resources update issue 72

Continuing our series of tasters of our digital resource evaluations, we bring you a selection of geography, maths, science, MFL, PE, PSHE & Citizenship, and english titles for primary and secondary: -

• Footprints-Science: Life Processes and Living Things
• Resource Education: Moles
• BBC Active: Mountains, Coasts and Rivers DVD plus pack
• Virtual Language Systems Ltd:  LaunchPad 2 (French)
  

• Learning and Teaching Scotland: Lifeskills - Smart Spender
• Brian Coates & Associates:  Inspirational Gymnastics Key Stage 2
• United Nations World Food Programme: Food Force Game & Website
• Cambridge - Hitachi: i-Read 3
  

Footprints-Science: Life Processes and Living Things is a series of 25 interactive PowerPoint presentations. Designed to be used on an interactive whiteboard with GCSE pupils, it could also be used with a multimedia projector and laptop. Each presentation is made up of a series of slides that can be used as a whole presentation or by just selecting the slide you want to use for starters, plenaries or the reinforcement of a topic or a particular concept in the lesson. There are a variety of slides which contain facts, animations, drag and drop exercises, quizzes and word searches.

The animations are good for getting across difficult concepts so that the students can visualise processes that we could otherwise only describe.

This piece of software is an absolute delight for young children. Its emphasis is on breaking down the five stages of mouse control (roll over, roll over and drag without clicking, single click, double click and click and drag) into small, achievable steps before progressing to the next stage.
The games are based on encouraging moles back into their holes, or onto deck chairs in the sun when using the ‘drag’ option. There are great sound effects and colourful characters through each game. Additionally, Moles can also be used for developing mathematical language, adding, subtraction and counting skills.
In summary, this is a ‘must have’ piece of software which fills the need for developing mouse control in the Early Years ICT curriculum.

This software is an excellent resource for teachers struggling to get to grips with teaching gymnastics. It offers both video clips and photographs of children carrying out activities, differentiated lesson plans with progression all relating directly to the National Curriculum and QCA for PE.

The video clips are a particularly good starting point for a gymnastics lesson, especially if the teacher has access to an interactive whiteboard, allowing the children to model their activities from examples onscreen. The clips are not too long so keeping the attention of the children shouldn’t be too difficult. Teachers and children alike will gain confidence from seeing actions and movements required in the lesson. It may also be used in a plenary to a lesson, allowing teachers to keep valuable concepts clear after a physical lesson has finished.

Food Force Game & Website

Designed specifically to complement QCA units 11, 14, 15 and 23, this double DVD pack is highly relevant and interesting to children and has a strong cross-curricular link with English through its excellent material on writing in different styles from explanations to mountain safety instructions.

The support pack is incredibly comprehensive with full details of the accompanying programmes, activities, advice and support on planning, follow-up suggestions and cross-curricular links. The DVD has a range of very simple menus, allowing access to whole and parts of programmes or through inputting keywords to short sections that illustrate a concept. There is also an interactive map of the River Severn. Overall, this pack is engaging for children with a wealth of information to see and hear. One to view many times!

Food Force is a website compiled by the UN’s WFP and designed for use in the classroom to teach children about hunger, while encouraging strategic thinking and decision-making. The site contains a wealth of information about hunger, famine and the work of the WFP. There are press cuttings, photo galleries and an interactive hunger map, all of which are very useful resources.

Of particular interest is an educational video game suitable for 8 – 13 year olds and deals with a hunger crisis on a fictitious island, requiring initial crisis assessment through to delivery and distribution of food aid. Each mission’s game plan is unique in order to maximize appeal to a variety of learning levels. The game has a wide cross-curricular appeal for geographical, social studies and health issues.

Launchpad 2 French is an interactive language learning CD-ROM for children aged 9 to 14. As well as being a useful tool for classroom teaching, the software can be used at home to aid revision and independent study. Activities are based within the topics of School, Food and Drink, Sport, Clothes, In town and A visit.

The topics are presented in a way which will appeal to the targeted age group. A vocabulary section introduces words and phrases, and children are enabled to learn the meaning, pronunciation and spelling of each word or phrase. By playing the digital video, pupils are able to hear the word being said and also see the facial movements of the child saying the word. Children can record their own version of the words and compare this with the audio recording.

i-Read 3 is a new resource developed specifically for the interactive whiteboard for the teaching and learning of reading skills and strategies at KS2. It is designed to support whole class teaching and consists of a wide variety of newly written fiction, non-fiction and poetry texts by popular children’s authors, and is supported by animation, video and music.

The main activity has been designed to apply the latest thinking on the best practice of teaching reading by exploring and analysing the texts. The ability to highlight and annotate texts is a real benefit when revisiting them at a later date.

The Teacher’s Notes are well planned and clearly arranged making navigation simple. The activities are also cross referenced with the NLS, the Scottish 5 -14 guidelines, and the Northern Ireland Lines of Development.

Your requirements

• Work with colleagues to prioritise areas where new resources are most in need and/or could make the most impact in enhancing pupil learning.
• List the age groups and subjects most in need of additional multimedia resources.