Free Functional Skills and Skills for Life resources
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Teaching and learning theory
The theories behind teaching and learning, and other useful CPD sites for teachers of literacy, numeracy, ESOL and Functional Skills. For specific Maths or English teaching CPD see our Level 5 Additional Diploma links.
I’ve only briefly skimmed through but some of these new mastery resources for L1 & L2 Functional Maths (and GCSE resits) look amazing! Includes full 33 hour (22 x 1.5 hr lessons) schemes of work, lesson plans, handouts and slides.
The Science of Reading blog is well worth a look - especially the Tuesday Teaching Tips.
For example, the entry for Tuesday April 25th included a useful morpheme chart & a lovely idea of pulling out & deeply analysing specific vocabulary over a period of several days (in this case the word 'siphon'!).
A huge collection of links to resources that can be used to support and feedback on English learning in Further Education (Functional Skills and GCSE)
Categorised by Level (FS E2, E3, L1, L2, GCSE) along with other categories such as R&D. You are invited to add what you can. Compiled and created by Nicola Milton with other contributors.
Editor's note
There are some excellent feedback and marking sheets in here for Entry Level 2 FS Writing through to Level 2 Writing, along with very useful mock papers, progress review sheets and much much more!
The National Numeracy site has a great ’essentials of numeracy’ diagram which encapsulates the essential components in understanding numbers, the number system and the ways that numbers can be combined and used – to help learners decide on their own personal starting point and pathway to develop key skills in numeracy.
This is one of many Harvard maths online references that I used in the Level 5 Maths ADTLLS, Meeting a learner’s needs / case study assignment (Part of Module 1: Approaches to Mathematics learning and teaching).
Communities of practice is site run and written by Etienne Wenger (of Lave and Wenger fame!), a leading expert on communities of practice. Try this excellent quick starter diagram (PDF) to get your head round his theories and apply it to your teaching rationales, reflective diary, etc.
Maths4Life is now archived as part of the NRDC site. Loads of ideas for teaching and learning numeracy – along with related constructivist / connectivist theory. It’s also a fantastic source of printable resources and card based games – I keep the big yellow folder under my desk and refer to it often.
Don Clark’s (aka as Big Dog) pages are stuffed full of training, learning and leadership advice, including excellent sections on learning styles (VAK, Briggs, Gardner, Honey & Mumford, etc.). These are discussed both individually and as whole and are prefaced by a very sensible warning about the current thinking on learning styles.
