Back to top

Teacher

Ability to:

• use data projector/interactive whiteboard
  
• use PowerPoint
• use a digital camera and be able to transfer photographs to the computer
  

Child

Ability to

• use PowerPoint to insert text and photographs
• navigate to a local website and copy and paste images and text (optional)

• to synthesis what they have found out about the local area
  
• to organise information and communicate it appropriately to the audience
  

Resources

• Computer with large screen or data projector for whole class teaching"
  
• ICT suite or set of laptop computers"
  
• Ready made PowerPoint presentation: Wallingford.ppt
  
• Old maps are available from http://www.old-maps.co.uk

Vocabulary

Buildings and words associated with features of buildings e.g. gable, window, churchyard, steeple etc, sites of historic interest e.g. corn exchange, town hall, tithe barn, relevant geographical features i.e. ford, river, roads, transport etc.

Back to top

Preparatory work

Teachers should acquaint themselves with using a digital camera.

Teachers need to obtain an old map of the local area and plan a walk to visit the local buildings and sites of specific interest.

Children need to be encouraged to take digital photographs of the buildings of interest as these will be used in their presentation. The teacher may wish to have already taken some photographs and to have transferred them to a shared area or on a number of disks.

It would be useful if the teacher could find a local website with relevant information and bookmark it as a favourite.

Back to top

The Lesson

Whole Class Teaching

This session takes place after their walk around the locality and may take place in separate session to the main activity.

Teacher should start the session by showing the children the ready made presentation of Wallingford - Wallingford.ppt

Show slide 1

Q Why did people settle in Wallingford?

Any settlement requires water and good transportation links. Wallingford is on the side of a convenient shallow crossing place hence the word "ford" in the name.

Q Are there any towns locally with ford in their names?

Oxford, Shellingford, Bradford etc.

Q Why did people want to cross the river?

To get to the market or to trade their goods.
Point out that this presentation could be improved by the addition of this information e.g.
Many people came to Wallingford to trade their goods.

Show slide 2

Q Why would William the Conqueror have built a castle here?

Children may suggest that the town was strategically important and the castle would have helped to protect the river crossing as well as keeping the local population of Saxons under control.

Q What would the walls be needed for?

Children might suggest that the walls provided protection for the town against attack.

Q What was the mint used for?

Some children may not know that the mint was where coins were made.

Show slide 3

Q What does this slide tell you about this town?

The corn exchange indicates that this was a prosperous market town.

Q What sort of people went to Wallingford in the past?

Children may suggest farmers, traders etc.
For a town to have had a town hall in 1600 suggests that the town was prosperous.

Show slide 4

Q Why is it important for the author of this presentation to acknowledge their sources of information?

Children may want to use a local website when the come to create their own presentation and should also learn of the importance of giving credit to the original author of the materials used.

Main Activity

The teacher needs to explain to the children that they are now going to produce their own presentation about their local area. Discuss with the children the best length for a presentation, limit the number of slides (quality rather than quantity). Decide on the chosen audience for the presentation e.g. governors or class assembly.

In order to help children plan their presentation it is suggested that the presentation is viewed again. This time the teacher should draw out from the children the plan the author may have used to structure the presentation.

Slide 1 is a summary of some important geographical reasons about why people settled in Wallingford.

Slide 2 provides some historical context.

Slide 3 provides some more recent evidence using digital photographs taken on their walk.

Slide 4 Acknowledges the sources used.

This is just one way of structuring this presentation, children may come up with perfectly valid alternatives.

Give children time out to discuss with their response partners how they might structure their presentation using slide titles/headings on their whiteboards - no detail is required at this point.

Draw out the common relevant themes that children have suggested and record these on a flip chart.

Children now go to the computers, open PowerPoint and create their presentation to show what they have found out about their local area. Depending on their previous experience with PowerPoint some children may need reminding how to insert pictures and textboxes.

Remind children of the importance of concise bulleted information. As the teacher circulates positively reinforce this point and remind them of their audience.
Children should not waste time experimenting with changes of fonts, colours, animations or sounds until all the information has been entered. This presentation is to synthesise what they have found out about the local area not to all the distracting features of PowerPoint.

Back to top

Plenary

Having selected a child or pair carefully, who can accept constructive criticism, ask them to share their presentation to the rest of the class. Prompt the class to provide at least two positive points and one for improvement. Now ask the rest of the class to consider if there are any changes or improvements that they might make to their own work in light of viewing this presentation.

Back to top

Why use ICT

Demonstrating: Using ICT the teacher can effectively demonstrate methods, illustrate procedures and set out instructions and processes required for an effective presentation of a local area. The process of planning and composing the presentation can be easily demonstrated by the teacher.

Accessing and analysing: The use of ICT gives the opportunity for children to use digital photographs of the local area and use them in their presentation. It allows access to data and information in a wide variety of forms and formats involving multi-media. The use of ICT to quickly access information provides the children with the opportunity to interrogate, analyse and select relevant information from the Internet.

Presenting, re-presenting and communicating: ICT opens up a many new opportunities for presentation, re-presentation and communication. Information can now be presented in more exciting and engaging ways, creating motivating outcomes for a wide variety of learning objectives. Texts can be drafted and redrafted and information presented in ways that further explore, unpack or elucidate the content. This not only provides a medium for presentation and communication, but also opens possibilities of many new, "real" audiences and learning communities.