Writing
Our aim is to develop children’s ability to produce well-structured writing with appropriate detail, in which the meaning is clear and the interest of the reader is engaged. The Curriculum divides writing skills into two dimensions:
- Transcription (spelling and handwriting)
- Composition (articulating ideas in speech and writing)
We recognise that both these elements are essential to success and we support the acquisition of both sets of skills through various methods.
Reading into Writing
Reading is treated as an integral part of writing lessons. Teachers base their writing plans on high quality texts which are closely read, discussed and drawn on in the children’s own writing.
Writing skills are taught in sequential steps, building to end points, as set down in detail within our writing curriculum documents below.
Children follow a progressive curriculum that develops their understanding and application of punctuation and grammar, and these are set down in detail within our writing curriculum documents below.
All classrooms display visual aids as part of their working wall, to support and enhance the learning.
Spelling
Although we live in an electronic age, children do need to be able to express themselves on paper and we therefore believe that the ability to spell accurately is an essential life skill.
In Reception and Year 1, children are taught spelling through the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme.
From Year 2, children are taught spelling regularly through the No Nonsense Spelling programme. They are given activities appropriate to their abilities, investigating rules and patterns that will help them to develop strategies for spelling. They are then encouraged to apply these in the spelling of unfamiliar words.
Dictionaries, thesauri and word banks, both digitally and non-digitally, are easily accessible for all children, and children are expected to use them within and beyond the English curriculum.
