what a worry!

no, seriously, any tips for impressing the panel at a PGCE interview? i don't have a degree in a national curriculum subject and my classroom experience in the last couple of years has been patchy, to say the least, but i'm over the first hurdle and have got an interview and am hoping to win them over just by brimming over with enthusiasm.

so, tonight i was reading this book about classroom management, and he kept stressing the importance of routine. so i had a beginner's go at formulating a start-of-day routine! i thought: play a particular piece of music as they come in (shit will have to find out smthg about classical music, or else go for pachalbel's cannon). cos it's calming and also because if they hear it every morning, it sets a pattern (or is this a bit creepy - like conditioning?). then i thought a start-of-day ritual like recording the day's weather, or watering the plants, or even better, feeding the (democratically-named!) class pet would get them settled down after running around outside and ready to begin the day.

what do you think? is that shit? did they stop thinking classical music was conducive to learning in the 1970s?

also: does anyone know whether you are still allowed to have a class pet?!

xoxox

I teach after school science to Key Stage 1 kids, so I'm not an actual teacher but similar.
I think that is a good tactic (the music). The school I worked in for a while did something called "big reading" where they learn/brainstorm about what they are going to write and then they have a period of actual writing while they are played classical music.
I understand many school do it so its not that weird a thing, it seems classical music is used and considered normal now.

Oh oh and I find "Heads down; Thumbs up" is a good calming game.
Two are "it". They have to put the thumbs down on two others (at this point they're all sat with their heads down so they can't see and their thumbs up) and the ones who have their thumbs put down get to be on - if they can guess which of the two "on" kids pushed their thumbs down.
I learnt it recently as a really good game for KS1, because it gets them in a state of being quiet and being sensitive to small changes in the environment. Which is obviously pretty good for learning.

But from what you've said I think you've got the absolute important feature, of all children being calm before you start the day. And at every 35 minute interval.

My mums a primary school teacher and she made me make a mixed cd for her. Not sure whether it was for when they come in first thing, but I put 'The White Stripes - I Can Tell That We Are Gonna Be Friends' on there and told her to play that the most. She wanted some Madonna and shit for P.E. too.
Good luck anyways! I know it's a lot of work being a Primary teacher.

my friend who passed the interview for her course said she was advised to read up on new practises / recent developments in the field of teaching for her interview and that it went down well.

Primary Teacher UK: Current Affairs

like being aware of the goverment's free meals pilot, studies on classroom sizes, numbers of exclusions etc.

what is your degree in? try and fit the transferable skills from it to working with children. A few people doing my degree (radiotherapy) applied to do teaching after it as they could argue that the skills could be used there (working with children, angry people, doing paper work, being responsible, time management, passing on knowledge etc)

She also found this useful, it is aimed at those going for a job after the degree but if you have an answer ready for any of these questions, you'll do well.

Primary Teacher UK: Interview Questions

i'll ask her later on about the class pet, i'll be GUTTED if it is no longer allowed...

Music and Movement for children - babies to primary school age.

some good stuff with links on music there

best of luck with it, let us know how you get on

I'm a primary school teacher. I teach upper KS2 (Year 5 at the moment) and qualified in 2007.

When I was interviewed for my course a few years back they tended to give you newspaper articles about current issues in education to discuss either with your interviewer or as a group. They often will also give you a classic school scenario and ask you how you would deal with the issue. E.g. pissy parents, fighting children and the like. One interview I went to provided us with a big box of resources and asked us how we would use them with the children.

In terms of current hot topics in primary education testing is the really big one, especially as KS3 SATs have recently been abolished. Every Child Matters, Extended School Partnerships and Assessing Pupil Progress are the current initiatives that are in vogue so you might want to google them.

Classroom routines are really important but I wouldn't get too bogged down thinking about that yet as you won't be able to really do your own thing until you qualify. Unfortunately as a student teacher you essentially have to fit in with what the teacher you're working with does as otherwise it's incredibly confusing for the children.

ETA: My Year 5 Class's Morning Routine: In the morning I collect them from the playground, get them to hang their coats up and the like and then take them into the classroom. I always have a thinking skills style question up on the board for them which they then answer in their thinking skills books which are kept on their tables. They know to settle down to do this straight away. I then do the register and collect any notes from parents/dinner money and the like, pass on any messages to them and start my first lesson.

If you need any help feel free to PM or whatever, I've got a mountain of marking and paperwork to do and would be glad of the distraction!