As we move closer to the top of the countdown of our most-read learning blogs of the year, a clear pattern emerges. These blogs weren’t popular because they were loud or trendy. They were popular because they helped people make sense of their work. Today’s entries, numbers 4 to 2, all explore the models and mental frameworks learning professionals use to design, explain and justify what they do.

Somewhere between Christmas and “back to normal”

This is an odd part of the year.

The big pause has happened.

The inbox is slowly waking up again.

People are starting to think about January, but not quite acting on it yet.

That makes it a useful moment to look at ideas that help us frame our thinking, not just plan our next task. And that’s exactly what blogs 4, 3 and 2 did for a lot of readers this year.

#4 – The Next Top Learning Model: Bloom’s Taxonomy

🔗 https://www.popcornlearning.agency/post/the-next-top-learning-model-bloom-s-taxonomy

Why it mattered this year

Bloom’s Taxonomy is one of those models everyone recognises, but not everyone still uses deliberately.

This blog resonated because it didn’t treat Bloom’s as sacred or outdated. It treated it as useful, if applied thoughtfully. It reframed Bloom’s not as a checklist, but as a way to think more clearly about what we’re really asking learners to do.

Readers told us it helped them challenge lazy objectives, improve conversations with stakeholders and design learning that aimed higher than recall.

Sometimes revisiting a familiar model is exactly what’s needed.

#3 – 10 Learning Models Every Digital Learning Pro Should Know

🔗 https://www.popcornlearning.agency/post/10-learning-models-every-digital-learning-pro-should-know

Why it mattered this year

This post became a quiet reference piece.

Not because people wanted ten models to memorise, but because they wanted language. A way to explain why a particular approach made sense. A way to choose a model that fit the problem, rather than forcing the problem to fit the model.

In a year where L&D teams were asked to justify decisions more clearly, this blog gave people tools to think with, not rules to follow.

That distinction matters.

#2 – The Future of eLearning: Predictions and Trends 2025–2030

🔗 https://www.popcornlearning.agency/post/the-future-of-e-learning-predictions-and-trends-in-the-e-learning-industry-2025-2030

Why it mattered this year

Trend pieces are everywhere. Most are skimmed once and forgotten.

This one travelled further because it didn’t just list technologies. It explored what those trends mean for design, capability and organisational priorities over time.

Readers told us they used it to sense-check strategy discussions, not to chase the next shiny thing. It helped them ask better questions about where to invest effort, and where not to.

As we move closer to a new year, that long-term view feels especially relevant.

What these three have in common

Looking at numbers 4 to 2 together, a clear signal emerges.

People are hungry for thinking tools.They want models that help them decide, not decorate slides.They want foresight that supports judgement, not panic.

These blogs didn’t offer certainty. They offered perspective.

And perspective is often what’s missing when work speeds up again.

One more to go

There’s just one blog left now.

The most-read post of the year.

It’s not the loudest.

It’s not the most technical.But it struck a nerve for a reason.

The final blog in this countdown will land on New Year’s Day, when people are naturally asking bigger questions about standards, purpose and what “good” really looks like.

For now, these three remind us of something important.

Strong learning design starts with strong thinking.