'Care vocabulary' tutor notes

This module is designed specifically to help adults who are studying to improve their basic skills in the workplace. However, we very much hope that any adult who has care responsibilities will find this material useful and engaging.

The primary aim of the module is to enable learners to 'spell correctly words used most often in work and daily life', but the exercises within this module cover a multitude of other Level 1 curriculum points (please see below).

Other areas on the site which particularly link in with some of the learning points covered in this module are:
'Root words'
'Prefixes'
'Suffixes'
'Look, Say, Cover, Write and Check'

How does this tie in with the curriculums?

• England
  Ww/L1.1 - 'spell correctly words used most often in work, studies and daily life'.
  Rw/L1.3 - 'recognise and understand an increasing range of vocabulary'.
  Also -
  Wt/L1.6 / Ws/L1.1 / Ww/L1.2 / Rw/L1.1/
• Wales
  As England.
• Northern Ireland
  As England.
• Scotland
  See www.aloscotland.com for details of the Scottish curriculum.

In the Skillswise module you'll find:

Care is a very broad work area, covering nursing, elderly care and the institutional care of the young and disabled. This module tries to offer something for all of these areas, but its main contextual focus is the care of the elderly in residential care homes.

Care vocabulary factsheets
There are four factsheets in this module. Two are simply word lists, while the third one offers some hints and tips on ways to remember spellings.
The fourth worksheet looks at mnemonics, what they are and how to use them. If your learners would like to contribute their mnemonics for care words, please ask them to email their tips to skillswise.feedback@bbc.co.uk

Care vocabulary crossword
This is an interactive crossword that sits within the game page.

Care 'Look, say, cover, write and check' game
This is an interactive variation on the 'Look, say, cover, write and check' method. Learners can choose a care word list and then see different objects come out to cover the words. There are 3 attempts to get the word right before the next word will appear. This adds more of a game quality and challenge to the activity.
NB: 'People's Choice' will have care-themed word lists suggested by students via our messageboard or emails - so encourage your students to put together a list of 10 care words and send it in.

Care vocabulary quiz
A three level quiz for learners to test their understanding of care vocabulary. Level A is the easiest and level C the hardest.

There is a system in place that allows students to print out a certificate if they score 50% or over in the quiz. This appears as a link on the results page - click on the link and the certificate will appear in a new window. Students can write their name on the certificate once it is printed.

Care vocabulary worksheets
Here you'll find 13 printable exercises for further practice. There are several worksheets that look at the history of care words and how being aware of word origins can help you to remember spellings. There are also worksheets on phonics, proofreading, writing your own sentences, putting things in alphabetical order and working with dictionaries.

If you have any comments on these worksheets, or if you would like to contribute a worksheet of your own, please do get in touch at skillswise.feedback@bbc.co.uk

Technical help:

To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug-ins':

• Flash
  The game in this module uses the Flash browser plug-in. This is free to download and should only take a few minutes. You can follow the BBC WebWise instructions to download it to your machine.
  Find out more.
  If you don't have Flash the same learning points are covered in the quiz and in the worksheets and factsheets.

If you are new to the web, why not try the BBC WebWise online course, Becoming WebWise? It's free, you can do it in your own time from any computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the web successfully in your teaching.
Find out more about WebWise.

You can find out more about the technical requirements for Skillswise in our Help - Technical Information section.

Taking it further:

With Skillswise:
Don't forget to check out the Skillswise Lesson plans and Teaching inspirations areas for more ideas about teaching vocabulary and care.
If you have any worksheets or ideas about teaching care vocabulary, or any of the other work areas, don't forget to share! Just email us at skillswise.feedback@bbc.co.uk

On the web:
If you know of any great online resources, please do let us know at: skillswise.feedback@bbc.co.uk
We can, however, offer you a range of links that should provide you with a wealth of care related materials you can adapt and use in class.

• dfes NVQ Mappings
  An effort to ensure basic skills standards reflect the range of skills and knowledge required by workers to perform the occupational tasks.
   
• ENTO
  ENTO provide information, advice, guidance and support for those who use their National Occupational Standards.
   
• NHSU
  Provides access to relevant materials, including case studies, details of jobs within the NHS, press releases and details of the Agenda for Change within the NHS.
   
• Guide2Care
  An on-line resource centre for those working in care sector. Information on medical conditions, care standards, regularly updated relevant news items and downloadable policy documents.
   
• Action on elder abuse
  An on-line resource for those working with the elderly. News reports, articles and links to other useful sites.
   
• Connects
  The Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Portal.
   
• English for nursing
  Elsevier is a commercial UK publisher of health and science books, but their website includes whole book chapters that you can read for free. There are two relevant publications, designed specifically to help foreign nurses learn the English they will need to work in UK hospitals. The first of these involves a whole series of exercises built around a lady who has diabetes and includes a patient admission form and care plan. The second is built around record keeping and written communication and includes blank examples of an observation chart and a fluid balance chart.
   
  Note that you will need the free Adobe Acrobat software on your machine to view these PDF documents.
   
• Health over 50
  Whether you are elderly yourself or looking after someone who is - there is an wealth of advice and information on this BBC site. You can find out what causes arthritis and what to do about it.
   
• Working in social care
  This government website is run by the Department of Health. It is designed to encourage people into a career in social care and includes a search facility for jobs throughout England, a links page and videos of care workers talking about their jobs.
  For similar information in Northern Ireland contact http://www.niscc.info/intro.htm
  For information in Wales visit http://www.ccwales.org.uk/
   
• Support site for carers
  This is another government website designed to support carers. There is a comprehensive information section and a good links page. There's also a discussion forum.
   
• Help the Aged
  The website for a well-known charity that campaigns on behalf of the elderly across the UK. It includes information about money and how to pay for care, access to their advice leaflets on issues such as bereavement and shingles, and an online shop for things like walking aids and continence care.
   
• Alzheimer's Society
  This is a great resource for information about dementia, from the facts and diagnosis to how to care for someone who has dementia.
   
• Royal College of Nursing
  There is a lot of text on this site and the font is rather small, but there is plenty of useful information you could print off and adapt. You'll find forums for nurses working with elderly patients, details of career paths and how to become a nurse.
   

Please note that the BBC is not responsible for the content of other websites.

Do you know of any great online resources for practising care vocabulary? Tell us about them!