Joanna MW
@jbalaena.bsky.social
Independent specialist in SpLD (M.Ed, AMBDA); previously English teacher & Glos LA Lead English
Teacher. Dyslexia and dyscalculia specialist teacher. Wife, vicar’s wife, mama of 4, SEN parent carer. Neurodivergent. greatexpectationseducation.uk
Teacher. Dyslexia and dyscalculia specialist teacher. Wife, vicar’s wife, mama of 4, SEN parent carer. Neurodivergent. greatexpectationseducation.uk
A Belgian supermarket sign says ‘Huisdieren’ — ‘house animals’. Dutch ‘dieren’ shares its root with English ‘deer’ and German ‘Tier’. Same word, different paths. More at bit.ly/GEEwords
November 26, 2025 at 7:01 PM
A Belgian supermarket sign says ‘Huisdieren’ — ‘house animals’. Dutch ‘dieren’ shares its root with English ‘deer’ and German ‘Tier’. Same word, different paths. More at bit.ly/GEEwords
‘You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.’
– C.S. Lewis
Not sure about the tea — but the longer the book, the better.
#CSLewis #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LongReads #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
– C.S. Lewis
Not sure about the tea — but the longer the book, the better.
#CSLewis #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LongReads #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
November 25, 2025 at 4:29 PM
‘You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.’
– C.S. Lewis
Not sure about the tea — but the longer the book, the better.
#CSLewis #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LongReads #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
– C.S. Lewis
Not sure about the tea — but the longer the book, the better.
#CSLewis #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LongReads #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
‘Broth’ is one of English’s oldest cooking words. From PIE bhreue- ‘to brew’ to bouillon cubes, its story still bubbles today. More on my blog at: bit.ly/GEEwords
November 24, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Broth’ is one of English’s oldest cooking words. From PIE bhreue- ‘to brew’ to bouillon cubes, its story still bubbles today. More on my blog at: bit.ly/GEEwords
Spotted in a Flemish supermarket: Beenhouwerij. It means butcher’s shop — but literally ‘bone-hacker’s place’. English ‘butcher’ comes from French for ‘goat-slayer’. 🐐🔪 #etymology #Flemish #butcher
November 24, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Spotted in a Flemish supermarket: Beenhouwerij. It means butcher’s shop — but literally ‘bone-hacker’s place’. English ‘butcher’ comes from French for ‘goat-slayer’. 🐐🔪 #etymology #Flemish #butcher
Cranberry’ comes from Low German Kraanbere - ‘crane-berry’. The same bird stalks through Europe in words like tranebær, Kranbeere, and canneberge.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
November 21, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Cranberry’ comes from Low German Kraanbere - ‘crane-berry’. The same bird stalks through Europe in words like tranebær, Kranbeere, and canneberge.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
From Greek ‘pepon’ to English ‘pumpkin’, a word ripened by the sun and carried across oceans. Read the full story: bit.ly/GEEwords
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pumpkin
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pumpkin
November 19, 2025 at 7:31 PM
From Greek ‘pepon’ to English ‘pumpkin’, a word ripened by the sun and carried across oceans. Read the full story: bit.ly/GEEwords
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pumpkin
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pumpkin
Life with children who have additional needs is… loitering by a railway bridge on the way to the GP for a train photo. That’s after emails, meltdowns, diplomacy, and three hours of teaching before lunch. Still ahead: a school meeting, an OT visit, and a play-therapy intro.
November 19, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Life with children who have additional needs is… loitering by a railway bridge on the way to the GP for a train photo. That’s after emails, meltdowns, diplomacy, and three hours of teaching before lunch. Still ahead: a school meeting, an OT visit, and a play-therapy intro.
‘I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading… I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.’
– Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Snapped on a Brittany headland — but she’s right: the best homes have books.
#JaneAusten #PrideAndPrejudice #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectation
– Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Snapped on a Brittany headland — but she’s right: the best homes have books.
#JaneAusten #PrideAndPrejudice #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectation
November 18, 2025 at 4:29 PM
‘I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading… I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.’
– Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Snapped on a Brittany headland — but she’s right: the best homes have books.
#JaneAusten #PrideAndPrejudice #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectation
– Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Snapped on a Brittany headland — but she’s right: the best homes have books.
#JaneAusten #PrideAndPrejudice #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectation
By November the weather calls for jacket potatoes. The word has travelled as far as the crop itself — from Taíno ‘batata’ and Quechua ‘papa’ to Spanish ‘patata’. Across Europe, people called it an ‘earth apple’ or compared it to a truffle.
November 14, 2025 at 7:35 PM
By November the weather calls for jacket potatoes. The word has travelled as far as the crop itself — from Taíno ‘batata’ and Quechua ‘papa’ to Spanish ‘patata’. Across Europe, people called it an ‘earth apple’ or compared it to a truffle.
‘Parsnip’ began as the Latin ‘pastinaca’—a word for both parsnip and carrot, and for the fork used to dig them up. Across Europe, the name still traces those Roman roots.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
November 12, 2025 at 7:30 PM
‘Parsnip’ began as the Latin ‘pastinaca’—a word for both parsnip and carrot, and for the fork used to dig them up. Across Europe, the name still traces those Roman roots.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
‘Poppy’ keeps its Latin root ‘papaver’ through centuries of language change. From Old English ‘popiġ’ to today’s word of remembrance. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
November 11, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Poppy’ keeps its Latin root ‘papaver’ through centuries of language change. From Old English ‘popiġ’ to today’s word of remembrance. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
“Every man who knows how to read… multiplies the ways in which he exists.”
– Aldous Huxley
Spotted on the north coast of Germany: a flash of pink, a beetle, and a reminder that books don’t just inform — they expand.
#AldousHuxley #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
– Aldous Huxley
Spotted on the north coast of Germany: a flash of pink, a beetle, and a reminder that books don’t just inform — they expand.
#AldousHuxley #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
November 11, 2025 at 4:29 PM
“Every man who knows how to read… multiplies the ways in which he exists.”
– Aldous Huxley
Spotted on the north coast of Germany: a flash of pink, a beetle, and a reminder that books don’t just inform — they expand.
#AldousHuxley #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
– Aldous Huxley
Spotted on the north coast of Germany: a flash of pink, a beetle, and a reminder that books don’t just inform — they expand.
#AldousHuxley #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #GreatExpectationsEducation #LiteraryQuotes
Pear began as Latin pirum and may go back to an ancient root meaning ‘to crush’. A soft fruit with a long linguistic history. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pear
November 7, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Pear began as Latin pirum and may go back to an ancient root meaning ‘to crush’. A soft fruit with a long linguistic history. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pear
‘Bonfire’ once meant a fire of bones. Folk speech re-heard it through French ‘bon’ — a ‘good fire’. From ritual smoke to village blaze. Read the full story: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/bonfire
November 5, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Bonfire’ once meant a fire of bones. Folk speech re-heard it through French ‘bon’ — a ‘good fire’. From ritual smoke to village blaze. Read the full story: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/bonfire
“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.”
– W. Somerset Maugham
A quiet headland in Brittany… and the kind of refuge you can carry anywhere: a book.
#SomersetMaugham #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LiteraryRefuge #GreatExpectationsEducati
– W. Somerset Maugham
A quiet headland in Brittany… and the kind of refuge you can carry anywhere: a book.
#SomersetMaugham #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LiteraryRefuge #GreatExpectationsEducati
November 4, 2025 at 4:29 PM
“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.”
– W. Somerset Maugham
A quiet headland in Brittany… and the kind of refuge you can carry anywhere: a book.
#SomersetMaugham #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LiteraryRefuge #GreatExpectationsEducati
– W. Somerset Maugham
A quiet headland in Brittany… and the kind of refuge you can carry anywhere: a book.
#SomersetMaugham #BookQuote #ReadersOfX #LiteraryRefuge #GreatExpectationsEducati
The word ‘November’ once meant ‘ninth month’. The Romans counted from March, while the Anglo-Saxons called it ‘Blōtmōnaþ’ — the sacrifice month. Read the full word history: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/november
November 1, 2025 at 7:30 PM
The word ‘November’ once meant ‘ninth month’. The Romans counted from March, while the Anglo-Saxons called it ‘Blōtmōnaþ’ — the sacrifice month. Read the full word history: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/november
‘Halloween’ began as ‘All Hallows’ Even’, the night before All Saints’ Day. The word holds centuries of English and European memory: saints, souls, and the turning of the year.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
October 31, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Halloween’ began as ‘All Hallows’ Even’, the night before All Saints’ Day. The word holds centuries of English and European memory: saints, souls, and the turning of the year.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
‘Twilight’ joins ‘two’ and ‘light’ to name the half-light between day and night. From Old English twi-lyht, it shares roots with ‘twin’ and ‘lucid’. Read more: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
October 29, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Twilight’ joins ‘two’ and ‘light’ to name the half-light between day and night. From Old English twi-lyht, it shares roots with ‘twin’ and ‘lucid’. Read more: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
‘The world was hers for the reading.’
– Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
A bright bloom, spotted in a corner of Brittany — and a reminder of everything that opens up with a book.
#BettySmith #LiteraryQuotes #ReadersOfX #BooksAndBlooms #GreatExpectationsEducation
– Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
A bright bloom, spotted in a corner of Brittany — and a reminder of everything that opens up with a book.
#BettySmith #LiteraryQuotes #ReadersOfX #BooksAndBlooms #GreatExpectationsEducation
October 28, 2025 at 4:29 PM
‘The world was hers for the reading.’
– Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
A bright bloom, spotted in a corner of Brittany — and a reminder of everything that opens up with a book.
#BettySmith #LiteraryQuotes #ReadersOfX #BooksAndBlooms #GreatExpectationsEducation
– Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
A bright bloom, spotted in a corner of Brittany — and a reminder of everything that opens up with a book.
#BettySmith #LiteraryQuotes #ReadersOfX #BooksAndBlooms #GreatExpectationsEducation
‘Frost’ is one of English’s oldest words — unchanged for a thousand winters. From Old English ‘forst’ to the same chill sound we use today. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
October 27, 2025 at 7:35 PM
‘Frost’ is one of English’s oldest words — unchanged for a thousand winters. From Old English ‘forst’ to the same chill sound we use today. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
Across Europe, the smallest rain has many names — drizzle, bruine, llovizna, Niesel. All speak of drops that hover before they fall.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
October 24, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Across Europe, the smallest rain has many names — drizzle, bruine, llovizna, Niesel. All speak of drops that hover before they fall.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
‘Ember’ comes from Old English ‘ǣmyrge’ and Old Norse ‘eimyrja’—a live coal. Its cousins across Europe still glow: ‘braise’, ‘brasa’, ‘glød’. The word has carried warmth for over a thousand years. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
October 22, 2025 at 6:35 PM
‘Ember’ comes from Old English ‘ǣmyrge’ and Old Norse ‘eimyrja’—a live coal. Its cousins across Europe still glow: ‘braise’, ‘brasa’, ‘glød’. The word has carried warmth for over a thousand years. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
“Book collecting is an obsession… not a hobby. Those who do it must do it.”
– Jeanette Winterson
This is my neatly shelved version. Sometimes the ‘to read’ pile reaches the ceiling and looks like it might topple in the night. Still worth it.
#BookCollector #ReadersOfX #BookQuote #JeanetteWinterson
– Jeanette Winterson
This is my neatly shelved version. Sometimes the ‘to read’ pile reaches the ceiling and looks like it might topple in the night. Still worth it.
#BookCollector #ReadersOfX #BookQuote #JeanetteWinterson
October 21, 2025 at 3:29 PM
“Book collecting is an obsession… not a hobby. Those who do it must do it.”
– Jeanette Winterson
This is my neatly shelved version. Sometimes the ‘to read’ pile reaches the ceiling and looks like it might topple in the night. Still worth it.
#BookCollector #ReadersOfX #BookQuote #JeanetteWinterson
– Jeanette Winterson
This is my neatly shelved version. Sometimes the ‘to read’ pile reaches the ceiling and looks like it might topple in the night. Still worth it.
#BookCollector #ReadersOfX #BookQuote #JeanetteWinterson
At Vile, on Denmark’s Limfjord, the word for dusk is 'tusmørke', ‘between dark’. English has kept its own word for over a thousand years. Read more: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/dusk
October 20, 2025 at 6:35 PM
At Vile, on Denmark’s Limfjord, the word for dusk is 'tusmørke', ‘between dark’. English has kept its own word for over a thousand years. Read more: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/dusk
The hearth once meant both fireplace and family. From Old English ‘heorð’ to Latin ‘focus’ and Greek ‘Hestia’. More at greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/hearth #etymology #hearth
October 17, 2025 at 6:35 PM
The hearth once meant both fireplace and family. From Old English ‘heorð’ to Latin ‘focus’ and Greek ‘Hestia’. More at greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/hearth #etymology #hearth