When asked how they teach reading, many teachers pride themselves that they are teaching ‘balanced literacy’ in their classroom. This idea seems to imply that they are covering all the approaches their pupils may need to learn to read. But what is ‘balanced literacy?’ Can it be defined or measured? Read this article by Professor […]
Read MoreLearning to Read
Should ‘alien words’ be part of the Year 1 Phonics Check?
It is that time of year again and the Year 1 Phonics Check is looming. It will take place this year during the week commencing June 12th. There had been a lot of criticism about the check in general but specifically about the nonsense, ‘alien words’ in the check that children are asked to decode. […]
Read MoreHow to teach reading and spelling with the Smart Chute
It is really important to teach reading and spelling together so that children can see that reading is decoding letters into sounds and spelling is encoding sounds into letters. In short, they are reverse activities. This way children learn how the English language alphabetic code actually works. It also means that from the beginning, children […]
Read MoreHow to teach high-frequency words
High-frequency words are common words in the English language. Many teachers believe that it is useful for children to learn to read and spell these words as soon as possible. The problem is that many of these words have complex spellings. This means that children may find it difficult to read and spell them until […]
Read MoreQuestions about the efficacy of phonics
If you are not convinced that phonics works for everyone or feel that you have tried it and still some of your pupils struggle – here are answers to often held views about teaching to read with synthetic phonics. Professor Pamela Snow addresses each argument. http://pamelasnow.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/the-story-of-ugly-duckling-aka-phonics.html
Read MoreWhy no one can really multi task
Young people today are obsessed with social media, constantly switching from school work to Facebook, texting, Instagram or whatever the latest cool gadget is on their phones. How does this affect their learning? They tell their parents and teachers that they are multi-tasking. But is this actually true? Read this interesting article by David Didau about this important issue. This had added […]
Read MoreAre learning styles now finally out of style?
Many SEN teachers believe and promote the idea of learning styles. It feels right. It feels personal to every individual student – but it is supported by science? https://ssec.si.edu/sending-learning-styles-out-style#.WHdcuDaVr6E.twitter
Read MoreIt’s time all teachers had a good grasp of synthetic phonics
Five years after the introduction of synthetic phonics into classrooms, it is time that teachers made it their business to have a good understanding of synthetic phonics and what science tells us about effective ways to teach reading. Read this short article on the Phonics Blog by Mike Lloyd-Jones. http://www.phonicsblog.co.uk/
Read MoreEssentials that NQTs need to know about teaching reading
Are NQTs equipped with what they absolutely need to know about reading when they leave Teacher Training? John Walker discusses ‘threshold concepts’ – the fundamentals that a teacher needs to master in order to be able to teach reading effectively. These include an understanding of how the English Phonic Code is structured and what skills children must practice […]
Read MorePISA results are in…
I have made a few predictions about PISA both on this blog and on Twitter. I predicted an entrenchment of East Asian countries at the top of the table, a decline for Finland and perhaps a decline f… Source: PISA results are in…
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