SIMPLE CIRCUITS

Go to http://www.deltamicro.co.uk/primary_online/circuits.html for a fantasic site that can be used on a whiteboard, demonstrating how to build a simple circuit. A light, battery and motor can be dragged onto a simple circuit with an on-and-off switch. A great way to allow pupils to test whether the circuit they build actually works.

Or go to http://www.engineeringinteract.org/resources/siliconspies/flash/concepts/simplecircuits.htm for another interactive lesson for the whiteboard showing how to build a simple circuit.

Both these websites are suitable for primary school level. They are easy to understand, and the pupil involvement is great.

PREHISTORIC MAN

GRADE 7 TEACHERS-
Go to
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/prehistoric_life/ for a fantastic interactive website that deals with prehistoric man.
Click on Cavemen profiles and it will bring up various skulls. Click on a skull for handy facts about hominids. Photos and facts are from the series Walking with Cavemen(2003) unless otherwise stated.
Click on Lucy's Legacy, for information about the discovery of Australopithecus Afarensis.
On the right hand side of the page showing the various skulls, there is a link to Cavemen Art, also from bbc.co.za

JP ART AND CRAFT IDEAS

Go to http://www.kideas.com/ for some wonderful art and craft ideas for younger children. They are free to teachers, and everything is clearly laid out:-method as well as materials required.

For those children who enjoy cooking, there is a section called creative foods where easy to make recipes can be found.

Here is an example:

Handprint and Footprint Art

"Make a unique gift and a precious memory for those who love your child using their handprints or footprints. Unlike a standard print or impression, by turning your child's print into art you create not only a record of your child's youth, but also a lovely piece of handmade art that any loved one will be touched to receive." Go to the website for further information.

AUDIO BOOKS

I was recently introduced to audiobooks by a friend of mine, and was utterly blown away at the possibilities that they bring with them. Our lives are often so rushed that we don't always have time to do the things we love, like READ. However, we often spend long periods behind the wheel of a motor car. This got me thinking! Audiobooks might just provide me with the opportunity to 'read' all the books that I want to. By purchasing an audiobook, and downloading it onto an ipod, one can listen to books while you are driving, or sitting in a car (or somewhere else) waiting for children to finish school or sport. People who travel a lot from one town to the next could listen to books instead of the radio.

Older children love listening to music, so they would probably listen to audiobooks.This is great for children who dislike reading, especially in the higher grades when there are book reviews and set books that have to be read.

I use www.audible.com/ They have a huge selection of audio books, they have a customer support department in case you have problems, and are very efficient. Give it a try if you have not done so already.

Afrikaans Readers for 2nd Language Speakers

One of the problems I was faced with as a Media Specialist, was to get the learners reading Afrikaans books to improve their Afrikaans. They would pull a few books off the shelf, and after discovering that they were too difficult, they would move off in search of English books. I decided to make life easier, and graded all the Afrikaans books into four colours:

Level 1-blue
Level 2-green
Level 3-red
Level 4-yellow


Class teachers graded the children according to their ability using the four levels above. When the learners chose Afrikaans books, they knew exactly which books they would manage. This resulted in a mass interest in Afrikaans readers, so we had to rush out and buy more books. Below is a list of some of the series that we bought. My contacts page lists some of the suppliers we used.

1. Jasper, a four book series published by Fantasi Boeke 2005
ISBN 1-919764-70-4

2.Zebra Leesboeke, a three level series with four books in each level. Published by Shuter and Shooter and written by Jean Clarke.

3.Storiestraat, a series of short stories written by various authors and published by Nasou.

4. Lees is maklik, a delightful series that we used mainly for our grade seven readers. Published by Heinemann 2005.

5. The ladybird series that consists of various levels, translated into Afrikaans by Maskew Miller and Longman.

6.Avonture in Suid-Afrika, an eight book series written by David Jesse. (The language is slightly difficult)

7. Oxford Storieboom, a delightful fantasy series that ranges from a few words per page, to a few paragraphs per page. The pictures are clear and the storyline is fun. Published by Oxford University Press 2004.

KZN Media Teachers meeting

On Saturday 15 September, the KZN Media Teachers Association met at Glenwood Preparatory School in Durban. We were addressed by Professor Lilli Pretorious who spoke to us about the importance of reading, and the facts were startling. Unless we can increase the reading ages of our learners, they will really find studying difficult. Getting children to read is our number one priority.

We were then treated to an informative talk by Saragh Parfitt, who discussed how she went about selecting childrens books for exclusive books,and much of what she said applies to media teachers selecting books for schools. She introduced us to a few new books which looked very interesting, and I will get these titles to you shortly on this blog.

I was so pleased to meet so many teachers who are using my media workbooks, and would like to thank you for your words of encouragement. Please continue to correspond with me using my e-mail address. Your input is invaluable.

For those teachers living in KZN, support the KZN Media Teachers Association's website on http://www.kznmta.org.za/ by informing them of your views, and lets make this association the best in the country.

Food for thought!

I recently came across this bookmark, which I always keep close by. It has a prayer on it with the following words:

Dear God

So far today I've done all right.

I haven't gossiped,

lost my temper,

been greedy or nasty,

selfish or indulgent.

I'm very thankful for that...

But in a few minutes, God,

I'm going to get out of bed,

and from then on

I'm probably going to need

a LOT more help!

Amen

How True!!!

BULK ORDERS

We are fast approaching the end of the year, and many schools have already drawn up their budgets for next year. Please let me know if you are wanting to place bulk orders for next year ASAP as I will need to have more printed due to high demand. Prices for bulk orders will remain at R35 per book till the end of the year. There will be a price increase at the beginning of January 2008, so join schools like Thomas More College, Hillcrest Primary and Bellair Primary who have placed their orders this week, and ensure that you are not caught without stock.

Attention All JP Media Teachers

In response to the huge success of our Senior Primary workbooks, Catbooks are in research phase for a Junior Primary Media Workbook. We have some ideas, but we want to include what YOU want.

So, send us an e-mail with any topics you feel we should include, or any other useful information, and this will assist us in producing something really worthwhile.

catbooks@mweb.co.za

BOOKS2YOU

For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of working with Shaun and Paula Saunders from Books2You, I thought you might find this info useful.They run a mobile bookshop that sets up book fairs at various schools. The learners,educators and local community are invited to attend, and a portion of the sales spent goes back to the school in the form of books. Visit their website for further info.

http://www.books2you.co.za/