MS Excel has powerful data plotting functions but the default settings are for illustrative graphs for presentations rather than printed graphs of scientific data. This handout suggests some settings that might produce better quality graphs.

Half term break provides a gap long enough to forget some bits of Maths, and this worksheet is designed to jog memories.

Cambridge University and the Darwin family have presented all of Darwin’s writings on a Web site. Text is searchable. Superb resource, and perhaps the way forward for history?

By spending extra lesson time on fractions – front loading in the jargon – I can save time on percentages and ratios. This kind of teaching needs trust from students; as I teach adults, I’m upfront about what I am doing.

Press Gang is a 300,000 word history of national newspapers in the UK from 1945, with a bias towards the London newspapers. Roy Greenslade has written a brick of a book coming in around 300,000 words. The Birmingham Rep is producing Pravda by Howard Brenton and David Hare and we have tickets for this Friday.

The shop signs in the Stratford road show recent changes in ownership, and advertise the new approaches to retail provided by the Internet.

Very handy web site has flash animations of basic fractions processes complete with fla files for further customisation.

‘Spot the common factors’ approach works well for equivalent fractions puzzles. The kind of puzzle with unknowns on the bottom provokes thought!