David Didau

If I could I would I would I swear I would be better but it seems I am just a natural no good Chapter 45 of The Second Summer of Love

New chapter- The Second Summer of Love
open.substack.com/pub/secondsu...

I’m in

No Way Sis and Hayseed Dixie are two of my favs

Agreed. Similarly, putting on a play is an act of creative interpretation. And, as always, there's a bell curve: some do it much beeter than others. The 'creativity' but can sometimes be a barrier to quality

In case it wasn’t clear, our best bet is to feed their minds and not be dicks about closing down the connections they make.

The field defines the field. In the case of music, KB is not a member of the field and so her value judgements on this topic should not be given more weight than any other non expert’s

Of course. But the judgement of the field is worth more than than that of others

Are cover musicians not creative?

That’s why Csikszentmihalyi’s idea of domain, field & individual is potentially useful

Thanks Dave. I think Sir Ken killed creativity

A fascinating read from David Didau. I’ve been talking about Sir Ken’s TED talk for years back when I was in the classroom and spent years exploring creative thinking with Year 7 classes.

It’s one of the reason why I believe collaborative, creative storytelling is so important!

I haven’t. Thanks

Do schools kill creativity? The case for knowledge before novelty and why constraint enables original thought

open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

Do schools kill creativity? The case for knowledge before novelty and why constraint enables original thought

Do schools kill creativity?”

It’s a seductive story. But creativity isn’t a free-floating spark waiting to be protected from schooling. It grows from knowledge, constraint, revision and judgement. Far from killing creativity, schools breathe life into it.
open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

Pulled out of my long run on Sunday after 5k. Chat GPT advised me not to run. Saw physio (who made the same diagnosis as GPT: medial tibial stress) and gave me some rehab. Foam rollers are brutal! This is the longest I’ve not run since the summer. Feeling very antsy. Marathon in 6 weeks!

A shift in language - The White Paper A shift in language It has taken me a while to digest the contents of the White Paper. I did not want to react to the headlines or rush to j...

“High standards and inclusion are two sides of the same coin.”

After reading the white paper carefully and discussing it during a SENCo forum this week, I’ve written on the shift in language, and what some of this might mean for schools in practice.

moderncassie.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-sh...

It’s the other side of love Chapter 44 of The Second Summer of Love

New chapter of Second Summer of Love
It’s all going Pete Tong
open.substack.com/pub/secondsu...

It’s the other side of love Chapter 44 of The Second Summer of Love

New chapter of Second Summer of Love
It’s all going Pete Tong
open.substack.com/pub/secondsu...

Just completed a trawl through about 30 Ofsted reports all released since Feb 26. With one exception, every setting with low attainment get needs attention for achievement and leadership and governance and every setting with close to average or above achievement gets expected or above for both.

A banner that says Little but Fierce: Streamlined 5th Edition for Children of All Ages. There’s a preview of the physical book cover and artwork. There’s a quote from Sarah Johnson, Education Consultant that says: “In a sea of electronic alternatives, Little but Fierce stands as an exciting and fun competitor that will delight geeky parents and their children alike.” There are also four photos of the creative team: DC Bradshaw, Catarina Eusébio, Sebastian Yūe and Jennifer Kretchmer.

ARE YOU LITTLE BUT FIERCE?

Little but Fierce, the streamlined adaptation of 5th Edition for kids, is now live on Kickstarter! 



Support the project to introduce TTRPGs to the next generation:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/dcb...



#TTRPG #LittleButFierce

Faster reading, faster progress? The promise, the problems, and the proof we still need

Whole-text immersion at pace is a sounds like a great idea. It may build stamina, coherence, vocabulary. It may especially help weaker readers.

Some thoughts on how we might respond to the evidence on ‘fastervreading’ open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

Faster reading, faster progress? The promise, the problems, and the proof we still need

Whole-text immersion at pace is a sounds like a great idea. It may build stamina, coherence, vocabulary. It may especially help weaker readers.

Some thoughts on how we might respond to the evidence on ‘fastervreading’ open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

Being a "warm demander" is a main drive for us this year, and this fits in perfectly ...

A lovely review in Teach Secondary for my Cabinet of Curiosity. “School life ought to consist of far more than just a utilitarian pursuit of exam grades”
You can buy a copy here if you like books and think this is interesting:
www.hachette.co.uk/titles/james...

NEW BLOG: We need to talk about oracy

A taste of my ResearchEd talk yesterday

learningfrommymistakesenglish.blogspot.com/2026/03/we-n...

They really were

What are we really doing when we let students opt out? How low expectations protect adults and diminish children

We say we care about children. So why do we let them opt out?
At researchEDBrum I taught a live lesson. One student wanted to opt out. I could have backed off. It would have been easier. Instead, I insisted they participate, as warmly as possible
open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

It was so valuable to have a more reluctant pupil in the room (albeit unintentionally, I'm sure) as this is the modelling it's really useful and reassuring to see. Exemplar videos often show a leafy/half-size class where nothing's wrong - great for showing some things, but not everything.

What are we really doing when we let students opt out? How low expectations protect adults and diminish children

We say we care about children. So why do we let them opt out?
At researchEDBrum I taught a live lesson. One student wanted to opt out. I could have backed off. It would have been easier. Instead, I insisted they participate, as warmly as possible
open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...

Chilled to the bone and five miles to home I'm messing in the dark and feelin' all alone Chapter 43 of The Second Summer of Love

Chapter 43 of The Second Summer of Love

It’s going to kick off…
open.substack.com/pub/secondsu...