Monthly Archives: August 2016

Music

Ready-made Whole-class Music-making…

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Give your children a ‘sound’ music education

Years ago, music was taught by singing or listening only. Children didn’t make music or explore sound in their lessons. As in Victorian days, it was expected that children should be seen and not heard!

Over the last few years OFSTED have said that too little actual music goes on in primary music lessons. Music is a language and the language of music should be dominant, but often isn’t.

Playing instruments is a great way to get all children making music. They can all play tunes and get a great sense of achievement. However, whole classes of trumpets & trombones, or violins & cellos make a very loud noise indeed. Even tin whistles & recorders are shrill in large numbers. And drums don’t play tunes, only rhythms.

Which Instrument should we use?

The English Ocarina is a really great instrument. The 4-hole Oc® has been judged by independent experts to be the Best Music Education Product. Here’s what the panel said…

The Ocarina “combines creative potential, ease of use, affordability and practicality” Best Music Education Product WINNER in the Music Teacher Awards for Excellence

The sound of the Ocarina blends beautifully in groups. If one child plays it badly, their Ocarina cuts out and is silent, so you only hear the best. And the sound of the Ocarina is the purest of any musical instrument, giving children the best feedback and immediate success.

If you would like to enable your children to play great music in class, in assembly, at the Christmas Concert or at community events, just order now. Ocarinas are supremely portable as children wear Ocarinas when they play. They are also lightweight and very easily stored.

But is it ‘proper’?

People who don’t fully understand music or children, may think that the Ocarina is not a ‘proper’ instrument. What is a proper instrument? Crumhorns are proper for medieval music, French Horns for orchestral music and Ocarinas for educational music. It’s “horses for courses”. There is no single instrument that is perfect for everything. However, Ocarinas are best in class.

Tuned, Accessible, Musical and Ready-to-play

There is nothing to go wrong – no reeds or strings that require setting up or mending – just kits of Ocarinas with music books, backing CDs, ready-made lessons and lots of musical fun.

Order an Ocarina Class Set today. Hand them to any teacher and within half-an-hour their class will serenade you with familiar tunes and play eight notes – seven more than they would play in half-an-hour on any other instrument! Or give them to the staff first and let the fun begin!

music@ocarina.co.uk | ocarina.co.uk | 01536 485 963
David Liggins B.Ed (Hons) | Christa Liggins BA (Hons), PGCE
Ocarina Workshop, PO Box 56 Kettering, NN15 5LX

School News

Cover Teacher who thinks a vulgar fraction is a row on ‘Eastenders’?

According to figures from the Dept for Education, the average secondary school teacher has about four working days off a year due to illness.  Of course this incorporates teachers who have a long time out with a serious illness as well as the 44% of teachers who are fortunate enough to go a whole year not getting ill at all.

These numbers show why the need for ready-made materials for supply teachers who cover Maths classes is as vital as ever.   For even when something has been left from the previous lesson, there are always going to be those who finish the work rapidly, and need something else to do.

Which is why the Absent Maths Teacher volume of worksheets was developed.

The worksheets within the volume cover a wide range of topics and range of ability – and are all designed so that they can be used as a one-off in an emergency, or as a series of highly varied tasks over a number of days, should the absence be unexpectedly protracted.

Activities range from drawing Venn diagrams showing the intersection of two sets, to working out profit and loss percentages.

Each topic area is followed by a wide range of questions, an extension task through which (for example) the students are required to balance equations, and a homework task in which the students have to copy a series of diagrams and find the value of angle x.

The volume covers such topics as the rules for algebra, decimals, equations, geometry, powers, statistics, etc. etc.

Each lesson in the volume is printed on a single page and is simple to photocopy instantly for any class that suddenly requires the lesson.

The Absent Maths Teacher Worksheets collection is available from Hamilton House priced at £30 plus £2.95 delivery.

You can order the Absent Maths Teacher worksheets collection by filling in the order form and sending it by fax, email, or post (see contact details below). Alternatively, if you have a school order number, you can order by phone.

First and Best in Education, Earlstrees Court,
Earlstrees Road, Corby, Northants, NN17 4HH
Telephone: 01536 399 011      Fax: 01536 399 01
Email: sales@firstandbest.co.uk

Languages

How can your school avoid the ‘learning a language’ trap?

Teachers can be under-confident when teaching foreign languages in the classroom because they do not have the language skills. What’s the most effective way of supporting your staff in the teaching of French, Spanish or German?

Avoiding the trap …
Have you been in the scenario where the teachers have been informed that they have to teach a language and seen the panic on their faces? Suddenly they have to read, write, speak and teach it to the children. Most teachers race on line to hunt through the mixed bag of resources.  Imagine their surprise if they could be provided with a proven resource that enables them to teach a language, they do not know, effectively.

Finding the resource …
What is the right resource? A resource which gives instant lessons, lesson plans and games, with sound, which are effective and fun. A resource which promotes linguistic confidence.

EDpaX offers …
Lessons that develop the teaching of French, Spanish or German in the Primary classroom.

There are 28 topics specially developed for teachers required to teach a foreign language using the interactive whiteboard. No preparation is needed! There are 500+ teaching pages, with sound, including games and activities. Each language introduces and reinforces initial language, spelling, vital verbs, simple sentence structure and small paragraphs. Colourful and effective interactive whiteboard language lessons and games at your fingertips! These instant lessons bring fun to language learning for both the teachers and the children. Ideal for all Primary school teachers.

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.

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

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

Do you need more information? Please email info@edpax.com or call 0845 4752289

One language product contains 2 disks plus the photocopy workbook for only £350

(excl. VAT and p&p). One-off purchase with full site licence.

www.edpax.com

School News

For many schools the cost of a minibus seems prohibitive but two developments have cut the price dramatically.

It is rare to find a school that wouldn’t accept the offer of a minibus if it was there, available for them.  But they don’t buy one, because of the cost.

However, two recent developments have ensured that more and more schools are now able to have minibus transport that they previously felt was out of their reach.

But – and this is the key fact – these two new approaches have to be seen together; on their own they look like interesting notions – but not a solution.

The two approaches are a) to lease the minibus on a set monthly fee which includes all servicing, maintenance and repair costs, and b) to share its use with a nearby school that is in the same cluster, trust or council as they are, so that each school has the bus for an agreed amount of time.

What’s more, many schools do then add a third element of their own to the equation – since they know how much the minibus will cost each month they do sometimes ask the PTA or other support group to make a contribution to that cost each month.

Now that is often very much welcomed since it means that the parents making the contribution to the minibus account know that is it their children who are benefiting, rather than the children in future years (as happens when the fund raising goes on for several years before a bus can be bought).

Sharing a leased minibus also has the benefit of ensuring that everyone is always driving a bus that is well maintained – since it is the leasing company that works on maintaining the bus in tip top condition.

If you haven’t leased a minibus or thought about sharing one, please do give me a call on 01753 859944 and I can talk you through how it all works.

But if you want to take a look at who we are and what we do before you call, you’ll find more information about leasing at www.minibusleasing.co.uk.

School News

Dans Ma Chambre

Are you tired of creating your own PowerPoint presentations, only to find that you are forced to use uninspiring cartoons or internet images to convey your messages?  These images are often just not quite right.  Well, no more!  Our presentations use authentic resources in their proper French context.  These particular resources should be used initially with 11-12 year olds during their first year of learning French but then can subsequently be used as a revision tool for older students if necessary.

The presentation should be used to teach learners to describe their bedroom and also to use various (5) prepositions to say where items are in relation to other furniture.  These materials are to be used within the context of learning about the house/home in French.

The resources are multi-faceted in that they are used interactively from the beginning of the PowerPoint presentation to teach the required vocabulary to the class in a fun way.  Students work in pairs, individually and as a whole class throughout the lesson using visual, auditory and kinaesthetic activities to engage and motivate them.  The pace can be fast or slowed down as necessary for the students to assimilate the required lexis and can be used equally well with SEN learners.

They will enjoy the variety of activities, the competition, 2 written exercises and use the 4 skills of listening, reading, speaking and writing in this lesson.  These resources have been developed by an experienced language teacher, used with a class and have consequently been proven to be effective, fun and engaging.

Dans Ma Chambre  26 Powerpoint/slides plus 4 word documents, 2 worksheets and 2 answer sheets.  £ 24.99 (including VAT £29.99  )  Order Code : H9232

Once purchased the CD can be freely copied and networked throughout the school.

To see sample pages please email info@classroom-resources.co.uk quoting the order code H9232.

You can order the Dans Ma Chambre in any of these ways:

  • On our website
  • By phone or fax on 0117 940 6409
  • By email (quoting a school order number) to info@classroom-resources.co.uk
  • By post to: Classroom Resources, 9 Logan Road, Bristol, BS7 8DU
School News

How can we effectively improve pupil progress in KS4 with intervention?

When it comes to intervening with a pupil’s learning journey, it’s crucial that we get it right. Intervention usually involves implementing a programme for helping to improve an area of need with a retrospective recording of pupil progress.

In order to avoid passiveness from the pupils meeting tedium from the teachers, intervention must do more than just implementing a programme and looking back at whether it has made a difference.

Intervention is complex but there is a simple solution.

With limited time and resources, we tend to focus on the pupils who need intervention to get them up to a national standard. An effective intervention programme should not only focus on pupils of weak ability but rather any pupil not reaching their full potential.

There are numerous intervention strategies we can use such as quality feedback, personalised target setting and revision classes. This is beginning to sound like a lot of work and time on top of the busy teaching timetable.

Here lies the key issue we are faced with: How can we effectively improve pupil progress in KS4 with intervention… whilst saving pupils from passiveness… saving teachers from tedium… progressing every pupil not reaching their full potential… implementing a range of strategies… and not creating an unmanageable workload?

We hear the need for effective intervention time and time again but the barriers teachers face often make it untenable to do anything other than just putting on an extra class at break time.

As a result, we have produced an e-Learning solution whereby each pupil has their own homepage where they can access their learner journey in class, out of class, at home; with a teacher, teaching assistant, friend, cover supervisor; and on a computer, tablet or smartphone.

bksb’s GCSE Achieve e-Learning solution for English and maths begins with a Diagnostic Assessment, mapped to the 2017 GCSE curriculum, to ascertain a pupil’s precise strength and weaknesses. From this, Individual Learning Plans are produced and interactive Learning Resources are given to plug individual skill gaps. There is a short summative assessment at the end of each module to test whether progress has been made. The final stage of the solution is Exam Practice materials that are designed to help and prepare pupils for their final GCSE examinations.

All assessments and resources in the solution are self-marking and teachers are able to access detailed reports for individual pupils and groups to monitor and evidence progress.

If you would like to learn more about bksb’s GCSE Achieve solution, why not request a free trial at www.bksb.co.uk/schools?

Please do not hesitate to call 01623 413333 or email enquiries@bksb.co.uk if you have any questions or queries.

Roberta Hutley

Financial management, Travel

For many schools the cost of a minibus seems prohibitive but two developments have cut the price dramatically.

It is rare to find a school that wouldn’t accept the offer of a minibus if it was there, available for them.  But they don’t buy one, because of the cost.

However, two recent developments have ensured that more and more schools are now able to have minibus transport that they previously felt was out of their reach.

But – and this is the key fact – these two new approaches have to be seen together; on their own they look like interesting notions – but not a solution.

The two approaches are a) to lease the minibus on a set monthly fee which includes all servicing, maintenance and repair costs, and b) to share its use with a nearby school that is in the same cluster, trust or council as they are, so that each school has the bus for an agreed amount of time.

What’s more, many schools do then add a third element of their own to the equation – since they know how much the minibus will cost each month they do sometimes ask the PTA or other support group to make a contribution to that cost each month.

Now that is often very much welcomed since it means that the parents making the contribution to the minibus account know that is it their children who are benefitting, rather than the children in future years (as happens when the fund raising goes on for several years before a bus can be bought).

Sharing a leased minibus also has the benefit of ensuring that everyone is always driving a bus that is well maintained – since it is the leasing company that works on maintaining the bus in tip top condition.

If you haven’t leased a minibus or thought about sharing one, please do give me a call on 01753 859944 and I can talk you through how it all works.

But if you want to take a look at who we are and what we do before you call, you’ll find more information about leasing at www.minibusleasing.co.uk.

English, Learning Outside the Classroom, Travel

What more can you do to help your pupils with their creative writing?

Writing in an unfamiliar environment is something that nearly all successful writers do as it can provide them with the inspiration to think and write more creatively than before. Thus, when your pupils are tasked to write creatively, it can be a good idea to take the lesson elsewhere.

Whether it’s a short story or a poem, by taking your pupils to a park, busy street, reservoir or anywhere else which isn’t considered as commonplace, your pupils will be inspired by their surroundings and thus (in terms of creativity) their writing will be improved.

Of course, to do this you will need some kind of transport (unless your school is fortunate enough to be located within walking distance of such an environment), which is where Benchmark Minibus Leasing can help.

Leasing a minibus with Benchmark can often work out cheaper than buying a minibus outright (especially if one takes into account the re-sale value of a school bus at the end of its working life), or indeed hiring a coach each time.

It is an arrangement which makes it possible for schools to fund the minibus through a small payment each month, which has the added benefit of improved budgeting and cash flow.

What’s more, a full maintenance programme is included, so no matter the outcome of the vehicle’s services and MOTs, the cost of repairs won’t affect the lease price.

For more information about leasing a minibus with Benchmark Leasing you can go to our website, call us on 01753 859944 or email minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk

Benchmark Leasing Ltd
11 High Street
Eton
Berkshire
SL4 6AS

www.minibusleasing.co.uk/school-minibus.php

minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk

Tel: 01753 859944

Financial management

What is the simplest way to locate and apply for grants and funding for school projects?

One of the interesting aspects of the grants and special funds available to British schools is that few schools actually know about them.

Where the knowledge about educational grants does exist, there are many schools for whom the whole process of applying for a grant can appear just too complex and time consuming to make it worthwhile.

Over the past few years we have helped dozens of schools and educational charities raise well over £500,000 towards their projects, via successful grant applications to various local authorities, lotteries, trusts and foundations.

Recently there has been a particular interest in using such funds for new outdoor classrooms, to cope with the rise in school numbers, but grants can  be awarded for a whole variety of projects.

Other options include, funding school playground improvements, new play equipment, new surfacing or playground markings, shelters, furniture, gardens, planting, forest areas, before or after school clubs, holiday clubs, extra-curricular, and community activities…

In fact significant grants are available to almost any project potentially beneficial to the development of your pupils or community.

The problems are in finding the grants in the first place, and completing the necessary documentation – and that is why ABC Fundraising exists.   We find appropriate grant opportunities and do the paperwork for you.  And we help you to make the most convincing and compelling case for your project to the grantmaker. Working with us will cost no money up front, and charge a fee only if you receive a grant towards the project through the application we have helped you prepare.

Everything we do is completely transparent, and you have complete control over your project direction and the content of the application. However, we of course provide advice upon how to give your grant application the best chance of success based on the hundreds of applications we have overseen from all parts of the UK.

If you would like to know more please do call me on 07598 722 722 or 0131 308 0687

Or email me at: andy@abcfundraising.co.uk

There is also more information at www.abcfundraising.co.uk

Financial management, Learning Outside the Classroom, Lunch times, playtimes and school clubs, Travel

For many schools the cost of a minibus seems prohibitive but two developments have cut the price dramatically.

It is rare to find a school that wouldn’t accept the offer of a minibus if it was there, available for them.  But they don’t buy one, because of the cost.

However, two recent developments have ensured that more and more schools are now able to have minibus transport that they previously felt was out of their reach.

But – and this is the key fact – these two new approaches have to be seen together; on their own they look like interesting notions – but not a solution.

The two approaches are a) to lease the minibus on a set monthly fee which includes all servicing, maintenance and repair costs, and b) to share its use with a nearby school that is in the same cluster, trust or council as they are, so that each school has the bus for an agreed amount of time.

What’s more, many schools do then add a third element of their own to the equation – since they know how much the minibus will cost each month they do sometimes ask the PTA or other support group to make a contribution to that cost each month.

Now that is often very much welcomed since it means that the parents making the contribution to the minibus account know that is it their children who are benefitting, rather than the children in future years (as happens when the fund raising goes on for several years before a bus can be bought).

Sharing a leased minibus also has the benefit of ensuring that everyone is always driving a bus that is well maintained – since it is the leasing company that works on maintaining the bus in tip top condition.

If you haven’t leased a minibus or thought about sharing one, please do give me a call on 01753 859944 and I can talk you through how it all works.

But if you want to take a look at who we are and what we do before you call, you’ll find more information about leasing at www.minibusleasing.co.uk.

Careers

As a Careers Advisor how can you ensure that you are offering your autistic students the additional resources and support that they require?

According to the Office of National Statistics there is a year-on-year increase of the number of disabled people in work, not least due to a heightened awareness of the resources and support that young people with a disability require to help them into employment.

Indeed, just one way in which you can help your autistic students to prepare for employment is with the Work Experience Activity Pack by SEN Press.

The Work Experience Activity Pack contains a wealth of information, support and resources about what to expect when undertaking work experience and how to demonstrate good work etiquette in an array of situations they are likely to find themselves in.

Not only has the Activity Pack’s content been specifically designed to respond to the way in which students with autism typically view the world, but it will also respond to their learning needs – it has been designed for older students (16+) with a reading age of around seven.

The Work Experience Activity Pack approaches the subject through a series of six student reading books, each focussed on a particular work setting, ranging from an animal charity to a fast-food restaurant, from a garage to a supermarket.

The six reading books, each of which builds upon the themes of the series (time keeping, showing respect, and so on) are accompanied by a set of copiable worksheets and teachers’ resources, supplied in spiral-bound format for easy use.

The teachers’ resources also include around 100 A4 pages of additional resources including keyword flashcards, word searches, and spot the difference pictures.

Finally the pack also includes a CD rom which has a set of eBooks and whiteboard resources. These include real voice audio tracks of the eBook versions of the readers and a wide range of interactive activities so that the students can practise the life skills introduced.

The complete set of resources containing two copies of each of the six readers, the complete teacher book, and the CD Rom is available for £139 plus VAT.  Individual elements from the pack are also available separately.

For further information, please click here.

Alternatively, please email info@senpress.co.uk or call 01582 833205.

Janie Nicholas

Special Needs

It’s time for your SEN students to start developing some life skills. Starting with Making Sense of Money.

Finding resources which explain finances in a way that students with SEN can understand can be somewhat of a challenge – not least because there are so few resources of this kind on the market.

Which is why SEN Press has devised the Making Sense of Money Complete Set which contains a wealth of resources about dealing with money in everyday situations, including:

  • Six story books which support the ASDAN CoPE Award. Titles include, “Money In, Money Out”, “Everyday Money”, “What’s it Worth?”, “Cash and Cakes”, “Keeping Money Safe” and “Making Ends Meet”.
  • A CD-ROM providing electronic versions of the above titles, making it ideal for interactive whiteboard presentations and for students who would also benefit from listening to the text.

It is also possible to edit and save the text to make your own story, create differentiated texts and personalise the text with your students’ names to enhance engagement.

  • An extensive range of activity worksheets and interactive activities that encourage reading comprehension. Activities include, Words and Pictures, Picture Search, Keyword Flashcards, Wordsearch, Spot the Difference, How Well Did You Read?    Missing Words, Quizzes, and Drag and Drop.
  • Supporting resources for teachers including page-by-page notes for all the stories and assessment resources (feedback sheets and student record sheets).

The complete set of resources containing two copies of each of the six readers, the complete teacher book, and the CD Rom is available for £139 plus VAT (save 10%).

You can see more details and sample pages from the readers as well as details for ordering individual items or the full pack on our “Making Sense of Money” web page.

If you have any questions or need more information, please email info@senpress.co.uk or call 01582 833205.  We’ll be delighted to hear from you.

Janie Nicholas

Health, Safety and Security

A worrying number of schools contain asbestos, it’s a potential issue for nurseries too

We all know the dangers associated with asbestos, but how certain can you be that it is not contained within your nursery?

Worryingly it has been reported that between 200 and 300 former school children and a rising number of teachers die of mesothelioma each year, thought to be caused by the asbestos found in 86% of school buildings across the UK.

But obviously this is a potential issue in nurseries too.

It is important that all staff, particularly those responsible for the running of the buildings, are made aware of the potential hazards.  All staff should be instructed not to disturb or damage asbestos containing materials. Damage to nursery fixtures or fittings that could lead to the release of asbestos fibres need to be reported.

How do I know if asbestos is present and how do we manage it?

The Asbestos Man is able to work with you to devise and implement a comprehensive Asbestos policy that starts with a consultation, followed by a full site survey including the analysis of any suspect materials.

We will compile a user friendly report containing photographs, annotated plans and the appropriate recommendations from the survey findings. Where asbestos has been identified we will then work with you to put in place a management plan so that the occupants of the premises are protected.

For nurseries where budget does not allow a full site survey we can, in many cases, update an existing survey.

It is a legal requirement to undertake a refurbishment or demolition survey for asbestos containing materials prior to any works taking place.

If you have any enquiries regarding asbestos please do not hesitate to call (quoting reference code HH1):-

  Alan the Asbestos Man on 07510 104323

info@theasbestosman.co.uk

www.theasbestosman.co.uk

To view my Checkatrade page please click this link www.checkatrade.com/TheAsbestosMan/

 

Maths

These two calculators could be all you need for the new school year….

LK 183                                                                 LK 83XP

The LOGIK LK 183 calc. has been used by UK school and college students since 2008. With 240 functions, plus twin line display, auto power off, hard plastic keys and a slide-on cover, it has proved to be extremely reliable as well as being competitively priced, (from just £ 3.49 ex vat).

It has recently been joined by the LOGIK LK 83XP with its “natural display” feature which enables the user to enter calculations as shown in textbooks and worksheets. With (almost) all the features of the brand leader, (not “verify” or “recurring decimal”) , its 252 functions include number tables, random numbers, prime factorisation, trig & stats functions log and anti-log etc plus a twin line display, slide-on cover, hard plastic keys and auto-power off. It’s battery powered with solar back-up for longer life and competitively priced. (from just £ 4.85 ex vat)

Both LOGIK calcs have a THREE year warranty (excludes LCD damage) and are suitable for KS 3, 4 and GCSE.

For more details, please see the website: www.signposteducational.co.uk

or email: info@signposteducational.co.uk or phone 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

PS. Also available is the “Value Maths set” which has proved to be very useful for students in lessons and exams……from just £ 1.10 ex vat. Details on the website.

Signpost Educational Ltd., PO Box 999 London E14 6SH

Exams

Why an increasing number of schools are delivering lessons for exam preparation throughout the whole of their students’ educational career.

An increasing number of schools are finding that by delivering lessons for exam preparation throughout the whole of their students’ educational career, their students are more able to cope with the pressure of exam and thus achieve higher levels of attainment.

Furthermore, an increasing number of schools are also finding that such an approach to exam preparation isn’t just ideal, but indeed, that it is essential – not least because a fair amount of GCSE examinations are now taken earlier by students.

To support you in delivering lessons for exam preparation at regular intervals throughout your students’ educational career, Positively MAD has devised the Exam Busters workshop (our most popular workshop).

This flagship workshop has been received by over 550,000 students and teaching staff across the UK, with many schools repeating on an annual basis.

In just 2 hours, using an engaging and entertaining delivery style, our Positively MAD (Making A Difference) presenter will motivate your students to think and act positively about their exam preparation.

The students are given exercises to help de-stress and overcome nerves and shown regular review techniques to shift information from short to long term memory. They are also introduced to innovative tools which help improve their learning by boosting recall and revision.

Many students comment on how this multisensory learning experience has transformed their thinking from revision being boring and difficult to it being fast, fun and effective. Improving their attitude, recall and most importantly results.

You can find more information about our Exam Busters workshop by visiting www.positivelymad.com/Secondary/Exam-Busters.

If you would like to discuss any specific requirements for your school, please call our office staff on 0844 8094850 or simply email us at info@positivelymad.co.uk.

We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Committed to your success!

The Positively MAD Team

Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Positively-Mad
Follow us on Twitter @PositivelyMAD

School News

Ideas, support and networking for your Mathematics Classroom

A warm welcome to you as you begin to plan and prepare for the new school year.

To help with this, ATM are delighted to present our 2016/2017 catalogue.

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This year the catalogue includes lots of taster activities from a selection of ATM publications – Go and check them out!

We have four new publications to share with you that show both our guiding principles and how we aim to support you in your classroom

New Publications Pack – 2016 New Resources

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Assessment in the New National Curriculum – an ATM Perspective – Book and PDF
Illustrates how a teacher can use ordinary classroom practice as the basis for assessment. KS1 KS2 KS3

Mathematical Imagery – Book and PDF
A full colour collection of ideas and discussion on the subject of mathematical imagery. KS3 KS4

Teaching Mathematics Social Justice – Book and PDF
Seven projects, along with task sheets for students, teacher notes and research articles that address social justice in the mathematics classroom.  KS3 KS4

Learning Mathematics with Origami – Book and PDFDesigned to support learners to explore important mathematical topics and solve problems when doing origami. KS2 KS3

Other best selling titles include:

It Makes You Think – Book and PDF
A photocopiable resource that encourages thinking skills and collaborative working while problem solving.KS1 KS2

Talking Maths – Book and PDF
A selection of photocopiable tasks to stimulate rich mathematical discussion while learners test, clarify and develop their understanding of mathematics.

About ATM Publications

ATM publications embody our guiding principles, offering tasks that teachers can use in their classrooms in a form that allows them to use them immediately.

There is a wide range of publications from Early Years to A level, written by experienced practitioners, that have been scrutinised for the quality of their tasks and narrative.

Most publications include ideas to reflect on for your continuing professional development and to support using the tasks in your classroom.

For more information about the Association of Teachers of Mathematics go to www.atm.org.uk

School News

What is the single most effective way of handling an unexpected incident or emergency in the school?

An “incident” in the school could be an accident involving a pupil, student or member of staff.   Equally an incident could be the sudden arrival of a parent who is particularly aggravated or abusive and is facing an administrator who is alone in the office.

Or again it might be the arrival of an outsider who it is suspected has no reason for being in the school.  Or it could be a power failure which has taken out the school’s phone system.

In all such events the most important point is communication – immediate communication between the individual handling the incident and a designated member of staff who can then quickly arrange a suitable response to events.

By far the most simple, cost effective way of arranging such cover is a compact two-way radio that provides fast and direct communication across a campus.

This ensures that staff and teams remain co-ordinated and informed at all times.

There are also of course more complex systems available – and it is obviously important to select the right system for your school.  But the key point is to have a facility that allows someone in the school (for example the administrator) to have the ability to summon help at the press of a button if there should be a sudden problem.

There is information about the various systems that we offer on our web site and if you would like to discuss your school’s requirements in detail, please do call us for free on 0800 084 27 99.

Alternatively you can email sales@nrsupplies.co.uk and we’ll get straight back to you.

 

School News

English Basics posters – New posters added

It’s essential that all pupils and students have a sound grasp of the basics of English.

Give your teaching of the basics a real impact by using these pdf posters.

These colourful, snappy posters will have an immediate impact but can also be a continued point of reference.

At less than £30 for the set this is brilliant value. You can print as many copies of these as you like – have them in every classroom!

The posters cover: Adjectives; Adverbs; Alliteration; Antonyms; Connectives; Direct speech; First person; Hyperbole; Infinitive; It’s; Metaphor; Nouns; Onomatopoeia; Paragraphs; Personification; Pronouns; Reported speech; Rhetorical question; Sentences; Similes; Superlatives; Synonyms; Their; They’re; There; Third person; Vary your verbs; Verbs; Your; You’re.

There are 30 A4 pdf posters in all. The set is an ideal classroom resource. A PowerPoint version is also available for whiteboards and large display screens.

You can see all the posters here
http://www.carelpress.co.uk/hh_englishbasics/

Ann Batey
Office Manager
Carel Press
(01228 538928)
www.carelpress.co.uk
Follow us on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/carelpress

 

School News

Help promote a climate for learning with ‘Busy Hands, Busy Brains’

Learning involves the whole mind and body.  Learning is not all merely “head” learning (conscious, rational, “left-brained,” and verbal) but involves the whole body/mind with all its emotions, senses and receptors.

Children learn better if they have something in front of them that they can feel and physically touch. Lessons incorporating touch and movement will be particularly beneficial to kinaesthetic learners and it will be fun for everyone.

Dr Ben Mardell, PhD, a researcher at Harvard University says “Kids learn through all their senses,” “and they like to touch and manipulate things.”  But more than simply moving materials around, hands-on activities activate kids’ brains.

NEW – These tactile products are designed to help the kids be more productive in the classroom.

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50 Piece ‘Busy Hands, Busy Brains’ Classroom Pack

  • 8 x Yellow Tangles
  • 8 x Yellow Bendy Men
  • 8 x Smiley Yellow Stress Ball
  • 26 x Stretchy Men
  • 1 x Cotton Storage Bag*

* Cotton storage bag is made from natural promotional quality unbleached cotton with long shoulder length handles. This bag is 100% Recyclable, 100% sustainable and biodegradable. Size is 38x42cm 

Fantastic Offer for Schools – Over 30% Discount on our ‘Busy Hands Busy Brains’ Classroom  Pack

For a limited period We are offering a fantastic 30% discount from our Busy Hands Busy Brains Classroom Package’ which includes 50 tactile items ideal for kids to use during lessons to engage senses that are not normally engaged simply by listening.

RRP                                       £54.99
Special Offer Price             £38.99

Follow this link Calm Kids to take advantage of this great limited period offer.

NEW: We have just introduced a new ‘purchase order’ process which allows you to buy products online with a purchase order (no need for a credit card). Simply follow the normal steps to buy online and add your purchase order number at ‘Step 5 Payment Information’.

Dan Carter
Stress Check Ltd
Tel: +44 (1904) 413560
Email: dan@stresscheck.co.uk
Web: www.stresscheck.co.uk

 

School News

Just a week left of the Topical Resources’ sale with discounts of up to 75%.

You may recall that we’ve been running a £5 sale on all our printed products until our stocks run out – meaning that there are discounts of up to 75% on our books.

We still have some stock left, but the sale does have a final and absolute cut-off date of 24 August.  So if we have not received your order by midnight on this day, then I am really sorry to say we won’t be able to process the order.

You can order any of our resources (while stocks last) for just £5 a book on our website.

Or, if you’d prefer, you can place an order…

  • by phone on 01772 863158,
  • by fax on 01772 866153,
  • by email to sales@topical-resources.co.uk, or
  • by post to Topical Resources, P.O. Box329, Broughton, Preston, Lancashire PR3 5LT.

Also, if you’d like to share this offer (which we would appreciate very much), please do forward this email and/or share our Facebook post about Topical Resources’ 2016 Summer Sale which you will find pinned to the top of our Facebook page – Topical Resources.
www.topical-resources.co.uk
sales@topical-resources.co.uk

 

School News

What is the most effective way of ensuring that every pupil and student always hears what is being said?

If there are parts of your school where the acoustics are poor or which are next to a source of noise such as a main road, then there is every chance that some of your students will fail to hear everything that is being said and will miss out on some of the teaching and learning.

Such a situation could arise in the assembly hall or a teaching room and can be the cause of additional stress where teaching staff have to raise their voices on a regular basis just to be heard.

Fortunately, any issues regarding the acoustic environment in both classrooms, assembly rooms, and other areas can be resolved readily by using a soundfield system – a system already used in hundreds of schools across the UK.

In order to show just how positive the benefits of a soundfield system can be we can offer a free trial in a classroom in your school. You simply tell us when it is convenient to visit your school and we come in set up the equipment and show the relevant teacher how to use it.

The whole process takes about 15 minutes and you can then keep the equipment for up to three weeks. If you like it and it is having a beneficial effect on the learning in school, then great, we will leave you an invoice. If not, then we’ll come and collect it.

Alternatively if you would like us to have a look at your school hall and offer some advice regarding simple equipment to help ensure the school is complying with the relevant regulations in relation to visitors and students who are hard of hearing, we will be pleased to help.

There is more information about our most popular Soundfield system, the Swift Digital, on our website here: www.connevans.co.uk/product/3109896/

To arrange a free three-week trial in a classroom or to invite us to take a look at a larger area such as an assembly hall please do:

  • Phone 01737 247571
  • Email info@connevans.com
  • Write to Connevans Limited, Bridge House, 1 Nutfield Road, Merstham, Surrey RH1 3EB

I look forward to hearing from you.

Phil Boswell

Director

As of April 2016 we are very proud to be … by Appointment to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Manufacturer and Supplier of Audio Equipment …  https://www.royalwarrant.org/directory?query=connevans

 

Building, furniture, maintenance, energy etc

How would you like new classroom chairs with a warranty which lasts until 2036?

How much could your organisation save? With a TWENTY year warranty there’ll be no maintenance or replacement costs for twenty years… Think how much that will improve your furniture budget!

The Postura Plus range of chairs has been designed not only to be good looking and extremely durable (hence the 20 year warranty) but also to encourage good posture for your students, as well as being easy to stack and move from room to room if necessary.

Postura Plus chairs are used successfully in thousands of UK schools, often just as a trial in one classroom and then being “rolled out” throughout the school as funds allow.

Postura Plus chairs are available in a range of 15 attractive colours and six sizes for ages four years upwards. The TWENTY year warranty (and its associated benefits) means that these chairs are likely to be one of the best investments that a school or college could ever make.

Further information about Postura Plus chairs including very competitive pricing may be found at:

www.centraleducational.co.uk/classroom-postura%20plus.html

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

You can contact them by email: info@centraleducational.co.uk or phone on: 020 7515 1797
Ask for Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

School News

The Arab-Israeli Conflict and Recent Upheavals in the Middle East

!cid_part1_06FC4325_0EE1931B@hamilton-house

Both Sides of the Story

by  Muslim and  Jewish speakers

Much is happening in the Middle East which raises many questions. Our talks endeavour to address these issues. For example: would the upheaval and violence in so many countries be eliminated by an Israel-Palestinian peace?  What can halt the Syrian civil war? Is Israel to blame? What is ‘occupied territory’?  What are ‘settlements’? What is being done to help the Palestinian refugees  in their camps? Are we (the West) supporting the moderate Palestinians enough? When will the Palestinians have the opportunity for democratic elections?

In addition, talks can be requested which give a historical, political or religious perspective of the current situation and show the varying opinions of the two sides, and between fifty years ago and today.

Talks can be requested on any relevant alternative subject, for example: the Balfour Declaration, the British Mandate, Walls/Security barriers around the world, Refugees, Habitation of Palestine.

The talks are given by two speakers together, a Muslim and a Jew, who explore all issues with honesty and give both sides of the story.

Where distance makes visits to schools difficult, we would be happy to work with you to give a talk via video conferencing.

Cost: Travel costs (train or car mileage) plus a voluntary donation towards other expenses.

Please contact us with any queries, for further details, or to book a talk.

Looking forward to hearing from you

Ruth Camay
School News

Preventing hate crime: free equality workshops for teachers and senior school managers

Learning to respect one another is a significant aspect of children’s education, and the government has recently acknowledged, in the hate crime action plan 2016, that schools have a vital role to play in reducing hate crime in society.

But there is a problem.  Although schools have statutory obligations under the Equality Act 2010, information from the Department for Education and from the Equality and Human Rights Commission is not readily accessible and may appear conflicting.

As a result it is fair to say that many schools are unclear about the Protected Characteristics covered by the Equality Act and about the requirements of the Public Sector Equality Duty.

With this in mind, CSIE is offering a series of FREE equality workshops throughout the country in autumn 2016, supported by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation.

Over and above helping schools fulfil their legal duties, these are practical, “hands on” workshops designed to be engaging and constructive.

The workshops are framed around CSIE’s award-winning guide “Equality: Making It Happen“, a succinct and user-friendly set of reference cards to help schools reduce bullying, address prejudice and promote equality holistically.

The guide offers simple and practical advice, as well as links to sources of further information and support. We know of no other initiative addressing all aspects of equality in schools in such an effective and user-friendly way. It will take a long time for our new guide to make an impact on the lives of all pupils in all schools, but for those that it reaches the effect can be decisive.

Each workshop will address what more schools can do to ensure that: a) all pupils are safe, included and learning; and b) the school is fully compliant with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.

The free workshops will address equality in the context of current challenges in education and provide an overview of the Equality Act 2010 in order to help schools ensure they are fully compliant with the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Within the free workshop we will discuss ways of welcoming pupils, staff and visitors in all their diversity, present a range of strategies for addressing prejudice and promoting equality, and help participants develop confidence and language for addressing sensitive equality issues.

This event will provide simple and practical advice for reducing all forms of prejudice-based bullying; it will consider real-life examples (participants are encouraged to bring their own examples of equality challenges in school) and assist in developing a context-specific framework for change.

Who should attend:

The workshops have been designed for primary and secondary school teachers, inclusion managers, pastoral support leaders, senior leaders and governors who care about equality and want to reduce all forms of prejudice-based bulling and discrimination in school. Workshops will also be of interest to equality champions outside schools, for example academy chain or local authority officers and voluntary sector organisations working to promote equality in education.

Cost:

All workshops are free to attend but places are limited and must be booked in advance. These events have been subsidised by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation, to both of whom CSIE remains grateful.

Feedback from previous CSIE equality workshops:

“Great!”

“Inspiring.”

“Eloquent and informative.”

“A lot of very practical and very useful information.”

“Excellent content and awareness of legal framework.”

Free workshops have been scheduled to take place in Bristol, Norfolk, Leicester and Reading.  More workshops will be announced in other locations soon.  For more information, or to book your place, please visit www.csie.org.uk/about/training.shtml.

If you want to find out more about these free workshops or about Equality: Making It Happen, or if you have any questions or queries at all, please call 0117 353 3150 or email admin@csie.org.uk.  We look forward to hearing from you and meeting you at one of our workshops.

Artemi Sakellariadis
Director, CSIE

ICT

How can schools create a manageable computing journey at Key Stage 2 when there are so many free tools to use?

In the run up to the launch of the new computing curriculum, as well as after it was phased in, there was a collective intake of breath from teachers up and down the country as they absorbed what it all meant.

For many teachers the notion of writing and debugging programs or explaining simple algorithms was well beyond their every-day experience and certainly not in their training.

Fortunately at the time there was already a string of free web based tools out there to use and a couple of these have proved really successful like Scratch from MIT & Daisy the Dinosaur.

Thankfully, it also seems sometimes that many children tend to be a little more fearless with technology – a strength when it comes to Computing!

With all the free tools that some school enthusiasts started to champion it soon became apparent that while they were free there was little if any support or influence on how products developed – how could there be if the tool was free?

The result for some schools has been a bird’s nest of logins for different tools, varying user interfaces, unreliable work saving and patchy levels of school service. Factors like these undermine teacher confidence who just want it to work. Schools love saving money but when the cost is not having a reliable learning environment then its surely too high.

The mission at Blippit has been to get key elements of the computing curriculum under one roof and to help develop curious learners through authentic learning – even to the point of publishing apps (with the teacher’s approval) on our free app store, Planet Blippit.

Blippit IO, through its powerfully simple tools, opens the door to computational thinking, logical reasoning and unexpectedly – writing.  You can use our templates or just create your own.

To try Blippit IO for your school just visit us here and if you decide that Blippit IO would serve your schools needs you can upgrade here.

If you have any questions or queries about Blippit IO please do call 01772 657 100 or email support@blippit.co.uk  John Bidder

School News

Clips and videos bring a subject to life – but there’s so much out there. How do you find the best?

The web is awash with video material, but how do you find material that’s relevant and interesting?

TV Choice has brought together the best of its 280+ films and clips, supported by notes, on one password for classroom and home use. It means to-the-point, fact-packed material on Business, Economics, Geography, ICT, D&T History and PSHE & Citizenship. It means material created for UK schools, clearly organised, entertaining and without bias.

TV Choice has been providing relevant, compelling material for schools for over 30 years – that wealth of material is now available as an easy to use library at less than £4 a week.

You can preview some of our new titles that we offer by clicking on the following links:

Marketing Strategy Case Studies: Tesco Triumph & Tragedy

Marketing Strategy Case Studies: The Starbucks Experience

The European Union Explained: EU History, Structure, Pros and Cons

TV Choice offers a range of Streaming Platform Packages:

  1. Full TVChoice Library (280+ films & clips £195 + vat per year)
  2. Business & Economics (230+ films & clips £165 + vat per year)
  3. Geography, Leisure & Tourism (100+ films & clips £120 + vat per year)
  4. Design, Technology & ICT (60+ films & clips £75 + vat per year)
  5. PSHE & Citizenship (80+ films & clips £75 + vat per year)
  6. History (13 films & clips £49 + vat per year)

You can order any of our TV Choice Streaming Platform Packages either by visiting our website, calling 0208 464 7402, faxing 0208 464 7845, or by sending your order in the post to TV Choice Ltd, PO Box 597, Bromley, BR2 0YB.

Please note that if you enter the code HHSP16 at checkout (on the website) or on your order, you will receive 10% off your order.

Assemblies

Exceptional Secondary School Assembly Resources

Exceptional Banner - Bigger

Compassion in World Farming

School speaker service – Compassion in World Farming provides a speaker service for schools, youth clubs, colleges, universities and adult groups in the UK. In many parts of the UK we can provide a speaker.

This service is free, though expenses are appreciated. This service is also available for youth groups of any age from 5-18.

To book a speaker you can:

Complete our speaker request form
Call our education department on 01483 521965
Fax or post the form on the back of our educational resources leaflet

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

CCLI

CCLI Collective Worship Licenses – offers licences, resources and ideas to help schools use songs and hymns during their times of Collective Worship in assemblies and special services.

Telephone: 01323 436100
Postal address: CCLI, Chantry House, 22 Upperton Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN21 1BF

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

AssembliesOnline.com

AssembliesOnline.com – free school assemblies based around a popular feature film. Assemblies are designed to help school pupils develop a greater understanding of themselves, their community and the world around them.

Email: office@ethoseducation.org
Postal address: Ethos Education, PO Box 1800, Southampton, SO15 9GP

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Teaching Resources Support

Assemblies for KS3/4 – These ready to use assembly ideas have been created to help you deliver engaging and topical KS3 and KS4 assemblies throughout the year.

Email: admin@teachingresourcessupport.com
Telephone: 0113 266 0880
Postal address: Morwick Hall, Mortec Office Park, York Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS15 4TA, U.K

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

School Speakers

School Speakers, set up by entrepreneur Apprentice TV star Claire Young, is the UK’s No.1 agency working with schools (primary and secondary), colleges and universities to provide talks, workshops and full day activities for students.

Email: office@schoolspeakers.co.uk
Telephone: 01924 277343 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Caswell’s Strings

Caswell’s Strings – we invite you to examine our extensive range of student instruments, the separate listing of advanced instruments, the pages of accessories and teaching aids, the Tonerite, the bows, and the books.

Email: sales@caswellsstrings.com
Telephone: +44 (0) 1280 707 140
Postal address: The Old Chapel, Banbury Road, Brackley. NN13 6BA

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

You can find more Exceptional Teaching resources at exceptionalteaching.org.uk.

School News

These two calculators could be all you need for the new school year….

LK 183                                                        LK 83XP

The LOGIK LK 183 calc. has been used by UK school and college students since 2008. With 240 functions, plus twin line display, auto power off, hard plastic keys and a slide-on cover, it has proved to be extremely reliable as well as being competitively priced, (from just £ 3.49 ex vat).

It has recently been joined by the LOGIK LK 83XP with its “natural display” feature which enables the user to enter calculations as shown in textbooks and worksheets. With (almost) all the features of the brand leader, (not “verify” or “recurring decimal”) , its 252 functions include number tables, random numbers, prime factorisation, trig & stats functions log and anti-log etc plus a twin line display, slide-on cover, hard plastic keys and auto-power off. It’s battery powered with solar back-up for longer life and competitively priced. (from just £ 4.85 ex vat)

Both LOGIK calcs have a THREE year warranty (excludes LCD damage) and are suitable for KS 3, 4 and GCSE.

For more details, please see the website: www.signposteducational.co.uk
or email: info@signposteducational.co.uk or phone 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

PS. Also available is the “Value Maths set” which has proved to be very useful for students in lessons and exams……from just £ 1.10 ex vat. Details on the website.

Signpost Educational Ltd., PO Box 999 London E14 6SH

School News

A worrying number of schools contain asbestos

We all know the dangers associated with asbestos, but how certain can you be that it is not contained within your school?

Worryingly it has been reported that between 200 and 300 former school children and a rising number of teachers die of mesothelioma each year, thought to be caused by the asbestos found in 86% of school buildings across the UK.

It is important that all staff, particularly those responsible for the running of the buildings, are made aware of the potential hazards.  All staff should be instructed not to disturb or damage asbestos containing materials. Damage to school fixtures or fittings that could lead to the release of asbestos fibres need to be reported.

How do I know if asbestos is present and how do we manage it?

The Asbestos Man is able to work with you to devise and implement a comprehensive Asbestos policy that starts with a consultation, followed by a full site survey including the analysis of any suspect materials.

We will compile a user friendly report containing photographs, annotated plans and the appropriate recommendations from the survey findings. Where asbestos has been identified we will then work with you to put in place a management plan so that the occupants of the premises are protected.

For schools where budget does not allow a full site survey we can, in many cases, update an existing survey.

It is a legal requirement to undertake a refurbishment or demolition survey for asbestos containing materials prior to any works taking place.

If you have any enquiries regarding asbestos please do not hesitate to call (quoting reference code HH1):-

  Alan the Asbestos Man on 07510 104323

 info@theasbestosman.co.uk  

www.theasbestosman.co.uk

To view my Checkatrade page please click this link http://www.checkatrade.com/TheAsbestosMan/

 

 

School News, Special Needs

Maths & Dyslexia

!cid_4c6ceb3b3fbb26c846533c17d759e04b

Much of the information in this volume is based on research that suggests that many pupils with Dyscalculia don’t succeed at maths because they have not understood the basic concepts required for the more advanced topics.

Thus, Maths & Dyslexia offers a wide range of information on methods of teaching, study skills, placement and progress tests and worksheets for teachers working with pupils who experience difficulties with the four basic functions of maths (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division), plus decimals, fractions, and percentages.

You can order Maths & Dyslexia in a variety of ways, including:

If you would prefer to receive Maths & Dyslexia in PDF, simply visit this link, select the ‘International’ option and click the ‘Pay by Credit Card (PayPal)’ button to check out.

Once we have received payment, you will receive Maths & Dyslexia in PDF by email within 12 working hours.

Please note that all rights are reserved and no part of this publication (Maths & Dyslexia) may be circulated or shared in any form without the prior permission of the author.

!cid_3686b3c257a1805dd4ba9e6b90fd9076

ICT

How can schools create a manageable computing journey at Key Stage 2 when there are so many free tools to use?

In the run up to the launch of the new computing curriculum, as well as after it was phased in, there was a collective intake of breath from teachers up and down the country as they absorbed what it all meant.

For many teachers the notion of writing and debugging programs or explaining simple algorithms was well beyond their every-day experience and certainly not in their training.

Fortunately at the time there was already a string of free web based tools out there to use and a couple of these have proved really successful like Scratch from MIT & Daisy the Dinosaur.

Thankfully, it also seems sometimes that many children tend to be a little more fearless with technology – a strength when it comes to Computing!

With all the free tools that some school enthusiasts started to champion it soon became apparent that while they were free there was little if any support or influence on how products developed – how could there be if the tool was free?

The result for some schools has been a bird’s nest of logins for different tools, varying user interfaces, unreliable work saving and patchy levels of school service. Factors like these undermine teacher confidence who just want it to work. Schools love saving money but when the cost is not having a reliable learning environment then its surely too high.

The mission at Blippit has been to get key elements of the computing curriculum under one roof and to help develop curious learners through authentic learning – even to the point of publishing apps (with the teacher’s approval) on our free app store, Planet Blippit.

Blippit IO, through its powerfully simple tools, opens the door to computational thinking, logical reasoning and unexpectedly – writing.  You can use our templates or just create your own.

To try Blippit IO for your school just visit us here and if you decide that Blippit IO would serve your schools needs you can upgrade here.

If you have any questions or queries about Blippit IO please do call 01772 657 100 or email support@blippit.co.uk  John Bidder

ICT

Tamper-resistant IT chair

This “tamper-resistant” IT chair is available in a wide range of upholstery colours…and a FIVE year warranty……

It’s often true that keeping things simple is the best policy. This is the case with the Kenton IT chair which has a single lever to adjust seat height. No fancy stuff, no bells, no whistles.

The Kenton IT chair has been designed specifically for the education sector. By reducing the number of components which might be removed or damaged (either accidentally or deliberately !) the aim is to provide a more reliable and tamper-resistant chair for your students. It’s also available in a wide range of upholstery fabrics …and it’s made in the UK.

The Kenton IT chair is available from Central Educational Supplies Ltd., Further details and pricing information can be found on their website: www.centraleducational.co.uk

They can be contacted by email: info@centraleducational.co.uk    or by phone on 020 7515-1797. Please ask for Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

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

Music

Free sign up for a year to KS3 Music Education Quizzes

Our library of KS3 Music Education Quizzes is free for a whole year and covers an extensive range of topic areas including: Composition, Form and Structure, Hooks and Riffs, Jazz Chords, Music and Media, Music for Dance, and more!

To see our full range of Music Education Quizzes for KS3, click here.

Would you like to be able to offer Education Quizzes as home revision or homework to your students? Our Education Quizzes can be accessed by students on their home computers, tablets, and smartphones.

For free sign up for a year to our library of KS3 music Education Quizzes, please visit https://www.educationquizzes.com/schools-uk-registrations/. If you would like to know more, please do email admin@educationquizzes.com or call 01406 371799.

Colin King

Geography

An Interactive GEOGRAPHY Software Free Trial Offer, At An Unmissable Price.

No School Should Miss Out On This. It Is Simply Unbelievable!

This offer for ALL 10 titles is packed with hundreds of stunning curriculum 3D animations describing difficult to understand concepts for GEOGRAPHY, text, voice-overs, quiz zones, drag and drops, multiple choice quizzes and more.

Includes a full school site PC and network licence, nothing more to pay EVER! Free 14-day trial , so if you don’t like it you can just send it back. All 10 of these individual great titles are included in the pack for just £100 for everything:

Acid Rain; Deforestation; Desertification; Global Warming; The Work Of Ice; The Work Of Rivers; The Work Of The Sea; Urban Geography; Weather and Climate 1; Weather and Climate 2

It’s just £100 for all 10 of these software titles in one pack!

Now isn’t that truly staggering value for money for all these titles from the UK’s leading curriculum software supplier? Let’s beat the cuts!
click here

School News, Workshops

What more can primary schools do to ensure that everyone is safe, included, and learning?

This message brings you news of free workshops across England in autumn 2016.

In many schools, responding to a pressure to raise standards, staff concentrate their efforts on teaching the curriculum, with little or no time to explore issues which are not expected to lead directly to better SATs results.

In other schools staff invest equivalent energy in attending to the learning environment: they embrace the challenge of welcoming pupils, staff and visitors in all their diversity and actively engage with different identities and perspectives.

No matter how much, or how little, schools engage with equality issues, all schools have a legal obligation to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty, introduced by the Equality Act 2010.

This is sometimes seen as an additional responsibility, and other times as an integral part of everything that happens in a school.  In some schools, learning to respect one another is understood to be a significant aspect of children’s education.

CSIE is offering a series of FREE equality workshops throughout the country in autumn 2016, supported by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation. Over and above helping schools fulfil their legal duties, these are practical, “hands on” workshops designed to be engaging and constructive.

The workshops are framed around CSIE’s award-winning guide “Equality: Making It Happen“, a succinct and user-friendly set of reference cards to help schools reduce bullying, address prejudice and promote equality holistically. The guide offers simple and practical advice, as well as links to sources of further information and support. We know of no other initiative addressing all aspects of equality in schools in such an effective and user-friendly way. It will take a long time for our new guide to make an impact on the lives of all pupils in all schools, but for those that it reaches the effect can be decisive.

Each workshop will address: a) what more schools can do to ensure that all pupils are safe, included and learning; and b) how schools can best respond to their legal equality duties and ensure that all protected characteristics covered by the Equality Act 2010 are reflected positively in the curriculum and in everyday school life.

The workshops will:

  • address equality in the context of current challenges in education;
  • provide an overview of the Equality Act 2010;
  • consider the public sector equality duty and its implications for schools;
  • offer clear information on all protected characteristics;
  • present a range of strategies for addressing prejudice and promoting equality;
  • help participants develop confidence and language for discussing sensitive equality issues;
  • provide simple and practical advice for reducing all forms of prejudice-based bullying;
  • consider real-life examples (participants are encouraged to bring their own examples of equality challenges in school);
  • assist in developing a context-specific framework for change.

Who should attend:

The workshops have been designed for primary and secondary school teachers, inclusion managers, pastoral support leaders, senior leaders and governors who care about equality and want to reduce all forms of prejudice-based bulling and discrimination in school. Workshops will also be of interest to equality champions outside schools, for example academy chain or local authority officers and voluntary sector organisations working to promote equality in education.

Cost:

All workshops are free to attend but places are limited and must be booked in advance. These events have been subsidised by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation, to both of whom CSIE remains grateful.

Feedback from previous CSIE equality workshops:

“Great!”

“Inspiring.”

“Eloquent and informative.”

“A lot of very practical and very useful information.”

“Excellent content and awareness of legal framework.”

Free workshops have been scheduled to take place in Bristol, Norfolk, Leicester and Reading.  More workshops will be announced in other locations soon.  For more information, or to book your place, please visit www.csie.org.uk/about/training.shtml.

If you want to find out more about these free workshops or about Equality: Making It Happen, or if you have any questions or queries at all, please call 0117 353 3150 or email admin@csie.org.uk.  We look forward to hearing from you and meeting you at one of our workshops.

Artemi Sakellariadis
Director, CSIE

School News

The simple solution to ensuring a hassle free start to lessons…..

Every now and again I get to chat with current or former teachers and one of the topics that often crops up is why many students don’t seem to be able (or willing) to bring a pen, pencil, ruler etc to their lessons.

In an attempt to solve this problem there’s a product called the “Student Essentials set,” which, as the name suggests, contains all the basics that students need for most of their lessons.

Click on image

Consisting of three quality black ink ballpens, two full length HB pencils, eraser, 15 cm ruler and a metal sharpener, all packed in a A5 size, clear PVC “exam friendly” wallet with a zip slider.

From just 75p each (ex vat) the “Student Essentials set” is a convenient and cost effective solution to the problem of students who don’t have the correct kit. Full details of the “Student Essentials set” (and other useful products) can be found at: www.signposteducational.co.uk

You can order by email: info@signposteducational.co.uk phone, fax, post.
Tel: 020 7515 1797 (ask for Martin Evans) or fax: 020 7515 4420

Signpost Educational Ltd., PO Box 999, London, E14 6SH

School News

What is the most common response of schools to the requirement to have comprehensive data protection policies?

Occasionally the Information Commissioner’s Office becomes concerned about lapses in data protection within schools and issues a warning or even a fine.

And indeed for some time now schools have had to have data protection policies in place to ensure that no sensitive data goes astray. However, it seems no one has recently done a survey on what is going on – hence below is a very short questionnaire.

It will take absolutely no more than 3 minutes to complete, and probably less. We don’t ask for the school’s details or anything to identify the school, although if you wish to have a copy of our analysis of the results we’ll happily send that to you if you provide an email address at the end.

There are also details of a free report on data security in schools at the end of the questionnaire.

Please click here to complete the questionnaire.

Peter Barnfield

School News

What is the simplest way to ensure that school breaks suit the need of everyone?

It could be argued that there are three types of people: those who want to move fast, those who want to move slow, and those who don’t want to move at all.

For the first two groups, open space is what is obviously needed, but for the third group there is a need for some form of seating.  Not necessarily anything luxurious, but seating that is functional, and which will survive in all weathers.

Just about the most popular form of such seating is the Earth Anchors Ranger series of steel seats and tables.

Earth Anchors Ranger series are being used by schools across the UK. We have agreed special prices with Hamilton House for this mailing on the most popular items of the range, benches, seats and Tri-Tables.

Picture 019 Picture 012 £269
Picture 017 Picture 015 £429
Bench_20  £869

The Ranger Series

Conceived with schools in mind it is cost-effective, has anti-vandal fittings and comes in a range of colours.

It is designed to be fixed straight into soft earth by via the patented Rootfast Anchorage System or simply by being bolted down into hard surfaces, this outdoor furniture is simple, functional and supplied at a very reasonable cost.

You can order by calling us on 020 8684 9601 quoting offer HH12 or reply to sales@earth-anchors.com

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School News

Anti-Bullying, Literacy, Health and Wellbeing projects for Winter 2016

This is an Educational Christmas Show!

An interactive exciting and fun experience for all your pupils. We bring shows from the theatre into your school hall.

A brilliant pantomime – Oh yes it is!                Like all the others? – Oh no it isn’t!

* Unique productions based on key educational elements *
* Enhance your students learning and wellbeing *
* A perfect way to celebrate the end of the winter term*
* Over 10 years experience delivering national PSHE projects*
* Teaching resource pack full of classroom activities free with every show *
* GREAT VALUE – Book before September 10th 2016 for 10% discount *

Entertainment and Education
No need to be a Scrooge this Christmas – have your Figgie Pudding and eat it too! By incorporating aspects from the curriculum from literacy to PSHE in each magical story, you get to treat your students and at the same time justify it within the school budget!  Your students get the chance to experience a one-of-a-kind pantomime that both entertains and educates.

For All Ages
The shows are fast paced, funny, and visually exciting for all ages. Big kids are kept guessing with the exciting script and plot whilst the physical comedy and colourful characters appeal to the younger years.

The educational elements cover KS1 and KS2 topics.

Audience Involvement

Warning! Not a spectator sport! The whole school will be involved from the beginning to end of this unforgettable experience. Questions need to be answered, songs need to be sung and there may even be room up on the stage for an extra body or two!

A Performance to Suit You
Timetable worries? Let us do the hard work. To suit your school the performance time can be adapted from 55 minutes to 1 hour and a quarter. We are happy to perform 1 to 3 performances per day for up to 240 pupils per show.

PLUS
A teaching resource pack full of classroom activities comes free with every show so you can continue the journey inside the classroom long after our story has ended.

SEE ALL THE SHOWS, VIDEOS, AND PICTURES HERE

www.pantomimeplay.co.uk

On tour this winter:

“The Incredible Christmas Story”: Supporting and promoting literacy and reading

“Gnome Alone”: Supporting and promoting anti-bullying and friendship

“National Elf Service”: Exploring health and wellbeing

Prices
1 SHOW = £475 + Travel + vat
2 SHOWS (am) = £700 + Travel + vat
2-3 SHOWS (am & pm) = £900 + Travel + vat

 “The best show I’ve seen in all my years of teaching!”  – “The acting was superb!”

A totally unique educational entertainment event!

www.pantomimeplay.co.uk

Contact Robin: info@pantomimeplay.co.uk

Tel: 0845 474 7907

Mob: 07519 593711

Pantomimeplay is part of Tip of the Iceberg Theatre Company Ltd.

School News

From igloo to cough, we’ve covered every spelling choice and every phonic in the English language

It sometimes comes as a bit of a shock to realise that there are some 90 different spelling and phonic rules in the English language.

They range from troublesome similarities (such as words like “coin” and “toy” with the same sound but different spelling choices), to the six different ways of pronouncing “ough”, not to mention the bizarre collection of words which utilise silent letters.

There is only one way in which dyslexic students can learn the spelling choices for the many different phonics and homophones, and that is through a structured reading and spelling programme.

Which is exactly what MSL has devised: the complete reading and spelling rescue programme.

This programme covers all the 90 different spelling and sound rules and adds in ten sections on issues such as word patterns, suffixes, prefixes, homophones and irregular final syllables, making 100 topics in all.

The 90 rules and associated topics can be seen on our website where you can see the structured order of teaching that we have introduced.

What we have then done is broken these 100 topics down into 20 modules, presented in an order which allows students to use the spelling rules as soon as they have learned them.

As a result of this structured approach, which includes placement & progress tests, you can introduce a dyslexic pupil or student to the sequence from the very start. You can also begin work at a point where the individual will be revising key points, before moving on to areas of weakness, where his/her knowledge becomes erratic.

A copiable version of each module costs £29.99, or you can order five modules together on a CD for £80 plus VAT. All 20 modules are available for £450.

You can order the Reading and Spelling Rescue Programme in any of these ways:

  • On our website (where you can also see full details of the programme)
  • By phone on 01536 399017
  • By fax to 01536 399012
  • By email to msl@schools.co.uk       
  • By post to Multi-Sensory Learning, Earlstrees Court, Earlstrees Road, Corby, NN17 4HH

Financial management

School Finance without a finance background

Online Training Program 4 x 1 hour sessions with assignments – why not use the summer to learn a bit more about school finance?

Do you have finance staff that don’t have a background in finance? Lots of schools do, and it can be tricky to understand it all and to have a full appreciation of the importance of the processes, without this background.

To this end we have created a new online training program consisting of 4 x 1 hour sessions covering different aspects of school finance.   Each session provides a recording of our live online presentations with accompanying notes and copies of the Powerpoint slides.

The aim is to provide a basic overview of what the terms mean, what needs to be done, what’s important to know about and what the reports tell us. It also covers an overview of double entry booking, financial statements, period end & audit. This isn’t an in-depth study of bookkeeping or management accounting – it’s a clear, simple overview to give school finance staff a grounding in accounting.

Each session has an optional assignment which will help consolidate the information covered, and on completion of all 4 assignments a Certificate in School Finance will be awarded.

The 4 sessions are as follows :

Session 1 –  Introduction to finance and the need for accounts.  Types of accounting, Accounting reports, Audit,  Legal aspects & segregation of duties. Financial controls. Record keeping & filing.

Session 2 – The Bookkeeping process. Revenue accounts, Assets & Liabilities, Double Entry bookkeeping, Credits & Debits, Journals/Virement, The Ledgers.

Session 3 – Financial Statements and Reports – what they are, what they mean, general accounting reports and school specific reports.

Session 4 – Period End  – Month and Year end processes, Orders & Commitments, Period end Journals, Closing the period, Gift Aid. VAT, Internal audit

The whole 4 session course costs £99 per school and multiple staff can use the course for this price.

To order this training program please email on info@istekuk.com or visit our website www.istekuk.com and click on TRAINING & UPGRADES – FINANCE TRAINING

 Istek UK Ltd  3 St Ursula’s Close, Salisbury SP1 3FY

W: www.istekuk.com  E: info@istekuk.com   T:  01722 413 255  F: 01722 568262

Building, furniture, maintenance, energy etc

Postura+ warranty doubled after 20 years of proven performance

Postura+ was the first one piece polypropylene chair introduced to the UK education market in 1996. Twenty years on, it stands unsurpassed as the only chair in its class to outlive its warranty.

Tried, tested and proven in the most demanding environments, we can now confidently double the chair’s warranty to 20 years knowing that it can be substantiated by real world, everyday use by millions of students all over the country.

Setting the benchmark for comfort, quality and versatility, it has stood the test of time and will continue to provide comfort and flexibility for millions more children in years to come, growing the ranks of what we call “#GenerationPostura”.

#GenerationPostura
Central Educational Supplies Ltd are pleased to be a partner with KI in distributing the excellent Postura+ chairs to schools and colleges throughout the UK. Postura+ chairs can be ordered directly from Central Educational Supplies Ltd. Further details and pricing can be found on their website: www.centraleducational.co.uk

Alternatively, please email: info@centraleducational.co.uk  or call 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans who will be pleased to assist.

Find out more | Postura+ datasheet | KI’s Schools, Academies & Colleges Brochure

School News

Summer savings for primary schools

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Edventure Playtime Games

Free delivery on Edventure Playtime Games when you quote the code HH0515 – www.edventure.co.uk

Topical Resources

Topical Resources Summer Sale of 2016: Buy primary teaching resources for just £5 a book before the end of August (or while stocks last) – www.topical-resources.co.uk

Brilliant Publications

Visit www.brilliantpublications.co.uk for an extensive range of practical books and other resources (including free resources) to support, challenge and inspire teachers and pupils.

Snail Tails

Multi-day storytelling workshops include free lesson plans, a free twilight INSET session, and free storyteller support for any event you host for parents to come and witness the talents of their children (subject to availability) – www.snailtales.org/news/view/53

Education Quizzes

Free sign up for a whole year to Primary Education Quizzes – https://www.educationquizzes.com/schools-uk-registrations/

Town Hall Symphony Hall

Find out more about the programmes and performances at Town Hall and Symphony Hall that are suitable for your KS1 and KS2 pupils at www.thsh.co.uk

 

School News

What is simplest and most effective way of developing problem solving skills at KS3?

The answer has to be one that involves giving the students a chance to practice their maths problem solving skills by working through hundreds of tried and tested activities.

And that is exactly what Mind Maths offers: hundreds of problems to solve in a copiable worksheet format complete with comprehensive teaching notes and advice on preparation, planning, plenaries and extension work.

The topics are broken down into four sections: number logic, rules, combinations and sequences, all within a CD containing over 400 pages of activities.

The problems can be used by individual students and within small groups as part of a unit on problem solving, or as extension exercises when students have completed a set piece of work.

They can also be used as elements of short projects on specific mathematical topics, or in an extra-curricular problem solving club.

There are sample pages available as a download on our website – just click on the sample pages button in the centre of the screen.

You can place an order