Most of us would agree on the importance of listening to student voice when developing and implementing a classroom programme. In the context of an instructional writing programme, this means finding out: How do my students feel about writing? How do they feel about themselves as writers? How do they feel about the writing instruction they receive at school? Finding … Read More
Kia ora koutou katoa Updated Oct 26th 2021. I do hope that you are doing OK out there in lock-down. We have had several enquiries on how to share videos with students. As a result of the lockdown, we have decided to make some of the videos easier to share with your tamariki. About Working With Video Lessons As a … Read More
Online security is important to us and we will shortly be enhancing our website login security for Membership Subscribers. From 10th November 2021, we will be introducing a technology known as Two Factor Authentication (abbreviated to 2FA). What Is Two Factor Authentication (2FA) When you log in to an account online, you mostly use a simple ‘username and password’ combination to … Read More
Kia ora tatou, Hope you all had a great break – though it probably seems ages ago now – and that the weather and/or the trans-Tasman bubble breaking didn’t interrupt your plans too much. The purpose of this update is to inform you of what’s new on the website – both free and paid resources – and to catch you … Read More
2020 was a tough year for all of us, given the two lock-downs that Auckland educators faced during the year as well as the abandonment of overseas travel. But I finished it nicely. I’m just completing six weeks of relaxing (mainly at home), reading, swimming, walking and a little bit of socialising. I hope your break has been good as … Read More
Kia ora koutou, I do hope you’ve all had a great break, getting yourself ready to take on the challenges of the final term. Yes, it’s been a difficult year hasn’t it, especially for those of us who live in Auckland. But, as a professional community, I think we’ve done very well. We’ve taken risks, we’ve found new ways of … Read More
Kia ora tatou, I’m very excited Our new subscription product called: Annual Membership for Online PLD – “Building Excitement, Engagement and Achievement in Writing with Dr. Murray Gadd” – is now available. Yay! I have geared myself up to this for a long time now, and it’s great to be able to finally present this resource to the world. I … Read More
As the lock-down started late March 2020, I was about to get on a plane to fly to Sweden for a two-month working stint at Stockholm University, working on literacy issues with teachers of students with intellectual disabilities. I’ve been doing this for four years now and this was to be my fifth visit. But alas, like everyone else in … Read More
The beginning of the school year fast looms and, like all teachers, I am getting ready for it. Almost all working days for the year have been allocated already and I am now taking tentative bookings for 2021. During 2020 I will be undertaking in-depth LPD projects (mostly around writing) in 17 schools around New Zealand: 6 in Auckland 1 … Read More
Over the past fortnight (21-28 October), I have had the privilege and pleasure of hosting a teacher from Sweden (Maarten Koops) as he undertook observations of writing lessons in 14 Year 3-10 classrooms and interviewed teachers and students as part of these observations. Observations were undertaken at Balmoral School (Auckland), Clayton Park School (Auckland), Dominion Road School (Auckland), Ranui School … Read More