by Sharona Edwards | January 13, 2017 | School Start Articles, School Start Videos |
The first year of school sets the foundation for success. Children learn to become more independent, follow routines and learn essential skills that provide the platform for future learning. Set your child up for success with these ten tips. Teach your child to...
by Sharona Edwards | October 11, 2016 | School Start Articles |
Phonics is a method of teaching spelling by focusing on the sounds in a word. Children need to be able to hear and break words into sounds and then learn the letter patterns that make these sounds. For example, the long “a” sound can be made with eleven different...
by Sharona Edwards | October 10, 2016 | School Start Articles |
Children who begin school recognising most letters of the alphabet and the sounds they make will generally progress more quickly with reading and writing than those who don’t. I have taught junior primary students for many years. At the beginning of each year I assess...
by Sharona Edwards | October 7, 2016 | School Start Articles |
Teaching your child to go from writing single words to putting their thoughts and ideas into sentences seems like a big leap, but it is a skill that anyone can teach. This is my favourite stage of teaching children to write because it is where I see the most rapid...
by Sharona Edwards | October 6, 2016 | School Start Articles |
Next time your child draws you a beautiful picture and happily explains what they have drawn, grab a marker and write exactly what they say underneath the picture. This is one of the easiest ways to teach a child to write! When your child watches you write what they...
by Sharona Edwards | October 5, 2016 | School Start Articles |
When children are able to spell well, writing becomes more enjoyable and effortless. The problem is often that there are so many words that it can seem overwhelming and it is hard to know which words to teach and where to start. There are a number of key strategies...
by Sharona Edwards | October 4, 2016 | School Start Articles |
You may feel unsure about what words you should teach your child first. Beginning with your child’s name, is a great place to start. But where do you go next? A good starting point will be to begin with the sound we teach children when learning the letters of the...
by Sharona Edwards | October 3, 2016 | School Start Articles |
Learning to write with the correct pencil grip is much easier than trying to correct an incorrect pencil grip as children get older. You can start putting this important skill into practice before children begin school. Activities to strengthen hand and wrist muscles...
by Sharona Edwards | June 10, 2015 | School Start Articles |
‘Sight Words’ are frequently used words that are beneficial to learn as a whole by sight. They are words that can be blended, for example ‘th-a-t’, and words that can’t, for example ‘was’. The more words a child can memorise and read by sight, the more fluent...
