Update on Murray Gadd Literacy Term 3 2020

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 doing our job and we’ve achieved a great deal with our students.

The most satisfying aspect of my year has been the development of my on-line writing lessons (on YouTube) during the main lockdown period and the subsequent establishment of an Online PLD Membership scheme, based initially around the video writing lessons.

 At this point, I want to thank those of you who have contacted me with notes of appreciation.  I’m so pleased that so many of you are finding my resources useful and stimulating, especially those connected with the PLD Membership scheme.

Over the recent break, I’ve been busy.  It began with a great workshop for 60 teachers at Learning Network in Henderson and then moved on to planning for 2021.  So far, I’ve agreed to work with 17 schools across the country, but mainly in Auckland and Wellington.

But over the past week I’ve really enjoyed developing several new resources for my Online PLD Membership scheme 

Three New Video Lessons

There are three new writing lessons added, based on picture books:

• a personal experience writing lesson for NE-Year 1 students based on Anthony Browne’s ‘How Do You Feel?’;
• a narrative writing lesson for Year 2-4 students based on Margaret Mahy’s ‘Down the Back of the Chair’;
• a personal experience writing lesson for Year 5-8 students based on Margaret Wild’s tale of refugees, ‘The Treasure Box’.

And Three New ‘Murray Talks’ Videos

Yes, there are also three new ‘Murray Talks’ videos added, about the teaching of writing:

• one on Topic and Task Selection;
• one on Purposes, Text-Types and Audiences;
• one on Teaching Approaches.

These are accompanied by downloadable teacher notes (PDF) on each of the 3 new writing lessons and each of the 3 new ‘Murray Talks’.

Are You Already A Member?

Simply login to your Membership account to access the newly uploaded resources.  Feel free to leave comments in the comment section for any of the resources.

Not Yet A Member – Who’s This For?

The Annual Membership for Online PLD is aimed at all educators, teachers and learning motivators who wish to ‘build excitement, engagement & achievement in writing’. The tools made available within the membership are based on a belief that teachers can make a difference for all students, regardless of their level of ability.

They are developed around a long-term goal of students becoming motivated, independent writers, who are able to communicate confidently, proficiently and with impact. Teachers can use the video lessons directly with students or to get teaching ideas from.

The Murray Talks videos are direct-to-camera talks on an aspect of effective implementation. You can use the resources at the whole-school level, or at the team/whanau level or at the individual teacher level – whatever suits your establishment / organisation.  Teachers may also wish to purchase individual access to learn more about good instructional writing practices and inquire into the effectiveness of their own practices.

What Does Membership Provide?

1. 19 Murray ‘Reads and Writes From’ video lessons​
   • ​​Plus three new video lessons added each new term
2. 6 Murray Talks videos around the teaching of writing 
   • Plus three new Murray Talks videos per each new term
3. Downloadable Teachers’ Notes ​
   • that supplement each talk or video
4. Access to a “Members Area” section where you can manage your Subscription, add remove and invite Group Managers and members to your Group.
5. Access to technical support for your membership plan.

Ready To Buy?