Visit my new store

I have recently created my own online store, with the aid of Amazon Associates, so if you would like to purchase any of the books written by myself simply follow the link at the top of the sidebar, or click here.

Match Wits with your 11 year-old self

As has been reported elsewhere, Match Wits with the Kids is not the only book out at the moment that reminds parents of what they once knew. But now a new book of exam questions taken from the old-style 11-plus exam has begged the seemingly perennial question - are exams getting easier?

You can read more about The Eleven-Plus Book: Genuine Exam Questions From Yesteryear here, and try out a some of the questions from the test for yourself here. Do you think exams are getting easier? Do you think that teachers should make a return to the teaching methods they used when you were at school? Let us know how you get on and have your say on the matter here.

Subliminal education

You've probably heard of subliminal advertising, but what about receiving a subliminal education? Well that seems to be the goal of video games developer Capcom and Nipan Maniar, a senior lecturer in creative technologies at the University of Portsmouth, who is described as a 'leading academic'.

The plan appears to be to embed subliminal lessons, which address subject areas that many students find hard to grasp such as maths and physics, into game play. According to Maniar, 'The power of games as a learning tool is the great untapped education resource of our time.'

But how do you feel about video games companies having the power to influence how children learn and what they learn? Do you agree with Maniar that this could be the next big thing in education, or do you have fears that this is just another example of technology being used irresponsibly, as was implied by this particular news item.



To read more about Capcom's plans, click here.

Match Wits is Book of the Month!

At least it is in W H Smith in Hammersmith.

If Smiths think Match Wits with the Kids is good enough to be non-fiction book of the month, don't you think it must be good enough for you too?

(Thanks to Catherine for the heads up on this one.)

Fun Learning

Part of the appeal of Match Wits with the Kids is that it promotes learning as a fun experience to be enjoyed by all.

Well how about this example of fun learning, as proposed by the rather appropriately named Mr Rolls, and witnessed recently on a school trip to Kew Gardens?



I don't know which part I found more amusing; the actual rolling down the hill or the laborious preparations beforehand.

But that's what I call fun learning!

Match Wits in Harrods

I happened to find myself in Harrods the other day (as you do from time to time when you live in London and it's your wife's birthday) and I happened across Match Wits with the Kids in the Waterstones store there.

I also happened to happen across a number of my other recent publications including my science fiction steampunk novel Leviathan Rising, my Doctor Who book The Horror of Howling Hill and several Fighting Fantasy gamebooks I had written.

As they say, there's only one Harrods, and there's only one Match Wits with the Kids too!

It pays to know your spellings

As reported in The Times newspaper, a GCSE student has gained marks in an exam for swearing on paper.

It just goes to show that a little accurate spelling can go a long way. It's just unfortunate for the expletive-expressing teenager that he didn't decide to write a little more on his exam paper or he might have earned himself more than just 2 marks out of 27.

Match Wits with the Kids has a whole section on spelling, including a number of useful spelling rules and a list of those words which are commonly misspelled.

So, if spelling isn't your strong suit you could do a lot worse than pick up a copy of the book here. We just wouldn't recommend resorting to the Anglo-Saxon vernacular when it comes to putting it into practice.