Parent Information Evening – A Celebration of Learning at SKiPPS
Last Wednesday evening we were delighted to welcome a fantastic turnout of parents and carers to our Information Night on Teaching and Learning at SKiPPS. The strong attendance reflected the genuine curiosity and enthusiasm within our community to better understand the changes that have been taking place in classrooms over the past 12 months.
The evening began with an introduction to the Science of Learning. Neil shared the research that underpins much of our practice – exploring how the brain processes new information, the limitations of working memory, and the strategies teachers can use to minimise distractions (or “extraneous cognitive load”). He also explained the importance of actively combatting the brain’s natural tendency to forget most of what it processes, and how at SKiPPS we carefully design lessons to maximise the likelihood of true learning – that is, creating a change in long-term memory.
From there, our teaching team provided practical insights and live demonstrations across our core curriculum areas:
PhOrMeS (Phonology, Orthography, Morphology, Etymology, Semantics): Jac and Ange shared how every child at SKiPPS takes part in our whole-school reading and spelling program. They showed how this begins with systematic, synthetic phonics in the early years, before moving into spelling rules and patterns in the middle years, and finally morphology and etymology in the upper years. Parents were invited to take part in activities themselves – experiencing “opportunities to respond” and “checks for understanding” that are daily features of our classrooms to ensure high engagement and accountability.
Literacy through rich novels: Amy and Mel introduced our approach to reading and writing through the study of engaging, content-rich novels. Using Tom Appleby (the current Year 5 text) as an example, they demonstrated how literature is used to build student knowledge, vocabulary, and sentence-level understanding, before guiding students to craft their own written pieces. Parents were able to see how carefully chosen texts provide a platform for deep thinking and creativity.
Mathematics – Explicit Instruction in action: Ange led families through a mathematics lesson structured around the “I do, We do, You do” model. Parents saw how new concepts are explicitly modelled by the teacher, followed by guided practice under close monitoring, before students move into independent practice once strong understanding has been established. This structure ensures clarity, confidence, and mastery before moving on.
The evening was an opportunity not only to explain what we are doing differently at SKiPPS, but also to showcase why: we are committed to using the best available research and evidence to design lessons that embed foundational knowledge, reduce unnecessary barriers, and provide every student with the tools they need to succeed.
Above all, the night was a celebration of the expertise and hard work of our teaching team, and of our shared goal: ensuring all SKiPPS students build the knowledge, fluency, and confidence to thrive academically and beyond. The fact that so many were willing to stay late after school to share their craft with families demonstrates their incredible dedication and their passion and belief in these teaching practices.
For families who weren’t able to attend, we will run another similar session early next year. We look forward to welcoming you then and continuing this important conversation about how we teach and how your children learn.