Have you ever walked the walk of parental shame?  An unusually hectic day as a working Mum was rounded off with a distressed call from my sister who usually picked up my children from their setting. Like many of our peers, we shared the load, but on this day my sister was just not going to make it. I was new to my village and did not yet have friends to call on. So, a flurry of activity ensued to organise cover at work.  A quick explanation to my understanding boss, a call to

I am fairly open about being more hot headed with my children than I would like to be. Anyone that knows me will know that I do more bribing than I would advocate for and that my youngest has less boundaries than most children double her age.   But last night, I went to parents evening for my son and realised that I have been failing to practice what I preach in other areas, too.    Lewis is 16 and on the verge of doing his GCSEs. People who have heard me speak will know that

Have you ever been sat in training - professional learning, CPD, workshops (pick your label) - and thought, “I’m totally lost/bored/uninterested here”? You know the scene: the slow drift of attention, doodles creeping across the page, the smell of terrible coffee in the corner. If you’re lucky, maybe a tray of stale pastries or those pointless individually wrapped biscuits. Hardly the environment where learning sticks. Time for professional learning is scarce, and the pressur

I was listening to a podcast recently when the topic of resilience was discussed. It pricked my ears. I hear a lot of talk about resilience when I’m around educators. More often than not, it’s used damningly: “Young people just don’t have resilience these days.” It’s a phrase I’ve heard countless times. Perhaps you have too. But let’s pause and really consider what resilience means. The Oxford definition is: “the ability of people or things to recover quickly after something

I live with three young children. I love them deeply, but, like all children, they can be wildly unreasonable over the smallest of things. The plate and the cup don’t match? Meltdown. Too much butter, not enough jam? Hissy fit. Having to take shoes off before socks go on? Unthinkable. At home, I shrug these moments off. I know they’re not signs of something “wrong” but simply the growing pains of childhood. My children live in an environment that is safe, predictable, and for

A report recently dropped into my inbox. This happens a lot, as I’m sure it does in yours. However, this one caught my eye. Why? ' Listening, Learning: Attendance'  by Impetus draws directly on the voices of Year 10 pupils from across the attendance spectrum. Not the policymakers. Not the statisticians. The young people themselves. To me, at least, this holds more value. Their message? If schools want to re-engage them, they need to become places that care not just about atte

I need you to imagine a tablet (the paracetamol, not the iPad type). This tablet, yet undiscovered, has the ability to reduce the overall rate of depression by more than half, alcoholism by two-thirds, and suicide, IV drug use, and domestic violence by three-quarters. If such a pill existed, governments would legislate it, doctors would prescribe it, and pharmacies would run out of stock before lunchtime. The headlines would scream about the miracle cure. But here’s the kicke