Category: Pedagogy

“The pupils are working, but they still aren’t learning”: Revisiting foundational principles in the final phase of the ITT year

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com As beginning teachers enter the final phase of their ITT year and take on teaching 80% of a full timetable, we often see a return of the wobbles first experienced in February or March. This is a demanding point in the year; they are being asked to prioritise, … Continue reading “The pupils are working, but they still aren’t learning”: Revisiting foundational principles in the final phase of the ITT year →

Photo by Anna Tarazevich on Pexels.com Yesterday, I had a little bit of a crisis while I was on a tight deadline leaving work to make the school run. It had just started to rain and there I was, staring at my coat through my car window, pressing the unlock button with increasing ferocity in … Continue reading A little bit of a panic: keeping calm to make in-lesson adaptations in the classroom →

Photo by Rachel Claire on Pexels.com The power of Initial Stimulus Material (ISM) to ‘hook’ pupils into historical learning via an intriguing image, a provocative quote, a story, or even a soundscape that promotes curiosity, has been long established. In his 2001 article, Phillips built a set of principles for using ISM as a gateway … Continue reading Diagnostic Hooks: Reconceptualising Initial Stimulus Material (ISM) for Eliciting Prior Knowledge →