Speaking

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – teaching classics to a Harry Potter generation

By Jo Fliski The appeal of Harry Potter, I feel, is magic. Real, honest magic, the magic children are consumed, enraptured and engaged by. The same principle can be found in Lewis’ classic – it is after all, a story about magical lands, friendship and moral dilemma – the core… Read More

Most Multilingual Student Alex Rawling’s Chinese Challenge – Week 3

A close friend once said to me that when you start learning a language, it’s like staring at a painting from really close: you can’t see much of it, and you can’t make sense of the little piece that you can. However, every time that you learn more, it’s like… Read More

Primary Literacy – Fresh Ideas for Speaking and Listening

In the past I considered this to be all about drama but since the introduction of thinking skills and philosophy into the curriculum, I’ve realised that there are a lot more ways it can be practised and developed. Activity 1: The Voice of the School    Schools are all about… Read More

Primary Speaking and Listening – How well do you listen?

Over the years there’s been a lot of discussion over whether difficulties in following instructions are because of not listening carefully or because of not remembering. We did a little test on the children which turned into a regular practice session on listening skills. Give the children a sheet… Read More

GCSE English – How to Succeed at Studying Spoken Language

Like many of us, I was surprised and a little bit scared to see the inclusion of a Spoken Language element to the Controlled Assessments for the new specifications. Having taught AS and A2 English Language for many years, the terminology didn’t daunt me and I had a plentiful supply… Read More