English
We are Readers and Writers
INTENT
At Haydonleigh Primary School, through the English curriculum, we help pupils develop the skills and knowledge that will enable them to communicate effectively and creatively through spoken and written language and equip them with the skills they need to become lifelong learners. We believe that developing a love for writing and reading is essential for each child to achieve excellence across all aspects of the curriculum.
We know that the teaching of reading is the foundation to a child’s understanding and appreciation of the world around them and beyond. It is a platform that allows our children to see beyond what they know, share in cultural experiences and develop the vocabulary they need to effectively express themselves. We are dedicated to helping children becoming lifelong readers for pleasure, to gather information and understand that reading is the key to academic success. We cultivate the behaviours that they will need to be discerning readers as they read frequently across the curriculum and discuss what they have read.
Pupils learn to speak and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others, and through their reading and listening, others can communicate with them. High levels of language acquisition through the high-quality text we use, enable children to build wide and diverse vocabulary banks within both spoken and written literacy.
Our English curriculum enables our children to grow into global citizens, whilst also becoming successful readers and writers.
IMPLEMENTATION
Phonics
We use the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme to provide daily engaging phonics lessons. Our phonics teaching starts in Foundation Stage and follows a specific sequence that allows our children to build on their previous phonic knowledge and master new phonic skills. The programme enables children to see the relationship between reading and spelling, meaning they learn to blend and segment words successfully. At Haydonleigh, we also model these skills in shared reading and writing both inside and outside of the phonics lesson and across the curriculum. If by the end of KS1, children are not secure with their phonics knowledge, intervention will continue in KS2.
Reading
Children in Foundation Stage, Year One and Two apply their phonics knowledge in small group reading practice sessions with fully decodable books matched carefully to the child’s secure phonics knowledge. The children then take the same book home to share. All books within the early reading system can be fully decoded by the children using their phonics skills and knowledge so reading can be practised at home with confidence.
In KS2, the reading practise sessions focus on the content domains and follow a weekly timetable. Though there will be a specific content domain focused on each day, there is flexibility (and in upper key stage 2 the expectation) to apply the skills of the learned content domains throughout the week.
All children in the school have access to the school library. Children in FS have their own library where they change their book weekly. All the books are age-appropriate and varied.
Children from Year 1 to Year 6 choose books from the library bus. The books are mostly fiction and have been specially chosen for each year group with each year group having it’s own colour banded books. KS1 books are downstairs and organised into their years whereas KS2 books are organised alphabetically by surname so the children are introduced to a more traditional library system.
All year groups have a pre-selected set of books called the ‘Class Reader’ which are carefully chosen and have links between each year group. These are intended to inspire and encourage pupils to read for pleasure. There is a wide range of reads from new titles to ever-popular classics, as well as a mix of scheme and non-scheme books. These books are taken from our progression document so teachers make links between themes, genres and characters.
Writing
Following our detailed, progression of skills document for each year, the children are immersed in a quality text. The children have an exciting launch activity for most texts and the reasons for writing are shared with the children as well as the intended outcome – e.g. sharing with another class, making a class book, parent exhibition, corridor display, school website. Understanding and vocabulary is checked, reading is developed through drama and discussion activities and SPaG is taught through lessons that are then embedded in our English Lessons. Teachers provide a model of writing which children can attempt to emulate and tailor their writing to the needs and interests of the class. Teaching sequences therefore are progressive, reflect pupils’ current needs and have clear fiction and non-fiction outcomes.
For fiction writing, the children are exposed to an increasing range of planning scaffolds and for Non-Fiction writing, we use the Michael Tidd ‘Writing for a purpose’ document.
Every English lesson from Y1-6, will start with a SPaG warm-up which revisits previously taught objectives.
IMPACT
Phonics
At the end of Year 1, The children take the National Phonics Screening Test
In addition, half termly checks are made to ensure that pupils are placed at the correct reading level and that progress is being made.
Reading
Through the teaching of systematic phonics, our aim is for children to become fluent readers by the end of Key Stage One. This way, children can focus on developing their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school.
Attainment in reading is measured using the statutory assessments at the end of Key Stage One and Two. These results are measured against the reading attainment of children nationally.
Years 3-5 undertake the NFER reading test once a year In Term 5.
Half termly children in KS2, read to their teacher to assess their fluency and check they are on the correct book level.
Writing
Our children are confident writers. This can be seen in presentation, quality and quantity. The impact of our writing curriculum is that children have mastered writing across various genres, on a variety of subjects. As authors, they are able to adapt their style and language to suit various audiences and purposes and are able to reflect on how to improve it further.
Attainment in writing is measured consistently throughout the year. At the two assessment checkpoints, progress is tracked, using a combination of evidence which includes a Comparative Judgement piece of writing and moderation in Year groups using exemplars.
Moderations take place, to quality assure judgements made. These are either in house, or as part of a cluster of local schools.
End of Key Stage 2 writing: teachers assess a selection of pieces of writing in Year 6, using this to inform reported Teacher assessment judgements. Exemplification materials are used to support judgements made.
Spellings are tested weekly from Year 1-6.
English book coverage across the school - click here
English Roadmap - click here
English Long Term Plans - click on the links below to view