❓ What’s It All About?
This one breaks down how teachers can represent new knowledge and plan tasks to help pupils process and organise new knowledge. Think dual coding, supporting cognitive load, and organising knowledge, all neatly packaged in a wonderfully visual book.
👀 Why I Picked It Up
Having a fine art background, I’ve always been drawn to the visual side of things, and Oliver and David's work hits that sweet spot between research and real-world classroom practice. But it’s not just nice-looking diagrams, it made me stop and think about how we can present new knowledge and what we ask children to do with that information. It pushed my thinking around task design in the best way. It also delves into the embodiment of learning, where the physical world and what we physically engage with (maniplulatives, gestures and scaffolds) directly connect to the building of cognitive structures and schema. As a primary specialist, passionate about practical, hands-on experiences, this explicit connection certainly lit a few lightbulbs for me!
💡 What Stuck With Me
🧱 Knowing what kind of knowledge you’re teaching helps you shape how we should present information and design tasks.
🔄 The idea that we’re not just delivering info; we’re helping pupils manipulate, organise and reuse it, which supports cognitive load.
🎨 Task design, including using manipulatives and the physical environment, directly supports the construction of knowledge and schema. Treating ideas as objects is my new favourite talking point!
🎯 Who Should Give It a Go
Perfect for teachers looking to bridge research and practice, especially if you're into curriculum planning, task design or refining how we present information.
💥 A Bit from Coops
What’s buzzing in my brain now is how AI could play a big role in complimenting the work in this book. Tools like NAPKIN and ChatGPT’s new image creation can help teachers organise and present content more clearly than ever, making ideas visible, manageable, and memorable. If you’re working in primary and want to combine great pedagogy with the best of new tech, this book's a solid starting point.
📗 Fancy Grabbing a Copy?
📝 More Book Recommendations From WAGOLL Teaching
The Ultimate List of Books for Research-Informed Teachers - Looking for more book recommendations? I have you covered in my Ultimate List of Ed. Literature!
In a bit,
Coops 😎
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