Bernie Westacott
@berniewestacott.bsky.social
Full time 1973-2012 Head of Maths. Now Part time intervention teacher. Introduced Singapore Maths in school 2006. Independent consultant 2012 - current. Oxford University Press maths consultant 2015-2020. Teach Monster game maths consultant 2020 - current.
Pinned
Craig Barton and me
Craig Barton's one and only vlog was with me. Introducing Craig to all the manipulatives!
t.co
The separate videos of the vlog I did with @mrbartonmaths
(on Twitter) in 2018 can now be found here in a Playlist on my YouTube channel t.co/umIiJkywrx
(on Twitter) in 2018 can now be found here in a Playlist on my YouTube channel t.co/umIiJkywrx
Using apps such as Polypad from Amplify can help to bring published maths schemes to life. We can make processes in schemes into actions that children can do and talk about. In intervention sessions I can keep making further examples. Links to the boards can also be shared👇
February 10, 2026 at 12:10 PM
Using apps such as Polypad from Amplify can help to bring published maths schemes to life. We can make processes in schemes into actions that children can do and talk about. In intervention sessions I can keep making further examples. Links to the boards can also be shared👇
When I need some practice material for pupils then
@draustinmaths.com is so useful. Easy to find the appropriate resource as it is well-labelled/grouped - answers/solutions are given. Load it all up into a Zoom whiteboard and off we go. Huge 'Thank You' to Amanda @draustinmaths.com
@draustinmaths.com is so useful. Easy to find the appropriate resource as it is well-labelled/grouped - answers/solutions are given. Load it all up into a Zoom whiteboard and off we go. Huge 'Thank You' to Amanda @draustinmaths.com
February 9, 2026 at 12:08 PM
When I need some practice material for pupils then
@draustinmaths.com is so useful. Easy to find the appropriate resource as it is well-labelled/grouped - answers/solutions are given. Load it all up into a Zoom whiteboard and off we go. Huge 'Thank You' to Amanda @draustinmaths.com
@draustinmaths.com is so useful. Easy to find the appropriate resource as it is well-labelled/grouped - answers/solutions are given. Load it all up into a Zoom whiteboard and off we go. Huge 'Thank You' to Amanda @draustinmaths.com
Jemma @jemmaths.bsky.social did such a great thread on Twitter in 2022 that I wanted to put it together and share it with teachers. You can pause it wherever you want for individual or group discussion. Not new but worth a repost. youtu.be/YBx1rcPjuck?...
Jemma Algebra V1
YouTube video by Bernie Westacott Maths
youtu.be
January 26, 2026 at 11:57 AM
Jemma @jemmaths.bsky.social did such a great thread on Twitter in 2022 that I wanted to put it together and share it with teachers. You can pause it wherever you want for individual or group discussion. Not new but worth a repost. youtu.be/YBx1rcPjuck?...
Split the middle term method for factorising quadratic expressions. A video I made for pupils using a @drfrost PowerPoint youtu.be/jeAQwc5m46I?... via
@YouTube
@YouTube
DFM GRID METHOD WITH EQUAL PRODUCTS AND THE SUM - SPLIT MIDDLE TERM
YouTube video by Bernie Westacott Maths
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 11:27 AM
Split the middle term method for factorising quadratic expressions. A video I made for pupils using a @drfrost PowerPoint youtu.be/jeAQwc5m46I?... via
@YouTube
@YouTube
Edited version of webinar session on using virtual manipulatives I did for a client last year. Just noticed an error around 42 minutes where I only have 2x instead of 3x. youtu.be/hsiV9vipoWM?... via
@YouTube
@YouTube
Edited version of webinar session on using virtual manipulatives
YouTube video by Bernie Westacott Maths
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 11:06 AM
Edited version of webinar session on using virtual manipulatives I did for a client last year. Just noticed an error around 42 minutes where I only have 2x instead of 3x. youtu.be/hsiV9vipoWM?... via
@YouTube
@YouTube
Dr. Jared Horvath reveals Gen Z as the first generation to underperform predecessors on cognitive metrics like attention, memory, and IQ with PISA data across 80 countries showing a two-thirds standard deviation decline after digital tools' adoption around 2010 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd-_...
Doctor on How Screen Time Hurts Kids' Cognitive Development
YouTube video by C-SPAN
www.youtube.com
January 25, 2026 at 11:06 AM
Dr. Jared Horvath reveals Gen Z as the first generation to underperform predecessors on cognitive metrics like attention, memory, and IQ with PISA data across 80 countries showing a two-thirds standard deviation decline after digital tools' adoption around 2010 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd-_...
Great to meet with OCR staff Amy Dai @miss-agd.bsky.social Sarah Gotting and Mary Fisher online yesterday to discuss the feasibility of 'maths mastery' approaches, including manipulatives and bar models, being integrated into GCSE maths examinations. Lots of issues with this and much to discuss...
August 1, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Great to meet with OCR staff Amy Dai @miss-agd.bsky.social Sarah Gotting and Mary Fisher online yesterday to discuss the feasibility of 'maths mastery' approaches, including manipulatives and bar models, being integrated into GCSE maths examinations. Lots of issues with this and much to discuss...
Made me chuckle!
July 21, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Made me chuckle!
A new UK study which has tracked nearly 6,000 children for more than a decade has provided solid evidence about what parenting style is associated with the best outcomes. And the answer is: “authoritative”. seed.natcen.ac.uk?_ga=2.107965...
SEED
seed.natcen.ac.uk
July 18, 2025 at 5:27 PM
A new UK study which has tracked nearly 6,000 children for more than a decade has provided solid evidence about what parenting style is associated with the best outcomes. And the answer is: “authoritative”. seed.natcen.ac.uk?_ga=2.107965...
View of the Victoria Nile from the Black Lantern restaurant, Bujagali, Uganda. An evening of relaxation after a full-on week with schools out here.??
July 13, 2025 at 3:52 PM
View of the Victoria Nile from the Black Lantern restaurant, Bujagali, Uganda. An evening of relaxation after a full-on week with schools out here.??
1/n Thought we had done our last Jinja Educational Trust (JET) trip, but they persuaded me and Karen to go again. We have spent the week travelling into JET schools, some 'off road' a long way from Jinja. Lots to share: children are stunning - so calm, focussed and well-behaved.
July 13, 2025 at 9:50 AM
1/n Thought we had done our last Jinja Educational Trust (JET) trip, but they persuaded me and Karen to go again. We have spent the week travelling into JET schools, some 'off road' a long way from Jinja. Lots to share: children are stunning - so calm, focussed and well-behaved.
Using algebra tiles app to help Y10 understand what 'completing the square' looks like as we work on calculating intercepts on axes and turning points.
July 5, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Using algebra tiles app to help Y10 understand what 'completing the square' looks like as we work on calculating intercepts on axes and turning points.
This is still one of my favourite videos I have made. A presentation I did for @lasalleed.bsky.social in 2023. Using @mathspadjames.bsky.social Decimals Blocks app. Fractals in action. I love apps that enable users to zoom in and out and to appreciate scale and connections.
June 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
This is still one of my favourite videos I have made. A presentation I did for @lasalleed.bsky.social in 2023. Using @mathspadjames.bsky.social Decimals Blocks app. Fractals in action. I love apps that enable users to zoom in and out and to appreciate scale and connections.
Huge shout out to @draustinmaths.com for her resources free online. These were so useful for Y10 consolidation and practice this week. They are so well constructed 😍
June 28, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Huge shout out to @draustinmaths.com for her resources free online. These were so useful for Y10 consolidation and practice this week. They are so well constructed 😍
Great question from a Singapore Maths competition for Primary 6. Requires a careful and systematic approach and also has triangular numbers within that analysis.😍
June 18, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Great question from a Singapore Maths competition for Primary 6. Requires a careful and systematic approach and also has triangular numbers within that analysis.😍
Great problem solving for Y3 and Y4 pupils. I also use some of these questions for my Y2 Maths Enrichment Club.
The FMC starts today! For children aged 7-9. Schools can still take part in the challenge by Friday 27th June - bookings close on Wednesday 25th June. buff.ly/NrZM8fL
June 16, 2025 at 8:19 AM
Great problem solving for Y3 and Y4 pupils. I also use some of these questions for my Y2 Maths Enrichment Club.
‘Learning that does not last was never really learning, it was mere exposure’. Another cracker from @markmccourt.bsky.social. In my role as an intervention teacher and as a tutor preparing pupils for GCSE I see this issue day in, day out.
June 14, 2025 at 10:56 AM
‘Learning that does not last was never really learning, it was mere exposure’. Another cracker from @markmccourt.bsky.social. In my role as an intervention teacher and as a tutor preparing pupils for GCSE I see this issue day in, day out.
It has been interesting helping some of our Y3 and Y4 pupils look at ways of solving these sorts of problems - this one is taken from a Grade 3 international maths competition.
May 31, 2025 at 4:04 PM
It has been interesting helping some of our Y3 and Y4 pupils look at ways of solving these sorts of problems - this one is taken from a Grade 3 international maths competition.
Very excited to be asked to go out to Uganda this summer holiday to help the Jinja Educational Trust jinjaedtrust.com once again. They have recently taken on several new schools, so there is an increased need for support and training. Just booked flights 😁
Home
jinjaedtrust.com
May 26, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Very excited to be asked to go out to Uganda this summer holiday to help the Jinja Educational Trust jinjaedtrust.com once again. They have recently taken on several new schools, so there is an increased need for support and training. Just booked flights 😁
Early number and counting are complex. I love this overview of key elements of the number and counting trajectory from @gfletchy Progression of Early Number and Counting youtu.be/BX9RH8MLOp8?si… via @YouTube
Progression of Early Number and Counting
YouTube video by Graham Fletcher (gfletchy)
https://youtu.be/BX9RH8MLOp8?si…
May 20, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Early number and counting are complex. I love this overview of key elements of the number and counting trajectory from @gfletchy Progression of Early Number and Counting youtu.be/BX9RH8MLOp8?si… via @YouTube
The disastrous periodic 'revolution' so beloved of snake oil salesmen i.e. politicians et al desperate to leave a legacy - which they do, but mostly not in a good way 😱 - as opposed to the careful 'evolution' model of other successful jurisdictions. As always, Mark hits the nail bang on the head!
NEW BLOG: Educational Amnesia: Why England Is Sleepwalking into a Scottish Mistake
www.emaths.co.uk/blog/general...
www.emaths.co.uk/blog/general...
Emaths - Educational Amnesia: Why England Is Sleepwalking into a Scottish Mistake
Resources and support for improving mathematics education in schools and colleges
www.emaths.co.uk
May 20, 2025 at 10:17 AM
The disastrous periodic 'revolution' so beloved of snake oil salesmen i.e. politicians et al desperate to leave a legacy - which they do, but mostly not in a good way 😱 - as opposed to the careful 'evolution' model of other successful jurisdictions. As always, Mark hits the nail bang on the head!
(1) When we first introduced the Singapore maths pedagogy into our school in 2006, we realised very quickly how we needed to concretise the 'groups' in 'groups and items' as bits of paper. This made the groups something distinct from the items and they could be manipulated.
May 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
(1) When we first introduced the Singapore maths pedagogy into our school in 2006, we realised very quickly how we needed to concretise the 'groups' in 'groups and items' as bits of paper. This made the groups something distinct from the items and they could be manipulated.
The words of a wise man who knows a LOT about teaching and learning.Too often I see an overcrowded maths programme being gone through at a ridiculous pace leaving many pupils trailing in its wake.
May 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM
The words of a wise man who knows a LOT about teaching and learning.Too often I see an overcrowded maths programme being gone through at a ridiculous pace leaving many pupils trailing in its wake.
Using MS Whiteboard to make interactive prepared online apps to model directly content in the WRMH scheme. This unit from Y3 Autumn has the the videos, the workbook pages and links to app boards I have already set up and stored via links/codes.
May 15, 2025 at 9:22 AM
Using MS Whiteboard to make interactive prepared online apps to model directly content in the WRMH scheme. This unit from Y3 Autumn has the the videos, the workbook pages and links to app boards I have already set up and stored via links/codes.
Working with Y3 and Y4 Maths Clubs this week: as well as some UK First Maths Challenge questions, I will also share some Grade 2 and 3 problems from Singapore Maths competitions such as these: Grade 2 then Grade 3 - medium difficulty from the middle section of the papers. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
May 13, 2025 at 10:29 AM
Working with Y3 and Y4 Maths Clubs this week: as well as some UK First Maths Challenge questions, I will also share some Grade 2 and 3 problems from Singapore Maths competitions such as these: Grade 2 then Grade 3 - medium difficulty from the middle section of the papers. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday