Category Archives: Curriculum resources

Developing Mathematical Concepts and Language Through the Cockatoos’ by Quentin Blake.

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cockatoos

The Cockatoos’ is a story about Professor Dupont, a man so wrapped up in routines that he overlooks how some of his quirks may be perceived as annoying!

This book offers several opportunities to explore mathematical language with early years’ pupils.

 

 

cockatoos-2As Professor Dupont searches for his ‘Feathered Friends’ classes can explore positional language such as ‘the cockatoos are ‘above’ his head.’ ‘The cockatoos are sat ‘on top’ of the toilet.’

As he searches for his cockatoos there are ample opportunities to count as a class. ‘How many cockatoos can you find in this picture?’ ‘How many more are there?’

Another activity which can stem from this story is for the class to hide their own cockatoos and think about how they can direct their classmates to try and find them. ‘Go left three steps,’ ‘Turn around and go back.’ By photographing or drawing areas of the classroom, school or playground the children can take turns hiding the cockatoo and use their ‘map’ to help guide each other to its location.a983e33478bff143f02b01ccae1f7994

This type of lesson can lead onto basic programming games on the computer such as Scratch.  https://scratch.mit.edu/

Science: How does it work?

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Today’s Science input showed me that as an adult we don’t tend to question why things are the way they are. This is something which has been explored within the International Baccalaureate module which encourages teachers to engage children’s natural curiosity and facilitate inquiries. Yet, this isn’t often something adults do for themselves!

Liz asked us to discuss the function of the wax of a candle today and I was surprised that this is something I had never actually pondered…how does that work? It got me thinking like a child again. Well how does the car move or why does the world look all wavy when its hot? These were things I asked when I was younger and had explained to me, perhaps not incredibly scientifically but my parents tried their best!

The organic nature of curiosity and wonderings is crucial to all types of learning and I believe it should be at the heart of Science in order to make it relevant and purposeful for the children. This draws on the constructivist theory which starts with the knowledge already possessed by an individual and sees misconceptions lead to the development of further understanding.

By creating a ‘wonder wall’ where children can share their questions and ideas teachers can base their lessons within Science and  any other curricular areas on the genuine interests of the children. By following through inquiries which are built on a topic of interest children are more likely to be truly engaged and immersed in the experience and more interested in the findings.

Science can become part of the day to day workings of the classroom in a way that it currently is not. Rather than a rarely dusted off box of electrical circuits or test tubes why not rely on the curiosity of your class, it may even teach you a thing or two!

 

As a side note:

The investigation conducted today within class was a success. My group and I worked together to over come confusion relating to some poorly drawn instructions and were able to conclude a controlled experiment which was planned using cleverly designed planning boards. This is definitely something I would use with a class to help them structure their ideas and wonderings prior to an experiment as well as to enable them to understand the correct procedures required to achieve a controlled experiment.

My Maths Problems Solved.

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Maths is something I have always been praised for being good at, both from my parents and from teachers. My experience of maths was for the most part a positive one in that I was always in the top group and when I moved to high school I competed for the top three seats in the class. This being said it wasn’t something that I necessarily enjoyed!

I was just good at accepting what the teacher said and applying the set rules. Most of my maths revision even for Intermediate 2 was repetition. I would go over and over past papers applying what I had written in my notes until it sank in. I do recall other students saying things like ‘But why do we do that?’ and thinking ‘you just do!’

I always told myself that I liked maths because there was always one right answer but after our input with Tara I know that this is a ‘maths myth.’ Following her input I have become increasingly concerned with the way I was taught maths after reading ‘Mathematics explained for primary teachers’ by Haylock. I now recognise that my teachers didn’t explain the answer to the students who asked ‘But why do we do that?’ because they were most probably taught to just accept the answers in the same way I was.

In terms of teaching maths I now have some apprehension…I don’t want to set children up to fail by teaching in a prescriptive way which encourages mindless repetition and little engagement. I look forward to learning new approaches and techniques and I shall endeavour to apply them within my practice and look for new ways to explore maths with my pupils which engage them and encourage them to ask questions.

Dance- Lesson plan.

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Following our one and only dance input of MA1 I have decided to try planning my own dance lesson. The lesson I have planned is for a P5 class and the stimulus for the lesson is the seasons.

315964861384The different seasons conjure up different emotions, different associations etc. and I thought it would be interesting to explore these through dance.

Prior to the lesson which I have planned the children would have had 2 lessons focusing on the different types of movement and expression within dance, meeting the outcome EXA2-08a, as well as a class discussion on the stimulus of ‘Seasons’.

001 The lesson itself would meet the outcome:

‘Inspired by a range of stimuli, I can express my ideas, thoughts and feelings through creative work in dance.’ EXA2-09a.

The learning intention would be: To create a group dance/movement piece which is inspired by the seasons.

The success criteria:

  • To work effectively as part of a team listening to each others ideas of the thoughts and feelings which relate to ‘seasons’.
  • To contribute to your teams efforts by effectively expressing the thoughts and feelings discussed through dance, drawing on those used in previous lessons if needed.
  • To be able to rehearse a completed dance/movement piece as a team.

 

The overall lesson would last for around 1hr 15 minutes. ( A breakdown of my timings can be seen on the above image.)

I feel it would be important to have a consolidation lesson soon after the initial lesson allowing the children to perfect their routines and perhaps to include an element of performance working towards the outcome:

I have experienced the energy and excitement of presenting/performing for audiences and being part of an audience for other people’s presentations/performances.

EXA 0-01a / EXA 1-01a / EXA 2-01a

Drawing on one of the examples given by Nikki Doig within the dance input the children could be split in half with half of them being the audience and half performing. This removes some of the apprehension for the children of performing in front of their peers.

 

The input with Nikki highlighted some of my own apprehension over teaching dance. During my school career my only real connection with dance was mandatory social dancing at the end of each year. Since then I have found a love for exercise classes with a dance element such as Zumba but after an unfortunate accident I now suffer with an ankle injury which considerably restricts the things I am able to take part in.

During our dance input I went through mixed emotions feeling completely useless due to my injury and quite out of place. What this highlighted for me was the mixed emotions I will be faced with when I come to teach dance to my pupils. It is important then that I can demonstrate enthusiasm to my pupils regardless of my own hesitation and show them that despite any reservations they are having they can still have fun and take part.

A next step for me is to look into ways I can demonstrate movements of dance to my children even with my injury.

Sink or Swim: Animation Tdt

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Following a brilliant Technologies ICT input with Sharon Tonner I have a new found confidence in my computing ability. Following an input on animation we were asked to group up and make our own animation using Plasticine, a camera and a piece of computer software called ZU3D.

Myself and my partner’s creation was something which we felt incredibly proud of and the lesson was one which I feel I would be confident teaching.

I feel this type of lesson would meet the following outcome:

 I can create, capture and manipulate sounds, text and images to communicate experiences, ideas and information in creative and engaging ways.

TCH 1-04b / TCH 2-04b

This project should be taught over more than one lesson as children need a background knowledge of the software and procedures involved in order to fulfill the objective.

The children also need a lesson to brain storm ideas either as a class or in small groups. The animations could be linked to a particular topic or to a piece of creative writing etc. The opportunities are never ending!

The modelling of the characters could be done as an art lesson.

Each child needs to be given a role so that no one is left out. These roles should be rotated to ensure each child is gaining experience in each stage of the animation process.

Some barriers to teaching this lesson could be its relevance. I think the interests of the children need to be captured in their characters etc. Some children may also find it too challenging but this can be avoided by preparing them over several lessons.

Sharon also showed us a software called Pivot which could be used as a way of introducing the children to the terminology and processes which surround animation. Another stimulus could be showing the class an animated film such as Wallace and Gromit and discussing the processes its creators would have had to go through in order to complete it.

This input has really opened my eyes to the scope a lesson can have in terms of interdisciplinary learning and opportunities to broaden a class’ knowledge.

Science: Food for Thought

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Science is a subject of which I have limited knowledge. I studied all 3 sciences at Standard Grade but it was never something I had much of a passion for. Naturally after reflecting on what little information I could remember, using the science audit Richard supplied, I knew it was my duty as a trainee teacher to do something to increase and develop my science knowledge.

Following the first Science input of this semester I have thought a lot about how to begin developing my knowledge and skills within the sciences. There are a wealth of online resources at my disposal as well as many places to visit and explore within the local area. 

This brings me to the Tdt which Richard set myself and my fellow students. He asked us to set a SMART target that would help us develop our confidence and competence within Science. Below I have added mine in the form of a power point:

Smart Target power point

The Expectations and Outcomes which would be met by resulting lesson would be:

I can explore examples of food chains and show an appreciation of how animals and plants depend on each other for food.

SCN 1-02a

This comes from the section Planet Earth: Biodiversity and interdependence

 ‘Learners explore the rich and changing diversity of living things and develop their understanding of how organisms are interrelated at local and global levels. By exploring interactions and energy flow between plants and animals (including humans) learners develop their understanding of how species depend on one another and on the environment for survival. Learners investigate the factors affecting plant growth and develop their understanding of the positive and negative impact of the human population on the environment.’

Somes resources which could be used to plan the lesson/within the lesson:

Food chains:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zjshfg8

http://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/t2-s-160-food-chain-sorting-game

Ideas for lesson:

Lucky dip bag filled with animal types (one per child). Once allocated each child must research their chosen animal using computers, books etc to find out about their food chain. They must then communicate with their class mates to find those with animals which are part of the same food chain. Once in groups they will be required to plan and produce a poster explaining the food chain with labels and pictures.

 

 

Simply by reflecting on my knowledge of science and acting to make it more vast I have been able to develop a better understanding of a particular topic area as well as discover many resources to use within placement. I now feel more confident and capable, ready to explore the other areas of the subject.

Technology and Teaching.

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Technology is everywhere, it has become a huge part of our lives. Our phones are now our computers, our diaries and our cameras. Our computers are now our social tool, the way we network and connect. We have tablets, kindles, selfie sticks and smart watches; so isn’t it only natural that technology has a place in our classrooms?

The advancements in technology within my lifetime have been incredible. My generation has seen so much change that we are among the youngest to become nostalgic. Technology offers us so many new and exciting opportunities, it brings people together and unlocks a whole world of information. Bringing it into the classroom to enhance learning is imperative but we must also be aware of its dangers and challenges and how we, as teachers, can combat them.

The guidance set out by the GTCS addresses both our personal and professional relationship with technology. Using this as a platform we must be mindful of the way we conduct ourselves online. How do we use our accounts? Is our Facebook private or public? How do we come across to others online? I know that for me Facebook is a personal space, it has all its privacy settings in place and I would never add anyone who wasn’t a friend or family member.

But what about an online space which we use for professional purposes? Work emails, Glow, School Twitter feeds etc. How do we utilise these whilst still maintaining the same level of professionalism and keeping the same boundaries with our pupils? Well, it’s pretty simply really; we just need to act in the same way we would within the classroom. Our conversations online should be professional, considered and convey the same relationship we hold with the recipient as in real life. We should think carefully before we post onto professional spaces: Is this message coming across how I want it to? Do I sound angry or confrontational? Am I being too relaxed and personal?

Once we have mastered this art we then must consider how we influence our pupils to behave in a safe and appropriate way when they are online. There are many websites at our disposal which offer helpful and up to date information on how to address internet safety with primary aged children. There are also sites such as NSPCC Netaware that give you current information on new websites and apps children in your class may be using. This is an invaluable tool as we as teachers need to know what our children are accessing in order to keep them safe and resolve any issues which arise.

In my opinion, one of the best ways we can encourage a safe and appropriate use of technology within our classes is to utilise it to its fullest. If we introduce children to new, fun and creative avenues for them to explore online they are less likely to misuse it or to stray into inappropriate content by looking for something fun to do. On top of this we must also address any issues that do occur within the class and use them as learning opportunities: what do you think went wrong here? Why? How could this have been avoided? By creating an open and honest culture we are showing pupils that they can come to us for advice and guidance and that they wont get in trouble for making a mistake.

A great way in which we can increase the profile of internet safety within our classes and schools is by taking part in ‘Safer Internet Day.’ This event offers us the opportunity to center lessons, assemblies and activities around the idea of safe conduct online. It gives the children a chance to be interactive in their learning as well as to voice their concerns and questions.

Overall it can be said that my view on Social Media and Online spaces/resources is a positive one. As a teacher I want to incorporate it into my classes as much as possible after all, it is a huge part of the world we are preparing our pupils for.