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Topic “Secondary (11-16yrs)”
Secondary school age (11-16 years)
Name 2d shapes e.g. square
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Shape pairs A set of cards with shapes you are working on - say four with squares on, four with triangles on, four with rectangles on and four with circles on. |
| Make sure you have a go as well as the children. Take your go in the same way as they do, saying the name of the shape as you turn it over. If the child struggles to say the name of the shape, say it for them. Having lots of goes rather than labouring over one go is likely to be more satisfying for the children. Variations Shapes and object pictures Half the cards have the shape picture on, the other half have pictures of objects that are that shape (viewed from an angle that looks like that shape) - for example: book, iPad, ball, clock, door, coin, cheese triangle, end of Toblerone box, road warning sign. To make pairs, you now have to match a shape to an object picture. Call out the shapes for the objects and shape pictures as before. Object pictures |
| Models with 2D shapes Printed cards with pictures of the shapes and their names. Selection of 2D shapes. | Start with a small number of shapes - e.g. squares and triangles. |
pupils use words left and right on objects in front of them
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Put it there One large object such as a toy bus, house etc. Several smaller objects e.g. toy animals Prompt cards saying "left" and "right" | 1. Put the large object in the centre of the table in front of the child. 2. Ask the child to identify the left side and the right side. Help if necessary. 3. Put the "left" and "right" prompt cards to the left and right of the object. 4. Give the child instructions such as "put the lion to the right of the bus" 5. Swap roles so that the child has a chance to give the instructions. 6. When the child is fairly proficient at carrying out the activity with the prompt cards, try the activity with no prompts. | The child should be able to understand and refer to left and right when talking about their own body first (see "understand and use words left and right on own body"). You should sit next to the child so their left/right is the same as your left/right. Note: if you are sitting opposite the child and want them to refer to your left and right this is a more difficult task: this equates to working at Level 3 (8 to 9 year old typical development). |
| "Draw it" barrier activity Paper Pens Cards with pictures of two items drawn next to each other, e.g. car and cat, tree and house | ||
| Matching pairs Matching pairs cards. Visual prompt for left, right, up and down like this: ↑ up ←left right→ down ↓ | Sit next to the child so that your left is the same as their left. Note: if you are sitting opposite the child and want them to refer to your left and right this is a more difficult task: this equates to working at Level 3 (8 to 9 year old typical development). Use an appropriate number of pairs for the age and ability of the child. If the child struggles with giving instructions using up/down, put the cards in one long horizontal line and work only on "left" and "right". Vary your starting point so the child has the opportunity to use all the direction words. You can use the words further and nearer instead of up and down, if it is more appropriate, but you must be consistent in which word you choose. |
name 3d shapes eg sphere
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| 3D shapes Printed cards with pictures of the shapes and their names. Selection of 3D shapes. | 1. Use simple 3D shapes like cube, sphere etc. 2. Make a model with them and label the different shapes you can see. 3. Match the shapes shown in the cards with the 3D shapes. 4. See if the child can name some of the shapes they can see. 5. Ask the children to use their shapes to make the same model. See if they can name the shapes as they go, and tell you where they are. | Start with a small number of different shapes - e.g. cubes and cones. |
| 3D and 2D shapes Printed cards with shapes and names. Selection of 2D and 3D shapes. |
recognise vocabulary for basic number operations
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Calculation Lotto Duplicate the resource if there are more than 2 players. Cut up the calculation cards. Some children will need some visual prompts to help them remember what the mathematical vocabulary means. | 1. Each child has a Lotto base board with the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division symbols. 2. Put the calculation cards face down in a pile. 3. Each player picks a calculation card from the pile and matches it to the appropriate symbol on their base board. 4. If a player can't use a calculation card because they have used up all their spaces then they return the card to a discard pile in the middle and miss their turn. 5. Other players can choose to take a card from the top of the face-down pile or from the pile of cards discarded by other players. 6. The winner is the player to cover their board first. | Use a visual prompt initially, prompting players to find the words on the prompt and match them to the symbols. Take this prompt away when children become familiar with the words. You can make the game more challenging by asking children to give the answers to the simple calculations on the cards. |
Write a message using own name and 1 or 2 words
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Greetings Cards Examples of real greetings cards (birthday cards, fathers' day cards, etc), which have had a hand written message added. Photocopied A4 paper or a piece of card containing a printed greeting, (e.g. 'Happy Birthday') for each pupil, and for yourself to use as a model. Pencils, Pens, felt tip pens, crayons. Pictures to stick on the front of the card (optional). Glue/glue stick (optional). | 1. Talk with the child about why people send each other cards. Explain you are going to write a message in a card and send it to xyz. 2. Show the pupil a real card and identify the front of the card, where the picture usually is. Read any printed words on the front of the card to the pupil. Point at each word as you read it. 3. Show the pupil which direction the card opens. Then show the pupil the printed greeting inside the card. Point at and read the greeting to the pupil. 4. Finally, show the pupil the handwritten message written in the card. Talk about the difference between the printed greeting and the handwritten message. 5. Point at and read the handwritten message to the pupil. Explain that we write the word 'To' and the other person's name above the printed greeting. Explain that we write the word 'from' and our own name under the printed greeting. 6. Tell the children you are going to draw a picture / stick a picture on the front of your card and write a message inside it. 7. Demonstrate drawing a picture on the front of the card. 8. Open your card. Point at and read the printed greeting inside the card with the pupil. 9. Model writing the first part of the message (To xyz) above the printed greeting. Emphasise the initial sound of each word as you slowly write it. 10. Model writing the second part of the message, (from and your name) underneath the printed greeting. 11. When you have finished writing your message, encourage the child to read it back with you as you point at the words. 12. Give the child their own piece of paper/card and 'read' the printed greeting inside with them. 13. Tell the child s/he is going to make their own card. Decide with the child who they are going to send the card to. 14. Ask the child to show you where they are going to draw the picture. 15. Ask the child to show you where they are going to write 'To xyz' inside the card. 16. Ask the child to show you where they are going to write 'From' and their own name inside the card. 17. Ask the child to draw a picture / stick a picture on the front of their own card and write their message inside the card. If necessary you could make another card yourself alongside the pupil to remind them where to write the message. | This activity could be done with an individual pupil or with a small group of up to 6 pupils in total. Many different types of cards could be made as appropriate e.g.
Key vocabulary to focus on may include the words: To Mum, Dad (optional) Love (optional) from (optional) Child's name This may be an opportunity to introduce the idea of using capital letters in writing. If your pupil is not ready for this yet, you could just use lower case letters, except for names. If the pupil has directionality difficulties, you could play a game where you deliberately open the card up incorrectly and encourage the pupil to correct you. You may want to put the card in an envelope and model writing the person's name on the front of it. Although the child may need to copy the words 'To' and 'from' from your card, make sure that they don't copy your name in 'from xyz' section and that they write their own name. |
Copies underneath writing l to r
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Describing a picture from a book Photocopies of main pictures from a favoured book Writing pens | 1. Choose a favoured book and photocopy the most important pages (about 4). Fold the photocopy to hide the text and photocopy again so that you have a picture with a blank space for writing. 2. Share the book with the child. Show the child the photocopies and discuss the pictures. 3. Write down a short phrase that the child has used to describe the picture in the blank space over the picture. 4. Make a dotted copy of the short phrase and help the child to over write this 5. You may need to use special pen grips to support he child writing. 6. The child can colour the picture after the writing as a reward. 7. You can make a short book like this and the child can make a cover page with a title and his own name. | Keep the writing activity as fun as possible by using only short phrases and having reward breaks. Keep writing activities relevant by matching them to appealing pictures or photos. |
| Writing to describe child's own photos Photos and pens | ||
| Writing to describe picture cards |
spell phonically regular words
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Play four in a row Materials Sheet of paper, filled in as a 'board' A dice Different coloured pens Preparing the board Create a landscape page with 6 columns and 7 rows. On the first row number each column from 1-6. Select the short vowels (e.g. a, e, i, o, u, y) or vowel digraphs (e.g. ay, ai, ee, ea, oi, oy) that the children need to reinforce. Next to each number write a different vowel or vowel digraph that the children need to reinforce. | 1. Establish the sound of each vowel (or vowel digraph) with the players. 2. Give each player a different coloured pen. 3. The first player rolls the dice and chooses any of the empty boxes in the column that corresponds to the number on the dice. 4. They write a word containing whichever short vowel or vowel digraph is at the head of that column. For example, if they throw a 3 and the 3 column is 'ee' they could write the word see. They write it in their own colour, underline the vowel or vowel digraph and read the word out loud. 5. No one else can now use that box. 6. Each player has one throw per turn. 7. If one of the columns becomes full and the player throws that number they are allowed one more throw. If it's still the same number they cannot write a word during that go. 8. The winner is the first person to get 4 words in a row either horizontally, vertically or diagonally. 9. If there is a time issue it can be 2 or 3 in a row. | Children need to learn the phonic spelling patterns to enable them to read and write fluently. At the beginning of the game it is important to establish what happens when they can't think of a word or they get it wrong. Do you give them a word? Do they forfeit their turn? Sensitivity is required depending on the pupils' needs. The aim is to have fun whist learning! |
spell high frequency words
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Using a race track game to learn high frequency spellings Set of 20+ cards with target high frequency words Race track or loop Dice Counters | 1. Read through the words with the player(s). 2. Place the cards face down. 3. Players take it in turns to pick up the card, use S.O.S. to spell the word, throw the dice and move around the board. 4. Winner is the first person to finish. 5. Repeat the game after reading through all the words again. 6. A spelling 'test' could be introduced when the child thinks he is ready to try this. | New words need to be added gradually. There could be several copies of each word or selected word. S.O.S. = simultaneous oral spelling = saying the word and then saying each letter of the word while writing it. The card can be turned over while they are trying to spell the word. A variation could be asking the child to write the word on a whiteboard. |
| Using mnemonics to teach spelling A short list of words the child is finding particularly difficult to remember - 'tricky words' Whiteboard and pen | Mnemonics are memory triggers to help learn words. They are especially useful for irregular words such as 'said' and 'because' e.g. said = said ant itching, don't. Include the word to remember as the first word in the mnemonic and use short vowel sounds as far as possible. because= because eagles can add up so easily |
use a strategy to remember spellings
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Visualisation A4 paper Thick marker pen Paper and pencil or pen for pupil to use. | 1. Ask the pupil to visualise (see inside their head) something familiar: e.g. their TV and what's on top of it, beside it, etc; or their kitchen. 2. Write words in large unjoined lower case letters in thick felt tip on A4 paper - maybe important bits in a different colour or larger. 3. Hold the word up in front of the pupil. 4. Discuss visual features (e.g. two o's looking out of the middle of the word school). 5. Pupil shuts eyes and tries to 'see' the word. 6. Ask 'What colour are the letters?' 'Change the colour' 'What's the first letter?' What's the last letter?' 'Put the letters inside a picture' etc. 7. If the pupil gets something wrong, ask him/her to have another good look. 8. The pupil writes the word down, and checks it is correct. 9. It may help visual recall if the pupil looks up towards his/her top left when trying to remember the word. | Phonics is especially important in spelling, but it is not enough. Pupils need to remember the spelling of specific words. Phonics will make some bits of any word easy to learn. When using the methods described here, focus especially on the bits which are difficult to remember. Research has shown that if pupils establish their own best method, it helps them remember words better. Some people find it easier to visualise with their eyes open. If your pupil prefers to do it this way, allow it. If they can say the letters in reverse order, this is a good sign they are visualising the word. |
| Tracing Paper - A4 size or larger Thick felt tip Pencil and extra paper to write on | Use the style of joined handwriting the pupil uses or is being taught. When he/she is quite confident with tracing, you may want to ask the pupil to trace with eyes closed, and focus on the movement. It is important the pupil checks at every stage - otherwise he/she may be learning a misspelling. | |
| Spelling pronunciation Pencil and paper, or whiteboard and dry-wipe pen | This is useful for irregular words, especially those containing 'silent' letters or vowel sounds that are not very clear. It assumes the pupil has enough phonics to allow them to spell the word the way you have pronounced it. For instance, if you emphasise the "or" sound in motor, this will only help if they know that this sound is spelled with the letters o and r. Examples of other spelling pronunciations are fry-end for friend, skissors for scissors, |
write simple sentences
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| The daily sentence Paper / pencil or pen (and grip if needed) Scissors Story book or picture (optional) (Optional, if available: Clicker grid with the words from the child's sentence in random order. The programme Clicker is available from: www.cricksoft.com.) | 1. Child / adult generate a meaningful sentence orally that is made up of words which are easy to sound out or are high frequency. This could be just 3-4 words to begin with. This could be based on the child's 'news' or a sentence from a book or a sentence based on a picture. 2. Child / adult rehearse the sentence together orally - especially checking that it makes sense. 3. Adult scribes - and writes the words as the child repeats each word slowly. Child watches the adult writing (adult adds capital letter / full stop). 4. Child reads the sentence. Adult ensures child can read all the words. 5. Child writes the sentence without looking at the adult's version. (Adult helps with spellings as appropriate and gives prompts if a word is missing - depending on the needs of the child.) 6. Adult cuts up their (adult's) copy of the sentence into separate words and mixes the words up. 7. Child attempts to re-assemble the sentence. 8. Child reads the re-assembled sentence and checks it makes sense and compares it to the sentence they wrote before. Child makes corrections if any are needed. 9. Child writes a final 'best' copy in a book. | This activity assumes that the child has: basic writing skills e.g. forms letters and can write & spell simple words, can speak in sentences and can identify sentences in reading. It links reading and writing. Focus is on construction of a sentence, so help can be given with spellings where necessary. When repeated every day the adult can reduce the amount of support given gradually (in step 5). Sentences can be gradually extended - simple connectives e.g. 'and' could be added Further activities: Choose a keyword to work on in reading / spelling. Use ICT - use the words from the child's sentence in a Clicker grid - child can work on writing sentences independently by clicking on each word in the correct order. Child could practice writing the sentences to adult's dictation at the end of the week - and compare to sentences made before. Child could take the book of sentences home to practice reading - and draw pictures to illustrate each sentence. |
distinguish letter b from letter d in writing
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| b and d fingers No resources needed other than pupil's hands. | 1. Make sure the pupil can recite the first 4 letters of the alphabet in the correct order, without hesitating: a b c d. 2. Make sure they know that the alphabet is written from left to right. If not, practise this with moveable letters. 3. Show them how to make a b shape with their left hand. The tips of the thumb and forefinger touch to form the rounded part of the b. The other fingers go straight up to form the upright part. 4. Show them how to make a d shape in the same way with the right hand. 5. They then recite the first four letters of the alphabet. When they say b, they hold up their left hand in the shape of a b. When they get to d, they hold up their right hand in the shape of a d.
|
With this technique, children will not need to rely on anyone or anything else to help them check which way each of these letters faces. All they need to remember is to hold up their left hand first - but if they know the alphabet goes from left to right this is unlikely to be a problem. Encourage them to see what they are doing inside their head, so that as they grow older, they do not have use their hands. |
| Reducing capital B Pencil, paper and rubber, or whiteboard and dry-wipe pen | 1. Ask pupil to write a capital B. 2. Slowly rub out the top curve of the B. 3. Show them how this finishes up as a lower case b. 4. Ask them to do this for themselves 2 or 3 times. 5. Ask them to shut their eyes and see the top of the B fading out inside their head. | Many children have no difficulty with capital B and D. This technique uses capital B to help them remember lower case b. |
| Writing b and d with the correct sequence of strokes Handwriting programme, pencil and paper | When written properly, b and d are not exact mirror images of each other. If they start with 'lead in strokes', they look more different still. It is important children do not form either letter as a stick and a separately drawn circle. | |
| 'c, d' Pencil, paper and rubber, or whiteboard and dry-wipe pen | This is a technique for remembering how to write d. They can remember the sequence 'c, d' either because the letters come in that order in the alphabet, or because it's what you put in a CD player. | |
| b and d drawing of bed Paper and pencil, or other drawing/colouring equipment. | For this activity to be helpful, pupils need to recognise that bed starts with a /b/ sound and ends with a /d/ sound. After they have used the picture of the bed for a while, encourage them to see it inside their head. | |
| Bat and ball Pencil, paper and rubber, or whiteboard and dry-wipe pen | This technique helps them remember which way round the b is. The pupil will need to be aware that the words bat and ball both start with a /b/ sound. Don't worry if your drawing is not great art! Repeat on several different days. |
To develop vocabulary around a specific topic
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Topic books - Ring binder and paper or some blank exercise books - Topic pictures | 1. Choose a topic - this can either be curriculum related (at school) or around an activity you will be doing e.g. a trip to the seaside (at home). 2. Explain that you are going to think about all the words you need to talk about that topic. Aim for 5-6 words. 3. Think about what sort of things you will see and do. You could write these down - let your child think of as many as they can. 4. Together look for pictures to stick in the book for each word. 5. Write down the word for each picture and fill in a word web template. 6. Put the word webs together to make a book that you can use to discuss your topic. | |
| Bingo - Bingo cards - each with a list of your topic related words on it - you may wish to put a picture/symbol alongside each picture. - A set of definitions of the words (descriptions of what the words mean). | ||
| Alphabet Game | The category cards in this game are general - you may like to add more speicifc ones related to the topic you have been working on. | |
| Topic Trees / Mind Maps - Blank sheet of paper - Pens - Cards with different topics on them (optional) | You can use a different colour for each set of branches. | |
| What is that Word? Game |
To develop question skills
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Flowchart questions Use one of the pre-made flowcharts or use the blank flowchart to make your own one. You can find these charts on www.commtap.org: Template for creating your own question flowchart: Blank 3 question challenge Pre-made flowcharts: The Animal Challenge, The Food Challenge Labels to write the answers on | Write one answer per sticky label. Stick one of the labels to the back of the child / children. Using the questions on the flowchart, they must work out what the word on their back is. | It works well if you have one answer 'spare' so that each child needs to ask the questions to work out what their word is. |
| Guess who? Game | ||
| '20 Questions' Object cards (optional) | Emphasise that they are working out the answer, not guessing it. It is useful to have prompt questions, or categories on cards for the children to use. E.g. questions such as: How big is it? What colour is it? What do we use it for? Categories can include: animals, toys, furniture. | |
| 'I Spy' with a difference | It is useful to write on a whiteboard what you have found out. Use this to remind the children of what you already know and what you need to find out. |
Plan steps in a familiar activity eg make a sandwich
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Cooking Basic kitchen equipment - dependent on what you make. Whiteboard or paper Pen Camera (optional) | 1. Choose something very simple which the children are familiar with, e.g. making toast. 2. Explain to the children that you are going to make toast, and that they are the 'teacher'. They need to tell you exactly what to do, in steps. 3. Ask them what the steps are, and write or draw them on the paper or whiteboard. Do not correct their answers. 4. Carry out the steps exactly as they have told you. Allow them to identify any errors and to correct them. 5. Record the accurate stages at the end of the activity. 6. Photos of the stages of the activity can be used as a sequencing task as well. | Make it fun! It is not a test and exaggerating the errors when you are doing them will allow the children to spot them more easily. |
| Photo sequencing Photos taken in the activity above Paper Scissors Glue | If you are making e.g. tea, there will be some acceptable variations - do you put the milk in before or after the tea? | |
| Going to the shops Paper Pen Shop! Some money | ||
| Planning steps in familiar routines Paper Pen Whiteboard | To make this easier, give them a number of steps they have to fill in, or pictures to sequence. These tasks are very useful for children who find it difficult to organise themselves. |
To be able to name items from different categories
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Think of a... Game - category dice - click here to print or - category cards - click here to print - if you do not have a printer you could make your own. - normal dice (optional) | 1. Print and cut out the catgeory cards and/or dice. You can make your own if you do not have access to a printer. 2. Explain to your child you are going to play a game where you think of items from different categories, e.g. 'animals' - you might say 'cat'. 3. Choose either the category dice or cards to play with. 4. Roll the dice or choose a card. The person has to name an item from that category. If the same category comes up later in the game, you need to think of a different item. You may want to keep a list of the items that have been named as a reminder.
| To make the game harder, when you roll the category dice, or choose the category card, roll a normal dice to give you a number of item to name from that partiucalar category. |
| How many can I think of? - Pen and paper | Count up the number of suggestions the child has made. Next time you do the activity, the child can try to beat their score. |
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