An t-Alltan - Lord Minginish - Roddy John MacLeod

Welcome

The An t-Alltan 2015 conference for Gaelic teachers was held in the
MacDonald Aviemore Conference Centre,
on 30 September and 1 October.

This conference is an excellent professional learning opportunity for Gaelic educationalists and gives delegates the opportunity to have a look at new initiatives for teaching and learning through a series of keynote speeches and workshops.

The conference was opened by Dr Alasdair Allan MSP, Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland’s Languages. Lord Minginish, Roddy John MacLeod, Chair of the Board of Directors, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig and Kirsteen Macdonald, BBC Alba’s weather and news presenter, were our keynote speakers.

Here are the workshops which ran:

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Workshops 2015

Primary School

1. Gaelic medium in the early years: everyday practices and challenges

Christine Stephen

Reflecting on practice in GME Early Levels
Wednesday morning and afternoon

2. Making music work for you

Dolina Munro

Early Years – Bi Sunndach/A’ Chiste-chiùil
Wednesday morning and afternoon

3. Maths and Numeracy at the Early Levels

Anne Thirkell

Numeracy at the early levels
Wednesday morning and afternoon

4. Clicker – Storyworld Templates

Chris Mitchell, Cànan

Storyworld templates and using devices to teach
Wednesday and Thursday mornings

5. ASN/SLT

Archie MacLullich and Rebecca Castello

Dynamic assessment and screening tools in Gaelic Medium Education
Wednesday afternoon & Thursday morning

6. GME resources + composite classes

Donna Barden

GME resources + composite classes
Thursday morning & afternoon

7. Lasadh – Using practical on-line materials/the new language website

Gwen Culbertson and Mairi MacDonald

Use of practical online materials/new language website
Thursday morning & afternoon

8. Writing

Sarah Fraser/Selina MacKay

VCOPs, Bloom’s Taxonomy, etc.
Thursday morning & afternoon

1. Considering Transition Work

Shonagh McLennan, IRA (Chair), Kirsty Scott (BSGI) and Ceitidh Smith, Millburn Academy

Preparing for the transition of pupils from P7 to S1 – useful materials and resources
Wednesday morning and afternoon

2. Gaelic Education 3-18

Joan Esson, HMI, and Maeve Mackinnon

This session provided an update on advice, guidance and projects that are priorities for Education Scotland in fulfilling their strategic objectives.
Wednesday afternoon

3. ‘Comic Life’ in the Classroom

Donna MacDonald

’Smathsin, by Stòrlann, is the only on-line Gaelic comic in the world! Using this as an example, we can bring funny stories to life with classes, using iPads and the computer program ‘Comic Life’. We looked at how these lessons can be used to create a wide range of texts incorporating different media.
Wednesday morning and Thursday afternoon

4. Numeracy and mathematics in broad general education 3-15

Jacqui Stephenson, Development Officer, Education Scotland

This session encouraged teachers and playroom leaders to review the effectiveness of the 3-15 Gaelic Medium curriculum for numeracy and mathematics within their settings.
Thursday afternoon

1. Ceumannan

Colm O’Rua

Introduction to Ceumannan and online supporting resources
Wednesday morning & afternoon

2. ASN/SLT

Archie MacLullich and Recbecca Castella

Dynamic assessment and screening tools in Gaelic Medium Education
Wednesday morning & Thursday afternoon

3. Grammar – like it or not!

Christina Walker

This workshop considered why grammar is a vital part of language learning and discussed ways in which grammar can be incorporated.
Wednesday and Thursday mornings

4. Writing for Native Speakers and Learners

Catriona MacPhee, Eòghann Stewart

Gàidhlig & Gaelic writing
Wednesday and Thursday afternoons

5. SQA Gàidhlig

Calum Iain MacKay, Principal Assessor and Carolyn O’ Reilly, Qualifications Officer.

SQA Session Aims: to support Practitioners in their understanding of national standards in National 5 Gàidhlig by:

Reviewing key messages and learning points from session 14/15 in relation to standards
Discussing these and associated Assessment Standards with colleagues
Opportunity to ask questions and seek clarification about national standards

Thursday morning

6. Drama as a language tool in Secondary education

Arthur Donald

Arthur Donald, Drama Artist in Residence at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, held workshops on Healthy food and exercise, and on Social Media. Arthur also looked at drama structures which would be suitable for teachers over multiple subjects.
Thursday morning and afternoon

7. Scottish Studies

Catriona Campbell

What is Scottish Studies? Can any school teach it?
Thursday morning and afternoon

Conference Timetable

Tuesday 29 September

19:00 – 20:00

Registration

08:30 – 09:10

Tea and Coffee / Registration

09:10 – 09:30

Welcome and Opening – Dr Alasdair Allan MSP

09:30 – 10:15

Statutory Guidance for Gaelic Education – Presentation and Discussion, Bòrd na Gàidhlig

10:15 – 10:45

Speech 1 – Kirsteen MacDonald

10:45 – 11:15

Tea and Coffee

11:15 – 13:00

Session 1

13:00 – 14:00

Lunch

14:00 – 15:00

Session 2

15:00 – 15:30

Tea and Coffee

15:30 – 16:15

Session 2 (continued)

16:15 – 16:45

Information Session 1 – GTC / e-Stòras

19:00 – 19:30

Reception / Resource Launch

19:00 – 21:00

Dinner

08:30 – 09:00

Tea and Coffee / Registration

09:00 – 09:45

Speech 2 – Lord Minginish, Roddy John MacLeod

09:45 – 10:30

Session 3

10:30 – 11:00

Tea and Coffee

11:00 – 12:00

Session 3 (continued)

12:00 – 13:00

Lunch

13:00 – 13:30

Information Session 2 – IntoFilm / Scholar

13:30 – 15:15

Session 4

15:15 – 15:30

Thanks / Close

Downloads

[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Conference Timetable
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Workshops – Primary (Gaelic)
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Workshops – Primary (English)
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Workshops – Secondary (Gaelic)
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Workshops – Secondary (English)
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Biography – Roddy John MacLeod
[themify_icon icon=”fa-file-pdf-o” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Biography – Kirsteen MacDonald
[themify_icon icon=”fa-map-marker” style=”large rounded” icon_color=”#FFFFFF” ] Venue map and floor plan

Bhidiothan

Images

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An t-Alltan 2015

“It’s great to meet other people in the same situation as yourself.”

Registration

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Primary School

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Speaker / Workshop Leader / Exhibitor / Other Non-teaching Visitor

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[themify_icon icon=”fa-twitter” icon_bg=”#FFFFFF” icon_color=”#991896″ ] An t-Alltan on Twitter

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At the conference there was information available from…

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Welcome

The An t-Alltan 2015 conference for Gaelic teachers was held in theMacDonald Aviemore Conference Centre, on 30 September and 1 October.

Workshops 2015

1. Gaelic medium in the early years: everyday practices and challenges

Christine Stephen

2. Making music work for you

Dolina Munro

3. Maths and Numeracy at the Early Levels

Anne Thirkell

4. Clicker – Storyworld Templates

Chris Mitchell, Cànan

5. ASN/SLT

Archie MacLullich and Rebecca Castello

6. GME resources + composite classes

Donna Barden

7. Lasadh – Using practical on-line materials/the new language website

Gwen Culbertson and Mairi MacDonald

8. Writing

Sarah Fraser/Selina MacKay

Conference Timetable

Downloads

Bhidiothan

Images

An t-Alltan 2015

Registration

Please choose your conference stream…

Primary School

High school

Speaker / Workshop Leader / Exhibitor / Other Non-teaching Visitor

Board / Staff

[themify_icon icon=”fa-twitter” icon_bg=”#FFFFFF” icon_color=”#991896″ ] An t-Alltan on Twitter

At the conference there was information available from…

The An t-Alltan 2015 conference for Gaelic teachers was held in the
MacDonald Aviemore Conference Centre,
on 30 September and 1 October.