INSET
DESCRIPTION
The
Poetry Society has devised exciting ways to help teachers enable
students of all abilities to develop their understanding
of poetry and to improve their writing.
The main focus
of our INSET is on poetry writing, but the principles of good writing
are relevant to all disciplines and across the curriculum. poetryclass
methods also develop speaking and listening skills, and offer new
techniques for improving students' performance of their own
work.
"I
have been amazed at the quality of language used by pupils in both
poetry and prose since using the ideas I gained on the course."
A specially trained team of
professional poets delivers the INSET; the team includes well-known poets such as
Valerie Bloom, Graham Mort, Matthew Sweeney, Anthony Wilson and Cliff
Yates - click here
to see a full list. All the
poets on the poetryclass team are highly experienced in work in
schools. Between them they have hundreds of
tried-and-tested ideas for approaching poetry in the
classroom.
Since
the launch of the poetryclass INSET service in October 2000, we
have delivered INSET courses in Lancashire, Exeter, Manchester,
Birmingham, Cumbria, Surrey, Liverpool, London, West Midlands, Kent,
Leicestershire and Bristol. More than 178 primary teachers and 64
secondary teachers have participated in training so far, plus 12 PGCE
students and four teacher training lecturers (see Exeter
project for details on PGCE work).
The
service works in two main ways:
-
In-school:
a school can buy in the services of a poet for the day, to deliver
training to its staff. This can be combined with classroom work,
offering opportunities for skillsharing.
-
One-day
course: set up in partnership with an LEA adviser, this
offers the chance for schools in the area to buy a place for an
individual teacher.
The
training can be tailored to meet your specific needs.
Whether you're seeking the creative impulse to make the
Literacy Hour work at Key Stage 2, or new approaches to
contemporary poetry at Key Stage 4, this INSET training
is for you.
"inspiring… a very
creative experience, something teachers
don’t often get!"
WHAT'S
INCLUDED?
- A
toolkit of tried-and-tested techniques designed to get students
thinking, writing, redrafting and editing.
- Ideas
for developing students' oral work and performance skills.
- Ideas
for differentiation and progression.
- Opportunities
to raise questions and concerns.
- Information
about resources, opportunities for publication,
competitions, further training.
- A
copy of one of these highly acclaimed books for
each participant (limit 12 books per School Booking): The Poetry Book for Primary
Schools or Jumpstart Poetry in the Secondary
School
To enquire about future poetryclass
INSET courses in your area, please e-mail poetryclass@poetrysociety.org.uk
Attention:
LEA
Advisers
We
are still looking for support from Primary and Secondary
English Advisers to circulate our poetryclass packs to schools
within their areas, and to work with us to set up INSET
training days in their areas. If you are one such adviser and
would like to become involved in the project, please call 0207
420 9892, and a member of our Education Department will talk
you through the scheme.
COMMENTS
FROM PARTICIPANTS
2001
- 7
February Holland Moor Primary School, Skelmersdale
> "thank you for all your hard work in preparing the session
and ensuring a most enjoyable day"
- 22
March Lowry Centre (in partnership with Salford LEA)
> "many of the teachers said it was the best INSET they had
ever attended"
>
"carefully planned and very well delivered"
- 24
March Keswick School, Cumbria
> "a very successful contribution to our conference"
>
"well organised, well targeted and well received"
- 23
April Long Ditton St Mary's Primary School, Surrey
> "an exceptionally useful session"
- 25
May Bangabandhu Primary School, London
> "we had a fantastic day"
>
"the teachers seemed to value very highly the fact that the
INSET sessions were designed not only to inspire pupils, but to
inspire the teachers 'as writers themselves'. One comment I
received was: "inspiration is not something you can pass on
unless you have felt it for yourself." I think that
highlights a key element of Poetryclass and its
philosophy."
- 4
October Poetry Society, London
> "Truly excellent - put us in the place of the child which
is very valuable."
> "The poet put us at our ease and made us do things we didn't
know we could."
2002
- 14
February Chaucer Centre, Merton (London)
> Most useful ideas included:
"applying this to students with special needs"
"learning how to help children access their own
ideas"
"the opportunity to experience study at both adult and
child level"
"having clearer expectations of desirable
outcomes"
> Other comments:
"Useful starting points, such as poetry based on
an emotion and using senses"
"I feel better equipped/inspired to break away
from conventional poetry teaching"
"Stimulated me to
devote more time to creative writing"
"I hope the
inspiration I felt today will be infectious!"
> Other suggestions:
"Could you run a course for teachers to improve
their own creative writing?"
"Possibility for regular refresher training to
be given to all staff on a 2-yearly basis?"
"Offer more courses to teaching assistants in
order for TAs to be able to deal/cope
effectively with the ever increasing demands
placed on them."
- 26
February Lowry Centre
> "Important lessons for
teachers about how children feel when faced with 'the blank
page'"
> "Thoroughly enjoyed myself
- didn't realise I could write poetry!"
> "One of the most enjoyable
INSETs I have been on"
- 1
March Waltham Forest, London
> "Feel inspired to get
back to class and inspire the children to enjoy poetry"
- 22
April Lanhydroch House, Cornwall
> See photos, separate page, here.
- 1st
and 2nd of May Northamptonshire LEA
> "Smashing"
> "Lots of confidence
building activity"
> "Good ideas for our
population of pupils with severe and multiple learning
disabilities"
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