This issue of JES features four more abstracts from the 2017 ESERA Conference, covering such topics as the perception of Spanish teachers during initial teacher training, knowledge and the 'knower', pre-school teaching quality and computational thinking in kindergartens. We also have some articles based on practitioner experience of research and its impact in schools, one on the applications of simple machines and another on outdoor learning. We also introduce a new section covering early years and primary science in an international context, beginning with teacher and technician training in Australia.