The PAL OpportunIty Issue 6August 2012

Created By: Vicki NoadEdited By: Steve Parton & Tamsyn Smith

Pal@bournemouth.ac.uk

Announcements . . . Congratulations for being selected as a PAL Leader for 2012-2013! This newsletter will be emailed out to you monthly and includes session ideas, news, and various opportunities for you and your PAL Group. This issue and previous issues of The PAL Opportunity are also accessible via myBU in PAL Central under ‘Session Ideas.’ Please feel free to let us know about ideas that have worked well for you. We appreciate any feedback that you would like to give us. Please email pal@bournemouth.ac.uk with details. The PAL Opportunity is created by The PAL Team, which coordinates PAL in the Business School, School of Tourism, School of Applied Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, and School of Design, Engineering, and Computing. Sue Court co-ordinates PAL in the Media School. Therefore, if you are a Media School PAL Leader, please bear in mind some of the announcements from PAL Central and some information in The PAL Opportunity may not be relevant to you. If you are a Media School PAL Leader and have any questions about PAL, please contact Sue Court by emailing scourt@bournemouth.ac.uk . We would also like to congratulate one of our 2011-2012 Psychology PAL Leaders, Lisa Marshall. Lisa carried the Olympic Torch on 5th July in Lowestoft, Suffolk. On the previous evening she was voted the NUS Endsleigh Student of the Year. Lisa commented,“I don’t think both achievements will ever sink in, I just try to live my life to the full and positively impact on as many other people as possible, to have the recognition for this is greatly appreciated but what motivates me most is helping individuals and watching them achieve their goals. I cannot put the feeling into words what it was like to carry the Olympic Torch - it was a true mixture of excitement, pride, anticipation and nervousness. It all went by like a dream and it didn’t feel like it was actually me carrying it.”

In thIs Issue . . .The PAL Leader Checklist................................................................................................... 3Example First PAL Session Plan......................................................................................... 4Your Contact Details: Add a Signature to your Email..................................................... 5Outlook Live: How to Forward your Uni Email.............................................................. 6PAL on facebook.................................................................................................................. 7PAL on myBU....................................................................................................................... 8 Plan Ahead for the Autumn Term..................................................................................... 9Working with Another PAL Leader................................................................................... 10Icebreakers............................................................................................................................ 11-12PG30a.................................................................................................................................... 13Advice from 2011-2012 PALs............................................................................................. 14

Share your ideas!

The best way to minimise your nerves about your 1st PAL Session is to get prepared. The checklist below should help you cover your bases.

The PAL Leader Checklist

I have been in touch with my PAL Course Contact and know which PAL Group I am leading

I have checked my PAL Group’s timetable and know where and when the 1st session is being held

I have completed my PAL Leader Profile on my PAL Course Community on myBU with a photo

I have posted an announcement on myBU/emailed my PAL Group to invite them to the 1st Session

I know what I think is most important to cover in the 1st session

I know how I am going to start the 1st session and how I am going to introduce myself and PAL

I know which icebreaker I believe is best to use

I know what I will do to ensure they understand the benefits of PAL

I have filled in my 1st session plan

I have discussed my 1st session with other PAL Leaders on my course

I have all the resources I need ready - including the register, anything I need for the icebreaker and a few campus maps in case someone asks for directions

I will arrive early to the room to change the layout if necessary, log into the computer, and turn on the projector

I will be relaxed because we are all students and they are probably more nervous than I am !

-If you don’t know the answer to one of their questions, or who to redirect them to, make a note of the question and check on it for next week

Share your ideas!

Date: Time: Location:

Aims of the session:

Preparation Before the Session:

Info from Course Contact?

Timing Activities

Introduction:

Ending the Session:

• WelcomestudentstoBournemouthUniversity;handoutregisterforstudentstosign• ExplainthatIamasecondyearstudentoftheircourse,andthatlastyearIwasin

thesameshoesasthem-sofeelfreetoaskmeanyquestionsaboutBU• ExplainwhereI’mfrom,whyIchosethecourse,andwhatmyfavouriteflavourof

icecreamis

• Askstudentstogetintopairswithsomeonetheyhaven’tmetbefore,andintroducethemselvestoeachother-includingwheretheyarefrom,whytheychosethecourse,andwhattheirfavouriteflavouroficecreamis

• AskonememberofthepairtointroducetheirpartnertothePALGroupbysayingtheirname,wheretheyarefrom,whytheychosethecourse,andfavouriteicecream

• BasedonwhattheynowknowaboutPAL,askstudentsindividuallytowritedown:3thingstheyseeasbenefitstoPAL;3thingsthatappealtothemaboutPAL;andanyquestionstheyhave.

• Aftertheyhavewrittenthesedown,askthemtosharetheirideaswithapartner(differentpartnerthanlasttime).

• GoaroundtheclassandaskeachpairtoshareonebenefitandoneappealingaspectofPAL.• Writetheseontheboard.Attempttoansweranyquestionsstudentsmighthave

aboutPAL.Ifyoucan’tanswerthem,makeanoteofthemandchckthemoutforthenextsession.

• Establishanygroundrules;askifanyonehasanyquestions• Askifanyonehasideasaboutwhattheywouldliketocoverinthenextsession• PutupmyemailaddressagainonlastslideofPowerPointandtellthemIlookforward

toworkingwiththemovertheyearandthattheycanemailmeanytime• Remindthemofthedate,time,andplacefornextPALSession• ThankeveryonefortheircontributionstotheirfirstPALSessionsaythatIlook

forwardtoseeingthemnextweek!

1st PAL Session Plan

e x a m p l e• TogettoknowmyPALGroupandforthemtogettoknoweachother• TosetexpectationsaboutPALfortherestoftheyearandmakethemawareofthebenefits• TogivestudentsanopportunitytoaskforadviceorinfoaboutBU,thelocalarea,accomodation,etc.• Tosetgroundrulesforfuturesessions

• DoublecheckLevelCTimetableformyPALGrouptoensureIhavethecorrectsessiontimeandroom• Gettoroomearlytomakesureprojectorandcomputerareworking;changelayoutofroomifnecessary• Bringtheregister,afewcampusmapsandnamelabelstosession

Thursday,4thOctober2012

11am-12pm DG02

IceBreaker

(15mins)

WhatisPAL?

(15mins)

‘Benefitsof

PAL’Activity

(15mins)

(10mins)

(5mins)

• Askstudentstothinkof3thingstheyareexcitedaboutrelatedtothecourseand3thingstheyarelookingforwardtoinstartingtheir1styearatuniandaskthemtosharethesewithadifferentpartner;andthenshareanddiscusswiththewholetable

• Goaroundclassandaskeachtabletosharetheirthoughtsandwritetheseontheboard• TrytoconnectwithsomeoftheirthoughtsandexplainhowPALhelpedmesettleintouni,

andmyexperienceofthecourseandPALlastyear• ExplainwhatPALisandshowPowerPointforvisualaid,explainmyroleasPALLeader,and

theirroleasstudents• ShowstudentstheirPALCourseCommunityonmyBU;Askifanyonehasanyquestions

• Email/meetwithCourseContactaweekbeforefirstPALSession

Share your ideas!

add a sIgnature to your emaIl! As a PAL Leader, you are a member of the university staff, and it is highly recommended you create and add a signature to your email. Signatures allow you and other members of staff and students to communicate more easily.

• It saves you having to type the same things at the bottom of every email;

• It clearly shows who the email is from and how to contact you;

• You will probably use your university email account to contact placements/potential employers – it shows them that you are a competent user of IT as well as presenting your message professionally;

• Adding links to any professional

profiles you have will increase your networking potential.

You may choose to have several signatures that you use for different audiences, but essentially your university email signature should include your full name, your email address, the programme you’re on, the seminar group you’re in, and which PAL group you lead. It may also be helpful to include details of the PAL group you’re leading (such as the date, time and where and when you meet) when sending emails to your PAL group. You may also wish to provide links to any professional profiles you may have, such as your e-portfolio, your Linked In

profile, or your website (or you may like to put a link to the PAL website or BU website).

Log into your email and select ‘Options’ at the top right of the screen, and then ‘See all options.’ Select ‘Settings’ on the panel to your left, and by default ‘Mail’ will appear with your Email Signature Box. Type your signature in the text box and then click ‘Save’ at the bottom right of the screen. You can also chose whether you would like your signature to appear autmatically, by clicking the box below. If you do not chose this option, you will have to click on the ‘pen and pad’ icon to include your signature when composing a new message, as shown below.

Why add a sIgnature to my emaIl?

What should my sIgnature say?! How do I add a

sIgnature to my emaIl?

Share your ideas!

OutlOOk l i ve - hOw tO

FOrward yOur un i ema il

You, or someone in your PAL Group, may wish to forward your Outlook Live (university) email to another account. We do not recommend doing this, because if your other email account is unavailable or becomes full you may miss important messages from the university and we cannot provide any support or retrieve your emails if something goes wrong. However, you may feel that this may be a more convenient way of accessing emails sent to your account. To forward your Outlook Live email to another email account, please follow these instructions:

1. Sign-in to you university email (Outlook live) account.

2. In the upper-right corner of the Outlook Live inbox click Options, and then Create an Inbox Rule from the drop down menu.

3. Select New, then Create a new rule for arriving messages.

4. In the new Inbox Rule window, choose to:• Apply the rule to all messages• Redirect the message to your desired

address

5. If you don’t wish for a copy to be kept in your mailbox, choose Delete the message

6. After saving the rule you should see it listed in the rules along with a description describing what it will do

Any queries please phone the Service Desk 01202 965515

Share your ideas!

PAL on facebook

PAL Leaders 2012-2013 facebook group

http://www.facebook.com/BournemouthUniversityPAL

http://www.facebook.com/groups/PAL.BU/

We have launched a facebook page called ‘Bournemouth University Peer Assisted Learning,’ which is open to everyone, including incoming freshers who may be searching facebook soon for Bournemouth University related pages. If you haven’t already done so, please check out this page!

We have also set up a closed group that will be only for PAL Leaders. It is called BU PAL Leaders 2012-2013. Please add yourself to this group and we will accept you – otherwise it would be super difficult for us to find and add all of you! We are hoping that this will be a convenient way to keep PAL Leaders in touch so that you can all share your ideas! Please feel free to post any questions, advice, and experiences on here – the more ideas we can all share the better! Links to the PAL Facebook Page and PAL Leader Facebook Group are also available in PAL Central. If you can’t find either of these, or if you have any questions, please let us know. If you don’t use facebook, don’t worry – info, resources, and support will continue to be emailed out and posted on PAL Central via myBU.

Share your ideas!

PAL Central

your PAL Course/programme CommunIty

CommunIcatIon & Resources AvaIlable vIa

Your programme PAL Community is accessible by all first year students and PAL Leaders on your course/programme - programme staff cannot access it. This is your community to manage and edit. Ensure you have completed your PAL Leader Profile with a photo, and make the most of your community by:

• Posting announcements for your PAL Group• Emailing members of your PAL Group, all first

years on your course/prgramme, and/or other PAL Leaders on your course/programme

• Posting resources and links for your PAL Group• Posting questions on the Disscussion Board

If you have any questions about how to manage your community, please see the ‘Using myBU’ section in PAL Central via myBU.

This community is aimed at PAL Leaders and Course Contacts and includes various resources for PAL Leaders. There are lots of session ideas and other relevant resources available on here for you to use - please make the most of them!

PAL EssentIals• Your job description

and all employment documents

• Your Pay Claim form

• PAL register • PAL Session Plan

and Review Sheets• Follow Up Training:

Sign up for these sessions to help you develop your skills as a PAL Leader, and/or as a student yourself

Contacts• List of Course

Contacts, Schools’ Admin, and contact details

• Your contact details• SUBU, ALS, &

Cultural Awareness• Careers &

Placements• Questions about

PAL

UsIng myBU• How to manage

and edit your PAL Course/Programme Community

• myBU tips

• How to use a projector

SessIon Ideas• Icebreakers• Preparing for

Assignments• Presentation

Practice• Referencing

Activities• Preparing for exams

Share your ideas!

Despite the fact that it is up to your PAL Group to decide what they want to cover in each session, they may not have suggestions or be aware of what would be helpful to cover. To help you plan ahead, think back to what you thought was relevant to cover at certain points in the first term and also check out the Level C Assignment Calendar via your school’s tab on myBU. This will give you an idea of what assignments they have coming up, and when they are due. You may find out that they have an assignment due in at the end of November, therefore it would be relevant to go through a referencing activity with your group to ensure they are confident with the BU Harvard Referencing system and what is expected of their citations.

Or you may discover they have 3 assignments due in December, in which case it will be relevant to start going over the topics ahead of time to avoid last minute cramming. Additionally, don’t forget you will have access to their Level C units

in myBU, so you will be able to see some of the content that is being delivered to them by their lecturers. Briefly reviewing these may help you form questions to get discussions going about how the content relates to their assignments. Furthermore, you may wish to email or meet up with your PAL Course Contact to gain any ideas they might have for sessions or what topics will be relevant to cover in certain weeks. One of the most important concepts of PAL is that the sessions are student led, e.g. the students agree on what to cover. However, it may be helpful to create an outline for the term as a back-up. If no one in your PAL Group has any idea about what they would like to cover in the following week(s), you will then be able to make relevant suggestions that they may agree will be helpful to cover. Below is the BU academic calendar and examples of relevant topics to suggest if students do not have any of their own ideas as to what they would like to cover.

plan ahead for the autumn term 2 4 S e p t e m b e r - 1 4 D e c e m b e r

Share your ideas!

Each school decides independently whether PAL Sessions are conducted by two PAL Leaders working together or an individual PAL Leader facilitating on their own. Some of you will be leading PAL Sessions on your own. However, many of you will be leading the sessions in cooperation with another PAL Leader. Leading your sessions with a co-PAL Leader has many advantages, including:• One of you can fill in if the other has a mind blank• One of you can add in anything the other may not have

mentioned• You can bounce ideas off of each other• There is more time to monitor the students’ progress while the

other is facilitating• You can give each other feedback about what has been working

well and how each of you can improve• You can learn a lot when observing your co-PAL Leader lead

the group • Working cooperatively is a transferrable skill employers seek

You may know who your co-PAL Leader is, or if not, you will be notified by your Course Contact before the start of term. Your co-PAL Leader may be your best friend and you feel confident that the two of you will be able to lead the sessions seamlessly . . . or maybe you’re worried because you don’t even know your co-PAL Leader? Or maybe you’re worried about the flow of the session because you and your co-PAL Leader are complete opposites? Whatever your situation is, there will always been a few differences between the two of you. But even if you know the two of you have completely different personalities, there is no need to worry. It is the differences that will enable both of you to support everyone in the group, and make your PAL Sessions more interesting. In fact, in last year’s PAL Evaluation, the advantages of having two PAL Leaders were highlighted by a first year student, “I think you learn more from the two, because we had two very very different personalities, one was a lot stronger, and a lot more academic than the other one, but they both had very valuable stuff to give us.” She concluded that “...two very similar characters aren’t going to give a group as much as two different characters will give.” Leading sessions with another PAL Leader may be challenging at first, but many of last year’s PAL Leaders said the friendship with their co-PAL Leader was the best unexpected benefit they gained from the role. Overall, whether your co-PAL Leader is your best friend or an acquaintance, the key to co-leading PAL Sessions effectively is communication. You have to talk to each other – be honest and accept each other’s differences from the beginning. If you disagree about something, you must talk about it as early as possible before the session, keeping in mind that you share the same goal – to facilitate productive sessions for your PAL Group. This should ensure that the two of you do not have a disagreement about the information one of you is delivering in front of your PAL Group, as this may lead to awkwardness and distrust from your PAL Group. You and your co-PAL Leader should both be equally involved in planning, facilitating, and monitoring the progress of all students in your PAL Groups.

There are different ways of co-leading that can be discussed in

advance so that no one feels that the other has taken over or that your toes are being stepped on. You may feel that the two of you work together best by facilitating each activity in turn during the session. You may also find that, depending on each of your strengths and weaknesses, you may wish to alternate who is the main facilitator for each PAL Session based on who is most confident about the topic. Furthermore, your group may want to cover 2 different topics in the same PAL Session, in which case one of you can facilitate one group as your co-PAL Leader facilitates the other. Towards the end of the session, you can ask each group to feedback a summary of what they discussed to everyone. The more flexible you can be by switching up who is facilitating the session, the more interesting it will be for your PAL Group. Just beware that the two of you don’t talk too much, as this may cause a lack of student interaction in the discussion.

Just because you don’t have a designated co-PAL Leader doesn’t mean you can’t benefit from the advantages of co-leading. You may wish to invite another PAL Leader from your course to join you in leading your PAL Session for support. If this is not convenient, then you and a PAL Leader from your course* may work together when planning sessions but not necessarily lead sessions together. This way, you can share ideas and discuss session plans with another PAL Leader, but run your own sessions individually with your own groups. Then afterwards, you can meet to discuss what worked well and how you can both improve while you plan the following week’s session. It may also be a good idea to combine your group with another PAL Leader’s group for socials or for certain PAL Sessions (especially if you know attendance may be low during a particular week). This would give students in your PAL Group an opportunity to discuss ideas with others in their course outside their PAL Group and would give you a chance to try co-leading the PAL Groups.

*If you are the only PAL Leader for your course, you may wish to work with a PAL Leader on a course with similar first year units or with a similar framework

W o r k I n g w I t h a n o t h e r P A L L e a d e r

W h a t I f I a m t h e o n l y P A L L e a d e r f o r m y g r o u p ?

Share your ideas!

As a PAL Leader, you should make sure your first PAL Session and any ice breakers are remembered for the right reasons – as a fun start to a great opportunity and not a recipe for disaster! Ice Breakers can be an effective way of starting your first PAL Session. Icebreakers are interactive and fun – as they may help students get to know each other and better understand the purpose of the PAL. If an ice breaker session is well-designed and well-facilitated, it can really help get things off to a good start. By getting to know each other, getting to know you as a PAL Leader, and learning about what PAL is, students can become more engaged in the rest of the session and are likely to contribute more effectively during future PAL Sessions. But have you ever been to an event when the ice breaker session went badly? A bad ice breaker is at best simply a waste of time – or worse an embarrassment for everyone involved! Just as a good ice breaker and first session can smooth the path for future productive and enjoyable PAL Sessions, a bad ice breaker may deter some students from attending again. As a PAL Leader, the secret to a successful

icebreaker is to keep it simple by creating an icebreaker with specific objectives in mind and by making sure the icebreaker is appropriate and comfortable for everyone involved.

When designing your ice breaker, think about the “ice” that needs to be broken.

Students in your PAL Groups:• May come from

different backgrounds and vary in age;

• Are a newly formed group (that may or may not have met);

• May or may not have met you

• May find the topics you are talking about and/or the concept of PAL to be new or unfamiliar

As the PAL Leader, you need to get to know participants and allow them to get to know you too! It is important to treat these differences sensitively. Focus on what’s important for your PAL Sessions, and make sure the activity is appropriate for everyone involved. (Remember, you want to break some ice for your first PAL Session, no need to uncover the whole iceberg!). Additionally,

when planning your icebreaker and facilitating it during your first session, it’s always best to focus on what students in the group have in common (rather than differences). You may be able to tell in the first few minutes of your first PAL Session whether many in your PAL Group seem to know each other already or have not met before. However, you may not know this before planning your icebreaker, so it is best to keep this in mind. Either way, you may not have met all of them before and there are bound to be some in the group who haven’t met each other. Once you have established what the ‘ice’ is, the next step is to clarify the specific objectives for your ice breaker and first PAL Session. For example, for your first PAL Session, the objectives might be: “To establish a productive and comfortable learning environment with

good participation from everyone involved.”

To help you reach your aim, ask yourself how you will meet some of your objectives:

1. How will you create a common sense of purpose?

2. How will you establish a level playing field for students with different backgrounds?

3. What kind of icebreaker will allow everyone to feel comfortable when contributing?

4. How do you think the students will react to the icebreaker?

5. Will they feel the icebreaker is appropriate and worth their time?

For ice breaker ideas and examples, please see below and check out PAL Central via myBU under ‘Session Ideas.’

Ice Breakers!

So what is the ‘ Ice ’ ?

* Remembered for the rIght reasons *

Share your ideas!

Mingle(Group)

Prep: Word document is available on PAL Central in Icebreakers folder under ‘Session Ideas’ section; can be edited if you wish! This is a ‘Human Bingo’ activity with 20 spaces of various criteria. Each student receives a copy of this grid and will need to move around the room collecting signatures of those who meet the criteria (each box must have a different person’s signature unless the group is smaller than 20 people). The first person to complete the whole grid wins. This word document is available on PAL Central under the Icebreakers folder under the ‘Session Ideas’ section, and it can be edited if you wish to better suit your group.

3 Truths AND a Lie(Individual -> Group)

Ask each student to introduce themselves and make 4 statements about themselves, one of which is false (it may be easiest if you give them a couple minutes to write down their statements - this way they can read them out). You can join in yourself and provide them with an example by going

first. Now ask the rest of the group to vote on which fact is false. As well as getting to know each other as individuals, this ice breaker helps to start interaction within the group. This may also work well even if students have already met each other before PAL, as there are always a few unknown facts students can come up with.

The More the Merrier (Group)

Prep: You need to bring a bag of small sweets to the PAL session - e.g. M&M’s, starbursts, skittles, Maoams, Haribo, etc. Inform your PAL Group that you are all going to play a little game - but first each person must grab some sweets from the bag - as many as they wish - but they can’t eat them yet. Once everyone has a few sweets, ask each person to share a piece of information about themselves for as many sweets as they grabbed . . . so the shy people who took only one sweet are lucky, and the outgoing individuals who gabbed a handful get to share lots!

Getting to Know You(Pair -> Group)

Ask students to get into pairs and tell each other 5 things about themselves

among which they must include something unusual and something they would like to be remembered for. This could be where they live, their favourite book or drink, a strange experience - anything. When it seems conversation is drifting away, get the attention of the group as a whole, and get each person to say as much as they can remember about the person they have been talking to.

Grandmother’s Suitcase(Group)

Seat people in a circle and explain you are going to play a memory game. Ask the first person to say their name, their favourite and least favourite thing. Then move to the second person, who must repeat the name, favourite, and least favourite things of the first person, and then say their own (e.g. ‘This is Tamsyn, she loves karate and hates coffee. I’m Vicki, I love motorcycle riding and hate mayonnaise’). This goes on around the circle, getting more difficult as the number of people increases. You can finish by asking the first person to say the names of everyone in the group, and attempting this yourself :-)

Hi! My name is Tommy. I worked at the Olympic Games over the summer (true); I won £10 from the lottery last week (false))); I went to Reading Festival last year (true)); and I have been scuba diving in the Cayman Islands . . . (true) Can anyone guess which one is the lie . . . ?

Icebreaker Ideas!Aim: To acquaint people with one another

Use: 1st and/or 2nd PAL SessionTime Needed: Depends on group size, approx. 15 mins

Share your ideas!

Need to book a room for your PAL session or club/society meeting? Book PG30a! It is located down the hall opposite of reception in Poole House, Talbot Campus.

This is room is ideal for group work. PG30a has a computer with a projector screen, 28 chairs, 6 tables, and 8 white boards.

If you would like to book this room for a PAL Session, please email pal@bournemouth.ac.uk, or for a meeting, please email sca@bournemouth.ac.uk

Share your ideas!

“Go with the flow; if the students head off in one direction, go with it”“Plan your sessions and always have a back-up plan”“To enjoy it and put all your effort into it as you will gain more from it.”“Go for it! If you have a placement year employers love it too!”“Start as you mean to go on, the 1st and 2nd sessions are crucial, if you don’t get their respect then you never will and attendance will fall and it will become a waste of both your times ”“Try it out-it’ll help you get a great deal of confidence :3 ”“Go for it! It’s a great experience, in terms of skills you learn, interacting with first years, and gaining really valuable experience for your CV / professional portfolio.”“Be patient and give up your time because it’s worth it!”“Encourage social events”“It’s not as intimidating as it seems! Very beneficial in improving skills needed in placement and future work, e.g. communication skills, self management/organisation etc.”“Plan before sessions”“Don’t prepare too much as mostly

students needs varied week to week so your session is likely to change.”“Getting help, support and even advice from other PAL leaders and members of staff. Whether good or bad it’s always easy to improve and have a critical outlook on your leadership skills ”“Don’t let the problems and concerns of the first year interfere with your second year studies.”“You have to be very organised and plan sessions well in advance.”“Plan sessions but prepare for flexibility”“Make sure as well as being friendly and having fun with your group you are strict enough to gain respect.”“To focus on what their group want to focus on and not just focus on the weekly topic. This will make sure the group feel engaged.”“To get stuck in, the better you get to know your PAL group the more you and they will gain from it.”“Be prepared”“Relax, enjoy it and be as friendly as you can to make your group at ease straight away.”“Be careful not to be overly informal as they will not take you seriously.”“Don’t combine your assigned groups with a friend and do it together, they’ll let you down and you’ll end up doing all the work.”“Over plan for sessions, as you need to give options to the students to ensure you cover what they want to do, to keep them interested.”“Go for it, it really helps to reinforce past work and it’s not hard just be confident ”“To try and create a nice group/team environment where students can share, as well as keeping it light and a comfortable place to be.”

“Ensure you are prepared each session with clear aims of what you want to achieve by the end of the session. However, you must also ensure you are flexible to your structure.”“Be yourself and don’t try to be a teacher just be a friend ”“Be ready to do a bit of extra work on top of your studies to prepare for everything unforeseeable as lessons don’t always go as planned! And be confident. Get to know your students’ names and what they are like which makes it much less scary.”“Plan for success.”“Be yourself ”“Organisation is key. It’s not possible to just go into a session unprepared because the students pick up on it and it will get noticed.”“To use the plan and reflection templates provided, planning ahead helped when the class had run out of ideas and reflecting helped to improve week upon week. To let the class run the session, it is important not to teach or lecture them (they have enough of that!) but to advise them.”“Give it your all cos you get out of it as much as you put in!”“Structure sessions around your groups, see what they want to know and go from there, don’t bore them with stuff that they might not need at that point in time.”“Keep in mind what you want PAL to be and always make it an inclusive experience ”“Structure your time to make sure you have back up session plan ideas just in case your original plan falls through on the day.”“Just be friendly and smile, and more often than not listening to someone is exactly what they need.”

AdvIce from last year’s PAL Leaders When PAL Leaders of 2011-2012 were asked ‘What advice would you offer to potential PAL Leaders?’ this is what they said . . .

Share your ideas!