Digging for the Why

Send us Fan Mail In our final episode of Season 2 of ‘Digging For The Why’ we talk to Curriculum Lead for Oak National Academy, Ed Southall. In this week’s episode, Ed emphasises the need to nurture curiosity from an early age to encourage participation in the classroom. We delve into the challenges of moving away from traditional teaching models and the benefits that conceptual insight can bring...

Send us Fan Mail In this week’s episode, we invite Susan Okereke to open the conversation on whether students should study maths till age 18. We take a look at the enhancing numeracy levels in the UK and the positive effects that might have. As well as the societal impact of poor math skills and emotional responses to maths. We also explore the importance of welcoming mistakes and encouraging incl...

Send us Fan Mail In this captivating episode, we invite Alex Bellos, renowned author, mathematician, and puzzle-maker, to join the discussion on why we dig for the why.   Alex is an expert on the narrative approach to making maths engaging. We explore the similarities in teaching methods between maths and computer science. As well as the significance of generating curiosity and the role teachers p...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 2 of ‘Digging For The Why’ explores the idea of enquiry-based learning in mathematics education.   This week, we talk to Catriona Agg, a specialist in continuity between years 5 – 8, about the benefits of incorporating puzzles into your lessons.  We also look at independent learning across educational levels and explore strategies for engaging students in mathematics and r...

Send us Fan Mail Join us and our special guest, Ben Sparks, as we discuss everything from engaging teaching methods and practical applications to fostering curiosity among students. We emphasise the need for teachers to make maths interesting and accessible beyond the traditional curriculum. While exploring the importance of deep understanding over memorisation across all subjects. We also take a...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers and maths enthusiasts where we discuss the need to ask why.   In this special episode, recorded live at the MEI conference in June 2023, we get the opportunity to ask questions to the key people involved in designing the new maths curriculum for KS1-4 for the Oak National Academy. Andy hosts the episode and...

Send us Fan Mail Join us for the preview episode of Season 2 of ‘Digging for the Why’ where we explore the deeper questions behind mathematics education. In this episode, we’ll glimpse into what listeners can expect from the upcoming season. We welcome a special guest and the third wheel of the DFTW tricycle, Sam, who provides her unique perspective as a non-mathematician and offers her insight in...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy are joined by a special guest, Tom Button. Together they discuss the following: Season 2 of Digging For The Why? How can students and teachers benefit from technology? When should students s...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy are joined by a special guest, Richard Perring. Together they discuss the following: Keeping your LinkedIn up-to-date! Why should we encourage the use of rich tasks? What do students and tea...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy are joined by a special guest, Tom Rainbow. Together they discuss the following: Tom's thoughts on challenging and motivating students Andy's son passes the Men In Black interview...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy discuss the following: Andy apologises for a lack of knowledge of adjectives Do we take into account the difference in how children conceptualise maths to teachers? Clarity in the classroom...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy are joined by a special guest, Alison Clark-Wilson. Together they discuss the following: Andy learns the meaning of enigmatic! Why is curiosity important? Do we encourage students to ask why...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy are joined by a special guest, Vicky Osborn. Again this episode was recorded in two parts:  Part One: Andy and Alison The differences between KS2 and KS3 for stakeholders KS3: The Wasted Yea...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. This episode is in two parts. In part one, Andy and Alison discuss what they mean by mastery. In part two, they are joined by Steph Kirk, a teacher in a brand new school with just Year 7, to hear how she uses mastery as par...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. In this episode, Alison and Andy discuss the following: What do we mean by digging for the why?  Why we shouldn't teach tricks  A student led vs teacher led classroom Links to things mentioned in this episode: NCETM co...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome to Digging for the why - the podcast for maths teachers of years 5-8 looking at continuity and why we need to dig for the why in our lessons. This episode is a chance for us (Andy and Alison) to introduce ourselves and give you an overview of the podcast series that will follow. You can find us on twitter: Andy - @desire2undrstnd Alison - @AlisonHopperMEI Our int...