Daily Archives: 27/04/2016

PSHE, PSHE and Citizenship

SRE – It’s essential we get it right.

Recent research now suggests that more and more the responsibility for delivering good and correct sex and relationship education is falling to schools and teachers as opposed to parents or families. But with budgets and curriculum hours for PSHE being cut how is it possible to deliver involving, informative and relevant sex and relationship education?

It is hard for schools to compete in an age where technology, the media and the pornography industry target young people in an exciting and provocative way as it promotes to them an image of beauty, sexuality, love and relationships that undermines their self esteem and promotes an unrealistic image of who they should be and what they should be doing.

Now it is more important than ever to create sex and relationship education that can be as compelling, as exciting, as influential as the media campaigns it is battling.

Tip of the Iceberg Theatre Company has been delivering SRE projects in schools across the country for the past 15 years. ‘The Sex Factor’ project uses a mix of performances, workshops and up-front honestly to tackle the difficult and vast topic of sex and relationships education.

For the participants involved you can forget disturbing diagrams and awkward talks; this is Sex Ed with a difference. Our experience has shown that to affectively reach and address the attitudes of a young audience it is not enough to deal with the ‘nuts and bolts’ of these personal issues, but rather the heart and soul.

The work of the theatre company does not give simple answers, or tell audiences what to do, however, encourages them to ask questions, consider themselves and others and to be aware of the many influences affecting them, giving them options for positive solutions and an understanding of the importance of life changing choices.  Our projects are constantly being adapted as the needs of pupils and schools change, however, we always aim to deliver relatable and thought provoking work.

“PSHE is a crucial part of preparing young people for life. It can provide them with the knowledge and confidence to make decisions which will affect their health, wellbeing and relationships, now and in the future.” (Stroud News and Journal, 11.1.16)

Read about how our projects support OFFSTED findings on PSHE education

“Together we can be outstanding” Click here

The Sex Factor project is suitable for years 9-11 and consists of 2 plays and a range of workshop options for a half or full day.  The project can be delivered for up to 300 pupils (depending on performance space). Working with your school we adapt workshop options (timings/sizes) to suit your requirements and endeavor to provide the most effective PSHE solutions for your budget.

Prices start at:

£675 + VAT for a half day

£950 + VAT for full day

View a video and read more about “The Sex Factor” here

We have a range of other shows with different topics for years 7-13 and work with many schools on a complete PSHE programme so please don’t hesitate to contact us for more information.

Email: admin@tipoftheiceberg.biz Tel: 07519593711 or 0845 4747907

www.tipoftheiceberg.biz

Building, furniture, maintenance, energy etc

Do we have enough exam desks for all our students?

GCSE exams are just around the corner but sometimes it’s only at the last moment that someone realises there’s not enough exam desks. If this happens it’s panic all round and a desperate search to find a supplier who can deliver more exam desks at short notice.

If you need exam desks in a hurry then Central Educational Supplies can help. With prices from £13.75 (ex vat) for folding desks plus quick delivery (often next working day) you can see the range on their website.

www.centraleducational.co.uk

For exam desks, folding chairs plus a wide range of classroom tables and chairs you can check out the options on their website or give them a call on 020 7515 1797 or email your requirements.

Central Educational Supplies Ltd., PO Box 999,  London E14 6SH

www.centraleducational.co.uk      signpost@talk21.com

Tel: 020 7515 1797   Fax: 020 7515 4420

PS. Whatever else you do, don’t throw your old furniture in the skip until the new stock arrives!

If you would like more information or discuss a possible order, call 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

Maths

Discover the 9 good reasons why 5,000 UK schools are already using Mathletics … …

…. AND WE WILL GIVE YOU A 10th …

FREE ACCESS THIS SUMMER TERM FOR YOUR SCHOOL
NOW THAT’S AN OFFER THAT REALLY ADDS UP!

Hi Maths Subject Leader

3P Learning recently surveyed the schools using its Mathletics digital resource to ask them to share with us the reasons why they use it and the impact and benefits they have seen as a result.

They told us that there are 9 very good reasons!

Read on to learn what they are, to register for your free trial and to take advantage of this fantastic summer term offer…

The 9 reasons your school should subscribe to Mathletics…

1) Mathletics is proven to significantly improve levels of attainment and progress (independently validated by the University of Oxford)

2) Mathletics creates hugely increased levels of pupil engagement, confidence and motivation in maths

3) Mathletics contains fully aligned curriculum content, supporting a mastery approach, developing the core skills of mathematical fluency, problem solving and reasoning

4) Mathletics comprehensively supports SATs preparation

5) Mathletics provides powerful diagnostic reporting and assessment tools to assist with “life after levels”

6) Mathletics can help close the attainment gap for FSM (Pupil Premium) pupils

7) Mathletics can play a key role in encouraging a “Growth Mindset” in maths

8) Mathletics is shown to assist in building parental engagement

9) Mathletics effectively supports personalised learning

For full information on the 9 reasons why Jenny School should subscribe to Mathletics, please click here

About Mathletics

Mathletics is a multi-award-winning digital resource used by more than 5,000 schools across the UK. It is proven to significantly improve results and pupil engagement in maths.

Mathletics contains fully aligned curriculum content, supporting a mastery approach, developing the core skills of mathematical fluency, problem solving and reasoning.

For teachers it offers powerful differentiation, assessment and diagnostic reporting tools.

Mathletics can be accessed on PCs and tablet devices both at school and at home, making it great as a classroom resource for teaching and learning and for setting homework.

Get in touch now by emailing info@mathletics.co.uk and enjoy your free access this summer term if you subscribe.

If you have any questions whatsoever, please contact us using our details below and we will be very happy to help.

We would love to welcome your school into the Mathletics community, so get in touch now to enjoy your summer term free access!

Kind regards,

3P Learning
0117 370 1578
info@mathletics.co.uk

Assemblies, Music

Take a world that is completely different from ours – and those creatures completely different from ordinary people like us

David Stoll  (SEALSONGS, DICK OTTINGTON) has a new song collection for Primary Schools available for download from First & Best. The package also contains a specially written story script for a narrator which weaves all the songs together.

Thus THE CUCKOO ROCK SONGBOOK can be used as a basis for individual songs to be sung in assembly or simply within the class, or it can be a complete production for presentation to parents and the rest of the school – without any need for complex staging, special lighting or any other effects that may or may not be available.

The collection includes twelve settings of poems by Phil Bowen. These magical poems are full of unusual characters, colourful scenes and surprising wordplay; the original book was short-listed for the CLPE prize.

The music has echoes of 60’s rock as well as various contemporary styles. The SONGBOOK includes both printed piano accompaniment and pre-recorded full backing tracks with permissions for use.

You can see an extract from the songbook here http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/primary/CUCKOOROCKsample.pdf and you can hear the backing track here http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/primary/01 cuckoo rock.mp3

A copy of the complete collection of songs and the narrator’s script is available as a download from http://shop.firstandbest.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=820

The price is £16.95 plus VAT (the VAT can be reclaimed in most cases by the school).

THE CUCKOO ROCK SONGBOOK is distributed by First and Best in Education, part of the Hamilton House group. If you have any enquiries you can call 01536 399 011, or email sales@firstandbest.co.uk or write to us at First and Best, Hamilton House, Earlstrees Ct, Earlstrees Rd, Corby, Northants NN17 4HH.

The full range of First and Best books can be seen at www.shop.firstandbest.co.uk

Languages

EDpaX Primary French, Spanish and German

Remove the stress … No preparation or expertise is needed
when using EDpaX Primary Language products.

What are they? – Each language is a fun, sound enhanced product which provides 28 visual and colourful interactive whiteboard topics enabling and supporting the teacher when delivering a Primary language.

Lessons at your fingertips! No preparation is needed. The versatile lessons provide a wide variety of teaching pages with associated games and activities for the pupils. Each product introduces and reinforces initial language, spelling, vital verbs, simple sentence structure and small paragraphs.

Teachers’ Note – Whew! No need for you to have any experience of teaching a foreign language – a Teacher’s Help button is provided on every page offering detailed guidance and support.

Photocopy Workbooks each containing 56 differentiated photocopy pages which reinforce and consolidate every topic are included as a SPECIAL OFFER. Planning grids detailing the language used in each topic are there too.

Here are the titles of each topic …

Disk 1

Disk 2
All About Me Numbers 0 – 12 Classroom Language Shopping
Alphabet Numbers 13 – 39 Classroom Objects Shops
Colours Numbers 40 – 69 Free Time The House
Days of the Week Pets Jobs Time
Family The Seasons Countries The Body
How We Look The Weather Nationality The Town
Months Zoo Animals Numbers 70 – 1000 The Village

Check out the product at  http://www.edpax.com/languages-mfl/

Want to try before you buy? Please download a full FREE teaching topic from Free Resources at http://www.edpax.com/free-resources/languages/

One language plus workbook only £350 (excl. VAT and p&p)

One-off purchase and full site licence. Offer valid until 31st March, 2016.

www.edpax.com

Learning Outside the Classroom

Putting LOtC to the test to obtain tangible evidence of its benefits.

There is no doubt that Learning Outside the Classroom is beneficial to students’ emotional, social, (sometimes physical), and academic development; yet there is little tangible evidence to prove this – and tangible evidence is something that Ofsted is rather keen on.

However. an article in TES has reported that two schools have signed up to be part of a King’s College project in which they will relocate their lessons from the typical classroom setting to a museum.

The King’s College project aims to test the theory that LOtC is beneficial to students’ development and also to find out exactly what the long-term benefits of LOtC are, as well as the extent to which LOtC is beneficial to students’ development.

Director of the Cultural Institute at King’s College London, Katherine Bond, commented: “It seems such an obvious thing to do.

“There is a long tradition of school trips to museums, but we’ve never come across anyone taking the entire curriculum and moving it all into a museum.”

Nonetheless, until the results of this study materialise, theory and human observation is all we have to go on, which is better than nothing at all.

And, of course, if you are planning to take your students on a school trip to experience how real-life businesses operate and need a cost-effective transport solution, Benchmark Leasing can certainly help.

Benchmark Leasing specialises in leasing minibuses to schools and, as part of the leasing arrangement, we will also take care of the maintenance of the vehicle and thus assume responsibility for keeping it fully operational at all times.

A minibus which is leased is simply paid for on a monthly basis through a small monthly deduction from the school’s income. Thus schools are finding that it is possible to fund a minibus without taking anything from the school’s capital account.

In cases where trips are paid for by contributions from parents, it is possible to allocate a part of those payments towards the cost of the minibus.

And in other cases, the PTA has agreed to make a monthly contribution, particularly if it means that students will have more opportunities to undertake Learning Outside the Classroom and will enhance the breadth and scope of the school’s vision.

If you are interested in leasing a school minibus with us, please do call us on 01753 859944 or click here to see what we can offer.

If you are looking for LOtC ideas, please take a look at our Facebook & Twitter pages.

Link to article – https://www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-news/why-moving-lessons-museums-could-have-long-term-benefits-younger