A simple week of purposeful classroom talk

Our first and flagship collection.

Launched September 2026, Oracy Lab Primary Daily Labs provides five engaging speaking activities each week, organised around one shared theme. Choose the appropriate phase, open the relevant link and display the activity. Everything pupils need to begin talking is right there on the screen. Our daily labs can be integrated into lessons or used as stand-alone activities. No worksheets. No whiteboards. No wasted time. Just talk.

One theme. Five ways to speak.

Each of our 39 themed weeks (one per teaching week) explores one broad, engaging theme across five different Labs.

Following the scheme in its entirety, the weekly routine through Monday to Friday is simple:

Explore on Monday, Debate on Tuesday, Tell Stories on Wednesday, Build Speaking Confidence on Thursday and Defend the Impossible on Friday. Follow the full weekly programme or dip into individual Labs whenever you need an engaging speaking and listening activity.

Monday: Explorer Lab

Explore. Discover. Discuss.

Pupils explore a curriculum-linked image through three carefully structured questions.

The questions progress across the phases:

  • KS1: notice, identify and describe

  • LKS2: explain, connect and support ideas with evidence

  • UKS2: evaluate, prioritise and reach reasoned judgement

A cartoon character with a blue face holding a magnifying glass, wearing a safari hat, glasses, and a explorer's outfit with a backpack, set against a background with various archaeological artifacts and ruins, promoting an explorer lab for children.

Tuesday: Debate Lab

Persuade. Listen. Respond.

Lab Partner A and Lab Partner B take different positions on a clear, age-appropriate question.

Pupils explain their viewpoint, listen to another perspective and respond directly to the ideas they hear. The simple two-sided format makes debate accessible while allowing reasoning to become more sophisticated across the primary phases.

A cartoon illustration of two scientists wearing lab coats and goggles, pointing at each other, with signs labeled 'A' and 'B', in front of a blue background with the text 'Debate Lab'.

Wednesday: Storytelling Lab

Read. Imagine. Perform.

A compelling image and short story opening invite pupils to continue the story aloud.

KS1 pupils develop events from clear visual clues. Older pupils build suspense, control the release of information and explore more complex characters, choices and consequences.

Colorful illustration of a friendly cartoon scientist with glasses and a lab coat, holding an open book, with fantasy castle and dragon in the background, promoting storytelling and imagination.

Thursday: Timed Talk Lab

Ready. Set. Speak.

Pupils choose or receive a themed prompt and speak for a set length of time.

The prompts increase in both duration and depth, helping pupils develop confidence, fluency and the ability to organise ideas while speaking.

Activities begin with familiar descriptions and gradually progress towards explanation, recommendation, evaluation and judgement.

Cartoon character of a blue scientist wearing goggles and an orange apron holding a stopwatch with red hands, against an orange background with race flags, stadium lights, and a checkered banner, promoting a timed talk at a STEM event.

Friday: Impossible Argument Lab

Defend. Justify. Convince.

Pupils are challenged to defend an absurd proposition.

The idea may be impossible, but the speaking challenge is real. Pupils must generate reasons, overcome objections and make an imaginative argument sound convincing.

Cartoon superhero character with a laboratory flask in place of a head, wearing a red mask, cape, and gloves, holding a finger up as if making a point, with speech bubbles containing an exclamation mark and a question mark, and lightning symbols on a red background with science-themed icons.
Colorful illustrated map of a town with labels for various features such as farm, woodland, town center, hospital, sports center, the park, community center, school, bus and train stations, shops, library, and residential area, with a compass rose at the top left.
A colorful digital illustration for a debate lab with a question about keeping wild animals in zoos. It features animated characters of lab beakers wearing glasses, bow ties, and suits, standing behind podiums labeled A and B, engaging in a debate. The background is light blue with a border of laboratory items and speech bubbles.
A presentation slide titled "The Future of Learning" listing four time-based questions about education, with a cartoon character of a blue lab monkey running on a track in the bottom left corner, and a logo of Oracy Lab Primary at the bottom left.
A colorful poster with a superhero character and a message promoting a classroom activity, specifically an 'Impossible Argument Lab' that challenges students to defend, justify, and convince.

Try a Complete Week for Free!

Want to see exactly what Oracy Lab Primary looks like in the classroom? Download our free sample week and explore all five Labs across KS1, LKS2 and UKS2.

Theme: School and Learning

Click on the images to download the Week 1 pack of your choice.

Educational poster for Oracy Lab Primary, featuring a smiling laboratory flask cartoon with safety goggles, with text mentioning autumn, KS1, week 1, and school and learning.
Educational poster for Oracy Lab Primary with a science theme, featuring a smiling cartoon chemical flask wearing goggles, with text indicating 'Autumn', 'LKS2', 'Week 1', and 'School and Learning', set against a background of a science laboratory with test tubes, beakers, and a microscope.
Educational material titled "Oracy Lab Primary" featuring a science laboratory background with test tubes, a microscope, and shelves with books and plants. Text indicates it is for Year 1, Week 1, and focuses on Autumn, UKS2, and School and Learning.