About Me
Hi! I'm Barry. I'm the *only* author of this website.
I'm currently working as a mentor in a SEN environment with children between the ages of 11 and 16, and the idea behind this website comes from about three years of hard work online in the midst of a pandemic (which we will leave unnamed, as let's face it, we still hear about it to this day!).
When we had the first lockdown in the UK in March 2020, we all (our school) went online with Microsoft Teams, YouTube and other websites. But what I have progressively found is that not everything is in one place, or the right place at the right time.
So, my thought was, why not collate all the resources, information and images that I have gathered over the years and put it onto one website? Great.
Great.
So now, fast forward to the beginning of the new academic year for 2022/23, and I have many more resources than I care to imagine, with people now showing me new things, and giving me ideas for the site. Which is fantastic. The website itself has had a bit of an overhaul, with some small additions (an overhaul of the front page to look more like a landing page - I've always wanted one!), and also some changes (names of sections have been changed, pages have also been renamed if needed) that have made it more appealing and flow better.
Along with the smaller changes, I have a couple of larger changes. The addition of Physics and Chemistry. Now, I am no chemist, nor a physician (that being, a person who likes physics), but I am learning along the way, and adding new content to the site as I go along.
That being said, I have a long way to go before those two sections are complete, as I will be teaching them as well as biology. I will be adding new sections one at a time, with new pages, information, images, video links, and my favourite part - the interesting facts.
The interesting facts are what makes this website. For me, they add a personal touch of information that you might not already know. I've used them in lessons, and sometimes I get a "wow" moment from students when I do. They are literally little nuggets of out-of-the-box information that can make or break a lesson. I can start with that fact, or bring it in to the teaching during the 45 minutes we get to teach it. Either way, it helps the process of learning. I like that.
Website Design
If you haven't noticed, I spend quite a bit of time changing little bits of the website around. Just because I can. I get bored of a stagnant layout, and although I am totally happy with the design, the development of new items, new criteria and new features means that sometimes, a small overhaul or change is needed.
I'm currently running a version of Dreamweaver, made by Adobe, along with Photoshop, also made by Adobe. I sometimes use Notepad (made by Microsoft) if I'm not around my laptop where I can upload it. I have used Dreamweaver since the Macromedia days (yes, I'm THAT old), and I've always found it to be the best at handling what I want.
Final thought: I hope this website allows you to learn something new, and if you have, why not email or message me on social medias (Facebook and Instagram pages) to let me know.
Testimonials
I came across Biology Bricks on Facebook, with two children that struggle with their learning. I was intrigued to see if this was any different to the text books or Google on science topics. Science is a minefield at the best of times but this has been broken down into easy to find topics which are easily accessible, understandable and have simple explanations. My children are in Years 7 & 10 and this site has come at the perfect time, firstly as a simpler introduction to a year 7 and secondly as a learning and revision aid for my son who has now started GCSE work. My daughter finds learning particularly difficult and has an Education Health Care Plan, however Biology Bricks is divided into manageable sections that can be re-visited as many times as necessary before moving into the next section. We are also able to pick the particular topics the children are currently covering in their own school so we look at it with different teaching methods/views.
