PLACEMENT TASK
Serial Day tasks: During your eight serial days, you should spend the equivalent of three days gathering this information, by observing, speaking to class teachers and other colleagues, interacting with learners, reading school policies, and any other appropriate activities. The tasks will be explained in greater detail in relevant sessions during the module.
Mapping of school grounds/area.
Each classroom is big enough for all the children in them and space on the floor for all the children to gather in front of the smart board. The corridors in the school are very wide and there are also countless desks and chairs set up. These are mainly used by support staff working with children during class time and for Primary 7 pupils over lunch time. In one area of the school there are computers in the corridor, enough for a whole class. This is where teachers can take their class to do anything IT related.

Evidence of existing engagement with sustainable education within the school such as garden area, recycling bins, litter picking ‘wardens’, bird boxes, and so on.
There are plenty of small trees, plants and bushes outside of the primary. However if you go through the gym hall and open a large door, it leads to a closed off outside area. Within this small area there are gardening tools and patches of soil. I was able to accompany some children who had the task of planting some plant bulbs. The children had to measure 10 cm over from the previously planted bulb, use a tool that picked up the soil in a cylinder shape, put the bulb in that space, then drop the soil back on top and flatten it down. The class were organized so that two children stayed behind to show the others what to do as only 6-8 children were allowed out of class to plant. This job of planting gave the children the opportunity to use measuring skills, assume leadership positions, work with one another and learn about how to plant flowers.
The school also has an eco comittee and each class has representatives for that as well as each class havng two assigned litter pickers.

Consideration of actual play space for children and its suitability.
The playground surrounds the whole school and has different features within it. One part has a large wooden frame with a roof which children use to congregate and play with each other. There is also a large pole with a container on top of it that has different sized spaces in it. The object of the game is to throw a ball through the space and it will fall out of another one and someone has to catch it.

Discussion with children on these aspects of sustainable education.
Someone came into the school to teach a class all about how chicks hatch from eggs. There was an incubator left in the classroom for 2-3 weeks until the chicks hatched and were taken by the person who brought them. Unfortunately I was unable to get the name of the organisation or farm that they person worked for however I was glad to have seen the impact that the experience had on the children and all the staff in the school. The classroom had wall displays of pictures and facts regarding eggs and how the chicks hatch, what they look like when they first hatch to a few weeks later, how long it takes etc. It was good to see them learning about another form of life and how it is born, it was very interesting to see everyone’s fascination surrounding the topic. This to me was a sure sign of sustainable education within the school.

Energy
Electricity Workshop
We discussed how we would teach electricity in school by working through tasks and reflecting on what was good about it, what could be improved and what would be done differently with children rather than adults. A good way to introduce electricity to a class would be the use of an engaging but simple video pitched at the children’s level of understanding. An activity to determine what materials conduct electricity and what ones do not would work well with children. The children could record two lists, one for conductors and one for insulators. After testing all the materials and recording what they thought each were, a conclusion could be made to determine what materials work/conduct best.
If a teacher was wanting to have there class do experiments with creating different types of circuits then the teacher would need to do a lot of preparation work before hand. The resources would have to be checked to make sure there are enough to split the class into sensible sized groups, as well as checking that the equipment actually works. The class would need to have a lot of background knowledge of circuits, how to construct one, the names of all the equipment and what they do before tackling the previously mentioned task.

Energy Debate
I found this class quite useful for learning the content that the lecturer wanted us to know as well as an effective way to ensure everyone in the class had something to do and felt that they contributed in some way. However there are a lot of things to consider when giving this type of lesson as a teacher. The groups need to be supervised and have a good variety of skills and personalities. This will ensure that there the amount of personality clashes and carrying on are limited. It is important to have enough research articles and websites or books for everyone to look at so that no one is left out or not engaged in the researching part of the debate.

14/10/16
Soil Association


I learned how much the soil affects different aspects of our life. The soil association campaigns for healthy, humane, sustainable food, farming and land use.
Crofting connections is a key strand of the company used in education, in schools teaching children about their heritage and crafting skills that would have been used in their history.
I didn’t know that a lot of schools in Scotland have a ‘food for life’ badge. There are bronze, silver and gold which is a level of award that represents the freshly made,healthy food from natural ingredients that the school provides.

“Good food for all” is the company’s ethos which is all about good food for humans, animals and the land.

From this presentation we were told of resources that would be good to use for teaching children about the different types of soil and how to identify them.
There is a survey called the OPAL survey that identifies soils and what you can do with them.
http://www.opalexplorenature.org/soilsurvey
Particularly for children the http://www.hutton.ac.uk/learning/dirt-doctor would be a good resource to use. This is because it has named characters that depict different types of soil with a biography describing what that soil is like and where they ‘live’ e.g. “damp” or “soft exterior but extremely hard beneath”
We were also to think of our own activity ideas that we could do in a classroom. The group that I was in thought that you could plant a flower or herb when learning about what plants need in order to grow. You could also get seeds for food from different countries and see if they would grow in our soil. This shows that different soils are needed for different things to grow. Another idea would be weighing soil for children to practice using measuring skills.

We as teachers can inspire the next generation to take better care of their environment. Ways we can do this is make them aware of the damage that is being done, show them what is being done to change this globally, nationally and by farmers. It is important to then teach them things they can do personally or with friends and family so that they know it is something they can do to help.
Children can learn about food waste collection, find out if there is one in their local area. This is a way that non farmers can help with composting soil. They can also learn that what their family, carers buy from the supermarket can help stop erosion. For example, palm oil is in a lot of things sold at the supermarket but it is a big cause of deforestation. Children can ask parents to avoid buying products with this in it, or at least share that fact with people they know in the hopes of inspiring them to watch what they buy and the sources the products come from. Another idea children can put into practice is tell their parents that if antibiotics have been subscribed but not all of them are used by the individual then if taken back to the pharmacy they will be disposed of properly. This is a much better thing to do then but them in the bin or down the sink, as this can cause contamination of water and soil.

Farm Visit
It was great to learn about Rhet http://www.rhet.org.uk/teachers/Farm+Visits who organise farm visits all over scotland for schools to take children to see where their food comes from. This helps the children become considerate of what they eat and develop respect and a wider knowledge of the world around them. This experience is not only beneficial for children but for adults as well. We as young adults were taken aback by the time spent with the farmers and learning from them how much goes into getting the milk from the cows to the processing companies to the shops then to us.I highly look forward to the chance of being able to contact this organisation in the future to organise a class trip for me as a teacher.
During the visit we were asked to raise questions that we had regarding the facility, process of milking, and the welfare of the animals. Our class had raised concerns about the cows never going outside and are only kept in small individual stalls a fews days after birth


then progress into large more open enclosure when over 8 weeks old

Then into main areas with many more cows once over a certain age

The farmer’s acted to ease our concerns by saying that the animals are well fed, sheltered and the farm has multiple machines that monitor temperature and light.
Regardless of this some still found it unfair to the animals that they never experience more than the indoors and the space they are confined to. However others could see the farmers point of view as the animals are really well looked after and are dairy cows so keeping them they way that they do is extremely beneficial for business purposes as the cows get milked a lot more often due to technology used inside the farm.

06/09/2016 Study Task, Carbon footprint
http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/?_ga=1.176985891.745195644.1442412124
From using the above website I was able to calculate my carbon footprint. My individual carbon footprint was shockingly higher than I had expected. However upon more reflection I feel this is because I live at home with my parents and 4 siblings so I do not choose what phone, tv, gas companies my home has. I also do not buy what kind of food we have in my home as the previous is all done by parents. Therefore some answers that I had to give on that quiz counted as my whole household compared to if I lived on my own. That being said, I can still make an influence in my home and can ask my parents to look out for buying more local products in terms of food. I can also ask a family member to turn off their room light if they are heading out somewhere, or turn off an appliance when they finish using it.
The highest factor that contributed to my carbon footprint was travel. This is not something I feel I can help as I do not drive and have to use public transport for university which takes around 3 hours of travel per day. I also have a medical condition so I cannot walk too far or exert myself too much in a day so will use buses to get to centre of my local town as it is 30-40 minute walk away from my house. On top of this I have never learned to ride a bike however that does not mean that I cannot buy a bike and learn to ride it. If this was the case then perhaps I would not need to take the bus to the train station but again there is the difficulty of my medical condition that may prohibit me from being physically able to ride a bike for a long time.

30/09/2016
SCIENCE WORKSHOP – Climate Change
In primary schools climate change can be hard to teach as it is mostly associated with statistics which are unappealing to children.However if focusing on extreme weather which is a result of climate change,then it is something easier children to understand and connect with.
When teaching science it important to remember that not everything has to be an experiment. Discussions can be had with children about different types of snow e.g. soft, or more ice like, or avalanches. Then an activity can follow when the children make snowflakes out of paper like below

An important teaching point to remember is that science is all about trial and error, figuring out why something did or did not work the way you thought it would,then making plans to continue accordingly. Hence discussion is key to helping the children understand the essence of scientific experiments and for you as the teacher to remain confident even if you’re lesson did not work as planned.These moments are learning opportunities for both pupils and teacher. The pupils learn that it is okay for things to go wrong or not work and learn the importance of evaluating what happened and trying to improve.For the teachers they learn what works well and what does not so will know in future what experiments to try again with a class.
Other directions you can take climate change in teaching is discussing well known figures who have gotten involved in climate change research and help the children relate to the topic that way. Another option is the water cycle by creating posters, diagrams, or using equipment that specifically shows the water cycle.

Moving on, another key teaching point is to always check the prior knowledge of your class so you can make appropriate adjustments to lessons and to hear of their interests.
It is a teachers job to interest children and connect them with whatever we teach them. This can be done by finding a “hook” to grab their attention, something they know and are aware of e.g. showing a video that explains that humans damaging their world is like an astronaut cutting off his oxygen or life line.
A further teaching point to always bear in mind is to create extension activities for every task or lesson given to children as well as improvements that can be made to the tasks.
An example can be found in an activity we did in class involving making a tornado in an empty jar with water, washing up liquid and food colouring. When adding the previous into the jar and shaking it, a tornado effect happened. The activity was very short so could be lengthened by repeating the task but with different sized jars, adding more or less of the water or washing up liquid to see if the tornado was harder or easier to see etc. It can then be followed up by studying on the internet or in books to find out how tornadoes happen and where in the world to tornadoes regularly occur.

Politics and Global Warming Workshop
The main thing I took from this class was how we need to raise awareness how to be prepared for disastrous climate change in our lives without putting people off. It needs to be done in a way without scaring learners but helping them being able to make decisions even when their futures are unclear.
A key teaching point is to stay up to date with world and local actions and news regarding climate change. Prepare children to have skills and make connections between what they know and can do with other things. For example if they can problem solve in maths then they can apply those skills to different subjects and even life situations.
I also learned that it is highly important to be open and transparent if I as the teacher do not know something but be able to ask the children what they think could be a possible answer or commit to finding out the answer with the children.
A good lesson idea would be what we did in class. We were to act as if we were in political parties. We had to decide what we valued strongly and what we would want to achieve. It made us realize how connected everything is and how hard being a politician could be.
This offers a sense of realism, creating an intriguing, exciting atmosphere to learn in.

27/09/2016
SCIENCE WORKSHOP – Living things
The lesson was carried out by the learners rotating round tables to perform different tasks. Most of the tasks were active whilst one or two involved more academic work. It is good to have a balance when giving lessons like this as it offers a way to control the energy of the class. If every activity involved a lot of physical action then, especially with young children, they may become overly excited and hard to manage. A task that involves study and recording provides the opportunity and challenge of showcasing the knowledge learned through drawings and words. For example making a chart or answering questions through making a poster involves collecting, processing and displaying information learnt.

Whilst participating in the given tasks I was able to understand how easy it can be to involve many curricular areas in the one lesson.
In the space of around 2 hours we were able to learn about science through art, technology, literacy and maths.

THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT – Outdoors
The whole duration of the class was spent outdoors as we went around the campus completing tasks set by the lecturer. After completing the tasks we were to reflect on three questions. All the tasks involved identifying birds, plants, trees, birds and lichen
The following paragraphs discuss the answers to those questions:

How could it be done outdoors?
All the activities could have been done via power points, interactive games, art projects etc but all lack the depth of the memorable experiences that can be gained from doing them outdoors.
If the children were to identify bugs and their features then they could play a game of “What am I?” In which one child would have a picture of a bug and the other students have lots of pictures. The peers would asks questions such as does it have wings, antennas, eight legs etc to figure out what bug the student had.
This can be done in slightly different ways and with birds too.

How did we engage?
Engagement rose and fell whilst doing the tasks. This was due to us finding many things but not having them on our lists of what to look out for. Therefore even though we did find a lot, it seemed insufficient as it wasn’t what we were meant to have found according to the given lists. It was also quite hard to find or identify things as well sometimes.

Learning outcomes/points?
Despite what was said in the last paragraph, the fact that we were still able to realize and notice what was around us is what the lesson was actually about. For learners it shows the depth and scope of the natural environment as things you never knew existed or weren’t looking out for can suddenly appear when you try to look. For teachers it is important to encourage children who may not have found what you asked them too, that they did not “fail” the task, as they can make note of all they did notice instead. As the teacher this is an opportunity to let the individual and the class know about diversity as there is so much more in the world then we may know or realize.

Urban Area Task

Physical Environment:
Photographs of Paisley
The above link is a gallery of pictures that show what makes up paisley from the street views, transport, education, town hall etc.
In Paisley like most city or town centres there are streets full of shops and cafes and the only housing is flats. As you move further out of the main city then there are more housing estates with semi detached or detached houses. Despite the modern aspects of the town it manages to maintain an older feel as the Abbey and town hall are wonderful historical buildings that are still in use today. Within Paisley there is a river called the River Cart which adds to diversity of the landscape.
In my Urban area there is plenty of greenery. Upon entering my housing estate there is a fenced park with planted bushes and trees, a climbing frame for children and walkways to use. In addition to this there is a much larger park only 15-20 minute walk away which has vast grass fields and a pond which is home to swans and ducks. Both parks are beneficial for individuals, families and dog owners as it provides the opportunity to get physical exercise whilst interacting with nature on a daily basis if one desired.

Transport:
There is a railway line behind the back of my housing estate as well as a main road, plus an airport is not too far away too. This causes countless trains, planes and car noises to be heard throughout the day. The estate I live in can be quite busy too and a car could pass by my house at any time of the day, night or early hours of the morning. Despite there being exposure to many different traffic sounds they become background noise and you become adapted to hearing them, meaning they do not cause much annoyance. On the road there are many buses frequently timetabled, and there are two train stations within a close range to my house. There are also many cyclists who use the roads often, plus just recently new street signs were put up for cyclists to show them near by cycle tracks and paths they can use. Due to the closeness of the neighboring towns to one another,the main roads to paisley and the motorway to Glasgow being near where I live it can be hard to travel at specific times of day as the rush hour traffic causes the roads to be very congested. This however does not pose too much of a problem if you’re only wanting to get of the house to buy some bread and milk. This is because there are 3 shops in which you can buy necessities from and they range from a 5-15 minute walk to get to them. Moreover despite Paisley having a few busy roads, it does not seem to cause too much of a negative effect on the air quality.

By using the website www.scottishairquality.co.uk a town, city or village can be searched and it will show a map like the above with colour coded marks to show how much pollution is in the air. For Paisley it has the lowest, number 1. This is very good as it means there is a low amount of pollution in the air which results in less severe or any health issue being caused due to it.

Community spaces:
Regarding schooling in paisley, from this website
http://www.schools-search.co.uk/school-search-town.php?town=PAISLEY
It can be seen that there are 40 schools (primary and highschool) in Paisley Renfrewshire. This offers a selection for parents as to which school they feel is best for their children and also shows the amount of families living in these towns as there needs to be multiple schools to accommodate all the children. Some schools are only a 5 minute walk from each other, further explaining the previous statement.
This picture gives an outline of the amount of schools in close proximity to one another

Other community spaces in paisley are the art museum which is also in the same building as the library. Throughout the year the art museum has different exhibits and events that are always promoted around the town. There is also St Mirrens Football Stadium which hosts games as well as offering a range of clubs and community football centres to various primary schools and different ages of children. As shown here: http://www.saintmirren.net/forms/st_mirren_in_the_community_football_centres_2016.pdf

Industry and Work: Consider all types of work; manufacturing, agricultural, retail, service etc.
Between Paisley and Linwood there is something called the Phoenix Retail Park. Here there are many car showrooms which require salesman, tech workers and mechanics. There are also may retail shops that offer a large selection of what you can buy as there are specific stores for clothes, house and garden, shoes and toys as well as having a large Asda. Quite recently the brands Greggs and Star bucks also built shops within the shared car park that links all the nearby stores together which is used frequently by shoppers as they move from store to store. Even more recently a new cancer research store has been built and is asking for volunteers. The wide number and variety of stores offer many jobs, especially with Asda being open 24hrs and having a petrol station and car washing facility that needs workers too. The Asda also has an opticians and pharmacy, further adding to the types of jobs available locally.
The retail park also has many restaurants and fast food right places to choose from and has a cinema next to it, offering more variety for work and entertainment.
Within both Paisley and Linwood there are also sports centres that are 15 minute bus ride from my house. Since the two centres have some distance between them but not too much it means that a wider range is covered so anyone living directly in those towns or in the outskirts in any direction do not need to travel too far to use the facilities. This means there are more people who are able to engage in sports and exercise without too much trouble. Having these centres offers different options for work as they will need coaches for sports like swimming where local families and primary schools will bring their children too.
Another field of work available in Paisley is medicine. It has the Royal Alexandra Hospital, with GP out of hours available, a medical practice with pharmacy next door, as well as other pharmacies within the town centre. There are also care homes not too far from the centre as well.