English
Subject Leaders Vision Statement
At Crowton Christ Church C of E Primary School we believe that our quality English curriculum develops children’s love of reading, writing and discussion. Through reading in particular, pupils will have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually.
Pupils will leave our school able with the skills of language essential to participating fully as a member of our society, speaking 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.
Intent
Our curriculum closely follows the aims of the National Curriculum for English 2014 to enable all children to:
- read easily, fluently and with good understanding
- develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
- acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
- write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
- use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas
- competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate.
This intent is embedded in our English lessons and the wider cross-curriculum. We will provide the means for children to develop a secure knowledge-base in Engsih, which follows a clear pathway of progression as they advance through the primary curriculum. Teacher assessment and review will ensure that we are able to provide targeted support so that all children experience success in all English areas; we believe that a secure basis in English skills is crucial to a high quality education.
Implementation
We follow a mastery approach to English through the programme 'Pathways to Write'. Units of work are delivered using high quality texts. Skills are built up through repetition and children apply these skills in writing activities. This approach also widens childrens vocabulary.
Year 2 - 6 follow 'Pathways to Read' and for phonics we use Little Wandle with Reception and Year 1.
Parents can find out more about Little Wandle by clicking on the following link: https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/
Below you will find the end of year expecations for year groups.
In EYFS, our children are:
- taught to link sounds and letters and to begin to read and write.
- given access to a wide range of reading materials (books, poems, and other written materials) to ignite their interest
- helped to use books and stories to make sense of their physical world and their community through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places, technology and the environment
- express themselves effectively, showing awareness of listeners’ needs. They use past, present and future forms accurately when talking about events
In KS1 and KS2, our children are taught to:
- speak fluently and confidently
- make inferences about texts or characters
- use evidence to support their opinions or the opinions of others.
- use appropriate punctuation for their age
- link sentences and paragraphs together using cohesive devices
- develop their own individual author's voice
- reflect on and edit their work independently
- write increasingly complex stories, poems and other text types, building on their knowledge of features each year.
Children in KS1 and KS2 have daily exposure to Reading, Writing and Spoken Language. In EYFS they explore through a mix of play with quality adult interactions in the moment and with adult led activities. In KS1 and KS2, English lessons are explicitly taught usomg 'Pathwasy to Write'. All lessons and experiences cover a range of reading and writing. Class teachers use quality and engaging texts for the teaching of English and when planning English lessons, We develop the children's vocabulary with these selected texts. Teaching blocks focus on fiction, non-fiction or poetry, in line with the National Curriculum and comprehension, grammar and writing are embedded in lessons. Handwriting is also taught as per the handwriting policy, all children are encouraged to have a high level of pride and presentation across all written outcomes. We also support and encourage reading at home. We appreciate the parental support that goes hand in hand with developing and fostering a love of reading.
Impact
The organisation of our English curriculum, has realised a community of enthusiastic readers and writers who enjoy showcasing their developing literacy knowledge and skills. Children are confident to take risks in their reading and writing, and love to discuss and share their ideas. Outcomes of work in both English and topic books evidence the high quality of work and the impact of varied and cross curricular writing opportunities. These enable children to write across a range of forms and adapt their writing successfully, considering the purpose.
Assessment criteria has been developed in line with the National Curriculum requirements for the end of year expectations and enables us to assess children as they move through each stage of their learning journey. Teachers have to opportunity to attend moderatiom and cluster meeings for English.
In our school, we have an action plan for English to measure the impact and assess the implementation of our curriculum. Our aim is to achieve a GLD (Good Level of Development) in EYFS in line with national standards, and be at or above the national standard in the Phonics Screening in Year 1, KS1 National Tests and KS2 National Tests.
It is intended that every child in our school travels on their learning journey with a love for reading and writing that will last a lifetime. We are confident that our pupils have developed the knowledge and skills that will help them as they continue on to high school.
Please see the additional policies and documents below. They can also be found on the Parent Zone and Polcies section of the website. If you have any questions about English or Phonics at our school, please do not hesitate to contact your child's class teacher.
We will attempt to cover as many of the recommended books that we can in school. Please do not feel you need to buy any. The best thing to do is borrow them from a library.