https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/blog/ News, ideas and insights from Dimensions Curriculum. en-gb https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/a-welcome-from-our-new-ceo-graham-bell/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/a-welcome-from-our-new-ceo-graham-bell/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 12:00:00 GMT Stepping into the role of CEO at Dimensions Curriculum, Graham Bell shares why everything we build has to start with the realities of school life. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/the-national-curriculum-is-changing/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/the-national-curriculum-is-changing/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 11:00:00 GMT Yes, the national curriculum is changing. But that doesn’t mean everything needs to change. We’re evolving massively, without asking schools to start again. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/history-that-sticks-helping-pupils-think-like-historians/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/history-that-sticks-helping-pupils-think-like-historians/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 10:00:00 GMT The real promise of primary history is bigger than a list of topics. Five classroom habits that help pupils think like historians and make learning stick. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/making-inclusion-part-of-everyday-learning/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/making-inclusion-part-of-everyday-learning/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 09:00:00 GMT Your Inclusive Mainstream Fund is an opportunity to strengthen the curriculum you already have. And your Dimensions licence can help you make it happen. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/smarter-screen-use-in-schools/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/smarter-screen-use-in-schools/ Wed, 14 Oct 2026 08:00:00 GMT The real challenge for schools isn’t choosing screens or no screens. It’s choosing purposeful screen use while protecting the parts of learning that depend on children being hands-on. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/build-confidence-early-career-teachers/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/build-confidence-early-career-teachers/ Mon, 14 Sep 2026 13:03:05 GMT Starting your career as an Early Career Teacher (ECT) is exciting — but it can also feel overwhelming. Every teacher has been through that journey. The transition from training (where support from mentors is close at hand) to becoming the class teacher with full responsibility is a significant step. Suddenly, you’re expected to manage behaviour, … Build Confidence in an ECT’s First Years of Teaching (From Survival to Success) Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/small-curriculum-changes-big-difference-september/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/small-curriculum-changes-big-difference-september/ Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:24:00 GMT As September approaches, many school leaders are reviewing plans for the new academic year. While major curriculum redesigns occasionally have their place, some of the most effective improvements I have seen throughout my career have come from relatively small changes implemented consistently over time. Curriculum development does not always require a complete rewrite. Sometimes a … Small Curriculum Changes That Can Make a Big Difference in September Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/spot-gaps-primary-curriculum-before-new-term/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/spot-gaps-primary-curriculum-before-new-term/ Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:12:00 GMT As the summer term draws to a close, many school leaders begin looking ahead to September. Staffing, timetables and school improvement priorities often dominate the conversation, but this is also one of the best times of year to review your curriculum. The reality is that no curriculum is ever finished. Schools evolve, communities change and … How to Spot Gaps in Your Primary Curriculum Before the New Term Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/why-curriculum-conversations-matter-end-of-school-year/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/why-curriculum-conversations-matter-end-of-school-year/ Mon, 20 Jul 2026 08:22:04 GMT As another school year draws to a close, many school leaders find themselves reflecting on outcomes, reports, transition arrangements and plans for September. Amid all of this activity, there is one conversation that deserves particular attention: curriculum. The end of the school year is one of the most valuable opportunities schools have to review what … Why Curriculum Conversations Matter at the End of the School Year Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-priorities-new-academic-year/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-priorities-new-academic-year/ Fri, 17 Jul 2026 13:54:00 GMT As one academic year draws to a close, those of us in school leadership find our minds naturally wandering towards the next. The summer break offers a rare, quiet window to step back, take a breath, and reflect on what worked, what felt a bit cluttered, and how we want to reset before the doors … Looking Ahead: Curriculum Priorities for the New Academic Year Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-simplicity-primary-education/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-simplicity-primary-education/ Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:50:15 GMT In education, there is often a temptation to believe that more is better: more content, more objectives, more assessment, more resources, more documentation. Yet some of the most effective curriculums I have encountered throughout my career have not been the most complicated. They have been the clearest. As schools continue to review and refine their … Why Curriculum Simplicity Can Be a Strength in Primary Education Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/keep-curriculum-ambitious-without-overloading-staff/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/keep-curriculum-ambitious-without-overloading-staff/ Tue, 14 Jul 2026 05:38:54 GMT We’ve all been there. You read a brilliant new research paper, scroll through education Twitter, or come back from an inspiring conference, and your brain starts buzzing. You think, “Yes! This is exactly what our children need.” So you sit down and map out an incredibly rich, interconnected, deep-dive curriculum. It looks gorgeous on paper. … How to Keep your Curriculum Ambitious without overloading your Staff. Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/accessible-ambitious-meaningful-primary-curriculum/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/accessible-ambitious-meaningful-primary-curriculum/ Fri, 03 Jul 2026 08:37:35 GMT One of the biggest challenges facing school leaders today is finding the right balance between ambition and accessibility. We rightly want children to leave primary school with strong knowledge, vocabulary and understanding. We want them to be curious, confident and well-prepared for the next stage of their education. However, ambition should never be confused with simply adding more … Making the Primary Curriculum Accessible, Ambitious and Meaningful Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/how-to-plan-progressive-lessons/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/how-to-plan-progressive-lessons/ Wed, 01 Jul 2026 08:24:00 GMT One of the biggest shifts in education over the past decade has been the growing focus on curriculum progression. Most schools now spend considerable time mapping out what children should learn and when they should learn it. However, one challenge remains: ensuring that individual lessons genuinely contribute to long-term learning rather than simply covering content. … How to Plan Lessons That Build Knowledge Over Time Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-review-checklist-primary-schools/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/curriculum-review-checklist-primary-schools/ Mon, 29 Jun 2026 08:04:55 GMT With curriculum reform on the horizon and discussions around the future National Curriculum continuing to gather pace, many school leaders are taking the opportunity to review their current provision. While every school’s curriculum should reflect its own context and community, there are some key questions that can help leaders evaluate whether their curriculum is truly … Primary Curriculum Review Checklist for School Leaders Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/balance-creativity-courage-progression-curriculum/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/balance-creativity-courage-progression-curriculum/ Thu, 25 Jun 2026 07:20:00 GMT As a supply teacher, one of the unexpected benefits of stepping into so many classrooms has been seeing just how differently schools interpret their curriculum. Some schools have embraced creativity wholeheartedly. Children were building, debating, performing, investigating and creating. You could walk into a classroom and immediately sense the excitement. In other schools, the curriculum was equally ambitious and carefully … How to Balance Creativity, Courage and Progression in Your Curriculum Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/make-primary-learning-more-relevant/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/make-primary-learning-more-relevant/ Wed, 24 Jun 2026 12:20:09 GMT Over the last year, I have had the opportunity to visit more than fifty primary schools as a supply teacher. It has been fascinating. Walking into so many different classrooms has given me a fresh perspective on what teaching and learning currently look like across our schools. I have seen some wonderful practice, incredibly dedicated teachers and some genuinely … How to Make Primary Learning More Relevant to Children’s Lives Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/strengthen-curriculum-intent-primary-schools/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/strengthen-curriculum-intent-primary-schools/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 10:51:09 GMT One of the phrases we hear most often when discussing curriculum is ‘curriculum intent’. Without meaning to, it can sometimes become a statement that sits on a website or school improvement plan rather than something that genuinely shapes what happens in classrooms every day. In my experience, the strongest curriculum intent is something that is developed collaboratively, understood … How School Leaders Can Strengthen Curriculum Intent in Primary Schools Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/what-is-curriculum-impact-primary/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/what-is-curriculum-impact-primary/ Fri, 19 Jun 2026 09:37:00 GMT Impact has become one of the most-used (and most misunderstood) words in primary education. It’s easy to reduce it to a spreadsheet, a set of attainment scores, or a neat statement for a report. But curriculum impact is bigger than a data point. In the UK context, the National Curriculum provides the statutory framework for what pupils should be taught. The real question … What does Curriculum Impact Really Mean in Primary Education? Curriculum Blog Posts https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/helping-children-see-links-across-subjects-primary-school/ https://dimensionscurriculum.co.uk/helping-children-see-links-across-subjects-primary-school/ Wed, 17 Jun 2026 09:39:20 GMT I have always believed that some of the best moments in teaching are those where learning stops being a set of separate lessons and starts to feel inter-connected. That is what I have always tried to build in my classrooms and in the schools that I have worked with. Not necessarily a ‘themed curriculum’ where … Helping Children See Links Across Subjects in Primary School Curriculum Blog Posts