Eight Ideas from Eight Teachers Vol #3 | WAGOLL Teaching Ideas by WAGOLL Teaching

Vol. 3 | March 2020

Ideas 8 8 Sharing great teaching ideas with the world of education.

from

Teachers Amazingteachingideas sharedbyteachers, forteachers!

Contents Engage Your Class In Writing 5 How to use SCRATCH to support childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s writing.

Magic Words

Praise Phrases for Positive Behaviour

Teaching Vocabulary In Your Classroom

Breaking down the fear of maths through clever teaching.

Get Friendly With Your Fixed Mindset Learn to look after you as a teacher first.

What Teaching Taught Me About Motherhood

Introducing the Daily Mile

The Diary of a newly Qualified Mum!

Get (and keep) your children running!

Gamification In The Classroom

Shaping the Habits of the Future

An NQT Crash Course In Resilience.

5 SMALL classroom changes that could make a BIG difference for our world.

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Featured Writers

@misslearningbee

Tam (Miss Learning Bee) is from Sydney Australia. She is an Assistant Principal and also teaches a Kindergarten class. She is particularly passionate about all things literacy and creative. Her #FrothinonPhonics handbook contains almost 200 pages of strategies, tips and tricks for teaching phonics and spelling in the classroom. It is FREE for all teachers! She is also a big believer in the importance of teaching kids to be kind and emotionally resilient little humans.

by @PobbleEducation

Louise Robinson is an experienced teacher and literacy lead, working with Pobble to support teachers with the teaching of writing.

by @TheProductiveTeacher

Hi! I am currently a Year 6 teacher in a junior academy in Peterborough. I have only been teaching 4 years but in that time I have discovered a passion for words for that has inspired the way I teach across the curriculum.

@WAGOLLTeaching

I'm Ben from WAGOLL Teaching. We create and share free professional development videos focused on great teaching ideas! Our aim is to build a community of teachers from across the world who wish to develop and improve their teaching by sharing great ideas.

@GrowYourMindset

Gemma Sanchez is the co-founder of Grow Your Mindset and delivers training and coaching to school staff, as well and providing workshops for children around the theory of mindsets.

@Mr_Minchin

My name is Blair, I'm a primary teacher currently working in Edinburgh. I have a real interest in Music, Sport and STEAM and am an advocate of restorative practice and pupil voice.

by by @goodmorningmsfoster

I'm Jen. I have been teaching for 8 years from ages 5 - 11. I have done multiple roles including working within the senior leadership team. I started my gram I moved to teach in Malaysia. I was fully able to express my sheer passion for teaching. I also noticed the vast gap from university to your first year of teaching. The countless things we are not taught and the huge challenges we face. I decided I wanted to narrow that gap. Enter FOSTER OUR TEACHERS; my teacher mentorship programme.

@thomasblakemore

I teach, travel and sometimes triumph. I am a huge advocate for making life easier for teachers, children and parents to try and enable a better education system;I try to make a small splash in a big pond. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve taught from year 6 to year 2 and now work in Dubai. Check out my YouTube for a range of teacher travel and tips video linked.

www.wagollteaching.com

Editor's Letter Dear Reader,

of This edition will be the third om 8 as fr WAGOLL Teaching's 8 Ide with the Teachers. I am so pleased content! , e idea of sharing simple th on ilt bu is g hin ac Te WAGOLL bal community of teachers glo a th wi as ide g hin ac te great type of as fortunate to receive the be t no ay m o wh of e m so deserve. This may be ly tru ey th t en m lop ve de cial professionalÂ s or a lack of finan ion at loc l ica ph ra og ge due to investment and support. and global community. se er div a is n sio es of pr The teaching l media and the internet cia so on rs he ac te of s 00 10 all There are proaches. My job is to pull ap om ro ss cla ing az am sharing easy to share in one place that is to er th ge to as ide e es th of access. hing brings the global teac y all re ue iss is th ink I th erse we demonstrates just how div d an er th ge to ity un m m co about all kinds of ng iti wr rs he ac te ve ha all our. We nservation initiatives and co m fro ing ng ra s pic to l wonderfu vocabulary development. ple sim to s gie te ra st n tio ca gamifi th so many fantastic wi rk wo to e leg ivi pr a It truly is ing the next generation. I lop ve de to ed at dic de ls na pired professio just as much as it has ins u, yo es pir ins ue iss is th hope me! Enjoy reading! Ben - WAGOLL Teaching

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Engage

Your Class

If you’re on the lookout for quick and easy ways to support your teaching of writing, then look no further. Here are some tried and tested ways to grab your classes’ attention and engage them in writing.

Find the Right Resources

When it comes to teaching writing, finding creative inspiration and good quality resources for your lessons is time consuming. Rather than trawling search engines for the best ideas, Pobble hosts resources from the best education providers all in one place. Not only that, but the free daily writing activities on Pobble 365 offer powerful prompts and are now integrated into Pobble’s new lesson tool so you can add your own activities. A real timesaver when planning.

@PobbleEducation

Louise Robinson is an experienced teacher and literacy lead, working with Pobble to support teachers with the teaching of writing.

Write for Pleasure Although writing is an essential life skill, it's important that children don’t see it as a chore. To encourage spontaneous writing, make it fun and appealing. A writing area in your class (even at Key stage 2) provides your class with a valuable opportunity to share their voice. Stickers, stamps, coloured pencils and glitter or scented pens add to the fun!

Whole Class Writing Writing doesn’t always have to be an independent task. Working together as a whole class, including you, to produce a piece of writing is great for building confidence. You could start the story yourself or have one person in the class start, then others take turns to add to the piece until everyone has contributed a line. Try one of these other ideas for making group writing more interactive and engaging.

WAGOLL Teaching Podcast Great teaching ideas shared in a short broadcast. Click to Listen Now!

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Writing Use Real Life Writing Examples We all know it’s invaluable for young writers to read as much as possible, but reading a wide range of texts is important too. Reading the work of other young writers allows your class to see the versatility of writing. You can show your class ‘real’ writing and ‘what a good one looks like’ from children across the globe on Pobble.com where you’ll find over 250,000 pieces of children’s written work to use as model texts.

An article by

Give Them an Audience

We know from experience that when children feel proud of their work, they are encouraged to write more and better. So show off their work however you can. This can be either being read out in front of the class, display it around the school or take it one step further by publishing it on Pobble. The Pobble platform gives a real global audience for children’s writing, allowing them to engage with an authentic audience of parents, peers and teachers.

Bring it to Life

Providing a great stimulus for writing offers a rich source of conversation and vocabulary before beginning to write. It can be anything linked to your topic: a photograph, piece of music, a costume, book, animation or story as long as it hooks. So long as it creates an atmosphere to hook the writer. Role play or hot seating is a great way to bring situations to life and provide a basis for exciting writing too.

Get Social Remember you are not alone on your mission to teach the little ones to write. Reach out and ask for help, ideas and inspiration. Social media can provide inspirational, valuable CPD. Networks like Twitter and Pinterest are jam-packed with brilliant teaching ideas.

Set Them Free Encourage note taking, jotting down ideas and continuous reiteration to stimulate experimentation with your classes’ writing. Giving young writers time to write freely, allows them to be naturally creative. We love Cressida Cowell’s ‘Free Writing Friday’ initiative. The idea is that every Friday, the children are given at least ten minutes out of their school day to write whatever they like! For more writing inspiration check out Pobble.com. Tens of thousands of primary school teachers use the platform to teach writing. Individual teacher subscriptions are now available. The first 30 days are free and you can cancel at any time.

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Magic

Words

Teaching vocabulary in your classroom... Words are fantastic and the foundation of everything we teach. It is important that children are exposed to a wide range of words across a range of topics. Lots of research shows that vocabulary can be split into 3 tiers.

Tier 1

Everyday words that we use in communication. These words seldom need any direct teaching and are learned through conversation. E.g happy, sad, hungry, scared, run, play etc

Tier 2

Words found in many content areas. They are high frequency words that need some amount of teaching across the curriculum.

Over the last year, I have become passionate about finding interesting, exciting and innovative ways to embed the teaching and exposure of vocabulary across my school setting. There are two ways you can embed vocabulary within your own classroom and that is either through direct teaching or by the children encountering words independently.

The Magic Ingredients

E.g hilarious, endure, arrange,

Tier 3

Subject specific words that only appear in specific topics. E.g tundra, algebraic

composition,

All children are issued with a Vocabulary Book (a small exercise book) at the start of the year which they can use to record any and all vocabulary that they meet across the curriculum. For SEN/EAL children you could provide print outs or stickers to support any of the activities below. It will take time and practice but over time the children should start using the words they collect within their writing.

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Word of the Day A simple one to start. I use Tier 2 words and to save on teacher workload, you can find a whole host of premade word of the day resources on www.vocabularyninja.co.uk. I get my kids to write down the word, word class, definition, synonyms and antonyms and then give them the opportunity to use the word in a sentence. Doing this means you can see the children understand how to DEFINE, USE and LINK the words they are learning. The children do this during morning/afternoon time, usually whilst I’m doing the register, allowing the children to encounter the words independently and letting them build a bank of vocabulary that they may not have come across through direct teaching.

Organise Vocabulary I hate myself for even mentioning the word OFSTED *cringes internally* however we know they have changed their framework and we know curriculum is a big focus. With this in mind it is important to ensure that vocabulary is prevalent across the curriculum not only in core but also through foundation subjects. When you consider how many foundation subjects there are the thought of teaching new vocabulary for each one may seem like a daunting task, but it doesn’t need to be. Something that I have just implemented in my school is a Topic Vocabulary Organiser, an A4 page detailing all of the vocabulary that could be taught or encountered throughout the foundation subjects being taught within the topic. You could decide to include or leave out the definitions – this could be something the children complete or you could leave the whole document blank and build up the vocabulary over the course of the topic - whatever suits you within your setting.

by @TheProductiveTeacher

Gamification? Everyone has played a version of this game at some point in their life whether it’s guessing celebrities, TV shows or films. It is a versatile game that can also be used to ensure vocabulary knowledge has been embedded. Children work in pairs choosing a new word they have learnt that week - either Word of the Day, Topic or Core vocabulary. Pairs choose each other’s words and they can either ask yes or no questions to work out the answer or their partner can describe the word to them. This can be used as a quick time filler activity, starter task or morning activity.

My Top 4 Reads to Support Vocabulary Closing the Vocabulary Gap – Alex Quigley Mastering Vocabulary: Activities to unlock the world of words - Vocabulary Ninja The Dictionary of Difficult Words – Jane Solomon The Word Collector – Peter H Reynolds

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Praise Phases for

Positive Behaviour by

@WAGOLLTeaching

The Antecedent-Behaviour-Consequence (ABC) Model is a tool that can help teachers examine behaviours. It breaks down the examination into the triggers behind those behaviours, and the impact of those behaviours. If a child wants attention (antecedent), they may shout out in class (behaviour). This results in them being spoken to about not shouting out (consequence). Without realising, the teacher has provided the child with their desire for attention. However, by understanding and identifying the antecedent or trigger, you can indirectly encourage positive behaviour. Sometimes, it is the small things we do and say, the antecedents, that can make all the difference! Some refer to this as the 'setting event' or a 'trigger'. Simply, the antecedent is anything that triggers a behaviour. No ice cream? I cry. Lots of ice cream? I cheer, get too excited and make myself sick! In the classroom, it could be anything from a teacher's question to the presence of another person or even a change of environment.

'I'm feeling great about this lesson!' Sometimes, simply by telling a child you are excited about a lesson or activity can change their mindset too. Particularly for children with a mindset block on a specific subject, they can be encouraged to be more positive about a subject. AÂ reluctant writerÂ may approach a piece of writing in a more positive way just by telling them that you believe in them and you are excited to see their work.

'Thank you for putting your hand up!' I want attention. I shout out. I get in trouble from the teacher. Great, I have gained the attention I desired. Knowing that children want to be heard and want their moment to share their learning with you, should influence how you approachÂ questioning and answering. Before you pick anyone with their hand up, thank those who are ready to contribute with their hand up. That way, they are already receiving the attention they are seeking. Not to mention, others who have yet to put their hand up, will instantly shoot their hand up in the air so they feel part of the praise! Yipeee!

When attempting to trigger a positive outcome, antecedents can be manipulated to foster certain behaviours - and most often this is in the things that we say as teachers.

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'I know you had the answer too, well done!' Everyone's hands are up! There are groans of over stretching from various members of the class, who are desperate to be the ones to tell you the answer. You pick the boy in the corner, whose face is slowly turning a deep pink due to the fact that he has forgotten to breath whilst desperately waiting for you to pick him. At that moment there is a huge release of air and disappointment from the other 28 children who also wanted a small snippet of your attention. Congratulate those who may also have had the correct answer. 'Were you going to say that too? Well done!' Not only will this further encourage children's participation in the discussion but they have received that positive praise they have been craving all along.

'You are playing so well.'

We celebrate hard work in lessons and we praise positive attitudes to learning but do we ever congratulate children on playing well at break and lunch? Antecedents at these times are vital and play a huge part in the behaviour and relationships of children. Feeling nervous or intimidated by the playground can result in a child developing negative behaviours as a defence. Encourage great playing and social interactions through simple praise. Additionally, let them know why they are playing so well. Are they taking turns? Are the communicating clearly and fairly? Are they including everyone around them? If they know what theÂ Success CriteriaÂ is for playing well, they can further develop these skills and focus on them. Praise one child for using great manners and, within a second, you will hear more pleases and thank yous than ever before!

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Get

Friendly with

your

Fixed

Mindset! Why getting friendly with your fixed, is just

important

developing

your

growth mindset.

Since making the leap of faith to leave my teaching job of 15 years to embark on my own business, developing mindsets across schools and businesses, I’ve learned that networking with like-minded people can be of enormous possibility and continuous development. So when I spotted Ben Cooper and his WAGOLL ideas, I was keen to find out more. What interested me most was that he too had ideas and thoughts about Growth Mindset and even though he is based in the much sunnier UAE, our passion for developing and supporting children to allow them to be the best they can be, was clear. Ben recently posted a Vlog on the development of Growth Mindset and he had some great ideas. Making mistakes, collaborative learning, praise the process rather than outcome, all super tips and pointers. In this mini blog, I just wanted to add a couple of ideas of my own, to support Ben’s.

The S.O.S Strategy No, not save our sausages, but a strategy that everyone can use because ultimately mindset is about choice. When developing the idea with the children, I use actions too, but the message is the most important part.

S O S

Stop, when you hear your fixed mindset coming into play, saying “I can’t do this, this is too hard, I can’t be bothered…” just notice it, don’t ignore it.

Observe, how does this mindset make you feel? Fixed often produces negative emotions. Worry, anxiety, stress, anger.

Shift, now you choose. Are you going to stay fixed, feeling negative or can you change and shift your mindset to become more growth orientated? “I will give this is a go, it’s hard because my neurons are firing, I’m going to put effort into this….”

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The more we do this, the easier it becomes because we are requiring our brain to think differently. We just have to be prepared to put the effort in at first.

'Celebrate Your Fixed Mindset!' Another tip, is to talk about and celebrate a fixed mindset. So often it is deemed as a negative thing, but actually this is where the magic happens. Being the facilitator for change, means we should talk to the children about our fixed mindset moments and seek advice from our pupils on how we could have reacted differently.

@GrowYourMindset

Gemma Sanchez is the co-founder of Grow Your Mindset and delivers training and coaching to school staff, as well and providing workshops for children around the theory of mindsets.

They have some brilliant ideas and often, things we havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even thought of. Encourage the children to do this too. I used to have a letter box, where children posted their fixed mindset moments in and in those snippets of time, we would get one out and talk about it in a supportive way, but also celebrate if someone managed to change from fixed to growth.

'Discover more about the brain!' Finally, teach the children about how their brain learns. Once the children understand the science behind learning, how their brains makes neural connections that get stronger the more we practise something, it can be a real game changer for them. Good luck with developing your growth mindset classroom or even school. It really is an exciting journey that I love being part of!

Have you watched our YouTube PD?

Simply great teaching ideas. www.wagollteaching.com

What Teaching Taught Me About

Motherhood! The Diary of a newly Qualified Mum!

iI’s currently 15:32 on a Sunday. Miles has been in this world for 14 days today! I am sitting here with Miles laying on me with a Spotify nature sounds playlist on. He looks so peaceful! It is cool that I need a wee and probably won’t be moving for a while. i better skip past the ocean sounds quickly.

by @goodmorningmsfoster

These last two weeks have been… I mean, how can I even try to summarise it? How about a list? Does that work? It has been overwhelming, surprising, emotional, educational, scary, exciting, full of love and pride and oh my goodness what is the point of writing every adjective in the dictionary. I have had a lot of mixed emotions!

One thing that really struck me, in the first few days, was how instinctive being a Mumma is. I was also surprised at how much knowledge and understanding I could use from my teaching. I found myself using classroom developed skills at home. I thought I would share some of these with you today. Partly because I like the idea of jotting down my thoughts and partly to connect with you all with how incredible being a teacher really is.

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Maslow is everything! As you guys already know, I’m really into behaviour management. I’ve shared before the importance of Maslow above all and should be your first thoughts when faced with baffling behaviour. For those who are unsure what I am talking about and are about to click off…I am talking about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. A theory that outlines how learning cannot occur until basic needs have been met. With a baby, this really has been our bible. Why is Miles crying? Let’s check the needs; does he need feeding? Is he tired? Does he need the toilet? Is he uncomfortable? I mean, I’ve only been a Mumma for 2 weeks but surely it is only going to be one of those at this point? This has kinda saved our sanity and helped us solve the crying riddle - most of the time at least!

Structure Is Sanity Jimmy and I went to an antenatal course and they said ‘forget about structure, you will have no structure with a newborn and you need to accept that.’ I remember how we looked at each other trying not to gasp. You can imagine the horror we felt as teachers.

Obviously you can’t train your newborn to feed and sleep at a certain time. However, you can have structures in place. Jimmy and I have already started this. For example, bath time and reading before bed. Or tummy time before we have our dinner. Jimmy normally has morning cuddles while I shower and get ready and we swap. Jimmy does night time changes and I do the feeds #structure. We HAD to carve a structure for our sanity. Structure is security, I am You know how much I love using music in the used to creating that for my kids. Now? I create it for classroom. It really is my go to. Music has such a myself! powerful impact on how we feel and respond. The hardest part for me was (and is) the crying. I get such an emotional reaction and it breaks my heart. Miles cries the most during changing (yay). Jimmy is great at dealing with this but I am not! I have been experimenting with different playlists to calm Miles. Currently I am on nature sounds and it seems to be working! I’m not saying it’s fool proof, it’s not a potion or hypnosis but I do think it helps. More than that? I think it helps the adults. Just like when my class got out of control, music would help to calm them and me. Children feed off your energy, I always wanted a calm energy in my classroom and I’m trying to do the same with my boy.

Rhythm is a dancer

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Multi-sensory is the way! Trial and Error

A HUGE part of my teaching ethos. Super simple really, just engage as many of the senses as possible for the best learning experience. When we have felt stuck and Maslow hasn’t helped, Jimmy and I have always had this concept in our back pocket for ideas. Does it always work? God no. But it’s all about back up plans, in and out of the classroom!

One of the biggest lessons I learnt as a teacher is not to be disheartened when a strategy goes wrong. Try to reflect, adapt and try again. This is easier said than done - right? Your pumped for a lesson, you’ve just been on training, you try it out and BOOM - chaos! You want to run away and never do it again right? But how do we ever improve and perfect our practise if we run from our failures? We have to practise what we preach right? Growth mindset. Try and try again. With Miles, we had no idea where to start. I mean, do any new parents? But we NEVER stop talking and adapting. I mean, sometimes we drive ourselves a bit mad doing it. Maybe it is because we had too many people round today? Maybe it is because we had bath time later? Maybe it is because it is Sunday and we are both a little anxious? Maybe it is nothing? Constant questioning can drive us crazy, but just sometimes, we find an answer and we fix a problem. One at a time.

Love There is a quote I have always held close. ‘If you can’t teach them, love them, love will teach them.’ It is normally my go to for all those children we can’t ‘figure out’, for the behaviour we just don’t understand. Now, it is my drive and my entire being. People told me you can never prepare for the amount of love you have for your child. It really is the truest and most undeniable thing I have ever been told. I have only been a mother for 2 weeks. I do not have everything figured out and I am pretty sure I never will and that doesn’t exist. But love is wildly powerful and when all else fails I know that will never ever go away. It is so funny writing this because as I come to the end, I realise, it is not about Miles at all. It is about me. Having a baby is a life changing, earth shaking event that alters everything. However, throughout these last two weeks, these simple teaching ideas and strategies have kept my feet on the ground and in the right direction. Similar to teaching, is it not all a reflection of us? Our mindset? Our demeanour with our children? Our confidence and our ability to keep going no matter what the day throws at us? I don’t know what the next two weeks will hold. Well probably tears, probably some projectile poos, probably lots of sleepless nights and probably the most amazing moments of my life. No matter what it brings!

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Free example texts to support the teaching of writing! www.literacywagoll.com

To advertise here, contact literacywagoll@outlook.com

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Introducing...

Mile!

The

Daily

Get (and keep) your children running!

If you haven’t already heard of The Daily Mile it is a regular part of my pupils day. For 15 minutes, come rain or shine, we get outside and we run laps of the playground at our own pace. At least, that was until late last year, when the enthusiasm started to wain. It was cold; it was wet; our all-concrete playground was slippy and the puddles in parts were ankle deep.

'Pupils were imploring me to bring the whole thing to a halt.' Yet, rather than succumb to the elements or tell my kids to power through the repetitive nature of running in circles around the playground, I decided to change up our routine; and the class have been delighted with the result. So here are my top 5 ways to change up your daily mile:

WAGOLL Teaching Podcast

The Bolt Lane The class came up with the name and it’s very fitting. Mark out a rectangular area for your pupils to manoeuvre around. Designated one of the longer sides as ‘The Bolt Lane’ and task your pupils with running ask quickly as they can along this straight before having a recovery walk around the other three sides and repeating.

Categories In the middle of your running area, mark out a small square. Your pupils then begin running around their track. You can then shout out a category (Blonde Hair) and all pupils who fall into that category race into the middle of the square. The first one into the middle then gets to shout out the next category, with the others returning to jogging around the area. Now, make it funny: Pizza Hut over Dominoes; Mr Minchin is your favourite teacher; Mr Minchin is your LEAST favourite teacher.

WAGOLL Teaching Podcast Great teaching ideas shared in a short broadcast. Click to Listen Now!

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by @Mr_Minchin

My name is Blair, I'm a primary teacher currently working in Edinburgh. I have a real interest in Music, Sport and STEAM and am an advocate of restorative practice and pupil voice.

Clean the Graden Send all your pupils to find two stones or sticks in the playground (if not you could hand out shuttlecocks or similar). Split them into two teams at either end of the playground. The aim of the game is to clean your area of sticks and stones by placing them into your opponents area. In order to make the game fair, ensure that pupils can only pick up one object at a time.

Relay Race

A Peloton

This is a fairly straightforward one. Divide your class into teams of roughly six and have three line up at one end of the playground and three at the other. Running as fast as they can, they run to the other side, tag their partner and join the end of the line. There are no winners, the kids just run for the 15 minutes. However, you can put in a few twists. For example, you can call out that everyone has to do their next sprint hopping or pretending to ride a horse.

Definitely the most complicated event but when the class understand how it works they absolutely love it. The whole class run around the track at their own pace. However, every third lap is a race lap with first, second and third getting 3, 2 and 1 points respectively. The tricky bit comes in that you as the facilitator have to always have your eyes on the person in first place, as pupils can still fall a whole lap behind and yet compete on race lap if they are in the same ‘straight’ as the leader. (if this one isn’t making sense, maybe best just to ignore!)

Target Practice Setup a coconut shy of sorts at one end of the playground. Every time the pupils get to the that part of the track they have the opportunity to try and knock off a coconut for which they win a small prize (a piece of Haribo or 10 minutes in the teachers chair next lesson). For a real crowd pleaser, get yourself a large bucket of water, a load of cut up sponges and invite the kids to try and soak you every lap on a warm summers day. Trust me, from my own experience, you’ll rarely see kids run quicker in your life!

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Gamification in the classroom Defined, gamification is the application of game-design elements and game principles in non-game contexts. In education, this involves turning once mundane topics into something fun and exciting through game-type activities. Gamification within the classroom has been found to improve participation and engagement leading to more motivated learners within the classroom (Landers and Landers, 2014).

As a 90’s child, I grew up int the golden age of gaming (I believe): Pokemon, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Mario- the classics! During my childhood I remember playing a range of different games. The excitement and challenge, always left me wanting more. Some of my key memories of my time in primary school were the games that invoked the greatest emotion: Competitive times tables and a range of quizzes. Here are some ways that you could incorporate gamification within your teaching

Technology

It doesn’t take an academic journal to inform us of the vast developments within technology within the classroom. Technology can enhance learning through several processes such as providing students with instant feedback, making additional resources readily available, or allowing them to practice their skills at their own pace and test their own knowledge. There is a plethora of different online resources to facilitate learning within the 2020 classroom:Kahoot, Pobble, StudyLadder (amazing for home learning) and many other test based platforms engage children through instant feedback and competitivity. Furthermore, Online interactive games such as Times Tables rockstars and a variety from MathsFrame further develop mathematical ability.

by @thomasblakemore

I teach, travel and sometimes triumph. I am a huge advocate for making life easier for teachers, children and parents to try and enable a better education system;I try to make a small splash in a big pond. I’ve taught from year 6 to year 2 and now work in Dubai. Check out my YouTube for a range of teacher travel and tips video linked.

www.wagollteaching.com

'Sometimes stepping away from technology can help too'

Despite the increased accessibility and effectiveness of online resources, many educators are concerned by the increased ‘screen time’ within schools. There are many ways to gamify your lessons without technology.

cOLLABORATION AND cLANS

Love them or hate them, games like Minecraft or the dreaded but popular Fortnite encourage gamers to work in teams within some modes. ‘Teamwork makes the dream work’ is one of my cliché classroom chants. A collaborative approach can be developed by putting children into teams and assigning a range of roles: Leader, notetaker, safety monitor, etc. This enables children to consider their role without domineering.

Badges and Levels

Pokemon was always due to the way progress was visible. Children can gain accolades by achieving a set goal over a course of time. Read 5 times a week for a month? Why not become a reading ranger (why do Some research by Hanus & Fox (2015) suggested that teachers love alliteration so much?) there can be some potential negative consequence of an overly gamified curriculum coverage. They suggest that gamified systems strongly featuring rewards Like a game of Super Mario, children can practice a may have negative effects- particularly towards those range of concepts before battling it off with an expert who lack intrinsic motivation and are unable to achieve within the classroom or, if you’re feeling confident, YOU! such rewards. Thankfully, there isn’t a great amount of research around the impact of gamification within the classroom (Sanchez et. al, 2019) This encourages teachers to adopt gamification in the classroom whilst closely monitoring the impact of activities on children. In other words, I stopped playing Pokemon Gold because I couldn’t beat Red the final trainer. We don’t want children to do the same with their learning so try and Ah, you’ve died! Luckily as part of a video game you can ensure that children build motivation by succeeding as go again. Developing a ‘second life’ mentality can help well as failing.

nEGATIVES?

Bosses and battles

Second Life

children gain resilience when things don’t go perfect each time, helping children embrace failure.

Quests and cHALLENGES

Remember Zelda or Runescape? These encorproate the focal point of quests. Quests and challenges can be used to inspire an enquiry based approach. Find the most suitable rock to create a Stone Age Wheel challenges pupils to ask a range of questions to complete an open quest. Add a badge/ accolade in (Chief UGGineer) and we have a strong motivational factor.

Hanus, M. D., & Fox, J. (2015). Assessing the effects of gamification in the classroom: A longitudinal study on intrinsic motivation, social comparison, satisfaction, effort, and academic performance. Computers & Education, 80, 152-161 Landers, R. N., & Landers, A. K. (2014). An Empirical Test of the Theory of Gamified Learning: The Effect of Leaderboards on Time-on-Task and Academic Performance. Simulation & Gaming, 45(6), 769–785. doi:10.1177/1046878114563662 Sanchez, D. R., Langer, M., & Kaur, R. (2019). Gamification in the classroom: Examining the impact of gamified quizzes on student learning. Computers & Education. Doi:10.1016

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Shaping the habits of the Future! 5 SMALL classroom changes that could make a BIG difference for our world. I write this article at a time when Australia is in the midst of being ravaged by bushfires that are on a completely unprecedented level. It’s been scary, it’s been heartbreaking, and the losses have been huge. There is an enormous amount of frustration amongst the Australian public (and the world), with people wanting to see far more decisive action being taken on climate change. At times, it can be so hard to not feel incredibly helpless, particularly when our leaders just don’t seem to be doing anywhere near enough. But change has got to start somewhere, no matter how small those changes might be. And as teachers, we have one of the most important roles to play. Because the example we set in our own classrooms is shaping the very people who will be our next generation of leaders and policy makers. So, with that in mind, here are just five small changes that could make a big difference for our world in 2020 and beyond.

'End the reign of plastic classrooms' We all know the enormous problems that plastic is causing all around the world. So, let’s not let our classrooms become plastic kingdoms and be a part of the problem! Just a few of the ways that you could reduce plastic in your classroom this year: Plastic Alternatives

They might be a bit more expensive, but on the plus side, they are likely to last a lot longer rather than cheap plastic which is very prone to breaking! It’s easy to be tempted by pretty looking ideas on Instagram or Pinterest, or by the endless amounts of colourful items that you can find at places like Kmart or Target… and there’s nothing wrong with pretty resources! But try to resist the ones that are essentially just gimmicky plastic items! Give Up the Prize Box

I have been guilty in the past of having a prize box full of little bits and pieces I’ve found in $2 shops. But at best, the kids will use these prizes for a short time, and then they will just become more landfill. Create other alternatives for your prizes- one of my favourite sorts of prizes are experience-based one e.g. desk swap, shoes off, free play, technology time, class DJ etc. SAve the Cups!

Most of my students (and I) have re-usable drink bottles, which is a really easy way of reducing our plastic imprint. One of my goals for this year is to also be much better at using my reusable coffee cup- I am guilty of being lazy about always remembering it. But, it's another way I can set a good example to my students, and significantly reduce the amount of plastic I’m consuming!

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by @misslearningbee

Plastic Wallet pROBLEMS

I am working towards finding ways to store my resources without relying on single use plastic like snap lock bags. Sturdy containers and folders, pouches, ring clips, drawstring bags, pencil cases, baskets and mini drawers are just some alternatives! paper pARTIES

If you're having a class party, doing an experiment, creating an artwork or creating a game, choose PAPER cups, plates and cutlery instead of the plastic versions. Wherever possible, use existing cups, plates and cutlery that already exist at your school- even if it means you need to do a bit of washing up!!

'I'm rethinking lamination...' This is a big one and it's an idea that's really beginning to trend amongst teachers, which I’m so glad about. Too often, laminating everything in sight becomes the default for teachers. I have definitely been very guilty of this too. But what we are doing is taking something that CAN break down (paper) and covering it in something that will not (plastic). That perspective really can help you to stop and think: is the laminating I'm about to do REALLY necessary??

Sustainable Gifts

At the end of the year, lots of teachers (myself included) like to give their students a little gift. In the past, I’ve been very guilty of giving plastic- based gifts. Last year, I really tried to think more sustainably and long term with the gifts that I gave my students. I created a ‘bee kind’ version of noughts and crosses, using cloth bags from Kmart and pebbles from Bunnings. I also placed succulent clippings in mini terracotta pots from Kmart- not only was it a more sustainable gift, but it was something that my students could hopefully keep and tend to for many years to come!

How much you reduce your laminating is a personal choice. I personally do still laminate a few games/activities that are handled by my little kids day in and day out because these activities just do not last the year otherwise. But I have stopped laminating artworks or anything that goes up onto my walls- no one touches these things, so why do they need to be laminated?! Yes, a display might last a few more years if I laminate it. But, in reality, it will continue to last for thousands of years after that as well- long after I’ve stopped needing it! Given how often resources and displays become outdated and need to be replaced, is ‘lasting longer’ really enough of a reason to laminate them?!

Eco-Artists...

Some of the materials we use for art and craft activities can be terrible for our planet- particularly things like plastic straws and glitter. Glitter is a microplastic that does not bio-degrade and washes into our waterways, causing huge problems for marine life. Substitute paper straws for plastic straws and choose eco-friendly glitter- it's more expensive but means you can still do all the things that sparkle, but guilt free!

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The Wipe Mat Revolution

These have been an absolute GAME CHANGER in my classroom! Instead of laminating games or activities, just slide them into the wipe mats and they are ready to go! You can get wipe mats from lots of different stores- mine are from Modern Teaching Aids. Don't get click happy

There are SO many activities and games out there for teachers to use. But many can involve a LOT of prep and laminating, for very little gain. I recommend purchasing or downloading resources that have MULTIPLE uses, rather than something that will only be used once or twice. Not only will it save you a LOT of prep time, but you won’t be laminating lots of unnecessary things!

'Go Nude!' My school encourages students to bring ‘nude food’ recess and lunches. This is otherwise known as a ‘waste-free lunch’, where there are no wrappers or packaging. Lots of lunch boxes these days come with little compartments- like this one that is available on Amazon. Alternatively, students can use little containers or beeswax/cotton sandwich wraps or pouches. There are LOTS of options out there! You can make it a big deal in your class or school with initiatives like ‘Nudie Tuesdays’ or ‘Waste-free Wednesdays’. It’s also generally a good idea to send home waste-free lunch ideas and alternatives for parents- not only will this support your students in bringing their nude food lunches, but it helps you to partner with families and encourage them to be more sustainably minded as well! It can also be great to get your canteen on board. My school's canteen is fantastic- they ask students to bring in keep cups for soup and hot chocolates, they use recyclable packaging, they cook with produce from our school veggie garden, and they work hard to ensure minimal food waste. We are lucky enough to have volunteers who cook all of our canteen food from scratch, which also reduces the amount of packaging. Your school canteen might not have the capacity to do all of these things, but talk to them about what they CAN do. Encouraging recyclable packaging or re-usable cups is a great place to start!

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'Buy less, re-use more'

This is a big one. We live in such a consumerist time where everything is disposable and replaceable. Something has a little dent? Buy a new one. Something isn’t quite what you want? Buy a new one. Something has become outdated by a new trend? Buy a new one. I’m not saying we can’t buy things for ourselves or for our students/classrooms, but it’s just a really good thing to be mindful of, particularly if we have something similar that’s in perfectly good working order already! Find ways to re-use things wherever you These days, most classrooms have paper/plastic can, and resist the temptation to always buy those recycling bins, which is awesome. Ensure that you bright new, shiny things!! explicitly teach your kids how to use them properly, and model recycling habits in your classroom. Now that most classrooms are effectively recycling these things, I also encourage you to go a step further and find ways to recycle some or all of the following too:

'Relentless recycling'

Soft Plastics

in Australia, there are collection points for soft plastics at a lot of Woolworths stores. These soft plastics are recycled by REDcycle and Replas into benches, bollards and other items that can be used in Woolworths stores and carparks. Glue Sticks and Markers

in Australia, a company called Terracycle recycles these! Do some research to find if there are any similar initiatives near you! If you’re an Aussie resident, click this link to find a drop off location near you: http://www.terracyclemap.com/ Food Waste

collect for compost, chickens if your school has them, or a worm farm.

'Totally doable, right? It sure is! And as small as many of these changes might seem, imagine the bigger change that we could create if every classroom in Australia (and around the world) committed to just some or all of these five small changes?' The habits that we create in our students will become the habits of the future. And when you think about it like that, suddenly those changes don’t seem so little or insignificant after all!

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All About

Who are we?

WAGOLL Teaching is all about sharing great, simple teaching ideas with a global teaching community. As a teaching group, we need to stick together, support each other and develop positive approaches to classroom innovation. Development is all about trying something new, taking risks and sharing great ideas! You may even have some fun along the way!

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