At Macworld 2008 BBC event, London

Here listening to Steve Jobs release new Apple products.

Programming with Lego Mindstorm

Here pupils are using control technology to gain a greater understanding of programming. They were set a range of tasks to complete from launching a liferaft to fetching a satellite. Looked like good fun to me with great learning outcomes.

Learner Voice @ BETT

Horse play!

Scouts on a hiking expedition came across some horses in a field which seemed to want to join us on our walk!

Tactile tools for learning

This lightbox is covered with sand and allows pupils to draw shapes, patterns and letters. It's very similar to my iPod Touch and Sketch app, except it doesn't email the pictures! Great for play in this particular primary school.

Jamboree Dining Shelter

We've recently benefitted from equipment used at the enormous 44,000 big Jamboree camp that took place at Hylands Park in Chelmsford earlier this year. Here, pupils at Stepping Stones have erected a dining shelter for use at their next expedition.

Polyethylene Oxide - "tubeless siphon"

Last Friday, during our science session, we played with a Polyethylene oxide solution which was dyed pink. This experiment is called the "tubeless siphon" and is an example of a non-Newtonian fluid, probably because it doesn't obey the usual rules. It is used it to illustrate the strength of the hydrogen bonds.

Here's how it works.

Simply pour the solution from one beaker to another. As soon as it begins to pour, put the pouring beaker into an upright position, as if to stop pouring. You'll notice that the viscous solution continues to pour or siphons into the other beaker. Clever, huh?

Watch the video! (shot from my mobile phone)

MacBook Pro gets hard disk upgrade

Upgrading the internal hard disk in my MacBook Pro seems to be a bi-annual task these days. The demand for fast, large data storage continues to grow at a rapid pace. I've upgraded to the Hitachi 250gb, 5200rpm disk, opting for faster disk rather than more space, that comes with the 300gb 4200rpm model. Will the available storage capacity be double that of today, in six months time?

Duke of Edinburgh induction morning

great presentation on good practice when working with children who have special needs.

Mixed aged teaching

Classes 4 and 5 are researching famous people using the Internet in preparation for writing a biography. This class of mixed aged children have been grouped by ability and it is a wonderful example of how children in the future will no longer be grouped simply because they share a birthday in the same school year. Thinking about it now, it sounds like complete madness that grouping children by age is indeed sensible or helpful for learners, whom we know, learn at different rates. It was wonderful to observe the success of this initiative, and see children brimming with confidence amongst their peers.

Train line is back in service for the first time in 12 years.

Max, who IS the most wonderful person in the world, helped me put my model railway back into service after 12 years of disuse. Everything was found exactly how it was left, and after some gentle encouragement, we managed to get some of the trains moving again. The whole track was built around the perimeter of the loft space in the family home, making it quite an experience for a little boy of 3 years.

Max had great fun playing with the toy cars which can be placed on a transporter, which took me back to how I had modelled this on my experience of using the French Motorail. One day, I might tell you the whole story of how our car ended up in a completely different place to us, the family, on holiday to the south of France.

Friend's Reconnected

Internet now restored after troubleshooting another broadband problem. I'm amazed that what is quite a simple process is made tricky by manufacturers. Most routes configuration could be automatic, and a wizard need only request username and password. Working with Windows is a tribulation in itself as you dismiss notification after notification warming you that life will end in 60 seconds unless you scan for viruses. If it's so vital, i'd rather it just got on and done it. No wonder i'm busier than ever helping people through the nightmare.

Millennium Wheel at night.

Stepping Stones are in London again. This time at the National Theatre to see War Horse.

3rd Billericay Scouts on the driving range

Scouts from Orion Troop developed their golf swings this evening at The Belvedere Golf Club this evening. We had the son of a former champion give instruction. However, what was more interesting was the way the scouts helped each other. Those who knew gave advice to novices. The smart ones exchanged advice for more golf balls, clearly they're not lacking in ingenuity either.

Lesley at Bedales School gives a talk on bees and beekeeping.

Stepping Stones pupils listen intently to Lesley. This is an example of where small schools utilise local expert knowledge from the community. Pupils have been studying evolution and adaptation. It's a wonderful model of learning.

One man MOT test rig

Has a clever gadget for testing the front wheel bearings and steering column.

iPod Touch and jailbreak

I've had my iPod Touch for just over a week and am completely taken by just how good the interface is. I think it's easy to completely miss how refined and usable it is, and how much engineering went in to making it really work. Thanks to ijailbreak mine now has a full suite of cool apps.

A shady character?

...or a big sombrero?

La Bayadere at the Royal Opera House

Stepping Stones pupils in London to watch the Ballet

New housing built right next to the Mi5 building...

... and built using the same design. It'll be a brave set of home owners who purchase one of these!

Video conferencing with pupils, parents and leaders in Little Cayman

We, the Cayman Ministry and I, invited parents and pupils, to learn more about connecting schools together on a global scale.

Max feeding squirrels in the park

At this time of year, squirrels are out gathering food before the winter.

The 'out' in Scouting

Patrol Leaders training weekend

Rear view

M25. Junction 4.

Roadside rubbish

We were talking today about the amount of rubbish found on the central reservation of motorways. Odd shoes and reflective lumino jackets are in abundance on the M25.