English

Curriculum Intent

The main aim in teaching English at Cronton CE is to ensure all children reach their full potential through a well-planned curriculum. To ensure they develop an understanding that will help the children develop their independence and to take responsibility to always be the BEST they can be. 

The aims include:

• Developing pupils’ abilities within an integrated programme of Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing.

• Giving pupils opportunities to interrelate the requirements of English within a broad and balanced approach to the teaching of English across the curriculum, with opportunities to consolidate and reinforce taught Literacy skills.

• Delivering the statutory National Literacy Curriculum 2014 in an engaging way which enables all children to achieve their full potential.

• Providing children with the necessary skills to become competent, creative and efficient users of the English Language to prepare them for secondary school and to enable them to become successful in their later lives.

• Providing children with successful Literacy role models to increase aspiration.

• Providing children with meaningful, engaging contexts for reading and writing.

When I read great literature, great drama, speeches, or sermons, I feel that the human mind has not achieved anything greater than the ability to share feelings and thoughts through language.

James Earl Jones

How English links with our Keys Curriculum

Throughout our KEYs curriculum English is at its core. Whether it be in the articulation of the subject or understanding the subject specific vocabulary, English is the overarching subject that enables the children to share their knowledge and understanding. This may be through oral, written or dramatized enactments to share their learning outcomes. English promotes high standards of literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the written and spoken word, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. This is permeated throughout our KEYS Curriculum and supports the development our children throughout their time at Cronton.

The KEY Attributes of our English Curriculum:

• A strong command of spoken language underpins the development of vocabulary, grammar and the understanding needed for effective reading and writing. This is why we place the important in oracy skills so our children become confident and develop into articulate children able to voice their ideas and feelings.  
• The ability to be imaginative, listen carefully, think creatively and express themselves clearly through the conventions of discussion and debate refining ideas and understanding.  
• Ease and fluency in reading are also essential for children are to gain enjoyment from reading widely and often, for pleasure or information.
• A good writer has stamina and a good understanding of purpose and audience and uses this knowledge to adapt their style, flair and language choices.  Proof-reading and editing are habitually used to evaluate the impact of their independent writing.

Implementation

The English Curriculum is currently delivered using a variety of genres across each year group, with specific author focuses and medium term units for each genre applicable to the year group.

The Early learning Goals are followed to ensure continuity and progression from the Foundation Stage through to the National Curriculum. Pupil provision is related to attainment, not age.

The teaching of English is carried out by the class teacher.

Throughout the subject of English, our pupils will also demonstrate additional traits from our KEYS Learning Attitudes including - Teamwork, Curiosity, Responsibility, Independence and Perseverance which gives them the ability to learn through and learn from their mistakes. 

Reading into Writing Approach

At Cronton we believe that immersing children in a range of high quality texts leads to effective writing outcomes. Therefore, we use a reading into writing approach for our English units. We use Ready Steady Write to aid us with this. 

Each English unit follows this process:

1. Immerse 

This is where the children are immersed in the focus genre with lots of reading. 
Examples of activities for these lessons include: 

• reading several examples or extracts of the genre
• speaking and listening and role play
• 'magpie' vocabulary and literary language to use 
• incidental writing opportunities like mind-maps and notes on post its

2. Analyse

This is the time to identify the key features of the genre through discussion and text marking.

Examples of activities for these lessons include: 

• giving examples of What a Good One Looks Like (WAGOLL)s and text mark together, drawing up a success criteria. This can be displayed on working wall and used in books for writing lessons
• showing What a Bad One Looks Like (WABOLLs) and up-level together using success criteria
• grammar features relevant to this genre
• presentational features relevant to this genre

3. Plan and write

We follow a scaffolded, modelled writing approach. Write lessons include opportunities for the children to edit

and improve their written work. 

• Teacher models how to plan an example of the text type, using all the elements captured in the Immerse and Analyse days and the children to then have a go at writing a plan for the different example they will be writing in the text type
• Teacher models how to write the introduction for their example and the children to then have a go at writing their introductions
• Teacher models how to improve their plan/introduction and then the children have a go at improving their own.
• Teacher models the next couple of key features of the text type; children have a go for themselves.
• Teacher models improving the text, children have a go for themselves.
• Teacher models writing the ending for the text type and re-evaluates it against success criteria already agreed and shown on working wall

At Cronton, we use Spelling Shed in Year One and Ready, Steady, Spell in Years Two to Six to support our children's development of spelling. Each week the teacher sets a spelling list for the children to learn.