Special Edition
To coincide with our 2nd birthday (yes, we launched Issue 1 in November 2005), we thought that we would send you an extra dose of Teachers’ Toolkit to help you through the rest of the year!
This Special Edition also:
- heralds the release of Issue 9 of Teachers’ Toolkit magazine which will be arriving at your school any time now. Keep an eye out for Liz Ellis on the cover. Issue 9 features the Nestlé/AIS Get the AIS into your Classroom feature in which you will find terrific FREE PDHPE resources for your school
- provides some extra help as the school year winds down
- gives us a chance to brag about our new Teachers’ Toolkit logo … what do you think?
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In this e-newsletter you will find:
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Get the AIS into your Classroom: Special Feature
FREE PDHPE RESOURCES FOR UPPER PRIMARY SCHOOL
Written by teachers for teachers!
www.nestle.com.au/AIS
To obtain your copy of Get the AIS into your Classroom and other free 2008 PDHPE resources go to www.nestle.com.au/AIS.
WIN a set of the AIS SURVIVAL Cookbook series!
If you have not previously registered online for the Get the AIS into your Classroom PDHPE
resources then you will automatically go into the draw to win a set of the AIS Survival Cookbooks series. There are five (5) sets of books to be won in each state and territory.
To enter, register at www.nestle.com.au/AIS before 5 pm AEDST on 31 March 2008. See the
website for full terms and conditions. Prize drawn 14 April 2008. Each prize is valued at $80.85
RRP (40 to be awarded). Authorisations: NSW LTPS/07/27403; ACT TP 07/04652; SA T07/4738.
You can also order the following booklets free of charge, either online by visiting www.nestle.com.au/AIS or by calling 1800 122 322:
- A Winning Diet
- Get Out, Get Active, Get Healthy.
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What’s in Teachers’ Toolkit Issue 9
Environmental Calendar and giveaways
Many teachers asked that we deliver the Environmental Calendar in November rather than March so that it could be used as a year-long planning guide for matters environmental. We have listened … you will find this very useful resource on Page 15 of the November issue (Issue 9) of the magazine. The magazine article also offers the chance to secure a free copy of the book You Can Save the Planet, so keep an eye out for Issue 9!
Teachers’ Toolkit magazine Index: Issues 1–9
We have not only updated the index for all issues of the magazine to date but have also made an electronic version with each entry a live weblink to the relevant lesson plan or resource. Download the electronic version and keep it on your computer desktop for instant access to every article and resource published in Teachers’ Toolkit magazine. |
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Christmas helpers
How often are you asked to think of new ideas and activities for that end-of-year time? We have gathered a great selection of useful resource links to help you. The links may be found on page 14 of the latest issue of Teachers’ Toolkit magazine. Otherwise, click here to go to the complete listing on the website.
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New Kids Books in Oz
Chris Cheng has created a great new blog featuring the latest Australian children’s book releases. Log on to http://newkidsbooksinoz.blogspot.com/ to view the list. |
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MacquarieNet: Australia’s leading online reference library
One of Australia’s best online reference sites, MacquarieNet, is offering a free one month trial. MacquarieNet gives you and your students access to a wealth of information on Australian topics. Go online to sign up or else contact support@macquarieonline.com.au to take advantage of this great offer.
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No place like home: out there in space!
Scientists and astronomers are always looking to the skies and beyond in their continuing search for what is ‘beyond’. Recently, astronomers reported that there might be a place like ‘home’ some 41 light years away in the constellation Cancer. They have found that there are five planets circling a star in much the same manner as our solar system.
In the latest issue of Teachers’ Toolkit magazine you will find a great unit, The Space Age: 50 Years On that your students will love. Remember that if you don’t have a copy of the magazine you can download this (and any other unit) from the Teachers’ Toolkit website.
And just in! A Japanese satellite, Kaguya, has taken the first high definition pictures of Earth rising over the moon. The images were taken some 380,000 kms away in space. Quite amazing and you can see these at: www.jaxa.jp |
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Tutankhamun
The mummy of Tutankhamun, the boy pharaoh who died over 3000 years ago, has been placed in a new display for better viewing and to better preserve this important part of Egypt’s heritage. There has been much written about this boy pharaoh, who died at only 19 years old. Type in Tutankhamun in Google search and you will find a huge array of fascinating information. Your students will be entranced! |
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Did you know (1)?
Who said that children weren’t wired? In a recent survey of Australian children aged 7–14:
- 89% regularly used the internet
- 91% have a computer or video gaming system
- 63% have access to an iPod or other MP3 player
- 36% of children send text messages while watching television.
This last entry can be interpreted in a number of ways! Good staffroom discussion point! |
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Did you know (2)?
It wouldn’t be Teachers’ Toolkit without some green comments!
Did you know that Australians:
- own more cars per person than any other country except the US?
- generated 690 kilograms of municipal waste per person in 2003 (the 5th largest in the OECD)?
- commit 39% of household energy to heating and cooling?
- have increased their electricity 40% since 1990?
Makes you think doesn’t it? |
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Telecommunications: the key to being green?
Why not initiate a classroom discussion examining how telecommunications may reduce greenhouse emissions? Consider the following:
- GPS navigation units can help drivers get to their destinations more efficiently, using less petrol.
- In order to reduce energy expended by appliances via ‘stand-by mode’, switches could be introduced to turn off entire networks of hardware all at once.
- Governments could make it compulsory for lights and air-conditioners to have motion censors operating so that these devices switch off when people are absent.
- ‘Telecommuting’ (working at home with the aid of internet access) reduces the number of people who need to travel to work each day.
- Video conferencing can be used to minimise air travel.
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Trees are also good for … birds
In Issue 2 of Teachers’ Toolkit (March 2006) we featured a unit looking at birds in backyards. Whether it is the changing climate or else an unusual seasonal change, many suburban trees are attracting a increasing number of noisy birds, such as the Rainbow Lorikeet and the Noisy Miner. Apparently, the humble native grevillea, which commonly grows in backyards, is partly to blame. Time to revisit the Birds in Backyards website (www.birdsinbackyards.net) where you will find some very interesting information and good student research topics.
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Every tail tells a story
Another reminder: take a look at Teachers’ Toolkit Issue 4 (September 2006) where we dealt with whales and whaling. Trish and Wally Franklin, who have been studying whales for over 15 years and who helped create the unit in Issue 4, have recently shown that whales can be identified by the markings on their tail flukes. Whales are very special to our environment; they demand protection and are ‘friends’ to many Australians. Revisit this unit and the Franklins’ website, The Oceania Project: www.oceania.org.au.
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Just plain bad manners: Dale Spender
As you know, we like reading articles written by the educator Dale Spender. Ms Spender’s recent article, Just plain bad manners, includes a look at the emergence of a convention for new forms of writing in the communication age. If you missed the article it is available online at: http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/just-plain-bad-manners/2007/10/28/1193555533413.html. |
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Did you read about how primary students spend their day?
A recent government survey looking at how Australian primary students spend their school day delivered the following results. (Note: at the same time—and no surprise—primary schools reported that their curricula were just too cluttered; for example, with life skills subjects.)
| English |
38% |
Arts |
8% |
Assemblies |
4% |
| Maths |
18% |
HSIE/SOSE |
4% |
Religious Ed |
4% |
| PDHPE |
8% |
Science and Technology |
4% |
Languages |
2% |
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Christmas time and thanks
We could not finish this final e-newsletter for 2007 without wishing our teaching community a happy, joyous and safe festive period. We at Teachers’ Toolkit have greatly valued and appreciated the continuing support and contact with you, the teacher, in our drive to offer support to your teaching programs and the education of our young students.
Don’t forget to review Pat Edward’s Recipe for Educational Broth (Teacher’s Toolkit Issue 1, page 31) before you take your holidays!
Have a peaceful holiday and we look forward to involving you in some exciting developments in 2008.
The Teachers’ Toolkit team
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