It's a source of deep regret for education secretary Michael Gove, but like it or loathe it: school lessons don't just consist of chalkboards and textbooks.
From role pay to live-tweeting, teachers go great lengths to help pupils understand their work. And it's not just teachers who come up with unusual tricks: students will do all sorts in the run up to exams, even singing their revision notes, as one self-confessed "audio learner" tells Guardian Students.
Gove's criticism of a Mr Men-inspired history lesson has got readers talking about the strangest lessons they remember being taught, or delivering.
Are you a teacher with maverick methods? Or do you recall being taught a tricky subject in an odd way? Perhaps it was a path to exam success. Or maybe it was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Here's a few stories you've shared with us so far. To add yours to the mix post in the comment thread below
GHPrice: "My A2 history teacher introduced the subject of political parties of Weimar Germany through a 'speed dating' exercise. Alright, it probably wasn't the most serious way to learn it, but I'll never forget the aims of the DDP (Deutsche Demokratische Partei) or DNVP (Deutschnationale Volkspartei). I suspect Mr Men is the same idea… It'll stick in kids' minds more than being forced to recite something over and over."
Edain: "For my A-Level English we had a section on 'monsters', containing excerpts from Frankenstein, Dracula... and then Pokemon and Fungus the Bogeyman. We were 18. It was actually a lot harder to witter on about 'gotta catch 'em all' and a children's picture book when you're supposed to be dissecting the Modern Gothic and linking the depiction of monsters in literature with societal concerns of the time."
Aejw: "Getting older pupils to present the information in an entertaining way to year 6 pupils has benefits for both groups, it encourages the older students to think creatively and hones presentation skills whilst showing the younger students that History can be engaging.
I teach French and Spanish to years 7-11 and sometimes am bereft of ideas to illustrate a dry grammar point in an entertaining fashion. I would be happy to adapt a resource like this."
