Students are always interested in people who come from significantly different backgrounds from themselves – sports stars, celebrities, entrepreneurs…people whose lives are totally different from their own.

We currently have a team of military veteran speakers touring the country and are on a mission to inspire students to increase their aspirations and motivate them to be the best they can possibly be.

Our speakers draw upon their unique experiences of success and failure to convey the value of hardwork and commitment to get the best in life.

Schools and academies regularly invite us to work with their Year 11 students prior to the new year, so our study techniques can be incorporated early in preparation for the exams ahead.

The good news is that we are making our sessions even more affordable by offering a one hour seminar to 100 of your students for £399.

During the session we cover:

– How to be self motivated

– Inspirational stories of success

– Strategies to plan your work

– Study skills to ‘get the edge’

– Revision techniques.

If you are interested and would like to know more, then please feel free to contact me for a no obligation chat.

In addition, if you know of any other schools or academies which would benefit from one of our military speakers working with their students, I would be very grateful if you were to forward my details across to them.

Many thanks

Nasir Unia

07830 208725

info@armykeynotespeakers.com

www.armykeynotespeakers.com

Of course we all get frustrated with pupils and students who are not using their natural talent or native ability and who could do so much better at school, but simply won’t settle down to work.

However, such a lack of application is not just something that is observed in the classroom or with homework.  It gets reported in all walks of life.

Employers constantly see young staff who could really get on in the business but who have a certain resistance to being told what to do. The same is found in sport – athletes, footballers, swimmers, etc – all with a natural ability that could give them a career in the sport, who simply will not train properly or refuse to look after their bodies.

And then again it is there in the arts – the talented actor who won’t focus in rehearsals, the musician who won’t practise…

So it is probably not surprising when we find it in school, when attitude gets in the way of what could be achieved.

The problem is, with all these cases, that once the poor attitude sets in it is quite hard to shift, not least because attitude is a habit, and habits are incredibly easy to pick up and very difficult to remove.

Difficult – but not impossible.  For with a clarity of purpose it is possible to make a change in attitude and behaviour happen in virtually every individual – as long as we can encourage parents to play a central role in the issue of the changing attitudes and behaviour of pupils and students.

Our argument is that if ways can be found to bring parents who might not normally associate strongly with the school, into the school’s approach, then change can happen more quickly and become more solidly embedded within the school and within the pupil or student.

From these concepts emerged a series of formal school policies and everyday approaches which are set out in detail in our report “Improving attitudes, managing behaviour and reducing exclusions.”

The volume is available as a download only for £14.95, inclusive of VAT, with the right to reproduce the volume in full or in parts to colleagues in the school.

Sample pages can be viewed at http://www.schools.co.uk/samples/T1813.pdf

ISBN: 978 1 86083 845 3 Order code: T1813

You can obtain the download by:

• buying on-line from our shop at https://www.schools.uk/index.php/on-line-shop/item/1-improving-attitudes-managing-behaviour-and-reducing-exclusions
• with a school order number by email to sales@schools.co.uk
• by phone to 01604 880 927 again with a school order number
• with a cheque by post to Schools.co.uk, 1 Oathill Close, Brixworth, Northampton, NN6 9BE.  Please make cheques payable to Websites and Blogs Ltd.

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 11-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes. It is an environment conducive to getting to grips with new ideas.

Working in small groups (usually around 14 students per group) over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

Highlights for students aged 15-18:

The Summer Law School in three distinct five-day Parts to allow time for more cases, more analysis and more debate on some of the most intriguing legal questions. Students can choose to focus on Criminal Law, Civil Law or International Law, or to attend all three Parts for a comprehensive introduction to legal study.

The International Relations Summer School will introduce the central theories involved in the academic study of IR – realism, liberalism, constructivism and Marxism – and will then look at a range of detailed case studies in order to apply, test and explore these theories. Topics covered will include military intervention, international law, development aid, feminism and foreign policy, regional sessions looking at China and the Middle East, and the European response to the migration crisis.

The Medicine Summer School offers a series of two-day events with specialist sessions on cardiology, paediatrics, oncology, emergency medicine and many other topics – enabling students to attend a wide-ranging introduction or select the sessions most relevant to their interests.

Our Mathematics and Physics Summer Schools now offer options for students at GCSE, and also for those who have completed the first year of A Level study. These five-day events offer a challenging and rigorous exploration of theory and application, with a focus on developing practical problem-solving skills.

We also have courses in Economics, History, Classical Civilisations, Philosophy and Politics (all for students aged 15-18).

Last but not least, we also have a smaller number of courses available for younger students (ages 11-14) in Law, Medicine, Creative Writing and Science subjects.

Practical Details:

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2019. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

You can find full details of schedules, dates, costs, student reviews and tutors at http://www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/.

There is a limited amount of bursary funding available for students who would otherwise have financial difficulty in attending – please see our website for details.

To book a place please visit http://debatechamber.com/call us on 0845 519 4827, or email info@debatechamber.com. Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

For around 1000 years Roman numerals was the counting system of western civilisation. Which is odd considering it is so clunky and difficult to use.

It’s biggest problem, of course, is that it has no zero – one moves from IX (9) to X (10).  And without zero maths gets at best frustrating, at worst fiendish.

But when we ask “what is zero?” and answer “nothing” we are merely using one word to explain another – we are not saying what zero is, as happens when we ask “what is a chair?”

To make sense of zero, and thus our whole numbering system, we each need a particular part of the brain to be able to decode the concept of number in general.

And where that brain function isn’t working properly, no matter how much teaching in the standard way continues, the individual will struggle to learn.

But just as with dyslexics and the spelling of words, teaching in the conventional way does not work – the pupils and students need a different approach, which deals with the concept of maths in a totally new way.

This is why the Dyscalculia Centre not only offers a diagnostic test for dyscalculia, but also provides an analysis of that person’s areas of difficulty and a range of teaching materials suitable to that individual.

The Dyscalculia Diagnostic Test is taken on-line, and generally lasts about 15 or 20 minutes.  When it has been completed you will receive a detailed report identifying the problem areas and the actions that can be taken to help the individual overcome these issues and the relevant teaching materials.

The materials can also be copied so that, where appropriate, the parents can also work with the pupil at home.  You’ll find more information about the Dyscalculia Centre’s on-line test for dyscalculia on our website.

Testing costs £59.95 per individual.  Where three tests are booked together the price is £49.95 each.  When 10 tests are booked together the price is £45.95 each.

However if you are working in a school which rejects the notion of dyscalculia or which for other reasons will not fund the use of our test, please get in touch with details as we may be able to help you through our Bursary scheme.

Once you have purchased the test/s each one can then be used at any time.  The cost includes taking the test, a specific report in relation to the individual taking the test, and resources relevant to that individual which can be used to aid progress in maths.

You can order the test:

• On our web site
• With a school order number by email to Diagnostic@schools.co.uk
• By phone to 01604 880 927, again with a school order number

Tony Attwood C.Ed., B.A., M.Phil (Lond), F.Inst.A.M.

It’s not a trick question, but it might be one you’ve never thought about.  Why did counting with Roman numerals come to an end after almost 1000 years of use.

The answer is nothing to do with all that XL and VIII business – it is something quite different from that.  In fact it wasn’t something in Roman counting that caused the problem, it was the lack of something.

And that something was zero.

The Romans didn’t think of nothing, because for them there was always something.  If there was nothing, there was nothing to count, nothing to discuss.  If Lucius owed Marcus five apples and had the five to give his pal, that was the end of counting.  It wasn’t that Lucius now had zero apples.  There was no number 0 so there was no issue.  Apples were gone from the agenda.

Now of course we have zeros and everything is fine – except for around four children in every 100 who find the whole issue of zero very odd, and rather disturbing.  Indeed some of these youngsters find the whole concept of number rather bizarre.

Fortunately, there are ways of teaching the meaning of number and time to young people who suffer from this type of problem; young people who are often called dyscalculic. But these ways are somewhat different from the conventional approaches to maths.

Understanding Dyscalculia: An Introduction for Schools examines the origins of dyscalculia and sets out the methods of working available which can help those with dyscalculia overcome their problems with maths.

The book can be copied to give out in full or part to other members of staff in school, to worried parents, and to governors, so that everyone can share in the awareness of what dyscalculia is, and how it can be tackled.

Research suggests that most children who gain appropriate help in school can overcome their dyscalculic difficulties and achieve an acceptable grade in secondary school examinations, thus allowing entry into further and higher education.

Understanding Dyscalculia: An Introduction for Schools is available as a download which can be printed out, copied and given to colleagues within the school for £14.95, including VAT.

ISBN: 978 1 86083 614 5   Order code: T1628 – please quote with order.

You can purchase the download copy of the volume

• On the phone with a school order number or credit card at 01604 880 927
• By email to sales@schools.co.uk with a school order number
• On line with a credit card via PayPal at https://www.dyscalculia.me.uk/online-shop/item/1-understanding-dyscalculia-an-introduction-for-schools.html

UK ISA specialist, True Potential Investor, investigates the effects of the growing population. Click here to see the infographic.

The UK population is growing, reaching an estimated 65.1 million people in 2015 and projected to pass 70 million people by 2026. What effect will a growing population have on the amount that will need to be invested by the government into the UK’s economy, though? Here, we take a look at key stats of previous generations to try and forecast the same parameters but for generations to come…

Understanding Gross Domestic Product

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is used throughout this infographic. It represents the monetary value of all the finished goods and services that is produced within a country’s borders within a specific time period.

All private and public consumption is included within GDP, as does investments, government outlays, private inventories, paid-in construction costs and foreign balance of trade — whereby exports are added and imports are subtracted. In essence, GDP broadly measures the overall economic activity of a nation and indicates its economic health and gains an idea of its standard of living.

Silent Generation

Also known as Traditionalists, the Silent Generation were named as such as they were expected to be seen and not heard. Due to growing up through the Great Depression and the Second World War, this is a generation who considered work a privilege and held the belief that you earn your own way through hard work.

Date period: Born during 1945 or prior

All of this generation were 16 by: 1961

UK population (estimated) in 1961: 52,807,400

UK’s GDP (chained volume measure and seasonally adjusted) in 1961: £529,152m

Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate in 1961: 4.37%

UK real households’ disposable income per head in 1961: £5,979

*Employment and unemployment rates unavailable for 1961

Baby Boomers

Baby boomers were named as such as there was a ‘baby boom’ in the years that followed the end of the Second World War. Due to witnessing both the Women’s Liberation movement and the Civil Rights movement, this generation is known to challenge the status quo. They also like to seek immediate gratification and attempt to fulfil personal goals.

Date period: Born between 1946 and 1964

All of this generation were 16 by: 1980

UK population (estimated) in 1980: 56,329,700

UK’s GDP (chained volume measure and seasonally adjusted) in 1980: £859,674m

Great Britain’s historic CPI inflation rate in 1980: 15.12%

UK real households’ disposable income per head in 1980: £9,188

UK’s employment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 1980: 70.8%

UK’s unemployment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 1980: 6.8%

Generation X

Sometimes referred to as the MTV Generation as they witnessed the growing popularity of music videos and, more specifically, the emergence of the MTV channel, Generation X also lived through the fall of the Berlin Wall. As a result, this generation is independent, skeptical and self-sufficient, not to mention valuing a work/life balance.

Date period: Born between 1965 and 1976

All of this generation were 16 by: 1992

UK population (estimated) in 1992: 57,584,500

UK’s GDP (chained volume measure and seasonally adjusted) in 1992: £1,138,538m

Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate in 1992: 2.54%

UK real households’ disposable income per head in 1992: £12,905

UK’s employment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 1992: 69%

UK’s unemployment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 1992: 9.9%

Millennials

Also known as Generation Y, Millennials experienced an upbringing where they were increasingly surrounded by computers and technology. TV shows became popular during their childhood too, while they also witnessed the girl’s movement. As a result, this generation is confident, sociable and optimistic. They also don’t always understand their limitations and value a sense of achievement and multi-tasking.

Date period: Born between 1977 and 1995

All of this generation were 16 by: 2011

UK population (estimated) in 2011: 63,285,100

UK’s GDP (chained volume measure and seasonally adjusted) in 2011: £1,729,121m

Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate in 2011: 4.20%

UK real households’ disposable income per head in 2011: £17,991

UK’s employment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 2011: 70.3%

UK’s unemployment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 2011: 8.1%

Centennials

Often also referred to as Generation Z, iGen and Post-Millennials, this group lived through 9/11 and its aftermath, witnessed a worldwide economic recession and read countless news reports about war. As such, Centennials are known to be more self-aware, self-reliant and driven, as well as socially minded but cautious.

Date period: Born from 1996 to the current day

This generation began turning 16 during: 2012

UK population (estimated) in 2015: 65,110,000

UK’s GDP (chained volume measure and seasonally adjusted) in 2015: £1,888,737m

Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate in 2015: -0.44%

UK real households’ disposable income per head in 2015: £18,770

UK’s employment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 2015: 73.7%

UK’s unemployment rate (aged 16 to 64 and seasonally adjusted) in 2015: 5.4%

Thoughts for generations to come

From analysing the trends of previous generations, here’s a few points to consider for what might be to come for the generations to come…

• As well as the UK’s population continuing to grow, so too has the nation’s GDP and real households’ disposable income per head.
• Following a dip as the Baby Boomer generation was reaching adulthood, the UK’s employment rate has continued to increase.
• The UK’s unemployment rate did increase as the Baby Boomer generation reached adulthood too. However, in the generations that followed, the unemployment rate has continued to drop.
• It would be very difficult to forecast the nation’s rate of inflation in the years to come. As showcased when analysing the previous generations, Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate has altered in a manner that doesn’t appear to follow a trend and certainly cannot be compared with the trends of any other parameter covered.

Sources:

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gdp.asp

https://genhq.com/faq-info-about-generations/

https://www.thebalancecareers.com/workplace-characteristics-silent-generation-2164692

https://managementisajourney.com/understanding-and-managing-the-4-generations-in-the-workplace/

https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/tapping-generation-z

https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/5505402/millennials-baby-boomers-generation-groups-z-y-x-explained/

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/articles/overviewoftheukpopulation/mar2017

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/abmi/pgdp

https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/timeseries/lf24

https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotinwork/unemployment/timeseries/mgsx/lms

https://www.inflation.eu/inflation-rates/great-britain/historic-inflation/cpi-inflation-great-britain.aspx

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/ihxy/ukea

 

Every child with poor communication skills has, quite obviously, difficulty in listening, understanding, and self-expression.  Which is to say, that child has difficulties with every aspect of learning.

As research has shown, this problem affects a huge number of children.  Ican, for example, has suggested that at least 10% of young people across the UK have communication difficulties severe enough to be hindering their learning.

These children invariably also have difficulties in areas such as problem-solving and maintaining relationships.

Many agree that what is needed in order to overcome such problems is a way to learn effective two-way interactive communication so that they can participate both in the formal side of their education and the social side of being at school.

But the problem is, how can this be arranged within the current financial situation?

We know that it is vital for children to be able to express themselves openly and articulate their thoughts and feelings.  We know that language is an integral part of our processing of daily events through our thoughts.

And beyond this we know that if we do not have the skills to process daily events internally then our mental health and well-being suffer.

But that still leaves the question, how can change be effected?

NLP4kids works in this area with many schools around the UK, and our work includes helping schools access government funding specifically set aside for this sort of project – thus effectively making our services available free of charge to the school.

If you would like to know more about our work in improving students’ communication skills and about the funding, please do have a look at our communication skills webpage.

To discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email me at gemma@NLP4Kids.org

If you your school is not already employing a registered Play Therapist, you could use the Play Therapy UK placement scheme provided by our accredited training providers APAC in collaboration with Leeds Beckett University.

This year there will be about 300 trainees from all over the UK looking for placements to work therapeutically with primary school pupils who have emotional, behaviour and mental health issues.

They will be clinically supervised in providing 100 hours of sessions (typically seeing 8 pupils throughout the year).

All you have to provide is a safe, confidential play room and a budget of about £300 for equipment and materials. ie a cost to the school of roughly £3 per session.

In addition, the placements will conduct parent interviews, assessments, measure outcomes for the children and also for your objectives – how you want therapy to benefit your school and provide regular progress reports.

See: http://www.playtherapy.org.uk/CareersInPlayTherapy/TrainingPlacements/Placements

First come, first served.  Last year our Autumn cohorts were fully placed by the end of October.

More information:  mokijep@majemail.com to fix a time for a chat.

www.playtherapyregister.org.uk

www.playtherapy.org.uk

Introduced  in 1996  the “one piece” Postura chair was the first classroom chair to be manufactured from a single mould of polypropylene.  Today hundreds of thousands of these chairs are in use throughout the UK in schools, colleges and nurseries.

What’s so special about the “one piece” Postura chair…..?

Before the introduction of the Postura chair, most classroom chairs were  made either of wood or  a metal frame  which was fixed to a polypropylene “shell” (the seat)  by screws or rivets.  If you have ever worked in a school then you will almost certainly  have come across broken or vandalised chairs ………How do they get broken?

The weak link is the fixings which join the shell to the frame. They can usually be unscrewed or damaged, either deliberately or by the constant stresses and strains of wear by students for several hours everyday, week after week, month after month and year after year.  Sometimes they can be repaired using a replacement shell or frame but more often than not such repairs tend to be of a temporary nature.

The Postura chair has done away with all this.   Its one piece design means there are no screws or rivets to be broken or damaged.  When you take delivery of Postura chairs you get a TWENTY year warranty with each one. That’s how confident are the manufacturers that you’ll get at least twenty years of trouble free use from each chair.

How can the Postura chair save us  hundreds  of pounds?

Simple. The warranty covers any possible manufacturing defects for 20 years.

This means that you’ll get 20 years of trouble free classroom seating from as little as 35p per term per chair…and this cost is based on the largest size, being used by ages 11 upwards…for primary and nursery schools the cost is even less !  So you can wave goodbye to broken and vandalised chairs…..no more time wasted in repairs, no more “wonky” chairs, no more expenditure for replacements when they have become unrepairable. It all adds up to big savings when you switch to Postura classroom chairs from the traditional classroom chair.

What about improving students’ concentration….?

If you’ve ever sat on an uncomfortable chair you’ll know….well, how uncomfortable it is. You  change your position, you fidget, you can’t sit comfortably and if you’re in a meeting the chances are you’re just as concerned with your sitting position than concentrating on what is being said.  It’s no different with your students, which is why the Postura chair was designed to be ergonomically beneficial …… to be comfortable and encourage good posture, so students can concentrate on lessons rather than continually trying to make themselves comfortable.

………..and here’s an additional reason to order Postura chairs now.

Central Educational Supplies Ltd., one of the leading distributors of Postura chairs in the UK, have held their 2017 prices throughout 2018….so your organisation can make even greater savings when ordering from this company.

If you’d like to know more about these excellent chairs or make an order, please visit the website of: Central Educational Supplies Ltd,  www.centraleducational.co.uk

or phone 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans.  If you prefer to email then it’s info@centraleducational.co.uk or fax  020 7515 4420

P.S. orders are usually delivered within 7-10 working days.

There are several ways of classifying emotions, and one that is often found helpful contains four emotional pairs: joy-sadness, anger-fear, trust-distrust, surprise-anticipation.

Psychologists have long argued about the best way to list all emotions, but whatever approach is used anger most certainly is one of the fundamental human impulses.

And because anger is so basic to the human psyche it is hard to control simply by saying “don’t get so angry.”

The tendency to get angry is innate, automatic, and, when triggered, very fast and we have it, because in earlier times getting angry automatically could enhance one’s chances of survival.

But, obviously, the classroom is not a life or death struggle, and thus anger in the classroom  is not helpful.  However helping students control angry reactions not just to everyday experiences but to accumulated problems across time can be difficult.

For anger expressed in the classroom can leave the teacher in an invidious position, wanting to offer emotional support to a student in difficulty, while at the same time having a duty towards everyone in the class.

And yet it is possible for students with anger issues to be fully integrated back into mainstream schooling.

This approach involves not just managing a student’s behaviour but also seeking out and dealing with the issues that are causing this behaviour as well as helping the student find the best emotional coping strategies to resolve the problem.

And this is what NLP4Kids offers: helping students communicate their thoughts and feelings with others, helping them make meaningful relationships, and ultimately helping them improve their employment opportunities all through bringing their anger under control.

If you feel that you have some students in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of anger and related issues, you may find our website helpful.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the students you nominate. There are more details of our work at http://nlp4kids.org.uk/schools-co-uk/

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

Gemma Bailey 

Director of NLP4Kids

 

It’s not easy  to ensure that every student comes to school or college properly equipped for  lessons or exams.

But  NOW  there’s a  simple,  effective and low cost way of solving the problem       The “STUDENT ESSENTIALS” set 

Consisting of, three quality black ink pens, two  full length HB pencils,  a      15 cm ruler,  pencil sharpener, eraser, all contained in  a clear   “exam friendly” PVC wallet with a zip slider….

From just 85p each, ex vat  it’s a simple and effective way of  improving productivity and helping students succeed in their  lessons and exams.

More details at:    www.signposteducational.co.uk/student-packs/

or you can contact them on: Tel:  020 7515 1797    Fax:  020 7515 4420   email:  info@signposteducational.co.uk

Orders are usually delivered within 1-3 working days.

Signpost Educational Ltd   PO Box 999   London  E14 6SH