Sharing Good Practice Professionals Conference

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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning as a Vehicle for GT Provision
Sharing Good Practice Professionals Conference
Intellectual Playfulness
3rd July 2008
every child
every person
every minute
South East GT Regional Partnership Marcelo
Staricoff St. Bartholomews CE Primary
School Brighton
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom

• Meeting the needs of the gifted and talented is
  about building on good general school provision,
  not something entirely different Professor
  Deborah Eyre, 2001.

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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom

• A Thinking Skills and Philosophically enriched
  Curriculum
• has a very positive impact on all aspects of
  school life
• is one part of the jigsaw of the school

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Hexagon
The School
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policies
C
access to curriculum
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buddying
U
R
playground classroom
developing independence
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responsibility for learning
school council
meaning making
love of learning
learning relationships
changing and learning
forgiveness
school-home links
strategic awareness
respect
resilience
creativity
justice
curiosity
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trust
VALUES
ELLI
M
relevant contexts
specialist weeks
positive learning environment
thinking tools
exercising mind and body
accelerated learning cycle
extrapolation
Thinking Skills
ALPS
analysis
learning styles
teaching and leaning
Our aim is to develop a responsible child with a
positive self image who takes pleasure in
learning
Responsibility Resourcefulness Resilience
problem solving
enquiry methods
making connections
life maps
sources of information
whole school instruments
Philosophy
Entitlements
creativity
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use of ICT
C
promoting emotional literacy
local, national, International links
residential visits
questioning skills
perform exhibit
listening, appreciating respecting other points
of view
enrichment activities
environmental project
healthy living project
confidence in own ideas
acting as devils advocate
U
contemplating why
visiting experts
U
L
extended visits
open learning
R
U
day visits
questioning
R
C
performances
links with real world
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Westbury Park Primary School 2004
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ST. BARTHOLOMEWS 2007-2008
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Thinking Skills
W
L
E
A
D
L
O
thinking skills is at the heart of all we do
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom

• ENRICHING PROVISION FOR ALL MODEL
• Based on a Thinking Skills, Philosophy and
  Lifelong Learning approach to the curriculum

I wish I was doing what theyre doing
I wish I was doing what he/shes doing
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom

• ENRICHING PROVISION FOR ALL MODEL

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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
strategically aware
robotic
creative
rule bound
curious
passive
meaning making
fragmented
effective partner
dependent
resilient
fragile
thinking skills allow children to gradually

move along the concept lines
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
HOW?
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Intellectual Playfulness
ROUTINES
CURRIC.
EXTRA-C.
Thinking Skills Toolbox
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Whiteboard
Starters
ROUTINES
Performances
Displays
Wonder Wall
Resources
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
What could these be?
.
.
.
.
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Whiteboard
Date
Spanish Date
Thinking Skills
Daily Schedule
Espanol
News
WWW
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Starters
Date
Spanish Date
Thinking Skills
Daily Schedule
Thinking Skills
Espanol
C
News
WWW
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Starters
Date
Spanish Date
Thinking Skills
Daily Schedule
Thinking Skills
Espanol
READ REAL SEAL SELL
News
WWW
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Starters
Date
Spanish Date
Thinking Skills
Daily Schedule
Thinking Skills
Espanol
4 Fours
News
WWW
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Starters
Date
Spanish Date
Thinking Skills
Daily Schedule
Thinking Skills
Espanol
What makes you laugh?
News
WWW
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Performances
It could be anything at all
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Displays
Intrapersonal
We are learning to Think!
Naturalistic
Interpersonal
Musical
My Mind...
Kinaesthetic
Verbal/ Linguistic
Existential
Spiritual
Mathematical/ Logical
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
ROUTINES
Resources
We are learning to Think!
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
TLP, TIL
Traffic Lights
CURRICULUM
Mind Maps
Concept Lines
PMIs
TS Enrichment
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Creativity is a gift, it can not be taught
disagree
agree
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
Date
Written Work
Title
TLP
TC
TS
TIL
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
All involved
2
3
4
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
All involved
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
Concept Lines and Fortune Lines
good
evil
Birbal
story
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
PMIs
P positive
M minus
I interesting
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
Enrichment
Thinking Skills HOTS not MOTS
Teachers
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
CURRICULUM
Mind Maps
enabling thinking skills to be incorporated into
subject teaching
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
EXTRA-CURRICULA
Philosophy
Home Learning
Improvisation games
Maths Investigations
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Is it ever right to do something wrong?
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
EXTRA-CURRICULA
Philosophy for Children
Questioning
Current Issues
Childrens Ideas
School Newsletter
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
EXTRA-CURRICULA
Home Learning
Monday-Friday
Open-ended
Stimulating
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
EXTRA-CURRICULA
Maths Investigations
The One Minute Round
Consecutive Numbers
Diagonals
Perfect World
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
EXTRA-CURRICULA
Improvisation Games
The Interpreter
Three as One
Thinking Hats
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom

• This approach provides children with
• a toolkit of strategies
• a means of structuring thinking
• the facility to take ownership and
  responsibility of their own learning
• an enjoyable, non-threatening, creative
  approach to learning

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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Thinking Skills- a gift for life
robotic
strategically aware
creative
rule bound
passive
curious
fragmented
meaning making
dependent
effective partner
fragile
resilient
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Teaching, Learning and Enjoyment _at_ St.
Bartholomews CE Primary School
OUR MODEL
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
O
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L
L
A
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Marcelo Staricoff St. Bartholomews CE Primary
School Brighton m.staricoff_at_talk21.com
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Starters
Create your own Thinking Skills Starter

• Numbers
• Words
• Science

Philosophy Resilience Creativity
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Home Learning
Create your own Home Learning task

• Numeracy
• Literacy
• Science

Humanities Arts Celebrations
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Mind Mapping
Create a Mind Map of your School

• Choose appropriate size/orientation of page
• Create a central image that represents the whole
• Brainstorm ideas
• Decide on key issues/ideas 7, creating one
  branch for each capitals on end of line
• Make your branches grow and organise ideas
  brainstormed
• Make your map personal, memorable
• Use a different colour for each branch
• Use size of word to reflect importance
• Use icons, diagrams, pictures to convey
  information and to make connections
• Add to it at any time

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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Concept Lines
Read the Story of Birbal
construct concept lines of characters
construct fortune lines of characters
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Birbal Goes to Heaven?
Because Birbal was very wise and witty, the
Emperor's courtiers and other people used to be
jealous with him and used to find some way to
degrade him. One day the court barber, who was
very jealous with Birbal, plotted a plan against
him. So when the King called him again to trim
his beard, he went and started trimming his
beard. He said, "Sir, last night I dreamed about
your father." The King got interested, so he
asked, "What did he say to you?" "Sir, he said to
me, that everything is good in paradise, but he
feels a great absence of a good humorous man who
can amuse him." The King thought and thought,
but nobody else he could think of except Birbal
who could perform this kind of duty very well.
And, naturally, the only way to go to heaven was
through death. For a moment, Akbar was very sad
to lose such a good man, but thinking of his
father, he made up his mind. He summoned Birbal
and said, "I think Birbal you love me very much
and you can sacrifice anything for me." Birbal
tried to understand his point but couldn't guess.
He said, "You know Majesty, I do." "Then
Birbal, please go to heaven to give company to my
dear father." Birbal understood that this was a
wicked plan of somebody to kill him. He said to
Emperor politely, "I will do so, but I need a few
days to prepare myself to go to heaven." The King
said, "Certainly. You are giving me such a great
favor, I allow you one week to prepare
yourself." Now Birbal was worried. He thought,
somebody has planned very well and he could not
escape from this plan. He thought and thought.
And then he found a way. He dug a ditch near his
house which would serve as his grave, and dug a
tunnel too which would open in a room of his
house. After doing this, he returned to the
Imperial Court. He said, " I am ready, His
Majesty, but there two conditions." Akbar was so
happy to hear this that he forgot that Birbal
could put some odd conditions to him. He asked,
"What are those conditions? Tell me soon. I will
try to fulfill them so that you can go to heaven
to be with my dear father." Birbal said, "His
majesty, I wish to be buried near my house. And I
want to be buried alive so that I can reach
heaven alive to amuse your dear father." The King
found this logical and agreed up on them
immediately. So Birbal was buried alive near his
house. Of course he made his way to his house
where he lived in confinement for six months.
After six months, he came out of hiding with
grown beard and shabby hair and asked the
permission to appear in the Royal Court. Looking
at him Akbar cried, "Where have you been Birbal?"
Birbal said, "Your Majesty, I was in Heaven with
your dear father. I had a very good time there
with your father. He was so happy with my
services that he gave me special permission to
return to Earth." Akbar was very anxious to know
about his father, he asked, "Did he send any
message for me?" Birbal said, "Yes Your Majesty,
he said that very few barber can make it to go to
Heaven, you can make out this from my grown beard
and shabby hair, so he has asked to send your own
barber to him immediately. Akbar understood
everything. He gave Birbal a big prize, and his
barber the life sentence. The End
_at_ Marcelo Staricoff, St. Bartholomew's CE Primary
School
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Philosophy
Can you jump into the same river twice?
what questions arise from story? can you
offer opinions and justify your reasoning?
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
Workshop Session
Improvisation Games
What do I do in those last few minutes?
The Interpreter Three as One De Bonos
Thinking Hats
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Thinking Skills, Philosophy and Lifelong
Learning in the Primary Classroom
LEARNING TO LEARN WEEK _at_ ST. BARTHOLOMEWS CE
PRIMARY SCHOOL
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