morag.macdonald

I think the name will stick as we embark upon our new jobs as Peripatetic Early Level Teachers! Having spent the last 2 days at Inveraray training for my new job , there is so much to digest and read.

I have been without internet access during this time so have been surfing to my heart’s content since I got home. Pickford’s managed to unload my car of its contents and I certainly won’t need any novels for Christmas this year!

Despite at times feeling a bit overwhelmed, mixed with fear and flashes of “help ma boab” it promises to be a very interesting and exciting time ahead.

I will enjoy being immersed in Early Years and have just been looking again at TTS whose stand I visited at the Scottish Learning Festival. They had a super product which looked like a wee dry wipe board but you can record 6 or 10 seconds of speech.

I checked it out again and they now produce a 24 page talking photo album. This looks to have brilliant potential for PLP’s , talking story books made by the children and changeable displays to cover so many curricular aspects. Children can also revisit and develop their ideas by simply re-recording. They also produce a 1 to 24 button strip, a bit like a big ruler which can be displayed beside children’s work. The work can be named and numbered enabling children or parents to hear what their child has to say about a piece of work, model or drawing they have completed.

I know how much the older children love the record facility in Kidspiration so this would be a gem of a resource to have in Early Years.

Back to school tomorrow and will be working for most of the morning with Primary 1 who are a lovely bunch. We are going to explore 2D shapes and will use the ActivPrimary software as well as some super foam shapes I found in the resource room. I shall get the children to photograph their shape models and print them out to display.

Now if I had a talking photo album…………..