Teaching Skills

Troubleshooting problems with students' teamwork

This ebulletin begins to look at how to troubleshoot common problems that students face when asked to work together in groups or teams. It continues Anne de A’Echevarria's focus on ‘Team Workers' from the PLTS curriculum

Language for developing team work in young learners

What kind of language do students need to develop if they are to think and learn effectively as a team? This e-bulletin is the second Learning and Thinking Skills to focus on 'Team Workers'

Thinking skills activities for Year 6

These lesson ideas and revision activities for Year 6 students are designed to meet national learning objectives and develop life long thinking skills

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Strategies for developing team work in young learners

This e-bulletin is the first Learning and Thinking Skills to focus on the 'Team Workers' strand, highlighting strategies that can help students to learn with, and from, each other more effectively

Introduction to dilemma-based learning

This 14 page resource discusses the basic format and approach of dilemma-based learning

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Teaching strategies for effective learning

This resource explains the relation between the application of a wide range of teaching strategies and effective learning in the classroom

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Remembering your calling

How can you remember your calling as a teacher and integrate those thoughts, ideas and philosophies into your professional learning?

Supporting SEN across the curriculum

An important part of the SENCO role is to support colleagues in developing effective strategies for meeting children's special needs. This term, we're providing subject-specific guidance for you to share with class teachers read more

Contextualising development: CPD in practice

Taking on new learning is only one side of the story; making it work for you in your classroom is the other side, and the link between the two is the contextualising of development. read more

Discipline for the whole-school, classroom and individual

This issue of Behaviour Matters looks at the importance of instilling discipline across the entire school and provides you with practical information on creating an effective learning environment read more

Assessing the quality of CPD

This week we look at the task of assessing the quality of CPD as a way of asking the sometimes difficult questions that can push us forward read more

Chronic misbehaviour: tactics and interventions

Tips for dealing with persistent bad behaviour from pupils and interventions to help you manage pupils who continually disrupt lessons

Establishing a school-wide approach to spelling

Spelling is an area where many well-educated adults lack confidence, let alone children who are still developing as writers. It's important to have a whole-school policy for teaching this important skill. read more

Using SEAL and empathy in the classroom

Empathy is central to the SEAL (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning) initiatives, and this week's Behaviour Matters aims to help you create an environment conducive to teaching empathy skills to your pupils read more

SENCO's role in reading part 1: developing skills

In this issue of SENCO week, we will consider the SENCO's role in developing reading, beginning with how you can support excellent 'first teaching' read more

Supporting peer to peer learning

This week look into the world of peer to peer learning and what it can do for your school read more

SENCO's role in reading part 2: interventions

Once a teacher has identified that a child is experiencing difficulty with reading, the next step is often to approach the SENCO for an assessment of the child read more

Using pupil voice to refine the focus of CPD

The pupil voice is an accessible method of regularly refining the focus of CPD, and this week we take a look at how best to listen read more

Difficult student behaviour

We examine how to resolve classroom behavioural problems without inciting further escalation read more

Encouraging pupils to make good decisions

Behaviour Matters explores how you can help your students to make the right choices, helping to improve behaviour in your classroom read more

The fine line between sarcasm, humour and spite

Behaviour Matters provides tips for achieving effective communication in school read more

Special needs in the mainstream

CPD Week probes the place of CPD in special needs provision in mainstream schools read more

Use warnings as a proactive behaviour management strategy

Whatever the reason, if you are using or issuing a warning, both you and the student must be fully aware of what the warning indicates read more

Using timed reminders in the classroom

Behaviour Matters explains why it's important to break down the separate activities within a lesson into clear time slots read more

Removing barriers to learning

Practical strategies and specific solutions for helping pupils with communication and interaction difficulties to overcome barriers to learning, plus an update on special schools funding

Learning behaviour management techniques from colleagues

The sharing of skills and experiences with colleagues can be a rich vein of potential learning opportunities and, in the right environment, is surprisingly easy to promote read more

Attention! Gaining theirs and seeking yours

Clear, taught strategies for attracting and holding attention can help to create a calm and ordered learning environment

Supporting the child with a hearing difficulty

A small number of children with 'glue ear' go on to experience longer term hearing difficulties, an important issue for SENCOs to convey to class teachers read more

Improving teacher effectiveness with NLP

How can neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) be used to support teaching and learning? Richard Churches, principal consultant for National Programmes at CfBT Education Trust and a doctoral researcher in the School Management of Surrey University, explores

Lessons from America

Last year 12 sixth-form teachers applied to TEAM (The European-Atlantic Movement) to take part in a sponsored study trip to America to deepen and broaden their knowledge of US politics, government and culture. One of them shares his experience

Motivating underachievers: techniques and tactics

John Blanchard looks at the importance of distinguishing underachievers and slow learners and gives examples of techniques and tactics you can use to help pupils reach their potential

Creating research-informed practitioners: the BERA Professional User Reviews

The BERA Professional User Reviews, published in 2003, aimed to critically inform the thinking of practitioners about research. Kate Wall uses them as a focus to argue that the closing of the theory-practice divide is becoming more and more relevant in 2008 read more

The 'lesson study' model of classroom enquiry

Lesson study is a form of classroom enquiry from the Far East that focuses on improving an aspect of teaching and learning through collaborative long-term study. Pete Dudley describes its background and how it has been adapted for use in England

Using ICT with able classes

Jo Smith provides some practical tips about how technology can support and enhance the learning you have planned for gifted and talented (G&T) pupils

Evidence-informed practice

Teachers are being encouraged to use evidence to improve their practice. David Leat looks at three forms of evidence-informed professional enquiry – tinkering, action research and design research read more

The cool 'no hands' approach to assessment for learning

Miraz Triggs found that random name generation as a way of choosing who would answer questions focused students’ attention and led to a higher level of participation

Developing teachers' personal effectiveness

Susannah Temple uses concepts from transactional analysis to highlight an important psychological issue for teachers in developing their own identity as effective practitioners

Creative and sensitive teaching of religious education

Angela Youngman turns her attention to religious education, potentially the most difficult and divisive of subjects to teach creatively and sensitively

High level questioning skills in young children: part 2

Steve Mynard, editor of Primary Headship, considers the practicalities of helping young children to develop higher-order questioning skills read more

A teacher's perspective on teacher research and its impact

Is doing research time well spent? Mike Kelly of Ivybridge Community College, Devon, found that the results were positive for both individuals and for schools read more

Assessing the capability of Overseas Qualified Teachers

This week's poll asks a question about Overseas Qualified Teachers. Lynne Smith asks fellow Tex readers to have compassion for these teachers, who can find it difficult to get information about teaching in the UK read more

Higher level questioning skills in young children

We tend to take questioning skills for granted; they certainly seem to develop quite readily in young children. Steve Mynard, editor of Primary Headship, explores the reasons why we might choose to guide our children towards higher-level questioning skills read more

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