Exploring teachers' knowledge of children's literature

In the context of the current debate about teaching reading, research to ascertain primary teachers' personal and professional reading practices was undertaken. The study explored teachers' reading habits and preferences, investigated their knowledge of children's literature, and documented their reported use of such texts and involvement with library services. Questionnaire responses were gathered from 1200 teachers. The data were analysed and connections made between the teachers' own reading habits and preferences, their knowledge of children's literature, their accessing practices and pedagogic use of literature in school. This paper reports on part of the dataset and focuses on teachers' knowledge of children's literature; it reveals that primary professionals lean on a narrow repertoire of authors, poets and picture fiction creators. It also discusses teachers' personal reading preferences and considers divergences and connections between these as well as the implications of the teachers' limited repertoires on the reading development of young learners

Visual approaches to teaching writing

xvii, 195 p. ; 24 c

Classroom Interactions in Literacy

This book examines some of the complexities and debates about language, literacy and learning, challenging current assumptions about shared understanding of pedagogical principles. It foregrounds social and cultural issues and the nature of interaction between children and teachers; children and children; children and texts of all kinds; and the significance of wider interactions within the teaching profession. The contributors revitalise debate about the nature of professional knowledge, provide insights into the detail of classroom discourse and teacher interventions and examine the transformative possibilities of literacy. They argue for a more open and expansive agenda informed by an analytically constructive view of pedagogy and challenge the profession to move from restrictive certainties to the potent possibilities of development through uncertainty and risk

Teachers as readers in the 21st Century

About the book: Acts of Reading is an enchanting and scholarly review of the history of reading and texts for children, from the 18th century to the digital age and beyond. They are examined through the eyes of their various audiences: the children, writers, teachers and parents, so as to explore the act of reading itself, whether oral, silent or performative, whether for pleasure or instruction. We see the changing representations of childhood over three centuries and the influence of the visual on reading. The genres explored include commonplace books, fairy tales, poetry, fiction, fables, picturebooks, Arthurian legends, online messageboards, reading primers and A Very Pretty Story (1744). This collection was inspired by Jane Johnson's unique 18th century nursery library, which sheds light on perceptions of childhood and texts for children at the time. It traces the progression of the ideas around reading and childhood past, present and future, looking at the 19tth century through classic children's literature. It shows how our expectations and ways of teaching are being modified as a result of the changes in the book and its relationship to other media, including multimodality and the digital technologies

Teaching Writing Effectively: Reviewing Practice (2nd edition)

This self-support book for teachers and subject leaders provides the basis for a thorough review of classroom practice in teaching writing. Bringing together key ideas about teaching writing from contributors with extensive experience of working with teachers to improve classroom writing, the book covers: - the role of the English subject leader - purposes for writing in the curriculum - teachers as writers - talk for writing - the writer’s voice - issues of diversity and inclusion - spelling, handwriting, grammar and punctuation - response to writing - assessmen