Teacher Resource Centre

Reading is a fundamental ability for all other learning activities. Students can learn only when they comprehend, and this requires appropriate reading skills in the first place. Appropriate reading skills support the learning of increasing amounts of instructional content. This is why children who fail to learn to read during their early years of schooling will encounter more difficulties in later grades and a higher risk of drop out. Quality early grade reading instruction is critical in preventing these challenges and risks as well as in protecting children’s rights to education and ensuring better chances of success in their life.

Teachers are at the center of reading instruction and they need to be trained with pedagogical knowledge and management skills in order to provide students relevant and quality instruction. It has however been noted that teachers in many countries, especially low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa, lack the proper training and support on ways of teaching early grade reading to their students. Therefore, a comprehensive and practical guide on early grade reading is highly needed to bridge this gap.

This guide aims to empower teachers in Africa by equipping them with the knowledge and skills of early grade reading, including the simple identification of the main pillars of reading, lesson planning and classroom management, taking into account the context in Africa. Subsequently, these teachers will help their students build basic reading skills in their early years of schooling.

Art, music and drama have had a pivotal role in the livelihood of human beings. This is clear by the wealth of literature, architecture, fine art, theater and music that define human past, present and future. The inherent creative ability and a yearning to express ourselves is what gives value to art, music and drama as companion components in human evolution. 

This teacher's guide covers art, music, dance, drama, experiential learning, community engagement, and how to integrate these aspects into curriculum. Additionally, this document provides lesson plans for primary school students in these subject areas. 

This short guide provides teachers with action-based approaches to address waste and trash management for sustainable development. It contains infographics and factsheets, inspiring initiatives taken by youth all around the world and activities that can be implemented in class or outside, over one day or several class sessions.  

Assistive technologies encompass tools and services designed to enhance learners' independence, participation, and success, helping them reach their full potential. This guide explains how educators can use assistive technology to create an inclusive environment that supports diverse learning styles and information processing. It introduces various assistive technologies that cater to individual learner needs, helping them overcome challenges. Educators should view assistive technologies as resources for all students, integrating them into the classroom to ensure widespread benefit and minimize the risk of stigmatization.

This resource kit includes several components that provide teachers with information on why and how to incorporate living heritage into their school based activities. It was developed as a result of the UNESCO–EU initiative on cultural heritage and education, under the European Year of Cultural Heritage in 2018, and it builds on projects across a variety of subjects developed by teacher from 10 countries.

A set of teacher guides containing each 6 Mental Mathematics Lesson Starter units for Grade 3 learners, in alignment with the South African curriculum. A different calculation strategy is in focus in each unit. These calculation strategies are taken from the curriculum. Each unit covers a particular group of connected skills, and the aim is to move learners on from counting in ones on their fingers or with tally marks on paper.

Each unit is three weeks long; it begins and ends with a short test for the learners. Marking these tests provides information for the teacher and the learners about how much they have improved in using that particular set of skills during the three weeks. Within each unit, the focus is on three types of calculations: fluency, strategic calculating and strategic thinking.

Working through the Lesson Starters in each unit should lead to improvements in learners’ performance from the pre to post-tests. These improvements show progress in mental mathematics skills and number sense.

The guide is available in 11 official languages of South Africa.

This guide provides teachers with the necessary tools to highlight historical and current themes from the animated film "Where is Anne Frank".

It includes a preparatory lesson, a lesson to discuss the film and four detailed thematic follow-up lessons. The film and the lessons are accompanied by extensive background information and ready-to-use worksheets with information, questions and assignments.

Remedial education programs provide responsive and flexible learning support for students as they continue to attend regular public-school classes. Remedial education targets students for whom the regular education system is not the best fit, providing them with content and skills needed to succeed in formal education.

This remedial education handbook is for primary school teachers who are already working in school settings and who want to begin a remedial education program. This handbook is also useful for education personnel such as principals, administrators, and counselors, and can be used for teacher training. It was designed for teachers and education personnel working in Arabic-speaking contexts as a self-guided reference that can be used to design, implement, and improve remedial education classes. It was developed based on World Vision’s experiences facilitating a remedial education program in a specific context (Jordan). However, its contents are versatile and can be applicable in many other contexts where children live in vulnerable conditions and require academic support and protection.

This booklet will provide teachers with ideas and pedagogical approaches on how to teach about forced displacement and to use UNHCR's Teaching About Refugees teaching materials in their specific teaching context.