# Learning Pioneers ## Homepage **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/ ## Memberships **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/memberships ## Contact **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/contact ## Practice Lab **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/memberships/lab ## Courses **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/courses ## Challenge **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/courses/challenge ## Relationships **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/courses/relationships ## Introduction to the Learning Power Approach **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/courses/lpa-intro ## Wellbeing **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/courses/wellbeing ## Learning Library **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/memberships/library ## Learning Experiences **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/memberships/experiences ## Philosophy **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/philosophy ## Team **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/team ## Pricing **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/pricing ## TESTDRIVE **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/testdrive ## Blog **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post ## Book Studies **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/book-studies ## Masterminds **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterminds ## Leaders **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterminds/leaders ## Teachers **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterminds/teachers ## Masterclasses **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterclasses ## Inquiry Leadership **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterclasses/inquiry-leadership ## LPA Leaderships **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterclasses/lpa-leaderships ## Leadership Masterclasses **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/masterclasses/leadership-masterclasses ## Testimonials **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/testimonials ## experience **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/experience ## Spiral **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/experience/spiral ## Landing **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/landing ## Do No Harm! Schools that heal **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/do-no-harm-schools-that-heal Can schools cause harm? Explore trauma-informed education frameworks, Marshall Rosenberg's 9 human needs, and real examples of shame-free learning environments. Name: Do No Harm! Schools that heal Created: 2026-05-13 07:24:38.093554+00 Description: Exploration of how schools can be healing rather than causing damage. Content: My heart is full after a 5-week trip across North America, meeting with incredible people doing incredible work, educators, schools and strangers. It turns out, no matter what the media is telling us, there are brilliant, bright people in places we are told are full of darkness.  As with any of my international trips, I am left reflecting on the connections between all the places Iu2019ve visited - This time, visiting What do all of these places have in common?  What shared values do these educators, schools and institutions have?  What can I learn moving forwards? The conclusion I came to on this visit was that every place we connected with, every ## Engaging Students in Challenge **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/engaging-students-in-challenge Stop avoiding hard tasks. Learn how to use the Learning Pit, empower student choice, and normalise failure to turn challenge into a growth opportunity. Name: Engaging Students in Challenge Created: 2025-11-26 15:57:57.453777+00 Content: Engaging Students in Challenge u200dChallenges lead to growth when they stretch studentsu2019 capabilities in a way that isengaging and accessible. Unfortunately though, many people associate challengewith difficulty and therefore shy away from something that appears too hard. Overtime, however, we can adjust that perspective by emphasising that \ u200dOther approaches include: u200dEmpowering students is a key element in making challenge accessible. Whenstudents feel they have some control over their learning, they are more likely toengage with challenging tasks. Providing choices in how they approachassignments, what level of difficulty they wish to tackle, and which learning strategiesthey want to try fosters a sense of ownership. This autonomy ## Why is challenge so challenging - Part 2 **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/why-is-challenge-so-challenging-part-2 Struggling to embed challenge? Learn how to align teams, define 'challenging learning,' and foster student-led perseverance using the Learning Power Approach. Name: Why is challenge so challenging - Part 2 Created: 2025-11-26 15:56:01.975843+00 Content: Why is challenge so challenging? Embedding challenge - true challenge - student-led challenge where students see the value of challenging learning and will seek it out - is hard! If it wasnu2019t, everyone would be doing it and all classrooms would be full of self-motivated and driven students. Which theyu2019re not. Yet! (but imagine if they were!) ;)u200d To understand why this might be happening and begin to explore how to embed challenge in our classrooms, both James Nottingham and I have been writing blog posts to explore the depths of challenge.  Here are Jamesu2019 posts on challenge -  This blog post will explore more deeply strategies on how to align and embed challenge, based on these actions to embed student-led cha ## Challenge that Leads to Growth **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/challenge-that-leads-to-growth Name: Challenge that Leads to Growth Created: 2025-11-26 15:53:30.497661+00 Content: Embracing Challenge: Why Growth Needs a Push u200dThe value of challenge in the classroom cannot be overstated. Challenges not onlystimulate critical thinking and innovation, but they also empower students to stepoutside their comfort zones and embrace the learning process. In this blog, we willexplore some of the benefits of incorporating challenges into lessons, highlightinghow they can transform the educational experience and equip students with the skillsthey need to thrive in an increasingly complex world. u200d1. Challenge Fuels Progression u200dChallenge is a fundamental pillar of student development. Without it, the learningprocess stagnates. When students are pushed just beyond their comfort zones, theyenter their u2018zone of proximal developmentu2019 (Vygotsky, 1978). This space is wherelearning unfoldsu2014not through overwhelming demands, but by setting aspirationalgoals and tailoring chal ## Set your Classroom to the Frequency of Love **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/set-your-classroom-to-the-frequency-of-love Name: Set your Classroom to the Frequency of Love Created: 2025-11-26 15:47:18.429754+00 Content: All brilliant educators I know deeply care about the children and families with whom they work. Their job goes way beyond academics and they are truly u201cforu201d the children they teach and their families. For these educators, education is about growing hearts, minds and souls and holding children in unconditional positive regard.The essence of their work involves being human and humane (lovely bit of serendipity, as I was writing this blogpost, I came across  I love working and learning with these people.  Reflecting back on my own practice, and what I held true to me and what I intentionally aimed to cultivate in my students, there were many aspects to my practice that: enabled children to be in the driving seat of their learning,  mindfully cultivated lifelong learning habits over time and  valued their input into the Learning Design of the day and the classroom. ## Inquiry into Self **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/inquiry-into-self Name: Inquiry into Self Created: 2025-11-26 15:45:55.184523+00 Content: Inquiry practice hasnu2019t always been part of my educational make-up; not intentionally anyway. It was through Yet, as soon as I engaged with inquiry-led learning and developed an inquiry approach in Early Years at Bangkok Patana School and in a PYP school in Switzerland, I loved it instantly. There are so many reasons for me feeling aligned with inquiry-led learning. My top four might be: Inquiry teaching and learning is a natural incubator to develop the Inquiry highly values agency, curiosity and reflectiveness; all values I hold high, both in life and in education Inquiry, Iu2019m beginning to realise, might bethe most balanced approach to education -  Inquiry learning, done well and with intention, has a baseline frequency of love -  Looking at learning through 3 lenses: Apart from loving inquiry for the impact it has on children and their learning, one thing I love the most about being an educator ## Could inquiry be one of the most balanced approaches to education? **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/could-inquiry-be-the-most-balanced-approach-to-education Name: Could inquiry be one of the most balanced approaches to education? Created: 2025-11-26 15:41:55.731355+00 Content: Have you ever scrolled through social media and had a bit of an u201ca-hau201d moment?! As much as I love the educational banter on LinkedIn (and used to on Twitter - what happened?!), Pinterest is my go-to place for expansive, nurturing inspiration that feeds my soul. I love how the algorithm works for me over there! Itu2019s not doom scrolling, itu2019s joy scrolling - I leave Pinterest more energised than when I dived in (i.e High ROE - Return on Energy - How Iu2019m measuring all of my interactions these days). Anyway, I was getting inspired over on Pinterest and came across this visual of u201cyin yogau201d words. Take a moment to check them out u2026 What do you notice? u200d u200d Hereu2019s what I noticed u2026  Some of these are words I might hear an inquiry teacher use with their students. This vocabulary is part of the repertoire of inquiry u201c ## Refining the Learning Power Approach: Defining the difference between **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/refining-the-learning-power-approach-defining-the-difference-between-collaboration-and-co-operation Name: Refining the Learning Power Approach: Defining the difference between Created: 2025-11-26 15:39:34.449727+00 Content: What could a version of this look like in our school? One of the key aspects of my professional learning last academic year was asking myself the questions -  What could this look like in my school? Or  What could our version of this look like?  So easily, as educators, we can think we need to adopt, letter for letter, an amazing strategy, process or policy from another setting or a lead thinker and there is certainly no lack of such gems and takeaways in  But coming to terms with the fact that thinking, structure and practice will and should look different in my setting has been both freeing and enriching. From inspiration to perspiration - embedding learning from inspiration in Learning Pioneers As a school,  To inspire thinking in our team, I used the example of a brilliant two part Learning Pioneeru2019s  Learning from Andrea's Ma ## What do the LPA and Reggio Emilia Have in Common? **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/what-do-the-lpa-and-reggio-emilia-have-in-common Name: What do the LPA and Reggio Emilia Have in Common? Created: 2025-11-26 15:35:59.605067+00 Content: Earlier this year, I decided to take a big leap of faith by changing careers. Transitioning out of the classroom was an exciting experience filled with all sorts of feelings. I was extremely excited, curious and intrigued to explore all of the opportunities that awaited me in the wider world of education. But I was also experiencing another feeling: anxiety! Now that I would no longer be working in a school, I was scared to miss out on so many things: working with children, brainstorming with colleagues, professional learning opportunities..the list went on.  u200d When I first heard about the  u200d What were these u201cDesign Principlesu201d that everyone kept referring to during Masterminds?  What was the Learning Pit and did I need to be wary of it?  What in the world was u201cLearnishu201d?...and why couldnu2019t I find it on DuoLingo?  What was psycholo ## Let's get intentional **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/lets-get-intentional Name: Let's get intentional Created: 2025-11-26 15:34:53.456119+00 Content: For those of you who know me, youu2019ll know Iu2019m super into personal growth  Itu2019s not just me who believes (or perhaps, by now, knows!) this; all philosophers, coaches, personal growth specialists point towards the same knowledge. u201cBe patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; itu2019s holy ground. Thereu2019s no greater investmentu201d Stephen Covey So, for years Iu2019ve set goals and worked towards those goals. Itu2019s the only way Iu2019ve known how. And itu2019s worked. Kinda. Iu2019ve reached goals, for sure, but have I been u201ctenderu201d in the process as the great Stephen Covey suggests? Have I pushed more than perhaps I have allowed? Could there be another way? Intentionality. Cue: Setting intentions rather than goals. And utterly perfect timing if youu2019ve set those New Yearu2019s Resolutions and already found yourself dwindling - Donu2019t worry, thatu2019s ALL of ## Can we empower children to plan and assess their own learning? **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/can-we-empower-children-to-plan-and-assess-their-own-learning Name: Can we empower children to plan and assess their own learning? Created: 2025-11-26 15:30:09.158054+00 Content: If someone asked me this question early on in my career, I would have probably laughed and thought, u201cthat's all we need, like we donu2019t have enough to do!u201d Over my years in teaching I have seen teaching styles and approaches come and go and nothing has really stood out for me. I just did what the other teachers were doing, planning and resourcing everything step-by-step for the children - because, at the time this meant you were an organised teacher who had good management control of your class. Leaving exhausted at the end of the day with 30 books to mark at home, this was seen as the norm and if you were following this daily routine, you were seen as a good teacher. It never felt quite right, but I was surrounded by teachers who were doing the same thing - so what was wrong with it? Being brave to change. Over the years I always knew that as a teacher I want ## The Improvement Jar - Cultivating positive mindsets for learning **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/the-improvement-jar Name: The Improvement Jar - Cultivating positive mindsets for learning Created: 2025-11-26 15:18:06.087156+00 Content: I had sunk to the bottom of The Learning Pit. I was teaching a particularly challenging group of Year 6 students who Iu2019d allowed to become  Thankfully at the beginning of the second term, I went on a CPD weekend to Malaysia where I would learn  u200d Learnish and u2018Mistakesu2019 In Bangkok (and much of Asia generally), the idea of making u2018mistakesu2019 is a cultural barrier which stands in the way of our students being able to build a sense of empowerment in their learning. Every year, teachers in International schools have to begin the process of changing the u2018perfection mindsetu2019 and help the children (and their families) to understand the value, not only in making mistakes, but in correcting these to show visible improvement and progress in learning. When Guy began speaking about u2018 Guy shared the story of his calling erasers u2018the ## The Magic of Masterminds **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/the-magic-of-masterminds Name: The Magic of Masterminds Created: 2025-10-23 09:40:10.019464+00 Content: Are you part of a Mastermind?  Do you know what a Mastermind is?  Do you know how a Mastermind can supercharge your learning, ideas, inspiration and connection? Discovering Masterminds If you are answering \ Since I liked what Danny had to say, which included: Owning your time, such as being disciplined enough to focus your time on what matters (ouch, that's still a challenge!) Connecting with others trying to solve the same problems you are and figuring it out together (yes please, sign me up!) Agreeing that honey badgers are the chief ruckus makers of the animal kingdom (It's a fact people), I decided to go \ Hereu2019s a different video of Danny wondering about PE and the Arts. What do you think about the ideas heu2019s sharing? Since learning with Danny and his generous crew, I have been inspired to set up Masterminds within Learning Pioneers to support and challenge teachers and leaders in edu ## What does Learning Power look like? **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/what-does-learning-power-look-like Name: What does Learning Power look like? Created: 2025-10-23 09:34:19.028397+00 Content: What does Learning Power actually look like?  This was the question I asked myself at the end of 2019. I had been teaching at Newington College for a year. The release of  As a life-long stickler for the rules, this wide scope and subjectivity is what I simultaneously find most fantastic but also most challenging about Learning Power. With a broadened understanding of Learning Power in 2020, I set out to find the answer to the question: What does Learning Power look like? In one way the answer was complex. Learning Power looks different depending on context, teacher, student group and learning focus. But, in another way, it was very simple. Empowerment. That is, a genuine handing over of the reins of teaching and learning. No matter what the particulars were, Learning Power looked like empowerment.  Students were empowered when they learned how to describe their learning from the fi ## Making learning visible for parents **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/making-learning-visible-for-parents Name: Making learning visible for parents Created: 2025-10-23 09:30:05.316069+00 Content: What? Back to School How I try to avoid those signs that appear each year as soon as the summer holidays begin but recently those words have been so eagerly anticipated by educators around the world. While Iu2019m sure we all enjoyed our new morning commute, transforming our homes into remote classrooms came with many challenges. Balancing home schooling with home teaching, switching off while surrounded by reminders of the working day, finding time to take breaks and reduce screen time are a few of the many challenges weu2019ve faced during this time. Iu2019m still finding stray Numicon lurking around my apartment, serving as regular reminders of my online learning experiences.  Reimagining u201cback to schoolu201d Whether you are an educator who survived or thrived during this challenging time; itu2019s important that we use this experience to reflect on our classroom approaches and conside ## Why is challenge so challenging? **URL:** https://learningpioneers.co/post/why-is-challenge-so-challenging After our recent “Fireside chat” with James Nottingham, I’ve been reflecting on why it’s so challenging to embed challenge in our schools and classrooms. Name: Why is challenge so challenging? Created: 2025-10-07 13:31:20.751896+00 Description: After our recent “Fireside chat” with James Nottingham, I’ve been reflecting on why it’s so challenging to embed challenge in our schools and classrooms. Content:  After our recent u201c To unravel and unpick this, itu2019s first important to explore:u200d Why challenge might be important to embed as a value and ethos in any and every classroom What we mean by u201cchallengeu201d and why itu2019s important to define Why challenge? Challenge fuels progression u2026 And no matter where our students are, within which curriculum they are learning, what their background is, what their hopes and dreams are, I think we can all agree, we want them to make progress. For personal growth A subject close to my heart. Weu2019re all, as humans, here to g