All posts by K. Mayer

Holly Cram

Welcome from Holly Cram, Game On Scotland Ambassador

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What an introduction to the Game on Scotland programme I had at Comley Park Primary in Falkirk.  I am so thrilled to be part of a special team looking to make a lasting legacy in schools across Scotland and beyond.  The Commonwealth Games offers the perfect opportunity to teach our youngsters about the world and will provide valuable learning and teaching opportunities.  I have an action packed diary of visits, training and work so keep posted to see where and what I am up to in the build up to the games.

(Twitter: @hollycram)

Award, Game On Challenge

Scottish Education Awards 2014 – Category ‘Commonwealth Games’

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Nominations for the 2014 Scottish Education Awards are now open and this year any school involved in work around the Commonwealth Games and its legacy will have a unique chance to win!  This of course applies particularly to schools who have already posted a Game On Challenge on our website.

Join our athletes in competing for the top award in 2014!

The deadline for submitting nominations is Friday, 21 February 2014. For more information and to see the full list of categories, please visit the Scottish Education Awards website.

Clyde, Competition

Congratulations!

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The Game on Scotland team wishes to congratulate Louise Johnston from Torphichen Primary School, Bathgate, West Lothian who won the signed Libby Clegg poster donated by Team Scotland. Louise’s name was randomly selected from those 110 people who signed up to Game on Scotland in November.    

There are many more opportunities to win through Game On Scotland from Art Competitions to visits from Athletes and Clyde .  If you want to be kept in the loop about what’s on offer why not become part of the Game On Scotland family by signing up to our regular e-updates.

For other poster downloads please visit the Go Scotland website.

curriculum, Glow Meet, RME

Game On Scotland and RME – Glow CPD, 3 Dec @ 4pm

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On 3rd December 2013 (4pm – 4.45pm) is the first of the Religious and Moral Education ‘Game On’  Glow Meets. This is a great opportunity for practitioners to link what they’re doing in RME with the incredible sporting and cultural spectacle which is the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. This will be a chance to discuss with colleagues across the country how RME is uniquely placed to explore a dizzying variety of issues linked to the Games – cultural, social, moral, philosophical – to name but a few…

 So log on at GOS RME Glow Meet and take part in a stimulating and challenging discussion about how RME can lead on exploring the Games in Scotland’s educational establishments. Cultural diversity, moral issues in sport, taking part or winning,  beliefs about sport and beliefs and sport –let’s get RME to the heart of the games!

So, join this unique training session from the comfort of your own chair… be a winner (participants will qualify for a Clyde Mascot visit) –  make sure you’re there!

For your diary:  Learning zone session for classes to get involved:  17 December, 11am.

If you have missed any of our previous Glow Meet sessions on the Queen’s Baton design, Talor Lawn Bowls production, literacy and the Games etc. why not catch up on it HERE.

Glow Meet, International Education, partnership, The Commonwealth Class

Debating the Games

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Young Scots and Sri Lankans virtually met at the new building of the British Council in Colombo to engage in discussions about the Commonwealth Games and values.

14 -17 year old pupils at St Joseph’s Academy in Kilmarnock and Stonelaw High in Rutherglen linked up with Holy Trinity College in Kandy, and Colombo schools, Vishaka Vidyalaya and Mahinda Rajapaksa College, to discuss their educational and cultural links with HRH Prince Tunku Imran, President of the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Education Scotland, with the support from the British Council, made the live exchange possible via the unique education tool Glow. The session supported the British Council’s Commonwealth Class programme that provides resources, online BBC debates and interactive activities for schools to mark the run-up to the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Watch gain:  If you have missed this session you can catch up on it here

Glow Meet, Queen's Baton Relay, Technologies

Learning Zone Glow Meet: The Queen’s Baton Design

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Join us on Tuesday,  26th of November  (11am – 12noon) for the second of our Game on Scotland Technologies Glow meets. (Glow meet sign-up: http://bit.ly/gostechnologieslearningzone)

This session allows learners to:

–        hear from the Queen’s Baton designer Will Mitchell (4cDesign) & share their own a baton design ideas

–        find out more about the challenges of producing lawn bowls from Grant Heron Taylor bowls

–        learn how they can get involved in the Scottish Engineering Special Leaders Award from Angela Greene from Primary Engineers.

In order for your learners to get involved most effectively in this session why not:

–        Set your class a baton design challenge  

–        Prepare a 2 minute pitch of your idea to Will Mitchell from 4cDesign (Dragons’ Den Style) on the day.

Please register for the glow meet before the 26th Nov.  We will aim to have as many schools as possible involved in the challenge.  For more information email Kirsty McFaul (DO Technologies) kirsty.mcfaul@educationscotland.gov.uk

Watch again!

If you missed last week’s excellent presentations from Will Mitchell and Adam Best (Queen’s Baton Relay Team, Glasgow 2014) you can watch this again here

Educational resources, The Commonwealth Class

The Commonwealth Class – Education Pack

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The Commonwealth Class education pack is a flexible resource that can be used to support individual projects or joint curriculum work with a partner school. 

For more information about opportunities and resources around the Commonwealth Class programme visit  British Council Schools Online.

If you do not yet have a British Council Schools Online account we recommend that you register with them to gain access to other opportunities to develop the global dimension at your school including Connecting Classrooms, International School Award and Language Assistants.

The next BBC online debate will be held on Thursday 14 November to coincide with the Commonwealth Youth Forum 2013. The debate is a fantastic opportunity for your students to engage with their peers around the globe on the most vital challenges and opportunities facing young people today. You can contribute to the debate on the day by emailing comments to the BBC team at commonwealthclass@bbc.co.uk.

And finally, British Council are offering grants of £250 for schools to hold mini launch events on their site for other schools in their area. Events do not have to take any predetermined format but should be 2 hours long and schools should involve at least 10 teachers representing different schools in their area. The launch should be based on the script provided in the Commonwealth Class Education Pack. If you would like to hold a launch event please download and complete the Commonwealth_Class_Launch_Grant_Application  and return to ryan.dunn@britishcouncil.org.

Games Legacy, Glow Meet, partnership

Join the Digital Commonwealth!

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Interested?-

     –   Then why not take part in the Digital Common Wealth Glow Meet on Tuesday 26th November at 1pm.   

This will be an opportunity for those of you who want to participate in the schools’ programme to hear from the Digital Common Wealth team and some of the potential participants about ways to join in, and ask questions about the project.  The deadline for submitting an indication of interest form is 29th November, therefore we hope to answer any last minute queries which you have as well.  If you have already submitted an indication of interest form, it is a chance to meet other participants from across Scotland and join in the project discussions.  You can respond to the conversations and post comments and questions in the chat box which appears during the Glow Meet. 

Join the Glow meet here!

For more information pelase contact:

Alison McCandlish  (Educational Coordinator – Digital Common Wealth Project):  Alison.McCandlish@uws.ac.uk

Literacy, partnership

Digital Common Wealth Schools Programme

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Learners from 32 school clusters from targeted areas of most socio-economic need across Scotland will be given the chance to participate in the Digital Common Wealth schools programme, funded by the Big Lottery Fund, the University of the West of Scotland and the MediaTrust and launched formally on Friday 25th October 2013, with a great deal of interest shown from the education and cultural sectors and over fifty attendees.  The project aim is to involve every Local Authority in Scotland in the digital reporting of the Commonwealth themes in the run up to the Queen’s Baton Relay in June 2014, promoting digital media literacy skills through a series of specialist workshops (with associated learning materials mapped to Curriculum for Excellence requirements) focusing on audio, video, blogging and social media storytelling techniques, for up to 20 pupils (at P6 – S2 level) per cluster.  These will use readily available technology to help learners use their imagination and knowledge to produce creative, appropriate and engaging content based around four broad Commonwealth themes of People, Place, Culture and Exchange.  Participating schools will see their work showcased on a project website which will be archived as a record for future generations and there will be opportunities for working on a collaborative and cross curricular basis.

To participate in the project the Digital Common Wealth project team are looking for a Local Authority representative in each area to submit an indication of interest form

detailing how the proposed school cluster meets the project eligibility criteria and why they would like to take part, as well as details of how the project would be embedded in the curriculum.  Indications of interest should be submitted to the Digital Common Wealth Educational Coordinator, Alison McCandlish by email (alison@digitalcommonwealth.co.uk ) by 5pm on Friday 29th November 2013.

For more information on the project, together with detailed eligibility criteria you may wish to visit the Digital Common Wealth website www.digitalcommonwealth.co.uk , and the links below:

 Digital Common Wealth schools project website http://digitalcommonwealth.co.uk/project/education/

 Digital Common Wealth Twitter account @DigCW2014 with project hashtag #DigCW2014

Digital Common Wealth on EDUtalk http://www.edutalk.info/radio-edutalk-11-09-2013-david-mcgillivray/

 Digital Common Wealth launch event schools project summary slide  http://www.slideshare.net/DigCW2014/schools-presentation-for-launch-27532818 

Digital Common Wealth launch audio http://mixlr.com/johnpopham/showreel/digital-commonwealth-launch-live-from-glasgow-digcw2014-3/

Glow Meet

Technologies on Glow: Meet the Queen’s Baton Designer (5 & 26 Nov)

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In November two exciting Glow Meets around Technologies’ will focus on the Queen’s Baton and its design.

  Join us on Tuesday the 5th of November  (4 – 4.45pm) to learn more about how William Mitchell and his design team  at 4cDesign effectively utilised science, technology, engineering, maths, art and design skills to create the Queen’s baton and how you and your learners can be involved  on the 26th November (11am – 12 noon) by considering your own baton design for your school or centre.  

Register for the CPD session here or simply join us on the day.   

For more information on all Glow Meets please visit the relevant page on Game On Scotland .

Find more information about the Queen’s Baton Relay, its design and nominating batonbearers here.