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Hayley Simpkin

@pipkinzoo.bsky.social
417 followers 548 following 411 posts

KS3- KS4 Jack of All (Science) Trades, KS5 Biology and Applied Science in the East Midlands. Previously all of the above plus SEMH and vocational/school farms bod.

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Reposted by Hayley Simpkin
Jill Berry @jillberry102.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
"Retention is not just about staying, but about learning how to stay, by developing sustainable working habits, setting boundaries & managing emotional labour over time. This is essentially the essence of resilience & personal growth." @hugheshaili.bsky.social @samgibbs.bsky.social
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AR @psalisbury.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Things that don’t improve well-being: Restricting emails Work free weekends Free eye tests Not allowing marking at home Thing that does improve well being: Reducing workload by getting rid of any stupid initiative that doesn’t directly improve quality of provision
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
My year 13 applied group's Teams channel is the most eclectic mix of no-context photos of their practical work. And an occasional meme
A blob of blood which has been stained with fluorescein and hydrogen peroxide glowing green under a UV light
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Fr Chase 🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁 @kalanthropos.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I don't think the year 11 who came out with 'but cows don't have horns?' today expected a full chapter and verse lesson on rare and native cattle breeds. Or the phase 'when we had our school cows...'
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
I only got 20 because somebody left (dumped?) a typewriter next to our car in Stratford Upon Avon when I was about 10
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Christian Moore-Anderson @cmooreanderson.eurosky.social · 19/09/2026
I wanted to redesign my model for teaching condensation to my 11-year-olds. My physics-teacher colleague and I came up with this. We'll have to see how it works in the classroom (using a bottle of cold water to help). I'm not sure if the evaporating flow should be in a lighter colour, or omitted.
A stock and flow model of condensation on a bottle's surface, with the flows: condensing, colliding and staying as a gas, and evaporating.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Wish I could remember why I was talking about bats and rabies/Lyssa virus with my tutor group last week
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
So many questions
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Odd This Day @oddthisday.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Sat in a meeting today opposite an AI poster for a charity coffee morning and couldn’t concentrate on the proceedings because of this eldritch horror who has a jug for a hand (or is holding a jug in her claw hand), and making a cake levitate in front of her
Identikit people with cakes and coffee cups in a bland, featureless AI nightmarescape Close up of a woman with a cake floating in front of her (she’s not holding it), and with a jug floating where her right hand should be. There’s what might be a hand at her elbow, but it could be a bear’s paw
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Created a topic test in copilot as directed by SLT. What it has produced is garbage and taken longer than it would have to have just used exampro and put a few MCQs in manually. How are people getting so captured by this crap?
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
I'm not sure @teacherhead.bsky.social is active on here but I really enjoyed this substack.com/@tomsherring...
substack.com
Make teaching the job you want it to be. Be yourself, express yourself and have fun with it!
As readers of my blogs will know, I’m a passionate advocate for developing teaching techniques with precision; I believe in strong routines and clear boundaries for assertive behaviour management; I’m...
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Spilled coffee down my white top 10 mins into the day ✅ Gained a new nickname from pastoral team ✅ Still not entirely sure what I'm doing tomorrow ✅ Standard INSET day!
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Mr E @theniceman.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Modelling learning when you learn pupils' names: whoteacheslanguages.blogspot.com/2022/09/lear...
whoteacheslanguages.blogspot.com
Learning pupils' names - modelling learning
Two weeks in and I have learned the names of my five Year 9 groups and my two Year 7 groups. Very deliberately, and using it to talk to pup...
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
I'll never tire of the bemused looks from other adults when they see you chatting happily to a group of slightly sketchy-looking teenagers (year 9 boys playing Bogies in a covered car park "the echo is great, miss").
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Lots to have a look at here!
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Liz Webster 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇬🇧🇪🇺 @lizwebster.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
🚨 THIS IS NOW A NATIONAL FOOD SAFETY WARNING we warned was inevitable if we left the EU!!! The FSA is telling pregnant women, children under five, over-65s and vulnerable people not to eat runny eggs when eating out. Why? 👇 🧵
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Excellent again
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Mark Enser @ensermark.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
GCSE results are out tomorrow. The data tells you real things, and it can't be trusted on others. Some thoughts for middle leaders on what to actually claim from your results before drawing conclusions: enserm.substack.com/p/what-your-...
enserm.substack.com
What Your GCSE Results Can (and Can’t) Tell You
Cutting through the data noise
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Luke Tryl @luketryl.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
🌑☀️Does anti-system thinking correlate with disregarding official advice? Those who'd rather see our 'political and social institutions burn' than 'preserve and improve them' were more likely to look at the sun directly during the eclipse.
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George Eaton @georgeeaton.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Ulez has delivered remarkable public health gains in a short period. Sadiq deserves more credit than he’s had for defying Labour pressure to U-turn after Uxbridge. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Ulez led to better lung size and function among London children, study finds
Researchers find capacity stunted by pollution restored after introduction of ultra-low emission zone
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Ferris Jabr @ferrisjabr.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
🧵Thread on the fascinating phenomenon that is the multi-species foraging flock: If different species are competing for finite resources, why would they band together like this? Research suggests that by doing so they enhance their chances of finding food, flushing out insects, and avoiding predators
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
New build estates don't have to be bereft of wildlife (will be using ours to demonstrate ecology fieldwork to yr13 Applied!)
A heron sitting in a pond with a new house behind it. They are all reflected in the pond water.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Quote from a 14 year old boy when we did an end of term lessons around possible net zero and climate policy changes 'did Andy Burnham even go to school?!'
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Sam Blatherwick @blatherwicksam.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
why is this situation just accepted??
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Little helper this afternoon
A red common darter (I think) dragonfly sitting on a guy rope
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Was not expecting to be able to find (online!) the mark scheme for a 2014 exam in a defunct subject 🤯
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Count Binface @countbinface.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
There now follows a party election broadcast by the Count Binface Party, And if I do say so myself, it's a banger. #VoteBinface #Clacton
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Nail on head again- we already have a broad range of vocational options at all levels- if they aren't being utilised/accessed to best effect, ministers need to spend the time analysing why and addressing that rather than reinventing the wheel (again)
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Stuart Rowntree @primarythink.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
The outrage cycle prefers a simpler story. Schools must shape the entire fate of every child, whatever the economy, labour market or public services do. It is emotionally satisfying, politically convenient and structurally dishonest...
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Ben Newmark @bennewmark.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
If I wanted to protect the most prestigious and highly paid jobs for the social groups who usually hold them I'd probably design an education system that discouraged poorer children from studying the entry qualifications for these jobs as early as possible..
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
Spot on- "so if you are advocating for vocational qualifications at 14, I think it is incumbent upon you to explain how you will stop all these problems happening again"
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David Didau @didau.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Schools are normally thought of as machines to optimise but it might be more helpful to imagine them as ecosystems to cultivate. Healthy schools renew the conditions that make future success possible. open.substack.com/pub/daviddid...
open.substack.com
The ecology of schools
An ecological perspective explains why relationships, feedback and adaptation matter more than isolated interventions
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Sam Heller | سام هيلر @abujamajem.com · 30/07/2026
Stupid empire x.com/reutersafric...
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
We even 'had to' turn down one of our own (excellent) yr10s doing one day with our science technician on a specific dry kit stock-taking task- because he was in school two days as his placement could only offer three days 🤷‍♀️
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Maybe the issue isn't needing new quals etc, but returning to schools being free to offer from the great many existing courses that 'don't count' 🤔. We had a great mixed curriculum in the SEMH special school (full ability range) because we weren't constrained by perf. indicators.
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La Biologuita @labiologuita.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
The death of the Saturday job. The child labour laws, ironically, are doing our children a disservice. Pupils who work alongside school are less likey to become NEET. Work experience is a poor proxy for the longer term benefits of a Saturday/holiday job. www.gov.uk/government/p...
gov.uk
The death of the Saturday job: the decline in earning and learning amongst young people in the UK
In 1997, 42 per cent of 16-17 year old students were studying and working. By 2014 this figure had declined to 18 per cent. This report describes and explains the long-term fall in young people combin...
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Excellent analysis, certainly resonates with my experience of trying to make a good attempt at running a county-wide one. I think we only got two cohorts through before it ended.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Just realised I've been commenting based on my experiences in land-based education (Diploma, PL, ELBS GCSE, C&G) and forgot I've taught several 'vocational' science quals too. GNVQ, anyone? DAS, Additional Applied, BTEC (NQF & QCF, not the RQF one though). We have been here so many times before.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Thread! As always. Also @physicsmrh.bsky.social a reference for us!
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Jon Severs @jonsevers.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
BREAKING: A huge shift in secondary education has been announced by @andyburnham.bsky.social - new technical routes offered in schools for 14 year olds.... by 2028. Announcing in the holidays with very little info is not a good way of selling it to the sector. www.tes.com/magazine/new...
tes.com
New technical pathways in secondary schools by 2028, PM announces
Schools will be inspected by Ofsted on vocational offering, but sector leaders want more details on multiple aspects of the plans
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Today is my last day working with our very own 'Mr Physics'. Brett's knowledge and unending enthusiasm for teaching and learning (not just physics) have left a permanent impression on our team & his impact will be felt long after he has settled in to his new role. Nobody does dad jokes better, too!
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Danny Nicholson @dannynic.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Professional development videos to help teachers consider ways to make practical work purposeful in primary science: www.bathspa.ac.uk/projects/pra... #edusky #cpd
bathspa.ac.uk
Practical work in primary school science
This Nuffield Foundation funded research seeks to clarify the role of practical work in primary school science.
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Spain are undeniable very good but their way of winning is so dull. Like spending a week watching a python digest a sheep.
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Richard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
FTFY
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Matthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Does molecular biology still exist? Ngram frequency below. Given that many of the recent usages will be to historical events/ideas etc, it may be disappearing from modern science.
Ngram graph showing peak of using in late 1990s, now at the level it was in 1980.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
This little fella made both a poor choice (finding its way into a kids' pool) and a good choice (the pool belonging to people who like cool nature incursions) today. Now safely back in the real pond near our house.
A Great Diving Beetle, wondering how it found itself temporarily housed in a takeaway tub of chlorinated water.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Little garden visitor this evening!
A hummingbird hawkmoth enjoying some lavenderHummingbird hawkmoth hovering above a lavender flower
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turgut keskintürk @tkeskinturk.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
data visualization is my passion.
fox news showing weekly temperatures: 92, 92, 92, 94, 94, 92, 92, with a very strong gap between 94 and 92.
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Hayley Simpkin @pipkinzoo.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
Bumped into some yr6 I'd taught earlier in transition week as I was coming out of the prep room with my yr9 kit... "What's on the trolley, miss?" Liver and hydrogen peroxide investigation, I replied. "Is it human liver? 😱". I'm not sure that's the impression I should have made on them...
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