Category Archives: Languages

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy, Literacy and English

Paper Creativity Challenge – Building With Paper

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Our successful Paper Creativity Challenge continues and this we are challenging you to build structures with paper. Once again we have a range of exciting Glow Meets that you can become involved in – find out more….

Paper Structures – Monday 28th January at 11am

Join Syrah live from the Dundee Contemporary Arts activity room where she will demonstrate three examples of origami folding.Firstly the 3D tree using a recycled magazine, secondly the flapping bird a classic origami design with great decorative possibilities, and lastly the Kusudama flower ball. Sign up in Glow TV and find out what materials you will need if you want to work along with Syrah – Paper Structures

The Great Paper Caper – Tuesday 29th January at 11am

Once again join our Paper Princess Margo from West Lothian for an exciting reading! This time listen to the mystery of the Great Paper Caper by Oliver Jeffers and find out about this week’s creativity challenge. Sign up and join us in Glow TV – The Great Paper Caper.

Scratch – Thursday 31st January at 10am
Join Derek Robertson and pupils from Newburgh Primary School, Fife for an introduction to Scratch and to learn about the launch of a Scratch Glow TV channel.

Scratch is a programming language that makes it easy to create your own interactive stories, animations, games, music, and art – and share your creations on the web! Sign up and join us in Glow TV – Scratch

Remember if you have missed any of the challenges then please go to the Watch Again section in Glow TV and view the recordings of all the events that have already happened in the Paper Creativity Challenge.

CfE, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy, Literacy and English

Julia Donaldson Event – Running on the Cracks

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The Tron Theatre will stage an exciting new show Running on the Cracks , an adaptation by Andy Arnold of the Julia Donaldson book of the same name. This new show will be staged in February 2013 and is a co-production with Pilot Theatre Company, York. Running on the Cracks is a fast moving new play about runaways, identity, survival and how friendships can develop in the strangest situations.

Join Julia Donaldson, children’s laureate for a Glow Meet live on Tuesday 29th January at 1.45pm from the Tron for this exciting event. Julia will discuss her inspiration for the book and will answer your questions. Don’t miss this opportunity to speak with one of the UK’s leading children’s author.

Sign up and join us in Glow TV!

CfE, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy, Literacy and English

Scottish Chamber Orchestra – A Little Book of Monsters

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The Scottish Chamber Orchestra’s Family Concert on Saturday 9 February features a new song book for a chorus of 300 children – A Little Book of Monsters. With lyrics by Matt Harvey and music by Stephen Deazley the book is full of songs about the kind of creatures that live under your bed….

Join Stephen Deazley and Matt Harvey for an exciting Glow TV event on Tuesday 29th January live from Broomhouse Primary in Edinburgh at 9.30am where you’ll get the chance to ask questions, take part in creative interactive activities and find out what it is like to be a composer or poet!

Sign up and join us in Glow TV!

Early Years, Literacy, Literacy and English, Young people, children & families

Wise Up Wednesday: National Storytelling Week

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Picture of logo for National Storytelling WeekThe  Education Scotland calendar gives details about celebrations, awareness days and action weeks all covering topical issues relevant to childcare and education settings.

National Storytelling Week starts on 26 January and you can learn more about it and find relevant links on the calendar here.

We’d love to know how you use the art of story telling to make a difference to children’s learning. Why not share your practice in the comments?

Classical languages, Expressive Arts, Mathematics, National Qualifications

Further titles published in series of Professional Focus Papers

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Education Scotland has published further titles in its series of Professional Focus Papers.  These materials have been designed to assist those supporting learners as they work towards the new qualifications.

The papers highlight important features of learning which are enhanced or different from previous arrangements. They provide advice on approaches to learning and teaching which build directly on those used in the 3-15 Broad General Education in order to promote continuity in learners’ acquisition of knowledge, understanding and skills. The papers are also intended to stimulate professional reflection and dialogue about learning. 

This set of materials covers a variety of subjects at National 4 and National 5: Lifeskills Mathematics, Mathematics, Care, Latin and Classical Studies. 

Also available, at National 5 only: Dance, Psychology, Sociology and Economics. 

They come as part of the development of exemplar course materials across the full range of National 4 and National 5 qualifications, being managed by Education Scotland in partnership with ADES. 

The Professional Focus Papers are now available for download on the National Qualifications area of the Education Scotland website.

CfE, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy and English, Literacy and Gàidhlig, Social studies

Burns Bash

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Join us for our celebration of the birth of Burns and the life and work of our famous bard on Friday 25th January at 9.30am. This year we want you to be able to share what you have been doing in your schools and classrooms so join us for our Burns Bash!!

If you would like to share your Scottish poems, dances or art work then make sure that you are with us that day to let other schools see what you have been doing – remember we always need an audience too so if you don’t want to perform then please just join us anyway!!

Taking part in the Glow Meet is easy – just email Jen McDougall and let her know what you would like to do and she will organise a short test with your webcam/microphoe to ensure that you are ready to go on the day.

If you have any Burns/Scottish art work that you would like to share then please send that to Jen as well and that will be showcased on the day too on our Scottish Showcase Sharepod!

During the event we will be joined by Newburgh Primary who wowed us with their ukulele playing in our recent Scotland’s Got Talent Glow TV event and a piper who will be piping us in to our show and bringing it to a close.

So get your shortbread and Irn-Bru (or other Scottish themed foods!) and join us for a fun and interactive session.

Sign up and join us in Glow TV!

CfE, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English

Daily What – Birdwatch Special

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The first news round-up of 2013 will be on Friday 18th January at 11am with the usual fun mix of news, quizzes and missing words. Our guest will be Craig Leith, the Lifelong Learning Officer for SSPB, talking about the Big Schools Birdwatch (in association with BBC Birdwatch).

Craig is happy to take any wild bird-related questions, so get tweeting and send in those questions!
Sign up and join us in Glow TV.

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy and English, Technologies

Take Part in the Paper Creativity Challenge!

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Over the next 4 weeks we are asking you to take part in our great new Paper Creativity Challenge which will involve exploring the properties of digital and physical paper through a variety of different and exciting activities!

We start this challenge on Monday 14th January at 11am with a visit to Dundee Contemporary Arts where we will begin our investigations with a Paper Making Workshop. During this Glow TV event you will learn how to make delicate and wonderful hand made papers from pulps.

Learn simple techniques suitable for using at home such as how to create a smooth surface texture for printing on, soaking and blendng recycled paper, and then also painting with coloured pulp. You can add decorative materials to make designs and also create your own watermark. Join us to learn more about this and then try it out in your own classrooms or homes. Sign up in Glow TV – Paper Making Workshop.

We continue our challenge on Tuesday 15th January with a visit to Bruntsfield Primary School in Edinburgh with Catherine Rayner as she reads her book ‘Ernest’. Meet Ernest who is a rather large moose with a rather large problem. He is so big he can’t fit inside his book! What is a moose to do? Luckily Ernest is also a very determined moose, and he and his little chipmunk friend aren’t going to give up easily. Will they find a way for Ernest to fit in?

During this exciting session you will have the opportunity to read and explore the story of Ernest with early years pupils (approx 20 mins) and then Catherine will work with older children and demonstrate to them how to illustrate texts, in particular Ernest. Ideally learners should have paper and paint so that they can also try the techniques. Sign up and join us in Glow TV – Ernest.

And there is more of this challenge to come! Keep watching this blog and the Glow TV schedule……..

CfE, CLD, Community Capacity Building, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, National Qualifications, Outdoor Learning, Research, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Senior Phase, Social studies, Supporting Learners, Technologies, Young people, children & families

Learning for Sustainability – report published

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Learning for Sustainability – the report of the One Planet Schools Working Group, was published 17 December 2012. 

The report includes strategic recommendations to support the development of coherent whole school approaches to ensure that learning for sustainability, global citizenship and outdoor learning are experienced in a transformative way by every learner in every school across Scotland. The report includes a number of recommendations relating to career-long professional learning and initial teacher education and advocates genuine partnerships with local communities and action to improve the sustainability of the school estate. A key ambition of the report is to provide an agenda for strategic change that will create an enabling framework, remove barriers, and build on existing excellent practice.

Dr Alasdair Allan, Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland’s Languages said:
“I welcome the publication of Learning for Sustainability and would like to thank the Working Group for their work and commitment to producing the report and recommendations. As we approach the Year of Natural Scotland in 2013, the report reminds us of the importance of learning which connects young people to local and global issues, an integral part of Curriculum for Excellence.

“A wide range of actions have been taken as part of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development and we welcome steps to encourage and support schools in their approach to sustainability and global citizenship, including through outdoor learning.

“We will take time to consider the report, to engage with partners on its recommendations and respond in full in March 2013.”

The report can be downloaded from:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Education/Schools/curriculum/ACE/OnePlanetSchools 

See the associated Engage in Education blog from Professor Pete Higgins, Chair of the One Planet Schools Working Group: http://engageforeducation.org/news/learning-for-sustainability/

CfE, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy and English

Christmas Talent Show

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Yes it is that time of year again where we showcase some of the great talent from aroud Scotland and we want to hear from you!!

Whether you want to sing/dance/recite poetry or tell us jokes we would love to hear from you. You can perform individually, in a group or as a whole class – it’s up to you how you do it!

You can let us know if you want to perform on the day and we can sort out all the technical side so we can see and hear you if necessary on the day too!

We’ll also need a great audience so even if you don’t want to perform you can sign up and join us on the day for some festive fun!

Sign up and join us in Glow TV on Thursday 20th Decmeber at 1.45pm – we look forward to seeing you then!

CfE, Literacy and English, Sciences, Social studies

Professional Focus Papers now available

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Education Scotland has launched the first in a set of Professional Focus Papers.

These materials have been designed to assist teachers and others with the delivery of programmes of learning within the new National 4 and National 5 courses.

The papers highlight important features of learning which are enhanced or different from previous arrangements.  They provide advice on approaches to learning and teaching which build directly on those used in the 3-15 Broad General Education in order to promote continuity in learners’ acquisition of knowledge, understanding and skills.  The papers are also intended to stimulate professional reflection and dialogue about learning.

This first tranche features 10 subjects: Biology, Chemistry, English, Environmental Science, Geography, History, Modern Studies, People & Society, Physics, and Science, each with papers published at both National 4 and National 5 level, except People & Society and Science which are only available at National 4.

They come as part of the development of exemplar course materials across the full range of National 4 and National 5 qualifications, being managed by Education Scotland in partnership with ADES.

The Professional Focus Papers are now available for download on the National Qualifications area of the Education Scotland website.

CfE, Expressive Arts, Glow TV, Literacy and English, Social studies

What is Remembrance? – Wounded

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This year Poppyscotland have teamed up with Glow TV to bring you a series of events about remembrance. This is the final event in this series.

From 20th – 23rd November 2012, Surgeons’ Hall Museum at The Royal College of Surgeons will host a unique theatrical and educational event. ‘Wounded’ is a new play, which has been written by members of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre for students from S3 upwards.

Wounded is a free educational event which has two aims: to bring to life elements of the Curriculum for Excellence, particularly in History, English, Drama and Citizenship; and to support outreach initiatives for students, enabling interaction with museum collections.

This is your chance to watch ‘Wounded’ from the comfort of your own classroom!

Sign up and join us in Glow TV on Thursday 22nd November at 10am or Watch Again if you are unable to join us live.

CfE, Literacy and English, Responsibility of All

National Literacy Network

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Join us live in Glow TV from Stirling Management Centre on Thursday 8th November for three National Literacy Network events.

This excting opportunity to join the NLN group begins at 9.30am with the Keynote speech from metaphrog who will be kick starting events with ‘Comics in the Classroom’. metaphrog discuss their experiences working with different age groups using graphic novels to explore literary ideas and to encourage reluctant readers. They will share insights into visual storytelling, talk about their Louis books and demonstrate their working methods. Sign up and join us in Glow Tv for this session.

This is followed at 10.20am by an opportunity to join a Workshop Presented by Moyra Hood, ESO Literacy, Angus Council and Yvonne Manning, Principal Librarian, Falkirk Council. In the context of creative approaches to literacy and research which shows that a love of reading is more important in academic achievement than a child’s social or academic background, two local authorities describe how book awards, both local and national, can contribute to raising enthusiasm and enjoyment for reading for pleasure among young people. Practical advice and ideas will be shared and the workshop will be illustrated with images showing the impact of the book awards and the book award ceremonies. Sign up and join this session in Glow TV.

Finally we conclude our Glow TV coverage at 12pm with a series of 5 minute sessions on literacy which includes Latin through ‘The Romans’, Literacy Across Learning Planning, Bookface Project, Using social networking style layout for exploring fictional characters, historical figures M Literacy-using mobile phone apps, Blogging, Writing Across Secondary Social Subjects, i Books/e books and much much more! Sign up and join us in Glow TV.

And remember if you miss any of these events you can watch them all again in Glow TV’s Watch Again facility.

CfE, Expressive Arts, Literacy and Gàidhlig

Scotland Sings

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Learning about Scotland in partnership with Live Music Now Scotland are teaming up with Hands Up for Trad’s new Scotland Sings project to encourage everybody in Scotland to sing.

In this Glow TV Event on Wednesday 24th October at 2pm you will hear two of Scotland’s top musicians Ewan Robertson and Megan Henderson singing a short song in Scots and another in Gaelic. You will then get the chance to sing along during the event and on the 30th November during the ‘Scotland Sings’ event itself!

There will also be a competition for schools to write a short song and chorus with prizes for the winning entrants and the chance to performance the song LIVE on Glow.

We look forward to singing with you! Sign up and join us in Glow Tv!

Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, Religious and Moral Education, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Social studies

BBC Class Clips

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A group of Development Officers from Education Scotland worked with the BBC yesterday exploring BBC Scotland’s Learning Scotland website and the BBC Class Clips resource. It’s possible to embed BBC Class Clips in blogs and share links through social media. One handy feature for practitioners who are subject specialists is the ability to search for the clips used in BBC Bitesize. To find the clips, include Bitesize as a keyword along with your subject specialism.

CfE, Early Years, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English, Responsibility of All

Did you miss Slowly Wins the Day?

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Are you working with an Early Years class and did you miss author Helen Hendry reading her new book ‘Slowly Wins the Day’? Well don’t worry you can still see it in Glow TV’s Watch Again section.

Slowly Wins the Day is a modern day version of the Tortoise and the Hare filled with passion and determination that also promotes exercise. This especially timely story tells of a little girl who loves to participate in sports but always comes last.

Even though she is saddled with the name “Slowly”, she still enjoys the thrill of competing and has never learnt to quit. A new fitness teacher joins the school and gives the children inspiration; encouraging them by telling them the story of Robert The Bruce. The teacher discovers Slowly has a special talent and a sport which she can excel.

The story shows that if you try hard enough you can succeed and that everyone has a talent and delivers a clear message about exercise and sport, that it should not be seen as a punishment but enjoyed by everyone.

It is a picture book and is approx. 1000 words, suitable for ages five to eight.

There is also a wealth of other recorded events that you might be interested in in Watch Again.

Literacy, Modern Languages, Sciences

Space Junk

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This Space Junk clip from the BBC could be used to support and enrich learning ideas found in, Passeport pour la Francophonie ,a new website from Education Scotland. This website was developed to support the teaching and learning of French at 2nd Level. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14762620

CfE, Literacy and English

Raising Attainment in Literacy: Latin and the Romans

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Join us in Glow TV on Wednesday 3rd October at 4pm where we will be joined by Kate Coutts, Headteacher at Nesting Primary School, Shetland. Kate will be discussing how she has introduced Latin in the upper primary as part of an interdisciplinary Romans topic.

Drawing on extensive research, Kate will show how this approach can help engage boys in particular while raising attainment in literacy across learning. The target audience for this event is primary teachers.

Sign up and join us in Glow TV and also access relevant resources provided by Kate. If you are unable to join us live on the day please have a look at Glow TV’s Watch Again section where you can view the recorded version.

CfE, Literacy and English

The Daily What Newsround

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Tune in to the Daily What Newsround on Glow TV at 11am on Friday 28 September for a round up of some of the latest news stories, missing headlines game, and interactive quiz. We will also have exciting news about our big competition for this term. See you then!

Melissa and Louise, Daily What News team

Sign up and join in on Glow TV!

CfE, Early Years, Literacy, Literacy and English

Wise Up Wednesday – National Poetry Day

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This year National Poetry day is on Thursday 4 October 2012. During National Poetry Day, people all over the UK take part in a celebration of great poetry. 

Poetry helps us to remember stories, from Jack and Jill all the way to the Odyssey. Children love rhymes and rhythms, but poetry also helps to improve literacy skills.

You can download poetry posters and practitioners’ notes from the Scottish Poetry Library website. This year’s theme is Stars and the resources include “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” in both English and Scots.

To keep up to date with what’s happening at the Scottish Poetry Library and find out about their resources, training and freebies, you can sign up to their monthly e-newsletter here. As well as support for practitioners, their website also has a useful section for families.

Further resources to support National Poetry day are also available in the resources section of the Education Scotland website.

Please come back and tell us in the comments what you have planned to celebrate National Poetry day in your establishment!

CfE, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English

Daily What Newsround Olympic Celebration Special

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Join the Daily What News team live on Glow TV at 11am on Friday 14 September, the day when Scotland’s Olympic and Paralympic heroes will parade through Glasgow.

The team will be joined by a very special Olympic guest – tune in to find out who and to send in your questions!
We will also have our usual news roundup, quizzes and fun.
Sign up and join us in Glow TV!

If you are unable to attend this event when it is being transmitted live then you will be able to watch a recording of it in Glow TVs Watch Again facility.

Assessment, CfE, CLD, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, National Qualifications, Research, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Senior Phase, Social studies, Supporting Learners, Technologies

Glow TV – Watch Again!

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Have you read about an event in Glow TV and wanted to join in live but were unable to because of other classroom commitments or timetabling? Do you want the ability to view exciting or interesting pupil focused Glow Meets at a time that is convenient to you? Do you want to enhance your Professional Learning at a time that suits you? Well you can in Glow TV’s Watch Again facility!

All Glow TV events are recorded so if the time of the live event isn’t suitable for you and/or your class to join in you can still have the opportunity to watch the recorded version at a time that suits your timetable or other classroom/personal commitments.

Watch Again is available in Glow TV and you can filter all the recordings that have taken place over the past 17 months either by name or by the programme category eg Literacy and English, CPD etc or by the programme tags.Once you have found what you want to watch simply click the Watch Again link which will take you to your chosen programme (and all the others in that channel category too!) and you can then view the recording at your leisure. You can also have the opportunity in our Watch Again Feedback Forum to let us know how useful you found the recording and if/how it enhanced your or your classes learning.

So why not take part in Glow TV when it suits you? You may not be able to ask questions in a live environment but you will still be able to see and listen to experts in their field and have fun in our numerous interactive Glow TV events.

CfE, Literacy, Literacy and English

Edinburgh International Book Festival – Watch Again!

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Did you miss the Glow TV coverage live from the Edinburgh International Book Festival? Well don’t worry you haven’t missed out as all the events were recorded and are available in our Watch Again section in Glow TV.

During the festival Glow TV was filming at the following:

Twists, Turns and Thrillers with Ally Kennen an event suitable for S1-3. Find out more and Watch Again.

Steve Barlow & Steve Skidmore present Action Dogs! an event suitable for P4 – 7. Find out more and Watch Again.

International Rescue with Sally Grindley an event suitable for P4 – 7. Find out more and Watch Again.

Rhyme, Rhythm and Rap with Brian Moses an event suitable for P3-P6. Find out more and Watch Again.

Ghosts and Ghouls with Andrew Hammond an event suitable for P7- S3. Find out more and Watch Again.

Drawing Inspiration with Tony Ross an vent suitable for P1- P4. Find out more and Watch Again.

Each event was accompanied with for Curriculum for Excellence teaching ideas on the Edinburgh International Book Festival website Education section.

Don’t miss out make sure you check out Glow TV’s Watch Again section for this and many more exciting events.

CfE, Literacy and English

Daily What Newsround – It’s Back!

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The Daily What News eds return after the summer break with an action-packed round-up of the site’s latest stories.

With fun games such as the latest stories in numbers and discussion topics that would engage even the most reluctant participant, Louise and Melissa return on Friday 31st August at 11am LIVE from Glow TV’s Glasgow studio.

We think these news girls are just fab and their approach to the show is likely to be light-hearted and fun, whilst introducing some inspiring opportunities for classroom discussion and ideas about how to use the news site’s stories in school.

Sign up and join us in Glow TV!

CfE, Literacy and English

Glow At The Edinburgh Book Festival

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The highly acclaimed Edinburgh International Book Festival begins in Charlotte Square on Saturday 11th August and runs until the 27th August and Glow will be there for one week bringing to you a selection of some of the best of the children’s events!

Join us from Monday 20th August at 10.30am where we start our week with Twists, Turns and Thrillers with Ally Kennen as she introduces her teen novels including her latest, Bullet Boys, a gripping, thought-provoking story filled with twists, turns,guns and danger. She shares how she goes about researching her novels and describes what inspired her to start writing. Bring plenty of questions! (Suitable for S1-S3)

On Tuesday 21st August join us again at 10am as Steve Barlow & Steve Skidmore present Action Dogs! In addition to being prolific writers of books for children, Steve Barlow and Steve Skidmore have entertained audiences worldwide with their crazy double act for over two decades. Their events are always fun so make sure you get involved if you are P4 -7.

Wednesday 22nd August sees a double session coming live from the EIBF the first at 10.30am being suitable for P4 -7. Join International Rescue with Sally Grindley for a lively, interactive event all about International Rescue, her brand new series of adventure books written in collaboration with the Zoological Society of London. Meet the Brook family and hear about their exciting travels globe as they strive to save endangered animals.

The second event on the 22nd begins at 1pm and is aimed at S4 -S6 – Keith Gray on Lord of the Flies. Keith discusses William Golding’s remarkable and provocative novel, Lord of the Flies. Find out how he first discovered the story, how it influenced his own writing and how he believes it has left a lasting impression on a generation of authors writing.

On Thursday 23rd August join us at 10.30am for Rhyme, Rhythm and Rap with Brian Moses. Suitable for P3 -6 to have fun in an exhilarating exploration of the different forms of rhythm and rhyme.There will be musical instruments and some movement too, so come in good voice and bring your dancing shoes!

The week draws to a spooky close on Friday 24th August with Ghosts and Ghouls with Andrew Hammond. A roller-coaster ride through the grim and gruesome history of the world’s most famous cities with the author of the hugely popular new horror series CRYPT. Ghosts and ghouls guaranteed!

As a special finale to our week at the Book Festival we will be returning on Monday 27th August, this time at 10am with Drawing Inspiration with Tony Ross. Drawing inspiration from the Little Princess series and from the weird and wonderful stories that whizz around his head all day, Tony Ross gives you a masterclass in creativity. This is a unique opportunity for you to be inspired by, and ask questions of, one of the most popular and successful illustrators around.

All events are accompanied with Curriculum for Excellence teaching ideas on the Edinburgh International Book Festival website.

All these events will also be recorded so you can catch up later in Glow TV’s Watch Again. Find out more about the events, sign up and join us in Glow TV!

Assessment, CfE, CLD, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, National Qualifications, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Senior Phase, Social studies, Supporting Learners, Technologies

Schools IT Excellence Group set up

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The Scottish Government has announced that Education Secretary Michael Russell has appointed the Chief Scientific Adviser Professor Muffy Calder to convene an ICT Excellence Group to consider the future development of the schools’ intranet ‘Glow’.

 The new ICT Excellence Group will draw on the experience and expertise of end-users, and educational technology experts to scope the long-term user-centred future of Glow.

 Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, Michael Russell said:

 “It is crucial that the next generation of Glow allows schools to harness the power of technology for learning, to keep pace with rapidly evolving developments and speak the language that young people speak online.

 “Professor Calder’s group will have the challenge of imagining a future for the service that can be customised to the individual requirements of our young people, is dynamic and can remain relevant for years to come. I look forward to receiving their advice later this year.”

 The group members are now announced as follows: Prof Muffy Calder, Prof Ian Sommerville, Prof Mike Sharples, Mr Ewan McIntosh, Mr Charlie Love, Prof Bill Buchanan, Mr Hamish Budge, Prof Jeff Haywood, Mr Neil Winton, Mr Tony Rafferty, Mr Fraser Speirs, Ms Jaye Richards Hill and Mr Martin Dewar who will facilitate the involvement of two school pupils in the group.

See announcement on Engage for Education.

CfE, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English

Edinburgh International Book Festival and Glow TV

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This year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival RBS School Programme is bigger than ever before. It runs from 20th – 28th August in Charlotte Square Edinburgh and many events are live in Glow TV! It’s also truly international with writers from Australia, Canada, the USA, France and Poland as well as from all parts of the UK.

Our guests selector is Vivian French who has designed a series of events with the theme of story creation for those who are reluctant readers. Viv struggled at school with the mechanics of reading and writing and so understands the challenges some young people face. She also understands the challenges this can pose for teachers and her event is designed to engage the children whilst giving simple, yet effective, ideas for the classroom. Friday 24th August

2012 Programme Debuts
Although we know that there are some authors who are hugely popular every year, we also aim to introduce you to new and emerging writers. This year, we have a number of School Programme debuts:

Primary
• Alex T Smith: both an illustrator and writer, Alex’s event will involve storytelling and drawing – perfect for P1-P3. Monday 20th.
• Gill Lewis: Described as the next Michael Morpurgo, Gill’s novels beautifully describe nature, wildlife and the Scottish coast. Monday 20th.
• Nicola Davies: Former presenter of the Really Wild Show, Nicola will talk all things natural history. Tuesday 21st
• Gill Arbuthnott: Biology teacher and novelist, Gill will be talking about her first picture book all about a trip to tthe zoo. Friday 24th.
• Atinuke: African storyteller and author, Atinuke conjurs the sights, sounds and smells of African village life. Friday 24th.
• Barroux: French illustrator and writer, Barroux will be taking a trip to the streets of Paris. Ideal for planning fun French week activities. Monday 27th.

Secondary
• Sue Reid Sexton: Sue will talk about her novel set during the time of the Clydebank Blitz. Monday 20th.
• Margo Lanagan: Flying in from Australia, Margo will be discussing her dark, disturbing yet compelling novels. Tuesday 21st.
• Shaun Tan: Perfect for senior art students, Shaun will discuss his wordless novel and his Oscar winning film. Wednesday 22nd.
• Alexander Gordon Smith & Susanne Winnacker: Delve into the world of zombies with two leading horror writers. Thursday 23rd.
• Andrew Hammond & Paul Dowswell: Two writers who explore the impact of the war on ordinary people. Friday 24th.
• Amy Plum & KJ Wignall: History is so much fun when told by vampires and immortals who have actually ‘lived’ through it. Forget Bella & Edward, come and meet the undead with real bite. Monday 27th.

So check out the full programme on the Edinburgh International Book Festival website and also check out the Glow TV schedule and sign up for events that you want to join in virtually!!

Literacy and English

New advice and guidance published for English National 2

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The National 2 English and Communication course builds on the experiences and outcomes of the literacy and English curriculum area and enables learners to develop the ability to understand and use language. 

This advice and guidance will support practitioners as they plan their approaches.

See list of latest advice and guidance.

Assessment, CfE, CLD, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, National Qualifications, Research, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Senior Phase, Social studies, Supporting Learners, Technologies

Cabinet Secretary announces positive future for Glow

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Mr Michael Russell, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, made an announcement today on the immediate and long-term future of Glow. 

You can read full details of Mr Russell’s announcement on Engage for Education.

Modern Languages

S1/S2 Assessment Tasks

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I recently visited the Modern Langauges Department in St Mungo’s High School, Falkirk.  It was lovely to have the opportunity to meet the teachers there and have a cup of tea and chat with them in their French café!  It’s always interesting to exchange ideas and take part in professional dialogue with other practitioners and they even allowed me to visit some classes to see their young people “in action”.  The St Mungo’s team were more than willing to share their CfE materials with all of us and I’ve posted them on our National Glow group.  To access their materials please click here. (You will need your Glow password)

Many thanks to the teachers in St Mungo’s and to their principal teacher, Jim McWillliams for being willing to share their work.  If we all share our materials, it can only make life a little easier!

If anyone else would like to share something they have developed that would help to support either the BGE or Senior Phase, then please feel free to post directly onto the Modern Langauges National Glow Group, or send it to me and I’ll post it for you.  My email address is

fhiona.fisher@educationscotland.gov.uk

Modern Languages

New German Materials for Senior Phase

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A German teaching project has sprung to life led by Maike Muthel, the German teacher at Mallaig High School in Lochaber. It will particularly benefit pupils in remote areas and those within schools where German is not currently provided.

On offer is a one year online Intermediate 2 course via  GLOW, which will be available to all senior pupils.  The materials will also be easily adaptable to suit candidates sitting National 5 in 2014.   Learners will undertake the course working mainly on their own after a weekly face-to-face session with the teacher introducing grammar, tasks and providing feedback. A week to week programme is available on GLOW and this year the course is on offer to the whole of Scotland. For pupils with prior knowledge of German, provision of a Higher course could also be discussed.

To access the materials please click here.  ( you will need your Glow password.)

For more information please get in touch directly with Maike Muthel:

MMuthel839@highlandschools.org.uk

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Gaelic Learners, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English, Literacy and Gàidhlig, Responsibility of All

Resources and ideas now available!

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If you visit our Early Years Saturday Conference Community you will see links, resources and information from delegates.

If you are developing new ideas using this inspiring information why not make a pledge and let the community know all about it? Other You may be able to join other members of the community in developing your idea.

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Gaelic Learners, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Literacy and English, Literacy and Gàidhlig, Research, Responsibility of All, Sciences, Social studies

Learning about Scotland in the Early Years

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Saturday was a very inspirational day for the Early Years team at Education Scotland. Our Saturday Conference, Learning about Scotland in the Early Years was a great success. There was singing, poetry writing and even a competition!

 

If you would like to follow up on any interesting discussions from the day or revisit and reflect on the presentations then visit our Early Years CPD community. The presentations are within the Early Years Saturday Conference mini CPD site.

If you have not joined our community yet, then please do. We had a queue of enthusiastic delegates who couldn’t wait to join on Saturday and you can meet them (virtually!) when you do.

Well done to Sharon from South Lanarkshire who won the well deserved prize of two Scots books to share with her establishment.

Thank you

The Early Years Team

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Literacy and English

Creative Connections fife 2012 – An Early Years Gathering

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Fife Council’s Cultural Partnerships Team, in partnership with Fife’s Childcare & Early Years Services and The Byre Theatre are delighted to announce their early years event ‘Creative Connections fife 2012’ on Wednesday 23 May 2012 at The Byre Theatre, St Andrews.

Bookings are still open, so if you are an early years practitioner or have a professional interest in this field, then this day will be of interest to you. Book today!

To book contact cultural.partnerships@fife.gov.uk or telephone 01592 583255.

Find out more about Creative Connections 2012 – An Early Years Gathering. Also visit our Glow Group

If you are unable to attend in person please join us via Glow. All sessions will be live on Glow TV – sign up and register for all the events in Glow TV!

Literacy, Literacy and English, Technologies

The Daily What News – iPads for all?

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The Daily What News is an online news service provided by Education Scotland for Scottish schools. Its main purpose is to help the development of literacy and language (English and Gaelic) in young people aged nine to 16 as well as support their needs for news and information. At the same time, its functions facilitate interdisciplinary learning and critical thinking skills. The service empowers teachers and learners to develop trusted learning resources and classroom activities using community-created content and group interactivity.

Hi-tech future for Scottish classrooms

 The government wants young people to be able to use more mobile devices and handheld computers in schools.

Hundreds of pupils at almost 20 schools in Scotland are already using cutting-edge technology in their classrooms. P7 children at Sciennes Primary School in Edinburgh, for example, each have an Apple iPad, while students at Morgan Academy in Dundee use Android technology.

To read the rest of this news article click here.

For suggestions on how to use this article with your learners click here.

Your learners can take part in the debate Do you think schools should use more moibile technology? in the Glow Forum. (Glow log in required)

CfE, Modern Languages, Social studies

Euroquiz for Primaries

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A P7 team from St Mary’s Primary School in Duntocher, West Dunbartonshire, was the winner of yesterday’s Euroquiz 2012 Finals held at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. This annual competition continues to encourage learning about Europe and thinking about what it means to be a citizen of the European Union.

http://ltsblogs.org.uk/globalcitizenship/2012/05/15/euroquiz-success/

Gaelic Learners, Languages, Modern Languages, Technologies

Calling all educators interested in languages!

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We are hosting a CPDMeet on Glow on the use of technology in the learning of Modern Foreign Languages. Catriona Oates (facilitator of MLPSNet on Glow) will host the online webconference. It will be of interest to language educators in all sectors; primary, secondary and special education.

It starts at 4pm on Thursday 17th May. More details and sign-up at http://bit.ly/cpdmeet48

MLPSNet is a community on Glow which is open to all educators. See http://bit.ly/mlpsnet for details.

Note that this CPD opportunity came about as a request from one of our CPD community members. You too can ‘order’ free, online CPD on any subject matter using the service at http://bit.ly/cpdrequest

CfE, Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English, Responsibility of All

Wise up Wednesday – Learning about Scotland in the Early Years

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Last chance to sign up for our next Saturday Conference!

Early Years Saturday Conference

Learning about Scotland in the Early Years

Saturday 19 May, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall

The study of Scotland is right at the heart of Curriculum for Excellence. This conference will provide an opportunity to develop practitioners’ understanding of a renewed emphasis on learning about Scotland and how we can enrich the learning experience for our youngest children.

Keynote speakers

  • Liz Niven – Liz is an award-winning poet who writes in English and Scots.
  • Juliet Robertson – Juliet is one of Scotland’s leading education consultants, specialising in learning and play outdoors.
  • Dr Donald Smith – Donald is the Director of the Scottish Storytelling Centre, as well as a novelist, poet, playwright and storyteller.

Vist here to find out more.

If you are already attending why not join our Early Years Saturday Conference community and meet other attendees before the event?

Visit  www.bit.ly/earlysat and make a pledge today!

The Early Years Team

CfE, Expressive Arts, Literacy and English, Social studies, Technologies

A documentary about Scotland – made by you

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The new project Northern Lights sets out to be Scotland’s first ever mass participation documentary, an innovative way to build a movie about contemporary Scotland. Basically it will be composed, and edited into a final feature-length film, from videos made by people all over the country and contributed to a common pool of rich material.

Global Citizenship often starts local, and this seems a great way for secondary schools and students over the age of 14 to reflect on their own community and how it is represented to the world. And the skills involved in such a piece of work: research, team work, communication, media, ICT, and lots of creativity.

It’s all explained here www.wearenorthernlights.com with extra description of how to participate, ‘how to’ guides, etc, http://wearenorthernlights.com/get-involved/preparing/

The project is open for submissions until 21st June. There are already a lot of submitted videos, and web audiences get to vote on their favourites. Why not get your secondary school involved, and showcase the creative skills of your pupils?

For further information, please contact workshops@wearenorthernlights.com

Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Literacy and English, Responsibility of All, Technologies

Wise up Wednesday – This Sucks!

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Hello everyone!

Thank you for logging in for your Weekly Wednesday Wise Up! This week we are really excited to highlight the fantastic work created by Glasgow Film Theatre, Starcatchers, Platform and Toad’s Caravan. One of our team attended the premier at the Galsgow Film Theatre last week and had a great time! Lovely to see the stars of the show in their glamorous clothes on the red carpet!

This film presents a fantastic example of partnership working in the early years. What a great way to use the expertise of others to enhance children’s experiences.

As you watch you may get ideas for new experiences in your establishment. Your children will really enjoy this film, why not show it to them at story time?

Thank you and Enjoy the film!

The Early Years Team 🙂

THIS SUCKS: THE MOVIE!

Glasgow Film Theatre, Starcatchers, Platform and Toad’s Caravan have joined forces to produce This Sucks: The Movie, starring a talented cast of hundreds of nursery children from across Glasgow.

This Sucks: The Movie is a short film made by and starring children four-years-old and under from nurseries around the East-End of Glasgow. The film tells the story of Hetty the Hoover and the love of her life — Mike Dust.

The concept grew from a previous, highly successful Starcatchers project, This Workshop Sucks, which premiered at the Glasgow Youth Film Festival, a fun interactive workshop, telling the same story to pre-school children combining theatre, art and moving image.

Over two weeks in February 2012, hundreds of children from Glasgow nurseries participated in making the film with directors Matt Addicott and Katy Wilson from Starcatchers and the support of Toad’s Caravan.

This Sucks: The Movie! was made possible by Glasgow City Council’s Area Committee Grants.

CREDITS

CAST

Hetty the Hoover
Mike Dust
The Man and his family
The Doctor and Nurses
The Dancers

STARRING CHILDREN FROM:

Barlanark Family Learning Centre
Helenslea Nursery School
Hullabaloo Children Centre
Sandaig Nursery School
Westercraigs Nursery

STORY

Matt Addicott
Katy Wilson

NARRATION

Matt Addicott

FILM PRODUCED BY

Toad’s Caravan

DIRECTED AND PRODUCED BY

Joanna Susskind
Marissa Keating

ANIMATION

Joanna Susskind
Bruce Cameron

FILMING

Brian Sweeney

MUSIC

Stuart Brown

PROJECT MANAGER

Paul Macgregor

Thanks to Numatic, James Dean and Rhona Matheson

© Glasgow Film Theatre / Starcatchers / Platform / Toad’s Caravan

For more info on Glasgow Film, visit http://www.glasgowfilm.org

For more info on Starcatchers, visit http://www.starcatchers.org.uk/

For more on Platform, visit http://www.platform-online.co.uk/

For more on Toad’s Caravan, visit http://www.toadscaravan.com/

Modern Languages, National Qualifications

New Advice and Support for Secondary Schools

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 As you will no doubt know, the SQA have published their final documents for National 2 – Higher.  In order to support schools in the delivery of key aspects of the new qualifications, Education Scotland has  published a suite of practical advice and guidance for teachers and lecturers.  

There are new materials to help practitioners deliver their national 4 and 5 courses, although with some amendment, practitioners  could use these materials at other levels too.  They are designed to be skilled focussed to help teachers and lecturers  integrate the skills of listening and talking, reading and writing.  Practitioners can also use the ideas and suggestions to apply them to their own materials as they see fit.

The National 4 materials are based on five episodes of an audio book called “Mike Martin et le Grand Jeu” and the National 5 materials  includes a video of three young French people discussing the contexts of Society, Learning, Employability and Culture.  Both sets of documents include extensive exemplification, advice and guidance for practitioners and notes for learners.

I think all practitioners who will be delivering the new qualifications will find them useful and would be delighted to receive your feedback.  To access the advice and support from Education Scotland please click here

To access the SQA website pages containing the final documents for Modern Languages please click here

Languages, Modern Languages

Swiss and Basque schools seeks Scottish partners

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A French-speaking school near Basel in Switzerland is looking for a Scottish secondary school partner – for joint learning projects, shared language learning, etc.  Their students are in the 16-18 age bracket.

And a Basque school in Oinati, northern Spain, is also seeking a Scottish secondary for possible joint projects in language, culture or science, and maybe an exchange programme or Comenius project in the future. Aagin, their students are around 16-18.

If your school is interested in a link with either of these two schools, contact Nick at nick.morgan@educationscotland.gov.uk for more details.

Modern Languages

Attention all teachers of Spanish!

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The Spanish Consejeria de Educación in Scotland, together with the University of Dundee and SALT, have put together a variety of Spanish Workshops in Scotland for 2012.
Following on last year’s successful experience,  they will be offering special workshops both for Primary school teachers as well as for Secondary, Higher and Further Education teachers. In an effort to come closer to teachers from different regions all over Scotland, this year the workshops will be held in Dundee on the 12 May 2012.

This is a unique opportunity to get some new ideas, share good practice and catch up with colleagues. The teachers who successfully complete these workshops will receive a certificate. For further information, please, click here to access the programme and application form (deadline 27 April 2012).  You will need your Glow password.

CfE, Literacy, Literacy and English

Literacy across Learning (Un)conference

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The Literacy across Learning (Un)conference will be held at Stirling Management Centre on 25th May. This free event will build a community of educators who want to develop 21st century learning and literacy skills. Come prepared to share experiences, practice and resources and to contribute to the learning. More information and sign up details below.

Literacy Event Flyer

CfE, Early Years, Gaelic Learners, Literacy and English

Wise up Wednesday – new online resource

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Studying Scotland is a resource that will help build confidence in the learning and teaching of Scotland within the curriculum, making it a rewarding and valuable experience for both learner and practitioner.

The resource includes new and exciting learning and teaching ideas as well as resources for learning. There are ideas on how to teach about Scotland within the Early Level.

There is also a Glow page on the Early Years National site which has gathered together all early years relevant resources on this subject.

Visit today and be inspired!

CfE, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Literacy, Literacy and English, Mathematics, Modern Languages, Religious and Moral Education, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Social studies, Technologies

School Open Day – Bo’ness Academy, Falkirk Council

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School open day – using international education to develop a whole school approach to global citizenship

Venue: Bo’ness Academy, Falkirk

9:30am – 3.00pm

Thursday 17th May 2012

Note: this event was due to place at an earlier date in the year but has now been rescheduled for the date above.

Theme:  International Education

This CPD event offers practitioners and school leaders an exciting opportunity to visit Bo’ness Academy and attend Falkirk Council’s Global Citizenship Showcase Event.

Bo’ness Academy is an inspiring example of a school that has used international education as a vehicle to engage the whole school in global citizenship activities. Through the Comenius Programme and other well established links the school has developed a rich international programme connecting it to countries across the world including: The Gambia, The Netherlands, China, France, Germany and The Czech Republic.

A focus of the event will be to identify and share the practical lessons and ideas that have helped the school move forward on its journey including: 

  • Making global citizenship a key priority in the school and a focus for the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence
  • Using international links to explore important issues in a global context and to create engaging, meaningful and challenging learning experiences
  • Developing strong international partnerships which can be sustained and which have made an impact on every learner.

Participants will have the opportunity to meet and talk with the Head Teacher, International Coordinator, staff and learners and also tour the classrooms and school. Time will also be set aside for participants to reflect and share their own experiences.

Download Programme for Bo’ness Academy Open Day 17May12

How to book

To book, please contact Megan Farr, Policy Officer, Falkirk Council. Email: megan.farr@falkirk.gov.uk or Tel. 01324 506671.

Places for the open day section of the event are limited so please book early to avoid disappointment. This is a free event!

Adult Learning, Assessment, CfE, Early Years, Health and wellbeing, Literacy, Literacy and English, National Qualifications, Research, Responsibility of All, Senior Phase

Literacy in Action

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Literacy in Action: Supporting Colleges to Influence Early Years Practice

 The Literacy in Action: Supporting Colleges to Influence Early Years Practice Conference took place at Stirling Management Centre on Saturday 25 February 2012. This event was organised by Education Scotland to give Further Education lecturers an opportunity to hear about the Scottish Government’s Literacy Action Plan.

 View video of the keynote speakers here.

Enjoy!

Expressive Arts, Literacy, Literacy and English, Sciences, Technologies

Guitar Hero

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The ICT development team from Aberdeenshire Council was one of the first to engage with the Consolarium and as a result of this a number of games-based learning projects were identified. The idea of using the context of Guitar Hero as the main driving focus in a collaborative story that would enable cross-curricular work was one of the ideas that we wanted to explore.

A Sony PS2, the game and the guitars were placed with a willing teacher in a P7 class after the Easter break. This was the last term for the class so the teacher decided to use this as the main driver for the remainder of the term. Having teenage sons who played the game the teacher quickly became familiar with how it worked and devised a series of tasks that she believed would enable ‘connected learning’ to take place.

We then left the class teacher and the class with the resource and returned in the last week of term to discover a rich seam of creativity, learning and engagement from a class who had lost themselves in the world of rock and roll …

Click here to read the case study.

CLD, Early Years, Health and wellbeing, Health and wellbeing, Literacy, Literacy and English, Mathematics, Responsibility of All

Wise up Wednesday – see our exciting new early years resources!

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Every Day’s a Learning Day 

Two new books have been published by Education Scotland to help parents and carers of young children to make the most of the learning experiences that exist in everyday life.

 ‘Every Day’s a Learning Day (Birth to 3 years)’ and ‘Every Day’s a Learning Day (3 to 6 years)’ aim to help parents support their child’s development in the crucial areas of health and wellbeing, literacy and numeracy.

 Both books are available in English and Gaelic language versions.

 www.educationscotland.gov.uk/everydaylearning  

There will be a copy of each of the books with the next issue of Education Scotland’s Early Years Matters.

The books will be distributed in the Scottish Booktrust’s Bookbug bags. The Birth to 3 book will go to parents when they visit their health visitor for their child’s first vaccination from March onwards. The 3-6 book will be in Bookbug bags for children when they turn 3 and join nursery.

Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Health and wellbeing, Literacy, Literacy and English, Technologies

Learning connections with game based learning

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Nintendogs game for the Nintendo DS, has been used to create a rich, dynamic and inclusive educational context for learners as part of a game-based learning initiative run by Learning and Teaching Scotland and Aberdeenshire Council.

The initiative looks at how the challenging, demanding and appealing world of Nintendogs can help support effective teaching and learning in Curriculum for Excellence.

The initiative provided content for learning in a P2 class. The teachers involved in the initial project and subsequent teachers that have used Nintendogs, made the game the central focus for projects that created connections across learning.

Caring for and nurturing your virtual pet was central to this game. Teachers created purposeful and relevant activities that involved learning in Art & Design. The videos showcase in more detail accounts of what the teachers and the children did and how the game impacted on their learning.

To read this case study click here.

Health and wellbeing, Literacy, Modern Languages, Responsibility of All

Fabulous new Fair Trade materials – French

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Many thanks to Linda Stormonth at St Machar Academy, Aberdeen City who has very kindly been willing to share her Fair trade materials with the rest of us across the nation!  they are well worth a look as they “raise the bar” in terms of the kind of language they exploit and exemplify ways of incorporating literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing into our lessons.  A very motivating and grown up topic – these materials could easily be used as an interdisciplinary project. 

To access the materials click here ( You will need your Glow password)

Early Years, Expressive Arts, Health and wellbeing, Languages, Mathematics, Responsibility of All, RME, Sciences, Social studies, Technologies, Young people, children & families

Wanted! Creative teachers and CLD staff

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Are you creative in the classroom? Do you empower creativity in your young people?
Education Scotland is looking for teachers and CLD staff who use creativity in their work to speak up and share their creative learning and teaching approaches with the rest of Scotland through a series of very short online film clips.

Creativity in its purest sense involves generating original ideas that have value and crosses ALL areas of the curriculum (not just the arts) and we are looking for examples from subjects as diverse as PE, Languages and Maths. It could be the young people learning creative skills or an approach to lesson planning that is particularly creative. What creativity might involve can be found here: http://glo.li/xGyO32

Here are the questions we would like to put to you:

• What is creativity (to you)?

• Why be creative in your teaching?

• What happens when the young learners are engaged in a creative activity?

• What did you and your young learners do that was creative?
You might explain an example of what creativity looks like in your classroom or group.
You might detail day-to-day creative approaches or else explain a specific project, topic or development.
How did this specifically benefit you and the young people?

You will be filmed by a professional film company (they really put you at your ease) who will come to you, fit around your timetable, and the whole process of setting up and filming will take less than half an hour. Ultimately we are capturing just 3 minutes of glorious quality footage from you that will be shared through the Creativity Portal. This is a great opportunity to showcase your creativity to a national audience.

The filming will be arranged to suit you some time in the next three weeks.

It takes moments to offer your experience or suggest a colleague who you think would fit the bill:
Go to: http://glo.li/z0Mi3s
Email: Stephen.bullock@educationscotland.gov.uk
Phone: 0141 282 5194

Modern Languages

Money for language departments and projects in Scotland! – invitation to apply for new award

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The British Academy is offering two awards of £4000 specifically for Scottish schools that want to develop creative ways of improving language teaching and learning. It could go towards helping you to work with your local primary schools, take forward business links, or develop a new course.

The funding is intended to extend or strengthen work that has already started, even if on quite a small scale. One of the awards is for mainstream secondary schools and the other is intended for supporting the learning of community languages outside mainstream school times. PLUS the winners will have a chance to win an extra £4000 which will go to the best overall UK project. The closing date for applications is 31 March 2012.  Please click here to access an easy application form to fill in and further details.    

This is the first year that the British Academy has run the scheme and we need to get the message out, so if you know someone who would be interested, pass this message on. It would be a real shame if schools in Scotland missed out on this opportunity.

Assessment, Expressive Arts, Literacy and English, Moderation, Modern Languages, NAR, National Qualifications, Profiling, Religious and Moral Education, RME, Sciences, Technologies

CfE & Glow News – February Issue

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The CfE and Glow News update provides you with information about Curriculum for Excellence and support for practitioners, along with all the latest developments within Glow. Read it here.

To sign up for this newsletter, please click here.

Literacy, Literacy and English

World Book Day – 1st March

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Talk with the author of ‘Horrid Henry’ through Glow TV and find other online resources to help celebrate World Book Day.

World Book Day is held on March 1 and was designated by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of books and reading, and is marked in over 100 countries around the globe.

Speak with Francesca Simon, the author of the phenomenally successful Horrid Henry books, on Glow TV at 11am or at 1.15pm on Thursday March 1. The event is suitable for P1-P7 learners (age 5-12) and fans of the Horrid Henry series.

The event has been organised by the Scottish Book Trust. You can watch videos of previous author events – including Michael Rosen, Julia Donaldson, Charlie Higson, Michael Morpurgo and many more – in the Scottish Book Trust Glow Group (Requires Glow login).

Find more resources for World Book Day on the Education Scotland website.