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ICT Communicating

 

Communicating is what ICT is all about - it's what the middle letter stands for, after all (more or less). Often Modelling resources can be used for this area of ICT, and you will find some here, but this time it's all about getting an idea across, whether that's imparting wisdom to the little ones, or them demonstrating their understanding to you.

 

Communicating

ICT

Text Adventures
Back in the day, techy kids enjoyed text adventures. They support development of imagination, reading and logical and analytical thinking. This section contains adventures for use in the classroom. Developed as an experiment for what can be done using HTML5, they may be useful in Literacy or coding lessons.
The Key Adventure Not a particularly original first adventure, and very short indeed, this reintroduces the concept of the Text Adventure and demonstrates the basic format.
 
search.zip A set of IT keyword Word Searches, covering the main areas of IT in the Curriculum. For use as part of an IT topic or just a bit of fun!
A complete guide to becoming an amazing presenter with particular emphasis on doing this without over-reliance on PowerPoint. The author coaches the reader through a powerful 7 point strategy, with pertinent and perceptive cartoons from Nicholas Bate's blog.
Also available from our Associates' store.
ICT Club
teachnotes.pdf Teachers' Notes for a series of activities suitable for an ICT Club.
task1.pdf Design a holiday brochure outlining a holiday suitable for a given group of people.
task2.pdf Find the rules to Backgammon and then create a rule sheet for the game.
task3.pdf Do some research and find out the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World, then create a poster showing what you have found.
task3b.pdf What would you name as the 7 Wonders of the Modern World? Do some research, then create a poster of what you decide are your 7 modern wonders.

Touch-Typing

Touch-typing is an important basic skill. It should be seen to ICT, as learning Times-Tables are to Maths. Unfortunately, it is about as much fun to learn and your pupils will need brow-beating into focusing on the correct style, rather than developing their proven manic, single-fingered strategy that has gained them their proud 10wpm score! Here are a few applications that might help them persevere.

KAZ People have said that Kaz is the least inspiring touch-typing product available. This may be so, but it is nonetheless excellent and this online version is the best version yet. The phrases have been carefully worked out so that (although it appears your pupils are typing nonsense) typers are using the same fingers of each hand to develop their technique. Kaz tracks pupil progress and offers various statistics on speed. The downside is it is rather complicated to remove users, when they leave the school. We hope that regular updates will compensate.
Dance Mat Typing Dance Mat typing is probably the most exciting typing application out there. It's true to say children do love it - and it's free! However, it lacks some of the progress tracking of other software.
Mavis Beacon Mavis Beacon Typing is another application that is very poplular with schools. The software tracks progress and has rewards for landmark typing speeds.
Nessy Fingers For younger typers, there's Nessy Fingers. This colourful application encourages children to type using games and challenges. Keep an eye on their typing style though, as bad habits can prevent children from succeeding in proper touch-typing.

Art

Teaching Art using a computer, is very different from teaching Art as a subject. You see, when children, of Primary age, have spent all their lives mastering the pencil and the paint brush, why would they want to swap them for a mouse or graphics tablet? These alien artistic tools can be a hindrance to the budding artist, so why do we try? Well, here's the rub. For good reason, the computer is used to simulate more conventional artists' tools, therefore we have created a more relevant Art section (for the ICT teacher, at least) on the Modelling page.

DT


Serif DrawPlus
When creating designs you really need a decent Vector drawing package that enables designers to create scale drawings. Here's DrawPlus, which does all that and more - you can create animations, logos, flyers; the list goes on.
Sketchup Sketchup really is amazing - and free! It's a Computer Aided Design package that really is simple to use. Start with upper KS2, creating simple models for DT and progress to full scale models with KS3, which can be uploaded to Google Earth.
Chair.zip A basic picture of a chair with labels for the different components. Useful for making children consider the many parts that make the whole object in DT.(see MyWorld notes below)

Geography

Rivers Label the parts of a river, using the words provided, by dragging them onto the diagram. Alternatively, explore the image and click on the parts of the river for an explanation of how it is formed.
The Water Cycle Label the Water Cycle, by dragging the words provided onto the diagram. Requires Internet Explorer in Compatibility Mode
Compass Points This interactive screen supports the teaching and learning of the points of a compass. Ideal for use on an Interactive Whiteboard. Requires Internet Explorer in Compatibility Mode
Google Earth Exactly as its title suggests, this is an online, interactive atlas. Zoom in to a remarkable level to view arial photographs of any part of the globe. The latest version has a flight simulator and a 3D effect that allows you to tip the horizon and look along valleys and across mountain ranges.
India.zip A map of India allowing children to label the picture for a range of purposes. Labels include surrounding water, major cities, geographical areas and are categorised into Human and Physical features. (see MyWorld notes below)

History

Ancient Egypt Learn about Ancient Egypt and test yourself with the fun interactive challenges (requires Shockwave Plugin).

PSHE

BBC Bitesize PSHE The BBC PSHE site covers a range of topics from the curriculum with some excellent multimedia resources.
Think you know? A totally invaluable resource covering all ages (including parents) with superb multimedia content.

RE

Church.zip A simplified 3D picture of a Church that can be taken apart. A limited number of graphical items can be added and there are some labels (of course you can type in your own with MyWorld).(see MyWorld notes below)

Science

Science Quizes Follow this link to a Science mini-site. A set of KS2 Science quizes on a range of topics. (opens in new window)
Plant.zip Make either a flower or Cactus along with sun and soil. Includes deep and shallow root systems and seeds for showing plant development. Resizeable icons allow the full life-cycle to be created.(see MyWorld notes below)
Body.zip A simple outline of the human body. Children add the major organs and can also label them.(see MyWorld notes below)
I-Spy
I Spy
I-Spy Minibeasts (Android App)
I-Spy Minibeasts is an Android App that allows pupils to capture images using the onboard camera. The app records each minibeast captured against its name, as well as adding the photos to the Gallery.
This is experimental and not yet in the Play Store. You will need to allow installation from 'Unknown Sources' (which you do at your own risk, of course), but this is a genuine app, offered in good faith. If it proves popular, it may be submitted, along with others, to the Play Store.
Android App
I-Spy Shapes (Android App)
I-Spy Shapes is an Android App, similar to the Minibeasts app (above) from the same series. Pupils capture images using the onboard camera. The app records each image captured against the shape, as well as adding the photos to the Gallery.
You will need to allow installation from 'Unknown Sources' (which you do at your own risk, of course), but this is a genuine app, offered in good faith.
Android App
I-Spy 3D Shapes (Android App)
I-Spy 3D Shapes is an Android App, similar to the Shapes app above, but for Polyhedra this time.
You will need to allow installation from 'Unknown Sources' (which you do at your own risk, of course), but this is a genuine app, offered in good faith.
I-Spy Minibeasts (web version) This is the web version of the app (above). Again, experimental, it's designed to work in your web browser. However, this version has a few more minibeasts to find. It works well in Edge and Firefox, but other browsers are less reliable. It does not work in Chrome, Safari or Internet Explorer at present.

Sport / PE

Football Pitch Use this screen to coach your school football team. Drag the symbols onto the pitch to represent the players and explain your strategy.

Literacy

Pairs: High Frequency Words A game of 'memory': click 2 squares to reveal words. If the words match, you have a pair. See how many pairs you can find to reveal the hidden image. (opens in new tab)
Past Present A story opening, with the inital task of converting the tense. The pupils then have the option to continue the story in the new tense. This is a downloadable resource in PDF format.
Filmeducation.org A comprehensive index of films and their curriculum links.
NAACE Big Books Index A set of Big Books, ideal for KS1 Literacy. In HTML format, so images and text can be copied for use elsewhere (check copyright conditions).
NAACE Big Book Maker Make your own Big Books. This resource is ideal for teaching older children (KS2) to write for younger audiences, or creating your own Big Books for a KS1 Literacy class.
www.meettheauthor.co.uk Watch video clips that really introduce you to these children's authors - Link
www.meettheauthor.co.uk Watch video clips that really introduce you to these children's authors.
NAACE Big Book Maker Make your own Big Books. This resource is ideal for teaching older children (KS2) to write for younger audiences, or creating your own Big Books for a KS1 Literacy class.
Writing Frames
Here is a small collection of work sheets for Literacy and Language sessions. They can be printed out and photocopied for use with the whole class, or used on the PC itself, to enhance both Literacy and ICT skills.
Story Planner An interactive writing frame to aid Story planning. Print the final screen before writing the story.
Tell Me a Story App
Story Planner for Android App
An Android version of the very popular interactive planner (above). Because the original relies completely on Flash, this version is presented Flash free for mobile devices.
arg1.zip A simple writing frame to aid Argumentative writing.
pers1.zip Another frame supporting writing. This time supporting a persuasive style.
MyWorld
sort.zip A set of sorting and Cloze procedure screens to support reading.
syllab.zip Screens to support the understanding of syllables. Children make words from given groups of letters.
vowels.zip Children can use these screens to extract words with the same vowel sound.
Other subjects
www.primaryresources.co.uk Online activities for every subject
 
Maths
(FLASH) A simple game for practising times tables. Not an original game concept, but no versions seem to be available for modern systems. This version covers up to 12x12. In Flash format, so security alerts may need accepting. (opens in new tab)
(HTML5) A simple game for practising times tables. Not an original game concept, but no versions seem to be available for modern systems. This version covers up to 12x12.(opens in new tab)
Pairs: Halves and Doubles A game of 'memory': click 2 squares to reveal numbers. If one number is half the other, you have a pair. See how many pairs you can find to reveal the hidden image. (opens in new tab)

MyWorld notes

Several files on this page were created for use with MyWorld for both RISCOS and Windows. MyWorld was a powerful application designed for drag and drop activities, before the web browser and Flash provided the capability. Since MyWorld is no longer in common use, most of these files will gradually be updated for use within a web browser.