EdCircuit Staff 
For this episode, Tom and Emma chat with education “sister act” Tracey Adams and Sonia Thompson. The pair discuss their roles at St. Matthew’s Primary School in Birmingham, Sonia’s publication with John Catt Educational, and their philosophies on research-based education. In addition to being Head and Deputy Headteachers at St. Matthew’s, Tracey and Sonia are sisters and discuss their dynamic in a research school environment. St Matthew’s has garnered a lot of positive attention from the education community in the U.K, even having other educators visit quite often to take some of the techniques Sonia and Tracey use into their own classrooms across Britain.
“We are a school that cares about our children… and we will do whatever we have to do for them to find success and to be richly fed in primary as they can be.” Says Sonia On St. Matthew’s and the experiences they are striving to create.
Using a wealth of knowledge gained in the classroom, Sonia’s recent publication builds off Ron Berger’s seminal work An Ethic of Excellence: Building a Culture of Craftsmanship. Sonia’s book explores how she has used Berger’s work in the classroom to build fundamentals in reading, language, and create educational experiences that shape young students for great achievement in the future.
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Mind the Gap is presented by John Catt Educational, a leading independent publisher that has supported teachers and school leaders with research-based, easy-to-use professional development publications since 1959. Learn more about books from Tom, Emma, and many other world-class authors at us.johncattbookshop.com (US) or johncattbookshop.com (International).
About the participants:
Sonia Thompson
Sonia Thompson is Head Teacher at St. Matthew’s C.E. Primary School and Director of St. Matthew’s Research School. She is an SLE for English and School Improvement and a regular speaker at conferences, such as Research Ed. As an author, Sonia has published several articles and thought leadership pieces concerning primary education including her recently published book with John Catt Educational: Berger’s An Ethic of Excellence in Action. You can find Sonia on twitter @son1bun
Tracey Adams
Tracey Adams is the Deputy Head Teacher at St. Matthew’s CE Primary School and Deputy Director of St. Matthew’s Research School. She is also NCETM Professional Development Lead and SLE for Maths and School Improvement. Her goal as an educator is to become a thought leader, sharing best practices based on research with the education community. You can find Tracey on Twitter @traceya75
