Writing Matters: A fresh look at the writing curriculum

The Teacher Foundation is organizing another Afternoons With TTF, in Bangalore. The purpose of hosting these sessions is to encourage interaction between teachers from different schools and facilitate exchange of thoughts and ideas. Each meeting focuses on a different theme, and using small group interaction, creates a personal and lasting learning opportunity. They are free and open for teachers of Bangalore City Schools. Individual teachers can attend any 'Afternoons With T T F' of their choice. Kindly circulate this invitation to all your teachers.

The Topic: “Writing Matters: A fresh look at the writing curriculum”
We all have stories to tell, ideas to share, opinions to voice and causes to fight for. Yet, how can one create a democracy, when children lead lives without recording their reactions, thoughts, arguments, opinions and dreams? To express oneself is a fundamental human quality, but what are we doing in schools to nurture it? While schools are spending time and money on reading, little work is done on the teaching and learning of writing - we have ignored the power of the pen. How lovely it would be to create a community of avid writers, writing with voice, emotion and personality, writing for causes that are close to our hearts, writing tug-at-your-heart kind of stories that can change the world.

Join us in the journey of creating the environment that our children deserve, to express themselves. An environment where children learn that writing is a vital medium for thinking, for Writing Matters….

Presenter: Gita Varadarajan
Gita has been an educator for over 10 years, as a teacher, administrator and now a student. Her last assignment was with Neev Schools where she was the Branch Head of two of their schools and responsible for curriculum coordination across all their schools. Currently completing her master’s in Literacy Education at Teacher’s College, Columbia University, New York City, USA she is closely working with Lucy Calkins and The Reading and Writing Project. Gita believes it is literate communities that accelerate change and classrooms must act as places to nurture these communities.

Venue, Date and Timing
Venue
Holy Angels Higher Primary School, St. Josephs Convent, Ware Road, Frazer Town, Bangalore – 560 005.
Contact No. 080 25554221
Land mark
Parallel to Promenade Road, less than half a km from Thoms Cafe
Date
25 August, 2011
Timing
2.00 pm to 4.00 pm

There is no participation fee for Afternoons with TTF Programmes
Please do feel free to circulate this invitation to all your teachers

RSVP:  We look forward to your participation in 'Afternoons With The Teacher Foundation'. Request you to confirm at 080 – 41131930, 41231149 or 25593335.

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Sishu Griha tells us: “We are gentle!”

The Teacher Foundation is actively working with 15 schools in Bangalore, with the support of Wipro Applying Thoughts in Schools, training teachers to action a positive cultural change in the school community. TTF’s Safe and Sensitive Schools Project (SASS) aims at making schools “safe and sensitive through embedding policies, spaces and interactions that are positive, constructive, nurturing and collaborative for all – students and staff alike.” SASS is designed based on the Whole School Quality Circle Time Model developed by Jenny Mosley. SASS helps schools to put systems in place that make sure  teachers are confident, classrooms are cheerful, and interactions between people in the school are warm, gentle and pleasant.   

 

One of our SASS Schools, Sishu Griha, organized an assembly on one of the Golden Rules - We are Gentle; We do not hurt others! They actually observed the rule for the fortnight and at the end of which students from each class were nominated by fellow classmates for following the rule. These students were felicitated with badges during the assembly and their photographs were out on their bulleting board. The school mailed us a few photographs and a write-up about the Golden Assembly and we would like to share them with you.

 

The students of Sishu Griha Montessori& High School right from the Primary to the High School were very assiduous in following the Golden Rule for the preceding fortnight- WE ARE GENTLE, BOTH IN OUR ACTIONS AND WORDS. WE DO NOT HURT OTHERS. The teachers elucidated on the different ways in which the students could exhibit gentleness in school and the response was gratifying.

The students made conscious efforts to adhere to the golden rule of being gentle. They spoke in soft tones, were gentle in their actions and the gentleness reflected in their demeanour too. Books and furniture were handled with a lot of care. They made sure that they did not hurt others and there was a sharp drop in the number of grievances that the teachers had to lend their ears to. They appeared contrite when they erred and were painstaking in their efforts to make amends. Being bestowed with a badge that had the wordings ‘I AM GENTLE’ was the ultimate honour. Many students received the much coveted badge.

The Golden Assembly was held on the 18^th July , 2011. There was a sense of heightened excitement as the students trooped into their respective lines. What ensued certainly proved to be a golden hour for the students and staff alike. The SPARKS ensured that everything was in order .Principal Ms. Sujatha Mohandas gave a brief overview of the SASS programme and explained to the children that the marks card was not the only yardstick to measure their success in life. She stressed on the importance of imbibing good qualities. Later, Navyaa Shah of Std IV spoke about the importance of being gentle and shared her experience with the other students. The profundity of her thoughts was certainly appreciated. The names of the students who had been nominated , one each from every section of all the classes, were announced amidst applause. They assembled on the dais and seemed to revel in being the cynosure of all eyes. They took pride in the trust reposed in them as they had been nominated by their classmates . Bulletin Boards bearing their photographs delighted one and all.

The students dispersed with a renewed vigour to dedicate themselves to the pursuit of these noble qualities. Principal Ms. Sujatha Mohandas’ exhortation to be on constant vigil against flouting these golden rules will certainly be remembered by the students and staff alike.

 

Posted by Misbah, Coordinator – Teacher Training and Support, TTF Bangalore Centre

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If You Can't Say It, You Can't Write It!

“I found the workshop useful as I can now see how it comes together. The use of pictorial representation combined with a contextualised text – was REALLY GOOD!” said  Velina Murari from The International School, Bangalore, after attending the two day course on Writing, organized by The Teacher Foundation in Bangalore on 27 and 28 July 2011. 27 teachers from 11 schools in Bangalore actively participated in the 2 day course, delivered by Gina Menon, Deputy Head Teacher of Raynham Primary School,London.

 

 

Children often experience great difficulty in writing independently unless they already have a fund of oral stories, rhymes and songs upon which to draw. This difficulty becomes even greater when children come to write factual reports, explanations or discussion texts. The teachers of primary schools have had an opportunity to take back into their classrooms practical techniques to enable their pupils to begin to write independently with increasing confidence and fluency. They tried out lively, interesting strategies, adapted to be manageable within the Indian education system, for developing primary age children’s writing competency. Participants took part in a wide range of classroom activities for stories as well as factual writing.  “I learned about telling stories through story maps and using gestures builds the inner confidence” said Ektha Shetty, Sherwood High, as she explained what she gained from the course.

 

Posted by Firoza Maneksha-Sinha, Sr. Centre Coordinator, The Teacher Foundation

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