"Allow children to find their way with words through passion and poetry." After an hour in the company of Joseph Coelho speaking on Reading for Pleasure at the Ilsham English Hub event last week, I was convinced that he was every inch the Waterstones Children's Laureate. In the second year of his tenure as the twelfth Laureate and successor to “How to Train the Dragon” writer Cressida Cowell; poet and library enthusiast Joseph’s call to action was delivered with focused fervour and fizz in how encouraging children to read, you also encourage them to write (and vice versa). Let them understand they are “part of this wonderful world of words and their words are wonderful.” Words count and understanding that many children struggle with words, poetry reading can be the perfect medium as “you cut straight to the marrow.” Poetry can come with a certain scary “baggage,” but thinking beyond any imaginable barriers, poetry plays with words and can be very appealing to children and boost their reading. Poetry is often dipped into for a wedding or a funeral and then forgotten. But “it translates into the soul” and puts into words the indescribable and can be relished in our minds. It makes words live. Think of the almost magical meaning of lyrics as the words performed to the lyre. Sharing his own poet pen portrait story was inspiring. Joseph did not grow up in a book-filled home. Yet it was a home of words in which poetry was prominent. There were Argus and Littlewoods catalogues and whilst books were sparse, Joseph notably remembers reading a Ladybird edition of “Little Red Riding Hood” with the iconic watercolour cover and Dr Seuss’s “The Cat in the Hat.” His Gran wonderfully furthered his literary leanings with a poster of 1950s Mabel Lucie Attwell‘s “Please remember - don't forget - never leave the bathroom wet!” in her toilet. Joseph read and read the catchy fun verse over again, learning and absorbing it as a boy and in later years, it was a happy revelation for him to discover that Gran wrote her own poems. As a child in his formative writing years, Joseph put his own poetry skills to the test when he wrote a poem for a competition. He had discovered that bears were not treated well, which upset him and he wrote a poem very cleverly called “Unbearable” (a young punster!). Whilst he did not win, Joseph enjoyed writing the poem and kept writing and reading. Along the way in his own journey as a poet, Joseph was to work as a gym instructor, in adverting and sales, as a transport planner and even dare we say it, a tequila boy. Joseph’s ideas do not come from starring at a computer screen, but from going out and thinking, confident in the act of composition by letting ideas evolve. The schooling of his poetic soul evolved in attending a poetry performance course at Battersea where he discovered an ownership in reading and writing poetry and felt in his bones that he was already a writer, believing poetry to be innate in us all, belonging to everyone in non-judgemental ways. Amongst many role models, Joseph was inspired by the work of Jamaican dub poet and storyteller Jean, "Binta" Breeze MBE; understanding personally the importance of diversity and representative characters in books and writers on the bookshelves. But poetry is more than putting pen to paper or writing composition; it is about ideas and ownership of children’s words and opportunity to read each other’s words. In leading activities with children, Joseph has used post-it notes for their wordy ideas whilst playing in the hall to describe what they are doing, for example, sliding down a dragon’s back. Poetry allows children to build-up empathy by using each other’s poetic phrases and taking the words back into the classroom and in doing so, gently introducing the idea that they can all read and write poetry; which can have a huge impact on the reading and writing process and encourages them to be more open to reading the works of others. Indeed, in his own work, Joseph has used poetry to work on a project supporting mental health. ![]() Poetry tends to be short, so you can read it and keep in your head for longer than prose and is less overwhelming. Let’s say it and celebrate it now: reading a poem is usually less of a challenge. You can memorise it. It becomes part of you. The pleasure of reading poetry. Poetry plays with language, for example the world of spoonerisms – switching around the front letters as in Joseph’s fun poem, “A Tip of the Slongue” and encourages pupils to be actively engaged in reading the poem. Introduce simple devices and engage them in hunting out the different devices. The wonderful thing about children is that they naturally use poetry and naturally come up with poetic devices. Encourage them to feel words are powerful and valid. Think what the children are writing on. Use giant pieces of sugar paper, jotting down words in felt-tip pens or in one activity Joseph even used disposable lab coats (taking Science to new heights!) that can be put on and taken off. In his own crafting, Joseph uses a beautiful notebook and before he had a space of his own, he used to write in cafes in Soho. Poetry makes literacy accessible to children. Give them their own poetry notebook to use in the classroom. Let them know that the pen belongs to them and their words are powerful and valid in building a foundation where they feel welcomed by books. Get children to write quickly and put their poems down from their heads. Poetry-penning can certainly be easier with younger children who have yet to learn to edit and are not worried about the opinions of others. As teachers, read aloud your poetry. Children are always enthralled by listening to the poetic world. Join them on their poetic journey. On visits to schools, Joseph has even been asked by the librarian if he has a book with him to take part in the stop: 15-minutes reading time for everyone. Children mimic, so it is good for them to see everyone reading. Make these reading routines a happy habit. Let the children feel that they have a final product of their work. Be it a performance to which parents are invited to attend, a wall display, a book, a piece of art. Encourage children to share their own poems. ![]() “Invite them into the world of the books.” Cue libraries. Joseph is a member of 177 libraries. It must a be a record and a tribute to his passionate support. Back to Joseph’s own childhood and his introduction to libraries. It was his Gran who launched him on his library career and the beautiful, wood-panelled West Hill Library where she had wanted her ashes to be scattered on the parquet floor. Although Joseph’s Gran outlived West Hill Library; recently sending him an article that the library was sadly closed and the building was up for sale. Joseph used to spend the day at the library. He was part of the reading schemes, bought incomplete encyclopaedias in book sales (“a space to own books”), did his homework there, he even met a girl, laughed with the two Pauls, and played the book bag games of triggering the alarm. Libraires are “a hub for the community.” Warm and dry, a resource of information and support. As well as a place to discover and read books and enjoy other experiences, libraries are spaces to play board games and Lego, for knit and natter, and support mental health services. Not surprisingly, Joseph has created lots of poems about libraries. For four years he performed a one-man stage of poetic storytelling, writing plays that toured libraries as spaces to experience live theatre and events and for him to test out new material. Joseph works with children who are not taken to the library, working to break down barriers to get them into a library and making visual the opening of doors to new worlds. “So that more children can discover books and see themselves in books and know that their own words are important and have power too.” With an eye on literacy, one of the teachers in the audience asked a question about balancing creative pupil writers with the a focus on spelling that can be an issue with some children avoiding big words that they cannot spell. Understanding this dilemma, Joseph encouraged teachers to develop “a passion and urgency” in the children’s writing, as once they wish to write, everything else is easier. Plus, as we all know, spelling mistakes are a part of life. Get them to the point where they want it to be their best work and to be inventive and imaginative and brave with their word choice. In his privileged poetic position as Children's Laureate, it is clear that Joseph will continue to celebrate books and inspire children to read and write their own poetry through his delightful personality and poetry. We thank him for his dazzling talk and to Ilsham English Hub for hosting such a wonderful event. Afterwards, I was tempted to pen a poem in celebration myself. Review by Jude, PA to the SWIFT Executive Team Ilsham English Hub are pleased to offer the following professional development opportunities for 2023 – 2024: Teacher as Readers Group | Open University/UKLA Ilsham English Hub 2023 - 2024 1600 – 1730 | Zoom Session 1 | Thursday 5 October 2023 Session 2 | Thursday 30 November 2023 Session 3 | Thursday 18 January 2024 Session 4 | Thursday 14 March 2024 Session 5 | Thursday 23 May 2024 Session 6 | Thursday 20 June 2024 This group provide free evidence–based CPD for teachers, Teaching Assistants, Early Years professionals, librarians, reading volunteers and others to enrich their understanding of Reading for Pleasure (RfP) and how to support it. It is the fourth year this group has been running and is led by Danni Cooke Ilsham English Hub Lead and the Ilsham Hub Team. The aims of the group are:
You will receive a certificate at the end of the course when you have shared your example of practice on the Open University Reading for Pleasure website. We ask that you aim to attend all the sessions, and within this work you are aiming to make a difference initially to a small group of children. Transforming your School Reading Culture (TSRC) | Ilsham National English Hub 2023 - 2024 Core Sessions | 1230 – 1500 | Zoom Optional Workshops | 1600 – 1630 | Zoom Sign up here The TSRC programme is underpinned by research; and throughout the programme there are articles/books for participants to read, as well as references to research built into the session plans. This research is split into two strands: reading for pleasure and leadership development/change management theory, and there will be gaps tasks in between the sessions. You will need to attend all the sessions and will receive a certificate once the course is completed. Core Sessions Core Session 1 | Reading for Pleasure: a whole school culture | Wednesday 11 October 2023 Core Session 2 | Creating whole school change | Wednesday 22 November 2023 Core Session 3 | Creating a reading school: structural changes | Wednesday 17 January 2024 Core Session 4 | Creating a reading school: behavioural changes | Wednesday 13 March 2024 Core Session 5 | Celebrating impact and sustaining change | Wednesday 19 June 2024 Optional Workshops
This group is for English Leaders and is looking at developing a whole school reading community and culture and is FREE to access and will be facilitated by Danni Cooke (Ilsham English Hub Lead) and Carly Watson (Hub Team). You will need to sign up to attend all five core sessions to be part of this support group and you are also welcome to attend the optional after school workshops (further details to follow next academic year), which should also be valuable. Contact
For any enquires, you can contact Ilsham English Hub Lead, Danni Cooke.
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"Our lives are built on and held together by words." Tuesday 20 June 2023 | 0930 to 1600 Broadclyst Community Primary School, School Lane, Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon EX5 3JG Reading roadblocks can be a daily problem for school communities. For many learners, significant roadblocks interrupt the journey to becoming an avid and fluent reader. The Cornerstone English Hub 2023 Conference will explore the various challenges and hurdles faced by pupils as they embark on their reading journeys and will unpick strategies and approaches to make lasting differences to children and teachers. Words help us to discover new information and imagine new worlds, they underpin human creativity and provide us with the foundations of rational thought. When we help children to learn new words and to love using them, we unlock the limitless possibilities offered through the wonderful world of reading. Join like-minded colleagues at the 2023 Cornerstone English Hub Conference and explore these reading roadblocks and learn how to support every child to overcome the hurdles hindering their reading adventures. Be inspired and reflect on the subject of reading. FREE to attend for all educators, the Reading Roadblocks event will be of most interest to primary English / Reading Leads or Senior Leaders.
Ilsham English Hub are pleased to host the following free CPD sessions in the Autumn Term. Gill Jones HMI English Talk Thursday 29 September 2022 | 1600 - 1700 | Online Gill Jones HMI, Deputy Director, Schools & Early Education will talk about learning to read and write, drawing on research from Ofsted English Research Review and the implications for teachers of primary age children. The session will cover communication and language, phonics, handwriting, transcription and comprehension and Gill will be joined by Kirsty Godfrey HMI, Specialist Adviser. N.B. This session will not be recorded. Teachers as Readers Group | Open University/UKLA Ilsham English Hub Session 1 | Wednesday 12 October 2022 Session 2 | Wednesday 23 November 2022 Session 3 | Wednesday 18 January 2023 Session 4 | Wednesday 15 March 2023 Session 5 | Wednesday 24 May 2023 Session 6 | Wednesday 21 June 2023 From 1600 - 1730 Open to all! These six informal, friendly and supportive sessions will help to develop evidence informed practice, widening knowledge of children's literature and other texts, enriching Reading for Pleasure pedagogy and documenting the impact of children as readers. There is an expectation that attendees will try to attend all the sessions. Transforming your School Reading Culture Core Session 1 | Wednesday 12 October 2022 | Reading for Pleasure: a Whole School Culture Core Session 2 | Wednesday 23 November 2022 | Creating Whole School Change Core Session 3 | Wednesday 18 January 2023 | Creating a Reading School: Structural Changes Core Session 4 | Wednesday 15 March 2023 | Creating a Reading School: Behavioural Changes Core Session 5 | Wednesday 21 June 2023 | Celebrating Impact and Sustaining Change From 1230 - 1500 Transforming your School Reading Culture is a sustained, research based CPD programme aimed at Primary English Leaders. The group looks to develop a whole school reading community and culture and will be facilitated by Danni Cooke and Carly Watson. Participants can benefit from five core sessions plus ten optional workshops. It is however, necessary to sign-up to attend all five core sessions to be part of the group. In between the five sessions, participants complete gap tasks related to developing participants’ own knowledge of children’s literature, understanding of reading for pleasure pedagogy and developing the reading for pleasure culture in their school. Those who commit to the programme will be expected to attend all sessions. N.B. This is currently not open to Wave 4 Partner Schools - if this is you, then please, send email Danni Cooke. The optional online workshops will run from 1600 to 1630 on the following topics:
Further details to follow on dates and times. Contingent Talk Session 1 | Thursday 10 November 2022 Toolkit Focus: Why do books matter so much? What is child-led book talk? Gap Task: Book talk and complete the pre-project survey. Session 2 | Thursday 19 January 2023 Toolkit Focus: Quick reflection on first session. Gap Task: Set up a timetable for sessions and start note-taking. Session 3 | Thursday 23 February 2023 Toolkit Focus: Quick reflection on the last session and troubleshooting. Gap Task: Film yourself with one of your target children and choose a snippet to share. Session 4 | Thursday 4 May 2023 Toolkit Focus: Reflection. Gap Task: Complete survey From 1400 - 1500 The structure of this work will be four sessions led by Danni Cooke, Ilsham and Rowena Lucas, Ilsham and Ramsbury English Hub Leads and the focus will be on Early Years Foundation Stage (nursery/pre-school included, but can be bridged into Year 1). In-between each session, participants will be invited to try out the strategies that they explore to ensure that they reflect on the previous workshop. This work is open to a maximum of 20 schools. N.B. This is currently not open to Wave 4 Partner Schools - if this is you, then please, send email Danni Cooke. Schools will need to sign up for all four sessions and as a commitment to the sessions will be sent two books for use in the work. Ilsham English Hub Showcase Thursday 6 October 2022 | 0900 - 1200
We recommend Heads of School, SLT, Reading/Phonics Leaders attend this session. This showcase has been updated in accordance with current up-to-date documentation and priorities. Some schools might be eligible for a total of £160 funding each to support supply cover to attend. Schools will be assessed for eligibility when spaces are booked. If supply cover has been given in previous years, then it cannot be claimed again. Oral Blending and Segmenting and Soft Sounds Thursday 6 October 2022 | 1600 - 1700 | Ilsham English Hub This workshop will look at the importance of the foundations of understanding the skills of oral blending and segmenting and soft sounds and will be useful for any colleague who wishes to develop their understanding of the foundations to build effective phonics learning. Nurseries and Pre schools are welcome to attend. The Role of the Reading Leader (Autumn 1) 14 October 2022 | 1130 - 1300 | Online This webinar will look at the key priorities for this point in the term as the reading leader and will be run every half term with a different focus to enable leaders to develop in the reading leader role. Contact Ilsham English Hub will also be booking audits for the Autumn Term where they can look at personalised support and access to funding. Please contact Danni Cooke if you would like to find out more. Listening to celebrated poet, children's author, presenter and former Children's Laureate, Michael Rosen makes me wish I were a primary school teacher, a Secondary Teacher of English – or even better perhaps…a child hiding in a corner with a book, or looking forward to my bedtime story with a loved one. This Reading for Pleasure session introduced by Ilsham DfE National English Hub Lead, Danni Cooke, and Early Years and Phonics Specialist Leader of Education with the Learning Academy Partnership was always going to be a treat like reading a gripping good book. Michael’s credentials to talk on this lovely literacy topic are aplenty. A parent himself, actively working in schools leading workshops and as a writer in residence, television presenter, with a PHD in reading and writing and currently Professor of Children’s Literature at Goldsmiths, University of London in which a module studies and researches the best ways to approach children’s books in classrooms with a book of teachers’ projects due to be published in the autumn. Children benefit from “reading widely and often” beyond the classroom that can be seen in test results and attainment/achievement and ultimately, the years that children stay in education. Fact! We know it and believe it. But empirically, it is based on the esteemed longitudinal study, “Family Scholarly Culture and Educational Success: Books and Schooling in 27 nations,” by M.D.R. Evans, Jonathan Kelley, Joanna Sikorac and Donald J. Treimand from representative national samples across 27 nations, and with over 70,000 cases. “Children growing up in homes with books get three years more schooling than children from bookless homes, independent of their parents’ education, occupation, and class. This is as great an advantage as having university educated rather than unschooled parents, and twice the advantage of having a professional rather than an unskilled father.” In a lively storytime session, Michael read from Maurice Sendak’s 1960s children’s book, “Where the Wild Things Are” (cue lots of scary atmospheric pictures) as he skilfully guided the audience to see the story from a child’s eyes (and ears!), interpreting the words, pictures and concepts. And a new concept for me, this was part of Early Years and Year 1 pupils learning about the “interiority.” Engaging, thought-provoking and certainly reinforced the audience’s love of reading and the wish to share this love with children. In this value-added talk, so, to the takeaway tips and Michael Rosen’s Top Strategies to create a reading culture in schools – all of which are doable and dynamic, so without further ado... 1. Home School Liaison Mindful that some parents might not be literate, might have language difficulties, might have their own preconceptions of schools and teachers, there’s value in developing a home school culture. Set up a Home School Reading Committee to act as “Book Champions.” Organise bring and buy sales to encourage parents and pupils that sharing books is normal - and reach out to parents! 2. Hold Book and Reading Events Get everyone excited! Book sales. Book swaps. Second-hand bookshops. Enact book dramatisations and invite parents to watch and play out a story. 3. Appoint a School Librarian But what about sharing a School Librarian across a number of schools in a Trust or locally? 4. Share Information on Local Libraries Yes, we know the story about our national library service… Keep parents informed. Some might think they have to pay to use the library. Tell them they can borrow the books! 5. Set Up School Book Groups Let the School Book Group influence others with their reading ideas and discussions. 6. Adopt an Author or Illustrator Why not?! A win-win for the school and the author! 7. Making Books Dignify the making of books. Make the children the authors and celebrate the joy of books and reading. 8. Regular Activities Nourish activities with books. Think fiction poetry, music, guides to sites. 9. Show your Emotion about Special Books As teachers and staff, share books that mean so much to you. Bring in cherished books, talk about them and say why they are cherished. 10. Book Reviews To get started online, see: https://booksforkeeps.co.uk/ http://www.lovemybooks.co.uk/ https://www.lovereading.co.uk/ https://www.booksfortopics.com/ Print and pin-up in the classroom book reviews from newspapers and magazines AND of course, get children to write their own 11. Train Colleagues and Children on Children’s Literature Set up reading for pleasure groups and study children’s literature. 20 minutes after school. Booklovers always like an insight into a favourite author’s favourite books. You heard it here that Michael’s favourite books are “Emil and the Detectives” by Erich Kastner (for older children) and “Clown” by Quentin Blake (for younger), and in the realm of poetry, Wilfred Owen’s “Dulce and Decorum est” and “Down Behind the Dustbin” by Mr Michael Rosen no less. We thank Michael for his uplifting talk that makes reading for pleasure palpably so and to Ilsham English Hub for hosting this event. Watch out for the Goldsmiths, University of London “Children’s Literature in Action” free e-book due to be published in September. Report by Jude Owens, PA to the Executive SWIFT Team For more information and inspiration from Michael see his YouTube channel: More RFP CPD from Ilsham English Hub Ilsham English Hub are providing the following FREE TO ACCESS Reading for Pleasure offer of support for the next academic year: Teachers as Readers Group A Open University/UKLA evidence informed practice CPD. Open to all! There will be six informal, friendly and supportive sessions to help develop evidence informed practice, widening our knowledge of children's literature and other texts, enriching or Reading for Pleasure pedagogy and documenting the impact of children as readers. Session 1 | Wednesday 12 October 2022 Session 2 | Wednesday 23 November 2022 Session 3 | Wednesday 18 January 2023 Session 4 | Wednesday 15 March 2023 Session 5 | Wednesday 24 May 2023 Session 6 | Wednesday 21 June 2023 From 1600 to 1730 | Zoom There is an expectation that attendees try to attend all the sessions. Transforming your School Reading Culture (TSRC) Programme The TSRC programme is a sustained, research based CPD programme aimed at Primary English Leads. During the course of the programme participants will engage deeply with reading for pleasure pedagogy and leadership theory to transform their school’s reading culture. Participants will attend five sessions and complete gap tasks in between sessions: Core Session 1 | Wednesday 12 October 2022 | Reading for Pleasure: a whole school culture Core Session 2 | Wednesday 23 November 2022 | Creating whole school change Core Session 3 | Wednesday 18 January 2023 | Creating a reading school: structural changes Core Session 4 | Wednesday 15 March 2023 | Creating a reading school: behavioural changes Core Session 5 | Wednesday 21 June 2023 | Celebrating impact and sustaining change From 1230 to 1500 | Zoom There is an expectation that attendees try to attend all the sessions. The gap tasks will be related to developing participants’ own knowledge of children’s literature, understanding of reading for pleasure pedagogy and developing the reading for pleasure culture in their school. Audits
Work is underway for Autumn Term audits where Ilsham English Hub might be able to help your school with further personalised support and access to funding. For more information contact Ilsham DfE National English Hub Lead, Danni Cooke. 26/5/2022 0 Comments Winning Them Over: Overcoming Struggles in Parent Engagement | Cornerstone English HubMatthew Pitts, Deputy Head of School & English Hub Lead, Cornerstone Academy Trust led this fifth network event, “Winning Them Over: Overcoming Struggles in Parent Engagement” to provide guidance for teachers in the context of reading and literacy. Put simply, there’s no perfect solution to winning over parents. Any parent body is made up of human beings who inevitably do not fit into boxes. It’s a case of doing the best you can. Sometimes in education we think we can’t “crack it” and want to impact the whole class or cohort and so we deprioritise. But by impacting some key parental engagement, teachers can reduce the number of “on watch” children who are more vulnerable to drops in progress and gaps in their knowledge. Research shows that parental involvement can still have an impact. The benefits are clear for those children whose parents are engaged in their schooling and spend time with their child at home going through their classwork and reading with them. “Parental involvement in the form of ‘at-home good parenting’ has a significant positive effect on children’s achievement and adjustment even after all other factors shaping attainment have been taken out of the equation. In the primary age range the impact caused by different levels of parental involvement is much bigger than differences associated with variations in the quality of schools. The scale of the impact is evident across all social classes and all ethnic groups.” Source: The Impact of Parental Involvement, Parental Support and Family Education on Pupil Achievement and Adjustment: A Literature Review | C. Desforges and A. Abouchaar (2003) The stablishing factor is for a child to allow for transitions between teachers and also when teaching and learning in the classroom is not as good as it could be due to staff absence and struggling teachers. Ultimately children need to be educationally resilient. But it is important to be realistic as teachers are never going to engage all parents. ![]() Educational Endowment Foundation (EEF) research undertakes what it terms “meta-analysis” of all the current analysis that it distils into simple takeaway points. Their research into parental engagement was based on 97 different international studies in ten different countries. Strong evidence showed that those schools working on parental engagement demonstrated a four-month educational improvement across a child’s career. One advantage is that the implementation cost of many parental engagement strategies is very low. Low budget high reward. It’s a question of using what you have in place, i.e. school infrastructures. Research shows that impact can vary at different stages with the highest impact in Early Years settings and this impact gradually lessens as the child gets older. This is to be expected given children become more secure in themselves as learners. However, whilst children might make rapid progress, they are still dependent on adults in every aspect of their lives. The most strongly seen impact in reading is home reading, which does not require huge technical knowledge. There are nevertheless the inevitable “tussles and tensions” in parental engagement. “Teachers often lack confidence and knowledge to work with parents, and schools do not always recognise or value the ways in which parents are already engaged with children’s learning. Furthermore, schools generally do not collect sufficient data on their own interventions, particularly relating to the impact on academic outcomes. For their parents face numerous logistical barriers to further engagement, including costs, times and transport.” Source: Review of the Best Practice in Parental Engagement | Goodall and Varhous 2010 ![]() When considering interventions, the key advice is for teachers to consider: How do you know that’s helpful to parents? So, what are the barriers for parental engagement? Research shows there are three types of barriers: 1. Physical and practical – time of meetings 2. Social and demographics - not attending parental training, parents living in poverty. 3.Stigma – the school and education might not be valued. To consider how to avoid this failure for parents What about those schools who have had a successful impact? Research shows there are five areas for success: 1. Take a whole school approach. 2. Training for staff. 3. Identify parents’ needs. 4. Outward-facing ethos. 5. Digital technologies. Source: Review of Best Practice in Parental Engagement | Goodall and Vorhaus 2010 What methods can schools focus on? Research demonstrates four processes: 1. Spaces 2. Online platforms 3. Communication methods 4. Relationships But above all, it is essential that schools know their parental body: 1. What makes them tick? 2. What are their struggles? 3. Where do they hang out? (social media!) Cornerstone found they had greater take-up for online meetings and duly uploaded recorded meetings to Vimeo for parents to watch when they wish. Too often, Headteachers do not speak the same language as parents. Show parents what’s going on in the classroom - don’t tell. Schools can make the classroom more transparent by inviting parents to: 1. Watch a lesson 2. Join in virtually 3. Learn to coach Take a moment to think and “critically review how you work with parents.” And how can schools guide parents to engage with their children at home? Certainly, to foster a love of reading and to guide how to read more efficiently. Schools could demonstrate by reading a few paragraphs of a book and then discussing the pages. Film it! Invite parents into school and show them with a live child and teacher/Teaching Assistant reading together. Do the best you can with what you have. Thank you to Matt and Cornerstone Academy Trust for this thoughtful and pragmatic winning approach to Overcoming Struggles in Parent Engagement. Report by Jude Owens, PA to the SWIFT Executive Team |
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