I think Southampton has come out with terribly low figure for Boys Writing 64%
I think my whole curriculum is very boy friendly but I am very interested in the project my colleague Charlie Hackett is starting that I will inherit from her when she leaves to work in the emirates in January - she is putting together Lads/Dads story sacks with emphasis on Sport - (and spending lots of my English budget!) this is a reading project and just wondered if Ros - you had any ideas for a writing element to this project ?

sounds interesting, currently looking at a short intervention with boys reading and writing and sports links. Was working along principle of things like reading an interview in a magazine then interviewing someone(hopefully a sports person but guess could be a dad) and then writing own interview. Reading through instruction booklet for a sport then playing and learning a sport and creating one for that. Reading tabloid and broadsheet sports pages comparing them looking at language and doing own sports report. (there is also lots of potential for whole newspaper project for reading and writing activities which ive done in past and could be useful for a dads group) Still trying to think of other activities

Two replies...

1) I can't get to reply to your APP query for some reason Bluerose, it keeps switching me back to the menu. (Curtis - are you reading this???) I will send you our thoughts on APP by mail attachment. Would you mail me a reminder please? PS - I fully agree with comment from Hampshire seagull..

2) The story sacks were launched around 2004 / 5 - through strategy I think. Education Bradford had a literacy consultant who managed them there - put hours in on them. She had got funding - think it was a pilot. She bought loads of lovely boyish rucksacks and gave each one a theme... a football team / fire service / police / space / hobbies / rap etc etc.... They had lots of goodies in... a comic, a game, mazes and puzzles, programmes and adverts and promotional material. They were designed for sons and dads to share. EB schools commited to the project and got dads to commit within school and it was their sons who borrowed the sacks. It was extremely popular at the time.

I think organised and managed within a school would be very successful. Each sack needs an index of contents and they are loaned out like library books.

Cheers, Ros

Visited an SN Dept at another school last week, and was amazed at the creativity of the SNAs working there. They have produced "stories in a shoebox" - essentially little scenes in a shoebox, with moveable action figures that are used to discuss situations, and to inspire creativity on a kinaesthetic level with the SN children, who show a preference with interacting with the figures, and expressing themselves through the dialogue of the characters they represent. I believe Hampshire SEN are looking into producing these, and another variant called "story on a stick" with the SNA concerned, but they are really simple to create, and use. I am going to create one (correction, my wife is going to create one!), and use it as inspiration for a writing tasks for my Level 1/2 Year 6 SENs to see if it makes a difference to how they structure their stories. They say that the boys are particularly attracted to these (pirates, Billy Goats Gruff, Three Little Pigs, etc), so they may be an avenue to explore?

I love that idea

Sounds fantastic... we would be interested too. Can you let me see a model please? Ros

Here are a couple of pictures - not high quality, only mobile phone I am afraid!

Fancy being able to get those onto the forum just like that... They are great Hampshireseagull, lucky you having a wife who will help...Ros

Did these shoeboxes work for you Hampshire Seagull? Have you continued with them?