Mr P's ICT blog - Tech to raise standards!

Today with Year 2 we were continuing out work on Money in maths. Rather than the suggested lesson from the scheme which involved a lot of time being spent printing, cutting out and photocopying. I decided to do something different instead: View this post on Instagram I had a great day in school today working with Year 2 looking at Money in maths. Using technology, I was able to create a lesson in a fraction of the time which worked brilliantly without any printing, cutting out or photocopying. I am not suggesting teachers do this all the time, but the key for me in balance and when the tech can help us #worksmarternotharder we need to embrace it. I have posted a step-by-step tutorial of the lesson for the supporters of my page. Sign up here - facebook.com/becomesupporter/ictwithmrp A post shared by Lee Parkinson (@ict_mrp) on Jan 31, 2019 at 12:53pm PST The lesson worked fantastically well and the children were able to ac...

As I recently discussed in a previous blog post (click here to read)  I really think, when used effectively, technology can enhance and support a student's love of reading. In most classrooms, once a child finishes a book they will be asked to then fill out a book review worksheet. Something along the lines of this... I don't want to sound like I am having a go at any teachers who do these types of worksheets. I just believe with technology so easily accessible in schools, it should be used to enhance this task to add more purpose and engagement. Using an app like Apple Clips, children can turn their book review into a VLOG (video blog.) Not only does this add more purpose to the writing (children have to write the script of their book review first), you will be developing key oral speaking objectives and ICT skills. In my experience, these worksheet type activities are rarely done to the best of children's ability as they are used as a time filler or carousel acti...

Tonight, I did a Facebook Live Video discussing a few thoughts around the proposed new Ofsted Framework, please give it a watch and let me know what you think. For more CPD support, visit - 

A few months ago, Facebook gave me the opportunity to launch a supporter aspect to my page. For £3.50 a month, teachers can subscribe to receive the following benefits: This platform, for me, is a way to bring my CPD training in schools online. I regularly receive messages from teachers saying that they would love to attend one of my CPD and Inset sessions, however, due to one reason or the other (location, school not allowing them to go etc) they can't make it. It gives teachers the opportunity to take ownership of their own professional development. I honestly think that the best resource in the classroom is the teacher and I want this platform to be a way teachers can build confidence in knowledge to best make use of the technology in their classroom. So far, it has been amazing to have so many people sign up and the feedback has been so positive, especially when you see teachers using the ideas and sharing the incredible work from their pupils. Over the ...

It has been another incredible year for my social media platforms. The opportunities, feedback and love I have received has been amazing! I want to thank every single person who has followed, shared or liked anything I've posted. It has been humbling to have my social media platforms recognised as I received the Social Media Saviour award this year: I have also had the opportunity to create an exclusive CPD support part to my Facebook page. For £3.50 a month, you have access to video tutorials, CPD videos, discounts and a whole lot more. Tap the picture for more information. I thought I would share a list of my top ten most popular videos of the year. You can rewatch and enjoy my Top Ten Videos of 2017 here.   Mr P's TOP TEN VIDEO of 2018 10 - Me as a Teacher vs Me as a Parent 9 - The Struggles of a Teacher Administering a Test 8 - Now That's What I Call Being A Teacher Vol. 16 - Back to the 90s again! Watch every Volume...

As much as I love technology, I will always talk about the importance of reading on my CPD sessions. It really annoys me when people like to blame technology as a reason why children don't read as much. We like to blame technology for a number of things but for me, it comes down to choices. I hope through this blog and my social media pages, I demonstrate how, when used effectively, it can transform teaching and learning. Unfortunately, I think too many of us make the wrong choices with technology. When pictures like this appear on my social feeds, it does wind me up because they both can be valuable and certainly enhance each other: For me, technology can enhance the reading experience allowing pupils to explore texts in more creative ways. This is something I wanted to promote in my yearly Christmas video. For the past 9 years, I always treat my pupils to a silly video at the end of our annual talent show. To see what I have produced previously - CLICK ...

I love using Christmas as a way to engage children in their learning. They are excited, inquisitive and generally really interested in anything Christmas. Recently, I worked with Year 2 where they created their own Interactive Christmas scene using Chatterpix Kids and Thinglink. Here is an example of what they created: I have posted a step-by-step guide for how to do this activity on the supporter part of my Facebook page. Sign up by tapping the picture below: This idea can easily be adapted to other areas of the curriculum, such as: Read more about this idea here. Read more about this idea here. Read more about this idea here