Glow, Microsoft Office 365 and Additional Support for Learning:
Did you know your child can download Microsoft Office 365 for free onto your home laptops/computers etc. All you need is your child’s Glow username and password.
Free access to Microsoft Office 365 programmes such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access and OneNote can be downloaded at no charge onto 15 computers/laptops/personal devices at home.
There are a number of tools on Microsoft which will help children/young people with additional support for learning needs. Have a look at www.onenote.com/learningtools
Supporting literacy at home
There are many opportunities in everyday routines to practise and apply literacy skills in real and meaningful ways e.g. reading to your child every day, learning nursery rhymes together and pointing out signs in the local community.
You can also encourage your child to talk about their thoughts and ideas, and about how they are feeling.
These leaflets provide fun ideas to encourage good reading habits at different ages and stages.
PDF file: Reading tips – early years (134 KB)
PDF file: Reading tips – primary (134 KB)
Related links
Scottish Book Trust – First Minister’s Reading Challenge – Explore a range of books and develop a love of reading.
Play Talk Read – This website helps promote health and brain development by offering advice and ideas for interacting with very young children.
Read, Write, Count – Tips, ideas and activities for you and your children to read, write and count together and promote home school partnerships.
Scottish Book Trust – Blog for parents – Link to a blog for parents from the Scottish Book Trust.
Let’s read them a story: The parent factor in education (PDF file) – A downloadable e-book with practical suggestions on how you can help your child develop a positive attitude to reading.
Supporting numeracy at home
Numeracy is about being able to understand and use numbers in a range of situations, for example when solving problems or making decisions in situations involving numbers.
How can I help?
Learning doesn’t just take place in the classroom, it can happen anywhere. A child or young person’s everyday routine offers many opportunities and experiences to practise and apply their numeracy skills in real and meaningful ways.
There are many ways that you can build learning activities into everyday routines to support your child’s numeracy skills. Below are some simple ideas to build numeracy skills into everyday activities from early years to secondary.
PDF file: Information handling (746 KB)
PDF file: Measurement (1.20 MB)
PDF file: Mental calculation (536 KB)
‘I am a mathematician’ resource
Mathematics is important in our everyday lives, allowing us to make sense of the world around us. We use it every day, at work, leisure and at home. Parents and carers can play a vital role in reinforcing the importance of maths to their children, promoting a positive attitude towards it and making it a fun activity to do together as a family.
This resource will help parents to support their children’s learning with fun activities to do at home.
PDF file: I am a mathematician (8.6 MB)
PDF file: I am a mathematician – Gaelic version (19.8 MB)
Related links
Read, Write, Count – Tips, ideas and activities for you and your children to read, write and count together and promote home school partnerships.
Making Maths Count – This report encourages greater enthusiasm for maths amongst children, young people and parents.
BBC – Bitesize – First Level – Mathematics – Fun activities to help children at 1st Level in Scotland learn more about Mathematics.
BBC – Bitesize – Second Level – Mathematics – See how knowing about sums, averages, shapes, graphs and measurements can help with many tasks.
Fun to Save – This website is designed to be fun and allow children to learn about money and ways to save.
Skint! – A money management resource created for adult literacy and numeracy support groups.
The Big Plus – The Big Plus encourages adults to improve their reading, writing and number skills.
