Wednesday morning saw me gazing at the sea, then moving swiftly past Butlins to speak at University of Chichester MFL Conference. I had a lovely day attending sessions in the morning and sharing some ideas about using technology and stories in the languages classroom.

Below are my sketchnotes of the sessions I attended, starting with Elaine Minett’s upbeat introduction to the conference, talking about challenges being seen as opportunities, followed by an idea packed session about using poetry by Concha Julian of the Consejería de Educación and finishing with Lynne Brackley’s session on using drama based activities in languages. I enjoyed using my dramatic skills in both of the latter sessions!

If you get the opportunity next year, I can thoroughly recommend attending as the conference was varied with sessions for primary, secondary as well as cross phase sessions, and they were delivered by a variety of people including PGCE students, teachers and representatives of organisations like the British Council, the Consejería de Educación and Language Angels. I enjoyed seeing Catherine on the Little Linguist stand once more (and buying a new book!) as well as visiting other stands including Institut Français and European Schoolbooks.

A post about my sessions will follow later!

After two successful years at the International School of Toulouse in 2015 and 2016,  Practical Pedagogies is returning in 2018. This time it’s moved to Cologne and St Goerge’s English International School. Here’s what Russel Tarr, the conference organiser says:

Educational conferences can be prohibitively expensive for ordinary teachers, and often focus on abstract theory delivered by academics with little hands-on classroom experience. In contrast, “Practical Pedagogies” believes the best training conferences are delivered by practising teachers, for the benefit of each other and their students, at an affordable price.

Practical Pedagogies 2015 and 2016 took place at the International School of Toulouse, France. Teachers from all over the world delivered upwards of 100 sessions in a vibrant, friendly and enriching event lasting two days. Hot lunches, refreshments, an evening restaurant meal after day 1, and a bar tour after day 2 provided social opportunities for carrying on the conversations with old friends and new acquaintances.

The feedback was so enthusiastic that it’s been decided to take the show on the road, with St. George’s International School Cologne scheduled to host the next conference in November 2018. Session proposals will be invited as from January, a programme will be drawn up in February, and delegates will be encouraged to book their places from March onwards.

Russel Tarr, conference organiser (@russeltarr)

100 workshops have been confirmed, led by educators from all over the world – including me! – and delegates can pick 8 to attend over the two days.  And the good news is, you’ve got two more days to get the Early Bird discount.

Still need convincing? Here’s what I think!  

Would be great to see you there. Lisa x

This year at Language World I was invited to present some ideas for using technology for collaboration in language learning. I teach primary so the focus was on that age group but there are many ideas and tools that are equally applicable for young and old! In spite of some technical hitches and running out of time as there was so much to share, the ideas were well received and I hope that this will serve as a reminder/update for those who attended, and a snapshot for those who didn’t.

Below is my presentation. Whilst all the links work, the videos don’t I’m afraid but you’ll find some below to give you a taster.

Following on from the success of Practical Pedagogies 2015 and 2016 at International School of Toulouse, the third Practical Pedagogies conference is on the move to Cologne, and specifically St George’s International School.

I have been fortunate enough to be invited to speak at both Practical Pedagogies so far – in 2015 about Using technology to enhance Primary Language Learning and then, after my sketch noting caused interest,  in 2016 I delivered a workshop on Sketchnoting for Beginners and also sketch noted the conference. I was dismayed when I discovered that IST was unable to hold the conference in 2018 as it is such an amazing event. Fortunately, my dismay and disappointment was short lived as a new plan was hatched and it’s all systems for November 2018 in Cologne.

At this stage, the programme has yet to be set and Russel Tarr, Practical Pedagogies mastermind and the man behind Classtools and Active History, has issued a Call for Presenters. He told me today that there have already been 120+ ideas submitted – including one of mine! – and that there’s still time for more. The deadline for submission is 31st January and I’d encourage you to apply if you have an idea. It doesn’t have to be primary language related – it’s a conference for anyone involved in teaching and at whatever level. It’s international and one of the things I love most is being inspired by educators from around the world who teach in other educational systems, under different ‘rules’ and circumstances, and discussing with them how they experiences can be applied in other contexts. If you do want to submit an idea, you can do so via this link to the Practical Pedagogies site.

Once all the submissions have been reviewed, a programme will be drawn up and booking will open in March! The advantage of being a speaker is that you get to attend the conference for a highly reduced price (50 euros but you get your restaurant meal on the first night paid for which would cost that, more or less!) and you get your foot in the door before anyone else. Plus speaking at Practical Pedagogies is a great experience! This year, I’m really pleased that it’s taking place during half term so I won’t need to beg to be released from school if I’m chosen to speak – and I’ll get to visit Germany and try out my developing German!

So go for it – nothing ventured, nothing gained and then, fingers crossed and thumbs pressed!

A brilliant opportunity has come to my attention via the LiPS group on Facebook. If you’re interested in art and/or languages and you live in or near Coventry, or can get there on 28th September by 4pm, I’d say register. And as the blurb says, it’s not just for language teachers – it;’s for any KS1/2 staff member. And if you do go, please report back as I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to attend as it’s just my thing! (Really hope they repeat it on a day i can attend!)

Teaching Modern Foreign Languages through Art
Herbert Art Gallery & Museum
Thursday 28 September, 4.00-5.30pm
Suitable for all Key Stage 1 & 2 teachers and teaching assistants.
Knowledge of a MFL isn’t necessary.
Includes a tour of the new Picasso exhibition
Cost £20
Explore, consider and learn how to use art when teaching modern foreign languages in this cross-curricular workshop.
Finding inspiration from our newest exhibition Picasso: Linocuts from the British Museum, language expert Anna Grainger* will draw on her 20 years of experience to discuss ways in which non-specialists (so don’t worry, you don’t need to be able to speak a foreign language to take part) can use artworks to think about vocabulary, history and culture. This workshop also includes a special private view, tour of the exhibition, and an opportunity to learn more about the Coventry Primary Languages Hub.
*Notes on the speaker: Anna has taught languages for 20 years and is currently a specialist MFL teacher and international coordinator at Alderman’s Green Primary School in Coventry. The school has recently been awarded the British Council’s prestigious International School Award in recognition of its work to bring the world into the classroom.
Booking essential, please contact Nicky McIntosh on 024 7623 4271, nicky.mcintosh@culturecoventry.com

Website

SaveSave

Did you know that the Association for Language Learning (ALL) has a Youtube channel? I didn’t until today when I attended the ALL Council meeting and discovered that not only did an ALL channel exist but that one of the first videos on it features me talking about sketchnoting!

There are currently a number of playlists and numerous really interesting videos. Most of them are really short, getting the message cross succinctly which is always a bonus. One of the playlists is full of videos recorded at Language World 2017 that cover things like what ALL does, how it supports language teachers and learners through networking and CPD, why you’d want to attend Language World and why languages are beneficial in the workplace.

One video I found particularly interesting – as a teacher and also as the parent of a child who’s just started studying German at university  – is entitled UK LINGUA – the students viewpoint in students discuss the transition from learning languages at school to learning languages at university. I’ve embedded it below.

I’d really encourage you to take a look at the channel, particularly if you’re not sure about what ALL does! You can find the channel here .

SaveSave

It’s one month to go until the annual Association for Language Learning conference, Language World. Have you signed up yet?

This year the theme is Progress for All (like the clever logo!) As the ALL website says:

Progression in the teaching and learning of languages is a priority for all teachers and ALL as a professional association as we respond to significant curriculum changes and developments at all levels. Progress for ALL is a deliberately broad title, as we aim to serve the needs of all conference delegates. For example, we are including sessions on promoting progress in all aspects of pupils’ learning of languages, ensuring progression in curriculum planning, sustaining progress in curriculum leadership and celebrating progress in building a culture of language learning in a school.

During the two days there will be a mixture of plenary sessions, major talks and workshops with something for everyone from primary to higher education, and this year there is a slot for poster presentations which looks really interesting too.

This year the conference takes place in Nottingham at the East Midlands Conference Centre which is very convenient for me living in the Midlands and once more in the ‘middle’ of the country.

There’s a special ‘call out’ to primary colleagues issued on the ALL page with testimonials from a range of primary colleagues. Have a look at the flyer: 

I’m not speaking this year (apart from a contribution to the Primary Spanish Show and Tell) but I have a special (albeit rather daunting) role to fulfil:

I’m looking forward to attending sessions and trying to capture them ‘live’ ready to post to the timeline in the exhibition area; a shame I can only be in one place at a time though as there are several slots where I’d like to attend two or even three sessions at the same time.

If you’re interested in attending, the programme is below, and booking details can be found here.

Hopefully see you there?

As I said in my previous post, I’ve just come back from the Practical Pedagogies conference in Toulouse. Last year I attended the inaugural #pracped conference and presented about Using technology to enhance primary language teaching and learning  As you can see from this post which charts my impressions, I vowed I wanted to attend the next one. And that post also explains what I was asked to speak on this time.

I have, over the last 18 months, discovered sketch noting or visual note taking to be an excellent tool. I sketch noted last year’s conference and several people commented that i should do a workshop on it. So I did!

Below is my presentation. You can’t read the notes so I’ve added some below that.

I’d also like to highlight certain things:

1. Slide 7 in the presentation is a slide deck of the development of my sketch noting but only the last slide is showing. You can see more of my sketch notes in my Flickr album Sketchnotes – bit.ly/lisibosketch – where you can see for yourself how my style has developed!
2. There are several books that I recommend in the presentation; if you click on the book covers, I’ve linked to where you can purchase them. I wanted to highlight the free iBook Sketchnoting for teaching and learning that  is downloadable from iTunes (see slide 39). I didn’t know that it was finished in time to share it at the conference but @lanclassrach (one of the authors) put me right and shared the link with the description “the book is designed by teachers for teachers to help them get going with sketch noting.” Recommended reading, especially if you want to know more about using technology to sketch note.
3. I wanted to highlight one of the blog post mentioned on slide34 – 4 quick myth busters about visual notes in the classroom. It’s a good summation of a large part of Wendi’s book and gives practical answers to questions that are often asked about getting pupils to use visual note taking.
4. Slide 38 is Sylvia Duckworth’s guide to sketch noting digitally. She has further advice since then and says ‘ I draw on the iPad with Procreate app (tutorials here and here) and the Musemee Notier Prime Stylus (If you buy one, make sure to get extra replacement tips as well). Thanks to Sylvia for giving me permission to share her sketch notes and for her advice!
5. As I finished my workshop I discovered a new Twitter account just started by the lady who made the image on slide 51, so please follow @sketchadoodle for more beautiful visual notes.
6. Finally, proof that you just need to try – one of the delegates went straight from my session and had a go during the next workshop. Here’s the evidence! Well done @asperatus07!

I’ve just got back from the Practical Pedagogies conference at the International School of Toulouse. Organised by Russel Tarr, the two day conference brought together educators from around the globe. Here’s the rationale behind the conference which explains why I travelled to Toulouse at my own expense to speak (I wasn’t paid to it):

“Educational conferences can be prohibitively expensive for ordinary teachers, and often focus on abstract theory delivered by professional academics with very little hands-on classroom experience. Such events often appear more concerned with making money than with genuinely improving the quality of education being delivered within schools.

In contrast, “Practical Pedagogies” comes out of the belief that the best teacher-training conferences are delivered by practising teachers, for the benefit of each other and their students, as not-for-profit events.”

I attended some excellent workshops and chatted to so many people that further inspired me.

Below are my sketch notes of the conference that document the sessions I attended. I hope that they give you a flavour of the conference. You can find out more by checking out the Twitter hashtag #pracped16 (which was trending at various points in various countries over the two days!) or by looking at the conference website. I’m sure that many will share their presentations and that there’ll be lost of blogging so I’ll update the post over the next week or so to share them.

Opening Keynote by Ewan McIntosh. @ewanmcintosh @notosh

Curriculum, controversy and current affairs: manoeuvring in a multicultural world by Mariusz Galczynski @MariuszEDU

Philosophy for Children across the primary Curriculum by Jenna Lucas @JennaLucas81

I’m a teacher: Get me out of here! by Mike Watson @WatsEd

Coding with cards by Yasemin Allsop @yallsop

The Art of Voice:bringing characters to life by Ben Culverhouse @ben_culverhouse

You shipping it? Closing keynote by Ewan McIntosh @ewanmcintosh @notosh

My session at the wonderful Practical Pedagogies conference centred around the use of technology to enhance Primary Language Learning.

Key points I made included:

• technology is not  just for the pupils but also for the teacher;
• it is just one tool we have to use;
• it is not always the best tool for the job.

I went on to suggest online tools as well as apps that might be useful in a range of contexts and situations.

My presentation is below and there is wiki with links to tutorials, examples and ideas that accompanies it. Feel free to ask questions via the contact form or @lisibo on Twitter.