ACTIVE 1 – SESSION PLAN

Introductory session in the hall(given by Mark Soames)

Awareness test video (sound required please)

Video is projected on big screen for pupils (pps file containing embedded video attached).

Pupils are asked to concentrate on counting how many passes one particular team makes.

Video is stopped (click on video itself to pause) before the number of passes is revealed by the voice-over man to check the number the pupils have come up with.

Pupils are asked ‘What else did you observe?’ (Pupils are stumped for answers because they were concentrating on just the one task, probably, hopefully.)

The rest of the video is played (click on video again to re-start) and pupils are now asked by voice-over man if they saw the moon-walking bear in the video.

(Cue gasp from pupils (hopefully) as they watch incredulously and wonder how they could have missed such a thing.)

Pupils are asked (hands-up) what they have learnt from the whole experience.

Mark Soames then tells the ‘missing child’ anecdote involving a police friend of his.

Pupils are asked to think about and volunteer good ‘DetectiveSchool’ skills.

Volunteered skills are typed onto the big screen and the key skills the session will focus on are highlighted to pupils.

Key skills – being attentive, noticing

NB changed to detective scene in 2008. Given in an assembly. Needs to be to whole year group at once.

Other activities – pupils to do each one

Note taking activity (run by MFL staff)

Pupils to watch videos made by staff showing pupils taking notes in different styles. There are 6 video clips. These are on Q drive as follows

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007114342.wmv

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007114645.wmv

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007114843.wmv

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007115114.wmv

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007115947.wmv

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\MWA_Video\20081007120246.wmv

Three show groups of pupils taking notes in different styles (not writing anything/spider diagrams/copying verbatim). Three show the same groups of pupils giving a talk from their notes, showing which methods were successful and which weren’t. Pupils to identify who had the best note taking skills, discuss the different methods seen, who would make the best learners? They are then given a text (either the one used in the video, on smoking, or an easier text on sea monsters. They should take notes themselves onto A4 paper using the style they identified as good from the videos. They each need to do the written activity.

There is a power point for this part of the session at

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\Note-taking.ppt

Key skills – note taking, noticing

Fingerprinting activity (run by Biology staff)

Give each pupil the A5 sized sheet of instructions. They can write on or highlight on this sheet as you demonstrate how to take fingerprints. Point out to them what may be useful to highlight and what a KEY POINT is.

Give a clear and slow demo of the fingerprinting technique. The pupils then have to follow the instructions closely to do the task. They put their fingerprints in the five boxes on their instruction sheet and label them appropriately.How to label the boxes is shown on the Fingerprinting information sheets you will also have. They then use the Classifying Fingerprints sheets to determine their own fingerprint pattern.

The information sheets have lots of useful info about fingerprints on if you need any extension work for those who finish prints early.

Key skills – identifying key points, being attentive, noticing

Research activity (run by MFL/Biology staff)

Pupils are shown information relating to a crime scene and some information on suspects. You will need to project this.

Q:\Administration\CREATE\Active session 1\Research task intro.pptm

They have to decide as detectives what questions they would need to ask the suspects in order to get the correct information to make any decision on guilt. Help the pupils to think about what questions they need to be asking. This activity can be linked to the note taking one as they are asked to make notes on their discussion. It will be interesting to see if they use what they have just learnt about note taking!

You can tell pupils that this crime scene will be the focus of their next Active session later in the year. It is important that they file the notes they make carefully. They will get the briefing again then so they don’t have to recall it all!

Key skills – Researching, concluding