Good week for
Teacher workloads. Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has established a “workload challenge” to free teachers from bureaucracy. Teachers are invited to discuss ways to ease pressure on the Times Education Supplement website.
Early years. Extra power is being given to schools to enrol two-year-olds under new legislation currently going through parliament that removes bureaucratic hurdles. The law is designed to improve early education standards.
Bad week for
Healthy teeth. A public health survey found that in some parts of the country half of five-year-olds have tooth decay or fillings. It also found that 12% of young children in England suffered from tooth decay. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has called for nurseries and primary schools to step in when it comes to oral hygiene. Share your views on the issue here.
Headteachers with big pay packets. The education secretary Nicky Morgan has said that school leaders should think very carefully about levels of pay and make sure as much public money as possible is spent on “frontline education”.
What you’re saying
This week we asked you which film character you would most like to be in school. We had a range of responses from Star Wars’ Darth Vader and Harry Potters’ Dumbledore to King Julian from Madagascar. Other suggestions included Katniss Everdeen and the shark from Jaws. A very mixed bag! Keep sharing your characters with us via @GuardianTeach using #filminschools.
@GuardianTeach The one and only Mr Keating from Dead Poets Society. This film was key in my desire to want to teach pic.twitter.com/kVrYdbWIud
— StephenCookEducation (@StephenDCook) October 23, 2014
Photograph of the week
Sticking with a film theme, this week’s picture of the week is of the Rhino hamster in Bolt. Thanks for sharing this cute little creature @RCivval.
I'd be Rhino the hamster from Disney's Bolt "So totally awesome!!!" @GuardianTeach #filminschools pic.twitter.com/SXhrNHoYJX
— Rachel Civval (@RCivval) October 22, 2014
The week in numbers
The charity ActionAid sent out resources on the Ebola virus to thousands of schools to give students a better grasp of the disease.
A new study has found that teachers are not trained to deal with bereavement. According to a study by Ellie Stokes, a University College of Birmingham final year student who researched the subject as part of her dissertation, seven out of 10 schools are likely to have a bereaved child on the roll at any one time, but staff are not always equipped to help.
Teachers should be paid 25% more to work in some of the country’s most deprived areas, according to a new report. The Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission called for high-performing teachers to be brought into to the most challenging schools.
Dates to remember
Halloween is on its way. Will you be creating a display area of all things ghoulish in your class? If so, send us a tweet @GuardianTeach and have a read of How to teach ... Halloween arts and crafts. With National Stress Awareness Day on 2 November, take a look at our blog on using mindfulness. And don’t forget it’s also Guy Fawkes Night on 5 November.
Resources for you
- Help support young people after the death of someone close with this school bereavement policy.
- True of false: Ebola has killed more than 4,000 people across west Africa? Test your students on their knowledge of the disease with this quiz.
- Teach your class the firework safety code ensuring your students stay safe on Guy Fawkes night.
- Take a look at 50 practical stress management techniques for teachers.
Reading list of blogs and comment
- ‘Be picky’ and 24 other great tips for teachers on how to manage a classroom
- How can schools help teachers better manage their time?
- Teacher blogs the hilarious things children say
- The secret lives of teachers
Quote of the week
We couldn’t miss out this film character suggestion from Moseley School, and we loved the tweet that came with it. Totally bodacious.
@GuardianTeach Station's most bodacious creation... Mr James Howes! #filminschools pic.twitter.com/cTqbcAy5ry
— Moseley School (@MoseleySch) October 23, 2014
