INSET
Workshops for Teachers
Teaching the Dynamic Earth
The Earth Science Education Unit provides Continuing and Professional
Development (CPD) for teachers of Key Stages 2, 3 and 4 Science in England,
Northern Ireland and Wales.
Our programme of CPD for primary and secondary teachers in Scotland addresses
Earth science in the Curriculum for Excellence Framework to enhance experiences,
outcomes and expectations for learning and development in Social Studies
and Sciences.
All of ESEU’s English, Welsh and Scottish workshops are designed
to raise staff confidence and enthusiasm in teaching about the Earth. Workshops
can be combined to provide half-day, one-day or twilight sessions.
Thanks to sponsorship from Oil
and Gas UK, we are able to offer CPD for the cost of expenses
for your local trainer only, with no fee.
Although ESEU is administered from Keele University, the trainer will
be one of our ESEU facilitators based throughout England, Scotland
and Wales.
For further details, please email eseu@keele.ac.uk with
your contact details or fill in our booking
form.
Choose from our Teaching the Dynamic Earth interactive workshops:
Primary Workshops | Secondary
Workshops | Scottish
Workshops
Primary Workshops
KS2 (England, Northern Ireland and Wales)
How the Earth Works in Your Classroom (Earth science for Years
5/6)
This 90-minute workshop brings the world into your classroom through
a wide range of Earth science practical and thinking activities that
cover aspects of both Science and Geography Programmes of Study and Schemes
of Work for the Years 5 and 6.
The Rock and Soil Circus Comes to Town (Earth science for Years
3/4)
This 90-minute workshop introduces interactive and hands on practical
activities that spotlight rocks and soils as part of the National Curriculum
the scientific way (Starter and Plenary activities for KS1 included).
Spot that Rock: sorting rocks the scientific way (Earth science
for Years 3/4)
This 90-minute workshop leads you step by step through a series of investigative
practical activities that will allow you to teach children to investigate
and sort most rocks from first principles (and distinguish them yourself). The
activities not only explain why rocks have the characteristics that they
do but also what this means in the development of the local and UK landscape
and in the uses of rocks.
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Secondary Workshops
KS3 (with focus on the QCA Scheme of work - England
only) 90 minutes workshops
The Dynamic Rock Cycle
This 90 minute workshop shows how the rock cycle may be used to organise
schemes of work for the geological sections of the National Curriculum
for Science at KS3 and how the major geological processes may be taught
through a range of practical and investigative lab activities.
Earth Science Out of Doors
Earth Science out of doors consists of several different activities
which are suitable for both Key Stages 3 and 4. Activities can take
place around the school (30 minutes), or can involve a visit to a local
cemetery or town centre (at least 60 minutes). Workshops include:
Earth
Science Around Your School Grounds
An Earth Science investigation around your school grounds, studying
building materials and how they are being weathered and establishing
geological principles from the building and its surroundings.
Will
My Gravestone Last?
How to use your local churchyard (or town centre) in teaching Earth
Science.
Any
Quarry Guide
A guide for teachers wishing to lead their own visit to a quarry or
small local exposure of rocks, (ESEU facilitators would be happy to
help you realise the potential of such a site if you allow time for
it whilst they are delivering ESEU CPD).
Spot that Rock
This 60 minute workshop, aimed primarily at Key Stage 3, introduces activities
relating to rock identification and interpretation, in line with National
Curriculum requirements.
KS4 (with focus on GCSE Science specifications
- England and Wales) 90 minutes workshops
The following workshops targeted at the Earth-related parts of the
AQA, CCEA, EDEXCEL, OCR Gateway, OCR 21st Century and WJEC science
specifications are also available::
- ‘The Earth & Plate Tectonics
(AQA
Science, CCEA Science, OCR Gateway Science, OCR 21st Century Science,
WJEC Science)
How do you teach plate tectonics and the structure of the Earth in
an interactive way? What are the scientific explanations for
a dynamic Earth on a global scale? How can you use the “Wegener
Story” to exemplify “How Science Works”? This
workshop has been devised to cover the requirements of each of the
Awarding Bodies. It consists of a major presentation, interspersed
with a range of practical activities.
- Life, the Atmosphere & Everything
(AQA
Science, CCEA Science, OCR Gateway Science, OCR 21st Century Science,
WJEC Science)
This workshop has been devised to cover the requirements of each of
the Awarding Bodies, to cover much of the Earth science, other than
plate tectonics. It focuses on the Earth science often linked
with the biology, chemistry and physics parts of specifications, ranging
from the evolution of the atmosphere to materials from the Earth. It
consists of a mixture of practical activities and mini-presentations.
- Earth, Life & Atmosphere for EDEXCEL Science
This session is
a combination of the above KS4 workshops; ‘Earth & Plate
Tectonics’, and ‘Life, The Atmosphere & Everything’ focused
on the EDEXCEL specification.
Extension Workshop Material for KS3 and KS4:
Science in an Earth Context
The Earth Science Education Unit also offers workshops in ‘Science
in an Earth Context’ for Biology, Chemistry and Physics, see
Taster Activities for sample material. However, these workshops
carry a fee, so if you would like an ESEU Facilitator to present any
of the workshops, please contact ESEU at eseu@keele.ac.uk for
further details.
Resources to Accompany Workshop Material
England and Wales: a free CD ROM, with animations
and high quality colour graphics is available with ESEU CPD delivery; includes
workshop material for KS3, KS4 (examination specific) and Science in
an Earth Context workshops.
Northern Ireland: a free CD ROM, with animations
and high quality colour graphics is available with ESEU CPD delivery; includes
workshop material for KS3, (Earth Science Through the Window) and material
for KS4 CCEA examination specific (‘Life, Energy and Everything’ and ‘The
Earth and Plate Tectonics’).
Scottish Workshops
Curriculum for Excellence: Social Studies
and Sciences (two hour workshops which can be tailored to 90 minutes
if required)
- Scotland Rocks! (Early Level to First Level):
An introduction to Rocks Earth processes, their uses and their
influence on landscapes through a range of interactive, practical
activities involving description, classification, simulation
and investigation the activities link to local relevant contexts.
- Scotland’s
Rocky Journey (Upper Primary Second Lower Level to Lower Secondary
Third Level):
Explore how we can link all of Scotland’s rocks into a series
of processes that together form the rock cycle. Some of these
act very quickly and some very slowly, but together a whole cycle
takes millions of years. Each process produces a new product,
and the products are the rocks that together have built Scotland.
- Scotland on a Plate (Secondary Third Level to Fourth Level):
Using evidence from the present day and evidence from the past
to introduce plate tectonics and understand Scotland’s
journey across the globe over time.
Resources to Accompany Scottish Workshop Material
A free specially-designed
CD ROM of resources is also available when Scottish CPD workshops
are delivered; includes comprehensive teaching notes and many ready
to use images.
Earth Physics Workshops: ages 14-19 (available
via your IoP Network Co-ordinator, throughout the UK)
- Tackling Climate Change through Earth Physics
How does climate change work and what can be done about it?
Consider the physics behind how climate change could affect the Earth, before
investigating different methods of generating power that have low greenhouse
gas emissions. Finally, decide which power source would be most appropriate for
your region.
- The Seismology Story
How are seismic waves generated and detected and what can this tell
us about the Earth? Try a range of activities, including some
of those from the Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme’s ‘Seismology’ publication,
to investigate how Earth physics can reveal crucial information about
Earth processes and structure.
- Earth Physics: the geophys story
Try using the ‘Geophys’ of ‘Time-Team’ to
detect ‘things beneath the ground’ in the same way as geophysical
techniques find archaeological remains, buried infrastructure and natural
resources. These activities show how school physics is used in ‘real
world’ situations.
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