When my year 3 teacher, Mrs Margaret Browne, told us she had to pull on a pair of gloves before she could start reading our new class novel, I don’t …
Read more6 reasons every teacher should read aloud every day
As far as books go, 2020 has turned into Margaret Wild’s ‘The Sloth Who Came to Stay.’ You know the picture story book about the busy family forced to adjust …
Olfactory memory. Have you ever smelled a smell and immediately been reminded of a place, person or thing from your past? That’s olfactory memory: the recollections of odours. For me, …
Being a literacy consultant, I get the opportunity to visit lots of schools and observe in lots of classrooms. I see all types of wonderful teaching practice and I get …
Read more5 common mistakes teachers make in Independent Reading
Australian teachers and schools have the ‘benefit’ (if you can call it that) of entering this challenging time a few weeks after many other countries. We therefore have the opportunity …
Read moreTips for preparing student work during school closures
This week’s blog post answers a question asked by one of the Oz Lit Teachers in our community. It focuses on all things Reading Workshop. What is a Reading Workshop? …
In last week’s post we looked at the research behind classroom libraries, the number and types of books they should contain and the need for diversity on our shelves. This …
Read moreClassroom Libraries: All Your Questions Answered (Part 2)
It’s early days in the school year and you want to make sure you are setting your students up for absolute success in all things literacy this year. You’ve got …
Read moreClassroom libraries: All your questions answered (Part 1)
Think about your classroom. What do your walls say about the instruction that occurs in your classroom? What is valued? What is not? What is the current instructional focus (according to the walls)?
What are anchor charts and why and how should you use them?
I wonder what goes through the mind of Bunnings staff members when they see adult after adult scouring the plumbing aisles only to emerge with a piece of narrow PVC …
Read moreHow to Make and Use Whisper Phones / Fluency Phones