Subscribe for PD updates

Enter your information below to keep up to date with the latest events in your area?

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
4.5 PD HOURS

Event Details

05/06/2026

9.30am - 3.00pm - Log on between 9.15am and 9.30am Victorian Time

Webinar via Zoom

For K to Yr 9 Teachers

Save The Date

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
  • This field is hidden when viewing the form
  • This field is hidden when viewing the form

Booking Conditions

No applications for this program will be accepted after all vacancies have been filled. Unsuccessful applicants will have their monies refunded in full. Cancellation prior to two weeks before the program date (cut-off date) will incur a 15% service charge per applicant. This program will be payable in full for cancellations made on or after the cut-off date or for failure to attend the program. All cancellations must be in writing and emailed to us. In the event of insufficient applications this program will not proceed and registration monies be fully refunded. In the event of this program being cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances registration monies only will be refunded as Critical Agendas will not accept liability for the payment of any other associated costs. Critical Agendas reserves the right to vary the advertised programs prior to commencement. Please note Critical Agendas reserves the right to transfer participants from face to face to webinar format with price adjustments (if required), should minimum numbers not be met for face to face event

Improving Spelling Instruction and Spelling Accuracy

The Australian Curriculum dictates that teachers explicitly teach phonic knowledge and spelling skills up to Year 10 but many teachers don’t find that an easy task. What is the most effective way in which to teach spelling? How do you cater for a wide range of abilities? What words should you teach? How many rules should you teach? How do you teach the ‘rule-breakers’? What can you do to help the student whose written work is really hard to decipher? How can you get all of your students interested in words and spelling?

This very practical, interactive seminar aims to make spelling easier for teachers and students by investigating:

  • the spelling process and the causes of spelling difficulties
  • the assessment of spelling
  • the development of phonemic awareness
  • the mapping of letters to sounds
  • the rules you should know
  • word study
  • strategies for catering for a variety of spelling abilities
  • multisensory activities and games

Participants will be involved in lots of activities and leave the seminar with new understanding, strategies and resources.

Critical Agendas Speaker
Presented by Critical Agendas

Shirley Houston

Shirley Houston is an independent educational consultant with 40 years of teaching experience. She has a Masters degree in Special Education and has taught students in years K-12 at government, Catholic and Independent schools, in Australia and in America. She has lectured at several universities in Western Australia and at the Central Institute of Technology. Shirley has an enduring passion for work with children and adults who have specific learning difficulties and is a long-standing Board member of The Dyslexia- SPELD Foundation of Western Australia. She runs teacher-training, advises companies on educational product development and tutors students with diverse needs.

Other workshops you might like

Hear from teachers who have attended a Critical Agendas Event

Wendy – Notre Dame College

Unleashing Brilliant Brains: Boys, ADHD & the Power of Connection – Tony Vallance

This has been the best PD I have ever attended. As an ADHD’er myself (undiagnosed), the mother of an ADHD’er 21 yr old with some serious addictions and now teaching for the past few years in the VM space with ADHD students. I have over 25 years of policing and only recently a teacher and feel so privileged that I get to have an impact on these young people. So grateful Tony for the work you do.

Ivana Ryan

Loved the passion of the Presenters

Frances Wong AI Skills for Busy School Admin Teams

“AI Skills for Busy School Admin Teams by Tracy Anthony & Dennis Wollersheim”

I have already enhanced my skills over the past week – been able to interact with AI program to redraft, polish and give suggestions/ideas.

Frances Wong

Australian International School Hong Kong

Karon Grimmer – Administration Workshop

This session was one of the most empowering workshops that I have ever done and I leave the session with extremely useful and relevant tools to use going forward. Thanks so much to Sally for leading us in the session so positively.

Absolutely brilliant information, empowering us with many tools and skills to takeaway and work on. My colleague and I leave full of positive energy about how to approach the challenges of our admin roles.

Emily Anderson – Saint Ignatius College

Classroom Dynamics – the latest strategies and solutions to positive classroom management – Glen Pearsall

I really enjoyed the small group size. The sessions were interactive and we not only saw Glenn demonstrate how he would use strategies himself but we heard from other educators on their challenges and thoughts and also saw video examples from other schools. I find this multi modal style of presentation much more engaging. It was also appreciated to have a copy of the book to take back to school and access to the online platform.

Tamara Rundle

Passionate &  Authentic Speakers – Meaningful Strategies

Susan Snooks

The best P.D. I have attended in living memory!” I loved every minute of this engaging, interesting and informative PD. And I have been teaching for 40+ years!

Tina Hobbs – Administration Workshops

I have come away from this session feeling very inspired and so much more positive. I now have many new ideas/techniques/strategies regarding how I can better manage a workload that often feels overwhelming. Some of these can be implemented immediately while others are more long-term plans. Thank you for making this workshop so practical. I just wish that all school admin staff had the opportunity to undertake this course.

Meaghan

“It is the first P.L. in a long long time that I haven’t been checking in with my watch.”

Rebecca Sim Mt Hira College

“Strategies to Thrive as a Year Level Co-ordinator by Sally Learey”

Sally was insightful and helped me to make clear connections to every day behaviours / emotions that I will need to recognise in my position. It really reiterated why I applied for this position in the first place as I think that often the purpose or the why is forgotten in an attempt to do everything for everyone.