Improving students’ inference skills through numeracy

I often use non-text based inference activities to develop students’ familiarity with the skill, before moving on to looking at texts. I’ve found that this engages students who find numbers more comfortable, it opens them to discussion and allows them to think, and then develop their thinking in different ways.

Learning quotes for Macbeth and Jekyll & Hyde? Download these free flashcards

Getting students to learn quotes for Macbeth and Jekyll & Hyde is hard, but they'll need them for their English Literature Exam. I've made these flashcards and will be using them in lessons with both years 10 and 11 - as well as giving year 11 a set to print themselves to revise for mocks. …

Why are students’ inference skills important?

Inference is a difficult skill to learn, but it is an essential one for all students sitting written exams. With that in mind, I'm going to post for the next couple of weeks with some ideas you can use to develop students' inference skills, not just in English, but across the curriculum. 

Get your students to write themselves creative

Using writing to develop creativity – flipping the thinking. Getting students to write can be difficult, especially if it requires creativity.

Use my PAWS structure to get more from your students’ reading

Having students sit and read is easy, and it’s great for so many reasons. It develops their reading skills, which in turn improves vocabulary, general knowledge, understanding of texts, concentration, emotional intelligence (the list goes on). But, how can you be sure they’re actually doing it? Not looking out of the window or day dreaming? …

Becoming a self-reflective teacher

Our whole existence is all about improvement, we inspire it – and if that doesn’t work – demand it from the people around us. But what do we do to make sure we are improving personally?

Time for teaching, time for you

Teaching is full on - everyone knows that. From that first day back, late nights marking, parents’ evenings, to the caffeine fuelled last day of term. Sometimes we all feel overworked, and I suppose that’s normal. We’re very quick to teach our students about the techniques they need to succeed, but do we think about …

Bringing the world into your classroom

As a teacher who loves to travel, I try to bring the world into the classroom at every opportunity. I’m not just talking about discussing where I've been on holiday - I’m talking about using what’s around me to hook a student’s interest outside of the subject, then develop their understanding within it. Why? Young …

Boost creativity in your life, classroom or home

Creativity underpins imagination, resilience, versatility and empathy – so why do we spend so little time thinking about it? Most jobs of the future don’t currently exist – so young people will need to be creative. Of course, content is important – but increasingly people sink or swim on their skills and how creatively or …

Becoming “read fit”

I think every teacher I've ever spoken to loves reading. I think it's part of the job. The fact you are reading this now is a symptom of it. But what you’re doing is the result of years of practice, dedication, mistakes and successes to make you “read fit” – you are an athlete and reading …