I have created a pair of structured worksheets for students who gained a grade 3 in GCSE English Language in the summer and are preparing to take the November resit examinations. The resource focuses on Question 4 from both AQA papers, using repeatable methods that can be taught and practised within the relatively short resit … Continue reading GCSE English Language November resit: a focused Question 4 revision strategy
reading
New Edutopia Article: Making Assessments More Accessible Without Lowering Expectations
My latest article for Edutopia has now been published: 5 Ways to Make Assessments More Accessible Without Lowering Expectations. The article grew out of a question I return to often in my teaching: what is an assessment really measuring? Many pupils can understand an idea, explain it in conversation, or show their thinking when the … Continue reading New Edutopia Article: Making Assessments More Accessible Without Lowering Expectations
A Small Milestone: Four Titles Now Available on Amazon
A small milestone: I now have four titles available on Amazon. My latest workbook, Understanding English Through Word Parts, has been published by Kate Coldrick and focuses on Anglo-Saxon, Latin and Greek word parts for vocabulary, spelling and reading. The book is designed to help students look inside words and understand how they are built. … Continue reading A Small Milestone: Four Titles Now Available on Amazon
A New Resource: Understanding the Phonics Policy in England
Over the past decade, the phonics policy in England has reshaped how reading is taught in primary schools. Systematic synthetic phonics is now the central approach used in early literacy instruction, and the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check has become a familiar feature of the education landscape. At the same time, discussion about phonics policy … Continue reading A New Resource: Understanding the Phonics Policy in England
Now Listed in the National Autistic Society Autism Services Directory
I’m very pleased to share that I am now listed in the National Autistic Society Autism Services Directory as a specialist literacy tutor for autistic and neurodivergent learners. You can view my full profile in the National Autistic Society Autism Services Directory. The National Autistic Society directory is a trusted national resource used by families, … Continue reading Now Listed in the National Autistic Society Autism Services Directory
When Praise Turns: Heremod and Modthryth in Beowulf
One of the most difficult ideas for students of English to grasp is that meaning is not located solely in events, but in how those events are described, framed, and judged. At GCSE level, this sits at the heart of language analysis: writers shape reader response not just through what happens, but through voice, viewpoint, … Continue reading When Praise Turns: Heremod and Modthryth in Beowulf
Why Some Children Get Stuck After Phonics – Understanding Orthographic Mapping and the Self-Teaching Phase
Thousands of children can sound out words but still can’t read fluently. They can decode the letters on a page yet struggle to recognise words automatically or understand them easily. This article explores what happens after phonics – the stage where real reading begins – and why understanding orthographic mapping and the self-teaching phase is … Continue reading Why Some Children Get Stuck After Phonics – Understanding Orthographic Mapping and the Self-Teaching Phase
From Sound to Story: How Children Really Learn to Read – and Why So Many Phonics Programmes Misfire
Children learn to read by linking the sounds they already know to the symbols on a page. Yet most phonics programmes start from the wrong end – from print instead of speech – forcing children to memorise the alphabetic code backwards. Here’s what really happens inside the reading brain, and how to teach in a … Continue reading From Sound to Story: How Children Really Learn to Read – and Why So Many Phonics Programmes Misfire
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