The Structured Literacy Podcast
Hi there, I'm Jocelyn Seamer. Teacher, former school leader, author, and all around cheerleader for teachers everywhere. Learning to read and write is a matter of social justice. Every child deserves to learn through evidence informed practices, and every teacher deserves to be fully supported to make that happen.The Structured Literacy Podcast goes beyond the program to get to the heart of what it's really like to build a structured approach to literacy across the school.
Episodes
In this episode, Jocelyn pushes back on all-day, scripted, tightly paced instruction in Foundation to Year 2 while defending responsive, teacher-led explicit instruction as essential for learning across the curriculum. She explains why young children need a better-designed school day with movement, talk, and purposeful guided play so they can regulate, engage, and learn more.
The fastest way to make spelling instruction fail is to assume every student is starting from the same place. They are not and your planning shouldn’t pretend they are. I’m getting practical about what to do with the real mix of spellers sitting in front of you, especially in upper primary and early secondary, where gaps can hide behind “good enough” writing and familiar word memory.
I also walk you through the key design ...
Spelling is not a side quest. When it isn’t automatic, it quietly steals the working memory students need for ideas, sentence craft, and clear argument, especially in upper primary and the early secondary years. If you are seeing capable students write small, play it safe with vocabulary, or avoid writing altogether, word-level knowledge may be the hidden barrier you cannot afford to ignore.
Jocelyn focuses on Years 3 to 8...
We map out a practical path to targeted phonics that lifts every learner. We define instructional precision, show how to gather the right data, and share a step-by-step launch plan that works in real schools with limited adults.
• clarifying whole class versus grouping and why size is not the point
• defining instructional precision and cognitive load in phonics
• sorting data as a team and narrowing the range per ...
We challenge the assumption that whole-class phonics with a little extra is the most effective route and explore why targeted Tier 1 grouping often delivers stronger gains. Using cognitive load theory and intervention research, we show how matched content can raise progress without creating waitlists or missed learning elsewhere.
• why many Year 3 students still need foundational code
• what grouping studies actually t...
We unpack how to use decodable texts with precision so beginners practise the code instead of guessing. We share the biggest mistakes schools make, how to spot readiness to transition, and a staged text diet that blends decodables with rich literature.
• reframing the debate around suitability, not good or bad
• defining novice readers by code knowledge, not age
• risks of mixing leveled and decodable texts too e...
In this episode, we weigh the current research on decodable and leveled texts, separate durable findings from weak claims, and explore which research findings we can confidently base decisions on.
Some of the research focus explored in this episode are:
• strengths and limits of the research base
• how decodables build early decoding and pseudoword reading
• strategy differences prompted by text type
• why ear...
We share five evidence-informed moves to boost reading in Years 3–6, from language-rich talk and explicit code knowledge to partner reading and smart text selection. We close with practical ways to thread reading through science, history, and geography without burning out.
• creating a language-rich classroom with explicit, natural vocabulary use
• assessing and addressing phonics and morphology gaps
• using partne...
In this season opener of the Structured Literacy Podcast, Jocelyn argues that before any real learning can happen, students need answers to three unspoken questions: Do you like me? Are you going to help me? Can I trust you? Drawing on brain science and classroom experience, she offers practical strategies for building the connection and emotional safety that make everything else, including literacy instruction, possible.
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
Join us on the Structured Literacy Podcast as we unpack the critical elements of successfully rolling out these initiatives. From meticulous planning to effective execution, we guide you through the journey educators will undertake—from initial excitement to achieving high commitment an...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In this episode of the Structured Literacy podcast, Jocelyn addresses the challenges of successfully onboarding new school staff members while maintaining instructional quality.
Has something in this episode resonated with you? Get in touch!
We have released Spelling Success in Action 1,...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
Repeated reading doesn't work for all students because fluency issues have different root causes. Understanding four reading profiles helps target the right intervention:
- Speedy & accurate
- Slow & accurate
- Fast & inaccurate
- Slow & inaccurate
Critical principle: F...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In today's episode of the Structured Literacy podcast, we explore the role of comprehension strategies in our overall instruction. This episode will leave you with a clearer vision of the reading instruction landscape and the tools necessary to develop a deep understanding of text...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In today's episode, I discuss how you can maintain high student engagement in your low-variance instruction.
Has something in this episode resonated with you? Get in touch!
We have released Spelling Success in Action 1, a catch-up program for phonics, early morphology, and orthograp...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In this week's episode of the Structured Literacy podcast, I address the common challenge of tracking student reading progress.
Has something in this episode resonated with you? Get in touch!
We have released Spelling Success in Action 1, a catch-up program for phonics, early morph...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In this week's episode, I share some of my secrets for writing and teaching text-based units that will engage all your students in learning age-appropriate content.
Has something in this episode resonated with you? Get in touch!
We have released Spelling Success in Action 1, a catc...
What is the Summer Series?
A collection of listener favourites from the Structured Literacy Podcast to get you prepared for 2026.
Today's Episode
In this week's episode, we're going to talk about how Nonsense words play an important part in phonics assessment, but what about in Years 3-6? This week's episode of the structured literacy podcast explores whether middle and upper primary teachers need to incl...
The difference between curiosity and commitment can make or break a literacy journey. We close our sixth season by drawing a clear line between being interested in structured literacy and being devoted to outcomes for every student, then map how teams can cross that line together. Along the way, we unpack five behaviour groups you’ll recognise in any staffroom, from early adopters to the special-case sceptics, and explain why label...
This episode explores how to select rich texts for comprehension instruction by moving beyond traditional levelling systems. Jocelyn introduces four dimensions of text demand to help teachers find the "Goldilocks spot" - texts that challenge students without overwhelming them. She discusses four common reading scenarios and emphasises matching text complexity to students' abilities while considering cognitive load.
Fo...
This podcast episode argues that while PowerPoints became widespread during COVID and helped reduce teacher cognitive load, over-reliance on them can hinder teachers' development. The key takeaway: if we are removing all obstacles, how are teachers learning from experience?
Has something in this episode resonated with you? Get in touch!
We have released Spelling Success in Action 1, a catch-up program for phonics, early morph...
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