Apparently 100 people have now looked at this post and not felt moved to reply in any way.

I know it's been holidays (and only sad people post in the holdiays) but does no one have any thing to say or have I asked the wrong question?

 Is every one succeeding with the Skills Curriculum? If so please share your success.

If it's the wrong question what should I have asked?

 I will reply :)

 

The skills cirriculum looks confusing to me- school is not how i remember it.

I am a teaching assistant and applying for a PGCE in wales and am looking for some help understanding how the skills cirriculum works- and how the needed information is included. (primary)

How do you explain it?

mjkthorpe

How do you explain it?

Well that is a good question!

If you send me a message with a contact e-mail I can send you some examples of planning which might help you understand how I run the skills currruculum against the "subject" curriculum.

 

I think the reason you've had so many views but little in the way of response is that people don't like to show too much ignorance!

In my case, we've had no training and are just muddling along, fitting skills in where we think appropriate. I'd love to know what other people are doing.

dimeto

In my case, we've had no training and are just muddling along, fitting skills in where we think appropriate. I'd love to know what other people are doing.

Well, I was sort of thinking people would reply like you have or to say that thye have found something that really works. 

We've had no formal training. I'm trying to do a theme based term plan that looks like a foundation one but shows separate subjects - its cross linked to the range and skills-I'm hyperlink queen! As I do that I keep a range and skills audit for my class which I then review with the other KS2 teacher at the end of each term to assess where we are missing bits of the range.

All my teaching plans then have this in them:-

FRAMEWORK SKILLS

THINKING Plan

Asking questions (to understand the problem)Activating prior knowledge, skills and understandingGathering informationDetermining the process/method and strategyDetermining success criteria

Develop

Generating and developing ideasValuing errors and unexpected outcomesEntrepreneurial thinkingThinking about cause and effect and making inferencesThinking logically and seeking patternsConsidering evidence, information and ideasForming opinions and making decisionsMonitoring progress ReflectReviewing outcomes and success criteriaReviewing the process/methodEvaluating own learning and thinkingLinking and lateral thinking  DEVELOPING COMMUNICATION ACROSS THE CURRICULUMOracyDeveloping information and ideasPresenting information and ideasReadingLocating, selecting and using information using reading strategiesResponding to what has been read.WritingOrganising ideas and information

Writing accurately        Wider communication skills

Communicating ideas and emotionsCommutating information DEVELOPING ICT ACROSS THE CURRICULUMICT skills frameworkFinding and developing information and ideasCreating and presenting information and ideas     DEVELOPING NUMBER ACROSS THE CURRICULUMUse mathematical informationUsing numbersMeasuringGathering informationCalculateUsing the number system

 

And I take out the bits I'm not going to do.

And then at some time I have to assess at what point on the skills continuum children are.

I also have to include AfL activities (we're targetting six this year).

 

So I've displayed my ignorance over to the rest of you.

s

FRAMEWORK SKILLS
THINKING

Plan
Asking questions (to understand the problem)
Activating prior knowledge, skills and understanding
Gathering information
Determining the process/method and strategy
Determining success criteria
Develop
Generating and developing ideas
Valuing errors and unexpected outcomes
Entrepreneurial thinking
Thinking about cause and effect and making inferences
Thinking logically and seeking patterns
Considering evidence, information and ideas
Forming opinions and making decisions
Monitoring progress Reflect
Reviewing outcomes and success criteria
Reviewing the process/method
Evaluating own learning and thinking
Linking and lateral thinking
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATION ACROSS THE CURRICULUM
Oracy
Developing information and ideas
Presenting information and ideas
Reading
Locating, selecting and using information using reading strategies
Responding to what has been read.
Writing
Organising ideas and information
Writing accurately Wider communication skills
Communicating ideas and emotions
Commutating information
DEVELOPING ICT ACROSS THE CURRICULUM
ICT skills framework
Finding and developing information and ideas
Creating and presenting information and ideas

DEVELOPING NUMBER ACROSS THE CURRICULUM
Use mathematical information
Using numbers
Measuring
Gathering information
Calculate
Using the number system

 

Hope this looks better

OMG!!  That's so much. We have inserted the skills framework into our medium term topic plans (inc. literacy and maths) We picked out the skills relevant to what was intended to be taught during each week and slotted them in alongside.

At least we can show that we are covering the skills framework. We are a primary school and as the skills framework goes up to 19 years, we have only taken the first few skills of each strand.

Thanks for joining in! After the struggle to get an expanded forum everyone seems to have disappeared.

greta444

At least we can show that we are covering the skills framework. We are a primary school and as the skills framework goes up to 19 years, we have only taken the first few skills of each strand.

The advice we had was you shouldn't limit your children by choosing say only from the first three columns. You should plan in such a way that if a year 5 for example can achieve at the highest level they should be able to. You audit their skills level from what they do.  I can see the sense in this because children can surprise us but it is not easy. In fairness my "lesson plans" can run for several individual periods of work.We are trying to work to themes but to be honest, I think we need to go back to specific lessons with targeted skills and make sure we get the children to make the learning links.  If a lesson covers two subjects then that should just be made clear in the objectives.I just wish I felt like someone "out there" running it all really had a handle on it. Still could be worse could be redundant or in England! (Not a racist comment referring to their curriculum.) 

I'm secondary and we're currently revamping schemes of work to tie the new framework more closely into what we already do. AFL is also being made much more explicit. In essence, much of what we are putting in is just committing to paper what good classroom practitioners were already doing on a day to day basis anyway. It's just a paper shuffling exercise to please some bearded man in an office somewhere. older, more experienced staff seem somewhat bemused by it all. I think being fresher out of my PGCE means I'm better able to take it in my stride, as these ideas were very much at the core of my training and we have been taught to deliver them in an overt way to please the person at the back of the lesson with the clipboard, if that makes sense.

I must say I'm bitterly disappointed with the NC; there is too much weighting on skills. I too find the pace painstakingly slow.

WAG have been utterly useless with support and the LEA networking is just as poor (I don't think having to network in our own time helps!)

I think the biggest impact has been in assessment of these skills (I teach science by the way). It has added a great deal to my workload (unless I'm doing it all wrong!).

I'd be interested to hear from fellow science teachers.

Our County has pushed the thematic approach and I can def see on the boards here that a lot of people are planning like this.

We've resisted it and I, for one am not sorry about that.

We make as many cross-curricular links as possible, but are not planning across all subjects like that.  I have taught thematically before and (in my experience) have found that some children can become bored if everything is covered through the same topic.  Instead we have a few different themes running, with plenty of links as appropriate.  We all know that the skills are being covered and co-ordinators know that there is continuity and progression

It worries me on here when people post things like "I'm doing xxx next half term, has anyone got some planning for it". 

 

As far as science is concerned, in Primary we have been given a trial scheme of work based on the skills to be covered.  Many schools across Wales have found a dip in level 5s at the end of KS2 and I am currently looking at how to address this.  The needs of the new curriculum and the many new skills (especially in science) have not been able to be thoroughly absorbed by simply introducing the curriculum to year 6 a year later than the rest.

Our county have left it up to each individual school to decide how they will deliver the new curriculum. There has not been any training or helpful advice. I am in charge of leading the new curriculum in our Primary school and have contacted many schools within my area. They all do it differently and there is no one approach. However many schools seem to be going over to the International primary Curriculum but that has a financial implication. At the moment we plan using the skills framework but ensuring we deliver the skills.

Sorry last word should have been range.

Waterfin

Many schools across Wales have found a dip in level 5s at the end of KS2 and I am currently looking at how to address this.

Could this be due to a lack of understanding of the assessment criteria at KS2? 

The Primaries within my family of schools certainly demonstrate this, and many have openly said they go on 'gut feeling'! They're awarding level 5s based on a single skill. This is exasperated by the fact that the primary advisor fails to see an issue and the primary science/maths advisor is a retired teacher of 10 years. Additionally, during the (statutory) cluster moderation they failed to attend or produced no work. 

I understand the difficulties involved with KS2 assessment; KS2 teachers need to have an I understanding of all the skills criteria for all subjects, but they have not moved forward since the abolition of SATs. I have little faith in TA at the end of KS2, and this is rapidly be eroded to zero.

This I base this on my experiences with my feeder schools and appreciate that it may be an isolated case and that many other primaries may be 'operating' 'correctly'.

 What about pupils with learning disabilities who are below level 1 and the descriptors for the skills??? I nmy school we have pupils from p1 to p8 but are asked to teach skills . any ideas?