Articles
Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in primary teaching, with insightful articles and videos from top education experts.
Be Prepared for SATs 2018
John Dabell, January 2018
Some evidence-based recommendations on what really works for revision.
6 essential steps to impactful intervention
Charlotte Menezes, September 2017
Top tips on improving the effectiveness of your interventions this year.
Better SATs results
Simon Benn, March 2017
How mindfulness can strengthen both your pupils' and your own resilience in the lead up to the SATs.
Formal Column multiplication from concrete beginnings
Russell Timmins, February 2017
A step-by-step look at how and why the formal column method of multiplication works using Dienes.
Teaching Grammar in Context
Shareen Mayers, January 2017
Teaching grammrar in context is essential! Follow these four quick steps to get started.
Watching the Detectives
Rachel Clarke, November 2016
Experienced Primary English consultant, Rachel Clarke, discusses how solving questions about a text is like being a detective solving a crime.
Shareen Mayers on the latest SATs
Shareen Mayers, October 2016
In the first of her video series on teaching grammar, Shareen shares her expert insight into the latest papers.
Shareen's video series on grammar teaching
Shareen Mayers, November 2016
Expert Primary English consultant and Keen Kite author, Shareen Mayers, shares her insight into the teaching of grammar.
Ready, Steady, Practise! at Thatcham Park Primary
Keen Kite, October 2016
We sat in as Mrs Sheen’s Year 5 class got to grips with multiplying and dividing by 10, 100 and 1000 using the Ready, Steady, Practise! Mental Arithmetic pupil books.
Developing mastery for all through everyday problem solving
Sarah-Anne Fernandes, September 2016
One important way to support pupils in developing a deepened and more secure understanding of mathematics is to provide them with regular opportunities to reason and problem solve.
5 top tips for a mastery approach in KS2 mathematics
Russell Timmins, August 2016
Key points to consider when teaching KS2 mathematics, from embedding concepts to assessing fluency.
What can we learn from the 2016 KS2 grammar test?
Shareen Mayers, August 2016
5 tips to support teachers based on the results of this year's test.
The importance of teaching grammar in context
David Reedy, August 2016
Watch a short video from the General Secretary of the United Kingdom Literacy Association stressing the importance of teaching in context.
Ensuring for variation when working towards mastery with greater depth
Caroline Clissold, August 2016
A practical example of how an activity can be extended through variation to help children make connections and see the underlying structure of the mathematics they are learning about.
The 7 features of greater depth
Caroline Clissold, August 2016
Shareen Mayers, May 2016
Essential reading for all Year 6 teachers! Shareen Mayers shares a detailed overview of how your pupils can achieve the greater depth standard in writing at the end of KS2.
Each statement has been exemplified through using the writing exemplification files so that you can be clear about what is expected.
Writing Exclamations at KS1- A Practical Guide to Support Moderation
Shareen Mayers, March 2016
Shareen Mayers shares some ways of teaching exclamations and some examples of how these have been used within the KS1 writing exemplification materials.
'Working a greater depth within the expected standard' in reading
Shareen Mayers, February 2016
Shareen Mayers unpicks some of key differences between the easier and harder questions in the 2016 sample reading paper to support teachers with understanding how pupils are challenged in the KS2 reading test, especially as the Level 6 test has been removed.
Grouping and multiplication – is 2x3 two 3s or three 2s?
Paul Broadbent discusses the way that multiplication should be represented and modeled to children. How do you see 2x3? Is it two 3s or three 2s? More importantly, how do your class see it?
Primary Grammar Terminology in 2016
Shareen Mayers unpicks some of the changes to terminology and focuses on subordinate and relative clauses.
Interim Teacher Assessment Frameworks for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2
English Adviser, Shareen Mayers, shares an overview of the new assessment framework, with a particular focus on reading and writing.
Preparing for the new Year 6 Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling Test in 2016
English Adviser Shareen Mayers shares some quick top tips and ideas to support Year 6 teachers.
A differentiated approach
Our publishing is about you, the teacher and what you need right now. Our first series, Ready, Steady, Practise!, focuses on differentiation in core skills at KS2, an area that you have told us meets immediate requirements and supports some of the challenges of the new curriculum.