I am writing to apply for the Year 3 classroom teacher position at

ANISHA SMITH

16 Station Road, City AB1 2CC

Mobile: 07777 888 999

Email: jsmith[email protected]k

Teacher Registration No:

KEY SKILLS

Teamwork and relationship building My ability to foster good relationships with other staff, pupils, parents and

carers has been noted by my placement mentors. I enjoy collaborating with colleagues to develop resources co-

operatively and to share ideas and specialist knowledge, taking the lead on projects such as the well-received

Environmental Week during my final placement.

Planning and organisation I have considerable experience of successfully organising activities and using

detailed planning in my teaching, in my voluntary committee work and as district organiser for Watch. Achieved

Excellent for this area within my final placement assessment.

Communication My time spent in schools and with Watch has shown that I can successfully communicate with,

and relate to, a wide age and ability range. Through my undergraduate degree and PGCE, I have developed high-

level written and presentational skills, achieving consistently high grades and great feedback. I enjoy using a wide

range of science communication tools including real world learning, video, lab work and visits to engage students

and increase their understanding of key concepts

Commitment to continuous improvement and innovation I am proactive in my professional development and

have undertaken a number of additional CPD opportunities, such as attending The Big Nature Study conference. I

used ideas gained to devise creative new resources and to reflect on practice. I have a passion and enthusiasm

for my subject area and am a member of the Royal Society of Biology.

Inclusive practice I set high standards for myself and all pupils and always aim to understand the needs of the

entire class – on placement I have worked with pupils with SEN, the highly able, and students with EAL and have

received good feedback on my abilities to differentiate my lessons and my use of assessment to check progress.

Information communications technology I have a good knowledge of a range of Microsoft applications,

including Word, Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher and Photoshop, which helps me to produce creative

teaching resources.

EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS

2018 - 2019 PGCE Secondary Biology (Distinction) City University

• Able to teach all three sciences to GCSE level and biology up to A level.

• Gained an understanding of the theory underpinning science education.

• Practised innovative teaching and assessment methods, including experiments - such as extracting DNA

from a kiwi fruit!

• Solid knowledge of health and safety requirements and strategies for maintaining a quality laboratory

work environment.

2015 - 2018 BSc (Hons) Biology 2.1 City University

• Taking an environmental approach to biology with the emphasis on laboratory, computational biology and

communications skills.

• Practical final year research project ‘An investigation into the morphological adaptations seen in social

insects’.

Your statement should be tailored

to the particular role and school

you are applying for. Mention any

speciﬁc reasons you are keen to

work there, any key points, e.g. their

ethos, and show how you also share

their vision. Using the introductory

paragraph to set a ‘tailored tone’ is

a great start. Show you’re not just

applying for any job – you are keen

on their vacancy in particular and

you are a good ﬁt for them.

Mentioning speciﬁc strategies you

have used makes your points more

meaningful.

Mention any gradings received so

far.

Give a short overview of your

teaching experience to date, year

groups worked in, types of schools

if relevant. You could also talk

about how a particular placement

was especially relevant for this

application and why.

I am writing to apply for the Year 3 classroom teacher position at your school. On my visit

today I was made to feel very welcome within a warm, caring and inspiring environment.

It was lovely to have the opportunity to share the learning that was taking place, and

the creativity in the curriculum was really evident through the abundance of classroom

displays. Your school evidently promotes an environment where children and sta work

together to produce engaging learning and I would love to be a part of this team. It is

very important to me to enthuse children and celebrate their achievements. I noted your

emphasis on helping children to be ‘Happy - Respectful - Kind - Responsible - Proud –

Resilient’ and I am very excited about this opportunity to become part of such a positive,

fun, learning environment.

On my PGCE, I have taught primarily across KS2 (in a Year 3 class and a Year 5 class) but

I have also delivered a block of lessons in KS1 and phonics in FS & KS1. This has enabled

me to gain a good understanding of the whole school and progression through year

groups. At this stage I have met all of the teaching standards to a Good or Outstanding

level. My organised planning, patient behaviour management and ﬂexibility have been

highlighted as my core strengths and I am eager to develop and improve my practice

at every opportunity. I am obtaining positive feedback from mentors and aspire to be

‘Outstanding’ throughout my teaching practice.

As a result of my PGCE, I now have an excellent working knowledge of the new National

Curriculum and planning new schemes of work. I have good skills in assessment and

monitoring, marking work and providing feedback to children, using summative and

formative assessment to inform my teaching, dierentiating activities and personalising

learning, and liaising with parents on a daily basis. During lessons I ensure that my plans

contain activities which cater for all learning styles. This includes making learning very

visual for EAL children and allowing higher ability children to investigate topics in greater

depth and with greater autonomy. I believe in children taking the lead as much as

possible in their learning and I actively promote discovery learning and challenging

investigations. I often use strategies such as talk partners and group activities to promote

children’s conﬁdence and to create a safe learning environment in which to experiment.

On my ﬁrst placement I was responsible for taking children for intervention sessions

and giving extra support to children for literacy and maths in Year 3. I really enjoyed

oering the children learning opportunities to build their conﬁdence and understanding

of these subjects and I used assessment as a vital tool to structure individual learning

and progression. My mentor commented that I had built up an excellent rapport with

these pupils. Before embarking on my PGCE I volunteered for a term as a temporary

teaching assistant in a primary school, working with a pupil with SEN. My role involved

working alongside the class teacher and adapting the work to a level of understanding

to which the child could access the curriculum. I was expected to keep detailed records

and assessments that monitored his progress and have strong links with his parents

and external agencies to support him. Through this work, I saw the impact that such

interventions can have on a child’s progress, and gained valuable SEN experience.

In my second placement I developed an empathetic relationship with my class,

highlighting the strengths in their work, to create a positive working environment in which

the children were regularly challenged and praised for their behaviour and

Mentioning specic strategies you

have used makes your points more

meaningful. Tailor each paragraph

to demonstrate you meet the

criteria from the job advert or person

specication.

2008 - 2015 City Grammar School for Girls

• A levels: Biology (C), Chemistry (C), Psychology (B)

• AS level: Art (B)

• 7 GCSEs grade A–C, including Maths, English, Biology, Chemistry and Physics

SCHOOL EXPERIENCE

2019 Comprehensive School, Nottingham 11-week block practice

My overall grading: Outstanding

• Taught balanced science up to Key Stage 3 and biology to Key Stage 4.

• Responsible for planning, teaching and assessment of 80% of the timetable.

• Helped form tutor for Year 8 group – taking responsibility for attendance and behaviour.

• Ran a tutorial session on bullying and friendship using restorative practice.

• Led on Environmental Week activities – involved the wider community, including parents and local

businesses, fostering several new school community partnerships.

2018 Royal City High School, Nottingham 6-week block practice

• Taught biology, chemistry and physics up to Key Stage 3.

• Worked with a Year 7 group with additional needs to improve their learning.

• Had the opportunity to participate in a Reflective Inquiry programme.

• Contributed to staff meetings regarding assessment and incorporated new strategies for assessment for

learning into my practice.

• Helped organise and supervise a Biology of Living Things trip. I also had the opportunity to share the

learning with other staff via a peer training day - receiving positive feedback for my input from my mentor.

2017 New Road School (Comprehensive)

• Voluntary classroom assistant supporting pupils within science and technology lessons. Gained valuable

experience across the whole age range of the school.

WORK EXPERIENCE

2015 - 2017 Part-time district organiser for Watch (environmental charity)

• Led a small team of volunteers. Planned, organised and publicised a programme of events and activities

for a membership of 200 adults, children and young people.

2015 - 2017 Asda, Customer service assistant

INTERESTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

• A volunteer for The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) for 5 years and attended training courses in practical

conservation and the environment.

• Enjoy outdoor pursuits, including walking and youth hostelling.

• Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award, 2013.

REFEREES

Professor Jones

Dean of Education

Faculty of Education

City University

City AB1 2CC

Tel: 01234 567 890

Email: [email protected]

Mrs Smith

Head of Science

Comprehensive School

City Road

City AB1 2CC

Tel: 01234 567 890

Email: [email protected]

It is good to give a speciﬁc example

of your behaviour management

strategies. You could also show

an awareness of the behaviour

management policy at the school

you are applying to by referring to

their policy.

Give speciﬁc examples where

possible.

Mention hobbies and interests that

you can use in your teaching and

pastoral work at a school.

End with a positive conclusion.

Concise lesson examples to

address criteria from the person

speciﬁcation can bring your

statement to life. Use the CAR

methodology: Context – Action –

Result to structure your examples.

Using one or two short quotes in

your statement can be helpful to

provide evidence of what you are

saying about yourself.

work. I have high expectations and employ eective strategies for classroom

management and achieve this through using such strategies as ‘Golden rules.’ I manage

behaviour eectively, whilst valuing the importance of ensuring that children are happy

and conﬁdent in a safe learning environment. My placement mentor noted that I

“created an ordered and inclusive environment where children felt safe and happy to

contribute their ideas”.

I know that for every child to succeed there must be a good relationship between sta,

parents and carers, and the child involved. Parental involvement is a key element in

a child’s learning, as both parents and teacher need to support the child’s learning.

During my placements I invited the parents into the classroom as much as possible as this

allows the child to feel supported. On placement I wrote notes in homework diaries and

included samples of children’s work, as well as talking to parents in the playground to

keep them updated and check on progress.

I use my enthusiasm and hobbies, such as singing, to energise my lessons, using all

resources available to make creative and imaginative learning opportunities across

the Curriculum. I am committed to creating innovative, engaging lessons, sometimes

using familiar popular culture to help. For example, I devised a series of poetry lessons

around favourite songs, such as the theme song from the ﬁlm Frozen. The children

were engaged from the start, learning and performing the song with dierent tones of

voices, demonstrating how the nature of a poem can change from performance to

performance. At the end of the unit, the children used the rhythm and rhyming pattern

of the verse to write their own rhyming couplets. Not only did this fulﬁl the National

Curriculum requirement for teaching contemporary poetry, the children also thoroughly

enjoyed themselves and could, weeks later, use their learning from this unit in their other

English and guided reading work.

I realise the importance of working as part of a team, particularly with other professionals,

in my classroom. I believe that this collaborative approach to work acts in the best

interests of the children and school, promoting good teaching practices that impact

positively on children’s learning. As the teaching assistant in my second placement class

was a very capable mathematician, I used her expertise to challenge the higher ability

children further in their maths work. For example, as I taught the majority of the class how

to ﬁnd the area of regular shapes by counting, she taught the higher ability children how

to calculate the area of compound shapes.

In my personal time, I have completed a level 1 Makaton course, which I have found

highly beneﬁcial both to communicate and to teach, and also to pass on this skill to

children. I am keen to contribute to the wider life of the school and have had experience

of running after-school French and music clubs, attending parents’ evenings, organising

school trips and helping out at sta training days.

Once again, thank you so much for your time today. It was lovely to meet you and I

look forward to discussing my application further, should I be successful in the shortlisting

process.