Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract (CPA): Guide to Building Mathematical Understanding and Supporting SEN Mathematics can feel abstract and disconnected from reality for many pupils. Numbers, symbols, and operations often exist in a world that seems far removed from their everyday experiences. This is …

I think the people who invented the English language were just trying to see how much they could confuse us. Honestly, it feels personal sometimes. We teach our kids that words have specific meanings. We teach them that spelling matters. …

English phonics can feel like a game where the rules change halfway through. We teach our kids that C is for “Cat” and makes a /k/ sound. We teach them that G is for “Goat” and makes a /g/ sound. …

Summer is supposed to be a break. No alarms. No homework battles. No rushed mornings. Just a chance for kids to relax and reset.  So when the school year ends, it’s easy to think, They’ll be fine without math for a few months. After all, everyone …

The -CK Word Family Teaching Activities The -ck word family is one of the most consistent, reliable patterns in early reading. Once a child understands why we use “-ck” instead of just “k” or “c,” they unlock hundreds of words …

The -ea word family sails into phonics with the elegant long E sound (/ē/ as in eagle), offering a treasure trove of rhymes that whisk learners to beaches, kitchens, and meadows. This vowel digraph (e-a) teaches irregular patterns, sometimes long …

The -uck Word Family Word Lists There is something incredibly satisfying about the “-uck” word family. It is punchy. It is percussive. And, let’s be honest, it is a favorite among kids because it rhymes with… well, let’s just say …

Adjectives ending in K provide some of the sharpest, most distinctive sounds in the English language. This termination creates an abrupt stop (the unvoiced velar plosive /k/), giving these words a punchy, decisive feel. Unlike the flowing suffixes of -ous …

I understand the constraints. We are going deep, we are keeping it real, and we are absolutely banning those robotic corporate buzzwords Let’s be honest for a second. How many times this week have you marked a piece of creative …

The -ug word family packs a punch for phonics fun, highlighting the short U vowel (/ŭ/ as in umbrella) in bouncy, rhyming words that evoke bugs, hugs, and tugs-of-war. This rime helps emerging readers master blending (/d/ + ug = …