Alex - Blanksby - How do we make the most of examples, explanations, and elaborations?
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Alex - Blanksby - How do we make the most of examples, explanations, and elaborations?

Cognitive science tells us that, especially with novices, the use of worked examples, direct instruction, and self-explanation and elaboration are key. So, what can we do to make the most of each of these? What are the differences between effective and ineffective uses of examples? How do we make our explanations more impactful? What elaborative questions should we be asking students and have them ask themselves to get more out of a given question?

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Read 2 Learn Australian Units - Call for Writers
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Read 2 Learn Australian Units - Call for Writers

Get the lowdown on the Australian History and Geography Units planned for this project. Read2Learn (r2L) is Brandon Park Primary’s new platform for teaching reading comprehension within a knowledge-rich curriculum. This is an evolution from their work in recent years to teach reading comprehension explicitly and in a way that gets students focussed on in-depth text. Hear about next round for this ambitious project, where we are seeking to produce high-quality units that develop knowledge and reading/writing expertise in students, focusing particularly on Australian history and geography.

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Principals’ Forum - Marsden Road Public School - Manisha Gazula
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Principals’ Forum - Marsden Road Public School - Manisha Gazula

Open to all Principals and Assistant/Deputy Principals. Manisha Gazula is a passionate educator with a fundamental focus on improving student outcomes. She is Principal of Marsen Road Public School.
In 2019, Marsden Road Public School received the Executive Directors Award for significant contributions towards advancing the strategic goals of the NSW Department of Education.

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Dr Daniel Ansari - Building blocks of mathematical competence
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Dr Daniel Ansari - Building blocks of mathematical competence

Recent research has shown that basic number processing (such as comparing which of two numbers is larger) is related to individual differences in children’s arithmetic achievement. Furthermore, children with mathematical disabilities (Developmental Dyscalculia) have been found to perform poorly on basic number processing tasks. In this talk I will review evidence for an association between basic number processing and arithmetic achievement in children with and without mathematical difficulties. I will draw on evidence from both brain and behavior and discuss the implications of this research for assessment, diagnosis and intervention.

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Read 2 Learn Australian Units - Project Update
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Read 2 Learn Australian Units - Project Update

Get the lowdown on the Australian History and Geography Units planned for this project. Read2Learn (r2L) is Brandon Park Primary’s new platform for teaching reading comprehension within a knowledge-rich curriculum. This is an evolution from their work in recent years to teach reading comprehension explicitly and in a way that gets students focussed on in-depth text. Hear about the ambitious project to share our curriculum resources with you, and collaborate with other schools to produce high-quality units that develop knowledge and reading/writing expertise in students.

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Principals’ Forum - Riverwood Public School - Anne Davis
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Principals’ Forum - Riverwood Public School - Anne Davis

Open to all Principals and Assistant/Deputy Principals. Riverwood Public school is a small school located in a low socio-economic community in south-western Sydney. A focus on evidence-based wellbeing and learning practices has underpinned the school’s improvement work. We are committed to Explicit Direct Instruction as a key pedagogical approach and our literacy practices are aligned with the research from the science of reading. The school’s wellbeing framework articulates a twin focus on staff and student wellbeing.

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Principals’ Forum - Term 2 2022 - Beeliar Primary
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Principals’ Forum - Term 2 2022 - Beeliar Primary

The journey to become a school of excellence for Beeliar Primary School started with an in-depth analysis of student data, where all staff engaged in a disciplined dialogue about school and student performance. Whole school programs including Explicit Direct Instruction (EDI), InitiaLit, Critical Reading and Spelling Mastery were introduced to ensure consistency of practice and a systematic development of reading across the school. The results have been outstanding and Beeliar PS achieved green boxes for all literacy areas in our 2021 Year 3 NAPLAN results.

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Read 2 Learn Project Launch
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Read 2 Learn Project Launch

Read2Learn (r2L) is Brandon Park Primary’s new platform for teaching reading comprehension within a knowledge-rich curriculum. This is an evolution from their work in recent years to teach reading comprehension explicitly and in a way that gets students focussed on in-depth text. Catch the recording fro this free information session to hear about the ambitious project to share our curriculum resources with you, and collaborate with other schools to produce high-quality units that develop knowledge and reading/writing expertise in students.

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Environments for learning: Docklands Primary
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Environments for learning: Docklands Primary

Basing their work on professional reading around the importance of calm, settled learning environments, our guest presenters will be sharing their experiences and findings about effective classroom setup. Reviewing the kinds of seating plans that lend themselves to different kinds of work in the classroom; they have a heap of practical experiments in their own classrooms to share!

Jac and Leah will also share insights about classroom displays and organising student materials.

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TFE Principals’ Forum -  Nov 2021
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TFE Principals’ Forum - Nov 2021

In Nov 2021, we convened our fifth Think Forward Principals’ Forum, bringing together Principals and APs/DPs to discuss high quality instruction and the Science of Learning. Showcasing the work of Steven Capp and Sarah Asome from Bentleigh West Primary School.

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The Great Teaching Toolkit - Prof Rob Coe
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The Great Teaching Toolkit - Prof Rob Coe

Helping teachers to become even more effective is mainly about teacher learning. Crucially, teacher learning is just like every other kind of learning, so clarifying the curriculum - what is worth learning to get better at - is fundamental.

The Great Teaching Toolkit: Evidence Review, published in June 2020, presents the latest and best available evidence about what great teachers do that makes a difference. Teacher learning also depends on feedback - rich, insightful, actionable feedback that helps teachers to focus on the things that matter, to see how well they are doing, what they are improving and what they can most usefully work on. In this talk, Rob will describe what the great Teaching Toolkit is, how it could support your teaching, and how you can get involved.

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Moving towards the Science of Learning - Jack Neil
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Moving towards the Science of Learning - Jack Neil

A school improvement journey. In this practical and reflective talk, Jack Neil will explore an example of how to initiate school change towards the Science of Learning, and how to lead in a new space. Jack will emphasise that key to leading change is embracing teachers as your greatest asset.

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Using cognitive models as a roadmap for assessment and teaching reading - Prof Anne Castles
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Using cognitive models as a roadmap for assessment and teaching reading - Prof Anne Castles

Reading is a complex skill involving multiple processes, even at the single word level. In this talk, Distinguished Professor Anne Castles gave an overview of what is known about how words are read and learned in the context of an explicit cognitive model. She then illustrated how such cognitive models can provide a “roadmap” for teachers, guiding assessment and informing how best to teach word reading for maximum effects.

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Writing and the science of learning - Daisy Christodoulou
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Writing and the science of learning - Daisy Christodoulou

Think Forward Educators is thrilled to welcome Daisy Christodoulou to speak with us. Join us for an evening with one of the world’s most influential educators. Daisy provides her take on some of her areas of expertise, including Effective instruction, Assessment, and Writing.

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