a school/LA be interested, we can run a more in-depth in-service day session.

We will also be running online courses.

Please contact us for details.

Practical Ideas for Music-making with Early Years (CfE Level E–1). Contact us for additional levels

Edinburgh: Friday 6 February 2015

Glasgow: Monday 9 February 2015

Dundee: Thursday 12 February 2015

Perth: Thursday 5 March 2015

Conducting/Leading a School Ensemble

Edinburgh: Friday 3 October 2014

Glasgow: Monday 6 October 2014

Perth: Thursday 9 October 2014

Aberdeen: Thursday 29 January 2015

Dundee: Thursday 12 February 2015

An Introduction to Playing/Teaching Timpani

Workshops on request

Arranging for School Ensembles

Ranging from small percussion groups to the school orchestra, this workshop will help you to make the most of the individual talents within your ensemble.

Workshops on request.

For more information or to book, please contact the RSNO Engage team at engage@rsno.org.uk or on 0141 225 3574.

Exploring SCRAN – 390,000 images, movies and sounds from museums, galleries, archives and the media

Highland teachers are invited to attend the session arranged for Wednesday 8th October, at the Dingwall Education Centre. Anyone interested in coming along to the training can book via Highland CPD. This is an excellent opportunity to support the GTCS Professional Review process and expand professional learning plans.

Vertical aerial image taken near Dingwall, 17/05/1975                      © Scran

Scran sessions aim to show teachers how to tap into a vast visual resource, become familiar with the functions of the website, www.scran.ac.uk for research & investigation – as well as considering new applications for classroom activity.

Staff can find out how to acquire imagery & information to illuminate teaching & learning practice.  All 390,000 records on Scran are rights cleared for educational use and the content can be used across the curriculum. The session consists of a presentation followed by an enjoyable series of online tasks exploring the potential of Scran.

Scran is listed on the GTCS register of approved CPD providers and on Education Scotland’s PLFind.

Why not have a look at some Scran case studies?  Link – http://www.scran.ac.uk/learning/schools/cfe/casestudies/index.php

Starcatchers – Creative Skills Training Courses for Early Years

From 2013-­‐15, Starcatchers is delivering a new pilot programme of Creative Skills Training for Early Years practitioners in Scotland. Funded by the Scottish Government and Creative Scotland, this programme offers a range of training sessions from Early Years artists which explore expressive arts using an open-­‐ended, child centred approach.

The programme is for everyone working across the Early Years sector, including staff in nursery and family centre settings, health workers, childminders, and out-­‐of-­‐school and play workers.

‘If we are to encourage the next generation to be creative, flexible and confident, as practitioners we must first embody those principles ourselves. We need to be brave.’ Rhona Matheson, Starcatchers Director

National Programme Overview

Creative Skills application form

Creative Skills Training Programme – early years


“It’s not just about increasing creative confidence, it’s about broadening that confidence”

From 2013-15, Starcatchers is delivering a pilot programme of Creative Skills Training for Early Years practitioners in Scotland. Funded by the Scottish Government and Creative Scotland, this programme offers a range of practical, accessible and inspirational training sessions from Early Years artists which explore expressive arts using an open-ended, child centred approach.

Starcatchers is now inviting applications from applicants in Edinburgh, Fife, Inverclyde, East Lothian and South Lanarkshire with a deadline of Monday 23rd June. Applications for Aberdeen have a deadline of Monday 30th June. Deadlines for Dumfries, North Ayrshire and Highland will follow.  The deadline for applications for Dundee has now passed, however, please enquire via email about potential additional spaces.

“It goes beyond being given a set of instructions to follow, it’s a new way of thinking about your practice.  We got to be more creative about being creative” FEEDBACK FROM 2013 / 2014

The programme is for everyone working across the Early Years sector, including staff in local authority nurseries and partner providers, family centre settings, health workers, childminders, and out-of-school and play workers. For more detailed information about the programme including aims and outcomes please download the Programme Overview and area specific information.

“I used creative movement with a boy with severe anger issues – It absolutely blew my mind how effective it was” FEEDBACK FROM 2013/ 2014

In Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Inverclyde, East Lothian, South Lanarkshire and North Ayrshire sessions will take place in twilight slots, typically 4-6pm.  Dumfries and Galloway sessions will take place within the working day, and sessions in Fife and Highland will take place over four intensive Saturdays.  Please check the area specific information for exact times and dates.

You can download an application form HERE and return it to Starcatchers by email: info@starcatchers.org.uk.

Knee High Design Challenge: early years and parenting

An update on the Knee High Design Challenge: prototyping and testing stage where participants test their innovations including a musical about child birth, pop-up parks for families, and paper prototypes of an early years app. A great example of community led creative change.

https://www.designcouncil.org.uk/news-opinion/knee-high-design-challenge-prototyping-and-testing?utm_source=Design+Council+Monthly+Newsletter&utm_campaign=c7baa3cb74-Pinged_34_12_13_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_a2748d9827-c7baa3cb74-67145881

Early Years staff, Starcatchers Creative Skills Training

Starcatchers is a pioneering organisation that specialises in performances and creativity for babies, toddlers and young children under the age of five in Scotland. In addition to creative development and tours of performances for this age group, Starcatchers also delivers programmes of training for Early Years practitioners.

From 2013-­‐15, Starcatchers is delivering a new pilot programme of Creative Skills Training for Early Years practitioners in Scotland. Funded by the Scottish Government and Creative Scotland, this programme offers a range of training sessions from artists, including theoretical as well as practical sessions.

Download the full detail here:

Starcatchers Creative Skills National Info

The programme is for everyone working across the Early Years sector, including staff in nursery and family centre settings, health workers, childminders, and out-­‐of-­‐school and play workers.

‘If we are to encourage the next generation to be creative, flexible and confident, as practitioners we must first embody those principles ourselves. We need to be brave.’ Rhona Matheson, Starcatchers Director

The Training

The Creative Skills training is designed to be practical, accessible and inspirational, and will enable practitioners to explore their own creative and artistic capabilities in a supportive environment before introducing new ideas and techniques into their own Early Years practice.

Art forms explored will include drama, dance and movement, visual art, music, storytelling and puppetry.