All about... Communication Explain that you are going to do a presentation about communication, as that’s what No Pens Day is all about! *Pictures taken from Google images

What is No Pens Day!? A national day that focuses on our speaking and listening skills (it means no pens and no writing ALL DAY...) There are thousands of other schools taking part too! Just read through the slide

We know that talking and listening are really important We know that talking and listening are really important! Even Wizards think so... “Words are, in my not-so humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic!” Read through the slide and then ask if anyone knows who the picture is of? (Of course, it’s Albus Dumbledore!) Say that in the Harry Potter stories, he is really clever... So if he thinks communication is really important then it must be. Lots of scientists and researchers have also said it’s really important too.

Quick quiz... true or false!? 1 in 10 of all children and young people struggle with their communication skills, through no fault of their own. Language development is complete around the age of 9. A good vocabulary can help you do well at school and in a job. Talking and listening to young children is the most important thing in helping them learn to talk. Shouting really helps to get your message across. Say that you are going to do a quick quiz, to see what everyone knows about communication. Tell everyone that when you read out the questions, they need to do a “thumbs up” if they think the statement is true, or a “thumbs down” if they think it’s false. Read through the quiz questions, one at a time, and see how many your schoolmates and teachers get right!! ANSWERS: 1, 3 and 4 are TRUE number 2 is FALSE: Language development is never complete – we continue to learn new words and how to use language all through our lives And number 5 is FALSE Shouting really helps to get your message across – that’s not true!

Communication is important for loads of things.... What do you use your communication skills for? Ask the audience if they can think of the different things they use their communication skills for..? What about talking to mum and dad at home? Does anyone text their friends? What about talking and listening in school? After you have asked a few people for their answers, you can say that communication literally affects everything we do... The list is really endless!!

So, the more you know about communication, the better..... Read through the slide.

Point to the picture, and say that to finish your presentation, everyone is going to help you, by putting what they know about communication into practice! Say that the aim is to make a short story about this silly picture. You are going to read out the starting sentence in the story, then it’s their job to think of another sentence... You can choose people from the audience to give you the next sentence in the story. Using your brilliant communication skills, you will create a silly story to go with the picture. Starting sentence: One morning... Max the Squirrel woke up and knew he would be famous! *Picture contributed by Craig Palmer, TES teaching resources, www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/50-Perfectly-Timed-Photos-6340307/event/22/

Thank everyone for listening Thank everyone for listening. You could ask them if they have any questions?