NAIDOC Week 2017: Our Languages Matter

Worimi!

I would firstly like to acknowledge the Darug people, the traditional custodians of the land in which I live and work. I would like to pay my respect to Elders both past and present and extend that respect to other Aboriginal people visiting my blog and reading this post.

This year the theme for NAIDOC week is 'Our Languages Matter'. 

And they most definitely do!

What does our census say about Aboriginal languages?

In the 2011 Census, 83% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people reported speaking only English at home, similar to the proportion of non-Indigenous people (80%).  

About one in 10 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (11%) reported speaking an Australian Indigenous language at home. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25 to 44 years were most likely to speak an Indigenous language at home (13%), followed closely by those aged 15 to 24 years and those aged 45 years and over (both 11%). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 14 years and under were least likely to speak an Indigenous language (10%) and most likely to speak only English at home (85%).  

Of the Australian Indigenous languages spoken at home, languages in the Arnhem Land and Daly River Region Languages and Western Desert Languages groups were the most widely spoken (18% and 14% respectively). The next most prominent language groups spoken at home were Yolngu Matha and Torres Strait Island Languages (11% each).

Image from ABC Aboriginal Language Map

Here are some helpful resources that can be used to help teach your students about the Dharug people and their language:

1. Campfire Stories
This is an interactive website with short videos of elders speaking in their language. The interviews are presented in sections and include questions to guide students thinking as their watching.

2. Learn Darug
I'm a little addicted to this blog! It contains so many wonderful teaching resources, including notebook files and PDF's. The resources cover topics such as language, sacred sites, "Survival Day", etc. This site was developed for teachers working on Darug country.

3. Splash
Jacinta Tobin… where have you been all my life??? Splash have put together a number of videos with Jacinta speaking language. She explains how to greet people and use manners in Dharug. It's absolutely stunning. Click on the 'What to view next' side bar on the right to view more of her videos (after clicking on the 'Splash' link that is).

4. ABC Aboriginal Language Map
A great interactive tool to help show the different language groups/ countries. Use the magnifying tool to zoom in and have a closer look at the countries and where they are.

5. Dharug Dalang
This website is virtually a dictionary of Dharug words and phrases. Click on the 'Word Lists' tab to search for English words and find the Dharug translation (and vice versa).

Want to see some of my other posts? Click on the following links:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Perspectives in the Classroom

NAIDOC Week 2016: Songlines

Aboriginal-inspired Artworks

10 ATSI Online Resources

How to ensure I don't spend every waking moment of my life doing schoolprep!

Today's post is about something very close to my heart, and something that I struggle with almost every day: HOW to be a great teacher without sacrificing family time. I'll be honest, it's a fine line between getting it right and getting it horribly wrong. I am no expert... But since cutting down my working week to just two days and job sharing, I've picked up a few tricks and I thought I'd share them with you!

1. Keep marking to a minimum 

It's really important to mark work and some schools can be particularly strict on how often work is marked. But there are ways to get it done without taking tubs of books home every afternoon. First of all, marking work together as a class is a great way for students to be accountable to their own learning as well as cutting down your workload. However, marking as a class isn't alway feasible, and so that's why I created these amazing stamps with Vistaprint. I created a stack of different stamps so that I'm not always writing the same thing over and over. If you wait for a sale, you can get the stamps for a bargain.

2. Use your release time efficiently

I have always wasted my release time by prioritising my work badly. I've spent the time "catching up" rather than getting ahead. I only have one hour of release now, so I have to use my time wisely. Instead of going down to the staff room and potentially getting caught in a conversation with a colleague, I spend my first half hour marking and my second half hour photocopying and borrowing resources ready for the next week. So that when I come in on a Monday morning, I can ease my way back into work.

3. Have split up booklets organised for sick days so that students are still on task

Split Up days happen. It's unfortunately the way life is for teachers nowadays. Because I job share, there's a higher chance that my colleague or I have to take a day off. So we created 'Split Up Booklets' that are stored in an easily found tote tray for those days when one of us can't make it in and the school can't get a casual teacher in time. The booklet contains work that can be completed independently, however, is still keeping the class on task. STEM activities are great ideas for Split Up Booklets. Blank templates for planning and writing as well as spelling activities that cater towards different spelling lists are also great activities. I've put a couple of images below of our current Split Up Booklet below.

4. Use your diary well

This one is pretty self explanatory and links in with my second point. Write important details down and then remember to check your diary. I like to plan out what I need to do before and after school so that I make the most of my time. I also try to do jobs as soon as possible so that I don't forget to do them. Rip it off like a bandaid. 

I created a couple of different planning templates for you to download and use. I like to print them off in advance and bound it ready for the term. Click on the images to download the templates.

5. Keep parents up to date with what's happening regularly so that you don't have to spend your whole lunch break chasing them up

I've mentioned this point in a previous blog post… I highly recommend using ClassDojo! It has an amazing messenger tool where you can directly message parents. It's a great way to keep constant dialogue open between school and home. A quick message here and there is far easier than a long phone call.

6. Look after your own wellbeing… 

Make sure you make an appearance in the staff room. Don't always diet. Have a laugh. Say thank you to others. Ask people about their weekends. A happy workplace is a productive workplace.

7. Give yourself a pat on the back sometimes…

And ask yourself what went well rather than what went wrong.

8. Keep things digital and back up your USB regularly. 

I think every teacher has had a moment where they've had to search for a resource that they've put in a "safe place" and then they couldn't find it when they've needed it. Times have changed... There's no need for hard copies of every worksheet... It's time to get digital! Then you can access documents from home or school. 

My colleague and I have gone digital with our program too. We're using 'One Drive' but there's so many sharing platforms out nowadays. Google Docs is a great tool for working documents and there's lots of programming apps out there too. Check out iDoceo! 

Make sure your USB is organised. Label files and documents appropriately so that you can easily find them when you need them. I can't tell you how many times I've had to recreate a worksheet or PowerPoint presentation because I couldn't find the original one I made. We do not have time to reinvent the wheel let alone recreate things because they're lost! 

And remember to BACK EVERYTHING UP!

9. Have students assess their own work and teach them to be accountable for their own learning.

I've been using these little checklists for a while now. They're great for seeing which students understand and which students could have worked harder.

I also like to get my students to mark their own work where possible. By doing this, you're not only saving your own personal time but you're teaching them to be accountable to their own learning. I think it's important for them to be apart of the process. So mark homework as a class. Mark pre and post tests together. Get them to calculate their score and figure out whether they've improved. 

10. Stop being a Perfectionist!

There's just no time and perfectionism isn't always attainable. Just do your best!!

Taking Off With Numeracy (TOWN) Part I

While I was off on Maternity Leave, my colleagues participated in a number of professional learning sessions around TOWN (Taking Off With Numeracy). Since I have come back, I have had to do some catching up and I thought today I'd share what I've learned and how I'm applying it.

What is TOWN?

Taking Off With Numeracy (TOWN) is a whole-class intervention initiative which focuses on improving numeracy skills of students in the upper primary years identified as not performing at expected stage level. The initiative provides ongoing professional learning over the school year to assist teachers to assess each student’s current numeracy understanding and to monitor student progress against a research-based framework. Beyond this, the program aims to provide explicit guidance in designing whole class teaching programs to further develop each student’s numeracy understanding. Emphasis is given to the teaching sequence related to developing Place Value, as it underpins the four operations and decimals, as well as important concepts in measurement. Focus is also given to the teaching of Multiplication and Division concepts. 

(information taken from http://www.takingoffwithnumeracy.com.au) 

How and when does TOWN occur?

In my class, TOWN activities occur three times a week. Students participate in the same activity across the week, developing their ability and improving their skills. Each of the three sessions go for 10 minutes. We are currently focussing on place value.

I have a visual prompt on the board as the TOWN activities are differentiated, so you may have three or more variations happening at the one time. Materials are organised into tubs so that they're easily accessed.

What resources are needed?

Most of the resources needed can be found in the DENS books. Other resources include playing cards, dice, unifix cubes, counters, MAB Blocks and other maths equipment found around the classroom. Students will also need a book to put their working out in, a mini whiteboard and whiteboard marker. However one of the things that I love about TOWNS is that it is pretty adaptable. 

I am currently building up a bank of activities and I will share these with you in the near future. So make sure you check back here!

Spelling Rotational Activities

So I've been doing a fair bit of research around spelling lately, particularly how to better utilise the THRASS resources that my school has invested in. There is also a fair amount of content in the NSW English Syllabus in regards to Spelling and I felt like I could teach it better. So I created the following activities to be used during Spelling lessons. The idea is that students rotate through the activities, completing two different activities each week. My hope is that through all of this word work, students will not only know how to spell a word, but they'll also learn how to construct it, where it comes from and how to apply it in their own writing.

Here are TWELVE of my Word Work activities (all resources included):

1. Stamp It

This is a really cute activity. I bought these alphabet stamps from Kmart for $5 and the containers to put them in for $2.50. The idea is that the students stamp out their spelling words in their workbooks. I just wanted students to get as much practice as possible while catering to different learning styles. This is a great hands-on activity.

2. Built It

For this activity, students are to build their spelling words using magnetic letters. I bought tubs of magnetic letters from Aldi a couple of years ago now. I unfortunately haven't seen them since. Magnetic letters and whiteboards can be quite pricey, but they're definitely worth it.

3. Make It

Here is another hands-on activity for students to practice their spelling words. For this activity, students make their spelling words with play dough. Needless to say, this activity is very popular!

4. Sign It

As the new English Syllabus (NSW) content includes developing and applying contextual understanding of Auslan, I thought it only appropriate to teach my students some sign language. In this activity, students finger-spell their spelling words. I found this very easy to read poster from TeachStarter.com

5. Type It

I saw this activity originally on Pinterest but the idea is that students type out their spelling words on a QWERTY keyboard template. I just got my template from the internet.

6. Text It

I found this very cute iPad template on Teachers Pay Teachers. A lady named Christina Winter created it and you can download it for FREE HERE. I laminated the templates so that students can write their words on it using a whiteboard marker. Once they've written out their words, they text them. Alternatively you could just use an iPad… but I don't always have access to a set.

7. Rainbow Words

From the same creator, Christina Winter has created a Rainbow Words worksheet. You can download it HERE for FREE.

8. THRASS Match

I made this activity for my class. I wanted to strengthen their knowledge of the THRASS chart by matching the corresponding word with the phoneme (correct grapheme). These cards are great because you can play Snap and Memory with them also. Students can also spread the cards across the floor and create a large version of the THRASS chart by placing the cards in the correct order. You can download a copy of this activity HERE (vowels) and HERE (consonants).

9. Front or Back (Morphology)

This is a great activity for students to learn extensions (prefixes and suffixes) and how to apply them to their spelling words. Students write their word in the centre of the card and then add prefixes and/or suffixes, taking note of what sounds and looks right. You can download a copy of everything you need HERE (card to write on), HERE (prefixes) and HERE (suffixes).

10. THRASS It

For this activity, students construct their words using the THRASS phoneme-grapheme cards. It's a simple activity in concept, but students really have to think about the individual sounds which can be quite tricky. Students will need a THRASS chart to help them work through this activity. You can download a copy of this activity HERE.

11. Phoneme Frames

For this activity, students write out their words and then break the words into the individual phonemes by writing them in the smaller boxes. For example: TABLE | T - A - B - LE | You can download this worksheet HERE.

12. Word Origins (Etymology)

I think it is so important that students know where their words have come from, whether it be Latin, Greek, etc. By knowing WHERE the word originates from, students are given clues to know HOW to spell the word. There's a few Etymology Dictionaries out there and sometimes class dictionaries may include the origin next to the definition of the word being looked up. However, I really like using etymonline.com

The idea is that I start the lesson off very structured. I read the words out, we break the words down and identify the sound we're looking at for that week. We talk about possible meanings and discuss similar words. Students then complete TWO of the above activities independently. However, although the lesson is independent the activity itself is very structured.

The next day during Literacy Groups, students complete a spelling worksheet where they write their words out, find the definitions and write the words in sentences. You can download a copy of my worksheet HERE.

What do you do during Spelling lessons? I'd love to hear from you - comment below or send me an email at rach.sellen@gmail.com 

10 ATSI Online Resources!

I love being able to incorporate the ATSI perspective into most areas of my teaching. Now there are HEAPS of resources out there… the problem is sometimes trying to find them!

While on Maternity Leave, I dedicated a fair amount of time to finding these resources and creating a database of them. I had to search far and wide for some gems which were hidden in the abyss that is the internet.

With NAIDOC week fast-approaching I thought that tonight I'd share TEN of these amazing resources and websites with you, that are perfect for the Primary Classroom.

Image taken of one of my students artworks (2014).

1. YULUNGA- This is a PDF that you can download/print and it is filled with games and activities from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities from around the country. This is an excellent resource for PD/H/PE and for those moments when you need to fill-in some time.

2. Dust Echoes- This is a favourite of mine. Dust Echoes is a series of twelve beautifully animated dreamtime stories from Central Arnhem Land, telling stories of love, loyalty, duty to country and aboriginal custom and law.

3. Global Words- The fifteen units of work in Global Words have been produced by World Vision Australia and the Primary English Teaching Association Australia (PETAA) to integrate the teaching and learning of English with global citizenship education.

4. Move It Mob Style-  Move it Mob Style is a 20 episode x 30 minute dance-based fitness program for television broadcast and online. Showcasing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander hip hop and popular music, Move it Mob Style is all about good beats: using dance to stay healthy. Another great resource for PD/H/PE.

5. Deadly Vibe- Our vision is to support all Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander people in reaching their full potential by providing positive imagery, identifiable role models and quality information to improve community and quality of life. Deadly Vibe is Australia’s only national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander music, sport, entertainment, health and education magazine. This is a great resource for Literacy Groups.

6. Be Deadly Online-  Deadly Online is an animation and poster campaign about big issues online, like bullying, reputation and respect for others. Developed with deadly Indigenous writers and voice actors, all Australians can enjoy these short, fun animations and learn about how we want to behave together online.

7. Dreaming Stories Online- A collection of Dreamtime stories in video format, and useful information for students.

8. Gummingurru- There are a variety of resources and units of work on this website, available to the general public. These learning activities are seen by the Gummingurru Aboriginal Corporation (GAC) as an important reconciliation activity to be shared by Aboriginal and non- Aboriginal people.

9. Darug Country- The blog is designed to promote Learning from Aboriginal Country in Sydney. This site provides you with videos, lessons for the IWB, texts, and ideas for teaching about Darug on Darug Country. This resource is brilliant… make sure you check it out!

10. Education Dreaming (Crackerjack)- Education Dreaming is a non-Profit, For Purpose, Social Enterprise set up to share and educate to the world (using positive and innovative methodologies) and revive for our own people, the incredible and precious ancient culture and knowledge of this country’s Ancient Australians.

And there you have it… 

Ten AMAZING websites/resources that you should definitely check out RIGHT NOW!

EDIT: I have created a database with these and other websites/resources that I've found. You can download it for FREE right HERE. 

Please note that this is a work in progress. If you find any other ATSI websites/ resources please feel free to comment below and I'll add them in :)