Creativity and thinking outside the box are my key principles after 21 years of teaching. I try and push the boundaries and take risks along the way - some work out and others don't; the ones that have worked out are on here. I hope you find them useful.
Creativity and thinking outside the box are my key principles after 21 years of teaching. I try and push the boundaries and take risks along the way - some work out and others don't; the ones that have worked out are on here. I hope you find them useful.
Narrative unit of work based on Friend or Foe by Michael Morpurgo. Includes at least 10 days planning, supporting PPTs, exemplar story, story maps and chapter-by-chapter comprehension questions.
5 minute activities based on different styles of learning. The bomb explodes when the time is up. Great for morning or afternoon registration - even better as time fillers. Which type of learner is each child in your class?
A great way of keeping the children's science brains active. Touching on a topic in science once in a while means that, very often the children forget it 2 months down the line and so I created a mental science session. The session can be 5 or 30 mins long and is carried out verbally or on whiteboards. The children colour in a box every time they get a question correct which gives them a chance to evaluate the areas of science they are not so confident in. There are questions on: Animals & Humans, Forces, Electricity, Sound, Rocks & Minerals, Earth & Space and Living Things. I have used this with my classes and they absolutely loved the fast paced nature of it and the fact that they were constantly having to think back to things they had covered ages ago. Great Science assessment scores as a result!
A comprehensive bundle of resources based on Macbeth.
Includes:
- Planning and resources for Narrative, Poetry, Diaries, Formal Letters, Drama and Playscripts.
- Additional resources for Non Chrons and Advertising.
- Letter to parents launching unit with costume suggestions for drama.
- Targets
- Learning Journey PPT
Use my free resource, Macbeth Storyline, to accompany the unit.
Taught originally in KS2 but can be used in KS3 and KS4 with minor adjustments.
If you need to over-teach some of the basics in maths, this is a great warm-up for the class.
Choose a number, then decide what they need to add and subtract to it and provide them with a time limit if you need to.
The boxes can be changed to include anything you are covering or to suit your year group e.g. Roman numerals, nearest 1000 etc.
For every chapter in the book by Louis Sachar there are a variety of questions to be used in whole class reading sessions or small group guided reading.
A pack of 13 comprehensive lesson plans with photos of finished work to support the planning. Originally planned for Year 6 but adaptable for all year groups. Plans cover: Silk painting, Printing, Painting, Stencils, Clay, Collage and Mod-roc.
If you're about to start a Big Write this might help. I've put together a basic PPT which takes you through a whole session and can be adapted for any task you can think of.
ADDSPICE sentence starters bingo and prompt cards.
Laminate the bingo cards or shrink them to quarter the size to stick in books - a brilliant way to encourage children to start their sentences differently.
A comprehensive selection of resources that provide planning, resources and activities based on a variety of texts including: Street Child, Friend or Foe, The Silver Sword, Macbeth, Journalistic Writing, There’s A Boy In The Girl’s Bathroom and Rose Blanche.
A pack of 12 comprehensive lesson plans originally planned for Year 3 but can be used throughout KS2. Painting, Clay, Soft Pastels, Mehndi Patterns, Land Art, Picasso and Printing. Examples of finished pieces to support the plans.
A two week unit of work for journalistic writing. It focuses on Dresden, Dunkirk and DDay and covers both the German reporting and British reporting. A comprehensive PPT contains audio assignments for children and masterclasses in note-taking and interviewing techniques. Used originally with Year 6 but suitable for KS3 and 4 with regard to the moral debate.
If you are stuck for a story/sentence/paragraph starter then the Writer's Block Head will give you an aide memoir for how to start in a variety of ways. Children can draw parts of the Writer's Block Head too as they write to see how many different ways they can start their sentences. There is a poster and PPT explaining the different elements and examples too. For KS1 I have simplified the Writer's Block Head so that they are not overwhelmed.
[https://youtube.com/channel/UCvF3WCXm6oXstd2_cioRskQ]
For those of you wanting to close the vocabulary gap, I’ve set up a YouTube channel aimed at giving parents and children easy ways to expand their vocabulary.
Each week, I post 2 videos explaining why words are so important and what you can do to collect more words in everyday life.
The more words we know, the more choices we have in life and the better our chances of a happy and successful future.
