Brett Handley

Indeed ...

I've said it before: anyone who runs down the job that teachers do, even for such nakedly political reasons rather than from any real place of conviction, (a) should try surviving even a fucking WEEK of it themselves and (b) should then go to the bottom of a well.

Nigel Farage says Britain's eachers 'poisoning our kids' and predicts a teachers' strike as PM GlAean

I'll not even consider paying attention to anything Farage has to say about what happens in primary schools until *every* member of his party is legally allowed to be within 50ft of one

Inclusion, Inclusion, Inclusion Let’s cut through the noise. There is a lot of sabre rattling about inclusion. There are organisations, think tanks, consultants, local authorities and even educators in schools pushing an agenda t…

New blog on inclusion

samstrickland384843542.wordpress.com/2025/10/10/i...

the actual people in charge ... omg

Famously exactly how good science is always done.

Friday 10th October Scientist Henry Cavendish was born on this day 1731. He is widely regarded as one of the most brilliant but eccentric minds of all time. Born into a wealthy family his mother died when he was two, and he and his brother were raised by their father. He attended Cambridge University, but left without taking his degree exams (a relatively common practice at the time). He had the means to build a private laboratory in his home in Clapham including an extensive library. He carried out hundreds of experiments at his home. He discovered Hydrogen gas, which he called ‘inflammable air’. He measured the composition of the gases in the atmosphere and famously used lead balls and a torsion balance in a specially build shed in his garden to measure the size of the gravitational force and the mass of the earth. (short reel or extended physics teacher recreation) Cavendish wore the same clothes every day, took the same daily walk after dark, never married and found socialising difficult. He only ever spoke to one person at a time, finding conversations with women particularly difficult. He communicated with the servants at his home by leaving written notes. Visiting scientists to his home were always cooked the same meal. He was described as shy and eccentric, but perhaps today he may be diagnosed as autistic. However, no-one diagnosed autism until 1943 and it wasn’t routinely recognised until 1980. Questions: Autistic or not, there is no doubt that he was one of the greatest scientists that has ever lived. Would you like a laboratory in your own home? What difference might a diagnosis of neurodiversity had to Henry during is life?

Friday 10th October Henry Cavendish, one of the greatest scientists ever, was born on this day 1731. Cavendish had a lab built in his home in Clapham where he conducted hundreds of experiments including famously measuring the weight of the world. At the time he was described as “shy and eccentric”. Today his social differences may have led to an autism diagnosis, but autism wasn’t widely recognised until 1980. What difference might a neurodiversity diagnosis have made to Henry during his life? Watch: A Reel explaining how Cavendish weighed the world.

Science on Friday's TGT. Henry Cavendish was one of the most brilliant scientists of all time. Described as shy, or eccentric at the time, his communication difficulties today may have led to an autism diagnosis. Discuss his amazing science or how ND has always been around.
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The Bishop of Birmingham has written to the Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick about his comments about Handsworth

anyone can (mostly accidentally it would appear) send them - I wish they were vetted!

Monday 6th October Jane Goodall was born in London in 1934. In her 20s she travelled to Africa to study wild Chimpanzees under the anthropologist Louis Leakey and his wife. Goodall studied the wild Chimpanzees in the Gombe Reserve in Tanzania for 5 years. Controversially she gave them names instead of numbers. She observed behaviours that had never been seen before in any wild animals. She observed chimps strip leaves off twigs then insert it into a termite mound to “fish” for termites. This simple act shattered the long-held belief that tool-making was a uniquely human trait. Leakey was so impressed with Goodall’s work that he arranged funding for her to attend Cambridge University and complete a PhD on her findings. She was only the 8th person ever to complete a PhD at Cambridge having not studied completed an undergraduate degree. She returned to Gombe to study the chimp families many times over the following decades; documenting their familial relationships, hunting behaviors (including killing other monkeys in packs) and their social and emotional lives. She wrote more than 30 books, half of which were for children. In 1977 she founded the Jane Goodall Institute to protect chimpanzees and promote conservation. She also launched the Roots & Shoots youth program, inspiring new generations around the world to care for nature. Later in her life she travelled the world speaking on environmental issues and was on a speaking tour of the US when she died last week at the age of 91. What do you think of Goodall naming the Chimps, should scientific research be so personal or should she have been more objective? What do you think the differences are between humans and primates? Would you like to study animals?

Monday 6th October Before Jane Goodall’s ground-breaking observation of chimpanzees in Tanzania using sticks stripped of leaves to “fish” for termites it was assumed that humans were the only animals to make and use tools. Goodall studied chimpanzees for decades changing our understanding of primates and what it means to be human. Watch: Goodall explain how Chimps learn Jane Goodall died last week aged 91. What do you think the differences are between humans and primates?

TGT on Monday celebrates the life of Jane Goodall who passed away last week. Discuss breaking new ground in male dominated fields, or anthropology and primatology. What does it really mean to be human, are we simply a species and nothing more?
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Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.

This morning, the Trump Administration’s Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will. It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a Governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will.

BITUP: Updating Parents on Number of School Days Missed - trial A trial to test the impact of sending parents text messages about their child’s attendance on school attendance rates.

If you're from the school of 'every little bit helps' then here's a low investment (time, money) way of possibly improving student attendance.
Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, know what I mean...
educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and...

Please count me in :-)

#SciTeachUK #UKEd

I spent too long not realising there were two, not three, parts to "litigate partner for a buck". But, actually, great clue.

Teacher of Science - 12 Month Fixed Term Contract - Magnus Church of England Academy Teacher of Science - 12 Month Fixed Term Contract job from Magnus Church of England Academy. Apply by 13 Oct 2025.

Come & work with us ...

teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/jobs/teacher...

Friday 3rd October James Francis “Frank” Pantridge was born on this day 1916 in Hillsborough, Northern Ireland. His father died when he was 10 and he was expelled from school several times as a young child. He found later success though and went on to study Medicine at Queen’s University Belfast, graduating in 1939. His career was interrupted by WWII where he served as an army doctor in Singapore. He was captured and spent 3 years as a Prisoner of War, working in a slave camp on the notorious Burma Railway. Starvation, disease, and forced labour nearly killed him, and when the war finally ended he was emaciated. After recovering he returned to his medical career and trained to be a cardiologist. He became troubled by how many people suffering heart attacks died before reaching hospital. His solution was radical: take hospital treatment to the patient. In 1965 he and his team fitted the first portable defibrillator into a Belfast ambulance. The first model weighed 70 kg and ran on car batteries, but within a few years it had been refined into a lightweight version. In the 1970s he made further refinements so the defibrillator was automated and could be used by members of the public with no training. Pantridge’s invention revolutionised emergency medicine worldwide, creating the model for modern paramedics and mobile coronary care units. Today millions owe their lives to the “Pantridge Plan.” But Frank is largely unrecognised for his contribution to medicine. He died in 2004. Do you know where your nearest automated defibrillator is? Do you think someone who has saved as many lives as Frank should be more widely known?

Friday 3rd October James Francis “Frank” Pantridge was born on this day 1916 in Hillsborough, Northern Ireland. He qualified as a doctor in 1939 and was an army doctor during WWII. He was captured and spent 3 years in a P.O.W. camp where he nearly died. After the war he invented the portable defibrillator and later an automated version anyone could use. Should someone who has saved millions of lives be more widely known?

Last year we did a TGT on Norman Borlaug who has probably saved more lives than anyone in history, but is barely known. Second on that all time list might well be Frank Pantridge. His invention has saved millions yet he's barely known. Fix that with your students tomorrow.
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Thursday 2nd October Happy Birthday to celebrated portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz (left) and leading fashion designer Donna Karan who turn 76 and 77 respectively, today. Not only do the two women share a birthday, but they both also share a huge impact that their art has on our culture and society. Leibovitz started at Rolling Stone magazine where she captured the raw energy of the 1970s music scene before moving on to create some of the most famous celebrity images of the modern age. Her portraits aren’t just photos, they tell stories. From John Lennon curled around Yoko Ono just hours before his death, to a barefoot Queen Elizabeth, Leibovitz showed how photography could reveal personality, vulnerability, and power all in a single shot. Donna Karan rose through the fashion industry launching her own brand (Donna Karan, New York - DKNY) in the 1980s and quickly transformed the way women dressed for work. Her idea of “Seven Easy Pieces” (a mix-and-match capsule wardrobe) empowered women in business to feel stylish, professional, and modern. Her DKNY label blended high fashion with street style, making bold design accessible around the world. Though working in different fields, Leibovitz and Karan both use their art as a lens on culture. Leibovitz shapes how we see others, whilst Karan shapes how people present themselves. Both have shown how art isn’t separate from everyday life, but shapes the way we view ourselves and others. Do you ever stop to think about how much a single picture tells us about a person? What does what you wear (and how you wear it) say about you? Does a career in photography or fashion design appeal to you? How does art shape wider society?

Thursday 2nd October Happy Birthday to leading fashion designer Donna Karan (top) and celebrated portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz who turn 77 and 76 today, respectively. The two women share a birthday, but also a huge impact of their art on society. Leibovitz uses her camera to shape how we view others in society, whilst Karan shapes how we present ourselves to others. How much can you tell about someone from a single picture or a first impression?

Thursdays TGT is a 2 for 1, but thankfully this is not full of fat or salt, so is still allowed. Two artists who shape how we view ourselves and how we view others. Happy Birthday to Annie Leibowitz and Donna Karan who were born one year apart and share a birthday tomorrow.
bit.ly/TutorGroupThink

Astonished that Musk has not been kicked out. He has not upheld the values of The Royal Society in so many ways.

A statement from the President of the Royal Society | Royal Society A statement from Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society, regarding threats to the values that allow science to flourish.

Deeply disappointing. Once again the @royalsociety.org has avoided explaining how *actions* by Elon Musk that clearly repudiate the Society's values are consistent with the code of conduct that Fellows must adhere to. royalsociety.org/news/2025/10...

If you don’t like being called a racist, maybe don’t make a career of saying things that appeal to racists, don’t create a political party that keeps attracting racist candidates, don’t fawn over racist world leaders, and don’t make a convicted racist the guest of honour at your party conference.

Black and white photo looking down a street of terraced brick houses. Several cars line each side of the street, with many people gathered at the far end. Beyond this the bow of a large oil tanker can be seen, towering above the end of the street and the rows of houses.

Every time I come across this photo it completely stops me in my tracks. Crude oil supertanker Esso Hibernia under construction at Swan Hunter shipyard, Wallsend, during 1970. The scale and spectacle of this thing is incomprehensible. (📸 Harriet Berney)

As you'd expect, sensible stuff from @adamboxereducation.bsky.social - We focus on attention, participation and long term learning through research-informed practice .... but it all counts for nought if behaviour is not sorted.

School Improvement Starts Here: Behaviour, Participation, and Memory All schools can improve, but it's often hard to know where to start. In most contexts, we can begin by asking three simple questions.

I am blogging again!!!

Like many others, I've moved over to Substack for a bit of a refresh. First entry is on school improvement - where to start, and what things matter.

I'm weirdly a bit nervous about it it's been so long 😭😭

open.substack.com/pub/adamboxe...

So sad, so depressing.

Monday 29th September László József Bíró was born on 29th September 1899 in Budapest, Hungary, into a Jewish family. He trained as a doctor but turned to journalism. While working as a newspaper editor, he became frustrated with the slow drying ink in his fountain pen, which smudged easily and stained his hands. Inspired by the fast drying ink used in newspaper printing, Bíró looked for a new solution. One day, he watched children playing with marbles in puddles and noticed how the rolling balls left thin trails of water. That simple observation sparked an idea: a pen with a tiny rolling ball at the tip that could pick up ink from a reservoir and leave a clean, even line that dried quickly. By 1938, Bíró had developed and patented the world’s first successful ballpoint pen. But as a Jew living in Europe during the rise of the Nazis, Bíró’s life was in danger. He fled Hungary with his brother György and found refuge in Argentina, where they continued to improve their invention. In 1945 French businessman Marcel Bich bought the patent from Bíró. His company ‘Bic’ made the pen affordable and reliable, helping it spread worldwide. Bic has sold more than 100 billion of Biro’s pens. Today, in the UK and beyond many still refer to ballpoint pens simply as ‘biros’. Bíró died in Argentina in 1985 and Argentina celebrates ‘Inventors Day’ on this day in his honour. Questions: Have you ever used one of László’s pens? Have you ever used a fountain pen? What are the advantages of each? Can you think of any other inventors whose name has become synonymous with their invention?

Monday 29th September László József Bíró was born on this day, 1899 in Budapest. He invented a quick drying ball point pen after noticing children playing with marbles in puddles left a trail of water behind. He fled to Argentina during WWII and died there in 1985. He sold his patent to Marcel Bich in 1945. Argentina celebrate Inventors Day on this day in his honour each year. Have you ever used one of his pens? How does it compare to other types of pen?

Did you know that Biro was a man? (What else is a man?). Monday's TGT introduces your students to Hungarian László Bíró who was born in 1899 and invented the ballpoint pen in 1938. He fled the Nazis during the war and sold his patent to Marcel Bic(h) in 1945.
bit.ly/TutorGroupThink

They were equally shocked to discover that "Oui-Oiu" (Noddy) was also not French, but create by Enid Blyton :-)

When I worked in France the others in our office were convinced that ballpoint pens were invented in France by Bic - they even call them le bic, just like we call them biros. They didn't believe me at first when I told them about Laszlo Biro.