Education News

Left to their own devices during playtimes and lunchtimes, some children will play in a very positive way. They will work together, mutually acknowledging the rules of their own games, helping and supporting each other and gaining much from the experience.

Unfortunately not all children do this. Some become isolated, some race around letting off steam and occasionally colliding with innocent by-standers, some become the victims of bullies, others become bullies.

A straightforward way to enhance positive play in the school grounds is to teach the children one game a week which they can then work on together. Some games will catch on and become continuing favourites. Others by the nature of things will fade after a few days.

But two great benefits will emerge from teaching children one game a week. Firstly the initial playing of the playground game by a group of children is always a highly rewarding experience. The sorting out of the rules, agreeing the fundamentals and, above all, working together are all fundamental to the development of the social aspect of each child’s life.

Secondly, although the suggested games will not motivate and engage all children, they will enthuse many, leaving teachers on duty a much smaller number of potentially problematic situations to deal with.

As a further benefit, extracts from the book can be given to parents so that they can encourage their children to play these games when friends come around at weekends or after school, or to give a greater structure to birthday parties.

PSHE in the Playground is a photocopiable book (also available on CD so that it can be loaded onto the school’s network) which incorporates enough games to last a full school year and includes games that are suitable for both key stage 1 and key stage 2 children. Most games can be taught to children in a matter of minutes.

Because the book is copiable only one copy needs to be purchased for the book to be used by all teachers in the school throughout the year.

An extract from PSHE in the Playground, ISBN 978 1 86083 726 5, order code T1691EMN is available at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/primary/T1691.pdf

Prices

Photocopiable report in a ring binder, £24.95 plus £3.95 delivery
CD with school-wide rights: £24.95 plus £3.95 delivery
Both the Ring Binder and the CD £31.94 plus £3.95 delivery
Prices include VAT.

You can purchase the report…

By post from First and Best, Hamilton House, Earlstrees Ct, Earlstrees Rd, Corby, NN17 4HH
By fax to 01536 399 012
On-line with a credit card at http://tinyurl.com/npqers
By phone with a school order number or a credit card to 01536 399 011

When ordering the book please quote the reference T1791EMN.

Young people with Autism Spectrum Condition face difficulties with social skills, communication and behaviour – all things that if left can make it very difficult for children to maximise their potential in terms of their education.

However, with the right sort of teaching and understanding, children with Autism Spectrum Condition can be polite, well mannered and sociable, while becoming calm, and happy.

As a result of such changes they begin to feel secure and learn how to be kind and charitable, while putting their own leisure time to good use, while developing their skills and knowledge.

Perhaps most excitingly they can become creative in a unique way.

Understanding the learning style of children with ASC is necessary if such progress is to be made – which is where “Single Focused Attention: Teaching children with an Autism Spectrum Condition” comes in. This volume, which is available as a copiable book and on CD (which allows it to be placed on the school’s learning platform) takes the interested teacher from a discussion of the condition through to ways in which the pupil or student can be helped at school.

The book includes issues relating to individual work, social skills, life in the school playground, timetabling, anxiety, homework, the physical and sensory environment, curriculum issues, and much much more.

The volume concludes with a test to establish whether the children do have “Theory of Mind” plus a large series of worksheets that can be used with ASC children.

You can see a full list of the topics and sample pages at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/spneeds/T1766.pdf

Publisher’s reference: T1766EMN ISBN: 978 1 86083 782 1

Prices

Photocopiable report in a ring binder, £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
CD with school-wide rights: £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
Both the Ring Binder and the CD £27.94 plus £3.95 delivery
Prices include VAT.
You can purchase the report… please quote the order ref: T1766EMN

By post to First and Best, Hamilton House, Earlstrees Ct., Earlstrees Way, Corby, NN17 4HH
By fax to 01536 399 012
On line with a credit card at http://shop.firstandbest.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=743&osCsid=c1f61818b682e4a3155aec3e01e0baea

Left to their own devices during playtimes and lunchtimes, some children will play in a very positive way. They will work together, mutually acknowledging the rules of their own games, helping and supporting each other and gaining much from the experience.

Unfortunately not all children do this. Some become isolated, some race around letting off steam and occasionally colliding with innocent by-standers, some become the victims of bullies, others become bullies.

A straightforward way to enhance positive play in the school grounds is to teach the children one game a week which they can then work on together. Some games will catch on and become continuing favourites. Others by the nature of things will fade after a few days.

But two great benefits will emerge from teaching children one game a week. Firstly the initial playing of the playground game by a group of children is always a highly rewarding experience. The sorting out of the rules, agreeing the fundamentals and, above all, working together are all fundamental to the development of the social aspect of each child’s life.

Secondly, although the suggested games will not motivate and engage all children, they will enthuse many, leaving teachers on duty a much smaller number of potentially problematic situations to deal with.

As a further benefit, extracts from the book can be given to parents so that they can encourage their children to play these games when friends come around at weekends or after school, or to give a greater structure to birthday parties.

PSHE in the Playground is a photocopiable book (also available on CD so that it can be loaded onto the school’s network) which incorporates enough games to last a full school year and includes games that are suitable for both key stage 1 and key stage 2 children. Most games can be taught to children in a matter of minutes.

Because the book is copiable only one copy needs to be purchased for the book to be used by all teachers in the school throughout the year.

An extract from PSHE in the Playground, ISBN 978 1 86083 726 5, order code T1691EMN is available at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/primary/T1691.pdf

Prices

Photocopiable report in a ring binder, £24.95 plus £3.95 delivery
CD with school-wide rights: £24.95 plus £3.95 delivery
Both the Ring Binder and the CD £31.94 plus £3.95 delivery
Prices include VAT.

You can purchase the report…

By post from First and Best, Hamilton House, Earlstrees Ct, Earlstrees Rd, Corby, NN17 4HH
By fax to 01536 399 012
On-line with a credit card at http://tinyurl.com/npqers
By phone with a school order number or a credit card to 01536 399 011

When ordering the book please quote the reference T1791EMN.

Let your children celebrate their time with you in an uplifting, entertaining, and emotional way – and make the Olympics mean much more than sport to KS2!

Bringing together different parts of the curriculum to mark London 2012 can be a challenge. PE may be easy to tie in, and other elements too. But what about music?

Well it’s now easy to make sure that music is a medal winning part of your school’s activities in Olympics year. You can celebrate the summer games with a musical that complements everything else your school is doing to mark this special event.

Run, jump, swim – and sing, laugh and entertain.

Specially written for KS2 pupils, “Reach For The Sky” takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the sporty and PE life of a primary school and the Olympics. Songs such as “Can I Borrow Some Shorts”, “Swimming Today”, “My Dad’s Faster Than Your Dad”, and, of course, “Reach For The Sky” will provide a musical spectacular that will be a highlight of your school year.

Whether it’s rummaging through lost property for kit, competitive parents on Sports Day, or trying to get a rubber swimming cap on, “Reach For the Sky” has the songs and script to make children, staff, and parents sing, smile, and laugh. And the show is underpinned by the message that if we do our best in everything, then the rewards will come.

At Edgy Productions we write and deliver knowing what works in schools, what brings music to life, and what children enjoy and enthuse about.

To listen to song samples, to read script extracts and teacher testimonials, and to order online, please visit www.edgyproductions.com

“I’ve never found material that appeals to kids as much!” Chris Tregidden, Dobwalls Primary School, Cornwall

Lauren and the Edgy team

Unit 6a Kibworth Business Park, Nursery Court, Kibworth Harcourt, LE8 0EX
T. 0845 8333348 F. 0845 8333349 E. info@edgyproductions.com W. www.edgyproductions.com

“Sustainability is a key geographical concept in all key stages. It is always topical, and gives students an opportunity to address big issues that affect them, their future children and their grandchildren.”

After starting with the basics of what natural resources are, geography teacher Stephen Schwab’s lesson then engages students in current geographical debate.

Considering sustainable development from local, national and global perspectives, students are invited to question how a world with a population that has now reached seven billion can hope to remain sustainable.

To download the lesson plan and the Boardworks slides, go to: www.boardworks.co.uk/geography_704

Accompanying the slides in Stephen’s lesson are detailed teacher’s notes, giving you ideas for further discussion points. To find out more about the additional teaching support offered by Boardworks Geography resources, order your free sample disc today!
www.boardworks.co.uk/order-sample-disc/505

Regards,

The Boardworks Geography team

It is a well known fact that a variety of approaches are needed to cater for children with different learning styles.

By reading and examining different types of texts, many children can indeed be made aware of the correct use of punctuation and grammar and encouraged to use it in their own written work. Other children, as we have all seen, need a more structured approach.

It is with this in mind that my colleagues and I have produced a series of books which comply with the Primary National Strategy and adopt just such an approach: ‘Photocopiable Punctuation and Grammar Books (Year 3 to Year 6).

Introductory books for Year 1 and Year 2 are now included at the request of teachers that have used the series. Cartoon characters such as Freddy the Full Stop Man and Nelly the Noun Lady help to lay the foundation of understanding of punctuation and grammar skills at an early stage.

If you’d like to see exactly how we have tackled this issue there are free sample pages available from our website.

Click on the web links below for more information.

Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6.

If you would like to know more please call 01772 863158 or email enquiries@topical-resources.co.uk

As always you can order in any of these ways:

On our website using the web links above
By phone on 01772 863158
By fax 01772 866153
By email to Sales@topical-resources.co.uk
By post to Topical Resources, P.O. Box329, Broughton, Preston, Lancashire PR3 5LT

Topical Resources
P.O. Box329
Broughton
Preston
Lancashire
PR3 5LT

www.topical-resources.co.uk
sales@topical-resources.co.uk

Tel: 01772 863158

It’s a fairly fundamental question and one that students of religious studies need to understand before they get too far into the religious experience component of Religious studies AS and A2 levels.

That, of course, is only the start, for there is also the question of Channels, Sources and Occasions of Religious Experience. There’s also the need to know about such thinkers as Rudolph Otto, William James, Sir Alistair Hardy, Richard Swinburne, as well as those hostile to religion such as Ludwig Feuerbach and Sigmund Freud.

The copiable book, Religious Experience, (also available on a CD so that it can be put on the school’s learning platform) deals with all these points and many more in a way that gives the student a basic understanding and then allows, and indeed, encourages, debate beyond this point.

In short, it covers the spectrum of issues involved in Religious Experience and the theories advanced to explain them. It provides an introduction to and discussion points on these main types of religious experience and will enable students to obtain an overall grasp of the subject matter. It looks at the different kinds of religious experience and the different channels or occasions for religious experience and also discusses religious experience in the context of the major religions.

After taking in The Ongoing Significance of Religious Experience the book moves on to Problems of Religious Experience, including Empiricism, Kant, and The Logical Positivists.

The volume concludes with Discussions of Religious Experience, which ranges from private and public experiences to perception and moral attitudes.

Throughout the book are exercises/activities for the students to complete. These can form the basis for written homework or for group discussion in the classroom.

Religious Experience is available as a copiable spiral bound book or on CD Rom. The book comes with an unlimited photocopiable licence for the school, and costs £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery for either the book or CD. If you wish to buy both together the price is £26.94 plus £3.95 delivery.

You can order in four different ways. In each case please quote our reference T1672emn. Sample pages can be viewed prior to ordering on http://bit.ly/5Xt0dR

By post to First and Best, Hamilton House Mailings plc, Earlstrees Ct., Earlstrees Rd., Corby, Northants NN17 4HH

By fax on 01536 399 012

By phone with a credit card or with an official school order number on 01536 399 011

On line with a credit card at http://bit.ly/8lXyCy

Imagine a farmer coming into your nursery and transporting your children (figuratively) to his farmyard through song, dance and story-telling and the power of make-believe.

This is exactly what happens with our Funky Farmyard workshop.

Here at Perform we specialise in running workshops in nursery schools using imaginative creative resources, performing arts-based exercises and role-play scenarios which stimulate each child’s physical, cognitive and social development.

Our teachers (who are fully trained actors and singers) are able to captivate children’s imaginations with their dramatic story telling, specially written catchy themed songs, games and poems.

“The children were enriched and enthused, as were the staff!” – Whitchurch First School.

In addition to our Funky Farmyard theme we also offer Rumble in the Jungle, Tea Under The Sea and Beep, beep!

There are more details on our website at www.perform.org.uk/classes/primary-schools/explorer-workshops/nursery-themes.html

To book a workshop, or to ask any questions about our work, please either:

Call me on 0207 255 9136
Email me at allisonsmith@perform.org.uk
See the website
Allison Smith
Perform4Schools

The chances are that for many young people today newspapers are either something that exist in other households but not their own or they are gossip columns with very little international news.

Which is why Newsademic exists – for it is an international newspaper written and edited for KS 3 and KS 4 students.

To date we have over 30,000 readers – which is why we know there is a demand for such a publication.

It is also why we are happy to offer a free two month subscription to the paper. We know that schools that see it, like it.

The publication supports the PSHE, History, Geography, Science, English and RE curricula though its focus is on international news events that shape and affect the world that we all live in today.

Newsademic carries no advertising. Neither does it feature articles about television, sport, computer games, pop music or celebrity culture.

The newspaper is distributed fortnightly as a PDF file by email or as a download. Although it can be read on screen it is designed to be printed out and read as a paper copy. An intranet licence allows all students to access an HTML searchable version of Newsademic via their school network. Two levels of activities, based on some of the featured articles, accompany each issue.

Annual subscription rates start at £24.00 and schools can photocopy any part of the newspaper as many times as they wish for use within their school.

To subscribe free of charge for two months please go to: www.newsademic.com/promo/h0112

For more information visit www.newsademic.com

Constructing schemes of work and curriculum documents in drama to meet the needs of the department and OFSTED is one thing. Providing the rationale behind the work of the drama department is another. As is providing teaching material for colleagues who are not drama trained, and yet find themselves teaching drama lessons.

I am sure that for those who were drama trained it is all a straightforward process – but for those who were not, there is a need for support.

One possible way forward is through the use of the copiable book “Alive and Kicking” (also available on CD so that it can be loaded onto the school’s learning network – which means everyone can read the scheme of work at any time).

It provides a series of templates for all three years of Key Stage 3. There are schemes of work taken term by term, with three distinct modules per year. There is a detailed scheme of assessment criteria tied in to an expectation of many students going on to GCSE courses but also tied in to National Curriculum Level equivalents. There is also a package of resource materials for use with the modules, most notably a series of mini-scripts for children to work on in combinations of twos, threes, fours or fives.

The list of contents is huge – for example within the section on classroom practice there are articles on:

Rules of the studio
Key concepts and key words, year by year
Solo work (from simultaneous solo activities to audition speeches)
Improvisation
Scripts
Workshops
Use of Games
Alternative strategies
Feedback.
Other chapters cover key skills, assessment, reporting – and of course the complete year by year schemes of work. There is a sample chapter available on-line at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/drama/T1650.pdf

Cat No: 978 1 86083 569 8; Publisher reference no: T1650emn

Prices

Photocopiable report in a ring binder, £29.95. plus £3.95 delivery
CD with school-wide rights: £29.95 plus £3.95 delivery
Both the Ring Binder and the CD £36.94 plus £3.95 delivery
Prices include VAT.
You can purchase the book…

By post to First and Best, Hamilton House, Earlstrees Ct., Earlstrees Way, Corby, NN17 4HH
By fax to 01536 399 012
By phone with a school order number on 01536 399 011
On line with a credit card at http://shop.firstandbest.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=474