1. Literacy Mats
Writing strategy for all students

2. What is literacy mat?
• Valuable source of support and guidance for all
students in all subjects when completing written
tasks.
• Resource designed, created and used by all
subject areas consisting of literacy strategies and
key information from each Curriculum Area.
• Consistent and comprehensive literacy strategy
across the school.

3. Why should we have a
go?
• Doesn’t matter what subject we teach we are all
teachers of literacy.
(To be able to achieve full potential in a particular subject students need to
be able to communicate ideas in a variety of different ways)
• Encourage positive behaviour
(When students are able to approach written tasks independently they
tend to misbehave less)
• Boost students’ independence and self-esteem
(More manageable writing gives students the belief in their own ability and
sense of achievement)

4. ‘Literacy side’
Should consist of the literacy strategies suitable for the
type of writing that students produce in the particular
subject:
• List of connectives
• Punctuation strategies
• Sentence starters, etc.
• Sentence openers
• Writing for different purpose tips, etc.

5. ‘Subject side’
Should include:
• Subject related vocabulary
• Level descriptors/success criteria
• Diagrams
• Pictures

6. Developing literacy mat for your
Curriculum Area

7. Literacy Mat for each Key
Stage
• Should consist of all the ingredients of the general
mat on the literacy side.
• Should include elements related to the content of
the Key Stage curriculum, e.g.
vocabulary, expectations, level descriptors.

8. Literacy Mat for each
curriculum year
• Should consist of all the ingredients of the general
mat on the ‘literacy side’.
• Should include more detailed subject related
vocabulary used in the curriculum for each year
group.

9. ‘Topic related’ Literacy Mat
• Should consist of all the ingredients of the general
mat on the ‘literacy side’.
• Vocabulary and resources related to each topic
with visual cues.
• ???

10. Activity
• Plan the literacy mat for the topic you are currently
working on.