English Intent

At Bishop John Robinson Primary School, our curriculum is designed to ensure that all pupils have the opportunity to become the best that they can be. Having an understanding of the written word allows pupils to access and understand the world around them. Therefore, the skills of reading and writing are essential for life-long learning.  Our intent is to ensure quality first teaching of English throughout the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stages 1 and 2 for our learners are prepared for life as successful, valuable and socially responsible citizens.

Our English curriculum is designed to develop pupils as fluent readers and writers who have a love of reading, writing and discussion. Through our English lessons, pupils are introduced to a variety of engaging, high-quality texts and stimuli, as well as frequent, purposeful opportunities to practise and review key skills and prior learning.

Our English curriculum introduces pupils to a variety of texts in order to inspire an appreciation of rich and varied literature and all staff strive to instil a lifelong habit of reading for pleasure, widely and often, for all pupils.

We recognise the importance of nurturing a culture where pupils enjoy and take pride in their writing, can write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts.

Implementation

At the heart of the Early Years Foundation Stage is the teaching of early reading, which includes a systematic approach to the teaching and learning of phonics.  This continues into Key Stage 1, allowing them to become confident and fluent readers.  We strive to immerse all of our pupils in a language-rich environment, ensuring that they have the linguistic skills required to succeed in life. We will inspire pupils to be confident in the art of speaking and listening. This will support them in developing a positive attitude towards communication in all its forms, independently expressing their opinions, emotions and their ideas.

We believe that pupils need to develop a secure knowledge-base in English, which follows a clear pathway of progression as they advance through the primary curriculum. A secure basis in oracy and literacy skills is crucial to a high-quality education and will give our pupils the tools they need to participate fully as a member of society. Through our English curriculum, we strive to teach pupils how important their reading, writing, speaking and listening skills will be in the real world. By giving this context to their learning, the pupils understand the value of English to them now, and in their future.

Writing at Bishop John Robinson CofE Primary School

Reading and writing have a high profile in our school. We believe that teaching pupils not only to read and write successfully, but to enjoy the journey, is key in enabling them to reach their potential. This will also help them to develop a lifelong love for English.

We believe in using a wide range of high-quality texts with our pupils, to expose them to different styles of writing and a wide range of vocabulary. Over time, pupils gradually build their bank of well-known texts, supplemented by picture books, novels, poems and non-fiction books. Gradually, this living library of language begins to equip the pupils with the words that they need to express themselves. In the same way, the ability to manipulate that bank of texts increasingly enables pupils to create new versions and become inventive, blending and experimenting.

Shared writing also develops writing habits within the class community of writers. Each year, new strategies and techniques are introduced, building on previous learning and giving pupils confidence as writers.

Reading

We have a whole school commitment to making sure that every child is able to read and read well. We want our pupils to become enthusiastic, engaged readers and to develop a life-long love of books.  We introduce pupils to a range of good-quality fiction, non-fiction and poetry books through our reading scheme, daily whole-class reading sessions, writing lessons and during scheduled story time at the end of every day.

From Key Stage 1, pupils will regularly read individually with adults as well as participate in whole-class guided reading sessions and additional intervention sessions for any pupils that might require some support. This allows us to target specific skills and close any gaps in learning quickly, enabling all pupils to keep up with the curriculum being taught in classrooms.

During whole-class reading sessions, pupils are encouraged to consider what a ‘good reader’ is and the skills that are required to be able to not only decode words but read for meaning and pleasure. At Bishop John Robinson, we know that ‘good readers’ use a number of skills at once and, therefore, lessons are carefully planned to include opportunities for pupils to identify and practise these with others before

Pupils are also given opportunities to read for pleasure outside of lessons. Every class visits our local library every term to spend time selecting their own books to add to the classroom library. When the pupils have finished their chosen book, they swap with others. We also have our whole school ‘book swap’ area’s where pupils are free to choose any book they like to take home and read. This could mean that pupils are revisiting old favourites or choosing books about specific subjects that are not on their current curriculum. Pupils across the school are eager to share their passion for reading during whole school worship where each class has the opportunity to recommend a ‘book of the week’.

At Bishop John Robinson, we nurture strong links between home and school and recognise that this is vital in creating positive reading attitudes and routines. We invite parents into school to formally discuss the ways in which we are teaching reading systematically and building a culture around reading at school. This enables us to work in partnership and support any pupils who may need additional support or may be reluctant to read at home.  Parents and school staff are also able to share any reading that takes place at home or school through our reading records, which pupils bring to school every day.

Handwriting

Handwriting is a vital skill and therefore is taught across all year groups. The foundations are laid from a very early age through the development of gross and fine motor skills.

Our handwriting policy is based on a style that is quick and easy to learn. It should be neat, legible and fast. Pupils should eventually develop the ability to form letters without thinking. An automatic style releases the brain to concentrate on other ideas, i.e. spelling, grammar, syntax, style and content. We are very proud of the many pupils in Key Stage 2 whose excellent handwriting has been rewarded with a pen licence!

 

Spelling

At Bishop John Robinson Primary School, we aim for our pupils to become fluent and effective writers. Accurate use of spelling, punctuation and grammar is essential to this. In Years 2 and 3, pupils are taught using a spelling programme which carries on from our Phonics scheme. This allows pupils to build on their phonics knowledge that they have already acquired throughout Early Years Foundation Stage and Year 1. We use the National Curriculum as a basis for teaching Spelling from Years 4 - 6 by introducing patterns weekly, allowing for regular practise and building on previously learned patterns. Pupils are formally tested on these weekly.

Impact

Pupils leave Bishop John Robinson as happy, confident learners who have developed a love of reading and writing with the key skills and knowledge necessary for the next stage of their learning. Pupils are confident in the art of speaking and listening, and able to successfully use discussion to communicate and further their learning. 

As all aspects of English are an integral part of the curriculum, cross-curricular writing standards have also improved and skills taught in the English lessons are transferred into other subjects; this shows consolidation of skills and a deeper understanding of how and when to use specific grammar, punctuation and grammar objectives.

Pupils support one another in their discussions and peer-review each other’s work, and are able to use the correct terminology when doing so, leading to productive conversation.

Pupils will leave Bishop John Robinson:

• being an enthusiastic and confident reader, writer and speaker
• confident to take risks in their reading and writing
• with a love of discussion and enjoy showcasing their knowledge and skills
• with a rich and varied vocabulary
• with the ability to produce high-quality writing across a range of forms and adapt their writing successfully, considering the audience and purpose
• with the passion and skills to access the KS3 curriculum and beyond