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> Developing Comm.
> Pics & Symbols
> Env Studies
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On this page:
Symbol Topic Boards for Environmental Studies
This is a set of BoardMaker topic boards, each with 8 symbol locations, and each filled with core vocabulary relating to common themes and topics. You can download each board individually or as a whole set. Print out in colour on A4 paper, landscape. Print two or several copies of each board if you want to have cut-out cards for matching games and other activities. Laminate your boards and cards.
Display or store the boards and cards in the same place as the other objects, toys and materials relating to that topic, so that everything is quickly to hand when you start to work on that topic. For example, mount the colour-choice board on the wall beside the painting table; farm animal cards in a zip bag in beside the farm animals set.
The idea is that children with poor communication can point to picture symbols to participate actively in games, class activities, discussions, and classwork, and use a wider vocabulary, instead of sitting watching passively, or answering only ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ questions.
Ideas for Using Topic Boards
Day and night Topic Board
- Basic vocabulary
- Sorting activities:
- which might you see at night? which might you see during the day?
- who sleeps at night? etc.
Animals (farm, zoo animals and pets) Topic Boards)
- Children choose the animals to sing about during music or group time, for example choosing the chicken in “Old Mc Donald”.
- Children report back on a visit to the farm, pet shop or zoo. “I saw - ” and “I liked -”.
- Children identify the animals from a verbal description, for example “It’s furry, it purrs”.
- Children describe animals for their classmates to guess, using a colour topic board e.g. “I(t’s) white”.
- Children identify the animals through the noise that each makes.
- Children identify animals that are partly hidden by a cloth (progressively inched off so they can see more and more of the toy).
- Children identify animals in a shoe bag, by feel alone.
- On the Pets topic board, there are a few unusual pets that could lead into discussion of ‘pets that members of my family have’ and what ‘pets I’ve never seen before’.
House/ home
- Home 1: General - a range of the different parts of the house, so children can use the board to talk about the rooms that are in their house, or what furniture/activity goes on in each room.
- Living Room
- Kitchen
- Bedroom
- Basic vocabulary specific to each room, for matching and guessing games.
- Children identify room from a verbal description example “Where do we eat?”
- Playing a guessing games “What room am I thinking about?” “I sit down, I turn on the TV...”
Weather
- Children identify the weather for morning circle time, and at playtimes to indicate what clothes need to be worn.
- Using clothes Topic Board and/or cards as well, match particular weather to particular clothes that would be worn.
- Act out a sensation and get children to identify the weather that might cause it (eg panting, wiping face, taking off jumper etc. - ‘sunny’ or ‘hot’)
Transport
- Basic vocabulary - matching with toys, pictures, storybook pictures etc. vocabulary board.
- Categorising - things that go in the sky, things that go in the sea, things that go on the road, etc. (e.g. competitive games with a pair or small group - “who can find three things that go in the sea?”
Our local area
This really is just an example as you would need to personalise a board to suit your own local area. This general board might be useful for “What’s this? Is there a ______ in our area?” or “Did we see a _____ on our walk?”
Download BoardMaker Files for Environmental Studies
For Macintosh (compressed files):
- Click on a topic to download the compressed file for that topic. If you want ALL the topics, click on ‘env studies folder’ to download a folder containing all of them.
- Once the compressed file has been downloaded, your computer should automatically decompress the BoardMaker file (e.g. ‘home1’) or ‘env studies folder’ onto your hard disk. If you only see the downloaded file with the filename ending in ‘.hqx’ (e.g. ‘home1.hqx’), then you must double click on it to obtain the actual BoardMaker file.
- Technical Note: the downloaded ‘.hqx’ file is a self-extracting compressed file produced by StuffIt. Depending on the web browser used, the file may be automatically decompressed once downloaded.
For PC (compressed files):
IMPORTANT! - for Users of Boardmaker v5.0, please download this .pdf file first, which contains important explanatory notes
- Click on a topic to download the compressed file for that topic. If you want ALL the topics, click on ‘env studies folder’ to download a folder containing all of them.
- Once downloaded, you must decompress the file (in .zip format) using a program such as WinZip or PKZip.
- If you are using Winzip, double-click on the file after it has been downloaded and wait for Winzip to decompress the file. When you can see the Boardmaker file in the Winzip window, drag it across your desktop to the folder in which you wish to keep your Boardmaker file.
- NB. These files were created with the original version of Boardmaker for Windows and have to be IMPORTED into Boardmaker Version 5, rather than opened directly by Boardmaker, i.e. go to File - Import, rather than File - Open..
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