• Rural LA school 55 pupils in Devon
• Ofsted rating: Good
• FSM: 12.2%

Review rating:

Average rating across all Purple Mash reviews: 4.2/5

It is good and we will continue using it for the foreseeable future. Children enjoy it and it broadens their experience and knowledge of computing.

How well does it match the curriculum?

Reasonably: It’s good enough for the money, but needs some additional resources

Children enjoy using it. It helps where staff struggle with this area. The children like the games! It is also a very creative website.

How well does it support adaptation for different groups of pupils?

Reasonably: Essentially there’s enough for most pupils but there isn’t enough support.

It could be made easier to access for those who are SEND and struggle with the basics. It could be easier to enter and easier to identify areas of interest for those children.

How well does it engage and motivate pupils?

Well: Pupils generally enjoy using it and tend to welcome doing so

It is fun and as I have said; they love the games. It makes children realise that learning can be fun and does not have to be explicit. They are learning experientially.

How well supported is it by any included formative assessments?

Reasonably: There is some formative assessment included, but its usefulness is a bit limited

Children tend to avoid assessments, on the whole. They focus on the fun aspects. They regard it as a reward for learning rather than a learning tool.

How well does it support planning?

Reasonably: Mostly we can use it without an unreasonable amount of effort or additional resource requirement

The strengths are that it is an 'add on'. Teachers do not need to spend a great deal of time reviewing it to determine which areas will support the children's learning. This is also a weakness in a way because it may not be targeted on the area that children have been covering.

How well does it support home use / independent learning?

Badly: It’s not really suitable for home use or independent learning

Children do not use it from home. However, this is fine because school policy is that, other than covid, home learning is restricted to very specific areas such as reading and writing.

How would you rate it for value for money compared to similar resources?

Reasonably: It represents about the same value for money as similar resources I’ve seen

The resources could be increased! Or the price could be reduced. Other than that, it is difficult to say.

Would you recommend it to a colleague in a similar school to yours? 8/11

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