Thursday, June 25, 2009
Have your say, June 2009
Some interesting opportunities, consultations and free resources for learners and teachers available now.
The DCSF has published a second cookbook in the "Real Meals" series. This one focuses on picnic and packed lunch food and features 20 recipes with clear instructions. Printed copies are available free for all Year Six pupils. The recipe book is also available to download, so younger and older children can access it too. Download the Recipe book here. The previous cookery book is also available free of charge by following the same link.
Schools Question Time is a special edition of the BBC One programme with the usual panel of politicians and social commentators being replaced with a panel of young people aged 14-18 from schools across the country. The programme will also have young people working as part of the production team. Schools Question Time will be broadcast on 9th July and although the competition to be on the panel has closed, there are two other ways for young people and children to have their say. They can vote on which of the finalists they would like to see on the panel on the night: each finalist has made a video. Click here to view and vote or click here to apply for free tickets to be part of the audience for the show and ask a question on the night.
12 Seconds TV is a website which allows registered users to make short (12 seconds !) videos via their mobile phone or webcam and email them to the site, where their family, friends or colleagues can view them. Each video can only be 12 seconds long, so it is a kind of video version of Twitter. Use of the site is free and users need to be over 13.
Futurelab have produced a free resource for all those involved in managing a school through a re-design process as part of their collaboration with Becta for the Beyond Current Horizons programme. Vision mapper has free ideas and resources to support the process at each stage and is designed to encourage the re-designng process to lead to and support the most transformative designs and visions for new schools.
We have selected two DSCF consultations seeking the views of teachers, parents, learners currently running on Science Education and Home Education. These and all other DSCF consultations can be accessed by following this link. Following the review of home education, the Government is proposing to introduce arrangements for the registration and monitoring of home educated children. The consultation closes on Monday 19 October 2009.
Science and Learning. This consultation seeks to establish the perceptions from both the science and education communities, and from young people and their parents, about the strengths and weaknesses of the current education of young people in science and mathematics. Closing Date: Friday 18 September 2009
Shine Week is 6-10th July so just time to get involved. The website has lots of ideas and examples of how schools can use this time to showcase and recognise the talent in their children and young people which may get hidden under the usual timetable and curriculum.Shine Week is about celebrating all talent, it can be in the performing arts but it can also be in technology, science or working in the community. Last year around a million young people and 2,500 schools took part. Free resources, event packs, ideas and examples from last years Shine Festival are all on the website.
Newspapers for schools. The newspaper licensing agency has launched a website giving free access to newspapers and archives for all educational institutions with learners under 16 attending. Registered schools will be able to use and reproduce newspaper articles and copy without concerns over copyright issues. There is a registration form, but the service is free. The site has a News Library for registered users to search for articles relevant to their lessons/course/issue. UK major national newspapers such as the Guardian and the Times have given access to their material to this site as well as 100s regional titles.