Bell Primary School

Some interesting background information.

Some interesting resources here for the arrival. Quotes, newspaper articles including a podcast about the author. 

Scholastic stuff on the arrival. Teachers information

Some great images of the shaun tan arrival 

Interviews with Shaun Tan about The Arrival 

Every single teacher is concerned about his/ her teaching practices and the skills involved in this process. How many times have you wondered about a better way to teach the same lesson you have delivered to an eariler class? How often have you used technology to engage your students and improve their learning 

Some Good ideas for getting parents involved with the class blog

This could be a great creative writing stimulus.

"All of us are in agreement that it is all about the learner and that student voice and choice is necessary to personalize learning. Personalized learning is all about the learner, starts with the learner, and means the student drives their learning."

Ice Breakers are a great way to get people to learn each others names, find out interesting things about one another, and help people begin new relationships. Aside from name games, ice breakers provide a way to establish common ground between participants, get everyone moving, and create a inviting environment. These type of activities are especially important on the first day of camp - in fact, leading fun ice breakers helps counselors set ground rules, ease camper anxiety, and start the day off on the right foot.

Fantastic short video about where ideas come from which touches on what the creative thought process might look like. 

YouTube has a firm place in the current classroom. From Khan Academy's videos to YouTube EDU and beyond, there's a reason all these videos are finding a home in schools. In an effort to help keep the ball rolling, Google just launched a set of 10 interactive lessons designed to support teachers in educating students on digital citizenship. A topic obviously quite close to Google's heart. Google (which owns YouTube) built the lessons to educate students about YouTube's policies, how to flag content, how to be a safer online citizen, and protect their identities. Below is a list of lessons, and the recommended flow for delivery. Lessons are designed to fit within 50 minute classes, but can be adapted to fit your schedule:

An interesting poster for book choosing using a method called IPICK I choose my book (What do I want to read?) Purpose (Why do I want to read this book?) Interest (Does this book interest me?) Comprehend (Do I understand what I am reading?) Know (Do I know most of the words I read?) 

A fabulous collection of reading prompts and posters for the classroom. 

   1 Kathleen Morris, January 2013,http://primarytech.global2.vic.edu.au   Getting Started with Global2 This guide will help you begin a blog using Global2 (http://global2.vic.edu.au).Further instructions can be found at http://help.edublogs.org

Welcome. Project Zero is an educational research group at the Harvard Graduate School of Education composed of multiple, independently-sponsored research projects. Since 1967, Project Zero has examined the development of learning processes in children, adults, and organizations. Today, Project Zero's work includes investigations into the nature of intelligence, understanding, thinking, creativity, ethics, and other essential aspects of human learning. Our mission is to understand and enhance high-level thinking and learning across disciplines and cultures and in a range of contexts, including schools, businesses, museums, and digital environments.

I consciously overplan the first few days. The worst possible first-day scenario is to arrive unprepared. Over the years, I've collected a number of first-day activity ideas - far too many to use. I've pared down the activities based on the following considerations: My first goal is to build classroom community, making all students feel comfortable and successful. My second goal is to establish routine. My third goal is to formatively assess students' current levels in all subject areas. It's never too early to begin thinking about parent night. I choose activities that accomplish at least two of the goals stated above.

Productivity and simplicity, these are two things the modern knowledge worker craves. Google Reader is my "secret weapon" of productivity and I'd like to show you how I get the most out of this program.

"Why not start the school year with a Tagxedo of each student in your class? Add the final image to your class blog as a "getting to know you" activity."