“I read it but I don’t get it!” Helping your son with comprehension
Helping boys with comprehension is paramount.
“James often plows right through reading, decoding words but not comprehending.”
“I can tell that Samuel doesn’t get the meaning as he works through a text.”
“Alex just gives up.”
Sound familiar?
As a teacher and tutor with 20+ years’ experience, I think that comprehension is prob...
20 Great Books for 13-15 Year Old Girls
Finding books for teens is really hard! This is an age where kids often drift away from reading as books compete with social media. This article will focus on girls. So, teachers, parents, grandparents, aunties, librarians, friends: don't give up on trying to put engaging books into their hands.
My own teen daughter is a reluctant reader and I know the hard work it takes to find ...
25 Great Books for Boys
I often reference the decline of boys reading books, so I wanted to give teachers and parents some book ideas. With school holidays approaching, these can be a great list that you can take to your bookstore or library. (To save time, download your library's app and reserve books)
Finding the right book is the key to transforming a kid who says they don’t like to read into a self-d...
Easy, fun ways to support students with writing and reading
This article is going to explore some things to keep in mind when thinking about and reflecting on your literacy blocks and how you have been teaching, reading and writing in your classroom. How can you make reading and writing come to life in your classroom? Here are some ideas – is there something that you’d like to try?
1. Read to Please
You will...
How can parents help with learning and revision?
Today I received a message from a concerned mum about her son's literacy. Both parents are committed to helping their son, but they also work full-time. Leading into the holidays, she wants some advice on how to ensure he doesn't slip further behind. Parents often ask: "I'm not sure how to help my child with schoolwork." or "I see my child study for tests and not do we...
UNREAL! Reading Strategies Poster to Help Students
I know how important it is to engage students with reading. We need to give them structure to tackle a passage. This is one of my favourite acronyms that I use with my students.
Building Student Confidence around Test taking Preparation
Let's be honest, tests can be a source of stress and anxiety for students of all ages. But with the right strategies and mindset, anyone can become a successful test taker. Whether you're an educator looking for new ways to support your students or a parent who's trying to help your child succeed, this article will be beneficial for you. (My aim is to boost test prep confidence for every...
7 Tips to Prepare your Students for Test-Taking Success
As test prep season starts to creep up for the end of the semester, there can be an undercurrent of anxiety, overwhelm, and stress - both from teachers and students. But with preparation and tools in their toolbox, our learners can become more confident, calm, and ready for upcoming assessment tasks. In order to get your students prepared, I’m sharing 7 test-taking tips to use in your classr...
Super Skills of Reading: how to help your child become a better reader
This reading thing...... I know from teaching experience that the path to literacy isn't always straightforward or pain-free. In 20+ years of teaching and tutoring, I've seen children chip away at the reading process ~ and when a child cracks the code it's a wonderful thing. And if you have a struggling reader, they need our help before they come disengaged. Let's look at some Super Skil...
Inspiring kids to read – 6 ways to create a more literate environment
Reading instruction is much more than explaining. The ultimate goal is to inspire students to be readers.
As educators we need to create an inspiring literate environment - that is, an environment that immerses students in genuinely literate activity. But what does a "literate environment" look like? Do we emphasise recreational reading? Or understanding humanity thro...