I saw this link posted on Twitter by @TeacherToolkit and just had to share it.
This is a video by David McQueen (@DavidMcQueen) inspiring pupils to be the best they can in their exams:
If you teach an exam class or are a form tutor to an exam year, you NEED to watch this!
You will be surprised to hear that this activity doesn’t involve cutting up a GCSE paper! See Foundation GCSE student review and How to make GCSE past papers fun.
Equipment
Digital version of a GCSE (or A-Level or Functional Skills) paper
Individual whiteboards & pens
Digital projector
Set up
Split the class into groups of 4-6. They will need a whiteboard each. Allocate a team number/letter or name. Project the first question on the screen.
Activity
Use the GCSE paper to set (part of) a question for the class.
They all answer on their whiteboards and hold up the answer when you say.
The beauty of this method is you can adapt the questions to the understanding of the class and focus on specific skills, as opposed to issuing a paper version and going through every question.
Scoring
It’s quite common for a few bright/strong characters to take over team games, unless you can find a way to avoid this. The scoring is quite easy.
2 points if every member of the group gets the answer right.
1 point for each team, if more than one team is 100% correct.
You may think that this will encourage copying, but there is a third score:
-1 point if you can’t explain your answer
This means teams must work together to ensure everyone understands the solution. After all, these are exam questions which may take several minutes to complete. There is little value in using this as a revision tool if pupils don’t progress – which is where the peer explanation comes in.
Review
My class really enjoyed doing this on Friday as preparation for their end of year eams. It allowed me to pick out the most appropriate revision questions, without running up the photocopying bill!
Well folks, the end is in sight! Soon Y11 will be on study leave. Sure, there will be those conscientious few who come in for help or revision sessions, but the majority of pupils need the next month to considate their learning and be ready for their exams.
Are these teenagers buzzing with energy and keen to work? No.
They are tired of being told about exam technique and interpreting questions. They are fed up with assessments and coursework. They are irritable with every non-teenager who mentions exams and ‘this is your future’. And most of all they are just tired because they are working late on deadlines that are suddenly tomorrow, rather than 6 months away.
How can you make yet another GCSE paper interesting?
It’s time to cut up the exam paper (see Foundation GCSE analysis for first scissor session).
Now this task will need some prep work. It is an adaptation of a Maths Relay.
Equipment
*Enough copies of a GCSE paper for 1 between 2 or 3.
(Variation: A set of themed questions, for example 15 questions on Algebra of graduated difficulty)
*Roughly three copies of the mark scheme.
*Your best 3 or 4 students to help manage the task. Alternatively, mathematically minded sixth former or spare teacher would do. You could even put two classes together.
Optional: A spreadsheet with the pairs of students in the first column
Prep Work
You need to slice the papers into individual questions. Lay out the piles in number order across a desk.
The desks in the room need to be arranged to allow pair/group work and also movement around the room.
Your helpers need to be briefed about the activity.
Activity
Each pair is given the first question face down. When you say ‘Start’, they may write down their names on the question and answer the question.
When they have an answer, they must bring it to be checked.
Correct: it is ticked and they are issued with the next question.
Wrong: it is crossed and they try again.
Wrong twice: they are issued with the next question.
By using your most able student as checkers, you are enabling them to practise effectively checking work quickly and give hints. If they can check their own work in exams quickly, then they will have more time to answer harder questions. By giving hints they are consolidating their learning. Of course, the rest of the class can’t complain that the brightest will win as they are not taking part.
Differentiation
If you have a mixed tier/ability class you can colour code two exam papers: yellow for foundation, pink for higher. They can still race each other but at a more appropriate level.
About that optional spreadsheet
Set up a spreadsheet with the first column for names, the next 15 columns labelled 1-15 and the last column for the total.
Once a question is finished with you record correct/wrong with a 1/0 . You can then keep track of who is on which question with what success rate.
The more ICT-friendly teacher could use conditional formatting to highlight the cells and which team is winning.
Management
I have found it easiest to use helpers for checking and leave the spreadsheet recording to the class teacher. This allows the teacher to oversee and troubleshoot as required.
Review
I’ve done this with low-ability Y11 last lesson on a Friday and was stunned at the engagement. Although that might have had something to do with the prize of first choice from a box of fondant fancies …
I’ve recently started using the Edexcel Past Papers revision app (Apple & Android compatible) with my GCSE and A-Level classes.
It is basically a database of past papers for all Edexcel subjects and qualifications, even iGCSE. You search by qualification, then subject, then exam session, then paper. The papers and mark schemes are already available on the internet, but the app is much quicker than googling them. It is not a complete revision resource, but it is fairly comprehensive app. Some of the PDFs are e-versions, some are scans. You can also share papers by email, which allows you to print.
The recent material is still only available through the secure teacher area of the Edexcel website, so your mock exams won’t be compromised.
My Y11 have downloaded it for personal use when they are on study leave. They suggested that even though they don’t use Edexcel for every subject, they could use it as a source of extra questions when they run out of revision materials. I’m actually impressed that they intend doing so much revision!
My Y12 have used this app in class for checking their work and also when they have forgotten the exam paper I have copied for them. It also saves me having to print out new papers and dashing to the printer. I find it rather handy having a selection of mark schemes in my pocket, especially when students are working on a variety of papers.
Note: This app has mixed reviews on both itunes and the Google Play store. I think it depends what your expectations are and what device you have.
I used to teach in a corner classroom: 8 windows, lovely light quality, nice views, only one maths display board.
We had to get creative about how to display work.
Peelable glass paints were useful for making temporary stained glass effect displays on the windows. They were time-consuming and tricky to do with large groups.
Hanging displays were very useful. The longest display I’ve ever done consisted of 30 strips of A4 length card, with a transformation repeating pattern on each. The card was hole punched at either end and then attached with a piece of string to the next one (treasury tags would have been quicker). It took a lot of blu-tak to put it up, but it went nearly the whole way around the room.
My children were making Easter bunting and it got me thinking. Why don’t we use bunting to summarise key facts in class? It’s easy to make, cheap, you can colour code by topic and you can add to it all term by connecting another fact onto the end. It won’t take up precious wall display space as you can hang it above displays, around boards or even across the room.
Equipment
Card (size and color of your choice)
Scissors
Ruler
Hole punch
Tape (optional)
String or treasury tags
Decision time
Decide on your theme:
– one colour for all?
– one colour per topic?
– one colour per grade?
– traffic light for difficulty?
Decide on your shape:
– classic isosceles triangle?
– rectangles for more writing area?
– different shapes for different shape facts?
Isosceles triangle instructions
The instructions were made using A5 card.
Measure roughly 2-3cm down from the narrow end of your card.
Mark the midpoint of the bottom of the card.
Join up these three points and cut out.
Wrap a small piece of tape around either side of the top of the shape. This strip across the top reinforces the flag. The holes won’t be too close to a point, nor will they tear easily.
Hole punch the tape.
Repeat for as many flags as you need.
Connect them together by threading onto a long piece of string, if you want a fixed length display.
Connect them by treasury tag or knotted string, if you want an extendable display.
If you made one of these for each unit, you could store them away and get them out for test revision or recaps.
I’ve found that copying examples and methods into a useable revision resource can be tricky for younger pupils or those with concentration issues. They don’t refer back to their notes because they are either incomplete, unreadable, unfindable in their book or just lost.
I saw instructions for making simple books from a single sheet of paper and wondered if it was worth a try.
Non calculator percentage book
Making the book
Fold a sheet of paper into eight as shown. The sample here is A4, but I used A3 in class.
Cut along the middle two quarters (blue line in the picture) and fold in half lengthways.
Fold this into an X shape.
Arrange into a book.
Instructions
Clearly label the cover – you want your pupils to find this easily.
As we filled in each page, I explained why we did each process. Because their books were larger, the bottom of their pages had questions too.
We covered 50%, 25%, 10%, 5%, 30% and the last page was a challenge/extension task: 17.5%.
The back page was left blank so that they could stick the mini-books into their exercise books.
Example
I discovered this great website, ifaketext which generates roughly six lines of fake text messages.
Ice-breaker
I used it as an ice-breaker for revising cumulative frequency. The class read the texts and discussed what they could remember and whether those pointers were helpful. There were four screens of hints.
In fact the class liked it so much I printed out the fake screens and they stuck them in their books.
Motivation
I’m also using the site to encourage more engagement with homework for lower ability students.
I could have set the homework task ‘Write down key facts that help you work out percentages’. Instead I asked them to ‘Imagine a friend had texted for help with a percentages homework. What would you text back?’
When they hand their work in, we can turn the best advice into fake texts to stick in their books or use in a wall display.
Two of those who have homework ‘issues’ have already said they are going to text each other tonight to do their work. This resulted in the following unusual question:
‘Please Miss, can we hand in our work by showing you our phones?!’