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Tuesday 22nd September 4pm

Nicola Dawson - University of Oxford

How do properties of written input support or constrain children’s learning?

Children learn from the language they hear. It follows that the properties of this input may influence what children learn, both in the short term and cumulatively over time. In this talk, I present two lines of work that examine how variation in linguistic input relates to learning. The first focuses on ‘book language’, characterising how it differs from spoken language and considering how exposure to this form of input may support the development of children’s language and foundational literacy skills. The second focuses on the language of mathematics, examining how features of maths word problems, such as inconsistent cues or irrelevant information, can influence performance beyond underlying arithmetic ability.

Nicola is a Career Development Research Fellow at the University of Oxford and a Research Speech & Language Therapist at Moor House School & College.

Wednesdays 22nd July - 26th August

Every week of the summer holidays CAL:ON Cymru will host SUMMER READING SESSIONS as part of the GO ALL IN campaign for the National Year of Reading. 

The idea is simple: create the time and space for reading in our busy, screen-dominated lives.  

Summer Reading Sessions will be in a different venue each week. We will create a cosy area outdoors, if the weather is good, and indoors if it isn't! All the venues have a cafe where you can buy refreshments to enjoy as you read.  

Visit page for full details. 

Tuesday 12th May 12pm

What happens in the brain when reading is hard, and what that means for teaching

Dr Liory Fern-Pollak - UCL Institute of Education

This talk will explore how reading develops in the brain, why reading difficulties such as dyslexia arise, and what this means for classroom practice. Drawing on cognitive psychology, educational neuroscience, and cross-linguistic research, the talk will examine how phonological, orthographic, semantic, and attentional processes work together during reading and how they can go wrong. Through interactive tasks and real-world examples, the talk connects what we know about reading and dyslexia to familiar classroom experiences, before considering what this means for supporting learners in practical, realistic ways.             

Dr Liory Fern-Pollak is an Associate Professor in Cognitive and Educational Neuroscience at UCL’s Institute of Education. Her work focuses on reading development, reading difficulties including dyslexia, multilingualism, and how insights from cognitive neuroscience can be translated into meaningful educational practice. She is particularly interested in helping dispel neuromyths to support evidence-informed understanding of learning in real classroom contexts.

Monday 25th May & Thursday 28th May - Anglesey Show Ground, Gwalchmai

Come to the ³ÉÈËVRÊÓƵ area for story time with celebrated authors, reading and writing activities, and the chance to chat with the CAL:ON Cymru team to find out about our work supporting literacy teaching across Wales. 

Tuesday 9th June 4pm 

Supporting children and young people's reading enjoyment and engagement

Prof Sarah McGeown - University of Edinburgh    

Supporting children and young people's reading enjoyment and engagement   Concerns about low levels of reading enjoyment, motivation and engagement across the UK have amplified interest in supporting ‘reading for pleasure’. This talk highlights the benefits associated with reading, the evidence behind different practices used in primary and secondary schools to support reading enjoyment, motivation and engagement, and concludes with research-informed principles to embed into primary and secondary schools to inspire and sustain a love of reading.        

Sarah McGeown is Professor of Literacy and Co-Director of the Literacy Lab at the University of Edinburgh. Her research utilises participatory approaches and research-practice partnerships to better understand and enhance children and young people's reading experiences and outcomes. You can learn more about her research here: /

Friday 12th June - Venue Cymru, Llandudno

We will be at the ³ÉÈËVRÊÓƵ stand where you can find out how CAL:ON Cymru will support teachers in literacy teaching across Wales. There will be team members to answer your questions and demonstrate CAL:ON Cymru resources.