TDA Upskilling Course - Feedback

The TDA Upskilling course ended today with the ICT in MFL training. What better therefore than to share our attendees thoughts on the course as a whole than an ICT gadget that we experimented with - www.wallwisher.com:

Open University Beginners' Course in French

Do you need to learn French or improve your knowledge of

French for the classroom?

This course is designed to provide basic knowledge of French for the primary context and supports you as a teacher by developing speaking and listening skills and teaching basic grammar enjoyably! You will be able to try out diffferent classroom ideas during the course and develop a set of resources you can draw on for interesting and diverse lessons.

For further information, please see the dedicated OU site for this.

The course costs £275 and will be fully funded by the Kent Local Authority provided you complete it. Please contact Maureen Smith if you are interested in doing this 30 hour course. It can be completed at times convenient to you (provided it is completed within 12 weeks) in the comfort of your own home.

NB: This course is a complete beginners' course, so if you already hold a GCSE or equivalent, the upskilling courses run by your local Specialist Language Colleges will currently be more suitable to your needs.

INSET. Delivering the Intercultural Strand of the Framework

You are invited to attend a morning session run by Maureen Smith, teacher Adviser for KCC, on ideas for delivering the intercultural strand. This course will take place from 9.30 -12.00 on November 11th at the Weald of Kent Grammar School in Tonbridge.

If you would like to take part, please contact Maureen Utting (maureen.utting@wealdofkent.kent.sch.uk)

If there are any other courses you would like us to run, please let me know and we will do what we can.

Are you ready for January 2010? Support for primary schools

The West Kent Support Group for Primary Languages consists of staff funded by the Specialist Language Colleges in 4 partnerships - Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, Sevenoaks South and Cranbrook and Paddock Wood - together with lead teachers funded by KCC. They have been working together to help prepare you for the primary languages entitlement in January 2010.

The aim of the group is to help you in any way you would like eg planning, modelling lessons, helping with resources, FLA time, writing a policy, writing schemes of work, assessment etc

All primary schools have been allocated a support teacher who should now have got in contact with you. Please make use of this support as funding beyond this year cannot be guaranteed. The support group can also help you prepare for the new Ofsted subject inspections. In addition the FLA at Weald is being funded to help in the teaching of French in primary schools. Please note also the INSET courses running in the SLCs.

TDA Upskilling Course

The Specialist Language Colleges, in collaboration with ASK, offer two courses in language upskilling to take place in October 2009 and February 2010.

Target audience
All teachers/HLTAs/TAs teaching French in Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks South. Priority will be given to those teaching languages in Years 5 and 6.

Course Aims
To develop teacher confidence in language skills, building on prior learning.
To ensure progression of skills for pupils.

Please note this is not a course for beginners. The course is free of charge. £175 per day is payable for supply cover for participating teachers.

Dates and times of the first course to be held at the Weald of Kent Grammar School, Tonbridge.

Tuesday 6th October 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 13th October 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 20th October 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 3rd November 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 10th November 9.15-3.30

Dates and times of the second repeat course to be held at Bennett Memorial School, Tunbridge Wells.

Tuesday 2nd February 9.15-3.30
Wednesday 10th February 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 23rd February 9.15-3.30
Wednesday 3rd March 9.15-3.30
Tuesday 9th March 9.15-3.30

To book your place please contact Maureen Utting (maureen.utting@wealdofkent.kent.sch.uk)
or apply directly to Training and Development as advertised in the next e-bulletin from KCC.

CILT E-Zine

CILT, the National Centre for Languages, publishes regular updates on primary language teaching and resourses. In issue 6 you will find information on linking language and literacy (a new DCSF publication), cross-curricular links and CLIL. If you would like to subscribe to the CILT e-zine, please register on the Primary Languages website.

KS2 Progression

New 'Making and Marking Progress' guidance, for teachers who want to map the progress of young language learners in the Autumn terms of Years 3 and 4, is available now. To download the new materials, please follow the link to the Asset Languages KS2 progression page. http://www.assetlanguages.org.uk/primaryprogress.aspx