Teach This Staffroom

A few weeks ago we added a new feature to Teach This called “The Golden Ticket”. It’s a bit of fun that will give one lucky winner a free 12 month membership with Teach This. We will be listing exclusive clues to finding the Golden Ticket on Facebook. Click Here if you have not already joined us on Facebook. For those of you who have already joined us on Facebook, simply click on the Golden Ticket tab to view the clues. We̵...

If you want something quite cool to set your class apart from the rest during the upcoming final term of the school year, jump onto www.Classtell.com. I LOVE this site. It is so simple to use and you can choose from loads of different background templates for your class blog or mini-site. You can run it as a classroom blog choosing whether you’d like to monitor comments. You can even choose not to allow comments. Add calendars, photos, emb...

This new curriculum brings with it some exciting new changes. For some states, it requires a change in how we read and interpret curriculum documentation. What I am most excited about, however, is that we can take a sneak peak at what each of the states have produced for teachers. Recently I have spent quite a bit of time looking closely at documentation from Queensland and New South Wales. QSA has produced some very handy year level plans well ...

In response to my enquiry about the possibility of a national handwriting style for Australian schools, ACARA correspondence stated that “..the Australian Curriculum does not specify a recommended style of handwriting nor does ACARA have a particular preference for one style. ACARA’s main interest is that students learn to write fluently and legibly with developing automaticity. State and territory education authorities identify the sty...

Australian National Curriculum We all know Australia has finally decided on a National Curriculum and I, for one am grateful the decision has been made. I remember a time when my nephew moved from Sydney to the Gold Coast late in the year and there was quite a debate about which grade level he should enter. Thankfully, we are now on par with the rest of the country. But why haven’t we adopted a National Handwriting Font? It’s the per...

Every year the Children’s Book Council of Australia selects a Book Week theme. Some years they can seem remarkably challenging; other years wonderfully creative ideas immediately spring into your mind, but either way, they are always unique. I think it’s refreshing to be set this creative challenge each year. I will admit that this year I was far more challenged than last year. Across the Story Bridge was one of those themes that st...

Picture books (other than graphic comics) used to be seen as only useful for pre-readers, beginner readers and infant classrooms. Fortunately more recently the value of picture books has been more widely recognised. There are now picture books designed for all age groups, and even infant-oriented picture books can make excellent teaching resources in older classrooms. Here are just a few ideas for lessons and activities that make use of picture...

We all tend to think about books when we think of libraries but of course there’s a lot more to it than that. What about magazines? If you’re lucky, the school will allow some of the library budget to be spent on high quality children’s magazines that are a wonderful source of relevant, stimulating information and ideas. But there are also plenty of uses for old, used magazines (both junior and carefully selected adult ones) in the school ...

It’s one of the most common concerns for parents of elementary (primary) school age children. How can I best help my child to read at home? Teachers are asked about this all the time, and reading progress is one of the areas that parents worry about more than any other. So here are some tips for supporting your child’s development as a reader. Put as many of these things in place as you can, then relax! You’re doing your bit, and your chil...

Easter is always one of my favourite times of the year to implement bright and colourful art and craft lessons that are loads of fun. I always love to make little Easter baskets that can carry home a selection of goodies for excited students. Year after year these baskets continue to delight. Well.. that’s my personal favourite! I get as much enjoyment from filling the baskets as the children do discovering and sharing the goodies! There a...