Nicola Call, author of The ALPS Approach and The Thinking Child, taught for fourteen years in a variety of primary schools in and around London, combining writing with teaching until 1998, when she left the classroom to take up writing and training full time. 

Nicola had a dynamic career in the classroom, moving swiftly into management positions in four different schools. She spent four years in her first appointment, at a nursery and infant school in Inner London’s Camden Town. Working with a dynamic team, she sailed through an HMI inspection in her second year, and her work was quoted in subsequent publications. In her third year she took over as Acting Deputy, and had her first taste of management. This led to a position at a larger school as Senior Teacher, and then a swift move on to her first permanent Deputy Headship. Within a term, her Headteacher was off on maternity leave, and Nicola gained her first taste of Headship. On the Headteacher’s return, Nicola moved on, this time to a large school near London’s Heathrow airport.  

During her six years in this post, Nicola began to put the theory of brain-based learning into practice. The results astounded her. “The school was in the midst of major upheaval,” she says, “with falling rolls, very significant social challenges and an almost complete turnover of staff. We just knew that we had to do something.” The speed of change in the school accelerated, and Nicola, with three colleagues whom she describes as “brilliant”, implemented a dynamic accelerated learning programme.

Nicola's research into brain-based learning began to make sense as the team put it into practice. One of the teachers in the team was a music specialist, and her input was invaluable. Music, Brain Gym®, relaxation exercises, role-play and VAK (visual, aural and kinesthetic) all came together to enrich the children’s’ experience. Intensive work on raising self-esteem went hand in hand with academic work. The results were impressive, as the school shot to the top section of the league tables. More significant, however, to Nicola, was the improvement in motivation and attitude. She explains, “At the beginning the children were de-motivated, challenging in behaviour, and lacking in confidence. By the end, they were confident, self-motivated and developing self-esteem. Attendance and behaviour also improved dramatically. Attitudes to learning radically altered. Children started to ask for extra books to take home, homework tasks were completed enthusiastically, and Year 6 children even brought in GCSE course books and asked their teachers to explain the work to them - just for fun!”  

Through her work in school, Nicola met Alistair Smith, the well-known author and trainer in Accelerated Learning techniques. They joined forces, combining Alistair’s teaching, training and research expertise with Nicola’s practical classroom experience. The result was ALPS – Accelerated Learning in Primary Schools, which is now recognised as the leading work for primary teachers wishing to develop brain-based learning techniques. In January 2003, a long-awaited American version of The ALPS Approach was published in the United States, where it is expected to mirror its UK success.   

Recently,  Nicola has been working with the well-known early years consultant Sally Featherstone, and has returned to her roots as a nursery teacher. Together, they produced The Thinking Child – Brain-based learning for the foundation stage. Working with Sally was exciting and a rich learning experience. “It had been several years since I’d taught in the early years, and researching for the book brought back some wonderful memories of my years spent teaching nursery and reception children,” says Nicola.  “It was amazing; I even started to recall individual children and little incidents in great detail. I just wish that ALPS and The Thinking Child had been around at the start of my career. They are full of all the practical ideas that took me fourteen years to accumulate, along with the theory that I had to glean from many books and hours of reading.”  

Nicola’s writing career continues to accelerate. Now based in the United States, she is working on a resource book to follow up to The Thinking Child, and a series of children’s books to promote Emotional Intelligence. She combines writing with visiting schools and keeping up-to-date with brain-based research, whilst being a mum to her two young daughters.  

Nicola’s passion for the rights of children in the classroom has been described as ‘inspirational.’ Her greatest satisfaction comes from the success stories that result from teachers and practitioners describing how they have been inspired by her work in their classrooms. Nicola aims to continue to inspire others for many years to come. 

Nicola welcomes comments and suggestions!

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