Tooled Up Education

Managing Parental Anxiety Around Children’s Assessments and Exams

We all want our children to do well at school, both academically and socially. When they have an upcoming exam or assessment, it’s normal for parents to feel a little nervous and hope that their child is able to do their best. However, for children to perform optimally, we need to manage our own anxiety first, watch our tone, gestures and language, and coach, rather than soothe. How do we do it? In this short video, Dr Weston provides some top, evidence-based tips.

The Power of the Home Learning Environment

Did you know that parents are extremely powerful in shaping children’s early view of learning and can greatly influence their capacity to thrive academically? As parents, we are responsible for planting those early seeds that mean children enjoy learning and embrace challenges. When learning is ‘embedded into everyday life’, it shouldn’t feel onerous or stressful and in fact, should be enjoyable for the whole family. In this video, Dr Weston describes little things we can do at home that can maximise children’s chances of thriving at school.

Keeping Your Child Motivated

We all want our children to be happy and motivated to enjoy all of the opportunities that life and school have to offer. But how do we sustain motivation? Watch this video for our top tips.

Becoming a Resilient Reviser (A Video for Primary-Aged Children)

Tests and exams are a fact of life for all children. As parents, our goal should be to teach them that exams are not to be feared or perceived as stressful or traumatic. We should encourage them to view tests as a normal part of school life, which they should approach as proactively and positively as possible. This short video can be shared with your child to help them understand more about effective revision strategies.

Nudging Versus Pushing

As parents, we want the best for our children and we want to know that they are reaching their full potential. But we do have to be careful to keep a sense of balance between academic expectation or pressure and all of the other activities that keep them feeling good about themselves and their progress. There is a big difference between nudging and pushing. Find out more in this short video.

Charging Up My Body and Brain (A Video for Children)

Dr Weston shares four simple tips for primary-aged children which will boost their body and brain, helping them to feel more motivated and alert each day. She explains, in simple terms, why getting a good night’s sleep, exercising, eating a great breakfast and trying new experiences are all things which help us to function well and feel good. One to share with your children!

Dr Christie talks with Professor Johan Korhonen: Math Anxiety and Math Performance

In this interview, Professor Johan Korhonen talks with us about math anxiety and its role on math performance. Find out about why math anxiety may develop in children, what are the early signs of math anxiety, and how it may impact future educational aspirations. Professor Korhonen provides a number of insights into strategies both parents and teachers can implement immediately at home and at school to ease math anxiety in children.

Introducing Adaptive Teaching: A Practical Approach to Support Student Learning

In this webinar, Ariana Wells from the Teacher Development Trust speaks to us about the benefits of adaptive teaching, a more helpful and practical model than differentiation. Adaptive teaching involves being responsive to information about learning, adjusting teaching to better match the student, and using a student’s prior knowledge as a foundation for teaching new information. Ariana provides some practical advice for teachers and school staff and how to create the best, most encouraging and accessible learning environment for all students.

Maths Apps and Games to Play at Home

There are lots of maths-based apps and games that are designed to encourage a love of maths and improve numeracy skills. Here are some fun and engaging examples.

Researcher of the Month: Professor Shana Carpenter Discusses the Science of Effective Learning

Researcher of the Month, Professor Shana Carpenter, talks to English teacher and examiner, Patrick Cragg about the science behind two effective learning strategies: spacing and retrieval. She outlines how and why these simple practices can benefit learning and explores why so few students actually use them. Listen for top tips on how to integrate these strategies into the classroom or at home.