It is pretty shocking to see the axing of Reading Recovery after 50+ years.

Despite the disinformation spread about Reading Recovery, the facts show it is a very well-researched, gold-standard, and internationally renowned intervention. Anyone who thinks Reading Recovery is teaching children to ‘guess’ does not understand the complexity of the teaching of reading, does not understand what Reading Recovery is, and/or is very misinformed. Reading is rocket science. The sciences of reading show there is no one-size-fits all reading programme. This is why the individualised programme that Reading Recovery offers to our most vulnerable learners is so valuable.

Reading Recovery has changed a lot in the last 4 years and now includes the explicit teaching of phonics, the use of decodable readers, and small group teaching in Early Literacy Support. My Reading Recovery training is what has made me and many others, the teachers we are today. This is where I learned to teach explicitly. It is the best teacher training on offer, and just losing that training alone, is a great loss not only for our students but also for our profession.

The vast majority of Reading Recovery critics have never seen a Reading Recovery lesson, don’t really know what it is, and don’t understand what we are losing. I have invited Minister Stanford and other politicians to come to my school and watch a lesson with me so they can see what it is they are getting rid of and to see Reading Recovery in action. It does not have to be Reading Recovery or Structured Literacy. In my kura and many others, it is both.

Insert an Accelerator card into a Smart Tray* to complete the learning activity and turn over the tray – if the pattern matches, the user is correct. The self-correcting nature of the tray promotes independent learning and makes learning fun. This offer includes:

• Accelerator Spelling Set 1
• Accelerator Reading Set 1
• Accelerator Reading Set 2
• Accelerator Reading Comprehension Set 1
• Accelerator Number Set 1

USUALLY $19.99 NOW $13.99

*Note the Smart Tray is necessary for using the Accelerators and is sold separately.

HAVE YOU SEEN THESE DISCOUNTED ACCELERATOR SETS?

Accelerator Early Set 2 and Accelerator Number Set 2 and just $5 each!

N.B. This 30% offer excludes the $5 discounted ones (Early 2 and Number 2)

1) Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease and line a ring cake tin.

2) Whisk the aquafaba and sugar for a few minutes to make a white creamy foam. Scrape the sides of the bowl.

3) Add the oil, vanilla essence, and apple purée and fold in, before adding the flour, baking soda, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and ground cloves. Mix gently to combine. Don’t over-mix or beat.

4) Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin and bake for 40-45 minutes (160°C) or until a wooden skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

To make the salted caramel sauce

1) Place margarine, coconut or soya cream, brown sugar, and salt into a small saucepan and bring, stirring, to simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring.

2) Let cool to thicken up but it is ok to serve hot if need be. Drizzle the caramel sauce over the cake and serve.

TIPS:

• I don’t peel the apples – just core and remove any skin blemishes.

• Aquafaba is the liquid from a can of chickpeas. It helps bind and makes a nicely textured cake.

• The cake can be frozen but make the sauce at the time of serving.

INGREDIENTS

500gms (3-4 apples) cooked apples, pureed

180g (4/5 C) oil

400g (1 3/4 C) flour

3 tsp ginger

100g (9 tbsp) aquafaba

100g (1/2 C) sugar

1 tsp natural vanilla essence

2 tsp baking soda

1 pinch salt

1 pinch ground black pepper

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground cloves

Salted Caramel Sauce

120g (9 tbsp) vegan margarine (such as Olivani, Nuttalex etc.)

150g (3/4 C) coconut or soya cream

90g (1/2 C) brown sugar

1/4 - 1/2 tsp salt

Adapted from a Thermomix recipe.