FIVE FREE templates to take directly into your classroom to teach comprehension skills.

LEVEL-UP LITERACY

I help school leaders move beyond the next literacy initiative and build the systems that create consistent teacher practice and sustainable literacy improvement.

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Amanda Sutera

grounded in evidence | inspired by research | informed by practice

Knowing literacy and leading literacy improvement are two different things

As a classroom teacher, I was supported by compassionate and authentic leaders who wanted to help me build my literacy capacity to transform my practice and the progress of my students.

When I became a school leader, I wanted to do the same - help others feel valued, heard and seen to impact learning and engagement.

Now, as an Instructional Literacy Coach, Literacy Leadership Coach, and Literacy Consultant, I work alongside teachers and leaders to do the same—building capacity, strengthening literacy practices and creating lasting school-wide impact.

About Me

If I could read your mind...

You've invested time, money and energy in literacy initiatives, PL, programs and resources to build teacher capacity, but implementation is still inconsistent

You need to fix stagnant or declining reading + writing outcomes, but you're overwhelmed by competing priorities and unsure where to focus first

Your middle leaders are managing whole-school literacy improvement, rather than leading it because they're time poor or don't have the confidence to it well

Work With Me

"Amanda is dynamic, inspiring, and always practical. She has the ability to create real change.

Her work with kids in classrooms, teachers in schools and through her social media influence are

a huge reflection of her energy and innovation."

Jen McVeity OAM

Seven Steps to Writing Success

FOLLOW ME

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Coaching leaders and teachers in Years 5-9 to build clarity, capacity and consistency for sustainable literacy improvement.
Let's Connect ⤵️

https://linktr.ee/handsonheads

In this episode of Multidimensional Literacy Magic, I interviewedPaul Staniscia
Head of Primary – Southern Cross Grammar, VIC.

This episode is for literacy leaders, school leaders and teachers looking to build the systems, structures and leadership decisions that strengthen literacy instruction from Foundation to Year 6 while creating greater alignment across the whole school.

A moment for Learning Intentions and Success Criteria also featured!

One of the biggest takeaways?
Consistency isn't about every classroom looking identical. It's about every student having access to high-quality instruction, regardless of which classroom they walk into. Low variance, not no variance.

"If there's one thing we need in our classrooms, it's clarity."
"We were finally having conversations about the same thing using the same language."
"Sometimes you just need to listen and learn."

Comment 'PAUL' for the episode link.

Thank you Emily @emily.inquires @thinkagainedu, Luisa and Georgia for a night of inspiration, learning, community and wonderings.

It was great to have rich discussions about inquiry + explicit together in a room of educators who value both sides of the same coin- seeing the benefits, outcomes and impact on students...and teachers...all learners!

Fabulous meeting Kate in real life @theinquiryproject and listening to case study schools.

Lovely catching up with @emilykategregory!

How do you know what's happening when you're in a million different places trying to do a million different things?

Leaders ask me these 3 questions all the time to help them stay informed and across literacy in Years 5-9.

Comment 'CHAT', and I'll send you the details to book a leader's Literacy Strategy Session.

We all talk about 'building trust', but what does it actually look like?

When I'm working with teachers and leaders, these are some of the things I intentionally and sincerely do to build trust:

✔️ Ask about their weekend
Not because I need small talk, but because I genuinely want to know the people I'm working with. (People first, professionals second.)

✔️ Find common ground
Look for connections. Shared experiences, interests, challenges or even a good laugh can create connection. (Think TV shows, travel, books, etc. especially Kristin Hannah!)

✔️ Notice what's going well
Compliment the practice you genuinely value.

✔️ Bring the coffee
Sometimes it's the food or a coffee- an almond latte to be exact. It's about showing people you've thought about them. (Fruit is always a winner- safe for almost all dietaries!)

✔️ Follow up and follow through
If I say I'll send something, I send it. If I say I'll check in, I check in. If I say I'll help, I help. (Having this in the calendar is a BIG help. If it's not documented, it doesn't happen!)

✔️ Tell people I'm available to help
And then actually be available when they need me. (And always ASK if they need something from you to help them.)

✔️ SHOW, don't just tell
Don't tell teachers what great literacy instruction looks like and leave them to figure it out. Model it. Demonstrate it. Co-plan it. Teach alongside them. (I love the learning from and with each other.)

✔️ Be open and transparent
No gatekeeping, no hiding information, no pretending everything is perfect. Explain the WHY. Share the thinking. Make the process visible.

Your actions tell people:

👀 I see you
😊 I know you
🙋‍♀️ I'm here to help
👏 I'll do what I said I'd do
👥 You don't have to figure this out alone

And when teachers trust the process, they're more likely to engage in the uncomfortable work of changing practice.

That's when literacy improvement REALLY becomes possible.

I modelled a reading lesson to help teachers and students learn strategies to select the most appropriate word for a MAZE or CLOZE.

Giving students more CLOZEs or more MAZEs IS NOT going to improve their comprehension.

DIBELS MOY data was showing that students were making grammatical and vocab errors when selecting the most appropriate words to fill in a blank space.

When we teach students HOW the strategies to use, and WHY we select certain strategies over others, it helps them think about their selection to make intentional choices.

We don't just give students more of the same to practise CLOZE and MAZE responses, we give them an opportunity to SEE and HEAR how to correctly select words and justify the selection.

CLOZE and MAZE strategies are helpful for:
vocabulary development
+
grammatical knowledge
+
background knowledge
+
reading fluency
= hello, comprehension

Follow along for more ways to learn how I help teachers help their students make meaning.

I connected with Michael at an event last year, where he shared the successes of his school's whole-school instructional practices. Naturally, I wanted to learn more about what this looks like in the literacy space, so I invited him onto the podcast!

One of my key takeaways 'primary people in secondary spaces' where Michael shares the reason behind employing primary teachers in the secondary school- win, win.

If you're sitting there thinking, “How do we get every teacher to see themselves as a literacy teacher?” or "We don' just have the time in our timetables!" - this episode is for you.

Michael and I unpack the mindset shifts, practical changes and leadership decisions that helped build a stronger whole-school approach to literacy.

🎧 Listen to the end for the audio 'word cloud' that captures the heart of our conversation:
"We recognised pretty quickly... this needs to be happening more often, in more places."

"You've got to be vulnerable. You've got to give up a little bit of your content to ensure every student is set up so they can succeed."

"We're getting some wins because people are opening up a little bit more and recognising that if we can all help each other out, it's better for everyone in the long run."

Comment 'MICHAEL' for the episode link.

One of my favourite sayings , and one I often come back to, is one I created myself:

✨“That’s the thing about great leaders… they see something in us that we can’t see in ourselves… yet.”✨

Great literacy leaders know that improvement starts with understanding where to focus next.

'Toxic traits' used lightly from a recovering literacy leader who used to do all of these things!

Because when you care deeply about literacy improvement, it’s easy to fall into habits that feel helpful in the moment but don’t always build long-term capacity.
(I would also say that's a blessing and a curse of being ambitious. But you're in leadership BECAUSE of your ambition).

Repeating the message.
Doing the thinking.
Carrying the follow-up.
Trying to fix consistency before clarity has been built
(I just spoke to a Head of Pedagogy recently about this- we had to go back a step to CLARITY before moving forward with CONSISTENCY)

I’ve learnt that sustainable literacy change needs more than urgency- much to every leader's dismay.

It needs shared understanding, teacher voice, coaching conversations, evidence and enough trust for the work to become collective.

That’s the kind of leadership I’m always learning to practise more deeply and impart on the leaders I work with.

Join me and 10 literacy leaders taking part in targeted PL to strengthen literacy leadership, align practice and create lasting impact. Comment 'LIT' for all the details.

Sustainable, ongoing and impactful.

What began as uncertainty, confusion and overwhelm has become 7 months of dedication to improving practices, streamlining consistency, promoting equity, learning together and impacting outcomes- yay!

Don't be a leader who is trying to lead literacy improvement by finding the next strategy, program, resource or initiative.

Be a leader who is confident and knows EXACTLY how to create conditions for clarity, build teacher capacity and lead lasting literacy change.

Your PL shouldn’t look like this…

Teachers arriving late.
Laptops open.
Emails being responded to.
Side conversations happening.
People quietly finishing other work.
Counting down until it’s over.

That's far from learning. We wouldn't expect that from our students, so we wouldn't expect that from our teachers.

PL should be the place where teachers experience the same engagement, collaboration and thinking we want them to create for students.

Comment 'LIT' and I’ll share how to move from running meetings to facilitating meaningful and productive professional learning.

To the literacy leader and Head of English who is trying to create change but struggling to bring your team with you… this is for you.

Comment 'WEBINAR' for your FREE access to the training.

It all begins on Thursday 13 August.

The perfect time to end (2026) strong and begin (2027) clear.

10 schools only.
2 terms.
1 clear strategic pathway.

Think, like-minded leaders in a small group.

Think, connection leadership rather than lonely leadership.

Think, whole-school progression, not doing everyone else's admin tasks.

Think, confident and capable, not confused and overwhelmed.

Think, alignment over inconsistency.

Think, collaboration instead of isolation.

I would love to have you join me.

Comment 'LEVEL UP', and I'll share the invitation like with you.

*8 places remain

Had to screenshot mid webinar!

Sometimes it can feel like you're doing all the talking during your meeting, you're coming up with all the ideas during your planning session and you're the only one making decisions during the professional learning session.

All the while, colleauges are responding to parent emails, following up something from a lesson or having side conversation with others.

To ensure active participation and engagement during PLCs, planning sessions, meetings and PL, try asking these questions the next time you facilitate:

"What’s a win in your literacy practice over the past week?"

"And what else..."

"How does that sound?"

"Tell me about...."

"What’s the best use of our time today?"

"Since we last met...."

Comment 'webinar' for more questions to bring to your next conversation.

No single program or text book will upskill teachers to build their capacity, confidence and increase classroom consistency.

What will help them is sustainable, ongoing, professional learning that's theoretical AND practical so that teachers can take their learning directly into their classrooms.

These Year 9 teachers were having fun (yes, grammar is fun!) moving from formal to functional grammar, while playing with sentence structures and word choices for their upcoming unit, 'Romeo + Juliet'.

And, hello Vertical Learning!

Inquiry-based learning will always have my heart!

Thanks @trev_mackenzie for another insightful, refreshing and collaborative session. So fabulous catching up again, talking all things learning and learners!

Key takeaways:
- social over individual
-explore over explain
- model the model
- make it explicit

The HOH multidimensional approach to literacy resonated as always 🙌🏻

Give teachers and leaders the time, trust and the right tools and watch the magic happen ✨🪄

Thanks @acelaustralia for this fabulous event.

New term, new unit 📚

A fresh opportunity to build knowledge, deepen understanding and create meaningful literacy learning experiences for students.

Behind every successful unit is intentional planning, clear learning goals and a focus on what students need to know, understand and do.

How exciting to be embedding a new novel study unit into a new term!

You’re not just trying to improve literacy.

You’re trying to lead sustainable instructional change- while balancing competing priorities, supporting teachers and navigating the daily demands of school leadership.

The challenge isn’t knowing what needs to happen. (You know the WHAT)

It’s building shared understanding, influencing practice and creating consistency that lasts. (I'll help you with the HOW)

'Level Up Literacy- Leadership Coaching' has been designed to help Middle Leaders lead literacy improvement with clarity, confidence and impact.

Comment 'LIT' and I’ll send you the details.
*Limited to 10 schools.

That feeling a teacher gets when they're proud of how far a student has come or reaching new heights...that's a proud coaching moment on my end too! 👏👏👏

Shock Horror!

This is one way to develop students' comprehension skills and meaning making without reading and responding via question/answer in every reading lesson.

Save this strategy for when your students need extra scaffolding!

Confident literacy leadership isn’t about walking into the room with every answer ready.

It’s about creating the conditions where teachers are willing to open the door, think with you, look at student evidence honestly, and try the next instructional move.

That takes more than knowledge.

It takes trust.
It takes effective questions.
It takes the ability to notice what’s happening in practice and connect it back to the bigger whole-school literacy goals.

Because when teachers welcome you into classrooms, when conversations feel like coaching, and when data leads to purposeful action- leadership starts to feel less like pushing from the outside… and more like building capacity from within.

Comment 'LIT' to learn more.

Being a leader is one thing.
Being informed is another.

I've interviewed almost 30 school leaders, and the one thing they all have in common- they're INFORMED leaders. Aware, eager and willing to bring about changes to literacy practices and initiatives because they KNOW what's going on in classrooms.

Effective leadership isn’t about being in charge - it’s about being connected.
Connected to classrooms.
Connected to teachers.
Connected to literacy practice.

Real leadership starts with knowing what’s happening in classrooms - especially in upper primary and lower secondary literacy.

The most effective leaders don’t just lead change, they understand it.

The most effective literacy leaders I work with are not the ones trying to be the expert in the room.

They’re the ones creating the conditions where teachers feel safe enough to open their doors, reflect on practice, look at student evidence honestly and try the next move...together.

They made informed decisions because of their ability to connect.

That effective leadership quality takes TRUST.

It takes conversations that feel supportive, not performative.
It takes data being used to understand students, not judge teachers.
It takes modelling, observation and feedback that teachers can actually see as part of their growth.

And it takes letting go of the idea that you have to carry all the literacy knowledge yourself.

Because the real work is not in being the person with all the answers.

The real work is built in shared clarity, utilising the strengths of others, collective confidence and stronger practice across the team- so the work doesn’t depend on you alone.

If you have a practice problem, you have a planning problem.

If you have a planning problem, you have a purpose problem.

If you have a purpose problem, you have a pedagogy problem.

If you have a pedagogy problem, you have a people problem.

Comment 'CLARITY' to learn more about the 5Ps and leading literacy improvement.

One of my favourite resources to support clarity, shared language and shared understandings amongst team members.

We might be saying one thing and doing another.

Having something like this streamlines the approach, makes it clear which routine is being used and serves as a powerful evaluative tool to inform practice.

Which reading routine do you use most often?

Which reading routine do you need to add to your practice?

For the lonely literacy leaders, I have something for you.

In Term 3, I'll be hosting and facilitating an online, exclusive PL for Middle Leaders leading whole-school literacy improvement.

Places are limited to 10 schools.

Comment 'LIT' to learn more.

One of my favourites, an almond latte, continues to bring people together.

I remember, many years ago at my very first school, our Year 5/6 team would head to the café next door to the school every Friday for lunch.

Years later, at another school, there was a café onsite. During a free period, the Junior School leadership team would walk together from one building to another for a coffee.

Now, working alongside teams of teachers and leaders, I see the same thing happen time and time again. And, I can enjoy it with them!

Coffee seems to play an integral role in strengthening team dynamics.

But it's not actually about the coffee itself... it's the experience.

The walk together—away from the office, meeting room or classroom.

The conversations that don't usually happen between agenda items.

"What did you do on the weekend?"

"How were your holidays?"

"Did you end up finishing that movie?"

These moments build something bigger than connection.

They build trust.

And trust is often the foundation for honest conversations, collaboration amongst team members, and meaningful change.

There's no way you'll improve literacy achievement if you don't improve the quality of your professional relationships.

Sometimes the most important work doesn't happen around the meeting table.

It starts with a coffee.

Clarity doesn't mean "We're all on the same page".

Clarity looks like:
-We have shared literacy understandings
-We share common literacy language
-We have an established literacy vision/objectives
-We have agreed literacy non-negotiables
-We have common literacy practices
-We (leaders + teachers) have all been involved in the process

Comment "CLARITY", and I'll send you the
5-step resource to align your literacy instruction.

Whenever we lead literacy change, there's 3 types of people we're working with:

1. The Early Adopters
-They're the ones who are eager and would have said yes yesterday. They're the risk-takers and the forward thinkers. You would probably see elements of what's expected already implemented in their literacy practice.
(No surprises that I was usually an Early Adopter- still am- very Monica Geller style!)

2. The Inbetweeners
-They're not against it- they're just not sold yet. They'll ask good questions, want to see it work somewhere first, and they'll need a colleague they trust to go before them. Give them that, and they'll move- and move properly and effectively.
(Very Rachel Green- shaky and unsure at the start, but watch her end up running the whole show! )

3. The Cautious Laggers
They're not opposed forever - they just need more time, more reassurance and more proof this isn't "another thing" that'll quietly disappear next term. They move last, slow, but they move eventually. But once they move, they move solid - and often defend it harder than anyone.
(Very Ross Geller: "I don't think so!" right up until he's the one correcting everyone else's technique- classic Ross!)

If you know your Early Adopters, Inbetweeners and Cautious Laggers, but don't yet know HOW to lead each of them differently (because it feels like an uphill battle) - comment 'TEAM', and I'll send you a FREE diagnostic tool to level-up your literacy leadership

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FIVE FREE templates to take directly into your classroom to teach comprehension skills.

FIVE FREE templates to take directly into your classroom to teach comprehension skills.

LEVEL-UP LITERACY

Amanda Sutera

Knowing literacy and leading literacy improvement are two different things

FOLLOW ME

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