Sunday Vlog - Explicitly Teaching and Understanding the Component Skills

 This vlog talks about the importance of understanding what lies beneath the learning outcome that we see.  It has been one of the biggest learnings for me and I hope this thinking is useful for you too.

Welcome to the world of the upside down...

We are currently experiencing massive changes in education here in Aotearoa. As someone who has embraced evidence-based practice, I should be fairly content with the intent of these changes. However, I am not. Why? Simply put, our current government is trying to impose 'accelerated' changes on a system where most of us are just struggling to keep our heads above water.

While there is no denying that we desperately need to address certain aspects of literacy and math teaching, achieving this is nearly impossible right now without first implementing some long-overdue changes.

Teachers are overwhelmed; they are dealing with behaviours not seen even five years ago, facing massive levels of need with little to no support. The stories I hear about the number of schools needing to teach children basic skills like using the toilet are overwhelming. Many children come to school with a developmental age of two or three, unable to speak in full sentences. Many teachers and leaders are experiencing parent behaviours that can only be described as bullying, and they are full of anxiety as they enter each teaching day in a system that essentially expects them to tolerate it.

Teachers are desperately trying not to apply deficit thinking. They work with the children who come to school each day, try to form solid relationships, and manage the rest of the class when a child in a dysregulated state, who does not qualify for a Teacher Aide (TA), is having an emotional meltdown, intent on tearing up the classroom, or worse. Moreover, some children come to school hungry, tired, or in no emotional state to engage with learning.

Schools are financially strained, simply trying to provide enough support for the children who desperately need it so that classes can maintain some semblance of calm. Leaders, like myself, can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but right now, it is not sunshine and rainbows peeking through—it's a train hurtling at lightning speed toward us.

Do we need changes in literacy and math? Undeniably, yes. I have spent the last seven years learning all about it, but there are shifts we must make first to ensure that teachers are in a position to embrace these changes.

We don't expect our children to engage with learning when they are stressed or overwhelmed. We change the environment and expectations until they are ready and able to do more. Why are teachers not afforded the same level of empathy right now? Instead of expecting teachers and leaders to embrace changes that require more cognitive energy than they have, significant shifts need to be made now.

Firstly, children do well if they can, so all schools need time to learn about trauma-aware, developmentally informed, and neurodiverse-affirming practices.

Additionally, all schools need to have a TA funded for each class, no questions asked. If we want teachers to meet specific needs through evidence-based practice, they need support in the classroom.

Learning support funding also needs to be addressed. Many schools have given up applying because there are too many hoops to jump through, and children who desperately need support are missing out because they are not "bad enough." This is a crucial step, in my opinion, if we want schools to be in a position to embrace change, because right now, the system is a joke.

Schools also need funding for at least one to two teachers above their Full-Time Teacher Equivalent (FTTE) entitlement. This would allow more teachers to be free to support in classrooms and deliver effective Tier 3 support. Having these extra staff to cover when teachers are sick would also reduce significant stress and mean classes wouldn't have to be shared out or asked to stay home due to a lack of relievers.

All schools need a skilled Learning Support Coordinator.

Right now, everything seems upside down. Teachers are incredibly hard workers with huge hearts who want the best for their children. I know they will do their best to embrace change, but sadly, right now, much of that change will be surface-level unless we get the circumstances right.

We seem to have a government intent on pushing change through at the speed of light without any understanding of what a real classroom looks and feels like each day.

We know we need change, but the conditions must be right for that change to have any real impact on our children.

A little bit about leadership

This vlog focuses a little on leadership and a little on PLD,

 

Sunday Vlog - My Shared Texts

 This vlog post is about my class shared texts that I started writing when I launched into whole class literacy teaching.  Next to my scope and sequence, they are the most rewarding aspect of my practice right now!

Sunday Vlog - Building Oral Language

 This vlog is all about language.  Language development, in my opinion, is the most important thing we need to be talking about right now.  Get it right and so many things fall into place.

Sunday Vlog - How we weave 'structured learning' into our play

 This is a short conversation about how we weave the more 'structured learning' times into our day.

Vlog Post #3 - Delivery of the Scope and Sequence

 This vlog post is in response to the numerous questions I get about 'how fast' we can go through the scope and sequence and where classes need to be 'up to.'

It also looks at the vital role of patterning and why this is placed at the beginning of the scope and sequence, however, often ignored in an attempt to 'accelerate learning.'

If you have had anything to do with me, you will know that I firmly believe for progress to be 'faster' we first need to slow down.

This vlog post is 20 minutes and talks about these things, I hope it is useful.

Building Acquisition Towards Basic Facts Fluency

 This vlog today, is a bit of a prequel to yesterdays.  Today I look at the instructional hierarchy again, but back track to talk about acquisition before working on the strategies mentioned yesterday.

This relates to the scope and sequence, but can be applied to any resource you are using.  

This video talks exclusively about basic facts and obviously there are many skills children need to acquire in mathematics that would also work through this hierarchy in a similar way.

I hope this is useful.

Let's build a strong sense of number through subitising first, from here, children will fly!

Basic Facts - Effective ways to build fluency

 I thought today I would upload a bit of a 'vlog.'  There is simply too much information in my head to write it down.  This 'vlog' is around 30 minutes and details my learning so far around strategies to build fluency (accurate and with ease) with basic facts.

I know it is useful to sometimes have the main points broken down, so this video is my attempt to do this.

If you are like us, you shied away from building fluency with basic facts, for fear of causing anxiety.  This video addresses why this is a bit of a myth.  In saying that, there are ineffective and effective ways to build fluency with basic facts.

Daily retrieval practice is now part of our day, it looks a little different at times, but it is deliberate.  You can find out more via my number agents group on facebook, as I share what we are learning along the way.

We have a basic fact crisis in our country, if a year 6 child is still counting to solve facts that should be known, then there is something very wrong and we are setting them up for failure.

What the Heck Is Structured Maths? What is the problem with the way we have been teaching maths?

There are numerous buzzwords in education today, but the term "structured maths" has left me somewhat puzzled. Structured Literacy is a term trademarked by the International Dyslexia Association (IDA), so is there any value in using a similar term for maths? If so, what on earth does it mean?

Let's start by addressing the problems with how we have been teaching maths:

Lack of Guidance

Firstly, if your experience has been anything like mine, we've had very little guidance on what to actually teach. We had numbers and a set of strands, but our teaching seemed to oscillate between these without any clear connection or deliberate intention.  I'd spend a week on this, a week on that, to be frank, I was aiming for coverage, not learning.

Ineffective Numeracy Approaches

Secondly, our numeracy approach has often prioritised counting as a means to calculate. This has led to many children struggling to develop effective strategies for achieving fluency in mathematics.  

Gaps in Understanding Math Acquisition

Thirdly, our understanding of how children actually acquire mathematical skills is lacking. Don't even get me started on how little we know about dyscalculia and supporting children with specific mathematical difficulties. We have been led to believe that by presenting maths in authentic situations and encouraging children to engage in 'productive struggle,' they would magically develop the necessary understanding to become fluent mathematicians.  There was little to no understanding around the vital importance of subitising and the role it plays in strong foundations.

Misconceptions About Conceptual Understanding

Lastly, we have been sold the idea that conceptual understanding must precede procedural knowledge. This means that children are expected to have a solid conceptual grasp before they are introduced to any procedural methods. Many of us have also fallen into the trap of thinking that learning basic facts would naturally come as part of a rich program and that timed testing, under all circumstances, causes math anxiety.

So what is it we actually need to be aiming for?

Like you, I am a learner on this journey.  I have a degree in teaching that taught me very little and everything I know now, is based on what I have learned on the job.  My interest in math started several years ago, when I was faced with children I didn't know how to help.  This journey led me to question everything I had ever been taught about math teaching.

Below are some areas I believe are crucial components of any math approach, needless to say, this is not an exhaustive list, but a good starting point.

Subitising

This is a blog post on its own really, but this is a blurb from a recent facebook post.

Subitising is the ability to instantly recognise the number of objects in a small group without the need to count them individually. This skill is fundamental in early mathematics development and plays a crucial role in building a strong numerical foundation. Subitising forms the basis of the scope and sequence and is the common thread throughout all sessions.

There are two types of subitising:
Perceptual Subitising: Recognising small quantities (usually 1-4 items) instantly.
Conceptual Subitising: Recognising larger quantities by seeing groups and patterns within the sets.
Subitising is vitally important for a range of reasons.
It is the foundation for number sense. Subitising helps children develop an intuitive understanding of numbers and their relationships. This foundational skill is critical for more advanced mathematical concepts.
It encourages pattern recognition and noticing. Through subitising, students learn to recognize patterns and groupings, which is essential for understanding more complex mathematical ideas like addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
Subitising allows string calculation skills. Learners who develop strong subitising skills can perform arithmetic operations more quickly and with greater accuracy because they can see the results of their calculations at a glance. Counting is not calculating.
It builds from what is innate. Identifying and supporting subitising skills in early learners can help prevent later difficulties with math. It provides a solid foundation upon which more complex mathematical skills can be built. Explicitly teaching subitizing is vital for all children, but crucial for those with specific math difficulties, where it might not come naturally.
We know from research that procedural understanding needs to go hand in hand with conceptual. Procedural understanding in mathematics involves knowing how to carry out a sequence of steps to solve a problem. Subitising has strong connections to procedural understandings.
Subitising helps learners understand the basic building blocks of mathematical operations. For example, recognising that two groups of three objects each make six objects supports the understanding of multiplication.
Subitising enables learners to visualise numbers and their relationships, making it easier to understand and remember mathematical procedures. This visualisation supports procedural fluency, which we know is so important.
When learners can subitize, they can more easily connect concrete experiences (like seeing groups of objects) to abstract procedures (like addition and subtraction algorithms). This connection solidifies their understanding of why procedures work.
Learners with strong subitising skills are less likely to make procedural errors because they have a more intuitive grasp of numbers and their relationships. They can quickly verify the reasonableness of their answers.
Subitising promotes flexible thinking, allowing learners to approach problems from multiple angles and choose the most efficient strategies for computation. For example, a student might quickly see that 7 + 3 is the same as 10, without needing to count each number.
Subitising is a critical skill that underpins many aspects of mathematical understanding and it is a crucial component of all mathematical teaching.  

Explicit Teaching using a Scope and Sequence

One of the key components for effective teaching is having a well-defined scope and sequence. This framework ensures that instruction is systematic, progressive, and comprehensive. Explicit teaching is crucial in this context. Contrary to the misconception that explicit teaching is monotonous, it is actually an interactive process that actively involves students. This method leaves no room for assumptions, as it requires teaching content in a clear, deliberate manner.

A highly effective model to use within explicit teaching is the gradual release model: "I do, we do, you do." This can also be adapted to fit various needs, such as "I do, I do, I do; we do, we do, we do; you do." The essence of this approach is to provide a structured path from teacher-led instruction to student independence.

The Importance of Visuals

Visual aids are fundamental in helping children understand and internalize numerical concepts. This is particularly relevant in the context of subitising, which involves recognizing the number of objects in a small group without counting. I am a strong advocate of using Woodin Patterns, as they provide a consistent visual reference. Other effective visual tools include tens frames, five frames, and Numicon. These visuals aid in reducing the dependency on counting for calculation, enabling children to develop more intuitive strategies for understanding numbers.

Teacher-Modelled Examples

Explicit teaching often involves the use of teacher-modelled examples, which I have come to appreciate significantly. When introducing a new concept or strategy, it is beneficial for the teacher to work through an example while verbalizing their thought process. This method, known as "thinking out loud," helps students understand the rationale behind each step. As students work on examples alongside the teacher, it remains crucial to continue modeling the approach and thought process. This strategy has proven to be highly effective, as my students have begun to emulate this method in their own problem-solving.

Spaced Practice

Spaced practice is a strategy grounded in the theory of the forgetting curve, which proposes that information is more likely to be retained in long-term memory when practice is distributed over time. In line with this theory, my scope and sequence intentionally revisits concepts regularly. Initially, new learning requires frequent repetition, which can be gradually spaced out over time as students begin to internalise the key understandings and concepts.

Repeated Practice and Interleaved Practice

Repeated practice is essential for embedding knowledge and skills in long-term memory. Whether it involves basic facts, numeral writing, reading numerals, or recognizing and using patterns, repetition is key. The consistent practice helps solidify these skills, making them more accessible for future use.  Interleaving of practice, refers to the combining of areas of practice and perhaps weaving the new through this as well.  It is something I try hard to do within the scope and sequence.

Retrieval Practice

Retrieval practice involves the active recall of information from long-term memory, which strengthens memory retention. I have incorporated retrieval practice into the beginning of my sessions. This can be done through various methods such as games, quizzes, or traditional tests. One effective technique I use is taped practice: I record a set of ten problems, state each problem, wait four seconds, and then provide the answer. Students try to write down the answer before my voice gives it away. This method allows me to observe which students have mastered the material and which ones need additional support.

Aiming for Fluency - Fluency Does Not Just Mean Fast

The ultimate goal of these teaching strategies is to achieve fluency, which involves more than just speed. Fluency is about building a deep understanding that is embedded in long-term memory. It consists of three components: working at an appropriate rate, maintaining accuracy, and demonstrating flexibility. We promote fluency by helping students develop strong schemas to connect new learning with existing knowledge. Subitising plays a crucial role in building these connections, laying a solid foundation for future learning.

CPA: Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract

The CPA approach involves using concrete materials, pictorial representations, and abstract symbols. It is a common misconception that these stages are linear. In reality, they should be integrated and used concurrently in teaching sessions. Ensuring that all three components are addressed in each session enriches the learning experience and aids in deeper understanding.
Conceptual and Procedural Interwoven

There is a misconception that conceptual understanding must precede procedural understanding. In truth, these two types of understanding develop together and reinforce each other. In some cases, procedural knowledge can enhance conceptual understanding. Integrating both ensures a more holistic approach to learning.

Use of Schema for Problem Solving

I recently discovered the work of Sarah Powell, which emphasises using schemas for problem-solving. This approach has revolutionised my teaching, enabling me to instruct the process more explicitly and, consequently, helping my students become more successful problem solvers.

Ensuring Children Understand Mathematical Language

In recent years, it has become increasingly evident that children are entering school with lower language levels compared to previous generations. This trend has significant implications for their overall academic development, particularly in mathematics, where understanding the specific language used is crucial. For children with language delays or Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), this challenge is even more pronounced. As educators, it is our responsibility to ensure that all children develop a strong grasp of mathematical language to succeed in their studies.

The Importance of Mathematical Language

Mathematics is not just about numbers and equations; it is a language in itself. Terms such as "sum," "difference," "product," and "quotient" are foundational to comprehending mathematical concepts. When children do not fully understand these terms, they are at a disadvantage. This can lead to confusion, frustration, and a lack of confidence in their mathematical abilities.

Challenges Faced by Children

1. Lower Language Levels: Many children are starting school with reduced exposure to rich vocabulary and complex sentence structures. This can hinder their understanding of mathematical instructions and problems.

2. Language Delays and DLD: Children with language delays or DLD face additional hurdles. These children may struggle to grasp and retain mathematical vocabulary, making it harder for them to follow along in class and take a full part in sessions.

3. Assumed Understanding: Teachers often assume that students understand the language of mathematics when, in reality, many do not. This assumption can lead to gaps in learning and comprehension.

So, is there such a thing as structured maths?  I am still not sure, but what I do know, is that there are components that do need to be in place to ensure ALL children can achieve in maths.  Some of the directions maths has taken over the past  fifteen to twenty years have led to many children struggling and believing themselves to be 'bad' at maths, we need this to change and the way we can change it, is by growing our understandings about how to best teach maths.  As always, we need to start with our own understandings first.

To Decodable Or Not To Decodable? That Is The Question

 This has been a hot topic recently.  With Tim Shanahan's blog post on the research behind decodable books and their use (of which there has not been a lot) Blog post here.

Firstly let me say, I love his work, his research and insights have shaped a lot of what I do now.   But let's put some perspective on the post.

Very basically, the research is limited and unclear, leading to his last comment.

"I think it’s okay to use decodable texts as part of phonics instruction, but such practice should be

 limited, and even beginning readers should be reading (not just listening to) more than decodable texts."

This issue is complex and, in my opinion, not as straightforward as "Decodable's are nice to have, but not needed," as some might believe based on this last comment.

It's crucial to consider both research and practice in this matter. Given the high cost and difficulty of conducting relevant research, we must rely on practical experiences to answer questions like what constitutes good practice, the role of decodable books, their intended use, and how they compare to other text types.  

One common misconception about decodable books needs to be addressed

"Decodable books are boring and will put children off reading." This claim is often repeated, but it overlooks the variety of well-written, engaging decodable books available for the intended audience—novice readers, not fluent adult readers. From an expert reader's perspective, these books might seem dull, but for children, the ability to read these books is exciting and empowering. In my experience, I've never encountered a novice reader who found their first decodable books boring; rather, they were thrilled by their reading capabilities and driven to read more.

Understanding what a decodable book is remains essential. A decodable book is any book that a child can read independently based on their knowledge of phonetic codes. While most books are decodable for adults, for beginners who might only know a few short vowels and consonants, decodable books primarily feature words that adhere to these simple phonetic patterns. For this reason, I prefer to refer to them as 'controlled texts,' which better describes how these books selectively introduce phonetic elements to prevent overwhelming young readers.

A significant issue with decodable books arises when they are introduced to teachers without adequate professional learning and development (PLD). Teachers need to understand the purpose of these texts, which brings me to a crucial point:

Understanding takes time

This is something I think we need to shout from the rooftops!

Reflecting on my own journey with decodable books illustrates the importance of being given time to grasp their role fully.  

Check these out, this first one is a post from December 2018, after a year inquiring into literacy development...YES 2018, six years ago.

December 2018

Then again in 2020, updating my journey.  This is two years in to finding out more...oh the glorious benefits of being given time.  

September 2020

These experiences show how my approach and appreciation for decodable books have evolved, significantly impacting my teaching practices.  Primarily, the point I want to make, is that it has taken me that time to get to where I am and very clearly, decodable books played a massive part in that journey!

If we fast forward to 2023, at the beginning of last year, you will also see how my attempt to replace levelled readers in my class, with decodable books and continue on with the way I'd always done things, simply through a more informed lens.  This led to frustration and a real sense of need to do things better for my Tier 1 learners (the whole class.)

The start of whole class reading

Then a reflection in July around my interpretation of whole class texts.

And the unintentional benefits of these texts

Along with my reflection on whole class reading (Tier 1) at the start of this year

So here we are, six years later, what does practice tell us about decodable books and their use?

So if there is very little reliable research on decodable books, what has my six years of work with decodable texts told me?  

Given we started using decodable texts for our Tier 3 learners and because of our journey into understanding dyslexia, I think I am well placed to comment on this.  Of course, this is as usual, just my opinion, I am 'just' a teacher, do not have any recognised credentials in this area and funnily enough, other than the odd course, have had no formal training.  

As you can see if you read the series of links I have posted above, my journey has been just that, a journey and the role of decodable books has changed slightly.  I did initially present decodable books as the dominant text children were reading.  Over time this has changed, with my class texts becoming less decodable and reaching outside of the 'code' that the majority of children know.  

All children still practice with decodable books and spend a lot of time reading them. I've posted a little about this 'just right for me' reading on Facebook if it is of any interest. For those children who are ready to move away from decodable texts during this practice stage, these books are provided. Again, you know your children, and this decision can be made on an individual basis. We all have children in our classes who appear to be more 'natural' readers; they are often not the norm, though, and beware, because this does not necessarily translate to spelling ability.

They all benefit from this practice, and through our whole class sessions, we are still working in a systematic, explicit way through a scope and sequence. This is very, very important, in my opinion, because this approach isn't just about reading.

I always come back to the point that when it comes to learning, children are more similar than they are different, and this assertion that all children learn differently is a bit of a misnomer, in my opinion. If you have not looked into learning styles and how they are not a thing at all, then you really need to. I love the book Why Don't Children Like School? written by Daniel Willingham.

This message is important...

My Tier 2 students exclusively use decodable texts or sentences tailored to the specific phonetic elements they are learning. This approach is crucial for their development. These students depend on these books, and it's essential for me to understand their importance.

Through my experience, I've realised that I can significantly impact these learners by using decodable texts rather than uncontrolled texts. Reflecting on my practice in 2017, I remember the struggle of supporting students classified as 'Tier 2' or 'Tier 3'—terms I was unfamiliar with at the time. Back then, all students received the same instruction, yet some remained stagnant at the early stages of reading, known as the pink and red levels. I was at a loss on how to assist them and they desperately needed me to recognise the value of decodable books.

Tier 2 students require decodable texts to develop specific skills and insights, affording them numerous opportunities to apply and practice these skills. They should not be overwhelmed by texts containing unfamiliar phonetic codes. These learners benefit from the focused practice that decodable books offer, and it's crucial for us to understand and support this method. Even minor changes in font can deter these students; they find texts with embellishments on letters like 'i' and 'f' perplexing. For this reason, I often type out the sections of texts we are working on, preferring to use Sunshine texts for these students.

It is equally important to provide children with dyslexia with decodable texts. I have witnessed the profound impact these texts have on such learners and would be dismayed to consider them optional.

Back to addressing the original comment this post is based on

All students benefit from the systematic, explicit instructional strategies we employ, which are not solely about reading but encompass spelling and writing as well. It's crucial to recognise that while students may differ in various ways, their fundamental learning needs are more alike than not. This perspective challenges the notion of distinct learning styles, a concept well critiqued in Daniel Willingham's "Why Don't Students Like School?"

In conclusion, while decodable texts are not a panacea, they are indispensable for certain learners, particularly those at Tier 2 and 3 levels, who require specific phonetic practice. These texts should not be seen as merely optional or supplementary but as essential tools supported by a deep understanding of their purpose and application. This approach ensures that all students, especially those facing the most significant challenges, have the best possible support to succeed in reading.

Before dismissing decodable books as 'nice to have' let's take time to build our understanding of why they are so important for many.

Starting from a place of understanding - rewards don't work!

 Reading back over this blog, I realised I have never shared our journey into creating a school culture based on 'understanding.'   After listening to the radio segment yesterday and sharing it on my facebook page, I thought it was fitting to do a bit of a post, like many of my posts, it isn't short, but hopefully it may spark some thought, or at least give some affirmation to those on a similar journey.

Background...

Like all of our journeys,  it all started with play.  At the time when we started to plant the seeds of our future school culture, I really didn't realise how significant our play pedagogy would be, but as it turns out, like just about everything else we do, it ultimately it all does come back to play and understanding the brain.

We had already worked hard on being developmentally aware, changing this lens to developmentally sensitive and responsive.  We understood the difference of 'chronological age' and 'actual age', understood how play was crucial for children's development and were primed and ready for more learning about this.

Around 2018 we embarked on some learning about attachment.  Understanding attachment styles was a really useful start for us and helped to build our understandings about children.  As a school we also developed our understandings of restorative practice and saw this as a great approach for us.  We were also part of relationship based learning, or RBL as it was known then.

Over the next several years,  we were inspired by the work of Bruce Perry and did some 'bite sized' staff driven PLD around trauma, starting with a book study and building our own understandings.

A copy of some of the videos we watched are included in this document that guided our learning.

Bite Sized PLD 2021/22

Over this time we also attended workshops run by Kathryn Berkett and worked with Karina Schreurs at Aro Training, here in Whangārei.

We had worked really hard on our values as a school, and while we had largely moved away a rewards and punishment based environment, we totally stepped away from this and looked further to the work of Ross Greene.  His work on collaborative problem solving is excellent and this quote "Kids do well if they can" really resonated with me.

Key Learning Takeaways from Kathryn, Karina, Bruce and Ross

Understanding what is meant by read brain and green brain (watch this if you don't know what this is referring to)

This is also a great podcast to listen to, this is episode one on the stress response.

The stress response

We need to aim for attunement rather than attachment.  These children need to work with a trusted adult, going out with a person, who has no relationship is not going to help them.  Therefore it is us that need to work hard on those relationships.  This is a collective US, meaning whole school.  Teachers, TA, Office staff, caretaker...everyone.

Attuned relationship, children need an attuned adult.  A child needs at least four adults that are attuned to them and their needs.  This makes it bigger than the teacher.   

Sprinters - go from green brain to their red brain at the drop of a hat, is emotionally under six.  Intermediate classes possible have children that are emotionally 2, 3, 4.

Marathon runners, will hold onto 'big feelings' and stay in their red brain for extended periods of time.

Status, when a child is in their red brain, they will try to drop your status, this could be saying something silly, mocking, this is an attempt to grow their status, if you drop your status, it will lower this stress response.   If we react and become dysregulated ourselves based on this communication we will only serve to heighten their response.  

Keeping survival brain calm.  Some boys hate mullets - see me, acknowledge me,  belonging, show me how I belong, where do I seem myself here,  happening, tell me what is happening, warn me, don't suddenly surprise me, mana, let me have a say, activate my voice.  We can keep the survival brain calm in a classroom if we do these things.  The brain is aiming for safety, always asking "am I safe" if we use these key ideas, we can make our classroom a safe place for all children.

Build in moments of tolerable stress, where it is possible to become excited, but them self-calm.  We do this with little children, when we play games like hide and seek.  We do this with babies, where we play peek-a-boo.  Teaching all children to self-calm in these situations.  Play is the most important way for children to learn this and become emotionally resilient.  In play children will be in tolerable stress all of the time where they are trying to navigate this world.  Children know what they need to do and don't need to be directed in their play.

Devices can cause a heightened stress response, devices do not calm them, devices train the red brain.

Encouraging them to do something that will calm their red brain, must not be seen as a reward.  Punishing the red brain, will do nothing to prevent it happening it again.  Allowing them to choose an activity that will calm them, allows us to then engage with their 'green' or regulated brain afterwards.  The work we do in building a new template, needs to happen with the green brain.

We must consider how we interact with children who are dysregulated, we need to teach every child what works for them to find their calm.  It is all about building new templates for regulation strategies.

The first three years build the foundations of the brain, it is possible to rebuild this and at school this needs to be part of our core work.  If you do not have a strong foundation a programme is not going to assist the children without strong foundation, this needs to be rebuilt.  Music, dance, play, touch, movement are all great ways to do this.  Many of our youngest children need us to go back and think about how we would have helped our babies, rocking, touch, serve and return.

Children who are lacking strong foundations, are trauma impacted and stressed are emotionally six or less.  This is the most important work we can do.  Learning can not happen in the red brain, if we want our learning approaches to work, we must meet these needs first.  First see me, understand me, then teach me,

It is possible to rewire the foundation that has been built in the first three years, time repetition and calm, it is possible to teach these children to calm.

Our brain forms connections, the more repetitions, the stronger the connection, allowing the brain to form templates for everything that it sees, hears, feels.  This happens in the first three years, this is how they see the world.  A child that starts school swearing, actually knows no different.  Asking them not to, is not going to work.  We then actually need to work on building new templates.  The old template never goes away.  When they are in green brain, they will use the template we have helped them to build.  When they are in red brain, the old template kicks in, this is when we see the old 'behaviour.'  When we don't feel safe, our old template activates

We build new templates through attuned relationships, repetition, repetition, repetition.   It takes time, calm, understanding and acceptance.  

Children also have a self-belief template, such as saying things like "I am mean."  Repeating when they are in their green brain "that action was mean, but you are not mean". This takes repetition, patience and calm.  

We are not capable of thinking in our red brain, punishments do not work.  A reward based economy will only work for children that feel safe and have strong foundations.

Red brain is oppositional, selfish, aggressive, negative.  Our aim is for children to be able to activate calm quicker, but engaging with the red brain is never going to go well.  Think fight, flight, freeze.

If we watch children and over time we see children staying in their red brain for shorter times, this is proof that we are helping them build a new template.

While in their green brain, we need to allow them to share with us what they like to do when they are moving into their red brain.  Discuss it after when they are in their green brain.  Think of places outside of the classroom, it could be climbing a tree, hiding in a hut, nature is a great way to activate the green brain.  Teach children to recognise the signs that they are becoming dysregulated so that they can begin to use these strategies independently.

So, where are we at now?

The notes I have shared above are not a complete picture of everything, in fact it is an incredibly vast topic, however if we can lock onto these key understandings, we can really make a difference.

Firstly, this work really bound together what we do in approach to wellbeing, it has in fact accelerated this work forward and allowed us to tie everything together under the framework of Te Whare Tapa Whā

This work has also really helped me grow my understanding of nuerodiversity and  and impacted the strategies we use to assist these children in terms of belonging, safety and inclusion.

In fact, this work has benefited all children, it has helped us establish a school culture that is often remarked on by visitors as being calm, safe and welcoming.  People often comment on the wairua of the place.  

What we have done, is over time built on our understandings, not discarding one piece of knowledge for another, but weaving together our understandings.  We will of course, keep weaving, embedding these approaches into the very fabric of our place.  What we have not done, is leapt on a programme, we have shaped something that is right for our place and our children.

Play

The catalyst of it all.  Having a pedagogy based on play is vital to the success of our environment.  Play enables us to give children to practice their social and emotional skills.  It allows them to have mana and to regulate within situations of tolerable stress.  Play also allows us to see children, to hear them, to understand them.  Play is absolutely golden.

Whole Staff Knowledge

Something we continue to work hard on.  This is an approach that takes all of the adults in the school.  We wrap around children, understanding that we are all a part of their journey.

Te Kōhanga

Te Kōhanga, or the nest, was our take on a nurture space.  With little funds, it was impossible to build something, so we reinvented our library.  This is now a space children can take themselves to if they feel overwhelmed.  It has become a safe place for our neurodiverse children and anyone that needs it.  Over time it has shifted and changed, I am certain it will continue to do so, as our understandings change.

SEL

Social emotional learning is so vitally important, it is something that needs to be taught across the whole school.  Across our juniors, we use the little spot of feelings, which is awesome, it gives children the vocabulary to describe how they are feeling when they need to.   We also have a whole school wellbeing curriculum, with areas of focus for each term, or ideas for when problems come up.  This curriculum is based on Te Whare Tapa Whā.

Empowering Children 

Part of our wellbeing curriculum includes teaching about the brain, the red brain and green brain.  Children are taught to recognise this in themselves and others and how they need to respond.  Children are also taught about neurodiversity, so they can respond appropriately and come from a place of understanding.  Our neurodiverse children are empowered to to embrace their diversity as something that makes them special, we want them to be able to advocate for themselves.  This comes through strongly when children are talked to, one instance where our target learners were spoken to recently, a child said "sometimes I find it hard in the classroom because of I am autistic."  I consider these small comments wins.

More recently I started sharing a series of videos about neurodiversity with my wider school community, change comes from a place of understanding.

Wellbeing Teams

We have several members of staff who make up our wellbeing team.  If a child is identified as needing extra support (for whatever reason) a member of the team will be assigned as a support person.  In some instances the child may be asked who they would like, but in most cases, these staff members have already proven themselves to be attuned adults.  These children are checked in with regularly and together they problem solve and work on strategies to find solutions to what might be going on.  In some instances, it is just a chat, just someone who I can go to who cares.  In some cases, our whole staff forms the team, ensuring we see and hear that child in the playground and make a deliberate attempt to connect to build that sense of belonging.

I am part of this team and if the 'case' is seen as more complex, I will be assigned to help.  We will generally use collaborative problem solving. 

In every case, there is communication between home and school.

In parting...

I don't know if I have done a very good job of describing our journey, or where we are at.  I know I will have missed things, because there are so many parts of the puzzle.  It is a journey that never stops, next term, we are again working with Karina, she will be working with our children, our teachers and our whānau.  We are committed to deepening our understandings to help our children.  

This has been a largely self-led, self-funded journey, but an important one.  I despair at the idea of pushing outdated rewards based programmes into our schools.  Every day I hear of children being stood down and suspended at schools, because a well meaning teacher engaged with a dysregulated child in a way that heightened their response.  Often these children are our neurodiverse and it breaks my heart.

We are not perfect, that is not possible, but we are striving to do the best for our children, to understand them, to see them, to hear them.  

To be developmentally sensitive and responsive, Neuroscience informed, should be the goal of all our schools.

I will leave you with this short video featuring Ross Greene, I really recommend you getting your hands on his book "Lost At School".   This video is the first of a series, that is well worth watching!

Comprehending comprehension - a complex task indeed

Some initial thoughts...

I wanted to start this 'last' blog post around the pillars, by clearly saying although the visual represents the different components as independent, they of course are/should all taught in an interactive way.  Vocabulary, should of course be taught in the context of comprehension and as I have added to the bottom of the pillars, rests on a bed of oral language (expressive and receptive) and background knowledge.

I would not want anyone to think that we would teach these components as seperate and it is also important to understand that comprehension is one of the most complicated things we do on a daily basis and it does not only happen in the context of reading.  Narrowly focusing on reading, as it is presented in the visual, is not useful to anyone.

I have taken this straight from the transcript of the podcast I have linked to this post.

"Comprehension is not a skill that you can learn how to do it and then apply it to different contexts, because it depends upon what you're reading, what the purpose of reading is. I've used the example. It's not like swimming, where you learn how to swim and then you can swim in any body of order. It's heavily dependent upon what it is you're reading and the purpose of that reading. And that's why I and others are beginning to argue that it's best taught within a meaningful context that in school involves learning or appreciating literature, understanding about how stories are told and what's involved in poetry or whatever it might mean. It's a meaningful context that where comprehension is best taught.
But by treating this comprehension the focus is on understanding for the purpose of learning or for the purpose of enjoyment, appreciation, whatever it might be there, and then alphabetics and fluency would still be taught. 
 I think it's more important to think about what the goal is of the instruction and in one case, the goal is going to be understanding how the alphabetic principle works and how to become more efficient at using that principle so that kids can learn to read more words, can be more fluent in their reading and then, with comprehension, focus on the purpose of the comprehension activity."

Hugh Catts

I am not going to even attempt to claim any expertise when it comes to comprehension.

 I have read a lot, listened to a lot and there have been some common ideas coming from what I have engaged with, that have shaped how I 'enact' the comprehension pillar in my classroom (again, not a fan of the pillar visual.). In essence, I am still trying to comprehend, comprehension.

I guess the reason I have separated the areas out in the way I have done in this blog post series, is to show what each component looks like for me and spark some thinking about how it looks for you.  

I have found that the gift the 'Science of Reading' as a body of research has given to me, is the deliberate lens I apply to everything I do in my classroom now, that why, how and what have become so incredibly important to my practice.  

I also say, that this is what it currently looks like, because everything evolves, we learn more, we do better, we tweak, we change, we base what we do on the needs of our class.  To do this however, it is crucial we have the understanding ourselves first.  

I have quite a few blog post topics spinning around in my head at the moment, so don't want to go into any great detail about teacher knowledge, but I will say, that I hold great fears around the current speed we are implementing programmes, without knowledge, in my opinion, we are setting ourselves up for failure.  If we place such a huge importance on developing the background knowledge of our children, should we not prioritise our own as well?

The gift my learning journey has given me, is time to understand, apply, change, learn more, tweak, learn more, change...over and over again.   I would like all teachers to have that same gift.

More about that another time.   However I will say, what I do in a classroom, is dependent on the needs in front of me and how I know best (right now) to respond to these needs, what I am doing for the class I have now, is quite different at times from what I did last year and the year before that.  Not only because I know far more each year, but because the children in front of me have different needs.

Comprehension...the point of this post.

Firstly let me say, that from the reading and listening I have done, I think that the five pillars visual, although it is helpful to show the facets that make up our approach to teaching reading, doesn't serve to represent the process as effectively as it could.  

Because the pillars are represented in the way they are, they look independent of one another, what we know is this is not the case, that they are interwoven.  To me I wonder if a better representation would be of a weaving, with alphabetics and fluency woven through comprehension.  I am thinking of the way flax is woven, each strand important, but reliant on the other to stay together.

As the pillars are all the same size, it also appears that they carry the same weight, of course, we know that at different times, we will be needing to give different weights to each area, when a child is learning to read, decoding and the learning of the code, will be vitally important and therefore is likely to carry much more weight in the first few years. 

I don't sum this up very well, but it is summed up really well by Hugh Catts in this 16 minute podcast here with Melissa and Lori, it is well worth a listen.

High Catts - The five pillars

A bit straight out of one of my old blog posts...

Comprehension...this is a massive area, and there is currently a big problem with how the majority of teachers interpret comprehension.  If you are anything like me, you had come to think of comprehension of something that happened at the conclusion of reading...a product of the reading so to speak.  Summed up, comprehension could be labelled as the questions you ask at the end of the text, that largely rely on what existing knowledge about the topic the reader had when they started reading.

You'd probably also been under the understanding that comprehension is a skill that can be taught, but finding a main idea and summarising are strategies that will look different according to the text.  

That led me to the work of Hugh Catts, who among many other well known experts of comprehension speaks about the value and role of knowledge.  The need to tell children what they need to know, to stop all the pre-knowledge activities.  He goes on to talk about the fact that knowledge gives us a place to put incoming information and that reading then allows us to add to or modify our existing knowledge.  It is our knowledge that helps us to organise and inference.  I love the way he says that reading comprehension is thinking with a book in your hand. 

Hugh Catts also says it is not possible to think critically unless you have knowledge about something.  He advocates strongly (as do many others) for teachers to give background knowledge before reading, so that children have a place to tie the new details on to, it is important we understand our working memory is overwhelmed by too many details. (which is possibly what I am doing to you via this post.)

Hugh Catts says popping comprehension amongst the pillars in the way that it is presented above has led us to think it needs to be measured, remediated or instructed in the same way as the others and this has led to teacher misunderstanding.  It has also led to a lot of classroom learning tasks that do very little to increase comprehension skills.

The problem here is that our system largely embraces 'discovery' over knowledge.  

In fact I sit in an interesting world, where I actively advocate for play, which innately is based on discovery, but then am here saying, yep I also believe in building knowledge, and in in explicit teaching.  

The crux of the problem here is that we think there are two camps and that we can't be in both.  In reality we can and should be in both camps...each has a very well deserved place in every classroom.  In my opinion magic and science combine to make deep learning.

In fact in our space it is the curiosity that is palpable through play that often feeds the knowledge and vice versa, I see a very symbiotic relationship here.

Tim Shanahan says - Education should both nurture curiosity and provide the means to fulfil it – increasing what kids know about science and social studies (and literature and the arts, too.)

I have learned so much about comprehension over this holidays, too much to put it all here, and a lot of it, is swimming around in my mind, trying to find some knowledge to attach itself too, but what I do know is that in the majority of our schools there is a lack of understanding of the Science and that is a problem.

I have tied this learning strongly to what I had already learned about schema and the building of knowledge and vocab in a classroom.  It has certainly given me loads of ideas!

Hugh Catts Podcast 

This podcast with Anne Lucas discusses micro-skills and it is a must listen in my opinion.  It will change how you think about comprehension

Anne Lucas Podcast

Quotes from Anne "The more tools we give to kids to grapple with texts and concepts, the better they’ll be able to do it.”

“Background knowledge is incredibly important and is something that we need to integrate into instruction and curriculum.”

And back to now...

So if we understand that comprehension is not a set of skills that we can teach, but instead strategies, then what are these strategies?

Seven comprehension strategies - reading rockets

I like this summary and found it really useful.

I think the most important part is that we know comprehension is developed in the context of the text and is also very reliant on the background knowledge and vocabulary that they bring to that text.

So, what does this actually look like in my class right now?

I apologise for my very long winded way of getting to the actual point of this post. 

How do I encourage my children to make sense and meaning while they read...in essence to comprehend?

I teach a year one and two class, they are still largely learning the code, learning to decode and working on developing their fluency.  In these terms I very much dedicate a lot of our time here, because it is incredibly hard to comprehend a text if you can not read it.  

This visual image demonstrates how important the foundations, leading into fluency, assist with being able to comprehend whilst reading.  

1) Sentence level comprehension

- I use my 'character' texts here.  These are texts, that are 70-80% decodable for the majority of my class.  I have blogged a little about these in several blog posts.  Here are a couple if you are interested.

https://numberagents.blogspot.com/2023/07/dramatically-different-meets-explicit.html

https://numberagents.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-unintentional-impact-of-my-class.html

We read these stories in parts.  Children read, we then read together and buddy read.  The sentences give us a chance to discuss what is happening, in some cases infer and apply what we know in context, they are also written in a way that require some form of prediction.  We summarise what is happening together and children will ask and answer questions.  Children will then go away and demonstrate their understanding of the days sentence, by drawing a picture to go with the text.  The pictures below show some examples of how their pictures express their understanding.

Children are constantly coming up with new characters and new adventures for these characters and delight when they see these added into our next stories.

2) Play

We work through a pedagogy based on play.  Comprehension is naturally developed through talk, children share their wonderings, their interests and we explore these together, they ask and answer questions and share their ideas.  These are all important foundations of comprehension.  Of course these situations are great for vocabulary development and an important link to the development of background knowledge.

3)Read Alouds and Storytelling

As children are still learning to decode and build fluency, a lot of our comprehension is developed through read alouds.  These read alouds can take the form of a chapter book, a non-fiction text, a fairy tale, a quality picture book or a shared text.  These are used deliberately to focus on using comprehension strategies in the context of the text.  To look at those micro-skills that Anne discussed in her podcast, to develop vocabulary and knowledge.

I also use storytelling in my class, sharing my own stories, so children can think about similar experiences they may have had and tell their own stories, this obviously has a strong link to writing.  I always start these stories with "Have I ever told you about the time....."

Puppets occasionally make an appearance here too.

Dramatic inquiry is woven through some of the picture books we read, and this is a super powerful way of building contextual understanding, of course when we start our 'portal maths' this imagined world opens up a whole new experience.

4)Knowledge building

Really this is woven through everything that we do, but I do use our knowledge spine, that is woven togtether with our SEL curriculum and our reading spine, to layer knowledge.

Kaurihohore Knowledge and Reading Spine. (As always this is a work in progress.)

I will look at the knowledge we are deliberately trying to develop, pick a range of texts, videos and podcasts and go from there.  Layering this knowledge, building vocabulary and linking to new areas of knowledge.  Children will draw understandings, respond in written form, writing facts about a topic, we will generate questions, answer questions, summarise understandings.  This is a process that works really well for us.

Whatever knowledge we are developing, I will weave it into our reading and our writing, with strong links obviously to other curriculum areas.

5)Language and Listening Comprehension

I intend to blog a little more about this in time, but the fact is, all over our country, children are entering school with skills in expressive and receptive language that are far below where they used to be.  Obviously this is a massive area of discussion, COVID had a role to play, but sadly this was happening long before COVID, as the declining oral language levels was what launched my journey into play over ten years ago.

It is incredibly hard to work on reading comprehension if this is an area of struggle.  

So we spend a lot of time on this, in all the ways listed above.  I don't lower my expectations, we listen to podcasts, we listen to chapter books, we discuss quite complex scientific concepts, but the amount of scaffolding I do has increased.  I share my thinking out loud, I model what I am doing when I am thinking about a topic, I break our learning into bite sized amounts and more importantly, we regularly review and revisit what we have been discussing, making explicit connections to new areas of learning.  We also use pictures a lot, looking at a picture, talking about what we can see and notice, inferring what could be going on. What could have just happened?  What might happen next?  Children generate questions and answer questions, they then write sentences from this picture.  We do the same using silent animations.  These are incredibly powerful for developing comprehension overall.  

Over the past two years I have been learning more about language struggles and about DLD (developmental, language disorder) which is said to be as prevalent as dyslexia.  It is something we know little about, but when it comes to assisting our children with literacy, it is crucial we start catching up.

And so this brings me to the end of my little series on the pillars.  I hope that there have been some ideas that have sparked some thought.  This of course is not the end, it is but the beginning, I share, not because I perceive that I am an expert, but because I think sharing is the most powerful thing our profession can do.

Cracking the code - phonemic awareness, phonics, encoding and spelling - what we are missing

 

This is the next instalment in blog posts around the 'pillars of literacy' and unpacking what this looks like in a real classroom.

If you have read any of my posts, you will know I am a massive advocate for whole class teaching.  When I say whole class teaching, what I mean is quality tier one teaching for the whole class, done together, without groups.

Obviously I still work with groups or individuals as needed, but this is much more fluid and dependent on the exact need at the time.

This blog post touches on the code, the teaching of phonics, encoding (taking the sound to print) and spelling, learning the rules and applying them.

In the past (before I developed an understanding of a scope and sequence) I did of course teach phonics, in fact we did a bit of everything, it was all very balanced.  While we did our best, I can see why this pick n mix approach, with little thought of the why and the what, did many of our children little favour.   I did a lot of 'stuff' because that was what you do, often there was very little understanding of the why.  

Don't get me wrong, many children did flourish, they became readers and writers (not necessarily spellers) and went on to do very, very well.  

However it is not them that I refined my practice for, it is the group of children that struggled to get going, the children that started and never stopped spelling saw as sor, or who never moved past the dreaded 'magenta', it is those children that I have worked so hard to reshape my practice for.

This is not about 'Structured Literacy' it is not about 'the Science of Reading' it really isn't even about the 'Science of Learning' this is about a teacher being able to use research informed practice and being given the time and space to do so.

Firstly I want to start with the end of this blog post title - what are we missing?

Well, I actually think we are missing a massive part of the puzzle, which makes this blog post even more relevant right now.  We are so desperate to turn around reading results, to leap on board with 'one stop programmes' that we are missing the role that spelling has to play in the improvement of reading. 

In turn, this means we are totally missing the boat on writing.  Encoding, the recording of the graphemes that represent the sounds that we hear, has a massive role to play in the improvement of reading. 

 There is a lot to read and listen to about this, I particularly like the work of Lyn Stone.

It really makes sense doesn't it?  If you can spell it, then you have mapped it, therefore this assists you to read it.   Along with this, if you are developing fluency in your spelling, ultimately this will have a massive impact on your writing as working memory will be freed up to concentrate on the other 'stuff.'  I have a blog post on writing, if it is of any interest.

Everything I see focuses on reading, will this ultimately mean that writing will become the new 'red flag.?'  Will it mean we madly dash about to find programmes to fix our dismal writing levels?

 Children who are good readers are not necessarily good spellers, I am sure as teachers, we see this first hand, every day.  I know my own children were great readers, natural readers, seemingly not needing to be taught, but boy oh boy I wish I had known about the importance of explicitly teaching encoding skills and spelling patterns back then, because spelling is not their strong point.   

This is not really just about turning out great readers, it is about ensuring children are capable in all areas of literacy.

So, back to the point...

What does it look like in my class?

Well, we follow the LLLL scope and sequence, I say we, because this is a school wide thing.  We flow from that into the code.  We teach the sounds explicitly as we go, largely using a sound to print methodology.  

As part of my whole class sessions, we do daily review, included in this review are the sounds we are working on committing to long term memory, the ones we largely have nailed, will disappear from the slideshow over time, the ones remaining are those that we need repeated practice of.  From time to time, the embedded sounds will return, just to make sure everyone is still on track with this.  I incorporate phonemic awareness into this, but largely not in the dark (without letters) it is done largely with print and I find this works really well.

Initially in my Year 1 and 2 class, our slideshow may focus on 2-3 new sounds.  This is largely because they usually have them already and it is really just a refresher.  Featuring strongly from week to week are the short vowel sounds, which I generally introduce all at once, but will focus on the ones that are easily confused, such as 'e' and 'i'.   Why all at once?  Well because in most cases, they have already been working with ones that feature in stage one and two and once we have all of our short vowels, we can spell and read so many more words.

We go through our review sounds at the beginning, then get to our new sound/s.  By the time we have worked our way through to stage 4+ it is time to start focusing on some 'spelling rules' as well.  Some weeks there are no new sounds, I may have noticed a common misunderstanding that I really want to hammer and the focuses is then on that.

If we are up to the flossy sounds in stage 4+ I will include all of them in the slide, in fact they often appear long before we start to learn the spelling rule, children read these sounds quite naturally, they make sense, there is not a need to spend time focusing on each one.  

When we get to our new sound pattern, we will focus on learning it, learning how to articulate that sound, how our mouth is shaped, words that start with that sound.  We will then focus on encoding that pattern, practicing it, by recording it.  If there is a rule attached, like the floss rule, we will then learn that rule and spend some time practicing spelling words that follow this pattern.

When we are spelling our sounds, we will also work on reviewing those we have recently learned and word chaining, along with a dictated sentence will feature strongly here.  Children benefit from lots of practice applying what they have learned.

Obviously we also work on word reading and use our connected text, but a lot of time is spent on the recording.

You will note that I have mentioned encoding and spelling in the blog post title, this is because I see encoding as learning to record the graphemes that represent the sounds, but spelling is about recording the spelling patterns and obviously spelling can represent sound, but it can also represent meaning.  Lyn Stone explains this all much better than I.

I do spend a bit of time learning the spelling rules with my class, for many, these are a real lifesaver.  Simply knowing that english words can not end in the letter v, is empowering for children as they venture into becoming writers.

This is where I divert a little from the sequence...

So, while I do follow a scope and sequence and explicitly teach in this way (I do love UFLI for the format) I also take detours from time to time.  The character texts that we use in our 'decodable' class stories contain parts of the code that have not yet come up in our whole class sequence of teaching.  For instance, we are up to 'ck' but have taught 'ee' 'sh' 'ch' and the vowel sounds of 'y'.  We have also touched on some of the other long vowel representations and the 'ng' sound at the end of words.  

I have read a range of views on this, but. have found from my experience that there is a lot of benefit from teaching outside of the sequence, when children are meeting these patterns in the context of what they are reading.  Last year I found children did a lot of 'self teaching' once they got through the initial code (stage 4) and there ended up (reading wise) being a lot they cottoned onto by themselves.  This does not mean that I don't again teach these explicitly when we get to them in our sequence, but I do not shy away from including a few of these patterns in the character stories I write.

I guess this is where not having a 'programme' but having a personal 'why' and a commitment to always increasing my understanding and knowledge comes in. 

 I can be guided by my children and there needs and act in an informed way.

Informed, purposeful practice.