Talk for Writing in Secondary Schools: How to Achieve Effect

Talk for Writing, developed by Pie Corbett and supported by Julia Strong, is a proven approach to teaching writing that is engaging and motivating for students and teachers alike.

Building on best practice, this practical guide takes you step by step through how to establish quality written communication across the secondary curriculum. It can be used as a handbook by a literacy coordinator to lead the approach as well as being a source of practical ideas for each subject area. Every teacher can help students internalize the pattern of language of their subject through focused talk activities related to exemplar text. This enables students to independently generate the sentence patterns and structures that are key to effective communication in any subject.

Julia Strong puts the experience of the learner at the centre. By establishing some consistent approaches across the curriculum, the learner can see how what they learn in one area can be transferred to support learning in another. The approach progressively builds up students' linguistic competence involving them in co-constructing the next steps they need to take to make progress.

This practical resource offers:

• Wide range of examples from all subject areas with a particular focus on science

• DVD of a training session with teachers showing Talk for Writing in action suitable to use on training days to help introduce and embed the approach

• Over 80 customisable handouts downloadable from the DVD

• Customisable PowerPoint slides to train all staff in the approach

Thoroughly grounded in the principles of formative assessment, Talk for Writing if systematically applied across the curriculum really can turn secondary students into powerful communicators. Try it, it works!

'Silent classrooms do not lend themselves to progress, the Foreword to this important new book reminds us. What follows is an exceptionally well-informed and practical guide to how high quality talk can lead to high quality writing. I strongly recommend it for all teachers across all subjects'.

Geoff Barton, Headteacher of King Edward VI School, Suffolk, UK, author and speaker

Julia Strong now works with Pie Corbett in developing Talk for Writing - see A former secondary school deputy head, she then became Deputy Director at the National Literacy Trust and Director of the National Reading Campaign. She is an expert on literacy across the curriculum and the author of a number of bestselling books, including Talk for Writing Across the Curriculum: How to teach non-fiction writing 5-12 years (Open University Press, 2011) with Pie Corbett.

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