Practitioner Enquiry Tip of the Week: 2 weeks to go before the schools go back (in some shape/ form). As the new school year draws near prioritising your list of things to do becomes more important, so I would suggest remembering to be clear about WHY you are doing that thing /1

Practitioner enquiry is about becoming aware of why you do stuff. Colleagues and I would call it the Banarama Principal: its not what you do, but why you do it. If we're clear about why we do something, have a rationale for doing it, it's more likely to be impactful /2

The rationale might come from experience, research (inc. peer reviewed papers to someone's practitioner enquiry) or the internet. Maybe there'll be triangulation across sources. But be clear with yourself about how it connects to your setting and, v important, your CYP's needs /3

As you do this thing you have researched, planned and committed to, keep an open mind. It might not work; it might not work the way you expect or for the children you thought. And that's OK. Thats the beauty of prof learning through enquiry. The learning won't stop. /4

So as you browse Twitter/Pinterest etc for cool, flashy ideas for your new class/ classroom, always come back to the fundamental question about WHY it would be useful. If beguiled by the flashy, be honest with yourself that's what it is (I'm not against pretty classrooms) /5

Finally, remember you still have 2 weeks of your holiday left. Preparing for the new term is important, but so is making the most of your holiday. So don't forget yourself and prioritise that as much as you do your classroom prep /6