A syllable is a part of a word that contains some of the sounds (phonemes) of that word, usually including at least one vowel. A syllable is also called a ‘beat’: teachers often teach children to identify syllables by clapping the ‘beats’ in words. Another way to describe a syllable is a ‘mouthful’ of a […]
Read MoreReading Difficulties
Cumulative teaching – how to teach children who forget
Many of my students at the Bloomfield Learning Centre have difficulty remembering the complex alternative spellings of sounds in English. The problem is they don’t hold on to what they have learnt. The teacher may teach ‘ai’ and the next lesson ‘ee’ and after that ‘oa’. By this stage ‘ai’ is forgotten. It seems that […]
Read MoreReading with expression can help with reading fluency
Do you have children. who. r-ea-d. l-ike. th-i-s? How can we get children to read fluently? Firstly, why do we need to read fluently? We need to read fluently because it is difficult to understand what we are reading if we read in a halting way. Our working memory can’t combine all the different aspects […]
Read MoreIndependent review of That Dog! series
We have just received this independent review from Teach Primary Magazine. The review is available online. See link below. Phonic Books – That Dog! for catch-up readers across the school. At a glance: • Age appropriate, synthetic phonic catch-up reading books with decodable text for pupils who can read CVC words • Controlled language […]
Read MoreWhat is the ‘Matthew effect’ when it comes to reading instruction?
In the context of reading instruction, the ‘Matthew effect’ is the idea that children who learn to read in the first three years of their education become increasingly fluent readers. They read more and learn more vocabulary, which enables them to even read more and comprehend more-advanced texts – so they advance further. Conversely, children […]
Read MoreShould we label deprived children as less able?
Is it dangerous to assume that a child who has not had parental input is less able? Are we setting low expectations from the very beginning? Quirky Teacher presents some important arguments about making assumptions about pupil ability in Early Years assessment. https://thequirkyteacher.wordpress.com/2017/05/13/its-as-if-the-parents-dont-exist/
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 MoreOn the frustration of seeing children struggle with reading
I read this excellent blog post just now and wanted to add some of my thoughts as a primary school teacher (UKS2) on something that I consider a big problem in schools and society in general: lack … Source: On the frustration of seeing children struggle with reading
Read MoreLanguage and literacy policies
For those you who have time over half term I recommend this excellent article by Pamela Snow. It gives one a very good overview about the politicisation of the teaching of literacy in English speaking countries around the world. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/17549507.2015.1112837
Read MoreAre all reading interventions created equal?
It is time for some research which compares different reading intervention programmes. They are not all equal…
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