One giant leap..

As we sit preparing sessions for the Newcastle College Summer School – and the wealth of confidence building activities we are about to deliver - we thought it appropriate to reflect on our own experiences of Further Education and how it provides that vital bridge between school and University.

Coming from a relatively small Secondary School, where everyone knew me and I knew the majority of the student body, the local Sixth Form College seemed a huge and daunting place, not least because of the lack of uniform and opportunity for individual style that this resulted in. There were around 15 of us who progressed from my school to college. At the beginning of Year 12 we sheepishly stuck together for fear of the other groups who seemed to possess an inordinate amount of members in comparison. But once Year 13 struck things began to change; new groups formed and, as the older kids, we were finally able to embrace college life – move from canteen to common room - and with it new beginnings.

Although now dotted around the country, the college group are some of my closest friends, for we had all experienced the uncertainty of Sixth form life, had found each other, and had gone through the anxiety of University applications together. The experience made me a more confident person, not only socially but also academically; I was ready for University when the time came, purely because I had been coached and guided by my peers and tutors.

This week we intend to share our experiences with prospective students, and equip them with the skills necessary to enter Further Education at speed.

Technology fever

Every year I help out at The Town Moor Fair School – a temporary school for the show children of the Hopping’s funfair. I work with the older kids, generally those in Years 7-9, and enthuse them about the joys of English Literature, amongst other things. Every year I’m amazed by the latest technology that they seem to be in possession of, and this year it is without doubt the iPhone. The iPhone keeps cropping up in art sessions and is used for internet research, replacing the laptop which was a common feature at the school last year.

Technology, like the iPhone and the laptop, undoubtedly plays an important role in these children’s lives; because they’re travelling around most of the time they need to find ways to stay in contact with base schools and their fellow show friends. But what about children in more mainstream education?

We’re currently doing some research into the use of technology in the Primary setting, and the issue keeps arising as to the place of popular technology – such as the iPhone and the iPod – in an educational setting. Now we know that lots of work has been done around technology and its ability to engage male learners - and that's fantastic - but what about in more general terms? Could the mobile phone be successfully incorporated into lessons? So this is the question we are left pondering; can popular technology be incorporated into the classroom effectively?

Calling all missing post

Our language, the joyful words we use on a daily basis, is both fascinating and (it would seem) potentially hazardous; the slightest error can result in a highly amusing faux pas. Now we know that it gets confusing at times because we have a different trading name (Kidology) to our umbrella company (ANYTHING But Limited), but combining the two has never been something we’ve thought of experimenting with. That is until we glanced at our newly erected post box; Anything But Kidology.

Hmmm...

To those fellow English graduates out there this incident will no doubt evoke memories of Lynne Truss’ fantastic work Eats, Shoots & Leaves; a book which had me crying with laughter and howling for hours (a sure fire way to make friends in the first year at Uni; confess that a book on grammar had you in hysterics). Whilst at first understandably tickled by the above postal incident, I am now rather concerned as to what we may find in place of our mail, and where indeed Kidology’s post, which has clearly been excluded from the box, will end up. We will keep you posted (ha).

Shouting about it

We all know how important it is for businesses to get their name and message out there, but the marketing budget seems to be one of the first to go when times are hard. A week or so ago we attended a thoroughly inspirational marketing event; a day aimed at getting us to consider more creative (and inexpensive) ways to spread the word. Our own marketing campaign is a process of trial and error; a staged bungee jump off the Tyne Bridge – complete with branded T shirts – is next on our hit list.

Whilst the internet has undoubtedly played a significant role in companies marketing campaigns, from our own experiences nothing seems to be more effective than a good old face to face natter complete with a cup of tea (preferably the Yorkshire variety). We’re lucky enough to find ourselves invited to a number of different networking events and our door is always open for people to come and see where the magic happens.

With this in mind, for the next week we’ll be holding open office and trying to chat to as many people as possible. Let’s see if we can start an open door revolution...

Nothing beats a play day!

The kids looked mortified when they had to take their shoes off – did they think it was some sort of foot inspection? But as we divided them into teams several realised that it was going to be a case of fastest team to locate their shoes wins. Chaos ensued.

Our group at a local Secondary School had great fun playing a variety of different games, all aimed at getting them to work together for the greater good. Young People generally thrive at the chance to be free of their shackles (table and chair) and experience a less formal way of interactng and this week was no exception.

Now everyone knows how important play is in childhood – how else do you let off steam? Role playing what you’ve observed that day and letting your imagination run wild shows an educator what messages they've been giving off but more importantly helps many young people associate enjoyment with learning. What happens to the association with working and fun when we get older? We’re lucky at Kidology – we get to play games and find ways to cling on to our childhood through the kids that we work with. What about the rest of the adult population? Let’s start a petition for a national play at work day! Hurrah.