Asking children to find the meaning of words using a dictionary and then using those words in their own written sentences is a useful way to learn more about words. But if we’re to ensure children maintain interest in word learning, it is worth considering other approaches to vocabulary building. With this in mind we’ve listed some techniques you may want to add to your vocabulary focussed reading lessons

Literary Christmas quotations paired with lights and decorations from the West End of London.

Which of the following sentences is correct?

The bus waited for Sam and me.

The bus waited for Sam and I.

I explain how to help your students make the right choice by referring to pronouns, subjects, objects and a quick and dirty trick.

Let me ask you a question: Where do you encounter non-fiction reading in your everyday life? And is this a pleasurable experience or is your use of everyday non-fiction literacy purely out of necessity?

We look at non-fiction in the primary school and consider how it is both a necessity and a pleasure.

A range of practical approaches to support blending and segmenting.

For many years I've been supporting teachers to teach editing and proofreading using the ARMS and CUPS aide memoire as a systematic approach to editing and proofreading. It’s an incredibly simple approach to evaluating, improving and redrafting and one that the teachers I work with have embraced enthusiastically.

Reading has the power to transform lives. In this article, we collate inspirational quotations about the power of books and reading.

Cohesion is one of those aspects of writing that can be hard to pin down. Teachers often describe it as writing that flows and writing that sticks together. But just what is it that gives writing cohesion, and can it even be taught? We share our thoughts and our Cohesion Roadmap to help you ensure cohesion is taught progressively across your school.

Monday can be one of those days where you need a few words of wisdom to get you going…

Scaffolding is an approach to adapting learning so that all pupils can be successful. But what does in look like in primary English lessons?

A really useful article full of links to blogs about reading pedagogies including guided, whole class guided and close reading.

Activities to support spoken language in the primary classroom.

A quick walk through expanded noun phrases - what the national curriculum says about them, some of the myths busted and a selection of ideas to teach this important aspect of grammar across Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

Ideas to help you prepare for the key stage 2 reading SAT. Perfect for new teachers and those looking for some quick reminders.

This article introduces the Primary English Progression in Spoken Language document. The resource takes each of the spoken language objectives from the national curriculum and breaks them down into steps for each year from 1 - 6. This article explains more.

Writing a whole story that flows logically and successfully can be extremely challenging. In this article, we consider how simple journey stories can act as models for young writers.

A collection of quotations about Christmas.

Modelling in its broadest sense is one of the most powerful tools we have in our teacher toolkits. It’s the epitome of an expert showing a novice how to do something and thereby moving them towards expertise themselves. In this article we look at modelled and shared writing as tools you can use to improve children’s writing.

I share my thoughts about the PEE acronym and its usefulness (or not) for answering extended comprehension questions in Key Stage 2.

Assessing writing can be complicated and time consuming. In this article we take a look at a few ways to simplify the process and introduce you to the Primary English Writing Assessment Grids.