innovatED Magazine - Issue 4 - Spring 2020

Children were given pre-made packs, that contained a
map of the school grounds, a pencil, class camera and
some clues so the children knew where to head
around the school grounds. Once the walk began the
children came across a dragons’ nest and in a variety
of different places there were dragon eggs.
Alien eggs
When I took the class into the whole school assembly,
a TA from a nearby classroom placed some alien eggs
and a letter in the middle of the carpet. The children
and I returned to the classroom and found the alien
eggs in the classroom. The children knew that it
couldn’t have been me that put them there, as I had
been in assembly with them. The letter outlined what
the children needed to do in order to care for the
aliens appropriately. This was a really successful way
of beginning instructions and letter writing in English,
as well as learning how to care for others in PSHE.
Flight
On the first day back to school after a half term, the
children entered the classroom to find that it had been
filled with paper aeroplanes and flight mobiles. They
were hanging from the ceiling all around the room. On
each table there were different clearly written stepby-step
instructions and an assortment of coloured
card. The children were instantly mesmerised and
began following the instructions to create different
aeroplanes. This topic grew into learning about Amelia
Earhart, making predictions about what different card
would do to the flight length of their planes,
measuring distances of flight and so many more
areas.
A Hook can be incredibly powerful as a means of
capturing a child’s attention and inspiring them to find
out more. I believe that learning should be purposeful
and fun and that is what I try to recreate in my
classroom. Why not give it a try yourself? •
Nadine is a Child development specialist who
has recently joined the Salisbury Plain
Academies.
She has worked with children for 17 years
having originally trained as an International
Montessori Directress before moving into state
schools and completing a Graduate Teacher
Programme. Nadine is passionate about making
the most out of every day, either at school or
with her two young children. She has previously
written articles that have been published in
various magazines including the TES.
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