http://www.playbackschools.org.uk/programme/1330/uncut-lesson-1-rachel-atkins

What are the most effective aspects of teaching which emerge for you?

• Choice of what to do
• Stations
• Some children were outside while others were inside
• Teacher did not do things for the children – got them to try themselves first
• Teacher did not give the children the answers – the children had to think about it first
• Stickers, star chart, ‘happy face’ board – positive reinforcement
• Use of the specialist teacher
• Pairs work
• Hands up
• “1,2,3” – method to get children quiet
• Actively involved in the story
• Going back through the story at the end
• Realising that the kids were thirsty and bored, so changed what they were doing to accommodate that
• Mixing with the other classes

What are the least effective?

• Children working on their own – could lose focus and start wandering around
• Took a long time explaining/getting started

What are the factors contributing to success or problems?

• Respect for each other
• Individual personalities
• Engagement with the lesson
• Level of interest in the lesson
• Willingness to cooperate with the lesson

How could you use some of the success factors?

I think that the teacher here used some very effective methods to teach. I think that by giving the children a choice of what they wanted to do, she was engaging them better as they had an interest in what they were learning, which I think would make them more focused on their task and likely to take more from why they were learning. When I am teaching, I am going to remember the idea of having stations and letting children choose between them, as I think that it was a very effective method of teaching.

I think that when they read the story, and all the children felt like they were a part of it was a good idea. When I am teaching I am going to remember this practice, as I could see on the video that the children were enjoying it, and that they were not sitting passively listening, so they were taking more in, which I think is really important, as it gives the reading of the story a point during the lesson.

When I am teaching, I am going to remember the resilience of the teacher in the video. When she realised that the children were all thirsty and becoming bored, she changed the plans and sent them to get a drink and to find an activity to do. I think this is very important, as I can imagine that it is very easy to want to stick to your plans, despite how the children feel and how they are acting – especially with the inspector there.