Oxford Education Podcast

Mary Hamley

James Clements

Lindsay Pickton

Dr. Sarah McGeown



Learn all about the link between motivation and reading for pleasure in this insightful conversation between Oxford Education’s Mary Hamley and reading experts James Clements, Lindsay Pickton and Dr Sarah McGeown.

We discuss how you can grow a reading culture in your classroom, how to encourage students to read for pleasure, and practical tips to support motivating students to read more.

James Clements is an education writer and reading for pleasure advocate.
Lindsay Pickton is primary English specialist. He tweets at @EnglishHubUK
Dr Sarah McGeown is a reading for pleasure and literacy expert. She tweets at @DrSarahMcG
Mary Hamley is Head of Primary Digital Literacy and Reading at Oxford University Press.

Further reading and support:

Learn more about Readerful - a new reading library packed with ingredients to motivate children to read more.
Order a free Readerful taster pack for your school.
Find out more about the Love to Read project that Sarah mentions.

Aaron Wilkes

Josh Preye Garry

Alex Fairlamb

Becky Carter

Dan Lyndon-Cohen



Aaron Wilkes, Alex Fairlamb, Becky Carter, Dan Lyndon-Cohen and Josh Preye Garry discuss how effective teaching of case studies on the fights for Women's Rights, Disability Rights, Black Civil Rights and LGBTQ+ Rights can enrich your Key Stage 3 curriculum.

What do students gain from studying these topics at KS3? How has historical scholarship changed in recent years? What is the impact of new research on how we should teach these topics?

Aaron, Alex, Becky, Dan and Josh answer these questions and offer advice to any teacher thinking of introducing the fight for rights into their curriculum.

Aaron Wilkes has over 20 years’ experience working in schools as a teacher, department, and faculty leader. He also works with the PGCE History trainees at the University of Warwick. In addition to the classroom, Aaron is also one of the leading history authors in school publishing and his KS3 History series, now in its fourth edition and published by Oxford University Press, is currently the best-selling KS3 History textbook series/online package in the UK. Aaron is also Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s NEW KS3 Depth Studies: The British Empire, African Kingdoms, Fight for Rights, and Migration Nation. He is the Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s KS4 History textbooks which match the AQA and Edexcel GCSE History specification and is involved with the BBC as an Educational Consultant for their Bitesize and Teach series. Aaron tweets at @WilkesHistory

Alex Fairlamb is a Senior Leader in charge of Teaching and Learning and CPD, based in the North East. She is a Specialist Leader in Education and an Evidence Lead in Education. Alex is a proud member of the Historical Association Secondary Committee and the Schools North East Steering Board. Alex is a History teacher and former Lead Practitioner of History and Teaching and Learning, with a strong commitment to ensuring that curriculums are diverse. Her research interests centre on diversity within the curriculum, evidence informed teaching and learning practice within schools, and social justice in education. Alex tweets at @lamb_heart_tea

Becky Carter is a secondary history teacher of 10 years in Nottingham. She has experience of being a mentor for PGCE and SCITT students, and is a current ECT mentor. Becky has spent time working to diversify the school's KS3 curriculum, with a particular focus on LGBTQ+ history alongside running the school's LGBTQ+ student group. She is a long standing member of the History Teacher Book Club and is keen to include historians' work in lessons. Becky tweets at @missrcarter89

Dan Lyndon-Cohen has 30 years’ experience in the History Classroom as a teacher, HoD and Lead Practitioner. He is Director of the Schools History Project; author of 8 books on multicultural/migration histories; an education consultant for BBC Bitesize, National Portrait Gallery, Imperial War Museum and Colonial Countryside Project; and Exam constructor and Specification writer for OCR. Dan tweets at @danlyndon

Josh Preye Garry is a Head of Department at Park View School where he champions Decolonization and Anti-Racism within the Curriculum which has led to him receiving a National Diversity Award. He is currently studying an MSc at Oxford University where he is focusing on Teaching & Learning. Josh is a GCSE Examiner and has also written textbooks. His consultancy specialises in Black British History and pre-colonial African Kingdoms. Josh tweets at @JoshPreyeGarry

The publisher would also like to thank Dr Stella Moss (Royal Holloway, University of London), Vicky Iglikowski-Broad (Principal Records Specialist: Diverse Histories at The National Archives), Beckie Rutherford (University of Warwick),

Aaron Wilkes

Shalina Patel

Liberty Melly

Tia Shah



Aaron Wilkes and Shalina Patel discuss how effective teaching of migration can enrich your Key Stage 3 curriculum, with insights from Liberty Melly and Tia Shah from the learning team at the Migration Museum.

What do students gain from studying migration at KS3? How has historical scholarship on migration changed in recent years? What is the impact of new research on how we should teach the topic?

Aaron, Shalina, Liberty and Tia offer advice to teachers thinking of introducing migration into their curriculum.

Aaron Wilkes has over 20 years’ experience working in schools as a teacher, department, and faculty leader. He also works with the PGCE History trainees at the University of Warwick. In addition to the classroom, Aaron is also one of the leading history authors in school publishing and his KS3 History series, now in its fourth edition and published by Oxford University Press, is currently the best-selling KS3 History textbook series/online package in the UK. Aaron is also Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s NEW KS3 Depth Studies: The British Empire, African Kingdoms, Fight for Rights, and Migration Nation. He is the Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s KS4 History textbooks which match the AQA and Edexcel GCSE History specification and is involved with the BBC as an Educational Consultant for their Bitesize and Teach series. Aaron tweets at @WilkesHistory

Shalina Patel has over 13 years of experience in the classroom and is former Head of History and currently Head of Teaching and Learning and leader of the ITT programme at Claremont High School Academy in London. In 2018 Shalina won the Silver Pearson Teaching Award for Outstanding Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School and in 2021 won the GG2 Inspire Award. She has been featured in publications such as the Guardian and The Times and on programmes like Radio 4’s Three Pounds in my Pocket, BBC Woman’s Hour and BBC’s Teach Me A Lesson podcast. Shalina showcases her passion for hidden histories via @thehistorycorridor Instagram account and her first book will be published in 2023/4. Shalina tweets at @Ms_PatelHistory

Liberty Melly is the Senior Learning Manager at the Migration Museum, where she leads the ever-expanding learning programme which to date has engaged over 27,000 students across the UK and internationally. Since joining the team, she has grown the first seeds of a learning programme by developing relationships and delivering projects with teachers, teacher training bodies, multi academy trusts, exam boards and publishers. This is against a backdrop of growing urgency for more and better teaching and learning about migration and intersecting themes. Liberty has coordinated a national schools competition, provided training for hundreds of teachers and championed migration learning and teaching at all levels. Liberty completed her undergraduate degree in History from the University of Nottingham, and went on to complete a MA in Museums, Galleries and Contemporary Cultures. Liberty can be contacted here.

Tia Shah is the Learning Officer at the Migration Museum, focusing on the day-to-day delivery of the Migration Museum’s learning programme and engaging young people with the themes of migration. Tia completed a MA in Early Modern History from Durham University and has been working in heritage education for 6 years. Tia is particularly passionate about embedding young people’s voices into museums and heritage sites and diversifying the stories that are told there. As well as working at the Migration Museum, Tia’s other freelance work centres around getting young people into the heritage industry and helping them build life skills. In her spare time Tia is a Contributing Writer for Girl Museum, helping to share untold stories about girls throughout history...

Helen Prince

Gurav Dubay

Helen Prince and Gaurav Dubay discuss the crucial role vocabulary and oracy strategies play in the Key Stage 3 classroom. They highlight the importance of focusing on talk and vocabulary to help students rehearse written outcomes before taking the next step and moving onto writing. They discuss drama, fluency, modelling and reducing cognitive load with oral rehearsal.

Helen Prince is an English Advisor, author of Oxford University Press’s Get It Right: Boost Your Vocabulary workbooks, and CEO of ChatterStars. Helen tweets at @prince_helen

Gaurav Dubay is Head of English at an inner-city grammar school in Birmingham, one of our Pioneer Schools for Oxford Smart Quest. Gaurav tweets at @GauravDubay3

Further reading and support:

 Take a look at Helen’s Get It Right: Boost your Vocabulary workbooks
 Hear more from Gaurav on ‘Vocabulary Teaching: giving students a voice’ on the Oxford Education Blog
 Find out more about Oxford Smart Quest
 Get a free Oxford Smart Quest digital taster for your school
 Visit the Oxford Smart Quest Resource Hub where you’ll find blogs and case studies relating to KS3 English



View transcript

Teni Gogo

Katie Amery

Aaron Wilkes

Aaron Wilkes, Katie Amery and Teni Gogo discuss how effective teaching of African Kingdoms can enrich your Key Stage 3 curriculum.  
What do students gain from studying African Kingdoms at KS3? How has historical scholarship on African Kingdoms changed in recent years? What is the impact of new research on how we should teach the topic?  
 
Aaron, Katie and Teni answer these questions and offer advice to teachers thinking of introducing West African Kingdoms into their curriculum.  
 
Aaron Wilkes has over 20 years’ experience working in schools as a teacher, department, and faculty leader. He also works with the PGCE History trainees at the University of Warwick. In addition to the classroom, Aaron is also one of the leading history authors in school publishing and his KS3 History series, now in fourth edition and published by Oxford University Press, is currently the best-selling KS3 History textbook series/online package in the UK. Aaron is also Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s NEW KS3 Depth Studies: The British Empire, African Kingdoms, Fight for Rights, and Migration Nation. He is the Series Editor/co-author of OUP’s KS4 History textbooks which match the AQA and Edexcel GCSE History specification and is involved with the BBC as an Educational Consultant for their Bitesize and Teach series.  Aaron tweets at @WilkesHistory   
 
Katie Amery has more than 15 years' experience working in schools as a History and Politics teacher and department leader. She is also currently the subject lead for History Initial Teacher Training at Liverpool Hope University. Katie is passionate about curriculum diversity and working with fellow historians to promote cutting-edge thinking including with Toby Green. Katie is a keen blogger @educationalimposters and tweets at @KatieAmery
 
Teni Gogo is a History Teacher who has spent much of her career exploring medieval African Kingdoms and Black British History. She is currently a Postgraduate student at the University of Oxford as an Action Research Fellow for the Empire, Migration and Belonging Project.  Teni tweets at @tenigogo_
 
The publisher would also like to thank Professor Anne Haour and Toby Green for their valuable input into this project. 
  
Further reading and support:  
·         83% of schools surveyed report having made substantial changes to their Key Stage 3 curriculum in recent years to address issues of inclusivity and diversity. Read the Historical Association Secondary Survey   
·         Sign up for free samples and updates on OUP’s new KS3 History Depth Study series


View Transcript

Genevieve Bent
Lamorna Newcombe
Lynda Charlesworth
In this episode we welcome Genevieve Bent, Assistant Principal leading Sixth Form and former Head of Science at the Harris Federation, and Lynda Charlesworth, Head of Science at Camden School for Girls. Genevieve and Lynda talk to Lamorna Newcombe, Science Publisher at Oxford University Press, about the importance of identity in engaging students in their learning, and the impact of the strategies they are using in the science classroom.







Our speakers take a research-based approach to discussing the influence of science capital, culturally responsive teaching, and diversity and inclusion on learner identity. They also share some exciting ideas for increasing engagement and representation in STEM studies, activities and careers provision.
Further reading and support:


Every student needs to feel valued in order to succeed and learner identity is one of the key pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum Service. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.
Read our 10 top tips for starting a STEM club in your school on the Oxford Education Blog.
It is important that all learners can see themselves and people like them in the science narrative. Students need to know that they can use or do science as part of their life, where science becomes part of their identity. Read more on curriculum narratives in science on the Oxford Education Blog.

Kathrine Mortimore

Helen Prince talks to Kathrine Mortimore about ways to employ disciplinary literacy techniques in your classroom. The EEF have placed disciplinary literacy as their number one strategy for improving literacy in secondary schools. Kathrine and Helen discuss the importance of: showing students what excellence looks like in your subject; the explicit teaching of challenging key ideas and vocabulary; and scaffolding using carefully prepared materials. 

Kathrine Mortimore is currently an Associate Assistant Principal, leading literacy at Torquay Academy. Her most recent book 'Disciplinary Literacy and Explicit Vocabulary Teaching' is centred on moving forward those who are furthest behind by improving their literacy skills. This publication follows research she has undertaken into narrowing the attainment gap at the University of Cambridge, and whilst working in the context of Torquay Academy. Kathrine has also co-authored four of Neil Bowen's 'Art of..' literature study guides. She tweets at @Kathrine_28



Further reading and support:

Read more on disciplinary literacy strategies from Kathrine on the Oxford Education Blog.
Kathrine is particularly interested in tackling social inequalities through education and has been blogging about this topic for many years.

Action Jackson

Helen Prince talks to Jackson Ogunyemi, better known as Action Jackson, about the importance of being able to motivate, equip and empower to unlock young people’s confidence. He shares tips to help teachers motivate themselves and their students, discusses how psychology and physiology are interlinked, and stresses the importance of celebrating ourselves and our achievements.

“The opposite of winning is not losing; the opposite of winning is learning.”

Action Jackson is a motivational speaker, helping teachers motivate their learners to wake up happy and achieve. Known as the UK Ambassador for Happiness, he loves cheesecake, running and inspiring people. Action tweets at @Actionjackson

Further reading and support:

Are you looking for GCSE and A Level revision guides for your students? Developed by cognitive science and subject experts, Oxford Revise follows a simple three step strategy that helps students to make every minute of their revision count: Knowledge, Retrieval, Practice.
Explore the Oxford Revise student & parent hub for expert videos, past papers, revision planners, and advice.
Learner identity and Awe and wonder are two pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.

Laura Henry-Allain

In this episode of Diversifying Reading with Shareen Wilkinson, Shareen talks to Laura Henry-Allain MBE about the Lit in Colour research and diversifying children’s publishing, why we need to talk to children about race in school and at home, and how to be anti-racist.

Laura Henry-Allain MBE is an award-winning international writer, speaker and consultant. She is the creator of the well-loved CBeebies characters JoJo and Gran Gran as well as the series' associate producer. She is also executive producer on a few shows that are currently in development. She is the vice-president of the British Association for Early Childhood Education, and is an educational consultant for several well-known brands as well as children's media, television and publishing.

Laura's new children's book, My Skin, Your Skin, illustrated by Onyinye Iwu, explores race and racism, and empowers children to be the best versions of themselves.

Laura tweets at @LauraHAllain

Further reading and support:

Read more about the Lit in Colour research and find out what we're doing at OUP to support the initiative, including lots of practical tips for your school.
My Skin, Your Skin, written by Laura Henry-Allain and illustrated by Onyinye Iwu.
The Early Years Blacklist
Supporting you to Raise Antiracist Children, written by Laura Henry-Allain and Emma Worrollo for Mattel Play Room, 2020.

Daniel Fenwick

In this episode of Diversifying Reading with Shareen Wilkinson, Shareen talks to Deputy Headteacher Daniel Fenwick about his involvement with Penguin and The Runnymede Trust’s Lit in Colour initiative and the steps that his school have taken to teach a wider range of texts.

Daniel Fenwick is the Deputy Head and English Coordinator at St Wilfrid's Primary School. He has a real passion for English and one of his favourite things to do is to read stories to children of all ages. He’s a father to two young children and loves reading stories to them, particularly before bed.

Further reading and support:

Read more about the Lit in Colour research and find out what we're doing at OUP to support the initiative.
Download our free Getting Started Guide to diversifying literature in your school.
Penguin’s (in)complete book lists

Darren Chetty

In this episode of Diversifying Reading with Shareen Wilkinson, Shareen talks to Darren Chetty about his involvement with Penguin and The Runnymede Trust’s Lit in Colour initiative. They talk about why it’s important for all children to have access to a representative range of books, as well as ideas to support parents.

Darren Chetty is a Lecturer at UCL Institute of Education and has taught in London primary schools for twenty years. His research focuses on philosophy for children, multiculturalism and racism. Among his many books, columns and articles, he is the author of ‘You Can’t Say That! Stories Have to be About White People’ an essay in The Good Immigrant, edited by Nikesh Shukla. Darren tweets at @rapclassroom

Further reading and support:

Read more about the Lit in Colour research and find out what we're doing at OUP to support the initiative, including lots of practical tips and reading recommendations to share with parents.
Penguin’s (in)complete book lists
The Good Immigrant: 21 writers reflect on race in contemporary Britain edited by Nikesh Shukla (2017)
Reflecting Realities Survey of Ethnic Representation in Children’s Literature CLPE November 2021
Critical Philosophy of Race and Education edited by Judith Suissa and Darren Chetty (2021)
Secret Gardens: A Study of the Golden Age of Children's Literature by Humphrey Carpenter (2009)
‘Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors’ by Rudine Sims Bishop in Perspectives: Choosing and Using Books for the Classroom. Vol. 6, no. 3, Summer 1990. (PDF)
Darren's 'Beyond the Secret Garden' column in Books for Keeps
Musical Truth: A musical history of modern black Britain in 28 songs by Jeffrey Boakye (2021)

Penny Rabiger

Helen Prince talks to Penny Rabiger about the importance of listening to young people and what we can learn from them about race, identity and social justice. 

Penny Rabiger was a teacher for 10 years and has been working with social enterprises, charities and start-ups in the education sector since 2007. She was one of the founding directors of The Key for School Leaders, Head of Membership at Challenge Partners, and Director of Engagement with the Finnish edtech organisation Lyfta. Penny is a school governor at a north London primary school, Trustee on a south London multi-academy trust board, a member of the Haringey BAME achievement group and a Co-founder and Trustee of the BAMEed Network. Penny is a coach on the Leeds Beckett University Centre for Race, Education and Decoloniality's Anti-Racist Schools Award. 

Further reading and support:

Penny tweets at @Penny_Ten and you can read her blog here
Learner identity is one of the pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.

Nathan Burns

Helen Prince talks to Nathan Burns about his specialist subject, metacognition. Nathan explains the importance of embedding metacognition into day-to-day teaching, why modelling and monitoring are key approaches in the classroom, and the value metacognition plays in all areas of life, from poaching an egg to putting up a tent.




Nathan Burns is a teacher of Mathematics, Assistant KS3 Progress and Achievement Leader and More Able and Talented Co-Coordinator at David Nieper Academy in Alfreton. He is a former Metacognitive Implementation Lead, as well as the founder of metacognition.org.uk, which offers metacognitive resources and CPD. Nathan is passionate about teaching and learning, and has researched, written about and delivered CPD on metacognition for several years. He tweets at @MrMetacognition

Further reading and support:

Where does metacognitive modelling fit in the classroom? Read more from Nathan on the Oxford Education Blog.
Metacognition is one of the pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Read the curriculum direction paper.
Find out more about Oxford Smart Mosaic, an intuitive and impactful KS3 Maths course created by Oxford and Craig Barton which helps to embed mastery.

Louise Pennington

Louise Pennington and Adam Gaskell talk about supporting secondary transition in maths. They discuss removing barriers to maths learning, the benefits of using manipulatives and the meaning of mastery. 

Louise Pennington is Professional Development lead for Oxford University Press, previous teacher, specialist maths teacher and local authority SEND Team lead working with both primary and secondary schools, students and parents. She is a Numicon Author and vice-chair of the Mathematical Association's joint primary group. Louise tweets at @pdLouiseP 

Adam Gaskell is Head of Mathematics at a Leicestershire secondary school, NPQML and NCETM Mastery Advocate. Adam tweets at @MrGTeach 

Numicon Big Ideas helps upper Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 students learn and explore maths while building their confidence.

Further reading and support:

Find out more about Numicon Big Ideas for KS3.
Access resources to support transition to secondary school.

Kat Howard



Helen Prince talks to Kat Howard about curriculum implementation and how an exciting curriculum fires up and motivates learners. Kat also discusses fidelity to the subject, how to capitalise on colleagues’ interests and passions to enrich knowledge and extend the curriculum, and the importance of awe and wonder in the classroom.


Kat Howard is Head of Professional Learning for a large Multi-Academy Trust Teaching School Hub and is also the founder of national charity, Litdrive UK. In addition to her in-school role, Kat is an in-house Expert Adviser for the Teacher Development Trust, writing curriculum content for the Reformed NPQ Leadership Suite. In previous roles, she was a Senior Leader taking oversight of staff professional development, performance management and curriculum, with strategic leadership for English, and prior to her career in education, Kat gained extensive experience in the financial sector, overseeing recruitment, training and operations for a leading high street bank.




Further reading and support:

Kat tweets at @SaysMiss and blogs at https://saysmiss.wordpress.com/
Curriculum coherence is one of the pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.
Follow the conversation at @OUPSecondary

Tara Dodson

Katie Press

Caroline Derby talks to Tara Dodson and Katie Press to chat about Essential Letters and Sounds, a new DfE validated phonics programme developed by Knowledge Schools Trust English Hub and published by Oxford University Press. 

Caroline Derby is Head of Phonics and Early Literacy publishing at Oxford University Press. She has been a children’s and educational publisher for many years, specialising in primary literacy. She is also vice-chair of governors at a nursery school in Oxford. 

Tara Dodson has many years of experience in supporting schools across London as Reading Lead and developing CPD programmes for phonics and early reading. She is the English Hub Lead for the Knowledge Schools Trust English Hub. 

Katie Press is a specialist English teacher, supporting schools in developing their phonics practice and modelling high quality phonics and early reading teaching. She is the English Lead for the Knowledge Schools Trust Primaries and a Literacy Specialist for the KST English Hub. 

Further reading and support:

Find out more about Essential Letters and Sounds.
Is ELS the right SSP programme for your school? Watch our on-demand webinar where Tara and Katie are joined by Debbie James, Tanya Freeman and Lauren Heawood. They discuss why they chose the programme, how they've implemented it in their schools, what the successes and challenges have been, and how their pupils are getting on.

Lauren Stephenson

Helen Prince talks to Lauren Stephenson about metacognition and bridging the gap between research and the classroom. Lauren also talks about her role in the Research Schools Network, how research shows that working on self-regulation and metacognition with your students can add months to their progress, and shares her top recommendations for wider reading.


Lauren Stephenson is a Physics teacher and Assistant Director of Blackpool Research School.


Further reading and support:

Lauren tweets at @LST_Physics and blogs at http://www.teachingandlearningdiaries.com/
Lauren explores metacognitive strategies in the science classroom on the Oxford Education Blog.
Metacognition is one of the pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.

Aaron Bradbury

Helen Prince and Aaron Bradbury discuss the importance of creating a sense of belonging in the classroom and Aaron offers three ideas for teachers to take away around diversity, equity and inclusion.




Aaron is Principal Lecturer Early Years and Childhood (Learning and Development, Psychology, Special Educational Needs and Inclusion) at Nottingham Trent University. Aaron is the Chair of the LGBTQIA+ Early Years Working group and advocates for representation in the Early Years. He is a Member of the Coalition for the Early Years on the Birth to Five Matters and currently researching on Early Childhood workforce, The voice of the child, and Pioneers of Early Childhood. He is also Co-Chair of the Early Years Academy and owner of Early Years Reviews, Team Early Childhood Podcast.

Further reading and support:



Learner identity and Awe and wonder are two pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.

Zoe Enser

Helen Prince and Zoe Enser discuss metacognitive learning and how this can motivate students to feel empowered, helping them to build independence and resilience and become lifelong learners.

Zoe Enser was a teacher of English for over twenty years, a middle and senior leader and is currently working across Kent with the Education People as their English Specialist Adviser and an ELE (Evidence Lead in Education) for the EEF. She is also an author, having co-written Fiorella and Mayer’s Generative Learning in Action and the CPD Curriculum: Creating the Conditions for Growth and is a writer for TES and other educational publications. Zoe tweets at @greeborunner

Further reading and support:

Zoe explores metacognition in more detail and how student wellbeing can benefit from embedding these practices on the Oxford Education Blog.
Metacognition is one of the pillars of the Oxford Smart Curriculum. Find out more and read the curriculum direction paper.

In this episode of our series Word Up with Helen Prince, Helen chats to Sophie Bartlett about her experiences of being a primary Year 5/6 teacher. Sophie shares some great tips on how to use vocabulary in mixed year groups and explains how she successfully teaches whole class reading. Sophie also talks about how she uses Twitter as a positive way to engage and support other teachers and NQTs. 

Sophie is a Year 5/6 primary teacher, English & curriculum lead, and the brains behind #TeachLikeAChumpion on Twitter. 

Access the content referenced in this episode here: www.oup.com/education/podcasts

Emily Weston

Helen Prince talks to Emily Weston about the key role teachers can play in bridging the word gap at transition. Emily discusses her experience of moving from being a primary teacher to a transition role at a secondary school. She offers tips for improving transition from Year 6 to Year 7, for teachers and parents, and has some good advice for NQTs.

Emily Weston is a KS2/3 Transition teacher, blogger and founder of #TeacherSelfCareSunday on Twitter. She tweets at @primaryteachew

Further reading and support:

Emily kindly shares some of her 'Year 7 ready' transition resources.
The 3 Cs for a successful transition to secondary school. Emily Weston shares her top tips on the Oxford Education Blog.
Download the Oxford Language Report 2020: Bridging the Word Gap at Transition.
Access free support and resources to support students as they transition from Year 6 to Year 7.

Lindsay Bruce

Helen Prince talks to Lindsay Bruce about the importance of language and vocabulary in the History classroom. Lindsay shares her passion for teaching students to communicate their opinions, both orally and on paper, a skill that will set them up for life. 

Lindsay Bruce teaches History at a school in the West Midlands. She is an Assistant Head and is also an author for Oxford University Press. Lindsay tweets at @HistoryTeach0

 

Further reading and support:

Closing the word gap in History. Lindsay offers 6 ways to build Historic vocabulary on the Oxford Education Blog.
What can we do to bridge the word gap at transition? Read more from Lindsay on the Blog.
Lindsay shares practical classroom ideas to develop students’ understanding of key vocabulary in our activity pack 'Closing the Word Gap: activities for the History classroom'. Download a copy.

Dawn Cox

Helen Prince talks to Dawn Cox about strategies to teach subject vocabulary in the RE classroom, ensuring equality of provision, testing retrieval of key words, and the important role parents can play in supporting pupils. 

Dawn Cox is a Head of RE and SLE in Essex; she is also a respected blogger and author. She tweets at @missdcox

Further reading and support:

Dawn shares strategies to develop students’ understanding of the words they read, hear and speak. in our activity pack 'Closing the Word Gap: activities for the RE classroom'. Download a copy.

Matt Pinkett

Helen Prince talks to Matt Pinkett about strategies to raise expectations and improve outcomes for boys, the importance of challenging gender stereotypes and what good vocabulary teaching looks like in the classroom.




Matt Pinkett has had a number of teaching roles: Literacy Coordinator; Head of English; and Assistant Head Teacher of Teaching, Learning and Assessment. He is also a best-selling author, passionate about books, gender studies, and reducing social inequality. In his spare time he likes to wear ugly trainers. Matt tweets at @Positivteacha




Further reading and support:

Find out more about Super-Readable Rollercoasters, a series of accessible, readable fiction for KS3/11-14.

Michael Morpurgo

Helen Prince talks to Michael Morpurgo about his childhood, teaching career and success as a storyteller and writer. We learn how Michael’s love of stories was inspired by his actor mother and how a courageous decision to tell his first story to a Year 6 class, along with encouragement from Headteacher Mrs Skiffington, opened the door to him becoming an author of magical children’s books. 

If you missed part 1 we would recommend listening to that episode before tuning in to part 2. 

Michael Morpurgo is an award-winning storyteller, author, poet and playwright who has written over 120 books; a former teacher who went on to become Children’s Laureate. Michael is also series editor of TreeTops Greatest Stories published by Oxford University Press. 

Further reading and support:

Explore TreeTops Greatest Stories.
Find out how your child expands their vocabulary at primary school, and discover how you can help them learn new vocabulary at home here.

Michael Morpurgo

Helen Prince talks to Michael Morpurgo about his childhood, teaching career and success as a storyteller and writer. We learn how Michael’s love of stories was inspired by his actor mother and how a courageous decision to tell his first story to a Year 6 class, along with encouragement from Headteacher Mrs Skiffington, opened the door to him becoming an author of magical children’s books.

Michael Morpurgo is an award-winning storyteller, author, poet and playwright who has written over 120 books; a former teacher who went on to become Children’s Laureate. Michael is also series editor of TreeTops Greatest Stories published by Oxford University Press.

Further reading and support:

Explore TreeTops Greatest Stories.
Find out how your child expands their vocabulary at primary school, and discover how you can help them learn new vocabulary at home here.

Baasit Siddiqui

Helen Prince talks to Baasit Siddiqui about his time as a teacher and his journey to becoming one of our favourite Gogglebox regulars.   

As well as being a professional educator, Baasit has been helping to support his daughter’s home learning during school closures. Baasit talks about the remote learning strategies his child’s school used to help build pupils’ vocabulary, as well as the positive experience of seeing his daughter learn through play during lockdown.  

Baasit Siddiqui is the managing director of Siddiqui Education Ltd. Baasit’s passion is to educate, motivate and build aspirations of disadvantaged school children across the nation, using his unique experiences and connections as an educator, entertainer and entrepreneur. He tweets at @SiddiquiEdu

Further reading and support:

Visit our wellbeing hub for support for parents and teachers.
Read our Numicon guide for parents.
Find advice and support for parents and carers to help close the word gap at home.

Moira Marder

Helen Prince and Moira Marder discuss the effective leadership techniques Moira has used across the Ted Wragg Trust, a group of 12 schools and 9,000 pupils.  

They talk about the importance of creating a strong team and creating sustainability with a long-term vision for schools.  A lovely conversation about optimism and creating opportunities for our young people.  

Moira is the Chief Executive Officer of The Ted Wragg Multi-Academy Trust; an Exeter-based Trust set up in 2013 to transform the quality of education and life chances for all pupils in Exeter.  

Further reading and support:

Visit our wellbeing hub for support for parents and teachers.
Download our report 'How Schools are Closing the Word Gap: The Oxford Language Report 2021-22' for a series of case studies from teachers packed with ideas and suggestions for narrowing the Word Gap.

Louise Pennington

Helen Prince talks to Louise Pennington about communication in children with special educational needs.  Louise outlines the challenges some children with SEND face from early years through to secondary education and how the Word Gap can affect this, before offering strategies to help support teachers and pupils. 

Louise Pennington is the Professional Development Lead for maths and Numicon at Oxford University Press. She is a founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching and previous Primary Teacher, SENCO and Local Authority SEND Team Leader.  Louise tweets at @pdLouiseP

Further reading and support:

Louise recommends 10 favourite gins with an education connection!
The Communication Trust: A website for professionals supported by a collection of not-for-profit organisations.
I CAN's Talking Point: A guide to the typical stages of speech and language development in babies, children and young people.

Laura Patch

Helen Prince talks to Laura Patch about who and what inspired her to pursue a career in acting. Laura discusses how a broad vocabulary range helps her develop the characters she plays. They also chat about some of the challenges faced by parents during home schooling (peppered with amusing anecdotes from the village WhatsApp group!).

Laura Patch is a British comedy actor and mum to three young boys.

Further reading and support:

Visit our wellbeing hub for support for parents and teachers.
Find advice and support for parents and carers to help close the word gap at home.

In this episode of our series Word Up with Helen Prince, Helen and Phil Minns chat about the joy of working in an Early Years setting, and discuss the impact of school closures on Early Years learning. They look at how to identify and prioritize which gaps to focus on, as well as discussing the importance of EYFS teachers working with KS1 teachers to ensure children have the basics to build on in the next step in their education. 

Phil also talks about his time with Ofsted and the rewarding moments of working with schools.  A funny and light-hearted conversation covering everything from drama and stories to crisp flavours and musicals! 

Phil is one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and is the specialist advisor for Early Years and Primary education. He has been Assistant Director of Children’s Services with responsibility for education, SEND and Early Years. 

Access the content referenced in this episode here: www.oup.com/education/podcasts

Shareen Wilkinson

The link between extensive reading and a broad vocabulary is well known, but how can teachers expand children’s vocabulary when they’re reluctant to read?  

Helen Prince and Shareen Wilkinson talk about children’s literature, early memories, reading and poetry. Shareen discusses the different strategies she uses to engage children with reading; including dance, music and drama. Shareen also shares stories from her best lessons and why they’ve been so successful.  A lovely conversation looking at the link between vocabulary and reading in primary schools. 

Shareen Wilkinson is a primary school senior leader, former LA lead Primary English advisor, and an established educational author and series editor. Shareen advises at national level, including as a DfE grammar and reading (KS1 and KS2) subject specialist. She tweets at @ShareenAdvice

Further reading and support:

Shareen offers practical strategies to teach vocabulary in the classroom in this blog.
Shareen's popular webinar on 'Closing the vocabulary gap in primary schools' is available to watch on demand.
Find out more about Word Sparks, fully decodable books that tackle the word gap, developed with series editors Shareen Wilkinson and James Clements.