Events Search and Views Navigation
October 2018
Developing Comprehension Day 1: discussion and dialogue
Day 1 of our comprehension course poses two key questions: What does research tell us about the ways readers comprehend text? How can we translate this knowledge into pedagogy? The day will start with the presentation of a model of comprehension underpinned by recent research. We will examine the different factors affecting reading comprehension and consider how to teach the skills that support children's understanding. We will give close attention to the role of dialogue and discussion in supporting and…
Find out more »Exploring Children’s Literature: Fairy Stories
The first in our series of twilight sessions exploring different aspects of children's literature. In this session we will share a range of fairy stories for different ages from both the oral and the literary traditions. How did these stories originate? How have they changed over time? What purposes do fairy stories serve? Is there still a place for fairy tales in the 21st century? Reading fairy stories with children and teenagers. Participants are invited to bring along a favourite…
Find out more »January 2019
Developing Comprehension Day 2: inference and criticality
Day 2 of our comprehension course focuses on the complexities of inference making and critical reading. We start by building participants' knowledge of the different types of inference that readers make. We then consider potential barriers to understanding and explore ways in which these barriers can be overcome. Drawing on research into critical literacies we look at how the transformative nature of reading can help young readers connect what they read with their developing sense of identity, as well as…
Find out more »Exploring Children’s Literature: Graphic Novels
In this twilight session we will be exploring the diversity of comics and graphic novels for children and young people. From adaptations of classics, to original stories; from the ligne claire style to Manga, from humour to horror and on to social realism, from series to standalones, there's a graphic novel out there for everyone. We will be challenging the myth that graphic novels are solely suited to struggling readers. While it is true that the form may be more…
Find out more »March 2019
Developing Comprehension 3: word awareness
Words form the bedrock of speaking, listening, reading and writing. This course pays attention to the ways in which we can develop word knowledge for reading and writing in the context of rich language experiences. Informed by up-to-date research and exemplification from across the primary years, this one day course presents a blended approach to word study. We start with the fundamentals of why vocabulary is important, distinguishing between broad and deep knowledge. We then look at the contexts in…
Find out more »Exploring Children’s Literature: science in fiction
From adventures with quantum physics to environmental thrillers, we will explore the way science features in fiction for children and teenagers. We will also take a detour into narrative nonfiction, sometimes called 'faction'. We will look briefly at the history of the Science Fiction or SF genre as well as reviewing a range of recent books Bring along your favourite science-based fiction to share with others. There will be plenty of resources to view on the day and some suggestions…
Find out more »June 2019
An Ear for Reading – developing fluent readers
This one day course presents the case for developing reading fluency and is based on up-to-date research. We start by outlining a set of core principles for developing fluent and expressive readers in the context of quality first teaching. Fluency is not magically achieved in the transition from KS to KS2; readers of all ages may at some point find their fluency challenged. This course considers the needs of pupils of different ages and levels of attainment. Areas of focus…
Find out more »