Watching a child learn to read is one of the most exciting things in the life of an educator. It is a real privilege.

The way we teach children to read has changed enormously in recent years for lots of reasons but one of the major reasons is because we know more about how the brain learns thanks to new technologies, including MRI. As we’ve learned more about the brain, it has become very evident that the old methods of teaching reading, sometimes referred to as Whole Language or Balanced Literacy, are not up to scratch and many children, learning under these approaches, are being left behind.

In 2020, SMC junior teachers started the shift towards a new approach called Structured Literacy. This is an evidence-based approach with decades of research behind it, based on the science of reading. It involves explicit, systematic and sequential teaching of literacy, including phonemes, letter-sound relationships, syllable patterns, morphemes, vocabulary, sentence structure, paragraph structure, and text structure. Under a balanced literacy approach, there might have been a small smattering of phonics teaching but much was left to chance. Now at SMC Junior School, we are committed to the explicit teaching of all threads of reading and we are seeing amazing results.

Under the guidance of Jo Jessep and Andrea Wylie from Literacy Connections, we’re excited to be implementing this approach we believe in so strongly throughout our school. Year 1 and 2 girls are firmly ensconced in Structured Literacy and Year 3 is also benefiting from structured literacy lessons. Bindy and Lillian are enthusiastically supporting the development of structured literacy in our girls via group and individual lessons and this year, the Year 4- 6 classes have also started their Structured Literacy journey. We are proud that very soon we will have Structured Literacy throughout the entire Junior School.

I’ve loved watching experts Nicki Douglas and Michele Callaghan work with the Year 1 and 2s on their structured literacy lessons. The progress these girls are making and the sense of accomplishment they display is heartwarming.

In the words of Andrea Wylie, “SMC Junior School Teachers are Structured Literacy Rockstars!” We are all loving watching your daughters grow as readers and writers.