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Unlocking the Joy of Writing: Insights from Sharon Callen's Podcast
In a captivating podcast episode New Writing Units Uncovered, Part 2 with Sharon Callen, educators are invited into an enriching dialogue on nurturing students' writing skills with joy and purpose. Delving into the second part of their discussion on new writing units, Sharon shares invaluable insights and strategies for crafting...
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How to Teach Early Writers
HOW TO TEACH EARLY WRITERS Follow these top tips from conversations with an early years teacher and experienced literacy consultant. Focus on Interests: Engage students by tapping into their interests and passions, encouraging them to write about topics they care about. Create Opportunities for Sharing: Foster a culture of sharing...
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New 'Imaginative Texts' Writing Units
Try our new Writing Units, Yr F-6, (PDFs) for teachers. EMPLOY THE 'READING LIKE A WRITER' PROCESS ...where students see how authors craft their stories. Then students have a few short attempts at honing the technique before going on to their extended writing. MODEL 'GOOD WRITER' MINI LESSONS For example...
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Getting Started with the Writing Workshop - Mini Lessons for Year 3 to 6
Introducing "Getting Started with the Writing Workshop - Mini Lessons for Year 3 to 6" YOUR GO-TO GUIDE FOR AN AMAZING WRITING JOURNEY What's Inside: Perfect tips for kicking off your Writing Workshop in the crucial first weeks. Create a buzzing Writer's Notebook: a personal space for ideas and drafts....
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Podcast Ep 102: Part 2: Teaching Early Writers: from Program to Professional Plan
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 102, Part 2: In this second part of the podcast, Sharon and team delve into various strategies for nurturing writing skills in Foundation year students. One key concept introduced is the use of "sentence stems." These stems provide young children with simple sentence starters, helping them initiate...
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Podcast Ep 101: Part 1: Teaching Early Writers: from Program to Professional Plan
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 101, Part 1: In this podcast, expert literacy consultant, Sharon Callen and team welcome special guest Grace Cullen, a Foundation/ Reception teacher at Littlehampton Primary School. They discuss the challenges and strategies for teaching early writing to young students. Grace shares her experience transitioning from a structured...
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Podcast Ep 100, Part 2: Engaging Readers AND Writers through Book Club
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 100: In part 2 of our podcast, Dr. Jan Turbill continues the discussion on engaging approaches to the teaching of writing through book clubs. She emphasises the importance of teaching writing by allowing students to read like writers and connect with authors. Dr. Turbill recalls her own...
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Podcast Ep 99, Part 1: Engaging Readers AND Writers through Book Club
LATEST PODCAST Ep 99: In this episode, we welcome special guest Dr. Jan Turbill. Jan is an accomplished educator, who talks about her post-retirement involvement with a NSW school, where she worked for 10 years to improve literacy skills in students, particularly in Years 4,5 and 6. She describes how...
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Podcast Ep 94, Part 2: Good Writers Revise and Edit Their Writing
In this podcast, Ep 94, Part 2: Good Writers Revise and Edit Their Writing', join Sharon Callen and her dynamic team whilst they continue on a riveting exploration, this time discussing the 'Magnificent Seven' revising strategies, spanning rereading, editing, and reorganisation. Discover the power of Prompt Posters and Anchor Charts...
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Podcast Ep 93, Part 1: Good Writers Revise and Edit Their Writing
LATEST PODCAST Ep 93, In this podcast, join Sharon Callen and her dynamic team in 'Part 1: Good Writers Revise and Edit Their Writing' for a captivating exploration of effective writing instruction. Delve into the art of topic selection, cognitive load relief for teachers, and the potency of routines. Experience...
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Revising and Editing Our Writing - Anchor Charts,
NEW RESOURCE: This explicit teaching resource, Revising and Editing Our Writing - Anchor Charts, will support you and your students to revise, improve theor writing. See the 'How to Use' section below. How To Make Print as A3 Add A3 card for back cover Staple left side to create your...
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The Four W's of Being a Writer
LATEST BLOG: Literacy expert Sharon Callen delves into the four foundational elements of being a writer, to underpin a teacher's literacy strategy. On Episode 81 of The Teacher's Toolkit for Literacy, Sharon explained the four Ws of being a writer, which teachers need to consider and plan for before anything...
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Teaching Writing Effectively with Alan Wright
NEW RESOURCE: Enjoy this wonderful new podcast transcript on teaching writing effectively with expert educator Alan Wright! (Sign up as a member for a free copy). As a renowned education consultant and author, Alan shares powerful tips to make writing sessions meaningful for students. With his extensive experience in the...
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What is the Language Experience Approach?
LATEST BLOG: Student engagement can be increased by bringing a child's own language and experiences into their reading and writing. On Episode 80 of The Teacher's Toolkit for Literacy, host Sharon Callen was joined by leading Australian educator Diane Snowball to explore the Language Experience Approach. Sharon and Diane believe...
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The Hidden Power of Reading Journals, Ep 89
LATEST PODCAST: In the latest podcast episode, Sharon Callen and her team explore the hidden power of Reading Journals and their significance in education. They address the challenges faced by teachers and how Reading Journals can help overcome them. Sharon defines what a Reading Journal is and explains its implementation,...
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How to Improve Your Teaching Practices with Mentor Texts
LATEST BLOG: Teaching practices can be developed through using the right Mentor Texts and undergoing frequent observation and reflection in the classroom. On Episode 78 of The Teacher's Toolkit for Literacy, literacy expert Sharon Callen was joined by Mount Barker South Primary School's Robert Kennedy, Kate Tucker and Ra Te...
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Writing in the Early Years - Teacher Q & A with Diane Snowball, Ep 85
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 85: Expert literacy educator Diane Snowball recently answered teacher’s questions about better ways of teaching writing in the early years with Year 1 teachers at Mildura West Primary School. The session helps clarify understandings for all of us, in particular: How the Language Experience approach works in...
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How Teachers Can Bring Quality Literature Into the Classroom
LATEST BLOG: Quality literature can be a powerful tool in literacy teaching across all year levels, according to literacy facilitator Kate Tucker. Actively using literature is critical in the teaching of reading and writing. Although, its use needs to be planned for to ensure it’s effective. Kate joined literacy expert...
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Top Tips for Teaching with Literature , Latest Podcast Ep 83
LATEST PODCAST Ep 83: Literacy expert Sharon Callen chats with Kate Tucker, literacy facilitator and teacher at Mt Barker South Primary School, about the top tips for using literature as a powerful force in literacy classroom teaching, and across a school. Specifically the duo discuss: How a school intentionally and...
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How to Use High Quality Books to Support Student Writing
LATEST BLOG: Author Mike Dumbleton says different books can be used by teachers to support student reading and writing. Providing students the chance to engage with quality books is key to building their own writing skills, whether it’s for developing stories, adapting and experimenting with texts or identifying techniques like...
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Latest Release Books: Podcast with Mike Dumbleton, Ep 82
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 82: As teachers we are continually searching for great books to use in our teaching with students, to support them in their reading and writing: We need help in finding books to use as Mentor texts, to help explicitly model how others write We want to engage...
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How to Implement the 4 W's of Being a Writer
LATEST BLOG: The writing curriculum, process, traits and workshops will help teachers set up and plan lessons to build successful young writers. For literacy expert Sharon Callen, being a writer means that ‘you are choosing and using writing for an audience for a particular purpose and to communicate meaning’. But...
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The Four W's of Being a Writer - Latest podcast, Ep 81
LATEST PODCAST, Ep 81: As teachers we try different ways to get our children engaged in and becoming increasingly successful as writers. In this newest podcast episode, literacy expert Sharon Callen talks about: The 4 foundational things we can set up and plan before anything else The ways we can...
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How Using Mentor Texts for Quick Writes Keeps Students Motivated
LATEST BLOG: Teachers can keep students engaged by presenting literacy devices through Mentor Texts, and then using the Quick Writes tool to practise and experiment. In Episode 72 of The Teacher’s Toolkit for Literacy, literacy expert Sharon Callen talked about the power of bringing Mentor Texts and Quick Writes together...
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How to Teach the Key Traits of Writing to Students
LATEST BLOG: Teachers need to activate the core aspects of writing with students so they can better understand the behaviours of effective writers. In Episode 71 of The Teacher’s Toolkit for Literacy, literacy expert Sharon Callen delves into ‘The Six Plus Traits of Writing’ – ideas, organisation, voice, word choice,...
