Scribo

 

Today I attended a 30-minute professional development session about how I can use Scribo in my class. It looked very valuable for the learners and the educators. As a school, we are looking at trialling with my Year 4/5 class and Year 5/6 class this year. 

ChatGPT gave me the information below:

Scribo: Supporting Better Writing Outcomes for Every Learner

Writing is an essential skill that helps students communicate their ideas, express their creativity, and succeed across all areas of learning. As teachers, we are always looking for ways to provide meaningful feedback while encouraging students to become confident, independent writers. One tool that is making a positive impact in classrooms is Scribo.

What is Scribo?

Scribo is an AI-powered writing platform designed to support both teachers and students. It provides students with instant, personalised feedback as they write, helping them improve their spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and overall writing quality. At the same time, it gives teachers valuable insights into student progress and learning needs.

How Does Scribo Benefit Students?

One of Scribo's greatest strengths is its ability to provide feedback in real time. Students do not need to wait for their work to be marked before making improvements. Instead, they can review suggestions, edit their writing, and develop greater independence as writers. This immediate support helps students build confidence and stay engaged throughout the writing process.

Scribo also encourages students to reflect on their work and make thoughtful revisions, helping them develop the skills needed to become successful writers.

How Does Scribo Support Teachers?

Providing individual feedback to every student can be time-consuming. Scribo helps reduce this workload by offering automated feedback and progress tracking. Teachers can quickly identify strengths, areas for improvement, and trends across the class, allowing them to plan targeted instruction and support where it is needed most.

Rather than spending large amounts of time correcting basic errors, teachers can focus on deeper conversations about ideas, organisation, and creativity in writing.

Why Scribo Matters

Research and classroom trials have shown that students using Scribo can make significant progress in their writing. Schools have reported improvements in writing accuracy, sentence structure, engagement, and confidence. Teachers have also noted increased visibility of student progress and a stronger understanding of what to teach next.

Looking Ahead

As digital tools continue to evolve, platforms like Scribo offer exciting opportunities to strengthen writing instruction while maintaining the important role of the teacher. By combining technology with quality teaching practice, Scribo helps create classrooms where every student can grow as a writer and every teacher can make the most of their instructional time.

Writing progress improves when students receive timely, meaningful feedback, and Scribo is helping make that possible.

LEARN

 Today, on the 2nd of March, we had an informative staff meeting where Mrs Grant joined us to talk about LEARN. Our Manaiakalani cluster focuses on three key areas: Learn, Create, and Share, and today’s session focused specifically on the Learn aspect.

Mrs Grant discussed what effective learning looks like in our classrooms and how we can support our learners to develop strong understanding, curiosity, and independence. She highlighted the importance of providing meaningful learning opportunities where students can think deeply, ask questions, and engage actively with their learning.

We also reflected on how our teaching practices can help learners build knowledge and skills that prepare them for the Create and Share stages of the Manaiakalani model. By strengthening the Learn phase, we ensure that students have a solid foundation before moving on to creating and sharing their ideas.

It was a valuable session that gave us time to reflect on our classroom practices and think about ways we can continue to support our learners to become confident and capable learners.

Making Sense of eTAP Data

 Making Sense of eTAP Data: A Practical Guide to Effective Graphing

Using data well is one of the most powerful tools a class teacher has. Within eTAP, the graphing tools allow you to quickly visualise achievement, identify target groups, and have informed professional conversations about next steps.

This blog post walks you through how to analyse your data effectively using eTAP’s built-in graphing features.

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Why Graphing in eTAP Matters

Raw numbers in a markbook can be overwhelming. Graphing allows you to:

• Instantly see patterns and trends

• Identify students working below, at, or above expectations

• Clearly recognise target groups

• Reflect on equity across ethnicity and gender

• Support data-informed planning and reporting

The visual tools are especially powerful during team meetings, appraisal conversations, and whānau reporting discussions.

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Quick Steps: Analysing Data in eTAP

(For Class Teachers)

1️⃣ Ensure All Data Has Been Entered

Before analysing, confirm:

• Assessment results are complete

• No students are missing entries

• Data is accurate and up to date

Incomplete data leads to misleading graphs.

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2️⃣ Choose the Group

Decide whether you want to analyse:

• Whole school

• A specific class

• A particular year level

Be intentional — clarity about your group ensures meaningful insights.

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3️⃣ Select the Markbook

For example:

• Markbook 263 (or your relevant markbook)

Make sure you're in the correct curriculum area and assessment set.

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4️⃣ Check the Year and Folder

• Change the year to 202X if needed

• Ensure the correct folder is selected

It’s easy to accidentally analyse last year’s data — double-check before proceeding.

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5️⃣ Select “Adv / Graph / Print”

Scroll to the bottom of the page and click:

Adv / Graph / Print

This opens the graphing and analysis tools.

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6️⃣ Select the Data to Interrogate

On the left-hand side, tick the assessment data you want to analyse.

Example:

• T3 e-asTTle

You can select multiple data points if comparing across time.

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Choosing the Right Graph

On the right-hand side, you’ll see graphing options. Here’s how to use them effectively:

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📊 Stacker / Expectations with Name

Best for instant understanding and professional conversations

This option:

• Clearly shows students against curriculum expectations

• Displays names for easy identification

• Uses colour coding

• Highlights target students (often shown in yellow)

This is the most useful tool when:

• Identifying students below expectation

• Planning targeted teaching

• Discussing achievement in team meetings

It provides an immediate snapshot of class achievement.

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📈 Ethnic & Gender Graph

Best for reflective practice and equity analysis

This option:

• Breaks data down by ethnicity

• Breaks data down by gender

• Helps identify patterns and disparities

Use this graph to:

• Reflect on equity

• Inform culturally responsive practice

• Guide school-wide discussions

• Ensure no group is being unintentionally underserved

This tool shifts the focus from individuals to systems and patterns.

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Identifying Target Groups

The graphing tools clearly identify:

• Curriculum expectation levels

• Achievement distribution

• Target students (highlighted in yellow)

From here, you can:

• Form instructional groups

• Plan targeted interventions

• Set measurable goals

• Track shifts over time

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Tips for Effective Data Conversations

When using graphs in meetings:

• Start with observations (“I notice…”)

• Identify strengths first

• Then discuss students below expectation

• Ask: What teaching response is needed?

• Revisit data after intervention

The graph is the starting point — not the conclusion.

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Going Deeper: Full eTAP “How-To” Guide

A comprehensive eTAP Full How-To Guide has been shared with staff. If I need a refresher on navigation, setup, or advanced features, refer to that resource alongside this quick-start guide.

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Final Thoughts

Effective use of eTAP graphing transforms data from static numbers into meaningful insight.

When used well, it helps you:

• Clearly see your learners

• Identify equity trends

• Focus on priority students

• Make informed teaching decisions

The key is not just generating the graph — it’s using it to drive action.

Data is most powerful when it leads to better outcomes for learners.

Manaiakalani - Research Reflection

 Yesterday our team had the privilege of attending the Manaiakalani Cluster meeting at Point England School, where we engaged in a powerful presentation on Manaiakalani – Research Reflection 2025.

The session provided a clear overview of the year’s data, highlighting student achievement trends, engagement patterns, and the impact of our digital learning approaches. It was reassuring to see how evidence-based practice continues to guide the Manaiakalani kaupapa. The data not only affirmed areas of strength across the cluster but also challenged us to reflect deeply on where acceleration is still needed.

One of the most valuable aspects of the meeting was the collaborative discussion. As a cluster, we examined what the data is telling us and considered the collective actions required moving forward. As a school, we reflected on our own priorities - what is working well, what needs refining, and how we can continue to lift outcomes for all learners.

The Research Reflection reminded us that data is not just numbers on a page; it is a story about our learners. It is our responsibility to respond thoughtfully, strategically, and with urgency where needed.

We left the meeting aligned, informed, and motivated to strengthen our practice in 2026. Together, as a cluster and as individual schools, we remain committed to making a meaningful difference for our students.

Preparing to share Our Manaiakalani Films on the Film Festival Website

I have updated all the class blogs and scheduled the class 3-minute movies. This is so that each class can watch or show their class movies to their friends and families on the 12th of November.

The email below from Fiona, as always, guides me to post on class blogs, schedule and copy the permalink for her spreadsheet.

Kia ora koutou,

The following email includes instructions for preparing to share your films on the Film Festival website. We are very happy to help with any of this, especially if you have new teachers.

The expectation is that each school's film festival organiser (that's you) completes the following, except for scheduling the blog posts.

Please confirm with your teachers that they know how to schedule their Film Festival Blog Post

Also let them know that our team is able to help individual teachers with this when we are in school over the next couple of weeks.

We'd appreciate the following being completed on or before Wednesday 5th November, please. 

Read each step and contact us if you need any help.

Instructions:

1. Watch this screencast first 
2. Make ONE copy of this template so all your thumbnails are the same size
3. Upload your thumbnails to your school's folder
4. Support teachers to schedule their film festival blog post - Embed films from Google Drive and include supporting text e.g. the script your presenters will use on the day of the film festival
5. Ask your teachers to share the permalink with you or if you have access to your school's blog admin, log in and copy the permalink for each post.
6. Paste Permalink for each film's blog post here

Please contact us if you need any support with this process,

ngā mihi nui, 

Fiona

Why Should Educators Expose Year's 4 & 5 Learners to a Variety of Texts?

Exposing Year 4 and 5 learners to a wide variety of reading texts is a crucial educational strategy. It moves beyond just the ability to read and builds the skill and will to be lifelong, proficient readers.

Based on educational research, here are the primary reasons why this is so beneficial for learners at this age:

1. Builds Vocabulary and Language Skills

Different genres use different language. A science-fiction novel, a historical non-fiction book, a poem, and a comic all have unique vocabularies and sentence structures.

• Wider Exposure: Learners encounter a much broader range of words in varied contexts than they would from a single genre.

• Deeper Understanding: Seeing new words in different types of texts helps solidify their meaning and use, building a richer "word bank" for the student.

2. Develops Cognitive Flexibility and Critical Thinking

Reading is not a one-skill-fits-all activity. The way a student reads a non-fiction text for information is different from how they read a narrative for plot and character.

• Understanding Text Structures: Learners discover that texts are organized in different ways. They learn to identify and use features like headings and glossaries in non-fiction, or to analyze plot, theme, and character in fiction.

• Analytical Skills: Engaging with diverse texts (e.g., interpreting the blend of images and text in a comic, or understanding the symbolism in poetry) sharpens a student's analytical and critical thinking abilities.

3. Boosts Engagement and Motivates Reluctant Readers

At this age, learners are solidifying their identities as readers. Offering variety ensures that every child can find something that sparks their interest.

• Finding "The" Book: The more options students have, the more likely they are to find a topic or genre they are passionate about. This is how they transition from "learning to read" to "reading to learn" (and reading for pleasure).

• Validating All Reading: Including texts like comics or graphic novels—which your survey results showed an increase in—is a powerful strategy. These formats are highly engaging, can scaffold understanding for complex topics, and motivate students who might be intimidated by text-heavy books.

4. Expands World Knowledge and Empathy

Texts serve as both windows and mirrors.

• Mirrors: Students need to see their own lives and experiences reflected in what they read. This validates their identity and builds confidence.

• Windows: Reading about different cultures, historical periods, and perspectives gives learners a "window" into worlds and experiences beyond their own. This is fundamental for building background knowledge and fostering empathy.

5. Strengthens Reading Comprehension

All of these factors combine to create more skilled readers. A student with a wider vocabulary, a better understanding of text structures, and higher engagement is naturally going to have stronger comprehension. They develop a "toolkit" of different strategies to tackle any text they encounter.

In short, variety is the key to developing adaptable, confident, and curious readers who are prepared for the increasingly complex texts they will encounter in school and in life.

Term 4 Assessment Data - PM Bench Mark

Term 4 Rebound: In Term 4, almost every student made significant progress, with many making substantial jumps in their reading levels, indicating a successful re-engagement or change in instruction.

📈 Student Progress Breakdown

Strong Rebound (T1-T4)

Despite the Term 3 stall, most students finished the year showing good to excellent progress from their starting point.

• Gra (Year 4): L 24 → L 26 → L 26 → L 30 (4A)

• Ame (Year 4): L 22 → L 24 → L 24 → L 30 (4A)

• Del (Year 4): L 22 → L 26 → L 26 → L 30 (4A)

• Sio (Year 4): L 10 → L 14 → L 14 → L 23 (3B)

• Cia (Year 5): L 18 → L 20 → L 20 → L 23 (3B)

• Jae (Year 5): L 22 → L 24 → L 24 → L 28 (4B)

• Sad (Year 5): L 5 → L 9 → L 9 → L 15 (3P)

These students all jumped multiple levels in Term 4, effectively overcoming the previous stall.

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⚠️ Significant Concern

• Ang (Year 5): This student is the only one who did not rebound in Term 4.

• T1: L 25

• T2: L 25

• T3: L 25

• T4: L 26 (3P)

Evaluation: This student showed no progress for three consecutive terms and only advanced one level by the end of the year. This indicates a significant and persistent barrier to learning that was not resolved by the methods that proved successful for the other students in Term 4. Ang requires immediate and targeted intervention.