On the 22nd of May, I had the great pleasure to join the researchEd Home gang to talk ‘Closing the Reading Gap (in the time of Coronavirus)’. A couple of years ago, …
Thinking about School Transition
Moving from primary school to secondary school, nursery to school, or school to college, is a seismic change for any child. The transition can be both exciting and frightening. As Covid closures …
5 Recent Articles on the Reading Gap
Over the past couple of months, I was asked to write about reading given interest in my new ‘reading gap’ book. Below is a list of the articles you can access online, …
Tricky Texts and the ‘Arduous Eight’
When it comes to reading, teachers are a little like Goldilocks. When it comes to spotting difficult texts – whether it is the class reader in year 5, or a maths word …
Introducing ‘Closing the Reading Gap’
Nearly two years ago, I began researching and writing ‘Closing the Reading Gap’. After writing my book on vocabulary, I knew that reading was the natural next step. I knew that every …
Home School: History Week
Ok – let’s be clear: I am not a historian, nor am I a primary school teacher. But in my newfound role as home-schooling Dad, I have wanted to devise some additional …
Home School Resources
Home schooling is a surprising new reality for lots of working parents. I have two young children – aged 8 (year 4) and 11 (year 6) – and now home school is …
‘We Did Vocabulary Last Year’
“We did vocabulary last year.” I have the privilege to speak to lots of teachers and school leaders about vocabulary, accessing the school curriculum, along with the challenges of making a difference …
We are ‘Doing Curriculum’ – so what are we stopping?
“From the teachers’ perspective, the education system is “noisy”: Teachers are surrounded by multiple and conflicting messages about what is most important to do. Furthermore, if they focus too much on any …
Reading by the beach
Reading by the beach normally evokes glossy scenes of lying on the beach, amidst the heady scent of suncream and sea air, along with a good ol’ story. Well, this blog isn’t about such a sunny scene…