Selattyn C of E Primary School

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WRITING

Our Vision

As a loving community, our vision is to nurture each individual in our care, giving them the skills, resilience and hope to succeed and flourish, both academically and spiritually, in God’s ever changing world.

Intent

At Selattyn Church of England School, we believe that a quality English curriculum should develop children’s love of reading, writing and discussion. We aim to inspire an appreciation of our rich and varied literary heritage and a habit of reading widely and often. We recognise the importance of cultivating a culture where children take pride in their writing, can write clearly and accurately, and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts. We want to inspire children to be confident in the arts of speaking and listening. We believe that a thorough grasp of literacy skills is crucial to a high-quality education and will give our children the tools they need to participate fully as a member of society.

Implementation

The 2014 National Curriculum states that:

‘English has a pre-eminent place in education and in society. A high-quality education in English will teach pupils 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. Through reading in particular, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Literature, especially, plays a key role in such development. Reading also enables pupils both to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know.’

These aims are embedded across our English lessons and the wider curriculum. We have a rigorous and well organised English curriculum. The organisation provides many purposeful opportunities for reading, writing and discussion. We use a wide variety of quality texts and resources to motivate and inspire our children. Each day, children take part in whole class and/or group reading lessons whereby the teacher uses good quality, rich texts to enable discussion, excitement and development of language. This in turn inspires our children to incorporate language from these texts in their own writing. All teachers strive to deliver stimulating English lessons which incorporate cross curricular themes, drama, outdoor learning, ICT and collaborative learning. Delivering exciting lessons leads to a strong motivation to write. To help us teach a range of high quality lessons we use resources which include ‘Rising Stars’ writing, ‘Bug Club’ and Phonics and ‘Spelling Shed’.

We also provide a wealth of enrichment opportunities, from hosting World Book Day, organising whole school writing events, being reading buddies, as well as reading challenges.

We believe it is highly important to give children feedback that is rich and meaningful. Part of our rigorous marking policy is to provide children with instant ‘live’ feedback during their lessons, recognising their achievements and highlighting areas to be improved. By doing this, the children have a much better understanding of how to improve their own work and put their learning into action. Providing in the moment feedback also helps to create an open and honest classroom environment whereby children feel confident to address misconceptions and raise any thoughts about their learning.

Impact

As a result of this curriculum, we have a community of increasingly enthusiastic writers who enjoy showcasing their developing literacy skills. They are confident to take risks in their writing and love to discuss and share their ideas.

Writing in the Early Years

At Selattyn Church of England School, pupils in the Early Years start to learn basic key skills that will enable them to begin to read and write independently, as well as have time to develop     vocabulary, interact with others and listen well. Much of this learning takes place through play   and 'real life' situations. The children also have Phonics lessons daily following the ‘Bug Club’ scheme. In the second term, children begin to take part in daily storytelling sessions which begin to expose children to story structure, characterisation, and reading for pleasure.

Writing in Key Stage One

As pupils move into Key Stage One, learning becomes more formalised. English is delivered  as an individual subject and also through cross-curricular themes. In Key Stage One, daily discreet Phonics lessons (Bug Club) are taught in ability groups, while children have daily English lessons. Children develop their skills in writing using a variety of genres with SPAG taught as an integral part of this. Provision is made for children who require extra support through intervention programmes, differentiated class teaching and extended phonic sessions.

Writing in Key Stage Two

In Key Stage Two, Children have daily English Lessons with SPAG taught as an integral part of this. Handwriting and SPAG are also taught at other times    during the day. The children’s lessons incorporate an equal balance of speaking, listening, writing and reading. We use a wide variety of texts to develop children’s understanding of a variety of genres. All pupils are given work at their ability level and challenged where necessary. Provision is made for children who require extra support through intervention programmes and differentiated class teaching.

Equal Opportunities and Inclusion

Through the school's RESPECT acronym, we are committed to providing a teaching environment which ensures all children are provided with the same learning opportunities regardless of social class, gender, culture, race, special educational need or disability. Teachers use a range of strategies to ensure inclusion and also to maintain a positive ethos where children demonstrate positive attitudes towards others. Support for specific individuals is well considered and planned for, with consideration given to how greater depth and further challenge can be provided and demonstrated by children who require further challenge. All pupils are entitled to access the writing curriculum at a level appropriate to their needs.

To ensure inclusion, teachers use a range of strategies in line with the school's Inclusion Policy. Independent tasks, as well as teaching, are also well-adapted to ensure full accessibility and reasonable adjustments are made when needed, as well as to provide appropriate challenge to different group of learners. The school makes full use of additional adults who are deployed effectively to ensure that identified children are able to make progress in each curriculum area, according to their full potential.

Assessment

Assessment for learning is continuous throughout the planning, teaching and learning cycle. Assessment is supported by use of the following strategies:

• observing children at work, individually, in pairs, in a group and in class during whole class;

• teaching using differentiated, open-ended questions that require children to explain and unpick their understanding of ideas and techniques;

• providing effective feedback in line with our school’s marking and feedback policy- where possible verbal feedback is used to provide immediate feedback as children are working;

• at the end of a  term, writing assessments take place which allow for monitoring  to see if children are on track and where gaps are in their learning;

• NFER and pupil progress meetings take place at the end of each school term, and continuous assessment is carried out by class teachers and subject leaders throughout the school year.

British Values

As a Church of England School, Christian Values are embedded at the heart of our community. Each half term we focus on a specific value in Collective Worship, in order to gain a better understanding of how these values impact the way that we live. As a Church of England School, mutual respect is at the heart of our values. Children learn that their behaviours have an effect on their own rights and those of others. All members of the school community treat each other with respect and follow our three school rules: ‘Be kind, be safe, and be respectful’. As a friendly and welcoming primary school in Selattyn our children learn about British values like respect, tolerance, democracy, liberty and law. We appreciate and celebrate diversity through the teaching of stories, values and celebrations from a variety of faiths and cultures.

The Curriculum Leader for English Writing is:

Ross Shepherd