GCSE English teacher - ask me anything!

[MrsChinamano]

Hey guys,

I'm an English teacher and I specialise in GCSE English from KS3 - KS4, I also have an MA in DYS. I work on TEAMS for a college and the rest of my time is spent working privately with students from Year 7 - year 12 using Google Drive, Google meets, Zoom …
I run an Instagram account for my students with weekly English based competitions & daily tips for MH too, I make videos on YouTube and post these for my students.

I know many people are struggling, so here I am, ready to serve you!

Let me know how I can help.

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@MrsChinamano Are there any websites or apps or exercises you’d recommend to improve a year 8’s punctuation?

@SomethingInTheWaySheCooks

SPaG Gold for KS2 and KS3 on Google Play apps is good.

I would also say a great way to learn them in application is to write and then encourage them proof read it out loud, then they might practice putting in different punctuation to see the effect - you could even read it aloud to them so they can hear the difference.

Thank you, we currently do the reading out loud, so good to know we’re on the right track!

What's the contraction of I did, he did, she did?

Do you think learning about fronted adverbials and the like genuinely improves children's understanding and use of English- not in a 'pass exams' way, but in a more general way?

Thanks for this@MrsChinamano

I have a dyslexic year 10. More working memory than the traditional spelling/ reading. He's on a predicted grade 4.
Are there any top tips that could help him nudge his GCSE grade up please?
He's not at all ambitiously competitive which doesn't help.
I try to encourage reading for pleasure it he's down the tunnel of phones and video games.
Thanks!

@MrsChinamano I don't think my tag worked.
Pushy parents, eh?!

@unmarkedbythat It's certainly not something I remember learning and I never EVER see any of my secondary school pupils remember what they're called or how to use them. I think learning them as fronted adverbials is the problem, if they were taught as alternative ways to start or open your sentence then I feel my students would understand and implement this more ...

Overall, I think they improve the quality of writing in terms of interest, for a creative piece for example.

@FlatEarthling I'd say move away from the desire to read and encourage him to listen to audibles or podcasts, even radio stations. If his working memory is poor he will most like retain more through a multisensory approach so listening and moving, or listening and sketching would be better than just reading.
He may also find it helpful to learn, like a script, to music sentence starters for the most common exam questions (paper 1 Q2 and paper 2 Q3) also a structure he knows how to follow for his Q5's which are 40 marks. You can find me on Instagram at successfuldirectiontutoring where I post lots of writing frames, tips etc to support parents and students - even if he follows me it will be a drip feed which is best to start now!

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Your posts on reading material are very helpful thank you