You can find out more about the Trusts projects here: https://shinetrust.org.uk/our-impact/

For more regular updates please visit their blog: https://shinetrust.org.uk/our-impact/latest/

Below we share two of our current projects.

Boromi

Boromi is a community of in-school play libraries that helps parents to support and nurture their child’s early development through powerful, purposeful play together at home. Since its founder Evie Keough won a Let Teachers SHINE award to develop Boromi, it has grown at a remarkable rate, reaching many hundreds of families. During lockdown, the project was adapted for home use, with Evie’s fun-filled and educational “Keepmi” boxes acting as a lifeline for home-bound disadvantaged children. More than 6,000 boxes were posted during the pandemic. Between 2019 and 2021, Boromi has increased its family reach by 600%. SHINE and TGET are currently supporting a two-year impact and evaluation report involving schools and parents in Doncaster. This project will help develop our understanding of how we can meaningfully support children and their families with home learning – a crucial part of early development.

Times Tables Rockstars

When Bruno Reddy came up with the idea for Times Tables Rock Stars to help students in his class, he never imagined that it would go on to transform maths education. But what began as a simple printed worksheet in class has become a sophisticated app that is used by around 85 per cent of the UK’s schools, with up to a million children logging on each week. Funding and support from Let Teachers SHINE enabled Bruno to take his idea to the next level. It gave him the confidence to develop the concept and introduce it into more schools. Times Tables Rockstars uses music, incentives, and an element of competition to encourage children to practice and learn their times tables. There are countless examples of children from disadvantaged backgrounds developing a love of maths through using Times Tables Rockstars.