In lockdown I’ve tried to live by the mantra everything you do now, try to make sure it is of use when “normality” returns. With this in mind I have been going through the Biology SLOP booklets and made some changes to the originals Some changes that have been made are: Proof reading Slight reduction…
Setting students: What do we mean by ‘that bottom set feeling’?
There has been a recent discussion around the setting, or streaming, of students on twitter. This tweet by Dylan Wiliam seems to give a slight nudge towards mixed ability favouring less able students. Some people are very much in favour of sets. The use of rank order as a tool to make the setting process…
KS3 Mastery booklets
Below are links to download the majority of our KS3 booklets we used this year. These were incredibly helpful in supporting non-specialist teachers, disadvantaged students and improving the amount of reading in science lessons. They are varied in nature as they were written by a wide range of staff and also show a progression in…
COVID-19 response plan part 3: Mass bereavement policy amendment
This is hopefully the final post I will make in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Part 1 on creating a temperature screening protocol from existing school supplies is here Part 2 on maintaining social distancing within a lock-down school setting is here This is the post I hope you never need to use. In times…
Creating a safe space of the children of key-workers part 2: Promoting social distancing within the school
This is the second part of a blog that focuses on the issues involved with protecting the children of key-workers and suggests some possible solutions. Part 1 which is focused on temperature screening all building occupants on a daily basis. This section shares some of the decisions we have made to try to promote social…
Creating a safe space for the children of key-workers: A COVID-19 monitoring protocol.
Firstly let me apologise for any typos and spellings. This is a rushed post. I wanted to get it out as soon as possible in the hope that it might allow others to implement similar ideas. Secondly let me say I am not an infectious disease expert. I do have a biochemistry background but that’s…
Building a teaching and learning policy from a single idea: The genius of Prof. Daniel Willingham
I’ve recently been reading “Why don’t children like school?” by the incredibly insightful Professor Daniel T. Willingham. It’s amazing! I wish I had read it years ago. While there are lots of ideas that I am now familiar with, through CogSciSci and reading other books and blogs, it’s great to read Professor Willingham’s perspective on…
All the Biology SLOP you need.
Here is where you will find all my Biology GCSE SLOP booklets. I’ve taken the excellent work done by a large group of biology teachers and updated them to include: More questions (over 100 in each booklet) More maths in biology (graphs, percentage increases, standard form etc..) More literacy support (refutation texts , graphic organisers)…
I accidentally made Edutwitter Merch shop.
I’ve shared in the past a few images of posters I have in my room. They kind of have a cogsci, knowledge rich feel to them. In discussion with some people on twitter they requested the designs on T-shirts. So I’ve quickly made a shop where you can order you own. I’ve made it so…
How to run a great Science Fair: A guest post by Rebecca Offer
Earlier in the year our school held it’s fourth annual Science fair for students in years 7 and 8. It was my first year running the project and it was a brilliant success. In previous years we have run the project for year 9 students as well, however due to it being the first year…
