Reading resources for primary school children across the nation as lockdown continues
Warwickshire Schools’ Library Service (SLS) is demonstrating just how valuable the school library sector is to communities during the coronavirus outbreak by providing reading resources for primary schools nationwide.
Warwickshire SLS has contributed reading-based activities and resource links to learning projects that are being compiled by a Birmingham-based Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) and are now being shared nationwide (since Thursday 23 April 2020).
The projects, created by Robin Hood Multi Academy Trust, cover the whole curriculum and will provide parents overseeing their children’s home learning with a range of activities for primary-school-aged children over an eight-week period.
The Trust, based in Hall Green, Birmingham, previously created projects for use by parents and other schools for the first 8 weeks after the lockdown began. These went on to be shared widely across social media and used by more than 200 schools and local authorities across the UK.
Contributions to the projects have also been made by the STEM Learning organisation, which is based in York.
Access the Warwickshire School Library Service ‘Useful Resources for Learning at Home’.
Access the full learning projects from the Robin Hood MAT website.
There will also be topic cards for SLS subscribing schools which will be on a new password protected area of the Schools’ Library Service website.
Think Active update and resources to get children and young people moving
Think Active works with partners across Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire to encourage everyone to enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle. They provide support for schools across the area to help them strengthen their PE and Sport Premium offer and are responsible for organising the School Games and for awarding the School Games Mark.
During this time, Think Active is still offering their support with resources to encourage physical activity whilst schools are closed and sports clubs and other classes that students might usually enjoy are suspended.
Don't miss!
- The School Games A-Z Challenge - maybe your students will become a bean bag master? Try out new age kurling? Or learn to juggle?
- Virtual School Games - starting on 11 May - a virtual countywide competition open to all children and young people with events for Athletics, Cricket, Tennis and Dance
For more information about the above activities as well as updates on the School Games 2019-20, Active Lives, School Games Mark and more please read the attached update from Think Active.
Online hub launches to help schools deliver remote learning
Backed by government funding and created by 40 teachers from some of the leading schools across England, the Oak National Academy aims to support teachers and schools in delivering remote education.
Launched on 20 April, the online classroom and resource hub will provide a bank of 180 hours' worth of video lessons each week across a broad range of subjects from maths to art to languages, for every year group from Reception through to Year 10.
Teachers can use the resources to complement their own lesson planning and remote teaching until schools fully re-open. Every lesson will be free to use for every teacher and every pupil and has been designed to be accessible on any device.
To find out more please visit https://www.thenational.academy/
Free online courses to help boost parents' confidence
A reminder to schools that there are a number of free online guides available for Warwickshire parents and carers to help build their confidence and strengthen family relationships.
With a lot of parents and carers currently spending more time at home with their children, this would be a good opportunity to share these courses with your families.
Created by NHS experts and parents, and offered online by Warwickshire County Council, there are four courses available:
- Understanding your pregnancy
- Understanding your baby
- Understanding your child
- Understanding your teenager's brain
Courses are available online here. After selecting which course to complete, the code 'BEAR' should be used to access the online content.
WCC Chief Executive reads brand new 'Warwick Bear' Road Safety children's book
Move over Tom Hardy!
Warwickshire County Council (WCC) Chief Executive reads brand new ‘Warwick Bear’ children’s book by local author – the first in a series of virtual bedtime stories from WCC
Following in the footsteps of Tom Hardy, Dolly Parton and Orlando Bloom, who have all famously told bedtime stories on TV in recent years, WCC's Chief Executive, Monica Fogarty, will be narrating a children’s story online next week - with a special road safety theme.
Monica has volunteered her time to read ‘Warwick Bear: Tooting Trucks and Busy Bikes’, the latest book to be created for Warwickshire County Council’s Road Safety Club, for a special online bedtime story.
The illustrated story, which has been developed with Diane Maybey, a children’s author and illustrator based in Warwick, can be watched on WCC's social media channels this Tuesday (5 May) at 6pm.
It will be the first of a number of virtual bedtime stories to be read by County Council employees in the coming weeks, including staff from Warwickshire’s Libraries Service and Fire and Rescue Service.
With two children of her own, Monica is no stranger to reading bedtime stories and was happy to take a short amount of time out from managing the County Council’s Covid-19 response to share an important road safety message with children.
Monica said:
“I was delighted when the Road Safety Education Team invited me to read the latest ‘Warwick Bear’ book, which has been written to help young children learn important messages about road safety by following his journey through our streets and towns.
“It’s wonderful that we have been able to work with Warwick-based author and illustrator, Diane Maybey, to tell the story.
“Families are looking for all sorts of different ways to entertain and educate their children at home at the moment and our staff are doing an amazing job, developing online activities so that families can continue to get involved with libraries and our other areas of work, like road safety, from home.
“Staff from our Libraries Service, Warwickshire Fire & Rescue Service and other Council teams have stepped up to follow in the footsteps of celebrities like Tom Hardy on CBeebies and will be volunteering their time to read some special bedtime story sessions for us in Warwickshire over the coming weeks.”
You can tune into Monica Fogarty reading ‘Warwick Bear: Tooting Trucks and Busy Bikes’ at 6pm on Tuesday 5 May on the following social media channels:
Warwickshire Road Safety Twitter @RoadSafetyWarks
Warwickshire Libraries Twitter @warkslibraries and Facebook facebook.com/WarwickshireLibraries
Warwickshire County Council Twitter @warwickshire_cc and Facebook facebook.com/WarwickshireCountyCouncil