resources update issue 52

• Interactive Poetry: The English Anthology
• Primary School Monitor
• Object Lessons
• Abacus Pupil Activity 3
  

• Getting the Point KS2 Numeracy
• Insight Interactive Comprehension
• Language Martians
• Anquet 1:50,000 Map Series: Great Britain South
  

Anyone teaching the anthology for the English GCSE AQA A syllabus will be interested in this resource particularly if you have an interactive whiteboard (or laptop and data projector).

The resource will enhance your teaching of all of the poems from the Different Cultures and Traditions section of the anthology as each poem is in both text and audio form to assist with whole class teaching. The text can
be easily highlighted with the Easiteach tools.

There are whole class interactive activities on each poem with video footage and appropriate images. The Teacher’s Guide is both in a spiral bound booklet and in Word so that the suggested teaching sequences, ideas and questions can be adapted. Extension tasks and
comparison activities are also included.

KS2 Numeracy CD-ROM contains hundreds of slides based on the National Numeracy Strategy key objectives for your chosen year group. The slides can be used as they come or, with a little knowledge of PowerPoint, can be edited to make differentiated resources for all your numeracy lessons.

A very useful tutorial on PowerPoint and how to edit slides for differentiation is available of the CD-ROM. These new slides can be pasted into new presentations and be customised by adding pictures, photographs, scanned images or Clipart. Hyperlinks can take you seamlessly to relevant websites. The slides can be used
for whole class teaching, and worksheets can be printed for class work or homework from the presentations. Audio and video clips can be added to your presentations to make truly dynamic learning resources for teaching.

Primary School Monitor offers teachers the facility to produce pupil assessment records, tracking files, timetables, long, medium and short term plans with NC copy and paste links, IEP’s, incident recording and annual reports, all combined and cross referenced all in one package which is easy to use and maintain.

One of the major strengths of this software is that it can be used by head teachers, senior management teams and teachers to keep a close overview of exactly what is going on in school on a short or long term basis.

Whilst ‘Primary School Monitor’ can be used effectively as ‘stand alone’ software, most benefit will be derived by adopting it as part of an agreed schoolwide record keeping strategy.

Insight Interactive Comprehension (Stage 3 for Year 5) is an enjoyable and motivating reinforcement tool for traditional written comprehension. With an accompanying book (sold as a package with the software) children can read 12 engaging texts (a range of genres) linked to National Literacy Strategy objectives.

Then, using the computer, children can then answer 10 questions (in a variety of formats) related to the texts they have just read. These questions test and improve literal, deductive, inferential and evaluative comprehension skills.

Children are put in control of their own learning with encouragement and reassurance along the way. Teacher’s can track children’s individual progress with an easy to use record keeping and diagnostic system. Finally, children can test their recently acquired knowledge and skills using an interactive game.

Art and Museum Service, East Sussex County Council

Object Lessons is an ‘Online Museum’ featuring objects and artefacts from British and World History and with links to geology, biology and geography. This is a superb website with lots of pictures of artefacts, a map of the world to locate them on and scientific evidence to back up the information given. There are several zones to explore with a dedicated Teacher Zone which contains ideas for using Object Lessons to support the National Curriculum.

It is suitable for use with a range of Key Stages. The children found it easy to navigate and find the artefacts they wanted to highlight and examine closer. I used Object Lessons on the interactive whiteboard with the class, which enabled pupils to see a large image to inspect and discuss.

Language Martians is a resource primarily marketed for KS3 beginners of French but is also appropriate for beginners of a slightly younger age.

The software is easily loaded from the CD-ROM for either a single-user or a multi-user. The multi-user option allows pupils to log on and work independently and progressively through the four key skills. The tasks are differentiated and there is immediate feedback for the
pupils. The assessment function is useful here as pupils’ achievements in each exercise are recorded and can easily be accessed by the teacher.

The layout and graphics are bright and clear, and were met with a positive response by all students. The audio response was given a mixed reception, but can be turned off.

Abacus Pupil Activity 3 is part of the Abacus Mathematics Teaching Scheme by Ginn for KS1 and KS2. It can be used as part of the scheme, using the activities to support the work in the classroom or as a stand-alone resource.

Containing over 70 fun and visually exciting activities that are differentiated into three levels of difficulty, the activities are closely related to the National Numeracy Strategy and help children practise key mathematical
concepts including addition, place value, number patterns and 2D shape. Teachers are able to assign specific activities and the level at which the activity should be attempted to individual pupils or groups of pupils within their class and a record of their progress is kept. This is a well-presented piece of software enabling
children to carry out activities that reinforce the key concepts in mathematics.

This map program is a set of 4 CD-ROMs containing half the UK in OS 1:50,000 map format. It is available in either Great Britain North or South editions and enables a 1:50,000 OS map of any part of the title area to be displayed and printed. It also features a
powerful location database and integration with GPS inputs. The latter feature allows real time positioning and tracking.

Once a location or route has been set, it can then be displayed as a 3 dimensional map to give a realistic landscape perspective. The package will be of great use as a reference resource and as a teaching aid for geography departments. It will also assist Duke of
Edinburgh expedition students in the planning and preparation of their routes.

Think carefully about what type of license you will require
• Do you need it on a network or do you just need a license for your interactive whiteboard, for example?
• It is usually cheaper to allow for as many users as required in the first place, rather than topping up later