tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-11-14:/MokoFeed2009-11-14T13:29:30+01:00tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-13:/2009/03/13/week-5746802/mattpayne2009-03-13T01:00:14+01:002009-03-13T01:00:14+01:00 <p>Week 32</p> <p> The first lesson was R.E; we talked very much philosophically about the existence of God, reasons for and against his existence.<br> Our next lesson was Science; we started by looking at study element 3 and 4.<br> Study element 3 is too monitor own subject knowledge for lesson 9/10, this means making concept maps for all major elements of science. It also entails furthering subject knowledge, by keeping track of reading and going back to power points.<br> Study element 4 is due in session 5, it is to identify health and safety in national curriculum and what it implies for teachers, this should be about a side of A4, size 12 font, double spaced. Also, to complete a risk assessment for a lesson involving collecting plants and animals near a pond, this is about 750 words.<br> The next part of the lesson involved a candle observation; we lit a candle and wrote our observations as it burnt.<br> After this we saw a water cycle demo:<br> • Ice goes into water on a hot plate<br> • Ice will melt<br> • Water will get hotter<br> • Water will boil<br> • Water levels will change<br> • Evaporation</p> <p>All energy goes into melting the ice, so until all the ice has melted the temperature will stay the same.<br> A solid can hold its own shape and cannot be compressed.<br> A liquid fits the container, cannot be held easily and cannot be compressed easily.<br> A gas has no fixed shape, will fill the space it is in and can be compressed.<br> What are in between particles? Nothing.</p> <p>Atom: Really small, it builds up everything.<br> Element: Pure forms of things. Specific number of protons and electrons make up 1 type of atom.<br> Molecule: Collection of atoms.<br> Compound: 2 or more different elements banded together.<br> Mixture: Two or more different substances not banded together.</p> <p>A colloid suspension is a solid that does not dissolve into a liquid but instead mixes with it.</p> <p>Rust is Iron oxide.</p> <p>Protons = positive<br> Electrons = negative</p> <p>Endothermic takes in energy<br> Exothermic gives out energy.</p> <p> Chromatography is putting an ink blot on paper and dipping it in water, then watching the ink go different colours as the water goes through the paper.</p> <p>Fuel + oxygen = carbon dioxide + water + heat.</p> <p>Sublimation is a solid turning straight to a gas, like dry ice. </p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/13/week-5746802/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5745698/mattpayne2009-03-12T22:00:31+01:002009-03-12T22:00:31+01:00 <p>Week 31</p> <p> The week started with a maths lecture, this was just an introduction to the module. The topics we shall be studying are shape and space, shapes and our environment, visualisation and the nature of mathematics. We also heard about our assignment.</p> <p>“Wake Lord, why are you asleep?”<br> Psalm 44</p> <p> In R.E we talked about why God allows bad things to happen, using the example of Job. The lesson was like my old philosophy lessons, just things such as if God is all loving and all powerful, why does he allow bad things to happen? See J.S Mill inconsistency triad.<br> Science ended the week, we done about Biology and concept maps. We learnt the difference between learning a fact and developing understanding too, learning a fact is knowing something but developing understanding will link why it happens.<br> Concept mapping is like mind maps, linking things together. </p> <p>Living things<br> Can reproduce<br> Can grow<br> Can die<br> Can move<br> Can excrete<br> Can respire<br> Can eat<br> Can survive<br> Are made out of cells</p> <p>Non-living things<br> Cannot reproduce<br> Cannot die<br> Cannot grow<br> Cannot excrete<br> Cannot respire<br> Cannot eat</p> <p>What makes a plant a plant, 2 things, photosynthesis and multi-cellular.<br> Not all plants are green, but still photosynthesis, different pigments of chlorophyll.<br> An organism is a living thing.<br> 4 kingdoms of classification:<br> • Plants<br> • Animals<br> • Fungi<br> • Bacteria</p> <p>Cells<br> All cells have a nucleus, like the brain of the cell, this holds the D.N.A. The cell walls are partially permeable, as they allow things to pass through.<br> However, red blood cells have no membrane, they just carry oxygen.<br> Nerve cells are very long.<br> Egg cells are bigger than most.<br> Sperm cells have a tail to swim with.</p> <p>MRS GREN<br> Movement<br> Reproduction<br> Sensitivity<br> Growth<br> Respiration<br> Excretion<br> Nutrition</p> <p>Respiration:<br> Oxygen + glucose = energy + carbon dioxide + water</p> <p>Photosynthesis:<br> Carbon dioxide + water = using suns energy = glucose + oxygen</p> <p> We then had our first Maths seminar. The first part involved making shapes using other shapes. Then we went on to talk about different areas of Maths and what was used to reach conclusions, this are categorised as so:<br> Problem solving:<br> • Planning/organising<br> • Designing/devising<br> • Checking/reviewing</p> <p>Communications<br> • Talking/describing<br> • Asking/interpreting<br> • Discussing/explaining<br> • Recording/presenting</p> <p>Reasoning, logic and proof:<br> Reasoning and testing.</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5745698/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5744812/mattpayne2009-03-12T19:40:49+01:002009-03-12T19:40:49+01:00 <p>Week 30</p> <p> Not much of this week, R.E and Science.<br> R.E we looked at God, we decided that God is:<br> • Omnipotent – All powerful<br> • Omniscient – All knowing<br> • Omni benevolent – All loving<br> • Omnipresent – Everywhere</p> <p>He is also the creator and destroyer and is feared. The uncaused causer (philosophy reference).<br> We then briefly looked at ancient Mediterranean concepts of God, which included ancient Egypt.<br> Science seemed very mush an introductory lesson. We talked about how science was a lesson of discovery and experimenting. We also talked about how science can easily have I.C.T links and also it is important to remember Health and Safety at ALL times!<br> If a child asks a question you are not sure about, “let’s find out together.”<br> We looked at positives and negatives of teaching Science:</p> <p>Positive<br> Enthusiasm<br> Fun<br> Behaviour</p> <p>Negative<br> Set-up time<br> Resources<br> Behaviour<br> Lacking of understanding</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5744812/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5744708/mattpayne2009-03-12T19:29:13+01:002009-03-12T19:29:13+01:00 <p>Week 29</p> <p> Once again no Art and the D.T module has now finished so straight over the specialist R.E. This was a long lesson with plenty of notes…<br> The lesson started with the assessment task:</p> <p>“If religion generated everything that is essential in society, that is because the idea of society is the soul of society.”</p> <p> Discuss this statement with reference to Smart’s ‘social dimensions of religion.’ Choose an early religion and focus on its communal and social significance.</p> <p>• Where and how did it originate<br> • What evidence is there of early beliefs and practices (i.e sacrifice)<br> • Is it monotheistic, polytheistic, atheistic<br> • What concepts of God are central to religion<br> • What extent has your early religion influenced socio-religious practice in one or more mainstream world faiths<br> • To what extent do you agree with the statement and why</p> <p>I made note that a good way to write the essay is to introduce the chosen religion and why it was chosen, for the middle part focus on the above bullet points and to conclude write about whether you agree or disagree and to what extent.<br> The next part of the lesson took us to Chinese and Japanese concepts of God. These tend to focus on the ethics that nothing should be harmed and keeps a very strict self-discipline.<br> We then looked at a Japanese/Chinese timeline:</p> <p>4000-2205 B.C.E<br> Neolithic</p> <p>2205-1766 B.C.E<br> Hsia Dynasty</p> <p>1765-1050 B.C.E<br> Shang Dynasty</p> <p>1050-256 B.C.E<br> Chou Dynasty<br> Taoism<br> Confucius</p> <p>Confucius includes things such as education to be set up for a wider range of people. Relationship balance, the husband is more superior to the wife. Do onto others as you would wish to be done onto yourself.<br> Rituals – ceremonies<br> Mythological – Tian God – shallow beliefs<br> Doctrinal – All came a lot later<br> Ethical – Treat others as you wish to be treated<br> Hierarchy – Education for all<br> Social – Education and hierarchy<br> Experiential – Through good actions you get closer to God.</p> <p>Taoism (pronounced Dowism).<br> Ying-Yang symbol balance.<br> Yin black female, Yang White Male.</p> <p>Shinto<br> Prominent in Japan.<br> The ‘way’ of the Gods.<br> Superior beings, afraid of forces of nature, Gods get angry!<br> Ritual – washing, honesty and sincerity, offerings made to Gods, magic and spell rituals.<br> Mythological – The Kami (a superior being)<br> Doctrinal – Chronicles of Japan<br> Ethical – Strong on honesty and sincerity</p> <p>I apologise that the above notes seem messy.<br> The second of my R.E lessons was based on Islam. We learned that the journey Muslims take to Mecca is called the Hajj, and they worship the God Allah and the Prophet Muhammad.<br> There are 5 pillars of Islam:<br> • Creed<br> • Prayer<br> • Fasting<br> • Almsgiving<br> • Pilgrimage</p> <p>Muhammad<br> • Born at Mecca 570 C.E<br> • Angel Gabriel revealed the Qur’an to Muhammad when he was 23 years old<br> • 622 C.E, the first Muslim community was established<br> • Died at Mecca, 632 C.E</p> <p><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/apps/ifl/learningzone/clips">www.bbc.co.uk/apps/ifl/learningzone/clips</a></p> <p>The Qur’an<br> • Actual word of God<br> • Shari’ah law (rules of living)<br> • No translation except for study<br> • 114 suras</p> <p>Doctrine of Islam<br> • One God<br> • Angels<br> • Prophets and scriptures<br> • Allah – last judgement</p> <p>Ramadan is the festival that involves no eating during day light hours. The time of Ramadan varies across the year.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bl.uk/learning/cult/sacred/stories">www.bl.uk/learning/cult/sacred/stories</a><br> <a href="http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/re/re-islam.html">www.primaryresources.co.uk/re/re-islam.html</a><br> <a href="http://www.juniors.reonline.org.uk/nframe.php?">www.juniors.reonline.org.uk/nframe.php?</a><br> <a href="http://www.islamonline.net/english/introducingislam/worship/fasting/article08.shtml">www.islamonline.net/english/introducingislam/worship/fasting/article08.shtml</a><br> <a href="http://www.juniors.reonline.org.uk/nframe.php?">www.juniors.reonline.org.uk/nframe.php?</a><br> <a href="http://www.re-xs.ucsm.ac.uk/re/pilgrimage">www.re-xs.ucsm.ac.uk/re/pilgrimage</a></p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5744708/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5744450/mattpayne2009-03-12T18:49:26+01:002009-03-12T19:01:13+01:00 <p>Week 28</p> <p> This week was Art-less, due to an ill tutor, so again no art this week.<br> D.T went ahead as usual, not many notes but we talked about the importance of evaluation. By using subheadings (we made a… it looks like this… we used… I like… next time…) the children can reflect on their work and what they really think about the whole learning experience, we can also highlight what they are pleased with or what they would change.<br> The first R.E lesson of the week was looking once again at the Indian experience. Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism all (although Buddhism isn’t Indian but still eastern religion) are without a single God, and Buddhism and Jainism are completely without God.<br> We looked at a more detailed timeline also:<br> 2500-1500 B.C.E<br> Indus Valley<br> Tamil Gods and Goddesses<br> Aryans</p> <p>1500-1000 B.C.E<br> Vedic Period</p> <p>1000-500 B.C.E<br> Brahmanism<br> Samkhya<br> Upanishads<br> Bhagavadgita<br> Birth of Mahavira (599 (Jainism))<br> Birth of Siddharta Goutama (560)</p> <p>500-0<br> The Buddha<br> The Epics: Ramayana and Mahabharata.</p> <p>Jainism<br> A 6th century B.C.E religion with no creator God.<br> Once Nirvana is achieved the Spirit goes elsewhere.<br> Originated in the Indus Valley<br> Mahivira = Great Hero<br> Believe in Karma and reincarnation, governs rebirth.</p> <p>Buddhism<br> Buddha = Awakened or Enlightened.<br> Moving towards spiritual enlightenment.</p> <p>In the middle of the week we had a cohort meeting. This was to discuss I few things. The main parts were just checking how we were getting on. Such as assignments, library stuff, audits and PDP’s.<br> We then went on to discuss how we get our results on the 10th July, if we need to appeal anything we have until the 24th of July. The deadline for resubmissions is 24th August and we enrol year 2 on the 21st September.<br> The final part we talked about trips in the second year, websites will be listed below for future reference:</p> <p><a href="http://www.fredonia.edu">www.fredonia.edu</a><br> <a href="http://www.ulapland.fi">www.ulapland.fi</a><br> <a href="http://www.oulu.fi/welcome.html">www.oulu.fi/welcome.html</a><br> <a href="http://www.ucl.dk">www.ucl.dk</a><br> <a href="http://www.zcu.cz/index-en.html">www.zcu.cz/index-en.html</a></p> <p> In the second R.E lesson we went to a church. When we got back we talked about the trip and our assignment.</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5744450/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5744354/mattpayne2009-03-12T18:33:55+01:002009-03-12T18:33:55+01:00 <p>Week 27</p> <p> The week was a bit different, I missed the Monday due to a funeral, so I missed notes on D.T, there was no art lesson scheduled anyway so it’s just R.E for this week!<br> The first R.E lesson was our specialist lesson where we looked into Indus Valley civilisations, listed below:<br> • Mohenjo (Daro)<br> • Harappa<br> • Indra<br> • Varuna<br> • Agni<br> • Aryans<br> • Vedas</p> <p>After we looked at an Indian timeline, all B.C.E (also we should use before Common Era due to political correctness):</p> <p>2500-1500 B.C.E<br> Indus Valley<br> Tamli Gods and Goddesses<br> Aryans</p> <p>1500-500 B.C.E<br> Vedic Period</p> <p>1000-500 B.C.E<br> Brahmanism<br> Samkkhya<br> Upanishads<br> Bhagavadgita</p> <p> We went into detail on a few of these things but my notes are a little scattered and vague on everything, so I shall leave it out.<br> The second R.E lesson was all about Judaism. Not much was said, we were each given a festival to make a small presentation about, mine was Hanukah.</p> <p>This is a short entry but it was a quiet week.</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5744354/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-03-12:/2009/03/12/week-5744180/mattpayne2009-03-12T17:59:00+01:002009-03-12T17:59:00+01:00 <p>Week 26</p> <p> The first lesson of the week was art and we looked at different paints, which ones were good and which ones were bad. The first paint we looked at is free flow paint, this is not recommended as it is expensive, already mixed (so there is no chance to experiment) and the nozzles often stick. The second paint is tempera blocks; these are also not recommended as they are too messy. However the last paint we looked at is recommended, this is powder colour, it’s cheap, not messy and gives the children a chance to experiment with colour mixing. Also you can make the paint thicker and thinner simply by mixing different amounts of powder and water. A tip we learned was that by mixing in a bit of glue will make the paint really thick.<br> The only colours needed are black, white, blue, red and yellow; this is because all shades and colours can be made by mixing these different colours.<br> After having a go with the paints we tried out different brushes, we started with the hog’s hair brush. We then used the sable brush, with is very good for creating marks, details and patterns.<br> The second half of the lesson we looked at the use of artists work.<br> Landscape painting (Urban and Rural)</p> <p>What kind of conversation can be discussed?<br> • Investigation of a rural landscape<br> • Cross curricular links to history<br> • Cross curricular links to literacy<br> • Depiction of movement within a painting<br> • The viewpoint taken by the artist</p> <p>Discussion:<br> • Investigation of an urban landscape<br> • Brushstrokes – how the paint is applied<br> • How colours are overlaid one on top of the other<br> • Use of non naturalistic colours<br> • The depiction of water</p> <p>Discussion:<br> • Investigation of an urban landscape<br> • The brushstroke – how the paint is applied in order to create very flat areas of colours<br> • Use of warm and cold colours<br> • Different shapes</p> <p>Discussion:<br> • Creation of a fantasy environment<br> • Links between I.C.T and art<br> • Use of different tones of same colours</p> <p>In D.T we started by talking about a ‘junk box’ for the classroom, this is a place to store all materials that could be used for D.T such as empty cereal boxes and empty yoghurt pots. We also talked about the 3 R’s, reduce, reuse, recycle.<br> We went on to talk about reclaim materials; they are cheap and usually very easy to get hold of. Also the use of making things from reclaim materials covers lots of things in the curriculum such as science and maths. However, it is important to check with health and safety when bringing in materials to make sure they are appropriate for the classroom.<br> In our module of R.E we just researched for our assignment, so it’s all just quotes and notes.<br> In our second R.E class, not our specialist class, we looked into Hinduism. There’s a lot covered here so will try my best to depict the lesson accurately.<br> We started the lesson by looking at some of the Hindu Gods, we talked about how Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are all names of the same God but there are approximately 330 million Gods, however Brahma (or Vishnu/Shiva) is the source of all these Gods. For Hindus, every home picks a certain god to worship, and each home has to have a picture or statue of the chosen God.<br> After looking at the Gods we looked at some of the traditions of Hinduism, these include the scriptures that were written in sand script, Karma (good things lead to good things and bad things leading to bad things), Samara (the cycle of rebirth), the concentration spot (on the centre of the forehead) and Moksha (ultimate goal of salvation). Moksha comes in 4 stages:<br> • student (learning)<br> • household (family)<br> • forest dweller (meditate and learn more about God)<br> • holy man (ultimate enlightenment)</p> <p>The next part of the lesson we looked at the story of Rama and Sita and how it will fit in with attainment targets for a lesson. As R.E is not part of the national curriculum it has different guidelines known as Attainment Targets. These vary between places depending on religious backgrounds. I have a generalised list of the A.T’s I will put at the end of this entry.</p> <p>KS1 Knowledge, skills and understanding<br> AT1 Learning about religion: </p> <p>1. Children should be taught to:-</p> <p>a. explore a range of religious stories and sacred writings, and talk about their meanings<br> b. name and explore a range of celebrations, worship and rituals in religion, noting similarities where appropriate<br> c. identify the importance, for some people, of belonging to a religion and recognise the difference this makes to their lives<br> d. explore how religious beliefs and ideas can be expressed through the arts and communicate their responses<br> e. identify and suggest meanings for religious symbols and begin to use a range of religious words.</p> <p>AT2 Learning from religion:</p> <p>1. Children should be taught to:-</p> <p>a. reflect on and consider religious and spiritual feelings, experiences and concepts, such as worship, wonder, praise, thanks, concern, joy and sadness<br> b. ask and respond imaginatively to puzzling questions, communicating their ideas;<br> c. identify what matters to them and others, including those with religious commitments, and communicate their responses<br> d. reflect on how spiritual and moral values relate to their own behaviour<br> e. recognise that religious teachings and ideas make a difference to individuals, families and the local community.</p> <p>Breadth of study</p> <p>3. During the key stage pupils should be taught the Knowledge, Skills and Understanding through the following religions, themes, experiences and opportunities.</p> <p>Religions and beliefs<br> a. Christianity<br> b. Focused religion: Judaism<br> c. a different religious community with a significant local presence, where appropriate<br> d. a secular world view, where appropriate.</p> <p>Themes<br> e. believing: what people believe about God, humanity and the natural world<br> f. story: how and why some stories are sacred and important in religion<br> g. celebrations: how and why celebrations are important in religion<br> h. symbols: how and why symbols express religious meaning<br> i. leaders and teachers: figures who have an influence on others locally,<br> nationally and globally in religion<br> j. belonging: where and how people belong and why belonging is important<br> k. myself :who I am and my uniqueness as a person in a family and community.</p> <p>Experiences and opportunities</p> <p>l. visiting places of worship, focussing on symbols and feelings<br> m. listening to and responding to visitors from local faith communities<br> n. using their senses and having times of quiet reflection<br> o. using art, and design, music, dance and drama to develop their creative talents<br> p. sharing their own beliefs, ideas and values and talking about their feelings and experiences<br> q. beginning to use ICT to explore religions and beliefs as practised in the local and wider community.</p> <p>KS2 Knowledge, skills and understanding</p> <p>AT1 Learning about religion:</p> <p>1. Children should be taught to:</p> <p>a. describe the key aspects of religions, especially the people, stories and traditions which influence beliefs and values<br> b. describe the variety of practices and ways of life in religions and understand how these stem from, and are closely connected to, beliefs and teachings<br> c. identify and begin to describe the similarities and differences within and between religions<br> d. investigate the significance of religion in the local, national and global communities<br> e. consider the meaning of a range of forms of religious expression, understand why they are important in religion, and note links between them<br> f. describe and begin to understand religious and other responses to ultimate and ethical questions<br> g. use specialist vocabulary in communicating their knowledge and understanding<br> h. use and interpret information about religions from a range of sources.</p> <p>AT2 Learning from religion:</p> <p>2. Children should be taught to:</p> <p>a. reflect on what it means to belong to a faith community, communicating their own and others’ responses thoughtfully<br> b. respond to the challenges of commitment both in their own lives and within religious traditions, recognising how commitment to a religion is shown in a variety of ways<br> c. discuss their own and others’ views of religious truth and belief, expressing their own ideas clearly<br> d. reflect on ideas of right and wrong and their own and others’ responses to them<br> e. reflect on sources of inspiration in their own and others’ lives.</p> <p>Breadth of study</p> <p>3. During the key stage the pupils should be taught the knowledge, skills and understanding through the following religions, themes, experiences and opportunities.</p> <p>Religions and beliefs</p> <p>a. Christianity<br> b. Focused religions:- Hinduism, Judaism, Islam<br> c. a different religious community with a significant local presence, where appropriate;<br> d. a secular world view, where appropriate.</p> <p>Themes<br> e. beliefs and questions: how people’s beliefs about God, the world and others impact on their lives<br> f. teachings and authority: what sacred texts and other sources say about God, the world and human life<br> g. worship, pilgrimage and sacred places: where, how and why people worship, including at particular sites<br> h. the journey of life and death: why some occasions are sacred to believers, and what people believe about life after death<br> i. symbols and religious expression: how religious and spiritual ideas are expressed<br> j. inspirational people: figures from whom believers find inspiration<br> k. religion and the individual: what is expected of a person in following a religion or belief<br> l. religion, family and community: how religious families and communities practise their faith, and the contributions this makes to local life<br> m. beliefs in action in the world - how religions respond to universal issues of human rights, fairness, social justice and the importance of the environment.</p> <p>Experiences and opportunities</p> <p>n. encountering religion through visitors and visits to places of worship, and focusing on the impact and reality of religion on the local and global community<br> o. discussing religious and philosophical questions, giving reasons for their own beliefs and those of others<br> p. considering a range of human experiences and feelings<br> q. reflecting on their own and others’ insights into life and its origin, purpose and meaning<br> r. expressing and communicating their own and others’ insights into life through art and design, music, dance, drama and ICT<br> s. developing the use of ICT, particularly in enhancing pupils’ awareness of religions and beliefs globally.</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/03/12/week-5744180/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2009-01-27:/2009/01/27/week-5456705/mattpayne2009-01-27T14:44:30+01:002009-01-27T14:44:30+01:00 <p>Week 25</p> <p>Ok, it’s been a while since I posted a blog, the reasons being that I had a 2 week school placement and the following two weeks I didn’t have too much to write about as it was mainly signing off of modules.<br> The first lesson back after Christmas is Art. We started the first session by talking about drawing; our teacher described drawing as the engine that drives art and design, also that drawing is fundamental in art and consists of the creation of marks, lines and tone.<br> We then went on to talk about pencil types. We learnt how the pencils go across a spectrum, i.e 4H -> 2H -> HB -> 2B -> 4B -> 6B getting softer respectively.<br> After we tried some different types of materials and paints available, we also tried some observational drawing and the teacher reminded us to always try out different things to draw so it doesn’t get boring.<br> The next lesson was design and technology. We were told at the start that important things to be aware of are the national curriculum, paragraph 5 and the Q.C.A, the Q.C.A has ideas, F.P.T’s and D.M.As.<br> We than went on to talk about how health and safety is incredibly important when teaching a D.T lesson, for example there are things that the children may be allergic to (if doing food). Also that every child matters, so it is important everyone gets involved and is watched over for safety.<br> After this talk we went on to do practical work, this involved making a box out of wood and paper.<br> Our next lesson was part of our humanities lesson, R.E. This is the concepts of the divine module. We started the lecture by looking at the dimensions of religion, these include; ritual, mythological, doctrinal, ethical, social and experimental. We also talked about some words that may come up in religion and where they originate, anima is Greek and means spirit and Mana means a hidden or secret spiritual force that operates in individuals.<br> After this we started looking at our research projects and how we will go about it.<br> We then had a second R.E lesson, this isn’t the specialism but instead the same teaching as what everyone will be taking. We started by talking about what is special to us, this (as we are told) is a good way to lead a class.<br> We then went on to try to answer the question ‘what is religion?’ This sparked a some what large debate, concluding that is answers to questions and a fundamental part of us.<br> We then spent the rest of the lesson looking at symbols from different religions and what they mean. </p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2009/01/27/week-5456705/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-11-14:/2008/11/14/week-5035404/mattpayne2008-11-14T15:05:31+01:002008-11-14T15:05:31+01:00 <p>Week 16</p> <p> The week started with a bit of a difference, instead of the standard classroom lesson we went for a field trip on Dartmoor. It was rubbish weather and when we got on the moors it was incredibly foggy, so we went into the visitor centre and had a look around then came back.<br> The next day we were suppose to have another field trip to the moors, this time with Pete for geography, but due to hazardous weather conditions we decided to postpone, so we still had our I.C.T lecture in the morning and our field trip was replaced with a session, we then had our afternoon I.C.T lesson as usual.<br> In the I.C.T lecture we mainly focused on the assignment and what is needed to be done.<br> In the geography lesson we were each given a mp with 3 separate points, we each had to pick a point of where to settle and think of an argument to debate why it would have been better, after this great debate was over (with minimal fighting talk) we worked in pairs to design our own maps, to use as a resource.<br> The I.C.T lesson in the afternoon involved us using spreadsheets to make a game that children can learn from and write how we would use it in class and with what age group we would do it with.<br> The Wednesday was just of one event, the school experience lecture. We talked about what was expected of us and how we will go about things during our time there. We all took a pack of booklets and handouts to look through and read.<br> Unfortunately I missed Fridays lesson due to a hospital appointment, and as it is Friday now I have yet to read through the notes from a class mate of look up the lecture on the portal. So I shall do that and include it in next weeks reflective diary. </p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/11/14/week-5035404/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-11-14:/2008/11/14/week-5035282/mattpayne2008-11-14T14:44:23+01:002008-11-14T14:44:23+01:00 <p>Week 15</p> <p> The week started slightly different than usual as we had a guest for history. A man came in for a Roman role play. This was a really useful activity as he used the class to demonstrate certain aspects of the Roman lifestyles, such as how they would stand in a cohort or how they would stand for battle. This was a really good learning technique, I certainly learnt from it and I think children will enjoy some practical learning.<br> Geography was all about the assignment as well as the upcoming field trip. The first point Pete made was that there are still mysteries in humanities and it is important to remember this, as children enjoy stories and mystery. We then went on to look at risk assessments, how to fill out the hazards, who could be harmed from the dangers and what can be done to avoid these risks.<br> We then went on to make ‘I spy’ booklets, these are really good for fieldtrips as it keeps the children engaged and using geographical language. The booklets have a picture on each page of something that needs to be seen with a brief description, the children can tick them off when they see them and learn from the description. If children were to make their own booklets in class we should keep an eye out for if they go wrong to help them adapt their designs.<br> I.C.T in subject… featuring maths – The Robot Invasion! This was the I.T lecture that included the use of robots in the classroom. We can learn from robots as these robots can be used to teach about shapes, angles, lengths, units as well as many other things. The good thing about the robots is it keeps interest whilst learning as they are fun. There are different types of robots to use too, such as bee-bot, which is designed like a bee.<br> This lesson got me thinking which robots might make good teachers, I immediately ruled out terminator, wall-e is probably rubbish too. I do, however, think that Robocop, C3P0 and that maid from the Jetsons will all be good candidates.<br> The follow up lecture was us playing with the robots and getting ourselves familiar with the way they work. We then each thought up an activity to use them with in the classroom.<br> In English this week we had a practise audit, this went ok but I do need to learn a bit about morphemes, that was my downfall!<br> Next we compared some spoken and written examples of a girl, and saw how much more detailed the written version of an events was a lot more descriptive than when the girl was just saying them. Also when speaking there were lots of pauses and modification to the story.<br> Before school children know very little about how to write, so they do all their learning with school. Before they start school they may be able to write letters and their names, but that will probably be about it, they come to school to learn the meaning of the language and what the symbols they are writing down are worth.<br> In the next part of the lesson we looked at the process of writing, there are 5 steps, the first is the characters, then setting, then drama, then what happens in between and finally resolution.<br> The last part of the lesson Tatti showed us something helpful, if you draw a hand, write on the palm how, then on each finger, who, what, where, when and why.<br> The last day of the week had primary education in context. We started by looking at reflective thinking and the stages of the reflective process, focus, awareness and critical analysis.<br> We then looked at planning a lesson, a good lesson should have:<br> • Good teachers knowledge and understanding<br> • Effective planning<br> • Effective behaviour management<br> • Effective teaching of basic skills<br> • Good use of time, support staff and resources<br> • Effective range of teaching methods<br> • High expectations mapped well to activities<br> • Effective use of ongoing assessment<br> • Effective use of homework<br> • Good supportive learning environment</p> <p>We went on to show the lesson plans we went through in groups. This went well as our group made a smart board presentation; we then got feedback from another group and heard theirs.<br> When planning a lesson we have to keep certain things in mind, for example, it is important to know the children, we need to be ready to adapt, in case a lesson doesn’t go exactly to plan, the lessons will start to fit together, rather than individual classes they will all be like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, timing and pace of the lesson, so the lesson and generally whole day will flow nicely and finally C.C.A.</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/11/14/week-5035282/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-11-04:/2008/11/04/week-4979349/mattpayne2008-11-04T01:47:17+01:002008-11-04T01:47:17+01:00 <p>Week 14</p> <p> With the start of the week we looked at the ancient Greeks in history. The first little interesting fact I learnt was that the columns were not invented by the Greeks, but instead the Egyptians. After we learnt different Greek words and the English equivalents, such as logos means word, dunamics means power, sophos means wisdom and graphos means write or draw. We learnt a good game to start lessons with, by writing one of these Greek words and getting the children to write all the words they can think of that has the Greek word in them.<br> We then went on to look at how it was the ancient Greeks who started asking the questions of the word, such as why do good and bad things happen? Or what happens when we die. We also looked at how Greek belief can be compared to an ocean liner, where people are the passengers and the Gods are the officers, with Zeus being captain.<br> The next lesson was Geography, we spent a lot of time looking at our up-coming field trip and also our assignment. This is to include objectives, activities and an end of lesson line up.<br> On Tuesday we had another ICT day. The morning gave us a lecture, featuring maths…<br> Why use ICT for maths?<br> • Learning from feedback<br> • Observing patterns<br> • Exploring data<br> • Teaching the computer<br> • Developing visual imagery</p> <p>We then looked at how <a href="http://www.standards.dfes.gov">www.standards.dfes.gov</a> has a maths tab with loads of really good resources. We were then reminded that little games should just be used for things like the start and end of the lesson, and not the main focus.<br> On the Wednesday I had a course rep meeting, not much to say about it really as we just discussed a few issues, but I just wanted to mention it.<br> On Thursday we started with a lecture on English, we were each given our first article for our English assignment, we need to annotate it.<br> We then went on to hear about phonics, they’re fun. Phonics are nothing new, they are simply the symbols and sounds made in words. Sir Jim Ross recommends direct teaching of synthetic phonics that is systematic.<br> Phonics teaching must be set within a broad and rich language experience. The more words children know and understand before they start, the better equipped they are succeed.<br> So… children should have opportunities to:<br> • Role play and drama<br> • Hearing and singing songs<br> • Telling stories<br> • Listening to fiction and non-fiction</p> <p>We need to understand the relationship between graphemes and phonemes. Also, if your mouth has to move, it is a different phonic.<br> The next and final part of the lecture told us about how more than one letter can make up a phoneme; digraph is 2 letters, such as ‘sh,’ a trigraph is 3 letters, such as ‘igh’ and a quadgraph is 4 letters like ‘ought.’<br> We finally touched on schwa vowels, these are when the letter isn’t pronounced, such as the y in pyjamas.<br> There are a total of 44 phonemes in English language, made up of 26 letters and 140 combinations called graphemes.<br> After the lecture we had an English lesson, we started by learning that phonics need to be taught discretely and daily and needs to be engaging and multisensory.<br> We then got into groups and thought of an activity we could do with children for learning phonics, our group had an adaptation on the song we’re going on a bear hunt, using onomatopoeia and actions to help them remember. Another good activity is counting out syllables in words, or even clapping them out.<br> On the Friday we didn’t have primary education in context and had a maths lecture. In the maths lecture however we simply spoke about the audit and it was basically going back on information we already knew. The afternoon took us to research skills where we practised some of the skills we learnt the week before in our cohort meeting about referencing and plagiarism. </p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/11/04/week-4979349/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-11-02:/2008/11/02/week-4972949/mattpayne2008-11-02T23:22:30+01:002008-11-02T23:27:28+01:00 <p>Week 13</p> <p> In the first History lesson we moved on to talk about complex societies. We started talking about the ancient Egyptian society and culture. The reason the culture managed to grow and thrive was because of the Nile, this is not only a significant resource (water) but also made the land around it very fertile. This is a good society to look at for early religious background, as with the original society they only believed that Kings had an after life, but as time went on they adapted the thinking that everyone had an after life. It is also the ancient Egyptians who were famous for mummifying the dead.<br> This society was also interesting as we start to see science emerging, what the Egyptians could not solve through their scientific means they would simply attribute it to God. It was also these complex societies where we would see the complex development of Politics, forming hierarchy of law.<br> We ended the lesson with a good activity for children that was looking at hieroglyphics and write our names. This is a good C.C.A as it can involve art work as well as history.<br> In Geography we started by having a recap on the last lesson. We got back in our groups from the week before and looked back at the lessons we had planned out.<br> After we presented to the rest of the class what we had planned and how we planned to do it we went on to talk about the field trip we shall be going on in week 16.<br> On Wednesday we only had 2 things but they were big, the cohort meeting and the maths audit. So the cohort meeting there was lots and lots of stuff so take a deep breathe…<br> The first thing we talked about was handing in work, this is to be done in the Rolle building reception, and this will give us a receipt so we can prove our work was handed in. It is also electronic so must be done in time or the work will be failed and there’s no going back. This is also the place to collect work coming back.<br> We then talked about absence, if you are going to be sick just email the tutor of the lesson but for other extenuating circumstances we should email Miles. If we need an authorised absence, for example missing a lecture for a field trip or a hospital appointment then Miles is the person to speak to.<br> The next part of the lecture we talked about research skills. With this we talked about plagiarism, plagiarism is this:<br> • Quotes or paraphrasing without reference<br> • Use of data or ideas without acknowledgement<br> • Copying the work of another student<br> • Someone else writing it<br> • Poor use of the internet</p> <p>It is also very important not to plagiarise yourself, this aint good! You also need to acknowledge group work, by naming everyone in the group.<br> We also learnt that we must reference everything used, this includes books, people and pictures, so any images or photographs used need to be referred too.<br> The next point brought up was to take responsibility for your own work, we need to review and monitor our own progress, we need to further our own knowledge, we need to write things down and research and we need to manage our time effectively. We need to also be responsible to complete the PDP and keep everything up to date and on track.<br> That basically sums up the main points of the meeting, after we walked into town for the audit… not much to write about that it was a maths text. Wasn’t very fun either.<br> The next day was an English lecture, we learnt all about reading. We started by looking at different types of text and how it may be hard to read it, for example if it is written in a different language or if its written with jumbled up letters.<br> We also learnt the readers draw on their knowledge of how language works by recognising words on sight as well as the contextual clause.<br> At the end of the lecture we learned the two separate theories of reading, the top down model and the bottom up model.</p> <p>Top down model</p> <p>Past experience</p> <p>Selective aspects of print</p> <p>Meaning</p> <p>Sounding out if necessary</p> <p>Print</p> <p>Bottom up model<br> Meaning</p> <p>Pronunciation</p> <p>Blending</p> <p>Phonemes and graphemes matched</p> <p>Every letter discriminated</p> <p>Print</p> <p>On Friday we had a bit of a shift around, we had English and primary education on the same day. In English we started by talking about how we learnt to read. The ideas we came up with are:<br> • Knowing a favourite book very well<br> • Reading books whilst listening to an audio book<br> • Learning phonics based scheme<br> • Flash cards<br> • Reading schemes<br> • Book bands<br> • Story sacks</p> <p>Most print is non fiction.<br> The last part of the lesson we looked in pairs at a picture book and thought about what kind of questions we can ask, thinking about how we can use the text and the pictures to get the children to think about the story.<br> The last lesson of the week was primary education in context. The first part we looked at what we needed to make an effective lesson plan:<br> • Good subject knowledge<br> • Know the children’s abilities<br> • Good time management<br> • Resources/equipment<br> • Learning objectives<br> • Meet the QTS standards<br> • Follow up lessons<br> • National curriculum<br> • C.C.A<br> • Fun</p> <p>Also this week I read: [Goosebumps] Welcome to Dead House by R.L. Stine</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/11/02/week-4972949/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-10-19:/2008/10/19/week-4896985/mattpayne2008-10-19T21:26:33+02:002008-10-19T21:26:33+02:00 <p>Week 12</p> <p>The week started as usual with History. The main theme of the lesson was the question; ‘what do we mean by society?’ We started this by looking at culture and the environment, we explored the evidence there is of people coming together to form societies, whether it be on religious grounds, trade, or something similar. The planet itself has seen very little change in the past 10,000 years, any major changes which have happened have been man made. We then went on to look at how societies could stabilise themselves through the use of farm lands. Originally farming was used and the community would move on, but as they developed they learnt to re-use the land, this meant they could stay in the same place and grow as a population.<br> We decided as a group what was needed for a civilisation to become a civilisation, these were:<br> • System of trade<br> • Hierarchy of authority<br> • Transportation links<br> • Education<br> • Communication<br> • Vital resources, water etc<br> • Defences, walls, armies etc</p> <p>After we done this we looked at a brief overview of societies throughout time:</p> <p>3500BC Masapataniums<br> 3100BC Egyptians<br> 2500BC Indus people<br> 2000BC Minoan Cultures<br> 1500BC Stone Hedge<br> 1400BC Ancient Greece</p> <p>For children we must break down societies in more tangible ways. An example of one way this can be done is the aboriginal societies, we can learn a lot about their culture by looking at aboriginal art. This can then make it easier for children to grasp the certain concepts of communities.<br> The lesson then ended with a quick look at caring for society. This was where we looked at the ways in which we can care for our community, these were:<br> • Care for the young/old<br> • Make sure people behave<br> • Spirituality<br> • Providing for basic/social/spiritual needs.</p> <p>Just as the lesson finished we were told how when looking at culture it is always important to make sure you are politically correct and in no way seem to condescend other groups of people.<br> That afternoon we moved on to Geography, this is where we looked at how we should start a lesson, by having a recap. By recapping the last lesson it will remind the children about what they learned the lesson before and get them focused on the topic at hand. After the recap has finished we can say what will be learnt during the course of the lesson, so the children have got aims for the lesson.<br> After this we went through an activity we demonstrated how we have got different options to have ‘enrichment activities,’ these are lessons that are seemingly fun but are really all about learning, and when the children may actually learn the most. One of the examples used was hot-seating. This is when the children can role play a character and questions can be asked to get all the children thinking and learning. Another option is timelines, but with timelines they cannot be too boring, children won’t concentrate if it’s just a list of dates, use pictures and other things to make it more exciting.<br> Tuesday is ICT day. In the morning lecture we were told that it would be important to find out who is in charge of child protection whenever we go into a school, this is usually the head teacher but not always so it is worth finding out.<br> After we heard about internet safety and different options available to keep children safe, such as filters, this will mean that children can work without having inappropriate material or anything that may distract them. One thing to also always remember is that what is on the screen may not always be true, such as Wikipedia, so things must be checked to make sure the children aren’t misinformed.<br> In the afternoon we had a lesson in which we got the chance to finish our videos (which I done on my phone at the bus stop) and after we all created igoogle accounts.<br> The next lesson we had was English. We started by going back to story telling and practised telling our stories to each other, by using different voices and plenty of body language. After this we looked through picture books and discussed the importance of them. We talked about how the pictures can add depth to the tale and get the children involved and imaginative.<br> We also explored how stories can raise questions in the classroom, for example we looked at the book piggy book, we then decided that it could raise questions such as ‘what do you do at home?’ of questions about cooking or cleaning.<br> The last lesson of the week was primary education in context, the central theme of this lesson was ‘what makes a good teacher?’ This started with the highlighting of 2 major points, the first being that a good teacher must be there in the morning for when the children arrive, so the teacher is there to talk to the children when they come through in the morning. The second was that it is important to not take your work home with you, but instead do it all at the school. This is because working in a school can get stressful, so rather than taking stressful work back to the home stay in school for as long as it takes to get it done in the working environment. That way when you do go home you can relax.<br> We talked about the point that 40% of children who start school come from split families. This is something important to bear in mind as it means that some children may have different home lives and others may have emotional baggage that is important to remember.<br> We then went on to talk about recount writing. This can be done in 4 steps.<br> 1. Establish a purpose and context for writing (talk for writing).<br> 2. Shared writing. Still talking and discussing things at this stage we demonstrate how to recount write.<br> 3. Scaffolding writing. There are variances on this depending on the child, if the child is not very able then it can be more guided, if the child is more capable then it can be more independent.<br> 4. Key outcomes. This is what eventually comes from the exercise.</p> <p>The teacher gave us the example of a rugby match. It was taped and brought in and shown to the children, as well as newspaper clippings and articles about the game. This is because the children need the experience in order to write about it.</p> <p>Also this week I read:</p> <p>Horrible Histories: The Stormin’ Normans by Terry Deary.<br> And<br> Peepa Pig Sports Day (a picture book).</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/10/19/week-4896985/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-10-13:/2008/10/13/i-c-t-video-4865393/mattpayne2008-10-13T17:52:45+02:002008-10-13T17:55:17+02:00 <p>This is the video created by myself, Nathan Jones and Becky Holland for our I.C.T class. The entire video was filmed and edited on my Nokia N95 mobile phone.</p> <p>Featured music:<br> Guns 'N' Roses - Welcome to the Jungle<br> and<br> Linkin Park/Jay-Z - Numb/Encore </p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/10/13/i-c-t-video-4865393/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>tag:mattpayne.blog.co.uk,2008-10-12:/2008/10/12/week-4859242/mattpayne2008-10-12T15:31:50+02:002008-10-12T15:31:50+02:00 <p>Week 11 Reflective Diary Entry</p> <p> At the start of the week we looked at History. Within this lesson we learnt about concepts of time and how it can be related to Children, I good example used was a clock, if every minute on a clock was the equivalent to a century then the first human was about 7 hours ago. We talked about how this might not always be the most specific analogy as it may not be so good with short term events children are more familiar with but when trying to look back it breaks down a concept that can be quiet complex.<br> After talking about time we went through how societies evolved, 1.9 million years ago shows the first signs of humans using tools to catch meat and eat it. If we think back to the first homed fossils were found 4.5 millions years ago, then 1.9 million years ago they started to use tools, and then through to how society has changed in the past few centuries we see how the exponential growth is phenomenal.<br> We finished the lesson by talking about Lindow Man. This was the body of a man that was found preserved in Cheshire, England, the body tells us he was of some sort of status, such as a Druid, and his death indicates he may have been killed as part of a ritualistic killing. This shows that dating back as far as 2000 years ago in Britain there was some what tribe like of maybe religious communities.<br> Geography was the next lesson and we looked at the local area in a bit more detail. We looked at a town called Princetown, in Dartmoor, and how it originated. We looked at how the town started as a play to keep prisoners of war, but as the prison grew so did the community, so they expanded and eventually became the town it was today. We looked at maps and talked about how we could get children to look at maps to find places in the area and get an understanding of what their surroundings are like.<br> ICT was next on the agenda; we started with a lecture in which the importance of ICT in such a digital age was discussed. Points were made such as English now not being just spelling and handwriting but also the use of new technology, such as typing.<br> During the lecture it was also said that the average primary school teacher saves themselves about 2.5 hours a week all thanks to the use of ICT.<br> ICT is empowering was also brought up, this was then backed up by the fact that ICT is expanding itself into all subjects, such as using search engines and the internet to research history, or typing up a story.<br> There was some important points brought up as to why ICT can be useful:<br> • Displays<br> • Planning<br> • Time saving<br> • Editing<br> • Reports<br> • Record-keeping<br> • Communications<br> • Collaborating<br> • Shared planning</p> <p>All these thing could either not be done with ICT or would be much harder to do without it. They are all key for any Primary teacher so the amount of help ICT can be as an aid is incredible. We were then told how ICT can be used to improve a child’s development of language, through composing, presenting, reading and transforming texts, and exploring information.<br> After the lecture we had a practical lesson, this involved taking out cameras and making film clips that we could use to put together a short video. This exercise was designed to show us how we could record things in a classroom and simply put them together for the children to see, although we have yet to put the clips together, that will happen next week.<br> The last part of the week was Primary Education in Context. This is a lesson that focuses on a child’s learning and how they learn. The main point emphasised throughout the lesson was that for a child to learn best they must feel ownership of a lesson; this will lead them to feel responsible for their learning and will give them the motivation they need to stay concentrating and paying attention.<br> The key points brought up in the lesson were:<br> • The child is at the centre of the learning<br> • Learning is key<br> • Reflection and evaluation<br> • ECM</p> <p>Brain gym was something brought up, it is just simple exercises that get the brain working and motivated, doing brain gym every day will lead to improved concentration. It is also very good to let children use their imagination and to be creative whilst learning.<br> As teachers we should also always make sure to include the parents or guardians, these are the people who know the children best and as teachers will help us to get to know the children as individuals to improve our teaching techniques.<br> It is vital to remember that we should never tell a child off if we lose our tempers. Discipline is very important and we need to make sure children behave, if they don’t then we should tell them off but not if we have lost our tempers, the child will pick up on this.<br> At the end of the lesson we went through some learning objectives to help us when we are teaching. The first we learnt was W.A.L.T. This stands for We Are Learning To… at the start of the day of lesson we as teachers can give the ‘W.A.L.T’ so there is an objective or aim set for the end of day or lesson. The second is:<br> Must =================<img src="/img/smilies/icon_arrow.gif" alt="=>" class="middle" border="0"> Every Child<br> Should =================<img src="/img/smilies/icon_arrow.gif" alt="=>" class="middle" border="0"> What most children should do<br> Could =================<img src="/img/smilies/icon_arrow.gif" alt="=>" class="middle" border="0"> What they go on to do</p> <p> <small> <a href="http://mattpayne.blog.co.uk/2008/10/12/week-4859242/#comments">Comments</a> </small> </p>