Hi Jay, Thank you so much for the work you did with our children last Thursday. With all activities similar to yours it can be hard to measure the effects and even justify the time off timetable. In this case I truly feel that the children benefitted immensely from your inspirational and thought provoking sessions and that the time out of lessons was extremely well justified. Our year 10 cohort are a tough bunch and you kept them thinking and concentrating for a full day. More importantly the feedback that we have had from the pupils has been extremely positive with many pupils stating that they have already used the strategies in their studies. Thanks again, Fraser

Unfortunately I didn’t get to attend the course but feedback from colleagues was all very positive – they thought Shenaz was brilliant and she had as much impact on them as she did on the kids. They thought her behavior management was outstanding! Excellent from start to finish – not just Shenaz (who impressed everyone) but the whole origination was efficient and like clockwork. I’ve been really impressed.

A good overall course – well delivered

We were very impressed yesterday. The course content was exactly what I was looking for. The students were engaged, motivated and came out ‘buzzing’. The practical techniques and target setting skills have given the students a good base knowledge. The ‘buzzing’ students were a direct result of the quality of delivery by Natalie and Karim so please pat them on the back.

On behalf of Marlwood school we would like to say ‘Thank you’ for a brilliant day! Positive feedback from staff and Year 11s.

Mastering Motivation with Y12 students was well received. Pace, delivery and content all good and appropriate.

Very engaging for all pupils. Course delivery was set to the ability of the pupils with high levels of expectation regarding Motivation and pupil behaviour. Many positive comments were made by pupils who in some cases were reluctant to take part at first but then realised the whole idea is that they have to have aspirations and they have to work and go after their aspiration to achieve. A very worthwhile event and suitable for the entire cohort

Rachel was brilliant, really lively and engaging throughout the day. The students learning a lot of new techniques to help them revise in the up-coming months. I think they were surprised about how much they could recall. We had a great day and I am now looking at ways to ensure that these techniques are used by students and endorsed by staff.

Lisa was great. Really upbeat and engaged the audience. Lisa arrived early, really well organised and very professional

Your sessions were very well received by students and the Ofsted team were also very impressed.

Rachel’s delivery was excellent, and engaged the students. The materials were a good combination of teaching and practical activities and the content was interesting. Student evaluation of the event was very positive. Thank you Rachel.

Very engaging and the students enjoyed working with Jay

Excellent. All aspects of the course were beneficial and the feedback from all participants was excellent. Shenaz was amazing at motivating and engaging the students. A very worthwhile experience for the students and for the teachers who attended the sessions.

They were great, Shenaz had the expertise and skills needed to keep the year 11’s engaged, learning and achieving what was set out in the workshop. Good pace and inspiring/ motivational elements added too. The techniques used were simple enough and explained well to enable to students to use them in practice.

Really good ideas. Great that we were given explanations why the ideas could work for us. Many from Years 10 and 11 felt that they would definitely use the study ideas. The presenter/workshop leader was effective because she was enthusiastic and funny (students’ comments). A really good day Shenaz was bubbly, enthusiastic and had a good rapport with the students. She was able to keep the more difficult students engaged and involved which was very positive.

The course content was great. I was really impressed at how the students were able to use the information given to them at the beginning and then recall it all several hours later. The skills taught will prove very beneficial to our students and also to staff in school, skills we can build on in the weeks to come. There was a lot of information delivered over the course of the day but not too much for the students to take it all in. Jay, our presenter, was excellent. He quickly got the measure of our students and identified and built relationships with the few who may have become disengaged with the seminar. He was lively and entertaining – all the students are talking about him today. A great session overall, thanks very much!

It was brilliant that it gave students so many practical tips for revision. Kim was really engaging and it was nice that she gave examples of how the techniques worked such as the mind map and using objects around the room. The students have commented how useful it was and we’re looking forward to working with you again.

Human Bingo worked well – especially for Seren as there are multiple schools present. Allows the students to get to know each other, build on their communication, as well doing an active task to set off the session. Workshop was informative and gives the students a better understanding and tools to keep motivated for both short term and long term goals. Other teacher commented “Another interesting session, thank you.”

Well planned, informed and a good blend between exam skills, revision strategies, resilience and motivation. Fantastic interaction with students, creating a positive learning environment. Shenaz,Thank you so much for the fantastic day that you ran on Thursday, we were really pleased and I know that the students enjoyed themselves and would have got lots from your energetic style and brilliant strategies. We will be looking at further intervention following the mock exams.

The course was excellent. Pupils were buzzing with ideas and energy by the end of the session. We hope that we can maintain this motivation until the exams and beyond. The course was tailored to our needs and that is much appreciated

It was really good, all of the pupils were engaged for much of the time, which is no mean feat on a warm day with a gym full of 15 - 16 year olds.

Many thanks for the online sessions that were delivered by Kim and Dave. We generally had lots of positive praise and feedback from various parents, either by email or through our social media posts. If time and money allows, we will be looking to organise other sessions in the future, either online or face-to-face when lockdown ends. Many thanks.

Fun, interesting, pupils engaged! Would definitely recommend!

An excellent day, which enthused the students and covered a range of topics. The timing of the day was perfect for us, as it kick started the New Year and countdown to the GCSE exams. Jay was engaging and related well to the students.

Well organised and year group appropriate. Engaging presentation. Presenter was clearly knowledgeable and passionate about her subject matter. Well balanced between factual delivery and stimulating activities. It was a great day for our Key Stage 4 students and for staff. We have had lots of positive feedback from students who picked up a ‘can do’ attitude from the session. The staff welcomed the chance to see what students have been learning and many have already been embedding the proposed revision strategies in their own teaching.

Very engaging and easy for the students to relate to. Fun and dynamic the students should have got a lot out of it Shenaz was very motivational and gave the students really valuable tools to take away and use in their studies.

Very enthusiastic presenter meant students remained energised throughout. Very good; we would definitely have you back

We have been incredibly lucky to work with the Positively Mad team for 3 years now, and we were very thankful that we were able to welcome Shenaz back, so early on in the academic year, despite the current Covid-19 situation. For our new Year 12 cohort, Shenaz delivered the first workshop as part of their 2-day Sixth Form Conference. For the majority of the Year 12 students in the room, they had not been back in school since we went into lockdown in March, so as you can imagine, some of our students were very anxious, nervous and unsettled. Shenaz was an absolute breath of fresh air. From the onset, the students were engaged, reassured, challenged and most importantly, settled and at ease. Throughout their 2-day Conference, Year 12 attended 3 sessions with Shenaz. During the first half of the first sessions, Shenaz learnt the names of all our students, and from student feedback, this meant a lot as it showed she was interested in each and everyone of them, not just as a group collectively. Each session transitioned smoothly into the next, and what the students covered in the previous workshops was picked back up and built upon. During our tutor programme, over this the remainder of this half term, we hope to build on the work Year 12 covered over the 2-day conference, as we believe it will further develop their characters, aid them with ideas to support their academic and independent study and overall support them across their Level 3 journey.

The feedback for the day has been overwhelmingly positive – from parents, staff and pupils. Following the course, Year 11 pupils have already drafted a first timetable this morning so are on track to continue with the enthusiasm and ideas shared by Shenaz during the day. We have seen that the ‘Positively MAD’ days have a noticeable effect on pupils. It plays an important part in our school calendar and provision for pupils and helps to inspire and motivate students as well as give them some practical tools that can be used in class and at home immediately.

An outstanding workshop that engaged and motivated our pupils. Shenaz really engaged with all our pupils and they were all very motivated following the session. An excellent day and excellent presenter.

Thank you so much for your presentations today. The staff thought they were first class. Hopefully at least 90% will use these techniques to achieve their target grades in their GCSE's and in any future exams. Two boys from the afternoon were walking the school at 3.40 with a pen and paper (!) asking staff to recommend revision books for their subjects. I am sure the effect will be long lasting Thanks again Steve

Students found Jay’s delivery both entertaining and engaging. The key messages supported what we say in school, but were delivered by someone different in a different way. Lots of images / words / anecdotes to hold attention; the pace was good. Staff in attendance felt the students’ focus and engagement were very positive. Jay clearly knows how to relate to a hall full of teenagers. Well-structured. Jay was flexible to work around our time slots / breaks etc and understood and was not phased by the workings of a school e.g. use of hall as social space at lunchtime. The staff session was useful in that staff are now equipped to do follow-up work in terms of targets / deadlines.

Fantastic day, Jay was amazing pupils were buzzing with ideas.

Jay came out to my school today and can I say that he was brilliant, such an inspiration and he has encouraged me to do more revision for my exams in the summer, thank you for doing what you do

We loved the day. We thought that Jay was very engaging and both students and staff enjoyed the sessions he delivered. We were able to take strategies from the training to support our students and staff have talked passionately about the grid strategy for revision and the mind mapping. As a pastoral team we are going to use the reflective ‘what have I done well this week’ with all of the students.

Steve was able to quickly build good rapport with the students and kept their attention throughout the morning. The sessions were informative and practical. It was learning and fun put together! A lot of content was covered in a fairly short amount of time. The day went smoothly and Steve was very well prepared.

It was great to meet Emily today. She had such great energy and positive mind set. She was able to really get the first group working and thinking. The second group were a bit more of a challenge but she worked very hard and there was a good energy in the room when I came in at the end of the second session. The students and teachers really enjoyed the session and the students were thinking about themselves in a different way during their destinations interviews which followed Emily’s session. It was a great day and we would definitely have something similar in school. Thanks. Excellent day, Lots of energy from the presenter.

The course content is highly appropriate and we will want to repeat these sessions next year. The presenter was very well received by the students and I have had a number of very positive comments back from student, staff and parents.

Brilliant, enthusiastic presenter. They did really enjoy the day and there new slogan in the school is GO MAD.

Engaging and relevant. A great experience for the students

I was grateful for the talk this morning I would like to thank Steve for making me think about the future. We all learnt something today because you have a very unique way of teaching. You made us laugh and think at the same time I would like you to come back and see us again and show us more thanks you again #steveiscool

Facilitator full of energy. Lots of helpful strategies. 10/10

Very relevant to our pupils and really opened up the thinking for many of them. The students themselves commented on how positive they found the sessions. Fantastic engagement and the fun and active approach really engaged many of the pupils.

Excellent- the course really delivered what we were looking for. Resources were very good as was the presenter. The students were very engaged and enjoyed the whole course. Many commented that they had gotten a lot from the material they looked at and were hoping that it will help them with their exams.

Natalie was excellent – her enthusiasm and passion were really clear, and this rubbed off on the students. They were all really positive about the content and the course leader. Communication with Natalie before the event was really easy, she arrived early in the morning and was adaptable to our requests! 10/10!!!