Welcome to the 4th newsletter for Enhanced Learning Educational Services. ELES specialises in helping schools help students develop effective study skills through study skills resources and study skills sessions. In this newsletter:
1. Sydney Schools Professional Development Day.
2.
Request for help with the students at Wat Chi Kreng Primary School in Cambodia.
3. Study Skills 'Snakes and Ladders' and the Online Study Skills Handbook Website.
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The day is particularly useful for New-Scheme Teachers with less than 5 years' teaching – although attendees on the 8th Nov 2007 who were experienced teachers or executives also found the day extremely worthwhile, with 98% of attendees evaluating the day as EXCELLENT!
What do we cover? Well in a nutshell:
Is it really worthwhile? Here are responses from attendees last week:
Venue: York Conference and Function Centre (at the Bowlers’ Club),
95-99 York Street, Level 2, Phillip Suite, Sydney.
Fee: $220 including GST. Includes morning tea and course materials. (Lunch is not provided)
Send in forms by Friday. For more info about the two presenters or to print a registration form go to:
http://www.enhanced-learning.net/studyskillssessionseles/workshop.html
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You think your class is crowded? It is easy to forget how lucky we are. Many schools around the world are under-resourced and very crowded. This particular school in Cambodia has 664 students and 6 rooms. This is typical of many schools in Asia.
On a trip recently, I bought a book in the airport 'Leaving Microsoft to Change the World' by John Wood (http://www.leavingmicrosoftbook.com/). I could not put it down. It is about a guy who while on holiday in Nepal is appalled at the lack of resources in schools, the low attendance rate and literacy levels and sets about making a difference in a big way. He started a group called Room to Read (http://www.roomtoread.org). Room to Read partners with local communities throughout the developing world to establish schools, libraries, and other educational infrastructure as well as educational scholarships.
So I had to get involved. I am paying $10,000 US (so I will have to sell lots of products and run lots of sessions to pay for it!) for the establishment of a free-standing library at the Wat Chi Kreng Primary School in the Siem Reap province of Cambodia. The library will be built in the traditional Khmer style, and will include child friendly furniture, flooring, shelving, maps, puzzles, games, and of course, books. Room to Read will stock the library with English and Khmer books totalling 500-1,000 over 3 years, and will provide 3 years of library management training to a designated teacher. ELES donates 5% of all products and services to a variety of different charities (to see the list visit : http://www.enhanced-learning.net/aboutenhancedlearning.html - and suggestions are welcome). After reading the book, I decided that this is a fabulous way to use the money I set aside for donations.
The Wat Chi Kreng Primary School is located in a poor rural area in Siem Reap where families rely on subsistence farming for their livelihood. After this library is built 664 children (in a 6 room school!) will now have access to a new colorful and engaging reading room. If you'd like to see photos and more info about the school click here.
SO WHAT DO I NEED FROM YOU??
The library should be ready mid 2008 and I would love for some students at your schools to write letters to the students there so they can use them to practise their English. If you have any classes you might like to do this activity with, have the students in the class write a simple letter ‘Hi, My name is….' and just talk about themselves, their lives and their interests. Maybe draw some pictures. Even better if they made a card or wrote inside a card or added something fun to the page. Decorating the page with photos from magazines, or pictures along with a simple letter would be great. Then just package them up and post them to me at PO Box 9 Neutral Bay NSW 2089. I hope to go and visit the library and I’d love to be able to take each of the 664 students a letter (even if it is not personally addressed ) from a student in Australia that they could keep and take home and use to practise their English.
Thanks in advance for your help!
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SNAKES AND LADDERS ‘STUDY SKILLS’ CLASS SET. To be released in Term 1, 2008. Looking for ways to make study skills more ‘fun’? Our new product for schools available in Term 1 2008 is a study skills ‘snakes and ladders’ game. Each pack will include 10 sets (2-4 students can use each set together). For more info just visit our website in Term 1 and click on Resources.
ONLINE STUDY SKILLS HANDBOOK WEBSITE – If you haven’t had a look yet – you should! The more different ways we can bring study skills to life the better and this is a fabulous resource for your parents and students to have access to. For around $1 per student every student, parent and teacher gets unlimited access for a full year to www.studyskillshandbook.com.au - an online and interactive study skills resource with quizzes, videos, audio files and more! Students and parents can browse the site at home or schools can integrate the 25 units (with accompanying worksheets) into their pastoral program. Schools that sign up before the end of the year get the use of the handbook over the holidays at the end of this year as a BONUS. To get an on approval password to view 5 units of the handbook, simply email us at info@enhanced-learning.net or request a password at www.studyskillshandbook.com.au
All the best for the rest of the term, a Merry Christmas and a delightful 2008!
Cheers
Prue Salter
Enhanced Learning Educational Services
PO Box 9, Neutral Bay, NSW 2089.
P: 0416 293 087 F: 02 9908 1893
info@enhanced-learning.net
www.enhanced-learning.net