My sixth form formed an arts society with the boys one down the road with the sole purpose of buying group tickets at discounted rates. We went to see ballet and plays. It was brilliant! No teachers involved. But it was the trips through ks3 and ks4 that gave us the love of theatre to start with!

Why we need to change our attitude towards theatre?

(I am talking about English here - there were other sch trips but the cost - financial and staffing - were massive)

"We need it to be acceptable to take a small group to the theatre." This this this! At a previous school we were told we had to offer school trips to an entire year, not just a small group. There were 240 kids in a year... of course we didn't run trips.

I remember going to see A View from the bridge at my local theatre. There was a group (possibly GCSE age) with a teacher next to me, and at the end, one of them turned to the teacher and just said, "WOW." That's what good theatre can do.

“The theatre was packed with students because it was a GCSE text they were studying.” Going the theatre, an art gallery, or to a sporting event, with school should be and can be a lifelong memory - not just a revision task. For some kids, this is their only opportunity to see more of the world.

NEW BLOG: What do I go to school for? learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/04/what...

NEW BLOG: What do I go to school for? learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/04/what...

NEW BLOG - Reading Recommendations learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2024/06/read... Books from - J.P.Rose, Megan Davidhizar, Beth O'Brien and William Hussey

NEW BLOG - Reading Recommendations learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2024/06/read... Books from - J.P.Rose, Megan Davidhizar, Beth O'Brien and William Hussey

Discovered my blog has hit over 2 million views.

This is not just a writing competition - it's a way of thinking about the water crisis & the future of our planet Help us spread the word! @georgemonbiot.bsky.social @katharinehayhoe.com @mrsspalding.bsky.social @xris32.bsky.social @engmediacentre.bsky.social @englishassociation.bsky.social

If you believe in the value of English as a humane, creative and essential subject, joining NATE is one of the best ways to support its future so we can ensure that English remains rich, dynamic, and meaningful — for teachers and students. www.nate.org.uk/2025/03/05/w...

Join us for exhilarating talks, enriching conversations and wonderful new connections with people who love learning as much as you do! In the English strand we have @ahughes3.bsky.social @xris32.bsky.social @haledonal.bsky.social @hugheshaili.bsky.social @meerachudasama.bsky.social and more!

NEW BLOG - Reading Recommendations learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2024/06/read... Includes Keith Gray, Ciannon Smart, Jackie French, Robin Jarvis

NEW BLOG - Reading Recommendations learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2024/06/read... Includes Keith Gray, Ciannon Smart, Jackie French, Robin Jarvis

Enjoyed Wuthering Heights. Felt very Derek Jarman/Francis Ford Coppola. Great imagery, apart from the skin walls! I didn’t have any issues with the changes to the story because I am so used to Shakespeare reinterpretations. Very much a Coppola and Burton portrait of Victorians

NEW RESOURCE: I’ve been experimenting with @xris32.bsky.social style ‘phrase banks’ over the past term to much success! Here are the AIC ones I’ve used. Great discussions had over what each phrase means and how we can use them appropriately in our writing. Use/chuck: www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/ptem7...

NEW BLOG: We need to talk about oracy A taste of my ResearchEd talk yesterday learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/03/we-n...

We’re a month away from the book release date and 2 months away from some great CPD around ‘An Inspector Calls’. @zarashah.bsky.social, @xris32.bsky.social and @funkypedagogy.bsky.social all speaking! 🤩 Sign up below! @hugheshaili.bsky.social @miriamhussain.bsky.social @teachals.bsky.social 👇🏻

NEW BLOG: We need to talk about oracy A taste of my ResearchEd talk yesterday learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/03/we-n...

"We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist." James Baldwin

Today’s reading

Today’s reading

@openingdoors.bsky.social @englishassociation.bsky.social @natecommunity.bsky.social It is so often the artists, the writers who see and speak to tyranny whilst the rest stay quiet

Join NATE, the UK’s leading subject association for English teachers. Get inspiring resources, stay up to date with the latest thinking in English education, and join a supportive community — from just £5/month (£1 trainees, £3 ECTs). mailchi.mp/nate.org.uk/...

NEW BLOG: Metaphor, Oracy, and Real Speech learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/01/meta...

NEW BLOG: Metaphor, Oracy, and Real Speech learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/01/meta...

English teacher? 5 mins to spare? Your view is essential! How is poetry being taught in secondary schools today? We’re mapping the national picture in England & will report on it. 5 minute survey: tinyurl.com/238cz6mu Supported by Christ Church's Tower Poetry Development Grant​

Here are almost 40 of my favourite #MiddleGrade reads for 2025. A fantastic range from wild fantasy, to gritty realism, historical adventures and more than a few scares. What a brilliant year its been for children’s books

NEW BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS: learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2024/06/read...

The English Strand at TTR Connect 2026! So far, we have announced eight speakers with many more to come! Check them out here: www.ttradio.org/english26 and get a free ticket here: www.ttradio.org/connect2026

*NEW* for AQA Lang P1 from June 2026 onwards: ✅ The Day of the Triffids Specimen paper and a PPT slide deck with resources, scaffolds and model answers, like so 👇 Repost and help yourself 😊 www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/bd6qg...

*NEW* for AQA English Language Paper 1 from June 2026 onwards: ✅ The Woman in Black Specimen paper and accompanying PPT slide deck with resources, scaffolds and model responses, like so 👇 Help yourself 😊 www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/qu9to...

This was terrific - every English teacher and everyone involved in education policy should listen!

I’m wondering if any children’s publishers need a freelance writer to write reading scheme books for them or branded picture books etc? I’ve written reading scheme books for Star Wars and Disney before! Any shares would be amazing! #BookSky #KidLit

Today’s reading. A third of the way in and I am not feeling it.

The Occasional 10: excellent newsletters. open.substack.com/pub/juliangi...

NEW: Good schools make good trachers If teachers don’t always improve with experience, the problem isn’t them. It’s the environment. Schools that get better do so because they make feedback clearer, practice more deliberate, and culture more trustworthy. open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

It is that time of year. Not Christmas. The book token competition. hiddenbooks.nationalbooktokens.com?utm_medium=p...

Cracking blog on English homework

Love being reminded to do this every year. It's a win/win all round

NEW BLOG: A question of homework in English learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2025/11/a-qu... @carousel-learning.bsky.social @adamboxereducation.bsky.social

Women writers of WW1: three poets and four poems ⤵️ www.douglaswise.co.uk/.../women-wr.... Many Sisters to Many Brothers, by Rose Macaulay Munition Wages, by Ida Bedford The Shadow, by Rose Macaulay The Sisters Buried at Lemnos, by Vera Brittain

NEW BLOG: A question of homework in English learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2025/11/a-qu... @carousel-learning.bsky.social @adamboxereducation.bsky.social

Richard Aldington's Epilogue to Death of a Hero. Always worth revisiting on Remembrance Sunday.

In WW2 a 19 year old sent his mother a poem. He sadly died; but the poem endured. It’s a long term favourite with our schools via ‘OD to Quality Writing 10-13’ .I’ve just heard it read out at the British Legion Festival on bbc. John Magee lives on! www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/157986...

NEW POST This time on school leadership substack.com/inbox/post/1...