The Literacy Lounge

In this episode, we tackle a topic that so many schools find challenging: spelling. Thank you for joining us for another episode of The Literacy Lounge. If you are enjoying the pod, don’t forget to subscribe and leave a five‑star review to help us reach even more teachers. We want these episodes to be short, practical snippets you can listen to whenever it suits you and return to whenever you need...

In this episode, we continue our exploration of sentence development by moving beyond the early building blocks and into the next stage of pupils’ writing journeys. Following on from our previous conversation with Lynne about early writing skills and securing a strong understanding of what a sentence is, we now look at what happens next. How do pupils move from writing a series of connected senten...

In this episode, we explore how pupils develop early writing skills and what teachers can do to build strong foundations from the very start. With the writing framework and the curriculum and assessment review in mind, we begin in the early years, looking closely at the essential pre‑writing skills children need before they ever pick up a pencil with purpose. From there, we move into Year 1 and Ye...

In this episode, we continue our two part series on making secure end of year judgements. After focusing on EYFS in Part 1, we now turn our attention to Year 6 and what teachers should be looking for as pupils reach the end of their primary journey. It is now the summer term and thoughts are shifting towards final judgements and whether pupils are working at the expected standard. For Year 6 teach...

In this episode, we begin a two part series exploring how teachers can make secure end of year judgements. We start in EYFS, where the process looks and feels very different from the rest of the school. It is now the summer term and soon teachers will be asked to make final decisions about whether pupils have met the expected standard. EYFS brings its own unique challenges, from the nature of evid...

In this episode, we take a deep dive into the Phonics Screening Check and what teachers can be doing right now to prepare pupils for success. Whether you are listening on your commute or winding down with a hot drink after school, we hope you find this conversation both useful and reassuring. The PSC has been part of school life since 2012 and many of us remember that first year vividly. For those...

In this episode, we’re joined by Jon Smedley, founder of Teach Active, to explore the power of active learning and how movement can transform engagement across the curriculum. From his early days in the classroom to creating Teach Active, Jon shares the journey that shaped his mission to get pupils up, moving and learning with purpose. We dig into the principles behind Teach Active, the impact of...

This episode takes a small step away from our usual format as we turn the spotlight onto one of our directors, Cath Richardson. If you are new to the podcast, Cath and Linda founded the company in 2013 and have led it through more than a decade of growth, challenge and change. From navigating the post‑Covid landscape to winning the ERA Award for Company of the Year, their journey has shaped everyt...

In this episode, we are going to focus on the hot topic of reading for pleasure. There’s been a lot in the press recently which we will pick up on and we are in the middle of the National Year of Reading which is encouraging us to ‘Go All In’. As pledge partners to this initiative we though we would share some of our thoughts and tips. Things we chat about in this episode: The recent articles abou...

On this episode, I have a new guest in the form of Jo who is going to be sharing with us her passion for spoken language and performance. Things we chat about in this episode: Thoughts on the curriculum review and aspects linked to spoken language Why do you believe it is so important for pupils? What we think has been the impact of spoken language being squeezed out in the current curriculum The...

On this episode, I’m joined by Lynne who you may have seen already on our popular writing framework sessions. Today we are going to be tackling that tricky subject of handwriting. It comes up again and again and has become very high profile with the writing framework recommendations. Things we chat about in this episode: Pre-handwriting tips and how to build fine/gross motor skills Resources we fi...

In this episode, we are happy to welcome back Allison! We are armed with our big cups of tea ready to talk about spring term and all that has to offer in terms of development and progress. Allison is here with her moderation hat on in particular to give some tips about what to focus on and expect. Things we chat about in this episode: Our favourite thing about Spring Term in KS2 Differences in pup...

In this episode, we are joined by another member of the teamand a fellow EY/KS1 champion – Louise. Things we chat about in this episode: What’s our favourite thing about Spring Term The differences in pupil development What should teachers be focusing on at this time of year?       When is the right time to worry? So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy the Literacy Lounge! Any questions or podcast...

In this episode, Jen has joined us to talk about her route into teaching and what our ideal National Curriculum for English would look like. Things we chat about in this episode: General thoughts on the curriculum review.   If we think anything was missing from the review. If we could start again – what would it look like? In an ideal world, what is Primary education? Where we think it will go nex...

Welcome to the second episode of The Literacy Lounge which is a bit of a follow on from our first episode . This is part 2 of our origin story where we will talk a bit more about how we became consultants, the roles we do now and what it’s like working to support schools. Lots of people ask us how we got into this job so it’s nice to share it. It will also hopefully showcase what we do and also wh...

Welcome to the first ever episode of our new podcast – The Literacy Lounge! This podcast is designed to make practical English advice easy to access whenever it suits you. Pop it on during your commute or keep it playing in the background while you’re marking. Each episode dives into the common patterns we notice when visiting schools as consultants, offering termly guidance and clear, down‑to‑ear...