Being Creative in Primary English

Adrian Copping has been working in teacher education for the last twelve years. At present, he is Primary PGCE Programme Leader and Senior Lecturer in English and Literacy based at the Lancaster campus of the University of Cumbria. Previously, Adrian worked at two contrasting schools in Lancashire, as class teacher and leader. Adrian’s particular interests are the use of teacher-in-role and other drama techniques to develop children’s writing and understanding of text and also the impact of creative thinking on children’s writing. Adrian has presented work on this at various national and international conferences. In his teacher education work, Adrian continues to develop close working relationships with primary schools, which have enabled him to keep abreast of current practice as well as develop his areas of research interest.

In this book, Adrian Copping offers an insightful exploration of creativity in the primary classroom and challenges assumptions about this concept. This book encourages the reader to think about the opportunities for developing creative thinking and engagement across different aspects of primary English specifically, but also offers principles of creative teaching across the curriculum. Practical examples and ideas for the classroom enhances the discussion around this concept. This book is helpful to those new teaching in developing their understanding and range of teaching approaches, as well as reminding all practitioners of the principles of creative teaching to enable creative thinking and learning.

• IntroductionChapter 1: Cracking the Concept: creative thinking, creative teaching creative integrationChapter 2: Creative approaches to teaching reading and enjoying textChapter 3: Creative approaches to teaching writingChapter 4: Speaking and listening scaffolds reading and writingChapter 5: Creative English: Early Years into Key Stage 1Chapter 6: Reading into Writing: Key Stage 1 fictionChapter 7: Reading into Writing: Key Stage 2 fictionChapter 8 Reading into Writing: Key Stage 1 Non- fictionChapter 9: Reading into Writing: Key Stage 2 Non- fictionChapter 10: Reading into Writing: Key Stage 1 PoetryChapter 11: Reading into Writing: Key Stage 2 PoetryChapter 12: Creative approaches: Transition Key Stage 2-3