EASTER CONFERENCES
Subject Association Conferences Reflection, April 2021 Easter is the time when both the Mathematical Association and the Association of Teachers of Mathematics (I know, I know) hold their residential conferences. This year of course that simply wasn’t possible so they heade online instead. I have to say that both did an exceptional job under the […]
The Power of Gateway Questions
I’ve been experimenting with something I’m calling ‘Gateway Questions‘ this morning. This has come about because I am working with a KS2 class who have a huge ability range, perhaps as much as the equivalent of 4 NC years. This is not unusual in many classrooms, sadly. The truth is that a ‘whole-class’ Mastery approach […]
How Should a Recovery Curriculum Look?
So What Now? Catch-Up? Recovery? Or ‘Business as Usual’ ? I must admit I’ve been thinking A LOT about this since the new year. Come the 8th March, the vast majority of our children will be returning to us full-time. Children and young people are anxious enough at the moment. They have missed school, missed their […]
Are we Dividing Wrong?
So I’ve been thinking really hard for a few years now why it is that children seem to get so confused by division. I’m not saying I have the full answer yet, but I do think that it might be a lot to do with the fact that for some reason we usually introduce division […]
Reflections of 2020
So today we finally say goodbye and good riddance to 2020. We marked it with a lovely walk up on Devil’s Dyke (see photo above). My natural tendency is to look for the positives, but that can feel a bit forced, and a bit ‘everything is marvellous’. For me, the secret is probably the way […]
Geometry Wordsearch
Funnels
Depth, Dormancy and Permanence.
I had an interesting experience recently, which made me reflect on what I now think is an overly simplistic model of memory – namely the very common binary way to thinking about working memory and long-term memory. Here’s what transpired: My son recently asked for help with A-level maths homework. It was a bearings question, […]
Writing this is a RISK. But I believe in taking risks.
Deep breath… Ten years ago I left the security of a great job, a secure pension and a good salary to follow a dream. That dream was to become a support to teachers who didn’t yet feel the same love for mathematics that I did. I was fortunate. Part of that, I believe, is down to […]
What Price Mastery? The Place of Culture in Education
Much has been written recently, both about mastery and the way in which it is interpreted in different cultures. I have been fortunate enough to be able to travel widely both in the UK and abroad, and rarely miss an opportunity to learn about education wherever I go. While usually my trips are predominantly to […]
School. Or Education?
Education. Everyone in the world gets one. To doubt this is to confuse the concept of education with the idea of schooling. My view of education is perhaps a little different from many: I define it as the sum total of your experiences, how you choose to interpret them, and how you choose to respond […]