Welcome to our blog

We're celebrating the European Day of Languages by taking a look at the benefits learning a second language can bring. We're also offering 25% off our Euro Stars resources until the end of September.

It has taken a lot of hours for Ofsted to discover that the primary curriculum is skewed by SATs, that the foundation subjects are being squeezed and creative teaching is not as widespread as they hoped.  They find that timetabling is conservative, priorities are focused on the acquisition of knowledge and there is a lack of flair in some of the teaching. And, apparently, we don’t know what we mean when we say ‘skills’.

Martin Waddell's Room for a Little One is the basis of today's free English lesson plan!

Another day, another free lesson plan! Behind door 8 on our advent calendar is another great lesson plan based on Ruth and Neil Thomson's Finders Peepers. 

Our advent calendar is bursting with fantastic lesson plan ideas for you to use in the classroom! Today's is based around The Frog Olympics by Brian Moses. 

For the 12 days of advent, Rising Stars are bringing you a fantastic English lesson plan idea to use with your pupils. Today's is based on Paul Rockett's Close-up Continents: Mapping Europe. Our thanks to Maddy Barnes, Assistant Head Teacher at Sacred Heart Catholic School and English Consultant, for her superb lesson plan!

Back in the summer term, the Switched on Computing team ran an e-safety competition to promote the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology. We sent out a free e-safety poster to all schools, challenging children to design their own e-safety poster! The brief was clear – it needed to be colourful and eye-catching with a strong e-safety message.

After much consideration, the judging panel (including HES and Switched on Computing author Miles Berry), announced Alex from Smawthorne Henry Moore Primary School in Castleford as the winner! They were really impressed with the creative design, attention to detail and the positive e-safety message. As a prize, the poster was recreated by one of our top designers and professionally printed.

Join Rising Stars and the National Science Learning Centre for a free online science CPD course on Working Scientifically!

We are delighted to invite you to a free online science CPD course hosted by Rising Stars and the National Science Learning Centre. 

This course will explain what working scientifically means in the new curriculum and will provide practical activities to support you in the classroom. All attendees of the complete course will receive a CPD certificate of attendance from the NSLC.

With thanks to Nick Hart, Deputy Headteacher at Penn Wood Primary School in Slough, for this really interesting article on teachng additive reasoning.

Brickhouse Primary school have been using Space Hoppers readers and ebooks with their Year 5 children intervention group who are working slightly below expectations for reading. Helen Debney the Deputy Headteacher tells us how Space Hoppers have helped to improve their results.