NEWS
Consent for conference
Young people, sex and consent is the theme of this year’s annual conference for sexual health charity Brook. The event is on March 3. www.brook.org.ukconference-and-awards
Countdown is on
The Royal Institution, a charity that promotes science, is running sessions to help maths teachers hold masterclasses. The next one is on February 25 in Perth. www.rigb.orgmaths
Chemical attraction
Nobel laureates will discuss why chemistry matters in a new series of videos to promote the subject as part of the International Year of Chemistry 2011. A total of 16 laureates will appear in the four videos. The videos are free to download and can be found at http:nobelprize.org
CITIZENSHIP
What is it
This is a set of resources designed to be used around Fairtrade Fortnight, which runs from February 28 to March 13.
How to use it
The collection includes resources on Fairtrade and cocoa, featuring lesson plans on Fairtrade chocolate, photos and films showing the journey from bean to bar and a series of webcasts made by the children of cocoa farmers, suitable for key stage 3 pupils (uploaded by kerriemo). A PowerPoint on the environmental impact of growing coffee, also aimed at KS3 classes, can be used as a lesson starter, followed by a quiz on where coffee comes from and how much we drink (both llequette).
Weblinks to the Fairtrade and Cafod (Catholic Overseas Development Agency) sites provide lesson plans and resources, including PowerPoint presentations, activities and homework ideas (both TES web staff). A Christian Aid assembly looks at where food comes from and who produces it (LearnGG) and a short film features two banana producers from the Dominican Republic (TES resources team).
Four KS3 lessons, supported by Teachers TV videos, look at Fairtrade in Pakistan (planuk), while another resource asks pupils to design a presentation to inform consumers about Fairtrade (Google). For KS4 pupils, a PowerPoint with supporting worksheets looks at the banana trade and includes classroom activities and homework ideas (njlee).
Where to find it
The collection can be found at www.tes.co.ukfairtrade-fortnight
SEN
What is it
This is a series of 20 resources aimed at teachers of children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD). It is intended to cover a range of teaching needs, from advisory or refresher material to complete lessons. It covers primary and secondary stages and most of it is in a format that can be easily personalised or amended.
How to use it
The collection includes a checklist of steps to manage behaviour that can be put on the staff noticeboard (uploaded by pived). A worksheet aims to raise children’s emotional awareness by highlighting the physical changes that accompany anger (rooneys), while a PowerPoint gives pupils suggestions for ways of calming down (georgetimlin) and a spinner showing faces expressing different moods can be used during circle time (SEN Teacher).
A weblink to a site that looks at moving from primary to secondary school includes tips on coping with the transition, which can be a particularly stressful period for children with BESD (starfish1954).
A link to an article by behaviour management consultant Rob Long focuses on challenging negative thinking, which can be useful for children with low self-esteem (educationworks). Three different styles of reward charts have football, The Simpsons or solar system themes as a way of encouraging better behaviour (missjulieclark).
Teaching resources that can be particularly effective when used with children with BESD include a lesson on Tibetan prayer flags as an introduction to Buddhism (simspurejuice) and a worksheet on FA Cup statistics that aims to provide a manageable amount of data that pupils can then turn into sentences (St.Christophersschool).
Where to find it
The collection can be found at www.tes.co.ukSEN-BESD
ENGLISH
What is it
This is a set of resources designed for World Book Day on March 3. It has been put together by TES English with the help of the English and Media Centre, a not-for-profit trust that provides publications and professional development for English teachers.
How to use it
Key stage 3 resources in the collection include puzzles and quizzes relating to World Book Day (uploaded by TES English). There is also a worksheet on Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, featuring a range of pupil activities, and an accompanying video interview with the author, where he discusses the swearing in the novel, which is suitable for KS5 pupils. Videos from The Poetry Station can be used to explore imagery and as a basis for creative-writing (both English and Media Centre).
Among the KS4 collection are resources on Give by Simon Armitage and Medusa by Carol Ann Duffy (both TES English) and a unit of work on the Sherlock Holmes story Silver Blaze (English and Media Centre). Revision materials for The Crucible are based on a game of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? (lottielizzie).
Where to find it
www.tes.co.ukworldbookday
COMPETITION
TES English is running a competition to mark World Book Day, inviting teachers and pupils to submit photos of themselves dressed up as their favourite literary characters. Prizes include book tokens, an iPad and a range of English resources. www.tes.co.ukworldbookday.
