Articles
Bella learning seeks to give you relevant and accessible articles that will help you navigate primary school as a parent and support your child. We get our ideas from talking to parents, kids, forums and by seeing what you google the most! Articles will cover information about the curriculum and learning, what happens in the classroom, how to interact with school and teachers and also more difficult and personal issues such as learning needs, bullying and relationships.
Your child doesn’t need to be ‘school ready’ (but you do!)
I keep hearing parents discuss, ask, question and worry 'is my child school ready?' As parents, we constantly question ourselves - and this is no exception. Is my child ready? Will they need a nap during the day? How will they feel with the sudden structure, and being...
read more
What is the Reception Baseline Assessment?
You may or may not be aware that children starting reception in September 2021 will have to sit a ‘baseline assessment’. This much-contested measure was meant to start last year but was put back due to the pandemic. Children will be asked questions relating to maths...
read more
7 fuss-free ways to support your child’s learning
(I promise it's far easier than you think!) Parents are naturally great teachers and we know that their involvement in education makes a huge difference. But we also know that families are stretched for time and that sitting down at a desk with a worksheet together...
read more
I don’t want to be THAT parent
I'm delighted to share with you an article I've written for Families® magazine! In my Facebook group Ask a Teacher, we always have a number of members stating that they don’t want to be ‘that’ parent with regard to expressing their concerns to teachers. I’m here, as a...
read more
Why won’t my child write?
There’s a simple answer to this one... because you have told them to! Imagine I gave you a piece of paper and told you to write a story about monkeys. Would you immediately be able to? Would you see the point? Would you have the ideas? This week, I’ve had lots of...
read more
Primary school jargon explained for parents
Primary School Jargon Explained for Parents Did you know - I now offer zoom workshops to cover an 'Explained Series' including Grammar, Phonics, Calculations and more - If you'd like to gain a better insight into what your children are learning in the classroom, I'd...
read more
Phonics – Phriend or Pho?
Since 2005, every child in state education has been taught to decode words through the teaching of phonics, starting in Reception and culminating in a (rather obscure) statutory 'screening check' at the end of Year One. In short, children in England are taught the 44...
read more
Swap Homeschool Stress For Smiles
Hi, I'm Annabel and I'm a primary teacher, tutor and parent. Marketing isn't really my thing (I prefer learning) but I'm seeing too many families struggling with home-learning not to tell you the story of Bella Learning Games. Long before the pandemic hit, homework...
read more
Tuition Groups For Lockdown 2021
Tuition Groups for Lockdown 2021 Thanks for your interest in Zoom Tuition. I’m Annabel – the admin of Ask A Teacher and I run Bella Learning. I’ve been a teacher for 14 years and since having my children I have been tutoring, working with parents and writing for...
read more
Challenge 9 – Make A Treasure Hunt
Welcome to the ninth challenge for primary school children. These challenges are open-ended, purposeful tasks, differentiated for different abilities, that your child can enjoy every day. Today’s challenge is about creating a fun hunt for your friends. Children are...
read more
Your child doesn’t need to be ‘school ready’ (but you do!)
I keep hearing parents discuss, ask, question and worry 'is my child school ready?' As parents, we constantly question ourselves - and this is no exception. Is my child ready? Will they need a nap during the day? How will they feel with the sudden structure, and being...
What is the Reception Baseline Assessment?
You may or may not be aware that children starting reception in September 2021 will have to sit a ‘baseline assessment’. This much-contested measure was meant to start last year but was put back due to the pandemic. Children will be asked questions relating to maths...
7 fuss-free ways to support your child’s learning
(I promise it's far easier than you think!) Parents are naturally great teachers and we know that their involvement in education makes a huge difference. But we also know that families are stretched for time and that sitting down at a desk with a worksheet together...
I don’t want to be THAT parent
I'm delighted to share with you an article I've written for Families® magazine! In my Facebook group Ask a Teacher, we always have a number of members stating that they don’t want to be ‘that’ parent with regard to expressing their concerns to teachers. I’m here, as a...
Why won’t my child write?
There’s a simple answer to this one... because you have told them to! Imagine I gave you a piece of paper and told you to write a story about monkeys. Would you immediately be able to? Would you see the point? Would you have the ideas? This week, I’ve had lots of...
Primary school jargon explained for parents
Primary School Jargon Explained for Parents Did you know - I now offer zoom workshops to cover an 'Explained Series' including Grammar, Phonics, Calculations and more - If you'd like to gain a better insight into what your children are learning in the classroom, I'd...
Phonics – Phriend or Pho?
Since 2005, every child in state education has been taught to decode words through the teaching of phonics, starting in Reception and culminating in a (rather obscure) statutory 'screening check' at the end of Year One. In short, children in England are taught the 44...
Swap Homeschool Stress For Smiles
Hi, I'm Annabel and I'm a primary teacher, tutor and parent. Marketing isn't really my thing (I prefer learning) but I'm seeing too many families struggling with home-learning not to tell you the story of Bella Learning Games. Long before the pandemic hit, homework...
Tuition Groups For Lockdown 2021
Tuition Groups for Lockdown 2021 Thanks for your interest in Zoom Tuition. I’m Annabel – the admin of Ask A Teacher and I run Bella Learning. I’ve been a teacher for 14 years and since having my children I have been tutoring, working with parents and writing for...
Challenge 9 – Make A Treasure Hunt
Welcome to the ninth challenge for primary school children. These challenges are open-ended, purposeful tasks, differentiated for different abilities, that your child can enjoy every day. Today’s challenge is about creating a fun hunt for your friends. Children are...