Topical Teaching

Courtesy of The Guardian:

This display was posted by @piesatthekippax. He said: “I only moved into year 6 in December last year (I’m still a newly-qualified teacher). I wanted to create a mural that would create a real wow-factor and I have had idea for a landscape for a few months now. My plan is to add details throughout the year. This will mainly include literary characters that we look at throughout the year. I also plan to include inspirational quotes. The children will also decide what they want to add to it themselves.”

Vincent Rice (@MiloVent24), a year 5 teacher from Lord Street primary school, sent us this. It’s the background for his class’s art display, and Rice says it took him hours. “It’s focusing on colours, the classroom was a state when I got in there; it was dark, dingy, dusty and not child friendly. Five days, 16 bin bags and lots of laminating later we have my new class.” Rice said he had heard that the children in his new class were interested in art deco so he created the wall to inspire them. Around this wall they will have an “artist of the month” display, focusing on both well-known and lesser-known work.

Jen English, a geography teacher at Wellington school in Cheshire, sent us her words display after finding the idea on Twitter and Pinterest. “I have spent the last year telling students to be more specific in their writing. Fed up of having to correct words like “people” and “place” I have decided to ban these words in writing.

I challenge my pupils to look for an alternative word when doing peer marking or teacher marking. I get students to highlight any banned words when they are used, and replace them with another word. “Then I use my display in class activities to get students to post their alternative words on the display.”

Rebecca Franks, curriculum leader of computing at The Kingswinford school, sent us this display. “The smoothie hut was designed to get the students to understand the word ‘algorithm’,” she said. Franks looked up “tiki hut” on the internet for inspiration and built it up from there. “I think that the best displays should simply ask a question that gets the students to think of their own answer.”

Franks also sent us another display she made which is designed to get students to think about where they are going. It’s displayed in the school’s inclusion room. And a magic themed display about algorithms.

Click on the link to read Classrooms the Swedish Way

I love this pie graph I stumbled across from ukedchat.com. It dispels the very frustrating myth that teacher fall into teaching because of a lack of other opportunities or for the generous holidays.

I chose to teach like most of the teachers surveyed, out of a desire to make a difference in an area I felt was in need of more idealism and passion. I also obviously enjoy working with students and really appreciate how lucky I have been to work with so many gifted and caring individuals.

What is the reason you chose teaching?

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