If you have been on Topmarks this morning you may have experienced a few issues with download speeds. If this is the case I must apologise, but our server has been creaking under the pressure of massive traffic on account of it being Chinese New Year today.

The good news is that we have been working feverishly to optimise the site to improve the situation. The last thing we want to do is let people down. We know how important it is to you to have the resources on-hand when you need them. Thank you for your patience.

Chinese New Year Resources

At present one of the busiest site areas is our Chinese New Year section as many schools use this for reference for this popular topic. This year we have added further resources, namely video footage of the Dragon Dance and Lion Dance to add to our existing information about these traditions.

We have also designed a simple to make Ox, as the Year of the Ox commences on 26 January. It consists of a photocopiable template which you can download for your pupils to colour, cut out and assemble. There are accompanying instructions. In addition we have added a table of future Chinese New Year dates.

In case you haven't see our Chinese New Year resources they include information on the festival such as the traditions and customs of the festival and the story of the Chinese Zodiac. We also have an accurate calculator for discovering what zodiac animal year you were born in and the features associated with each animal sign. Many websites just stipulate a table of years and since Chinese New Year follows a Lunar rather than Gregorian calendar these are not always accurate for people with January or February birthdays.

Additions to Our Search Engine

As usual we have been adding lots of sites to our search engine and our interactive whiteboard pages.

Early Years - Foundation Stage, Ages 3 - 5

Cookery Quiz Baked Potato
The site goes through a sequence of instructions for making a baked potato with baked beans and cheese. Children need to listen carefully to each question and click on the pictures to choose the required things.

Shopping Time
Here the pupils listen to the questions and see if they know what to buy in different shops. The game works well on an interactive whiteboard.

Maths - Early Years, KS1, P1 - P3, Ages 5 - 7

Number Bonds
A super activity for finding number bonds of the numbers up to 10. It is great for investigating different number bonds and works well on an interactive whiteboard.

Number Sequences 2
Drag and drop the numbers in the gaps to order the numbers 1 to 10. There are mixed examples so some sequences of numbers go down.

Maths - KS1, KS2, P3 - P5 Ages 7 - 9

Dino Dig
A game where pupils are archaeologists searching for dinosaur bones. They have to use the grid to put in the coordinates to see where to dig. The game works well on an interactive whiteboard.

Maths - KS3, S1 - S3, Ages 11 - 13

Order of Operations
A useful interactive resource which can help your students to understand the order of operations in maths. It shows teaching strategies, solutions, print activities and rewards the user with a game to play.

English - KS1 KS2, P2 - P5, Ages 6 - 9

The Owl and the Pussycat
The website has an animation of the nonsense poem by Edward Lear. Listen to or read the poem or try one of the interactive activities which go with it.

Science/Environment/Geography - KS3 KS4, S1-S5, Ages 11 - 16

Clean Energy
The BMW Education Programme CleanEnergy resource is aimed at 12+ year old students and their teachers, CleanEnergy explores the issues relating to current and future energy sources. It has useful interactive whiteboard activities.

Look out for more new additions next month in my Best of January post.

Christmas Resources

As Christmas is almost upon us, Topmarks Christmas pages have been bustling with traffic. This year we have added instructions for making four new Christmas Cards designs that you could try in the classroom and a new page, featuring Christmas games and Advent Calendars for young children, which is proving to be one of the busiest on Topmarks already!

Parents' Articles

We have added two new parents' articles, 'Learning through Cooking' and 'Choosing a Primary or Secondary School'. We explain the many beneficial learning experiences that cooking activities provide, including developing mathematical vocabulary and give guidance to parents on how they can promote their child's learning. Early years practioners may like to tell parents about this.

Additions to Our Search Engine

As usual we have been adding lots of sites to our search engine and our interactive whiteboard pages. There are too many for me to mention here but I have selected some of my favourites from the latest additions to tell you about.

Early Years - Ages 3 - 6

Mr Tumble and the Minibeasts
A CBeebies story on the theme of minibeasts. Children need to help the character Mr Tumble on his way to find his missing juggling ball. By clicking on the minibeasts children can hear familiar songs. This is a delightful, animated story includes Makaton signs.

Maths - Key Stage 1, P2 - P3, Ages 6 - 7

Shark Numbers
A tens and units maths game. Children need to count carefully otherwise the shark will bite their boat.

Maths Key Stages 2, P6 - P7 Ages 9 - 11

Little Ernie's Daily Maths Tasks
Here you can create unlimited printable daily maths tasks for your pupils. Select the topics you want to cover, print it off and photocopy for your class. Good for SATs revision too.

Maths KS3, S1 - S2, Ages 11 - 12

Addition and Subtraction of Integers
Do your pupils have trouble with addition and subtraction of integers especially involving positive and negative numbers? This site will allow them to visually understand the concepts that are in place behind the scenes. It works well on an interactive whiteboard.

English KS3 KS4, S1-S5, Ages 11 - 16

Short Story
An animated, interactive teaching unit which looks at the elements of a short story and then provides a breakdown of three popular short stories. Students and teachers can use all or part of the resource. Includes teachers' notes.

English - Key Stage 3, S1- S3, Ages 11 - 14

What is a Clause?
This interactive animated tutorial explains the difference between independent and dependent clauses. There are activities where pupils need to identify types of clauses and to make sentences involving clauses. It is suitable for use on an interactive whiteboard.

Biology/Science - Key Stage 2, P4 - P7, Ages 8 - 11

Parts of a Flower and Pollination Activity
An animated matching activity about the parts of a flower which has a narrated explanation and a drag and drop matching activity. It also illustrates the pollination process.

Physics/Science - Key Stage 2, P3 - P7, Ages 7 - 11

Light and Shadows
A series of animations showing how light and shadows behave. A useful teaching aid particularly on an interactive whiteboard. It has teachers' notes.

Look out for more new additions next month in my Best of December post.