Teaching

Teach GCSE Writing through Grammar

Spelling, punctuation and grammar is on the agenda again. Not only do our key stage 2 students have to sit the controversial ‘grammar tests’, but most subjects now need to award marks for SPG at GCSE level. So, we need to help our… Read More

Lesson ideas to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday

In April, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 90th birthday and whilst many who reach that age like to reminisce about their lives, the whole country did just that on the queen’s special day with plenty of documentaries showing the life of our monarch in detail. The celebrations are sure to… Read More

Kloodle: Students and Employability

I recently blogged about a “teachmeet’ event that I attended in Manchester and one of the things I was introduced to here was Kloodle; I felt that this needed a blog of its own. One of the biggest challenges for today’s graduates is making themselves… Read More

GCSE Science Festival 2016: Round-Up

From the 11th – 14th April, Collins hosted the first virtual GCSE Science Festival. A week packed with expert insight, invaluable advice, resources – even a Twitter chat about the new GCSE Science curriculum. #Scifest16 was launched with a new blog post on Freedom to Teach,… Read More

How to…prepare for the new times tables test

In January, the UK Government announced plans to test every pupil in England on their times tables before leaving primary school. An effective way to prepare pupils for the new times tables tests is by using the new Collins' Times Tables Simulator Read More

Shakespeare Teaching Ideas for Key Stage 2

The result at Collins are five plays: The Tempest, Midsummer’s Night Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and Twelfth Night, rewritten in story form for younger readers. These are a great introduction to the world of Shakespeare but how can we use them effectively to help pupils immerse themselves in the rich language of Shakespeare’s world? Read More

Getting the Most from Group Work

On a recent TeachMeet training course at Manchester College, I was lucky enough to watch some great speakers looking at things such as Going Google, using Kloodle (more on this in a later blog) and raising attainment strategies. One of the other topics covered was a recap ways of how… Read More

Business News Quiz – 21.03.16

1) Chancellor George Osborne has unveiled a tax on the makers of what products to tackle childhood obesity? Chips Crisps Chocolate Soft drinks 2) The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has changed its economic growth forecast (GDP) for 2016 from 2.4% to what rate? 2.5% 3% 2% 1.5% 3) Which tax… Read More

Chemical Anniversaries: 1766 – John Dalton and the Atom

John Dalton was born two hundred and fifty years ago. During his lifetime he saw many changes to chemistry, many the result of his own work. His contributions are an important part of school science today. John was born in the village of Eaglesfield, Cumbria in north-west England,… Read More