From categorising buttons to categorisation in science “Pupils should be taught to explore and compare the differences between things that…
Trying to understand why ‘Progressive’ and ‘Traditional’ teachers disagree
I’ve been re-reading a couple of books by ‘progressive’ academics who have been celebrated for trying to bride the gap…
When colleagues recommend books to you that you find insulting and dismissive!
I’ve been recommended a couple of books by thoughtful, well-meaning colleagues who know I favour ‘explicit teaching’. These are books…
A Reflection on “Science for Children” by Marilyn Fleer
Promoting Explicit Teaching while Holding Your Nose? I was recommended reading “Science for Children” by Marilyn Fleer by a colleague…
Using story books to overturn science misconceptions in young children
This is an amazing piece of research. The researchers were able to show that children as young as four are…
End of Year Assessments – what do we want to know and how much time is it worth?
It’s the end of the school year, and many teachers are drowning in marking. It’s a tradition and perhaps we…
Are You Sitting Comfortably? Telling Stories in Physics Lessons
Richard Brock and I met several years ago at the Institute of Physics – I was Richard’s warm up act…
Teaching Categorisation in Primary Science with Variation Theory
Living and Non-Living Things Two weeks ago, I visited Solebay Primary Academy – one of Paradigm Trust’s primary schools in…
What Ofsted Missed about Disciplinary Knowledge in Science
In February 2023, Ofsted published its findings about primary and secondary science in England (here). It’s a long report, and…
What is flexible knowledge… and how do we get some?
Superficial knowledge is poor stuff – even carefully curated, well taught superficial knowledge. It isn’t satisfying and isn’t likely to…
Reading for Learning 