Mince Pie Mystery Christmas Fun. Someone has stolen the mince pies whilst everyone was in assembly - it is up to the class to turn detective and work out who it was! This is a structured activity suitable for Key Stage two - Years 3, 4 or 5 ideally, to be carried out close to the last few lessons of the term, when typical teaching has stopped and you need something engaging to hold them which has more value than a traditional quiz/Christmas activity. It would work well on Christmas Jumper day or Christmas Dinner day as a break from the usual routine, too. This is designed to take up the session which is typically the maths session, after play, but the skills needed to solve this are cross-curricular. Alternatively, it could end an afternoon session when something out of the ordinary has preceded it, such as a recorder concert/hymn rehearsal/church visit and the children need a highly structured activity to refocus them with the prospect of a treat at the end. Core skills being developed include: Maths- working within time periods and calculating time overlaps, English -reading and making deductions, Logic and Critical Thinking - Eliminating suspects based on cross-referencing given facts, Drama - acting or reading out in role (if you prefer). The lower abilities will simply need more support with the reading element and the deductions, but it would work well in mixed ability groups. The actual culprit is the most obvious one - but that was deliberate so that everyone feels good at the end - even if they couldn’t say with as much certainty why, most children will put their finger on the correct thief. There is an accompanying plan. Slides should ideally be printed and stapled as copies per table: a ‘Clue’ pack, an ‘Evidence’ Pack, Witness Statements, and an elimination sheet. The mystery itself is based on a story my son told me that actually happened at his school with the chocolates in an Advent calendar going missing during play, but I’ve gone for mince pies being stolen- all the better if you can buy a bulk lot of 30 cheaply, leaving tantalisingly on display all morning only to have them suddenly disappear at the start of the lesson - and then all munch on them as a reward once the activity has ended. I hope that the activity is as fun for you as it has been for me to envisage and create. As always, I would appreciated feedback once you have delivered it in class.

End of term fun. A classroom quiz full of topical and relevant questions. This was lots of fun in the making and I think it will be lots of fun in the doing! This quiz consists of four rounds of 5 questions each. The answers are multiple choice apart from the two bonus rounds. The rounds have been carefully selected to appeal to a wide cross-section of interests and abilities. Each new round is introduced with a sound bite to catch attention and each question also has a sound bite that plays automatically to gain silence, so you can read the question out. The answers are given after each round, groups being asked to swap to mark by passing to the left. The rounds are: Football (World Cup) Strange but True In the News Fads and Crazes The bonuses are pixelated images of famous people, books and films, to identify, some easy some more difficult, and can be done as timed extra rounds, or printed and given to children to do as a less-structured part of the quiz, and a quick break for the adult reading the questions. This quiz is written primarily for a KS2 audience, but could be used for older children, too. I have not had a chance to use this in the classroom, yet, but I did pre-test it on my own (key stage two) son, who loved it, and was begging for more the next day, even writing his own questions. I would appreciate feedback. In the end-of-term spirit, some of the questions are a little ‘colourful’ and be warned - the England chant as a sound bite on one slide will add to that ‘end of term’ vibe. :-) I have included lots of ironic potential answers to keep us quiz masters and mistresses amused, too. I hope you enjoy using this resource.

Tuesday 21st February is Mardi Gras (Shrove/‘Fat’ Tuesday)! This is a power point resource all about Mardi Gras that includes accompanying activities that can be done afterwards. It is designed as a French lesson, but can easily be used as a whole school assembly, especially in a French-teaching primary school. There are some links to be made with RE and Lent, so it will work especially well in a CE/Catholic primary school teaching French. It is suitable for KS2 or perhaps just lower Key Stage 3. There are already many resources out there on the subject of Easter, but very few on Mardi Gras, which is increasing in popularity in the UK as ‘Fat Tuesday’. The lesson commences with the children analysing 2 photos showing Mardi Gras (carnival) scenes. (A means of activating critical thinking skills) before introducing the lesson as one about Mardi Gras, how it is celebrated and some key vocabulary. The ppt links to a You Tube clip of a parade in Montreal (providing opportunities to discuss French culture around the world). It introduces some key vocabulary, (and can be used as an opportunity to revise colours, days of the week and dates, as they come up, naturally). Possible activities include: -2 word searches using the key vocabulary. One easier, one harder. Reading slide (depending on ability, could be read as a whole class looking for ‘the word that means…’ Recorded audio of the reading slide - you could give the challenge of listening to hear a specific word or phrase. (In the passage, as there are some near-cognate words that are not given in the vocabulary - children have to work out they mean based on how they look, sound or are spelled.) As a creative task, children can design a Mardi Gras mask, and several templates are given. The ppt slides can be printed in A3 when there are 2 per page. To make a larger art/DT project. This provides opportunities for wonderful displays!!! I have seen examples of Mardi Gras displays on the internet, where, having created the masks, the children’s photographs are taken and printed A3 size and the masks stuck over the top of the child’s face on the board - looks amazing! In my school, I haven’t gone that far, but the children were occupied for a whole wet-play, making gold, green and purple paper chains, which I decorated around a notice board, using my ppt slides as information for the mid-section. Sorry, there are no word search answers for the 2nd word search, but you could retain a child’s once they have solved - also, using the word ‘or’ in the word search has resulted in there being several possible answers - I didn’t change it - it’s probably something else of interest that will enable the word to stick in their minds. Please note: Selling resources on TES has enabled me to donate £500 to date to our partner school in Sierra Leone. All author proceeds from this resource will be donated to our partner school, where it is used to buy medicines and period products

This resource set is suitable for Year 4 (or 3 or 5 depending on ability) It includes: Lesson Presentation written using ppt fully explaining how to use RUCSAC to solve time problems using a number line. 3 sets of questions and answers (easier, middle and harder versions) The answers are on the worksheets and on the slides, so children can mark, if you would prefer. Print saving worksheets - no colour - simple cut and stick questions one by one.

Two simple time-saving Power Point resources - one simply with each letter of the alphabet per slide, for simple teaching of the alphabet - listen/repeat exercises. One Power Point will spin randomly - when in presentation mode (push F5) through all the letters, and will stop/start again on pushing s on the keyboard. Lots of fun activities to be done with this - far beyond knowing the letters of the alphabet - depending on the level of vocabulary acquired this could be used as a starter for a - ‘un object qui commence par …’ (something that starts with …) Equally useful in other languages, and deliberately written plainly to support use in many different ways. Alternatively - print in smaller (e.g. 2 slides per page) versions and use as flash cards, or for small group games.

The Bubble Wrap Boy by Phil Earle This unit of planning and resources is written specifically to engage reluctant readers, particularly boys. The initial weeks cover a range of reading and writing skills, (descriptive writing, character analysis, even cinquain poetry - skater style!) The Bubble Wrap Boy is an enjoyable book suitable for ages 10-15. It would work well in Year 6 or Year 7/8 intervention classes, where they keep the same teacher all day. It centres on a geeky teenager, Charlie Han, who reinvents himself as a skating legend. His equally geeky friend gains kudos through his graffiti art. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/188528/the-bubble-wrap-boy/ I have taught it in Year 5 and so that is what the national curriculum standards reference. My lower-ability writers’ standards shot up after this unit and standards of the whole class improved exactly where the gaps were, as this is how it was planned. The unit includes a mixture of discrete grammar lessons and lessons that build on from one another. The main focus is how to write an extended narrative - with each skill building logically on from the next. It leads into a project of extended writing at the end, this is key to improving stamina and ongoing writing ability. While this English unit of work focuses on writing, I strongly recommend that the book is focussed on during daily reading sessions prior to the main English writing session. It is assumed that the teacher will be able to read chapters outloud with the children outside of the main writing session, and ideally, the children themselves will have plenty of opportunity to engage with and read the text, too. This text has some strong themes in it, such as bullying, loss and family deception. It has some mild bad language and teenage-style comments that the teacher should be aware of and read with discretion with lower ages, particularly in Year 5. I had such fun teaching this unit, as we delivered it as a whole learning journey, where the children studied graffiti and urban art, too, and we visited the local skate parks, did skating angles etc in maths. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. If you like these resources, I would be grateful if you could leave a review for others.

One reading sheet Scenario: French teenagers talking about what they like doing in their hometown of Lille. The vocabulary has been deliberately chosen so that children can work out the meaning of the small paragraphs in the speech bubbles even if they have not been taught the vocabulary. This would be good for pair work - to try and figure out what is being said, for learners prior to it being read through and explained by the teacher. The second worksheet is a set of simple questions so it can be completed in a more traditional way.

Whole lesson presentation. Teaches 'tu aimes …?' And Oui, j’aime …/Non, je n’aime pas … For activities that are typically done in one’s home town. Builds upon a lesson(s) where learners have covered the basic vocabulary for places in a town. Includes recorded French.

This is a resource prepared for key stage 2 to be used in the maths session either in the first few days of the September term, or as a structured maths activity as part of a transition. Children solve the calculations/problems to find a number that corresponds to a letter. The letters spell out a phrase. The secret phrase is ‘Maths is fun!’ or ‘Maths is awesome’ when completed. Children can then go on to create their own phrases/coded words. I have used this activity in Year 5, but because there are four different levels of challenge, this activity could easily be carried out in lower years, or even Year 6. The children enjoyed it - because the phrase is the same for all levels, children can race to solve it first (swear them to secrecy, by asking them to only whisper the phrase to you for a reward if they are correct). Works well if partners are working together - if the sheet is too hard, or one question on the sheet is too challenging, they can always look at the question on an easier sheet. I found this exercise to be helpful to get an overall sense of how the class were with number and their ability and confidence with a range of maths overall - probably as helpful as a test for a quick sense of where a new class is at, but without any of the threat. It gave me some good ideas about where to pitch my planning for the next couple of weeks, whilst I got to know them and their strengths/gaps better, so I would consider it of much more value than simply a ‘holding’ teacher-meet type exercise. Tip: Set the printer to double sided, so they can flip over to create their own code once they have found the answer. I hope you enjoy using this resource. I would be grateful if you could leave a review, once used in class.

Available in pdf and editable word, for personalisation options. The first is a larger flag simply to print and colour, the second a smaller flag, that can be folded and displayed over a washing line type rope. These would be good for younger classes, where you are attempting to improve pencil grip and writing stamina. I would print one per pupil and use it to create eye-catching bunting over the classroom. 50% of the author proceeds of this resource will be donated to our partner school in Sierra Leone.

Year 4 - Changing States of Matter Practical lesson - used as a hook following Christmas start of new topic - link to food waste - ways to preserve. This is a whole lesson where children make butter by shaking double cream in jars until it first becomes whipped cream and then butter. I prepared it to use in the first week back as a lesson to engage before moving on to solids, liquids and gases. It is an easy and fun practical lesson. This resource comes with a lesson plan, a learning objective table/slip where children are encouraged to link their task to the forthcoming learning by answering two questions about how the liquid cream was different from the solid butter, and a power point presentation - my first slides relate to food waste at Christmas, but this could be easily edited to link to food waste more generally. You will need to provide: several tubs of double cream, jars or lidded plastic tubs to use as shakers, salt, spoons, crackers. I hope you enjoy using this resource and if you could take the time to feed back, I would be grateful.

PRACTICE SPELLING AND GRAMMAR PAPER This practice spelling and grammar test has been designed to resemble the actual SAT test paper as closely as possible. These are original questions. They test National Curriculum content. This download includes: Practice Paper 1 Grammar and Punctuation Practice Paper 2 Spelling Mark Scheme Papers 1 and 2.

This is a resource I created to be able to take the Year 3s beach combing/fossil hunting on a shingle beach on the SE coast. Whilst our beach does have some amazing fossils, the area was deemed too unsafe to go to, as access is tough and the cliffs are unstable, so instead I needed to research what the children were most likely to be able to find on a typical shingle beach (flint and chert) away from the cliffs. I have chosen to introduce only what I suspect the children might have luck in finding, and also included some information about quartz in pebbles (geodes), as these can be found. We will tie it in with a visit to a local museum to see and handle some real fossils, and it should make for a nice summer outing. This ppt is meant to be able to be used as an introduction, prior to a beach hunt (ideally with your own examples gathered in a pre-visit) Children will ideally receive instruction before or after on the formation of fossils. When I use it, I will take care to ensure the children know that we are relying on speculation, assumption and deduction, and all fossils would really require expert identification to be sure what they actually are. The ppt is not long, but does represent hours of painstaking research! It’s so hard to wade through the higher brow guides to get to the basics. I’ve included a .pdf that can be used as a guide in situ. I hope you will find it useful. If you like this resource you may also like my resources on comparing and sorting different rock types. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/compare-and-group-different-kinds-of-rocks-11910312 or Rock Identification (free) https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/what-s-my-rock-or-mineral-11912410

Children solve the maths equations in order to determine what colour to colour the chameleon. There is an easy version, suitable for lower year groups or older pupils with additional maths needs. There is a harder version, suitable for year 4 upwards, due to the fact it contains squares, brackets and square roots, but the calculations themselves are not too tricky. There is also a blank version that children can use to create their own calculations. A slide show accompanies the printouts, that can be used to model what to do. It also includes a couple of facts about chameleons - and introduces ‘Charmander the maths chameleon’. The calculations can be modified directly on the ppt and printed directly from the ppt to suit the needs of your class. I imagine this resource to be suitable for a maths activity as part of a meet the teacher transition, as a light hearted end to a topic/learning journey that covers rain forests, or towards the end of term/a busy week e.g. if there have been tests, when pupils are tired, so they can still engage in maths but in a less formal/structured manner. Tip: if there are some calculations that are too tricky on the harder version, have a few spare easier versions printed, so pupils can cross reference. I hope you enjoy using this resource.

A lesson that focuses on the witches’ use of word play and how this influenced Macbeth’s course of action. This includes a lesson plan, lesson presentation and differentiated activity. This lesson allows for a more detailed consideration of the role of the witches, and the use of the deliberately misleading in order to influence, but it is more than this, as it aims to foster a love of words and wordplay with the children. (There are some nice PSHE elements in terms of things people might say nowadays that are not actual lies, but not actually the truth, too.) There’s a great link to a clip from Shrek II where Pinocchio is attempting not to give away Shrek’s position but cannot lie. He uses double negatives and babble to mislead without lying! Children will really enjoy attempting to solve the riddles, which have been pitched so that at least 1 or 2 per bundle should be solved, possibly more. I’ve tried to source new ones, but there are a couple of oldies, too. The riddles should be distributed in tables or groups of 4-6. They are read and discussed in the groups. Once the solutions are given, pupils consider how the language was misleading/what it was about the riddle that was deceptive. This can be a piece of written work, or remain a spoken activity. I have used this resource in Year 5, with a re-written story version of Macbeth, once the story had been completed, so they could appreciate the significance of the second prophecies. We had puns and riddles galore for weeks afterwards! I hope you enjoy using this resource. I would be grateful if you could leave a review, once you have used it in class.

Third resource of a three-part survival-themed set of maths lessons. Children imagine themselves shipwrecked on a desert island. After reading a shipping map/timetable to know when they will be rescued, they have to create a look-out rota.This is a power point to introduce the idea and facilitate the initial discussion. It is based on 4 individuals wishing to have 24 hour a day look-out duty. Pupils can decide on the best way to do this. There are extension scenarios, for if one person is ill and only 3 people can carry out look at duty in a 24 hour period. The other accompanying resources can be found at: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/i-can-reading-timetables-and-shipping-maps-desert-island-survival-theme-11904303 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/coordinates-in-four-quadrants-desert-island-map-11866571