Featuring the new-look myfuture, new strategy guide for inclusive STEM learning environments and much more! No images? Click here This edition of ESA News celebrates the contribution of teachers – who this year have guided, mentored and supported young people under extraordinary circumstances. Read on and discover fantastic resources, informed by the work and feedback of educators, and created to support excellence in education. Celebrating and thanking teachersmyfuture has launched a refreshed, new-look website to offer users a better experience. The resources that users already know and value remain, while improved navigation and personalisation features have been introduced, along with a more modern design. Changes to the site were informed by best practice research methods as part of myfuture’s commitment to a strong evidence base and continuous improvement. The myfuture team is grateful for the support of the teachers from around Australia who provided feedback to inform the recent developments. If you or your students are registered myfuture users, all your data has been transferred and can be accessed when you log in. Strategies for inclusive STEM learning environmentsTeachers play an important role in STEM engagement, encouragement and as role models, with 24 per cent of teachers being cited by youth as the most influential people for STEM subject selection (Department of Industry, 2020). ESA recently released ‘Classroom strategies for inclusive STEM learning environments’, a teacher guide packed full of evidence-based ideas. Aligned to The Girls in STEM Toolkit’s seven principles for gender-inclusive STEM education, the guide includes practical strategies and contemporary resources that can be used to bring these critical principles to life to create an engaging and inclusive STEM classroom. Coming soon: Additional Literacy Hub resourcesThe Literacy Hub acknowledges the key role teachers play in supporting young students to develop the foundational literacy skills that will set them on a successful learning pathway. The Hub provides schools with a range of resources, including a free online Phonics Check, to support early literacy progress. Over the coming months, the Hub will be adding more resources and professional learning materials to help teachers develop the foundational literacy skills learners need for successful future learning. Teachers: a lifeline for young people and communities2020 has highlighted the immeasurable contribution that teachers make to the lives of their students. The relationships that teachers develop with their students are the foundation upon which trust, meaningful communication and resilience are developed. It cannot be overstated that when teachers help students celebrate their successes and address their anxieties, they model and normalise help-seeking behaviour that can be critical in times like these. Students who feel supported are more able to cope with difficulty and uncertainty. Great teachers, teaching great Digital Technologies lessonDid you know many of the lesson ideas and examples on the Digital Technologies Hub are developed by passionate educators? The Digital Technologies Hub team thanks these educators for extending themselves and sharing their fantastic lessons with us. Image: Regenwolke0/Pixabay Snap block models Students create a model using snap blocks 1 block high and create a code so someone else can build their model. It’s a great lesson that links the Digital Technology concepts of algorithms with mathematics concepts of 2D and 3D shapes. Hot bots Students are set a design challenge to create a program to automatically switch on an air conditioner. For this project, students are introduced to the Arduino microcontroller and Arduino integrated development environment for programming. Creating a virtual classroom environment with ELLAJo Mavrigiannakis extends her use of the ELLA program to support families in practising words in another language at home.
Updates and eventsStudent Wellbeing Hub webinarWebinar: 'A Celebration of Culture and Respect: Young people from refugee backgrounds show leadership in preventing family violence.' What’s new in Scootle?Image: MabelAmber/Pixabay This month Scootle includes resources that range across the curriculum including science and technologies investigation-based units on soil quality, agricultural pests and bees; videos exploring computer security; interviews with authors and publishers on the writing process; and modelling the impact of climate change. Professional learning modules for early years educatorsESA is happy to announce that it will continue to host the popular Early Childhood Resource Hub’s professional learning modules following the closure of the main ecrh.edu.au website. Going forward, users will be able to access and complete all of the following free courses on the professional learning page:
Image: Regenwolke0/Pixabay The ecrh.edu.au site will remain active until 16 October but users will continue to have access to a selection of the resources and materials on the ACECQA website. This move streamlines resources to one platform, making it easier for educators to access relevant support material. Not yet a subscriber?If you're not yet subscribed to ESA News, you can subscribe below. Archived editions of ESA News are also available on the ESA website. Do we have your correct details?If your name or email address is incorrect or needs to be updated, please use the Preferences link at the bottom of this email. |