English

Getting "hooked into books"... 

Intent

At Rode Heath we approach the teaching of 'English' as one entity rather than separating the skills out into reading and writing. We believe these two components should be taught in tandem and believe in teaching English through studying quality texts which relates to our thematic curriculum. When our pupils leave Rode Heath we expect them to be avid readers, children who read fluently and widely and are able to express preferences and opinions about the texts that they read. We want them to read for pleasure, having had access to a wide range of progressive text types, genres and authors in order for them to make informed opinions about their favourites. We want to produce children who write with confidence and accuracy for a variety of purposes and audiences whilst developing their own individual flair. We want our children to be able to write with grammatical accuracy and be able to apply spelling patterns correctly using a neat handwriting style. We aim to expose our children to a wide range of vocabulary so that they able to decipher new words and then use them when speaking both informally and formally. We also aim for our children to apply all of these English skills to all areas of the curriculum.

Implementation

In EYFS, we ensure that reading and writing is part of a daily diet through phonic sessions. Children also have an adult-led writing session most days and a guided read once a week. Continuous provision caters for children to explore and develop language through play and purpose built role play areas help promote vocabulary further as well as utilise print in the environment. In the summer term, transition begins with daily writing lessons for multiple groups, building up to whole class.

In order to build on this in KS1, writing lessons are timetabled directly after phonic sessions so that skills taught can be applied and embedded.   The focus of writing in KS1 is the construction of grammatically correct sentences, the different types of sentences and the punctuation applicable for these. Staff are instructed to choose genres that promote writing in full sentences and poetry covered in KS1 is entirely performance based. Children in KS1 read for pleasure daily and take part in a guided reading session once a week.

In KS2, the range of genres widens along with the range of punctuation and pupils are expected to routinely draft, edit and improve their own work rather than rely on this process being undertaken through marking by the teacher. Children in KS2 read daily for pleasure and take part in a guided reading session once a week.

Impact

At RHPS, there is a consistent approach to the teaching of all aspects of English across the school and this will be evident as part of classroom and school displays. Most importantly, we will develop a strong culture of reading, writing and communication. 

Children will make good or better progress from their own personal starting points. By the end of KS2 they will have read and will be able to read a wide range of texts fluently and with a good level of understanding. Children will write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences. They will acquire a wide vocabulary and feel confident to use it both verbally and in their writing.

This will be measured through a variety of methods such as, summative and formative assessments each term, pupil voice, lesson observations, questioning and marking of books.

Please view the English Curriculum Overview, at the bottom of this page, for an in-depth overview of our English provision from EYFs to Year 6.

Rode Heath Systematic Synthetic Phonics Programme

Here at Rode Heath, we have created our own bespoke SSPP programme, which is based on the Letters and Sounds document. We have created our own SSPP programme to ensure the we have a consistent whole school approach to the teaching of phonics.  If you would like to know more about our phonics programme, its overview and its progression throughout the school then please visit our Englihs curriculum which can be found at the bottom of this page.

For a full breakdown of our results, please click on this link: Whole School Data Overview 2024

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