Category: education

The Truth IS Climate Change

A Climate Change Collective Link Post

Every month a different member of the Climate Change Collective group of bloggers writes about a pressing environmental issue. This month, the brilliant Transatlantic Notes covers the subject of Climate Denial which is sadly rife at the moment.

You can check out the very informative article here:

A Greener World: Debunking Myths About Climate Change

My Worries

Recently I was shocked by some of the responses I got to my posts on Twitter/ X about global warming. Some people are quick to shout down anyone who wants to promote awareness about climate change.

Similarly, certain high profile politicians are happy to deny climate change altogether. They call it a liberal load of rubbish and such like, suggesting that temperature change is natural and not related to industrialisation at all.

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The Transatlantic Notes article includes various myths that have appeared in the press and helps to squash them:

Myth 1. | The Climate Has Always Changed; It’s Normal

Yes, there has been natural climate variability throughout history, and the planet has experienced climate shifts. However, what we’re experiencing today has scientists and experts concerned. Climate change is accelerating at a much faster pace than previous natural variations.

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In A Nutshell

As a geographer who studied environmental change in the biosphere at University, I have been aware of global warming for thirty years. Only recently has it become more widely recognised, seemingly in line with heightened affects such as heatwaves, extreme weather events and flooding.

Following the misleading nonsense of climate deniers is undoing all of the good that climate protestors and scientists are doing. Hopefully, after reading the lead article you will see that there really isn’t a time or place for the denial of climate change.

Please check out the myths about climate change linked in the post above.

For another article by the Climate Change Collective of bloggers, check outWarmer weather – What’s not to like?

Back To School – A Poem

Here is a little poem about going back to school – from a teacher’s perspective.

Back to work tomorrow,

Better start to think.

Get my laptop open,

Screen is on the blink.

Wading through the emails,

Checking for something good.

Need to write some lesson plans,

Kinda think I should.

Training day to start with,

Wishing for nice food.

Try to sneak back for seconds,

Hope I don’t seem rude.

Displays up and labelled books,

Pencils sharp to go.

Clay and art straws waiting

For arty stuff – you know.

Corridors are empty,

Ready for stamping feet.

Toilets have been deep cleaned,

Preparations are complete.

So welcome in another term,

Weeks of early starts.

Writing poems, singing songs

And making mathsy charts.

Final Thoughts

I hope that you enjoyed my short Back to School poem about getting ready to return to class for a new academic year.

For one of my poems about global warming, have a read of Heaing Up. Please follow my blog for future similar content.

Teaching Writing: Generating Intrigue

Following on from my recent article about how to teach young people to read, I decided to pass on my top tips regarding teaching writing. For me, as a teacher and writer, these two things are very important. Being able to write is a powerful skill which can easily become unappealing if it isn’t taught well.

You may wish to check out my article about encouraging reading too.

Reading Is Not A Punishment

Writing is something that not only opens doors, but provides an outlet for worries, dreams and memories.

Creating A Buzz

As with anything, motivation is a big part of the writing process. I was definitely losing interest in writing fiction when I got to Year 10 at school and then a wonderful teacher called Mrs S joined the school and reinvigorated my fascination with composition.

Mrs S was so enthusiastic and knowledgable. She made us feel like her creative team, shared her process of planning creative pieces, acted out scenes from plays excitedly and generally stirred up a buzz in all of us to write fiction.

So if you are a parent wanting to support your child to learn to write or a tutor trying to spark enthusiasm, you need to start by showing that you genuinely care about the written word. The students will then be fascinated by what makes you happy and want a piece of that particular pie.

Some Possibilities

– Be visible enjoying writing. Whether writing a shopping list, composing a speech or simply jotting down a joke, make sure you are clearly seen doing it. Children will be intrigued by a parent or tutor visibly enjoying writing something down.

– Guide the writing process. Any task is more fun when done collaboratively. So why not write something together. Unpicking the process as you go along, draw them into the magic of writing something.

Writing with a partner is fun. It involves sharing ideas, overcoming challenges together and ending up proud as punch of a piece of work that is the result of a team effort.

– One of the hardest parts of teaching writing is getting started. Don’t be afraid to get the learner off to a good start by feeding them possible routes into a text. So what if you have to provide them with the prompt or initiate the first paragraph? Often a beginning is all that is required to kickstart the unfurling of a work of fiction.

– Make sure that spelling is no object. Writing can be by hand or on a screen. Either way, dictionaries, word banks or spell checks on devices can be utilised to support spellings and speed things along. You as the tutor can encourage them to create a draft without worrying too much about spellings. These things can be fixed later on.

– Demonstrate how you come up with sentences. Make transparent the thought process and let them know that it is OK to make mistakes.

Every author starts with a first draft. They may have completely changed the whole thing by the time they publish a book. Editing is part and parcel of writing successfully.

And Finally…

For me, writing enables me to spout my ideas and thoughts on anything and everything. Nothing beats the feeling of creating a short story or writing a meaningful letter or note.

Hopefully some of the suggestions for teaching writing that I mentioned above will help you to think about the way you encourage writing. The most important thing is generating a love of writing by showing how much passion you have for composition.

For another recent article, have a look at my Wizard of Oz theatre review. Perhaps follow my blog for similar future content.