New tips and starters after Easter

I love this online stop watch. It's great using the whiteboard, it has easy to use and it helps myself and the students stay on task. If you have speakers, there is a buzzer sound which rings once the times up. If you want to push students and put them on a deadline, this is a great resource.

One of my friends told me to try out riddles and puzzles as a starter activity and I just could not believe what a difference it makes when it comes to getting the students settled and focused. It's brilliant. As soon as they come in put a riddle in front of them and give them a deadline using the above stopwatch.

One of the best resources on the internet for SEN worksheets by far is SEN Teacher. The site has thousands of free useful resources. Well worth checking out if you have not already done so and excellent if you have very little money left in the budget.

A really good tip I was recently given was to get the full attention of pupils was to instruct them to fully "turn around" and face thier head, knees, shoulders and toes directly towards the teacher when they listen to me. I can't believe a small tip like this makes such a difference. I often find students facing me but they are often just facing thier head towards me and hence tend to drift off, yet when there whole body is facing the teacher they are much more on target.

This is a truly inspiring speech from Will Smith for kids as he talks about working hard, reading and running. It is a must watch from YouTube and one to share with your students.