PGL- A great way to start half term

Some say PGL stands for Parents Get Lost although the real reason for the name is co-founder Peter Gordon Lawrence and the staff call it Pretty Good Laughs. Regardless of the name the outcome is still the same and I spent the last 3 days of term at the one in Liddington, Swindon. 

Over 40 children and 5 adults (including both my Head and Mentor) embarked on an M4 journey and upon arrival met one of the main organisers who promptly showed us around the main parts of the camp before our Group Leader took over and ensured we went to lunch and filled our hungry bellies.

Mountain Biking and Rock Climbing were first up the group I was in charge of and these were two things I looked forward to, firstly because I currently don't own a bike and secondly I used to rock climb with my old Scout Troop all the time and we even had a permanent wall outside our HQ.


I was super impressed by two of my group because they ascended up the wall quicker than Spiderman would have been able to. There were a few children who needed their confidence boosting and I was able to climb up to a safe distance without a harness and give some words of encouragement. The one thing I do notice about the many residential trips I have worked on is that children are put out of their comfort zone and it takes a lot to come out of their shell.

Our Group Leader from PGL showed us our very own building afterwards and this meant that with the main doors locked only members of staff from my school and students were able to roam. It was extremely safe and even had its own garden area for the children to play football. There are rumours of it being haunted with the ghost of King Edward (name of the house) and an adjoining Conservatory was out of bounds for all, which made it all the more secretive. My room was ground floor, as was my mentor and another adult. Being spread out among the children's rooms meant that we could keep an eye on them and listen out for any shenanigans (which of course there were bound to be, with it being the first time this year group had gone away together). 

During the evening, we were lead to a big field to play something called Wacky Races. Beforehand we were told to wear our clothes in strange ways: back to front, inside out, shorts on our head, onesies, etc. I put my running hoodie on back to front and this meant I could cover my face if needs be. It turned out that each race had us running to a cone and then back again in different ways/actions/positions.









Some of the funny ones included: acting like a granny to the cone and changing into a ninja on the way back; being a chicken to the cone, laying a square egg, running back with it but accidentally drop it on the way; do a crazy dance move at the cone; grab a stick, hold it by your head and running around in a circle 6 times to make you dizzy before running back.

Random virtual points such as a wooden spoon, 5 gold coins, 1 million points and a spork (spoon and fork combined), were given out for best individual performance and quickest team back. One of the best moments of acting was a new boy to the school who gave an impressive Zombie impression. With the Year 6 play coming up in a few weeks, I hope he auditions for it because this would be a great boost for him before leaving to go to Secondary School.

On the second day in the morning, I had to change which group I was in charge of due to one of the children in my group not feeling well so the Head stayed behind with them. It showed I could adapt quickly and was prepared to change plans at a moment's notice. We went Tree-Top walking (similar to Go Ape) and it was my first time and certainly not my last.


 For 3 hours we learned how to get into the harness, use the Safety Belt, move along the wire and ascend up a series of obstacles to proceed through the trees until a zip wire that lead us back to the ground again. Yet again I was impressed by some children who took to it like a duck to water and others who despite being afraid of heights tried it and thoroughly enjoyed it. So much so they went on the course again, second time round.

In the afternoon I changed back to my original group and this meant Tree Top walking again, the only downside was being among the trees for 6 hours caused my nose to explode and hay fever kicked in. I am usually not susceptible to pollen but on this occasion I couldn't escape the outdoors. This time round I was next to two boys in my group who were very quick on the ropes and we all managed to get around the course 3 times. On the 3rd we even timed ourselves and it only took 18 minutes from start to finish.

Disco was on the agenda for the evening and I am sure this is the main reason the children can't wait to go on a residential. Hair and clothes were immaculate and dance moves by one boy ensured our school walked away from a dance-off with a huge pat on our backs. Another I hope who auditions for the Year 6 play. I love to dance and when Macarena and Uptown Funk came on, I led the group to a dance routine. It was noticed by the other staff members that I can choreograph a dance so I won't be surprised if I am to assist with the play.

Finally, the last day arrived and the two activities were Giant Swing and Aeroball. I took the same group as I had done so the previous morning because one thing I really wanted to do was Giant Swing. Teamwork is key in pretty much everything at PGL and Giant Swing even more so because the children were in control of pulling a rope that was attached to metal bars. 






On these bars, a pair of children were harnessed in and pulled higher and higher into the air until the event leader said to stop. The rope was then fastened and those sat in the swing had to pull a cord to release themselves. I was last to go up on the swing and on my own. It was quite high up so I plenty of empathy for all who had been before me.

Aeroball was simply four trampolines attached to each other with nets surrounding them and the aim of the game was to bounce high, grab a ball and throw it into an opponent's goal. Different variations of the game took place and despite some rain that fell, everyone had plenty of fun and some astounding goals were scored including one boy who managed 4 in a row. 






Finally, after 2 days and 2 nights our bags were packed and we set on our way back home. New friendships were made, adventures shared and I am sure the many experiences will be retold once the new term commences in June. This week has given me the opportunity to show a new set of skills to my colleagues and add more proof as to why I am the right man for the job next year, with whichever year group I am entrusted to teach. My mentor said I suit residential trips and next year hopes I am part of the team again.

A busy start to 80% teaching

I know this blog is not a top priority throughout my training but I feel as if it should be used as a reflective tool at least every few weeks. Unfortunately my hopes of updating it on a weekly basis have been dashed somewhat due to the planning, preparation, marking, admin and another big thing - planning my pending wedding.

Yes I know I must be mad to be planning a wedding at the same time as training to be a teacher but I am not the only one in my School Direct course and am probably the only bloke, so kudos to those ladies out there who are really doing most of the planning.

It has been a strange year with me being in two different schools, 3 different year groups and working alongside a wide range of adults. Learning names of colleagues and children alike has been a must do especially as I like to get involved in playground activities so knowing who to pass the ball to is very important!

My fiancée is a teacher too and although in a secondary school she started at a new location and job role at exactly the same time. This had been good in some ways because we can sympathise with each other on many things. Even though she is 4 years my junior, she has been teaching since 21 and is part of the SLT and holds a Literacy role in the school that requires a lot of physical and emotional strength. Someone to look up to I think and not because she is also a few inches taller than me (more so in high heels) plus teaching is something she has always wanted to do, whereas I came into the profession after a period of being in the wilderness until I decided on this being my true vocation.

Now since my last post I have been a busy man as my title suggests. Getting to know 30 students names in my tutor group, an extra 10 who come in for Maths, 3 new teachers to work alongside and a couple of TA's was the easy part. Planning lessons to make the children acquire new knowledge, think more about why things are the way they are, ensure lots of open questions are being put forward and answered, teaching 16 out of 20 hours, marking books and constantly making formative assessments, is now the crux of my week.

Turn the clock back just a few months ago and I was merely observing, taking small groups, teaching the odd lesson here and there, rarely marking and having to make quick assessments of pupils. It is amazing how much there is to take on board in this profession and I often think should I have gone down the PGCE route where it is less classroom based but then I think 'well no because the whole purpose of learning how to teach is actually being in the classroom and getting the most out of the experience before reality kicks in next year when I have a class of my own and it will be a huge responsibility'.

So what exactly have I been doing these past 3 weeks?

English was an interesting lesson because some of the students created a newsletter based on the changes to their school lunchtime table. It was intriguing to see them work as a team to think of questions to ask a variety of people affected, right from the Head to a Year 1 student. 

Getting the WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHY and WHEN questions was top on the teaching and learning agenda, and presenting it on a Publisher Document was a new thing I had to teach so I learnt something new too. A few were chosen by the Head to be put into the school's weekly newsletter and it was a great way to showcase the excellent talent we have in Year 5.

Topic is about the Greek Legacy and the lessons are based around how they influenced modern society so everything from democracy, the Olympic Games, Famous Greeks, and the theatre.

I planned a lesson detailing where the word democracy came from and how it is different to other ways of ruling a country.

It is a great chance to put something like the General Election into context because the children can learn so much and this will only serve to enhance their thinking skills later on in life and for when they can vote in 10 years’ time.

My Maths group is a mix of children I used to teach before my second placement and some new children. Measures and scales was on the agenda for the first two weeks and when this changed to Data and Statistics I used a lesson idea based on the book

 ‘If The World Were A Village’ that I saw being used to teach a mixed year 5/6 class last year. I know it will be challenging but will adapt the lesson accordingly.

In Guided Reading my planning for this is based on what the children are currently learning and what they will be learning next. Some of the children require a heads up in advance so this will be an ideal time to input tricky vocab and help them to answer questions next week. Themes included the General Election, Life Cycles of Animals, some Data and Statistics, and a lot about the Greeks.

As this is my 80% teaching block, for 4 days a week right through till just after half term, I will be teaching pretty much every subject. Having to work alongside 3 different teachers, TAs and a Spanish support assistant has meant my people skills are required to be in tip top shape and I need to listen to all, take in their advice and then use what I feel is important.

My two observations were English and Topic. Persuasion is the unit of the term and I chose to include a set of techniques called DAFOREST that I used last term in my second placement. Being in Year 5 my main aim was that the children were able to recognise the techniques and to use them in their writing.

As it was the first lesson of the unit, I wanted to see if the children could ‘persuade’ their table partner into giving them something they really wanted. This was to get them thinking about what they were doing and the language being used. My lesson then moved on to include a piece of writing in which the children had to find words or phrases that persuaded them to do what was being asked of them. Firstly was a letter describing how amazing Hong Kong is and that people should visit this wonderful place, secondly was a speech to encourage men to become soldiers for Queen Victoria’s army, and the third was a challenging piece by a Head Girl encouraging her fellow students to eat more fruit throughout the week. I was pleased to see so many examples being given and the children has thoroughly gone through each text carefully and used a key to highlight where each part of the persuasive language was.

In PE I am teaching cricket and luckily the weather has been on my side. There is so much to go through not only in terms of bowling and batting but fielding, the rules, throwing, stopping the ball in different ways. I adapted a plan found on TES and the progress everyone has made in a few weeks is amazing and I can't wait to test our class against another in the year group.

So for another week or so this is it. I hope you enjoy my posts and please feel free to comment, share, RT or favourite. In 10 weeks I will be Qualified (touch the proverbial wood) and then 2 weeks later married. So much is happening at the moment and I am looking forward to sharing my honeymoon on a cruise somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean and reflect on the past year. One thing I do know is that it will never be the same again...