Rachel Clarke

Director of Primary English Education | Reader | Writer | Trainer | Content writer

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

📌 Pinning this to the top 📌
This book makes assessing reading fluency really straightforward. Also perfect for checking children are reading from the correct band. Available now from @CollinsPrimary

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@redhotcook @dieworkwear I do get what you’re saying. A varied curriculum that included crafts would be wonderful. But believe me, there would be curriculum standards and expectations that may well sap the joy. I don’t think we disagree as much as our word limited comments suggest.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@redhotcook @dieworkwear If you can sway the DfE to include a wide range of crafts within a balanced curriculum all power to you.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@redhotcook @dieworkwear Maybe today’s knitters do it for the joy. When I was a child it was for necessity. And as for schools teaching it: make it statutory (which it would be if added to the curriculum) and you near certainly kill the joy!

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@redhotcook @dieworkwear Really? I knit, my mum knits, my daughter’s knit. It’s very much alive and kicking.

[Lily Craven @TheAttagirls]

The Woman of the Day is the Anglo-Saxon noblewoman Godgifu of West Mercia, the only woman to remain a landholder in Britain after those robbing Normans swept in and stole everything that wasn’t nailed down (and quite a few things that were).

Of course you’ve heard of her. You’ve heard of the Godiva Procession which was instituted in 1678 by Coventry Fair to commemorate the legendary ride by the Lady.

Taking pity on the people of Coventry suffering grievously under her husband's oppressive taxation, she called his bluff that he would repeal the taxes if she would strip naked and ride through the streets of the town, clothed only in her long hair. She only agreed on the condition that everyone stayed indoors and shut their windows, but a tailor known ever afterwards as Peeping Tom disobeyed and was struck blind. Allegedly.

It was all bunkum. Absolute bunkum.

Lady Godiva’s real name was Godgifu. She married Leofric, Earl of Mercia, but both she and her husband were major philanthropists and among the most munificent of the Anglo-Saxon nobility until the Norman Conquest in 1066 (and those robbing Normans came along, etc).

In Anglo-Saxon times, in laws dated around 1008 AD, women enjoyed full property rights, from peasant to nobility. They could own land, farms, houses. Upon marriage, a husband was legally required to give his wife a Morgengifu (Morning Gift): land, money, or goods, which remained her independent property that she could sell, give away, or manage as she chose. Women wrote their own wills and left property to whomever they chose including children, servants, or religious institutions, and they didn’t need their husband's permission.

All that stopped after 1066. The new feudal system tied land ownership to military service, something women were barred from providing. Women became the chattels (property) of their husbands if they were married, or their fathers if they were not, a legal state known as coverture. Still, I’m sure the Normans thought they were being progressive and inclusive, two words I’ve come to loathe. But I digress.

Godgifu survived the death of her husband and was mentioned in the Domesday Book, one of the few Anglo-Saxons and the only woman to remain a major landholder after the Conquest.

Godgifu certainly would have ridden a horse but not in protest and certainly not minus her clothes. Still, the idea of it proved quite a crowd pleaser at Coventry Fair in 1678, even though the first fake Lady Godiva was actually a lad. Yes, I know. Some things just don’t change.

In the intervening years, the myth was spiced up by the Puritans to prove a moral point but dampened down by other Protestants to make it fit for delicate ears. Never forget: the objectification of women is eternal, along with its fraternal twin, misogyny. The two generally go hand in hand.

Despite several attempts to shut down the procession — in 1845, the Mayor got fed up with the crowds jostling to get a better view of her, expostulating, “It’s a disgrace”, and in 1854, the Bishop of Worcester protested against “a Birmingham whore being paraded through the streets as Lady Godiva” — it continued as a annual event until the 1960s.

Godgifu’s date of birth is unknown but she died in her mid-fifties in 1067 after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Domesday Book of 1086 notes that the lands formerly held by her had passed to others. Men of course. Chattels are property, and property cannot own property.

Married women finally achieved independent taxation in their own right in 1990. Prior to that, their husbands were responsible for paying tax on their income unless she obtained his signature and consent to claim her own single person's allowance and pay tax on her own earnings. Her unearned income — such as investment or savings interest — still legally belonged to him.

And of course, the "marital rape exemption" — the legal assumption that a wife could not withhold sexual consent from her husband under the marriage contract — was not formally abolished in English law until 1991.

935 years. It only took 935 years in this country to demolish the legal status and definition of Woman as Property, and despite the Supreme Court ruling, we still find ourselves having to dismantle the definition of Woman as a feeling — with political parties, Civil Service departments, with trade unions, charities, retailers, and with sporting bodies.

I know many of us are tired of fighting the same old battles but keep going, sisters.

“We woman suffragists have a great mission — the greatest mission the world has ever known. It is to free half the human race, and through that freedom to save the rest.”
Emmeline Pankhurst, 17 October 1912.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

That’ll be experienced educator to you young marketeer. That’s unless you want me to recount the great chalk face conflict of the late 20th century.

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

A story of two Coventry City 25-year-olds. Coventry’s character against Newcastle United embodied by the determined Jack Rudoni and Bobby Thomas. What a journey they’ve been on. Rudoni started out at Epsom Eagles, where Tino Livramento, Conor Gallagher, Reece James and Lauren James once played. Released by Crystal Palace at 11, taken on by AFC Wimbledon, Rudoni played on loan for amateur side Corinthian-Casuals at 17. He was man of the match on his debut against Dorking and received the award (a bottle of rose) from Alec Stewart, England cricket legend and ex-Casuals centre-back and midfielder.

Rudoni played on loan in National League South for Tonbridge Angels in front of 590 (against Chelmsford) but never lost belief. Played League One with AFC Wimbledon. Then Championship with Huddersfield – played under Neil Warnock, who predicted the midfielder would “go to the very top”. Championship and now Premier League with Coventry. At 25.

Midfielder develops further under Frank Lampard, and shows character in abundance. Rudoni had never taken a pen before in 280 appearances. Converted his kick in the 4-1 win over against Newcastle.

Thomas, outstanding against Newcastle, has also been on a rise up the pyramid. Defender began at Crewe Alexandra, but held back by Osgood-Schlatter’s, which restricted his game-time. Left Crewe, joined Burnley and went on “a work experience loan” at 18 to Kendal Town in the Northern Premier League. Thomas scored on his debut for the Mintcakes, a header, against Glossop North End.

Thomas played on loan in League Two for Barrow, League One for Bristol Rovers and Barnsley. Sold by Burnley to Coventry for £2m, Thomas has played Championship and now Premier League. Shows the importance of EFL (and non-League) in shaping players for the Premier League. And shows the power of persistence within Rudoni and Thomas #PUSB btw Stephen Mfuni looks a huge prospect, 18-year-old defender on loan from Manchester City.

[Coventry City @CoventryCityFC]

Coventry City FC are proud to launch a month of activations in aid of Breast Cancer Awareness, including the drop of a limited-edition all-pink shirt. 👕

Together, we can raise the awareness of Breast Cancer. 🩷

🔗 https://t.co/AHulgwwZvb

[UKLA @The_UKLA]

Members could win this spooky book to cower under the covers with for our #halloween #giveaway!

The Worst Thing is a collection of illustrated creepy short stories, comic strips, and verse by @GuyBassBooks and David Roberts.

Just repost to enter!

[Coventry City @CoventryCityFC]

Jay Dasilva has been nominated for @premierleague Player of the Matchweek. 🏆

Vote now! ⤵️

🔗 https://t.co/Ts7W89fcKC

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@premierleague Coventry City #pusb

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@KirstieMAllsopp I feel compelled to say the every time I watch one of those ads. Meaningless nonsense. I might be more tempted to buy these products if they could magically remove more than 100% 😂

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@Gripweed1 @lisacov19 @CoventryCityFC That would be the ideal scenario.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

Oh, @CoventryCityFC no longer follow me. They’ve changed.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

I’d argue that the inverted commas include ‘outdated conventions’.

[BBC Politics @BBCPolitics]

Reform will remove the ability of judges to lean on outdated conventions "like the European Convention of Human Rights", Nigel Farage says

Britain is broken and only Reform has the courage, the conviction and foresight to fix it, he adds

Follow live: https://t.co/X0H59wGpTm

[Count Binface @CountBinface]

There now follows a party election broadcast by the Count Binface Party, And if I do say so myself, it's a banger. #VoteBinface #Clacton

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@_night_brain__ To be clear I’m not a climate denier. Grass recovers incredibly quickly once there is rain. This is likely short mown grass which suffers far more than if left long. Changing mowing habits is essential as we move forward.

[Rachel Clarke @PrimaryEnglish]

@PolitlcsUK Says the man whose allies in govt. leaked like sieves.