This update is all about the summer reading that I’ve been undertaking; twelve novels in all. I then conclude with my ‘best of 2024’ list. I’ll discuss these books in alphabetical order, by author: BOOKS Martyr by Kaveh Akbar. This first novel by the well-known Iranian-American poet Kaveh Akbar is not a light read but it mostly engaged me … Read More
This update is all about the fiction I’ve been reading over the past two months. Why just reading? Because this is the time of the year when nominations for major literary awards (such as the Booker Prize and the American National Book Award) emerge, and as a serious reader, I feel obliged to read as many nominated novels as possible … Read More
I’ve done a lot of reading of fiction over the past few months – eleven novels in all, including several very substantial ones – but have undertaken less movie and theatre-going in that time period. I was lucky enough, while in London during March, to attend nine plays, but nothing since I have returned to New Zealand. I have, however, … Read More
For three months between Feb-April 2024, I have been living and working in Sweden, employed by Stockholm University as ‘guest lecturer’. This post is the fourth of a series that discusses some of the highlights of my time there. Following on from my work with students in Stockholm, along with Undertaking PD in Finland and giving multiple lectures at the … Read More
For three months between Feb-April 2024, I have been living and working in Sweden, employed by Stockholm University as ‘guest lecturer’. This post is the third of a series that discusses some of the highlights of my time there. Following on from my work with students in Stockholm, along with Undertaking PD in Finland, I’ve also given multiple lectures at … Read More
For three months between Feb-April 2024, I have been living and working in Sweden, employed by Stockholm University as ‘guest lecturer’. This post is the second of a series that discusses some of the highlights of my time there. Following on from my work with students in Stockholm, and the various lectures I have been giving to undergraduates, I’ve also … Read More
For three months between Feb-April 2024, I have been living and working in Sweden, employed by Stockholm University as ‘guest lecturer’. This post is the first of a series that discusses some of the highlights of my time there. In addition to the Professional Development I’ve been undertaking in Finland, and along with the various lectures I’ve been giving to … Read More
It’s only a few weeks since I sent out my last newsletter but so much has happened during February and March that I wanted to share more with you. A lot of it is to do with the launch of my book….. I am currently working at Stockholm University and will be here until the end of May – having … Read More
Kia ora tatou Here we are just starting the first term of 2024 already. Hope it has all started well for you. Despite wanting to slow down a bit, it has been hectic for me. My Book Completing my book (Building Young Writers: Engaging and Motivating Year 4-8 Students in Writing) and getting it ready for publication has been my … Read More
This is a launch that I undertook with a class of Year 5-6 students. It has been filmed to illustrate the main steps of a writing launch that I deem to be important in getting students engaged and motivated in a writing topic and task and moving them clearly into the task. The class I am working with is made … Read More