Wallace & Gromit are calling on people across the UK join The BIG Breakfast from the 20th -27th April to raise thousands of pounds for sick children in hospitals and hospices by enjoying a BIG Breakfast.

Research suggests that breakfast eaters have lower stress levels and better concentration than breakfast skippers yet 1 in 4 adults in the UK admit to regularly skipping breakfast, so Wallace & Gromit’s BIG Breakfast calls on the nation to wake up to a BIG Breakfast which not only helps everyone who takes part have a brighter day but also helps raise vital funds for sick children across the UK.

Could you hold a BIG breakfast for pupils and families at your school? For more information and to register to take part, call 0845 600 1924 or visit www.wallaceandgromitsbigbreakfast.org.

Don’t forget that you can find other educational events to take part in by browsing our Teaching Events site.

Get ready for the Big Schools’ Birdwatch! Schools can take part in the upcoming Big Schools’ Birdwatch from 16-30 January 2012, helping the RSPB to monitor UK bird numbers.

Run every year, the Birdwatch is a free activity for all UK schools and youth groups (brownies, scouts etc). There are different resource packs for each age group:

• Little Schools’ Birdwatch is for 3-5 year olds
• Big Schools’ Birdwatch is for 6-11 year olds
• Really Big Schools’ Birdwatch is for 12-14 year olds.

This simple activity is for all ages and abilities; it only takes an hour to complete and is rich in curriculum links. It’s also a great way to get to know more about the wildlife visiting your school grounds. If you don’t have school grounds, don’t worry! You can still take part by visiting a local park. Teachers and group leaders can find out more at www.rspb.org.uk/schoolswatch and to register for their free resource pack. The website also has lots of other activities to accompany the Birdwatch to download, including child (and teacher) friendly bird ID pages.

Don’t forget to explore other educational events that you can can get involved in at Teaching Events.

Youth & Family Gold Challenge is a new charity challenge, specifically aimed at schools, families, youth groups and 7-15 year olds. It aims to build on the excitement of London 2012 as all of the challengers take on Olympic and Paralympic sports to raise money for charity.

Those taking part can choose from three challenges (5 Sport Challenge, Family Activity Challenge and the 2012km Challenge). By joining the challenges, schools can also win a chance to run 100m in the Olympic Stadium watched by friends, family and a cheering crowd of 20,000!

There are currently over 20,000 registrations on the site and there is currently an incentive where for every 100 registrations, a school will receive 5 places in our Olympic Stadium Parade which will follow the route of the opening ceremony, and include charities, GB Ambassadors and celebrities. Find out more on the official site.

Spellathon is a new and exciting, sponsored spelling competition which aims to take over the world, while raising funds for learning disability charity Mencap. Entrants pledge a target number of words to spell correctly whilst practicing ahead of the online global championships to be held in March 2012. All words spelt correctly, are “banked” in your hive and your scores are displayed on the global leader board.

The competition is set in a futuristic digital universe and is presented by ‘The Professor’, a 3D bee character voiced by Stephen Fry. Spellathon can be played anywhere, by anyone – children, students, and adults of any age! You can register now at www.spellathon.net.

Wrong Trousers Day is organised by Wallace & Gromit’s Children’s Foundation. Money raised helps sick children in hospitals and hospices across the UK. This year’s Wrong Trousers Day is on Friday 24th June when people are encouraged to go to school or work in their ‘wrong trousers’. Everyone who takes part pays £1 for the right to be ‘wrong’ for the day.

www.wrongtrousersday.org

Thousands of people have already promised to throw aside their regular trousers and go to work sporting anything from football shorts, pyjamas, board shorts and other funny and wrong bottom halves – all in the name of charity!  If you would like to get involved in Wrong Trousers Day on Friday 24^th June, you can register for a fundraising pack at www.wrongtrousersday.org or call the hotline on 0845 600 1924 for more information.

Oxfam Water Week is a new UK-wide initiative that gives pupils the opportunity to learn about global issues, develop their skills and values as active global citizens, and make a difference to the world. Water Week benefits pupils, schools, communities and people living in poverty.

Aimed at key stage 2 and key stage 3 pupils, Oxfam Water Week helps young people learn about global water issues, encourages them to think about how they can make a difference and helps them to act through fundraising and campaigning activities.

The Oxfam Education team, along with teachers, have created a wealth of free teaching resources, specially designed to meet curriculum requirements in geography and citizenship. These resources include lesson plans, worksheets, a DVD of video clips and interactive games. They will also send you a free toolkit packed with teaching, fundraising and campagning ideas!

Oxfam Water Week is from 11-17 July in England and Wales and from 13-19 June in Scotland. To get involved, visit http://www.oxfam.org.uk/waterweek.

Every year school children of all ages take part in Number Day, working their mathematical magic for a great cause – the NSPCC. Their number-based fundraising helps to protect the vulnerable children in the UK who need the NSPCC’s services most. This year there are even more reasons for teachers to take part in Number Day. You could be a part of a new Guinness World Record: the biggest maths lesson ever! There are also Key Stage 1-4 lesson plans to support your fundraising activities. Register now to receive your FREE teaching pack at www.nspcc.org.uk/numberday.

www.nspcc.org.uk/numberday

The NSPCC have also produced a new, free teaching pack called Change Something. The pack contains three comprehensive lesson plans with strong links to the Key Stage 3 citizenship curriculum and the PSE Framework for 7 to 19 year olds in Wales. The lessons also support PSHE topics relating to risk, relationships and decision-making. Visit this page to download the free pack and see all the other resources available for schools.

Practical Action (a development charity that focuses on the use of sustainable technology in Africa, Asia and South America) have joined forces with Primary Engineer to offer a Special Leaders Award. The award is available for three ages groups: Primary (5-11), Secondary (11-16) and advanced (17-19).

To obtain the award, students need to provide evidence that they have been actively involved in promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) in their school and to interview someone who works in this area.

For our award pupils need to interview someone working in an area related to the development of technologies, products or services which incorporate sustainability as a key factor. The winners for each group will receive a solar powered media player. The winner of the advanced level will also spend a day working with a sustainable product designer.

The deadline for interviews and Leaders Award applications (via email only) is 30th June 2010. Find out more on the Practical Action and Primary Engineer sites.

World leaders have promised that all children will have a primary education by 2015 but with only 5 years left to go, there are still 75 million children missing out on an education completely.

1Goal, organized by the Global Campaign for Education, aims to get more children around the world a school place. The theme for 2010 is ’1GOAL’ to link in with the World Cup in South Africa.

www.sendmyfriend.org

There are three simple steps for schools to get involved:

• Make a gigantic 1GOAL supporter scarf,
• Hold a 1GOAL event (or assembly) in your school,
• Make it count! – by sending the scarf to the Prime Minister and adding the number of 1GOAL supporters in your school to the online Scoreboard.

Watch a Youtube video about the project below:

Find out more, and discover lots of useful teaching resources, at the Send My Friend website.

Wrong Trousers Day 2010 asks the nation to wear their pyjamas with pride to school or nursery. This is all to show support for sick children in local hospitals and hospices. This year’s event takes place on Friday 25th June 2010.

www.wrongtrousersday.org

You can find out more by visiting www.wrongtrousersday.org or by calling 0845 6001 924. You will then be sent a free fundraising pack to use on the day. A host of Pyjama party games and activities will also be available to download on the website soon.