Articles

Retrieval practice and spaced practice

During my first post, I outline some of the many benefits of retrieval practice and why it should be used regularly in lessons to enhance students’ learning. In this post, I am going to discuss the importance of spacing out retrieval and how this supports memory retention. Building schema … Read More

Q&A with Poppy O’Neill, author of ‘Hello Feelings’

Why this book? I think the key to emotional wellbeing is feeling comfortable with our emotions. On top of difficult emotions themselves – like fear or sadness – many of us also feel anxious about feeling these emotions: whether it’s OK to feel them, whether we can talk about or… Read More

Demystifying the primary music curriculum

There’s a lot going on in music education right now! For primary non-specialist teachers keeping up with all the reports, acronyms and edu-jargon can seem like an overwhelming task. In this blog, we will unpick some of the latest developments in the primary music curriculum and find out what teachers… Read More

Beyond the traditional boycott narrative – time for change, action not words

In December 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat when asked. All the other Black people on the bus complied but she did not. The image of a quiet respectable old lady sits comfortably in the collective popular imagination of the civil rights movement. This simple narrative… Read More

Global history broadens horizons

Laura Aitken-Burt, co-author of Knowing History second edition, explains the importance of teaching global history to your students, and how you can integrate this into your KS3 curriculum. Why is it crucial that all students learn about global history? History should be about broadening horizons, widening perspectives and giving… Read More

Books Like Us

I remember visiting the library in Doncaster when I was nine. One time, I spotted something surprising peeping out from a low shelf. ‘Johnny and the Bomb’ by Terry Pratchett. There it was – Johnny! My name! What stuck with me more than the story itself was the euphoria of… Read More

Using Complete Revision and Practice as a GCSE course companion

Who is your worst critic? Well, for me, it is my daughter Annie. She is exactly the target audience for the Collins Complete Revision & Practice series; I was lucky to be commissioned to work on the series. Last August, I had the excitement to re-draft the print edition of… Read More

How to develop brilliant reading at KS3

Reading is in vogue at the moment – and rightly so! Several factors have raised the priority of reading in schools. The number of students reading at home has slowly dwindled as the number of distractions has dramatically increased. Alongside this, the GCSE changes have also increased KS3 reading demand… Read More

How to develop brilliant reading at KS3

Reading is in vogue at the moment – and rightly so! Several factors have raised the priority of reading in schools. The number of students reading at home has slowly dwindled as the number of distractions has dramatically increased. Alongside this, the GCSE changes have also increased KS3 reading demand… Read More

How Snap Science can support you in delivering primary science

As you may be aware, Ofsted published a research review into high-quality science education. It has generated discussion between primary science educators, introduced some new terminology and stimulated reflection on current practice. Ofsted also draws upon its research review when it inspects schools. For all these reasons, it is important… Read More