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English and Media Centre

@engmediacentre.bsky.social

1.1K followers 350 following 920 posts

Award-winning charity supporting English and Media teachers with publications, CPD, consultancy + conferences. Putting curiosity + pleasure at the heart of learning. www.englishandmedia.co.uk Account managed by @andrewemc.bsky.social

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 13d

EMC TWILIGHTS ARE BACK

Join us after school on October 23rd for engaging conversation, intellectual stimulation + the leftover refreshments from our 50th birthday celebrations!

Refreshments from 4.30pm

@darrenchetty.bsky.social @barbarableiman.bsky.social

englishandmedia.co.uk/courses/6fae...

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 6h

Find out more about our fantastic Mixed Basket 200 offer, where you pay just £5 per copy when you buy 200 copies of key EMC publications in any combination: buff.ly/E3bA7rJ

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 8h

EMC CPD Webinar: Teaching Vocabulary – Principles and Practice

LAST CHANCE TO BOOK!

Book by: 8am on 10th October
buff.ly/SrKBwFh

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 11h

EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Language Investigations for the AL Language NEA

LAST CHANCE TO BOOK!

Book by: 8am on 10th October
buff.ly/NxBkvA2

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

10. EMC CPD Webinar: Teaching Diverse Literature for AQA GCSE – The New Set Texts (22.10.25)

Book by 8am on 20th Oct
buff.ly/IcCNVko

EMC CPD Webinar: Teaching Diverse Literature for AQA GCSE – The New Set Texts (22.10.2025, Autumn 2025)

Discussion around how to approach the new texts (My Name Is Leon, Princess & The Hustler, and Leave Taking) and practical suggestions and resources for the classroom.

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

9. When we teach diverse texts, we’re not adding extras — we’re offering our students essential ‘mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors’ buff.ly/PZP6Te4

For thought-provoking points around how to approach these texts plus practical suggestions and resources, join our webinar:

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

8. Teaching these texts supports all learners: Research shows that reading fiction from a range of perspectives develops empathy, broadens horizons, and sparks richer classroom discussion. buff.ly/NIZeEOz

Research

Research Our strategy is built on two key areas of scientific research – that empathy is a learnable skill and that reading builds real-life empathy What is empathy? Empathy is our ability to imagi…

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

7. CLPE’s Reflecting Realities research shows how much teaching texts like these matters for engagement. buff.ly/X0atKlw

Reflecting Realities Research | Centre for Literacy in Primary Education

Reflecting Realities is the first UK study looking at diversity in children's literature. Funded by the Arts Council, our aim is to quantify and evaluate the extent and quality of ethnic…

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

6. Leave Taking → First-gen Caribbean-British family navigating identity, belonging, and generational conflict.
Brilliant for exploring migration stories and discussing issues around assimilation.

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

5. Princess & The Hustler → A vibrant play set against the backdrop of the 1963 Bristol Bus Boycott.
Students love Hustler’s swagger + Princess’s dreams. Pair it with accounts of the boycott to deepen understanding of context and connect to non-fiction reading.

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

4. My Name Is Leon → A lens on race, family, and resilience in 1980s Britain.
Use Leon’s perspective to spark conversations about childhood innocence vs systemic injustice. Great for building empathy and critical thinking.

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

3. When we teach Kit de Waal, Chinonyerem Odimba, and Winsome Pinnock, we both widen the canon and show students their voices matter.
Read more about Lit in Colour here: buff.ly/ITK2Rm1

Lit in Colour | Supporting inclusive reading in schools

It’s vital that the books we read in our formative years reflect the rich diversity of the society we live in. That’s why we at Penguin have joined forces with The Runnymede Trust to explore how to…

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

2. The Lit in Colour research is stark: fewer than 1% of GCSE students study a book by a writer of colour. This does not reflect the society in which those students live.

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 16h

1. For AQA GCSE Lit, My Name Is Leon, Princess & The Hustler, and Leave Taking offer powerful ways to engage students while reflecting Britain’s real cultural stories. A thread about why and how 🧵

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

Included in our Mixed Basket 200 offer is our best-selling study guide to 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'. Click the link to find out more about the study guide which will assist both your teaching and your students' understanding of the text: buff.ly/pUb3Yz0

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

EMC CPD Webinar: Teaching Diverse Literature for AQA GCSE – The New Set Texts

Discussion around how to approach the new texts ('My Name is Leon', 'Princess & The Hustler' & 'Leave Taking') with practical suggestions & resources.

Book by: 8am on 20th Oct
buff.ly/3keNRUA

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

EMC Twilight: Belonging and unbelonging in children’s literature

Join us for a talk with Sita Brahmachari and Darren Chetty, who will be drawing on their recently-published books to discuss ideas of belonging and community in children's literature.

Book by: 8am on 21st October
buff.ly/SSWBKuN

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

Many of you will be familiar with EMC's publications and CPD training, but did you know that there is also a wealth of free content to be found on our website?

Click below to explore our free publications, events, guides, articles and more 👇

EMC Free

Discover EMC free! Free downloadable resources, videos, blogs and projects. Plus information about free online and in-person courses.

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

5. Along the way, we look at context and what’s useful to teach. Spoiler alert, a tonne of autobiographical details about Priestley aren’t helpful and no-one’s getting a mark for name-checking Clement Attlee or randomly shoe-horning in the date the Titanic sank!

Book now! buff.ly/FpNS51y

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

4. Our webinar takes our usual ‘text-first’ approach, exploring what’s special about AIC and looking at it as a piece of drama, created for performance.

EMC CPD Webinar: Refresh Your Approach to Teaching An Inspector Calls (21.10.25)

Book by: 8am on 17th Oct
buff.ly/FpNS51y

EMC CPD Webinar: Refresh Your Approach to Teaching An Inspector Calls (21.10.2025, Autumn 2025)

Practical classroom approaches for this popular text. NB: This is a repeat course.

tinyurl.com

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

3. This strategy puts them right where you want them: in the audience, in the drama.

Obviously, Priestley has messages to convey, but he's also a skilled playwright. He uses the same techniques throughout AIC so if you teach these, students will always have something to say about writers' methods.

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

2. You ask: ‘How would you react if an inspector walked through the door right now and started revealing everyone’s secrets?’

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 1d

🧵 1. Imagine this: you’ve started teaching ‘An Inspector Calls’. You’ve switched off one set of lights. Students slump in their seats, yawning through the smug dinner party — until you turn on ALL the lights and say, ‘The inspector is about to arrive.’ Suddenly, the class sits up. 👇

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English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 2d

EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Refresh Your Approach to A Streetcar Named Desire

"The session was really informative and engaging with lots of interactive activities that will be great to use with students and can also be adapted for other texts."

Book by: 8am on 21st October
buff.ly/UuYy1JJ

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 2d

Don't forget about our great-value Mixed Basket 200 Offer, which reduces the cost of every copy to just £5 when your purchase 200 or more of our key publications in any combination: buff.ly/E3bA7rJ

English and Media Centre @engmediacentre.bsky.social · 2d

EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Starting to Teach AL Media Studies

"Loads of really good ways 'in' to teaching the course and a really fun and informative day."

Book by: 8am on 15th October
buff.ly/P2kzeGz