Perhaps the greenest school in England... How do primary schools translate children’s anxieties about our planet into practical learning opportunities? Nick Bannister spoke to a Greater Manchester primary which has forged a national reputation for its approach to environmental education
Reflections on year 6 reading attainment The key stage 2 national curriculum tests can give us far greater insights than just a scaled score. Sarah Gibb explores what individual question data can tell us about which skills pupils successfully demonstrate in year 6 and which areas prove more challenging
RSE, health education and parental consultation Parental engagement with statutory relationships, sex and health education is a vital component of a successful curriculum. Leah Jewett offers her advice to primary schools ahead of September 2020 1 comment
Learning environments: A question of light and air With the darker days drawing in and winter upon us, Fiona Aubrey-Smith considers two issues that do not often make it to the top of school improvement plans – light and air
Improving your pupils’ retention and retrieval A project to boost the working memories of children in years 3 to 6 has proved a success for Liphook Junior School. SENCO Nicky Parrott takes us through what they did and how it worked
How we created an inspiring school library This is the story of how a small team created a new, woodland-themed library at Halberton Primary School. Christine Campion explains
Discussion is a key step towards maths mastery Mathematics Mastery has developed a framework to help teachers use language and communication to increase pupils’ enjoyment, confidence and attainment. Joe Sarchet-Winters breaks the approach down into five tips to enable pupils to confidently articulate mathematical ideas
Teaching climate change EduCCate Global and a group of Teaching Schools in Derbyshire are supporting teachers to train in climate change education in order to equip children to handle an uncertain future on a warming planet. Headteacher Fiona Cowan explains more about the project and her school’s climate change curriculum
Ofsted: What curriculum evidence will they need? With Ofsted’s new ‘quality of education’ judgement in mind, Imogen Rowley examines how inspectors will be judging the ‘intent, implementation and impact’ of your curriculum
Mastery of a broad and balanced curriculum... Lea Forest Primary Academy delivers an enriched, broad and balanced curriculum, at the heart of which is a five-part mastery model that guides teaching and learning. Headteacher Craig Clarke explains
The side-effects of high expectations... It is an important requirement of Ofsted inspections – teacher expectations, particularly of disadvantaged students, must be high. However, a new study asks whether this policy has any unintended consequences for our pupils
Getting your pupls reading The reading ethos at Wylam First School is impressive, as was shown by their performance in the 200 Million Minutes Reading Challenge earlier this year. Sean Daley explains how they have created 160 little bookworms
Embracing the benefits and fun of forest schools Creating forest school environments and opportunities for primary pupils of all ages can pay dividends. Emma Lee-Potter looks at some recent research and speaks to one school that has embraced the outdoors...
Curriculum design: Waiting for the Sunrise In light of the new Education Inspection Framework, St Mary’s CE School has created the Sunrise Curriculum. Headteacher Nicola Bray describes their journey of curriculum design and development
Ofsted’s EIF and the place of EAL education The new Education Inspection Framework makes no reference to pupils who use English as an additional language as a distinct group. This does not mean, however, that schools should stop considering the distinct learning needs of pupils with EAL. Katherine Solomon and Silvana Richardson advise
A focus on reading fluency to support SATs preparation Maintaining a focus on reading fluency beyond key stage 1 could be key to improving SATs results. Kelly Challis explains how and offers some teaching techniques and other ideas
Literacy: Inspiring pupils’ writing How can we innovate our practice to ensure even more young people achieve in writing? Teacher-writer experts Ross Young and Phil Ferguson share their dos and don’ts when it comes to raising standards and inspiring the next generation of writers
Chess in the classroom Chess is a low-risk and low-cost route to creativity, cross-curricular learning and attainment according to deputy headteacher Elizabeth Scott, who has been trialling it at her primary school in South Wales
A simple and inspiring use of ed-tech to boost learning The example of Blackfield Primary School shows us that it does not have to be expensive or time-consuming to ‘realise’ the potential of education technology. Fiona Aubrey-Smith explains
Leading EAL in your primary school EAL support is a core responsibility for every school. Catherine Brennan considers the key roles and duties for those leading EAL within primary schools and offers some tips on how to embed sustainable EAL provision within schools and support your teaching staff
Metacognition in the primary school classroom They are among the most effective teaching strategies, especially for pupils who are disadvantaged. Matt Bromley looks at how metacognition and self-regulation can work in the primary school setting
An inspiring range of STEAM activity ideas Science, art, technology and computing education is high on the agenda at St Mary Magdalen’s Primary as can be seen from their work each year to mark British Science Week. Gary McNab explains
School development, curriculum and Ofsted Schools across England will be reflecting on their curriculum design in light of Ofsted’s new ‘intent, implementation and impact’ approach. National Leader of Education Helen Frostick offers a quick insight into how her school’s curriculum will meet Ofsted’s criteria, including areas for development
A consistency of teaching while protecting teacher autonomy Consistency is often a misconstrued word in education. David Ruddle explains how his school achieved a consistency of teaching approaches in mathematics while still protecting teacher autonomy
Mission Mondays, RESPECT and character education The RESPECT curriculum at three Manchester primary schools has seven tenets of character education at its heart and is brought to life for pupils by the exciting Mission Mondays. Sophie Murfin explains all...
