Practical teaching activities

Please choose and complete one or more of the following activities:

1. Emergent writing

Identify a pupil in your class / school whom you would consider to be an emergent writer. With the pupil, plan and make an individualized storybook, using appropriate software and hardware resources. Evaluate the success of the exercise in terms of pupil involvement, motivation and acquisition of key skills.

2. Choose an activity that involves:

Sorting and identifying categories.
Recording the results using text and graphics.
Plan how you would differentiate this activity for pupils who are developmentally delayed.

3. Touch-typing

It is often thought that learning to touch-type not only speeds up text entry but also improves spelling skills. Introduce a touch-typing program to a group of pupils who have poor handwriting skills and then evaluate the results in terms of improved spelling and / or speed of text entry.

4. Sentence structure

In liaison with a Speech and Language Therapist consider how access to ICT could reinforce the development of sentence structure. Select a pupil or group of pupils and run a pilot project using appropriate software. Evaluate the results.

5. Accessibility features

Plan a presentation to your school staff on the access facilities available within ‘Windows’ or ‘Mac OS’. Ask them to identify pupils who might benefit from having the class computer made more accessible and offer to show them how to make any necessary changes.

6. On-going support

A pupil in your class / school has a medical condition which means that he will gradually lose all strength in his muscles. Although he is still able to hold a pencil, this will not always be possible. Plan how you will support this progressive weakness through the provision of appropriate hardware and software.

7. Literacy hour activities

As, or in liaison with (if you work in a support capacity) a class teacher plan a Literacy Hour which uses ICT as a teaching tool at the ‘engagement’ stage for the whole class and then plan to differentiate the follow-on activity for individual pupils with special needs. Describe the preparation necessary and evaluate the perceived value of focusing on ICT resources in this situation.

8. On-screen grids

Using on-screen grids with individual pupils or a class group, design resources to support an individual pupil, or class group, record rainfall, wind and sunshine over a period of one week. Show how ICT helped you to differentiate the activity to suit individual abilities.

9. Using images

Explore the graphics available in Word and create ‘libraries’ of topic-based images that the class can use to support their writing. You could extend this by importing images from a CD-ROM or digital camera. Plan how you are going to alert support staff to this resource.

10. Going out

A field trip is planned for a mixed ability group including two pupils who are not yet able to read text. During the visit the pupils will be expected to identify important features and make notes to expand back at school. Plan electronic worksheets to match the recording abilities of these two pupils and provide hard copies that can be annotated during the visit.

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