

Introduction
Oracy is the disciplined art of speaking and listening—where thinking, language, expression, and collaboration come together to shape understanding and communication. It includes both verbal and non‑verbal elements and spans a variety of interactions, from formal presentations to collaborative discussions.
Tongue Fu Talking® provides a structured framework: Explorer Mode for reasoning and discovery, and Presenter Modefor clarity and confident delivery. Both modes are underpinned by four disciplines (The Stance, The Flow, The Mind, and The Bond) and 23 teachable practices. Ten classroom talk strategies, below, illustrate how talk can be scaffolded purposefully to build oracy across key stages.
1. Because -So -But
Explorer Mode focus: This strategy helps students reason with justification and develop contrasts. The use of conjunctions encourages deeper exploration of cause, consequence, and alternative perspectives.
Cameos:
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White Belt (EYFS): I think the caterpillar is hungry because it is growing, so it will eat more, but if it doesn’t eat enough it won’t grow.
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Green Belt (KS1): Seeds grow into plants because every plant has a life cycle that begins with germination, so they develop into mature plants that can reproduce, but not all seeds germinate if conditions like water or warmth are missing.
2. Connect‑It
Explorer Mode focus: Connect-It strengthens schema-building by linking new ideas with prior knowledge and prototypes. It taps into the generative effect, making recall stronger through active connections.
Cameos:
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Green Belt (Lower KS2): Art and Design - Students explored primary colours in painting. "We know blue, yellow, and red are primary colours. Now, let’s mix them to create orange, green, and purple."
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Brown Belt (Upper KS2): Computing - Students created loops in coding. "We know loops repeat actions. Now, let’s use nested loops to create more complex patterns and designs."
3. Predict‑It
Explorer Mode focus: Predict-It supports forward thinking, encouraging students to extrapolate from known information to anticipate outcomes and justify predictions with reasoning.
Sentence stems:
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Green Belt (Lower KS2):
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Considering..., I predict...
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If we observe..., we might see...
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The evidence suggests that...
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Given that..., it is probable that...
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I hypothesise that...
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If we assume..., then...
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It seems likely that...
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Based on our findings, I predict...
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There is a possibility that...
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If we analyse..., we can predict…
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4. Visualise‑It
Explorer Mode focus: Visualise-It improves understanding by prompting students to picture processes, outcomes or scenarios. This strategy integrates dual coding, helping students mentally represent complex concepts.
Sentence Stems:
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White Belt (EYFS/KS1):
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I can see a little part of...
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I notice the shape is...
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I think this part looks like...
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I see the colour is...
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I can see something small like...
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I think I see a little mark here...
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I think it's smooth/bumpy like...
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I can see it's shiny/dull...
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I can see the edges of...
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I can see this pattern...
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I think it has little parts that...
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I can see a tiny spot...
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I think it's made of...
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I see it moving in small ways like...
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I think it's changing a little...
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5. Question-It
Explorer Mode focus: This strategy builds curiosity and critical enquiry, teaching students how to formulate and refine questions to deepen understanding. It directly links to metacognitive awareness of gaps in knowledge.
Examples:
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Brown Belt (KS2/3) -DT
- Why did we use pulleys in this mechanism?
- What's the purpose of using triangles in the frame structure?
- How does electricity flow in this circuit?
- What commands can we give to control the device through the computer
- Why do we need to measure the ingredients in the recipe?
- Why is concrete used in this solid structure?
- What can AI bring to this project that a simple computer program can't?
- Why are shell structures often hollow inside?
- What's the role of the battery in this electrical system?
- How does the cooking time affect the texture of the food?
6. Seek Clues and Make Inferences
Explorer Mode focus: This strategy emphasises evidence-based reasoning, helping students move from observation to logical inference. It develops analytical thinking by prompting students to identify patterns and meanings.
Cameos:
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Green Belt (Lower KS2): I see different weapons in the pictures. I think these are from different periods, so conflict has repeated through history.
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Black Belt (KS3): Given diplomatic letters from WWI era: I notice tense wording; I infer rising distrust before war erupted.
7. Reflect
Explorer Mode focus: Reflection enables students to evaluate both process and product. It builds self-awareness by prompting them to think about how they approached a task, what they learned, and what they might change.
Examples:
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Green Belt (KS1):
- Did I follow each step of the process, or did I skip any? Why?
- Which step was the most challenging for me, and why?
- Did I understand the purpose of each step? If not, which one confused me?
- What helped me stay on track with the steps I needed to follow?
- Were there any steps I found unnecessary? Why do I think that is?
- Would I change the order of any steps if I did this again? Why or why not?
- Did I need to go back and repeat any steps? What did I learn from this?
- How did each step contribute to my overall success or outcome?
- What could I do next time to ensure I follow all steps correctly?
8. What’s the Main Idea?
Explorer Mode focus: This strategy develops synthesis and summarising, requiring students to distinguish between central and supporting ideas and justify their reasoning.
Example activity:
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Green Belt (Lower KS2) - DT
Write MI (Main Idea) or SD (Supporting Detail) before each sentence.
__________ They are connected by fixed or moving pivots, which are the fulcrum of each lever.
__________ A linked lever system is a number of levers that are joined together.
__________ Its purpose is to change the direction of force and movement.
Now sequence the sentences logically, beginning with the main idea.
9. Prioritise‑It
Explorer Mode focus: Prioritise-It promotes evaluative reasoning, as students compare and rank information based on relevance or impact. It nurtures decision-making and justification.
Cameos:
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Green Belt (KS1): Which is most important for plant growth: (An evergreen plant, Sunlight, A flowering plant), pupils rank most important and explain: Sunlight is most important because without it plants can’t make food.
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Black Belt (Upper KS2/ KS3): Rank these factors in terms of their influence on historical interpretation: (Who discovered the artefact, Who payed the person to excavate a site, The credentials of the person who interpreted the artefact) I believe the credentials of the person interpreting the artefact is the most important factor, as if they are unqualified or bias, their interpretation cannot be relied upon.
10. Curriculum‑Based Debates
Explorer Mode & Presenter Mode focus: Debates integrate reasoning with confident delivery, blending the cognitive discipline of Explorer Mode with the performance elements of Presenter Mode. Students learn to construct arguments, present evidence, and counter opposing views.
Cameos:
Brown Belt (Upper KS2):
Question: Are concrete nouns more effective than abstract nouns when describing a setting?
Opening Statement:I believe concrete nouns are more effective because they help the reader picture the setting clearly.
Main Argument: Concrete nouns refer to physical objects that the reader can imagine. They create vivid mental images and make the scene more believable.
Evidence: For example, describing “rusty pipes” and “peeling paint” helps the reader visualise a run-down building better than just saying it feels “gloomy” or “oppressive”.
Counterargument: Abstract nouns can still be useful because they suggest the mood or atmosphere of a setting.
Rebuttal: That’s a good point, but those moods are easier to feel when they’re grounded in physical details. Concrete nouns give the reader something to see, which makes the mood more convincing.
See more Curriculum-Based Debates
Why Structured Talk Matters
While approaches such as Think‑Pair‑Share are widely used, they often lack the cognitive scaffolds needed for deeper thinking. Without sentence stems or frameworks, students may merely share unevaluated thoughts. Tongue Fu Talking® ensures classroom talk supports reasoning, metacognition and disciplinary knowledge—through Explorer Mode and Presenter Mode, supported by 23 teachable practices across four oracy disciplines (The Stance; The Flow; The Mind; The Bond)
Chris Quigley Education emphasises that oracy must be embedded across all curriculum areas rather than tacked on as optional activities. Structured frameworks encourage purposeful talk for learning, not mere conversation (Quigley, 2024‑25).
Further Reading
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Why Oracy Matters: Insights from Research, Policy and Inspection
- Curriculum-Based Debates: A Powerful Classroom Talk Strategy
References
Chris Quigley Education. (2024) Context – Specific Oracy: Unveiling the True Nature of Effective Communication. [Blog] 10 Apr 2024. Available at: Chris Quigley Education blog.
Chris Quigley Education. (2025a) Why Oracy Matters: Insights from Research, Policy and Inspection. [Blog] 18 Jul 2025. Available at: Chris Quigley Education blog.
Chris Quigley Education. (2025b) What Is Oracy? A Complete Guide for EYFS to KS3. [Blog] 15 Jul 2025. Available at: Chris Quigley Education blog.
Chris Quigley Education. (2025c) Oracy Is Not a Subject, but Every Subject Requires It. [Blog] 21 Jul 2025. Available at: Chris Quigley Education blog.
Chris Quigley Education. (2025d) Tongue Fu Talking®: Systematic Oracy Development Across the Curriculum. [Website]. Available at: Chris Quigley Education resources.
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