Usworth Colliery Primary School Usworth Colliery
Primary School

English

Enjoy achieving together…to be the best that we can be!

Intent

At Usworth Colliery we believe that a quality English curriculum should develop children’s love of reading, writing and discussion. We are dedicated to promote and encourage a lifelong enjoyment and love of reading to create confident, independent readers. We strive to instil in our children the sense of excitement, fun and pleasure that can be derived through reading. We recognise the importance of cultivating a culture where children take pride in their writing, can write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts.We want our children to be good communicators, confident in the arts of speaking and listening and able to use discussion to advance their learning and to develop more sophisticated vocabulary.


We believe that a thorough grasp of literacy skills is crucial to a high quality education and will give our children the tools they need to participate fully as a member of society.

 

The English National Curriculum covers reading, writing and speaking and listening.  We deliver English in a discrete daily session which cover all aspects.  We also have separate reading, phonics, handwriting, spelling and trio time sessions appropriate to the pupils in each year group.

Reading Plus

At our school, we follow Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, a validated, systematic phonics programme that ensures all children learn to read and write confidently and fluently. The programme is based on the latest reading research and provides a clear, consistent approach to phonics teaching across the school.

In Reception, children start Phases 2, 3 and 4. They learn new letter sound correspondences daily and are taught how to blend sounds to read words and segment sounds to spell. Lessons are taught every day and are short, engaging and carefully structured to allow children to practise, revisit and apply their learning. By the end of Reception, children are supported to read simple sentences and books with increasing accuracy and confidence.

In Year 1, children continue with Phase 5, where they learn alternative spellings and pronunciations of sounds. This phase focuses on building reading fluency, developing spelling knowledge and improving comprehension. The aim is for all children to become confident, fluent readers who can access the wider curriculum.

Reading Practice Sessions

Children take part in weekly reading practice sessions in small groups. During these sessions, children read fully decodable books that are closely matched to the phonics they are learning. Each book is read several times across the week, with a clear focus on:

  • Decoding (reading the words accurately)

  • Prosody (reading with expression and fluency)

  • Comprehension (talking about what has been read)

This repeated reading approach helps children build confidence, accuracy and enjoyment in reading.

Rapid Catch Up and SEND Support

We are committed to ensuring that every child keeps up, not catches up. Children who are identified as needing additional support, including those in our Base access Little Wandle Rapid Catch Up or the SEND programme. This is a targeted, structured intervention programme that mirrors the main phonics lessons but is delivered at a pace and level appropriate to the child’s needs.

Rapid Catch Up sessions are short, frequent and focused on addressing specific gaps in phonics knowledge. Progress is closely monitored so that children can rejoin whole-class phonics teaching as quickly as possible. Adaptations and additional support are put in place where needed to ensure all children can succeed.

Supporting Reading at Home

Little Wandle provides clear guidance for families so that phonics and reading are supported consistently. You can find helpful videos, explanations of how phonics is taught, and guidance on supporting reading at home in the Little Wandle Parent Area:

https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/

By using a consistent, evidence-based approach to phonics and reading, Little Wandle helps children develop the skills, confidence and love of reading they need for lifelong learning.

Learning to read is one of the most important things that your child will learn to do at school. At Usworth Colliery Primary we encourage your child to develop a love for reading. We encourage all children to read a variety of literature both at home and school to engage them in their learning and to widen their experiences.

We use Floppy’s phonics to teach early reading in EYFS and Year 1 and continue our reading development with books from the Oxford Reading Tree scheme. Books appropriate to the child’s ability are selected to ensure success and progression. All children are also given a reading book at an appropriate level to take home with an expectation of at least one book going home each week.  This varies according to age group, e.g. in reception/KS1 all pupils take home a phonics book, a reading scheme books and a library book.

The teachers read to the children so that the children get to know a variety of stories, poetry and information books. They learn many more words this way and it also helps their writing. We place high importance on staff reading to children so that they model reading skills and widen the children’s interests.

We ask for an adult to read with their child for at least 15 minutes every night, including weekends and school holidays. It is widely recognised regular practice allows children to develop their reading skills as well as enjoying a wide variety of texts and discovering the pleasure and excitement of reading.

 

WHOLE CLASS READING

We follow a whole class approach for reading and encourage rich discussion amongst our pupils.  Work completed in these sessions will be recorded in English books or floor books, depending on the age and skills of the pupils. During each session, tier 2 vocabulary words will be explored to help pupils put meanings into context.  Texts chosen will be a range of fiction, non-fiction and real reading e.g., magazines, comics, and newspapers. While specific reading skills are taught in whole class reading sessions, teachers model how reading skills are used at that moment to support pupils in becoming a skilled reader using strategies like ‘think aloud’ and book talk during lessons. Pupils engage in high quality discussions and are encouraged to use a variety of reading skills to support their deeper understanding of texts and ultimately monitor their own understanding and review the information being read independently. 

 

READING FOR PLEASURE

Pupils have access to a class library where they can explore age-appropriate books to promote and develop a love of reading. Reading conferences are held weekly across school, where pupils and staff can connect through books in an informal setting.

The National Curriculum divides writing 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. We recognise that these areas are clearly linked to the other aspects of English learning: speaking and listening, reading, grammar and vocabulary.

  • We teach grammar as an integral part of all English lessons
  • We correct grammatical error orally/ written work (where appropriate)
  • We have a systematic approach, we revisit key learning and build upon it in all areas from phonics, through to grammar and spelling.
  • We use high quality texts, modelling and shared/ collaborative writing to demonstrate good practice.
  • We encourage and promote effective composition through clarity, awareness of the audience, purpose and context and an increasingly wide knowledge of vocabulary and grammar.
  • We provide writing frames to support the least confident
  • We provide time for planning, editing and revising
  • We mark extended pieces of work at the point of learning
  • We use marking ladders and feedback sheets for pupils to self-assess or peer assess, when appropriate so they can evaluate effectively
  • We encourage joined handwriting to support spelling and speed
  • We support pupils with learning and motor difficulties
  • We offer meetings with parents to help them support their child

We have a long term plan for the each year group which is progressive and challenging.

The National Curriculum makes clear that learning vocabulary is key to ‘learning and progress across the whole curriculum’ (p11) since it allows pupils to access a wider range of words when writing and for them to understand and comprehend texts efficiently.

Vocabulary teaching needs to be:

  • Active
  • Progressive/ systematic
  • Making links from known words
  • Develop understanding of shades of meaning
  • Include ‘instruction verbs’ used in examinations
  • Subject specific- accurate mathematical and scientific words

Our Aims and Provision:

We encourage our pupils to have a wide and growing vocabulary in a number of ways, these include:

  • Using the correct vocabulary orally
  • In-depth word based lessons looking at patterns
  • Using dictionaries, thesaurus and similar programmes
  • Targeted small group support, where appropriate

Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised is a structured and engaging phonics programme that helps children learn to read and write with confidence. It provides a clear, systematic approach to early reading and writing, ensuring all children build strong foundations in literacy from the very start.

The programme is taught in carefully planned phases that match children’s development. In Reception, children move quickly into Phases 2, 3 and 4, where they learn letter sound correspondences, practise blending sounds to read words and segmenting sounds to spell. By the end of Reception, children are supported to read and spell longer words and simple sentences with increasing confidence. In Year 1, children complete Phase 5, where they learn alternative spellings and pronunciations, building fluency, accuracy and understanding.

Daily phonics lessons are short, focused and interactive. Children regularly read fully decodable books that are closely matched to the sounds they know, allowing them to practise and succeed. Alongside phonics, the programme promotes a love of reading through shared stories, poems and non-fiction. Little Wandle supports children to become confident, fluent and enthusiastic readers and writers.

Spellings in EYFS to Year 1 are taken from the phonics programme and the National Curriculum Expectations.

Year 2 and KS2 classes are taught spellings from the English National Curriculum following the No Nonsense Spelling Programme.

Our Aims and Provision:

  • We ensure pupils’ learning is assessed throughout the programme.
  • We offer opportunities for pupils to apply part of the sequence regularly.
  • We include assessment activities to identify if pupils have learnt the key concept taught. These activities include: testing – by teacher and peers, dictation, explaining, independent application in writing, frequent learning and practise of statutory and personal words.

The presentation of written work can not only reflect on an individual’s fine motor skills but also the nature of the writer through his/her awareness of, and attention to, an audience’s needs. We aim ultimately for our children to develop a fast flowing, attractive, legible, personal hand. To achieve this is a consistent approach to the teaching of handwriting across the whole curriculum and key stages.

Our Aims and Provision:

  • Cursive handwriting is started in Year 3 and follows the Letter Join scheme.
  • Handwriting lessons are timetabled daily following the scheme.
  • Teachers are expected to demonstrate correct size and formation and then observe children copying, intervening where necessary.
  • We encourage pupils to take pride in their presentation.
  • We aim to make a smooth transition from printing to a joined up style.

We encourage our pupils to speak clearly and confidently and articulate their views and opinions. We teach that children need to express themselves orally in an appropriate way, matching their style and response to audience and purpose. Listening and responding to literature, giving and receiving instructions. They develop the skills of participating effectively in group discussions.

Ways in which we support this include:

  • Activities which are planned to encourage full and active participation by all children, irrespective of ability
  • Children with specific speech and language and auditory problems will be identified and specialist help sought, where appropriate
  • Performance Poetry
  • School Plays
  • Class debates
  • Weekly assembly
  • Events within the community
  • School Council
  • Talk partners
  • Drama / role play
  • PSHE and circle time