After years of being frustrated that CPD events for schools very rarely featured how to use technology within the subject area covered, teacher Maggie Morrissey set up Technology To Teach. She and her colleague Wendy Gregory focus bringing primarily on delivering first-rate CPD on certain areas of the curriculum such as Maths and Science, but with a strong element of ICT incorporated throughout.

One of the attractions of Computing as a subject is the opportunity to have fun. To play. To mess about and try things out. So playing games and using toys fits very easily into what you can do in the classroom.

Student Ross Lowe, 16, discusses his journey with the micro:bit, from user to contributor, to designing and releasing his own ‘Maker’s Kit’.

‘Man Stuff’! Preconceived ideas of what men do and women generally don’t. Unfortunately, coding has found its way onto the list too… I’m going to start with the white elephant here. I’m a bloke. I like man stuff. I have a man drawer full of cluttered rubbish which may one day come in handy. My wife’s drawers however are borderline OCD. When I was younger I played rugby and went mountain biking which was all about taking risks and getting covered in dirt.

To meet the ICT needs of their teachers and learners, UTC (University Technical College) Oxfordshire enlisted the services of RM Flex, who deliver an ICT support service which offers cost savings, service benefits and best practice that partnership working provides. In May 2015, UTC Oxfordshire selected RM Education to provide their IT support and to help shape their ICT strategy.

“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door,” he used to say. “You step into the road and if you don't keep your feet there's no telling where you'll be swept off to. Do you realize that this is the very path that goes through Mirkwood, and if you let it, it might take you to the Lonely Mountains or even further or to worse places?” – J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring (Frodo Baggins about Bilbo)

Last year was generally considered a rotten year. Great Britain lost some of it's best-loved cultural icons. Society was politically divided… and Toblerone changed shape. For schools, September brought particularly challenging news: new regulations for school websites, and Ofsted updated their guidance to Inspectors.

Primary school ICT can be a tricky subject for some teachers. For those who aren’t completely au fait with the technology themselves, it can be difficult to integrate new concepts and ideas into their lesson plans. Computers and tablets are always being upgraded to include new features and software, which can make staying up to date difficult.

Curious teachers from across the UK are signing up to take part in the first ever Teacher Email Challenge. From the 9th October teachers will be sent 14 fun and snappy challenges across 14 days, designed to promote collaboration, share ideas and raise a smile in the classroom.

Schools across the UK are being invited to take part in a national survey of internet use by pupils when at home. Education consultant Brett Laniosh from Catshill Learning Partnerships, who are carrying out the survey, said that the results will provide valuable information to schools on the range of hardware such as laptops, tablets, consoles and smart phones being used by young people.