Blog

So, you’ve had half a term to find out what went on during the months your pupils weren’t in school and, undoubtedly, there’s been good news and bad news. Some pupils seem to have coped surprisingly well with online learning whilst others might have started this term well adrift of where you would like them to be. Dee Reid, co-creator of Shine:Targeted Interventions for Primary, discusses getting all pupils back up to speed in reading comprehension.

We are living through uncertainty and change where nothing seems to stay the same for more than 20 minutes. But one thing that is consistent through all of this turmoil is that the children in our care will grow, change and develop every day. Our job is to make sense of their very different academic profiles and ensure they continue to progress along the right track. Katharine Rogerson, co-creator of Shine: Targeted Interventions for Primary, discusses how we can help to get pupils back on track and support them to progress. 

The new edition of Switched On Computing includes some significant new content. The Teachers’ Guides have been substantially rewritten to make the scheme more accessible than ever to non-specialist teachers, whilst retaining the flexibility that expert computing leads might look for to make the scheme their own. Alongside the new lesson plans, extensive online support now includes step-by-step teaching slides and lesson walk-throughs, CPD videos and online quizzes to check pupils’ understanding at the end of each unit. 

Our November Reading Planet Book of the Month is Grandma's Story (Comet Street Kids - Gold) by Adam and Charlotte Guillain. In the book, Asha invites her grandmother to come into her school and recall her childhood memories to her class. Authors Adam and Charlotte explore the themes and topics in the book (which include the Moon Landing and overcoming fears) and give teaching ideas to help you share the story in school. 

We are thrilled to launch our Impact in Schools Study 2020. The Study uncovers the Reading Planet journey from initial creation and trialling to the impact of it in UK schools. 

This summer saw the publication of the third edition of Switched On Computing, a comprehensive scheme of work for primary computing. Since its first publication, the scheme has proved to be popular with teachers in England and further afield, through its emphasis on practical, hands-on computing activities, the focus on free and low-cost technologies readily available in schools and the ease with which it can be adapted to align with whatever other topics pupils are studying.
 

Find out how one school have used and adapted Rising Stars History to deliver an outstanding History curriculum at their school. 

Our October Reading Planet Book of the Month is Fatama and Mami Wata’s Secret (Galaxy - Turquoise) by Marcelle Mateki Akita. The book follows Fatama, a young girl who lives with her family in Freetown, Sierra Leone and is fascinated by stories about Mami Wata, a water goddess from African legend. In this blog, Marcelle explains the significance of Mami Wata in African culture and explores how children might study the book in the classroom.

Emma White explains how and why she created the Oi Frog! teaching unit and how it can be used to achieve high-quality reading and writing skills.

We are excited to announce that three of our resoruces were winners at this year's Teach Primary Awards.