Often parents think that their child’s progress in their learning and education is only really tracked when they start school. This is not the case as all nurseries and child minders have to be inspected by Ofsted and part of the criteria that they have to meet is to keep accurate records of how the attendants are progressing in many aspects.

For this to be assessed it is vital that accurate records are kept by the setting and compiled in to a report. This report is available to all parents/ carers of the children and should look in to how they are progressing in these areas: Areas of learning, personal social and emotional, physical, communication and learning, literacy, maths, understanding the world and expressive arts and design.

Once the child has been assessed, the report will show where the child currently is progression wise and targets to achieve by the next time the report is created. These targets are purely there for goals to help keep parents and staff reminded of what areas the child may need encouragement in.

Many people complain that they cannot get a job and that there are none available but recent studies have shown that there was over 730, 000 job vacancies from August to October. Obviously these jobs are in many different industries and locations all over the UK, but it does show that there are jobs available.

So where can you find these jobs, well they are listed in a number of different places and a large percentage of them are online. You can register to have access to a jobs board that will show a number of jobs privately advertised and through recruitment agencies. Some companies will only employ people who have come through a recruitment agency, so it is worth looking at these types of jobs too. Some of the job board websites also have a questionnaire you can complete, following completion you will be taken to a page showing you all the jobs that match your skills and qualifications.

When you first start in a new school then you need to very quickly take control of the class. This does not mean that you have to go in shouting and screaming at everyone on the first day, but you do need to lay down the ground rules.

Introduce yourself to the class and then go through some house rules. Explain what behaviour you expect from them and what will happen should they break the rules. Children respond well to rewards, so introducing a rewards system can help pupils stay on target. Traffic light systems have been used in many schools where pupils start off on a green light and then move to amber if they are on a warning and then to red if they do not improve which is then followed by a punishment such as missing a playtime.

If you find a group of children who are constantly misbehaving together then it is often a good idea to split them up.

Education is an ever changing subject with new teaching techniques coming out throughout the year. One of the biggest changes that has come out over the past few years regarding teaching techniques is the introduction of phonetic spelling. Phonetic spelling is where a word is spelt out using the sounds that the letters make rather than the name of the letters themselves. This is to help children understand how to pronounce words. As with any rule, there are of course exceptions, but in general, children do seem to be able to understand how to pronounce words quicker and more accurately using this method.

Some parents have expressed concerns about this as they don’t fully understand the phonetic spelling method and therefore struggle to aid their child’s learning at home. Many schools and other governing bodies are now running courses for parents to teach them about phonetic spelling and how they can help their child with it.

Waiting for your exam results can be a stressful time for any student, regardless of age. With A Level results released this week in England and GCSE’s the following week, many students are having to make important decisions on where they want to progress to in terms of education or employment.

Some students will not get the grades they need to progress in to their chosen degree or job opportunity, but this does not mean they have to give up. There is often more than one way in which to enter the university, college or job role that you desire and if you are not sure how to go about it then, a careers adviser will be able to assist you.

You may have to take additional exams, re-sit a year or gain experience through voluntary work first but if you have your heart set on a certain career path then this should not stop you. If you do need to have a total rethink about your prospects, then do not get down hearted as often people find that they job they end up in after a career change is more enjoyable and fulfilling that the role they had first decided upon.

A child’s first day at school can be extremely daunting for the child and the parents. It may be the first time that your child has been away from you for a long period of time throughout the day or just the fact that they seem to be growing up fast and will not be learning surrounded by children of all ages.

Preparing your child for their first day at school will not only make them feel better but will also help you relax and put your mind at rest. Most schools have new starting children in for taster days a number of times before they actually attend as a registered pupil. This allows them to get a feel for the school day and get to know some of the members of staff along with other pupils that they may be in class with.

Talk to your child about what they can expect and ask them if they have any questions about the school before they start. IF your child has any concerns, try to discuss it with them and make sure that they understand the answers.

If you are looking for a job but do not have the necessary experience to go straight in to a position then it may be a good idea to do a bit of voluntary work in the field to gain the time and experienced needed.

Often this may mean that you have to do the voluntary work on your days off or in the evenings as many people simply are not in a position to be able to give up a paid job for voluntary work. You may even find that you are able to get a paid job directly through the company or associated companies that you are doing the voluntary work for as if you impress them they will probably be more than happy to recommend you.

Voluntary work can not only help you get the experience needed to get in to the career you want but can also be extremely rewarding.

When you qualify as a teacher you will need to consider what age group of children you wish to teach. It may be that you don’t really have a preference but teaching primary school children can be worlds apart from teaching in a secondary school.

Depending on what type of character you have, will help you decide on what age children to work with. If you are extremely confident, don’t mind confrontation and cope well under stressful situations then secondary school teaching may be for you.

You could always try supply teaching initially to see which you enjoy the most before applying for a full time role. There are some great teaching agencies around that will be able to find you suitable roles to gain experience and help you decide which is best for you.

Teaching on the whole can be very stressful and test even the most experienced of teachers but finding the right school to teach is in a massive part of being able to cope with it.

The high demand for teachers in Nottingham has witnessed a rise in the number of supply teachers. Supply teachers cover for teachers who are absent due to illness, participation in workshop/service training and/or management duties. They help pupils cover the required syllabus in time. The following are the reasons many people are going for supply teacher jobs in Nottingham.

Flexibility

Supply teachers are free from the many constrains that face regular teachers. They can plan their holidays at any time of the year. They are therefore able to take advantages of off peak travel prices and can avoid crowded destinations. Supply teachers are also able to take days off especially when the demand for supply teachers is low. They don’t have to report to work very early in the morning except when there is a dire need to. As a supply teacher, you can choose to work as much or as little as you want. (more…)

Whether you use an iPhone or an android device there really is an app for everything!

Now some of these apps are purely novelty apps with games on or fun things to do, however there has been a rise in the amount of educational apps released for young children.

Most of the app companies realise that children love to play on mum or dad’s phone so have developed a number of apps to improve language skills, math and learning shapes and colours.

These apps base learning activities around games that are popular with young children so they can play and learn as they do so. If you want to get some of these apps it’s always worth checking some of the reviews out and always have a go yourself first to check that they are suitable and age appropriate for your child.

Also don’t for get to disable ‘in app purchasing’ on your device to stop your children accidentally running up a huge bill buying game add-ons or clicking through advertising links.