Ally Bull, Rosemary Hipkins, Chris Joyce, and Bill MacIntyre
“The most I have learnt about the new curriculum came from trialling this
resource, because it incorporates everything and you can see it working in front
of you. It is a resource that gets students thinking, working together,
questioning.”
Lorraine Spiller, NZ Science Mathematics and Technology
teaching fellow 2008 and teacher, Aotea College.
Crammed full of
activities including a board game, this latest resource from our Kick
Starts series aims to get students developing and practising the key
competencies–not as an add-on but integrated into their everyday learning. The
resource is also intended to help teachers explore the “nature of science”
strand in the new curriculum and how it fits into the key competencies.
NZCER’s science team has devised a board game based on the water cycle and
able to be played in different ways and at all levels from year one upwards. It
gives students the chance to put their knowledge into action, and it is content
they can easily relate to. Detailed teacher’s notes explore the ways the game
can be used and step into the classrooms where we first trialled the game, for
their stories.
The resource is also much more than a game. Teachers will find a host of
activities in the kit, including ones with a particular focus on developing
language to help students think. These relate directly to the key competencies
of thinking and using language, symbols and text.
This is not a traditional resource but rather a toolbox of activities, ideas
and discussion points that all teachers will be able to use. It has been
extensively trialled at all levels.
The kit consists of 42-page teacher’s
notes and an A2 pad containing 20 copies of the board game.
NZCER Press, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-877398-34-6 |
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