321 episodes
- Learn more about The Story of Maths and ACEL Pro - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview and https://www.acel.pro
For maths curriculum questions contact us here or via support@alta-education.com
Get your tickets for the TDaPE Conference Edinburgh
For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the Hey! What You Reading For newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe
AI For Teachers newsletter
Episode 304: What changes when schools stop treating behaviour as something to manage and begin teaching it as deliberately as any other part of the curriculum?
Kieran is joined by Australian educator Brendan Lee to explore the close relationship between behaviour, attention, curriculum and instruction. Brendan explains why calm, focused classrooms are a prerequisite for learning and why teachers must assume nothing when establishing routines and expectations.
The discussion moves from classroom entry routines and behaviour-specific praise to the antecedents and consequences that can create either positive or negative patterns of behaviour. Brendan also explains why routines need to be modelled, practised, revisited and strengthened over time, rather than introduced once and then assumed to be secure.
This is a practical exploration of how teachers can create classrooms in which pupils know what success looks like, experience it regularly and become increasingly able to participate in learning. The central argument is clear: good behaviour does not appear by accident. It is taught. - Learn more about The Story of Maths and ACEL Pro - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview and https://www.acel.pro
For maths curriculum questions contact us here or via support@alta-education.com
Get your tickets for the TDaPE Conference Edinburgh
For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the Hey! What You Reading For newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe
AI For Teachers newsletter
Episode 303: When teachers say that behaviour is getting worse, what do they actually mean?
In the opening episode of this four-part mini-series, Kieran is joined by Charles Benkowitz to explore why behaviour has become such a pressing and emotionally charged issue for schools. They consider the subjectivity of challenging behaviour, the relationship between attention and learning, and the profound effect that difficult classrooms can have on teachers’ confidence, wellbeing and willingness to remain in the profession.
The conversation also examines how much control teachers can reasonably expect to have, whether behaviour policies create clarity or merely shift responsibility, and why apparently minor disruption can become so draining over time.
Rather than offering one simple explanation, this episode establishes the questions that run throughout the series. Has behaviour changed, or have our expectations changed? What belongs to the classroom teacher, what belongs to school leaders, and what can genuinely help when teaching begins to feel overwhelming? - Learn more about The Story of Maths and ACEL Pro - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview and https://www.acel.pro
For maths curriculum questions contact us here or via support@alta-education.com
Get your tickets for the TDaPE Conference Online
For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the Hey! What You Reading For newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe
AI For Teachers newsletter
Episode 302: What does a year in school leadership actually teach you?
Adam Smith and Shannen Doherty return to reflect on the decisions, mistakes and moments that shaped their year. They discuss why leaders cannot solve every problem, what poor communication often reveals, when to hold your nerve and how to admit that a carefully constructed plan simply has not worked.
Along the way, we explore behaviour, suspensions, school improvement, instructional coaching, pointless assessment systems and the ghosts of decisions that nobody remembers making but everybody is still expected to follow.
An honest, funny and unusually practical conversation about becoming a better leader. - Get your tickets for the TDaPE Conference Online
For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the Hey! What You Reading For newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe
AI For Teachers newsletter
For maths curriculum questions contact us here or via support@alta-education.com
Learn more about The Story of Maths - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview and https://www.acel.pro
Episode 301: What should teachers do when a child is still struggling to decode in Year 5? How much should reading intervention take priority over the wider curriculum? What can a reading age genuinely tell us, and when should teachers adapt a phonics programme rather than follow it exactly?
In this episode, Christopher Such returns to answer some of the most difficult questions about teaching reading.
We discuss phonics in mixed Year 1 and Year 2 classes, the compromises involved in supporting older struggling readers, the limits of reading ages, the meaning of fidelity and whether audiobooks can develop the language and knowledge needed for comprehension.
A practical and thoughtful conversation about diagnosis, intervention and making better decisions for pupils who find reading difficult. - Get your tickets for the TDaPE Conference Online
For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the Hey! What You Reading For newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe
AI For Teachers newsletter
For maths curriculum questions contact us here or via support@alta-education.com
Learn more about The Story of Maths - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview and https://www.acel.pro
Episode 300: For the 300th episode of Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, Kieran is joined by Shannen Doherty and Tom Oakley to answer four questions submitted by listeners.
Should schools share test scores with parents? How should teachers approach maths in a mixed-age Year 1 and Year 2 class? Which pieces of common primary maths advice may have done more harm than good? And what should a teacher actually do on Monday morning when a pupil still relies on counting in ones?
The conversation explores the importance of context when reporting assessment information, why mixed-age teaching must begin with what pupils need to learn rather than their nominal year group, and how ideas such as concrete, pictorial and abstract learning can become damaging when reduced to slogans.
It also develops into a broader discussion about teacher expertise, curriculum schemes, number sense and why schools are often much better at introducing change than sustaining it.
More Education podcasts
Trending Education podcasts
About Thinking Deeply about Primary Education
Welcome to Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, the podcast that gives you a peek inside the minds of some truly inspirational primary teachers. Whether you're new to the profession or a school leader with tons of experience this podcast is a must listen. For references, links and extended cut video episodes head over to www.thinkingdeeply.info
Podcast websiteListen to Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, Coffee Break French and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app

Get the free radio.net app
- Stations and podcasts to bookmark
- Stream via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth
- Supports Carplay & Android Auto
- Many other app features
Get the free radio.net app
- Stations and podcasts to bookmark
- Stream via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth
- Supports Carplay & Android Auto
- Many other app features


Thinking Deeply about Primary Education
Scan code,
download the app,
start listening.
download the app,
start listening.






























