Espresso Primary https://www.espresso.co.uk has received many awards since they started 1997 and they received the Bett Awards
2014 (British Educational Training
and Technology).
The School I work for subscribes to this website, hence it is
available to all faculty and students, used mostly from Pre-K to grade 5 in
elementary school.
This website caters for all subjects, levels, learning and teaching
styles. It is available at school and for home use, it even has a parents’
guide. Not only do we use the website for classes, but also as a reward for the students. For
example, on a Friday the students get “free time” on their computers/iPads,
as long as they stay on the website. Usually the students will end up working together,
finding new areas of interest. You will find that Espresso is visual, auditory, kinesthetic, musical and
intrapersonal.
There are minimum technical requirements and
recommendations for internet connections, computer hard-and-software, as well
as for tablets and mobile devises. You can find everything specified by using this link https://www.espresso.co.uk/subscription_pricing/#tab=2 and then
choose to download the various requirements.
Their subscription fees are not stated on their website.. The website welcomes you to contact them for more information. You
are also welcome to sign up for free samples of Espresso, just click on free
sample and you will be able to sign up for a trial.
It can be used by head teachers,
teachers and ICT. If your school subscribes to Espresso
there is also guidance and professional development available for faculty. On the website you’ll
have access to – and help with – the new curriculum 2014 http://www.espresso.co.uk/nc2014 . There are webinars to keep teachers updated. For
the new curriculum 2014 there are
specific grade level videos showing the changes for the different subjects. You will find
yourself spending much less time on finding suitable lesson materials and you will
work with the newest material at all times. Since it has the different
sensory approach you know your lesson will cater for all learning styles including different learning disabilities, EAL, as well as behavioral and physical issues. Your students
will be challenged but not overwhelmed.
Students loves games !
So embrace their love for games. They are able to learn at their own pace while
playing and having fun, and you as a teacher are able to plan individual
lessons, set targets, or have the class practice at home. When an 8-year-old has
fun learning new vocabulary, times table or even geography, he is more likely to acquire this knowledge as opposed to just memorizing it.
Espresso has added espresso coding recently. It won
a Brett Award 2014. as well. Espresso coding teaches
how to code and make your own apps. It teaches how to program in a fun
age-appropriate way. You can find out more and try for free until the end of October 2014. It is amazing to see how we all can be in charge of our learning when we
understand a little bit more on how the tools work. http://www.espressocoding.co.uk/espresso/coding/index.html
ENJOY!
Christina Noren Zanoni
