Creativity in skills-building: some practical examples

1. Creativity in skills-building: some practical examples Rachel Hawkes Assistant Principal, AST, SSAT Lead Practitioner Comberton Village College, Cambridgeshire www.rachelhawkes.typepad.com/linguacom

2. What skills and attributes? • Pattern-finding • Link-making • Pronunciation • Memorising • Autonomy • Communicating (meaning making) • Creativity • Performing • Collaborating • Listening (audience skills) How do we embed these skills in our teaching?

3. 1 Learning the ‘sounds’ of the language • develops pronunciation • builds pattern-finding and link-making • increases autonomy • improves confidence in performance • facilitates comprehension

4. Support from new curriculum: 1 key concepts • 1.1b Applying linguistic knowledge and skills to understand and communicate effectively • 1.2a Understanding how a language works and how to manipulate it • 1.2b Recognising that languages differ but may share common grammatical, syntactical or lexical features

5. Support from new curriculum: 2 Key processes • 2.1a identify patterns in the TL • 2.1b develop techniques for memorising words, phrases and spellings • 2.1d use previous knowledge, context and other clues to work out the meaning of what they hear or read • 2.2d use correct pronunciation and intonation • 2.2k deal with unfamiliar language, unexpected responses and unpredictable situations

6. Support from new curriculum: 3 Range and content4 Curriculum opportunities • 3a the spoken and written forms of the TL • 3b the interrelationship between sounds and writing in the TL • 4c use an increasing range of more complex language

7. How to teach the ‘sounds’? • VAK approach – picture, sound, gesture for key sounds • Constant re-visiting • Frequent practice opportunities • Embed the links in the classroom discourse

8. 2 Pattern-finding, link-making, memorising • develops higher level thinking skills • mirrors ‘investigative’ approaches in other curriculum areas • makes learning explicitly collaborative • raises profile of memory skills

9. How to teach it? • Collective memory lesson • Constant re-visiting • Frequent practice opportunities • Embed the links in the classroom discourse

10. 3Using music to develop skills • memorising • pronunciation • creativity • fun • making the learning experiences memorable

11. 4Using drama to develop skills physical theatre hotseating • memorising • pronunciation • creativity • fun • making the learning experiences memorable using props character role-play

12. Two stars and a wish

13. Plenary • What do you do already in your departments that promotes skills-building?(e.g. teaching of phonics/thinking skills/music/drama) • What would you like to see further developed? • What is on your “wish-list” for creative and engaging activities ?

14. Further support from me • my blog:www.rachelhawkes.typepad.com/linguacom • RSA seminar day – ARU (Anglia Ruskin University) – Monday 17th March (flyers available) • ALL Regional Network twilight 2 – Wednesday 19th March 4.30 – 6.30 – Comberton Village College (to book: ashorten@comberton.cambs.sch.uk ) • ALL Regional Network twilight 3 – Wednesday 30th April 4.30 – 6.30 – Comberton Village College (to book: ashorten@comberton.cambs.sch.uk )

15. Second workshop only beyond this point! 

16. Reflection on next steps Arising from today, what conversations will you have with - your languages team? - your senior leadership team? - like-minded colleagues?

17. For further information: http://curriculum.qca.org.ukhttp://all-languages.org.ukkathywicksteed@tiscali.co.uk

18. Further support from me • my blog:www.rachelhawkes.typepad.com/linguacom • RSA seminar day – ARU (Anglia Ruskin University) – Monday 17th March (flyers available) • ALL Regional Network twilight 2 – Wednesday 19th March 4.30 – 6.30 – Comberton Village College (to book: ashorten@comberton.cambs.sch.uk ) • ALL Regional Network twilight 3 – Wednesday 30th April 4.30 – 6.30 – Comberton Village College (to book: ashorten@comberton.cambs.sch.uk )