Events
Rotherham Childrens Book Awards
An annual event which engages more able children from upper Key Stage 2 and lower Key Stage 3 throughout the year in the reading and discussion of six varied titles.
This culminates in a presentation afternoon to which parents and teachers are invited and where children demonstrate the work they have been doing, authors are invited to talk about their work and the winning author is announced. This year’s shortlisted titles were:
- Nickolai of the North, Lucy Daniel Raby, Hodder Children’s Books
- Ptolemy's Gate, Jonathan Stroud, Corgi Children’s Books
- The Diamond of Drury Lane, Julie Golding, Egmont Press
- The Beasts of Clawstone Castle, Eva Ibbotson, Pan MacMillan Children’s Books
- Bonebreaker, Peter J Murray, Hodder Children’s Books
- Alone On A Wide, Wide Sea, Michael Morpurgo, Harper
The winning author was Michael Morpurgo.
Rotherham Airborne Challenge
This event, suitable for most ages of children, is now in its third year.
It involves the adaptation of the standard BMFA dart to increase flight times; the design of a helicopter; and research into aircraft used in World War 2 in order to create a model that will glide.The cross-curricular work that goes into this is exciting and when competition day comes around, there are many categories in which children can show their prowess.
Kelham Island Museum in Sheffield is the venue and during that day, presentations are delivered, flight times investigated, and great enjoyment is had by all. Unfortunately this year, we had to delay the competition due to the impact that the floods had upon the venue, but all being well everything should go ahead on Tuesday 25th September 2007, and we shall then start the preparations for the 2007-8 challenge.
Read the report from the 2006 Airborne challenge on our RAC page
Summer School
In 1999, the DfES allocated £27000 to Rotherham to organise three Summer Schools for Gifted and Talented pupils. In subsequent years, this money, which was available annually, was shared between an increasing number of schools. Currently, an allocation of £3100 is transferred to each of those schools who took up the opportunity, and even though the money is not ring-fenced, fourteen schools this year have organised a G&T transition Summer School for children from their feeder primaries as well as, in some cases, their own Year 7 and 8 pupils. Extra funding has also been made available from each of the G&T networks across the Authority.
World Class Tests
World Class Arena is an international initiative designed to identify and assess gifted and talented students around the world. It was devised by the British government Department for Education and Skills (DfES), and World Class Arena items have been trialed by teachers and students in the UK , Australia , New Zealand and the US .
At the heart of World Class Arena are World Class Tests in mathematics and problem solving aimed at upper primary and lower secondary. It also offers classroom support materials and research. As World Class Arena continues to grow and evolve, it will offer more resources for everyone involved in gifted and talented education.
Network Events Case Studies
Sixteen secoundary schools in Rotherham are organised into 4 Networks. They work in partnership to fund collaborative enrichment activities for G&T pupils in their schools.