In the realm of education and cognitive science, the significance of revision and repetition in the learning process cannot be overstated. These fundamental strategies play a pivotal role in transferring information from short-term to long-term memory. One innovative method that incorporates these principles is the practice of daily literacy reviews.
Anzac Day is an important and special part of both Australia and New Zealand and a topic that I have found can be very engaging for students. When introducing Anzac Day activities in your classroom, it is crucial to consider the prior knowledge and experiences that each child brings with them and how this can…
ANZAC Day, held on April 25th each year, is an important event for both Australian and New Zealanders. We teach this integral part of our collective history in classrooms at all levels, which makes finding interesting and creative ways to teach this topic even more important. Keep reading to find some great Anzac Day teaching…
I’ve put this blog post together to highlight some great Treaty of Waitangi Books for Kids. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, Treaty of Waitangi Treaty Ideas, I am actually surprised by the lack of books for children around such an important issue in New Zealand’s past, present and future. However, with a bit…
Introducing Our New Whole-Class School Journal and Junior Journal Teaching Slides Are you looking for an engaging, structured, and evidence-based way to teach reading? Our new Whole-Class School Journal and Junior Journal Teaching Slides are here! These ready-to-use resources provide everything you need to teach reading effectively using the Science of Reading and Structured Literacy…
While Te Tiriti o Waitangi – The Treaty of Waitangi and Waitangi Day are important parts of New Zealand’s past, present, and future, these topics aren’t always easy to teach in the classroom. Read on to find some great Treaty of Waitangi teaching ideas for how to make the Treaty of Waitangi and Waitangi Day…
If you are in search of great Back to School activities for NZ or Australian classrooms – or even further afield, we have a great range available. I’ve also put together a great range of Back to School blog posts that will help you to get to know your students and set up the year…
Te Wiki o te Reo Māori – Maori Language Week is celebrated from the 14th – 21st of September 2024.I’ve put together this blog post to highlight free and low-cost resources to use during this week (and hopefully all year!). There are many free and low-cost resources available; learning and promoting te reo Māori does not need…
Mālō e lelei! Mālō e lelei! Tongan Language Week – Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e Lea Faka-Tonga is an exciting time of the year. In 2024, this event is held from August 18-24. This blog post highlights some exciting resources I have so you can explore the Tongan culture and language in your classroom during Tongan Language…
The importance of improving students’ vocabulary cannot be overstated. Having a large vocabulary helps students to develop their reading comprehension and writing skills. In fact, research has shown that children with larger vocabularies achieve better results at school, including higher reading achievement in particular. Targeting morphology is one way to teach vocabulary. What is morphology? Morphology…
This blog post explains why explicitly teaching semantics is important, and how you can teach semantics to increase vocabulary. We also highlight some handy tools to do just that! What is semantics? Semantics is the study of meaning in language. It is concerned with how words and phrases are used to convey meaning, and how…
Have you had a chance to explore the new Aotearoa New Zealand Histories Curriculum? The Treaty of Waitangi – Te Tiriti o Waitangi is understandably a key focus. To succeed in today’s world, students need to understand the history of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and perspectives of those who are impacted by this important document…
A great Getting to Know You activity for your classroom takes a group of students who have just met and builds a sense of community. I remember sitting in front of my very first class. 28 Year 5 and 6 students, all sitting quietly, nervously on the mat, looking around at each other and then…
I recently was asked for some practical suggestions for using our new range of “A Week in NZ’s History” resources. I am passionate about providing practical tips for busy teachers, so I hope these suggestions help. Our “A Week in NZ’s History” resources Our Week in New Zealand’s History resource explores key moments within Aotearoa New…
Research tells us that better listeners are better readers. We’ve put together this list of 10 Great Podcasts for Kids to highlight some excellent podcasts that provide active listening practice. Why Listen to Podcasts? Reading is a function of two key components: decoding and language comprehension. Listening is a key part of language comprehension. In…
Why You Should Be Teaching Text Structures The whole purpose of reading is to make meaning – that is, to understand what we read (reading comprehension). As teachers, we want our students to understand what they are reading; it is pointless, otherwise. As they move through the school levels, we also want them to understand…
Collaborative activities are the perfect way to explore Waitangi Day and the Treaty of Waitangi. With Waitangi Day commemorated at the beginning of the school year, our resources help you to cover this important part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s history while it is front and centre in your students’ minds. In the first weeks of…
I am excited to share this blog post and explain my top five teaching resources from our Top Teaching Tasks range! There is something in our top five teaching resources for everyone! So without further ado, and in no particular order, here are out top five! NZ History Time Travel Adventure (Print and Digital) Year…
Ngā pakanga o Aotearoa – the New Zealand Wars took place between 1845 and 1872 and spanned many conflicts and regions within New Zealand. The wars were about who controlled the country and who owned Aotearoa’s land. Around 3 million acres of Māori land were confiscated or sold and 2899 people were killed, with many…
In this blog post, I share with you how to use QR Codes as a Digital Reading Tool. I’ll also take you step-by-step through how to use a QR code and also explain how you can make your own. What are QR Codes? I am not going to attempt to explain that QR Codes are…
In my previous blog post, What is Guided Reading? I defined guided reading and shared the research and history behind this approach to building comprehension. In this blog post, I wanted to follow-up to give you some Practical Tips for Running a Guided Reading Lesson. Not everyone is a fan of guided reading, and that’s…
I’ve previously explained how my reading programme features four main aspects: Reading to, Shared Reading, Guided Reading, and Independent Reading. In this blog post, I answer the question: What is Guided Reading? I’ll also look at some of the research and history behind this approach to building comprehension. What is guided reading? Guided reading is…
What is Reciprocal Reading? Have you heard about reciprocal reading (also known as reciprocal teaching)? I love the way this strategy enables independent readers to work together in a self-managing team to discuss a difficult text. They teach each other and take turns leading. Let me tell you more about it! The four comprehension strategies students…
Samoan Language Week is held in 2024 from Sunday 26 May – Saturday 1 June. I’ve put this blog post together to highlight our Samoan Language Week Activities. Samoa Language Week – Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa is a fantastic event held each year to celebrate the language and culture of Samoa. “Ma’au i lou…
In this blog post, I explore the research behind our reading comprehension resources and the “why” behind the way we set out our activities. At the heart of it, here at Top Teaching Tasks, we provide reading passages and activities on engaging topics that help students to understand what they read. We do this by…
A common question I see regularly in teacher Facebook groups is “What is a good classroom read-aloud novel?” so I’m here to help. In fact, I knew just WHO to ask to help. Melina from Galarious Goods is passionate about books in a way that can really not be described. She is a fountain of…
Building Content-Area Literacy into our Integrated Reading Resources I’m excited to introduce our two new integrated reading resources. These reading units help students to increase their literacy engagement and grow their understanding of texts across the curriculum (content-area literacy). For example, our Kiwi Innovators unit features interesting texts that don’t shy away from using scientific…
When I surveyed trainee teachers on topics they would like advice on, the resounding and clear winner was tips for Successful Parent-Teacher Communication. From memory, this topic wasn’t something covered when I was going through teacher training. However, there are so many benefits for parents being active in their child’s education, and clear communication will…
I don’t know about you, but in planning the first week of school I always preferred to be overplanned and overprepared – you never know what can happen! The beginning of the year is so exciting – setting up your classroom, preparing resources, and looking forward to getting to know your new students. One step…
I am conscious of the fact that while many graduates are successful in gaining employment right away, others will spend time relieving at the beginning of their career. Others may choose to relieve at different points in their career for a myriad of reasons, so I wanted to provide some relief teacher tips and tricks!…
Top Teaching Tasks