Welcome to Season 2 of The Literacy Lounge. We are so pleased with the response to our first season and cannot wait to keep chatting with you all. Whether you are listening on your commute or winding down with a hot drink after school, we hope these episodes continue to be useful, reassuring and easy to dip in and out of whenever you need them.

In this episode, we are heading back to school. Those six weeks (which never actually feel like six weeks) have flown by in a blur of family time, catch ups with friends and tackling the never‑ending life admin list. You have your back‑to‑school haircut, your new stationery and your freshly printed name labels for your new class.

You have also forgotten how to teach, cannot remember what the start of term looks like and are quietly panicking about whether your classroom is ready. Do not worry, Louise and I have got you covered. We will be sharing some back‑to‑school survival tips along with a few amusing tales of September chaos.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• What September was really like for us as teachers

• The best and worst parts of the new term

• Tips for teachers starting their very first job

• The random advice we were given (including the classic “don’t smile until Christmas”)

• September INSET days from both a consultant and teacher perspective

• Our own funny tales and some favourites from the team and the internet

Thanks for joining us. We hope this episode helps you feel a little more prepared, a little more reassured and a lot more ready to take on September.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we tackle a topic that so many schools find challenging: spelling.

Thank you for joining us for another episode of The Literacy Lounge. If you are enjoying the pod, don’t forget to subscribe and leave a five‑star review to help us reach even more teachers. We want these episodes to be short, practical snippets you can listen to whenever it suits you and return to whenever you need a refresher.

Lynne joins us again, following her brilliant appearance in our handwriting episode. If you missed that one, it is well worth going back to listen. Today’s conversation links closely to handwriting as we explore spelling, a skill that often holds pupils back from meeting the expected standard. With the Writing Framework placing such importance on transcription, we dig deeper into what strong spelling looks like and how teachers can support pupils effectively.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• The key indicators of a confident speller

• What schools find most difficult when teaching spelling

• The importance of strong phonics foundations

• What teachers should be marking and what pupils should be correcting

• The role of spelling tests and spelling lists

• What an effective spelling session looks like

• What progression in spelling should look like across the school

A huge thank you to Lynne for sharing her expertise. If you missed her earlier episode on handwriting, make sure you go back and give it a listen.

And with that, we wrap up Season 1 of The Literacy Lounge. Thank you for listening, sharing, subscribing and being part of our growing community. We cannot wait to bring you more conversations, more practical guidance and more literacy love in Season 2.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we continue our exploration of sentence development by moving beyond the early building blocks and into the next stage of pupils’ writing journeys.

Following on from our previous conversation with Lynne about early writing skills and securing a strong understanding of what a sentence is, we now look at what happens next. How do pupils move from writing a series of connected sentences to crafting paragraphs and coherent pieces of writing?

Lynne joins us to share her insights from the Writing Framework and from the briefings she delivered earlier in the year. Together, we unpick what pupils find tricky in lower KS2, what teachers should be focusing on, and how we can build the secure structures pupils need as they move towards upper KS2 and beyond.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• What pupils often find challenging when they move into Year 3

• What teachers should be focusing on in lower KS2

• How to support pupils who are struggling with sentence development

• How to help pupils make the move from sentences to paragraphs, which is essential for coherent writing and composition

• The final pieces of the puzzle pupils need in order to be ready for secondary school

Thank you to Lynne for joining us. If you missed Part 1, make sure you go back and listen to our conversation with Louise about early writing skills and securing the foundations.

Thanks for joining us. We hope this episode helps you feel confident about supporting pupils as they move from simple sentences to structured, meaningful writing.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we explore how pupils develop early writing skills and what teachers can do to build strong foundations from the very start.

With the writing framework and the curriculum and assessment review in mind, we begin in the early years, looking closely at the essential pre‑writing skills children need before they ever pick up a pencil with purpose. From there, we move into Year 1 and Year 2 to consider how these foundations grow into confident sentence construction.

Louise joins us with her wealth of EYFS knowledge and her experience weaving foundational skills through our updated writing units.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• The growing concern that pupils are being rushed into writing before they are ready, and what those essential pre‑writing skills actually are

• What the next steps look like once pupils are ready to begin sentence development, from early Year 1 into Year 2

• Where pupils typically get stuck and why

• What teachers can do to support pupils who need more time or targeted guidance

• What we ideally want pupils to be able to do before they move into KS2

We wrap up with thanks to Louise and a look ahead to Part 2, where Lynne will guide us through the next stages of sentence development.

We hope this episode helps you feel clearer about the building blocks of early writing and how to support pupils as they move from mark making to meaningful sentences.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we continue our two part series on making secure end of year judgements. After focusing on EYFS in Part 1, we now turn our attention to Year 6 and what teachers should be looking for as pupils reach the end of their primary journey.

It is now the summer term and thoughts are shifting towards final judgements and whether pupils are working at the expected standard. For Year 6 teachers who are part of the moderation process, these decisions often come earlier than in other year groups, which means evidence gathering can feel particularly pressing.

Allison joins us to help unpick what secure judgements look like, how to approach evidence, and what strong progress should look like at this point in the year.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• Following on from progress made in the spring term, what development should we expect to see in the summer

• How to approach making a judgement about a piece of writing

• Where the difficulties often lie and which elements teachers find hardest to evidence or judge

• How we can support pupils to meet the expected standard

• The key differences between the standards

• What to consider when pupils are working at PKS

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we begin a two part series exploring how teachers can make secure end of year judgements. We start in EYFS, where the process looks and feels very different from the rest of the school.

It is now the summer term and soon teachers will be asked to make final decisions about whether pupils have met the expected standard. EYFS brings its own unique challenges, from the nature of evidence to the pace of development, so we sit down with Louise to unpick what secure judgements look like and how to approach them with confidence.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• Following on from progress made in the spring term, what development we should expect to see in the summer

• What best practice looks like when making EYFS judgements

• How Year 1 should be involved in the process

• Where the difficulties often lie and why certain elements are harder to judge

• How we can ensure pupils achieve a Good Level of Development (GLD) and what GLD actually means

• Whether summer born children are more likely to struggle with GLD and the reasons behind this

Thank you for joining us. We hope this episode helps you feel clearer, more confident and ready to approach your EYFS judgements with a secure understanding of what matters most.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Links:

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we take a deep dive into the Phonics Screening Check and what teachers can be doing right now to prepare pupils for success.

Whether you are listening on your commute or winding down with a hot drink after school, we hope you find this conversation both useful and reassuring.

The PSC has been part of school life since 2012 and many of us remember that first year vividly. For those who are newer to it, or for anyone who would like a refresher, we walk through the essentials and share practical advice for supporting pupils in the run up to the check.

Louise joins us with her EYFS expertise to help unpack what strong phonics development looks like at this point in the year and how Year 1 builds on the foundations laid in Reception.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• What the Phonics Screening Check actually is

• Who should be taking the check

• What adaptations can be made

• What the pass mark might look like this year

• What phonics development should look like in Spring 2

• How Year 1 builds on the work done in Reception

• How to support pupils who are struggling to blend

• Whether passing the PSC means a child is a reader

We hope this episode leaves you feeling clearer, more confident and ready to support your pupils in the weeks ahead.

So, grab a cuppa, settle in and enjoy The Literacy Lounge.

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠

Links:

Phonics blog

Phonics support video for your class

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we’re joined by Jon Smedley, founder of Teach Active, to explore the power of active learning and how movement can transform engagement across the curriculum.

From his early days in the classroom to creating Teach Active, Jon shares the journey that shaped his mission to get pupils up, moving and learning with purpose.

We dig into the principles behind Teach Active, the impact of physical activity on English and maths outcomes and what the recent Curriculum and Assessment Review might mean for schools. Expect practical ideas and plenty of inspiration for bringing more movement into your lessons.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• Jon’s career in teaching and how it led to the creation of Teach Active

• The key principles behind active learning and why movement matters

• How Teach Active supports English as well as maths

• Our thoughts on the Curriculum and Assessment Review - what we like, what we don’t and what it means for sport, maths and English

• Practical tips for teachers who want to get pupils moving more

• Jon’s favourite children’s book from his own school days

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions? Email us at [email protected]

Links:

Pathways to Write

Teach Active

The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies, or positions of The Literacy Company.

This episode takes a small step away from our usual format as we turn the spotlight onto one of our directors, Cath Richardson. If you are new to the podcast, Cath and Linda founded the company in 2013 and have led it through more than a decade of growth, challenge and change. From navigating the post‑Covid landscape to winning the ERA Award for Company of the Year, their journey has shaped everything we do today.

Cath shares her thoughts on this journey as well as what brought her to this point in the first place – all helped along by sharing some of the books which have had a lasting impact on her.

*Podcast now moving to fortnightly*

Things we chat about in this episode:

• What inspired Cath to become a teacher?
• Highlights/stories from Cath's teaching career
• Moving from teaching to consultancy
• What types of things Cath did for the LA and how did it shaped her ideas and practices
• Where did the idea to set up the company come from?
• What was it like in the early days?
• How has the company changed over the years?
• What we think the future of teaching English holds for us
• Going after your dreams!
• Current favourite reads
• The Pathways Literacy journey and favourite Pathways books

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠

Links:

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The opinions shared by our presenters and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views, policies or positions of The Literacy Company.

In this episode, we are going to focus on the hot topic of reading for pleasure. There’s been a lot in the press recently which we will pick up on and we are in the middle of the National Year of Reading which is encouraging us to ‘Go All In’. As pledge partners to this initiative we though we would share some of our thoughts and tips.

Things we chat about in this episode:

• The recent articles about Reading for Pleasure and what are our thoughts
• What we think the issue is with getting kids reading
• Is it too late to get this generation reading?
• How we can model reading for pleasure and support the Go All In initiative?
• How we would approach getting pupils interested in reading
• What does/doesn’t work
• How we see reading and the reasons we read (Hint: it isn't always pleasure!)

Any questions or podcast topic suggestions please email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Links:

⁠Pledge Partners - Go All In

Article - Why schools should stop pushing reading for pleasure

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