Rugby World Cup FREEBIES

I posted about this in July but now I felt it would be a good idea to re-post as the world cup begins tomorrow.


The rugby world cup will take place in New Zealand until Oct 23rd, 2011. There are some fantastic teaching resources available on the official RWC 2011 Site. 


Here's what's available on the site:

	Student Activity SheetsA teaching unit of 20 social sciences activity sheets for students to use to learn about their adopted team.
	Fun PackA collection of fun activities for students to complete including puzzles, crosswords, word finds, a quiz and more!
	Teacher ResourcesA resource pack containing background information about Rugby World Cup for teachers to use in their lesson planning.
	Ruggerbee Colour SheetsA series of colouring-in sheets featuring the Ruggerbees, each sporting the uniform and flag of their adopted country.
	RWC 2011 Match SchedulePrint out this poster featuring the Ruggerbees for your classroom wall. Students can fill in the scores as the Tournament progresses

The "Student Activity Sheets" are my favourite part of the pack as they contain simple graphic organisers for structuring information about a country. These are great for geography lessons. I love the idea of 'adopting a team.' It also comes with a really cute certificate to give to the children, saying that they have adopted XYZ team.


Of course, with the games being held in New Zealand, what better country to choose as a theme for other lessons. Here are some ideas of things to do:
Maths: Data handling using scores from the world cup matches; currency
P.E.: Tag rugby (There are some fantastic ideas on coaching tag rugby here)
P.E./Music: Haka (Dance; exploring chants, rhythm)
Music: New Zealand national anthem (NZ has two national anthems, one written by an Irish person)
Geography: Maori culture
Art: Maori tattoos (draw on each other with facepaint, washable markers - watch out for any skin allergies!), Maori jewelry, design their own poster for the world cup, design a flag for New Zealand based on what they have learned
Science/Nature: Kiwi birds (national bird)
Drama: Explore the attitudes of locals as the world cup comes to their country; use a Maori legend as a stimulus.
English: NZ legend (here!); write a magazine article about New Zealand, come up with an advert to entice people to go to NZ
Gaeilge: An Haka Gaelach (If you are teaching in Ireland and would like the lyrics to this, just post a comment below with your email address and I'll send it to you!)

Shape & space memory game FREEBIE

Today's freebie could be used to integrate maths and P.E. It's a memory game that involves plenty of running so it could be useful as a warm-up/cool down in a P.E. lesson. Here's how it works:

To prepare: 

Print out these templates (click here to view/download in Google Docs) on four different colours of paper. Each set needs 32 shapes (one with an "x," one without). Laminate them so they'll last for a long time!

To set the game up:

Place four cones in a line as the starting point for four teams.

Lay out 8 hula hoops in a giant semi-circle in front of the starting cones.

Place two shapes of each colour (WITH "x"s) in each hoop.

Place the copies of the shapes (WITHOUT "x"s) in a pile beside the starting cones

How the game runs:

1. Divide the children into 4 groups and assign a colour to each group.

2. Each group stands in a line behind the starting cone.

3. The first person takes a shape and has to run around and find the matching shape of the same colour. They then run back and show it to you. When you confirm that they're identical shapes, they place the shapes in front of their cone.

4. The next person may then go.

(As it's a sort of relay, only four people should be running at any one time.)

The first team to line up the matching shapes in front of their cone (all "x"s in one line, all plain shapes in another line, with matching shapes side-by-side) are the winners.

If you're Irish:

Subject: Maths

Strand: Shape and space

Strand Unit: 2-D shapes

Integration: P.E.

Reminder: Assessment Linky Party

Hello there, followers and stumblers,
Just a reminder that I am hosting an assessment linky party. There, you can share ideas for how to assess children, formally, informally and in a variety of other ways. There are only 11 days left before submissions end so, hop on over there and join in if you have something to share! :)




Here's what my entry was: Two Stars and a Wish:


Two Stars is very simple to use. The children write down two things (stars) they learned about the topic they're covering and one thing (wish) they would like to find out about it. It usually leads to some very interesting "wishes" so be prepared to be surprised!

Click on the image above to view in Google Docs.

GIVEAWAY: PE and fun games station teaching cards

Hello followers, blog-stalkers and new readers alike!


Earlier this week I shared a freebie of station teaching cards for 6 throwing activities. 


Today I'm giving away a bigger pack of station teaching cards, some of which could be used for a P.E. lesson, others of which aren't really P.E. related but are fun nonetheless. They might be useful as part of a fun day. I've given tips on how to run it smoothly with a large group of children. Or you could just pick a few and do it more simply. Either way, click on the image below to open in Google Docs. Enjoy!

PE freebie: Station teaching cards- Throwing

Everyone loves a freebie. Here's a station teaching pack to brighten up your day. It's based on 6 throwing activities for a simple, easy to run P.E. lesson. Just click on the image below to view, save and download in Google Docs.


I'll have a full set of P.E. and fun games station cards in the next week so keep an eye on this blog.

Contents:

6 throwing activity cards

Equipment list

Scoring sheet

If you're Irish:

Subject: P.E.

Strand: Athletics

Strand unit: Throwing

Integration: Maths - multiplication and addition (calculating scores)

FAO Irish Teachers: An t-Am Luaschártaí

As with my other posts this week, this is linked to Blog Hoppin's Teacher Week 2011 (click on the image above for full details).

Today is Free For All Friday in which I have to post a link to a free printable. So here you have it:

This is one for my Irish followers. Just a simple thing that you can put in any classroom as "prionta sa timpeallacht." Simply print out these flashcards on coloured (that's why they're not in order) or white paper, cut, laminate, trim and stick up around your clock.


Click on the image below to download these flashcards from Google Docs:

Teacher Week 2011: Three for Thursday

As I mentioned in my last post, I'm taking part in Teacher Week 2011 over at Blog Hoppin.' Today's theme is very straightforward, "Three for Thursday" where I have to link to my favourite font, blog and online resources. Here goes:

Favourite font: Smiley Monster

Favourite blog: Denise's Yearn To Learn - great resources; lots of really creative, often simple (yet effective!) ideas; tonnes of freebies and giveaways. Definitely one to check out!




Favourite online resource: http://forum.educationposts.ie [This one was hard for me as there are so many great resources online. Rather than pick just one post from one blog, I'm going to choose a website that has provided me with endless ideas/inspiration in times of creative-block.] 

This is the message board on the Irish education website, educationposts.ie. I find it really useful for sharing ideas. People on there are helpful and always point you in the right direction. Plus, being Irish, it relates directly to the curriculum I teach (as opposed to the ideas from other countries that don't quite match our's).