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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 12/09/2025

I shall be out of the country thank goodness, visiting my brother's family in Canada.

Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

It's important that teachers and practitioners are aware that children's mathematics doesn't only occur in adult-planned activities or lessons. The mathematical thinking they freely communicate in their play is hugely valuable for their developing understanding. www.childrens-mathematics.net

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

Four year old Mason drew on his 'funds of knowledge' as he wrote a string of letters and numerals, reading "SK, 714bp10". Lifting his spy gadget to his face he explained "SK is to keep the password safe. To switch it on you have to say '714bp10' - and you have to read it backwards for 'off'"!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

I think it's more likely to be a drop-off in freedoms as children go through the school system, so that they are empowered and have agency throughout.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

It's not just inspections but the restrictive influence it has had on schools and settings, on curricula, and the highly directed ways in which it should be taught. Teachers are professionals with degrees, yet they have little freedom to teach in ways that are TRULY in children's best interests!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

Couldn't agree more! I think most parents want their children to go to their nearest school, and that their wish is that their child will be happy at school. That's it, in a nutshell!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

Earlier in my career schools had inspections from HMIs (not sure if they still exist). I recall them as friendly and supportive, and certainly nothing resembling the nightmare Juggernaut that OfSTED has become! Does OfSTED really do any good? They have done irreparable damage - for what end?!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Moving TV last night (and tonight) about the 'Mother and Baby homes scandal in England. The impact it had on one young mother who was 16 at the time was horrendous. She said they were accused of being whores and prostitutes, and she had believed she was worthless all of her life. I cried.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

School-based nurseries are NOT the way to go! They are at risk of top-down approaches led by headteachers and subject leaders who want inappropriate practices and unrealistic demands on young children. Please, let them be children and not mini primary children!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 01/09/2025

‪Isaac, (4 years, 6 months) was playing 'Builders'. On a play cheque he wrote a reversed and inverted letter 'a' to signify “£500.00 for all the jobs I've done at my house". Young children begin to differentiate letter and numerical symbols in meaningful contexts such as their own pretend play.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 26/08/2025

Of course it's an elephant - I can see its trunk!

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Mary J @primaryteachermary.bsky.social · 25/08/2025

It’s an elephant!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 25/08/2025

Three-year-old Sam was watching as Bradley played with a calculator, talking about and writing numerals. Sam decided to copy what Bradley was doing, and made his own marks, making a connection between the technology, numerals and writing something down.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 21/07/2025

Young children need understanding, kindness, open-ended time to play and to make sense of the world, which is why all our research focuses on Children's Mathematical Graphics. See: www.childrens-mathematics.net

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 19/07/2025

Agreed! And the mathematical equivalent (of 'written' maths) is Children's Mathematical Graphics. See: www.childrens-mathematics.net turbologo.com/designs/8095...

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

The government wants neat and legible handwriting and spelling from Reception - writing that looks as though an older primary child has written. This is inappropriate for young children! They are in the Foundation phase, and should be free to choose how to communicate through emergent writing,

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

According to the 'Writing Framework', 'emergent writing' means: Children experimenting with mark-making or playing at writing before they formally start writing. But it's a logical and highly valuable way of young children meaning-making with marks, signs and symbols.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

Hooray for the teacher who created the classroom culture in which the children are free to do this!

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 06/07/2025

“I’ve drawn the Taj Mahal by a beautiful rainbow river” ‘They’re so beautiful’ I respond “Do you know what the numbers are?” the child asks “The doors?” “No…they are the way I drew them, I started with 1, I did 2, and 3 and 4 and 5 and 6 and then I glued them on the river”

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Dan Wuori @danwuori.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

Language has its own special genres. And your toddler is working to master them all. Thread 🧵

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Sue Cowley @suecowley.bsky.social · 28/06/2025

When the education system demands things that aren't developmentally appropriate, you end up creating issues not solving them. Young children are not meant to be static for long periods of time. If we insist they are, we create 'behaviour problems' that are actually just children behaving normally.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

Is there anyone in the current American government or legal system who is decent, and who is not corrupt?!!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

And this from the President of America!!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

Mine looks the same, and after a lot of hunting I found its name.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

Mine looks the same, and after a lot of hunting I found its name.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

Lovely! I think this rose is Felice de Perpetue (there should be an accent on the final'e').

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 22/06/2025

And he says 'Now is the time for peace'?!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 22/06/2025

Starmer is so wrong, on so many counts!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 18/06/2025

All change! Some years ago, teachers were advised by the government to 'differentiate' tasks and activities for children. Then came synthetic phonics and Mastery Maths - with little differentiation. Now it's all change again - to 'adaptive teaching'. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose …

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 15/06/2025

Thank goodness decent Americans are standing uo against Trump's madness!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 05/06/2025

Why do the free school meals not start until they are in primary school? Children in preschool and nursery have been overlooked, and should also have them.

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Thank goodness for the Green Party!

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 30/05/2025

Both speech and graphicacy are symbolic languages, and there are links between the early development of both. Young children will intentionally use graphical marks (i.e. scribble-marks or dots) to communicate their mathematical thinking. See: www.childrens-mathematics.net/gallery-1-ea...

childrens-mathematics.net

* GALLERY 1 * Early explorations with graphicacy | Children’s Mathematics Research Network

Children’s Mathematics Research Network

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Dan Wuori @danwuori.bsky.social · 26/05/2025

Soap phone! 🧼 As they grow, children’s play becomes gradually more sophisticated - passing through stages aligned with their cognitive development. (Thread 🧵)

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 27/05/2025

And for some lovely examples of children's mathematical graphics in pretend play and other contexts, see www.childrens-mathematics.net

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Fiona - Play Scotland @fiplayscotland.bsky.social · 27/05/2025

Love this! The power of play! #ScotEduSky #EduSky

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

This is a huge load for teachers to bear, and I have to question how much it is of value to parents. And does it ultimately benefit for children? Whose idea was this? Surely this has to stop!

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Ruth Swailes @ruthswailes.bsky.social · 17/05/2025

Good grief- they’re 2- they should be wriggly !

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Dr Maulfry Worthington @maulfry.bsky.social · 18/05/2025

Crazy (education) world! What does this Ofsted inspector actually know about young children?

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Dan Wuori @danwuori.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

Check out his cool flip phone! As your baby grows as a language user they’re learning more than just vocabulary. They’re learning the social scripts and protocols that govern its use in different scenarios. 🧵

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 03/05/2025

A Nursery Child draws hearts, counting them as she goes: “There are 34 children in circle time and I’ve drawn all their hearts. I’ve got a heart too, so I’m drawing my heart as well” ‘One for each child’ I respond. “Yes” she responds “Everyone has one heart, we have to look after them!” Joy!

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Reposted by Dr Maulfry Worthington

Bevan Holloway @bevanholloway.com · 11/05/2025

Hey, what if instead of obsessing over how we can ‘make learning visible’ we thought instead of how we can make a learner’s power and spirit evident. #edusky #learningstories

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