Responsive Teaching by Design: Effective Tasks, Questions and Actions

An ambitious 5-part 'staff meeting series' programme - designed for teachers and senior leaders - that examines the principles, evidence and practice behind embedding learning tasks within a curriculum.

Underpinning effective teaching and learning is the need for teachers to be responsive, not only to adapt for SEND pupils but also to extend children. By identifying what our pupils have understood, through well designed tasks and hinge questions, we can adapt our teaching accordingly.

In turn, we will improve our teaching and our pupils’ learning. The aim of responsive teaching is to better understand and support all our pupils. Through utilising findings from cognitive science and formative assessment, this programme identifies effective ways to check what all pupils have understood and outlines how classroom teachers can sustainably provide support in the classroom.

The first session (online) will be for school leaders to set up and make the training most effective for your staff. Thereafter five sessions will be run online and delivered live into your staffroom every half term. The benefits to you will be:

• Expert training delivered online direct to your staff.
• Gap tasks to explore practical approaches in the classroom.
• Training is carried out in normal staff meeting time 3.45-5.15
• Your staffroom is the online break out room.
• No travel or supply costs.
• No preparation time for your staff training
• Value for money
• Staff not in school that day (e.g. job shares) will be able to attend remotely

Outline of the programme:

15 October 2025 1545-1615

Short introductory session for leaders

5 November 2025 1545-1715

Task Design

Design tasks that truly enhance learning. This session breaks down what makes task design effective, revisiting key insights from cognitive science and identifying where tasks often fall short, so we can design them for impact.

7 January 2026 1545-1715

Hinge-point questions

Harness the power of hinge-point questions to check understanding and guide learning in real time. This session explores what makes a great hinge-point question, how to design them effectively, and how they can transform assessment into a powerful tool for responsive teaching.

25 February 2026 1545-1715

Responsive Teaching - Part 1

Discover the power of responsive teaching and how it shapes effective learning. This session explores the research and evidence behind responsive teaching, cognition and learning, assessment, and the common proxies that can mislead us about pupils’ learning.

22 April 2026 1545-1715

Responsive Teaching - Part 2

Strengthen your practice to drive real impact in the classroom. Building on Part 1, this session delves into Rosenshine’s Principles, planning and modelling, and strategies to assess and deepen pupil understanding.

3 June 2026 1545-1715

Responsive Teaching - Part 3

Lead with impact and develop excellence in others. This session builds on sessions 1 and 2, focusing on supporting colleagues to enhance their practice, covering key strategies for professional development, habits and behaviours, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Quotes from attendees of Elliot’s training in the past:

"Inspiring speaker, interesting content, very relevant."

"Well-structured session with theory and practice. Opportunities for collaborative work worked well."

"Hands on practical ideas and lots of research-informed knowledge to share with staff."

"Really great - engaging with science of learning."

"Really useful and thought provoking."

"Whole presentation from Elliot was excellent - time to think and respond."

Target Audience

Primary teachers and senior leaders

Training Lead

Elliot Morgan is a curriculum advisor for the Primary Knowledge Curriculum (PKC), where his role includes design of a curriculum used by over 100,000 pupils nationally and internationally, developing and delivering CPD programs, and supporting partner schools and trusts in effectively implementing PKC within their unique contexts.

With extensive experience in primary education, Elliot has served in various capacities, including Assistant Headteacher overseeing Assessment and Teaching and Learning, trust lead for science, Evidence Lead in Education for the London South Teaching Hub and Early Career Framework facilitator for Teach First. His diverse roles have equipped him with a comprehensive understanding of curriculum design, assessment, and teacher development.

Elliot's expertise extends to task design, where he has contributed to both private and public sectors by creating educational materials for schools. His commitment to enhancing teaching practices is evident through his involvement in auditing phonics provisions across numerous schools, delivering CPD to over 300 schools, speaking at educational conferences, and authoring a pedagogy newsletter with over 2,000 weekly readers.

In his current role at PKC, Elliot continues to focus on embedding evidence-informed teaching strategies, aiming to improve educational outcomes for all pupils. His work ensures that schools are well-supported in implementing a knowledge-rich curriculum, fostering an environment where both teachers and students thrive.

Costs

Pupils on roll are based on numbers in Reception to Y6

up to 120 pupils on roll: SWIFT Member Schools £395 / Non-member schools £595

121-210 pupils on roll: SWIFT Member Schools £495 / Non-member schools £695

211 or more pupils on roll: SWIFT Member Schools £595 / Non-member schools £895

NB Your school will need to have SWIFT membership for 2025/26 to qualify for the member price.

Please note: Payment is by INVOICE ONLY. Please select invoice as the payment method at check out.

SWIFT Partner providing course (including invoicing) is The Harbour Schools Partnership.

You will receive a confirmation of booking from Eventbrite. All further correspondence will come from jo.turnbull@sw-ift.org.uk; please ensure you check your junk mail box and approve the email to ensure you receive important event details.

If you are unable to attend on the day, or are sending someone else in your place, please let us know. Please be aware that failure to cancel your space can incur your school a cost.

• More than 21 days to date of event: Full refund available (minus £25 admin fee)
• Between 20-7 days to date of event: 50% refund available (minus £25 admin fee)
• 6 days or less to date of event: No refund available (plus £25 admin fee)

Should a training course recruit insufficient numbers to make it viable, we reserve the right to cancel the course, without penalty, giving minimum notice of 24 hours.

Full Terms and Conditions are available HERE.