The Hackney Pirates and their Ship of Adventure

Hackney resident and former teacher Catriona Maclay believed that, with some additional support, young people who have fewer opportunities and are falling behind could become fully rounded learners who are able to achieve at school and in the wider world. As a result the Hackney Pirates were founded in 2010 and this has become their vision.

The Hackney Pirates work with around 140 young people a year aged 9-12 years old. The pirates are referred by their schools and are young people who are disadvantaged in their personal circumstances and / or are underachieving in some way at school. They are not generally young people who are entitled to additional support but who are deemed to be unlikely to receive 5 or more A*-C at GCSE.

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      string(5639) "or useplasters), advise of risks and symptoms, and seek medicaladvice as soon as possible if infection is suspected.Tuck socks into trousers if in potential tick area.Sun/ultra-violet radiationAdvise of risks. Cover exposed skin, especially top of thehead, back of the neck and shoulders. Work in the shadewhere possible.Slippery surfacesWarn about mud or ice. Change activity or route according tothe weather. Wear appropriate footwear.Electrical storms or gale force windsCheck weather websites for the latest information and severeweather warnings. Cancel activity if too severe.Open waterGive a verbal warning of danger area. Advise to keep clear ofwater’s edge and banks.Have a throw line handy if working near deep or fast flowingwater. 53Volume4.3n CreativeTeaching & LearningCreativeApproachesActivities for winterThe Trust’s Nature Detectives website (www.naturedetectives.org.uk) offersover a thousand nature-based activities available for families, children andteachers to download completely free. Each resource provides hours of funthat incorporates learning, nature and creativity, and can be adapted to suitchildren of all ages.Here are some great ideas from the Nature Detectives winter area, which hasover 150 winter downloads as well as a special ‘Winter play booklet’, which isjam-packed with games to play outside in winter:Winter wonderland spotter sheet – How many of these wintry sights canyour class spot when you’re out on a snowy adventure? Look for things likefresh snow, icicles, footprints and melting snow and tick them off on thishandy spotter sheet: www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/hunt_winter_wonderland.htmWinter picnic – These warming ideas and recipes are ideal for keeping toastywhile out exploring the woods: www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/picnic_winter.htmAdventures with sticks –  From twig towers to stick ships, magic wands towinter wreaths, there are tons of things you can do with sticks. Here are someideas to get you started: www.naturedetectives.org.uk/packs/stick_pack.htmBird Pack – 25 free printable activity sheets, plus videos and desktop wallpapersto get children excited about birdlife. Includes a bird spotter sheet, birdbingo, a balancing swallow to colour in and perch somewhere interesting,and the nest building challenge – a hands on activity to help children learnhow birds build their nests. 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Whatdo you paddle in, wade through, jump in, splash…? What do you see, smell,hear and feel on your welly wander? Download here: www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/welly_wander.htmTree identification tools – Identify trees from their twigs, autumnseeds and as we come into spring, their leaves, buds and blossom.www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/trees.htmWinter scavenger hunt sheet – How many winter treasures can you collect?www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/play_winter_scavengerhunt.htmHunt for animal tracks – Hunt for and identify animal tracks left in the mudor snow! www.naturedetectives.org.uk/download/hunt_tracks.htmAnd all year round, enjoy our new Pirate Pack! Help your class make themselvesa pirate hat, then set sail for the woods. They can build a stick ship, make atreasure chest, then start hunting for natural treasures. Download this pack at:www.naturedetectives.org.uk/packs/pirate.htmThe Woodland Trust and schoolsAside from regularly updating our Nature Detectives website with new andexciting ways to encourage children and young people to interact with nature,the Woodland Trust works directly with schools in a variety of different ways.nnnnWhat do schools say?The following quotes are from staff and students from various primary and secondary schools across thecountry who planted free trees or hedges from the Woodland Trust in their school grounds. Each schoolreceived two points towards their Green Tree Schools Award from planting the trees and completing aquestionnaire afterwards.Quotes from staff‘It was a valuable experience and taught [the children] about nature, how to grow and care for plants andlook after them for the future. The rosy cheeks and smiling faces said it all!’‘It is so rewarding to see the children so enthused and excited about looking after their world.’‘I was amazed at how many things [the students] could tell me about where a tree needs to be plantedand how much they wanted their mums and dads to go and see the trees after school. We have had tomake a map to show where each person’s tree is on site!’‘That was the coldest, muddiest day of my life and the school field looks like a mud bath."
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Creative Teaching & Learning

A practical guide to outdoor learning

19 Dec 2013

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      string(4753) "answers.  We know that there is no perfect measure of key strengths.  If there was, it would be part of every government’s manifesto, every education minister’s targets, every setting’s Ofsted framework.  It would be used as a carrot for potential researchers and a stick to beat schools that didn’t quite ‘measure up’. In our report we will outline why measuring the positive attributes that are demonstrated in a broad range of children, in a systematic way, and over time, will highlight gaps that exist and more importantly will show why the work of our partners is making a positive impact.We believe that everyone can, and will, improve.  We know that there is a positive correlation between development of these key strengths and achievement.  We know that investing time and resources in developing and improving key strengths will improve educational attainment.  We also know that children from poor families are more likely to benefit from early years, in-school and beyond-school programmes. We want to directly celebrate instances of improvement and also highlight where improvement is not happening.  Only then can we dig deeper into whether the problem is one of access to interventions, or their effectiveness.Highlighting action does not in itself mean better outcomes for children.  We all know that.  But as a working group we are feeling more confident that we have the bedrock in place and are close to committing to a set of measures to which we will hold ourselves accountable.  After that, our effectiveness will be for all to judge.(The Fair Education Alliance (FEA)  established in 2012, is a national coalition, with representation from the education, business and the charities sector, united in closing the achievement gap between rich and poor.  Its 10-year mission is to identify and define the gap, and to see a measurable reduction in all measures by 2022 through campaigning, raising awareness and direct intervention.  In order to change this, the FEA has identified five ambitious Impact Goals).  Impact Goal Three Working Group Members: CCCU, Family Links, Allen & Overy, Barnardo’s, Debate Mate, ESU, Football Beyond Borders, Girlguiding, Hackney Pirates, NCB, Nurture Group Network, ReachOut, Right to Succeed, RSA, Step Up to Serve, UBS and Whizz KidzJessica Tanner is Research Coordinator at Family Links, a national charity dedicated to the emotional health of children, families and schools.Jennifer Shearman is Senior Lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University. Bea Stevenson is Head of Social and Emotional Learning for Family Links.ReferencesBanerjee, R., Weare, K. and Farr, W. (2014), Working with ‘Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning’ (SEAL): associations with school ethos, pupil social experiences, attendance, and attainment. Br Educ Res J, 40: 718-742Canterbury Christ Church University, www.canterbury.ac.ukChapman, C., Muijs, D. and MacAllister, J. (2011). A Study of the Impact of Federation on Student Outcomes. Nottingham: National College.Dweck, Carol S.. (2008) Mindset: The new psychology of success New York : Ballantine BooksEducation Endowment Foundation, https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/Egalite, A. J., Mills, J. N. and Green, J. P. (2015). ‘The Softer Side of Learning: Measuring students’ non-cognitive skills’, Improving Schools, pp. 9th June 2016. doi: 10.1177/1365480215616313.Fair Education Alliance, www.faireducation.org.ukFamily Links, www.familylinks.org.ukGoodman, A., Joshi, H., Nasim, B. & Tyler, C. (2015) Social and emotional skills in childhood and their long-term effects on adult life: A review for the Early Intervention FoundationJennings, P.A. & Greenberg, M.T. (2009). ‘The Prosocial Classroom: Teacher Social and Emotional Competence in Relation to Student and Classroom Outcomes’, Review of Educational Research, Vol.79, No.1. pp491 – 525.Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, http://www.jubileecentre.ac.uk/National Institute for Health Care and Excellence, (2015).Social and Emotional Wellbeing in Primary Education (NICE pathways). Public Health England, (2015). ‘Promoting Children and Young People’s Emotional Health and Wellbeing: A Whole School Approach’. Reach Out, www.reachoutuk.orgRicker, S. (2014). The Skillset more than 3/4 of employers want  Available at: http://advice.careerbuilder.com/ [Accessed 28th July, 2016]Weare, K. (2015). What works in promoting social and emotional wellbeing and responding to mental health problems in schools? National Children’s Bureau: Partnership for mental health and wellbeing in schools.Whatif Learning, www.whatiflearning.co.uk"
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Mental Health

Whole person Whole school Whole lot of impact

20 Jun 2017

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      string(3016) "To access Learning Spaces Magazine:Please LoginTo view the latest issue of Learning Spaces (volume 2.3), please go to the Online Publications page or Click Here for direct link.Alternatively, you can subscribe here. Call our sales team for the best rate: 0121 224 7599Learning Spaces ISSUE 2.3 																							It’s been a while since last addition of Learning Spaces came out. In that time a significant number of things have happened in the educational world. First however, we are pleased to welcome Dr. Jenny Thomas as co-editor of Learning Spaces whilst Dr. Sharon Wright who previously performed this role takes a break to pursue other projects.So the General Elections is now over and there is increased clarity and, it turns out, continuity to the education agenda.  The increased commitment to Free Schools and Academies will doubtless provide focus and opportunity for many people and organisations.  However, all of us engaged with helping design spaces in new build and expansion projects are very aware that we are frequently hampered in what can be done in designing new schools by restrictive building guidance. As a result some architects and designers consider that schools being developed under the new guidance are not fit for purpose. It is not all bad news however. It is encouraging to see and hear about various local authorities, architects and contractors trying to ensure that they provide interesting, innovative and dynamic learning environments for the young people in their communities.  Where this passion exists, there is enthusiasm and genuine interest to maximise the opportunities for interesting design – and so there should be.In this edition, we are pleased to read about Ian Wilson discussing a potential design solution that provides all the benefits of repetition and standardisation but still allows for different solutions from standard school designs.  Integration is always challenging – we are delighted to include an article about Heartlands High School and their work in integrating an autistic provision in their school,  as well as a special feature on outdoor learning solutions.   We explore the work of Hackney Pirates on supporting learning and the Marine Academy in Plymouth.  On a regulatory note, we are pleased to publish an article by Louise Hosking on the new safety legislation that will affect all schools in control of their own building. We would genuinely love to hear from all those involved in exciting education projects who would like to share your views, showcase your projects, and tell us about your experiences. We always need new stories for Learning Spaces – please contact us if you would like to contribute an article.In the meantime, let’s keep focusing on trying to create exciting learning spaces!Have a great summer!Gareth Long & Dr Jenny Thomas Co-editor of Learning Spaces To view the latest Learning Spaces Issue please go to the Online Publications page or Click Here for direct link."
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Learning Spaces

Creating educational spaces in the UK

25 Oct 2013

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      string(5643) "so important to our lives.The research shows that the capacity to presentcounterfactual worlds starts at around 18 months. We don’tneed to be conducting empirical research to know this,we can see evidence of it for ourselves as young childrenengage metaphorically with objects and ‘pretend’ theyare something else. A pencil becomes a comb, a banana aphone, a doll a baby. By age 2-3 much of the waking hoursof this age group is spent in a world of imagination as theycreate possible universes and assume different identities.Dressing up aids the fantasy world, as they become super-heroes, fairies and princesses, knights and princes – thevariety of roles young children assume are endless. They canalso pretend to be asleep, or take on the role of a favoritecharacter like ‘Fireman Sam’. How often do we hear 2-3 yearolds plan their pretend games and often ask us to join in: “I’mthe mummy – you’re the baby”. Soon, as toy manufacturersare well aware, they are creating whole pretend worlds withthe aid of toy farms, garages, castles or zoos.When Sara asked her children, “What if pirates attackedthe ship?” her experience told her that the children areable to imagine this possibility and think about what mighthappen if that event occurred. What the cognitive scientistshave done is show us that being able to respond to a “Whatif…” scenario demonstrates children’s understandingof causal connections between things in the world andfurthermore shows they are able to predict other possibleevents being the outcome of such an occurrence. They canalso imagine themselves acting in this possible scenarioand try out how they might affect events. These youngchildren are also able to consider alternative scenarios putforward by other children and imagine their consequences.Such responses and their subsequent actions, as later theyget the opportunity to ‘play’ castles or ships, shows thatthese nursery children know a lot about how one thingmakes another happen – they are demonstrating theirknowledge of the causal world – both the physical and thepsychological world.Alison Gopnik’s research shows that causal knowledgeabout the world and counterfactuals go together: they allowchildren to use their imaginations to explore alternativepossibilities and they use this knowledge to make predictionsabout the future, to explain the past and to imagine otherpossible worlds. It is worth considering these causal mapsof the physical world in more detail. By three years-old ayoung child’s brain has constructed a kind of unconsciouscausal map, an accurate picture of how the physical worldworks. A map, Alison tells us, is a very efficient device forconstructing different cognitive blueprints, pictures of whatwill happen as you move yourself through space. Togetherwith counterfactuals these causal maps give imagination itspower – its what makes creativity possible. When we knowhow events are connected we can imagine altering thoseThinking Skills20 Creative Teaching & Learning n Volume 2.4connections and creating new ones. It’s because we knowabout this world that we can create possible worlds. Thethree year-old pretending to be a fairy princess or a knighton horseback is therefore demonstrating a uniquely humankind of intelligence.At the same time as they are developing theirunderstanding of the physical world necessary for causalmaps, these very young children are developing theoriesof mind – the psychological causal maps. Knowing howpeople’s minds work, imagining what they might do isessential for pretend play. Psychological counterfactualsreflect the way people might be and how they might act.Faced with the possibility of pirates attacking the ship, thenursery children can predict motives for the attack – goodand bad – demonstrating their ability to imagine whatmight be in the minds of different kinds of pirates and howtheir imaginary selves might respond, with bravery or withfear and how their imagined response might make themact. The research shows that children between 2-6 yearsold are developing this understanding of human desiresand beliefs, emotions and actions, and realise that differentpeople have different beliefs and behave differentlybecause they have different kinds of minds. By the timethey are four they can understand that people can have falsebeliefs. Understanding the minds of others, psychologicalcausality, is what allows us to maintain complex socialnetworks and to develop culture.Let’s return to Sara’s classroom. The nursery childrenare now entering their third term when most of them arefour. This time they start their day with a different scenario,‘Would you dare…’ replaces ‘Would you prefer…’ on Sara’sregistration board. Children are asked to respond by placingtheir names under either YES or NO. One morning childrenare asked, “Would you dare be friends with a monster? Yesor no?”Sitting on the carpet and counting up the ‘Yes’ and the‘No’ votes Sara asks the children, “Does it make you braverthan me if you would dare be friends with a monster and Iwouldn’t?”. Sara knows that her nursery children are ableto discuss the abstract concept of bravery and considerwhether or not daring to be friends with a monster is abrave, or perhaps foolhardy thing to do.She then introduces a counterfactual, “What if he hadno friends?”. Children understand that the ideas they hadabout the mind of a ‘scary monster’ may turn out to bedifferent from what they thought. How does this furtherinformation change things? They are able to reflect"
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Special Needs

How the young mind works

16 Apr 2018

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Reviewer: Adrian Porter

Ridiculous Rhymes V2
Reviewer: Marion Archer

Birchfield Lesson Kits for English
Reviewer: Sarah Casey"
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Birchfield Lesson Kits for English
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Digital Learning

Reviews

15 Apr 2013

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