English
English
Ensuring children are able to speak, read and write confidently is one of the absolute core jobs of formal education. We take this duty seriously, and have several schemes and systems in place to ensure high quality teaching and learning of English skills throughout the school.
Reading
- In Reception and Key Stage 1, children have daily phonics lessons using the ‘Read Write Inc.‘ programme. More information here
- In Year 1 and 2, until they are assessed as having finished the RWInc programme in Year 2, children are grouped for phonics each day
- Beginning in Year 2 and through Key Stage 2 we follow a whole class reading scheme developed by the school which focuses on building understanding collaboratively through shared reading and discussion, enjoyment of literature, and developing children’s reading fluency.
- In Years 3 to 6 children also take part in the Accelerated Reader programme, which motivates and monitors their home reading
Writing
We used topic-based learning in all year groups, and rich texts linked to topics where relevant are used as a stimulus for many writing activities.
In reception and Key Stage 1, we use the ‘Talk for Writing‘ approach, with children becoming confident at retelling stories orally and in writing before innovating to create their own. In Key Stage 2 children read, discuss, and plan their ideas before writing. They learn key vocabulary and techniques linked to the text type they are using in order to write in the appropriate register.
Oracy
Promoting pupils’ speaking and listening is a core objective in the school, and structured talk tasks are used in every lesson across the curriculum. Discussion guidelines are introduced in every class to allow children to develop their skills in formal structured conversation proficiently and confidently. Children in Year 3 and Year 4 also have weekly sessions with our LAMDA coach, who provides inspirational support with performance and presentation skills.
Spelling, Punctuation & Grammar
The teaching of these key planks in the current national curriculum is primarily embedded in English lessons. However, in order to give children additional opportunities to rehearse their skills and develop their understanding, we also follow the Nelson handwriting scheme and Read Write Inc’s spelling programme throughout the school.
Resources for parents
Handwriting phrases for helping your child to form letters