Teach-Secondary-Issue-14.5

THE SWIMMERS (2022, 15, 134MINUTES) CURRICULUM LINKS: Geography, physical education Sara andYusraMardini are sisters living in Damascus, Syria, juggling regular teenage life with intensive training as professional swimmers, hoping to one day compete in the Olympic Games. But as war breaks out, Sara andYusra make the difficult decision to leave their family and travel to Europe as refugees.The journey proves incredibly dangerous, but even as they finally reach safety, their challenges aren’t yet over, as the sibling drama sparked by their different priorities soon starts to intensify... Based on a remarkable true story, this dramatic and uplifting portrayal of sport and girlhood rings out with empowerment. Discussionquestions: •What do you know about the European refugee crisis, and its origins? • How ismusic used to emphasise the film’s central themes of sisterhood and determination? Head online to intofilm.org to streamthis filmfor free anddownload its filmguide, includingTeacher’sNotes Creative exercises to get students generating new ideas A F E W M I N U T E S O F D E S I G N #36 EXTENDED FAMI LY Look at family of symbols below. How have the pictures been simplified to make symbols? Are they made of solid shapes or lines? What visual features does each one use? What makes them a family? Draw your own symbols to continue the series, keeping the same visual ‘language’ of simplification, line, shape and style as the original members. Then draw a symbol that does not belong to the family. Becky Francis @beckyfrancis.bsky.social Feeling sympathy for themagpie parents teaching their kids to fly inmy back garden. They aremodelling beautifully – repeating a short flap fromsaid kids to a low section of our fence – but kids are studiously ignoring, continuing to waddle about and peck in our rockery.We’ve all been there! Omar Khan @omaromalleykhan.bsky.social 29%of children on free school meals attend university.Over 7 in 10 do not. Some think that’s too few FSMchildren in higher education.Others are coy about admitting it, but clearly think it’s toomany. Not everyone should go to university, but all should be enabled tomake that choice. Follow us via @teachsecondary (X) and @ teachsecondary.bsky.social Get Into Film TEACHER TAL ES True stories fromthe education chalkface Uniform, please... While patrolling the school’s ‘out of bounds area’, I encountered a young female and asked her why she was there, and wearing a plain black jumper, rather than one bearing the school logo. “ Oh, I’m sorry, ” she replied. “ I didn’t think those rules applied to supply teachers! ” Zip it Once, whilst on greeting duties at parent’s evening,my zip fly decided to break. I therefore conducted my six upcoming interviews with great care. At the end of each, I stood and shook hands whilst strategically positioning my jacket over the offending area. During our staff break, I managed to locate a long-arm stapler and a box of brass staples and attempted temporary repairs down the front of my trousers and up along the zip. My trousers now looked like the product of a botched surgery, but it would do. I went to sit back down, ready for my next interview – but as I bent over to take my seat, a shower of brass staples ensued. As the evening drew to a close, one concerned parent approached me and asked if all was well, having seen me bent double when leaving the hall earlier. I confided in him about my troublesome zip, to which he responded, “ Oh, that’s okay then – several parents thought you had the runs... ” Have amemorable true school tale or anecdote of your own? Share the details, and findmore amusing stories, at schoolhumour.co.uk Like and subscribe Who’s been saying what on the socials this month? Image courtesy of Netflix 09 teachwire.net/secondary N E WS | J U L / A U G