Teacher Inspirations

10/05/2026

Today I’m on-site filming my very first snapshot of practice for the New South Wales Department of Education. 🎬✨

There is something incredibly powerful about being invited into a classroom to witness teaching and learning in action. We are deeply grateful to the school for opening their doors and allowing us to capture these authentic moments with their students and staff.

Sharing these snapshots is about more than just video; it’s about the vulnerability of our educators and their willingness to lead the way for others. These resources provide vital professional learning and guidance for teachers across our amazing NSW public schools, helping us all grow together.

Looking forward to seeing this snapshot come to life!

01/05/2026

My role as a learning designer for the department does keep me busy, but I am keen to stay connected to the classroom. Let me know what resources you wish you had for Term 2.

25/04/2026

For schools looking for primary maths programs and resources - have you seen what Ochre provide?

20/04/2026

I am very excited to let everyone know that the new and improved version of the Embodied Learning in Early Mathematics online professional learning is now available for Early Learning and Primary educators across NSW.

I am super proud to have been part of this as a learning designer. You can find out more about the course here https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/curriculum/mathematics/professional-learning-mathematics-k-12/mathematics-k-6-professional-learning-catalogue/embodied-learning-early-mathematics

19/04/2026

Have a great Term 2 everyone! See my post below about supporting anyone who feels that they need or require a resource☺️

15/04/2026

Heading into Term 2 can feel daunting. Quite often the holidays feel like they go too fast. We have grand plans to do so much, but we feel physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted — or for some… so excited, but we just can’t make, create and do everything we would like to. It’s not uncommon to feel like you just don’t want to go back yet.

Especially with new syllabus content, trying to do justice to core English and maths, assessment, reports… and all the things in between that never quite make it onto a checklist.

So…

What is feeling overwhelming for you going into Term 2?
What do you feel is missing, or not quite clear?
Are there particular areas you wish you had better resources or support for?

It could be anything — planning, assessment, differentiation, report writing, behaviour, using new units, or even just managing the workload.

I’m really interested in hearing what’s actually happening in classrooms right now. I won’t have all the answers, but I’d love to share what I can and also connect people with what’s already out there.

11/04/2026

Have you seen the updated Lesson Library? The NSW Department of Education has launched an updated Lesson Library on the curriculum website: https://curriculum.education.nsw.gov.au/index.html.

The Lesson Library offers:

* Ready-to-use lesson sequences and resources aligned to the NSW curriculum
*Support for planning and delivering engaging, standards-based lessons
* Access to updated content for a wide range of subjects and stages
* A user-friendly interface to help you find and use lesson materials easily.

This resource is designed to save you time and support high-quality teaching and learning. Check it out and explore the new features. There is also an opportunity to provide feedback on the resources; please take the time to do so.

If you have any questions about the Lesson Library, please let me know.

10/04/2026

I wanted to share a resource that I used regularly in my primary classroom, and one that had a genuine impact on my students.

Kindness 101, from Steve Hartman’s On the Road series, is something really special.

Each short episode tells a real-life story and connects it to a theme like kindness, empathy, gratitude, perseverance, or respect. I used these as part of our morning routine and wellbeing focus, and they consistently led to the most thoughtful, meaningful discussions with students.

What I loved most was how engaged the students were. These weren’t “lessons” they felt they had to sit through—these were stories they connected with. You could see them reflecting, making connections, and starting to think differently about how they treat others.

Over time, I noticed a shift in the classroom. Students were more aware of each other, more willing to show kindness, and more open in sharing their thoughts and feelings. It helped build a really strong sense of community.

The best part is that it’s incredibly easy to use. There are free, ready-to-go lessons with discussion questions and activities, so you can pick it up and use it straight away—whether it’s for a quick morning session or part of a broader wellbeing focus.

If you’re looking for something simple but powerful to support student wellbeing and positive classroom culture, I highly recommend this.

👉 Explore the lessons: https://charactercounts.org/digital_classroom/kindness-101/
👉 Join the teacher group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/kindness101

This is one of those resources that really stays with your students—and with you.

Here is one of my favourite episodes. https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18dKfPXJek/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Send a message to learn more

08/04/2026

Hello everyone, once again it has been a while since I posted here — Feb 2025! A lot has changed since then.

I have recently taken on a new role with the Department as a Senior Education Officer – Learning Designer. I love my new role — designing eLearning courses for teachers and students, running the tech side of professional learning Teams town halls and webinars (including interactives), and being part of team developing and filming Illustrations and Snapshots of Practice, to name a few.

This position has given me the time to see, find, learn about and truly engage with the extensive range of resources available across the system. Many resources are underused or unknown simply because, as teachers and school leaders, we often don’t have the time to discover and explore them. As an educator with 25+ years’ experience, across K–6 and as a substantive school executive, I completely understand how hard it can be to find the time to look beyond getting through our day-to-day teaching and learning commitments.

Term 2 will be a busy one for you all — new syllabuses to get your head around, core English and maths concepts to teach well (often in limited time), and of course, reports to write. I think it’s important to remind ourselves that our teaching should always be guided by the NSW syllabus documents. Units and resources are there to support and guide us, but the syllabus outcomes must remain our focus above all else.

There are a number of resources I can share with you, including:
• Department units and the updated Lesson Library
• Explicit Teaching resources (Illustrations and Snapshots of Practice)
• Curriculum support materials and teaching advice
• A wide range of digital tools
• Professional learning that can support you (e.g. writing meaningful report comments)

I’d love to hear from you —
What do you need right now to make Term 2 more manageable?
What resources would actually help?

I definitely won’t have all the answers, but hopefully as a community of teachers, someone will.

06/03/2025

Here is a very simplified version of ES1 Unit 3 - The PPT is more for the teacher than the students. I will add in learning intentions and success criteria over the weekend.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/103zEufDUS3r2brmvclBdx_nOHe3ZIm1C/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=104927497805381679675&rtpof=true&sd=true

Send a message to learn more