Get free science resources for British Science Week!
British Science Week takes place from 6-15 March 2020 and a well-known parenting blogger is launching a digital campaign to provide parents and teachers with free learning resources – raising money for charity at the same time. Helen Neale, the creator of the UK’s No.1 Parenting Blog Kiddycharts.com, is launching 31 Days of Learning which will give schools and families free access to a range of fun learning activities, bringing the wonder of science and creative subjects into classrooms and homes. This special digital event will provide parents and teachers with exciting experiments, crafts, projects and games to bring STEM and STEAM learning to life. From making rainbow slime to growing fruit and vegetables, the activities will help children to get hands-on with science, and to see the links between art and STEM subjects. Launching on 1st March, a new activity will be made available on the KiddyCharts website each day throughout the month. Covering Science, Maths, Languages, Literacy and Art, the free resources will also include activities to boost awareness around mental and physical health. One project encourages children to create a journal helping them to recognise their emotions, while another looks at healthy eating. Ranked as the leading UK Parenting Blog by Rise Global, Kiddycharts.com is the only UK Blog that is a registered social enterprise, with most profit going to charity. All proceeds from the 31 Days of Learning campaign will go to Reverence for Life, a charity that supports local UK and International charities in their work to help homeless, disadvantaged and vulnerable people and children affected by HIV/AIDS. Helen said: “31 Days of Learning will give parents and teachers access to fantastic free resources just in time for British Science Week. We’ve recruited some of the UK’s best-known bloggers to help us, and each day they’ll provide an exciting new activity for kids – helping them to learn about the world around us while raising money for a really important cause.” Teachers and parents are encouraged to visit www.kiddycharts.com from 1st March to start downloading the free resources. The content will also be available via Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram using the hashtag #31DaysOfLearning. Helen can be found on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. Picture: This fun science experiment blows up a balloon using baking soda and vinegar. This free activity will be available on Day 1 of the campaign provided by blog Daisies and Pie: daisiesandpie.co.uk.
My Magical Garden – Holistic Healing 4 Children
My Magical Garden is the basis of a technique that provides support and relief for children with anxiety, grief and challenging behaviour. It works in two ways; firstly, as a book on its own and secondly, as the basis for an Intervention Program and/or Guided Imagery Session As a book on its own, it helps to identify the emotional needs of a child and offers a fun, easy and non-invasive communication tool. The book is designed to help children understand and talk about their feelings. It guides the child through a series of choices allowing them to build a magical garden which empowers them to feel in control and to navigate through challenging situations. Additionally, the book provides an informative tool for parents or carers by offering them insights on how to help the child emotionally. Secondly My Magical Garden is a foundation for an Intervention Program, Workshop or Individual Session to be administered by a trained practitioner. During the session, the child is invited to create a safe place through the use of Imagination, Mindfulness and Guided Imagery. The children create an imaginary Magical Garden which provides an emotional safe place and once established they are provided with techniques that will help minimise anxiety, stress, pain or difficult feelings. The three main ingredients of the technique are: Imagination Imagination plays a number of important roles in mental health and can reduce anxiety and challenging emotions when used in a positive way. The imagination is very powerful. What a child thinks and imagines determines how they react to events in their lives. Since our brains can’t distinguish between real events and imagined ones it is a great tool to help promote relaxation and calm. Mindfulness Mindfulness is about being in the present moment. It is about taking notice of how you are feeling. Slowing down and focusing on the present in an easy and relaxed way. Mindfulness is becoming increasingly available in schools. Guided imagery It’s a relaxation technique that uses positive mental images to influence how you feel. It is a mind body intervention that involves the five senses. It can quickly calm the body and simultaneously relax the mind. In recent decades, there has been a rise in the scientific attention into the benefits of mindfulness. The number of randomized controlled trials involving mindfulness has jumped from one in1995?1997 to 11 from 2004?2006, to 216 from 2013?2015. A 2018 study conducted by Dr Joy Weydert into the benefits of Guided Imagery on children with Recurrent Abdominal Pain showed that a 67% reduction in pain was experienced during therapy. The trial concluded that the use of relaxation along with guided imagery is an effective and safe treatment for childhood Recurrent Abdominal Pain. Holmes Research in 2009, suggests that the use of positive imagination in our day to day life can reduce anxiety, increase positive affect, and be a buffer against depression My Magical Garden and its associated techniques provide benefits for the child, parents and the School. For the child, the garden reduces anxiety by providing a safe mental and emotional space. It will improve emotional wellbeing as the child will feel supported and this will increase their resilience and capacity to manage their emotions. Really importantly, it will provide the child with a means to communicate their feelings to parents and School staff, and therefore build a closer connection with their care provider. The benefits for the parents are similar, it gives them a way to support and understand their child and creates a stronger connection with the care provider. For the school this closer connection helps to give a better understanding for the child’s fears and anxieties leading to a calmer environment. The Magical Garden and associated techniques harness the child’s imagination in a positive and powerful way. It reduces the reliance on technology and screens to provide a distraction, but instead reconnects the child with their inner imagination, empowering them to learn how to help themselves. The book and techniques reduce the child’s sense of isolation by providing a fun communication tools to allow them to discuss their fears and concerns with their parents and the care providers. The Magical Garden provides a low cost, highly transportable and easy to learn technique to significantly reduce anxiety in a School setting. www.holistichealing4children.com
Spellzone unlocks the mystery of English spelling
Spellzone is the online English resource for students over 7 right up to adults, adapting to all abilities, it enables students, including those with dyslexia, to study independently on any platform at school, home or on the go. Spellzone has three main components; the Spelling Ability Test, a complete spelling course and 1000’s of word lists. The Spelling Ability Test provides students with baseline scores and individual learning pathways. Automatic retesting keeps them on track with little intervention. “The programme really can be tailored to suit individual needs. The resource allows every student to work at a level that has been set according to their individual strengths and needs. This means children whose spelling ability is strong don’t have to slow down and those with weaker spelling don’t struggle to keep up. They are all learning at the same time, at their own unique pace. Everyone is equal.” Pauline Guinan, Y5 and Y6 teacher and SENCo, Sheering Church of England Primary School The phonics-based spelling course covers all of the English spelling rules and includes the differences between British and American English spelling and much more. Teaching text includes definitions, sentence context and learning tips. There are lots of multi-sensory activities and tests with a high level of teaching, learning, practice and revision. All activity and results are logged so teachers can evaluate progress at any time. “His standardised score has risen from 99 to 131. This is a truly phenomenal result. I just wanted to share the best result I have ever seen.” Terrie Penrose-Toms, Casterton College Structured access to word lists makes Spellzone ideal for dyslexic and EFL students. All word lists can be used with spelling activities and games, translated into 92 languages and printed for off-line practice, including handwriting worksheets. Teachers can create their own subject-specific word lists. These can be set as classroom or homework tasks for individual learners or whole classes. Perfect for exam preparation! “The ability to find specific content for individual students and tailor learning support accordingly is superb. We’re very keen to make sure that work is specifically targeted to relevant age groups, and Spellzone makes this very easy to do. Being able to set tasks is another great tool, as it allows staff to set and mark homework quickly and easily.” Alison Ridyard, Director of Literacy, King’s Leadership Academy Free trials are available for single students, private tutors, families and schools. Visit the Spellzone website today to find out more.
How to achieve more in your EYFS or primary classroom…
What if there was a way to make the EYFS and primary school observations and assessment process simpler? What if there was a way reduce the manual burden on teachers, but at the same time, allow them to achieve more? These were just a couple of the questions that the software gurus at edtech software development company, NetSupport, were asking as they considered creating a new education app that would save time for teachers – as well as provide them with simple ways to gain more insights into the attainment and progress of their class. After close consultation with teachers and school leaders throughout the whole development process (plus extensive classroom trials), the end result is ReallySchool: an convenient app for primary school teachers that streamlines the observations and assessment process that needs to be completed for every pupil each day – with a comprehensive bundle of bonus tools that maximise the learning evidence that they are required to collect. And it’s already making quite an impact! Let’s explain… A new way to capture learning The ReallySchool app has been designed to be intuitive and easy for teachers and teaching assistants to use, without any formal training required. Teachers can begin using it in their classrooms straight away: photographing children’s skills acquisition on a tablet or smartphone and assessing it in a couple of clicks by applying statements from the in-built frameworks, spotting any learning gaps from timelines and class overviews and being able to share pupils’ achievements with parents and guardians via student journals or messages. The feedback we’ve had from the teachers already using ReallySchool in their classrooms is outstanding, with many saying that it saves them approximately two hours per day; cumulatively, over a week, that’s a significant amount of time that can be reinvested into teaching and learning to benefit pupils. As the app has been designed in the style of many common social media apps, it’s intuitive and easy to learn as you go. Some schools have told us that even their most technophobic members of staff who wanted to continue using paper journals for pupils’ observations started to use ReallySchool when they saw how quickly their colleagues were completing theirs – which is great news! What’s more, it’s extremely accessible to schools and early learning institutions due to its budget-friendly cost. A treasure trove of tools Sometimes, classroom learning can take an unexpected twist and teachers need to go with the flow. So to ensure that ReallySchool is as responsive teachers need it to be, we designed its tools to be as flexible as possible. So what if, instead of photographing evidence of learning, a child wants to tell you about it or show it to you instead? Simple – just click the audio or video icon, then ‘Record’, and it’s captured. What if you need to quickly add a student to a group observation? Just click and add them in, without having to re-create groups from scratch. Assessments in ReallySchool are extremely flexible and convenient, with teachers being able to include multiple frameworks, age bands and learning areas all in a single observation. To give teachers the extra insights and overviews of whole class attainment that they need (or, alternatively, whole-school views for senior leaders), ReallySchool’s complementary desktop portal has a dedicated Reports Dashboard. This can provide class attainment, class progress, baseline reports showing EYFS pupils’ skills on entry and more – as well being the area where teachers can create student journals; an individual in-depth achievement report for each pupil that can be shared with parents at parents’ evenings. Class overviews showing which pupils are emerging, developing, expected and exceeding in their skills acquisition are also a great way for teachers to spot where any learning gaps are – allowing them to plan their instruction accordingly and ensure that all pupils are on track. For convenience, teachers can also access these reports and overviews on the app, enabling them to easily spot and address learning gaps during the lesson. To reward pupils for good progress, behaviour choices and more teachers can give badges for achievement which are appended to their students’ observation records. These cover a multitude of topics and act as a great motivator for the pupils – and teachers can share news of any award directly with parents and guardians (to their own version of the ReallySchool app), so they can celebrate and share in their child’s success. And to encourage parental engagement, ReallySchool allows teachers to send messages and/or audio clips to parents, which can sometimes be helpful for those whose first language is not English and who may understand the spoken word better than the written one. Both parents and teachers can comment on observations and have a dialogue about learning, progress and how best to support young learners. ReallySchool: now UK-wide NetSupport focuses on continuous development and innovation to ensure all its solutions deliver exactly what schools and teachers need, so regular updates are the order of the day. ReallySchool’s latest tools include Leadership Reports for school leaders – including SOAP, whole school attainment and more. We’ve also added new assessment frameworks to the in-built list: the National Curriculum for Wales, The Digital Competence Framework, the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence and the Northern Ireland Curriculum for Primary – to make it even easier for teachers across the whole of the UK to apply the appropriate assessments to their pupils’ observations. And to help them make their judgements at the end of each key stage, we’ve incorporated the National Curriculum End of Key Stage 1 and End of Key Stage 2 assessment criteria too. There are already many ways that ReallySchool helps senior leaders, teachers and teaching assistants by maximising the data that schools are required to collect as evidence of learning – and more functionality is being developed and added all the time. To discover more about ReallySchool’s features and to sign up for a free trial for your school, click here. See us at Bett 2020 Even better,
Statutory Relationships Education – we’ve got your primary school covered
From September 2020, all primary schools in England must teach relationships education. Growing up with Yasmine and Tom is an intuitive and lively online teaching resource. Developed by teachers for teachers, and loved by children, it makes teaching relationships and sex education (RSE) easy and fun. “This has transformed and updated our RSE programme – thank you for introducing us to a brilliant resource” The age-appropriate lesson plans and interactive whiteboard activities are in line with the national curriculum, covering the following areas recommended by Department for Education guidance: Families and people who care for me Caring friendships Respectful relationships Online relationships Being safe Additional topics give you everything you need to deliver comprehensive, high-quality relationships and sex education. Body care Body parts Positive body image Positive sense of self Puberty Reproduction Gender stereotypes and identity Equality Where to get help “[We] loved the way that it was so user friendly and visual. The fact that Yasmine and Tom are the same age … made it even more relevant to the children, especially as they were from a more ‘modern’ family … that many of our children would identify with.” One simple cost-effective subscription covers the whole school Growing up with Yasmine and Tom is available as an affordable yearly subscription. A single subscription can be used by every teacher in school, making it a cost-effective resource that’s always up-to-date and never wears out, gets lost or needs replacing. Request your free trial today To request a free trial contact: Julie Arnaa, Sales and Marketing Manager 07506 405337 yasmineandtom@fpa.org.uk
Brilliant Brainz Monthly Magazine For Teachers
Are you a primary headteacher or school teacher looking for a fun and colourful magazine resource? Brilliant Brainz is a monthly print magazine available on subscription. Aimed at 6 -12 year olds, it is packed full of educational, creative and inspiring content and activities. Each main section in Brilliant Brainz; Art, Music, Philosophy, Food, Science and Nature, Health and Wellbeing is written by an expert in their field who has educated this age group. The activities and projects that are an integral part of the magazine are tried and tested and intended to develop a skill set and a deeper understanding of the subject. We work hard to make sure that the magazine doesn’t look like a text book, it has bright, colourful illustrated characters, like the terrible twins, Wiz and Dom and Professor Parrot, who pop up on the pages and make comments or jokes. Every page is bursting with colour and there are stories to read, quizzes to try and competitions to enter. The Philosophy section, written by Emma Leeson, an ex-Deputy Head who now works with Sapere and P4C, doesn’t give answers but asks thoughtful and challenging questions about BIG subjects, like Friendship or Happiness and encourages the children, through its activities, to think creatively. The Food section written by chef and nutritionist, Michele Harper, who goes into schools to teach children about food and how to cook, is funny and engaging and features easy to follow healthy recipes. Our new Wellbeing Section is written by Beth Parmar who runs workshops and individual sessions for children to help them deal with situations and emotions they are struggling with. It offers helpful insights and exercises for children to think about and experiment with. In the Science and Nature section we have one page dedicated to caring for the environment, as well as a fun experiment every month. Every section is full of information and activities which will encourage children to think and do. In fact, creative thinking and doing is our mantra and the aim of the magazine. Brilliant Brainz is a gender neutral, advert and plastic free magazine which is printed on high quality sustainable paper. At £3.33 per issue for an annual subscription it is amazing value and we offer a discount for schools on bulk subscriptions. So please do take a look at our website; brilliantbrainz.com (click on the teachers tab on the subscribe page) or call us on 0800 193 0092.
Straight Talking Peer Education
Straight Talking Peer Education employs teenage parents to educate pupils and raise awareness of Child Sexual Exploitation, healthy and unhealthy relationships and the realities and implications of early parenthood. Our courses have been independently evaluated to be effective in making students listen to, hear and remember our message. Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Teenage pregnancy has a serious and direct impact on secondary education. Statistics show that 40% of teenage mothers leave school without any qualifications, and many are still on benefits at age 30. Risk indicators for teenage pregnancy are high levels of deprivation, low educational attainment and low aspirations for the future. Despite the drop in teenage pregnancy rates, there were 59,815 teenage conceptions in 2015 (ONS, 2017), the highest in Western Europe. With high-risk indicators in the borough, now is the time for proactive decisions. Our comprehensively trained teenage mothers and young fathers draw on their personal experiences, enhancing the structured but interactive curriculum, to help pupils understand: • the responsibility of parenting and the impact on their social life • the loss of childhood • life in poor accommodation • the financial hardships • the effects on their future Our courses have been found to be “effective and [have] an immediate and sustained impact on young people’s views and understanding of teenage pregnancy and parenthood”. (Deloitte, 2016) “We have been using Straight Talking for a number of years and have always found them to deliver valuable, informative and expert advice to our pupils. The speakers are willing to share their experiences in an impartial manner. The pupils have commented on how their perceptions have been challenged; many have said that their views on the topic have changed considerably as a result of the Straight Talking performances / role-plays / question-and-answer sessions. Staff have also been complimentary about the sessions and have praised the way in which the speakers have quickly developed a rapport with the groups and have been able to answer questions that the pupils have asked. As Head of Department I feel that these sessions have really complemented my work on the topic of teenage pregnancy and I look forward to using the company again next year.” Chris Walsgrove Head of PSHE The Heathland School (Hounslow) 2015 https://www.straighttalking.org
Unique PSHE resources for mental health and safeguarding
There is now a realization by governments that schools play an important role in promoting good mental health. And there’s pressure on schools to deliver. Promoting robust mental health is now a formal part of the PSHE curriculum, yet there’s very little available to schools in terms of support and resources. Now, there are proven resources available – all the way from Denmark! Widely regarded as one of Europe’s most successful education systems, Denmark has enthusiastically embraced the need to provide positive mental health intervention. As in the UK, there are incredible stresses placed on children and young people by social media, peer pressure, bullying, exams, and more. There’s very little that schools can do to alleviate these stresses, but what they CAN do is provide ‘counterbalancing’ positive input. In Denmark, as in many other countries around the world, the concept of ‘positive education’ has emerged as an important part of the curriculum. Evidence from many studies shows that good self-esteem and robust mental health allow children to learn better. But until recently, the tools that schools needed to implement such policies were lacking. This is where Denmark has taken a lead… Based on the concepts of positive psychology and intrinsic character strengths, the Danish education company Strength Academy has developed a range of classroom materials that are easy to use and give very positive results. Now proven over several years, and in hundreds of schools, Strength Academy materials are finally available in the UK. With versions available for both Primary and Secondary schools, the Strength Academy resources are complete systems – ready to go. High quality teacher and classroom resources are complemented by low-cost student workbooks, reducing costs: Strength Game (each box for 2–4 players) Teacher guides with clear step-by-step activity instructions Low-cost student workbooks (just buy new workbooks for each class) A4 flashcards A2 classroom poster Evidence from Denmark shows that using these resources can lead to: Noticeable improvements in individual self-esteem Improved class interactions and acceptance of diversity Greater engagement and willingness to learn In the UK, these leading-edge resources are supplied and supported by Tiny Sponges. We’re a specialist supplier of PSHE, mental health, and safeguarding resources to schools and parents. With over 30 years’ experience in education, we’ve worked with Strength Academy to adapt these unique resources for the UK. Email: info@tinysponges.com Web: www.tinysponges.com Tel: 01903 910191
Little Troopers charity launches new course for primary schools
Military Child Wellbeing: Little Troopers charity launches new course for primary schools Military children’s charity, Little Troopers, has launched a new resource for primary schools to support service children. The Military Child Wellbeing Course is the first of its kind and is designed to encourage children in the military community to explore the unique challenges they experience while their parents are in the armed forces. The comprehensive pack features all the resources needed for the child-friendly, interactive course, which is made up of seven sessions. Topics covered include how to cope with separation, deployment, house moves and living abroad, as well as the personal themes of belonging, identity and mindfulness. The course has been created by a group of experts, including a cognitive behavioural therapy specialist, creative arts psychotherapist and play therapists, alongside Little Troopers founder: army veteran and military parent, Louise Fetigan. There are more than 75,000 children in UK schools who have parents connected to the military.* These children can experience life very differently from their civilian peers due to frequent house and school moves, as well as regular separation from their serving parent (or parents) due to deployments, training exercises and other service commitments. Any separation, however long, can cause children to feel unsettled, anxious or struggling to feel a sense of belonging. The aim of the course is to provide children with the tools to manage these feelings when they arise. Louise Fetigan explains: “Mental health is a hot topic at the moment and we often hear about the importance of wellbeing in relation to serving personnel and veterans, but we rarely discuss the impact of military life on our British Armed Forces children. “Of course, many children thrive in the military community and enjoy meeting new friends, travelling around the world and embracing the opportunities that military life can bring, but with the highs can come lows. These same children can be faced with other challenges that their civilian classmates are often not familiar with and find it difficult to relate to. “The aim of the Military Child Wellbeing Course is to acknowledge that service children do sometimes need additional support and to provide a safe space in which to open up these conversations and help children navigate these challenges in positive ways, be that now or in the future.” The Little Troopers course has been designed to be delivered to small groups of children ranging from 6 -11 years olds, making the material just as relevant to schools with two service children as to those with 100 or more. Currently there are four schools trialling the course; Wolvey CE Primary School in Leicestershire, Hythehill Primary School in Lossiemouth, Brunei MOD School and St Faith & St Martin CE Junior School in Lincoln. The course complements the Little Troopers existing Primary Resource Pack. Each school purchasing the course will receive a USB with all of the course materials included so they can be used time and time again. All profits from the course will go back into the Little Troopers fund to continue creating resources, initiatives and events to support military children.