English at Abbotts Ann Church of England Primary School

Intention: 

At Abbotts Ann CE Primary School we intend to provide a curriculum that immerses all children in a rich world of literature and language, which will provide them with the tools to succeed as readers and writers throughout their lives. By the time they leave Abbotts Ann, we aim for all our children to be confident, enthusiastic and successful both orally and in writing across the English Curriculum. They will gain knowledge of the wider world through exploring high quality texts and a range of genres.  Our aim is to create life-long readers who can read for both pleasure and information and apply their skills across other areas of the curriculum.  

Through our core values of curiosity, courage and compassion, our intention is that children:

• read with ease, fluency and good comprehension
• become habitual readers who read for both pleasure and information
• develop and utilise a wide vocabulary and an understanding of the conventions of grammar and spelling
• experience our rich, diverse literary heritage
• participate in role-play and drama 
• write coherently and clearly with a sense of understanding of purpose and audience
• articulate ideas and understanding in a relevant, cohesive way
• use discussion in order to learn – be able to add to others ideas as well as challenge in a courteous manner
• are confident speakers and thoughtful listeners, making formal and informal presentations, speaking in groups and to audiences
• can express themselves, their ideas and opinions in a range of creative forms
• are able to produce effective, accurate and well-presented written work

A child in Year 2 said that:

‘I like when you write and you do it neat, it brings joy to people.’

Implementation:

Our curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that it maps out a progression of knowledge, skills and vocabulary.  Teachers identify the necessary skills needed along the pupils’ ‘writing journey’ and adapt tasks effectively to ensure all needs are met and inclusivity is maintained throughout.  Learning journeys revisit and build on prior learning and are carefully planned to identify, explore and apply skills so pupils can demonstrate their knowledge. 

English lessons will include the following:

• Opportunities to develop depth and breadth of vocabulary
• Gathering content and planning
• Writing for a range of audiences and purposes
• Spelling Punctuation and Grammar
• Opportunities to develop handwriting skills
• Editing, improving and presenting

We will teach our children to write by giving them frequent, diverse and challenging opportunities to write with increasing independence as they progress through the school.  We will develop children’s creativity and enthusiasm for writing through high-quality text drivers.  We will provide children with vocabulary rich classrooms, in which modelling and shared writing are central teaching approaches.  We will combine this creative approach with rigorous teaching of spelling, grammar and handwriting objectives so that transcription skills develop hand in hand with composition.  There are many opportunities for children to develop their writing across the curriculum including:

• considering a range of different audiences and purposes
• responding to stimuli such as written and visual texts across a range of media
• building upon visits or events; using drama, role play, hot seating
• producing writing on their own or as part of group and incorporating opportunities to use ICT

A child in Year 1 said that:

‘Sometimes I get it wrong and sometimes I don’t, but it doesn’t matter, I can rub out or cross it out and try again.’

Impact:

The impact of our English curriculum is that children emerge as effective communicators, with a richer, deeper knowledge and understanding of the world around them.  Children enjoy reading and respond with enthusiasm, resilience and determination when presented with more challenging, rich texts within class study. Children can articulate what they want to achieve in their writing and are aware they write for not only themselves but for others as well. They are able to edit and improve their work and strive to make it engaging and accurate.

Reading at Abbotts Ann Church of England Primary School

Intent: 

At Abbotts Ann, we put reading at the heart of our curriculum. We believe reading is an entitlement that enables children to communicate effectively in all areas and equip them for the challenges they will face in the wider world. We strive to foster a love of reading which should open up a world of possibility and curiosity, and the opportunity to walk in the shoes of others.

Our reading curriculum prioritises the development of vocabulary and language to allow our children to see beyond what they know, share in cultural experiences, and express themselves effectively.  Our aim is to create life-long readers who can read for both pleasure and information and apply their skills across other areas of the curriculum. 

Learning to read:  When children learn to read, they need to be able to apply their phonological understanding to segment and blend words accurately. Once they can do this fluently, children will be able to read with expression, taking note of punctuation to help them. 

Reading to learn:  Through immersing children in a range of high-quality texts and genres, children will learn to analyse vocabulary, retrieve information, summarise effectively, make predictions and skim and scan texts. They will be confident to infer meaning from the texts they encounter and become inquisitive readers. 

Loving to read:  Ultimately, we aim to instil a love of reading where children are motivated to read for both learning and for pleasure. We provide opportunities for children to read books which act as ‘mirrors and windows.’ A book that is a ‘mirror’ contains storylines, characters, and experiences they can see themself in, allowing them to make personal connections. A book that is a ‘window’ allows readers a view of lives and stories that are different from their own.

A child in Year 2 said that reading is ‘fun and excitement.’

Implementation:

A child in Year 2 said that reading is ‘enjoying the book, like finding out things.’

Impact:

Every child at Abbotts Ann will become a successful, life-long reader who loves to read a wide variety of books for pleasure. Success is evident from the clear progression of skills taught across the whole school with informative ongoing teacher assessment and from written responses in pupils' books across the whole curriculum. Successful readers can read age-appropriate books fluently and have an informed opinion about their favourite characters, stories, genres, and text types. They will be able to articulate and justify their opinion using evidence from the text. Successful readers can use secure phonic knowledge to decode new words, use their comprehension skills to detect meaning in context and broaden their vocabulary. Ultimately, successful readers can transfer their reading skills to unseen texts, including across other subjects in the curriculum.