David Rogers

Weather Lesson Idea Idea from David Rogers Many people feel that it’s easy to link to literacy in their subject, but not maths.  Personally, I think that’s a bonkers position and to do with the misconceptions of what maths is.  Maths has a large problem solving  and puzzle element and a very diverse discipline, which makes it ripe for subverting into many lessons.  I also worry that many teachers may not tackle maths within class as their own confidence is lacking.  This mindset can rub off on young people which is a problem.  This isn't about Ofsted criteria but ensuring that our kids understand stuff like how much they'd get ripped off by Wonga.com.  Of course, maths should only be linked to when it's appropriate and is no different from any other teaching and learning tool / strategy / method.  As my school has a whole-school maths focus this year, I am thinking about how to get more problem solving / puzzle maths into lessons more and m...

Social media, such as Twitter, allows young people access to events around the world, as they happen.  This presents the geography teacher with a powerful opportunity to drive geographical enquiry.  The Slideshare embedded above supports a lesson I taught to a range of students a few weeks ago.  Apologies for the late posting, it’s been a busy few weeks! This lesson allows young people to evaluate Twitter as a source of information. The first images are taken from the Twitter language maps of London and New York .  They link to the work of Professor Paul Longley , who received a medal at the RGS(IBG) ceremony earlier this term. The images are a great starter, and the maps can be explored in detail from following the links. Next, we explored the use of hashtags and some (at least they were then) recent news events. The photo complete introduced the study area. I always enjoy these activities as it allows young people to use visual evidence and allows their im...

This post follows on from a similar post about Year 7 . Year 8 explore rainforests during the first term, and end the Autumn term with some on-site Guerrilla Geography . The expectations and seating plan are similar to the Year 7 post, so I won’t go in to too much detail here. Please remember that this is the planned lesson, what actually happens will depend on how things go! As pupils enter (and I meet at the door), the image below is displayed. (found on this blog and created by Orno Verde ). The task is to figure out what the unit will be all about.  I’m not expecting single word answers here, but a more in depth answer. I’m also going to ask pupils to write down a forest experience, as there are clear parallels between British and Tropical forests in terms of structure and processes. These will be shared during the register. After the register, seating plan and a reminder of expectations I set the homework which is to create a rainforest poem.  The poem must link...